Al-Mu'tamid Ibn Abbad
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al-Muʿtamid Muḥammad ibn ʿAbbād al-Lakhmī (; reigned c. 1069–1091, lived 1040–1095), also known as Abbad III, was the third and last ruler of the
Taifa of Seville The Taifa of Seville ( ''Ta'ifat-u Ishbiliyyah'') was an Arab kingdom which was ruled by the Abbadid dynasty. It was established in 1023 and lasted until 1091, in what is today southern Spain and Portugal. It gained independence from the Calipha ...
in
Al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...
, as well as a renowned poet. He was the final ruler of the Arab
Abbadid dynasty The Abbadid dynasty or Abbadids () was an Arab dynasty from the tribe of Banu Lakhm of al-Hirah, which ruled the Taifa of Seville in al-Andalus following the fall of the Caliphate of Cordoba in 1031. After the collapse, they were the most powerful ...
of
Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...
, before being deposed by the
Almoravids The Almoravid dynasty () was a Berber Muslim dynasty centered in the territory of present-day Morocco. It established an empire that stretched over the western Maghreb and Al-Andalus, starting in the 1050s and lasting until its fall to the Almo ...
in 1091.


Early life

When he was 13 years old, Al-Mu'tamid's father bestowed on him the title of
Emir Emir (; ' (), also Romanization of Arabic, transliterated as amir, is a word of Arabic language, Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocratic, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person po ...
and appointed the Andalusi Arabic poet Ibn Ammar as his
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 ...
. However, Al-Mu'tamid fell strongly under the influence of Ibn Ammar. Al-Mu’tamid's father was wary of Ibn Ammar and the influence he had, ultimately sending him into exile.


Reign

After the death of his father
Abbad II al-Mu'tadid Abu ʿAmr ʿAbbad II al-Muʿtadid (; died 28 February 1069), a member of the Abbadid dynasty, was the second independent emir of Seville (reigned 1042–1069) in Al-Andalus. His father, Abu al-Qasim Muhammad ibn Abbad, had established the Taifa of ...
in 1069, Al-Mu'tamid inherited
Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...
as
caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...
. One of his first acts was to recall Ibn Ammar and to bestow military honours and high political offices on him, including as Governor of Silves and Prime Minister of the government in Seville. This reconciliation would later be rebuked for unknown reasons. More likely the cause of resentment grew from the fact that the Prime Minister had let al-Mu'tamid's son, Prince al-Rasid, be captured and held hostage during a military campaign. He had also declared himself Emir of Murcia without properly acknowledging the rights of his own sovereign. The two men exchanged verses full of bitter criticisms and accusations. Murcia was subsequently lost and Ibn Ammar himself taken hostage. A final attempt to conspire with the young prince against his father proved too much for al-Mu'tamid, who "fell into a rage and hacked him to death with his own hands". After Ibn Ammar's death, the caliph was reported to have grieved bitterly and gave his former friend a sumptuous funeral. Large parts of
al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...
were under the dominion of al-Mu'tamid: to the west his territory encompassed the land between the lower Guadalquivir and Guadiana, plus the areas around Niebla, Huelva and Saltes. In the south it extended to Morón, Arcos, Ronda, and also Algeciras and Tarifa. The capital, Córdoba, was taken in 1070, lost in 1075, and regained in 1078. Nevertheless, the family was still subject to taxation by the King of Castile, to whom they were vassals. The drain of these taxes effectively weakened the kingdom's power: al-Mu'tamid's decision to stop paying these taxes caused King
Alfonso VI of Castile Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula. I ...
(who had already conquered Toledo in 1085) to besiege Seville. Al-Mu'tamid asked help from the Berber
Almoravids The Almoravid dynasty () was a Berber Muslim dynasty centered in the territory of present-day Morocco. It established an empire that stretched over the western Maghreb and Al-Andalus, starting in the 1050s and lasting until its fall to the Almo ...
of Morocco against the Castilian king. Al-Mu'tamid supported the Almoravid ruler
Yusuf ibn Tashfin Yusuf ibn Tashfin, also Tashafin, Teshufin, (; reigned c. 1061 – 1106) was a Sanhaja leader of the Almoravid Empire. He cofounded the city of Marrakesh and led the Muslim forces in the Battle of Sagrajas. Yusuf ibn Tashfin came to al-And ...
against Alfonso in the
Battle of Sagrajas The Battle of Sagrajas (23 October 1086), also called Zalaca or Zallaqah (), was a conflict fought in 1086 between the Almoravid dynasty, Almoravid army, led by their king, Yusuf ibn Tashfin, and the forces of King Alfonso VI of León and Cas ...
in 1086. The Almoravids established themselves at Algeciras and, after defeating the Christians, occupied all the Islamic taifas, including Seville itself in 1091. After they ravaged the city, al-Mu'tamid ordered his sons to surrender the royal fortress (the early
Alcázar of Seville The Alcázar of Seville, officially called Royal Alcázar of Seville (), is a historic royal palace in Seville, Spain. It was formerly the site of the Al-Andalus, Islamic-era citadel of the city, begun in the 10th century and then developed into ...
) in order to save their lives. When his son, Rashid, had advised him not to call on Yusuf ibn Tashfin, Al-Mu'tamid had rebuffed him: In 1091, Al-Mu'tamid was taken into captivity by the Almoravids and exiled to
Aghmat Aghmat ( Tashelhit: ''Aɣmat'', ''Āghmāt''; pronounced locally ''Ughmat, Uɣmat'') was an important commercial medieval Berber town in Morocco. It is today an archaeological site known as "Joumâa Aghmat". The city is located approximately 30& ...
,
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
, where he died (or was perhaps assassinated) in 1095. His grave is located in the outskirts of Aghmat.


Legacy

Al-Mu'tamid, one of the most eminent men of 11th-century al-Andalus, was highly regarded as a writer of poetry in Arabic. He was the father-in-law or father of
Zaida of Seville Zaida of Seville, c. 1070–1093/1107 (?), was a refugee Muslim princess, formerly associated with the Abbadid dynasty, who became a mistress and then perhaps wife of king Alfonso VI of Castile. She is said by Al-Andalus sources to have been th ...
, a concubine of
Alfonso VI of Castile Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula. I ...
, possibly identical to his later wife, Queen Isabella. Iberian Muslim sources say that Zaida of Seville was the wife of Al-Mu'tamid's son Abu Nasr al-Fath al-Ma'mūn,
Emir Emir (; ' (), also Romanization of Arabic, transliterated as amir, is a word of Arabic language, Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocratic, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person po ...
of the
Taifa of Córdoba The Taifa of Córdoba () was an ArabThe Caliphate of Córdoba ''would continue to exist de jure until the year 1031, when the Cordoban "republic" was proclaimed by the "senate" of that Andalusian city''The Formation of Al-Andalus: History and So ...
.Canal Sánchez-Pagín, José María (1991). "Jimena Muñoz, Amiga de Alfonso VI". Anuario de Estudios Medievales. 21: 11–40Lévi-Provençal, Évariste (1934). "La 'Mora Zaida' femme d'Alfonse VI de Castile et leur fils l'Infant D. Sancho". Hesperis. 18: 1–8,200–1.Montaner Frutos, Alberto (2005)
La Mora Zaida, entre historia y leyenda (con una reflexión sobre la técnica historiográfica alfonsí)
Historicist Essays on Hispano-Medieval Narrative. "En conclusion, no hay razones de peso para considerar a Zaida otra cosa que la nuera de Almu'tamid, sin poder precisar su foiliacion." In English: "In conclusion, there are no compelling reasons to consider Zaida anything other than the daughter-in-law of Almu'tamid, without being able to specify her filiation." p. 279.
Palencia, Clemente (1988). "Historia y leyendas de las mujeres de Alfonso VI". Estudios sobre Alfonso VI y la reconquista de Toledo. pp. 281–90.Salazar y Acha, Jaime de (1992–1993). "Contribución al estudio del reinado de Alfonso VI de Castilla: algunas aclaraciones sobre su política matrimonial". Anales de la Real Academia Matritense de Heráldica y Genealogía. 2: 299–336. Bishop Pelayo of Oviedo asserted that Zaida was the daughter of ''Abenath'' (Al-Mu'tamid ibn Abbad), a claim repeated by later Iberian
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 ...
chroniclers that persisted in written histories for hundreds of years. However, the Islamic chroniclers are considered more reliable, and the general consensus among scholars now is that Zaida was Al-Mu'tamid's daughter-in-law.


See also

*
Abbasid dynasty The Abbasid dynasty or Abbasids () were an Arab dynasty that ruled the Abbasid Caliphate between 750 and 1258. They were from the Qurayshi Hashimid clan of Banu Abbas, descended from Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib. The Abbasid Caliphate is divid ...
* Buthaina bint al-Mu'tamid ibn Abbad


References


Sources

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External links


Al-Mu'tamid ibn Abbad: PoemsThe poem of Al-Mu'tamid, in English
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mu'tamid ibn Abbad 1060s births 1095 deaths Abbadid dynasty 11th-century Arabic-language poets 11th-century writers from al-Andalus Poets from al-Andalus 11th-century monarchs in Al-Andalus 11th-century Arab people