CALIPHATE .1 The See also:

• HISTORY

1. Reign of Abu Bekr.—Abu Bekr proved himself quite equal to the perilous situation. In the first See also:

• PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

In Yamama (Yemama) only was there a severe struggle; the Banu Iianifa under their prophet Mosailima fought bravely, but here also. Islam triumphed. The See also:

• INTERNAL

Meanwhile the war was also carried on against the Persians in See also:

• IRAK

2 (2nd ed., See also:

• LEIDEN

Internal disturbances of a religious and political See also:

• CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

3 Baladhuri 315 sq.; See also:

• TABARI [Abu Ja'far Mahommed ibn Jarir ut-Tabari] (838-923)

Auf. The last-named declined to be a See also:

• CANDIDATE

Nor was it unreasonable that from the secularization of Islam the See also:

• CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

But, that the spiritual nobility was fighting not for principle but for personal advantage was as apparent in Ali's lostillties against Zobair and Talha as in that of the See also:

• ABBASIDS

His death in the See also:

• ACT (Lat. actus, actum)

He exhibited Othman's blood-stained garment in the mosque at Damascus, and incited his Syrians to vengeance. Ali's position in Kufa was much less advantageous. ,The See also:

• POPULATION (Lat. populus, people; populare, to populate)

But in yielding to the will of the majority he excited the displeasure of the minority, the genuine zealots, who in Moawiya were opposing the enemy of Islam, and regarded Ali's entering into negotiations with him as a denial of the faith. When the negotiations failed and war was resumed, the Kharijites refused to follow Ali's army, and he had to turn his armies in the first instance against them. He succeeded in disposing of them without difficulty at the battle of Nahrawan, but in his success he lost the soul of his following. For they were the true champions of the theocratic principle; through their elimination it became clear that the struggle had in no sense'anything to do with the cause of God. Ali's defeat was a foregone conclusion, once religious enthusiasm had failed him; the secular resources at the disposal of his adversaries were far See also:

• SUPERIOR

Omar did not deviate from that See also:

• LINE

This party was in the foreground, chiefly in the first period. (s) The partisans of All, the Shi'a (Shi'ites), who in proportion as their influence with the Arabs declined, contrived to strengthen it by obtaining the support of the non-Arabic Moslems, aided thereto, especially in the latter period, by the Abbasids, who at the decisive moment succeeded in seizing the supreme power for themselves. (3) The Kharijites, who, in spite of the heavy losses they sustained at the hands of Ali, maintained their power by gaining new adherents from among those austere Moslems, who held both Omayyads and Alids as usurpers, and have often been called, not unjustly, the Puritans of Islam. (4) The non-Arabic Moslems, who on their See also:

• CONVERSION (Lat. conversio, from convertere, to turn or ,change)

When the Abbasids had occupied the throne, they pursued this policy to its logical conclusion. But not content with having exterminated the hated rulers themselves, they carried their hostility to a further point. The See also:

• OFFICIAL (Late Lat. QJicialis, for class. Lat. apparitor, from officium, office, duty)

r. The Reign of Moawiya.—Moawiya, son of the well-known Meccan chief Abu Sofian, embraced Islam together with his father and his brother Yazid, when the Prophet conquered Mecca, and was, like them, treated with the greatest distinction. He was even chosen to be one of the secretaries of Mahomet. When Abu Bekr sent his troops for the conquest of Syria, Yazid, the eldest son of Abu Sofian, held one of the chief commands, with Moawiya as his See also:

• LIEUTENANT

He was so loved and honoured by his Syrians that, when he invited them to avenge the blood of Othman, they replied unanimously, " It is your part to command, ours to obey." All was a valiant man, but had no great See also:

• TALENT (Lat. talentum, adaptation of Gr. TaXavrov, balance, ! Recollections of a First Visit to the Alps (1841); Vacation Rambles weight, from root raX-, to lift, as in rXi vac, to bear, 1-aXas, and Thoughts, comprising recollections of three Continental

The arbitrators met in the year 37 (A.D. 658) at Adhroh, in the See also:

• SOUTH
• SOUTH, ROBERT (1634–1716)

Mahommed was beaten, taken in his flight, and, according to some reports, sewn in the skin of an ass and burned. Moawiya, realizing that Ali would take all possible means to crush him, took his See also:

• MEASURES

66o), is not very probable, for it is See also:

• PRETTY

Notwithstanding the protest of the Basrians, he transported this booty safely to Mecca. When his descendants had ascended the throne and he had become a demi-See also:

• SAINT (lat. sanctus, " holy ")

Sho'ba was appointed governor of Kufa. IIomran b. Aban had previously assumed the government of Basra. This is represented commonly as a revolt, but as Homran was a client of Othman, and remained in favour with the Omayyads, it is almost certain that he took the management of affairs only to maintain order. One strong antagonist to Moawiya remained, in the person of Ziyad. This remarkable man was said to be a See also:

• BASTARD (O. Fr. bastard, mod. bdtard = fits de bast, "pack-saddle child," from bast, saddle)

Moawiya, therefore, sent Bosr b. Abi See also:

• ARTA (Narda, i.e. iv "Ap&a, or Zarta, i,e. eis "Apra)
• ARTA, GULF OF (anc. Sinus Ambracius)

In See also:

• AFRICA
• AFRICA, ROMAN

But all others call his mother Somayya, who is said to have been a slave-girl of See also:

• HIND

We must not forget that Kufa and Basra were military colonies, and that each tribe had its own See also:

• QUARTER (through Fr. from Lat. quartarius, fourth part)

One of Moawiya's estates bordered on that of Abdallah b. Zobair, who complained in a somewhat truculent letter that Moawiya's slaves had been guilty of trespassing. Moawiya, disregarding his son Yazid's See also:

• ADVICE (Fr. avis, from Lat. ad, to, and visum, viewed)

It is almost incredible that Moawiya out of See also:

• PETTY, SIR WILLIAM (1623-1687)

Ali, it is unlikely that he used it against less dangerous persons. These two men were the chief obstacles to Moawiya's plan for securing the Caliphate for his son Yazid. The leadership with the Arabic tribes was as a rule hereditary, the son succeeding his father, but only if he was personally See also:

• FIT

We can scarcely, therefore, See also:

• CREDIT (Lat. credere, to believe)

This army was defeated, and from that time Ibn Zobair was supreme at Mecca. On the news of Yazid's accession, the numerous partisans of the family of Ali in Kufa sent addresses to Hosain, inviting him to take See also:

• REFUGE

They observe the loth of Muharram, the day of `Ashura, as a day of public See also:

• MOURNING (from the verb " to mourn," to be sorrowful, 0. Eng. murnan; cf. O.H.G. mornen, Goth. maurnan, to be anxious, O.N. morna, to pine away; by some referred to root seen in Gr. jdptpva, sorrow, by others to root mer-, to die)

A characteristically Arabic ceremony took place in the mosque of Medina. " I See also:

• CAST (from the verb meaning " to throw "; the word is Scand. in origin, cf. Dan. kaste, and Swed. kasta; " cast " in Middle Eng. took the place of the A.S. weor pan, cf. Ger. werf en)

After one of these the battle has been named " The Day of Harra." For three days the city was given up to See also:

• PLUNDER

About Medina also false statements have been made. The city recovered very soon from the disaster, and remained the seat not only of holy tradition and See also:

• JURISDICTION
• JURISDICTION, CRIMINAL LAW, DIVORCE

Hitherto Ibn Zobair had confined himself to an appeal to the Moslems to renounce Yazid and to have a caliph elected by the council (shard) of the principal leading men. He now openly assumed the title of caliph and invited men to take the oath of allegiance. He was soon acknowledged throughout Arabia, in Egypt and in Irak. The Omayyads, who had returned to Medina, were again expelled. Yazid is described in the Coutinuatio Isidori Byz. §27, as " iucundissimus et cunctis nationibus regni eius subditis vir gratissime habitus, qui nullam unquam, ut See also:

• OMNIBUS (Lat. " for all ")

25, though another account places his See also:

• BIRTH (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages from the root of the verb " to bear ")

Khalid, the brother of Moawiya II., was still a youth and appears to have had no strength of character. There was, however, a much more dangerous candidate, viz. Merwan b. IJakam, of another branch of the Omayyads, who had been Othman's right-hand man. He had pledged himself after some hesitation to Yazid, but now his 1 See also:

• DOZY, REINHART PIETER ANNE (182o-1883)

684) ensued at Merj Rahit, near Damascus, in which Palihak and Zofar, though they had the majority of troops, were utterly defeated. This battle became the subject of a great many poems and had pernicious consequences, especially as regards the antagonism between the Qais-Motlar and Kalb-Yemenite tribes. 4. Reign of Merwan I.—Merwan strengthened his position according to the old See also:

• ORIENTAL

This feeling gave rise to the prophecy that there should appear later a Sofiani on the throne, who would reign with might and wisdom. `Amr Ashdaq made no opposition till the death of Merwan. After the victory at Merj Rahit, Merwan conquered Egypt, and installed as governor his second son Abdalaziz. An army sent to the See also:

• RESCUE (in Middle Eng. rescous, from O. Fr. recousse, Low Lat. rescussa, from reexcussa,reexcutere, to shake off again, re, again, ex, off, quatere, to shake)

Ibn Zobair's representative in Kufa was compelled to flee, and all those who had participated in the battle of Kerbela were put to death. An army despatched against Obaidallah under Ibrahim routed the Syrians near See also:

• MOSUL

Ibrahim b. Ashtar, Mokhtar's governor of Mesopotamia, submitted and acknowledged the Caliphate of Ibn Zobair. 5. Reign of Abdalmalik.—Merwan died on the 27th of Ramadan 65 (7th May 685); according to tradition, he was suffocated by his wife, because he had insulted her son Khalid and herself. The accession of Abdalmalik was attended with no difficulty, but the first years of his reign were occupied by troubles in northern Syria, where, instigated by the Greeks, the Mardaites of the Amanus, called Jarajima by the Arabs, penetrated into the See also:

• LEBANON
• LEBANON (from Semitic laban, " to be white," or " whitish," probably referring not to snow, but to the bare white walls ofchalk or limestone which form the characteristic feature of the whole range)

Zobair, caliph of Mecca; that of the caliph of Damascus, Abdalmalik; that of Ali's son Mahommed b. al-Hanafiya, Mandi of the Shi'ites; and that of the Kharijites, who were at that time under the command of Najda b. `Amir. Such, however, was the respect inspired by the holy places, that no disorders resulted. When, in the year (69 A.H.) 689 Abdalmalik had at last en-camped at Botnan IJabib in the vicinity of Kinnesrin (Qinnasrin) with the purpose of marching against Mus'ab, his cousin `Amr Ashdaq, to whom by the treaty of Jabia, before the battle of Merj Rahit, the succession to Merwan had been promised, took advantage of his See also:

• ABSENCE (Lat. absentia)

About the middle of A.D. 691 Abdalmalik at last encamped at Dair al-Jathaliq (the monastery of the Catholicus) between Maskin, not far from the site of Bagdad, and Bajomaira. Mu'ab's best troops were fighting under Mohallab against the Kharijites; many Basrians were secretly favourable to the Omayyads, nor were the Kufian soldiers to be trusted. The people of Irak had never been accustomed to discipline, and no improvement had taken place during the troubles of the last years. Abdalmalik, therefore, wrote secretly to the chiefs of Mus'ab's army, and persuaded them to See also:

• DESERT

The See also:

• BLOCKADE
• BLOCKADE (Fr. blocus, Ger. Blokade)

Medina and Mecca, though they continued to be the holy cities, had no longer their old political importance, which had already been shaken to its See also:

• FOUNDATIONS

The Qais could not leave unavenged the blood See also:

• SHED

But he let them fall when Hajjaj lifted his veil and began to speak. Men of Kufa," he said, " I see before me heads ripe for the sickle, and the reaper—I am he. It seems to me, as if I'saw already the blood between your turbans and your shoulders. I am not one of those who can be frightened by inflated bags of skin, nor need any one think to squeeze me like a fig. The Prince of the Believers has spread before him the arrows of his See also:

• QUIVER

Foja`a, and was able at the beginning of the year 78 (A.D. 697) to return to Hajjaj at Basra. The latter loaded him with honours and made him governor of Khorasan, whence he directed several expeditions into Transoxiana. In the meantime Hajjaj himself had, in 695 and 696, with great difficulty suppressed Shabib b. Yazid at the head of the powerful tribe of Shaiban, who, himself a Kharijite, had assumed the title of Prince of the Believers, and had even succeeded in occupying Kufa. In the east the realm of Islam had been • very much extended under the reign of Moawiya, when Ziyad was governor of Irak and Khorasan. Balkh and Tokharistan, Bokhara, Samarkand and Khwarizm (See also:

• MODERN

Ash'ath, a descendant of the old royal family of Kinda, and a numerous army was entrusted to him, so magnificently equipped that it was called " the See also:

• PEACOCK (Lat. Pavo, O. Eng. Pawe, Du. pauuw, Ger. Pfau, Fr. Paon)
• PEACOCK, GEORGE (1791–1858)
• PEACOCK, SIR BARNES (1810-189o)
• PEACOCK, THOMAS LOVE (1785-1866)

The See also:

• REBEL, JOHANN PETER (176o-1826)

They considered it further as an injustice that the Syrian soldiers received higher pay than those of Irak. This is apparent from the fact that one of the conditions of peace proposed by Abdalmalik before the battle of Dair al-Jamajim had been that henceforth the Irakian troops should be paid equally with the Syrian. Moreover, Hajjaj, in order to maintian the See also:

• REGULAR

IIaywa. The idea of interfering with the pilgrimage to the House of God at Mecca, which would have alienated from him all religious men, and thus from a political point of view would have been suicidal, cannot have entered his mind for a moment. But the glorification of Jerusalem, holy alike for Moslems, Christians and See also:

• JEWS
• JEWS (Heb. Y8hudi, man of Judah; Gr. 'Iovbaiot; Lat. Judaei)

He retook Kairawan, swept the coast as far as See also:

• CARTHAGE
• CARTHAGE (Phoenician Kart-hadshat, " New City "; Gr. Kapxn5c; v, Lat. Carthago or Carchedon)
• CARTHAGE, SYNODS OF

To this change was due in great measure the predominance of Arabic throughout the empire. Lastly, a regular post service was instituted from Damascus to the provincial capitals, especially destined for governmental despatches. The postmasters . were charged with the task of informing the caliph of all important news in their respective countries. All the great rivals of Abdalmalik having now disappeared, he was no longer like his predecessors See also:

• PRIMUS, MARCUS ANTONIUS

Abdalmalik not only brought See also:

• TRIUMPH (triumphus)

No'man as governor, in a short time carried his conquests as far as See also:

• FEZ (Fes)

The spot where he landed thence acquired the name of See also:

• JEBEL (plur. jibed)

He therefore sent a message in all haste to Musa, entreating him to come speedily. Musa, though angered by the disobedience of Tariq, hastened to the rescue and embarked in See also:

• APRIL

Abdalaziz consolidated his power by marrying the widow of the late king Roderic. Musa left Spain about August 714, and reached Damascus shortly before the death of Walid. Notwithstanding the immense booty he brought, he did not receive his due See also:

• REWARD

Qasim invaded Makran, took Daibol, passed the Indus, and marched, after having beaten the See also:

• INDIAN

Walid immediately on his accession appointed as governor of Hejaz his cousin Omar b. Abdalaziz, who was received there with joy, his devoutness and See also:

• GENTLE (through the Fr. gentil, from Lat. gentilis, belonging to the same gens, or family)

For other accounts of the deaths of Musa and Abdalaziz see See also:

• SIR

7. Reign of Suleiman (Solaiman).—Suleiman had early missed the throne. Walid wished to have his son Abdalaziz chosen as his successor, and had offered Suleiman a large sum of money to induce him to surrender his rights. Walid went still further and sent letters to the governors of all the provinces, calling on them to take the oath of allegiance to his son. None, except Hajjaj and his two generals Qotaiba b. Moslim and Mahommed b. Qasim, consented thus to set at naught the order of succession established by Abdalmalik; and Suleiman succeeded without difficulty on the death of his brother Jomada II. 96 (See also:

• FEBRUARY

Qotaiba b. Moslim, the powerful governor of Khorasan, tried to anticipate the caliph by a revolt, but a See also:

• CONSPIRACY (from Lat. conspirare, literally to breathe together, to agree, combine, and especially to form a secret plot)

Suleiman carried them on with energy, and as early as the autumn of A.D. 715 Maslama invaded Asia Minor at the head of a numerous army, whilst a well-equipped fleet under Omar b. Hobaira sailed out to second him. It is said that Suleiman was firmly persuaded that Constantinople would be conquered during his reign, in accordance with a Sibylline prophecy which said that the city would be subdued by a caliph bearing the name of a prophet, he himself being the first to fulfil this condition .2 Moreover, the Byzantine empire was in these years disturbed by internal troubles. The first year of the expedition was not unsuccessful. The siege of Amorium in See also:

• PHRYGIA

The besieged were hard pressed, but the besiegers suffered by the severe See also:

• WINTER, JOHN STRANGE
• WINTER, PETER (c. 1755-1825)

Abdallah b. Abbas the names of the chiefs of the Shia in Irak and Khorasan, and disclosed his way of corresponding with them. From that time the Abbasids began their machinations against the Omayyads in the name of the family of the Prophet, avoiding all that could cause suspicion to the Shi'ites, but holding the strings firmly in their own hands. 8. Reign of Omar II.—Omar b. Abdalaziz did his best to imitate his grandfather Omar in all things, and especially in maintaining the simple manner of life of the early Moslems. He was, however, born in the midst of wealth; thus frugality became See also:

• ASCETICISM

The original inhabitants had been left on the conquered lands as agriculturists, on condition of paying a fixed sum yearly for each district. If one of these adopted Islam, Omar permitted him to leave his place,' which had been strictly forbidden by IIajjaj in Irak and the eastern provinces, because by it many hands were withdrawn from the tilling of the ground, and those who remained were unable to pay the allotted amount. Omar's system not only diminished the actual revenue, but largely increased in the cities the See also:

• NUMBERS, BOOK OF
• NUMBERS, PARTITION OF

Even to, the Kharijites he contrived to give See also:

• SATISFACTION (Lat. salisfacerc, to satisfy)

Yazid II., son of Abdalmalik and, by his mother 'Atika, grandson of Yazid I., ascended the throne without opposition. He had at once, however, to put down a dangerous rebellion. Yazid b. Mohallab had returned to Irak, after the conquest of Jorjan, when Suleiman was still alive. Shortly after, Adi b. Artat, whom Omar II. had appointed governor, arrived, arrested Yazid, and sent him to Omar, who called him to account for the money he had mentioned in his letter to Suleiman, and imprisoned him when he pretended not to be able to pay the amount. Yazid II. had personal grounds for ill-will to Yazid b. Mohallab. One of the wives of the new caliph, the same who gave birth to that son of Yazid II. who afterwards reigned as Walid II., was niece to the celebrated }Jajjaj, whose family had been ill-treated by the son of Mohallab, when he was governor of Irak under Suleiman. Aware that Yazid b. Abdalmalik, on ascending the throne, would spare neither him nor his family, Yazid b. Mohallab had succeeded in escaping to Basra, the home of his family, where his own tribe the Azd was predominant.

Meanwhile 'Adi b. See also:

• ART

He took his way over Wasit, which he mastered—the Syrian garrison seems to have been withdrawn in the days of Omar II.—but, before he could get hold of Kuf a, the Syrian troops arrived. The meeting took place at 'Aqr in the vicinity of See also:

• BABEL

Hobaira, to See also:

• SUPPLY (through Fr. from Lat. supplere, to fill up)

He did not feel that anxiety for the spiritual welfare of his subjects which had animated Omar II. Poetry and See also:

• MUSIC

After his death, in particular, the Yemenites celebrated him as their chief, and assigned as the reason for their revolt the injuries which he suffered. Khalid himself assuredly did not intend it. He was a loyal servant of the dynasty, and remained such even after receiving very harsh treatment from them. For fifteen years Khalid governed the eastern half of the empire, and continued to maintain peace with only few exceptions throughout. He did much for the reclaiming and improving of lands in Irak, in which the caliph himself and several princes took an active part. The great revenues obtained thereby naturally caused much jealousy. Khalid lived on a very rich scale and was extra-ordinarily liberal, and he was charged with having carried out all his improvements for his own interests, and upbraided for Selling .the See also:

• CORN (a common Teutonic word; cf. Lat. granum, seed, grain)
• CORN (fromm Lat. corms, horn)

When the dismissal of Khalid had been resolved upon, Yusuf b. Omar, his appointed successor, was sent secretly to Kuf a, where he seized on Khalid unawares. For eighteen months Khalid remained in See also:

• PRISON (derived through the Fr. from the Lat. prehensio, seizure)

He succeeded in so far that 15,000 Kufians swore to fight with him for the maintenance of the commandments of the Book of God and the Sunna (orthodox tradition) of his Prophet, the discomfiture of the tyrants, the redress of injury, and last, not least, the vindication of the family of the Prophet as the rightful caliphs. The revolt broke out on the 6th of January 740. Unfortunately for Zaid he had to do with the same Kufians whose fickleness had already been fatal to his family. He was deserted by his troops and slain. His See also:

• BODY

736) the governor Asad al-Qasri, the brother of Khalid, after having defeated* IIarith, gained a brilliant victory over the Turks, which finally caused them to retreat. Asad died almost simultaneously with the dismissal of Khalid. Hisham then separated Khorasan from Irak and chose as governor of the former Nasr b. Sayyar, a valiant soldier who had grown grey in war, and who, besides all his other capacities, was an excellent poet. Nasr instituted a system of taxation, which, if it had been introduced earlier, would perhaps have saved the Arabic domination. It was that which later on was generally adopted, viz. that all possessors of conquered lands (i.e. nearly the whole empire except Arabia), whether Moslems or not, should pay a fixed tax, the latter in addition to pay a poll-tax, from which they were relieved on conversion to Islam. During the reign of Hisham, Nasr made a successful expedition against Ilarith and the Turks. The 1 Cf. See also:

• VAN

This led to the evacuation of the eastern part of India (called Hind by the Arabs, Sind being the name of the western part), and to the See also:

• FOUNDING (from Lat. fundere, to pour)

But the See also:

• HERO (Gr. open)
• HERO, THE YOUNGER

See also:

• CARCASSONNE

Hajjaj, a man of high qualities, re-entered Gaul and pushed forward his raids as far as See also:

• LYONS
• LYONS (Fr. Lyon)
• LYONS, COUNCILS OF
• LYONS, EDMUND LYONS, BARON (1790-1858)
• LYONS, RICHARD BICKERTON PEMELL LYONS, 1ST EARL (1817–1887)

740). Kolthum was beaten and killed; Balj b. Bishr led the rest of the Syrian army to Ceuta, and thence, near the end of 741, to Spain, where they aided in the suppression of the dangerous revolt of the See also:

• PENINSULAR

Hisham tried to keep himself free from and above the See also:

• RIVAL

The Omayyads who came to pay their respects to him received large donations. Many philanthropic institutions were founded. As to the family of his predecessor, he contented himself with confiscating their possessions, with the single exception of Suleiman b. Hisham, whom he had whipped and put in prison. But the Makhzumites, who were related to Hisham by his mother, he deprived of all their power and had them tortured to death. The vicegerents of Hisham were replaced by Qaisites; Yusuf b. Omar, the governor of Irak, being a Qaisite, was not only confirmed in his office, but received with it the supreme command of Khorasan. He made use of it immediately by ordering Nasr b. Sayyar to collect a rich present of horses, falcons, musical See also:

• INSTRUMENTS

Dozy i. p. 268. It is not certain that Walid also suspected Khalid al-Qasri of having intrigued against him. But Yusuf b. Omar did not rest until he had his old enemy in his power. It is said that he guaranteed Walid a large sum of money, which he hoped to extort from Khalid. This unfortunate man died under torture, which he bore with fortitude, in Muharram 126 (November 743). Walid designated his two sons as heirs to the Caliphate. These were still under age and were not the children of a free-born, noble mother. Both circumstances, according to the then prevailing notions, made them unfit for the imamate. Moreover, it was an affront, in particular, for the sons of Walid I., who already had considered the nomination of Yazid II. as a slight to themselves. A conspiracy arose, headed by Yazid b.

Walid I., and joined by the majority of the Merwanid princes and many Kalbites and other Yemenites who regarded the ill-treatment of Khalid al-Qasri as an insult to themselves. Various stories were circulated about the looseness of Walid's manner of life; Yazid accused him of irreligion, and, by representing himself as a devout and God-fearing man, won over the pious Moslems. The conspirators met with slight opposition. A great many troops had been detached by Hisham to Africa and other provinces, the caliph himself was in one of his country places; the prefect of Damascus also was absent. Without difficulty, Yazid made himself master of Damascus, and immediately sent his cousin Abdalaziz with 2000 men against Walid, who had not more than 20o fighting men about him. A few men hastened to the rescue, among others `Abbas b. Walid with his sons and followers. Abdalaziz interrupted his march, took him prisoner and compelled him to take the oath of allegiance to his brother Yazid. Walid's small body of soldiers was soon overpowered. After a valiant combat, the caliph retired to one of his apartments and sat with the Koran on his See also:

• KNEE (O. E. cneow, a word common to Indo-European languages, cf. Ger. Knie, Fr. genou, Span. hinojo, Lat. genu, Gr. ybvv, Sansk. janu)

On the news of the murder of the caliph, the citizens of Moms (Emesa) put at their head Abu Mahommed as-Sofiani, a grandson of Yazid I., and marched against Damascus. They were beaten by Suleiman b. Hisham at a place called Solaimania, 12 M. from the capital. Abu Mahommed was taken prisoner and shut up with several of his brethren and See also:

• COUSINS, SAMUEL (18o1-1887)

He cancelled, however, the increase of the pay granted by Walid and thus earned the See also:

• NICKNAME

Sayyar, the governor of Khorasan, had not yet decided whethef he ought to take the oath of allegiance when Yazid died, after areign of only five months and a half, on the 12th of Dhu'l-Jrlijja A.H. 126 (25th September A.D. 744). 13. Yazid III. left his brother Ibrahim as his successor. He was acknowledged as caliph only in a part of Syria, and reigned no longer than two months, when he was obliged to abdicate and to submit to the authority of Merwan II. 14. Merwan II., the son of Mahommed b. Merwan and cousin of Maslama, was a man of energy, and might have revived the strength of the Omayyad dynasty, but for the general disorder which pervaded the whole empire. In 73 2 Hisham had entrusted to him the government of Armenia and Azerbaijan, which he held with great success till the death of Walid II. He had great military capacity and introduced important reforms. On the murder of Walid he prepared to dispute the supreme power with the new caliph, and invaded Mesopotamia.

Yazid III., in alarm, offered him as the See also:

• PRICE
• PRICE, BARTHOLOMEW (1818–1898)
• PRICE, BONAMY (1807-1888)
• PRICE, RICHARD (1723-1791)

When Merwan entered Damascus this man testified that the sons of Walid II., who had just become adult, had named Merwan successor to the Caliphate, and was the first to greet him as Prince of the Believers. All the generals and officers followed his example and took the oath of allegiance (7th See also:

• DECEMBER (Lat. decent, ten)

Khalid al Qasri. Merwan, who wanted to march against Irak, was obliged to return to Syria, where he put an end to the troubles, This time Thabit b. No'aim had to pay for his perfidy with his life. After this new pacification, Merwan caused the Syrians to acknowledge his two sons as heirs to the Caliphate, and married them to two daughters of Hisham. All the Omayyad princes were invited to the See also:

• WEDDING

Suleiman fled to Horns and thence to Tadmor and on to Kuf a, leaving his brother pa'id in Homs. The siege of this place by Merwan ja'tetl nkarly five lrrdnths. After victory the walls were demolished, and likewise those of Baalbek, Damascus, Jerusalem and other towns. Syria was utterly crushed, and therewith the See also:

• BULWARK (a word probably of Scandinavian origin, from bol or bole, a tree-trunk, and werk, work, in Ger. Bollwerk, which has also been derived from an old German bolen, to throw, and so a machine for throwing missiles)

This adventurer now went into See also:

• MEDIA

745). Mansur b. Jomhur was the first to pass over to the Khawarij; then Ibn Omar himself took the oath of allegiance. That a noble Koreishite, a prince of the reigning house, should pledge himself to follow I?ahhak the Shaibanite as his Imam, was an event of which the Khawarij were very proud. Ibn Omar was rewarded with the government of eastern Irak, Khuzistan and Fars. Whilst Merwan besieged Homs, Dahhak returned to Mesopotamia and took Mosul, whence he threatened Nisibis, where Abdallah, the son of Merwan, maintained himself with difficulty. Suleiman b. Hisham also had gone over to the Khawarij, who now numbered 120,000 men. Mesopotamia itself was in danger, when Merwan at last was able to march against the enemy. In a furious battle at Kafartutha (September A.D. 746) the Khawarij were defeated; Dahhak and his successor Khaibari perished; the survivors were obliged to retire to Mosul, where they crossed the Tigris. Merwan followed them and encamped on the western See also:

• BANK

Immediately after the battle of Kafarttitha, Yazid b. Omar b. Hobaira directed his troops towards Irak. He beat the Kharijites repeatedly and entered Kufa in May or June 749. Ibn Omar was taken prisoner; Mansur b. Jomhur fled to Ibn Moawiya. Ibn Hobaira was at last free to send Ibn Pobara with an army to Mesopotamia. At his approach the Kharijites left their camp and fled to Abdallah b. Moawiya, who was now at the height of his power. But it was not destined to last. The two generals of Ibn Hobaira, Ibn Dadra and Nobata b. IJanzala defeated his army; Ibn Moawiya fled to Khorasan, where he met his death; the chief of the Kharijites, Shaiban Yashkori went to eastern Arabia; Suleiman b.

Hisham and Mansur b. Johmur escaped to India. Thus, at last, the western and south-eastern parts of the empire lay at the feet of Merwan. But in the north-east, in Khorasan, meanwhile a storm had arisen, against which his resources and his wisdom were alike of no avail. When the news of the murder of Walid II. reached Khorasan,Nasr b. Sayyar did not at once acknowledge the Caliphate of Yazid III., but induced the Arab chiefs to accept himself as amir of Khorasan, until a caliph should be universally acknowledged. Not many months later (Shawwal 126) he was confirmed in his post by Yusuf b. Omar, the governor of Irak. But Nasr had a personal enemy, the chief of the Azd (Yemenites) Jodai' al-Kirmani, a very ambitious man. A See also:

• QUARREL

Nasr received him with the greatest honour, hoping to get his aid against Kirmani, but Ilarith, to whom 3000 men of his tribe, the Tamim, had gone over, demanded Nasr's abdication and tried to make himself master of Merv. Having failed in this, he allied himself with Kirmani. Nasr could hold Mery no longer, and retired to See also:

• NISHAPUR
• NISHAPUR (Old Pers. Nev-shdpur-nev, New Pers. niv, nik= good; Arab. Naisabur)

After the death of Hosain, they chose for their Imam Mahommed b. al-IJanafiya, and at his decease his son Abu Hashim, from whom Mahommed b. Ali, the grandson of Abdallah b. Abbas, who resided at IJomaima in the south-east of Syria, obtained the secrets of the party and took the See also:

• LEAD
• LEAD (pronounced iced)

Mahommed b. Ali died A.H. 126 (A.D. 743-744), and his son Ibrahim, the Imam, took his place. Ibrahim had a confidant about whose antecedents one fact alone seems certain, that he was a maula (client) of Persian origin. This man, Abu Moslim by name, was a man of real ability and devoted to his master's cause. To him,in 745-746, the management of affairs in Khorasan was entrusted, with instructions to consult in all weighty matters the head of the See also:

• MISSION

On that occasion Suleiman b. Kathir was still leader, but by the end of the year Abu Moslim, whom the majority believed to belong himself to the family of the Prophet, was the acknowledged head of a strong army. Meantime, Nasr had moved from Nishapur to Merv, and here the two Arabic armies confronted each other. Then, at last, the true significance of Abu Moslim's work was recognized. Nasr warned the Arabs against their common enemy, " who preaches a religion that does not come from the Envoy of God, and whose chief aim is the extirpation of the Arabs." In, vain he had entreated Merwan and Ibn Hobaira to send him troops before it should be too late. When at last it was possible to them to fulfil his wish, it was in fact too late. For a moment it seemed as though the rival Arab factions, realizing their common peril, would turn their combined forces against the Shiites. But Abu Moslim contrived to re-awaken their mutual distrust and jealousy, and, taking advantage of the opportunity, made himself master of Merv, in Rabia II. A.H. 130 (December 747). Nasr escaped only by a headlong flight to Nishapur. This was the end of the Arabic dominion in the East.

Many Arab chiefs were killed, partly by order of Abu Moslim, partly by their clients. The latter, however, was strictly forbidden by Abu Moslim. So severe indeed was the discipline he exercised, that one of the chief missionaries, who by a secret warning had rendered possible the escape of Nasr from Merv, paid for it with his life. As soon as Abu Moslim had consolidated his authority, he sent his chief general Qahtaba against Nishapur. Nasr's son Tamim was vanquished and killed, and Nasr retreated to Kumis (Qumis) on the boundary of Jorjan, whither also advanced from the other side Nobata at the head of an army sent by Merwan. Qahtaba detached his son Masan against Nasr and went himself to meet Nobata, whom he beat on the 1st of Dhu'l-hijja 130 (6th August 748). Nasr could not further resist. He reached Sawa in the vicinity of See also:

• HAMADAN

Qahtaba himself perished in the combat, but his son Hasan entered Kufa without any resistance on the and of September 749. Merwan had at last discovered who was the real chief of the movement in Khorasan, and had seized upon Ibrahim the Imam and imprisoned him at Harran. There he died, probably from the See also:

• PLAGUE (in Gr. Xotµos; in Lat. pestis, pestilentia)

On the point of gathering the ripe See also:

• FRUIT (through the French from the Lat. fructus; frui, to enjoy)

In order that no members of the family should escape, Abdallah b. Ali pre-tended to See also:

• GRANT (from A.-Fr. graunter, O. Fr. greanter for creanter, popular Lat. creantare, for credentare, to entrust, Lat. credere, to believe, trust)
• GRANT, ANNE (1755-1838)
• GRANT, CHARLES (1746-1823)
• GRANT, GEORGE MONRO (1835–1902)
• GRANT, JAMES (1822–1887)
• GRANT, JAMES AUGUSTUS (1827–1892)
• GRANT, ROBERT (1814-1892)
• GRANT, SIR ALEXANDER
• GRANT, SIR FRANCIS (1803-1878)
• GRANT, SIR JAMES HOPE (1808–1895)
• GRANT, SIR PATRICK (1804-1895)
• GRANT, U
• GRANT, ULYSSES SIMPSON (1822-1885)

With the dynasty of the Omayyads the hegemony passes finally from Syria to Irak. At the same time the supremacy of the Arabs came to an end. Thenceforth it is not the contingents of the Arabic tribes which compose the army, and on whom the government depends; the new dynasty relies on a See also:

• STANDING

I increase your See also:

• PENSIONS

Kathir, who had been the head of the propaganda in Khorasan, and had also expected that the Mandi would belong to the house of Ali. It is said that Abu Ja'far, whilst in Khorasan, was so impressed by the unlimited power of Abu Moslim, and saw so clearly that, though he called his brother and himself his masters, he considered them as his creatures, that he vowed his death at the first opportunity. The ruin of the Omayyad empire and the rise of the new dynasty did not take place without mighty See also:

• CONVULSIONS

In Sind the Omayyad governor, Mansur b. Jomhur, had succeeded in maintaining himself, but was defeated by an army sent against him under Musa b. Ka'b, and the black standard of the Abbasids was raised over the city of Mansura. Africa and Spain are omitted from this See also:

• CATALOGUE (a Fr. adaptation of the Gr. KaraXoyos, a register, from Karalyety, to enrol or pick out)

Abu Ja'far was, according to the historians, older than Abu'l-Abbas, but while the mother of the latter belonged to the powerful Yemenite tribe of al-Harith b. Ka'b, the mother of Abu Ja'far was a Berber slave-girl. But he was a son of Mahommed b. Ali, and was therefore preferred by Abu Moslim to his uncles and cousins. Abu`l Abbas, however, had promised the succession to his uncle Abdallah b. Ali, when he marched against Merwan. When the news of the death of Abu'l-Abbas reached Abdallah, who at the head of a numerous army was on the point of renewing the Byzantine war, he came to Harrah, furious at his exclusion, and proclaimed himself caliph. Abu Moslim marched against him, and the two armies met at Nisibis, where, after a number of skirmishes, a decisive engagement took place (28th November 754). Abdallah was defeated and escaped to Basra, where he found a refuge with his brother Suleiman. A year later he asked for pardon, and took the oath of allegiance to Mansur. The caliph spared his life for a time, but he did not forget. In 764 Abdallah met his death by the collapse of his house, which had been deliberately undermined.

The first care of Mansur was now to get rid of the powerful Abu Moslim, who had thus by another brilliant service strengthened his great reputation. On pretence of conferring with him on important business of state, Mansur induced him, in spite of the warnings of his best general, Abu Nasr, to come to Madain (Ctesiphon), and in the most perfidious manner caused him to be murdered by his See also:

• GUARDS, AND HOUSEHOLD TROOPS

A brother of Abdarrahman, I1yas, saw in this revolt an opportunity of obtaining the government of Africa for himself. Seconded by many of the inhabitants of Kairawan, who had remained faithful to the cause of the Abbasids, he attacked his brother, slew him, and See also:

• PRO

Every: petty amir then tried to seize sovereign power for himself, and the people groaned under the consequent anarchy. Weary of these commotions, the Arabs of Spain aVast came to an understanding among themselves for the election of a caliph, and their choice fell upon one of the last survivors of the Omayyads, Abdarrahman b. Moawiya, grandson of the caliph Hisham. This prince was wandering in the deserts of Africa, pursued by his implacable enemies, but everywhere protected and concealed by the desert tribes, who pitied his misfortunes and respected his illustrious origin. A deputation from Spain sought him out in Africa and offered him the Caliphate, which he accepted with, joy. On the 1st Rabia I. 138 (14th August 755) Abdarrahman landed in the Iberian peninsula, where he was universally welcomed, and 1 The rule of the caliphs in See also:

• MOROCCO

Musa. Had Ibrahim marched at once against Kufa he might have crushed Mansur, but he let slip the opportunity. A terrible conflict took place at Ba-Khamra, 48 M. from Kufa. IIomaid b. Qahtaba, the commander of Mansur's army, was defeated, only a small division under `Isa b. Musa holding its ground. At that moment Salm, the son of the famous Qotaiba b. Moslim, came to the rescue by attacking the See also:

• REAR

When the tumult of the See also:

• RAWENDIS

`Isa b. Musa had been designated, as we have seen, by Abu'l-Abbas as successor to Mansur. The latter having vainly tried to compel `Isa to renounce his right of succession, in favour of Mansur's son Mahommed al-Mandi, produced false witnesses who swore that he had done so. However unwillingly, 'Isa was obliged at last to yield, but it was understood that, in case of Mahommed's death, the succession should return to 'Isa. One of the false witnesses was, it is asserted, Khalid b. Barmak, the head of that celebrated family the See also:

• BARMECIDES

(Copronymus) had unsuccessfully blockaded Malatia; but five years later he took it by force and razed its See also:

• WALL (O. Eng. weal, weall, Mid. Eng. wal, wane, adapted from Lat. vallum, rampart; the original O. Eng. word for a wall was wag or tenth)
• WALL, RICHARD (1694-1778)

Mansur being told of it said: " I would rather they went to See also:

• HELL (0. Eng. hel, a Teutonic word from a root meaning " to cover," cf. Ger. Holle, Dutch hel)

As he could not or would not tell, he together with all his brothers and some other relatives were seized and transported to Irak, where Abdallah and his brother Ali were beheaded and the others imprisoned. Notwithstanding all these precautions, a vast conspiracy was formed. On the same day Malommed was to raise the standard of revolt in Medina, Ibrahim in Bara. But the Alids, though' not devoid of personal courage, never excelled in politics or in tactics. In A.D. 762 Mahommed took Medina and had himself proclaimed caliph. The governor of Kuf a, 'Isa b. Musa, received orders to march against him, entered Arabia, and captured Medina, which, fortified by Mahommed by the same means as the Prophet had employed against the besieging Meccans, could not hold out against the well-trained Khorasanians. Mahommed was defeated and slain. His head was cut off and sent to Mansur. When on the point of death, Mahommed gave the famous sword of the Prophet called Dhu'l-Fiqar to a See also:

• MERCHANT (O. Fr. marcheant, modern marchand; from Lat. mercari, to trade, merx, goods, merchandise)

In the meanwhile Ibrahim had not only gained with the connivance of the governor Omar b. IJaf * Hazarmerd, he had found refuge with an Indian king. Mansur discovered his See also:

• ABODE (from " abide," to dwell, properly " to wait for ," to bide)

But he was a great statesman and knew how to choose able officers for all places. He was thrifty and anxious to leave to his son a full treasury. He seems,to have cherished the ideal that this son, called Mahommed b. Abdallah, after the Prophet, should fulfil the promises of peace and happiness that had been tendered to the believers, and therefore to have called him al-Mandi. For that purpose it was necessary that he should have the means not only to meet all state expenses, but also to be bounteous. But from the report of the historian Haitham b. `Adi 1 about the last discourse which father and son had together, we gather that the . former had misgivings in regard to the fulfilment of his wishes. Khalid b. Barmak took the greatest care of the revenues, but contrived at the same time to consult his own interests. Mansur discovered this in the same year in which he died, and threatened him with death unless he should pay to the treasury three millions of dirhems within three days. Khalid already had so many See also:

• FRIENDS, SOCIETY
• FRIENDS, SOCIETY OF

Thereupon Mansur overlooked the deficiency and gave Khalid the government of Mosul. " And," said a See also:

• CITIZEN (a form corrupted in Eng., apparently by analogy with " denizen," from O. Fr. citeain, mod. Fr. citoyen)

The promises made to them during the war against the Omayyads had not been fulfilled, and the new Mandi did not answer at all to their ideal. A revolt in 16o under the leadership of a certain Yusuf b. Ibrahim, surnamed al-See also:

• BARM (a word common to Teutonic languages)

Immediately on his arrival in the Holy City he applied himself, at the See also:

• REQUEST, LETTERS OF

At first the armies of Mandi were not successful. The Greeks even conquered Marash (Germanicia) and annihilated the Moslem army sent from Dabiq. In 778, however, Hasan b. Qabtaba made a victorious raid as far as Adhruliya (Dorylaeum) ; it was on his proposition that Mandi resolved on building the frontier town called IJadath (Adata), which became an outpost. In 779 the caliph decided on leading his army in person. He assembled his army in the plains of Baradan north of Bagdad and began his march in the early See also:

• SPRING (from " to spring," " to leap or jump up," " burst out," O. Eng., springau, a common Teut. word, cf. Ger. springer, possibly allied to Gr. QnrFpxecOac, to move rapidly)

Leo IV., the East Roman emperor, had recently died, leaving the See also:

• CROWN

Three years later, he resolved even to give to him the precedence in the succession instead of See also:

• MASAI

Reign of Hadi.—On the death of Mandi, Harlan, following the advice of Yahya b. Khalid, sent the insignia of the Caliphate, with letters of condolence and congratulation, to Musa in Jorjan, and brought the army which had accompanied Mandi peacefully back from Media to Bagdad. Musa returned in all haste to the capital, and assumed the title of al-Hadi (" he who directs "). The accession of a new caliph doubtless appeared to the partisans of the, house of Ali, a favourable opportunity for a rising. Hosain b. All b. Hasan III. raised an insurrection at Medina with the support of numerous adherents, and proclaimed himself caliph. .Thence he went to Mecca, where on the promise of freedom many slaves flocked to him, and many pilgrims also acknowledged him. Suleiman b. Mansur, the caliph's representative in the pilgrimage of that year, was entrusted with the command against him. Hosain was attacked at Fakh, 3 In. from Mecca, and perished in the combat with many other Alids. His maternal uncle, Idris b.

Abdallah, a brother of Mahommed and Ibrahim, the rivals of Mansur, succeeded in escaping, and fled to Egypt, whence by the help of the postmaster, himself a secret See also:

• PARTISAN, or PARTIZAN

The Barmecide family were endowed in the highest degree with those qualities of generosity and liberality which the Arabs prized so highly, and the See also:

• CHRONICLES, BOOKS OF

At the end of some months, however, he was calumniously accused of conspiracy, and the caliph, seizing the opportunity of See also:

• RIDDING, GEORGE (1828-1904)

An attack by the Khazars called the caliph's attention from his successes in Asia Minor. This people had made an irruption into Armenia, and their attack had been so sudden that the Moslems and Christians were unable to defend themselves, and ro0,000 had been reduced to captivity. Two valiant generals, Khozaima b. Khazim and Yazid b. Mazyad, marched against the Khazars and drove them out of Armenia. In the midst of the cares of war, Harlan was assiduous in his religious duties, and few years passed without his making the pilgrimage. Having determined to See also:

• FIX, THEODORE (180o-1846)

The principal cause appears to have been that they abused the sovereign power which they exercised. Not a few were jealous of their greatness and sought for opportunities of instilling distrust against them into the mind of Harlin, and of making him feel that he was caliph only in name. The secret dissatisfaction thus aroused was increased, according to some apparently well-informed authorities, by the releasing of the Alid Yahya b. Abdallah, already mentioned. Finally Harlan resolved on their destruction, and Ja'far b. Yahya, who had just taken leave of him after a day's hunting, was arrested, taken to the castle of Harlan, and beheaded. The following day, his father Yahya, his brother Fadl, and all the other Barmecides were arrested and imprisoned; all their property was confiscated. The only Barmecide who remained unmolested with his family was Mahommed the brother of Yahya, who had been the chamberlain of the caliph till 795, when Fadl b. Rabi' got his place. This latter had henceforward the greatest influence at court: In the same year a ,revolution at Constantinople overthrew the empress Irene. The new emperor Nicephorus, thinking himself strong enough to refuse the payment of tribute, wrote an insulting letter to Harlin, who contented himself with replying: " See also:

• THOU, JACQUES AUGUSTE DE [THUANUS] (1553-1617)
• THOU, NOM

When the news came to Rakka, where Harlan was residing, not one of the ministers ventured to tell him, until at last a poet introduced it in a poem which pleased the monarch. Notwithstanding the rigour of the season, Harlin retraced his steps, and Nicephorus was compelled to observe his engagements. In'8o5 the first great ransoming of Moslem prisoners took place on the banks of the little river Lamus in Cilicia. But Nicephorus, profiting by serious disturbances in Khorasan, broke the treaty again, and overran the country as far as Anazarba and Kanisat as-sauda (" the black church ") on the frontier,. where he took many prisoners, who were, however, recovered by the garrison of Mopsuestia. Thus Harlin was obliged to take the field again. He entered Asia Minor with an army of 135,000 regulars, beside See also:

• VOLUNTEERS

'Isa b. See also:

• MAHAN, ALFRED THAYER (1840- )

A'yan with stringent orders to seize Ali and confiscate his possessions. This order was carried out, and it is recorded that 1500 camels were required to transport the confiscated treasures. The caliph's hope that Raft` would submit on condition of receiving a free pardon was not fulfilled, and he resolved to set out himself to Khorasan, taking with him his second son Mamun. On the journey he was attacked by an internal malady, which carried him off, ten months after his departure from Bagdad, A.H. 193 (March 809), just on his arrival at the city of Tus. Harlin was only forty-five years of age. He was far from having the high qualifications of his grandfather Mansur; indeed he did not even possess the qualities of his father and his brother. When the latter asked him to renounce his right of succession, he was willing to consent, saying that a quiet life with his beloved, wife, the princess Zobaida, was his highest wish, but he obeyed his mother and Yahya b.Khalid. As long as the Barmecides were in office, he acted only on their direction. After their disgrace; he was led into many impolitic actions by his violent and often cruel propensities. But the empire was, especially in the earlier part of his reign, in a very: prosperous state, and was respected widely by foreign powers. Embassies passed between.

See also:

• CHARLEMAGNE [CHARLES THE GREAT] (c. 742-814)
• CHARLEMAGNE, JEAN ARMAND (1753–1838)

Mamun, on receiving his brother's invitation to go to Bagdad, was greatly perplexed; but his tutor and later vizier, Fadl b. Sahl, a Zoroastrian of great influence, who in 8o6 had adopted Islam, reanimated his courage, and pointed out to him that certain death awaited him at Bagdad. Mamun resolved to hold out, and found pretexts for remaining in Khorasan. Amin, in anger, caused the will of his father, which, as we have seen, was preserved in the Ka'ba, to be destroyed, declared on his own authority that Mamun's rights of succession were forfeited, and caused the army to swear allegiance to his own son Musa, a See also:

• CHILD
• CHILD, FRANCIS JAMES (1825-1896)
• CHILD, L
• CHILD, LYDIA MARIA (1802-1880)
• CHILD, SIR FRANCIS (1642-1713)
• CHILD, SIR JOHN (d. 1690)
• CHILD, SIR JOSIAH (163o - 1699)

Rabi` to select Ali, knowing that the dislike felt towards him by the Khorasanians would See also:

• DOUBLE
• DOUBLE (from the Mid. Eng. duble, the form which gives the present pronunciation, through the Old Er. duble, from Lat. duplus, twice as much)

The year after, Amin placed in the field two new armies commanded respectively by Ahmad b. Mazyad and Abdallah b. 1iomaid b. Qahtaba. The skilful Tahir succeeded in creating divisions among the troops of his adversaries, and obtained possession, without striking a blow, of the city of Holwan, an advantage which opened the way to the very gates of Bagdad. He was here reinforced by troops sent from Khorasan under the command of Harthama b. A'yan, who was appointed leader of the war against Amin, with orders to send Tahir to Ahwaz. Tahir continued his victorious march, conquered Ahwaz, took Wasit and Madain, and pitched his camp near one of the gates of the capital, where he was rejoined by Harthama. One after the other the provinces fell away from Amin, and he soon found himself in possession of Bagdad alone. The city, though blockaded on every side, made a desperate defence for nearly two years. Ultimately the eastern part of the city fell into the hands of Tahir, and Amin, deserted by his followers, was compelled to surrender. He resolved to treat with Harthama, as he was averse to Tahir; but this step caused his ruin.

Tahir succeeded in intercepting him on his way to Harthama, and immediately ordered him to be put to death. His head was sent to Mamun (September 813). It was presented to him by his vizier, Fadl, b. Sahl, surnamed Dhu'l-Riyasatain, or " the man with two governments," because his master had committed to him both the See also:

• MINISTRY

The accession of this prince appeared likely to restore to the empire the order necessary for its prosperity. It was not so, however. The reign of Mamunthat reign in which art, science and letters, under the patronage of the caliph, threw so brilliant a lustre—had a very stormy beginning. Mamun was in no haste to remove to Bagdad, but continued to reside at Merv,. In his gratitude to Fadl b. Sahl, to whose service he owed his success, he not only chose him as prime minister of the empire, but also named his brother, Hasan b. Sahl, governor of Media, Fars, Ahwaz, Arabia and Irak. The two generals to whom he owed still more were not treated as they deserved. Harthama was ordered to return to Khorasan; Tahir was made governor of Mesopotamia and Syria, with the task of subduing Nair b. Shabath, who with numerous adherents refused submission to the caliph. The Alids seized on the elevation of Mamun as a pretext for fresh revolts. At Kufa a certain Ibn Tabataba placed an army in the field under Abu'l-Saraya, who had been a captain in the army of Harthama.

An army sent by Hasan b. Sahl was defeated, and Abu'l-Saraya, no longer content to See also:

• PLAY

Mahommed fled to Mesopotamia, but were made prisoners. The former was decapitated, the, latter was sent to Khorasan, the revolt in Arabia was quickly suppressed, and peace seemed within reach. This, however, was by no means the case. The disorder of civil war had caused a multitude of robbers and vagabonds to emerge from the purlieus of Bagdad. These ruffians proceeded to treat the capital as a conquered city, and it became necessary for all good citizens to organize them-selves into a regular See also:

• MILITIA (Fr. milice, Ger. Miliz, from Lat. miles, soldier, militia, military service)

Meanwhile, at Merv, Mamun was adopting a decision which fell like a thunderbolt on the Abbasids. In A.H. 201 (A.D. 817), under pretence of putting an end to the continual revolts of the partisans of Ali, and acting on the advice of his prime minister Fadl, he publicly designated as his successor in the Caliphate Ali ar-Rida, a son of that Musa al-Kazim who perished in the prison of Mandi, a direct descendant of Hosain, the son of Ali, and proscribed black, the colour of the Abbasids, in favour of that of the house of Ali, See also:

• GREEN, A
• GREEN, ALEXANDER HENRY (1832—1896)
• GREEN, DUFF (1791—1875)
• GREEN, JOHN RICHARD (1837—1883)
• GREEN, MATTHEW (1696-1737)
• GREEN, THOMAS HILL (1836-1882)
• GREEN, VALENTINE (1739–1813)
• GREEN, WILLIAM HENRY (.1825–1900)

Sahl, whose daughter Buran he afterwards married. Soon after the news came to him that Hasan b. Sahl had become insane. Mamun appointed an officer to act as his lieutenant, and wrote that he was coming to Bagdad in a short time. From that moment the pseudo-caliph Ibrahim found himself deserted, and was obliged to seek safety in concealment. His See also:

• PRECARIOUS

When welcoming Tahir, Mamun bade him ask for any reward he might desire. Tahir, fearing lest the caliph, not being able to endure the sight of the murderer of his brother, should change his mind towards him, contrived to get himself appointed governor of Khorasan. Like most of the great Moslem generals, pair, it is said, had conceived the project of creating an independent kingdom for himself. His death, A.H. 207 (A.D. 822), prevented its realization; but as his descendants succeeded him one after the other in the post of governor, he may be said in reality to have founded a dynasty in Khorasan. His son Abdallah b. Tahir was a special favourite of Mamun, He brought Nair b. Shabath to subjection in Mesopotamia, and overcame by great ability a very dangerous rebellion in Egypt. When he returned thence, the caliph gave him the choice between the government of Khorasan and that of the northern provinces, where he would have to combat Babak the Khorramite. Abdallah chose the former (see below, § 8). The pseudo-caliph, Ibrahim, who, since Mamun's entry into Bagdad, had led a wandering life, was eventually arrested.

But Mamun generously pardoned him, as well as Facjl b. Rabi', the chief .See also:

• PROMOTER

218 (A.D. 833) a new edict appeared by which all See also:

• JUDGES, THE BOOK OF

See also:

• PATTON, FRANCIS LANDEY (1843- )

His accession, however, met at first with active opposition in the army, where a powerful party demanded that Abbas should take the place of his father. Abbas, however, publicly renounced all pretension to the Caliphate, and the whole army accepted Motasim, who immediately had the fortifications of Tyana demolished and hastened back to Bagdad, where he made his public entry on the 2oth of September 833. Motasirn wanted officers for his bodyguard. Immediately after his coming to Bagdad, he bought all the Turkish slaves living there who had distinguished themselves. Among them were Ashnas, Itakh, Wasif, Simi, all of whom later became men of great influence. The guard was composed of an undisciplined . body of soldiers, who, moreover, held in open contempt the religious precepts of Islam. Tired of the excesses committed by these Turks, the people of Bagdad beat or killed as many of them as they could lay hands on, and Motasim, not daring to act with severity against either his guard or the citizens, took the course of quitting the city. Having bought in 834 territories at Samarra, a small place situated a few leagues above Bagdad, he caused a new residence to be built there, whose name, which could be interpreted " Unhappy is he who See also:

• SEES

When Motasim came back to Bagdad, after the death of his brother, he found the people in great distress, their supply of dates from Basra having been cut off by the Zott, and resolved to put them down with all means. After seven months of vigorous resistance, they at last yielded on condition of safety of life and property. In January 835 the Zott in their national See also:

• COSTUME
• COSTUME (through the Fr. costume, from Ital. costume, Late Lat. costuma, a contracted form of Lat. consuetudinem, ace. of consuetudo, custom, habit, manner, &c.)

During the civil war their power was steadily increasing, and spread not only over Azerbaijan, but also over Media (Jabal) and Khorasan. The numerous efforts of Mamun to put them down had been all in vain, and they were now in See also:

• ALLIANCE

The unfortunate prince was arrested and died soon after in prison. The conspirators were killed, many of them with great cruelty. (For the campaign see See also:

• BURY
• BURY, JOHN BAGNELL (1861- )

During the reign of the Omayyads a few large fortunes were made thus. But with the increasing luxury after Mansur, the thirst for money became universal, and the number of honest officials lessened fast. See also:

• CONFISCATION (from Lat. confiscare, to consign to the fiscus, or imperial treasury)

3° Reeks, v., 1888.employed with success by Harun al-Rashid after the disgrace of the Barmecides, and occasionally by his successors, but Wathiq was the first to imprison high officials and fine them heavily on the specific charge of peculation. The caliph also shared Mamun's intolerance on the doctrinal question of the uncreated Koran. He carried his zeal to such a point that, on the occasion of an exchange of Greek against Moslem prisoners in 845, he refused to receive those Moslem captives who would not declare their belief that the Koran was created. The orthodox in Bagdad prepared to revolt, but were discovered in time by the governor of the city. The ringleader Ahmad b. Nasr al-Khoza i was seized and brought to Samarra, where Wathiq beheaded him in person. The only other event of importance in the reign of Wathiq was a rising of the Arabian tribes in the environs of Medina, which the Turkish general Bogha with difficulty repressed. When he reached Samarra with his prisoners, Wathiq had just died (August 846). That the predominance of the praetorians was already established is clear from the fact that Wathiq gave to two Turkish generals, Ash nas and Itakh respectively, the titular but lucrative supreme government of all the western and all the eastern provinces. In his days the soldiery at Samarra was increased by a large division of Africans (Maghribis). ro. Reign of Motawakkil.—As Wathiq had appointed no successor the vizier Mahommed Zayyat had cast his eye on his son Mahommed, who was still a child, but the generals Wasif and Itakh, seconded by the upper See also:

• CADI (g¢di)

The new caliph hated the vizier Zayyat, who had opposed his election, and had him seized and killed with the same atrocious cruelty which the vizier himself had inflicted on others. His possessions, and those of others who had opposed the caliph's election, were confiscated. But the arrogance of Itakh, to whom he owed his Caliphate, became insufferable. So, with the perfidy of his race, the caliph took him off his guard, and had him imprisoned and killed at Bagdad. He was succeeded by Wasif. About this time an impostor named Mahmud b. Faraj had set himself up as a prophet, claiming to be Dhu'l-Qarnain (See also:

• ALEXANDER
• ALEXANDER (1461-1506)
• ALEXANDER (ALEXANDER OF BATTENBERG) (1857-1893)
• ALEXANDER (ALEXANDER OsxENOVici) (1876-1903)
• ALEXANDER, ARCHIBALD (1772—1851)
• ALEXANDER, FRANCIS (1800—1881)
• ALEXANDER, GEORGE (1858— )
• ALEXANDER, JOHN WHITE (1856- )
• ALEXANDER, JOSEPH ADDISON (18o9—186o)
• ALEXANDER, SIR JAMES EDWARD (1803—1885)
• ALEXANDER, WILLIAM (1824— )
• ALEXANDER, WILLIAM LINDSAY (1808—1884)

His son Mahommed was put in his place till 851, when all the members of the family were arrested. They released themselves by paying the enormous sum of 240,000 dinars and 16,000,000 dirhems, which constituted nearly their whole See also:

• FORTUNE, ROBERT (1813-188o)

He escaped afterwards, rose in rebellion at Kufa in 864, and was killed in battle. It is reported that the caliph even permitted one of his buffoons to turn the person of Ali into mockery. In the year 848-849 Ibn Ba'ith, who had rendered good service in the war against Babak, but had for some cause been arrested, fled from Samarra to Marand in Azerbaijan and revolted. Not without great difficulty Bogha, the Turkish general, succeeded in taking the town and making Ibn Ba`ith prisoner. He was brought before Motawakkil and died in prison. In the year 237 (A.D. 851-852) a revolt broke out in Armenia. Notwithstanding a vigorous resistance, Bogha subdued and pacified the province in the following year. In that same year, 852,-853i the Byzantines made a descent on Egypt with 300 vessels. `Anbasa the governor had ordered the garrison of See also:

• DAMIETTA

The annual raids of Moslems and Greeks in the border districts of Asia Minor were attended with alternate successes, though on the whole the Greeks had the upper hand. In 856 they penetrated as far as Amid (Diarbekr), and returned with ro,000 prisoners. But in the year 8S9 the Greeks.. suffered a heavy defeat with losses of men and See also:

• CATTLE (Norman Fr. catel, from Late Lat. capitale, wealth or property, a word applied in the feudal system to movable property and particularly to live stock, and surviving in its wider meaning as " chattel " or " chattle ")

In 858 Motawakkil, hoping to escape from the arrogant patronage of Wasif, who had taken the place of Itakh as head of the Turkish guard, transferred his residence to Damascus. But the place did not agree with him, and he returned to Samarra, where he caused a magnificent quarter to be built 3 M. from the city, which he called after his own name Ja`fariya, and on which he spent more than two millions of dinars (about £900,000). He found the means by following the example of his predecessor in depriving many officials of their ill-gotten gains. He contrived to enrol in his service nearly 12,000 men, for the greater part Arabs, in order to crush the Turks. In the year of his elevation to the Caliphate, he had regulated the succession to the empire in his own family by designating as future caliphs his three sons, al-Montasir billah (" he who seeks help in God "), al-Mo'tazz billah (" he whose strength is of God "), and al-Mowayyad billah (" he who is assisted by God "). By and by he conceived an aversion to his eldest son, and wished to supplant him by Motazz, Dinars " in the son of his favourite wife Qabiha. The day had been fixed on 1 for " dirhems." 49 which Montasir, Waif and several other Turkish generals were to be assassinated. But Waif and Montasir had been informed, and resolved to anticipate him. In the night before, Shawwal A.H. 247 (December 86r), Motawakkil, after one of his wonted orgies, was murdered, together with his confidant, Fath b. Khagan. The official report, promulgated by his successor, was that Fad.' b.

Khagan had murdered his master and had been punished for it by death.