Alp Arslan, Great Seljuq Sultan AH 455-465/AD 1063-1072

Jafar S.MS.463; A 1670, Very Fine

Madinat al-Salam (Baghdad) mint, citing Alp Arslan with title ‘Adud al-Dawla, the ‘Abbasid caliph al-Qa’im bi-Amr Allah and as heir, Abu’l-Qasim ‘Uddat al-Din (the future caliph al-Muqtadi).

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Alp Arslan (AH 465-485/ AD 1072-1092) was the nephew of Tughril Beg and accompanied his uncle in several military campaigns. After Tughril’s death he subdued the various warlords that rose against the Seljuqs. Eventually he became the undisputed king of greater Persia. He hired Nizam, a gifted Persian administrator, to lay a secure foundation for the governance of his vast empire. Alp Arslan conquered eastern Anatolia and Armenia, bringing him face to face with Byzantium. The Byzantine and Seljuq forces met at Manzikert near Lake Van in the far east of what we know today asTurkey. Alp Arslan emerged victorious in spite of the numeric superiority of his foe. The Seljuq victory at Manzikert opened the door for the Turkicization of Anatolia and the rise of the Ottoman Turks.