Abū Jaʿfar Hārūn ibn Muḥammad ( ar, أبو جعفر هارون بن محمد المعتصم; 17 April 812 – 10 August 847), better known by his
regnal name
A regnal name, or regnant name or reign name, is the name used by monarchs and popes during their reigns and, subsequently, historically. Since ancient times, some monarchs have chosen to use a different name from their original name when they ac ...
al-Wāthiq bi’llāh (, ), was an
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 ...
caliph
A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...
who reigned from 842 until 847 AD (227–232 AH in the
Islamic calendar
The Hijri calendar ( ar, ٱلتَّقْوِيم ٱلْهِجْرِيّ, translit=al-taqwīm al-hijrī), also known in English as the Muslim calendar and Islamic calendar, is a lunar calendar consisting of 12 lunar months in a year of 354 or ...
).
Al-Wathiq is described in the sources as well-educated, intellectually curious, but also a poet and a drinker, who enjoyed the company of poets and musicians as well as scholars. His brief reign was one of continuity with the policies of his father,
al-Mu'tasim
Abū Isḥāq Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Rashīd ( ar, أبو إسحاق محمد بن هارون الرشيد; October 796 – 5 January 842), better known by his regnal name al-Muʿtaṣim biʾllāh (, ), was the eighth Abbasid caliph, ruling f ...
, as power continued to rest in the hands of the same officials whom al-Mu'tasim had appointed. The chief events of the reign were the suppression of revolts:
Bedouin
The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu (; , singular ) are nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia. The Bedouin originated in the Syrian Desert and A ...
rebellions occurred in
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 ...
in 842, the
Hejaz
The Hejaz (, also ; ar, ٱلْحِجَاز, al-Ḥijāz, lit=the Barrier, ) is a region in the west of Saudi Arabia. It includes the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif, and Baljurashi. It is also known as the "Western Provin ...
in 845, and the
Yamamah
Al-Yamama ( ar, اليَمامَة, al-Yamāma) is a historical region in the southeastern Najd in modern-day Saudi Arabia, or sometimes more specifically, the now-extinct ancient village of Jaww al-Yamamah, near al-Kharj, after which the rest o ...
in 846,
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
had to be pacified over several years, and above all, an abortive uprising took place in
Baghdad
Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...
itself in 846, under Ahmad ibn Nasr al-Khuza'i. The latter was linked to al-Wathiq's continued support for the doctrine of
Mu'tazilism
Muʿtazila ( ar, المعتزلة ', English: "Those Who Withdraw, or Stand Apart", and who called themselves ''Ahl al-ʿAdl wa al-Tawḥīd'', English: "Party of ivineJustice and Oneness f God
F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''.
Hist ...
); was an Islamic group that appeared in early ...
, and his reactivation of the to root out opponents. In foreign affairs, the perennial conflict with the
Byzantine Empire
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 ...
continued, and the Abbasids even scored a significant victory at
Mauropotamos, but after a prisoner exchange in 845, warfare ceased for several years.
Early life
Al-Wathiq was the son of
al-Mu'tasim
Abū Isḥāq Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Rashīd ( ar, أبو إسحاق محمد بن هارون الرشيد; October 796 – 5 January 842), better known by his regnal name al-Muʿtaṣim biʾllāh (, ), was the eighth Abbasid caliph, ruling f ...
by a
Byzantine Greek
Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the Ottoman co ...
slave (),
Qaratis
Qaratis, also known as Umm Harun ( ar, أم هارون) or Umm al-Wathiq () was the of the eighth Abbasid caliph al-Mu'tasim, and mother of his successor, al-Wathiq.
Life
Qaratis was a Byzantine Greek woman. She entered the caliphal harem prob ...
. He was born on 17 April 812 (various sources give slightly earlier or later dates in 811–813), on the road 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 ...
. He was named Harun after his grandfather, Caliph
Harun al-Rashid
Abu Ja'far Harun ibn Muhammad al-Mahdi ( ar
, أبو جعفر هارون ابن محمد المهدي) or Harun ibn al-Mahdi (; or 766 – 24 March 809), famously known as Harun al-Rashid ( ar, هَارُون الرَشِيد, translit=Hārūn ...
(), and had the
teknonym
Teknonymy (from grc-gre, τέκνον, "child" and grc-gre, ὄνομα, label=none, "name"), is the practice of referring to parents by the names of their children. This practice can be found in many different cultures around the world. The term ...
Abu Ja'far.
The early life of al-Wathiq is obscure, all the more since his father was initially a junior prince without prospects of succession.
Harun ibn Ziyad is mentioned as his first teacher, and he learned calligraphy, recitation and literature from his uncle, Caliph
al-Ma'mun
Abu al-Abbas Abdallah ibn Harun al-Rashid ( ar, أبو العباس عبد الله بن هارون الرشيد, Abū al-ʿAbbās ʿAbd Allāh ibn Hārūn ar-Rashīd; 14 September 786 – 9 August 833), better known by his regnal name Al-Ma'mu ...
(). Later sources nickname him the "Little Ma'mun" on account of his erudition and moral character.
When al-Mu'tasim became caliph, he took care for his son and heir-apparent to acquire experience in governance. Thus al-Wathiq was left in charge of the capital
Baghdad
Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...
in 835, when al-Mu'tasim moved north to found a new capital at
Samarra
Samarra ( ar, سَامَرَّاء, ') is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Saladin Governorate, north of Baghdad. The city of Samarra was founded by Abbasid Caliph Al-Mutasim for his Turkish professional army ...
. He is then mentioned in the account of
al-Tabari
( ar, أبو جعفر محمد بن جرير بن يزيد الطبري), more commonly known as al-Ṭabarī (), was a Muslim historian and scholar from Amol, Tabaristan. Among the most prominent figures of the Islamic Golden Age, al-Tabari ...
as being sent to ceremonially welcome the general
al-Afshin
Ḥaydar ibn Kāwūs ( ar, حيدر بن كاوس, fa, خِیذَر اِبنِ کاووس, Kheyzar ebn-e Kāvus), better known by his hereditary title of al-Afshīn ( ar, الأفشين, fa, اَفشین, Afshin), was a senior general of Sogd ...
during his victorious return from the suppression of the revolt of
Babak Khorramdin
, native_name_lang =
, birth_date = 795 or 798
, birth_place = Ardabil, Abbasid Caliphate
, spouse = Banu
, death_date = probably 7 January 838 (age 40 or 43)
, death_place = Samarra, Abbasid Caliphate
, years_active ...
in 838, and being left behind as his father's deputy during the
Amorion campaign of 838.
Al-Wathiq is then mentioned in 841 as bringing a bowl of fruit to al-Afshin, now disgraced and imprisoned. Fearing that the fruit was poisoned, al-Afshin refused to accept it, and asked for someone else to convey a message to the caliph. In Samarra, al-Wathiq's residence was immediately adjacent to his father's palace, and he was a fixed presence at court. As historian John Turner remarks, these events show al-Wathiq in the "role of a trusted agent of his father, which positioned him well to take over the reins of power". On the other hand, al-Wathiq was never given a military command and did not even participate in the Amorion campaign, in a departure from previous Abbasid practice.
Reign
Al-Tabari records that al-Wathiq was of medium height, handsome and well-built. He was fair with a ruddy complexion, commonly associated with noble descent. His left eye was paralyzed with a white fleck, which reportedly lent his gaze a stern aspect. When al-Mu'tasim died on 5 January 842, al-Wathiq succeeded him without opposition. Inheriting a full treasury, the new caliph made generous donations to the common people, especially in Baghdad and the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and
Medina
Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the Holiest sites in Islam, second-holiest city in Islam, ...
. His mother, Qaratis, accompanied al-Wathiq's brother Ja'far (the future caliph
al-Mutawakkil
Abū al-Faḍl Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad al-Muʿtaṣim bi-ʾllāh ( ar, جعفر بن محمد المعتصم بالله; March 822 – 11 December 861), better known by his regnal name Al-Mutawakkil ʿalā Allāh (, "He who relies on God") was t ...
) on the
pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...
in 842, but she died on the way at
al-Hirah
Al-Hirah ( ar, الحيرة, translit=al-Ḥīra Middle Persian: ''Hērt'' ) was an ancient city in Mesopotamia located south of what is now Kufa in south-central Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of I ...
, on 16 August 842. She was buried in
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 ...
.
Ruling elites
Al-Wathiq's reign was short and is generally considered to have been essentially a continuation of al-Mu'tasim's own, as the government continued to be led by men that had been raised to power by al-Mu'tasim: the Turkish military commanders
Itakh
Aytākh or Ītākh al-Khazarī ( ar, إيتاخ الخزري) was a leading commander in the Turkic army of the Abbasid caliph al-Mu'tasim (r. 833-842 C.E.).
As the ''nisba'' in his name suggests, he was a Khazar by origin, and is said to have ...
,
Wasif, and
Ashinas
Abu Ja'far Ashinas ( ar, أبو جعفر أشناس; died 17 or 19 December 844) was a general of the ''Abbasid Caliph'' Al-Mu'tasim. One of the earliest and most prominent members of al-Mu'tasim's Turkic guard, he rose to become one of the leadi ...
, the
vizier
A vizier (; ar, وزير, wazīr; fa, وزیر, vazīr), or wazir, is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the near east. The Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was a ...
,
Muhammad ibn al-Zayyat
Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Malik, better known as Ibn al-Zayyāt ( ar, ابن الزيات), was a wealthy merchant who became a court official and served as vizier of the Abbasid caliphs al-Mu'tasim, al-Wathiq, and al-Mutawakkil, from 836 until his ...
, and the chief ,
Ahmad ibn Abi Duwad
Abu 'Abdallah Ahmad ibn Abi Du'ad al-Iyadi ( ar, أبو عبد الله أحمد بن أبي دؤاد الإيادي, ʾAbū ʿAbd Allāh ʾAḥmad ibn ʾAbī Duʾād al-ʾIyādī) (776/7–June 854) was an Islamic religious judge (''qadi'') of th ...
. These men had been personally loyal to al-Mu'tasim, but was not similarly bound to al-Wathiq; in practice, according to Turner, this narrow circle "controlled the levers of power and thus the Caliph's independence".
In a gesture likely aimed at cementing an alliance between the caliph and his most powerful commander, al-Wathiq bestowed a crown on Ashinas in June/July 843, and on the occasion invested him with sweeping authority over the western provinces, from Samarra to the
Maghreb
The Maghreb (; ar, الْمَغْرِب, al-Maghrib, lit=the west), also known as the Arab Maghreb ( ar, المغرب العربي) and Northwest Africa, is the western part of North Africa and the Arab world. The region includes Algeria, ...
—an act which the 15th-century Egyptian scholar
al-Suyuti
Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti ( ar, جلال الدين السيوطي, Jalāl al-Dīn al-Suyūṭī) ( 1445–1505 CE),; (Brill 2nd) or Al-Suyuti, was an Arab Egyptian polymath, Islamic scholar, historian, Sufi, and jurist. From a family of Persian or ...
considered as the first occasion when royal power () was delegated to a subject. Ashinas died in 844, and Itakh succeeded him in his rank as commander-in-chief and in his over-governorship of the western provinces. The new caliph also engaged in much construction in Samarra, which went a long way towards making the caliphal residence a proper city, with markets and a port adequate to its needs. This made Samarra not only more comfortable for its inhabitants but also made investment in property there economically attractive—both major considerations for the Abbasid elites and the military, who had been forced to relocate to the new capital by al-Mu'tasim.
However, in 843/4, the Caliph—allegedly at the instigation of the vizier Ibn al-Zayyat, or, according to a story reported by al-Tabari, inspired by the downfall of the
Barmakids
The Barmakids ( fa, برمکیان ''Barmakiyân''; ar, البرامكة ''al-Barāmikah''Harold Bailey, 1943. "Iranica" BSOAS 11: p. 2. India - Department of Archaeology, and V. S. Mirashi (ed.), ''Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era'' vol ...
under Harun al-Rashid—arrested, tortured, and imposed heavy fines on several of the secretaries in the central government, in an effort to raise money to pay the Turkish troops. The measure was at the same time possibly aimed at driving a wedge between civilian and military elites, or at reducing the power of the leading Turkish commanders, such as Itakh and Ashinas, since most of the secretaries arrested and forced to pay were in their service.
Suppression of rebellions
![Abbasid Caliphate 850AD](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Abbasid_Caliphate_850AD.png)
Already during the last months of al-Mu'tasim's life, a large-scale revolt had erupted in
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 ...
under a certain
al-Mubarqa
Abū Ḥarb al-Yamānī () or, according to Ya'qubi, Tamīm al-Lak̲h̲mī (), better known by his ''laqab'' of al-Mubarqaʿ (), was the leader of a rebellion against the Abbasid Caliphate in Palestine in 841/42.
Revolt
According to al-Tabari, wh ...
. Al-Mu'tasim sent the general
Raja ibn Ayyub al-Hidari to confront the rebels. When al-Wathiq came to power, he dispatched al-Hidari against
Ibn Bayhas
Muhammad ibn Salih ibn Bayhas al-Kilabi, better known as Ibn Bayhas (), was the Abbasid governor of Damascus in September 813–824/825 and a prominent chief of the Qays tribes in the environs of Damascus against their Yamani rivals. Under his ...
, who led a
Qays
Qays ʿAylān ( ar, قيس عيلان), often referred to simply as Qays (''Kais'' or ''Ḳays'') were an Arab tribal confederation that branched from the Mudar group. The tribe does not appear to have functioned as a unit in the pre-Islamic er ...
i tribal revolt around
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 =
, ...
. The exact relationship of this uprising with the revolt of al-Mubarqa is unclear. Taking advantage of the dissensions among the tribesmen, al-Hidari quickly defeated Ibn Bayhas, and then turned south and confronted al-Mubarqa's forces near
Ramla
Ramla or Ramle ( he, רַמְלָה, ''Ramlā''; ar, الرملة, ''ar-Ramleh'') is a city in the Central District of Israel. Today, Ramle is one of Israel's mixed cities, with both a significant Jewish and Arab populations.
The city was f ...
. The battle was a decisive victory for the government army, with al-Mubarqa taken prisoner and brought to Samarra, where he was thrown into prison and never heard of again.
Upon coming to the throne, al-Wathiq appointed
Khalid ibn Yazid al-Shaybani Khalid ibn Yazid al-Shaybani (in Arabic خالد بن يزيد الشيباني) was an Arab general and governor for the Abbasid Caliphate, active in the second quarter of the 9th century.
Khalid was a member of the Shayban tribe, dominant in t ...
as governor of the restive province of
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
. At the head of a large army, Khalid defeated the opposition of the local Muslim and Christian princes at the Battle of Kawakert. Khalid died soon after, but his son,
Muhammad
Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 Common Era, CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Muhammad in Islam, Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet Divine inspiration, di ...
, succeeded him in office and continued his father's task.
In spring 845, another tribal rebellion broke out around Medina. A local tribe, the
Banu Sulaym
The Banu Sulaym ( ar, بنو سليم) is an Arab tribe that dominated part of the Hejaz in the pre-Islamic era. They maintained close ties with the Quraysh of Mecca and the inhabitants of Medina, and fought in a number of battles against the Is ...
, had become embroiled in a conflict with the tribes of
Banu Kinanah
The Kinana ( ar, كِنَاَنَة, Kināna) were an Arab tribe based around Mecca in the Tihama coastal area and the Hejaz mountains. The Quraysh of Mecca, the tribe of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, was an offshoot of the Kinana. A number of mo ...
and
Bahila
Bāhila () was an Arab tribe based in Najd (central Arabia). Part of the tribe was settled and part of it was semi-nomadic. The Bahila was first mentioned during the early years of Islam, in the mid-7th century. During that time, many Bahila trib ...
h around Medina, resulting in clashes that left some dead (February/March 845). The local governor,
Muhammad ibn Salih ibn al-Abbas, sent Hammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari against them with a mixed force, comprising regular troops as well as inhabitants of Medina, from the
Ansar families and the
Quraysh
The Quraysh ( ar, قُرَيْشٌ) were a grouping of Arab clans that historically inhabited and controlled the city of Mecca and its Kaaba. The Islamic prophet Muhammad was born into the Hashim clan of the tribe. Despite this, many of the Qur ...
. Although the Banu Sulaym, not more than around 650 strong, were reluctant to fight, Hammad attacked them, only to be defeated and killed with almost his entire force. The Banu Sulaym now looted the environs of Mecca and Medina, and in May al-Wathiq charged one of his Turkish generals,
Bugha al-Kabir
Bugha al-Kabir (), also known as Bugha al-Turki (), was a 9th-century Khazar general who served the Abbasid Caliphate.
He was of Khazar origin, and was acquired along with his sons as a military slave (''ghulam'') by al-Mu'tasim in 819/820.Gordo ...
, to handle the affair. Accompanied by troops from the , Turkish, and the guard regiments, Bugha defeated part of the Sulaym at the town of al-Suwariqiyyah, and forced most of the tribe to surrender. He imprisoned about 1,000 of the tribe at Medina, and let the rest free. After going to Medina and Mecca in August, he also forced the
Banu Hilal
The Banu Hilal ( ar, بنو هلال, translit=Banū Hilāl) was a confederation of Arabian tribes from the Hejaz and Najd regions of the Arabian Peninsula that emigrated to North Africa in the 11th century. Masters of the vast plateaux of th ...
to submit on the same terms. After a few months, the prisoners, some 1,300 in total, tried to escape, but were thwarted by the Medinese, who proceeded to lay siege to the palace that was being used as a prison. The prisoners were all killed in the ensuing clashes, and many tribesmen who happened to be in Medina suffered the same fate. In the meantime, Bugha used the opportunity to intimidate the Bedouin tribes of the region, and marched to confront the
Banu Fazara
The Banu Fazara or Fazzara or Fezara or Fezzara () were an Arab tribe whose original homeland was Najd.
Origins of the tribe
According to Arab genealogical tradition, the progenitor of the Banu Fazara was Fazāra ibn Dhubyān ibn Baghīd ibn Ray ...
and the
Banu Murra
Banu Murra () was a tribe during the era of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. They participated in the Battle of the Trench.Rodinson, ''Muhammad: Prophet of Islam'', p. 208.
They were members of the Ghatafan tribe
See also
*List of battles of Muham ...
. The tribes fled before his advance, with many submitting, and others fleeing to
al-Balqa. Bugha then subdued the
Banu Kilab
The Banu Kilab ( ar, بنو كِلاب, Banū Kilāb) was an Arab tribe in the western Najd (central Arabia) where they controlled the horse-breeding pastures of Dariyya from the mid-6th century until at least the mid-9th century. The tribe was di ...
, taking some 1,300 of them as prisoners back to Medina in May 846.
A minor
Kharijite
The Kharijites (, singular ), also called al-Shurat (), were an Islamic sect which emerged during the First Fitna (656–661). The first Kharijites were supporters of Ali who rebelled against his acceptance of arbitration talks to settle the c ...
uprising in 845/6 occurred in
Diyar Rabi'a
Diyar Rabi'a ( ar, دِيَارُ رَبِيعَةَ, Diyār Rabīʿa, abode of Rabi'a) is the medieval Arabic name of the easternmost and largest of the three provinces of the Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia), the other two being Diyar Bakr and Diyar M ...
under a certain Muhammad ibn Abdallah al-Tha'labi (or Muhammad ibn Amr), but was easily suppressed by the governor of
Mosul
Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second large ...
. In the same year, the general Wasif suppressed restive
Kurdish
Kurdish may refer to:
*Kurds or Kurdish people
*Kurdish languages
*Kurdish alphabets
*Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes:
**Southern Kurdistan
**Eastern Kurdistan
**Northern Kurdistan
**Western Kurdistan
See also
* Kurd (dis ...
tribes in
Isfahan
Isfahan ( fa, اصفهان, Esfahân ), from its Achaemenid empire, ancient designation ''Aspadana'' and, later, ''Spahan'' in Sassanian Empire, middle Persian, rendered in English as ''Ispahan'', is a major city in the Greater Isfahan Regio ...
,
Jibal
Jibāl ( ar, جبال), also al-Jabal ( ar, الجبل), was the name given by the Arabs to a region and province located in western Iran, under the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates.
Its name means "the Mountains", being the plural of ''jabal'' (" ...
and
Fars.
In September 846, al-Wathiq sent Bugha al-Kabir to stop the depredations of the
Banu Numayr
The Numayrids () were an Arab dynasty based in Diyar Mudar (western Upper Mesopotamia). They were emirs (princes) of their namesake tribe, the Banu Numayr. The senior branch of the dynasty, founded by Waththab ibn Sabiq in 990, ruled the Euph ...
in
Yamamah
Al-Yamama ( ar, اليَمامَة, al-Yamāma) is a historical region in the southeastern Najd in modern-day Saudi Arabia, or sometimes more specifically, the now-extinct ancient village of Jaww al-Yamamah, near al-Kharj, after which the rest o ...
. On 4 February 847, Bugha fought a major engagement against about 3,000 Numayris at the watering place of Batn al-Sirr. At first he was hard pressed, and his forces almost disintegrated. Then some troops he had out raiding the Numayris' horses returned, fell upon the forces attacking Bugha and completely routed them. According to one report, up to 1,500 Numayris were killed. Bugha spent a few months pacifying the region, issuing writs of safe-passage to those who submitted and pursuing the rest, before he returned to Basra in June/July 847. Over 2,200 Bedouin from various tribes were brought captive with him.
Mu'tazilism and the abortive coup of al-Khuza'i
![Mihna Map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Mihna_Map.svg)
Like his father, al-Wathiq was an ardent
Mu'tazilite
Muʿtazila ( ar, المعتزلة ', English: "Those Who Withdraw, or Stand Apart", and who called themselves ''Ahl al-ʿAdl wa al-Tawḥīd'', English: "Party of ivineJustice and Oneness f God); was an Islamic group that appeared in early Islamic ...
—the sources agree that he was strongly influenced by the chief , Ibn Abi Duwad—but also, like his father, maintained good relations with the
Alids
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 (inclu ...
. In the third year of his caliphate, al-Wathiq revived the inquisition (), sending officials to question jurists on their views on the controversial topic of the
createdness of the Quran. Even during a
prisoner exchange
A prisoner exchange or prisoner swap is a deal between opposing sides in a conflict to release prisoners: prisoners of war, spies, hostages, etc. Sometimes, dead bodies are involved in an exchange.
Geneva Conventions
Under the Geneva Convent ...
held with the
Byzantine Empire
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 ...
in 845, the ransomed Muslim prisoners were questioned on their opinions regarding the topic, with those giving unsatisfactory answers reportedly left to remain in captivity. Thus
Ahmad ibn Hanbal
Ahmad ibn Hanbal al-Dhuhli ( ar, أَحْمَد بْن حَنْبَل الذهلي, translit=Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal al-Dhuhlī; November 780 – 2 August 855 CE/164–241 AH), was a Muslim jurist, theologian, ascetic, hadith traditionist, and ...
, the founder of the
Hanbali
The Hanbali school ( ar, ٱلْمَذْهَب ٱلْحَنۢبَلِي, al-maḏhab al-ḥanbalī) is one of the four major traditional Sunni schools (''madhahib'') of Islamic jurisprudence. It is named after the Arab scholar Ahmad ibn Hanbal ...
school of jurisprudence
Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...
, was forced to cease his teachings and only resumed them after al-Wathiq's death.
In 846, a well-respected notable,
Ahmad ibn Nasr ibn Malik al-Khuza'i, a descendant of one of the original missionaries of 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 ...
, launched a plot in Baghdad to overthrow al-Wathiq, his Turkish commanders, and the Mu'tazilite doctrines. His followers distributed money to the people, and the date for the uprising was scheduled for the night of 4 April 846. However, according to al-Tabari, those who were supposed to sound a drum as the signal to rise got drunk and did so a day early, and there was no response.
Khatib al-Baghdadi
Abū Bakr Aḥmad ibn ʿAlī ibn Thābit ibn Aḥmad ibn Māhdī al-Shāfiʿī, commonly known as al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī ( ar, الخطيب البغدادي) or "the lecturer from Baghdad" (10 May 1002 – 5 September 1071; 392 AH-463 AH), wa ...
on the other hand reports simply that an informer gave the plot away to the authorities. The
Mus'abid deputy governor of the city,
Muhammad ibn Ibrahim—the governor, his brother
Ishaq, was absent—inquired on the event, and the conspiracy was revealed. Al-Khuza'i and his followers were arrested and brought before al-Wathiq at Samarra.
The caliph interrogated al-Khuza'i publicly, though more on the thorny theological issue of the createdness of the Quran rather than on the actual rebellion. Ahmad's answers enraged al-Wathiq so much, that the Caliph took al-Samsamah, a famous sword of the
pre-Islamic period, and personally joined in the execution of Ahmad, along with the Turks
Bugha al-Sharabi
Bugha al-Sharabi ("Bugha the Cupbearer"), also known as Bugha al-Saghir ("Bugha the Younger") to distinguish him from his unrelated contemporary Bugha the Elder, was a senior Turkic military leader in the mid-9th century Abbasid Caliphate.
He se ...
and
Sima al-Dimashqi
Sima or SIMA may refer to:
People
* Sima (Chinese surname)
* Sima (given name), a Persian feminine name in use in Iran and Turkey
* Sima (surname)
Places
* Sima, Comoros, on the island of Anjouan, near Madagascar
* Sima de los Huesos, a cave ...
. Ahmad's corpse was publicly displayed next to the
gibbet
A gibbet is any instrument of public execution (including guillotine, decapitation, executioner's block, Impalement, impalement stake, gallows, hanging gallows, or related Scaffold (execution site), scaffold). Gibbeting is the use of a gallows- ...
of Babak in Baghdad, while twenty of his followers were thrown into prison.
The same year there was a break-in at the public treasury () in Samarra. Thieves made off with 42,000 silver
dirham
The dirham, dirhem or dirhm ( ar, درهم) is a silver unit of currency historically and currently used by several Arab and Arab influenced states. The term has also been used as a related unit of mass.
Unit of mass
The dirham was a un ...
s and a small amount of
gold dinar
The gold dinar ( ar, ﺩﻳﻨﺎﺭ ذهبي) is an Islamic medieval gold coin first issued in AH 77 (696–697 CE) by Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan. The weight of the dinar is 1 mithqal ().
The word ''dinar'' comes from the La ...
s. The ,
Yazid al-Huwani, a deputy of Itakh, pursued and caught them. Turner points out that this episode may provide some premonition of the
crisis
A crisis ( : crises; : critical) is either any event or period that will (or might) lead to an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, or all of society. Crises are negative changes in the human or environmental affair ...
to erupt in later decades: security even at the main palace was lax, and, based on the thieve's loot, the treasury appears to have been almost empty at the time.
The Byzantine front
![Asia Minor ca 842 AD](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Asia_Minor_ca_842_AD.svg)
In 838 al-Mu'tasim had scored a major victory against the Abbasid Caliphate's perennial foe, the Byzantine Empire, with the celebrated sack of Amorion. He did not follow up this success, however, and warfare reverted to the usual raids and counter-raids along the border. According to Byzantine sources, at the time of his death in 842, al-Mu'tasim was preparing yet another large-scale invasion, but the great fleet he had prepared to assault Constantinople perished in a storm off
Cape Chelidonia a few months later. This event is not reported in Muslim sources, however.
Following al-Mu'tasim's death, the Byzantine regent
Theoktistos
Theoktistos or Theoctistus (; died November 20, 855) was a leading Byzantine official during the second quarter of the 9th century and the ''de facto'' head of the regency for the underage emperor Michael III from 842 until his dismissal and mu ...
attempted to reconquer the
Emirate of Crete
The Emirate of Crete ( ar, إقريطش, Iqrīṭish or , ''Iqrīṭiya''; gr, Κρήτη, Krētē) was an Islamic state that existed on the Mediterranean island of Crete from the late 820s to the reconquest of the island by the Byzantine Empir ...
, an Abbasid vassal, but the campaign ended in disaster. In 844, an army from the border emirates of
Qaliqala
Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010.
The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...
and
Tarsus, led by Abu Sa'id, and possibly the emir of
Malatya
Malatya ( hy, Մալաթիա, translit=Malat'ya; Syro-Aramaic ܡܠܝܛܝܢܐ Malīṭīná; ku, Meletî; Ancient Greek: Μελιτηνή) is a large city in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey and the capital of Malatya Province. The city ha ...
Umar al-Aqta
ʿUmar ibn ʿAbdallāh ibn Marwān,. ʿAmr ibn ʿUbaydallāh ibn Marwān, or simply Umar al-Aqta ( ar, عمر الأقطع) surnamed al-Aqtaʾ, "the one-handed" (μονοχεράρης, ''monocherares'', in Greek), and found as Amer or Ambros ( ...
, raided deep into Byzantine
Asia Minor
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
and reached as far as the shore of the
Bosporus
The Bosporus Strait (; grc, Βόσπορος ; tr, İstanbul Boğazı 'Istanbul strait', colloquially ''Boğaz'') or Bosphorus Strait is a natural strait and an internationally significant waterway located in Istanbul in northwestern T ...
. The Muslims then defeated Theoktistos at the
Battle of Mauropotamos
The Battle of Mauropotamos ( el, Μάχη τοῦ Μαυροποτάμου) was fought in 844, between the armies of the Byzantine Empire and the Abbasid Caliphate, at Mauropotamos (either in northern Bithynia or in Cappadocia). After a failed B ...
, aided by the defection of senior Byzantine officers. At around the same time, the
Paulicians
Paulicianism (Classical Armenian: Պաւղիկեաններ, ; grc, Παυλικιανοί, "The followers of Paul"; Arab sources: ''Baylakānī'', ''al Bayāliqa'' )Nersessian, Vrej (1998). The Tondrakian Movement: Religious Movements in the ...
, a sect persecuted as heretical in Byzantium, defected to the Arabs under their leader
Karbeas Karbeas ( el, Καρβέας), also Karbaias (Καρβαίας), was a Paulician leader, who, following the anti-Paulician pogroms in 843, abandoned his service in the Byzantine army and went over to the Arabs. With the aid of the emir of Melitene ...
. They founded a small principality on the Abbasid–Byzantine frontier, centred on the fortress of
Tephrike, and henceforth joined the Arabs in their attacks on Byzantine territory.
In 845, a Byzantine embassy arrived at the caliphal court to negotiate about a prisoner exchange. It was held in September of the same year under the auspices of
Khaqan al-Khadim
Khagan or Qaghan (Mongolian:; or ''Khagan''; otk, 𐰴𐰍𐰣 ), or , tr, Kağan or ; ug, قاغان, Qaghan, Mongolian Script: ; or ; fa, خاقان ''Khāqān'', alternatively spelled Kağan, Kagan, Khaghan, Kaghan, Khakan, Khakhan ...
, and somewhere between 3,500–4,600 Muslims were ransomed. In March of the same year, however,
42 officers taken captive at Amorion were executed at Samarra, after refusing to convert to Islam. After the truce arranged for the exchange expired, the Abbasid governor of Tarsus, Ahmad ibn Sa'id ibn Salm, led a winter raid with 7,000 men. It failed disastrously, with 500 men dying of cold or drowning, and 200 taken prisoner. After this, the Arab-Byzantine frontier remained quiet for six years. Only in the west did the Abbasids'
Aghlabid
The Aghlabids ( ar, الأغالبة) were an Arab dynasty of emirs from the Najdi tribe of Banu Tamim, who ruled Ifriqiya and parts of Southern Italy, Sicily, and possibly Sardinia, nominally on behalf of the Abbasid Caliph, for about a cen ...
clients continue their gradual
conquest
Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms.
Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, t ...
of Byzantine
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
, capturing
Messina
Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...
(842/3),
Modica
Modica (; scn, Muòrica) is a city and ''comune'' of 54,456 inhabitants in the Province of Ragusa, Sicily, southern Italy. The city is situated in the Hyblaean Mountains.
Modica has neolithic origins and it represents the historical capital ...
(845), and
Leontini (846). In 845/6, the Aghlabids captured
Miseno
Miseno is one of the ''frazioni'' of the municipality of Bacoli in the Italian Province of Naples. Known in ancient Roman times as Misenum, it is the site of a great Roman port.
Geography
Nearby Cape Miseno marks the northwestern end of the Bay ...
near
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
in mainland Italy, and in the next year their ships appeared in the
Tiber River
The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the Riv ...
and their crews
raided the environs of
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
.
Death and succession
Al-Wathiq died as the result of
edema
Edema, also spelled oedema, and also known as fluid retention, dropsy, hydropsy and swelling, is the build-up of fluid in the body's Tissue (biology), tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. Symptoms may include skin which feels t ...
, likely from liver damage or diabetes, while being seated in an oven in an attempt to cure it, on 10 August 847. His age is variously given as 32, 34, or 36
years
A year or annus is the orbital period of a planetary body, for example, the Earth, moving in its orbit around the Sun. Due to the Earth's axial tilt, the course of a year sees the passing of the seasons, marked by change in weather, the hour ...
at the time. He was buried in the Haruni Palace in Samarra, that he had built.
His death was unexpected, and left the succession open—although
al-Ya'qubi
ʾAbū l-ʿAbbās ʾAḥmad bin ʾAbī Yaʿqūb bin Ǧaʿfar bin Wahb bin Waḍīḥ al-Yaʿqūbī (died 897/8), commonly referred to simply by his nisba al-Yaʿqūbī, was an Arab Muslim geographer and perhaps the first historian of world cultu ...
at least claims that an heir had been named, and the
oath of allegiance
An oath of allegiance is an oath whereby a subject or citizen acknowledges a duty of allegiance and swears loyalty to a monarch or a country. In modern republics, oaths are sworn to the country in general, or to the country's constitution. For ...
given to him. Consequently, the leading officials, the vizier, Ibn al-Zayyat, the chief , Ahmad ibn Abi Duwad, the Turkish generals Itakh and Wasif, and a few others, assembled to determine his successor. Ibn al-Zayyat initially proposed al-Wathiq's son Muhammad (the future caliph
al-Muhtadi
Abū Isḥāq Muḥammad ibn al-Wāthiq ( ar, أبو إسحاق محمد بن هارون الواثق; – 21 June 870), better known by his regnal name Al-Muhtadī bi-'llāh (Arabic: , "Guided by God"), was the Caliph of the Abbasid Calipha ...
), but due to his youth he was passed over, and instead the council chose al-Wathiq's 26-year-old half-brother Ja'far, who became the caliph al-Mutawakkil.
This selection is commonly considered by historians to have been in effect a conspiracy to place a weak and pliable ruler on the throne, while the same cabal of officials would run affairs as under al-Wathiq. They would be quickly proven wrong, for al-Mutawakkil quickly moved to eliminate Ibn al-Zayyat and Itakh and consolidate his own authority.
Assessment and legacy
Al-Wathiq is reported as having been generous to the poor of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, and to have reduced taxes on maritime commerce, but he does not appear to have enjoyed any great popularity. What is told of his character shows him being a mild-mannered person, given to indolence and the pleasures of court life, to the point of becoming inebriated and falling asleep. He was an accomplished poet—more poets of his survive than of any other Abbasid caliph—as well as a skilled composer, and could play the
oud
, image=File:oud2.jpg
, image_capt=Syrian oud made by Abdo Nahat in 1921
, background=
, classification=
* String instruments
*Necked bowl lutes
, hornbostel_sachs=321.321-6
, hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded with a plectrum
, ...
well. He was also a patron of poets, singers and musicians, inviting them to the palace; showing particular favour to the musician
Ishaq al-Mawsili
Ishaq al-Mawsili ( ar, إسحاق الموصلي; 767/772 – March 850) was an Arab musician of Persian origin active as a composer, singer, music theorist and writer on music. The leading musician of his time in the Abbasid Caliphate, he served ...
, the singer
Mukhariq
Abu’l-Muhannāʾ Mukhāriq ibn Yaḥyā ibn Nāwūs () (), was one of the most distinguished singers of the Abbasid period, and a protege of the Barmakids and the caliphs from Harun al-Rashid to al-Wathiq.
Life
He was born in Madma (although ...
, and the poet
al-Dahhak al-Bahili, known as ().
In contrast to this picture, the 10th-century historian
al-Mas'udi
Al-Mas'udi ( ar, أَبُو ٱلْحَسَن عَلِيّ ٱبْن ٱلْحُسَيْن ٱبْن عَلِيّ ٱلْمَسْعُودِيّ, '; –956) was an Arab historian, geographer and traveler. He is sometimes referred to as the "Herodotus ...
portrays al-Wathiq as "interested in scientific learning and facilitating disputations among physicians". The
Graeco-Arabic translation movement
The Graeco-Arabic translation movement was a large, well-funded, and sustained effort responsible for translating a significant volume of secular Greek texts into Arabic. The translation movement took place in Baghdad from the mid-eighth century ...
continued to flourish under his reign, and the sources also relate some episodes that show al-Wathiq's own "intellectual curiosity", especially as related to issues that could burnish his religious credentials: he reportedly dreamed that the "
Barrier
A barrier or barricade is a physical structure which blocks or impedes something.
Barrier may also refer to:
Places
* Barrier, Kentucky, a community in the United States
* Barrier, Voerendaal, a place in the municipality of Voerendaal, Netherla ...
of
Dhu'l-Qarnayn" had been breached—probably resulting from news of the movements of the
Kirghiz Turks at the time that caused large population shifts among the Turkic nomads of
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
—and sent
Sallam al-Tarjman to journey to the region and investigate. Likewise, according to
Ibn Khordadbeh
Abu'l-Qasim Ubaydallah ibn Abdallah ibn Khordadbeh ( ar, ابوالقاسم عبیدالله ابن خرداذبه; 820/825–913), commonly known as Ibn Khordadbeh (also spelled Ibn Khurradadhbih; ), was a high-ranking Persian bureaucrat and ...
, the caliph sent the astronomer
al-Khwarizmi
Muḥammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī ( ar, محمد بن موسى الخوارزمي, Muḥammad ibn Musā al-Khwārazmi; ), or al-Khwarizmi, was a Persian polymath from Khwarazm, who produced vastly influential works in mathematics, astronom ...
to the Byzantines to investigate the legend of the
Seven Sleepers of Ephesus
In the Islamic and Christianity, Christian traditions, the Seven Sleepers, otherwise known as the Sleepers of Ephesus and Companions of the Cave, is a Middle Ages, medieval legend about a group of youths who hid inside a cave outside the city o ...
.
Al-Wathiq is one of the more obscure
Abbasid caliphs
The Abbasid caliphs were the holders of the Islamic title of caliph who were members of the Abbasid dynasty, a branch of the Quraysh tribe descended from the uncle of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, Al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib.
The family came t ...
. According to the historian
Hugh Kennedy
Hugh Edward Kennedy (11 July 1879 – 1 December 1936) was an Irish Cumann na nGaedheal politician, barrister and judge who served as Chief Justice of Ireland from 1924 to 1936, a judge of the Supreme Court of Ireland, Supreme Court from 1924 t ...
, "no other caliph of the period has left so little trace of the history of his times, and it is impossible to form any clear impression of his personality", while the ''
Encyclopaedia of Islam
The ''Encyclopaedia of Islam'' (''EI'') is an encyclopaedia of the academic discipline of Islamic studies published by Brill. It is considered to be the standard reference work in the field of Islamic studies. The first edition was published in ...
'' writes that "he had not the gifts of a great ruler, and his brief reign was not distinguished by remarkable events". Nevertheless, his very obscurity allowed
William Beckford to present a heavily fictionalized version of al-Wathiq in his classic 18th-century
Gothic fantasy
Dark fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy literary, artistic, and cinematic works that incorporate disturbing and frightening themes of fantasy. It often combines fantasy with elements of horror fiction, horror or has a gloomy dark tone or a sense o ...
novel ''
Vathek
''Vathek'' (alternatively titled ''Vathek, an Arabian Tale'' or ''The History of the Caliph Vathek'') is a Gothic novel written by William Beckford. It was composed in French beginning in 1782, and then translated into English by Reverend Sam ...
'', which Kennedy describes as "a fantastic tale of cruelty, dissipation and a search for the lost treasure of ancient kings, guarded by
Iblis
Iblis ( ar, إِبْلِيس, translit=Iblīs), alternatively known as Eblīs, is the leader of the devils () in Islam. According to the Quran, Iblis was thrown out of heaven, after he refused to prostrate himself before Adam. Regarding the o ...
/
Satan
Satan,, ; grc, ὁ σατανᾶς or , ; ar, شيطانالخَنَّاس , also known as Devil in Christianity, the Devil, and sometimes also called Lucifer in Christianity, is an non-physical entity, entity in the Abrahamic religions ...
himself".
Family
Al-Wathiq had several concubines. The most famous of them was
Qurb, also known as Umm Muhammad. In 833 he gave birth to his elder son, Muhammad, the future caliph al-Muhtadi. Another known and famous concubine was Faridah, who was also a musician and al-Wathiq's favourite. When al-Wathiq died, the singer Amr ibn Banah presented her to Caliph al-Mutawakkil. He married her, and she became one of his favorites.
References
Sources
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wathiq
812 births
847 deaths
9th-century Abbasid caliphs
9th-century rulers in Asia
9th-century rulers in Africa
9th-century Arabs
Arab people of Greek descent
Deaths from edema
Mu'tazilism
Composers of the medieval Islamic world
Sons of Abbasid caliphs
Oud players
Poets from the Abbasid Caliphate