Shāhrukh Mīrzā is the Timurid ruler of the eastern portion of the empire established by his father, Central Asian warlord Timur (Tamerlane) who founded the Timurid dynasty, governing most of Persia and Transoxiana between 1405 and 1447.

After Timur's death in 1405, his empire falls apart with various tribes and warlords competing for dominance.

The Kara Koyunlu Turkmen destroy the western empire in 1410 when they capture Baghdad, but in Persia and Transoxiana Shāhrukh is able to secure effective control from about 1409.

His empire controlsthe main trade routes between East and West, including the legendary Silk Road, and becoms immensely wealthy as a result.The devastation of Persia's main cities leads to the cultural center of the empire shifting to Samarkand in modern Uzbekistan and Herat in modern Afghanistan.

Shāhrukh chooses to have his capital not in Samarqand, but in Herat.

This is to become the political center of the Timurid empire, and residence of his principal successors, though both cities benefit from the wealth and privilege of Shāhrukh's court, which is a great patron of the arts and sciences.