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Battle of Dandanqan (1040)

معركة دندانقان (١٠٤٠)

1040 CE · 431 AH† – 1040 CE · 431 AH† †

† Hijri date derived by computation from the Gregorian/Julian date; it may differ from the transmitted date by a day or two.

Merv

Tughril Beg and his brother Chaghri Beg broke Sultan Masʿud of Ghazna's army at Dandanqan near Merv in 1040 — the victory that won the Seljuks Khurasan and founded their state 1.

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Buyid, Fatimid and Seljuk Era
Region
Persia & Central Asia
Review
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In time

103010401050
The Buyid, Fatimid and Seljuk Era

In space

Merv

Map: Natural Earth, public domain · places and route from the graph

The long-form text for this entry has not been written yet. The facts and connections below come from the museum's data.

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Had participant
طغرل بك· جغري بك بن سلجوق
Occurred at
Merv

People and things also explored

The battle of al-Basasiri and the sermon for the Ubaydi al-Mustansir in Baghdad· Battle of Ray (1059)· Marriage of the caliph's daughter to Tughrul Beg· The Death of Yazdgard ibn Shahriyar· death of Sultan Shah of Merv — Malikshah takes Khurasan· the Khwarazmshah retakes what the Ghurids had seized· The return of al-Qa'im from Haditha to Baghdad· The marriage of al-Qa'im bi-Amr Allah to Tughril Beg's sister

Sources

  1. al-Kamil fi'l-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Battle of Dandanqan (1040)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/battle-of-dandanqan-1040/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-28.

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The battle of al-Basasiri and the sermon for the Ubaydi al-Mustansir in Baghdad

Arslan al-Basasiri grew so mighty he was preached on the minbars and the caliph decided nothing without him; when his ill creed proved out and his plan to sack the palace surfaced, al-Qa'im wrote secretly to Tughrul Beg at Rayy. Tughrul came in 447; al-Basasiri fell back to Rahba, took the Egyptian al-Mustansir's money and the treacherous brother Inal's distraction. In 450 he entered Baghdad under Egyptian banners — the khutba went to al-Mustansir at the Mansur mosque, 'hayya ala khayr al-amal' entered the adhan — and seized the caliph in Dhu'l-Hijja, jailing him at Ana; the caliph's letter to God was hung on the Ka'ba. Tughrul killed Inal, had the caliph returned in honour on 25 Dhu'l-Qa'da 451, and al-Basasiri's head reached Baghdad.