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Siege of Herat and the killing of Ibn Kharmil

حصار هراة وقتل ابن خرميل

c. 1207 CE · 604 AH

In 604 Husayn ibn Kharmil, lord of Herat, seized Khwarazm Shah's troops for mistreating the subjects, and apologized to the Shah. The Shah wrote commending his conduct, while secretly telling Izz al-Din Jaldak ibn Tughril, lord of Khaam, to stay with Ibn Kharmil and find a way to seize him. Jaldak rode out with two thousand horse, and Ibn Kharmil ventured out to meet him despite the warning of his vizier Khwaja al-Sahib. When the two saw each other they dismounted to meet, and Jaldak's men mingled with them and seized him. The vizier ordered the gate shut and the men onto the walls, called the slogan of Ghiyath al-Din Mahmud al-Ghuri, and told Jaldak he would surrender the city neither to him nor to the treacherous Ibn Kharmil, since it belonged to Ghiyath al-Din and his father before him. They brought Ibn Kharmil up to the wall; when he refused to order its surrender, they killed him. Ibn Kharmil had fortified Herat with four strong walls and dug its moat, and he had said he feared the water might be held back for days and then released all at once to breach the walls. The besiegers heard this, dammed the water until it gathered, and released it on Herat. The flood did not reach the wall because the town stood on high ground, but the moat filled and the ground around became a morass that kept people from approaching, which the chronicler counts among the finest of stratagems 1.

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Era
The Crusades, Ayyubids and Mamluks
Region
Persia & Central Asia
Review
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In time

1190120012101220 c.
The Crusades, Ayyubids and Mamluks · The Mongol and Post-Mongol Era

BattlesCivil wars and revolts

Overview

In 604 AH Husayn ibn Kharmil, lord of Herat, was killed after men of Jaldak ibn Tughril seized him, by an order that Ibn al-Athir relates from the Khwarazm Shah. 1

The report

Ibn al-Athir relates that Ibn Kharmil seized the army of the Khwarazm Shah because of their ill treatment of the subjects, then apologised. The Khwarazm Shah wrote to him approving of his act, and confided to Izz al-Din Jaldak that he should contrive to seize him. 1

Jaldak marched with two thousand horsemen. Ibn Kharmil came out to him despite the warning of his vizier, and they dismounted to meet, and Jaldak's men mixed in with them and seized him. 1

The vizier shut the gate and went up to the walls, and called out the slogan of Ghiyath al-Din Mahmud al-Ghuri. He said he would not hand the city over to Jaldak or to Ibn Kharmil. Jaldak's men ordered Ibn Kharmil to surrender from the wall, and he did not, so they killed him. 1

The water trick

Ibn Kharmil had fortified Herat with four walls and dug its moat. Ibn al-Athir relates that he said he feared the waters would be held back and then released all at once. The besieged heard his words and did it, and the moat filled and became a mire around the city. Ibn al-Athir describes it as among the finest stratagems. 1

The Khwarazm Shah took part in ordering the stratagem. 2

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Had participant
خوارزم شاه علاء الدين محمد

People and things also explored

The capture of Khwarazmshah by the Khita and his release· The battle that destroyed the Khitai· Perishing of the Khwarazmshah on an island in the Caspian Sea· death of Khwarazmshah Tekish· Ibn Khurmail killed; Herat besieged again· Khwarazmshah takes Ghazna and its dependencies· Khwarazmshah seizes the Ghurid lands in Khurasan· the Khwarazmshah retakes what the Ghurids had seized

Sources

  1. al-Kamil fi'l-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir , p. 334-335
  2. al-Kamil fi'l-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir , p. 334
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Siege of Herat and the killing of Ibn Kharmil”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/siege-of-herat-604/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-22.

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The capture of Khwarazmshah by the Khita and his release

In 604 Khwarazmshah Ala al-Din Muhammad fought the Khita; the Muslims were routed in a shameful defeat and many were taken prisoner, among them the Khwarazmshah and a great amir, Ibn Shihab al-Din Mas'ud, whom one man captured together. Once taken, Ibn Mas'ud told him: 'You must set aside the sultanate in these days and become a servant; I will contrive your release.' The Khwarazmshah began to serve him, bringing him food, taking off his clothes and shoes for him and honouring him. The captor said to Ibn Mas'ud: 'I see this man honouring you; who are you?' He replied: 'I am so-and-so, and this is my servant.' The captor treated him kindly and left him for some days. Then Ibn Mas'ud said: 'I fear the fugitives may return without knowing where I am, hold mourning rites, and divide my property.' He set a ransom on him and told his captor: 'Your companions do not know our people, but this servant of mine I trust.' The captor let him go, sending horsemen to protect him. They travelled until they neared Khwarazm, and the horsemen turned back; the Khwarazmshah reached the city, the people rejoiced, drums were beaten and the city was decorated. His brother Ali Shah had proclaimed himself in Tabaristan and cut the khutba for him; Kizlik Khan took Nishapur, and the siege of Herat was resumed, waiting for the sultan to be lost. The Khwarazmshah set out for Khurasan and reached it on the sixth day with six horsemen; Kizlik Khan fled with his wealth.