Resource

Seljuk Empire History Timeline: Dandanqan, Baghdad, Manzikert and Rum

A source-aware Seljuk history timeline from Oghuz frontier origins and the 1040 Battle of Dandanqan through Baghdad, Manzikert, Persianate institutions, political fragmentation and the Sultanate of Rum.

Data updated July 12, 2026 at 04:38 AMSeljuk timeline1040-1194Battle of ManzikertSultanate of RumPersianate institutionssource-aware historymedieval Islamic history

Seljuk Empire History Timeline: Dandanqan, Baghdad, Manzikert and Rum

Core coverage

Late 10th century-c. 1308; Great Seljuks and Rum separated

Timeline entries

32 source-labeled turning points

Editorial method

Separates dynasty, empire, regional branches, migration, institutions and later cultural afterlives

Last reviewed

12 July 2026

The name Seljuk does not describe one unchanging centralized empire. It can refer to a ruling family of Oghuz Turkic origin, the Great Seljuk sultanate that dominated much of Iran and Iraq, regional branches in Syria and Kirman, and the Sultanate of Rum in Anatolia. The Battle of Dandanqan in 1040 established Seljuk power in Khurasan, while Tughril's entry into Baghdad in 1055 changed the relationship between military sultans and the Abbasid caliph. Neither date by itself created every later Seljuk state.

Alp Arslan's victory over Emperor Romanos IV at Manzikert on 26 August 1071 was a major turning point, but the battle did not instantly transfer all Anatolia or replace its population. Byzantine civil wars, Turkmen mobility, local alliances, repeated campaigns and the emergence of several principalities shaped the following decade. Under Malik Shah and the vizier Nizam al-Mulk, court power, Persian administration, roads, taxation, patronage and madrasas connected a wide but negotiated political order. Succession struggles after both men died in 1092 then exposed how much power depended on households, commanders and regional rulers.

The death of Sultan Sanjar in 1157 ended effective Great Seljuk supremacy in the east, while Tughril III's defeat in 1194 ended the western Iranian line. Seljuk political and cultural histories nevertheless continued through successor states, especially Rum. Its rulers developed Konya and trade routes, sponsored caravanserais and madrasas, and negotiated with Byzantines, Crusaders, Armenians, Georgians, Muslim neighbors and merchants. The Mongol victory at Kose Dag in 1243 made Rum subordinate; the conventional end around 1307 or 1308 describes a dynastic endpoint, not the disappearance of Seljuk architecture, Persianate culture or Anatolian Muslim institutions.

How to use this timeline

Use the four eras to keep political names and geographic scope from collapsing into one empire-shaped block.

Late 10th century-1055 follows uncertain family origins, migration into Khurasan, Dandanqan and entry into Baghdad.
1055-1092 covers caliphal-sultanic relations, Alp Arslan, Manzikert, Malik Shah, administration and the first Rum polity.
1092-1157 traces succession conflict, Crusader-era fragmentation, Sanjar, Qatwan and the Oghuz revolt.
1157-c. 1308 separates the Iranian dynastic endpoint from the commercial and architectural history of Seljuk Rum.

Evidence rules

Chronicles, coins, inscriptions, buildings, waqf records, objects and later dynastic histories preserve different kinds of evidence.

Treat the conversion and early genealogy of the Seljuk family as reconstructed history, not a perfectly dated origin story.
Do not use a map at Malik Shah's death as proof of identical control in every city, pasture, frontier or household.
Do not make Manzikert the instant conquest, conversion or demographic replacement of all Anatolia.
Distinguish the Great Seljuks' political end from the Seljuk branches and from institutions that survived dynastic rule.

What this hub connects

Existing guides help readers move from the dynasty-wide chronology into education, Baghdad and the later Mongol conquest.

The Nizamiyya guide separates its 1065 foundation, 1067 opening, waqf structure and al-Ghazali's later appointment.
The House of Wisdom guide prevents the Seljuk and Mongol periods from being folded into one library-destruction myth.
The 1258 Baghdad guide follows the Abbasid capital after Seljuk political supremacy had already fragmented.

Origins and state formation, late 10th century-1055

Reconstructed family origins, Khurasan, Dandanqan and Baghdad show how mobile leadership acquired cities, revenue and dynastic authority.

Date	Event	Why it matters	Evidence label
Late 10th century	Seljuk family enters the Muslim frontier world	Later accounts connect the family to Oghuz steppe politics, migration near Jand and conversion to Islam; exact chronology remains reconstructed.	Later genealogies, regional chronicles and modern reconstruction
c. 1020s	Tughril and Chaghri lead mobile Oghuz followers	The brothers operate among changing alliances and military-client relationships before controlling a durable territorial state.	Ghaznavid, regional and later Seljuk narrative traditions
1035	Seljuk leaders enter Khurasan	Tughril, Chaghri and their followers seek pasture, recognition and revenue inside a Ghaznavid political landscape.	Ghaznavid chronicles and Seljuk origin narratives
1037-1038	Merv, Herat and Nishapur change hands	Control of major Khurasani cities turns a mobile confederation into a claimant to urban taxation, administration and sovereignty.	Regional chronologies and urban records
23 May 1040	Battle of Dandanqan	Seljuk forces defeat Sultan Masud's Ghaznavid army near Merv, establishing the conventional political beginning of the Great Seljuks.	Ghaznavid-Seljuk chronicles and modern military study
1040s	Family members divide commands and regions	Tughril, Chaghri and other commanders expand through negotiated family and military authority rather than a uniform modern bureaucracy.	Investiture, coin and chronicle evidence
1048	Battle near Kapetron or Pasinler	A major Byzantine-Seljuk frontier clash predates Manzikert and shows that Turkic movement into eastern Anatolia was already underway.	Byzantine, Armenian and Islamic narrative sources
18 Dec 1055	Tughril enters Baghdad	Buyid control ends and the Seljuk ruler becomes the dominant military power around the Abbasid caliph without becoming caliph himself.	Baghdad chronicles and later Seljuk history

Great sultanate and Manzikert, 1055-1092

Caliphal relations, Alp Arslan, Manzikert, Malik Shah, Nizam al-Mulk and early Rum combine expansion with negotiated institutions.

Date	Event	Why it matters	Evidence label
1058-1059	Baghdad crisis tests sultan and caliph	Rebellion, rival claims and ceremonial recognition show that Seljuk-Abbasid authority was negotiated and sometimes coercive.	Arabic and Persian chronicles, titulature and coins
1063	Alp Arslan succeeds Tughril	After a contested succession, Alp Arslan and vizier Nizam al-Mulk consolidate a new court and campaign network.	Court chronicles and administrative biographies
1064	Seljuk forces capture Ani	The conquest of the former Armenian royal city becomes a major frontier event with military, urban and community consequences.	Armenian, Byzantine and Islamic accounts; material evidence
1065 and 1067	Baghdad Nizamiyya is founded and opened	The two dates mark foundation and inauguration of a prestigious waqf-supported college associated with Nizam al-Mulk.	Institutional chronicles, biographies and waqf scholarship
26 Aug 1071	Battle of Manzikert	Alp Arslan defeats and captures Romanos IV; the battle matters greatly, but civil war and migration shape the later loss of Byzantine control.	Contemporary Byzantine and later Muslim narratives
1072	Malik Shah becomes sultan	His reign with Nizam al-Mulk is associated with wide political reach, Isfahan, fiscal administration, roads and court patronage.	Persian and Arabic chronicles, architecture, coins and objects
c. 1077-1081	A Seljuk polity of Rum emerges in Anatolia	Suleiman ibn Qutalmish builds power around Nicaea amid Byzantine civil conflict; the early chronology and relationship to the Great Seljuks are not simple.	Byzantine, Syriac and Islamic chronicles; later reconstruction
1089	Malik Shah campaigns into Transoxiana	The campaign illustrates the empire's broad reach while dependence on local rulers and family arrangements limits any picture of uniform control.	Regional chronicles and dynastic history

Succession conflict and Sanjar, 1092-1157

Succession wars, Crusader-era regional powers, Qatwan and the Oghuz revolt expose the limits of one empire-wide narrative.

Date	Event	Why it matters	Evidence label
Oct-Nov 1092	Nizam al-Mulk and Malik Shah die	The deaths remove two central figures within weeks and trigger contests among heirs, court households, commanders and regional branches.	Court chronicles and competing accounts of succession
1092-1105	Succession wars fragment Great Seljuk authority	Barkiyaruq, Muhammad Tapar, Tutush and other claimants fight across Iran, Iraq and Syria, making regional power more visible.	Arabic and Persian chronicles, coins and local dynastic records
1097	First Crusade takes Nicaea from Seljuk Rum	Rum loses its first major capital and shifts its center toward Konya, showing that Seljuk expansion was reversible and regionally uneven.	Latin, Byzantine, Armenian and Islamic narratives
1118	Sanjar becomes the senior Great Seljuk ruler	Sanjar's eastern court in Khurasan carries Great Seljuk prestige while western sultans, atabegs and caliphs exercise distinct power.	Persian chronicles, coins and court literature
1121	Seljuk-led forces lose at Didgori	The Georgian victory restricts Muslim political power in the Caucasus and demonstrates the limits of loosely coordinated regional forces.	Georgian, Armenian and Islamic narratives
9 Sep 1141	Sanjar is defeated at Qatwan	The Qara Khitai victory weakens Seljuk authority in Transoxiana and damages the fiscal and political balance of the eastern sultanate.	Persian, Arabic and Central Asian chronicles
1153	Oghuz revolt captures Sanjar	Rebel Oghuz groups defeat and detain the sultan, while Khurasani cities and rural communities experience severe disruption.	Persian chronicles and regional urban histories
1157	Sanjar dies	His death is the clearest endpoint for effective Great Seljuk supremacy in the east, but it does not end every Seljuk dynasty.	Dynastic chronology and later regional histories

Regional endpoints and Seljuk Rum, 1157-c. 1308

The Iranian lines and the Sultanate of Rum followed different chronologies, while trade, architecture and institutions outlived dynastic rule.

Date	Event	Why it matters	Evidence label
1176	Seljuk Rum wins at Myriokephalon	Kilij Arslan II defeats Manuel I Komnenos during a Byzantine campaign, reinforcing Rum's place in central Anatolia without ending Byzantine power.	Byzantine and regional narratives
1194	Tughril III is defeated and killed	The Khwarazm Shah defeats the last Seljuk sultan of western Iran, giving 1194 a different dynastic meaning from Sanjar's 1157 death.	Persian dynastic chronicles and chronology
1204	Latin conquest reshapes the Anatolian balance	The fragmentation of Byzantine authority after the Fourth Crusade creates opportunities and rivals for Rum, Nicaea and Trebizond.	Byzantine, Latin and Seljuk-era regional histories
1207	Rum captures Antalya	Mediterranean access supports diplomacy, customs revenue and long-distance trade rather than an inland-only picture of the sultanate.	Chronicles, inscriptions and commercial history
1214	Rum captures Sinop	Black Sea access strengthens transit routes linking Anatolia with Crimea, Iran and Mediterranean commerce.	Chronicles, inscriptions, coins and trade records
1220-1237	Reign of Ala al-Din Kayqubad I	Rum reaches a political and commercial high point associated with Konya, Alanya, fortifications, caravanserais and court patronage.	Buildings, inscriptions, coins, chronicles and objects
26 Jun 1243	Mongols defeat Rum at Kose Dag	The defeat makes the sultanate subordinate to Mongol power and later the Ilkhanate while Seljuk rulers continue with reduced authority.	Armenian, Persian and Seljuk-era chronicles
c. 1307-1308	Conventional end of the Seljuk line of Rum	Dynastic rule ends amid Ilkhanid supremacy and Anatolian beyliks, but Seljuk buildings, trade routes and Persianate institutions remain influential.	Dynastic chronology, coins, inscriptions and later histories

FAQ

When did the Seljuk Empire begin?

1040 is the most useful conventional start for the Great Seljuk sultanate because Tughril and Chaghri defeated the Ghaznavids at Dandanqan and secured Khurasan. The family and its followers had an earlier, less securely dated history.

Why was Baghdad in 1055 important?

Tughril entered Baghdad and ended Buyid control over the Abbasid capital. Seljuk sultans exercised military and political power while the Abbasid caliph retained religious, legal and dynastic authority; the relationship was cooperative and contested rather than a simple transfer of the caliphate.

Did Manzikert instantly give Anatolia to the Seljuks?

No. The battle defeated and captured Romanos IV, but Byzantine officials and communities remained across Anatolia. Civil war, mobile Turkmen groups, local alliances and later campaigns made the 1070s more decisive than one afternoon alone.

Were the Great Seljuks and the Sultanate of Rum the same state?

They belonged to related Seljuk dynastic histories, but Rum developed as an Anatolian branch with its own rulers, capitals, wars and institutions. It survived the Great Seljuk lines in Iran and Iraq by more than a century.

Did the Great Seljuk Empire end in 1157 or 1194?

1157 marks Sultan Sanjar's death and the end of effective Great Seljuk supremacy in the east. In western Iran, a Seljuk line continued until Tughril III was defeated and killed in 1194. The dates answer different regional and dynastic questions.

What happened to the Sultanate of Rum after 1243?

The Mongol victory at Kose Dag made Rum subordinate to Mongol and later Ilkhanid power. Seljuk sultans continued with reduced authority amid factional rule until the dynasty's conventional endpoint around 1307 or 1308.

Sources

Metropolitan Museum of Art: The Art of the Seljuqs of Iran
Used for Dandanqan, Baghdad, Persianate administration, Nizamiyya patronage, architecture, objects and the political fragmentation of the Great Seljuks.
Metropolitan Museum of Art: The Art of the Seljuq Period in Anatolia
Used for Manzikert, the Seljuks of Rum, Konya, Anatolian architecture and the cultural history that continued beyond Great Seljuk rule.
Metropolitan Museum of Art: Court and Cosmos
Used for the 1038-1307 regional frame and the Seljuks as a decentralized West Asian dynasty with wide artistic afterlives.
Encyclopaedia Iranica: The Saljuqids, 1040-1194
Used for Khurasan, Tughril's 1055 entry into Baghdad, regional Seljuk lines and the distinction between the Great Seljuks and Rum.
Encyclopaedia Iranica: Saljuqs of Rum
Used for pre-1071 Turkic movement, Byzantine civil wars, the uncertain early Rum polity, its high point and Mongol subordination.
Encyclopaedia Iranica: Saljuqid Literature
Used for Persian as an administrative and court language, urban literary networks, decentralization and cultural chronology beyond a ruler list.
UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Seljuk Caravanserais
Used for the social, commercial and architectural functions of the caravanserai network across Anatolia.
UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Anatolian Seljuk Madrasahs
Used for the Nizamiyya precedent, Anatolian madrasa plans, materials, cities and adaptation of architectural traditions.
Cambridge Core: Geopolitical Background to Manzikert
Used for the 1037-1040 Khurasan chronology and the decades of frontier movement that preceded the 1071 battle.
Cambridge Core: The Battle of Manzikert, Introduction
Used for the capture and release of Romanos IV, medieval source traditions and later interpretations of the battle's importance.
Cambridge Core: Turkish Migrations and Anatolian States
Used for Oghuz mobility, Manzikert, Seljuk Rum, frontier groupings and the longer transition toward Anatolian beyliks.
Library of Congress: History of the Seljuk Empire
Used as a digitized primary chronicle tradition beginning with Tughril's 1055 entry into Baghdad and covering succession, viziers and regional leaders.
British Museum: Seljuq Dynasty
Used for the museum chronology 1040-1194, Baghdad, Perso-Islamic administration, the army, madrasas and material evidence.
British Museum: Seljuqs of Rum
Used for the 1081-1307 Rum chronology, Konya, Mediterranean and Black Sea trade and surviving coins and objects.