Alp Arslan (Fidem Pacis)

Alp Arslan (AD 1029 - 1072) was the khan of the Seljuq Turks and the great-grandson of the eponymous founder of the dynasty. He was renowned for his military prowess, personal valour and fighting skills - for which he received his name, meaning "Heroic Lion" in Oghuz Turkish.

Alp Arslan's ancestors had migrated into Persian territory from their homeland north of the Aral Sea. As a child he accompanied his father on many expeditions, and was present at the Battle of Dandanaqan where the Turks destroyed the Armenian army but lost half of their own warriors in the process. Eventually the Seljuqs made peace and settled in Khorasan, but when Alp Arslan became khan in 1063 he renewed hostilities as a way to keep his people loyal.