Seljuk Sultanate

AD: turned into a range to reflect more possibilities for Baghdad.
Nishapur ^[1]
110,000-220,000: 1000 CE (Bulliet)
50,000: 1000 CE (Bosworth)
Isfahan ^[1]
65,000-130,000: 11th century (Durand-Guedy)
Sultankala ("the main Seljuk urban area at Merv")
150,000 (Agadshanow)
Baghdad ^[1]
500,000-1,000,000: Late 11th century (Duri)

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 302) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

in squared kilometers.
"The Seljuk empire eventually embraced all of what is now Iran and extended to modern day Turkey and the Caucasus. But it was born in Central Asia, it was ruled at its zenith by a Central Asian, its last capital was in Central Asia, and it was there that it met its end." ^[1]
Within the context of declining influence of the caliphate, the Seljuks took control of Anatolia after defeating the Byzantine Empire. ^{[2] [3]}

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[2]: C. E. Bosworth, ’Turks, Seljuk and Ottoman’ in The Oxford Companion to Military History eds. Richard Holmes, Charles Singleton, and Dr Spencer Jones (2001)

[3]: Ahmed H. al-Rahim, ’Seljuk Turks’ in The Oxford Dictionary of the Middle Ages ed. Robert E. Bjork (2010)

West + East: 1100 CE in McEvedy and Jones (1978) ^[1]
Iraq 1.75m
Caucasus 0.6m
Iran 5m
Afghanistan 2.25m
Russian Turkestan 2.5m

[1]: (McEvedy and Jones 1978) McEvedy, Colin. Jones, Richard. 1978. Atlas of World Population History. Penguin Books Ltd.

levels.
"Satellite towns and villages like those that surrounded Merv were to be found at all the other metropolitan centers." ^[1]
1. Capital
2. Metropolitan centrethe decentralized nature of Seljuq rule meant that many cities and urban life flourished, includings Hamadān, Nišāpur (Nishapur), Ray, Shiraz, Yazd, Tabriz and Šervān. ^[2]
3. Town4. Villagee.g. the villages outside Isfahan ^[3]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[2]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

[3]: Golombek, Lisa. “Urban Patterns in Pre-Safavid Isfahan.” Iranian Studies 7, no. 1/2 (January 1, 1974): 20-24.

levels.
George Makdisi is a specialist on Seljuk religion.
It is important to bear in mind that “a new stratification of power emerged, in which legitimacy and prestige belonged to the Abbasid caliph, but political power belonged to sultans or other synonymously titled rulers who acquired power by conquest and claimed legitimacy from him.” ^[1] This was called the amir-a’yan system, with the “the caliph theoretically at the top, then the various sultans or other autonomous rulers supposedly acting as his agents, then the commander (amir) of their military forces, then the notables (a’yan) from the indigenous populace who mediated between conquerors and conquered, and lastly the populace.” ^[1] The caliph was not at the head of administration but did theoretically head the religious and military hierarchies.
Sultan Malik-Shah (r. 1073-92) introduced a new definition of caliphal authority and a separation of powers. From then on "the (Abbasid) caliph functioned as the religious head of Sunnism, while the (Seljuk) sultan, as its secular authority, enforced public order." ^[2]
1. Caliph
2. Sultan. The title ’sultan’, "carried with it the notion of defender of the faith". ^[3]
3. Jurists. The central concern of the madrasa was the study of law in this period. ^[4]
3. Imams

[1]: Findley, Carter V., The Turks in World History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005), P.69.

[2]: Ahmed H. al-Rahim, ’Seljuk Turks’ in The Oxford Dictionary of the Middle Ages Ed. Robert E. Bjork (2010)

[3]: Michael Brett, ‘State Formation and Organisation’, in Maribel Fierro (ed.), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 2: The Western Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), 562.

[4]: Muhammad Qasim Zaman, ‘Transmitters of Authority and Ideas across Cultural Boundaries, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries’, in David O. Morgan and Anthony Reid (eds), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 3. The Eastern Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), 582-610.

levels.
1. Caliph.
Malik-Shah waited for "for news for the caliphs endorsement" before attacking the Karakhanids and Ghaznavids. ^[1]
2. Sultan. Examples of sultans deferring to Caliph’s authority, but they appointed the amirs.3. Commander (amir) of military forces.“It was said to have been divided into twenty-four military zones, each under a regional commander. These commanders had to raise, train and equip a specified number of troops every year, who would muster at a pre-arranged spot to spend the summer either training or on campaign.” ^[2]
4. Tribal leaders- they continued to owe allegiances to the sultan in times of war and provided troops.
5. Professional soldiers- "these professionals comprised heavily armed and armoured cavalrymen and infantrymen with swords and spears. For them a system of land grants grew up, on whose revenues the warriors, their mounts and weapons could be supported." ^[3]
6. Soldiers- the ordinary mamluk soldiers equipped by those holding land grants. ^[4]
"The armies of the first Seljuks bore little relation to the famed Turkish military of the classical Abbasid era." ^[5] “It was said to have been divided into twenty-four military zones, each under a regional commander. These commanders had to raise, train and equip a specified number of troops every year, who would muster at a pre-arranged spot to spend the summer either training or on campaign.” ^[2] "There was a cursus honorum through which the mamluks rose, lasting seven years. A freshly recruited mamluk would start at the rank of foot-groom, and could rise by the age of thirty-five to become a fully-fledged amir." ^[6]
Three armies: Turkmen, mamluks (standing army), and the sultan’s personal guard. ^[7] Mamluk forces did not have the same "ecological limitations" as the nomadic Turkmen. ^[8]

[1]: Başan, Aziz. The Great Seljuqs: A History. Routledge Studies in the History of Iran and Turkey. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2010, p.30.

[2]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.220.

[3]: Holmes, Richard, ed., ‘Turks, Seljuk and Ottoman’, The Oxford companion to military history (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004)

[4]: ‘Turks, Seljuk and Ottoman’, Holmes, Richard, ed., The Oxford companion to military history (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).

[5]: (Peacock 2015, 217) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[6]: (Peacock 2015, 226) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[7]: (Peacock 2015, 218) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[8]: (Peacock 2015, 225) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

levels.
--- 1037-1045 CE
"Beyond a few cities which served as Seljuk bases, such as Rayy and Hamadhan, Tughril made little effort to assert direct rule. For many city dwellers, little changed immediately, and not just the descendants of Seljuk but also local princes continued fighting among each other, sometimes recruiting aid from various Turks, ranging from Tughril himself to Ibrahim Yinal to the ’Iraqiyya." ^[1] "for most of Seljuk history there was no one central bureaucracy. Multiple Seljuk courts required multiple bureaucracies, and multiple viziers. Indeed, the whole system of administration was characterised by its extreme fluidity and decentralisation." ^[2] "As well as overseeing the functioning of other departments, the vizier and the diwan-i a’la were tasked with making appointments in the name of the sultan to offices which were in his gift, such as the positions of qadi, muhtasib and shihna." ^[3]
--- 1045-1118 CE
1. Caliph de jure
"The Seljuq leader, Alp Arslan (1063-1072), behaved with more courtesy toward the caliph and provided him with greater financial and political leniency, but it was clear that the latter figure was still mainly a de jure ruler. Real power remained in the hands of Alp Arslan, who was granted the title of sultan, which up to that time had generally meant ’rule’ or ’authority’ but henceforth could be understood to mean the de facto ruler, ostensibly appointed by the caliph to rule in his name." ^[4]
1. Sultan de facto
The sultan was the head of secular power ^[5] his court, the dargah ^{[6] [7]} 2. nadims (boon companions)according to Nizam al-Mulk "everything connected with pleasure and entertainment, parties of drinking and companionship, hunting, polo and gambling." However, Peacock (2015) reports he says that "nadims should not be consulted on matters of high politics - a stricture which suggests that in fact they frequently were." ^[8]
2. hajib (chamberlain)
2. wakildar (messenger)
2. Treasury
2. wakil (steward)3. Kitchen
3. sharabkhana (winehouse)
3. Stables
3. Palaces of the elites (khass)4.5. Slaves and servantsAccording to Nizam al-Mulk’s Book of Government "Slaves and servants should stand at attention while on duty." ^[9]
_Central government_ (nb: Anne Lambton is a specialist on Seljuk administration).
"for most of Seljuk history there was no one central bureaucracy. Multiple Seljuk courts required multiple bureaucracies, and multiple viziers. Indeed, the whole system of administration was characterised by its extreme fluidity and decentralisation." ^[2]
2. vizier of the diwan-i a’la (main government department with overall responsibility) ^[10] "As well as overseeing the functioning of other departments, the vizier and the diwan-i a’la were tasked with making appointments in the name of the sultan to offices which were in his gift, such as the positions of qadi, muhtasib and shihna." ^[3]
3. mustawfi of the diwan-i istifa (revenue)
4. sub-head in divan for taxation?
5?. ra’is (central government representative located in the regions)The ra’is "was essentially the link between the government and the taxpayers ... cases involving taxation were referred to his dīvān." ^[11]
4. Clerks
3. mushrif of the diwan-i ishraf (accountancy) ^[12]
3. tughra’i or munshi of the diwan-i tughra wa insha (chancery) ^[12]
3. diwan-i ’ard (military pay) ^[12]
3. diwan-i awqaf (religious endowments) ^[12]
3. diwan-i istifa headed by the mustawfidepartment for revenue
_Provinces_
"in the provinces an incredible variety of individuals were vested with authority in the name of the sultan(s)." ^[2] "the east ... has connotations of seniority in Turkic culture: with both the Gok turks and the Qarakhanids, the rulers of the eastern divisions of the empire, considering it to be superior." ^[13]
2. malik (prince) and atabeg (supervisor). wali (governor). amir.Seljuk princes assigned to provinces as iqta as nominal governor (maliks). Atabegs usually an amir. They looked after the princes. ^[14] "de facto independent atabegates" ^[15] amir: "(1) a military commander; (2) a prince, a ruler’s title; (3) a Turkmen chief (in this sense equivalent to beg)" ^[16]
3. Vizier"The bureaucracy of each court was probably quite small. ... Most probably, each department probably consisted of little more than its head - the vizier, mustawfi, tughrai and so on - and a handful of clerks." ^[17]
4. diwan-i iyalat (or diwan-i wilayat or diwan-i riyasat)department in the provinces concerned with taxation. ^[3]
5. Clerks
2. (provincal) 5. (central) ra’is"the head of the community known as the ra’is might be charged with functions ranging from the collection of taxes to cooperating with the shihna in the maintenance of security." ^[18] 4?. Prefects of police ^[9] 5.
2. Amir/muqta (Iqta holder)"Some provinces, like Ganja, were assigned to maliks and their atabegs, while others, towns like Mosul, were allotted as iqta to an ever-changing succession of amirs." ^[2]
"... in lieu of salary an amir would be granted the right to collect the taxes of a given area. An iqta could thus vary in size from a whole province to much smaller subdivision, to a single town or village. ... The system was greatly expanded under the Seljuks, and itqa’s were now used to pay senior bureaucrats as well as amirs and were also granted to members of the Seljuk dynasty. However, iqta holders became much more than tax collectors, and often functioned effectively as the local ruler (particularly amirs: bureaucrats seem to have become less entrenched in their iqta’s, perhaps because their duties required their presence at court)." ^[19]

2. Ulama"Some cities, such as Bayhaq, Nishapur and Bukhara, were controlled by religious elites - Bukhara, for instance, was subject to a dynasty of Hanafi ’ulama who bore the title of sadr (themselves, of course, subject to the Seljuks’ Qarakhanid vassals." ^[20]

2. Shihna"Baghdad had several types of overlapping administration: most prominent were the sultan’s shihna, and the caliphal diwan" ^[18]
_Vassals_
2. Vassal ruler"Vassals could often rule their territories in their traditional ways provided they recognised the Seljuk sultans’ suzerainty, remitted tribute and performed obligations of military service." ^[21]
"Other branches of the Seljuk family also controlled territories on the peripheries of the empire": "Kirman in southern Iran (and Oman too)" between 1048-1186 CE, Seljuks of Syria 1076-1117 CE, and the Anatolian Seljuks 1081-1308 CE. ^[22]
"Bedouin Arab chiefs in Iraq": Mazyadids and ’Uqaylids. ^[21]
"Bawandids on the Caspian coast" ^[21]
Ismaili state in Quhistan did not recognise Seljuk suzerainty ^[21]
--- 1118-1157 CE
1118 CE: "Seljuk sultans of Iraq recognised the suzerainty of the Great Seljuk ruler Sanjar, based in Khurasan, who was known by the title of al-sultan al- a’zam, ’the Greatest Sultan’. The sultans of Iraq are sometimes referred to as the ’Lesser Seljuks’. ^[22]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 46-47) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 189) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[3]: (Peacock 2015, 193) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[4]: (Amitai 2006, 51) Amitai, Reuven. The Mamluk Institution, or One Thousand Years of Military Slavery in the Islamic World. Brown, Christopher Leslie. Morgan, Philip D. eds. 2006. Arming Slaves: From Classical To The Modern Age. Yale University Press. New Haven.

[5]: Findley, Carter V., The Turks in World History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005), P.69.

[6]: (Peacock 2015, 12

[7]: 159) Peacock, A C S. 2015. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[8]: (Peacock 2015, 159) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[9]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[10]: (Peacock 2015, 333) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[11]: (Lambton 2011) Lambton, Ann K S. 2011. CITIES iii. Administration and Social Organization. Encyclopedia Iranica. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/cities-iii

[12]: (Peacock 2015, 333-335) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[13]: (Peacock 2015, 41) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[14]: (Peacock 2015, 93-94) Peacock, A C S. 2015. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[15]: (Peacock 2015, 75) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[16]: (Peacock 2015, 332) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[17]: (Peacock 2015, 194-195) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[18]: (Peacock 2015, 190) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[19]: (Peacock 2015, 79-80) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[20]: (Peacock 2015, 189-190) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[21]: (Peacock 2015, 8) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[22]: (Peacock 2015, 7) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

Mid-11th century (after conquest of Baghdad?) "the Turkmen began to be supplemented, but never wholly supplanted, as a military force by mamluks." ^[1]
According to ’Imad al-Din al-Isfahani: "The custom was that taxes were collected from the land and spent on the army; previously no one had held a land-grant [iqta]. Nizam al-Mulk realised that taxes were no being collected from the land owing to its poor condition, nor was revenue being realised for the same reason. He distributed land grants [iqta’s] to the soldiers and made them a source of income and revenue for them." However, al-Isfahani was wrong in saying that Nizam al-Mulk was the first to introduce the Iqta as they were used during the Buyid period. ^[2]
"Under the Seljuqs there were large and small iqtas that were granted to members of the dynasty, to various members of the military and official class and to ordinary soldiers." ^[3]
The first armies "were not ’professional armies’ in the sense of the Abbasid or Samanid mamluk corps, but warfare was a way of life for most adult male Turkmen; only women and children were exempted from fighting." ^[1]
Mamluks were "a standing army paid both in cash and by iqta’s" ^[1]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 218) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 69-70) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[3]: (Davidovich 1997, 144) Davidovich, E A. in Asimov, M S and Bosworth, C E eds. 1997. History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Volume IV. Part I. UNESCO.

Mid-11th century (after conquest of Baghdad?) "the Turkmen began to be supplemented, but never wholly supplanted, as a military force by mamluks." ^[1]
According to ’Imad al-Din al-Isfahani: "The custom was that taxes were collected from the land and spent on the army; previously no one had held a land-grant [iqta]. Nizam al-Mulk realised that taxes were no being collected from the land owing to its poor condition, nor was revenue being realised for the same reason. He distributed land grants [iqta’s] to the soldiers and made them a source of income and revenue for them." However, al-Isfahani was wrong in saying that Nizam al-Mulk was the first to introduce the Iqta as they were used during the Buyid period. ^[2]
"Under the Seljuqs there were large and small iqtas that were granted to members of the dynasty, to various members of the military and official class and to ordinary soldiers." ^[3]
The first armies "were not ’professional armies’ in the sense of the Abbasid or Samanid mamluk corps, but warfare was a way of life for most adult male Turkmen; only women and children were exempted from fighting." ^[1]
Mamluks were "a standing army paid both in cash and by iqta’s" ^[1]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 218) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 69-70) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[3]: (Davidovich 1997, 144) Davidovich, E A. in Asimov, M S and Bosworth, C E eds. 1997. History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Volume IV. Part I. UNESCO.

Imans in the mosques.

Mid-11th century (after conquest of Baghdad?) "the Turkmen began to be supplemented, but never wholly supplanted, as a military force by mamluks." ^[1]
The Saljuqs adopted the system of distributing land grants to pay for the army. Iqtas (land tax allotments) were given to military commanders in exchange for military service. They were also given to higher functionaries. ^{[2] [3]}
There were full time officers within the Sultan’s retinue and military commanders; there were full time soldiers in the mamluk contingent of slave soldiers. ^[4]
Iqta holder, who was a military officer, "was to support himself and his household, including his own retinue of troops, which meant their purchase, training, and upkeep. Unlike fuedalism this system did not usually entail administration of the territory in question." ^[5]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 218) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: (Lapidus 2012, 250)

[3]: Findley, Carter V., The Turks in World History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005 pp.70-72.

[4]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.220.

[5]: (Amitai 2006, 52-53) Amitai, Reuven. The Mamluk Institution, or One Thousand Years of Military Slavery in the Islamic World. Brown, Christopher Leslie. Morgan, Philip D. eds. 2006. Arming Slaves: From Classical To The Modern Age. Yale University Press. New Haven.

Mid-11th century (after conquest of Baghdad?) "the Turkmen began to be supplemented, but never wholly supplanted, as a military force by mamluks." ^[1]
The Saljuqs adopted the system of distributing land grants to pay for the army. Iqtas (land tax allotments) were given to military commanders in exchange for military service. They were also given to higher functionaries. ^{[2] [3]}
There were full time officers within the Sultan’s retinue and military commanders; there were full time soldiers in the mamluk contingent of slave soldiers. ^[4]
Iqta holder, who was a military officer, "was to support himself and his household, including his own retinue of troops, which meant their purchase, training, and upkeep. Unlike fuedalism this system did not usually entail administration of the territory in question." ^[5]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 218) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: (Lapidus 2012, 250)

[3]: Findley, Carter V., The Turks in World History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005 pp.70-72.

[4]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.220.

[5]: (Amitai 2006, 52-53) Amitai, Reuven. The Mamluk Institution, or One Thousand Years of Military Slavery in the Islamic World. Brown, Christopher Leslie. Morgan, Philip D. eds. 2006. Arming Slaves: From Classical To The Modern Age. Yale University Press. New Haven.

Mints coined gold dinars at Nishapur and Merv. ^[1]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

The Iqtas were granted by the sultan and later, many became hereditary. It was not a meritocratic system of appointments. ^[1]
According to Nizam al-Mulk "women must be strictly excluded from matters of state." ^[2]
According to Nizam al-Mulk "Today there are men, utterly incapable, who hold ten posts, and if another appointment were to turn up they would apply for it, giving bribes if necessary, and get it." ^[3]

[1]: Findley, Carter V., The Turks in World History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005 pp.70-72.

[2]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[3]: (Peacock 2015, 194) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

e.g secretary in royal household. ^[1]
The Sultans recruited Iranian bureaucrats. ^[2]
There were permanent officials in the royal household, for example. Higher officials were paid through the iqta system of land grants. Appointments were made by the sultan, although some of the iqtas became hereditary. ^{[3] [4]}

[1]: Başan, Aziz. The Great Seljuqs: A History. Routledge Studies in the History of Iran and Turkey. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2010. p.169.

[2]: Findley, Carter V., The Turks in World History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005)p.70.

[3]: Başan, Aziz. The Great Seljuqs: A History. Routledge Studies in the History of Iran and Turkey. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2010. p.169

[4]: Findley, Carter V., The Turks in World History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005 pp.70-72.

The Iqtas were granted by the sultan and later, many became hereditary. It was not a meritocratic system of appointments. ^[1]

[1]: Findley, Carter V., The Turks in World History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005 pp.70-72.

Highly literate and scholarly society.
"While the Seljuks themselves belonged to the Hanafi school of law, they, through their famous vizier Nizam al-Mulk, established a wide network of madrasahs (colleges) and mosques which promoted Sunnism, mainly in the form of the Shafii school of law and Asharite theology." ^[1]

[1]: Ahmed H. al-Rahim in ’Seljuk Turks’ in The Oxford Dictionary of the Middle Ages Ed. Robert E. Bjork (2010)

"the ulama were a third pillar of Seljuk administration, providing qadis, whose appointments were ratified by the sultan." ^[1]
a faqih was a jurist "one who specialises in fiqh" (Islamic jurisprudence). ^[2]
The "mazalim court" was a "potent symbol of sovereignty. Seljuk sultans sat in mazalim in person and conferred decision-making powers on subordinates. Qadis and viziers also consulted with the mazalim court and sometimes presided over it in the sultan’s name. Governors and military officers, besides holding their own courts, also enforced the judgements of the shariah courts, fulfilling their responsibility to preserve order, punish criminals, and keep the roads safe." ^[3]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 191) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 333) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[3]: (Darling 2013, 96) Darling, Linda T. 2013. A History of Social Justice and Political Power in the Middle East: The Circle of Justice from Mesopotamia to Globalization. Routledge.

Sharia law.
Differences between Islamic and royal justice, influenced by steppe custom, needed to be reconciled. ^[1]

[1]: (Darling 2013, 96) Darling, Linda T. 2013. A History of Social Justice and Political Power in the Middle East: The Circle of Justice from Mesopotamia to Globalization. Routledge.

Sharia courts. Mazalim court. Courts of governors and military officers.
The "mazalim court" was a "potent symbol of sovereignty. Seljuk sultans sat in mazalim in person and conferred decision-making powers on subordinates. Qadis and viziers also consulted with the mazalim court and sometimes presided over it in the sultan’s name. Governors and military officers, besides holding their own courts, also enforced the judgements of the shariah courts, fulfilling their responsibility to preserve order, punish criminals, and keep the roads safe." ^[1]

[1]: (Darling 2013, 96) Darling, Linda T. 2013. A History of Social Justice and Political Power in the Middle East: The Circle of Justice from Mesopotamia to Globalization. Routledge.

muhtasib: "market inspector; city official responsible for upholding public morals" ^[1] Toghrïl Beg “built a new quarter at Baghdad … which included ... bazaars”. ^[2] Seljuks built markets. ^[3] General reference for Seljuk? - Safavid? time period: "The bāzār was usually, though not always, divided into a number of sūqs (markets) in which different crafts and occupations had separate quarters. At night, after members of the crafts and shopkeepers had shut their premises and retired to their homes, the gates of the bāzārs were locked and barred." ^[4] Grand Bazaar of Isfahan first built in the Seljuk period.

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 335) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: Lambton, A.K.S., ‘The Internal Structure of the Saljuq Empire’, in The Cambridge History of Iran. Vol 5, The Saljuq and Mongol Period, ed. by J.A. Boyle (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1968),p.223.

[3]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[4]: (Lambton 2011) Lambton, Ann K S. 2011. CITIES iii. Administration and Social Organization. Encyclopedia Iranica. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/cities-iii

Present in Central Asia from about 800 BCE - 1200 CE: "the major Central Asian hydraulic systems appear to have been maintained with few serious interruptions for over two millenniums, extending down to the Mongol invasion in the thirteenth century." ^[1] Nishapur: "The agricultural basis of the region was the qanat system of irrigation through underground canals." ^[2] Merv (for which the cotton industry was "essential to the town’s prosperity"): "The city’s survival relied on a complex irrigation system, both to bring water of the Murghab River to the city and to allow cultivation of the surrounding oasis. In the tenth century, the only mediaeval period for which we have information, maintenance of the irrigation works required a workforce of 10,000 men." ^[2] Merv (for which the cotton industry was "essential to the town’s prosperity"): "The city’s survival relied on a complex irrigation system, both to bring water of the Murghab River to the city and to allow cultivation of the surrounding oasis. In the tenth century, the only mediaeval period for which we have information, maintenance of the irrigation works required a workforce of 10,000 men." ^[2] "rulers and elites financed dams, canals, and irrigation works". ^[3]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[2]: (Peacock 2015) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press.

[3]: (Darling 2013, 95) Darling, Linda T. 2013. A History of Social Justice and Political Power in the Middle East: The Circle of Justice from Mesopotamia to Globalization. Routledge.

General reference for Seljuk? - Safavid? time period: "Caravansaries, where goods were unloaded on arrival and where merchants could take rooms, were to be found both in or close to the bāzārs and on the outskirts of the city." ^[1]

[1]: (Lambton 2011) Lambton, Ann K S. 2011. CITIES iii. Administration and Social Organization. Encyclopedia Iranica. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/cities-iii

Seljuks built aqueducts. ^[1] There were cisterns beneath caravanserai. ^[1] Mountain top castles "created problems of water supply, which was solved through complex systems of canals and reservoirs." ^[2]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 242-243) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

"historic road networks that were traversed by scholars, pilgrims and merchants." ^[1]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 6) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

Seljuk Empire was involved in trade.

inferred that they maintained existing canal networks. "rulers and elites financed dams, canals, and irrigation works". ^[1]

[1]: (Darling 2013, 95) Darling, Linda T. 2013. A History of Social Justice and Political Power in the Middle East: The Circle of Justice from Mesopotamia to Globalization. Routledge.

Malan bridge near Herat. ^[1] Pul-e Malan, near Herat, is a 22-arched bridge constructed by Seljuks 12th CE. ^[2] "Nizam al-Mulk was particularly concerned with the construction and maintenance of trade routes, caravanserais, and bridges". ^[3]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[2]: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/afghanistan/herat/attractions/pul-e-malan/a/poi-sig/451141/355747

[3]: (Lindsay 2005, 20) Lindsay, James E. 2005. Daily Life in The Medieval Islamic World. Hackett Publishing Company, Inc. Indianapolis.

The administration produced written documents and correspondence, in Persian. ^[1]

[1]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

e.g. Persian, the language of administration and court letter writing. ^[1]

[1]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

The administration produced written documents and correspondence, in Persian. ^[1]

[1]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

Farid al-Din Attar (1145-1221 CE): "Pharmacist and Sufi poet from Nishapur." ^[1] Zayn al-Din Jurjani (1040-1136 CE): "Author in Gurganj of a massive compendium of medical knowledge, the Khwarazm Shah’s Treasure, which focused on the needs of the practicing doctor." ^[1] Omar Khayyam (1048-1131 CE): Mathematician, astronomer, philosopher, engineer, and poet from Nishapur" ^[1] Abu al-Rahman al-Khazini (d. c.1130 CE): "Astronomer and polymath whose Book of the Balance of Wisdom, written in Merv, has been called ’the most comprehensive work on [weighing] in the Middle Ages, from any cultural area.’" ^[1] e.g. The Aḡrāż al-ṭebb, "one of the first medical treatises in Persian literature" ^[2] Science and mathematics genius Omar Khayyam (1048-1131 CE) who was also a poet. ^[1]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[2]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

The Qu’ran.

Abu Hamid Muhammad al-Ghazali (1058-1111 CE): A Sufist who "integrated his views on faith into the mainstream of Islam, eventually influencing Christianity as well." ^[1] Ḥasan Ghaznavi wrote theology in Arabic and Persian. ^[2] " Nasir Khusraw (1004-1088) epitomized the challenge that the Ismailis presented to Sunni orthodoxy in the Seljuk period." ^{[1] [1]}

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[2]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

In the 11th century and after "the genre of writing treatises on statecraft in Persian develops, such treatises usually containing advice on the organizing of armies and on the art of war." ^[1] the Siār al-moluk or Siyāsat-nāma, a treatise on statecraft ^[2]

[1]: (Bosworth 2011) Bosworth, C E. 2011. ARMY ii. Islamic, to the Mongol period. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/army-ii

[2]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

Nizam al-Mulk wrote Siyasatnama (Book of Government). In tradition of the "Mirrors for princes" ^[1] writings of Persian authors giving advice to kings. Mirrors for Princes "do not venture upon systematic treatment of the problems of government and of state and society. Such treatment was indeed attempted by Abu Yusuf (d. 182/798), Mawardi, and other lawyers, whose approach is strictly rational within the limits of their doctrinal postulates, and by Farabi (d. 339/950) and subsequent philosophers, who attempted to reconcile Platonic theories with Islamic concepts. Authors of ’Mirrors’, however, keep clear of both constitutional law and political theory, and simply take for granted the existence of an Islamic state in whatever form they themselves knew it." ^[2] Abu Hamid Muhammad al-Ghazali (1058-1111 CE): "Theologian and philosopher from Tus in what is now Iranian Khurasan, and author of The Incoherence of the Philosophers, which threw down the gauntlet to rationalism." ^[3] Ḥasan Ghaznavi wrote philosophy in Arabic and Persian. ^[4] Nizam al-Mulk (1018-1092 CE) (or Abu Ali al-Hasan ibn Ali) a "powerful Seljuk vizier from Tus who railed against the Ismailis in his Book of Government" ^[3] Ghazali (1058-1111 CE). ^[3]

[1]: Bagley, F. R. C. trans. Huma’i, Jalal and Isaacs, H. D. eds. 1964. Ghazali’s Book of Counsel for Kings (Nasihat Al-Muluk). Oxford University Press. London.

[2]: (Bagley trans. 1964, xi) Bagley, F. R. C. trans. Huma’i, Jalal and Isaacs, H. D. eds. 1964. Ghazali’s Book of Counsel for Kings (Nasihat Al-Muluk). Oxford University Press. London.

[3]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[4]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

e.g. the Loḡat-e Fors , the first monolingual dictionary of Persian; manuals detailing the techniques of composing verse. ^[1] "Secretarial manuals describe the compilation of census and property registers that decided land rights and set just taxation levels." ^[2]

[1]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

[2]: (Darling 2013, 95) Darling, Linda T. 2013. A History of Social Justice and Political Power in the Middle East: The Circle of Justice from Mesopotamia to Globalization. Routledge.

There are many prose histories from this period. ^[1]

[1]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

Awhad al-Din Anvari (1126-1189 CE): "Poet and boon companion of Sultan Sanjar at Merv." ^[1] Ahmad Yasawi (1093-1166 CE): "Sufi mystic and poet from Isfijab, now Sayram, in southern Kazakhstan. His Turkic quatrains carried a message of private prayer and contemplation of God to large numbers of heretofore unconverted Turkic nomads." ^[1] There are many prose stories from this period. ^[2] The Saljuqs adopted the model of court patronage of their predecessors. "By so doing, they played a significant role in the diffusion of the Persian literary language and of the culture expressed by it, and this in turn led to a reappraisal and partial rejection of the dominance of Arabic as the lingua franca of educated society in the Middle East." ^[2] Omar Khayyam (1048-1131 CE) author of the Rubaiyat. ^[1]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[2]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v

"Biruni’s research on calendar systems, which he undertook in the early years of the eleventh century, took as its point of departure the Khwarazian calendar." ^[1] e.g. the solar calendar introduced by Sultan Malik Shah. ^[2]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[2]: E.S. Kennedy, ‘The Exact Sceinces in Iran under the Saljuqs and Mongols’, in J.A. Boyle (ed.), The Cambridge History of Iran. Vol 5, The Saljuq and Mongol Period (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1968), p.670.

Silver and gold. ^[1]

[1]: Cahen, Claude. The Formation of Turkey: The Seljukid Sultanate of Rūm: Eleventh to Fourteenth Century. Translated by P. M. Holt. A History of the Near East. Harlow, England: Longman, 2001, Pp.95-96.

Not mentioned in sources so far consulted.

"...individual areas used whatever type of coinage precedent, convenience and local circumstances dictated: Byzantine coins in Syria, Fatimid ones in Baghdad, the old Nishapuri dinar in Khurasan, and so on." ^[1] "The gold dinars issued at Nishapur, Merv, and other Central Asian mints became standard instruments of trade across Eurasia, staving off for a time the rising inflation that was later to be reflected in the issuance of degraded silver coinage." ^[2] Silver coins minted, "of a fineness superior to other Muslim coinages in the Levant". ^[3] “In the earliest period following the establishment of the Turks the only money was what the occupiers found, which must have been fairly abundant, being on the one hand accumulated by them as tribute or booty, or on the other hidden when possible by the indigenous people... “The first mintings appear only under the Danismendid Gumustekin Gazi and probably a little later under the Seljukid Sultan Masud I. Until the middle of the century at least they are solely of copper, that is to say, intended only for local trade. Silver was to appear under Kilic Arslan II, gold only in the thirteenth century.” ^[4]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 8) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

[3]: Meyers, Eric M., ed., ‘Anatolia in the Islamic Period’, The Oxford encyclopedia of archaeology in the Near East (New York: Oxford University Press, 1997)

[4]: Cahen, Claude. The Formation of Turkey: The Seljukid Sultanate of Rūm: Eleventh to Fourteenth Century. Translated by P. M. Holt. A History of the Near East. Harlow, England: Longman, 2001, p.97

"The Seljuks were not interested in enforcing conformity to the practices or ideals of an imperial centre. The empire did not even have a uniform currency ..." ^[1] e.g. coins acquired through booty and tribute. ^[2]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 8) Peacock, A C S. 2015. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: Cahen, Claude. The Formation of Turkey: The Seljukid Sultanate of Rūm: Eleventh to Fourteenth Century. Translated by P. M. Holt. A History of the Near East. Harlow, England: Longman, 2001, Pp.95-96.

Used in barter between merchants and nomads. ^[1]

[1]: Cahen, Claude. The Formation of Turkey: The Seljukid Sultanate of Rūm: Eleventh to Fourteenth Century. Translated by P. M. Holt. A History of the Near East. Harlow, England: Longman, 2001, Pp.95-96.

Inferred that postal stations were kept and used by chosen emissaries and it was just the bureaucracy behind it which involved an intelligence service that was abolished. "Despite Nizam al-Mulk’s urging, Alp Arslan was steadfast in rejecting the introduction of the barid. ... One reason may have been the Ghaznavid barid reports were encrypted (mu’amma), meaning that only a trained bureaucrat could interpret them. The Seljuks may not have wished to place such confidence in their kuttab." ^[1] Nizam al-Mulk mentions postal stations in his "Book of Government". "Little is known about the postal service in Persia under the Saljuqs, but Sultan Alp Arslan (455-65/465-1072) abolished at least the intelligence-gathering aspects of the courier service, preferring to rely on personally chosen emissaries". ^[2]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 200) Peacock, A C S. 2015. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[2]: (Floor 1990) Floor, Willem. 1990. ČĀPĀR. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/capar-or-capar-turk

a ’hamami’ was a "despatcher of carrier pigeons and letters from one town to another" in Iraq, Egypt and Syria: 9th, 10th 11th CE. ^[1] Expert input needed on whether this was accessible to private individuals

[1]: (Shatzmiller 1993, 140) Shatzmiller, Maya. 1994. Labour in the Medieval Islamic World. E. J. BRILL. Leiden.

A wakildar "brought messages between the sultan and the vizier." ^[1] a ’hamami’ was a "despatcher of carrier pigeons and letters from one town to another" in Iraq, Egypt and Syria: 9th, 10th 11th CE. ^[2]

[1]: (Peacock 2015) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press.

[2]: (Shatzmiller 1993, 140) Shatzmiller, Maya. 1994. Labour in the Medieval Islamic World. E. J. BRILL. Leiden.

Present for the walls at Isfahan. At Merv there was a mud-brick wall. ^[1]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 241) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

Cities were generally “enclosed by a fortified wall, within which there was frequently a citadel”. ^[1] "Castles tended to occupy the summits of mountains, with the citadel at the uppermost point, as is best exemplified by Ismaili castles, but can also be found in Seljuk fortifications like Shahdiz." ^[2]

[1]: Lambton, A.K.S., ‘The Internal Structure of the Saljuq Empire’, in The Cambridge History of Iran. Vol 5, The Saljuq and Mongol Period, ed. by J.A. Boyle (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1968), p.274.

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 242) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

Not developed until later in history.

In Syria?

"The Seljuks tended to use fortresses and citadels more as temporary bases in terms of emergency than as permanent bases, and were more likely to base their camps outside rather than at the heart of cities." ^[1]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 240) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

In Syria?

All descriptions are of a single wall with towers around the city, with a citadel at the centre in some cases. ^[1] "Some Seljuk towns were strongly defended. Isfahan had an impressive enceinte built by the Kakuyidsm, for Nasir-i Khusraw notes the strength of its walls and their battlements. ... However we should not assume that such solid stone work was the rule, for many fortifications were rather flimsy, designed only to deter casual raids and localised hostilities, not properly organised armies." ^[2]

[1]: Lambton, A.K.S., ‘The Internal Structure of the Saljuq Empire’, in The Cambridge History of Iran. Vol 5, The Saljuq and Mongol Period, ed. by J.A. Boyle (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1968), p.274.

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 241) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

All descriptions are of a single wall with towers around the city, with a citadel at the centre in some cases. ^[1] "Some Seljuk towns were strongly defended. Isfahan had an impressive enceinte built by the Kakuyidsm, for Nasir-i Khusraw notes the strength of its walls and their battlements. ... However we should not assume that such solid stone work was the rule, for many fortifications were rather flimsy, designed only to deter casual raids and localised hostilities, not properly organised armies." ^[2]

[1]: Lambton, A.K.S., ‘The Internal Structure of the Saljuq Empire’, in The Cambridge History of Iran. Vol 5, The Saljuq and Mongol Period, ed. by J.A. Boyle (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1968), p.274.

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 241) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

"archaeologists have discovered at Merv one of the first known furnaces for the production of crucible steel." ^[1]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.

Used for the chainmail. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.221.

"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." ^[1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

"A fragment of a wall painting depicting the use of a traction trebuchet at the siege of Penjikent (700-725) in modern Tajikistan. This unique painting is contemporary with Tang China, displaying how the traction trebuchet was used along the Silk Road." ^[1] First known use of the counter-weight trebuchet was in 1165 CE by the Byzantines at the siege of Zevgminon. ^[1]

[1]: (Turnball 2002) Turnball, S. 2002. Siege Weapons of the Far East (1): AD 612-1300. Osprey Publishing.

Used by archers. ^[1]

[1]: ‘Turks, Seljuk and Ottoman’, Holmes, Richard, ed., The Oxford companion to military history (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).

Ghulams or mamluks had javelins. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.221.

"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." ^[1] "In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." ^[1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

Used by mounted archers. Range of over 300m. ^[1]

[1]: Başan, Aziz. The Great Seljuqs: A History. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2010, p.161

Weapon of the Americas.

Ghulams or mamluks had maces. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.221.

Ghulams or mamluks had swords. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.221.

Saljuq art shows cavalryman equipped with ’short spear’. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.211.

"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." ^[1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

Saljuq art shows soldiers equipped with daggers. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.211.

Saljuq art shows soldiers equipped with axes. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.211.

Cavalry was important part of the Seljuk armies. ^[1] Like many armies in the Middle East mounted archers were central to the Seljuk forces. The tribal forces would have been lightly armoured and not highly organised. The introduction of ghulams or mamluks introduced better organised and better equipped soldiers (cavalry and infantry). They were heavily armoured, including horse-armour, and had lances, javelins, swords, bows, maces, lasso, hauberk [mail shirt] and helmets. ^[2] Citadels and walls around cities are known to have been built by the Seljuks. ^[3]

[1]: ‘Turks, Seljuk and Ottoman’, Holmes, Richard, ed., The Oxford companion to military history (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).

[2]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London: Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.221.

[3]: Lambton, A.K.S., ‘The Internal Structure of the Saljuq Empire’, in The Cambridge History of Iran. Vol 5, The Saljuq and Mongol Period, ed. by J.A. Boyle (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1968), p.274.

Certainly the Arabs of Sind, the Saffarids, and the later Buyids made almost no use of them at all." ^[1]

[1]: (Wink 1997, 102-103) Andre Wink. 1997. Al-Hind. The Making of the Indo-Islamic World. Volume II. The Slave Kings and the Islamic Conquest 11th-13th Centuries. BRILL. Leiden.

May have been used as pack animals as camels were present for postal duty during Buyid and Samanid times: "A network of camel stations was established under the Abbasids and continued under the Buyid and Samanid successor regimes." ^[1] "The camel was the favorite mount of the Turkish founders of the Seljuk..." ^[2]

[1]: (Irwin 2010, 152) Robert Irwin. 2010. Camel. Reaktion Books. London.

[2]: David Levinson. Karen Christensen. eds. 2002. Encyclopedia of modern Asia, Volume 1. Charles Scribner’s Sons. p.428

Their archers “wore little if any armor”. ^[1] "The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." ^[2] "... a fragment of a leather-covered circular wooden shield has survived, bearing a painting of a mounted warrior. This was found in the ruins of the castle of Mug, east of Samarkand, and with it were many documents dating the destruction of the place to the eighth century - when the Persian prince who held it rebelled against the local Arab ruler." ^[2]

[1]: Başan, Aziz. The Great Seljuqs: A History. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2010, p.161

[2]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

Shields. ^{[1] [2]} "Many of the early Persian miniatures, particularly those under Mongol influence of the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, seldom illustrate shields. When they do the shields would seem to be of stout hide - small, circular, and convex, with applied metal bosses." ^[2]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.221.

[2]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." ^[1] The picture of the Central Asian warrior appears to show scaled armour. The Sassanid Persians had scale armour. ^[2]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Farrokh 2012, 16) Farrokh, Kaveh. 2012. Sassanian Elite Cavalry AD 224-642. Osprey Publishing.

"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." ^[1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

Saljuq art shows soldiers wearing chain mail leg armour. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.212.

"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." ^[1] "... a fragment of a leather-covered circular wooden shield has survived, bearing a painting of a mounted warrior. This was found in the ruins of the castle of Mug, east of Samarkand, and with it were many documents dating the destruction of the place to the eighth century - when the Persian prince who held it rebelled against the local Arab ruler." ^[1] "Many of the early Persian miniatures, particularly those under Mongol influence of the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, seldom illustrate shields. When they do the shields would seem to be of stout hide - small, circular, and convex, with applied metal bosses." ^[1]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

Saljug art shows a lamellar cuirass [torso armour] worn over a mail shirt. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. p.214.

Saljuq art shows soldiers wearing dommed helmets, some with neck coverings.. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. pp.212, 215.

Saljuq art shows soldiers wearing mail shirts and mail leg armour. ^[1]

[1]: Nicolle, David. Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia. Rev. and updated ed. London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999. pp.211,214.

"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change." ^[1] The nomadic Turkman archer had the equipment of Turkic, rather than Persian, military culture. However, that the Sassanid cavarlyman wore breastplate ^[2] might suggest the Seljuk mamluk forces, which came from Islamic tradition, if not the Turkman forces themselves, may have worn breastplates.

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Mitterauer 2010, 106) Mitterauer, M. 2010. Why Europe?: The Medieval Origins of Its Special Path. University of Chicago Press.

In the Anatolian Seljuk state (a different polity) "the Seljuk state never possessed very large naval forces". ^[1] Could infer that this was also true for the Great Seljuk Empire.

[1]: (Köprülü and Leiser 1992, 62) Köprülü, Mehmet Fuat. Gary Leiser, Gary. 1992. The Origins of the Ottoman Empire. SUNY Press.

"Central Asia’s traders ... moved their goods by large, solidly built boats on the region’s three main rivers." ^[1]

[1]: (Starr 2013) Starr, S. Frederick. 2013. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. Princeton.