c. 1142–1192 · Anatolian Seljuk sultan (1156–1192)
Kilij Arslan II
Anatolian Seljuk sultan; he defeated Byzantium at Myriokephalon in 1176 and saw Konya taken as Frederick Barbarossa's army passed through his lands in 1190.
BIOGRAPHICAL DOSSIER
Life and historical role
Life and political setting
The son of Mas'ud I, Kilij Arslan II became sultan in 1156. He unified central Anatolia by taking the Danishmendid lands and maintained first peace, then war, with the Byzantine emperor Manuel I. The victory at Myriokephalon in 1176 largely ended Byzantium's hope of recovering Anatolia.
Role in the Crusades
During the Third Crusade, Frederick Barbarossa advanced through Anatolia in 1190. By then the aged sultan had divided his realm among his sons, and power lay largely with his son Qutb al-Din Malikshah. Turkish forces harassed the German army, but Barbarossa temporarily took Konya in May 1190. An agreement was made between sultan and emperor, and the army advanced toward Cilicia.
Historical significance and source problems
Kilij Arslan II's last years were taken up by internal strife among his sons; he died in 1192. Barbarossa's crossing of Anatolia is described in detail in Latin sources, especially the Historia de expeditione Friderici; information on the Seljuk side is limited.
Biographical information is linked to the sources shown on the page and to the connected event records. Disputed dates are given as approximate, gaps are not filled by conjecture, and later literary or visual depictions are not treated as contemporary portraits.