First Crusade: Partition of the Seljuk Empire - Medieval DOCUMENTARY

The story of the First Crusade is often portrayed as a religious or political struggle from a predominantly Western viewpoint, undermining the role the Eastern Romans and the Seljuks played on these remarkable events, so we decided to add another element that is often overlooked yet plays a crucial part of this story, while also giving context on the Seljuks in the period before the First Crusade and how they took control of Jerusalem. If you want to take control of some land yourself, check out the sponsor of this video, Established Titles. It's a project that lets you become a lord or lady by purchasing a little plot of land in Scotland, where all landowners historically can claim these titles. But it's also a project to reforest the world, planting a tree with every order, preserving picturesque woodland and biodiversity, and supporting global charities like One Tree Planted and Trees for the Future. You'll get at least one square foot of land in Scotland, with a certificate to not only show you exactly where it is, but to prove your new titles. This allows you to get lord or lady on your credit cards, plane tickets, and more. It only takes 5 minutes to set up, so it's a great last-minute gift for any loved one and you can get a couple pack that lets you and your partner have adjoining plots of land. They also offer maps to show your new estate, including the immensely detailed hand-drawn 1611 map by John Speed, held by the National Library of Scotland. Use the code KNG to get 10% off any purchase! Go to establishedtitles.com slash KNG to get this great gift at a discount now! Climate change is the catalyst behind many important events, and with the help of modern climatology, historians like Ronnie Ellenbloom and Richard Boullier were able to describe the extreme events occurring in this timeline. On one hand, the medieval warm period, spanning approximately from 950 to 1250, coupled with developments in iron smelting, led to a population boom in Europe, particularly in modern-day France, England, and Germany, which could now access new fertile lands due to the adoption of horseshoes and the heavy plow. This population growth meant that many could join an armed pilgrimage under the right circumstances. On the other hand, the entire Middle East was destabilized by dry and extremely cold winters. Egypt, which was the breadbasket of the region for millennia, was barren after consecutive years of droughts, causing famine and pestilence across the Islamic world. As the cold set in, numerous steppe people migrated west, pillaging everything in their path to sustain themselves. The climate instability was mirrored by a political one, as the once-mighty Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad was only a spiritual figurehead, a puppet under the control of the reigning Buyid dynasty. The Seljuks, a tribe within the Oghuz Turks, were an underdog faction that was cast out from one place to another, offering their military service in return for land. Despite embracing Sunni Islam, they were seen as a threat by the Ghaznavid Empire. After the Seljuk leader Tughril proclaimed himself ruler of Khurasan, the Ghaznavid Sultan Masud launched a campaign, taking the cities of Hirat and Nishapur before making his way towards Mirth. Along the way, his supply lines were harassed by hit-and-run tactics, and the vastly superior army, including 50,000 men and 12 elephants, was suddenly caught out in the desert with no fresh water. On May 23rd, 1040, the Battle of Dandenakan featured one of the biggest upsets in history, as a 16,000-strong lightly armoured force humiliated the Ghaznavid Sultan in front of his vizier, chief secretary and generals, who barely escaped. The Ghaznavids fell into decline and civil war, losing everything outside of a small holding in India, while the Seljuks rose to prominence. Tughril appointed his brother Chagri as governor of Khurasan, while he went on to conquer and vassalize most of modern-day Iran within the next 10 years. The two key factors that allowed a small band of renegades to build a massive empire were the military prowess and piety of Tughril and his followers, which attracted many Sunni followers. This rising tide was aimed towards the Shia people in Iran, and in particular the Fatimid Caliphate, but Tughril didn't fail to realize that in order to conquer Egypt, he would first need to defeat the decaying Eastern Roman Empire. As we showed previously, the Byzantines were barely holding on to the immense gains of Basil II, which included the newly formed theme of Iberia. Additionally, they had relatively friendly relations with the Fatimids, frequently sending gifts to each other, releasing prisoners, and administering the Church of the Holy Sepulcher since 1037. And so, in order to weaken the Romans, as well as secure the highly important grasslands of modern-day Azerbaijan, Tughril sent an invasion force in 1048, which was defeated, but followed up by a much larger one under the command of his half-brother Ibrahim-i-Nal in September of the same year. The Byzantine army was a shadow of its former self, with many of the best soldiers sent west to deal with a rebel army. The governor of the newly conquered Ani wanted to launch a preemptive strike before the Seljuks could raid the countryside, but the governor of Vespirikan, who also happened to be the son of the last Bulgarian Tsar, advised caution and to wait for the right moment. The commanders agreed to take the latter approach and to await reinforcements from the Georgian prince Leparid. The Seljuks raided the entire area between Trebizond and Taran, but the main army was focused on the district of Basia, attacking the market town of Arze, where the defenders were caught between a fire and the Turkish arrows. Thousands died or were enslaved as the town was ransacked and destroyed. As soon as the Georgian reinforcements arrived, the Byzantines formed up for battle at the plain near the fortress of Kapitron. Contemporary sources exaggerate the figures, and we have no clear number, but it was a massive battle in which the Seljuks had the numerical advantage. The Georgians formed the center, the governor of Vespirikan held the left, while the governor of Ani made up the right wing. The battle began in the evening and was mostly fought in the dark, with both Byzantine commanders defeating a disorganized Seljuk advance on the wings, but in the center, Ibrahim captured Leparid after his horse was shot with an arrow. He then withdrew to the east, while the Romans went back to their respective bases. This nocturnal battle was the first major engagement between these sides and ended up with mixed results. The Seljuks suffered in both men and reputation, but came back with many camels loaded with loot, and while the Byzantines repelled two invasions with very limited resources, the devastation on the region left a lasting impact on the economy. The Georgian leader was released after promising to never fight the Seljuks again, and an emissary was sent to Constantinople to demand tribute from the emperor. That request was denied, but Tughril was allowed to sponsor the restoration of the mosque in the capital. By 1050, one of the key Seljuk allies, the Khakiid Amir Faramuz, rebelled, but he was swiftly defeated by the nomads who captured Isfahan, bringing the entirety of Persia under their control. Seeing where the wind was blowing, the puppet Abbasid Caliph invited Tughril to Baghdad to replace the Shia Buyid dynasty, which was done in 1055, under the pretext of a pilgrimage to Mecca. Despite their accumulating power, the Seljuk Empire relied on the loyalty of the most powerful family members, as well as Persian bureaucrats, both of which were often fickle. Tughril's vizier, al-Kanduri, constantly conspired against the sultan in order to benefit his own cause, while Ibrahim, who felt like he was not getting enough credit for his raids, rebelled in 1058, but was unable to gather enough support and was strangled with a bowstring by his half-brother. Internally, the Seljuks were extremely divided and needed continuous military campaigns, so to feed this hunger, Tughril started sending annual raiding parties into Byzantium, starting with the sack of Melitini in 1058, while expanding into Armenia and the Levant. Both the Byzantines and the Fatimids were suffering from factionalism, the latter being ruled by al-Mustansir Billah, who reigned from 1036 until 1094, one of the longest reigning and inept Muslim rulers. During his reign, power shifted from his mother to his viziers, while another group of Turks harassed the populace, already suffering from one of the worst famines in Egyptian history. The coastal cities in the Levant were mostly autonomous and fell to the Seljuks in the 1060s in quick succession. In 1063, the Seljuk sultan died after appointing his nephew Suleiman as his legal heir. In reality, Suleiman's elder brother al-Paslan took up the mantle and marched on the capital of Rayy, while Tughril's cousin Qatelmish, who also wanted the throne, rushed from his base in Gerdke, reaching the city first. However, the vizier al-Kanduri declared his support for al-Paslan, which forced Qatelmish to besiege the city in November 1063. This delay proved critical, as it allowed for Arslan's army to arrive, forcing Qatelmish to lift the siege and engage his enemy, crushing the opponent's vanguard. Knowing that the remainder of the army was to the east, the pretender diverted the course of a creek to block their path, but eventually, al-Paslan made his way through the marshland and defeated his relative. In this flight, Qatelmish fell from a cliff, while his sons were taken as prisoners. Al-Paslan had big shoes to fill, so he immediately set out on a campaign against Armenia and Georgia, sacking the great city of Ani after a 25-day siege. It was at this time when the Eastern Roman Empire finally decided to focus on its eastern frontier under the leadership of the energetic Romanos IV, but the expert leadership of al-Paslan and nomadic tactics were no match for the slow-to-respond and divided empire. In 1071, after the Battle of Manzikert, Romanos was captured and then set free, which led to another civil war, while al-Paslan turned to the east. The following events are described differently by the various sources, but in the end this is the most likely sequence. After al-Paslan surrounded and captured the Karakhanid Bezem fortress, its commander was brought before the Sultan and was tied to a stake for execution. He complained that he didn't wish to die in such a disgraceful way, so al-Paslan ordered him to be untied and shot an arrow at him, missing his target for the first time in his life according to the sources. The man then rushed at the Sultan, who rose from his throne, but stumbled and fell. The desperate fortress owner grabbed his dagger and stabbed him several times before one of the servants killed him. Al-Paslan suffered from his injuries for four days before he died, and he was succeeded by his son Malik Shah. This led to another period of internal instability, during which the rival tribes fought each other and began raiding independently, while the four sons of Qatalmish managed to escape into Anatolia, led by the eldest brother Suleiman, who used shrewd diplomacy and brilliant military tactics to eventually create the Sultanate of Rum after he allied the Byzantines, who handed him several key fortresses in western Anatolia. Malik Shah I began his reign by defeating his uncle Qavert. He then turned his attention to the Karakhanids and Ghaznavids, who tried to capitalize on al-Paslan's death, but both were soundly defeated. In 1076, the leader of the unruly Nawakiyya Turkoman tribe captured Damascus and most of southern Syria, before being defeated at Cairo and appealing to Malik Shah I. His brother Tutush was sent to Damascus to relieve the Fatimid siege, which he did, before entering the city, killing the Nawakiyya leader, and establishing a base from which he conquered Sidon, Gibelka, Tiberias, Ramla, Jaffa, and most importantly, Jerusalem. Malik Shah I reigned during the peak of the Seljuk Empire, alongside his incredibly skilled vizier Nizam al-Mulk, whose policies during the rule of both al-Paslan and his brother brought stability and prosperity to the state. Many schools and observatories were founded, acting as predecessors to the universities later created in Europe, acting as centres of learning and art. Caravanserai were built on many important roads to support trade links, where food and accommodation was provided by the state. Taxation, administration, and justice were centralized and executed by the most talented bureaucrats. After his death in a hunting expedition in 1092, the Seljuk Empire broke apart, similarly to how the Mongol Empire fragmented, with his four sons and numerous other tribes and local governors carving up a piece for themselves. Tutush and Suleiman clashed in their desire to control Aleppo, both proclaiming themselves Sultan. At this point our story syncs up and we can turn back to Alexios Komnenos, who just managed to solve the Norman crisis and now prepared a major expedition against nomadic Pechenegs and the local cities on the bank of the Danube river who supported them. This divide existed for over a decade, but what escalated the situation was Alexios' harsh treatment of the Polikian community in Philippopolis after they refused to aid him in his Norman campaigns. The two rebel groups and the Pechenegs allied and invaded Thrace in 1087, going as far as the suburbs of Constantinople. Rather than chasing nomads up and down, Alexios conceived a much grander plan. Within 40 days, Alexios and his key generals gathered a large army which would make its way north, while a massive fleet shadowed its movement before entering the mouth of the Danube. At the war council, one of the key generals, Nikephoros Phryenios, a blind former rival, had this to say about the plan. Sir, if you cross the Hamas mountains, you will appreciate the fastest horses. When another council member asked him to elaborate, he simply added, for the flight. Despite the warning and centuries of experience fighting the Bulgarians in the region, Alexios marched on directly at the city of Dresda in order to cut off the Pechenegs from the supplies they needed to survive. Envoys were sent to discuss peace terms, but Alexios bet too much on this campaign to walk home with a simple treaty, so he arrested them. The now enraged nomads employed hit-and-run tactics on the Byzantine forages and the army camp. Still, Alexios managed to reach the trade city and take it, with the exception of its two citadels, the defenders of which held out. Not wanting to be caught in between a siege and a nomadic army, Alexios ordered a withdrawal and sought out the Pechenegs in open combat, as he was well aware that he could not sustain his army for long. It didn't take long before the horse riders were spotted and Alexios manned the center while the wings were commanded by his brother Adrianos and Nikephoros Melusinos. Alexios ordered his infantry to hold their formation under any circumstances, while the Pechenegs formed up with their wagons forming a circle behind them. The two sides clashed and fought for an extended amount of time, with the nomads constantly evading the Romans as they fired arrows from horseback, both suffering heavy casualties until another group appeared on the horizon, forcing the imperial army to flee. The son of Romanos died in combat, while Alexios himself was struck by a spear in the buttocks. In their rout, the Byzantines had to abandon the Shroud of the Virgin Mary by hiding it in some bushes after it was brought on campaign to boost the morale of the soldiers. Broken, scattered and chased down by the nomads, many soldiers were lost in the woods for weeks before finding their way back home. However, shortly after the battle, another nomadic group, the Cumans, who were called upon by the Pechenegs to aid them, arrived after the battle was done. Regardless, they demanded their share of the plunder, while the Pechenegs argued that the spoils should go to the many injured warriors. The argument spiralled out of control and the two sides clashed, with the Cumans winning over all of the spoils and chasing the Pechenegs down. In the next three years, Alexios changed his strategy, taking control over small bands of units defending against raids and tracking down nomads. In one instance, we are told of Alexios suspending wagons over the walls of a city and dropping them down on the unsuspecting raiders below, causing confusion. Balkan peasants were recruited as infantry, while Turkic and Latin riders were hired as mercenaries. Meanwhile, a new threat arose from Anatolia in the form of a renegade Seljuk pirate. Chaka, who was theoretically part of the Sultanate of Rum, built a fleet from his base in Smyrna in 1088 and began raiding and capturing Aegean islands, including Lesbos, Samos, Chios and Rhodes. He also reached out and coordinated his attacks with the two rebel governors of Crete and Cyprus who were unhappy with the taxing policies of Alexios. After hearing of the Battle of Drastar, Chaka also managed to send messages to the Pechenegs, convincing them to launch a new major offensive against Constantinople, while he distracted Alexios with his navy. As a response, Alexios reached out to the Cumans and won them over to his side by promising them all of the captives and loot from any battle against their now common enemy. In 1091, the Pechenegs raided Thrace again and the Romans met the Cumans at Livonian. The combined army assembled against the incoming Pechenegs and Alexios sent the imperial standard bearers to the Cuman side, which made up the right wing, ensuring that they would not betray him in the middle of the battle. On the left wing, Seljuk and Latin knights pursued the confused Pechenegs, who were sustaining heavy arrow fire and had nowhere to run, as their wagons were positioned behind them. The trap was set and now the imperial infantry pressed forward and began slaughtering the nomads who had also brought their wives and children. Alexios capitalized on this overwhelming victory, ordering servants to bring wineskins full of water to his troops, refreshing them and ensuring they finished the job. The carnage was so severe that it led to a saying referencing the date of the 29th of April 1091, all because of one day, the Siths never saw the month of May. In reality, a few managed to escape, while others were taken captive and settled near Thessaloniki to serve in the army, but either way, they will never play a significant role in history again. With that threat dealt with, Alexios now sent out John Ducas against Chaca and the rebels at the head of the imperial navy, a campaign which took years to complete and exhausted the treasury even further. At this point, everyone was anticipating the long overdue response to the Seljuks in Anatolia, but Serbs had rebelled in 1090 and required the Emperor's attention as they were raiding the countryside. Alexios announced that he would head west, surprising the aristocracy, which was desperate to reclaim their estates in the east. On the way towards Dyrrhachium, a conspiracy was hatched, and Nikephoros Ioannis, another son of Romanos IV, attempted to kill Alexios, but was caught. After being tortured, the co-conspirators were revealed, and to the Emperor's surprise, the list included the former Empress Maria, his brother-in-law, and his own brother Adrianos. Despite his policy of amnesty and success on multiple fronts, Alexios knew that he could not retake Anatolia on his own. That goal would only be achieved with the help of a foreign army of capable warriors motivated not by gold or titles, but something greater. The Seljuks and the Fatimids were weak, and now was the time for a diplomatic endeavour of epic proportions. Next time, we are going to examine the third and final side of this puzzle – the speech of Pope Urban II and the men who answered the call. Thanks to Established Titles for sponsoring this video. 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