Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Kundaj ( ar, محمد بن إسحاق بن كنداج) was a prominent general of 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 ...

in the early 10th century.

Life

He was the son of Ishaq ibn Kundaj, a Turkic strongman who had established himself, with sanction from 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 ...

court, as the ruler 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 larg ...

in 879. Ishaq ruled Mosul and parts of 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 ( ...

almost uninterruptedly until his death in 891, when he was succeeded by Muhammad. Already in the next year, however, he was driven from Mosul by a rival strongman, Ahmad ibn Isa al-Shaybani. In 893, the new Caliph

al-Mu'tadid Abū al-ʿAbbās Aḥmad ibn Ṭalḥa al-Muwaffaq ( ar, أبو العباس أحمد بن طلحة الموفق), 853/4 or 860/1 – 5 April 902, better known by his regnal name al-Muʿtaḍid bi-llāh ( ar, المعتضد بالله, link=no, ...

campaigned in the Jazira, aiming to re-establish direct caliphal control over the region. The Caliph seized Mosul and appointed his own governor there over much of the Jazira. Ahmad retreated to Amid, while Muhammad fled to the

Tulunids The Tulunids (), were a Mamluk dynasty of Turkic origin who were the first independent dynasty to rule Egypt, as well as much of Syria, since the Ptolemaic dynasty. They were independent from 868, when they broke away from the central authority ...

in Palestine. After the assassination of the Tulunid ruler Khumarawayh in 896, Muhammad was among those members of the court who tried to assassinate Khumarawayh's successor, Jaysh. The plot was betrayed to Jaysh, and on the very same day, they fled into the desert, leaving their families and property behind. The party crossed the Syrian Desert, losing a few to thirst, and arrived 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 a ...

, from where they sought asylum with al-Mu'tadid. The Caliph welcomed them and allowed them to enter his service (July 896). Muhammad now became one of the senior members of the Abbasid court, in both civilian and military positions. In 902, after al-Mu'tadid's death, he was one of the senior subalterns of the Abbasid commander-in-chief,

Badr al-Mu'tadidi Abu'l-Najm Badr al-Mu'tadidi was the chief military commander of the Abbasid Caliphate during the reign of Caliph al-Mu'tadid (892–902). Originally a military slave (''ghulam'' or '' mawla'') who served under the future al-Mu'tadid in the supp ...

. When 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 ...

al-Qasim ibn Ubayd Allah slandered Badr and sought to bring about his execution, Muhammad played a role in calming Badr's fears and persuading him of the sincerity of a guarantee of safe passage for

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. I ...

. On the way, Badr was killed by one of the Caliph's pages. In 903/4 Muhammad was among the leading officers in the campaigns against the Qarmatians, and in June 906 he led the army that drove them from the town of

Hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

. In 912 he was made governor of

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 han ...

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Kundaj 9th-century births 10th-century deaths Generals of the Abbasid Caliphate Governors of the Abbasid Caliphate 10th-century people from the Abbasid Caliphate Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown 9th-century Turkic people 10th-century Turkic people People of the Tulunid dynasty