Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati

Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati () was a

Zenata The Zenata ( Berber language: Iznaten) are a group of Amazigh (Berber) tribes, historically one of the largest Berber confederations along with the Sanhaja and Masmuda. Their lifestyle was either nomadic or semi-nomadic. Etymology ''Iznaten ( ...

Berber chieftain and military commander during the

Berber Revolt The Berber Revolt of 740–743 AD (122–125 AH in the Islamic calendar) took place during the reign of the Umayyad Caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik and marked the first successful secession from the Arab caliphate (ruled from Damascus). Fired up b ...

of the 740s against the

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 ...

s in 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, ...

. For reasons which are still obscure,

Maysara al-Matghari Maysar al-Matghari (Berber: ''Maysar Amteghri'' or ''Maysar Amdeghri'', ; sometimes rendered ''Maisar'' or ''Meicer''; in older Arab sources, bitterly called: ''al-Ḥaqir'' ('the ignoble'); died in September/October 740) was a Berber rebel leader a ...

, the original leader of the

and self-proclaimed caliph, was deposed and executed by fellow Berber rebels in the Summer or Fall of 740. Khalid ibn Hamid, a respected Zenata chieftain, was elected to take his place. Khalid ibn Hamid led the Berber rebel armies in two stunning victories over the

authorities. In the

Battle of the Nobles The Battle of the Nobles ( ar, غزوة الأشراف, translit=Ghazwat al-Ashraf) was an important confrontation in the Berber Revolt in c. 740 AD. It resulted in a major Berber victory over the Arabs near Tangier Morocco. During the battle, num ...

in late 740, Khalid annihilated a vanguard Arab army, composed of the aristocratic Arab cavalry elite of

Ifriqiya Ifriqiya ( '), also known as al-Maghrib al-Adna ( ar, المغرب الأدنى), was a medieval historical region comprising today's Tunisia and eastern Algeria, and Tripolitania (today's western Libya). It included all of what had previously ...

. The shock of the defeat prompted the

Caliph

Hisham 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 administrat ...

to dispatch a mighty Syrian expeditionary force from the east to join the Ifriqiyans in crushing the Berber rebellion. In October 741, Khalid's Berber army defeated the combined Ifriqiyan-Syrian force at the Battle of Bagdoura (or Baqdura), by the

Sebou River Sebou (Berber: Asif en Sbu, ar, سبو) is a river in northern Morocco. At its source in the Middle Atlas mountains it is known as the Guigou River (Berber: Asif n Gigu). The river is 496 kilometers long and has an average water flow of 137 m3 ...

(near modern Fes), killing the new Ifriqyian governor

Kulthum ibn Iyad al-Qasi Kulthum ibn Iyad al-Qushayri () was an Umayyad governor of Ifriqiya for a few months, from February to his death in October 741. Life Kulthum ibn Iyad, an Arab aristocrat of the Qaysi tribe of Qushayr (branch of the Banu Amir), was appointed by ...

, in the process. Khalid ibn Hamid disappears from the chronicles soon after this. The

Berber revolt The Berber Revolt of 740–743 AD (122–125 AH in the Islamic calendar) took place during the reign of the Umayyad Caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik and marked the first successful secession from the Arab caliphate (ruled from Damascus). Fired up b ...

continued for a little while longer, but under different commanders. But while his fate is uncertain, his legacy is not. 8th-century Berber people Berber rebels Berber Revolt {{Africa-mil-bio-stub Zenata