Abu'l-Abbas Muhammad I ibn al-Aghlab () (died 856) was the fifth

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 Aghlabid dynasty, who ruled over

Ifriqiya Ifriqiya ( '), also known as al-Maghrib al-Adna (), was a medieval historical region comprising today's Tunisia, eastern Algeria, and Tripolitania (roughly western Libya). It included all of what had previously been the Byzantine province of ...

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

, and most of

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

from 841 until his death. He also led the raid of Rome. Muhammad I was the son of the dynasty's fourth emir, Abu Iqal (838–841). Muhammad I turned out to be a great commander and economic strategist, like his uncle Ziyadat Allah I of Ifriqiya and his rival Asad ibn al-Furat. Under his reign, the Aghlabids continued their expansion into the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

, conquering

Messina Messina ( , ; ; ; ) is a harbour city and the capital city, capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of 216,918 inhabitants ...

Taranto Taranto (; ; previously called Tarent in English) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Taranto, serving as an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base. Founded by Spartans ...

, large parts of

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

and supporting Emir Kalfün with the establishment of an Islamic

Bari Bari ( ; ; ; ) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia Regions of Italy, region, on the Adriatic Sea in southern Italy. It is the first most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. It is a port and ...

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

allied with his preceding rulers and asked for their support to repel the siege of Lombard troops coming from the Duchy of Benevento, but, despite the previous Muslim-Christian alliance, Abul Abbas sacked Miseno, but only for Khums purposes (Islamic booty), without conquering the territories of

Campania Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islan ...

. Notable was his raid on

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, history's first Muslim invasion of the

Caput Mundi is a Latin phrase which literally means "Head of the world" whereas ''Roma Caput Mundi'' means "Rome capital of the world" and is one of the many nicknames given to the city of Rome throughout its history. The phrase is related to the endurin ...

and the central administration of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. In 846, Abul Abbas landed at

Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...

and Ostia with his enormous army. Having surpassed the

Tiber The Tiber ( ; ; ) is the List of rivers of Italy, third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the R ...

, he continued to strike in the Ostiense and Portuense, while the Roman militia swiftly retreated to the safety of the Roman walls. Simultaneously, his other forces landed at the

Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (, ; or ) , , , , is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenians, Tyrrhenian people identified with the Etruscans of Italy. Geography The sea is bounded by the islands of C ...

port of

Civitavecchia Civitavecchia (, meaning "ancient town") is a city and major Port, sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea west-northwest of Rome. Its legal status is a ''comune'' (municipality) of Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, Rome, Lazio. The harbour is formed by ...

. The

Vatican Hill Vatican Hill (; ; ) is a hill in Rome, located on the right bank (west side) of Tiber river, opposite to the traditional seven hills of Rome. The hill also gave the name to Vatican City. It is the location of St. Peter's Basilica. Etymology ...

was plundered, but Abul Abbas was unsuccessful in storming the protective Aurelian walls of Rome. However, his forces managed to loot huge amount of wealth St. Peter's Basilica, the world's biggest church, and

Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls The Papal Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls (, ) is one of Rome's four major papal basilicas, along with the basilicas of Saint John in the Lateran, Saint Peter's, and Saint Mary Major, as well as one of the city’s Seven Pilgrim Ch ...

.Italian Peninsula, 500–1000 AD
In

and

, during his rule, agriculture and trade flourished and new urban construction was observed, most notably the Great Mosques of Sousse and

Sfax Sfax ( ; , ) is a major port city in Tunisia, located southeast of Tunis. The city, founded in AD849 on the ruins of Taparura, is the capital of the Sfax Governorate (about 955,421 inhabitants in 2014), and a Mediterranean port. Sfax has a ...

. Muhammad's reign was briefly interrupted by his brother Abu Ja'far Ahmad, who, like his

Abbasid The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 C ...

contemporary

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 ...

, supported the

Mu'tazili Mu'tazilism (, singular ) is an Islamic theological school that appeared in early Islamic history and flourished in Basra and Baghdad. Its adherents, the Mu'tazilites, were known for their neutrality in the dispute between Ali and his opponents ...

and persecuted their

Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...

opponents, executing some and imprisoning others, most notably the

Maliki The Maliki school or Malikism is one of the four major madhhab, schools of Islamic jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. It was founded by Malik ibn Anas () in the 8th century. In contrast to the Ahl al-Hadith and Ahl al-Ra'y schools of thought, the ...

scholar and jurist Sahnun.

Death

Muhammad I died in Palermo in 856. He was succeeded by his son Ahmad ibn Muhammad (856–863), under whose reign the kingdom of the Aghlabids reached its zenith.

References

Sources

* {{s-end 856 deaths Year of birth unknown Aghlabid emirs of Ifriqiya Arab people of the Arab–Byzantine wars