Ja'far ibn Dinar ibn Abdallah al-Khayyat () was a ninth-century military commander for 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 ...

Career

Ja'far was likely the son of

Dinar ibn Abdallah The dinar () is the name of the principal currency unit in several countries near the Mediterranean Sea, with a more widespread historical use. The English word "dinar" is the transliteration of the Arabic دينار (''dīnār''), which was bor ...

, an army commander and provincial governor who was active during the caliphate of

al-Ma'mun Abū al-ʿAbbās Abd Allāh ibn Hārūn al-Maʾmūn (; 14 September 786 – 9 August 833), better known by his regnal name al-Ma'mun (), was the seventh Abbasid caliph, who reigned from 813 until his death in 833. His leadership was marked by t ...

(). He himself first appears in the last years of al-Ma'mun's reign, when he participated in the caliph's 830

invasion An invasion is a Offensive (military), military offensive of combatants of one geopolitics, geopolitical Legal entity, entity, usually in large numbers, entering territory (country subdivision), territory controlled by another similar entity, ...

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

and was sent with Ujayf ibn Anbasah to receive the submission of the commander of fortress of Sinan. Ja'far's prominence increased during the reign of al-Ma'mun's successor

al-Mu'tasim Abū Isḥāq Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Rashīd (; October 796 – 5 January 842), better known by his laqab, regnal name al-Muʿtaṣim biʾllāh (, ), was the eighth Abbasid Caliphate, Abbasid caliph, ruling from 833 until his death in 842. ...

(), who employed him in several of the campaigns of his caliphate. In 837 he and

Itakh Aytākh or Ītākh al-Khazarī () was a leading commander in the Turkic army of the Abbasid caliph al-Mu'tasim (r. 833-842 C.E.). As the '' nisba'' in his name suggests, he was a Khazar by origin, and is said to have been a slave working in the ...

were sent by the caliph to reinforce al-Afshin against the rebel

Babak Khorramdin Bābak Khorramdin (, , from , ''Pāpak/Pābag''; 795 or 798 – January 838) was one of the main Iranian revolutionary leaders of the Iranian Khorram-Dinān ("Those of the joyous religion"), which was a local freedom movement fighting the Abbasi ...

in Adharbayjan, and he played a leading role in the effort to take Babak's stronghold of al-Badhdh. In the following year he was placed in command of the caliph's left wing during the Amorium Campaign against the Byzantines, and during the assault against

Amorium Amorium, also known as Amorion (), was a city in Phrygia, Asia Minor which was founded in the Hellenistic period, flourished under the Byzantine Empire, and declined after the Sack of Amorium, Arab sack of 838. It was situated on the Byzantine m ...

itself he was assigned a sector of the city to attack. In 839 he received the governorship of the

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

and appointed deputy governors to enforce his rule in that province, but in 840 he incurred the anger of the caliph, who dismissed him from his position and briefly imprisoned him in the custody of

Ashinas Abu Ja'far Ashinas (; died 17 or 19 December 844) was a general of the Abbasid caliph Al-Mu'tasim. One of the earliest and most prominent members of al-Mu'tasim's Turkic guard, he rose to become one of the leading figures of the empire under al- ...

. Ja'far was appointed governor of the Yemen a second time in 846, this time by the caliph

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 ...

(), and was tasked with dealing with the long-running Yu'firid insurgency there. After pausing to go on the

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a travel, journey to a holy place, which can lead to a personal transformation, after which the pilgrim returns to their daily life. A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) w ...

, Ja'far entered the Yemen with several thousand cavalry and infantry and proceeded against the rebels. Although his initial advance against the Yu'firids ended without accomplishment, he went on a second expedition soon after and placed their fortress under siege. Upon learning of the death of al-Wathiq in 847, however, he concluded a truce with the Yu'firids and retired to

Sana'a Sanaa, officially the Sanaa Municipality, is the ''de jure'' capital and largest city of Yemen. The city is the capital of the Sanaa Governorate, but is not part of the governorate, as it forms a separate administrative unit. At an elevation ...

. Shortly after this he decided to withdraw to the province altogether and returned to

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

, leaving his son Muhammad to stay behind as his deputy until

Himyar ibn al-Harith Himyar ibn al-Harith () was the last governor of the Yemen for the Abbasid Caliphate, prior to the Yu'firid conquest of Sana'a in 847. Himyar was appointed to the Yemen by al-Mutawakkil Ja'far ibn al-Mu'tasim, Muḥammad ibn Harun al-Rashid ...

was appointed as governor in his stead. During the caliphate of

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 ...

(), Ja'far oversaw the events of the festival season (''

mawsim ''Mawsim'' or ''moussem'' (), ''waada'', or ''raqb'', is the term used in the Maghreb to designate an annual regional festival in which worshippers usually combine the religious celebration of local Marabouts or Sufi Tariqas, with various festi ...

'') during the annual pilgrimages of 854 to 858, and was also assigned the supervision of the

Mecca Road Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above sea level. Its metropo ...

. Under

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 ...

(), he was given command of the summer expedition ('' sa'ifah'') of 863 and undertook a successful raid against the Byzantines, but when he gave the governor of

Malatya Malatya (; ; Syriac language, Syriac ܡܠܝܛܝܢܐ Malīṭīná; ; Ancient Greek: Μελιτηνή) is a city in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey and the capital of Malatya Province. The city has been a human settlement for thousands of y ...

h, '

Umar al-Aqta ʿUmar ibn ʿAbdallāh ibn Marwān. or ʿAmr ibn ʿUbaydallāh ibn Marwān, surnamed al-Aqtaʾ (; , , in Greek), and found as Amer or Ambros () in Byzantine sources, was the semi-independent Arab emir of Malatya (Melitene) from the 830s until h ...

', permission to continue with the invasion on his own, the Byzantines struck back and killed 'Umar at the disastrous

Battle of Lalakaon The Battle of Lalakaon (), or Battle of Poson or Porson (), was fought in 863 between the Byzantine Empire and an invading Arab army in Paphlagonia (modern northern Turkey). The Byzantine army was led by Petronas (general), Petronas, the uncle ...

. Following the flight of al-Musta'in 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 ...

in 865, Ja'far was one of the few officers who remained behind 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 ...

, and instead supported the rival caliph

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 ...

(). He is last mentioned that year, when al-Mu'tazz placed him in charge of his guard ('' haras''). Ja'far's son Mansur ibn Ja'far al-Khayyat later rose to some prominence, likewise serving as a military commander and governor until he was killed in battle during the

Zanj Rebellion The Zanj Rebellion ( ) was a major revolt against the Abbasid Caliphate, which took place from 869 until 883. Begun near the city of Basra in present-day southern Iraq and led by one Ali ibn Muhammad, the insurrection involved both enslaved and ...

in 872.; .

Notes

References

* * * * * * {{s-end Generals of the Abbasid Caliphate Abbasid people of the Arab–Byzantine wars Abbasid governors of Yemen Prisoners and detainees of the Abbasid Caliphate 9th-century people from the Abbasid Caliphate 9th century in Yemen 9th-century Arab people