Seeing that the Mongols were terribly swift in pursuing, Jelal ordered Orkhan to rush in another direction with his forces, and draw off the enemy. He himself took the road to Amid with one hundred horsemen. The gates of that city were closed to him. Persuasion was powerless to open them, hence he fled on toward the Tigris, but soon turning aside he rushed back, and thus followed the counsel of Otuz Khan, who declared that the best way to flee from the Mongols was to double back and be behind them. He reached a small village in the region of Mayafarkin and stopped for the night at a granary. While he was sleeping Otuz Khan slipped away, and deserted. At daybreak the Mongols caught up with the Sultan, who had barely the time to mount and be off while his guards fought the enemy.
Most of Jelal’s men were slain while defending their master that morning. Fifteen of the Mongols, on learning that he who had fled was the Sultan, rushed along after him madly. Two reached the swift rider, but he slew both of them. The others could not come up with the fugitive whose horse beyond doubt was superior.
Jelal hurried on alone now, and made his way into the mountains. There he was captured by Kurds, whose work was to strip every wayfarer and slay him. They stripped the Sultan at once and were going to kill him when he told their chief secretly who he was, asking the man to conduct him to the Erbil prince, Mozaffer, who would load him with benefits for doing so; if not to conduct him to some place in the Sultan’s own kingdom. The Kurd chose the latter and taking with him to his own habitation the Sultan, whom he left in the care of his wife, he went out to find horses. Meanwhile another Kurd came in, and inquired of the woman who the Kwaresmian was, and why they had not killed him. She replied that he was under her husband’s protection, and added, that he was the Kwaresmian Sultan. “How know that [[171]]he is telling you the truth?” asked the Kurd. “But if he is the Sultan, he killed at the siege of Khelat my own brother, a far better man than he is.” With that he sprang at Jelal ud din, pierced him with his javelin, and killed him. Aug. 15, 1231.
With Jelal ud din perished the Kwaresmian dynasty.
“Jelal ud din,” says Mohammed of Nessa, “was of medium stature. He had a Turk face, his complexion was very dark, for his mother was from India. He was brave to excess, calm, grave and silent, never laughing except at the points of his lips. He spoke Turkish and Persian.” Jelal ud din was no statesman, he had neither foresight nor wisdom; attached to his whims he reconciled no man. Music and wine gave him most of his pleasure. He always went to bed drunk, even at times when the Mongols were hunting him like bloodhounds. He did not retain the affection of his warriors, who receiving no pay had to live on the country and ruin it. Reckless conduct estranged from him those who might have upheld him. A wise and strong leader could have raised up and directed a resistance which would have stopped Hulagu in his conquests. What might have come afterwards is of course a new problem.
Soon after the death of this Sultan, Prince Mozaffer sent men to collect his effects. They found his horse, saddle and sabre. These, being shown to his generals, were recognized. Mozaffer then had his corpse brought and put in a mausoleum.
In after years report ran that Jelal had been seen in various places of Iran. A man at Ispidar gave himself out as the Sultan. The Mongol commanders called in men who had seen Jelal ud din. The imposter was discovered and put to death promptly. Twenty-two years after this death of the Sultan a poor man dressed as a fakir while crossing the Oxus spoke to the boatmen as follows: “I am Jelal ud din the Kwaresmian Shah reported as killed by the Kurds in the mountains of Amid. It was not I who was killed then, but my equerry. I have wandered about many years without letting men know me.” Taken by the boatmen to an officer of the Mongols close to that river he was tortured, but insisted till death that he was Jelal ud din the Kwaresmian Sultan. [[172]]