Rukn al-Daula Da'ud

After the death of his brother, Ibrahim, Da'ud became bey of Hasankeyf in 1109. However, he always recognized the supremacy of his uncle Ilghazi, in which he sent him soldiers more than once. In 1122, he was unwilling to acknowledge the same position with Husam al-Din Timurtash. By Belek Ghazi's death, he quickly seized Harput in 1124;[2] when Timurtash managed to seize Mayyafariqin following the death of his brother Shams al-Dawla Suleiman. Da'ud had also aspired to control Mayyafariqin, but he acted late,[3] which provoked a rivalry between the two cousins. According to Ibn al-Athir, the Turkmens of Amida were more loyal to Da'ud than to Timurtash, whom they considered more skillful; the historian himself mentioned that he was able to return to the fight a few days after a defeat.[4]

Between 1123 and 1125, he accompanied the ruler of Ahlat in a campaign against the Kingdom of Georgia,[4] according to Matthew of Edessa. In 1126, Imad al-Din Zengi, atabeg of Mosul, besieged Nusaybin, which belonged to Timurtash of Mardin and Mayyafariqin. Hence, he sought help from Da'ud, and promised him the city. Zengi intercepted a messenger pigeon sent by Timurtash to the governor of Nusaybin, and replaced the message by getting the garrison to surrender to his forces.[5] That success of Zengi, followed in 1128/1129 by the conquest of Aleppo, forced the Artuqid emirs to ally with each other and with other Turkmen emirs.

In 1130, an alliance was signed with Ilaldi, the ruler of Amida, and with other Turkmen chiefs against Zengi; but the combined army was defeated by the Atabeg in Saruj, and the atabeg occupied the city along with Dara.[5] The alliance with Timurtash came to an end and each of them again dealt with his internal affairs, with Timurtash accepting Zengi's hegemony.[6]

In 1131, Da'ud occupied several fortresses south of Lake Van, including the fortresses of Qatalbas and Batasa,[5] and the important city of Siirt. In 1134, Timurtash and Zengi confronted Da'ud on the outskirts of Amida, where he was defeated.[6] Once Zengi left Amida, Da'ud, angry at the lost territories, launched a campaign against his cousin which forced him to demolish the suburbs of Mayyafariqin, as he thought that he could not maintain these parts against the depredations of his rival.[7] In 1141/1142, an agreement was reached with Timurtash, who sought an alliance with Da'ud and County of Edessa to which Zengi opposed.

Da'ud died in 1144. He was succeeded by his son Kara Arslan.

• Artuqids

• Bosworth, Clifford Edmund (2004). The new Islamic dynasties: a chronological and genealogical manual. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-2137-8.
• Ibn al-Azraq al-Fariqi (1979). Carole Hillenbrand (ed.). The History of the Jazira 1100–1150: The Contribution of Ibn al-Azraq al-Fariqi. Vol. 2. University of Edinburgh.