old by this time. This would indicate that because of his poverty and lack of prospects, he had been unable to secure wives of respectable rank until this time. His consciousness of his high birth would have prevented him from accepting wives of inferior birth, but his recent rise had removed all obstacles and provided him with two suitable wives. He was soon blessed with progeny by both wives and became the father of a numerous family. Yunus Khan begat two sons and two daughters by Shah Begum: Sultan Mahmud Khan, eldest child by Shah Begum, born in 1462. Sultan Ahmad Khan, second son, known later as Alacha (Slayer) Khan for his brutal attempts to usurp absolute power in the steppe by slaughtering the Kalmaks. Sultan Nigar Khanim, wife of Sultan Mahmud Mirza, third son of Yunus Khan's mentor Abu Sa'id Daulat Sultan Khanim, daughter Khanship In 1462, Yunus's brother Esen Buqa died. The Moghuls were divided over whether to support his son, Dost Muhammad, or his elder brother, namely Yunus himself, as his successor. The dughlat amir of Kashgar, Muhammad Haidar Mirza, supported Dost Muhammad, but his brother Saniz Mirza, the amir of Yarkand (who, it will be recollected, had taken Yunus Khan's help and invited him into Kashgar in 1457) supported Yunus Khan, and expelled Dost Mohammad from Kashgar. Dost Mohammad however consolidated his hold on all settled lands in Eastern Moghulistan, known at the time as Uyghurstan. He became the ruler of that region and took up residence in the town of Aksu, thus abandoning the nomadic style of life. Saniz Mirza died after only a few years, in 1464, and Dost Muhammad plundered Kashgar to avenge his previous expulsion. Shortly aftwewards however, in 1468 or 1469, Dost Muhammad died and Yunus Khan found it possible to seize Aksu. Dost Muhammad's son, Kebek Sultan, who was only a child, was whisked away by his supporters to Turpan (Uyghurstan), where he ruled nominally for a few years before being killed by the same supporters. Ruling from Aksu as Khan, Yunus Khan maintained good relations with the Timurids and with Janybek Khan and Karai Khan, the founders of the Khazak Horde (in 1465-1466). As a consequence of his alliance with the Khazaks, he made an enemy out of the rival Uzbeks. In 1468, the Uzbeks under Shaikh Haidar came into conflict with the Moghuls; they were defeated and Shaikh