A General History of the World: The World Before 1500

With the decline of the Caliphate, the Turkic mercenaries, like the Germanic mercenaries, changed from servants to masters. They deposed the rulers in Baghdad and took the caliphs into custody one after the other. Around 970, the Seljuks, a Turkic people, successfully crossed the border and entered the Muslim region, where they soon monopolized political power. This regime was officially recognized in 1o55 when the Caliph declared the Seljuk sheikh Toghlur Bey a "sultan", or "sovereign". Although the Caliph was still nominally the head of the empire, the actual ruler was from then on the Turkic sultan. Under the leadership of the warlike Turks, the frontiers of the Islamic Empire expanded further into two regions. One region was Asia Minor, which for centuries was a bulwark of Christian Byzantine forces against the many attacks of Arab Islam. But in 1071, at the Battle of Manzikert in eastern Asia Minor, the Seljuks won a great victory and captured Byzantine Emperor Romanos IV. The battle was a decisive turning point in the history of the Middle East, as it led to a civil war between rival Byzantine factions. In fact, the defeat at the battle of Manzikert.. It was largely due to this factional struggle that the Turks now entered Asia Minor without any resistance. Competing for positions in the administration of the chieftains of the Turkic tribes, discordant Byzantine officials and officers dedicated many towns and fortresses to the invaders. Moreover,Steel racking system, the peasants, dissatisfied with the corruption and exploitation of the Byzantine officials, were distrustful but subservient to their new masters. Thus, from the 11th to the 13th century, large parts of Asia Minor changed from Greek and Christian areas to Turkic and Muslim areas, and have remained until now. Moreover,long span shelving, Byzantium had been left empty by the loss of Asia Minor, a province that had in the past provided much of the empire with taxes and armies. Constantinople is now like a large head perched on a withered body; therefore, the cause of its decline in 1453 should be traced back to 1071. The victory of Manzichert was a great step forward for the Seljuks, allowing them to re-establish the rule of the dying caliphate. During the reign of Mariksha (1073-1092), the Serdu Empire reached its peak, ruling Syria, Mesopotamia, Iran and Asia Minor. With the support of the Seljuks, cultural undertakings flourished, most notably the achievements of Persian language, literature and art. But Serdu's ascendancy was short-lived. After Mariksha's death, the heirs fought over each other, warehouse rack manufacturer ,Narrow aisle rack, the fiefdoms became hereditary, and the empire began to split (see Chapter 13, Section 6). This division of the empire made it possible for the Crusaders to conquer the Holy Land in the 12th century. Another result was the emergence of the Ottoman Turks in western Asia Minor, who continued to hold high the banner of Islam at the gates of Vienna and ruled the entire Middle East until the 20th century. While the Seljuks were advancing westward in pursuit of fame and the spoils of war, other Turks were expanding in the east, marching on India, a huge treasure house. The most famous of these was a man named Mahmud (997-1030). Based in Ghazni, Afghanistan, he attacked the Indian region almost every year, eventually annexing Punjab, which has been a Muslim region ever since. Mahmood's zeal for destroying Hindu temples and smashing their idols, which earned him the nickname "iconoclast," was based on the Islamic doctrine that any visible depiction of God is sinful. Mahmud and his followers, inspired by the fanatical monotheism of Islam, came to India not only to plunder, but to convert or exterminate the infidels. There is also the issue of social conflict, a conflict between two different societies: one that believes that all people are brothers, and another that is based on a caste system that presupposes inequality. It was then, therefore, that the struggle between two fundamentally different cultures began here, resulting in the division of the Indian peninsula into Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan after the Second World War. In the 12th century, Mahmud's successors were replaced by another Turkic Dynasty based in Gurr, also in Afghanistan. Under the leadership of a man named Muhammad, the Gurkars advanced south to Gujarat and east into the Ganges Valley. In 1192, they captured Delhi and made it the capital of the kingdom of the Turkic sultans of India. In this battle, Buddhist monasteries were destroyed and a large number of monks were massacred, so that Buddhism has never been restored in its birthplace. The ease with which the Turks settled in a country whose population absolutely outnumbered them was due in part to ancient Indian military tactics, which, like those used against Alexander 150 years ago, were not adapted to the needs of the time. Its infantry was usually a disorganized mob, and their vaunted elephants were useless against Muslim cavalry. India's caste system is equally destructive, and an even more fatal weakness, limiting those who can fight to the "Kshatriya", or warrior class. Others were untrained and uninterested in fighting, largely because class divisions separated the oppressors, the landlords, from the peasants, further fragmenting the social hierarchy. Therefore, the masses of the people either adopted an attitude of indifference or welcomed the aggressors and embraced their religion. This situation has been repeated many times since then. This is why,Warehouse storage racks, in modern times, the British rulers have been able to rule India from Delhi, as the former Turkic sultans did. Genghis Khan. omracking.com