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Sanjar

Type Figure Region Khorasan Time 1085–1157 Also known as Sultan Sanjar、Mu'izz al-Din Ahmad Sanjar、Sultan of Sultans

Sanjar (Ahmad Sanjar, 1085–1157), last great Seljuk sultan, defeated by Western Liao in 1141 and captured by Oghuz Turks late in life, leading to the…

Timeline

  1. 1085–1118Merv · Merv OasisSanjar was born in Sinjar, son of Seljuk sultan Malik-Shah. In 1097 his brother Barkiyaruq appointed him governor of Khorasan, establishing his rule at Merv. He repeatedly suppressed revolts among Central Asian tribes, consolidating the Seljuk Empire's eastern foundations; his prestige grew and he was called 'King of the East'.
  2. 1118–1141Merv · KhorasanAfter Sultan Muhammad I died in 1118, Sanjar became supreme sultan of the Great Seljuks, holding the empire's suzerainty, with his nephew Mahmud II and others nominally acknowledging his position. He actively patronized scholarship and religion, making Merv a major intellectual center of the Islamic world. After Mahmud II's death in 1131, the Iraqi sultans contested the throne and central authority weakened. At the Battle of Qatwan in 1141, Western Liao forces crushed the Seljuk coalition; Sanjar barely escaped with his life, and Khorasan suffered a severe blow.
  3. 1153–1157Khorasan · KhorasanIn 1153 the Oghuz Turks revolted and Sanjar was captured in battle, held nearly three years. After escaping in 1156 he returned to Merv and died the following year, buried in a magnificent mausoleum at Merv. After Sanjar's death the Seljuk Empire fully fragmented and the Sultanate of Khorasan existed in name only.

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