Muslim ibn Sa'id al-Kilabi
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Muslim ibn Sa'id ibn Aslam ibn Zur'ah ibn Amr ibn Khuwaylid al-Sa'iq al-Kilabi () was governor of
Khurasan Greater Khorāsān,Dabeersiaghi, Commentary on Safarnâma-e Nâsir Khusraw, 6th Ed. Tehran, Zavvâr: 1375 (Solar Hijri Calendar) 235–236 or Khorāsān ( pal, Xwarāsān; fa, خراسان ), is a historical eastern region in the Iranian Plate ...
for the
Umayyad Caliphate 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 th ...
in 723–724. He is best known for his efforts to conciliate the native population of
Transoxiana Transoxiana or Transoxania (Land beyond the Oxus) is the Latin name for a region and civilization located in lower Central Asia roughly corresponding to modern-day eastern Uzbekistan, western Tajikistan, parts of southern Kazakhstan, parts of Tu ...
and for the major military defeat at the "
Day of Thirst The "Day of Thirst" ( ar, ﻳﻮﻢ ﺍلعطش, Yawm al-aṭash) is the name traditionally given in Arabic historiography to a battle fought in 724 between the Turkic Türgesh Khaganate and the Umayyad Caliphate on the banks of the Syr Darya ri ...
" against the
Türgesh The Türgesh or Türgish ( otk, 𐱅𐰇𐰼𐰏𐰾:𐰉𐰆𐰑, Türügeš budun, Türgesh people; ; Old Tibetan: ''Du-rgyas'') were a Turkic tribal confederation. Once belonging to the Duolu wing of the Western Turkic ''On Oq'' elites, Tür ...
.


Life

Muslim had a distinguished ancestry: his grandfather Aslam served as governor of
Khurasan Greater Khorāsān,Dabeersiaghi, Commentary on Safarnâma-e Nâsir Khusraw, 6th Ed. Tehran, Zavvâr: 1375 (Solar Hijri Calendar) 235–236 or Khorāsān ( pal, Xwarāsān; fa, خراسان ), is a historical eastern region in the Iranian Plate ...
in 671–675, and his father Sa'id was a partisan of the powerful governor of Iraq,
al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf Abu Muhammad al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf ibn al-Hakam ibn Abi Aqil al-Thaqafi ( ar, أبو محمد الحجاج بن يوسف بن الحكم بن أبي عقيل الثقفي, Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥajjāj ibn Yūsuf ibn al-Ḥakam ibn Abī ʿAqīl al-T ...
, who rewarded his loyalty by appointing him as governor of
Makran Makran ( fa, مكران), mentioned in some sources as Mecran and Mokrān, is the coastal region of Baluchistan. It is a semi-desert coastal strip in Balochistan, in Pakistan and Iran, along the coast of the Gulf of Oman. It extends westwards, ...
. When his father was killed during his governorship, Muslim was raised as a foster-son by al-Hajjaj, alongside his own sons. His first official post was as a provincial sub-governor under the 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 hand ...
, Adi ibn Artat, and he reportedly acquitted himself well. During the rebellion of
Yazid ibn al-Muhallab Yazid ibn al-Muhallab ( ar, يزيد بن المهلب) (672–720) was a provincial governor in the time of the Umayyad dynasty and an early member of the Muhallabid family that became important in early Abbasid times. Life In A.H. 78 (697-69 ...
in 720, he fled to
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 ...
carrying the province's tax revenues with him. Muslim became a companion to the governor of Iraq,
Umar ibn Hubayra Umar ibn Hubayra al-Fazari ( ar, عمر بن هبيرة الفزاري, ʿUmar ibn Hubayra al-Fazārī; ) was a prominent Umayyad general and governor of Iraq, who played an important role in the Qays–Yaman conflict of this period. Origin and ...
, who in 722/723 appointed him as governor of
Khurasan Greater Khorāsān,Dabeersiaghi, Commentary on Safarnâma-e Nâsir Khusraw, 6th Ed. Tehran, Zavvâr: 1375 (Solar Hijri Calendar) 235–236 or Khorāsān ( pal, Xwarāsān; fa, خراسان ), is a historical eastern region in the Iranian Plate ...
, replacing
Sa'id ibn Amr al-Harashi Sa'id ibn Amr al-Harashi ( ar, سعيد بن عمرو الحرشي, Saʿīd ibn ʿAmr al-Ḥarashī, ) was a prominent general and governor of the Umayyad Caliphate, who played an important role in the Arab–Khazar wars. Biography Sa'id ibn Amr ...
. He took office at a sensitive time, as widespread unrest among the native
Iranian Iranian may refer to: * Iran, a sovereign state * Iranian peoples, the speakers of the Iranian languages. The term Iranic peoples is also used for this term to distinguish the pan ethnic term from Iranian, used for the people of Iran * Iranian lan ...
and Turkic populations of newly conquered
Transoxiana Transoxiana or Transoxania (Land beyond the Oxus) is the Latin name for a region and civilization located in lower Central Asia roughly corresponding to modern-day eastern Uzbekistan, western Tajikistan, parts of southern Kazakhstan, parts of Tu ...
had been brutally suppressed by al-Harashi. When appointing him to the post, Ibn Hubayra advised him to seek conciliation with the native populations, and especially the converts (''
mawali Mawlā ( ar, مَوْلَى, plural ''mawālī'' ()), is a polysemous Arabic word, whose meaning varied in different periods and contexts.A.J. Wensinck, Encyclopedia of Islam 2nd ed, Brill. "Mawlā", vol. 6, p. 874. Before the Islamic prophet ...
''). Indeed, al-Kilabi appointed officials that would be acceptable to the locals, such as Bahram Sis, a
Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheistic on ...
who was appointed as ''
marzban Marzbān, or Marzpān (Middle Persian transliteration: mrzwpn, derived from ''marz'' "border, boundary" and the suffix ''-pān'' "guardian"; Modern Persian: ''Marzbān'') were a class of margraves, warden of the marches, and by extension militar ...
'' of
Merv Merv ( tk, Merw, ', مرو; fa, مرو, ''Marv''), also known as the Merve Oasis, formerly known as Alexandria ( grc-gre, Ἀλεξάνδρεια), Antiochia in Margiana ( grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐν τῇ Μαργιανῇ) and ...
. In the next year, he resolved to launch an expedition with the goal of seizing the
Ferghana Valley The Fergana Valley (; ; ) in Central Asia lies mainly in eastern Uzbekistan, but also extends into southern Kyrgyzstan and northern Tajikistan. Divided into three republics of the former Soviet Union, the valley is ethnically diverse and in the ...
, which had been lost during the unrest of the previous years. The campaign faced difficulties already in its early stages, when the news arrived of the accession of a new Caliph,
Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik 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 administra ...
, and the appointment of a new governor of Iraq,
Khalid al-Qasri Khālid ibn ʿAbdallāh al-Qasrī (; died 743) was an Arab who served the Umayyad Caliphate as governor of Mecca in the 8th century and of Iraq from 724 until 738. The latter post, entailing as it did control over the entire eastern Caliphate, mad ...
. This brought the long-simmering tribal rivalries of the Arabs of Khurasan came to the fore: anticipating the immediate recall of al-Kilabi, 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 ...
i (southern Arab) troops in
Balkh ), named for its green-tiled ''Gonbad'' ( prs, گُنبَد, dome), in July 2001 , pushpin_map=Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_relief=yes , pushpin_label_position=bottom , pushpin_mapsize=300 , pushpin_map_caption=Location in Afghanistan ...
refused to join the campaign, and had to be coerced by a force of
Mudar The Mudar ( ar, مُضَر) are one of the most powerful northern Arab tribal groupings. History The Mudar and Rabi'a are recorded in central Arabia in the Arabic histories of the pre-Islamic period; the kings of the Kindah bore the title of ...
is (northern Arabs) under
Nasr ibn Sayyar Naṣr ibn Sayyār al-Lāythi al-Kināni ( ar, نصر بن سيار الليثي الكناني; 663 – 9 December 748) was an Arab general and the last Umayyad governor of Khurasan in 738–748. Nasr played a distinguished role in the wars agai ...
, who clashed with them at Baruqan. The campaign eventually went ahead as Khalid al-Qasri wrote to al-Kilabi, urging him to proceed with it until his replacement, Khalid's brother
Asad Asad ( ar, أسد), sometimes written as Assad, is an Arabic male given name literally meaning "lion". It is used in nicknames such as ''Asad Allāh'', one of the by-names for Ali ibn Abi Talib. People Among prominent people named ''Asad'', " ...
, arrived in Khurasan. Al-Kilabi moved his army up the
Jaxartes The Syr Darya (, ),, , ; rus, Сырдарья́, Syrdarjja, p=sɨrdɐˈrʲja; fa, سيردريا, Sirdaryâ; tg, Сирдарё, Sirdaryo; tr, Seyhun, Siri Derya; ar, سيحون, Seyḥūn; uz, Sirdaryo, script-Latn/. historically known ...
valley to Ferghana and laid siege to its main settlement, but news of the approach of the
Türgesh The Türgesh or Türgish ( otk, 𐱅𐰇𐰼𐰏𐰾:𐰉𐰆𐰑, Türügeš budun, Türgesh people; ; Old Tibetan: ''Du-rgyas'') were a Turkic tribal confederation. Once belonging to the Duolu wing of the Western Turkic ''On Oq'' elites, Tür ...
forced him to hastily retreat south. After several days, with the Türgesh in close pursuit, the Umayyad army found its path blocked by the native princes who had allied with the Türgesh. In the so-called "
Day of Thirst The "Day of Thirst" ( ar, ﻳﻮﻢ ﺍلعطش, Yawm al-aṭash) is the name traditionally given in Arabic historiography to a battle fought in 724 between the Turkic Türgesh Khaganate and the Umayyad Caliphate on the banks of the Syr Darya ri ...
", the Arabs were forced to break through the enemy lines to cross the Jaxartes and reach safety, suffering heavy casualties in the process. Al-Kilabi surrendered the leadership of the army to Abd al-Rahman ibn Na'im al-Ghamidi, who led the remnants of the army back to Samarkand. This debacle led to the almost complete collapse of Muslim rule in Transoxiana over the next few years. Some of the Khurasani Arabs are said to have lashed Muslim after his dismissal, for his role in causing the battle at Baruqan, but al-Ghamidi interceded to make them stop. His successor, Asad al-Qasri, treated him well, and allowed him to return to Iraq.


References


Sources

* * * * * * {{s-end 8th-century Arabs 8th-century people from the Umayyad Caliphate Banu Kilab Umayyad governors of Khurasan Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Generals of the Umayyad Caliphate