Pīr Ḥusayn (died late 1379) was Emir of Erzincan from 1362 until his death. He was originally the ruler of Karahisar and arrived in Erzincan on 8 June 1362 and succeeded Ahī Ayna, who died on 2–3 July 1362 reportedly as a shahīd (martyr). In Abū Bakr Quṭbī's Ta'rīkh-i taqwīm, Pīr Ḥusayn is mentioned as an emīr-zāda (lit. 'son of an emir') directly following the statement about Ahī Ayna's demise, hinting at the possibility he was Ahī Ayna's son.^[1]

Pīr Ḥusayn's ascendance to the throne was not straightforward as Erzincan was in the midst of a civil war. He "gained independence" on 10 July,^[2] having clashed with emirs opposing to his rule, who eventually fled to Bayburt and Tercan.^[3] On 11 September, he gained control of Bayburt after a 32-day siege.^[2]

Although there is a coin specimen minted in Erzincan for ʿAlāʾ al-Dīn 'Ali dating back to 1366, Pīr Ḥusayn most likely exercised further autonomy, especially following the temporary political vacuum caused by Ghiyath al-Dīn Muhammad I's death in 1365. However, there aren't any sufficient accounts of the period until Pīr Ḥusayn's death in 1379.^[4]

A copy of Rumi's Masnavī prepared by Muḥammad ibn Ḥusayn al-Mawlawī in January–February 1373 probably in Erzincan for "Tāj al-Dīn Shaykh Ḥusayn Beg" is attributed to Pīr Ḥusayn's patronage.^[5]

References

Bibliography

• Jackson, Cailah (4 September 2020). Islamic Manuscripts of Late Medieval Rum, 1270s-1370s Production, Patronage and the Arts of the Book. Edinburgh University Press.
• Shukurov, Rustam (June 1994). "Between Peace and Hostility: Trebizond and the Pontic Turkish Periphery in the Fourteenth Century". Mediterranean Historical Review. Routledge. 9 (1): 20–72. doi:10.1080/09518969408569663.
• Yücel, Yaşar (October 1971). "Mutahharten ve Erzincan Emirliği" [Mutahharten and the Emirate of Erzincan]. Belleten (in Turkish). 35 (140): 665–719. Retrieved 19 December 2023.