Ghaznavid Empire

The Ghaznavid Empire was a culturally Persianate, Sunni Muslim state of Turkic mamluk origin that flourished from 977 to 1186. Founded by Sabuktigin, the empire spread from the Oxus to the Indus Valley at its greatest extent. Sabuktigin's son, Mahmud of Ghazni, expanded the empire to the Amu Darya, the Indus River, and the Indian Ocean in the east, and to Rey and Hamadan in the west. Under Mas'ud I, the Ghaznavids began losing western territories to the Seljuk Empire after the Battle of Dandanaqan in 1040, restricting their holdings to modern-day Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Northern India. The empire eventually fell in 1186 when Lahore was conquered by the Ghurid sultan, Muhammad of Ghor.