Mesud I

Type Figure Region Anatolia Time c. 1100–1156 Also known as Sultan of Rum Mesud I

Mesud I (c. 1100–1156) was an important ruler of the Sultanate of Rum, grandson of Süleyman ibn Qutulmish and son of Kılıç Arslan I.…

Timeline

c. 1100–1116Konya · Central AnatoliaMesud I was the son of Kılıç Arslan I and grandson of Süleyman ibn Qutulmish. After his father Kılıç Arslan I drowned in 1107, the throne first passed to his brother Şahinşah; Mesud I was at one point exiled during his power struggle with his brother, and ultimately recovered the sultanate around 1116 with the support of the Great Seljuk Empire. After the First Crusade the Sultanate of Rum lost Nicaea and was forced to move its capital to Konya (modern Iconium).
c. 1116–1156Konya · Central AnatoliaDuring his reign Mesud I restored the sultanate's authority centered on Konya, repeatedly defeating the campaigns of Byzantine emperor John II (in the 1130s), maintaining complex relations of war and peace with the Crusader states, and actively expanding eastward to consolidate the Sultanate of Rum's dominance in central Anatolia. His reign laid the foundation for his successor Kılıç Arslan II to further strengthen the sultanate.

The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol. 5: The Saljuq and Mongol Periods — J. A. Boyle (ed.) (1968)
The Seljuks of Anatolia: Their History and Culture according to Local Muslim Sources — Osman Turan (1971)