Danishmend Gazi
Danishmend Gazi, full name Danişmend Gümüştegin Ahmed Ibn Ali Taylu et-Türkmanī (Persian: دانشمند احمد غازی), Danishmend Taylu, or Dānishmand Aḥmad Ghāzī (died 1104), was the founder of the beylik of Danishmends. After the Turkish advance into Anatolia that followed the Battle of Manzikert, his dynasty controlled the north-central regions in Anatolia.
| Danishmend Gazi | |
|---|---|
| Bey Emir Ghazi | |
 | |
| Reign | 1071/1075 – 1084 |
| Predecessor | Position established |
| Successor | Gazi Gümüshtigin |
| Died | 1084 Niksar, Danishmendids, now Turkey |
| Father | Ali Taylu et-Türkmanī |
Life
The defeat of the Byzantine army at the Battle of Manzikert allowed the Turks, including forces loyal to Danishmend Gazi, to occupy nearly all of Anatolia. Danishmend Gazi and his forces took as their lands central Anatolia, conquering the cities of Neocaesarea, Tokat, Sivas, and Euchaita.
On 1085, he conquered Cappadocia. He died the same year.[1]
He was succeeded by his son Gazi Gümüshtigin.[2]
Legend
Danishmend Gazi is the central figure in the Danishmendnâme ("Tale of Danishmend"), a 13th-century Turkish-language epic romance. In this allegory, events from the life of Danishmend Gazi are blended with the legendary exploits of the 8th-century Arab warrior Sayyid Battal Gazi and of the Persian hero of the early Abbasid period, Abu Muslim.
The legends that comprise Danishmendnâme were compiled from Turkish oral tradition for the first time by order of the Seljuk Sultan Kayqubad I, a century after Danishmend's death. The final form that reached our day is a compendium that was put together under the instructions of the early 15th century Ottoman sultan Murad II.
Name
There is also some confusion on his name and divergence among names used by scholars. He had the same name as his son, Gümüştekin. The father is often referred to shortly as Danishmend Gazi, while his son is called Gazi Gümüştekin. Furthermore, the Danishmend dynasty is also cited as having a family tie to the Seljuk dynasty. He was the maternal uncle to the Seljuk ruler Suleiman ibn Qutulmish.[4][5]
Notes
- Cawley, Charles, Medieval Lands Project: Turkish dynasties, Medieval Lands database, Foundation for Medieval Genealogy,
- "Traditional Tomb of Danishmend Melik Ahmed Gazi". Archnet. Archived from the original on 2007-04-05.
- Yazici 1993, pp. 654–655.
References
- (limited preview) Clifford Edmund Bosworth (2004). The New Islamic Dynasties: A Chronological and Genealogical Manual. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-2137-8.
- Irene Melikoff (1960): Danishmendname La Geste de Melik Danishmend, translation and introduction to a Turkish epic of the 13th century
| New title | Melik of the Danishmends 1071–1084 |
Succeeded by Gazi Gümüshtigin |