World History 8
Chapter 11 Section 3 “Turkish Empires Rise in Anatolia”
As you read about the rise and decline of the Turkish Empire in Anatolia, make notes on the chart to
describe the outcome of each action or situation.
1. In 945, Persian armies move into
Baghdad.
Ended power of the caliph (Islamic religious or
political leader); Caliph gives up political power
as ruler to the new Persian ruler
2. In the tenth century, large numbers of
Turks known as Seljuks migrate into the
Abbasid Empire.
Turks begin converting to Islam
Seljuks grow in number
3. The Seljuks march on the Byzantine
Empire.
By 1081, Seljuks occupy most of Anatolia, the
eastern part of the Byzantine Empire
Brings Turks closer to Constantinople than any
other group
4. The Seljuks choose a Persian city,
Isfahan, as their capital city.
Seljuks work to gain loyalty of conquered
Persians
Seljuks appoint Persians as gov’t officials,
including as vizier, prime minister, to Seljuk
sultan Malik Shah.
Turks greatly admire Persian learning
5. The Turks adopt Persian as the language
of culture and adopt features of the
Persian was of life.
Turks were illiterate and didn’t know much about
the religion they had adopted, Islam, so looked to
Persians for guidance
Rulers called shah, Persian word for king
Supported Persian artists and architects
Arabic disappears as language in Persia
6. Malik Shah, the last of the strong Seljuk
leaders, dies.
Malik Shah dies in 1092 with no capable shah to
replace him
Seljuk Empire quickly disintegrates into a loose
collection of minor kingdoms
At the same time, the west launches the
Crusades
7. The Seljuks fight back against the
Crusaders after a century of domination.
1099, Crusades capture Jerusalem, Turks, under
Saladin, recapture in 1187
Later popes call for more Crusades
8. Further Crusades occur, but each is
weaker than the last one.
Crusades pose little threat, but Mongols attack
Baghdad by 1258
Mongols kill tens of thousands of Turks
Mongols knew little about administering a
territory, so empire crumbled in a few generations
Ottoman Turks rose to build an empire lasting
into the 20th century