Political History of the Seljuk Turks

• Abbasid Breakup• Turkish Infiltration

Political History of the Seljuk Turks

• Abbasid Breakup• Turkish Infiltration• Seljuks– Sunni– Vs. Shiite Fatimids– Defeat Byz’s– Sultanate of Rum

Political History of the Seljuk Turks

• Abbasid Breakup• Turkish Infiltration• Seljuks– Sunni– Defeat Byz’s and Fatimids Manzikert (1071)

Political History of the Seljuk Turks

• Abbasid Breakup• Turkish Infiltration• Seljuks• Mongols

Rise of Ottomans• Osman and the Ghazis• Centralized State– The problem of Ghazis– Janissaries– Bureaucracy and Ghulams

Rise of Ottomans• Osman and the Ghazis• Centralized State• Expansion– Constantinople– Other Expansion

Rise of Ottomans• Osman and the Ghazis• Centralized State• Expansion• Legacy after 1500

Islamization in Asia Minor

• Successful takeover

Islamization in Asia Minor

• Successful takeover• Why Successful?– More Similar Religion– Demographic Balance– Destructive Conquest– Centralization of Byzantine State– Aggressive Conversion

Islamization in Asia Minor

• Successful takeover• Why Successful?• Fusion– Role of women: • “respect shown to women by the Turks, for they hold a

more dignified position than the men…The windows of the tent are open and her face is visible, for the Turkish women do not veil themselves.”

– Ecstatic Dancing

Islamization in Asia Minor

• Successful takeover• Why Successful?• Fusion– Language– Role of women– Ecstatic Dancing

Part of the mystical tradition of Islam has been a group of dancers known as the whirling dervishes who twirl around to music to induce an ecstatic state of mind and spirit.

Conclusion