Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (18/110)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

Al-Muʾayyad relates in his History (1) that in 441 AH the Byzantine emperor dispatched gifts and precious offerings to Tughril Beg and requested a truce. Tughril accepted, refurbished the Constantinople mosque (2), and arranged for the Friday sermon there to be delivered in his own name, by which his authority became firmly established.

He next besieged Isfahan and its ruler Ibn Kakwayh for eleven months, after which the city capitulated under a pledge of safety. Captivated by it, Tughril moved his treasuries from Rayy to Isfahan (3).

Once the realm lay securely in Tughril’s hands, he sought the hand of Caliph al-Qāʾim’s daughter. The caliph was distressed and asked to be excused, but his plea was not accepted, and he was compelled to give her in marriage to Tughril (4). The sultan then travelled to Baghdad for the wedding.

Al-Qāʾim in fact owed him a great favour, for Tughril had restored the caliphate to him and had cut off the pro-Fatimid khuṭbah instituted by al-Basāsirī (5).

Tughril subsequently sent one hundred thousand dinars to cover the transport of the bridal trousseau. The wedding was celebrated in Ṣafar of the year 455 AH. The bride was seated upon a gilded throne, and the sultan entered, kissed the ground before her, and did not lift the veil from her face. He presented magnificent gifts, performed the required courtesies, and withdrew. He then sent her two jewelled necklaces and an enormous ruby. The following day he entered again, kissed the ground, and sat upon a throne beside her.

(1) Al-Mukhtasar, vol. 2, p. 169. (2) Al-Kamil records: “The Byzantine ruler restored the congregational mosque that Maslama b. Abd al-Malik had built in Constantinople …”. (3) See Al-Kamil, vol. 9, pp. 534 and 562 – 563, and Al-Mukhtasar, vol. 2, p. 170; the Ibn Kakuyah mentioned here is Abu Mansur b. ‘Ala’ al-Dawla b. Kakuyah. (4) See Al-Kamil, vol. 10, pp. 20 – 21. (5) For the details, see Al-Kamil, vol. 9, pp. 640 – 650, and Al-Mukhtasar, vol. 2, pp. 177 – 179.

وَذَكَرَ المُؤَيَّد فِي (تَارِيْخِهِ (١)) أَن فِي سَنَةِ إِحْدَى وَأَرْبَعِيْنَ بَعَثَ ملكُ الرُّوْم إِلَى طُغْرُلْبَك هدَايَا وَتحفاً، وَالتمس الهدنَةَ، فَأَجَابَهُ، وَعَمَّرَ مَسْجِد القُسْطَنْطِيْنِيَّة (٢) ، وَأَقَامَ فِيْهَا الخطبَة لطُغْرُلْبَك، وَتَمَكَّنَ مُلْكُه. وَحَاصَرَ بِأَصْبَهَانَ صَاحِبهَا ابْنَ كَاكويه أَحَدَ عَشَرَ شَهراً، ثُمَّ أَخَذَهَا بِالأَمَان، وَأَعْجَبته، وَنَقَلَ خَزَائِنَه مِنَ الرَّيّ إِلَيْهَا (٣) . وَلَمَّا تَمَهَّدَتِ البِلاَدُ لِطُغْرلْبَك خَطَبَ بِنْت الخَلِيْفَة القَائِم، فَتَأَلَّمَ القَائِمُ، وَاسْتعفَى فَلَمْ يُعْفَ، فَزَوَّجَهُ بِهَا (٤) ، ثُمَّ قَدِمَ طُغْرُلْبَك بَغْدَاد لِلعُرس. وَكَانَتْ لَهُ يَدٌ عَظِيْمَة عَلَى القَائِم فِي إِعَادَةِ الخِلاَفَة إِلَيْهِ، وَقَطعِ خُطبَة المِصْرِيّين الَّتِي أَقَامَهَا البَسَاسيرِي (٥) . ثُمَّ نَفَّذَ طُغْرُلْبَك مائَة أَلْف دِيْنَار برسم نَقل الجهَاز، فَعُمِلَ العرسُ فِي صَفَرٍ، سَنَةَ خَمْسٍ وَخَمْسِيْنَ، وَأُجْلِسَتْ عَلَى سرِيرٍ مُذَهَّب، وَدَخَلَ السُّلْطَانُ إِلَى بَيْنَ يَديهَا، فَقبَّل الأَرْضَ، وَلَمْ يَكشف المِنْدِيل عَنْ وَجههَا، وَقَدَّمَ تُحَفاً سنِيَّة، وَخدم وَانْصَرَفَ، ثُمَّ بَعَثَ إِلَيْهَا عِقْدَيْن مَجوْهَرِيْنَ، وَقطعَة يَاقُوْت عَظِيْمَة، ثُمَّ دَخَلَ مِنَ الغَدِ، فَقبَّلَ الأَرْضَ، وَجَلَسَ عَلَى سرِيرٍ إِلَى جَانبهَا

(١) " المختصر " ٢ / ١٦٩. (٢) في " الكامل ": وعمر ملك الروم الجامع الذي بناه مسلمة بن عبد الملك بالقسطنطينية ... (٣) انظر " الكامل " ٩ / ٥٣٤ و٥٦٢ - ٥٦٣، و" المختصر " ٢ / ١٧٠، وابن كاكويه هنا هو أبو منصور بن علاء الدولة بن كاكويه. (٤) انظر " الكامل " ١٠ / ٢٠ - ٢١. (٥) انظر تفصيل ذلك في " الكامل " ٩ / ٦٤٠ - ٦٥٠، و" المختصر " ٢ / ١٧٧ - ١٧٩.