Medieval History of Turco-Persian societies. Oya Pancaroglu.
Justine Quincé
XII/ Manzikert to the Crusades: context vs. conquest
Matthew of Edessa: local perspective on upheaval
Readings:
Peacock, Early Seljuq History, ch. 5.
Chevedden, "The Islamic View and the Christian View of the Crusades: A New Synthesis"
MacEvitt, "The Chronicle of Matthew of Edessa: Apocalypse, the First Crusade, and the Armenian
Diaspora”
Counter crusade activities started in the mid-12th century. The Sunni idea was strengthened with that
counter crusade activity.
Moment of Revitalization of the Abbasid Caliphate, but not as vital as it used to be
Networks of Madrasas supported by the people in power.
Chapter 3
“ on holding court for the redress of wrongs (mazalim) and practicing justice and virtue”
- Introduction, importance of mazalim court and two royal examples
- Long ssory: Saffarid aggression against the Abbasid caliphate, the defeat of the Saffarids by
the Samanids with emphasis on the wisdom and justice of Uslam’ili the Samanid
- Conclusion: Isma’ili the Samanid as exemplary ruler who holds mazalim court
Evaluating the Ssiyar al-muluk in its period:
- Last phase of Nizam al-Mulk’s carrer as chief minister
- Disturbances in the great Seljuk Empire
- Perception of the past and the present
- Dynastic identity and royal history
- Dargahvs diwan
- Bureaucracy vs military
- Persian vs non persian.
Rise of the Madrasa:
10th c. specialized education in jurisprudence (fiqh): theory of law)
Shari’a: Isclamic law based on Qur’an and prophetic traditions
Madrasa: school of law/jurisprudence
- Private foundation (not state institutionà
- Accommodation + salaries (teachers and students)
- Training of jurists (faqih/fuqaha) judge, scholar, preacher
- Lisence to answer legal questions
- Network of Sunno legal schools
- Support to the “Sunni revival”
Patronage of Madrasas : establishment of waaf, charitable endowment of private property and funds
on perpetuity
Patrins : rulers, state offcials, members of dynasty, other individuals (merchants, scholar, etc)
Nizamiyya : Madrasas for Shafi’I legal school established by Nizam al-Mulk. In Nishapur, Baghdad,
Balkh, Herat, Isfahan, etc.
Contextualizing narratives of 11th and 12th century conquests and expansions.
Medieval History of Turco-Persian societies. Oya Pancaroglu.
Justine Quincé
Types ans problems of terminology: conquest, conter-conquest, raiding, annexation/expansion, Holy
War (jihad, pilgrimage)
Actions
- Byzantine campaigns under Basil II (r.976-1025)
- Great Seljuk/Turkmen campaigns
- First crusade
- Counter-crusades
Modern/popular perception and interpretations vs medieval perceptions and frameworks of
interpretation
Eastern Anatolia
- 1000: Georgian Bagrationi Kingdom of Tao-Klarjeti annexed by the Byzantines (Basil II)
- 1021: Armenian Kingdom of Vaspurakan annexed by Byzantines (Artsruni dynasty resettled in
Central Anatolia)
- 1046: Ani taken by Byzantines (Armenians resettled in Central Anatolia)
- 1064 (Ani) 1071 (Manzekirt) Conquest? Repeated attacks on same targets/areas, with
changing leadership
Modern Framing of the Crusades (Big Bang Theory of Crusades)
- 1095: Pope Urban II calls for armed pilgrimage to the Holy Land Background
- 1054: Great Schism between the Western (Latin-Patriarchate of Rome) and Eastern (Greek
Patriarchate of Constantinople) churches (3 other patriarchates(Antioch, Alexandria,
Jerusalem) functioned under Muslim rule)
- 1071: Battle of Manzikert
- 1099-1109 Capture of Edessa (Urfa), Antioch, Tripoli, Jerusalem by the Crusade
Medieval Islamic Discourse on the Crusades
Al-Sulami (d.1106) : author of Kitab al-Jihad
- concept of a Christian jihad against Islam on 3 fronts : Sicily (Norman conquest 1060-91),
Spain (Reconquista Toledo 1085), Syria-Palastine
- basic perspective accepted in medieval Islamic historiography
- The Crusades understood by Medieval Muslims as
o a Christian jihad
o a Mediterranean- wide phenomenon of the late 11th c.
o not limited to Syria-Palestine
o having the aim to recover lands that were previously under Christianity
reciprocity (action and reaction)
historical continuity
- Modern Muslim perceptions of the Crusades: a unique event focused on Syria-Palestine -
framed as a case of imperialist aggression
Matthew of Edessa (Matt’eas Urhayets’i) (c. 1070-1136)
Armenian monastic priest, author of the Chronicle
active in and near Edessa (Urfa) during Crusader dominance (Armenian diaspora)
Seljuk-Turkmen attacks on Anatolia interpreted as a sign of the End of Time (Apocalypse)
Medieval History of Turco-Persian societies. Oya Pancaroglu.
Justine Quincé
Focus on 3 Nations: Armenians, Byzantine, Turks (+Franks
3 sections
- 1- Disappearance of Armania royal authority in S. Damascus and E. Anatolia due to Byzantine
and Seljuk aggression (952- 1052)
- 2- Destruction and displacement of Armanian communities (1053- 1101)
- 3- The expected Apocalypse (Matthew’s own lifetime)
Byzantines, Turksand Franks depicted in both negative and positive light)
- seeming contradiction
- apocalyptic perspective on the state of the world
- negative view on cultural fluidity, especially among Armenians
- complex perspective on geo-political transformations
Successors States of the Great Seljuks in the West
- Artukids (1098-1408)
o Artuk, Seljuk commander, appointed as governor of palastine by Tutush
o Move to Diyarbakir
- Zangids (1127- 1233)
o Imad al-Din Zangi, Seljuk commander appointed of Musul and Aleppo as atabeg –
o 1144 fall of country of Edessa
o unification of Syria N. Iraq under Nur al-Din Zangi (r. 1146-74)
- Ayyubids (1174-1260)
o Salah al-Din Ayyubi, Zangid commander
o 1174 Fatimid collapse
o 1187 Battle of Hattin/Jerusalem
