The siege of Baghdad was a fifty-day blockade of

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 ...

, the seat of the

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 to ...

, in 1136. The siege began when the

Seljuk Seljuk or Saljuq (سلجوق) may refer to: * Seljuk Empire (1051–1153), a medieval empire in the Middle East and central Asia * Seljuk dynasty (c. 950–1307), the ruling dynasty of the Seljuk Empire and subsequent polities * Seljuk (warlord) (di ...

ruler of

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 ...

Ghiyath ad-Din Mas'ud Ghiyath ad-Din Mas'ud ( 1108 – 13 September 1152) was the Seljuq Sultan of Iraq and western Persia in 1133–1152. Reign Ghiyath ad-Din Masud was the son of sultan Muhammad I Tapar, and his wife Nistandar Jahan Khatun. At the age of twelve (1 ...

, attacked the caliph

al-Rashid Billah Abu Ja'far al-Mansur ibn al-Faḍl al-Mustarshid bi'llah ( ar, أبو جعفر المنصور بن الفضل المسترشد بالله; 1109 – 6 June 1138) usually known by his regnal name Al-Rashid bi'llah ( ar, الراشد بالله) wa ...

. During the siege, the populace of Baghdad rose in revolt against the caliph, plundering the

Tahirid Palace The Tahirid Palace () or Tahirid Precinct/Sanctuary () was an Abbasid-era palace in Baghdad The palace was constructed on the western bank of the Tigris River, at the Zubaidiyya Fief, by Muhammad ibn Abdallah ibn Tahir, a member of the Tahirid fam ...

. In the end, al-Rashid fled the city for

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 ...

, where he abdicated the caliphate. His uncle,

al-Muqtafi Abu Abdallah Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Mustazhir ( ar, أبو عبد الله محمد بن أحمد المستظهر; 9 April 1096 – 12 March 1160), better known by his laqab, regnal name al-Muqtafi li-Amr Allah (), was the List of Abbasid calip ...

, was raised to the throne instead by Mas'ud, who then retired to the east.

References

Sources

* {{coord missing, Iraq 1136 in Asia Baghdad 1136 1136 Baghdad 1136 Baghdad 1136 Conflicts in 1136 Wars of succession involving the states and peoples of Asia Baghdad under the Abbasid Caliphate 12th century in the Abbasid Caliphate