Najm ad-Din Ilghazi ibn Artuq

Najm ad-Din Ilghazi ibn Artuq was the first Artuqid Bey of Mardin.

Reign
With death of his father Artuk Bey in 1091 he and his brother Sokmen became governors of Jerusalem. In 1107 he took the city of Mardin from this nephew Ibrahim. In 1110 he participated in a failed Siege of Edessa. In 1114 he fought against Aqsunqur and defeated him. The next year he attempted to siege Homs, but was captured for a short time. Later that year he participated in an anti-Seljuk coalition culminating in the Battle of Sarmin. Following Lulu's death in 1117 he took control over Aleppo. By 1118 he had seized all of Diyar Bakr a region of Jazira and took Silvan. In 1119 he defeated his former ally Antioch in the Battle of Ager Sanguinis. Subsequently he took the cities of Atarib, Zardana, Sarmin, Maarrat al-Nu'man and Kafartab. He would be defeated in the Battle of Hab. In 1120 he took Nusaybin, pillaged Edessa and led a campaign against Armenia. In Aleppo he was briefly usurped by his son Suleiman. He soon made peace with the crusaders in 1121 to support a campaign in the Caucasus against Georgia. He was defeated in the massive Battle of Didgori. In 1122 he had a successful campaign against Edessa and capture their ruler. He would die in November of that year to be succeeded by his son Husameddin Timurtas.