Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAlī (; – 764 CE) was a member of the
Abbasid dynasty
The Abbasid dynasty or Abbasids ( ar, بنو العباس, Banu al-ʿAbbās) were an Arab dynasty that ruled the Abbasid Caliphate between 750 and 1258. They were from the Qurayshi Hashimid clan of Banu Abbas, descended from Abbas ibn Abd al-M ...
, and played a leading role in its rise to power during the
Abbasid Revolution
The Abbasid Revolution, also called the Movement of the Men of the Black Raiment, was the overthrow of the Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE), the second of the four major Caliphates in early History of Islam, Islamic history, by the third, the A ...
. As governor of
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
, he consolidated Abbasid control over the province, eliminating the remnants of the
Umayyad dynasty
Umayyad dynasty ( ar, بَنُو أُمَيَّةَ, Banū Umayya, Sons of Umayya) or Umayyads ( ar, الأمويون, al-Umawiyyūn) were the ruling family of the Caliphate between 661 and 750 and later of Al-Andalus between 756 and 1031. In the ...
and suppressing pro-Umayyad uprisings. After the death of his nephew and first Abbasid caliph,
al-Saffah
Abū al-ʿAbbās ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Saffāḥ ( ar, أبو العباس عبد الله بن محمد السفّاح; 721/722 – 8 June 754, al-Anbar) usually known as Abūʾl-ʿAbbās as-Saffāḥ or simply by his laqab As-S ...
, in 754, he launched a bid for the caliphal title against al-Saffah's brother,
al-Mansur
Abū Jaʿfar ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Manṣūr (; ar, أبو جعفر عبد الله بن محمد المنصور; 95 AH – 158 AH/714 CE – 6 October 775 CE) usually known simply as by his laqab Al-Manṣūr (المنصور) w ...
, but was defeated and imprisoned. He was killed in 764.
Role in the Abbasid Revolution
Abd Allah was a member of the
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...
family, and uncle to the first two Abbasid caliphs,
al-Saffah
Abū al-ʿAbbās ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Saffāḥ ( ar, أبو العباس عبد الله بن محمد السفّاح; 721/722 – 8 June 754, al-Anbar) usually known as Abūʾl-ʿAbbās as-Saffāḥ or simply by his laqab As-S ...
() and
al-Mansur
Abū Jaʿfar ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Manṣūr (; ar, أبو جعفر عبد الله بن محمد المنصور; 95 AH – 158 AH/714 CE – 6 October 775 CE) usually known simply as by his laqab Al-Manṣūr (المنصور) w ...
().
By early 749, the anti-
Umayyad
The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by the ...
uprising that had begun under
Abu Muslim
, image = Abu Muslim chastises a man for telling tales, Folio from the Ethics of Nasir (Akhlaq-e Nasiri) by Nasir al-Din Tusi (fol. 248r).jpg
, caption = "Abu Muslim chastises a man for telling tales," Folio from the '' ...
in
Khurasan
Greater Khorāsān,Dabeersiaghi, Commentary on Safarnâma-e Nâsir Khusraw, 6th Ed. Tehran, Zavvâr: 1375 (Solar Hijri Calendar) 235–236 or Khorāsān ( pal, Xwarāsān; fa, خراسان ), is a historical eastern region in the Iranian Plate ...
had prevailed in the eastern lands of the Caliphate, and the Khurasani armies swept west across
Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
to the borders of
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. In October 749, al-Saffah was proclaimed Caliph at
Kufa
Kufa ( ar, الْكُوفَة ), also spelled Kufah, is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000. Currently, Kufa and Najaf ...
, and quickly gained the acceptance of Abu Muslim and the Kufans, thereby forestalling an
Alid
The Alids are those who claim descent from the '' rāshidūn'' caliph and Imam ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (656–661)—cousin, son-in-law, and companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad—through all his wives. The main branches are the (inc ...
bid for control of the revolution. To cement Abbasid control, al-Saffah now appointed members of his own family to command the armies: his brother, the future al-Mansur, was sent to lead the
Siege of Wasit, while Abd Allah was sent to confront the Umayyad caliph
Marwan II
Marwan ibn Muhammad ibn Marwan ibn al-Hakam ( ar, مروان بن محمد بن مروان بن الحكم, Marwān ibn Muḥammad ibn Marwān ibn al-Ḥakam; – 6 August 750), commonly known as Marwan II, was the fourteenth and last caliph of ...
() in the
Jazira
Jazira or Al-Jazira ( 'island'), or variants, may refer to:
Business
*Jazeera Airways, an airlines company based in Kuwait
Locations
* Al-Jazira, a traditional region known today as Upper Mesopotamia or the smaller region of Cizre
* Al-Jazira (c ...
.
Thus Abd Allah held the supreme command in the decisive
Battle of the Zab
The Battle of the Zab ( ar, معركة الزاب), also referred to in scholarly contexts as Battle of the Great Zāb River, took place on January 25, 750, on the banks of the Great Zab River in what is now the modern country of Iraq. It spel ...
, where the Abbasid forces defeated Marwan II, and led the pursuit of Marwan, first to
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
, where he captured the Umayyad capital,
Damascus
)), is an adjective which means "spacious".
, motto =
, image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg
, image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg
, seal_type = Seal
, map_caption =
, ...
, and then to
Palestine
__NOTOC__
Palestine may refer to:
* State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia
* Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia
* Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...
, forcing Marwan to flee to
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
. His brother
Salih
Salih (; ar, صَالِحٌ, Ṣāliḥ, lit=Pious), also spelled Saleh (), is an Arab prophet mentioned in the Quran who prophesied to the tribe of Thamud in ancient Arabia, before the lifetime of Muhammad. The story of Salih is linked to the ...
followed Marwan to Egypt, where the Umayyad ruler was captured and executed.
Governorship of Syria and suppression of Umayyad risings
As the first Abbasid governor of Syria, Abd Allah proved himself an implacable enemy of the Umayyads, vigorously persecuting the family's members. According to the Swedish Orientalist
Karl Vilhelm Zetterstéen
Karl Vilhelm Zetterstéen (18 August 1866 – June 1, 1953) was a Swedish professor and orientalist.
Biography
Zetterstéen was born at Orsa in Dalarna, Sweden. He began his studies at Uppsala University in 1884, became a Ph.D. and docent o ...
, "he shrank from no method to exterminate them root and branch. During his stay in Palestine, he had about eighty of them murdered at one time." So effective was this persecution, that only a single member of the dynasty, Caliph
Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik
Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik ( ar, هشام بن عبد الملك, Hishām ibn ʿAbd al-Malik; 691 – 6 February 743) was the tenth Umayyad caliph, ruling from 724 until his death in 743.
Early life
Hisham was born in Damascus, the administra ...
's grandson
Abd al-Rahman ibn Mu'awiya, managed to escape death and flee to
al-Andalus
Al-Andalus DIN 31635, translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label=Berber languages, Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, ...
, where he established a new
Umayyad dynasty
Umayyad dynasty ( ar, بَنُو أُمَيَّةَ, Banū Umayya, Sons of Umayya) or Umayyads ( ar, الأمويون, al-Umawiyyūn) were the ruling family of the Caliphate between 661 and 750 and later of Al-Andalus between 756 and 1031. In the ...
.
This harsh suppression, and the depredations of the victorious Khurasani soldiers, soon provoked an uprising by the Syrian tribes, led by the governor of
Jund Qinnasrin
''Jund Qinnasrīn'' ( ar, جُـنْـد قِـنَّـسْـرِيْـن, "military district of Qinnasrin") was one of five sub-provinces of Syria under the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates, organized soon after the Muslim conquest of Syria in t ...
,
Abu'l-Ward ibn al-Kawthar. They were joined by
Abu Muhammad al-Sufyani
Ziyād ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Yazīd ibn Muʿāwiya ( ar, زياد بن عبد الله بن يزيد بن معاوية), commonly known as Abū Muḥammad al-Sufyānī ( ar, أبو محمد السفياني) was an Umayyad prince and a pretender t ...
, a descendant of Caliph
Mu'awiya I
Mu'awiya I ( ar, معاوية بن أبي سفيان, Muʿāwiya ibn Abī Sufyān; –April 680) was the founder and first caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate, ruling from 661 until his death. He became caliph less than thirty years after the deat ...
, who put himself forward as a candidate for reviving the Umayyad Caliphate. The rebels were at first successful, routing an Abbasid army under Abd Allah's brother
Abd al-Samad
'Abd al-Ṣamad or Khwaja 'Abd-us-Ṣamad was a 16th century painter of Persian miniatures who moved to India and became one of the founding masters of the Mughal miniature tradition, and later the holder of a number of senior administrative rol ...
near
Qinnasrin
Qinnasrin ( ar, قنسرين; syr, ܩܢܫܪܝܢ, ''Qinnašrīn'', lit=Nest of Eagles), also known by numerous other romanizations and originally known as ( la, Chalcis ad Belum; grc-gre, Χαλκὶς, ''Khalkìs''), was a historical town in ...
, but Abd Allah finally dealt a heavy defeat on them at Marj al-Akhram in late 750. Abu'l-Ward fell, while Abu Muhammad fled to the desert. A nephew of Abu Muhammad, al-Abbas ibn Muhammad, rose up in
Aleppo
)), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black".
, motto =
, image_map =
, mapsize =
, map_caption =
, image_map1 =
...
shortly after, but al-Mansur, who governed the Jazira, sent troops that quelled the uprising before Abd Allah could arrive. Abd Allah then marched onto the frontier fortress of
Sumaysat
Samsat ( ku, Samîsad), formerly Samosata ( grc, Σαμόσατα) is a small town in the Adıyaman Province of Turkey, situated on the upper Euphrates river. It is the seat of Samsat District.[Ishaq ibn Muslim al-Uqayli
Ishaq ibn Muslim ibn Rabi'a ibn Asim al-Uqayli was a general and governor for the Umayyad Caliphate in the region of ''Arminiya'' (Transcaucasia), and a close supporter of the last Umayyad caliph, Marwan II. Following the defeat of Marwan by the A ...]
. In the event, a negotiated settlement was reached between Ishaq and al-Mansur, and many of the pro-Umayyad leaders were then accepted into the ranks of the Abbasids. Another uprising, headed by
Aban ibn Mu'awiya, a grandson of
Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik
Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik ( ar, هشام بن عبد الملك, Hishām ibn ʿAbd al-Malik; 691 – 6 February 743) was the tenth Umayyad caliph, ruling from 724 until his death in 743.
Early life
Hisham was born in Damascus, the administra ...
, erupted in the summer of 751 near Sumaysat, forcing Abd Allah to interrupt a raid into
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
territories to suppress it. Another Umayyad loyalist, Abd al-Samad ibn Muhammad ibn
al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf
Abu Muhammad al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf ibn al-Hakam ibn Abi Aqil al-Thaqafi ( ar, أبو محمد الحجاج بن يوسف بن الحكم بن أبي عقيل الثقفي, Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥajjāj ibn Yūsuf ibn al-Ḥakam ibn Abī ʿAqīl al-T ...
, managed to escape defeat and capture until 755.
Bid for the Caliphate
Despite the recurrence of pro-Umayyad revolts in the Jazira, over the next few years Abd Allah was apparently able to secure the loyalty of the Syrian tribal nobility, and the province remained mostly calm. By the time of al-Saffah's death in June 754, he ranked, along with al-Mansur and the viceroy of the east, Abu Muslim, as one of the three most powerful men in the Caliphate. Al-Saffah died on his way to
Mecca
Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...
, and on his deathbed he nominated al-Mansur as his heir. At the time, Abd Allah was preparing a major campaign against the Byzantine Empire, and had assembled a large army for this purpose. Upon receiving news of al-Saffah's death, Abd Allah proclaimed himself as Caliph, claiming that al-Saffah had promised him the succession as a reward for his role in the overthrow of Marwan II.
The veracity of Abd Allah's claim and the level of legitimacy he enjoyed vis-à-vis al-Mansur is difficult to assess following the prevalence of hostile traditions after his defeat, but, as P. Cobb comments, "what all accounts agree on is that the succession to al-Saffah was not solidly secured before his death", and there are indications that Abd Allah "had portrayed himself as an obvious successor
..in the few years prior to al-Saffah's death." Abd Allah enjoyed broad support in Syria, both by the native Syro-Jaziran troops and the Syrian elites who sought to regain the privileged position they had held under the Umayyads, as well as the Khurasani soldiers he had commanded during the Revolution.
As Abd Allah's army began their march on Iraq, al-Mansur turned to Abu Muslim for support. Although the Caliph distrusted Abu Muslim's power, the fact that he was universally popular with the Khurasani soldiers of the Revolution made him an ideal candidate to confront Abd Allah and rally most of the Khurasani soldiery, which formed the regime's main pillar, to the Caliph's side. The two armies met at
Nisibis
Nusaybin (; '; ar, نُصَيْبِيْن, translit=Nuṣaybīn; syr, ܢܨܝܒܝܢ, translit=Nṣībīn), historically known as Nisibis () or Nesbin, is a city in Mardin Province, Turkey. The population of the city is 83,832 as of 2009 and is ...
in November 754. Abd Allah's army was riven with doubt, as the Khurasanis were loath to fight Abu Muslim. Indeed, according to Zetterstéen, Abd Allah "is said to have killed 17,000 Khurasanis in his army, because he feared they would never fight against Abu Muslim". The Syrians still resented their defeat at Abd Allah's hands at the Zab. In the words of
Hugh N. Kennedy
Hugh Nigel Kennedy (born 22 October 1947) is a British medieval historian and academic. He specialises in the history of the early Islamic Middle East, Muslim Iberia and the Crusades. From 1997 to 2007, he was Professor of Middle Eastern Histor ...
, Abd Allah "suspected treachery all round and fled before the battle really developed", seeking refuge in
Basra
Basra ( ar, ٱلْبَصْرَة, al-Baṣrah) is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab. It had an estimated population of 1.4 million in 2018. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is hand ...
, where another brother of his,
Sulayman
Sulayman (Arabic: سُلِيمَان ''sulaymān'') is an Arabic name of the Biblical king and Islamic prophet Solomon meaning "man of peace", derived from the Hebrew name Shlomo.
The name Sulayman is a diminutive of the name Salman (سَلْ ...
, was governor. Despite the victory just gained in his name, the wily al-Mansur moved quickly to eliminate Abu Muslim, his chief remaining rival. A few months later, Abu Muslim was persuaded to come to the caliphal court, where he was murdered.
Abd Allah remained in Basra under his brother's protection until the latter was dismissed, two years later. Abd Allah was now imprisoned on al-Mansur's orders, until, in 764, he was "taken into a house that had been purposely undermined; it fell down on him and buried him under the ruins" (Zetterstéen). At the time of his death, he was said to be 52 years old.
Despite Abd Allah's rebellion, he was succeeded in Syria by his brother Salih and his family, who remained as the paramount Abbasid potentates in the province for the next half-century.
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
* {{Encyclopaedia Islamica, last=Bahramian, first=Ali, title=ʿAbd Allāh b. ʿAlī, year=2015, url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-islamica/abd-allah-b-ali-SIM_0024?s.num=17&s.f.s2_parent=s.f.book.encyclopaedia-islamica&s.q=umayyad
710s births
764 deaths
Abbasids
Generals of the Abbasid Caliphate
Governors of the Abbasid Caliphate
Abbasid people of the Arab–Byzantine wars
Rebellions against the Abbasid Caliphate
Prisoners and detainees of the Abbasid Caliphate
Syria under the Abbasid Caliphate
People of the Abbasid Revolution
8th-century Arabs