Royal kin and queens · Tabaristan: the Bavandid kings · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Sharaf al-Muluk

The heir.

In 595 AH (1199) his father had to send him into Tekish's service as the price of peace after the loss of the mountain castles; when relations broke down Tekish sent him back. He had possessions of his own, which his youngest brother Qarin claimed on his death (where they lay is not pinned).

Who he is

Name
Sharaf al-Muluk (called Sharaf al-Dawla in the account of his death) ibn Ardashir
Title
Heir of the Bavandid kingdom
Since
not pinned
Born
not pinned
Family
Eldest son of Ardashir I; mother not pinned.
Confidence
medium

Ibn Isfandiyar via Madelung.

Overlord

His father Ardashir.

What it holds

  • Possessions of his own in Mazandaran (not pinned)

How things stand that morning

Either still at Tekish's court or already sent home: the return happened between 595 AH and Tekish's death in July 1200 and cannot be pinned against 1 January 1200.

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

  1. 602 AH (1205-06)Dies about the same time as his father.Depends on: Natural course Stopped by: not known

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: Known only from Ibn Isfandiyar's narrative as summarised by Madelung.

Primary sources for Bavandids

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

  • History of Tabaristan, Ibn Isfandiyar (Baha al-Din Muhammad ibn Hasan) (begun 1206, extended about 1216; continued anonymously to 1349). The local history of the Caspian province and the only account of the Bavandid kings of Tabaristan: Husam al-Dawla Ardashir (reigned 1173 to 1206) at Sari and Amul, his dealings with the Khwarazmshahs Tekish and Ala al-Din Muhammad, the Nizaris of Alamut, the Eldiguzids and the caliph, and the marriages, feuds and raids of the Daylamite and Gilaki lords. Read online
  • Dictionary of Countries, Yaqut al-Hamawi (1224 to 1228, at Aleppo). An alphabetical gazetteer of every place Yaqut had read of or seen: he travelled as a bookseller's agent through Syria, Iraq, Persia, Khurasan and Khwarazm (about 1213 to 1220) and settled in Aleppo. Read online

Sources and studies

  1. Encyclopaedia Iranica, 'Bavandids' (W. Madelung), on Hosam-al-dawla Ardashir after Ibn Esfandiar

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.