Battle of Qatwan
Battle of Qatwan | |||||||
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Configuration of the Battle of Qatwan. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Qara Khitai (Western Liao) Karluks | |||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Yelü Dashi | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
20,000[2] – 300,000-700,000 (exaggerated Muslim figure)[3][a] | 100,000[4] | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
unknown | 50,000[5] | ||||||
The Battle of Qatwan (
Background
The
In 1141, Sanjar with his army arrived in
Battle
Widely varying figures from different sources were given for the Kara-Khitan forces, ranging from 20,000[2] to 300,000,[4] and 700,000,[3] while the Seljuk forces numbered 100,000.[4] The Kara-Khitans were also said to have been given a reinforcement of 30,000–50,000 Karluk horsemen.[8] While many Muslim sources suggested that the Kara-Khitan forces greatly outnumbered the Seljuks, some contemporary Muslim authors also reported that the battle was fought between forces of equal size.[9]
The battle took place on the Qatwan steppe, north of Samarkand, on 9 September 1141.[10][11] The Kara-Khitans attacked the Seljuk forces simultaneously, encircled them, and forced the Seljuq center into a wadi called Dargham, about 12 km from Samarkand. Encircled from all directions, the Seljuq army was destroyed and Sanjar barely escaped. Figures of the dead ranged from 11,000 to 100,000.[12] Among those captured at the battle were Seljuq military commanders and Sanjar's wife.[12]
Aftermath
Historical accounts
Accounts of the battle are given in a number of sources, for example in
Legend
Stories of this battle, told during the Second Crusade, filtered back to the Holy Land, inspiring stories of Prester John.[2]
Notes
- ^ "..he met Yeh-lu Ta-shih, who led an army reported by the Iraqi historian, Ibn al-Athir, as numbering 300,000 horsemen..[..]..Nor did other Moslem historians make any attempt to minimize the scope of the disaster. Some exaggeration is obvious, to be sure, in the attribution to Yehlu Ta-shih of 300,000 men."[4]
References
- ^ Biran 2005, p. 41.
- ^ a b c Asimov 1999, p. 238.
- ^ a b Biran 2001, p. 61.
- ^ a b c d Nowell 1953, p. 442.
- ^ Bosworth 1970, p. 90.
- ^ Biran 2005, p. 42.
- ^ Biran 2005, p. 41-43.
- ^ Biran 2005, p. 43-44.
- ^ Biran 2001, p. 62.
- ^ Biran 2005, p. 43.
- ^ Grousset 1970, p. 160.
- ^ a b c Biran 2005, p. 44.
- ^ Abu Bakr ar-Ravendi. "Rest of hearts and a miracle of joy", Chapter: on Tughril-beg, Oriental literature Archived 2021-04-19 at the Wayback Machine.
Sources
- Asimov, M. S. (1999). The Historical, Social and Economic setting. Motilal Banarsidass.
- Biran, Michal (2001). "Like a Mighty Wall:" The armies of the Qara Khitai" (PDF). Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam. 25: 44–91.
- Biran, Michal (2005). The Empire of the Qara Khitai in Eurasian History: Between China and the Islamic World. Cambridge University Press.
- Bosworth, Clifford (1970). "Dailamīs in Central Iran: The Kākūyids of Jibāl and Yazd". Iran. 8.
- Grousset, René (1970). The Empire of the Steppes: A History of Central Asia. Rutgers University Press. p. 160. ISBN 978-0-8135-1304-1. Archivedfrom the original on 9 September 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
- Nowell, Charles E. (1953). "The Historical Prester John". Speculum. 28, No. 3 (Jul).