Timur: Difference between revisions

| image        = Timur reconstruction03.jpg

| caption      = Timur facial reconstruction from skull, by [[Mikhail Mikhaylovich Gerasimov]]

'''Timur'''{{efn|{{IPAc-en|t|ɪ|ˈ|m|ʊər}}; {{lang-chg|{{nq|تيمور}}}} ''Temür'', {{lit.}} 'Iron'{{indent}}{{*}}Sometimes spelled '''Taimur''' or '''Temur'''.{{indent}}{{*}}Historically best known as '''Amir Timur''' or as '''''Sahib-i-Qiran''''' ({{lit.}} 'Lord of the Auspicious Conjunction'), his [[epithet]].<ref>{{cite book|title=The Shah Jahan Nama of 'Inayat Khan: An Abridged History of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, Compiled by His Royal Librarian: the Nineteenth-century Manuscript Translation of A.R. Fuller (British Library, Add. 30,777|authors=ʻInāyat Khān, Muḥammad Ṭāhir Āšnā ʿInāyat Ḫān|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1990|pages=11–17}}</ref>}} or '''Tamerlane'''{{efn|{{IPAc-en|ˈ|t|æ|m|ər|l|eɪ|n}}; {{lang-fa|تيمور لنگ}} {{lang|fa-Latn|Temūr(-i) Lang}}; {{lang-chg|{{nq|اقساق تیمور}}|link=no}} ''Aqsaq Temür'',<ref>{{Cite book |last=Johanson |first=Lars |title=The Turkic Languages |date=1998 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0415082005 |page=27}}</ref> {{lit.}} 'Timur the Lame'}} (9 April 1336{{spnd}}17–19 February 1405) was a [[Turco-Mongol tradition|Turco-Mongol]] conqueror who founded the [[Timurid Empire]] in and around modern-day [[Afghanistan]], [[Iran]], and [[Central Asia]], becoming the first ruler of the [[Timurid dynasty]]. An undefeated commander, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest military leaders and tacticians in history, as well as one of the most brutal.<ref name="marozzi-2004">{{Cite book |last=Marozzi |first=Justin |title=Tamerlane: Sword of Islam, conqueror of the world |publisher=HarperCollins |year=2004}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Josef W. Meri |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H-k9oc9xsuAC |title=Medieval Islamic Civilization |publisher=Routledge |year=2005 |isbn=978-0415966900 |page=812}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Timur {{!}} Biography, Conquests, Empire, & Facts {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Timur |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> Timur is also considered a great patron of art and architecture as he interacted with intellectuals such as [[Ibn Khaldun]], [[Hafez]], and [[Hafiz-i Abru]] and his reign introduced the [[Timurid Renaissance]].<ref name="marozzi-2004"/>{{rp|341–342}}

Born into the [[Barlas]] confederation in [[Transoxiana]] (in modern-day [[Uzbekistan]]) on 9 April 1336, Timur gained control of the western [[Chagatai Khanate]] by 1370. From that base, he led military campaigns across [[Western Asia|Western]], [[South Asia|South]], and [[Central Asia]], the [[Caucasus]], and [[Southern Russia]], defeating in the process the Khans of the [[Golden Horde]], the [[Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)|Mamluks of Egypt and Syria]], the emerging [[Ottoman Empire]], and the late [[Delhi Sultanate]] of [[India]] and emerging as the most powerful ruler in the [[Muslim world]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://scroll.in/article/825287/counterview-taimurs-actions-were-uniquely-horrific-in-indian-history|title=Counterview: Taimur's actions were uniquely horrific in Indian history|first=Girish|last=Shahane|date=28 December 2016|website=Scroll.in}}</ref> From these conquests, he founded the Timurid Empire, which fragmented shortly after his death.

Timur was the last of the great [[Nomadic empire|nomadic conquerors]] of the [[Eurasian Steppe]], and his empire set the stage for the rise of the more structured and lasting [[Gunpowder empires|Islamic gunpowder empires]] in the 16th and 17th centuries.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Darwin |first=John |title=After Tamerlane: the rise and fall of global empires, 1400–2000 |publisher=Bloomsbury Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-1596917606 |pages=29, 92 |author-link=John Darwin (historian)}}</ref>{{sfn|Manz|1999|p=1}}<ref name="Marozzi2006">{{cite book|last=Marozzi|first=Justin|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780306814655|title=Tamerlane: Sword of Islam, Conqueror of the World|publisher=Da Capo Press|year=2006|isbn=978-0306814655|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780306814655/page/342 342]|url-access=registration}}</ref> Timur was of both Turkic and Mongol descent, and, while probably not a [[Lineal descendant|direct descendant]] on either side, he shared a common ancestor with [[Genghis Khan]] on his father's side,<ref>{{cite book |authors= Donald M. Seekins, Richard F. Nyrop|date=1986|title= Afghanistan A Country Study · Volume 550, Issues 65–986|url= |url-access= |format= |language=English |location= |publisher=The Studies |isbn= 978-0160239298|via= University of California|page=11|quote=Timur was of both Turkish and Mongol descent and claimed Genghis Khan as an ancestor}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |authors= International Association for Mongol Studies; Secretariat, Kokusai Kōryū Kikin; [[Unesco]]|date=2002 |title= Eighth International Congress of Mongolists being convened under the patronage of N. Bagabandi, president of Mongolia|url= |url-access= |format= |language=English |location= |publisher=OUMSKh-ny Nariĭn bichgiĭn darga naryn gazar |isbn= |via= Indiana University|page=377|quote=First of all, Timur's genealogy gives him a common ancestor with Chinggis Khan in Tumbinai – sechen or Tumanay Khan}}</ref><ref name="woods"/> though some authors have suggested his mother may have been a descendant of the Khan.<ref>{{cite book |author=Henry Cabot Lodge |date=1916|title= The History of Nations Volume 14|url= |url-access= |format= |language=English |location= |publisher=P. F. Collier & son |isbn= 978-0160239298|via= University of Minnesota|page=46|quote=Timur the Lame, from the effects of an early wound, a name which some European writers have converted into Tamerlane, or Tamberlaine. He was of Mongol origin, and a direct descendant, by the mother's side, of Genghis Khan }}</ref><ref name="Arabshah2017"/> He clearly sought to invoke the legacy of Genghis Khan's conquests during his lifetime.<ref>Richard C. Martin, ''Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World'' A–L, Macmillan Reference, 2004, {{ISBN|978-0028656045}}, p. 134.</ref> Timur envisioned the restoration of the [[Mongol Empire]] and according to [[Gérard Chaliand]], saw himself as Genghis Khan's heir.<ref name="Chaliand">Gérard Chaliand, ''Nomadic Empires: From Mongolia to the Danube'' translated by A.M. Berrett, Transaction Publishers, 2004. translated by A.M. Berrett. Transaction Publishers, p. 75. {{ISBN|076580204X}}. {{google books|xKVAbb6Tc4wC|Limited preview}}. [https://books.google.com/books?id=xKVAbb6Tc4wC&pg=PA75 p. 75.], {{ISBN|076580204X}}, [https://books.google.com/books?id=xKVAbb6Tc4wC&pg=PA75 p. 75.], "Timur Leng (Tamerlane) Timur, known as the lame (1336–1405) was a Muslim Turk. He aspired to recreate the empire of his ancestors. He was a military genius who loved to play chess in his spare time to improve his military tactics and skill. And although he wielded absolute power, he never called himself more than an emir.", "Timur Leng (Tamerlane) Timur, known as the lame (1336–1405) was a Muslim Turk from the Umus of Chagatai who saw himself as Genghis Khan's heir."</ref>

According to [[Beatrice Forbes Manz]], "in his formal correspondence Temur continued throughout his life to portray himself as the restorer of [[Borjigin|Chinggisid]] rights. He justified his Iranian, Mamluk, and Ottoman campaigns as a re-imposition of legitimate Mongol control over lands taken by usurpers."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Forbes Manz |first1=Beatrice |title= Temür and the Problem of a Conqueror's Legacy |journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society |date=April 1998 |volume=8 |issue=1 |pages=21–41 |jstor=25183464 |series=Third |doi=10.1017/S1356186300016412 |s2cid=154734091 }}</ref> To legitimize his conquests, Timur relied on Islamic symbols and language, referring to himself as the "Sword of Islam". He was a patron of educational and religious institutions. He converted nearly all the [[Borjigin]] leaders to [[Islam]] during his lifetime. Timur decisively defeated the Christian [[Knights Hospitaller]] at the [[Siege of Smyrna]], styling himself a ''[[ghazi (warrior)|ghazi]]''.<ref name="marozzi-2004"/>{{rp|91}} By the end of his reign, Timur had gained complete control over all the remnants of the [[Chagatai Khanate]], the [[Ilkhanate]], and the [[Golden Horde]], and had even attempted to restore the [[Yuan dynasty]] in China.

Timur's armies were inclusively multi-ethnic and were feared throughout Asia, Africa, and Europe,<ref name="marozzi-2004"/> sizable parts of which his campaigns laid waste.<ref>Matthew White: ''Atrocitology: Humanity's 100 Deadliest Achievements'', Canongate Books, 2011, {{ISBN|978-0857861252}}, section "Timur"</ref> Scholars estimate that his military campaigns caused the deaths of 17&nbsp;million people, amounting to about [[World population estimates|5% of the world population]] at the time.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1999-01-17/news/9901170256_1_uzbek-islam-karimov-tashkent |work=Chicago Tribune |title=The Rehabilitation of Tamerlane |date=17 January 1999 }}</ref><ref>[[John Joseph Saunders|J.J. Saunders]], [https://books.google.com/books?id=nFx3OlrBMpQC&pg=PA174 The history of the Mongol conquests] (page 174), Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., 1971, {{ISBN|0812217667}}</ref> Of all the areas he conquered, [[Khwarazm]] suffered the most from his expeditions, as it rose several times against him.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Barthold |first1=V.V. |title=Four studies on the History of Central Asia, vol. 1 |date=1962 |publisher=Leiden: E.J. Brill |page=61 |edition=Second Printing}}</ref> Timur's campaigns have been characterized as [[genocide|genocidal]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Foss |first=Clive |editor1-last=Freedman-Apsel |editor1-first=Joyce |editor2-last=Fein |editor2-first=Helen |editor2-link=Helen Fein |encyclopedia=Teaching About Genocide: A Guidebook for College and University Teachers: Critical Essays, Syllabi, and Assignments |title=Genocide in History |url=https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED395853.pdf |access-date=November 29, 2022 |language=English |year=1992 |publisher=[[Human Rights Internet]] |location=[[Ottawa]] |isbn=189584200X |page=27}}</ref>

In his childhood, Timur and a small band of followers raided travelers for goods, especially animals such as sheep, horses, and cattle.<ref name=":0"/>{{Rp|116}} Around 1363, it is believed that Timur tried to steal a sheep from a shepherd but was shot by two arrows, one in his right leg and another in his right hand, where he lost two fingers. Both injuries disabled him for life. Some believe that these injuries occurred while serving as a mercenary to the khan of [[Sistan]] in what is today the [[Dashti Margo]] in southwest [[Afghanistan]]. Timur's injuries and disability gave rise to the nickname "Timur the Lame" or ''Temūr(-i) Lang'' in [[Persian language|Persian]], which is the origin of Tamerlane, the name by which he is generally known in the West.<ref name="marozzi-2004"/>{{rp|31}}

Following Qazaghan's murder, disputes arose among the many claimants to [[sovereign]] power. [[Tughlugh Timur]] of [[Kashgar]], the Khan of the Eastern Chagatai Khanate, another descendant of Genghis Khan, invaded, interrupting this infighting. Timur was sent to negotiate with the invader but joined with him instead and was rewarded with Transoxania. At about this time, his father died and Timur also became chief of the Barlas. Tughlugh then attempted to set his son [[Ilyas Khoja]] over Transoxania, but Timur repelled this invasion with a smaller force.<ref name=hannah/>

Timur's Turco-Mongolian heritage provided opportunities and challenges as he sought to rule the Mongol Empire and the Muslim world.<ref name="Manz 1988 pp. 105–122">{{cite journal |last=Manz |first=Beatrice Forbes |title=Tamerlane and the Symbolism of Sovereignty |journal=Iranian Studies |publisher=Taylor & Francis, Ltd., International Society of Iranian Studies |volume=21 |issue=1/2 |year=1988 |issn=0021-0862 |jstor=4310596 |pages=105–122 |doi=10.1080/00210868808701711 |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/4310596 |oclc=5546845168}}</ref> According to the Mongol traditions, Timur could not claim the title of ''khan'' or rule the Mongol Empire because he was not a descendant of [[Genghis Khan]]. Therefore, Timur set up a puppet Chaghatayid Khan, [[Soyurgatmish|Suyurghatmish]], as the nominal ruler of Balkh as he pretended to act as a "protector of the member of a Chinggisid line, that of Genghis Khan's eldest son, [[Jochi]]".<ref name="manz-2002-3">{{cite journal|last=Manz|first=Beatrice Forbes|title=Tamerlane's Career and Its Uses|journal=Journal of World History|year=2002|volume=13|page=3|doi=10.1353/jwh.2002.0017|s2cid=143436772}}</ref> Timur instead used the title of [[Amir]] meaning general, and acting in the name of the [[Chagatai Khanate|Chagatai]] ruler of Transoxania.<ref name=":0"/>{{Rp|106}} To reinforce this position, Timur claimed the title ''güregen'' (royal son-in-law) to a princess of Chinggisid line.{{sfn|Manz|1999|p=14}}

As with the title of Khan, Timur similarly could not claim the supreme title of the Islamic world, [[Caliph]], because the "office was limited to the [[Quraysh]], the tribe of the [[Prophet Muhammad]]". Therefore, Timur reacted to the challenge by creating a myth and image of himself as a "supernatural personal power" ordained by God.<ref name="manz-2002-3"/> Timur's most famous title was ''Sahib Qiran'' ('Lord of Conjunction'), which is rooted in [[astrology]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Moin |first=A. Azfar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=luw_guiJGfgC |title=The Millennial Sovereign: Sacred Kingship and Sainthood in Islam |publisher=Columbia University Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-0231504713 |location=New York |pages=40–43 |oclc=967261884}}</ref> The title was referring to the conjunction of the two "superior planets," Saturn and Jupiter, which was held to be an auspicious sign and the mark of a new era.<ref name=":1" /> According to A. Azfar Moin, ''Sahib Qiran'' was a messianic title, implying that Timur might potentially be the "awaited messiah descended from the prophetic line" who would "inaugurate a new era, possibly the last one before the end of time."<ref name=":1" /> Otherwise he was described as a spiritual descendant of Ali, thus claiming the lineage of both Genghis Khan and the Quraysh.<ref name="Aigle 2014 p. 132">{{cite book |last=Aigle |first=Denise |title=The Mongol Empire between Myth and Reality : Studies in Anthropological History |publisher=Brill |publication-place=Leiden |year=2014 |isbn=978-90-04-27749-6 |oclc=994352727 |page=132}}</ref>

Timur then began a five-year campaign to the west in 1392, attacking [[Iranian Kurdistan|Persian Kurdistan]].{{Sfn|Manz|1999|pp=123–125}}{{Sfn|Melville|2020|p=109}}<ref>{{Cite book|last=Shterenshis|first=Michael|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vJZm9amnoAoC|title=Tamerlane and the Jews|date=2002|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=978-0700716968|pages=144–189|language=en}}</ref> In 1393, Shiraz was captured after surrendering, and the Muzaffarids became vassals of Timur, though prince [[Shah Mansur (Persia)|Shah Mansur]] rebelled but was defeated, and the [[Muzafarids]] were annexed. Shortly after Georgia was devastated so that the Golden Horde could not use it to threaten northern Iran.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Strange|first=Guy Le|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-vOf7uE1APYC|title=The Lands of the Eastern Caliphate: Mesopotamia, Persia, and Central Asia, from the Moslem Conquest to the Time of Timur|date=1905|publisher=University Press|page=235|isbn=978-1107600140 |language=en}}</ref> In the same year, Timur caught Baghdad by surprise in August by marching there in only eight days from Shiraz. Sultan [[Ahmad Jalayir]] fled to Syria, where the Mamluk Sultan [[Barquq]] protected him and killed Timur's envoys. Timur left the [[Sarbadar]] prince Khwaja Mas'ud to govern [[Baghdad]], but he was driven out when [[Ahmad Jalayir]] returned. Ahmad was unpopular but got help from [[Qara Yusuf]] of the [[Kara Koyunlu]]; he fled again in 1399, this time to the Ottomans.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Morgan|first=David|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X6iQBAAAQBAJ|title=Medieval Persia 1040–1797|year= 2014|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1317871408|pages=167–184|language=en}}</ref>

In 1398, Timur invaded northern [[Indian subcontinent|India]], attacking the Delhi Sultanate ruled by Sultan [[Nasir-ud-Din Mahmud Shah Tughluq]] of the [[Tughlaq dynasty]]. After crossing the [[Indus River]] on 30 September 1398, he sacked [[Tulamba]] and massacred its inhabitants. Then he advanced and captured [[Multan]] by October.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hunter|first=Sir William Wilson |author-link=William Wilson Hunter|title=The Imperial Gazetteer of India|chapter-url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/gazetteer/pager.html?objectid=DS405.1.I34_V02_401.gif|volume=2|year=1909|page=366|chapter=The Indian Empire: Timur's invasion 1398}}</ref> His invasion was unopposed as most of the Indian nobility surrendered without a fight, however he did encounter resistance from the united army of [[Rajput]]s and [[Muslim]]s at [[Bhatner]]<ref name="RD">[https://books.google.com/books?id=VsujRFvaHI8C&pg=PA131] The History of India, edited by Kenneth Pletcher Senior Editor, Geography and History p. 131</ref> under the command of the Rajput king Dulachand,<ref>{{Cite book|first=Rima|last=Hooja|title=A History of Rajasthan|publisher=Rupa and company|year=2006|pages=371|isbn=978-8129108906|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tosMAQAAMAAJ&q=dulachand|quote=Bhatner was taken in 1391 by Timur from the Bhati Rajput King named Dulachand}}</ref> Dulachand initially opposed Timur but when hard-pressed he considered surrender. He was locked outside the walls of Bhatner by his brother and was later killed by Timur. The garrison of Bhatner then fought and were slaughtered to the last man. Bhatner was looted and burned to the ground.<ref name=DIZ/>

While on his march towards Delhi, Timur was opposed by the [[Jat]] peasantry, who would loot caravans and then disappear in the forests, Timur had 2,000 Jats killed and many taken captive.<ref name="DIZ">''History of India, as Told by Its Own Historians: The Muhammadan Period'' By Henry Miers Elliot pp. 489–493 [https://books.google.com/books?id=-knEHQUmBFgC&pg=PA493]</ref><ref name=ZXC>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kwiADwAAQBAJ&pg=PT437|title=Ganga: The Many Pasts of a River|first=Sudipta|last=Sen|year=2019|publisher=Penguin Random House India Private Limited|isbn=978-9353054489 |via=Google Books}}</ref> But the Sultanate at Delhi did nothing to stop his advance.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TKhuAAAAMAAJ&q=ahirs+and+jats |title=Rise of the Jat power |first=Raj Pal|last= Singh|access-date=22 May 2012|isbn=978-8185151052 |year=1988 }}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=May 2020}}

The capture of the [[Delhi Sultanate]] was one of Timur's largest and most devastating victories as at that time, Delhi was one of the richest cities in the world. The city of Delhi was sacked and reduced to ruins, with the population enslaved.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Battle of Delhi {{!}} December 17, 1398 |url=https://historyonthisday.com/events/mongolian-empire/timur-battle-of-delhi/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=History on this day |language=en-US}}</ref> After the fall of the city, uprisings by its citizens against the Turkic-Mongols began to occur, causing a retaliatory bloody massacre within the city walls. After three days of citizens uprising within Delhi, it was said that the city reeked of the decomposing bodies of its citizens with their heads being erected like structures and the bodies left as food for the birds by Timur's soldiers. Timur's invasion and destruction of Delhi continued the chaos that was still consuming India, and the city would not be able to recover from the great loss it suffered for almost a century.<ref name="marozzi-2004"/>{{rp|269–274}}

[[File:Lady travelling. Samarkand or Central Asia circa 1400. Possibly depicting the wedding of Timur with Dilshad Aqa in 1375.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Lady travelling. Samarkand or Central Asian painting, circa 1400. Possibly depicting the wedding of Timur with Dilshad Aqa in 1375.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sims |first1=Eleanor |title=Peerless images : Persian painting and its sources |date=2002 |publisher=New Haven : Yale University Press |isbn=978-0300090383 |pages=201–203 |url=https://archive.org/details/peerlessimagespe0000sims/page/200/mode/2up?view=theater}}</ref>]]

Dawlat Tarkan Agha, Burhan Agha, Jani Beg Agha, Tini Beg Agha, Durr Sultan Agha, Munduz Agha, Bakht Sultan Agha, Nowruz Agha, Jahan Bakht Agha, Nigar Agha, Ruhparwar Agha, Dil Beg Agha, Dilshad Agha, Murad Beg Agha, Piruzbakht Agha, Khoshkeldi Agha, Dilkhosh Agha, Barat Bey Agha, Sevinch Malik Agha, Arzu Bey Agha, Yadgar Sultan Agha, Khudadad Agha, Bakht Nigar Agha, Qutlu Bey Agha, and another Nigar Agha.{{Citation needed|date=June 2020}}

[[File:Timur leading his troops at the 1393 Conquest of Baghdad. Near-contemporary manuscript commissioned by his grandson Ibrahim Sultan in 1424–28. Published in 1435-36.jpg|thumb|Timur leading his troops at the 1393 Conquest of Baghdad. Near-contemporary portrait in [[Zafarnama (Yazdi biography)|''Zafarnama'']], commissioned by his grandson [[Ibrahim Sultan (Timurid)|Ibrahim Sultan]] in 1424–28. Published in 1435–36.]]

Tamerlane virtually exterminated the [[Church of the East]], which had previously been a major branch of [[Christianity]] but afterwards became largely confined to a small area now known as the [[Assyrian Triangle]].<ref name="nestoriangenocide">{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Nestorianism|title=Nestorianism &#124; Definition, History, & Churches &#124; Britannica|website=www.britannica.com|date=2 June 2023 }}</ref>

The poem "[[Tamerlane (poem)|Tamerlane]]" by [[Edgar Allan Poe]] follows a fictionalized version of Timur's life.

Timur's body was [[Exhumation|exhumed]] from his tomb on 19 June 1941 and his remains examined by the [[USSR|Soviet]] [[anthropology|anthropologist]]s [[Mikhail Mikhaylovich Gerasimov|Mikhail M. Gerasimov]], [[Lev V. Oshanin]] and V. Ia. Zezenkova. Gerasimov reconstructed the likeness of Timur from his skull and found that his facial characteristics displayed "typical [[Mongoloid]] features", i.e. [[East Asian people|East Asian]] in modern terms.<ref name="oshanin">{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=guxKAAAAYAAJ|title= Anthropological composition of the population of Central Asia: and the ethnogenesis of its peoples |volume=2|author= Lev Vasil'evich Oshanin |page=39|publisher=Peabody Museum |year=1964}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Gül |last= Berna Özcan |title=Diverging Paths of Development in Central Asia |date=2018 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1351739429 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OuZ3DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT48}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Yah|first=Lim Chong|title=Southeast Asia: The Long Road Ahead|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EYFIDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA3|year=2001|publisher=World Scientific Publishing Company|location=Singapore|isbn=978-9813105843|page=3}}</ref> An anthropologic study of Timur's cranium shows that he belonged predominately to the "South Siberian Mongoloid type".<ref>{{cite book|title=Russian Translation Series of the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology |date=1964 |publisher=Harvard University |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f5ZAAQAAIAAJ&q=cranium+}}</ref> At {{convert|5|ft|8|in|cm|abbr=off|sp=us}}, Timur was tall for his era. The examinations confirmed that Timur was [[Limp|lame]] and had a withered right arm due to his injuries. His right thighbone had knitted together with his kneecap, and the configuration of the knee joint suggests that he kept his leg bent at all times and therefore would have had a pronounced limp.<ref>{{cite book|title=The face finder |author=Mikhail Mikhailovich Gerasimov| page= 135 |publisher= Hutchinson|year= 1971 |isbn=978-0091055103}}</ref> He appears to have been broad-chested and his hair and beard were red.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Congress |first1=United States |title=Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the United States Congress |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |page=A7238 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PKDGIuJg16YC&pg=SL1-PA7238}}</ref> It is alleged that Timur's tomb was inscribed with the words, "When I rise from the dead, the world shall tremble". It is also said that when Gerasimov exhumed the body, an additional inscription inside the casket was found, which read, "Whomsoever{{sic|expected=should be "whosoever", because it is the subject of "opens", not the object}} opens my tomb shall unleash an invader more terrible than I."<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/asia/uzbekistan-on-the-bloody-trail-of-tamerlane-407300.html |work=The Independent |location=London |title=Uzbekistan: On the bloody trail of Tamerlane |date=9 July 2006 |access-date=17 April 2016 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131220050634/http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/asia/uzbekistan-on-the-bloody-trail-of-tamerlane-407300.html |archive-date=20 December 2013 }}</ref> Even though people close to Gerasimov claim that this story is a fabrication, the legend persists.<ref>{{cite web |title=Facial Reconstruction, Nazis, and Siberia: The story of Mikhail Gerasimov |url=https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/facial-reconstruction-nazis-and-siberia-the-story-of-mikhail-gerasimov |access-date=9 November 2020 |date=25 January 2011}}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable ([[WP:NOTRS]]).|date=April 2023}} In any case, three days after Gerasimov began the exhumation, [[Adolf Hitler]] [[Operation Barbarossa|invaded the Soviet Union]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Mark & Ruth Dickens |url=http://www.oxuscom.com/timursam.htm |title=Timurid Architecture in Samarkand |publisher=Oxuscom.com |access-date=22 May 2012 |archive-date=2 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130702182557/http://www.oxuscom.com/timursam.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> Timur was re-buried with full Islamic ritual in November 1942 just before the Soviet victory at the [[Battle of Stalingrad]].<ref>Marozzi 2004</ref>

* Yüksel, Musa Şamil. "Timur'un Yükselişi ve Batı'nın Diplomatik Cevabı, 1390–1405." ''Selçuk Üniversitesi Türkiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi'' 1.18 (2005): 231–243.

*