Isa ibn Yazid al-Juludi ( ar, عيسى بن يزيد الجلودي) was a ninth century military commander for the
Abbasid Caliphate
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 ...
. He twice served as governor of
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 ...
, from 827 to 829 and again from 829 to 830.
Early career
In
al-Tabari's chronicle, Isa first appears in 813, near the end of
civil war between the rival caliphs
al-Amin
Abu Musa Muhammad ibn Harun al-Rashid ( ar, أبو موسى محمد بن هارون الرشيد, Abū Mūsā Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Rashīd; April 787 – 24/25 September 813), better known by his laqab of Al-Amin ( ar, الأمين, al-Amī ...
(r. 809–813) and
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 ...
(r. 813–833), as one of the individuals in al-Amin's entourage. Following al-Amin's execution in September 813, Isa entered into the service of
al-Hasan ibn Sahl
Al-Hasan ibn Sahl (; died 850/51) was an Abbasid official and governor of Iraq for Caliph al-Ma'mun (reigned 813–833) during the Fourth Fitna.
Hasan's father was an Iranian Zoroastrian convert to Islam. Along with his brother, the future vizier ...
, who had been appointed by al-Ma'mun as governor of Baghdad, and over the next several years he participated in the struggle to maintain al-Ma'mun's authority in the central lands of the caliphate.
In 815 Isa was dispatched, together with
Warqa' ibn Jamil,
Hamdawayh ibn Ali, and
Harun ibn al-Musayyab, to recapture
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 ...
,
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, ...
and the
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 ...
, which had fallen to
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 ...
rebels. Warqa' and Isa's forces advanced against Mecca and, after linking up with the deposed governor of the Yemen, defeated the anti-caliph
Muhammad ibn Ja'far al-Sadiq Muhammad ibn Ja'far al-Sadiq, surnamed al-Dibaj ("the handsome"), the younger full brother of Musa al-Kadhim, and son of Ja'far al-Sadiq appeared in Mecca in the year 200 A.H. / 815 C.E., in the aftermath of the revolt of Abu'l-Saraya, claiming that ...
and entered the city in early 816. A few months later Isa defeated a force sent to Mecca by
Ibrahim ibn Musa al-Jazzar, who had seized control of the Yemen, and around the same time Muhammad ibn Ja'far agreed to surrender and abdicate. Isa then escorted Muhammad to al-Hasan ibn Sahl, leaving his son as his governor of Mecca.
Following al-Ma'mun's designation of the Alid
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida ( ar, عَلِيّ ٱبْن مُوسَىٰ ٱلرِّضَا, Alī ibn Mūsā al-Riḍā, 1 January 766 – 6 June 818), also known as Abū al-Ḥasan al-Thānī, was a descendant of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and the ...
as his successor in 817, Isa was dispatched to
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 ...
to arrest the governor
Isma'il ibn Ja'far
Abū Muḥammad Ismāʿīl ibn Jaʿfar al-Mubārak ( ar, إسماعيل بن جعفر; c.719 AD – c.762 AD) was the eldest son of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq. He is also known as Isma'il al-Ãraj ibn Ja'far al-Sadiq (اسماعيل الاعرج ...
, who had refused to obey the caliph's order to abandon the traditional Abbasid black clothing in favor of the Alid green. He then went to Mecca, where he delivered the oath of allegiance that the people were to give to Ali. Al-Ma'mun also appointed Ibrahim ibn Musa, who in the meantime had lost the Yemen to Hamdawayh ibn Ali, as governor of that province and instructed Isa to assist him in reconquering it. Isa, however, remained in Mecca and gave no support to Ibrahim, who was ultimately defeated by Hamdawayh in 818 and forced to return to Mecca.
In 820, al-Ma'mun ordered Isa to retake the Yemen from Hamdawayh, who was now considered a rebel. Isa marched south and defeated Hamdawayh on the field; the latter fled to
Sana'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 ...
, but Isa pursued and captured him and took him back to al-Ma'mun. That same year, Isa was appointed by the caliph to combat the
Zutt
Jat Muslim or Musalman Jat also spelled Jutt ( ur, ) (also spelled Jatt or Jutt; ) are a sub-group of the Jat people, who are followers of Islam and are primarily native to the Punjab region, Gujarat Region or Northern regions of the Indian S ...
, who had rebelled in
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 ...
and were raiding the environs of Basra and
Wasit
Wasit ( ar, وَاسِط, Wāsiṭ, syr, ܘܐܣܛ) is an ancient city in Wasit Governorate, south east of Kut in eastern Iraq.
History
The city was built by al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf in c. 702 CE on the west bank of the Tigris across from the hist ...
; al-Tabari provides no details of the campaign, but the Zutt remained active until 835.
Governorships of Egypt
In 827, Isa participated in
Abdallah ibn Tahir's reconquest of Egypt, which brought an end to the turmoil that had plagued that country since the outbreak of the civil war. After Egypt was pacified and Abdallah departed in 827, Isa was appointed as his deputy governor of the province. When the caliph's brother
Abu Ishaq (the future caliph al-Mu'tasim, r. 833–842) took Abdallah's place and assumed the governorship of Egypt in 828, he confirmed Isa as resident governor over the security and prayers. At the same time, however, Abu Ishaq transferred control of the provincial
taxes
A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or ...
, giving it to Salih ibn Shirzad.
Before long, the increased taxes and oppression that came with the re-imposition of caliphal authority in Egypt became deeply unpopular, and a rebellion broke out in the
Hawf district in
Lower Egypt
Lower Egypt ( ar, مصر السفلى '; ) is the northernmost region of Egypt, which consists of the fertile Nile Delta between Upper Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, from El Aiyat, south of modern-day Cairo, and Dahshur. Historically, ...
. Isa responded to the uprising by sending his chief of
security
Security is protection from, or resilience against, potential harm (or other unwanted coercive change) caused by others, by restraining the freedom of others to act. Beneficiaries (technically referents) of security may be of persons and social ...
, his son Muhammad, with an army to fight the Hawfis. Muhammad, however, suffered a major defeat at
Bilbays
Belbeis ( ar, بلبيس ; Bohairic cop, Ⲫⲉⲗⲃⲉⲥ/Ⲫⲉⲗⲃⲏⲥ ' is an ancient fortress city on the eastern edge of the southern Nile delta in Egypt, the site of the Ancient city and former bishopric of Phelbes and a Lat ...
in April 829 and barely escaped with his life, while most of his men were killed. News of the defeat reached Abu Ishaq, who responded by dismissing Isa and appointing
'Umayr ibn al-Walid in his place.
'Umayr's governorship came to a sudden end in May 829, when he lost his life in battle against the rebels. With 'Umayr dead, Abu Ishaq decided to re-appoint Isa as governor, and the latter took over affairs from 'Umayr's son Muhammad. Isa then set out in a fresh attempt to quell the rebellion, but the Hawfis defeated him at
Munyat Matar in September 829, and he was compelled to retreat to
al-Fustat
Fusṭāṭ ( ar, الفُسطاط ''al-Fusṭāṭ''), also Al-Fusṭāṭ and Fosṭāṭ, was the first capital of Egypt under Muslim rule, and the historical centre of modern Cairo. It was built adjacent to what is now known as Old Cairo by t ...
after burning his baggage.
Following Isa's defeat, the caliph al-Ma'mun decided that reinforcements were needed in Egypt and ordered Abu Ishaq to head to the province. Abu Ishaq arrived in Egypt with four thousand
Turkish
Turkish may refer to:
*a Turkic language spoken by the Turks
* of or about Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities and mi ...
troops and quickly defeated the rebels in October 829. After entering Fustat in November, where he received the homage of Isa and the local notables, he continued securing the province and executed the leaders of the rebellion. By the following year the Hawfis had been pacified and Abu Ishaq departed for
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 February 830, taking with him a large number of prisoners.
Isa did not retain the governorship of Egypt following Abu Ishaq's campaign; he was dismissed and
Abdawayh ibn Jabalah was appointed in his place.
[; ; .]
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isa ibn Yazid al-Juludi
Abbasid governors of Egypt
Abbasid governors of Yemen
9th-century Abbasid governors of Egypt
9th century in Yemen
9th-century Arabs