Timur was an emir.
Timur ( تیمور Temūr , Chagatai : Temür , 9 April 1336 -- 18 February 1405 ) , historically known as Amir Timur and Tamerlane ( تيمور لنگ Temūr ( - i ) Lang , `` Timur the Lame '' ) , was a Turco-Mongol conqueror . From that base he led military campaigns across Western , South and Central Asia , the Caucasus and southern Russia , and emerged as the most powerful ruler in the Muslim world after defeating the Mamluks of Egypt and Syria , the emerging Ottoman Empire , and the declining Delhi Sultanate .