Sulaymān ibn al-Manṣūr (), better known as Sulaymān ibn Abī Jaʿfar (), was an

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 ...

prince and served as governor of

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

, al-Jazira and

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

during the reign of his nephew, Caliph

Harun al-Rashid Abū Jaʿfar Hārūn ibn Muḥammad ar-Rāshīd (), or simply Hārūn ibn al-Mahdī (; or 766 – 24 March 809), famously known as Hārūn al-Rāshīd (), was the fifth Abbasid caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate, reigning from September 786 unti ...

(). He also served in Syria under al-Rashid's son and successor,

al-Amin Abū Mūsā Muḥammad bin Hārūn al-Amīn (; April 787 – 24/25 September 813), better known by just his laqab of al-Amīn (), was the sixth Abbasid caliph from 809 to 813. Al-Amin succeeded his father, Harun al-Rashid, in 809 and ruled unt ...

Life

Sulayman was a son of the

caliph

al-Mansur Abū Jaʿfar ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Manṣūr (; ‎; 714 – 6 October 775) usually known simply as by his laqab al-Manṣūr () was the second Abbasid caliph, reigning from 754 to 775 succeeding his brother al-Saffah (). He is known ...

() (whose

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

was 'Abu Ja'far') and one of his wives, Fatimah bint Muhammad al-Taymi, granddaughter of

Isa ibn Talha al-Taymi ʿĪsā ibn Ṭalḥa al-Taymī () was a notable of the Quraysh in Medina and is cited as a transmitter of historical reports by early Islamic historians. Family, life and work Isa was a son of Talha ibn Ubaydallah, a prominent companion of Muha ...

, who was the son of a leading companion of the Islamic prophet

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

, Talha ibn Ubaydallah. Sulayman's daughter Abbasa was a wife of Caliph

(), the son of Sulayman's brother, Caliph

al-Mahdi Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh al-Manṣūr (; 744 or 745 – 785), better known by his regnal name al-Mahdī (, "He who is guided by God"), was the third Abbasid Caliph who reigned from 775 to his death in 785. He succeeded his ...

(). Under al-Mahdi's other son and immediate successor, Caliph al-Hadi (), Sulayman led the

Hajj Hajj (; ; also spelled Hadj, Haj or Haji) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for capable Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetim ...

pilgrimage to

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

. During al-Rashid's reign, Sulayman led the Hajj in 793, and served as the caliph's governor in

, al-Jazira and

. Sulayman was entrusted by al-Rashid's son and successor

to secure the

oaths of allegiance An oath of allegiance is an oath whereby a subject or citizen acknowledges a duty of allegiance and swears loyalty to a monarch or a country. In modern republics, oaths are sworn to the country in general, or to the country's constitution. For ...

to his caliphate from holdouts among the elite. Al-Amin, who was also related to Sulayman through his mother, reappointed Sulayman to govern Syria around 809–810 in response to unrest in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

emanating from the theft of a prized crystal pitcher from the

Umayyad Mosque The Umayyad Mosque (; ), also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus, located in the old city of Damascus, the capital of Syria, is one of the largest and oldest mosques in the world. Its religious importance stems from the eschatological reports ...

by the incumbent governor, Sulayman's nephew Mansur ibn al-Mahdi. The outrage of the Damascenes prompted them to refuse prayer under Abbasid leadership. As governor of Syria, Sulayman was "a pillar of the 'Abbasid regime", according to the historian

Wilferd Madelung Wilferd Ferdinand Madelung FBA (26 December 1930 – 9 May 2023) was a German author and scholar of Islamic history widely recognised for his contributions to the fields of Islamic and Iranian studies. He was appreciated in Iran for his "know ...

. During the

Fourth Fitna The Fourth Fitna, Fourth Muslim Civil War, or Great Abbasid Civil War resulted from the conflict between the brothers al-Amin and al-Ma'mun over the succession to the throne of the Abbasid Caliphate. Their father, Caliph Harun al-Rashid, had name ...

, the civil war which broke out in 811 over the succession dispute between al-Amin and his brother

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 ...

, tribes and local magnates in many regions and cities in Syria expelled representatives of the Abbasids. In Damascus, remnants of the Umayyad dynasty, which was toppled from the caliphate by the Abbasids in 750, and their sympathizers, led by

Abu al-Umaytir al-Sufyani Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Khālid ibn Yazīd ibn Muʿāwiya ibn Abī Sufyān, better known as Abū al-ʿUmayṭir al-Sufyānī, was an Umayyad rebel against Abbasid rule in Syria during the Fourth Muslim Civil War and a self-pro ...

, attacked Sulayman's in his residence, the palace of

al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf Abu Muhammad al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf ibn al-Hakam ibn Abi Aqil al-Thaqafi (; ), known simply as al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf (), was the most notable governor who served the Umayyad Caliphate. He began his service under Caliph Abd al-Malik (), who successiv ...

. In the run up to the revolt, Sulayman had imprisoned an Abbasid loyalist, the prominent

Qays Qays ʿAylān (), often referred to simply as Qays (''Kais'' or ''Ḳays'') were an Arab tribal confederation that branched from the Mudar group. The tribe may not have functioned as a unit in pre-Islamic Arabia (before 630). However, by the ea ...

i chief Ibn Bayhas al-Kilabi, in the same palace. Ibn Bayhas was an opponent of the Umayyads' mostly Yamani backers, rivals of the Qays. Sulayman freed Ibn Bayhas during the Umayyads' attack and Ibn Bayhas helped him escape. The Qaysi chief escorted him through the

Hauran The Hauran (; also spelled ''Hawran'' or ''Houran'') is a region that spans parts of southern Syria and northern Jordan. It is bound in the north by the Ghouta oasis, to the northeast by the al-Safa field, to the east and south by the Harrat ...

to Thaniyyat al-Uqab. From there, Sulayman made his way to

Kufa Kufa ( ), also spelled Kufah, is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates, Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000. Along with Samarra, Karbala, Kadhimiya ...

in Iraq. During their escape from Syria, the Abbasid troops were attacked and pillaged by the Damascene mobs. Upon his return to Iraq, Sulayman remained among the leading partisans of al-Amin, staying with him and his loyalist troops from the '' al-abna'' faction as they barricaded in

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 ...

's City of Peace as al-Ma'mun's general, Tahir ibn al-Husayn, closed in on him. According to a narrative cited in the history of

al-Tabari Abū Jaʿfar Muḥammad ibn Jarīr ibn Yazīd al-Ṭabarī (; 839–923 CE / 224–310 AH), commonly known as al-Ṭabarī (), was a Sunni Muslim scholar, polymath, historian, exegete, jurist, and theologian from Amol, Tabaristan, present- ...

(d. 937), Sulayman was among those approached by Tahir to persuade al-Amin to surrender to al-Ma'mun.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sulayman ibn Abi Ja'far 9th-century people from the Abbasid Caliphate Abbasid governors of Basra Abbasid governors of Damascus Syria under the Abbasid Caliphate Sons of Abbasid caliphs People of the Fourth Fitna 8th-century Arab people 9th-century Arab people