Abu Sa'id Uthman II (; Abū Sa'īd 'Abdullāh 'Uthmān ibn Yūsuf Abū Ya'qūb; ) (December 1276 – August 1331) was the 10th

Marinid The Marinid Sultanate was a Berber Muslim empire from the mid-13th to the 15th century which controlled present-day Morocco and, intermittently, other parts of North Africa (Algeria and Tunisia) and of the southern Iberian Peninsula (Spain) ar ...

sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it c ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to A ...

, reigning from 1310 to 1331. A younger son of Abū Ya'qūb Yusuf an-Nasir, Abū Sa'īd 'Uthmān succeeded his nephew Abū al-Rabï' Sulaymān as Sultan of Morocco in November 1310, at the age of 33.

Biography

His full name was Abū Sa'īd 'Uthmān ibn Yūsuf Abū Ya'qūb ibn 'Abd al-Ḥaqq. He was the son of Abu Yaqub Yusuf al-Nasr and his wife Aisha bint Mhalhal al-Kholtī who was a daughter of the emir of the Khelouth Arabs, Abu Atiyah Mhalhal bin Yahya al-Kholtī. Abu Sa'id Uthman was described by his biographer as being of a white complexion, average height and well featured.''Rawd al-Qirṭās fī Tārīkh Mulūk al-Maghrib wa Fa's'', pp273-274 by Abū al-Ḥasan 'Alī ibn 'Abdallāh ibn Abī Zara'. French translation: A. Beaumier, ''Rawd al Kirtas. Histoire des Souverains du Maghreb et Annales de la Ville de Fès''. Editions La Porte, Rabat, 1999.

Reign

Abu Sa'id Uthman inherited Morocco after a tumultuous period during which the Marinids had survived a dangerous rebellion in

Ceuta Ceuta (, , ; ar, سَبْتَة, Sabtah) is a Spanish autonomous city on the north coast of Africa. Bordered by Morocco, it lies along the boundary between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It is one of several Spanish territori ...

, a long conflict with the Kingdom of Tlemcen and a severe check from Ferdinand IV of Castile, who, in the previous year (1309–10), had seized

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = "Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gibr ...

and laid siege to Marinid-owned

Algeciras Algeciras ( , ) is a municipality of Spain belonging to the province of Cádiz, Andalusia. Located in the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, near the Strait of Gibraltar, it is the largest city on the Bay of Gibraltar ( es, Bahía de Algeci ...

. Pious and preferring peace, Abu Sa'id Uthman refrained from any great enterprises. In 1313, hoping to divest himself of any entanglements on the

Iberian peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, def ...

, he returned the towns of

and

Ronda Ronda () is a town in the Spanish province of Málaga. It is located about west of the city of Málaga, within the autonomous community of Andalusia. Its population is about 35,000. Ronda is known for its cliff-side location and a deep chasm ...

to the Naṣrid ruler Nasr of

Granada Granada (,, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the c ...

. In 1315, Abu Sa'id Uthman faced a rebellion by his son and designated heir, Abu Ali, who ensconced himself in Fez. At first not enthusiastic about a confrontation, the sultan entered into negotiations which would pass the Marinid state over to his son and leave himself as governor of

Taza Taza ( ber, ⵜⴰⵣⴰ, ar, تازة) is a city in northern Morocco occupying the corridor between the Rif mountains and Middle Atlas mountains, about 120 km east of Fez and 150 km west of Al hoceima. It recorded a population of ...

. But Abu Sa'id Uthman gained courage when he heard Abu Ali had fallen ill, and hurried to lay siege to Fez and secure his son's capitulation. Abu Ali was removed from the line of succession, in favour of another son, Abu al-Ḥasan Ali. However, Abu Sa'id Uthman granted Abu Ali an

appanage An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...

centered on

Sijilmasa Sijilmasa ( ar, سجلماسة; ; also transliterated Sijilmassa, Sidjilmasa, Sidjilmassa and Sigilmassa) was a medieval Moroccan city and trade entrepôt at the northern edge of the Sahara in Morocco. The ruins of the town extend for five miles a ...

in southern Morocco, which he would rule as a quasi-independent state for the next couple of decades. In 1316, Yahya ibn Afzi, governor of

, revolted against the Marinid sultan, and managed to maintain Ceuta as effectively independent for nearly a dozen years, before returning to the fold. In 1319, facing a renewed challenge from Castile, the Naṣrid ruler

Ismail I Ismail I ( fa, اسماعیل, Esmāʿīl, ; July 17, 1487 – May 23, 1524), also known as Shah Ismail (), was the founder of the Safavid dynasty of Safavid Iran, Iran, ruling as its King of Kings (''Shahanshah'') from 1501 to 1524. His re ...

appealed to the Marinid sultan for assistance, but Abu Sa'id Uthman imposed such onerous conditions that the Granadines decided to handle the matter without him. In 1320 his son Abu Ali renewed his revolt against his father. From his base in

, Abu Ali seized control of much of southern Morocco (including

Marrakech Marrakesh or Marrakech ( or ; ar, مراكش, murrākuš, ; ber, ⵎⵕⵕⴰⴽⵛ, translit=mṛṛakc}) is the fourth largest city in the Kingdom of Morocco. It is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakes ...

), threatening to split the Marinid dominions in two. In 1322, the Marinid sultan Abu Sa'id Uthman marched against the south and defeated Abu Ali at the Oum er-Rebia. But, once again, he reconciled with his son and allowed him to retain

. Abu Sa'id Uthman built three significant

madrasa Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , pl. , ) is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary instruction or higher learning. The word is variously transliterated '' ...

s in Fez: Fez al-Jedid (1320), Es-Sahrij (1321) and Al-Attarine (1323). In 1329, pressed by an invasion from

Abdalwadid The Zayyanid dynasty ( ar, زيانيون, ''Ziyānyūn'') or Abd al-Wadids ( ar, بنو عبد الواد, ''Bānu ʿabd āl-Wād'') was a Berber Zenata dynasty that ruled the Kingdom of Tlemcen, mainly in modern Algeria centered on the town o ...

sultan Abu Tashufin of

Tlemcen Tlemcen (; ar, تلمسان, translit=Tilimsān) is the second-largest city in northwestern Algeria after Oran, and capital of the Tlemcen Province. The city has developed leather, carpet, and textile industries, which it exports through the p ...

, the Ḥafṣid ruler

Abu Bakr Abu Bakr Abdallah ibn Uthman Abi Quhafa (; – 23 August 634) was the senior companion and was, through his daughter Aisha, a father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, as well as the first caliph of Islam. He is known with the honor ...

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 ...

appealed to the Marinid sultan Abu Sa'id Uthman for assistance, offering his daughter Fatimah as a bride for the Marinid heir Abu al-Ḥasan. Satisfied by the terms, Abu Sa'id Uthman arranged a diversionary raid against

from the west, while dispatching a Marinid fleet to support the Ḥafṣid efforts in the east. In August 1331, while arranging for the reception of the Tunisian princess, Abu Sa'id Uthman fell ill and died in the environs of

. He was succeeded by his son and designated heir Abu al-Hasan, although his other son Abu Ali retained his quasi-independent appanage in the south.

References

Biography

*Julien, Charles-André, ''Histoire de l'Afrique du Nord, des origines à 1830'', édition originale 1931, réédition Payot, Paris, 1961 {{DEFAULTSORT:Uthman II, Abu Said 1275 births 1331 deaths Marinid sultans of Morocco People from Fez, Morocco 13th-century Berber people 14th-century Berber people 13th-century Moroccan people 14th-century Moroccan people Medieval Algeria 14th-century monarchs in Africa