Ilyas ibn Habib al-Fihri () (died December 755) was an

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

noble of the Oqbid or Fihrid family, and briefly ruler of

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 ...

(North Africa) in 755. Ilyas ibn Habib was a son of the Ifriqiyan military commander

Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri Habib ibn Abi Ubaida al-Fihri () (died October 741) was an Arab military commander of the illustrious Fihrid (or 'Oqbid') family who played an important role in the early history of Ifriqiya (Tunisia) and al-Andalus (Spain). Biography Habib ibn ...

. Ilyas was appointed governor of

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

(Tripolitana) by his brother,

Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib al-Fihri ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Ḥabīb al-Fihrī () (died 755) was an Arab noble of the Fihrid family, and ruler of Ifriqiya (North Africa) from 745 through 755 AD. Background Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib was a great-grandson of Oqba ibn Nafi al-Fihri (Mu ...

, not long after the latter seized power in

Kairouan Kairouan (, ), also spelled El Qayrawān or Kairwan ( ar, ٱلْقَيْرَوَان, al-Qayrawān , aeb, script=Latn, Qeirwān ), is the capital of the Kairouan Governorate in Tunisia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city was founded by th ...

in 745. In 747, Ilyas tried to crack down on the fledgling

Ibadi The Ibadi movement or Ibadism ( ar, الإباضية, al-Ibāḍiyyah) is a school of Islam. The followers of Ibadism are known as the Ibadis. Ibadism emerged around 60 years after the Islamic prophet Muhammad's death in 632 AD as a moderate sc ...

tes, a puritanical

Kharijite The Kharijites (, singular ), also called al-Shurat (), were an Islamic sect which emerged during the First Fitna (656–661). The first Kharijites were supporters of Ali who rebelled against his acceptance of arbitration talks to settle the c ...

sect strong in the cities of

Djerba Djerba (; ar, جربة, Jirba, ; it, Meninge, Girba), also transliterated as Jerba or Jarbah, is a Tunisian island and the largest island of North Africa at , in the Gulf of Gabès, off the coast of Tunisia. It had a population of 139,544 a ...

and

. The Ibadites, inspired by the success of their brethren in

Hadramut Hadhramaut ( ar, حَضْرَمَوْتُ \ حَضْرَمُوتُ, Ḥaḍramawt / Ḥaḍramūt; Hadramautic: 𐩢𐩳𐩧𐩣𐩩, ''Ḥḍrmt'') is a region in South Arabia, comprising eastern Yemen, parts of western Oman and southern Saud ...

and

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

, revolted under the leadership of their imam al-Harith, and seized control of much of Tripolitana, between

Gabès Gabès (, ; ar, قابس, ), also spelled Cabès, Cabes, Kabes, Gabbs and Gaps, is the capital city of the Gabès Governorate in Tunisia. It is located on the coast of the Gulf of Gabès. With a population of 152,921, Gabès is the 6th largest ...

and

Sirte Sirte (; ar, سِرْت, ), also spelled Sirt, Surt, Sert or Syrte, is a city in Libya. It is located south of the Gulf of Sirte, between Tripoli and Benghazi. It is famously known for its battles, ethnic groups, and loyalty to Muammar G ...

, for themselves. The Fihrids recovered Tripolitana in 752, driving the Ibadites south into the

Jebel Nafusa The Nafusa Mountains ( Berber: ''Adrar n Infusen'' (Nafusa Mountain), ar, جبل نفوسة (Western mountain)) are a mountain range in the western Tripolitania region of northwestern Libya. It also includes their regions around the escarpment f ...

. After the victory of the

Abbasids The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...

in the east in 750, many members of the

Umayyad 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 the ...

clan fled to

, at the invitation of Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib. Ilyas ibn Habib married one of the damsels of the Umayyad clan. Ilyas continued to serve under his brother, defeating various revolts against Fihrid rule, albeit growing increasingly resentful of the lack of honors that resulted. When Abd al-Rahman designated his own son,

Habib Habib ( ar, حبيب, ''ḥabīb''; ), sometimes written as Habeeb, is an Arabic masculine given name, occasional surname, and honorific, with the meaning "beloved" or "my love", or "darling". It also forms the famous Arabic word ‘''Habibi’'' ...

as his successor, the rift between the brothers grew. Around 755, Abd al-Rahman discovered a plot concocted by several exiled

nobles, and executed the conspirators. Urged on by his vengeful Umayyad wife, Ilyas assassinated his brother Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib in his personal quarters, plunging a dagger into his back while he played with his children. Ilyas ibn Habib assumed power for himself in

, with the support of his younger brother Abd al-Wareth ibn Habib and his uncle Muhammad ibn Abi Obeida. To secure his hold, he immediately restored the name of the

Abbasid The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...

caliph

Al-Mansur Abū Jaʿfar ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Manṣūr (; ar, أبو جعفر عبد الله بن محمد المنصور‎; 95 AH – 158 AH/714 CE – 6 October 775 CE) usually known simply as by his laqab Al-Manṣūr (المنصور) w ...

in the prayers. But Ilyas's other brother, Amran ibn Habib, then in command of

Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...

, refused to recognize the fratricidal coup. Amran gave shelter to Abd al-Rahman's fugitive son, Habib ibn Abd al-Rahman, and together, they waged war against Ilyas and Abd al-Wareth. The armies met south of Tunis in late 755. But before battle was enjoined, an agreement was reached to partition

between the Fihrid family. Amran was to be assigned the government of

Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...

and environs, the young Habib the government of southerly

Gafsa Gafsa ( aeb, ڨفصة '; ar, قفصة qafṣah), originally called Capsa in Latin, is the capital of Gafsa Governorate of Tunisia. It lends its Latin name to the Mesolithic Capsian culture. With a population of 111,170, Gafsa is the ninth-la ...

and Nafzawa, allowing Ilyas to hold on to the remainder of

and overlordship of the

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ar, الْمَغْرِب, al-Maghrib, lit=the west), also known as the Arab Maghreb ( ar, المغرب العربي) and Northwest Africa, is the western part of North Africa and the Arab world. The region includes Algeria, ...

. The settlement made, Habib proceeded to Kairouan, while Ilyas accompanied Amran back to Tunis. But once in Tunis, Ilyas suddenly turned on his brother and ordered the arrest of Amran and his coterie. Amran was dispatched in chains to

al-Andalus Al-Andalus DIN 31635, translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label=Berber languages, Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, ...

, where they would be handed over to

Yusuf ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Fihri Yusuf ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Fihri ( ar, يوسف بن عبد الرحمن الفهري) was an Umayyad governor of Narbonne in Septimania and the governor of al-Andalus from 747 to 756, ruling independently following the collapse of the Umayyad C ...

, governor of

. Returning to

, Ilyas pressured the young

to also leave for al-Andalus. But before the ship could depart, Habib was seized by the partisans of his late father

Abd al-Rahman Abd al-Rahman ( ar, عبد الرحمن, translit=ʿAbd al-Raḥmān or occasionally ; DMG ''ʿAbd ar-Raḥman''; also Abdul Rahman) is a male Arabic Muslim given name, and in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' Abd'', '' ...

, who promptly proclaimed

emir of

and raised an army in his name. The two armies met in the environs of Laribus. But before battle was enjoined,

challenged Ilyas to resolve the quarrel in single combat. At first hesitant, Ilyas finally consented, at the urging of his own commanders. Habib defeated and killed Ilyas, carrying his head as a trophy in a procession back to

. This took place in December 755.Ibn Khaldun (1852: p.369) Hearing of Ilyas's defeat, Abd al-Wareth and remaining partisans of Ilyas fled south and took shelter among the Warfajuma Berbers, from where they would plot their comeback.

References

Sources

*Ibn Khaldun, ''Histoire des Berbères et des dynasties musulmanes de l'Afrique'', 1852 transl. Algiers. *Julien, Charles-André, ''Histoire de l'Afrique du Nord, des origines à 1830'', édition originale 1931, réédition Payot, Paris, 1961 * Mercier, E. (1888) ''Histoire de l'Afrique septentrionale, V. 1'', Paris: Leroux. Repr. Elibron Classics, 2005.

References

Sources

See also