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164-436: Abū al-ʿAbbās Abd Allāh ibn Hārūn al-Maʾmūn ( Arabic : أبو العباس عبد الله بن هارون الرشيد , romanized :  Abū al-ʿAbbās ʿAbd Allāh ibn Hārūn ar-Rashīd ; 14 September 786 – 9 August 833), better known by his regnal name al-Ma'mun ( Arabic : المأمون , romanized :  al-Mūnna ), was the seventh Abbasid caliph , who reigned from 813 until his death in 833. He succeeded his half-brother al-Amin after

328-548: A Kufan of Iranian origin whose father had converted to Islam and entered Barmakid service, replaced Ja'far ibn Yahya as al-Ma'mun's tutor. In 806 he also became al-Ma'mun's secretary ( katib ), an appointment that marked him out as the chief candidate for the vizierate should al-Ma'mun succeed to the throne. In 804, al-Ma'mun married his cousin, Umm Isa, a daughter of the Caliph al-Hadi ( r.  785–786 ). The couple had two sons, Muhammad al-Asghar and Abdallah. The years after

492-605: A civil war , during which the cohesion of the Abbasid Caliphate was weakened by rebellions and the rise of local strongmen; much of his domestic reign was consumed in pacification campaigns. Well educated and with a considerable interest in scholarship, al-Ma'mun promoted the Translation Movement , the flowering of learning and the sciences in Baghdad, and the publishing of al-Khwarizmi 's book now known as "Algebra" . He

656-519: A Syrian judge of her own before al-Ma'mun was able to select one himself; the judge, who sympathized with the caliph's wife, refused the divorce. Following al-Ma'mun's experience, no further Abbasid caliphs were to marry, preferring to find their heirs in the harem. Al-Ma'mun, in an attempt to win over the Shi'a Muslims to his camp, named the eighth Imam , Ali ar-Rida , his successor, if he should outlive al-Ma'mun. Most Shi'ites realized, however, that ar-Rida

820-639: A day. Harun famously used to look up at rain clouds in the sky and said: "rain where you like, but I will get the land tax!" Harun was terrified for his soul in the afterlife. It was reported that he quickly cried when he thought of God and read poems about the briefness of life. Soon after he became caliph, Harun asked his servant to bring him Ibn al-Sammak, a renowned scholar, to obtain wisdom from him. Harun asked al-Sammak what he would like to tell him. Al-Sammak replied, "I would like you always to remember that one day you will stand alone before your God. You will then be consigned either to Heaven or to Hell." That

984-619: A desire to avoid a civil war, and himself took the oath of allegiance to his uncle, did the soldiers acquiesce in al-Mu'tasim's succession. Almanon , a lunar impact crater that lies in the rugged highlands in the south-central region of the Moon , was named after al-Ma'mun. Al-Ma'mun was the last Abbasid caliph who had a one-word Laqab , his successors had laqab with suffixes like Billah or alā Allāh . His nephew, Harun (future al-Wathiq ) learned calligraphy, recitation and literature from his uncle, Caliph al-Ma'mun. Later sources nickname him

1148-595: A fierce hatred for each other. During Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik 's reign, the Umayyad government appointed Mudaris as governors in Khorasan, except for Asad ibn Abdallah al-Qasri's tenure in 735–738. Nasr's appointment came four months after Asad's death. In the interim, the sources report variously that the province was run either by the Syrian general Ja'far ibn Hanzala al-Bahrani or by Asad's lieutenant Juday' al-Kirmani. At any rate,

1312-564: A horse to a single gold Byzantine dinar. Harun's raids against the Byzantines elevated his political image and once he returned, he was given the laqab "al-Rashid", meaning "the Rightly-Guided One". He was promoted to crown prince and given the responsibility of governing the empire's western territories, from Syria to Azerbaijan . Upon the death of his father in 785, Harun's brother al-Hadi became caliph. However, al-Hadi's reign

1476-419: A long thin beard, and a narrow forehead. Al-Ma'mun's first wife was Umm Isa , a daughter of his uncle al-Hadi ( r.  785–786 ), whom he married in 804, when he was eighteen years old. They had two sons, Muhammad al-Asghar, and Abdallah. Another wife was Buran , the daughter of al-Ma'mun's vizier, al-Hasan ibn Sahl. She was born as Khadija on 6 December 807. Al-Ma'mun married her in 817, and consummated

1640-752: A manner that Harun found disrespectful (such as entering his court unannounced) and making decisions in matters of state without first consulting him. Al-Fadl ibn al-Rabi succeeded Yahya the Barmakid as Harun's chief minister. Both Einhard and Notker the Stammerer refer to envoys traveling between the courts of Harun and Charlemagne , king of the Franks , and entering friendly discussions about Christian access to holy sites and gift exchanges. Notker mentions Charlemagne sent Harun Spanish horses, colorful Frisian cloaks and impressive hunting dogs. In 802 Harun sent Charlemagne

1804-513: A number of Byzantine forts ; he spared the surrendering Byzantines. Theophilos , for his part, captured Tarsus in 831. The next year, learning the Byzantines had killed some sixteen hundred people, al-Ma'mun returned. This time some thirty forts fell to the Caliphate's forces, with two Byzantine defeats in Cappadocia . Theophilos wrote to al-Ma'mun. The Caliph replied that he carefully considered

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1968-402: A number of ascetics with him, and whenever he was unable to go on pilgrimage, he sent dignitaries and three hundred clerics at his own expense. One day, Harun was visiting a dignitary when he was struck by his beautiful slave. Harun asked the man to give her to him. The man obliged but was visibly disturbed by the loss. Afterward, Harun felt sorry for what he had done and gave her back. Harun

2132-525: A present consisting of silks , brass candelabra , perfume , balsam , ivory chessmen, a colossal tent with many-colored curtains, an elephant named Abul-Abbas , and a water clock that marked the hours by dropping bronze balls into a bowl, as mechanical knights – one for each hour – emerged from little doors which shut behind them. The presents were unprecedented in Western Europe and may have influenced Carolingian art. This exchange of embassies

2296-521: A prominent figure in the Islamic and Arab culture , he has been described as one of the most famous Arabs in history. All the Abbasid caliphs after him were his descendants. About his accession famous poet and musician al-Mawsili said: Did you not see how the sun came out of hiding on Harun's accession and flooded the world with light About his reign, famous Arab historian Al-Masudi said: So great were

2460-927: A revolt took place in Khurasan. Al-Ma’mun tried unsuccessfully to absolve himself of the crime. The rebel forces in Baghdad splintered and wavered in opposition to al-Ma'mun. According to scholar and historian al-Tabari (839–923 CE), al-Ma'mun entered Baghdad on 11 August 819. He wore green and had others do so. Informed that compliance with this command might arouse popular opposition to the colour, on 18 August he reverted to traditional Abbasid black. While Baghdad became peaceful, there were disturbances elsewhere. In AH 210 (825–826 CE) Abdullah ibn Tahir al-Khurasani secured Egypt for al-Ma'mun, freeing Alexandria from Andalusians and quelling unrest. The Andalusians moved to Crete , where al-Tabari records their descendants were still living in his day (see Emirate of Crete ). Abdallah returned to Baghdad in 211 Hijri (826–827 CE), bringing

2624-458: A series of questions relating to theology and faith. The central question was about the createdness of the Qur'an. If the interrogatee stated he believed the Qur'an to be created, rather than coeternal with God, he was free to leave and continue his profession. The controversy over the mihna was exacerbated by al-Ma'mun's sympathy for Mu'tazili theology and other controversial views. Mu'tazili theology

2788-479: A succession struggle. Al-Amin assembled a massive army at Baghdad with 'Isa ibn Mahan at its head in 811 and invaded Khorasan, but al-Maʾmūn's general Tahir ibn al-Husayn (d. 822) destroyed the army and invaded Iraq, laying siege to Baghdad in 812. In 813 Baghdad fell, al-Amin was beheaded, and al-Maʾmūn became the undisputed Caliph. There were disturbances in Iraq during the first several years of al-Maʾmūn's reign, while

2952-549: Is also known for supporting the doctrine of Mu'tazilism and for imprisoning Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal , the rise of religious persecution ( mihna ), and for the resumption of large-scale warfare with the Byzantine Empire . Abdallah, the future al-Ma'mun, was born in Baghdad on the night of the 13 to 14 September 786 CE to Harun al-Rashid and his concubine Marajil , from Badghis . On the same night, which later became known as

3116-627: Is due to the particularly fierce second retribution campaign against Nikephoros, that the Byzantine practically ceased any attempt to incite any conflict against the Abbasid again until the rule of Al-Ma'mun . An alliance was established with the Chinese Tang dynasty by Ar-Rashid after he sent embassies to China. He was called "A-lun" in the Chinese Tang Annals . The alliance was aimed against

3280-519: The 'amma , (the common people). The volunteers of the movement were known as mutawwi'a , which was the same name given to "volunteers for frontier duty and for the holy war against Byzantium". Sahl's and movement influence was such that military chiefs first "delayed capitulation to al-Ma'mun" and adopted Sahl's religious "formula" until they became alarmed at his power and combined to crush him in 817–18 CE. In A.H. 201 (817 AD) al-Ma'mun named Ali ar-Rida (the sixth-generation descendant of Ali and

3444-503: The Barmakid al-Fadl ibn Yahya , and then in Baghdad . Abdallah was recognized as second heir only after entering puberty, in 799, under the name al-Ma'mun ("The Trusted One"), with another Barmakid, Ja'far ibn Yahya , as his guardian. At the same time, a third heir, al-Qasim , named al-Mu'tamin, was appointed, under the guardianship of Abd al-Malik ibn Salih . These arrangements were confirmed and publicly proclaimed in 802, when Harun and

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3608-731: The Battle of the Oxus River . The next year, Ibn Amir concluded a peace treaty with Kanadbak , an Iranian nobleman and the kanarang of Tus . The Sasanian rebel Burzin Shah , of the Karen family , revolted against Ibn Amir, though the latter crushed the rebels in the Battle of Nishapur . After the invasion of Persia under Rashidun was completed in five years and almost all of the Persian territories came under Arab control, it also inevitable created new problems for

3772-586: The Byzantine Empire to collect the most famous manuscripts there, and had them translated into Arabic . As part of his peace treaty with the Byzantine Emperor, al-Ma'mun was to receive a number of Greek manuscripts annually, one of these being Ptolemy's astronomical work, the Almagest . Al-Ma'mun conducted, in the plains of Mesopotamia , two astronomical operations intended to achieve a degree measurement ( al-Ma'mun's arc measurement ). The crater Almanon on

3936-528: The Caliphs , Khorasan was the name of one of the three political zones under their dominion (the other two being Eraq-e Arab "Arabic Iraq" and Eraq-e Ajam "Non-Arabic Iraq or Persian Iraq"). Under the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates, Khorasan was divided into four major sections or quarters ( rub′ ), each section based on a single major city: Nishapur, Merv, Herat and Balkh. By the 10th century, Ibn Khordadbeh and

4100-567: The Eastern Roman Empire , ruled by Empress Irene . The latter expedition was a huge undertaking, and even reached the Asian suburbs of Constantinople . According to the Muslim chronicler Al-Tabari , the Byzantines lost tens of thousands of soldiers, and Harun employed 20,000 mules to carry the riches back. Upon his return to the Abbasid realm, the cost of a sword fell to one dirham and the price of

4264-571: The Ghilji Pashtuns from Kandahar and became part of the Hotaki dynasty from 1722 to 1729. Nader Shah recaptured Khorasan in 1729 and chose Mashhad as the capital of Persia. Following his assassination in 1747, the eastern parts of Khorasan, including Herat were annexed with the Durrani Empire . Mashhad area was under control of Nader Shah's grandson Shahrukh Afshar until it was captured by

4428-585: The Hudud al-'Alam mentions what roughly encompasses the previous regions of Abarshahr , Tokharistan and Sogdia as Khwarasan proper. They further report the southern part of the Hindu Kush, i.e. the regions of Sistan , Rukhkhudh , Zabulistan and Kabul etc. to make up the Khorasan marches , a frontier region between Khorasan and Hindustan . By the late Middle Ages, the term lost its administrative significance, in

4592-513: The Mongol subjugation of Khorasan, carrying out the task "with a thoroughness from which that region has never recovered." Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth century, the majority of Islamic archaeological efforts were focused on the medieval era, predominantly in areas near what is today Central Asia . Under Caliph Umar ( r.  634–644 ), the Rashidun Caliphate seized nearly

4756-819: The Qajar dynasty in 1796. In 1856, the Iranians, under the Qajar dynasty, briefly recaptured Herat; by the Treaty of Paris of 1857 , signed between Iran and the British Empire to end the Anglo-Persian War , the Iranian troops withdrew from Herat . Later, in 1881, Iran relinquished its claims to a part of the northern areas of Khorasan to the Russian Empire , principally comprising Merv , by

4920-565: The Quraysh . Large scale hostilities broke out with Byzantium , and under his rule, the Abbasid Empire reached its peak. A Frankish mission came to offer Harun friendship in 799. Harun sent various presents with the emissaries on their return to Charlemagne 's court, including a clock that Charlemagne and his retinue deemed to be a conjuration because of the sounds it emanated and the tricks it displayed every time an hour ticked. Portions of

5084-561: The Sasanians , during the reign of Kavad I ( r.  488–496, 498/9–531 ) or Khosrow I ( r.  531–579 ), and comprised the eastern and northeastern parts of the empire. The use of Bactrian Miirosan 'the east' as an administrative designation under Alkhan rulers in the same region is possibly the forerunner of the Sasanian administrative division of Khurasan, occurring after their takeover of Hephthalite territories south of

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5248-574: The Tibetans . When diplomats and messengers visited Harun in his palace, he was screened behind a curtain. No visitor or petitioner could speak first, interrupt, or oppose the caliph. They were expected to give their undivided attention to the caliph and calculate their responses with great care. Because of the Thousand and One Nights tales, Harun al-Rashid turned into a legendary figure obscuring his true historic personality. In fact, his reign initiated

5412-606: The Treaty of Akhal (also known as the Treaty of Akhal-Khorasan ). Khorasan has had a great cultural importance among other regions in Greater Iran . The literary New Persian language developed in Khorasan and Transoxiana and gradually supplanted the Parthian language . The New Persian literature arose and flourished in Khorasan and Transoxiana where the early Iranian dynasties such as Tahirids , Samanids , Saffirids and Ghaznavids (a Turco-Persian dynasty) were based. Until

5576-455: The "Little Ma'mun" on account of his erudition and moral character. Al-Maʾmūn's religious beliefs are a subject of controversy, to the point where other Abbasids, as well as later Islamic scholars, called him a Shia Muslim. For instance, Sunni scholars al-Dhahabi , Ibn Kathir , Ibn Khaldun and al-Suyuti explicitly held the belief that al-Ma'mun was a Shi'a. The arguments for his supposed Shi’ism include that, in 816/817, when Ali al-Rida ,

5740-543: The "night of the three caliphs ", his uncle al-Hadi died and was succeeded by Ma'mun's father, Harun al-Rashid, as ruler of the Abbasid Caliphate . Marajil died soon after his birth, and Abdallah was raised by Harun al-Rashid's wife, Zubayda , herself of high Abbasid lineage as the granddaughter of Caliph al-Mansur ( r.  754–775 ). As a young prince, Abdallah received a thorough education: al-Kisa'i tutored him in classical Arabic, Abu Muhammad al-Yazidi in adab , and he received instruction in music and poetry. He

5904-536: The 1580s) that: The people of Hindustān call every country beyond their own Khorasān, in the same manner as the Arabs term all except Arabia, Ajem . On the road between Hindustān and Khorasān, there are two great marts: the one Kābul, the other Kandahār . Caravans, from Ferghāna, Tūrkestān, Samarkand, Balkh, Bokhāra, Hissār, and Badakhshān , all resort to Kābul; while those from Khorasān repair to Kandahār . This country lies between Hindustān and Khorasān. In modern times,

6068-559: The Abbasids. According to Ya'qubi , al-Ma'mun gave al-Jawad one hundred thousand dirham and said, "Surely I would like to be a grandfather in the line of the Apostle of God and of Ali ibn Abu Talib." Harun al-Rashid Harun established the legendary library Bayt al-Hikma ("House of Wisdom") in Baghdad in present-day Iraq , and during his rule Baghdad began to flourish as a world center of knowledge, culture and trade. During his rule,

6232-531: The Arabs were expelled from Sicily but they were to return. In 829, Michael II died and was succeeded by his son Theophilos . Theophilos experienced mixed success against his Arab opponents. In 830 AD the Arabs returned to Sicily and, after a year-long siege, took Palermo . For the next 200 years they were to remain there to complete their conquest, which was never short of Christian counters. Al-Ma'mun meanwhile launched an invasion of Anatolia in 830 AD, taking

6396-598: The Barmakids managed the fate of the empire, and both heirs, al-Amin and al-Ma'mun, grew up there. At some point the royal court relocated again to Al-Rayy , the capital city of Khorasan , where the famous philologist and leader of the Kufan school , Al-Kisa'i , accompanied the caliph with his entourage. When al-Kisa'i became ill while in Al-Rayy, it is said that Harun visited him daily. It seems al-Shaybani and al-Kisa'i both died there on

6560-589: The Byzantine ruler's letter, noticed it blended suggestions of peace and trade with threats of war and offered Theophilos the options of accepting the shahada , paying tax or fighting . Al-Ma'mun made preparations for a major campaign, but died on the way while leading an expedition in Tyana . Al-Ma'mun's relations with the Byzantines are marked by his efforts in the translation of Greek philosophy and science . Al-Ma'mun gathered scholars of many religions at Baghdad , whom he treated magnificently. He sent an emissary to

6724-428: The Caliphate's provinces. Furthermore, the Abbasid dynasty relied heavily on Khurasanis as military leaders and administrators. Many of the original Khurasani Arab army ( Khurasaniyya ) that came west with the Abbasids were given estates in Iraq and the new Abbasid capital, Baghdad, and became an elite group known as the abnāʾ al-dawla ("sons of the state/dynasty"). This large-scale presence of an Iranian element in

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6888-496: The Dar al-Imarah was known as the Mausoleum of Haruniyyeh . The location later became known as Mashhad ("The Place of Martyrdom") because of the martyrdom of Imam al-Ridha in 818. Harun al-Rashid and his first Heir , prince al-Amin (Al-Amin was nominated first heir, Al-Ma'mun second and Al-Qasim was third heir .) After Harun's death in 809 he was succeeded by Al-Amin . Al-Rashid become

7052-483: The Faithful in your service." Harun replied, "But you have still some energy left." The old man replied that "what I have, is yours to dispose of as you wish... and I am bold in opposing your foes." Harun was satisfied with the encounter and made the man governor of Basra for his final years. On Hajj , he distributed large amounts of money to the people of Mecca and Medina and to poor pilgrims en route. He always took

7216-476: The Imam, al-Ma'mun set him up with the greatest scholars of the world's religions, but the Imam prevailed and then informed al-Ma'mun that his grand vizier, Fazl ibn Sahl , had withheld important information from him. In Baghdad, al-Maʾmūn was unseated and replaced by Ibrahim ibn Mehdi not because al-Maʾmūn's naming Imam Reza as his heir was unpopular, but because of "rumors" spread by Fazl ibn Sahl. Seeking to put down

7380-483: The Ja'far ibn al-Hādī from his bed and forced him to publicly renounce his claims in favour of Hārūn. Hārūn became caliph in 786 when he was in his early twenties. At the time, he was tall, good looking, and slim but strongly built, with wavy hair and olive skin. On the day of accession, his son al-Ma'mun was born, and al-Amin some little time later: the latter was the son of Zubaida , a granddaughter of al-Mansur (founder of

7544-654: The Kharijites rose in rebellion in Daylam, Kerman, Fars and Sistan. Revolts also broke out in Khorasan , and al-Rashid waged many campaigns against the Byzantines. Al-Rashid appointed Ali bin Isa bin Mahan as the governor of Khorasan, who tried to bring to heel the princes and chieftains of the region, and to reimpose the full authority of the central government on them. This new policy met with fierce resistance and provoked numerous uprisings in

7708-497: The Moon is named in recognition of his contributions to astronomy. Al-Ma'mun's record as an administrator is also marked by his efforts toward the centralization of power and the certainty of succession. The Bayt al-Hikma , or House of Wisdom , was established during his reign. The ulama emerged as a real force in Islamic politics during al-Ma'mun's reign for opposing the mihna , which

7872-608: The Oxus. The transformation of the term and its identification with a larger region is thus a development of the late Sasanian and early Islamic periods. Early Islamic usage often regarded everywhere east of Jibal or what was subsequently termed Iraq Ajami (Persian Iraq) , as being included in a vast and loosely defined region of Khorasan, which might even extend to the Indus Valley and the Pamir Mountains. The boundary between these two

8036-518: The Prophet's descendant, refused designation as sole Caliph, al-Ma'mun officially designated him as his appointed successor. The official Abbasid coins were minted showing al-Ma'mun as a Caliph and al-Ridha as his successor. Other arguments were that: the Caliphate's official black colour was changed to the Prophetic green; in 210 AH/825 CE, he wrote to Qutham b. Ja'far, the ruler of Medina, to return Fadak to

8200-504: The Qur'an was created rather than coeternal with God, a belief that was shared by the Jahmites and parts of Shi'a , among others, but contradicted the traditionalist- Sunni opinion that the Qur'an and the Divine were coeternal. During his reign, alchemy greatly developed. Pioneers of the science were Jabir Ibn Hayyan and his student Yusuf Lukwa , who was patronized by al-Ma'mun. Although he

8364-584: The Splendour and riches of his reign, such was its prosperity, that this period has been called "the Honeymoon". Al-Rashid become the progenitor of subsequent Abbasid caliphs. Al-Rashid nominated his son Muhammad al-Amin as his first heir. Muhammad had an elder half-brother, Abdallah, the future al-Ma'mun ( r.  813–833 ), who had been born in September 786 (six months older than him) However, Abdallah's mother

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8528-600: The account of al-Tabari, on his deathbed al-Ma'mun dictated a letter nominating his brother, rather than al-Abbas, as his successor, and Abu Ishaq was acclaimed as caliph on 9   August, with the Laqab of al-Mu'tasim (in full al-Muʿtaṣim bi’llāh , "he who seeks refuge in God"). It is impossible to know whether this reflects actual events, or whether the letter was an invention and Abu Ishaq merely took advantage of his proximity to his dying brother, and al-Abbas's absence, to propel himself to

8692-500: The administration. The position of Persians in the Abbasid caliphal court reached its peak during al-Rashid's reign. The Barmakids were an Iranian family (from Balkh ) that dated back to the Barmak , a hereditary Buddhist priest of Nava Vihara , who converted after the Islamic conquest of Balkh and became very powerful under al-Mahdi. Yahya had helped Hārūn to obtain the caliphate, and he and his sons were in high favor until 798, when

8856-529: The argument that the Quran was created at some point over the orthodox Sunni belief that the Book is the uncreated word of God. However, Shi’ites condemn al-Ma'mun as well due to the belief that he was responsible for Ali al-Ridha 's poisoning and eventual death in 818 CE. In the ensuing power struggle, other Abbasids sought to depose Ma'mun in favor of Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi , Ma'mun's uncle; therefore, getting rid of al-Ridha

9020-489: The army to Merv , while Harun stayed at Tus , where he died on 24 March 809. In 802 Harun al-Rashid , father of al-Maʾmūn and al-Amin, ordered that al-Amin succeed him, and al-Ma'mun serve as governor of Khurasan and as caliph after the death of al-Amin. In the last days of Harun's life his health was declining and saw in a dream Musa ibn Jafar sitting in a chamber praying and crying, which made Harun remember how hard he had struggled to establish his own caliphate. He knew

9184-570: The caliph fell asleep. Then, strangely, a handsome young man appeared, snatched the musician's lute, sang a very moving piece (al-Masudi quotes it) and left. On awakening and being informed of that, Harun said Ishaq ibn Ibrahim had received a supernatural visitation. Shortly before he died, Harun is said to have been reading some lines by Abu al-Atahiya about the transitory nature of the power and pleasures of this world, an anecdote related to other caliphs as well. Every morning, Harun gave one thousand dirhams to charity and made one hundred prostrations

9348-612: The caliph named Tahir as governor for his military services in order to assure his loyalty. It was a move that al-Ma'mun soon regretted, as Tahir and his family became entrenched in Iranian politics and became increasingly powerful in the state, contrary to al-Ma'mun's desire to centralize and strengthen Caliphal power. The rising power of the Tahirid family became a threat as al-Ma'mun's own policies alienated them and his other opponents. Al-Ma'mun also attempted to divorce his wife during his reign, who had not borne him any children. His wife hired

9512-420: The caliph threw them in prison and confiscated their land. Al-Tabari dates this event to 803 and lists various reasons for it: Yahya's entering the Caliph's presence without permission; Yahya's opposition to Muhammad ibn al Layth, who later gained Harun's favour; and Ja'far's release of Yahya ibn Abdallah ibn Hasan, whom Harun had imprisoned. The fall of the Barmakids is far more likely due to their behaving in

9676-481: The caliph was in Merv (near present-day Mary, Turkmenistan ). On 13 November 815, Muhammad ibn Ja'far al-Sadiq (al-Dibaj) claimed the Caliphate for himself in Mecca . He was defeated and he quickly abdicated asserting that he had only become caliph on news that al-Ma'mun had died. Lawlessness in Baghdad led to the formation of neighborhood watches with religious inspiration, with two notable leaders being Khalid al-Daryush and Sahl ibn Salama al-Ansari. Sahl adopted

9840-480: The caliph was the protector of Islam against heresy , and had also claimed the ability to declare orthodoxy, religious scholars in the Islamic world believed that al-Ma'mun was overstepping his bounds in the mihna . The penalties of the mihna became increasingly difficult to enforce as the ulema became firmer and more united in their opposition. Although the mihna persisted through the reigns of two more caliphs, al-Mutawakkil abandoned it in 851. The ulema and

10004-449: The caliph's ability to speak concisely and eloquently without preparation, his generosity, his respect for Muhammad and religion, his sense of moderation, justice, his love of poetry and his insatiable passion for physical intimacy. Ibn Abd Rabbih in his Unique Necklace (al-'iqd al-Farid), probably drawing on earlier sources, makes a similar description of al-Ma'mun, whom he described as of light complexion and having slightly blond hair,

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10168-614: The caliph's treasury, both private and public, she used to spend freely as before and even tried to take him on his father's path in commanding and forbidding, and advised him on what to do and avoid. However, Al-Hadi submitted to his mother for only four months with patience and respect for her. Al-Hadi gradually became fed up with her interference, orders and extravagance. He also saw her inclination towards his brother Al-Rashid during his attempts to depose him. The historian al-Tabari notes varying accounts of al-Hadi's death, e.g. an abdominal ulcer or assassination prompted by his own mother. On

10332-414: The caliphate. Pockets of tribal resistance continued for centuries in the Afghan territories. During the 7th century, Arab armies made their way into the region of Afghanistan from Khorasan. A second problem was as a corollary to the Muslim conquest of Persia, the Muslims became neighbors of the city states of Transoxiana . Although Transoxiana was included in the loosely defined "Turkestan" region, only

10496-445: The city of Baghdad); so he took precedence over the former, whose mother was a Persian. Upon his accession, Harun led Friday prayers in Baghdad's Great Mosque and then sat publicly as officials and the layman alike lined up to swear allegiance and declare their happiness at his ascent to Amir al-Mu'minin . He began his reign by appointing very able ministers, who carried on the work of the government so well that they greatly improved

10660-508: The condition of the people. Under Hārūn al-Rashīd's rule, Baghdad flourished into the most splendid city of its period. Tribute paid by many rulers to the caliph funded architecture , the arts and court luxuries. In 796, Hārūn moved the entire court to Raqqa on the middle Euphrates , where he spent 12 years, most of his reign. He appointed the Hanafi jurist Muhammad al-Shaybani as qadi (judge), but dismissed him in 803. He visited Baghdad only once. Several reasons may have influenced

10824-430: The daughter of Ja'far ibn Yahya , the Barmakid, stolen and sold as a child when the Barmakids fell from power. She was brought by al-Amin, who then sold her to his brother. She was a noted poet, singer, and musician. She died at Samarra in July–August 890, aged ninety-three. Another concubine was Bi'dah, known by her epithet al-Kabirah . She was also a singer, and had been a slave of Arib. She died on 10 July 915. Abu Bakr,

10988-1067: The deaths of both mothers, the animosity between Abu Ali and Umm Abiha persisted. Another concubine was Hilanah. She had been formerly a concubine of his brother al-Hadi. Another of Harun's concubines was the captive daughter of a Greek churchman of Heraclea acquired with the fall of that city in 806. Zubaidah once more presented him with one of her personal maids who had caught his fancy. Harun's half-brother, while governor of Egypt from 795 to 797, also sent him an Egyptian maid who immediately won his favour. Some other concubines were namely: Ri'm, mother of Salih; Irbah, mother of Abu Isa Muhammad; Sahdhrah, mother of Abu Yaqub Muhammad; Rawah, mother of Abu Sulayman Muhammad; Dawaj, mother of Abu Ali Muhammad; Kitman, mother of Abu Ahmad Muhammad; Hulab, mother of Arwa; Irabah, mother of Umm al-Hassan; Rahiq, mother of Umm Salamah; Khzq, mother of Umm al-Qasim; Haly, mother of Umm Ja'far Ramlah; Aniq, mother of Umm Ali; Samandal, mother of Umm al-Ghaliyah; Zinah, mother of Raytah; Qaina; Shajw. Many anecdotes attached themselves to

11152-434: The decision to move to Raqqa: its closeness to the Byzantine border, its excellent communication lines via the Euphrates to Baghdad and via the Balikh river to the north and via Palmyra to Damascus, rich agricultural land, and the strategic advantage over any rebellion which might arise in Syria and the middle Euphrates area. Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani , in his anthology of poems, depicts the splendid life in his court. In Raqqa

11316-500: The defeated rebels with him. Also, in 210 Hijri (825–826 CE), there was an uprising in Qum , sparked by complaints about taxes. After it was quashed, the tax assessment was set significantly higher. In 212 Hijri (827–828 CE), there was an uprising in Yemen . In 214 (829–30 CE), Abu al-Razi , who had captured one Yemeni rebel, was killed by another. Egypt continued to be unquiet. Sindh was rebellious. In 216 (831–832 CE), Ghassan ibn 'Abbad subdued it. An ongoing problem for al-Ma'mun

11480-442: The deposing of al-Ma'um in Baghdad was not out of opposition to the wise and pious Imam Reza, but because of rumors spread by Fazl ibn Sahl. Al-Ma'mun moved Imam Reza to Merv in hopes of keeping watch over him, but was foiled by the Imam's growing popularity there. People from all over the Muslim world traveled to meet the prophet's grandson and listen to his teachings and guidance (according to these sources). In an attempt to humiliate

11644-434: The descendants of Muhammad through his daughter, Fatima; he restored nikah mut'ah , previously banned by Umar ibn al-Khattab, but practiced under Muhammad and Abu Bakr; in 211 AH/826 CE, al-Ma'mun reportedly expressed his antipathy to those who praised Mu'awiya I , the founder and first caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate, and reportedly punished such people; this later view of al-Suyuti however is questionable since it contradicts

11808-662: The devastating Mongol invasion of the 13th century, Khorasan remained the cultural capital of Persia. It has produced scientists such as Avicenna , Al-Farabi , Al-Biruni , Omar Khayyam , Al-Khwarizmi , Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi (known as Albumasar or Albuxar in the west), Alfraganus , Abu Wafa , Nasir al-Din al-Tusi , Sharaf al-Dīn al-Ṭūsī , and many others who are widely well known for their significant contributions in various domains such as mathematics, astronomy , medicine, physics , geography , and geology. There have been many archaeological sites throughout Khorasan, however many of these expeditions were illegal or committed in

11972-472: The early days of the Muslim conquests , Arab armies were divided into regiments drawn from individual tribes or tribal confederations ( butun or ‘asha‘ir ). Despite the fact that many of these groupings were recent creations, created for reasons of military efficiency rather than any common ancestry, they soon developed a strong and distinct identity. By the beginning of the Umayyad period, this system progressed to

12136-463: The eastern halves of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan , western Tajikistan , and portions of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan . The extent of the region referred to as Khorasan varied over time. In its stricter historical sense, it comprised the present territories of northeastern Iran , parts of Afghanistan and southern parts of Central Asia , extending as far as the Amu Darya (Oxus) river. However,

12300-561: The eighth Shia Imam) as his heir as caliph. This move may have been made to appease Shi'ite opinion in Iraq and "reconcile the 'Alid and 'Abbasid branches of the Hashimite family", but in Baghdad it caused the Hashimites—supported by "military chiefs of al-Harbiyya, including Muttalib and 'Isa ibn Muhammad"—to depose al-Ma'mun and elect Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi Caliph. According to Shia sources,

12464-487: The elderly Yahya. Harun then approached Yahya, who presented him with the girl. She died three years later in 789–90, and Harun mourned her deeply. Another concubine was Dananir . She was a Barmakid, and had been formerly a slave girl of Yahya ibn Khalid. She had been educated at Medina and had studied instrumental and vocal music. Another concubine was Marajil . She was a Persian, and came from distant Badhaghis in Persia. She

12628-526: The emergence of important dialogues on both secular and religious affairs, and the Bayt al-Hikma became an important center of translation for Greek and other ancient texts into Arabic. This Islamic renaissance spurred the rediscovery of Hellenism and ensured the survival of these texts into the European Renaissance . Al-Ma'mun had been named governor of Khurasan by Harun, and after his ascension to power,

12792-516: The empire, at its height including cities such as Nishapur , Herat , Merv , Faryab , Taloqan , Balkh , Bukhara , Badghis , Abiward , Gharjistan , Tus and Sarakhs . With the rise of the Umayyad Caliphate , the designation was inherited and likewise stretched as far as their military gains in the east, starting off with the military installations at Nishapur and Merv , slowly expanding eastwards into Tokharistan and Sogdia . Under

12956-579: The entire Persia from the Sasanian Empire . However, the areas of Khorasan weren't conquered until c.  651 during the caliphate of Uthman ( r.  644–656 ). The Rashidun commanders Ahnaf ibn Qays and Abd Allah ibn Amir were assigned to lead the invasion of Khorasan. In late 651, the Rashidun army defeated the combined forces of the Sasanian and the First Turkic Khaganate in

13120-446: The eventual conquest. In July 738, at the age of 74, Nasr was appointed as governor of Khorasan. Despite his age, he was widely respected both for his military record, his knowledge of the affairs of Khorasan and his abilities as a statesman. Julius Wellhausen wrote of him that "His age did not affect the freshness of his mind, as is testified not only by his deeds, but also by the verses in which he gave expression to his feelings till

13284-529: The fact that al-Ma’mun promoted scholars who openly defended Muawiyah, such as the Mu’tazilite scholar Hisham bin Amr al-Fuwati, who was a well-respected judge in the court of al-Ma’mun in Baghdad; in 212 AH/827 CE, al-Ma'mun announced the superiority of Ali ibn Abu Talib over Abu Bakr and Umar b. al-Khattab; in 833 CE, under the influence of Muʿtazila rationalist thought, he initiated the mihna ordeal, where he accepted

13448-430: The fall of the Barmakids saw an increasing centralization of the administration and the concomitant rise of the influence of the abnāʾ , many of whom were now dispatched to take up positions as provincial governors and bring these provinces under closer control from Baghdad. This led to unrest in the provinces, especially Khurasan, where local elites had a long-standing rivalry with the aabnāʾ and their tendency to control

13612-513: The family of Barmakids , which played a deciding role in establishing the Abbasid Caliphate, declined gradually. In 796, he moved his court and government to Raqqa in present-day Syria . Domestically, Harun pursued policies similar to those of his father Al-Mahdi . He released many of the Umayyads and 'Alids his brother Al-Hadi had imprisoned and declared amnesty for all political groups of

13776-524: The fictional One Thousand and One Nights are set in Harun's court and some of its stories involve Harun himself. Harun's life and court have been the subject of many other tales, both factual and fictitious. Hārūn was born in Rey , then part of Jibal in the Abbasid Caliphate, in present-day Tehran Province , Iran . He was the son of al-Mahdi , the third Abbasid caliph (r. 775–785), and his wife al-Khayzuran , who

13940-495: The formation of ever-larger super-groupings, culminating in the two super-groups : the northern Arab Mudaris or Qaysis , and the south Arabs or "Yemenis" ( Yaman ), dominated by the Azd and Rabi'ah tribes. By the 8th century, this division had become firmly established across the Caliphate and was a source of constant internal instability, as the two groups formed in essence two rival political parties, jockeying for power and separated by

14104-458: The former Khorasan Province of Iran (1906–2004), which roughly encompassed the western portion of the historical Greater Khorasan. The name Khorāsān is Persian (from Middle Persian Xwarāsān , sp. xwlʾsʾn' , meaning "where the sun arrives from" or "the Eastern Province"). The name was first given to the eastern province of Persia (Ancient Iran) during the Sasanian Empire and

14268-438: The governance of the empire until her death in 789; When he became caliph, Harun allowed her (Khayzuran) a free hand and, at times, restrained his own desires out of deference to her expressed wishes, and Khayzuran acted as an overseer of affairs, and Yahya deferred to her and acted on her advice. His vizier (chief minister) Yahya ibn Khalid , Yahya's sons (especially Ja'far ibn Yahya ), and other Barmakids generally controlled

14432-528: The highest circles of the Abbasid state, with the Barmakid family as its most notable representatives, was certainly a factor in the appointment of al-Ma'mun, linked through his mother with the eastern Iranian provinces, as heir and governor of Khurasan. The stipulations of the agreement, which were recorded in detail by the historian al-Tabari , accorded al-Mamun's Khurasani viceroyalty extensive autonomy. However, modern historians consider that these accounts may have been distorted by later apologists of al-Ma'mun in

14596-413: The impoverished. Yusuf, a judge and advisor to Harun, was called to arbitrate the case and to figure out a legal way for Isa to maintain his belongings even if Harun walked away with the girl. Yusuf decided that if Isa gave half of the girl to Harun and sold him the other half, it could not be said that Isa had either given her away or sold her, keeping his promise. Harun had an anxious soul and supposedly

14760-524: The latter's favour. Harun's third heir, al-Mu'tamin, received responsibility over the frontier areas with the Byzantine Empire in Upper Mesopotamia and Syria . Very quickly, the latent rivalry between the two brothers had important repercussions: almost immediately after the court returned to Baghdad in January 803, the Abbasid elites were shaken by the abrupt fall of the Barmakid family from power. On

14924-460: The major Islamic law schools became truly defined in the period of al-Ma'mun, and Sunnism —as a religion of legalism—became defined in parallel. Doctrinal differences between Sunni and Shi'a Islam began to become more pronounced. Ibn Hanbal , the founder of the Hanbali legal school, became famous for his opposition to the mihna . Al-Ma'mun's simultaneous opposition and patronage of intellectuals led to

15088-473: The major portion of Khorasān, as two of the four main capitals of Khorasān (Herat and Balkh) are now located in Afghanistan. Ghobar uses the terms "Proper Khorasan" and " Improper Khorasan" in his book to distinguish between the usage of Khorasān in its strict sense and its usage in a loose sense. According to him, Proper Khorasan contained regions lying between Balkh in the east, Merv in the north, Sistan in

15252-491: The marriage with her in December 825–January 826 in the town of Fam al-Silh. She died on 21 September 884. Al-Ma'mun had also numerous concubines. One of them, Sundus, bore him five sons, among whom was al-Abbas , who rose to become a senior military commander at the end of al-Ma'mun's reign and a contender for the throne. Her other sons were Harun, Ahmad, Isa and Isma'il. Another concubine was Arib . Born in 797, she claimed to be

15416-484: The most powerful officials of the Abbasid government made the pilgrimage to Mecca . Al-Amin would succeed Harun in Baghdad, but al-Ma'mun would remain al-Amin's heir and would additionally rule over an enlarged Khurasan . This was an appointment of particular significance, as Khurasan had been the starting point of the Abbasid Revolution which brought the Abbasids to power, and retained a privileged position among

15580-556: The most prominent men of the Marwanid period". Asad's arrival in Khorasan found the province in peril: his predecessor, Muslim ibn Sa'id al-Kilabi , had just attempted a campaign against Ferghana and suffered a major defeat, the so-called " Day of Thirst ", at the hands of the Turgesh Turks and the Soghdian principalities of Transoxiana that had risen up against Muslim rule. From

15744-568: The name has often been used in a loose sense to include a wider region that included most of Transoxiana (encompassing Bukhara and Samarqand in present-day Uzbekistan ), extended westward to the Caspian coast and to the Dasht-e Kavir southward to Sistan , and eastward to the Pamir Mountains . Greater Khorasan is today sometimes used to distinguish the larger historical region from

15908-449: The night of al-Hadi's death, al-Khayzuran quickly released Yahya ibn Khalid from prison and ordered him to pay the army's wages, send the letters to the governors to pledge allegiance to al-Rashīd, and prepare him as caliph. They summoned the commanders of the army, Harthama ibn A'yan and Khuzayma ibn Khazim , and asked them to swear allegiance to Harun as caliph. Khuzayma reportedly gathered and armed 5,000 of his own followers, dragged

16072-429: The one hand, this event may reflect the fact that the Barmakids had become indeed too powerful for the Caliph's liking, but its timing suggests that it was tied to the succession issue as well: with al-Amin siding with the abnāʾ and al-Ma'mun with the Barmakids, and the two camps becoming more estranged every day, if al-Amin was to have a chance to succeed, the power of the Barmakids had to be broken. Al-Fadl ibn Sahl ,

16236-412: The people with more than they could bear. This was on 9 August 833. Al-Ma'mun died near Tarsus . The city's major mosque ( Tarsus Grand Mosque ), contains a tomb reported to be his. Al-Ma'mun had made no official provisions for his succession. His son, al-Abbas , was old enough to rule and had acquired experience of command in the border wars with the Byzantines, but had not been named heir. According to

16400-464: The person of Harun al-Rashid in the centuries following his rule. Saadi of Shiraz inserted a number of them into his Gulistan . Al-Masudi relates a number of interesting anecdotes in The Meadows of Gold that illuminate the caliph's character. For example, he recounts Harun's delight when his horse came in first, closely followed by al-Ma'mun's, at a race that Harun held at Raqqa. Al-Masudi tells

16564-652: The personalities of both his sons and decided that for the good of the Abbasid dynasty, al-Maʾmūn should be caliph after his death, which he confided to a group of his courtiers. One of the courtiers, Fadl ibn Rabi', did not abide by Harun's last wishes and convinced many in the lands of Islam that Harun's wishes had not changed. Later the other three courtiers of Harun who had sworn loyalty to Harun by supporting al-Maʾmūn, namely, 'Isa Jarudi, Abu Yunus, and Ibn Abi 'Umran, found loopholes in Fadl's arguments, and Fazl admitted Harun had appointed al-Maʾmūn after him, but, he argued, since Harun

16728-415: The place. Nonetheless, Shia tradition states he was killed on orders of al-Ma'mun, and according to Wilferd Madelung the unexpected death of both the vizier and the successor, "whose presence would have made any reconciliation with the powerful ʿAbbasid opposition in Baghdad virtually impossible, must indeed arouse strong suspicion that Ma'mun had had a hand in the deaths." Following the death of Imam Reza,

16892-735: The political disintegration of the Abbasid caliphate. Syria was inhabited by tribes with Umayyad sympathies and remained the bitter enemy of the Abbasids, while Egypt witnessed uprisings against Abbasids due to maladministration and arbitrary taxation. The Umayyads had been established in Spain in 755, the Idrisids in Morocco in 788, and the Aghlabids in Ifriqiya (modern Tunisia) in 800. Besides, unrest flared up in Yemen, and

17056-399: The province (and its revenues) from Iraq. The harsh taxation imposed by a prominent member of the abnāʾ , Ali ibn Isa ibn Mahan , even led to a revolt under Rafi ibn al-Layth , which eventually forced Harun himself, accompanied by al-Ma'mun and the powerful chamberlain ( hajib ) and chief minister al-Fadl ibn al-Rabi , to travel to the province in 808. Al-Ma'mun was sent ahead with part of

17220-539: The rebel Thomas the Slav , Michael had few troops to spare against a small Andalusian invasion of 40 ships and 10,000 men against Crete , which fell in 824 AD. A Byzantine counter offensive in 826 AD failed miserably. Worse still was the invasion of Sicily in 827 by Arabs of Tunis . Even so, Byzantine resistance in Sicily was fierce and not without success whilst the Arabs became quickly plagued by internal squabbles. That year,

17384-443: The rebellion in Baghdad, al-Ma'mun set out for the city on 12 April 818. At Tus, he stopped to visit his father's grave. However, when they reached the town of Sarakhs , his vizier, Fazl ibn Sahl, was assassinated, and when they reached Tus , the Imam was poisoned. Al-Ma'mūn ordered that the Imam be buried next to the tomb of his own father, Harun al-Rashid , and showed extreme sorrow in the funeral ritual and stayed for three days at

17548-507: The region. Harun's first wife was Zubaidah . She was the daughter of his paternal uncle, Ja'far and maternal aunt Salsal, sister of Al-Khayzuran . They married in 781–82, at the residence of Muhammad bin Sulayman in Baghdad. She had one son, Caliph Al-Amin . She died in 831. Another of his wives was Azizah, daughter of Ghitrif, brother of Al-Khayzuran. She had been formerly married to Sulayman ibn Abi Ja'far , who had divorced her. Another

17712-421: The relevant solar deity ). The province was often subdivided into four quarters, such that Nishapur (present-day Iran), Marv (present-day Turkmenistan ), Herat and Balkh (present-day Afghanistan) were the centers, respectively, of the westernmost, northernmost, central, and easternmost quarters. Khorasan was first established as an administrative division in the 6th century (approximately after 520) by

17876-592: The revolt continued unchecked. (Harun had dismissed Ali and replaced him with Harthama ibn A'yan , and in 808 marched himself east to deal with the rebel Rafi ibn al-Layth , but died in March 809 while at Tus ). Harun al-Rashid became ill and died very soon after when he reached Sanabad village in Tus and was buried in Dar al-Imarah , the summer palace of Humayd ibn Qahtaba , the Abbasid governor of Khorasan. Due to this historical event,

18040-718: The ruling elite of Transoxiana was partially of Turkic origins whereas the local population was mostly a diverse mix of local Iranian populations. As the Arabs reached Transoxiana following the conquest of the Sassanid Persian Empire, local Iranian-Turkic and Arab armies clashed over the control of Transoxiana's Silk Road cities. In particular, the Turgesh under the leadership of Suluk, and Khazars under Barjik clashed with their Arab neighbours in order to control this economically important region. Two notable Umayyad generals, Qutayba ibn Muslim and Nasr ibn Sayyar , were instrumental in

18204-735: The same day in 804. For the administration of the whole empire, he fell back on his mentor and longtime associate Yahya bin Khalid bin Barmak. Rashid appointed him as his vizier with full executive powers, and, for seventeen years, Yahya and his sons served Rashid faithfully in whatever assignment he entrusted to them. Harun made pilgrimages to Mecca by camel (2,820 km or 1,750 mi from Baghdad) several times, e.g., 793, 795, 797, 802 and last in 803. Tabari concludes his account of Harun's reign with these words: "It has been said that when Harun ar-Rashid died, there were nine hundred million odd (dirhams) in

18368-518: The same year was Abbasa , daughter of Sulayman ibn Abi Ja'far . Another wife was Jurashiyyah al-Uthmanniyah. She was the daughter of Abdullah bin Muhammad, and had descended from Uthman , the third Caliph of the Rashidun . Harun's earliest known concubine was Hailanah. She had been a slave girl of Yahya ibn Khalid , the Barmakid. It was she who begged him, while he was yet a prince, to take her away from

18532-537: The second-born Muhammad, born in April 787 to Zubayda, as the first in line of succession. This was the result of family pressure on the Caliph, reflecting Muhammad's higher birth, as both parents descended from the Abbasid dynasty; indeed, he remained the only Abbasid caliph to claim such descent. Muhammad received the oath of allegiance ( bay'ah ) with the name of al-Amin ("The Trustworthy"), first in Khurasan by his guardian,

18696-441: The sense that it involved imprisonment, a religious test, and a loyalty oath. The people subject to the mihna were traditionalist scholars whose social influence was uncommonly high. Al-Ma'mun introduced the mihna with the intention of centralizing religious power in the caliphal institution and testing the loyalty of his subjects. The mihna had to be undergone by elites, scholars, judges and other government officials, and consisted of

18860-542: The slogan, la ta'a lil- makhluq fi ma'siyat al-khaliq , or 'no obedience to the creature in disobedience of the Creator' (originally a Kharijite slogan), alluding to what he saw as "the conflict ... between God's will and Caliphal authority". "Most" of the leadership of this vigilante movement came from the sulaahd ("men of good will of the neighborhoods and blocks") and from "popular preachers" (as both Khalid al-Daryush and Sahl ibn Salama al-Ansari were); its followers were called

19024-432: The son of Caliph al-Muhtadi , led the funeral prayers. Another concubine was Mu'nisah, a Greek. She was one of his favourites. Another concubine was Tatrif, also known as Tazayyuf. She was an accomplished poet and a native of Basra. She was noted for beauty and elegance, and it was said that al-Ma'mun favoured her above all his other concubines. She was inconsolable at his death and mourned him in many poems. Another concubine

19188-463: The sources agree that al-Kirmani stood at the time as the most prominent man in Khorasan and should have been the clear choice for governor. His Yemeni roots (he was the leader of the Azd in Khorasan), however, made him unpalatable to the Caliph. Khorasan became the headquarters of the Abbasid Revolution against the Umayyads . It was led by Abu Muslim , who himself belonged to Khorasan. This province

19352-589: The south of the Hindu Kush as the Khorasan Marches, forming a frontier region between Khorasan and Hindustan . First established in the 6th century as one of four administrative (military) divisions by the Sasanian Empire , the scope of the region has varied considerably during its nearly 1,500-year history. Initially, the Khorasan division of the Sasanian Empire covered the northeastern military gains of

19516-485: The south, Nishapur in the west and Herat, known as the Pearl of Khorasan , in the center. Improper Khorasan's boundaries extended to as far as Hazarajat and Kabul in the east, Baluchistan in the south, Transoxiana and Khwarezm in the north, and Damghan and Gorgan in the west. During the Sasanian era, likely in the reign of Khusrow I , Persia was divided into four regions (known as kust Middle Persian), Khwārvarān in

19680-452: The state treasury." According to Shia belief, Harun imprisoned and poisoned Musa ibn Ja'far, the 7th Imam, in Baghdad. Under al-Rashid, each city had its own law enforcement, which besides keeping order was supposed to examine the public markets in order to ensure, for instance, that proper scales and measures were used; enforce the payment of debts; and clamp down on illegal activities such as gambling, usury, and sales of alcohol. Harun

19844-446: The story of Harun setting his poets a challenging task. When others failed to please him, Miskin of Medina succeeded superbly well. The poet then launched into a moving account of how much it had cost him to learn that song. Harun laughed and said that he did not know which was more entertaining, the song or the story. He rewarded the poet. There is also the tale of Harun asking Ishaq ibn Ibrahim to keep singing. The musician did so until

20008-554: The term has been source of great nostalgia and nationalism, especially amongst the Tajiks of Central Asia. Many Tajiks regard Khorasan as an integral part of their national identity, which has preserved an interest in the term, including its meaning and cultural significance, both in common discussion and academia, despite its falling out of political use in the region. According to Afghan historian Ghulam Mohammad Ghobar (1897–1978), Afghanistan's current Persian-speaking territories formed

20172-458: The throne to Khorasan following the Arab invasion in the western parts of the empire. After the assassination of the king, Khorasan was conquered by Arab Muslims in 647 AD. Like other provinces of Persia it became a province of the Umayyad Caliphate . The first movement against the Arab conquest was led by Abu Muslim Khorasani between 747 and 750. Originally from Isfahan , scholars believe Abu Muslim

20336-415: The throne. As Abu Ishaq was the forefather of all subsequent Abbasid caliphs, later historians had little desire to question the legitimacy of his accession, but it is clear that his position was far from secure: a large part of the army favoured al-Abbas, and a delegation of soldiers even went to him and tried to proclaim him as the new Caliph. Only when al-Abbas refused them, whether out of weakness or out of

20500-537: The very end of his life". However, in the climate of the times, his nomination owed more to his appropriate tribal affiliation than his personal qualities. In 724, immediately after the rise of Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik (r. 724–743) to the throne, Asad's brother Khalid al-Qasri was appointed to the important post of governor of Iraq , with responsibility over the entire Islamic East, which he held until 738. Khalid in turn named Asad as governor of Khorasan. The two brothers thus became, according to Patricia Crone , "among

20664-401: The water was. He asked what would go best with this water and was told a specific kind of fresh dates. Noticing supplies arriving, he asked someone to check whether such dates were included. As they were, he invited those with him to enjoy the water with these dates. All who did this fell ill. Others recovered, but al-Ma'mun died. He encouraged his successor to continue his policies and not burden

20828-510: The west only being loosely applied among the Turko-Persian dynasties of modern Iran to all its territories that lay east and north-east of the Dasht-e Kavir desert. It was therefore subjected to constant change, as the size of their empires changed. In the east, Khwarasan likewise became a term associated with the great urban centers of Central Asia. It is mentioned in the Memoirs of Babur (from

20992-441: The west, apāxtar in the north, nīmrūz in the south and Khorasan in the east. Since the Sasanian territories were more or less remained stable up to Islamic conquests, it can be concluded that Sasanian Khorasan was bordered to the south by Sistan and Kerman, to the west by the central deserts of modern Iran, and to the east by China and India. In the Sasanian era, Khorasan was further divided into four smaller regions, and each region

21156-605: The whole time. News of this angered Harun, who wrote a message on the back of the Byzantine emperor's letter and said, "In the name of God the most merciful, From Amir al-Mu'minin Harun ar-Rashid, commander of the faithful, to Nikephoros, dog of the Romans. Thou shalt not hear, thou shalt behold my reply". After campaigns in Asia Minor , Nikephoros was forced to conclude a treaty, with humiliating terms. According to Dr Ahmad Mukhtar al-Abadi, it

21320-552: The world as it was known to the captains of the Arab sailing dhows which used the monsoon wind cycles to trade over vast distances (by the 9th century, Arab sea traders had reached Guangzhou , in China). The maps of the Greeks and Romans reveal a good knowledge of closed seas like the Mediterranean but little knowledge of the vast ocean expanses beyond. Although al-Mahdi had proclaimed that

21484-474: Was Inan . Her father was Abdullah. She was born and brought up in the Yamamah in central Arabia. She was a singer and a poet, and had been a slave girl of Abu Khalid al-Natifi. She bore Harun two sons, both of whom died young. She accompanied him to Khurasan where he, and, soon after, she died. Another concubine was Ghadid, also known as Musaffa, and she was mother of Harun's daughters, Hamdunah and Fatimah. She

21648-517: Was Maridah . Her father was Shabib. She was a Sogdian, and was born in Kufah. She was one of the ten maids presented to Harun by Zubaidah. She had five children. These were Abu Ishaq (future caliph al-Mu'tasim ), Abu Isma'il, Umm Habib, and two others whose names are unknown. She was Harun's favourite concubine. Some other favourite concubines were, Dhat al-Khal, Sihr, and Diya. Diya died much to Harun's sorrow. Dhat al-Khal also known as Khubth and Khunth,

21812-541: Was Badhal. She had been formerly a concubine of his cousin Ja'far bin al-Hadi , his brother al-Amin and Ali bin Hisham. She hailed from Medina and was raised in Basra. Described as charming with fair skin, she was praised for her musical talent, particularly her skill in playing instruments, and was known for her exceptional ability as a songwriter and singer. After al-Ma'mun's death, his brother al-Mu'tasim married her. Another concubine

21976-574: Was Ghadir also known as Amat-al-Aziz, who had been formerly a concubine of his brother al-Hadi. She had one son Ali. She died in 789. Another wife was Umm Muhammad , the daughter of Salih al-Miskin and Umm Abdullah, the daughter of Isa bin Ali. They married in November–December 803 in Al-Raqqah. She had been formerly been married to Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi , who had repudiated her. Another wife married around

22140-490: Was Nu'n. She was a singer. Another concubine was Nasim. She was a poetess and was one of his favourites. Al-Ma'mun had another son named Musa. He had three daughters. One was Umm Habib, who married Ali ibn Musa al-Rida. Another daughter was Umm al-Fadl, who married Muhammad ibn Ali bin Musa in 818. Another daughter Khadija was a poetess. Al-Tabari recounts how al-Ma'mun was sitting on the river bank telling those with him how splendid

22304-467: Was a Persian concubine, and his pure Abbasid lineage gave Muhammad seniority over his half-brother. Indeed, he was the only Abbasid caliph to claim such descent. Already in 792, Harun had Muhammad receive the oath of allegiance ( bay'ah ) with the name of al-Amīn ("The Trustworthy"), effectively marking him out as his main heir, while Abdallah was not named second heir, under the name al-Maʾmūn ("The Trusted One") until 799. and his third son Qasim

22468-409: Was a great patron of art and learning, and is best known for the unsurpassed splendor of his court and lifestyle. Some of the stories, perhaps the earliest, of "The Thousand and One Nights" were inspired by the glittering Baghdad court. The character King Shahryar (whose wife, Scheherazade, tells the tales) may have been based on Harun himself. Hārūn was influenced by the will of his powerful mother in

22632-403: Was a singer, belonging to a slave-dealer who was himself a freedman of Abbasah, the sister of Al-Rashid. She caught the fancy of Ibrahim al-Mausili, whose songs in praise of her soon reached Harun's attention, who bought her for the enormous sum of 70,000 dinars. She was the mother of Harun's son, Abu al-Abbas Muhammad. Sihr was mother of Harun's daughters, Khadijah and Karib. Another concubine

22796-647: Was a woman of strong and independent personality who greatly influenced affairs of state in the reigns of her husband and sons. Al-Mahdi freed her from slavery and officially married her and presented both her sons as his heirs according to her request, even gave her a free hand in the treasury, consulted with her on important matters. She even resided in her palace outside the harem and received petitioners and visitors, both men and women from both systems and both classes, and obtained what they wanted from caliph through her. Growing up Harun studied history, geography, rhetoric, music, poetry, and economics. However, most of his time

22960-478: Was absorbed with the surrender of the leader of Kabul . Mountainous regions of Iran were brought under a tighter grip of the central Abbasid government, as were areas of Turkestan . In 832, al-Ma'mun led a large army into Egypt to put down the last great Bashmurite revolt . Al-Tabari (v. 32, p. 231) describes al-Ma'mun as of average height, light complexion, handsome and having a long beard that lost its dark colour as he aged. He relates anecdotes concerning

23124-524: Was an excellent horseman, enjoyed hunting (with Salukis, falcons, and hawks) and was fond of military exercises such as charging dummies with his sword. Harun was also the first Abbasid caliph to have played and promoted chess. Harun desired a slave girl that was owned by an official named Isa who refused to give her to Harun, despite threats. Isa explained that he swore (in the middle of a sex act) that if he ever gave away or sold her, he would divorce his wife, free his slaves, and give all of his possessions to

23288-573: Was brief: a year and two months. Al-Hadi clashed with their mother over her great influence in court. Al-Hadi prevented her from acting in any of the country's affairs as she had been accustomed to at the end of his father's reign and the beginning of his reign. The princes, public and officials and the needy began to ask her permission to come to her door so that she could intercede for them, sometimes they would even stand in front of her howdah and make requests on such matters and to fulfill what they wanted from Al-Hadi through her words. Al-Khayzuran, in using

23452-421: Was dedicated to mastering hadith and the Quran. In addition, he underwent advanced physical education as a future mujahid, and as a result, he practiced swordplay, archery, and learned the art of war. His birth date is debated, with various sources giving dates from 763 to 766. Before becoming a caliph, in 780 and again in 782, Hārūn had already nominally led campaigns against the caliphate's traditional enemy,

23616-555: Was deeply influenced by Aristotelian thought and Greek rationalism, and stated that matters of belief and practice should be decided by reasoning. This opposed the traditionalist and literalist position of Ahmad ibn Hanbal and others, according to which everything a believer needed to know about faith and practice was spelled out literally in the Qur'an and the Hadith . Moreover, the Mu'tazilis stated that

23780-402: Was due to the fact that Harun was interested, like Charlemagne, in subduing the Umayyad emirs of Córdoba . Also, the common enmity against the Byzantines was what brought Harun closer to the contemporary Charlemagne. When the Byzantine empress Irene was deposed in 802, Nikephoros I became emperor and refused to pay tribute to Harun, saying that Irene should have been receiving the tribute

23944-489: Was his favourite concubine. Hamdunah and Fatimah married Al-Hadi's sons, Isma'il and Ja'far respectively. Another concubine was Shikl. She was the mother of Abu Ali. She was purchased by Al-Rashid along with another girl named Shadhr also known as Sukkar. When Shadhr became pregnant and had a child named Umm Abiha, Shikl grew envious of her. This jealousy escalated to the point where it became widely known. Later, Shikl herself became pregnant and gave birth to Abu Ali. Despite

24108-413: Was initiated in 833, four months before he died. Michael Hamilton Morgan in his book "Lost History" describes al-Ma'mun as a man who 'Loves Learning.' al-Ma'mun once defeated a Byzantine Emperor in a battle and as a tribute, he asked for a copy of Almagest, Ptolemy 's Hellenistic compendium of thoughts on astronomy written around AD 150. The 'mihna', is comparable to Medieval European inquisitions in

24272-621: Was more a matter of political and territorial gain. Tahir had helped the Caliph subdue other nationalistic movements in other parts of Persia such as Maziar 's movement in Tabaristan . Other major independent dynasties who ruled over Khorasan were the Saffarids from Zaranj (861–1003), Samanids from Bukhara (875–999), Ghaznavids from Ghazni (963–1167), Seljuqs (1037–1194), Khwarezmids (1077–1231), Ghurids (1149–1212), and Timurids (1370–1506). In 1221, Genghis Khan 's son Tolui oversaw

24436-416: Was nominated third heir , however he never became caliph. Among his sons, al-Amin became caliph after his death in 809. Al-Amin ruled from 809 to 813, until a civil war broke between him and his brother Abdallah al-Ma'mun (Governor of Khorasan). The reason of war were that caliph al-Amin tried to remove al-Ma'mun as his heir. Al-Ma'mun became caliph in 813 and ruled the caliphate for two decades until 833. He

24600-465: Was not in his right mind, his decision should not be acted upon. Al-Maʾmūn was reportedly the older of the two brothers, but his mother was a Persian woman while al-Amin's mother was a member of the reigning Abbasid family. After al-Rashid's death in 809, the relationship between the two brothers deteriorated. In response to al-Ma'mun's moves toward independence, al-Amin declared his own son Musa to be his heir. This violation of al-Rashid's testament led to

24764-412: Was one of the ten maids presented to Harun. She gave birth to Abdullah (future caliph Al-Ma'mun ) on the night of Harun's accession to the throne, in September 786, in whose birth she died. Her son was then adopted by Zubaidah. Another concubine was Qasif, mother of Al-Qasim . He was Harun's second son, born to a concubine mother. Harun's eldest daughter Sukaynah was also born to her. Another concubine

24928-562: Was part of the Iranian world that had been heavily colonised by Arab tribes following the Muslim conquest with the intent of replacing Umayyad dynasty which is proved to be successful under the sign of the Black Standard . Between the early 16th and early 18th centuries, parts of Khorasan were contested between the Safavids and the Uzbeks . A part of the Khorasan region was conquered in 1722 by

25092-515: Was probably Persian. It's possible he may have been born a slave. According to the ancient Persian historian Al-Shahrastani , he was a Kaysanite . This revolutionary Shi'a movement rejected the three Caliphs that had preceded Ali . Abu Muslim helped the Abbasids come to power but was later killed by Al-Mansur, an Abbasid Caliph. The first kingdom independent from Arab rule was established in Khorasan by Tahir Phoshanji in 821, but it seems that it

25256-525: Was prone to walk the streets of Baghdad at night. At times Ja'far ibn Yahya accompanied him. The night-time tours likely arose from a genuine and sympathetic concern in the well-being of his people, for it is said that he was assiduous to relieve any of their trials and tend to their needs. A major revolt led by Rafi ibn al-Layth was started in Samarqand which forced Harun al-Rashid to move to Khorasan . He first removed and arrested Ali bin Isa bin Mahan but

25420-513: Was ruled by a marzban . These four regions were Nishapur, Marv, Herat and Balkh. Khorasan in the east saw some conflict with the Hephthalites who became the new rulers in the area but the borders remained stable. Being the eastern parts of the Sassanids and further away from Arabia , Khorasan region was conquered after the remaining Persia. The last Sassanid king of Persia, Yazdgerd III , moved

25584-565: Was succeeded by another of Harun's son Abu Ishaq Muhammad (better known as Al-Mu'tasim ), his mother was Marida , a concubine. Khurasan Greater Khorasan ( Middle Persian : 𐬒𐬊𐬭𐬀𐬯𐬀𐬥 , romanized:  Xwarāsān ; Persian : خراسان , [xoɾɒːˈsɒːn] ) is a historical eastern region in the Iranian Plateau in West and Central Asia that encompasses western and northern Afghanistan , northeastern Iran ,

25748-524: Was the only realistic way of retaining united, absolute, unopposed rule. Al-Ma'mūn ordered that al-Ridha be buried next to the tomb of his own father, Harun al-Rashid , and showed extreme sorrow in the funeral ritual and stayed for three days at the place. Muhammad al-Jawad , Ali al-Ridha's son and successor, lived unopposed and free during the rest of al-Ma'mūn’s reign (till 833 CE). The Caliph summoned al-Jawad to Baghdad in order to marry his daughter, Ummul Fadhl. This apparently provoked strenuous objections by

25912-537: Was the region surrounding the cities of Gurgan and Qumis . In particular, the Ghaznavids , Seljuqs and Timurids divided their empires into Iraqi and Khorasani regions. Khorasan is believed to have been bounded in the southwest by desert and the town of Tabas , known as "the Gate of Khorasan", from which it extended eastward to the mountains of central Afghanistan . Sources from the 10th century onwards refer to areas in

26076-489: Was the uprising headed by Babak Khorramdin . In 214 Babak routed a Caliphate army, killing its commander Muhammad ibn Humayd . By the time al-Ma'mun became Caliph, the Arabs and the Byzantine Empire had settled down into border skirmishing, with Arab raids deep into Anatolia to capture booty and Christians to be enslaved. The situation changed however with the rise to power of Michael II in 820 AD. Forced to deal with

26240-582: Was too harsh for Harun's liking, and he was obviously disturbed. His servant cried out in protest that the Prince of the Faithful will definitely go to heaven after he has ruled justly on earth. However, al-Sammak ignored the interruption and looked straight into the eyes of Harun and said that "you will not have this man to defend you on that day." An official, Maan ibn Zaidah, had fallen out of favor with Harun. When Harun saw him in court, he said that "you have grown old." The elderly man responded, "Yes, O Commander of

26404-503: Was too old to survive him and saw al-Ma'mun's gesture as empty; indeed, al-Ma'mun poisoned Ali ar-Rida who then died in 818. The incident served to further alienate the Shi'ites from the Abbasids, who had already been promised and denied the Caliphate by Abu al-'Abbas . The Abbasid empire grew somewhat during the reign of al-Ma'mun. Hindu rebellions in Sindh were put down, and most of Afghanistan

26568-478: Was trained in fiqh by al-Hasan al-Lu'lu'i, showing particular excellence in the Hanafi school, and in the hadith , becoming himself active as a transmitter. According to M. Rekaya, "he was distinguished by his love of knowledge, making him the most intellectual caliph of the Abbasid family, which accounts for the way in which his caliphate developed". Although Abdallah was the oldest of his sons, in 794 Harun named

26732-598: Was unsuccessful in transmuting gold , his methods greatly led to the patronization of pharmaceutical compounds. Al-Ma'mun was a pioneer of cartography having commissioned a world map from a large group of astronomers and geographers. The map is presently in an encyclopedia in Topkapi Sarai, a Museum in Istanbul. The map shows large parts of the Eurasian and African continents with recognizable coastlines and major seas. It depicts

26896-418: Was used from the late Middle Ages in distinction to neighbouring Transoxiana. The Sassanian name Xwarāsān has in turn been argued to be a calque of the Bactrian name of the region, Miirosan (Bactrian spelling: μιιροσανο, μιροσανο, earlier μιυροασανο), which had the same meaning 'sunrise, east' (corresponding to a hypothetical Proto-Iranian form *miθrāsāna ; see Mithra , Bactrian μιυρο [mihr], for

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