Henry IV vs Malik Shah I

Henry IV was elected King of Germany in 1056 at the age of six following the death of his father Henry III. His minority led to a regency by his mother Agnes of Poitou, which weakened royal authority.

Henry IV defeated Saxon rebels at the Battle of Langensalza on June 9, 1075. This victory temporarily suppressed the Saxon uprising and strengthened Henry's position before the Investiture Controversy escalated.

Pope Gregory VII excommunicated Henry IV in February 1076 after Henry attempted to depose the Pope. The excommunication freed Henry's subjects from their oaths of loyalty, leading to a rebellion by German princes.

In January 1077, Henry IV traveled to Canossa Castle in northern Italy to seek absolution from Pope Gregory VII after being excommunicated. He stood barefoot in the snow for three days before the Pope lifted the ban, a dramatic act of penance.

Henry IV besieged Rome three times between 1081 and 1084 to force Pope Gregory VII to recognize his authority. He captured the city in 1084 and was crowned emperor by Antipope Clement III, but Gregory VII fled to Salerno.

Malik Shah I's forces, commanded by his general Alp Arslan, defeated the Byzantine army at Manzikert in eastern Anatolia. Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes was captured, leading to a Byzantine civil war and opening Anatolia to Turkish settlement.

Under Malik Shah I and his vizier Nizam al-Mulk, the Seljuk Empire implemented a centralized administrative system. This included the establishment of the iqta' land-grant system, a standardized tax code, and the construction of caravanserais to promote trade.

Malik Shah I commissioned the expansion and renovation of the Great Mosque of Isfahan (Jameh Mosque). This project added four iwans and a large dome, transforming the mosque into a masterpiece of Persian-Islamic architecture and a model for later mosques.

Vizier Nizam al-Mulk was assassinated by a member of the Assassins (Nizari Ismailis) near Nahavand. His death removed a key stabilizing figure from the Seljuk court and contributed to the subsequent decline of the empire under Malik Shah's successors.

Malik Shah I died in Baghdad shortly after Nizam al-Mulk's assassination, possibly poisoned. His death triggered a succession crisis among his sons, leading to a period of civil war and fragmentation of the Seljuk Empire.