Who is Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus? The life of Sinop conqueror Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus I. During the rule of Izzeddin Keykavus, he carried his country to the coasts and ports that opened up to the world and the oceans, guaranteed the advancement of exchange, and expanded the glory of the state.
The Life Of Sultan Izzeddinn Keykavus:
Izzeddin Keykavus is the eldest son of 1. Gıyaseddin Keyhüsrev. When his father left the throne to his brother, Rükneddin Süleyman, in 1196 and had to leave his hometown, which lasted for about nine years, he took his sons, Keykavus I and Keykubad I, with him.
After the death of Süleyman Şah, the 1st Keyhüsrev, who ascended the Seljuk throne again with the invitation and support of his supporters, sent Keykubad I to Malatya in March 1205 with the title of melik . Mecdüddin İshak, his father’s teacher, who went to Malatya with him, helped him with administrative affairs and completing his education.
Who is Sultan Izzeddin Keykavas :
When Gıyaseddin Keyhüsrev I was martyred in 1211, the state officials gathered in Konya and decided to have Malatya Meliki Izzeddin Keykavus I ascend to the Seljuk throne, as he was the eldest son of the Sultan, and sent a messenger to come to Kayseri. Keykavus I was welcomed in Sarkisla , between Sivas and Kayseri . Allegiance , mourning and enthronement ceremonies were held in Kayseri.
However, while moving from Kayseri to Konya, news was received that the Sultan’s brother, Tokat Meliki Alaaddin Keykubad , appeared with the sultanate case and was coming towards the city.
Alaaddin Keykubad assaulted the city, and soon Erzurum Meliki Mugīsüddin Tuğrul Shah and Armenian King Leon II joined the attack. Realizing that the issue could not be settled with war, the statesmen resorted to the diplomatic path. The chief of Kayseri, Celaleddin Kayser , was sent to the Armenian King Leon II with money and valuable gifts. Celaleddin declared that if he returned to Leon, he would be given 1200 mud of grain, and that Ulukışla, Ereğli and Larende (Karaman) that he involved would have a place with him. Leon acknowledged this deal and got back to his country. Ayyubid RulerHearing that el-Melikü’l-Eşref was called for help by Keykavus I, Tuğrul Shah subtly took the way to Erzurum. Mugīsüddin, who was left alone, and Keykubad, who did not have enough strength, lifted the siege and took refuge in the Ankara Castle.
Period Of Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus I (1211-1220)
1. When Keykavus reached Konya, the ceremony was held again and the festivities lasted for a week. Sultan Keykavus I sent his teacher, Mecdüddin İshak, to Baghdad to inform the Abbasid Caliph Nasır-Lidînillâh about his accession to the throne . The caliph sent him a fütüvvet shalwar with a text confirming his sultanate and it was reported that he was taken into the futuwwa organization.
Peace Treaty With Byzantine :
Meanwhile, the Emperor of Nicaea, Theodoros Laskaris , sent an envoy to celebrate Sultan Keykavus I’s accession to the throne, to rectify the relations that had been disturbed by Gıyaseddin Keyhüsrev ‘s Alaşehir expedition , and to make peace. Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus I, who accepted the peace offer of the emperor, sent Atabeki Emir Seyfettin Ayaba to Iznik to report this and bring his father’s body. Meeting with Emperor Theodoros Laskaris, Ayaba also brought the body of Sultan Gıyâseddin, who was temporarily buried in Alaşehir Cemetery.
Later, Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus I, who marched against Alaaddin Keykubad , besieged Ankara Castle . Alaaddin Keykubad, whose supplies were running low, surrendered on the condition that his life and that of the people would not be harmed, and he was imprisoned in the Minsâr Castle near Malatya. Although Sultan Keykavus I wanted to kill him, his teacher Mecdüddin İshak prevented this.
Conquest Of Sinop :
In these years, Antalya was still in the hands of the Franks. The Greeks of Antalya , who heard that Gıyaseddin Keyhüsrev was dead, massacred the Turks in the city and took over the administration of Antalya. However, the Sultan embarked on the conquest of Sinop instead of taking Antalya back . The Greek Emperor of Trebizond, who was held captive, 1 . Taking Alexios Komnenos with him, he arrived in front of Sinop. The people of Sinop , who stated that they would surrender the city on the condition that Alexios I was released and those who wanted to leave were allowed, surrendered the city to the sultan on November 2, 1214, upon their request. The next day, after Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus signed a treaty with Alexios, he sent him to his country. The Greek Empire of Trabzon was founded in 1243 from this date.How much the defeat of Kösedağ recognized the Anatolian Seljuk State.
The conquest of Sinop was reported to the Abbasid caliphate and neighboring states with fetihnames . Upon this success, the Sultan received the title of “es-sultânü’l-gālib” . After that, Sinop started to play an important role in the development of Seljuk trade.
On the other hand, Armenian King Leon wanted to give them to the Hospitaller knights because he knew that he could not keep the cities left to him. Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus took action after the Sinop campaign and took these cities back in 1216, and the King did not show any serious resistance. After Sultan Izzettin Keykavus I marched on Antalya and besieged it from land and sea, he recaptured the city, which was captured by the Franks from the Greeks, on January 22, 1216, and gave his command to Emir Mübarizüddin Ertokuş.
Armenian Experience Of Sultan Izzeddinn Keykavus :
In 1216, the conflict between the Armenians and the Crusaders came to a head. Sultan Keykavus did not miss this opportunity and marched to the country of the Armenian King Leon . The fortified fortresses of Çinçin and Hadjin were conquered after fierce attacks. Then the Seljuk army encountered the Armenian army in front of the Geben Castle. A part of the Armenian army, which suffered a heavy defeat, was taken prisoner, including many Armenian nobles . II. Leon sent an envoy with rich gifts and asked the sultan to sign a peace. The Sultan accepted this request and the peace treatysigned. According to the treaty, some of the castles on the borders would be given to the Seljuks, the Armenian King would recognize the Sultan as the overlord and would send 20 thousand gold each year. On the other hand, the sultan also recognized Leon’s dominance of Kozan. The sultan’s name was written on one side of the coins minted in Kozan, and a sermon was read on his behalf there. The recognition of the Seljuk sultans by the Armenian kings continued until the defeat of Kösedağ.
In the same year , a trade agreement was signed with the king of Cyprus . After these successes, the Sultan went to Antalya; He spent the winter of 1217 there. The following year, he married Selcuk Hatun , the daughter of Mengücük Ruler Fahreddin Behram Shah.
The Eyyubi Policy Of The Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus-I :
Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus made his last expedition to Aleppo. Upon the death of Al-Malikü’z-Zâhir Gāzî, the ruler of Aleppo Ayyubid, in 1216, his son al-Melikü’l-Azîz was enthroned in his place. With the thought that the Aleppo rulership could not survive with this ruler and with the consent of Izzeddin Keykavus, the Samsat leader of the Ayyubids, al-Melikü’l-Efdal Ali , was selected as the leader of Aleppo and an understanding was made with him. However, in this agreement, the fact that Telbaşir was given to Nasreddin , one of the Seljuk amirs, and not to him, aroused the suspicion in Efdal that the Sultan would not give Aleppo to himself. Şehâbeddin Tuğrul, who was the father of el-Melikü’l-Azîz, also asked for help from el-Melikü’l-Eşref. In the mean time, the Sivas head of the Seljuk armed force, Mübarizuddin Behram ShahThe spearheading power of 4,000 individuals under his command was quite far from the central branch of the army headed by the Sultan. Hearing that the Sultan was away, al-Melikü’l-Eşref attacked the Seljuk vanguard and inflicted a heavy defeat. Bahram Shah was taken prisoner. Izzeddin Keykavus, who learned this, did not fight el-Melikü’l-Eşref and returned. He filled a house in Elbistan for certain emirs, whom he associated with treachery, and set the house ablaze.
How Did Sultan Izzeddin Keykavus I Die?
He then began to prepare to avenge al-Malikü’l-Eşref. For this purpose, the sultan, who made an alliance with Diyarbekir Artuqid Ruler Mahmud Nâsırüddin and Erbil ruler Muzafferüddin Kökböri, fell ill when he came to Malatya with his army and died in Viranşehir , near Malatya, in January 1220. There are other rumors about the date of his death.
His body was brought to Sivas and buried in his tomb in the darüşşifa, which he had built here.
Sultan Izzeddin I Keykavus Period Events :
Sultan Keykavus I gained important successes such as the conquest of Sinop, the most important trade port of the Black Sea , the recapture of Antalya, the port of the same importance in the south , the taxation of the Armenian and Trabzon kingdoms, these successes increased the power and prestige of the Anatolian Seljuk State.
In parallel with the economic development in the time of Izzeddin Keykavus, many madrasahs, caravanserais and hospitals were built. According to the foundation charter of the darüşşifa (dârü’s-sıhha) in Sivas, which has survived to the present day, the facility also served as a medical school, where doctors, surgeons and ophthalmologists were working.