Forging alliances
Chapter 1
Georgian expedition and aftermath
The Seljuk-Georgian war was short and doomed to fail from the beginning. Many had refused the Sultans call to arms and had gone forth with their armies to conquer lands for themselves and when the Sultans armies, including the Baghdad regiments arrived to the front much of the vassals of Georgia had been conquered by the Sheiks and Emirs of the north. Sultan of course wasn't happy about this and expelled those Emirs and Sheiks who hadn't obeyed his orders from the Empire and refused to grant them any protection against foreign threats. When the Sultan and the King of Georgia met in the battlefield they signed peace.
So the Baghdad regiment returned to home as well as the Old Emir al-Qa'im and his son. Their armies had not seen a single battle on the expedition in the north but still they were tired after the long trip. And so was the Emir and he began to show signs of illness on the way back. In May 18th 1069, two weeks after the expedition had returned home Emir al-Qa'im passed away in his palace. His last wish for his son had been "Don't destroy the Empire" and al-Muktadi had promised that he would protect the Empire with all his might. The Emir was dead and new Emir had taken his place.
The son of al-Muktadi, Ahmad al-Mustazhir showed prodigal ability in his training and studies. Many believed that he would one day successeed his father and become a great Emir that would unify the Islamic world under one banner.
Few years passed and the Seljuk Empire healed it's pride from the failure against Georgia. But it seemed that the Sultan was not happy with the size of his realm and when news about Byzantine civil war reached him he seized the opportunity. Seljuks declared war against the Byzantine Empire and marched over the borders to defeat the Greeks. Once again Baghdad answered the call of their Sultan.
But al-Muktadi had plans how this war would be successful. He send ambassadors to the independent sheiks in the former Georgian lands who now faced the threat of being invaded by the Georgians who had truce with the Seljuks. al-Muktadi offered his protection for the sheiks if they would pledge loyalty for Baghdad and only Baghdad. In July 21 1071, Sheiks of Dvin and Kartli accepted this and pledged themselves to Baghdad. The Sultan of course believed that these Sheiks would be loyal to him too.
The war against Byzantine Empire was going on well and many rejoiced. Except for the independent Emirs of Aleppo, Drebent, Edessa and Azerbaijan who now feared that after Seljuk victory over the Greeks the Sultan would turn against them and force them in to the Seljuk Empire. al-Muktadi heard about their worries and visited each of the Emirs personally. He offered them the same deal as he offered for the Sheiks, pledge loyalty to Baghdad and be free from fears of Seljuk invasion. Only the Emir of Azerbaijan was willing to take this offer while the rest of them were too stubborn to accept Abbasid protection.