Melik Dânişmend Ahmed Gâzi'nin mahdûmu ve mülûk-i Dânişmendiye'nin beşincisi olup yeğeni Sunkur Hân'ın gâlibâ vefâtında ya'nî 529'da memleket-i Dânişmendiye hükümdârı olarak Amasya'da pederinin sarâyında ikâmet etmişdir. Kâdı'l-kudâtı Abdülmecîd el-Hirevî ve atabegi Hüsâmüddevle Hasan bin İltigin ve emîrü'l-ümerâsı Alâ'ü'd-devle Alî bin Râmîn bin Şettât-ı Rûmî olduğu³³⁹ terâcim-i ahvâl kitâblarından ve taharriyât-ı kaydiyyeden anlaşılmakdadır.
Ankara vâlîsi Güdül Bey ve Sivas vâlîsi Arslan Togmuş Bey bin [317] Suli Bey, Konya hükümdârı Sultân Mes'ûd'un enişteleri olup Nizâmeddîn Yağıbasan Gâzi dahi Canik ve havâlîsi emîri olarak Niksâr'da ikâmet etmekde idi. Bunlar Amasya hükümdârı Melik İzzeddîn Muhammed Hân'ın ahvâl ve etvârından pek de memnûn olmadıkları ibrâz etdikleri âsâr-ı fi'liyyeden anlaşılır.
Konya hükümdârı Sultân Mes'ûd Hân, memleket-i Dânişmendiye'yi istîlâ etmek hırsıyla pek ziyâde çalışıyor, eniştelerini elde ederek Niksâr emîri Yağıbasan'ı amcasının aleyhinde tahrîk ve Amasya hükûmetini tahsîle teşvîk ediyor, Arslan Togmuş ve Güdül Beyler de bu husûsa muvâfakat eyliyorlardı. Çünkü Melik Gâzi Muhammed Hân'ın vâlidesi câriye dendiği münâsebetle taht-ı hükûmete cülûsu Türkmenlik âdetine muhâlif bulunuyordu.
Türkmenler ana ve baba taraflarından asîl olanlara "İris, İric, Erkec" ve yalnız baba tarafından asîl bulunanlara "Paşat, Paşit" unvânını veriyorlar.³⁴⁰ Hükümdârı mutlakâ irislerden intihâb ediyorlardı. [318] Bu âdet-i kadîmeye binâ'en Melik Gâzi Muhammed Hân paşat ve Emîr Yağıbasan gâzî iris i'tibâr ediliyordu. Çünkü Yağıbasan Gâzi amcazâdesinin kızından mütevellid idi.
Sultân Mes'ûd'un maksadı, asâlet mes'elesi olmayıp belki Dânişmendîler'i yek-diğerine düşürecek bir fitne çıkarmak, ba'dehû memleket-i Dânişmendiye'yi istîlâ etmeğe bir yol bulmakdan ibâret olduğu mu'ahharan memleket-i Dânişmendiye'yi suhûletle istîlâ etmesinden anlaşılır. Lâkin Melik Muhammed Hân'ın hissiyât-ı İslâmiyyeyi tehyîc edecek mu'âmelât-ı cesâret yâhud mukarrebi bulunan Alâ'ü'd-devle Alî bin Râmîn'in Türkmen ümerâsını rencîde eyleyecek hâlâta cür'et etmiş olduğu Melik Muhammed Gâzi Bey'in meskûkâtından istidlâl olunur.
Çünkü Târîh Encümeni a'zâ-yı kirâmından müdekkik-i meşhûr Ahmed Tevfîk Beyefendi hazretlerinin inâyet buyurduğu meskûkât-ı İslâmiyye kataloğunda Dânişmendlüler Şu'besi şu hâdise-i târîhiyyeyi pek güzel tenvîr etmekdedir. Bu kataloğda mülûk-i Dânişmendiye'den Gâzi Ahmed, İsmâ'îl, İbrâhim, Sunkur Hânlar'ın ve Emîr Gümüştigin Gâzi'nin meskûkâtı bulunamadığı meşrûhdur. Dânişmendîler'den sikkesi elde bulunanlardan biri Melik Gâzi Muhammed Hân'dır.
Bunun sikkeleri tamâmiyle Rûmiyyü'l-ibâre olduğu gibi ba'zılarında tasvîr-i Mesîh bile vardır. Bu Rûmî ibârelerin tercümesi tasvîrsiz sikkelerde "Melik Gâzi bin Melik-i Mu'azzam Ahmed Gâzi" ve "Bütün Rûm [319] ve Anadolu Meliki Muhammed" ve tasvîr-i Mesîh bulunan sikkelerden Rûmî ibârelerin tercümesi de "Emîr-i Mu'azzam Emîr Gâzi" gösterilmekdedir. Hâlbuki halefi Yağıbasan Hân'ın sikkeleri açık nesh-i Arabî hattıyla muharrer olduğu hâlde ibârât-ı Rûmiyye yokdur.
Şu sikkelerden hâsıl olan fikir üzerine denilebilir ki Melik Gâzi Muhammed Hân'ın inân-ı idâresi aslen Rûm olan vâlidesi Gülnûş Bânû ile mukarrebi bulunan Alâ'ü'd-devle Alî bin Râmîn'in ellerinde olduğu cihetle Rûmluk nüfûzu ve ba'dehû kilise nüfûzu galebe ederek Melik Gâzi Muhammed Hân sikkelerinde tasvîr-i Mesîh'i tersîme kadar muvâfakat eylemiş olması, Türkmen beylerinin ve bütün müslimlerin i'tirâzâtını celb ederek bütün sülâlesinin felâketini ihzâr etmişdir. Vâlidesi ve mukarrebi yeni müslümân oldukları cihetle Rûmluk ve Hristiyânlık nüfûzundan birden bire tecerrüd edemezlerdi. Çünkü Rûmlar'dan ihtidâ edenlerin hissiyâtı bir karın geçmedikçe tamâmiyle müslim olmaz.
Hulâsa Sultân Mes'ûd'un teşvîki ve Türkmen ümerâsının tensîbi üzerine Niksâr emîri olan Yağıbasan Gâzi Amasya'ya gelip 535'de memleket-i Dânişmendiye hükümdârı olduğu gibi Amasya hükümdârı olan Melik Muhammed Gâzi Bey dahi Niksâr'a i'zâm olunduğu Târîh-i Âl-i Dânişmend'den müstefâd olur. Çünkü 535'de kadı-i bilâdu'r-Rûm olan Amasya kadısı Abdülmecîd el-Herevî Şâm'a rihlet edib orada bir müddet ikâmet etdiği tercemesi zeylinde Tabakâtü'l-Hanefiyye kitâblarında mestûrdur. [320]
In Modern English
Melik İzzeddîn Muhammed, son of Melik Dânişmend Ahmed Gâzi and fifth of the Danishmendid meliks, probably upon the death of his nephew Sunkur Han, that is, in 529 [1134-35], became ruler of the Danishmendid realm and resided in Amasya, in his father's palace. It is understood from biographical works and research in the records that his chief kadı was Abdülmecîd el-Hirevî, his atabeg Hüsâmüddevle Hasan ibn İltigin, and his emîrü'l-ümerâ (chief emir) Alâ'ü'd-devle Alî ibn Râmîn ibn Şettât-ı Rûmî.
Güdül Bey, governor of Ankara, and Arslan Togmuş Bey ibn Suli Bey, governor of Sivas, were brothers-in-law of Sultan Mes'ûd, ruler of Konya; Nizâmeddîn Yağıbasan Gâzi lived in Niksar as emir of Canik and its surroundings. That they were not at all pleased with the situation and course of Melik İzzeddîn Muhammed Han, ruler of Amasya, is understood from the conduct they showed.
Sultan Mes'ûd Han, ruler of Konya, was working hard out of ambition to seize the Danishmendid realm; he drew his brothers-in-law to his side and incited Yağıbasan, emir of Niksar, against his uncle, encouraging him to take the government of Amasya; Arslan Togmuş and Güdül Beys were agreeable to this. For since the mother of Melik Gâzi Muhammed Han was spoken of as a concubine, his being ruler was regarded as contrary to Turkmen custom.
The Turkmens give the title "İris, İric, Erkec" to those of noble descent on both the mother's and father's side, and the title "Paşat, Paşit" to those noble on the father's side alone. They always chose the ruler from among the irises. According to this old custom, Melik Gâzi Muhammed Han was regarded as a paşat, and Emir Yağıbasan Gâzi as an iris. For Yağıbasan Gâzi was born of the daughter of his cousin.
Sultan Mes'ûd's aim was not the question of noble descent; it was to stir up a strife that would set the Danishmendids against one another, and then to find a way to seize the Danishmendid realm. This is understood from his later easy seizure of the Danishmendid realm. However, that Melik Muhammed Han did bold things that would stir the feelings of Muslims, or that his relative Alâ'ü'd-devle Alî ibn Râmîn took up attitudes that would offend the Turkmen emirs, can be inferred from the coins of Melik Muhammed Gâzi Bey.
For in the catalogue of Islamic coins graciously provided by Ahmed Tevfik Beyefendi, a worthy member of the Tarih Encümeni and a renowned meticulous researcher, the "Dânişmendlüler Şubesi" (Danishmendid Section) illuminates this historical event very well. In this catalogue it is explained that no coins could be found of the Danishmendid meliks Gâzi Ahmed, Ismail, İbrahim and Sunkur Hans and of Emîr Gümüştigin Gâzi. One of the Danishmendids whose coins are at hand is Melik Gâzi Muhammed Han.
His coins are written entirely in Greek, and some even bear the image of Christ. The translation of these Greek inscriptions is given as "Melik Gâzi ibn the Great Melik Ahmed Gâzi" and "Muhammed, Melik of All Rum and Anatolia" on the coins without images, and as "the Great Emir, Emir Gâzi" on the coins bearing the image of Christ. Yet the coins of his successor Yağıbasan Han are written in clear naskh Arabic script and have no Greek inscription.
According to the conclusion drawn from these coins, one may say this: since the reins of government of Melik Gâzi Muhammed Han were in the hands of his mother Gülnûş Bânû, originally a Greek, and his relative Alâ'ü'd-devle Alî ibn Râmîn, first the influence of Greekness and then of the church weighed heavily; Melik Gâzi Muhammed Han went so far as to consent to having the image of Christ struck on his coins. This drew the objections of the Turkmen beys and of all Muslims and prepared the disaster of his entire dynasty. Because his mother and his relative were new Muslims, they could not suddenly shake off the influence of Greekness and Christianity. For the feelings of Greeks who become Muslim do not become fully Muslim until a generation has passed.
In short, upon the incitement of Sultan Mes'ûd and the approval of the Turkmen emirs, Yağıbasan Gâzi, emir of Niksar, came to Amasya and in 535 [1140-41] became ruler of the Danishmendid realm, and Melik Muhammed Gâzi Bey, ruler of Amasya, was sent to Niksar; this is understood from Târîh-i Âl-i Dânişmend. For in the supplement to his biography in the Tabakâtü'l-Hanefiyye books it is written that in 535 Abdülmecîd el-Herevî, the kadı of Amasya who was chief kadı of Anatolia, migrated to Damascus and stayed there for a time.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- mülûk-i Dânişmendiye: the Danishmendid meliks, rulers
- mahdûm: son
- kâdı'l-kudât: chief kadı
- emîrü'l-ümerâ: emir of emirs, a senior emir at the commander-in-chief level
- terâcim-i ahvâl: biographies, biographical books
- meskûkât: coins, money
- Rûmiyyü'l-ibâre: written in Greek
- tasvîr-i Mesîh: image of Jesus
- nesh: a round, legible type of Arabic script
- iris, paşat: titles in the text describing, among the Turkmens, noble descent on both parents' sides and on the father's side alone
- mukarreb: close, a person close to the ruler
- tecerrüd: shaking off, freeing oneself
- hal': deposition from the throne
Melik Muhammed in Today's Sources
In today's encyclopedias Melik Muhammed is the eldest son not of Dânişmend Ahmed Gâzi but of Emîr Gazi. Hüsameddin counts him as a son of Dânişmend Ahmed Gâzi. When his father died in 1134, the diploma, golden staff and other gifts that the Abbasid Caliph and the Great Seljuk Sultan had sent to Emîr Gazi were given to him, and he was proclaimed ruler in Malatya. In his first years he dealt with the revolts of his brothers Aynüddevle and Yağan and with Byzantine attacks; he had Yağan killed, and Aynüddevle fled to Malatya. He chose not Amasya but Kayseri as his administrative center in Anatolia: he had the ruined Kayseri repaired, had the Great Mosque built, and died there on 6 December 1143. His grave is said to be in the tomb on the qibla side of the Great Mosque today; the tomb has no inscription. The disagreement of the sources on the date of death amounts to a few years: some Arab historians give 536 (1141-42), others 537 (1142-43).
The information that Melik Muhammed, whom Hüsameddin describes as a ruler of Amasya, was deposed in 535 [1140-41] and sent to Niksar does not appear in the contemporary sources I read. In contemporary accounts Muhammed is ruler in Kayseri until his death. In the next entry Hüsameddin ties Muhammed's death to a battle dated 537 [1142-43].
Coins with Greek Inscriptions
The coin inscription Hüsameddin reports agrees with today's sources. On a coin of Melik Muhammed there is a Greek inscription reading "Muhammed, the great melik of the whole land of Rum and of the East"; according to some sources this title was adopted in 1137 as the symbol of a claim to Byzantium's lands in Anatolia. According to this reading, the Greek inscription and Christian symbols can be interpreted as the expression of a political claim by the ruler rather than, as Hüsameddin thought, of the influence of a mother or a relative.
Hüsameddin counts these coins as the cause of the dynasty's disaster. Contemporary sources, however, present Melik Muhammed as a pious and charitable ruler who waged jihad against the Greeks, Crusaders and Armenians. The Byzantine historian Niketas Choniates calls him the fiercest, boldest and most dangerous enemy of Byzantine cities. That is, Hüsameddin and today's interpretation part ways on the meaning of the coins. The information that his mother's name was Gülnûş Bânû and that she was of Greek origin, and that a relative named Alâ'ü'd-devle Alî ibn Râmîn had a say in the administration, was likewise not found in the sources I read.
Abdülmecîd el-Herevî
The chief kadı named in the text, Abdülmecîd el-Herevî, is called Abdülmecîd b. İsmâil el-Herevî in the sources. Among the religious scholars Melik Muhammed invited from various countries he comes first. In the next entry Hüsameddin also reports that he went to Damascus, then to Kayseri, and died there.
Discussion of Sources
Hüsameddin starts Melik Muhammed's rule at 529 [1134-35]; today's sources give Emîr Gazi's death as 528 (1134), so the difference is about a year. On the other hand, his counting Amasya as Muhammed's capital and presenting him as a son of Dânişmend Ahmed Gâzi are two points on which he differs from today's accounts.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 2, p. 328–329. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
Other sources