Abdullah-Khan II Ibn-Iskander

Born circa 1534; died 1598. Uzbek khan of the Sheibanid dynasty from 1583.

In 1557, Abdullah-Khan seized Bukhara and made it the capital of his state. In 1561 he proclaimed his father Iskander khan and began to rule in his name; after his father’s death in 1583, he ascended the throne. During Abdullah-Khan’s reign the Sheibanid state reached its greatest power. Tashkent and the territories north of Syr Dar’ya—Balkh, Fergana, Khorezm, Badakhshan—were annexed. Iran was defeated in a struggle for Khurasan. Abdullah-Khan carried out numerous legal and administrative reforms and encouraged the development of crafts, trade, architecture, and literature. During his reign Middle Asia’s ties with the Russian state, India, and Turkey were strengthened.