After learning about the vastly underrated Battle of Manzikert, I felt it appropriate to find out more about the Suljuk Turks. It turns out that most historians agree on pinpointing the Battle of Manzikert as the moment the decline of the great Byzantine Empire began. Although the Byzantine army did not suffer many causalities and many units continued fighting within a few months, the loss proved the Byzantines were not indestructible and began the series of events that lead to the downfall.

Now the Seljuks, the army that defeated Romanus and his troops, were a very interesting people. The Cleveland and the Esposito books both make a point of discussing how the Western idea of savage Muslims slaying Christians in order to spread their religion is a raging inaccuracy; examining the contributions of the Seljuk Turks furthers to prove their arguments. Although the Seljuks ruled over a majority of Muslims, there were plenty of Christians and even some Jews tolerated under their rule. Math and scientific progresses flourished under the Seljuks, as did scholarly and artistic endeavors.

Interestingly, because of all of the patronage of arts and scientists, the Seljuks are responsible for having a strong influence over the modern architecture of mosques, hospitals, and seminaries. J.M Rogers describes in his article, "WAQF and Patronage in Seljuk Anatolia" that Seljuk architecture is both beautiful and distinctive. It is fascinating that the architecture is a product of so many different influences (Persian, Turkish, and Greek were all fairly common within the empire), as that principle is reminiscent of the beginnings of Islam itself.