Melik Danishmend

Danishmend Gazi
Anatolia in 1097, before the Siege of Nicaea
Died	1104

Danishmend Gazi, full name Gümüştekin Danishmend Ahmed Gazi (Persian: دانشمند احمد غازی‎), Danishmend Taylu, or Malik Dānishmand Aḥmad Ghāzī (died 1104), was the founder of the beylik of Danishmends. After the Turkish advance into Anatolia that followed the Battle of Manzikert, his dynasty controlled the north-central regions in Anatolia.

The defeat of the Byzantine army at the Battle of Manzikert allowed the Turks, including forces loyal to Danishmend Gazi, to occupy nearly all of Anatolia. Danishmend Gazi and his forces took as their lands central Anatolia, conquering the cities of Neocaesarea, Tokat, Sivas, and Euchaita.

During the First Crusade, he was directly on the path of the advancing crusaders. On the losing side at the Battle of Dorylaeum in 1097, he scored a success in capturing Bohemond I of Antioch in 1100. He continued campaigning, extending southwards and capturing Malatya (Melitene) in 1103 (see Battle of Melitene).

He was succeeded by his son Emir Gümüştekin Gazi.

A tomb attributed to him is found in Niksar.

Danishmend Gazi is the central figure in the Danishmendnâme ("Tale of Danishmend"), a 13th-century Turkish-language epic romance. In this allegory, events from the life of Danishmend Gazi are blended with the legendary exploits of the 8th-century Arab warrior Sayyid Battal Gazi and of the Persian hero of the early Abbasid period, Abu Muslim.