Siyāsatnāma (Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is widely spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and to some extent in Iraq and Bahrain, and has a status of official language in the first three countries under different names...

: سياست نامه, "Book of Government"), also known as Siyar al-muluk, is the most famous work by Nizam al-Mulk
Nizam al-Mulk
Abu Ali al-Hasan al-Tusi Nizam al-Mulk was a celebrated Persian scholar and vizier of the Seljuq Empire...

, the founder of Nizamiyyah
Nizamiyyah
A nizamiyya , is one of the medieval institutions of higher education established by Khwaja Nizam al-Mulk in the eleventh century in present-day Iran. The name nizamiyyah derives from his name...

schools in medieval Persia and vizier
Vizier
A vizier is a high-ranking political advisor or minister, often to a Persian Empire's monarchs such as Shah and Shahenshah. It sometimes refers to ministers and advisors of the Muslim's caliph, or sultan...

to the Seljuq
Seljuq dynasty
The Seljuq were a Turco-Persian Sunni Muslim dynasty that ruled parts of Central Asia and the Middle East from the 11th to 14th centuries...

sultans Alp Arslan
Alp Arslan
Alp Arslan was the second sultan of the Seljuk dynasty and great-grandson of Seljuk, the eponym of the dynasty...

and Malik Shah
Malik Shah
Malik Shah may refer to:* Malik Shah I , sultan of Great Seljuk* Malik Shah II, grandson of Malik Shah I, sultan of Great Seljuk* Malik Shah III, sultan of Great Seljuk * Melikshah, sultan of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm...

. Al-Mulk possessed "immense power" as the head administration for the Seljuq empire
Great Seljuq Empire
The Great Seljuq Empire was a Persianate medieval Sunni Muslim empire, established by the Qynyq branch of Oghuz Turks that once controlled a vast area stretching from the Hindu Kush to eastern Anatolia and from Central Asia to the Persian Gulf...

over a period of 30 years and was responsible for establishing distinctly Persian forms of government and administration which would last for centuries . A great deal of his approach to governing is contained within the Siyasatnama which is in a tradition of Persian
Culture of Iran
To best understand Iran and their people, one must first attempt to acquire an understanding of its culture. It is in the study of this area where the Iranian identity optimally expresses itself. Hence the first sentence of prominent Iranologist Richard Nelson Frye's latest book on Iran...

-Islamic writing known as the "Mirrors for Princes".

Written in Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is widely spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and to some extent in Iraq and Bahrain, and has a status of official language in the first three countries under different names...

and composed in the eleventh century, the Siyasatnama was created following the request by Malik Shah
Malik Shah
Malik Shah may refer to:* Malik Shah I , sultan of Great Seljuk* Malik Shah II, grandson of Malik Shah I, sultan of Great Seljuk* Malik Shah III, sultan of Great Seljuk * Melikshah, sultan of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm...

that his ministers produce books on government, administration and the troubles facing the nation. However, the treatise compiled by al-Mulk was the only one to receive approval and was consequently accepted as forming "the law of the constitution of the nation". In all it consists of 50 chapters concerning religion, politics, and various other issues of the day with the final 11 chapters - written shortly prior to Nizam's assassination - dealing mostly with dangers facing the empire and particularly the ascendant threat of the Ismailis. The treatise is concerned with guiding the ruler with regard to the realities of government and how it should be run. It covers "the proper role of soldiers, police, spies, and finance officials" and provides ethical advice emphasising the need for justice and religious piety in the ruler. Al-Mulk defines in detail what he views as justice; that all classes be "given their due" and that the weak be protected. Where possible justice is defined by both custom and Muslim law and the ruler is held responsible to God.

Anecdotes rooted in Islamic, and occasionally pre-Islamic Persian, culture and history with popular heroes - for example, Mahmud of Ghazna and the pre-Islamic Shah Kushraw Anushirvan
Khosrau I
Khosrau I , also known as Anushiravan the Just Khosrau I (also called Khosnow I, Chusro I, Khusro I, Husraw I or Khosrow I, Chosroes I in classical sources, most commonly known in Persian as Anushirvan, Persian: انوشيروان meaning the immortal soul), also known as Anushiravan the Just (انوشیروان...

- who were considered as examplars of good and virture frequently appearing . The Siyasatnama is considered to provide insight into the attitude of the Persian elite of the 12th century towards the past of their civilization as well as evidence for methods of the bureacracy and the extent it was influenced by the pre-Islamic traditions. .

The earliest remaining copy is located in the National Library of Tabriz, in Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran is a country in Western Asia. The name Iran has been in use natively since the Sassanid period and came into international use from 1935, before which the country was known internationally as Persia...

. It was first translated into French in 1891.