TheOttoman Empire - A
Chronological Outline
The Turks in the Islamic World before 1300
830-850, Turkish mercenaries from Central Asia found in service of Abbasid caliphs
850-905,
Tulunids (Turkish generals) rule Egypt virtually independently of the Abbasids
900,
Samanids rule in eastern Persia and borderlands of Turkistan; Turks are exposed to
Persianate Islamic culture; preparation far incorporation of Turks into main body of
Middle Eastern Islamic civilization
10thc.
, term ”sultan” (Arabic abstract noun meaning ”sovereign authority”)
begins to be used to designate rulers
c.1000
, Ghaznavids establish rule in Afghanistan, break Samanid power, and expand into Persia
below Oxus River; champions of Sunni Islam within a predominantly Persian cultural context
1040,
Seljuks take Khorasan from Ghaznavids; soon control most of Persia with center at Isfahan;
from there advance to defeat Buwayhids (Shi’i Persians) who had dominated Abbasid
caliphs in Baghdad for a century
1055,
Seljuk sultans become de facto rulers in Abbasid Baghdad; two centuries of turmoil is
ended and unity restored in eastern Islamic region; Persia and Mesopotamia are reunited
and northern Syria added to the ”Great Seljuk” state
1071
, Battle of Manzikert (Malazgirt) a decisive victory for Seljuk Sultan Alp Arslan over
Byzantines; break Byzantine line of defense in Eastern Anatolia; Turkish-speaking Muslims
raid and settle in area now known as ”Turkey”; much of the Greek/ Christian
veneer of indigenous Anatolian population gradually replaced by a Turkish/Muslim veneer
1092
, death of Seljuk Sultan Malik Shah and his great vizier, Nizam al-Mulk; dynastic strife
ensues
1118,
Seljuk Empire splits into principalities ruled by princes of the family, often over-
shadowed by their ”atabeys” ( tutor guardians )
12th
c. , Seljuks of Rum ( Konya, Anatolia ) rule centra1 Anatolian plateau with center at
Konya (Iconium) .
1204
, Byzantium fatally weakened by 4th. Crusade and Latin occupation
c.1200
, high point of Seljuks of Rum; by absorption of smaller Turkish principalities (beyliks),
Seljuks extend their jurisdiction to south coast of Anatolia; Turkish nomads
(”gazis”) active in western border/march region adjacent to Byzantium
1243,
Mongols under Hulagu Khan move west, defeat Selcuk Sultan Kaykhusrav II, and establish
overlordship in Seljuk Anatolia
1258,
Mongols conquer Baghdad and bring Abbasid Caliphate to an end
Later
13th c., Turkish Anatolia fragmented as Mongol control weakens and is
withdrawn; many small principalities ( beyliks ) emerge, one of them led by Osman (Turkish
form of the Arabic/Muslim name, Uthmm; European corruption of Osman is Ottoman) in
northwest Anatolia (around Iznik and Bursa) adjacent to Byzantine territories.
1071-1300,
Anatolia witnesses swift military penetration, ragged political conquest, partial and
superficial cultural/linguistic conquest by Muslim Turks who, in their upper ranks were
carriers of Persianate Muslim culture. That group was small in number but powerful . Below
them, Turkish-speaking Muslims mix with indigenous population. Folk culture and folk
religion often at odds with high culture and Islamic orthodoxy represented by the
religious and political elite in the society.
Assembled by Richard L. Chambers,
The University of Chicago
