Abu Suleiman Dawud Chaghri Beg ibn Mikail, widely known simply as Chaghri Beg (, 989–1060), Da'ud b. Mika'il b. Saljuq,['Izz al-D in Ibn al-Athir, The Annals of the Saljuq Turks, transl. D.S. Richards, ed. Carole Hillenbrand, (Routledge, 2002), 302.] also spelled Chaghri, was the co-ruler of the early Seljuk Empire. The name Chaghri is Turkic languages (Çağrı in modern Turkish) and literally means "small falcon", "merlin".[ "ČAḠRĪ BEG DĀWŪD" Encyclopædia Iranica]
Background
Chaghri and his brother
Tughril were the sons of Mikail and the grandsons of Seljuk. The Great Seljuk Empire was named after the latter, who was a
Turkic peoples clan leader either in
Khazar[Arthur Koestler: The thirteenth Tribe (translated by Belkıs Çorakçı), Say, İstanbul, 1984, p.164] or Oghuz states. In the early years of the 11th century, they left their former home and moved near the city of
Jend (now a village) by the
Syr Darya river, where they accepted the suzerainty of the
in
Transoxania (roughly modern
Uzbekistan and southern
Kazakhstan). After the defeat of the Karakhanids by
, they were able to gain independence.
Biography
Very little is known of Chaghri and Tughril's lives until 1025. Both were raised by their grandfather Seljuk until they were fifteen and fought with Ali Tigin Bughra Khan, a minor Kara Khanid noble, against Mahmud of Ghazni.
[ Caghri-Beg, Cl. Cahen, The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Vol. II, ed. B.Lewis, C. Pellat and J. Schacht, (E.J. Brill, 1991), 4.] The earliest records of Chaghri concern his expeditions in
Eastern Anatolia. Although a
Ghaznavids governor chased him from his home in Jend to Anatolia, he was able to raid the
Byzantine forts in Eastern Anatolia.
[Prof. Yaşar Yüce-Prof. Ali Sevim: Türkiye tarihi Cilt I, AKDTYKTTK Yayınları, İstanbul, 1991 p 28-29] However, according to
Claude Cahen this was highly improbable and of legend.
[ Caghri beg, Claude Cahen, The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Vol. II, 4, 5; " Tradition gives here an account of a highly improbable escapade of Caghri-Beg in Armenia.", " On the legendary escapade of Caghri in Armenia, the article of Ibrahim Kafesoglu, "Dogu Anadoluya ilk selcuklu adini ", in "Fuad Koprulu Armagam ", 1953, and my discussion with him in JA 1954, 275 ff. and 1956, 129 ff."]
From 1035 to 1037 Chaghri and Tughril fought against Mas'ud I of Ghazni. Chaghri captured
Merv (an important historical city now in
Turkmenistan).
['Izz al-D in Ibn al-Athir, The Annals of the Saljuq Turks, 36.] Between 1038 and 1040 Chaghri fought against the Ghaznavids, usually with hit and run maneuvers and culminating in a major clash at the Battle of Dandanaqan. Tughril was rather hesitant and preferred continuing the hit-and-run attacks, but Chaghri commanded the Seljuk army and preferred direct confrontation.
[Ümit Hassan (ed. Sina Akşin) Türkiye Tarihi I, CemYayınevi, İstanbul,2009, p. 167] At Dandanaqan, the Seljuks defeated the numerically superior Gaznavid army. A
kurultai was held after the battle, by which empire was divided between the two brothers. While Tughril reigned in the west (comprising modern western
Iran,
Azerbaijan and
Iraq), Chaghri reigned in eastern
Iran,
Turkmenistan, and
Afghanistan, a region collectively referred to as
Greater Khorasan. Chaghri later also captured
Balkh (in modern North Afghanistan). In 1048, he conquered
Kerman in South Iran and, in 1056, the
Sistan region (south east Iran).
[ History page ] After the
Seljuk dynasty had gained more influence over the
Abbasid dynasty, Chaghri married his daughter, Khadija Arslan Khatun, to the caliph Al-Qa'im in 1056.
[ The Political and Dynastic History of the Iranian World, C.E. Bosworth, The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol. 5, ed. J. A. Boyle, (Cambridge University Press, 1968), 48.][ Dailamīs in Central Iran: The Kākūyids of Jibāl and Yazd, C. E. Bosworth, Iran, Vol. 8, (1970), 86.]
Death
Chaghri died in
Sarakhs, in North-eastern Iran. The historical sources do not agree on the exact date of his death: years 1059, 1060, 1061 and 1062 were proposed. But it is purported that
numismatics can be used to determine the exact death date. Coins were minted in the name of Chaghri up to 1059 and in the name of his son
Kavurt after 1060, so Chaghri's death can be ascribed more probably to 1059.
[ A paper on Chaghri's death date]
Daughters
One of his daughters was Gawhar Khatun. She was married to Erishgi (Erisghen). She was killed on the orders of her nephew Sultan
Malik-Shah I in March–April 1075.
Another daughter was married to
Buyid dynasty Abu Mansur Fulad Sutun in 1047–8. Another daughter was Khadija Arslan Khatun.
She had been betrothed to Zahir al-Din, son of Abbasid Caliph Al-Qa'im. However, Zahir al-Din died, and Arslan married Al-Qa'im in 1056. After Al-Qa'im's death in 1075, she married the
Kakuyids Ali ibn Faramurz, with whom she had a son,
Garshasp II. Another daughter was Safiya Khatun.
She was married to Kurd Hazarasp ibn Bankir in 1069–70. After his death the same year, she married
Uqaylid dynasty Sharaf al-Dawla Muslim, with whom, she had a son, Ali.
After his death in 1085, she married his brother Ibrahim ibn Quraish.
Legacy
Unlike later
Ottoman Empire practice, in earlier Turkic tradition, brothers usually participated in government affairs.(
Bumin – İstemi in the 6th century,
Bilge Khan –
Kultegin in the 8th century are notable examples.) Tughril and Chaghri as well as some other members of the family participated in the foundation of the empire. Although Tughril gained the title "
sultan", it was Chaghri’s sons who continued it afterwards.
Chaghri had six sons and four daughters. Among his sons, Alp Arslan became the sultan of the Seljukid Empire in 1064. All the remaining members of the Great Seljuk Empire were from Chaghri’s lineage. (Except Seljuks of Rum who were the descendants of Chaghri's cousins.). Another son, Kavurt, became the governor of Kerman (which later on became fully independent); a third son, Yaquti, became the governor of Azerbaijan.
In popular culture
In the 2021
Turkey historical fiction TV series
, Çağrı Bey was portrayed by Turkish actor Erdinç Gülener.
Bibliography
