Both Georgian and Islamic sources testify that, on the complaints of the Muslim merchants of – Tbilisi, Ganja and Dmanisi – Sultan Mahmud II of Baghdad (r. 1118-1131) sent an expedition into Georgia under command of Ilghazi ibn Artuq of Mardin, whose hegemony in the Middle East and authority among the Muslims was indisputable. After pillaging the County of Edessa and defeat of Roger of Antioch at the battle of Ager Sanguinis in 1119, the reputation of Ilghazi as a great military commander and champion of Muslims against Christians spread far and wide.