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Kaykaus II

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Kaykaus II
Sultan of Rum
Reign1246–1262
PredecessorKaykhusraw II
SuccessorKilij Arslan IV
Co-sultansKayqubad II(1249–1254)
Kilij Arslan IV (1249–1254) and (1257–1262)
Died1279/80
Crimea
HouseHouse of Seljuq
FatherKaykhusraw II
MotherProdoulia
ReligionIslam

Kaykaus ibn KaykhusraworKayka'us II(Persian:عز الدين كيكاوس بن كيخسرو,ʿIzz ad-Dīn Kaykāwus ibn Kaykhusraw) was the sultan of theSeljuqs of Rûmfrom 1246 until 1262.[1]

Life

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Kaykaus was the eldest of three sons ofKaykhusraw II.His mother was Prodoulia, who was aByzantine Greek,may have had Kaykaus baptized as a child.[2][3]He was a youth at the time of his father's death in 1246 and could do little to prevent theMongol conquest of Anatolia.For most of his tenure as theSeljuq Sultan of Rûm,he shared the throne with one or both of his brothers,Kilij Arslan IVandKayqubad II.Mongol commanderBaijuthreatened him and warned him of being late with paying tribute and requested new pastures in Anatolia for the Mongol cavalry. The Mongols defeated Kaykaus who then fled to the Roman empire in 1256/1257.[4]At some point, Kakykaus returned to the Sultanate but had to again flee to Byzantium following civil war with Kiliji Arslan IV around the summer of 1262, this time accompanied by his family.[5]The Roman court detained him, though, they welcomed him as usual. Soon however tensions grew between Sultan and Emperor, and Kaykaus tried to depose Michael.[5]So Kaykaus's brother Kayqubad appealed toBerke Khanof theGolden Horde.Nogaiinvaded the Empire in 1265 and released him and his men after EmperorMichael VIII Palaiologosdetained an envoy from Cairo to Berke. Berke gave KaykausappanageinCrimeaand had him married to his daughter, Urbay Khatun.[6]He died anexilein 1279 or 1280 in Crimea.

According toRustam Shukurov,Kaykaus II "had dual Christian and Muslim identity, an identity which was further complicated by dual Turkic/Persian and Greek ethnic identity".[7]Kaykaus and his sons were all said to be baptised, and whilst in Constantinople the family visited church baths, received communion and attended Easter services under the watch of the PatriarchArsenios.[3]Even when in Crimea, Kaykaus still insisted on his Christian faith, defending Arsenios against charges of noncanonical communication with pagans (Kaykaus and his family) by asking for theengolpionhe'd left in Constantinople and offering to eat pork to prove his orthodoxy.[8]

Family

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Kaykaus had multiple wives, but only one accompanied him to Byzantium. The ArmenianKirakos Gandzaketsireported that Kaykaus was married to a daughter of the emperorJohn III Doukas Vatatzesand later Ottoman sources give her name as Anna, however both of these claims are unreliable and likely only indicate that his wife was Christian and possibly Roman. This wife continued to live in Constantinople following Kaykaus' escape.[9]

Kakyaus' children, all with unknown mothers were:

  • Ghiyāth al-Dīn Masʿūd(b.1262-1308), the eldest son and heir who accompanied Kaykaus to Byzantium and then to the Golden Horde. Following Kaykaus' death, Masʿūd reclaimed his father's position, becoming the last Sultan of Rum, and maintained good relations with Michael VIII's sonAndronikos II Palaiologos.[10]
  • Rukn al-Dīn Kayūmarth (b.1262- a.1293), the middle son who also followed his father to Byzantium and the Golden Horde. Involved in a power struggle withMasʿūdfollowing Kaykaus' death that ended in Kayūmarth's imprisonment and death.[11]
  • Constantine Melik(b.1264- a.1306), who stayed in Constantinople after Kaykaus' escape, likely owing to his young age. Constantine remained in Roman service for the rest of his life and had an illustrious career as governor of Berroia in the 1280s and then of Pegai in 1305/1306. Constantine was at some point given the title ofCaesarorSebastokrator,and his descendants continued to serve in the Roman empire till its collapse in the 15th century.[12]
  • Sabbas Soultan? (b.1265-1320?), another son who stayed behind in Constantinople. He appears to have become a monk and served under thePatriarch of Constantinoplebefore moving to Crimea where he died.[13]
  • Unnamed daughter (b.1264-?), who was arrested after her father's escape.[14]
  • Rukn al-Dīn Qılıc Arslan (a.1264-?), one of the sons of Kaykaus born in Crimea after the flight from Constantinple.[14]
  • Siyāwus (a.1264-?), one of the sons of Kaykaus born in Crimea after the flight from Constantinple.[14]
  • Farāmarz (a.1264-?), one of the sons of Kaykaus born in Crimea after the flight from Constantinple.[14]

Legacy

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1251Persianmanuscript of Ali ibn Khalifa Salmasi'sDurar-e makhzan-e kaykawusi( "The Pearls of the Treasury of Kay Kawus" ), commissioned for the library of Sultan Kaykaus II. Created inKonya

Though deposed and exiled, Kaykaus remained popular among the Turkmen of Anatolia and a threat to the stability of the fragile Seljuq-Mongol relationship. The vizierFakhr al-Din Aliwas imprisoned for a time in 1271 for corresponding with him. It was from Kaykaus thatKaramanoğlu Mehmed Beyin 1276 sought help in his uprising against the Mongols. Since Kaykaus was in no position to help, Mehmed Bey thought it best to have a representative of Kaykaus’ line on his side, even if only an imposter, and namedJimrias head of the revolt. Kaykaus later dispatched several of his sons from the Crimea as pretenders, one of which,Masud II,was ultimately successful in winning the Seljuq throne in 1280.

Some modern historians consider the Byzantine nobleAthanasios Soultanosto have been the brother or son of Kaykaus, but this is unlikely due to the later age Soultanos lived in. Howeveranother branchof the Christianized aristocratic family of the Soultanoi was indeed begun by a close relative of Kaykaus, whence their name.[15]

In the Ottoman period the rebelSheikh Bedreddin,who drew support largely from Turkmen migrants to theBalkans,claimed descent from Kaykaus II.

See also

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References

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  1. ^"KEYKÂVUS II - TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi".
  2. ^Peacock & Yildiz 2013,pp. 118–119, 121.
  3. ^abShukurov 2016,p. 62.
  4. ^Shukurov 2016,p. 111.
  5. ^abShukurov 2016,p. 99.
  6. ^de Nicola 2017,p. 115.
  7. ^Peacock & Yildiz 2013,p. 133.
  8. ^Shukurov 2016,pp. 62–63.
  9. ^Shukurov 2016,pp. 114–115.
  10. ^Shukurov 2016,pp. 115–116.
  11. ^Shukurov 2016,p. 116.
  12. ^Shukurov 2016,pp. 116–117.
  13. ^Shukurov 2016,pp. 117–118.
  14. ^abcdShukurov 2016,p. 119.
  15. ^Shukurov 2016,pp. 190–196.

Sources

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  • Cahen, Claude (1968).Pre-Ottoman Turkey: a general survey of the material and spiritual culture and history.Translated by J. Jones-Williams. New York: Taplinger. pp. 271–279.
  • de Nicola, Bruno (2017).Women in Mongol Iran: the Khātūns, 1206-1335.Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.ISBN978-1474415484.
  • Peacock, A.C.S.; Yildiz, Sara Nur, eds. (2013).The Seljuks of Anatolia: Court and Society in the Medieval Middle East.I.B.Tauris.ISBN978-0857733467.
  • Shukurov, Rustam (2016).The Byzantine Turks, 1204-1461.BRILL.ISBN9789004307759.
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Preceded by Sultan of Rûm
1246–1262 		Succeeded by
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