The death of Adud al-Dawla is considered the start of the decline of the Buyid dynasty; his son Abu Kalijar Marzuban, who was in Baghdad when he died, at first kept his death secret to ensure his succession and avoid civil war. When he eventually made the death of his father public, he was given the title of "Samsam al-Dawla". However, Adud's other son, Shirdil Abu'l-Fawaris, challenged his authority, and the feared civil war occurred anyway. Meanwhile, a Kurdish Marwanid chieftain named Badh ibn Dustak seized Diyabakr and forced Samsam al-Dawla to recognize him as the vassal ruler of the region. Furthermore, Mu'ayyad al-Dawla also died during this period, and he was succeeded by Fakhr al-Dawla, who, with the aid of Mu'ayyad al-Dawla's vizier Sahib ibn 'Abbad, became the ruler of Mu'ayyad al-Dawla's possessions. Another son of Adud al-Dawla, Abu Tahir Firuzshah, established himself as the ruler of Basra and took the title of "Diya' al-Dawla", while another son, Abu'l-Husain Ahmad, established himself as the ruler of Khuzistan, taking the title of "Taj al-Dawla".