Abu Ja'far Ahmad ibn Isra'il al-Anbari (; 824 or 825 – September 8, 869) was a civil officer of the
Abbasid Caliphate
The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 CE), from whom the dynasty takes ...
in the mid-9th century, serving as
vizier
A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...
during the caliphate of
al-Mu'tazz
Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Muʿtazz bi-ʾLlāh (; 847 – 16 July 869), better known by his regnal title al-Muʿtazz bi-ʾLlāh (, "He who is strengthened by God") was the Abbasid caliph from 866 t ...
(r. 866–869). His career came to a sudden end when he was arrested on the orders of the
Turkish
Turkish may refer to:
* Something related to Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire
* The w ...
general
Salih ibn Wasif
Salih ibn Wasif (; died 29 January 870) was a Turkic officer in the service of the Abbasid Caliphate. The son of Wasif, a central figure during the Anarchy at Samarra, Salih briefly seized power in the capital Samarra and deposed the caliph al ...
in May 869, and he was killed four months later after being repeatedly subjected to torture.
Biography
Ahmad, like several other officials in the Abbasid bureaucracy, came from a family of
Nestorian
Nestorianism is a term used in Christian theology and Church history to refer to several mutually related but doctrinarily distinct sets of teachings. The first meaning of the term is related to the original teachings of Christian theologian ...
Christian
A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
origin. He embarked on a career in the civil service and became a secretary (''
katib
A katib (, ''kātib'') is a writer, scribe, or secretary in the Arabic-speaking world, Persian World, and other Islamic areas as far as the Indian subcontinent. In North Africa, the local pronunciation of the term also causes it to be written ke ...
''), serving under the Abbasid caliphs in
Samarra
Samarra (, ') is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Saladin Governorate, north of Baghdad. The modern city of Samarra was founded in 836 by the Abbasid caliph al-Mu'tasim as a new administrative capital and mi ...
. In 843-4, during the caliphate of
al-Wathiq
Abū Jaʿfar Hārūn ibn Muḥammad al-Wathiq bi'Llah (; 18 April 81210 August 847), commonly known by his regnal name al-Wathiq bi'Llah (), was an Abbasid caliph who reigned from 842 until his death in 847.
Al-Wathiq is described in the so ...
(r. 842–847), he was arrested as part of a general purge of the secretaries and was punished with a
fine
Fine may refer to:
Characters
* Fran Fine, the title character of ''The Nanny''
* Sylvia Fine (''The Nanny''), Fran's mother on ''The Nanny''
* Officer Fine, a character in ''Tales from the Crypt'', played by Vincent Spano
Legal terms
* Fine (p ...
and
flogging
Flagellation (Latin , 'whip'), flogging or whipping is the act of beating the human body with special implements such as whips, rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails, the sjambok, the knout, etc. Typically, flogging has been imposed ...
, but he was subsequently released and allowed to retain his office. Under
al-Mutawakkil
Ja'far ibn al-Mu'tasim, Muḥammad ibn Harun al-Rashid, Hārūn al-Mutawakkil ʿalā Allāh (); March 82211 December 861, commonly known by his laqab, regnal name al-Mutawwakil ala Allah (), was the tenth Abbasid Caliphate, Abbasid caliph, rul ...
(r. 847–861), he became the chief secretary for the caliph's son and second heir
al-Mu'tazz
Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Muʿtazz bi-ʾLlāh (; 847 – 16 July 869), better known by his regnal title al-Muʿtazz bi-ʾLlāh (, "He who is strengthened by God") was the Abbasid caliph from 866 t ...
, and was also appointed as the vizier
'Ubaydallah ibn Yahya's deputy over the Department of Taxation (''
diwan al-kharaj'').
During the
civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
between the rival caliphs
al-Musta'in
Abū al-ʿAbbās Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Mustaʿīn bi-ʾllāh (; 836 – 17 October 866), better known by his regnal title al-Mustaʿīn (836 – 17 October 866) was the Abbasid caliph from 862 to 866, during the "Anarchy at ...
and al-Mu'tazz in 865, Ahmad joined al-Musta'in after the latter fled to
Baghdad
Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...
, and remained in the city as it was besieged by al-Mu'tazz's army. As the war dragged on, however, he became a proponent of ending the conflict, and attempted to convince the governor of Baghdad,
Muhammad ibn 'Abdallah ibn Tahir, to seek peace with al-Mu'tazz and force al-Musta'in to abdicate. After Muhammad ibn 'Abdallah agreed to sue for peace, Ahmad served as a leading member of the delegations sent to negotiate the terms of surrender, which resulted in al-Musta'in being deposed in January 866. As a reward for his efforts to end the war, al-Mu'tazz appointed Ahmad as the head of the Department of the Post (''
diwan al-barid'') and shortly thereafter promoted him to be his vizier.
Ahmad remained vizier for most of al-Mu'tazz's caliphate (866–869), but his authority appears to have been limited. During his vizierate, the caliphate suffered from a major fiscal crisis, and the government was frequently incapable of paying the salaries of the soldiers. Ahmad also worked with the caliph to weaken the power of the senior Turkish officers, who had been in
effective control of affairs in the capital since 861. In late 866 al-Mu'tazz attempted to remove
Wasif al-Turki
Wasif al-Turki () (died October 29, 867) was a Turkic general in the service of the Abbasid Caliphate. He played a central role in the events that followed the assassination of al-Mutawakkil in 861, known as the Anarchy at Samarra. During this p ...
and
Bugha al-Sharabi
Bugha al-Sharabi ("Bugha the Cupbearer"), also known as Bugha al-Saghir ("Bugha the Younger") to distinguish him from his unrelated contemporary Bugha the Elder, was a senior Turkic military leader in the mid-9th century Abbasid Caliphate.
He s ...
, two generals who had sided with al-Musta'in during the civil war, from power, but the caliph was forced to reverse his decision when the army protested this action, and after negotiating with the two men, Ahmad restored them to their positions. Despite this, al-Mu'tazz and Ahmad continued in their efforts to destroy the officers, and they succeeded in having Bugha killed in 868, which, combined with Wasif's death the previous year, resulted in the influence of the military being temporarily reduced.
Ultimately, however, the Turkish commanders successfully regained their power, and Ahmad's vizierate was brought down as a result. On May 19, 869, one of the Turkish leaders,
Salih ibn Wasif
Salih ibn Wasif (; died 29 January 870) was a Turkic officer in the service of the Abbasid Caliphate. The son of Wasif, a central figure during the Anarchy at Samarra, Salih briefly seized power in the capital Samarra and deposed the caliph al ...
, complained to the caliph about Ahmad and two other senior officials,
al-Hasan ibn Makhlad and
Abu Nuh 'Isa ibn Ibrahim
Abu or ABU may refer to:
Aviation
* Airman Battle Uniform, a utility uniform of the United States Air Force
* IATA airport code for A. A. Bere Tallo Airport in Atambua, Province of East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
People
* Abu (Arabic term), a ku ...
, accusing them of corruption and of failing to pay the troops. A heated argument ensued between Salih and the three men, which ended when Salih's guards entered the room, apprehending the secretaries and hauling them away to the general's residence. Ahmad, al-Hasan and Abu Nuh were incarcerated and beaten, and an order was issued to seize the estates and properties of the officials and their families. They were not released until they promised to pay a large fine, which would be collected in installments.
In July 869, al-Mu'tazz was deposed and replaced with another caliph,
al-Muhtadi
Abū Isḥāq Muḥammad ibn Hārūn ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Muhtadī bi-ʾLlāh (; – 21 June 870), better known by his regnal name al-Muhtadī bi-ʾLlāh (Arabic: , "Guided by God"), was the Caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate from ...
. Shortly after the new caliph's accession, Salih ibn Wasif again seized the three secretaries and ordered them to be tortured, in an attempt to extract any remaining wealth they may still have had. Although al-Muhtadi disapproved of Salih's actions, he did nothing to stop him. On September 8, after securing a ''
fatwa
A fatwa (; ; ; ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (sharia) given by a qualified Islamic jurist ('' faqih'') in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist issuing fatwas is called a ''mufti'', ...
'' authorizing their execution, Salih had Ahmad and Abu Nuh brought to the public gate of the caliphal palace. There the two men were ordered to be flogged, with both men receiving five hundred lashes. After this, they were loaded onto donkeys and they were paraded around the city; both men died of their wounds during the procession.
[Al-Tabari, v. 36: pp. 9–12; al-Ya'qubi, p. 617; Sourdel, p. 299]
Notes
References
*
* Shaban, M.A. ''Islamic History: A New Interpretation, Volume 2, A.D. 750–1055 (A.H. 132–448).'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1976.
*
Sourdel, Dominique. ''Le Vizirat Abbaside de 749 à 936 (132 à 224 de l'Hégire) Vol. I'' Damascus: Institut Français de Damas, 1959.
* Al-Tabari, Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Jarir. ''The History of al-Tabari.'' Ed. Ehsan Yar-Shater. 40 vols. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1985–2007.
* Al-Ya'qubi, Ahmad ibn Abu Ya'qub. ''Historiae, Vol. 2.'' Ed. M. Th. Houtsma. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1883.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmad ibn Israil al-Anbari
820s births
869 deaths
Viziers of the Abbasid Caliphate
9th-century people from the Abbasid Caliphate
9th-century government officials