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Battle of Dandānqān
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Battle of Dandānqān

Iranian history
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Quick Facts
Date:
1040
Location:
Khorāsān
Merv
Turkmenistan

Battle of Dandānqān, (1040), decisive clash between the forces of the Ghaznavid sultan Masʿūd I (reigned 1031–41) and the nomad Turkmen Seljuqs in Khorāsān. The battle resulted in Masʿūd’s defeat and the Seljuq takeover of Ghaznavid territory in Iran and Afghanistan.

The late 1030s saw a struggle for supremacy in Khorāsān between Masʿūd and the Seljuqs, led by Toghrïl Beg. Taking advantage of a growing Ghaznavid weakness, Toghrïl gradually expanded his influence and began taking over territories formerly administered by the Ghaznavids. In 1037 Merv fell voluntarily to the Seljuqs, followed likewise in 1038 by the cities of Herāt and Nīshāpūr (modern Neyshabur, Iran). In 1040 Masʿūd’s army, led by Masʿūd himself, was forced to fight at Dandānqān, a fortress in the desert between Merv and Sarakhs. The Seljuqs attacked with 16,000 horsemen and routed the Ghaznavids. Masʿūd was forced to flee to India; he was deposed, and Khorāsān passed to the Seljuqs.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Laura Etheredge.