Al-Mu'ayyad Muhammad (died February 25, 1503) was an

imam Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, ser ...

of the Zaidi state in

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

who ruled in parts of the Yemeni highland including

San'a Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Governo ...

in 1462–1503.

Repulsing the Tahirides

He was a son of the former imam

al-Mansur an-Nasir Al-Mansur an-Nasir (died 1462) was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen who held power in parts of the northern Yemeni highland in 1436–1462. The old imam al-Mansur Ali bin Salah ad-Din died from the plague in 1436. His position was then claimed ...

who died while imprisoned in

Kawkaban Shibam Kawkaban ( ar, شبام كَوْكَبَان, Shibām Kawkabān) is a double town in Shibam Kawkaban District, Al Mahwit Governorate, Yemen, located 38 km west-northwest of Sanaa, the national capital. It consists of two distinct adjoinin ...

in 1462. At this time the Yemeni highland was contested between several imams, most prominently al-Mutawakkil al-Mutahhar who lost San'a to the Tahiride Dynasty in July 1462. The Tahirides were a

Sunni Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...

dynasty based in

Zabid Zabid ( ar, زَبِيد) (also spelled Zabīd, Zabeed and Zebid) is a town with an urban population of around 52,590 people on Yemen's western coastal plain. It is one of the oldest towns in Yemen, and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since ...

and

Ta'izz Taiz ( ar, تَعِزّ, Taʿizz) is a city in southwestern Yemen. It is located in the Yemeni Highlands, near the port city of Mocha on the Red Sea, at an elevation of about above sea level. It is the capital of Taiz Governorate. With a populat ...

in the lowland. Al-Mu'ayyad Muhammad, who had proclaimed his

imamate {{expand Arabic, date=April 2021 The term imamate or ''imamah'' ( ar, إمامة, ''imāmah'') means "leadership" and refers to the office of an ''imam'' or a state ruled by an ''imam''. Theology *Imamate, in Sunni doctrine the caliphate :* Naqshb ...

on the death of his father, moved to bring back the important city within the

Zaydiyyah Zaydism (''h'') is a unique branch of Shia Islam that emerged in the eighth century following Zayd ibn Ali‘s unsuccessful rebellion against the Umayyad Caliphate. In contrast to other Shia Muslims of Twelver Shi'ism and Isma'ilism, Zaydis, ...

fold. In 1464, his officer Muhammad bin Isa Sharib tricked his way into San'a by impersonating the Tahiride governor, who bore the same name. In the next year a Tahiride army made an abortive attempt to retake the city. The troops withdrew after al-Mu'ayyad Muhammad promised to pay tribute. War was resumed later in the same year, but this time the Tahiride prince Amir was killed.

Lord of San'a

After 1465 the imam was left in peace as lord of San'a (Sahib San'a) for 36 years. However, he only controlled part of the highland. The sons of the old imam al-Mutawakkil al-Mutahhar dominated

, and the region around the traditional Zaidi centre

Sa'dah Saada ( ar, صَعْدَة, translit=Ṣaʿda), a city and ancient capital in the northwest of Yemen, is the capital and largest city of the province of the same name, and the county seat of the county of the same name. The city is located in the ...

was divided between imam al-Mansur Muhammad and two other factions. Al-Mu'ayyad Muhammad was reportedly a good administrator and a man of learning. For a long time he entertained good relations with the Tahiride Sultan Amir. Finally, however, the sultan attacked Dhamar and then San'a in 1501. In spite of the use of

mangonel The mangonel, also called the traction trebuchet, was a type of trebuchet used in Ancient China starting from the Warring States period, and later across Eurasia by the 6th century AD. Unlike the later counterweight trebuchet, the mangonel opera ...

s to break the walls, the city held firm. After five months Sultan Amir burnt the equipment that could not be brought along and retreated, defeating a pursuing Zaidi force. Shortly after, in early 1503 (

Sha'ban Shaʽban ( ar, شَعْبَان, ') is the eighth month of the Islamic calendar. It is called as the month of "separation", as the word means "to disperse" or "to separate" because the pagan Arabs used to disperse in search of water. The fiftee ...

908 AH), al-Mu'ayyad Muhammad died. His old commander Sharib continued to exercise power in San'a and the latter's brother was declared imam as al-Mustansir Ahmad, though he is not counted in the official list of imams.Lein O. Schuman, 1960, p. 53. Already in 1504, however, San'a was conquered by the Tahiride sultan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muayyad Muhammad Zaydi imams of Yemen 1503 deaths Year of birth unknown 15th century in Yemen 16th century in Yemen 15th-century Arab people

Repulsing the Tahirides

Lord of San'a

See also

References