Malik Shah I

Malik Shah was Seljuk sultan from 1072 to 1092. Although he was a Turk, his name is a combination of the Arabic and Persian words for "king." He drove the Byzantine Empire out of most of Anatolia following their defeat by Alp Arslan at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071.

He expanded Seljuk power into Syria at the expense of the Fatimids of Egypt, setting up client sultans in Edessa, Aleppo and Damascus. After his death in 1092 the Seljuk empire disintegrated into smaller states, mostly antagonistic towards each other. In Anatolia he was succeeded by Kilij Arslan I, and in Syria he was succeeded by Tutush, but the disunity within both areas allowed for the unexpected success of the First Crusade shortly afterwards, beginning in 1096.