Qahtaba ibn Shabib al-Ta'i ( ar, قحطبة بن شبيب الطائي) (died 27 August 749) was a follower of the Abbasids from Khurasan who played a leading role in the

Abbasid Revolution The Abbasid Revolution, also called the Movement of the Men of the Black Raiment, was the overthrow of the Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE), the second of the four major Caliphates in early Islamic history, by the third, the Abbasid Calipha ...

against 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 ...

. Qahtaba was a Khurasani Arab, belonging to the Tayy tribe. He had journeyed to

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow v ...

, where the imam of the Hashimiyya Ibrahim ibn Muhammad appointed him as the military leader for the upcoming anti-Umayyad uprising in Khorasan. This appointment was accepted by the main Abbasid leader,

Abu Muslim , image = Abu Muslim chastises a man for telling tales, Folio from the Ethics of Nasir (Akhlaq-e Nasiri) by Nasir al-Din Tusi (fol. 248r).jpg , caption = "Abu Muslim chastises a man for telling tales," Folio from the '' ...

, and following the fall 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 ...

to the Abbasids and their supporters in February 748, Qahtaba was placed in command of the Abbasid forces that pursued the last Umayyad governor of Khurasan, Nasr ibn Sayyar. His army took Nishapur, where Nasr had sought refuge, defeated a 10,000-strong Umayyad force at Gurgan in August and subsequently took Rayy. There he wintered, and in March 749 he defeated a larger Umayyad army under Amir ibn Djubara, allegedly 50,000 strong, near Isfahan. Nihavand fell after a short siege and the Abbasid army began moving towards

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 ...

. Qahtaba's army advanced swiftly with the aim of taking Kufa, but was confronted by the Umayyad governor,

Yazid ibn Hubayra Yazid ibn Umar ibn Hubayra al-Fazari ( ar, يَزِيد بن عُمَر بن هُبَيْرَة الْفَزارِيّ , Yazīd ibn ʿUmar ibn Hubayra al-Fazārī; died 750) was the last Umayyad governor of Iraq. A son of former governor Umar ib ...

. Qahtaba was able to launch a surprise night attack on the Umayyad camp, forcing Yazid and his troops to flee to Wasit. Qahtaba himself fell in this battle, but his son al-Hasan ibn Qahtaba assumed command and took possession of Kufa on 2 September. Both al-Hasan and his brother,

Humayd ibn Qahtaba Humayd ibn Qahtaba ibn Shabib al-Ta'i () was a senior military leader in the early Abbasid Caliphate. Biography Humayd was the son of Qahtaba ibn Shabib al-Ta'i, who along with Abu Muslim led the Abbasid Revolution that toppled the Umayyad Cali ...

, were important military leaders in the early decades of the Abbasid regime.

Sources

* * * 749 deaths Generals of the Abbasid Caliphate People of the Abbasid Revolution Medieval Arabs killed in battle Year of birth unknown 8th-century Arabs Tayy {{Asia-mil-bio-stub