Balj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri
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Balj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri (sometime surnamed al-Qasi) (?- August, 742
) ; was a Syrian Arab military commander in North Africa
and Iberia
, and briefly ruler of al-Andalus
in 742.
Balj ibn Bishr was the nephew of Kulthum ibn Iyad al-Qasi
, who had been appointed by Caliph Hisham as governor of Ifriqiya
in 741 and charged with crushing the Great Berber Revolt
in North Africa. Kulthum was dispatched with a fresh Arab army of 30,000, raised from the regiments (junds) of the east - specifically, Damascus, Jordan, Qinnasrin
, Emesa (Hims), Palestine and Egypt. Despite its significant Egyptian contingent, historians frequently refer to them collectively as the 'Syrian' junds. Balj ibn Bishr came as his uncle's lieutenant and, by grant of Caliph Hisham, his designated successor. Balj was given military command of the elite Syrian cavalry.
Balj ibn Bishr led the vanguard that arrived in Kairouan
in the Summer of 741. In haughty spirits, Balj and his fellow Syrian commanders alienated their Ifriqiyan hosts by billeting troops, requisitioning supplies, and paying little or no respect to local authorities. Balj's behavior hardly improved when the Syrian expedition made junction with the remnant of the Ifriqiyan army near Tlemcen
. His high-handed manner provoked a quarrel with the Ifriqiyan commander Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri
that nearly led to blows between the two armies, before his uncle arrived and defused the situation.
(Ancient pre-Islamic tribal rivalries also played their part, as Ifriqiyan (and Andalusian) Arabs were largely of south Arabian ('Kalbid' or 'Yemenite
') tribal origin, while the Syrian junds were drawn from north Arabian ('Qaysid
', 'Mudhar
ite' or 'Syrian') tribes. Balj ibn Bishr, by all accounts something of a Qaysid chauvinist, played up the difference.)
The bad feeling generated between the armies is partly to blame for the subsequent defeat of the joint Syrian-Ifriqiyan army by the Berber rebels at the Battle of Bagdoura
(near modern Fes
). Two-thirds of the Syrian army, including his uncle, Kulthum ibn Iyad, were either killed or captured. Balj ibn Bishr took charge of the remaining 10,000 Syrians and fled north towards the coast, the Berbers hot in pursuit.
Barricading themselves in at Ceuta
, Balj ibn Bishr tried to secure sea passage for his army. But the Andalusian governor Abd el-Malik ibn Qatan al-Fihri, wary the Syrians might upset his delicate domestic balance, not only refused the Syrians passage across the water to al-Andalus, but went so far as to forbid his Andalusian subjects from providing any relief to the besieged Syrians at Ceuta. It is reported that one Arab merchant who surreptitiously dispatched a couple of grain boats to feed the starving Syrians was publicly tortured and executed by the governor's command.
At length, facing a Berber uprising in his own hinterlands, the governor relented and allowed the Syrians to cross, but forced Balj ibn Bishr to sign on to a treaty with strict terms - the Syrians were to assist the Andalusian Arabs put down the Berber rebellion, but return to North Africa within a year of the Berber matter being settled. Hostages were handed over to ensure Balj's compliance.
Crossing over in early 742, the Syrians performed as requested, and swiftly helped the Andalusians crush the three main Berber rebel armies in a series of encounters - at Medina-Sidonia
, Córdoba
and, finally, Toledo
.
But no sooner had the Berber armies been defeated that the governor Ibn Qatan began pressing Balj on the point of the Syrian departure back to Africa. Balj ibn Bishr's patience with the governor broke. Invoking his caliphal credentials as designated successor to his uncle, the late Kulthum ibn Iyad, Balj noted he was legally the current governor of Ifriqiya
and consequently overlord of al-Andalus
. He promptly deposed Ibn Qatan and declared himself governor of al-Andalus
. Avenging the punishment of the good Andalusian who had relieved them at Ceuta, Balj had the elderly Ibn Qatan publicly tortured to death.
The reaction was not long in coming. Rallied by Qattan and Umayya, the sons of the late Fihrid governor, Andalusian Arabs took up arms against Balj ibn Bishr and the Syrian junds. The Syrians delivered a decisive defeat upon the Andalusians at the Battle of Aqua Portora, outside of Córdoba on 6 August, 742, but Balj ibn Bishr was mortally wounded in the process and died two days later. He was succeeded by his lieutenant and designated successor Thalaba ibn Salama al-Amili
.
The chronicler Ibn al-Khatam asserts Balj ibn Bishr was killed in the battle by Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib al-Fihri, the future ruler of Ifriqiya, who had accompanied the Syrians to al-Andalus, but defected to the Andalusians upon the execution of the Fihrid governor. But this is likely confusion with Abd al-Rahman ibn al-Qama al-Lakhmi, the Andalusian governor of Narbonne
, who is reported elsewhere to have, in the heat of battle, as his army was falling apart, sought out Balj amongst the Syrian cavalry and struck him with his spear.
742
Year 742 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 742 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Asia :* Chinese poet Li Po is presented before the...
) ; was a Syrian Arab military commander in North Africa
Maghreb
The Maghreb is the region of Northwest Africa, west of Egypt. It includes five countries: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Mauritania and the disputed territory of Western Sahara...
and Iberia
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...
, and briefly ruler of al-Andalus
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 742.
Balj ibn Bishr was the nephew of Kulthum ibn Iyad al-Qasi
Kulthum ibn Iyad al-Qasi
Kulthum ibn Iyad al-Qasi was an Umayyad governor of Kairouan, Ifriqiya for only a few months, from February to October, 741....
, who had been appointed by Caliph Hisham as 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....
in 741 and charged with crushing the Great Berber Revolt
Berber Revolt
The Great Berber Revolt of 739/740-743 AD took place during the reign of the Umayyad Caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik and marked the first successful secession from the Arab caliphate...
in North Africa. Kulthum was dispatched with a fresh Arab army of 30,000, raised from the regiments (junds) of the east - specifically, Damascus, Jordan, Qinnasrin
Qinnasrin
Qinnasrin , was a historical town in northern Syria. It gained fame as an important religious and cultural centre of Syriac Christians before the coming of Islamic conquests....
, Emesa (Hims), Palestine and Egypt. Despite its significant Egyptian contingent, historians frequently refer to them collectively as the 'Syrian' junds. Balj ibn Bishr came as his uncle's lieutenant and, by grant of Caliph Hisham, his designated successor. Balj was given military command of the elite Syrian cavalry.
Balj ibn Bishr led the vanguard that arrived in Kairouan
Kairouan
Kairouan , also known as Kirwan or al-Qayrawan , is the capital of the Kairouan Governorate in Tunisia. Referred to as the Islamic Cultural Capital, it is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The city was founded by the Arabs around 670...
in the Summer of 741. In haughty spirits, Balj and his fellow Syrian commanders alienated their Ifriqiyan hosts by billeting troops, requisitioning supplies, and paying little or no respect to local authorities. Balj's behavior hardly improved when the Syrian expedition made junction with the remnant of the Ifriqiyan army near Tlemcen
Tlemcen
Tlemcen is a town in Northwestern Algeria, and the capital of the province of the same name. It is located inland in the center of a region known for its olive plantations and vineyards...
. His high-handed manner provoked a quarrel with the Ifriqiyan commander 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:...
that nearly led to blows between the two armies, before his uncle arrived and defused the situation.
(Ancient pre-Islamic tribal rivalries also played their part, as Ifriqiyan (and Andalusian) Arabs were largely of south Arabian ('Kalbid' or 'Yemenite
Yemenite
Yemenite may refer to:*Yemenite, a person from Yemen*Yemeni Arabic, dialect of the Arabic language*Yemenite step, an Israeli folk dance step originating from Yemen*Yemenite Jews...
') tribal origin, while the Syrian junds were drawn from north Arabian ('Qaysid
Qais
Qais , also spelled Qays or Kais, were an Arabian tribe branched from the Mudhar Adnani groups.-Main branches of Qais:The main branches of the Qais tribes are the Banu Sulaym, Hawazin and the Banu Ghatafan. These three main groups remained in the Eastern Hejaz until the 7th century...
', 'Mudhar
Mudhar
Mudhar or Mudar , is one of two major branches of the "North arabian" tribes, the other branch being Rabi'ah....
ite' or 'Syrian') tribes. Balj ibn Bishr, by all accounts something of a Qaysid chauvinist, played up the difference.)
The bad feeling generated between the armies is partly to blame for the subsequent defeat of the joint Syrian-Ifriqiyan army by the Berber rebels at the Battle of Bagdoura
Battle of Bagdoura
The Battle of Bagdoura was a decisive confrontation in the Berber Revolt in late 741 CE. It was a follow-up to the Battle of the Nobles the previous year, and resulted in a major Berber victory over the Arabs by the Sebou river...
(near modern Fes
Fes
Fes or Fez is the second largest city of Morocco, after Casablanca, with a population of approximately 1 million . It is the capital of the Fès-Boulemane region....
). Two-thirds of the Syrian army, including his uncle, Kulthum ibn Iyad, were either killed or captured. Balj ibn Bishr took charge of the remaining 10,000 Syrians and fled north towards the coast, the Berbers hot in pursuit.
Barricading themselves in at Ceuta
Ceuta
Ceuta is an autonomous city of Spain and an exclave located on the north coast of North Africa surrounded by Morocco. Separated from the Iberian peninsula by the Strait of Gibraltar, Ceuta lies on the border of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta along with the other Spanish...
, Balj ibn Bishr tried to secure sea passage for his army. But the Andalusian governor Abd el-Malik ibn Qatan al-Fihri, wary the Syrians might upset his delicate domestic balance, not only refused the Syrians passage across the water to al-Andalus, but went so far as to forbid his Andalusian subjects from providing any relief to the besieged Syrians at Ceuta. It is reported that one Arab merchant who surreptitiously dispatched a couple of grain boats to feed the starving Syrians was publicly tortured and executed by the governor's command.
At length, facing a Berber uprising in his own hinterlands, the governor relented and allowed the Syrians to cross, but forced Balj ibn Bishr to sign on to a treaty with strict terms - the Syrians were to assist the Andalusian Arabs put down the Berber rebellion, but return to North Africa within a year of the Berber matter being settled. Hostages were handed over to ensure Balj's compliance.
Crossing over in early 742, the Syrians performed as requested, and swiftly helped the Andalusians crush the three main Berber rebel armies in a series of encounters - at Medina-Sidonia
Medina-Sidonia
Medina-Sidonia is a city and municipality in the province of Cádiz in the autonomous community of Andalusia, southern Spain. It is considered by some to be the oldest city in Europe, used as a military defense location due to its elevated location. Locals are known as Asidonenses...
, 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...
and, finally, Toledo
Toledo, Spain
Toledo's Alcázar became renowned in the 19th and 20th centuries as a military academy. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 its garrison was famously besieged by Republican forces.-Economy:...
.
But no sooner had the Berber armies been defeated that the governor Ibn Qatan began pressing Balj on the point of the Syrian departure back to Africa. Balj ibn Bishr's patience with the governor broke. Invoking his caliphal credentials as designated successor to his uncle, the late Kulthum ibn Iyad, Balj noted he was legally the current 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....
and consequently overlord of al-Andalus
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...
. He promptly deposed Ibn Qatan and declared himself governor of al-Andalus
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...
. Avenging the punishment of the good Andalusian who had relieved them at Ceuta, Balj had the elderly Ibn Qatan publicly tortured to death.
The reaction was not long in coming. Rallied by Qattan and Umayya, the sons of the late Fihrid governor, Andalusian Arabs took up arms against Balj ibn Bishr and the Syrian junds. The Syrians delivered a decisive defeat upon the Andalusians at the Battle of Aqua Portora, outside of Córdoba on 6 August, 742, but Balj ibn Bishr was mortally wounded in the process and died two days later. He was succeeded by his lieutenant and designated successor Thalaba ibn Salama al-Amili
Thalaba ibn Salama al-Amili
Tha'laba ibn Salama al-Amili was a Arab military commander in Jordan, North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, and briefly ruler of al-Andalus from August 742 to May 743....
.
The chronicler Ibn al-Khatam asserts Balj ibn Bishr was killed in the battle by Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib al-Fihri, the future ruler of Ifriqiya, who had accompanied the Syrians to al-Andalus, but defected to the Andalusians upon the execution of the Fihrid governor. But this is likely confusion with Abd al-Rahman ibn al-Qama al-Lakhmi, the Andalusian governor of Narbonne
Narbonne
Narbonne is a commune in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Once a prosperous port, it is now located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea...
, who is reported elsewhere to have, in the heat of battle, as his army was falling apart, sought out Balj amongst the Syrian cavalry and struck him with his spear.
Sources
- Al-Maqqari, trans. 1840-43, The History of the Mohammedan dynasties in Spain, v.2, London: Royal Asiatic Society.
- Kennedy, Hugh (1996) Muslim Spain and Portugal: A Political History of al-Andalus, New York and London: Longman.
- Lévi-Provençal, E. (1950) Histoire de l'Espagne musulmane, Tome 1, 1999 ed., Paris: Larose.
- Mercier, E. (1888) Histoire de l'Afrique septentrionale, v. 1, Paris: Leroux. Repr. Elibron Classics, 2005.
- Taha, Abd al-Wahid Dhannun (1989) The Muslim conquest and settlement of North Africa and Spain, London, Routledge.
See also
- Great Berber RevoltBerber RevoltThe Great Berber Revolt of 739/740-743 AD took place during the reign of the Umayyad Caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik and marked the first successful secession from the Arab caliphate...