Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa
Encyclopedia
Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr (عبد العزيز بن موسى) was the first governor of Al-Andalus
, in modern-day Spain
and Portugal
. He was the son of Musa ibn Nusayr, the governor of Ifriqiya
. ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr had a long history of political and military involvement along with his father.
general, Tariq
, in the Umayyad conquest of Hispania
. It has been speculated that Musa ibn Nusayr and his son, both Arab
s, did not want the glory of conquest to be claimed by a Berber. The conquest of the area was progressing smoothly under Tariq, Musa ibn Nusayr and ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr. With the success of the conquest apparent, Tariq and Musa ibn Nusayr were called back to Syria
by the Umayyad
caliph
, Sulayman, in 714. ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr was given the governorship of Al-Andalus by his father. Musa ibn Nusayr, upon his return to Damascus
, fell into disfavor with the caliph and ended his days in Medina as an “old and broken man.” ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr outlived his son, ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa.
as his capital city. Seville, located in the modern day province of Andalucía in southern Spain on the Guadalquivir
River. Under ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr’s leadership after the departure of his father and Tariq, Islamic power, in what came to be known as Al-Andalus, expanded into modern day Portugal
in the west and the sub-Pyrenean
regions in the north. In one of the newly conquered lands, ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr signed a treaty with the Gothic lord of Murcia
, Theodemir. His name in Arabic is Tudmir. The treaty, known as the Treaty of Tudmir, gave Visigothic Christians the right to continue to practice their religion, as long as they paid a special tax and remained loyal to their Muslim overlords.
, the wife of the last Visigothic king
, Roderic
. Egilon took the name Umm ‘Asim upon her marriage and conversion to Islam. In his marriage to Egilon, ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr set a trend of espousing local Visigothic women, due to the lack of Arab and Berber women. This lack was because Arab and Berber women did not accompany the army into Al-Andalus at the beginning of the conquest of Spain. The practice of taking conquered women as wives almost became a general rule for conquering Muslim
leaders. Egilon’s influence over ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr was not common. Some felt that she held too much influence and sway over ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr. Egilon coaxed ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr to wear a crown, and lower entrance ways to promote veneration of him and people bowing to him. Egilon even had ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr make the entrance to his audience chamber lower, so that upon entering, he would be bowing to her. These links to the Visigothic royalty and the influence of Egilon led to the misconception and rumors that ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr had converted to Christianity
. These rumors even reached the Umayyad Caliph Sulaymān in Damascus. Troubled by these rumors, the caliph ordered ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr to be killed.
. However, Ibn Khaldun
reports the order was received and carried out by Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri
The caliph feared that he wanted to establish his own personal monarchy in Al-Andalus, separate from the Umayyad caliphate based in Damascus. Dates of his assassination vary between the years 715 , 716 , or 718 . ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa was beheaded in the monastery of Santa Rufina, used during the time as a mosque. After his death, ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa’s head was brought to Damascus and displayed publicly to an audience where the caliph knew that his father, Ibn Musa ibn Nusayr, was in attendance.
‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr was succeeded by his cousin, Ayyub ibn Habib al-Lakhmi
, who is thought to have played a role in his assassination. His tenure as governor did not last long and for a period of forty years following his assassination, Al-Andalus was filled with chaos and turmoil. Rival Arab factions continuously fought to gain power, and also to expand Islamic control in the area. Governors were appointed or chosen, but there were often deposed by rival groups or by the Umayyad caliph in Damascus. This pattern continued until 758, when an Umayyad caliphate was established in Córdoba
. Islamic power remained in the region until 1492, when Ferdinand
and Isabella
conquered the Islamic kingdom of Granada
.
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims , at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries...
, in modern-day Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
. He was the son of Musa ibn Nusayr, the governor of Ifriqiya
Ifriqiya
In medieval history, Ifriqiya or Ifriqiyah was the area comprising the coastal regions of what are today western Libya, Tunisia, and eastern Algeria. This area included what had been the Roman province of Africa, whose name it inherited....
. ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr had a long history of political and military involvement along with his father.
Origins of Power
‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr accompanied his father in 712 to aid the BerberBerber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
general, Tariq
Tariq
Tariq is an Arabic male given name, common in the Middle East, Central Asia and South Asia.-Etymology:...
, in the Umayyad conquest of Hispania
Umayyad conquest of Hispania
The Umayyad conquest of Hispania is the initial Islamic Ummayad Caliphate's conquest, between 711 and 718, of the Christian Visigothic Kingdom of Hispania, centered in the Iberian Peninsula, which was known to them under the Arabic name al-Andalus....
. It has been speculated that Musa ibn Nusayr and his son, both Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
s, did not want the glory of conquest to be claimed by a Berber. The conquest of the area was progressing smoothly under Tariq, Musa ibn Nusayr and ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr. With the success of the conquest apparent, Tariq and Musa ibn Nusayr were called back to Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
by the Umayyad
Umayyad
The Umayyad Caliphate was the second of the four major Arab caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. It was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty, whose name derives from Umayya ibn Abd Shams, the great-grandfather of the first Umayyad caliph. Although the Umayyad family originally came from the...
caliph
Caliph
The Caliph is the head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the ruler of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah. It is a transcribed version of the Arabic word which means "successor" or "representative"...
, Sulayman, in 714. ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr was given the governorship of Al-Andalus by his father. Musa ibn Nusayr, upon his return to Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, fell into disfavor with the caliph and ended his days in Medina as an “old and broken man.” ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr outlived his son, ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa.
Conquest and reign of Al-Andalus
‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr chose the town of SevilleSeville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
as his capital city. Seville, located in the modern day province of Andalucía in southern Spain on the Guadalquivir
Guadalquivir
The Guadalquivir is the fifth longest river in the Iberian peninsula and the second longest river to be its whole length in Spain. The Guadalquivir is 657 kilometers long and drains an area of about 58,000 square kilometers...
River. Under ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr’s leadership after the departure of his father and Tariq, Islamic power, in what came to be known as Al-Andalus, expanded into modern day Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
in the west and the sub-Pyrenean
Pyrenean
The term Pyrenean refers to things of or from the Pyrenees mountain range. See:*Pyrenees, the mountain range dividing France and Spain*Pyrenean Shepherd or Pyrenean Mountain Dog, dog breeds sometimes shortened to Pyrenean...
regions in the north. In one of the newly conquered lands, ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr signed a treaty with the Gothic lord of Murcia
Murcia
-History:It is widely believed that Murcia's name is derived from the Latin words of Myrtea or Murtea, meaning land of Myrtle , although it may also be a derivation of the word Murtia, which would mean Murtius Village...
, Theodemir. His name in Arabic is Tudmir. The treaty, known as the Treaty of Tudmir, gave Visigothic Christians the right to continue to practice their religion, as long as they paid a special tax and remained loyal to their Muslim overlords.
Personal life and influences
‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr remained in power and even married the widow EgilonEgilona
Egilona was the wife of the last Visigothic King Roderic in the early years of the 8th Century during the Muslim invasion of the Iberian Peninsula. When he died in the Battle of Guadalete she was captured by the Moorish leader Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa...
, the wife of the last Visigothic king
Visigothic Kingdom
The Visigothic Kingdom was a kingdom which occupied southwestern France and the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th to 8th century AD. One of the Germanic successor states to the Western Roman Empire, it was originally created by the settlement of the Visigoths under King Wallia in the province of...
, Roderic
Roderic
Ruderic was the Visigothic King of Hispania for a brief period between 710 and 712. He is famous in legend as "the last king of the Goths"...
. Egilon took the name Umm ‘Asim upon her marriage and conversion to Islam. In his marriage to Egilon, ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr set a trend of espousing local Visigothic women, due to the lack of Arab and Berber women. This lack was because Arab and Berber women did not accompany the army into Al-Andalus at the beginning of the conquest of Spain. The practice of taking conquered women as wives almost became a general rule for conquering Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
leaders. Egilon’s influence over ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr was not common. Some felt that she held too much influence and sway over ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr. Egilon coaxed ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr to wear a crown, and lower entrance ways to promote veneration of him and people bowing to him. Egilon even had ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr make the entrance to his audience chamber lower, so that upon entering, he would be bowing to her. These links to the Visigothic royalty and the influence of Egilon led to the misconception and rumors that ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr had converted to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
. These rumors even reached the Umayyad Caliph Sulaymān in Damascus. Troubled by these rumors, the caliph ordered ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr to be killed.
Assassination and Al-Andalus after
Sources differ on the year, but ‘Abd al-Aziz Ibn Musa ibn Nusayr was assassinated by Ziyad ibn ‘Udhra al-Balawi on order of the Caliph SulaymanSulayman ibn Abd al-Malik
Sulayman bin Abd al-Malik was an Umayyad caliph who ruled from 715 until 717. His father was Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, and he was a younger brother of the previous caliph, al-Walid I.-Early years:...
. However, Ibn Khaldun
Ibn Khaldun
Ibn Khaldūn or Ibn Khaldoun was an Arab Tunisian historiographer and historian who is often viewed as one of the forerunners of modern historiography, sociology and economics...
reports the order was received and carried out by Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri
Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri
Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri was an Arab military commander of the illustrious Fihrid family who played an important role in the early history of Ifriqiya and al-Andalus .-Biography:...
The caliph feared that he wanted to establish his own personal monarchy in Al-Andalus, separate from the Umayyad caliphate based in Damascus. Dates of his assassination vary between the years 715 , 716 , or 718 . ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa was beheaded in the monastery of Santa Rufina, used during the time as a mosque. After his death, ‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa’s head was brought to Damascus and displayed publicly to an audience where the caliph knew that his father, Ibn Musa ibn Nusayr, was in attendance.
‘Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa ibn Nusayr was succeeded by his cousin, Ayyub ibn Habib al-Lakhmi
Ayyub ibn Habib al-Lakhmi
Ayyub ibn Habib al-Lakhmi he was the 5th Umayyad Governor of Al-Andalus who succeeded his cousin Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa.He ruled for only 6 months,he moved to Cordoba and made it the Capital of Muslim Iberia instead of Toledo...
, who is thought to have played a role in his assassination. His tenure as governor did not last long and for a period of forty years following his assassination, Al-Andalus was filled with chaos and turmoil. Rival Arab factions continuously fought to gain power, and also to expand Islamic control in the area. Governors were appointed or chosen, but there were often deposed by rival groups or by the Umayyad caliph in Damascus. This pattern continued until 758, when an Umayyad caliphate was established in Córdoba
Córdoba, Spain
-History:The first trace of human presence in the area are remains of a Neanderthal Man, dating to c. 32,000 BC. In the 8th century BC, during the ancient Tartessos period, a pre-urban settlement existed. The population gradually learned copper and silver metallurgy...
. Islamic power remained in the region until 1492, when Ferdinand
Ferdinand
Ferdinand is a Germanic male given name composed of the words for "prepared"/"protection"/"safety"/"peace" and "journey"/"boldness"/"recklessness"...
and Isabella
Isabella
Isabella may refer to:* 210 Isabella, an asteroid* Isabella , an American hybrid grape variety* Isabelline or Isabella, a greyish-yellow or light buff colour* Isabella piercing, a female genital piercing- United States :...
conquered the Islamic kingdom of Granada
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
.