Rawadid dynasty

Rawwadid or Ravvadid (also Revend or Revendi) or Banū rawwād (955–1071), was a principality ruling Iranian Azerbaijan from the 10th to the early 11th centuries, centered on Tabriz and Maragheh. Rawadids were originally from Arab ancestry, and arrived in the region in the mid eighth century, but they had become Kurdicized by the early 10th century and began to use Kurdish forms like Mamlan for Muhammad and Ahmadil for Ahmad as their names The Rawandid tribe moved into Kurdistan in the mid eighth century, and it was known as a Kurdish tribe by the tenth century.

The earliest form of the name is written "Rewend" in the Sharafnameh. According to Kasravi, Rawwadids conquered the lands of the Musafirid ruler Ibrahim I ibn Marzuban I, in Azarbaijan in 979. Wahsudan bin Mamlan is the best known Rawwadid ruler, and he is mentioned by Ibn Athir. The regions of Tabriz, Maragheh and the strongholds of Sahand mountain were in his possession. In 1029, he helped the Hadhbani Kurds in Maragheh to defeat the invading Oghuz Turkish tribes.

Wahsudan also sent an expedition to Ardebil under the command of his son Mamlan II. The ruler (sipahbod) of Moghan had to submit to the conqueror. Mamlan also built a fortress in Ardebil.

Toghrul conquered the principality in 1054 CE, and he defeated the prince of Tabriz Wahsudan ibn Mamlan. In 1071, when Alp Arslan returned from his campaign against the Byzantine Empire, he deposed Mamlan. Wahsudan's successor, Ahmad bin Wahsudan, lord of Maragheh, took part in the Muhammad Malik Shah's campaign against Syria in 1110 CE. His full title was Ahmadil bin Ibrahim bin Wahsudan al-Rawwadi al-Kurdi. Ahmadil took part in the crusades on behalf of Muslims. Joscelin made a peace treaty with him during the siege of Tell Bashir (in present-day southern Turkey, south-east of Gaziantep). He was stabbed to death by the Ismailis in 1117 in Baghdad. His descendants continued to rule Maragheh and Tabriz as Atabakane Maragha until the Mongol invasion in 1227.