Berber Revolt
Encyclopedia
The Great Berber Revolt of 739/740-743 AD (122-125 AH in the Muslim calendar) took place during the reign of the Umayyad Caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik
and marked the first successful secession from the Arab caliphate (ruled from Damascus). Fired up by Kharijite puritan preachers, the Berber revolt against their Umayyad Arab rulers began in Tangiers in 740, and was led initially by Maysara al-Matghari
. The revolt soon spread through the rest of the Maghreb
(North Africa) and across the straits to al-Andalus
(Spain).
The Umayyads scrambled and managed to prevent the core of Ifriqiya
(Tunisia) and al-Andalus from falling into rebel hands. But the rest of the Maghreb was never recovered. After failing to capture the Umayyad provincial capital of Kairouan
, the Berber rebel armies dissolved, and the western Maghreb fragmented into a series of small Berber statelets, ruled by tribal chieftans and Kharijite imams.
The Berber revolt was probably the largest military setback in the reign of Caliph Hisham. From it, emerged some of the first Muslim states outside the Caliphate. It is sometimes also regarded as the beginning of Moroccan independence, as Morocco
would never again come under the rule of an eastern Caliph or any other foreign power until the 20th century.
governors in Kairouan
, Ifriqiya, who had authority over the Maghreb
(all of North Africa west of Egypt) and al-Andalus
(Spain).
From the early days of Muslim conquest of North Africa, Arab
commanders had treated non-Arab (notably Berber
) auxiliaries inconsistently, and often rather shabbily. Although Berbers had undertaken much of the fighting in the conquest in Spain
, they were given a lesser share of the spoils and frequently assigned to the harsher duties (e.g. Berbers were thrown into the vanguard while Arab forces were kept in the back; they were assigned garrison duty on the more troubled frontiers). Although the Ifriqiyan Arab governor Musa ibn Nusair had cultivated his Berber lieutenants (most famously, Tariq ibn Ziyad
), his successors, notably Yazid ibn Abi Muslim
, had treated their Berber forces particularly poorly.
Most grievously, Arab governors continued to levy extraordinary dhimmi
taxation (the jizyah and kharaj
) and slave-tributes on non-Arab populations that had converted to Islam, in direct contravention of Islamic law
. This had become particularly routine during the caliphates of Walid I and Sulayman
.
In 718, the Umayyad caliph Umar II finally forbade the levying of extraordinary taxation and slave tributes from non-Arab Muslims, defusing much of the tension. But expensive military reverses in the 720s and 730s had forced caliphal authorities to look for innovative ways to replenish their treasuries. During the caliphate of Hisham from 724, the prohibitions were side-stepped with reinterpretations (e.g. tying the kharaj land tax to the land rather than the owner, so that lands that were at any point subject to the kharaj remained under kharaj even if currently owned by a Muslim.)
As a result, resentful Berbers grew receptive to radical Kharijite activists from the east (notably of Sufri
te and later Ibadi
te persuasion) which had begun arriving in the Maghreb in the 720s. The Kharijites preached a puritan form of Islam, promising a new political order, where all Muslims would be equal, irrespective of ethnicity or tribal status, and Islamic law would be strictly adhered to. The appeal of the Kharijite message to Berber ears allowed their activists to gradually penetrate Berber regiments and population centers. Sporadic mutinies by Berber garrisons (e.g. under Munnus in Cerdanya
, Spain, in 729-31) were put down with difficulty. One Ifriqiyan governor, Yazid ibn Abi Muslim
, who openly resumed the jizya and humiliated his Berber guard by branding their hands, was assassinated in 721.
In 734, Obeid Allah ibn al-Habhab
was appointed Umayyad governor in Kairouan, with supervisory authority over all the Maghreb (North Africa) and al-Andalus (Spain). Coming in after a period of mismanagement, Obeid Allah soon set about dynamizing the fiscal resources of the government by leaning heavily on the non-Arab populations, resuming the extraordinary taxation and slave-tribute without apologies. His deputies Oqba ibn al-Hajjaj al-Saluli in Córdoba
(Spain) and Omar ibn el-Moradi in Tangier
(Morocco) were given similar instructions. The failure of expensive expeditions into Gaul
during the period 732-737, repulsed by the Franks under Charles Martel
, only increased the tax burden. The parallel failure of the caliphal armies in the east brought no fiscal relief from Damascus
.
's instructions to extract more revenues from the Berbers, Omar ibn al-Moradi, his deputy governor in Tangiers, decided to declare the Berbers in his jurisdiction a 'conquered people' and consequently set about seizing Berber property and enslaving persons, as per the rules of conquest, the 'caliphal fifth
' was still owed to the Umayyad state (alternative accounts report he simply doubled their tribute).
This was the last straw. Inspired by the Sufri
te preachers, the North African Berber tribes of western Morocco - initially, the Ghomara
, Berghwata and Miknasa
- decided to break openly into revolt against their Arab overlords. As their leader, they chose Maysara al-Matghari
, alleged by some Arab chroniclers to be a lowly water-carrier (but more probably a high Matghara Berber chieftain).
The only question was timing. The opportunity arose sometime in late 739 or early 740 (122 AH), when the powerful Ifriqiyan general Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri
, who had recently been imposing his authority on the Sous
valley of southern Morocco, received instructions from the Kairouan governor Obeid Allah to lead a large expedition across the sea against Byzantine Sicily
. Gathering his forces, Habib ibn Abi Obeida marched the bulk of the Ifriqiyan army out of Morocco.
As soon as the mighty Habib was safely gone, Maysara assembled his coalition of Berber armies, heads shaven in the Sufri Kharijite fashion and with Qura'nic
inscriptures tied to their lances and spears, and brought them bearing down on Tangiers. The city soon fell into rebel hands and the hated governor Omar al-Moradi was killed. It was at this point that Maysara is said to have taken up the title and pretension or amir al-mu'minin
('Commander of the Faithful', or 'Caliph'). Leaving a Berber garrison in Tangier under the command of Christian convert, Abd al-Allah al-Hodeij al-Ifriqi, Maysara's army proceeded to sweep down western Morocco, swelling its ranks with new adherents, overwhelming Umayyad garrisons clear from the Straits down to the Sous
. One of the local governors killed by the Berbers was Ismail ibn Obeid Allah, the very son of the Kairouan emir.
The Berber revolt surprised the Umayyad governor in Kairouan, Obeid Allah ibn al-Habhab, who had very few troops at his disposal. He immediately dispatched messengers to his general Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri in Sicily instructing him to break off the expedition and urgently ship the Ifriqiyan army back to Africa. In the meantime, Obeid Allah assembled a cavalry-heavy column, composed of the aristocratic Arab elite of Kairouan. He placed the nobles under the command of Khalid ibn Abi Habib al-Fihri
, and dispatched it to Tangiers, to keep the Berber rebels contained, while awaiting Habib's return from Sicily. A smaller reserve army was placed under Abd al-Rahman ibn al-Mughira al-Abdari and instructed to hold Tlemcen
, in case the Berber rebel army should break through the column and try to drive towards Kairouan.
Maysara's Berber forces encountered the vanguard Ifrqiyian column of Khalid ibn Abi Habib somewhere in the outskirts of Tangiers After a brief skirmish with the Arab column, Maysara abruptly ordered the Berber armies to fall back to Tangier. The Arab cavalry commander Khalid ibn Abi Habiba did not give pursuit, but just held his line south of Tangier, blockading the Berber-held city, while awaiting the reinforcements from Habib's Sicilian expedition.
In this breathing space, the Berber rebels got reorganized and undertook an internal coup. The Berber tribal leaders swiftly deposed (and executed) Maysara and elected the Zenata
Berber chieftain, Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati
as the new Berber 'caliph'. The reasons for Maysara's fall remain obscure. Possibly the sudden cowardice shown before the Arab cavalry column proved him military unfit, possibly because the puritan Sufrite preachers found a flaw in the piety of his character, or maybe simply because the Zenata tribal chieftains, being closer to the Ifriqiyan frontline, felt they should be the ones leading the rebellion.
The new Berber leader Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati opted to immediately attack the idling Ifriqiyan column before they could be reinforced. The Berber rebels under Khalid ibn Hamid overwhelmed and annihilated the Arab cavalry of Khalid ibn Abi Habiba in an encounter known as the Battle of the Nobles
, on account of the veritable massacre of the cream of the Ifriqiyan Arab nobility. This is tentatively dated around c. October–November, 740.
The immediate Arab reaction to the disaster shows just how unexpected this reversal was. Upon the first news of the defeat of the nobles, the reserve army of Ibn al-Mughira in Tlemcen fell into a panic. Seeing Sufrite preachers everywhere in the city, the Umayyad commander ordered his nervous Arab troops to conduct a series of round-ups in Tlemcen, several of which ended in indiscriminate massacres. This provoked a massive popular uprising in the hitherto-quiet city. The city's largely Berber population quickly drove out the Umayyad troops. The frontline of the Berber revolt now leaped to the middle Maghreb (Algeria
).
The Sicilian expeditionary army of Habib ibn Abi Obeida arrived too late to prevent the massacre of the nobles. Realizing they were in no position to take on the Berber army by themselves, they retreated to Tlemcen, to gather the reserves, only to find that city too was now in disarray. There, Habib encountered Musa ibn Abi Khalid, an Umayyad captain who had bravely stayed behind in the vicinity of Tlemcen gathering what loyal forces he could find. The state of panic and confusion was such that Habib ibn Abi Obeida decided to blame the guiltless captain for the entire mess and cut off one of his hands and one of his legs in punishment.
Habib ibn Abi Obeida entrenched what remained of the Ifriqiyan army in the vicinity of Tlemcen (perhaps as far back as Tahert
), and called upon Kairouan for reinforcements. The request was forwarded to Damascus
.
Caliph Hisham, hearing the shocking news, is said to have exclaimed: "By God, I will most certainly rage against them with an Arab rage, and I will send against them an army whose beginning is where they are and whose end is where I am!"
Nonetheless,the news of the Berber victory in Morocco echoed through Spain. Berbers heavily outnumbered Arabs in al-Andalus. Fearing the Berber garrisons in their own lands might take inspiration from their Moroccan brethren, the Andalusian Arab elite quickly deposed Obeid Allah's deputy, Oqba ibn al-Hajjaj al-Saluli, in January 741 and reinstated his predecessor, Abd al-Malik ibn Qatan al-Fihri, a more popular figure among local Arabs and Berbers alike.
to replace the disgraced Obeid Allah as governor in Ifriqiya. Kulthum was to be accompanied by fresh Arab army of 30,000 - 27,000 raised from the regiments (junds) of Greater Syria
and an additional 3,000 to be picked up in Egypt
. Caliph Hisham appointed Kulthum's nephew Balj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri
as his lieutenant and designated successor, and the Jordanian commander Thalaba ibn Salama al-Amili
as his second successor (should tragedy befall the prior two).
The elite Syrian cavalry under Balj ibn Bishr, which had moved ahead of the bulk of the forces, was the first to arrive in Kairouan in the Summer of 741. Their brief stay was not a happy one. The Syrians arrived in haughty spirits and quarreled with the Kairouan city authorities, who suspicious, had given them a rather cool reception. Interpreting it as ingratitude, the Syrian barons imposed themselves on the city, billeting troops and requisitioning supplies without regard to local authorities or priorities.
(It is pertinent to note that the members of the Syrian expedition were of different tribal stock than the Arabs they came to save. The early Arab colonists of Ifriqiya and al-Andalus had been drawn largely from tribes of south Arabian origin (known as Kalbid or 'Yemenite
' tribes), whereas the Syrian junds were mostly of north Arabian tribes (Qaysid
or Mudhar
ite, or 'Syrian' tribes). The ancient and deep pre-Islamic tribal rivalry between Qaysid and Yemenite found itself invoked in repeated quarrels between the earlier colonists and the arriving junds.)
Moving slower with the bulk of the forces, Kulthum ibn Iyad himself did not enter Kairouan, but merely dispatched a message assigning the government of the city to Abd al-Rahman ibn Oqba al-Ghaffari, the qadi
of Ifriqiya. Collecting the Syrian vanguard, Kulthum hurried along to make junction with the remaining Ifriqiyan forces (some 40,000) of Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri holding ground in the vicinity of Tlemcen.
The junction between the North African and Eastern forces did not go smoothly. News of the Syrian misbehavior in Kairouan had reached the Ifriqiyan troops, while the Syrians, incensed at the poor reception, treated their Ifriqiyan counterparts in a high-handed fashion. Habib and Balj bickered and the armies nearly came to blows. By smooth diplomacy, Kulthum ibn Iyad managed hold the armies together, but the mutual resentments would play a role in subsequent events.
The Berber rebel army, under the leadership of Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati
(perhaps jointly with a certain Salim Abu Yusuf al-Azdi ), while boasting great numbers (some 200,000), were very poorly equipped. Many Berber fighters had nothing but stones and knives, dressed in a mere loin cloth, heads shaved in puritan fashion. But they made up for this in knowledge of the terrain, excellent morale, and a fanatical Sufrite-inspired religious fervor.
The Berber and Arab armies finally clashed at the Battle of Bagdoura
(or Baqdura) in October–November, 741
, by the Sebou river
(near modern Fes
). Disdaining the experience and cautious advice of the Ifriqiyans, Kulthum ibn Iyad made several serious tactical errors. Berber skirmishers dehorsed and isolated the Syrian cavalry, while the Berber foot fell upon the Arab infantry with overwhelming numbers. The Arab armies were quickly routed. By some estimates, two-thirds of the Arab army were killed or captured by the Berbers at Bagdoura. Among the casualties were the new governor Kulthum ibn Iyad al-Qasi
and the Ifriqiyan commander Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri.
The Syrian regiments, now reduced to some 10,000, were pulled together by Kulthum's nephew, Balj ibn Bishr
and scrambled up towards the straits, where they hoped to get passage across the water to Spain. A small Ifriqiyan contingent, under Habib's son Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib al-Fihri, joined the Syrians in their flight, but the rest of the Ifriqiyan forces fled in a scattered way back to Kairouan. The bulk of the Berber rebel army set off in pursuit of the Syrians, and laid siege to them in Ceuta
.
who delivered the two great victories over the Arab armies disappears from the chronicles shortly after Bagdoura (741). But news of the defeat emboldened hitherto quiet Berber tribes to join the revolt. Berber uprisings erupted across the Maghreb and al-Andalus.
The most immediate threat arose in southern Ifriqiya, where the Sufrite leader Oqasha ibn Ayub al-Fezari raised a Berber army and laid sieges to Gabès
and Gafsa
. By a rapid sally south with the remnant of the Ifriqiyan army, the Kairouan qadi
Abd al-Rahman ibn Oqba al-Ghaffari managed to defeat and disperse Oqasha's forces near Gafsa in December, 741. But the qadi possessed far few Arab troops to put up a pursuit, and Oqasha immediately set about re-assembling his forces quietly around Tobna in the Zab valley of western Ifriqiya.
Immediately after hearing of the disaster at Bagdoura, the Caliph Hisham ordered the Ummayyad governor of Egypt
, Handhala ibn Safwan al-Kalbi
, to quickly take charge of Ifriqiya. In February 742, Handhala ibn Safwan hurried his Egyptian army westwards and reached Kairouan around April 742, just as Oqasha was returning to try his luck again. Handhala's forces pushed Oqasha back again.
When Oqasha was reassembling his forces once more in the Zab, he came across a large Berber army coming from west, under the command of the Hawwara Berber chieftain Abd al-Wahid ibn Yazid al-Hawwari (possibly dispatched by the Berber caliph Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati, although he is not mentioned in the chronicles). Abd al-Wahid's army was composed of some 300,000 Berber troops, ostensibly the largest Berber army ever seen. After a quick consultation, Oqasha and Abd al-Wahid agreed on a joint attack on Kairouan, Oqasha taking his forces along a southerly route, while Abd al-Wahid led his large army through the northern passes, converging on Kairouan from both sides.
Hearing of the approach of the great Berber armies, Handhala ibn Safwan realized it was paramount to prevent their junction. Dispatching a cavalry force to harass and slow down Abd al-Wahid in the north, Handhala threw the bulk of his forces south, crushing Oqasha in a bloody battle at El-Qarn and taking him prisoner. But Handhala had taken a lot of losses himself, and now faced the unhappy prospect of Abd al-Wahid's gigantic army. Hurrying back, Handhala is said to have put the entire population of Kairouan under arms to bolster his ranks, before setting out again. In perhaps the bloodiest encounter in the Berber wars, Handhala ibn Safwan defeated the great Berber army of Abd al-Wahid ibn Yazid at El-Asnam around May 742 (perhaps a little later), just three miles outside of Kairouan. Some 120,000-180,000 Berbers, including Abd al-Wahid, fell in the field of battle in that single encounter. Oqasha was executed shortly after.
Although Kairouan was saved for the caliphate, and with it the core of Ifriqiya, Handhala ibn Safwan now faced the unenvious task of dragging the more westerly provinces, still under Berber sway, back into the fold. He would not have the chance to accomplish this.
Although their leaders' have names escaped us, the Spanish Berber rebel army was organized into three columns - one to take Toledo
(the main garrison city of the central march), another to aim for Córdoba
(the Umayyad capital) and the third to take Algeciras
(where the rebels hoped to seize the Andalusian fleet to ferry additional Berber troops from North Africa).
With the frontier garrisons of Galicia suddenly evacuated, the Christian king Alfonso I of Asturias
could hardly believe his luck, and set about dispatching Asturian troops to seize the empty forts. With remarkable swiftness and ease, the northwestern provinces of Galicia and, shortly after, León
, were added to the Asturian kingdom
and permanently lost to al-Andalus. The Asturians immediately set about evacuating the Christian populations from the towns and villages of the Galician-Leonese lowlands, creating an empty buffer zone in the Douro River valley (the Desert of the Duero), between the Christian north and the Islamic south. This new emptied frontier will remain in place for the next few centuries.
, remained trapped in Ceuta
, besieged by the Berber rebels. The Andalusian ruler Abd el-Malik ibn Qatan Al-Fihri, wary that the presence of the Syrians in Spain would only aggravate matters, refused them passage across the water. Indeed, he forbade any relief of the stranded Syrians, going so far as to publicly torture to death an Andalusian merchant who had dared to dispatch a couple of grain boats to Ceuta to feed the desperate Syrians.
But news soon reached the Andalusian governor that the Berber rebel armies from Galicia had been organized and were now barreling south in three columns, towards Toledo, Córdoba and Algeciras.
Not having enough Arab forces at hand, the Andalusian governor Abd al-Malik realized he had little choice but to make use of the stranded Syrian force to defeat the Berber armies. In a carefully negotiated treaty, Abd al-Malik granted the Syrians permission to cross over, on the condition that they promise to return to North Africa within a year of the settlement of the Berber matter in Spain. Hostages were taken to secure Syrian compliance.
The Syrian junds under Balj ibn Bishr crossed the straits in early 742 and immediately headed to the environs of Medina-Sidonia
, where they intercepted and disposed of the Berber column aiming for Algeciras. The Syrians then joined the Andalusian Arabs in crushing the main Berber rebel army in a ferocious battle outside of Córdoba
in the Spring of 742. Shortly after, they proceeded to defeat the third Berber army, then laying siege to Toledo
.
The Berber rebellion was quashed in Spain, but the Syrians showed no signs of intending to leave. When the Andalusian governor Abd al-Malik ibn Qatan ibn Fihri pressed the point, Balj ibn Bishr, decided to simply depose him and proclaim himself governor, invoking his credentials as designated successor to his uncle, the late Ifriqiyan governor Kulthum ibn Iyad al-Qasi
. In revenge for the merchant of Ceuta, Balj ordered the elderly Ibn Qatan tortured to death.
A civil war was not short in happening. Rallied by Qatan and Umayya, the sons of the late Fihrid governor, Andalusian Arabs took up arms against the Syrian junds. The Syrians delivered a decisive defeat upon the Andalusians at the Battle of Aqua Portora outside of Córdoba in August 742, but Balj ibn Bishr was mortally wounded in the field. Command of the Syrian armies devolved to Thalaba ibn Salama al-Amili
, and for the next few months, the Syrians remained bunkered down, while the Andalusians (soon joined by what remained of the Beber rebels), assembled in Mérida
.
Much of the next few months was spent in an intercenine Arab civil war, the Berber question relegated to a secondary concern. Eventually, tiring of war, the parties, appealed to the Ifriqiyan emir Handhala ibn Safwan al-Kalbi
to resolve the matter. Handhala dispatched his cousin Abu al-Khattar ibn Darar al-Kalbi
as the new governor for al-Andalus. Abu al-Khattar arrived in May 743
and immediately set about restoring peace in Andalusia, liberating prisoners (Arab and Berber) and figuring a resolution to the displaced Syrian troops. He decided to distribute the various Syrian junds across Spain, carving out regimental fiefs in hitherto thinly-held areas: the Damascus jund was established in Elvira (Granada
), the Jordan jund in Rayyu (Málaga
and Archidona
), the Palestine jund in Medina-Sidonia
and Jerez, the Emesa (Hims) jund in Seville
and Niebla
and the Qinnasrin jund in Jaén
. The Egypt jund was divided between Beja
(Algarve) in the west and Tudmir (Murcia
) in the east. (Al-Maqqari refers to an additional jund from Wasit (Iraq) that was settled in Cabra
, but this jund is not recorded in other sources). The Syrian junds were allocated a third of the tax revenues collected in their regions, and given responsibilities of tax-collection and military service to the Andalusian governor.
The arrival of the Syrian junds would have tremendous implications for subsequent Spanish history. They increased substantially the Arab element on the Iberian peninsula, and, as such, were instrumental in deepening the Muslim hold on the south, what would become the heart of al-Andalus. But they also brought trouble. Unwilling to be governed, the Syrian junds carried on an existence of autonomous feudal anarchy, severely destabilizing the power of the governor of al-Andalus.
or 743
as the 'end' of the Great Berber Revolt, after the failure of the Berber armies to seize Kairouan or Córdoba
. But the Berber hold on Morocco would continue.
Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik
Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik 10th Umayyad caliph who ruled from 723 until his death in 743. When he was born in 691 his mother named him after her father....
and marked the first successful secession from the Arab caliphate (ruled from Damascus). Fired up by Kharijite puritan preachers, the Berber revolt against their Umayyad Arab rulers began in Tangiers in 740, and was led initially by Maysara al-Matghari
Maysara al-Matghari
Maysara , oft-surnamed al-Matghari or, in older arab sources, el-Hakir was a Berber rebel leader and original architect of the Great Berber Revolt that erupted in 739-40, until his deposition and death in the middle of 740.-Background:The exact biographical details of Maysara are...
. The revolt soon spread through the rest of the Maghreb
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...
(North Africa) and across the straits to 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...
(Spain).
The Umayyads scrambled and managed to prevent the core 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....
(Tunisia) and al-Andalus from falling into rebel hands. But the rest of the Maghreb was never recovered. After failing to capture the Umayyad provincial capital of 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...
, the Berber rebel armies dissolved, and the western Maghreb fragmented into a series of small Berber statelets, ruled by tribal chieftans and Kharijite imams.
The Berber revolt was probably the largest military setback in the reign of Caliph Hisham. From it, emerged some of the first Muslim states outside the Caliphate. It is sometimes also regarded as the beginning of Moroccan independence, as Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
would never again come under the rule of an eastern Caliph or any other foreign power until the 20th century.
Background
The underlying causes of the revolt were the policies of the UmayyadUmayyad
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...
governors 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...
, Ifriqiya, who had authority over the Maghreb
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...
(all of North Africa west of Egypt) and 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...
(Spain).
From the early days of Muslim conquest of North Africa, 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...
commanders had treated non-Arab (notably Berber
Berber 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...
) auxiliaries inconsistently, and often rather shabbily. Although Berbers had undertaken much of the fighting in the conquest in Spain
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....
, they were given a lesser share of the spoils and frequently assigned to the harsher duties (e.g. Berbers were thrown into the vanguard while Arab forces were kept in the back; they were assigned garrison duty on the more troubled frontiers). Although the Ifriqiyan Arab governor Musa ibn Nusair had cultivated his Berber lieutenants (most famously, Tariq ibn Ziyad
Tariq ibn-Ziyad
Tariq ibn Ziyad was a Muslim Berber general who led the Islamic conquest of Visigothic Hispania in 711 A.D. He is considered to be one of the most important military commanders in Iberian history. Under the orders of the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid I he led a large army from the north coast of...
), his successors, notably Yazid ibn Abi Muslim
Yazid ibn Abi Muslim
Abu'l-Ala Yazid ibn Abi Muslim Dinar was the Umayyad governor of Ifriqiya from 720 until his assassination in 721.Yazid ibn Abi Muslim was of the Arab tribe of Thaqif. He served in the administration of Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, the Umayyad governor of Wasit . He rose in the ranks to become...
, had treated their Berber forces particularly poorly.
Most grievously, Arab governors continued to levy extraordinary dhimmi
Dhimmi
A , is a non-Muslim subject of a state governed in accordance with sharia law. Linguistically, the word means "one whose responsibility has been taken". This has to be understood in the context of the definition of state in Islam...
taxation (the jizyah and kharaj
Kharaj
In Islamic law, kharaj is a tax on agricultural land.Initially, after the first Muslim conquests in the 7th century, kharaj usually denoted a lump-sum duty levied upon the conquered provinces and collected by the officials of the former Byzantine and Sassanid empires or, more broadly, any kind of...
) and slave-tributes on non-Arab populations that had converted to Islam, in direct contravention of Islamic law
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
. This had become particularly routine during the caliphates of Walid I and Sulayman
Sulayman 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:...
.
In 718, the Umayyad caliph Umar II finally forbade the levying of extraordinary taxation and slave tributes from non-Arab Muslims, defusing much of the tension. But expensive military reverses in the 720s and 730s had forced caliphal authorities to look for innovative ways to replenish their treasuries. During the caliphate of Hisham from 724, the prohibitions were side-stepped with reinterpretations (e.g. tying the kharaj land tax to the land rather than the owner, so that lands that were at any point subject to the kharaj remained under kharaj even if currently owned by a Muslim.)
As a result, resentful Berbers grew receptive to radical Kharijite activists from the east (notably of Sufri
Sufri
The Sufris were a Khariji sect of Islam that existed in the 7th and 8th centuries. They established the Midrarid state at Sijilmassa.In Algeria , the Banu Ifran were Sufri Berbers who opposed Umayyad, Abbasids and Fatimid rule, most notably under resistance movements led by Abu Qurra and Abu...
te and later Ibadi
Ibadi
The Ibāḍī movement, Ibadism or Ibāḍiyya is a form of Islam distinct from the Sunni and Shia denominations. It is the dominant form of Islam in Oman and Zanzibar...
te persuasion) which had begun arriving in the Maghreb in the 720s. The Kharijites preached a puritan form of Islam, promising a new political order, where all Muslims would be equal, irrespective of ethnicity or tribal status, and Islamic law would be strictly adhered to. The appeal of the Kharijite message to Berber ears allowed their activists to gradually penetrate Berber regiments and population centers. Sporadic mutinies by Berber garrisons (e.g. under Munnus in Cerdanya
Cerdanya
Cerdanya is a natural comarca and historical region of the eastern Pyrenees divided between France and Spain. Historically it has been one of the counties of Catalonia....
, Spain, in 729-31) were put down with difficulty. One Ifriqiyan governor, Yazid ibn Abi Muslim
Yazid ibn Abi Muslim
Abu'l-Ala Yazid ibn Abi Muslim Dinar was the Umayyad governor of Ifriqiya from 720 until his assassination in 721.Yazid ibn Abi Muslim was of the Arab tribe of Thaqif. He served in the administration of Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, the Umayyad governor of Wasit . He rose in the ranks to become...
, who openly resumed the jizya and humiliated his Berber guard by branding their hands, was assassinated in 721.
In 734, Obeid Allah ibn al-Habhab
Obeid Allah ibn al-Habhab
Obeid Allah ibn al-Habhab al-Maousili was an important Umayyad official in Egypt from 724 to 734, and subsequently Umayyad governor of Kairouan, Ifriqiya from 734 to 741...
was appointed Umayyad governor in Kairouan, with supervisory authority over all the Maghreb (North Africa) and al-Andalus (Spain). Coming in after a period of mismanagement, Obeid Allah soon set about dynamizing the fiscal resources of the government by leaning heavily on the non-Arab populations, resuming the extraordinary taxation and slave-tribute without apologies. His deputies Oqba ibn al-Hajjaj al-Saluli 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...
(Spain) and Omar ibn el-Moradi in Tangier
Tangier
Tangier, also Tangiers is a city in northern Morocco with a population of about 700,000 . It lies on the North African coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel...
(Morocco) were given similar instructions. The failure of expensive expeditions into Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
during the period 732-737, repulsed by the Franks under Charles Martel
Charles Martel
Charles Martel , also known as Charles the Hammer, was a Frankish military and political leader, who served as Mayor of the Palace under the Merovingian kings and ruled de facto during an interregnum at the end of his life, using the title Duke and Prince of the Franks. In 739 he was offered the...
, only increased the tax burden. The parallel failure of the caliphal armies in the east brought no fiscal relief from 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...
.
Revolt in the Maghreb
The zeal of the Umayyad tax-collectors finally broke Berber patience. It is reported that following Obeid Allah ibn al-HabhabObeid Allah ibn al-Habhab
Obeid Allah ibn al-Habhab al-Maousili was an important Umayyad official in Egypt from 724 to 734, and subsequently Umayyad governor of Kairouan, Ifriqiya from 734 to 741...
's instructions to extract more revenues from the Berbers, Omar ibn al-Moradi, his deputy governor in Tangiers, decided to declare the Berbers in his jurisdiction a 'conquered people' and consequently set about seizing Berber property and enslaving persons, as per the rules of conquest, the 'caliphal fifth
Royal fifth
The royal fifth is an old royal tax that reserves to the monarch 20% of all precious metals and other commodities acquired by his subjects as war loot, found as treasure or extracted by mining...
' was still owed to the Umayyad state (alternative accounts report he simply doubled their tribute).
This was the last straw. Inspired by the Sufri
Sufri
The Sufris were a Khariji sect of Islam that existed in the 7th and 8th centuries. They established the Midrarid state at Sijilmassa.In Algeria , the Banu Ifran were Sufri Berbers who opposed Umayyad, Abbasids and Fatimid rule, most notably under resistance movements led by Abu Qurra and Abu...
te preachers, the North African Berber tribes of western Morocco - initially, the Ghomara
Ghomara
The Ghomara are an originally Berber group in northern Morocco, living between the rivers Oued Laou and Ouringa, north of Chefchaouen and south of Tetouan, just west of the Rif. The river Tiguisas runs through their territory...
, Berghwata and Miknasa
Miknasa
The Miknasa were a Berber tribe in Morocco and western Algeria.The Miknasa Berbers originated in southern Tunisia, but migrated westwards into central Morocco and western Algeria in pre-Islamic times. The modern Moroccan city of Meknes bears witness to their presence.After defeat by the Muslims...
- decided to break openly into revolt against their Arab overlords. As their leader, they chose Maysara al-Matghari
Maysara al-Matghari
Maysara , oft-surnamed al-Matghari or, in older arab sources, el-Hakir was a Berber rebel leader and original architect of the Great Berber Revolt that erupted in 739-40, until his deposition and death in the middle of 740.-Background:The exact biographical details of Maysara are...
, alleged by some Arab chroniclers to be a lowly water-carrier (but more probably a high Matghara Berber chieftain).
The only question was timing. The opportunity arose sometime in late 739 or early 740 (122 AH), when the powerful Ifriqiyan general 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:...
, who had recently been imposing his authority on the Sous
Sous
The Sous or Souss is a region in southern Morocco. Geologically, it is the alluvial basin of the Oued Sous , separated from the Sahara by the Anti-Atlas Mountains...
valley of southern Morocco, received instructions from the Kairouan governor Obeid Allah to lead a large expedition across the sea against Byzantine Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
. Gathering his forces, Habib ibn Abi Obeida marched the bulk of the Ifriqiyan army out of Morocco.
As soon as the mighty Habib was safely gone, Maysara assembled his coalition of Berber armies, heads shaven in the Sufri Kharijite fashion and with Qura'nic
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
inscriptures tied to their lances and spears, and brought them bearing down on Tangiers. The city soon fell into rebel hands and the hated governor Omar al-Moradi was killed. It was at this point that Maysara is said to have taken up the title and pretension or amir al-mu'minin
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"...
('Commander of the Faithful', or 'Caliph'). Leaving a Berber garrison in Tangier under the command of Christian convert, Abd al-Allah al-Hodeij al-Ifriqi, Maysara's army proceeded to sweep down western Morocco, swelling its ranks with new adherents, overwhelming Umayyad garrisons clear from the Straits down to the Sous
Sous
The Sous or Souss is a region in southern Morocco. Geologically, it is the alluvial basin of the Oued Sous , separated from the Sahara by the Anti-Atlas Mountains...
. One of the local governors killed by the Berbers was Ismail ibn Obeid Allah, the very son of the Kairouan emir.
The Berber revolt surprised the Umayyad governor in Kairouan, Obeid Allah ibn al-Habhab, who had very few troops at his disposal. He immediately dispatched messengers to his general Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri in Sicily instructing him to break off the expedition and urgently ship the Ifriqiyan army back to Africa. In the meantime, Obeid Allah assembled a cavalry-heavy column, composed of the aristocratic Arab elite of Kairouan. He placed the nobles under the command of Khalid ibn Abi Habib al-Fihri
Khalid ibn Abi Habib al-Fihri
Khalid ibn Abi Habib al-Fihri was an Arab military commander in North Africa during the Berber Revolt, who led the Arab army that was defeated at the Battle of the Nobles in late 740....
, and dispatched it to Tangiers, to keep the Berber rebels contained, while awaiting Habib's return from Sicily. A smaller reserve army was placed under Abd al-Rahman ibn al-Mughira al-Abdari and instructed to hold 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...
, in case the Berber rebel army should break through the column and try to drive towards Kairouan.
Maysara's Berber forces encountered the vanguard Ifrqiyian column of Khalid ibn Abi Habib somewhere in the outskirts of Tangiers After a brief skirmish with the Arab column, Maysara abruptly ordered the Berber armies to fall back to Tangier. The Arab cavalry commander Khalid ibn Abi Habiba did not give pursuit, but just held his line south of Tangier, blockading the Berber-held city, while awaiting the reinforcements from Habib's Sicilian expedition.
In this breathing space, the Berber rebels got reorganized and undertook an internal coup. The Berber tribal leaders swiftly deposed (and executed) Maysara and elected the Zenata
Zenata
Zenata were an ethnic group of North Africa, who were technically an Eastern Berber group and who are found in Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco....
Berber chieftain, Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati
Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati
Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati was a Zenata Berber chieftain and military commander during the Berber Revolt of the 740s against the Umayyads in the Maghreb....
as the new Berber 'caliph'. The reasons for Maysara's fall remain obscure. Possibly the sudden cowardice shown before the Arab cavalry column proved him military unfit, possibly because the puritan Sufrite preachers found a flaw in the piety of his character, or maybe simply because the Zenata tribal chieftains, being closer to the Ifriqiyan frontline, felt they should be the ones leading the rebellion.
The new Berber leader Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati opted to immediately attack the idling Ifriqiyan column before they could be reinforced. The Berber rebels under Khalid ibn Hamid overwhelmed and annihilated the Arab cavalry of Khalid ibn Abi Habiba in an encounter known as the Battle of the Nobles
Battle of the Nobles
The Battle of the Nobles was an important confrontation in the Berber Revolt in c. 740 CE. It resulted in a major Berber victory over the Arabs near Tangier. During the battle, numerous Arab aristocrats were slaughtered, which led to the conflict being called the "Battle of the Nobles"...
, on account of the veritable massacre of the cream of the Ifriqiyan Arab nobility. This is tentatively dated around c. October–November, 740.
The immediate Arab reaction to the disaster shows just how unexpected this reversal was. Upon the first news of the defeat of the nobles, the reserve army of Ibn al-Mughira in Tlemcen fell into a panic. Seeing Sufrite preachers everywhere in the city, the Umayyad commander ordered his nervous Arab troops to conduct a series of round-ups in Tlemcen, several of which ended in indiscriminate massacres. This provoked a massive popular uprising in the hitherto-quiet city. The city's largely Berber population quickly drove out the Umayyad troops. The frontline of the Berber revolt now leaped to the middle Maghreb (Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
).
The Sicilian expeditionary army of Habib ibn Abi Obeida arrived too late to prevent the massacre of the nobles. Realizing they were in no position to take on the Berber army by themselves, they retreated to Tlemcen, to gather the reserves, only to find that city too was now in disarray. There, Habib encountered Musa ibn Abi Khalid, an Umayyad captain who had bravely stayed behind in the vicinity of Tlemcen gathering what loyal forces he could find. The state of panic and confusion was such that Habib ibn Abi Obeida decided to blame the guiltless captain for the entire mess and cut off one of his hands and one of his legs in punishment.
Habib ibn Abi Obeida entrenched what remained of the Ifriqiyan army in the vicinity of Tlemcen (perhaps as far back as Tahert
Tahert
Tiaret is a large town in the central Algeria, that gives its name to the wider farming region of 'Wilaya de Tiaret' province. Both the town and region lie south-west of the capital of Algiers in the western region of the central highlands, in the Tell Atlas, and about from the Mediterranean coast...
), and called upon Kairouan for reinforcements. The request was forwarded 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...
.
Caliph Hisham, hearing the shocking news, is said to have exclaimed: "By God, I will most certainly rage against them with an Arab rage, and I will send against them an army whose beginning is where they are and whose end is where I am!"
Coup in al-Andalus
It is sometimes reported that the Andalusian governor Oqba ibn al-Hajjaj al-Saluli dispatched an Andalusian army across the straits to support the Ifriqiyan column around Tangiers, only to be similarly defeated by the Berber rebels in late 740. But this story has been discounted by modern historians, as it is sourced principally from later Spanish chronicles; there is nothing in contemporary accounts referencing any such expedition.Nonetheless,the news of the Berber victory in Morocco echoed through Spain. Berbers heavily outnumbered Arabs in al-Andalus. Fearing the Berber garrisons in their own lands might take inspiration from their Moroccan brethren, the Andalusian Arab elite quickly deposed Obeid Allah's deputy, Oqba ibn al-Hajjaj al-Saluli, in January 741 and reinstated his predecessor, Abd al-Malik ibn Qatan al-Fihri, a more popular figure among local Arabs and Berbers alike.
The Syrian Expedition
In February, 741, the Umayyad Caliph Hisham appointed Kulthum ibn Iyad al-QasiKulthum 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....
to replace the disgraced Obeid Allah as governor in Ifriqiya. Kulthum was to be accompanied by fresh Arab army of 30,000 - 27,000 raised from the regiments (junds) of Greater Syria
Greater Syria
Greater Syria , also known simply as Syria, is a term that denotes a region in the Near East bordering the Eastern Mediterranean Sea or the Levant....
and an additional 3,000 to be picked up in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. Caliph Hisham appointed Kulthum's nephew Balj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri
Balj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri
Balj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri ; was a Syrian Arab military commander in North Africa and Iberia, and briefly ruler of al-Andalus in 742....
as his lieutenant and designated successor, and the Jordanian commander 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....
as his second successor (should tragedy befall the prior two).
The elite Syrian cavalry under Balj ibn Bishr, which had moved ahead of the bulk of the forces, was the first to arrive in Kairouan in the Summer of 741. Their brief stay was not a happy one. The Syrians arrived in haughty spirits and quarreled with the Kairouan city authorities, who suspicious, had given them a rather cool reception. Interpreting it as ingratitude, the Syrian barons imposed themselves on the city, billeting troops and requisitioning supplies without regard to local authorities or priorities.
(It is pertinent to note that the members of the Syrian expedition were of different tribal stock than the Arabs they came to save. The early Arab colonists of Ifriqiya and al-Andalus had been drawn largely from tribes of south Arabian origin (known as 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...
' tribes), whereas the Syrian junds were mostly of north Arabian tribes (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...
or 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). The ancient and deep pre-Islamic tribal rivalry between Qaysid and Yemenite found itself invoked in repeated quarrels between the earlier colonists and the arriving junds.)
Moving slower with the bulk of the forces, Kulthum ibn Iyad himself did not enter Kairouan, but merely dispatched a message assigning the government of the city to Abd al-Rahman ibn Oqba al-Ghaffari, the qadi
Qadi
Qadi is a judge ruling in accordance with Islamic religious law appointed by the ruler of a Muslim country. Because Islam makes no distinction between religious and secular domains, qadis traditionally have jurisdiction over all legal matters involving Muslims...
of Ifriqiya. Collecting the Syrian vanguard, Kulthum hurried along to make junction with the remaining Ifriqiyan forces (some 40,000) of Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri holding ground in the vicinity of Tlemcen.
The junction between the North African and Eastern forces did not go smoothly. News of the Syrian misbehavior in Kairouan had reached the Ifriqiyan troops, while the Syrians, incensed at the poor reception, treated their Ifriqiyan counterparts in a high-handed fashion. Habib and Balj bickered and the armies nearly came to blows. By smooth diplomacy, Kulthum ibn Iyad managed hold the armies together, but the mutual resentments would play a role in subsequent events.
The Berber rebel army, under the leadership of Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati
Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati
Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati was a Zenata Berber chieftain and military commander during the Berber Revolt of the 740s against the Umayyads in the Maghreb....
(perhaps jointly with a certain Salim Abu Yusuf al-Azdi ), while boasting great numbers (some 200,000), were very poorly equipped. Many Berber fighters had nothing but stones and knives, dressed in a mere loin cloth, heads shaved in puritan fashion. But they made up for this in knowledge of the terrain, excellent morale, and a fanatical Sufrite-inspired religious fervor.
The Berber and Arab armies finally clashed 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...
(or Baqdura) in October–November, 741
741
Year 741 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 741 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.- Europe :* Carloman, Pippin the Short and Grifo succeed...
, by the Sebou river
Sebou River
Sebou is a river in northern Morocco. The river is 458 kilometres long and has an average water flow of 137 m3/s, which makes it the largest North African river by volume. The source is in the Middle Atlas mountains. It passes near the city of Fes and discharges to the Atlantic Ocean in Mehdia...
(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....
). Disdaining the experience and cautious advice of the Ifriqiyans, Kulthum ibn Iyad made several serious tactical errors. Berber skirmishers dehorsed and isolated the Syrian cavalry, while the Berber foot fell upon the Arab infantry with overwhelming numbers. The Arab armies were quickly routed. By some estimates, two-thirds of the Arab army were killed or captured by the Berbers at Bagdoura. Among the casualties were the new governor 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....
and the Ifriqiyan commander Habib ibn Abi Obeida al-Fihri.
The Syrian regiments, now reduced to some 10,000, were pulled together by Kulthum's nephew, Balj ibn Bishr
Balj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri
Balj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri ; was a Syrian Arab military commander in North Africa and Iberia, and briefly ruler of al-Andalus in 742....
and scrambled up towards the straits, where they hoped to get passage across the water to Spain. A small Ifriqiyan contingent, under Habib's son Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib al-Fihri, joined the Syrians in their flight, but the rest of the Ifriqiyan forces fled in a scattered way back to Kairouan. The bulk of the Berber rebel army set off in pursuit of the Syrians, and laid siege to them in 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...
.
Offensive on Kairouan
The Zenata Berber leader Khalid ibn Hamid al-ZanatiKhalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati
Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati was a Zenata Berber chieftain and military commander during the Berber Revolt of the 740s against the Umayyads in the Maghreb....
who delivered the two great victories over the Arab armies disappears from the chronicles shortly after Bagdoura (741). But news of the defeat emboldened hitherto quiet Berber tribes to join the revolt. Berber uprisings erupted across the Maghreb and al-Andalus.
The most immediate threat arose in southern Ifriqiya, where the Sufrite leader Oqasha ibn Ayub al-Fezari raised a Berber army and laid sieges to Gabès
Gabès
Gabès , also spelt Cabès, Cabes, Kabes, Gabbs and Gaps, the ancient Tacape, is the capital city of the Gabès Governorate, a province of Tunisia. It lies on the coast of the Gulf of Gabès. With a population of 116,323 it is the 6th largest Tunisian city.-History:Strabo refers to Tacape as an...
and Gafsa
Gafsa
Gafsa is the capital of Gafsa Governorate of Tunisia. Its name was appropriated by archaeologists for the Mesolithic Capsian culture. With a population of 84,676, it is the 9th Tunisian city.-Overview:...
. By a rapid sally south with the remnant of the Ifriqiyan army, the Kairouan qadi
Qadi
Qadi is a judge ruling in accordance with Islamic religious law appointed by the ruler of a Muslim country. Because Islam makes no distinction between religious and secular domains, qadis traditionally have jurisdiction over all legal matters involving Muslims...
Abd al-Rahman ibn Oqba al-Ghaffari managed to defeat and disperse Oqasha's forces near Gafsa in December, 741. But the qadi possessed far few Arab troops to put up a pursuit, and Oqasha immediately set about re-assembling his forces quietly around Tobna in the Zab valley of western Ifriqiya.
Immediately after hearing of the disaster at Bagdoura, the Caliph Hisham ordered the Ummayyad governor of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Handhala ibn Safwan al-Kalbi
Handhala ibn Safwan al-Kalbi
Handhala ibn Safwan al-Kalbi was an Umayyad governor of Egypt from 721 to 724 and again 737 to 741, and subsequently governor of Ifriqiya from 741 to 745.-Governor in Egypt:...
, to quickly take charge of Ifriqiya. In February 742, Handhala ibn Safwan hurried his Egyptian army westwards and reached Kairouan around April 742, just as Oqasha was returning to try his luck again. Handhala's forces pushed Oqasha back again.
When Oqasha was reassembling his forces once more in the Zab, he came across a large Berber army coming from west, under the command of the Hawwara Berber chieftain Abd al-Wahid ibn Yazid al-Hawwari (possibly dispatched by the Berber caliph Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati, although he is not mentioned in the chronicles). Abd al-Wahid's army was composed of some 300,000 Berber troops, ostensibly the largest Berber army ever seen. After a quick consultation, Oqasha and Abd al-Wahid agreed on a joint attack on Kairouan, Oqasha taking his forces along a southerly route, while Abd al-Wahid led his large army through the northern passes, converging on Kairouan from both sides.
Hearing of the approach of the great Berber armies, Handhala ibn Safwan realized it was paramount to prevent their junction. Dispatching a cavalry force to harass and slow down Abd al-Wahid in the north, Handhala threw the bulk of his forces south, crushing Oqasha in a bloody battle at El-Qarn and taking him prisoner. But Handhala had taken a lot of losses himself, and now faced the unhappy prospect of Abd al-Wahid's gigantic army. Hurrying back, Handhala is said to have put the entire population of Kairouan under arms to bolster his ranks, before setting out again. In perhaps the bloodiest encounter in the Berber wars, Handhala ibn Safwan defeated the great Berber army of Abd al-Wahid ibn Yazid at El-Asnam around May 742 (perhaps a little later), just three miles outside of Kairouan. Some 120,000-180,000 Berbers, including Abd al-Wahid, fell in the field of battle in that single encounter. Oqasha was executed shortly after.
Although Kairouan was saved for the caliphate, and with it the core of Ifriqiya, Handhala ibn Safwan now faced the unenvious task of dragging the more westerly provinces, still under Berber sway, back into the fold. He would not have the chance to accomplish this.
Revolt in al-Andalus
The coup that installed Abd al-Malik ibn Qatan al-Fihri as ruler in Spain in early 741 had been a failsafe device. But once the news of the disaster at Bagdoura spread, a general Berber uprising in Spain could no longer be prevented. In October 741, Berber garrisons in the northwest frontiers of Galicia mutinied. They discarded their Arab commanders and took to the field, abandoning their garrison posts to assemble their own Berber rebel army around the center and march against the Andalusian Arabs in the south.Although their leaders' have names escaped us, the Spanish Berber rebel army was organized into three columns - one to take 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:...
(the main garrison city of the central march), another to aim for 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...
(the Umayyad capital) and the third to take Algeciras
Algeciras
Algeciras is a port city in the south of Spain, and is the largest city on the Bay of Gibraltar . Port of Algeciras is one of the largest ports in Europe and in the world in three categories: container,...
(where the rebels hoped to seize the Andalusian fleet to ferry additional Berber troops from North Africa).
With the frontier garrisons of Galicia suddenly evacuated, the Christian king Alfonso I of Asturias
Alfonso I of Asturias
Alfonso I , called the Catholic , was the King of Asturias from 739 to his death in 757.He was son of Duke Peter of Cantabria and held many lands in that region. He may have been the hereditary chief of the Basques, but this is uncertain...
could hardly believe his luck, and set about dispatching Asturian troops to seize the empty forts. With remarkable swiftness and ease, the northwestern provinces of Galicia and, shortly after, León
León (province)
León is a province of northwestern Spain, in the northwestern part of the autonomous community of Castile and León.About one quarter of its population of 500,200 lives in the capital, León. The weather is cold and dry during the winter....
, were added to the Asturian kingdom
Kingdom of Asturias
The Kingdom of Asturias was a Kingdom in the Iberian peninsula founded in 718 by Visigothic nobles under the leadership of Pelagius of Asturias. It was the first Christian political entity established following the collapse of the Visigothic kingdom after Islamic conquest of Hispania...
and permanently lost to al-Andalus. The Asturians immediately set about evacuating the Christian populations from the towns and villages of the Galician-Leonese lowlands, creating an empty buffer zone in the Douro River valley (the Desert of the Duero), between the Christian north and the Islamic south. This new emptied frontier will remain in place for the next few centuries.
The Syrians in Spain
Through much of the winter of 741-42, the remnant of the Syrian expedition, some 10,000 men, under Balj ibn BishrBalj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri
Balj ibn Bishr al-Qushayri ; was a Syrian Arab military commander in North Africa and Iberia, and briefly ruler of al-Andalus in 742....
, remained trapped in 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...
, besieged by the Berber rebels. The Andalusian ruler Abd el-Malik ibn Qatan Al-Fihri, wary that the presence of the Syrians in Spain would only aggravate matters, refused them passage across the water. Indeed, he forbade any relief of the stranded Syrians, going so far as to publicly torture to death an Andalusian merchant who had dared to dispatch a couple of grain boats to Ceuta to feed the desperate Syrians.
But news soon reached the Andalusian governor that the Berber rebel armies from Galicia had been organized and were now barreling south in three columns, towards Toledo, Córdoba and Algeciras.
Not having enough Arab forces at hand, the Andalusian governor Abd al-Malik realized he had little choice but to make use of the stranded Syrian force to defeat the Berber armies. In a carefully negotiated treaty, Abd al-Malik granted the Syrians permission to cross over, on the condition that they promise to return to North Africa within a year of the settlement of the Berber matter in Spain. Hostages were taken to secure Syrian compliance.
The Syrian junds under Balj ibn Bishr crossed the straits in early 742 and immediately headed to the environs of 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...
, where they intercepted and disposed of the Berber column aiming for Algeciras. The Syrians then joined the Andalusian Arabs in crushing the main Berber rebel army in a ferocious battle outside of 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...
in the Spring of 742. Shortly after, they proceeded to defeat the third Berber army, then laying siege to 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:...
.
The Berber rebellion was quashed in Spain, but the Syrians showed no signs of intending to leave. When the Andalusian governor Abd al-Malik ibn Qatan ibn Fihri pressed the point, Balj ibn Bishr, decided to simply depose him and proclaim himself governor, invoking his credentials as designated successor to his uncle, the late Ifriqiyan governor 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....
. In revenge for the merchant of Ceuta, Balj ordered the elderly Ibn Qatan tortured to death.
A civil war was not short in happening. Rallied by Qatan and Umayya, the sons of the late Fihrid governor, Andalusian Arabs took up arms against the Syrian junds. The Syrians delivered a decisive defeat upon the Andalusians at the Battle of Aqua Portora outside of Córdoba in August 742, but Balj ibn Bishr was mortally wounded in the field. Command of the Syrian armies devolved to 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....
, and for the next few months, the Syrians remained bunkered down, while the Andalusians (soon joined by what remained of the Beber rebels), assembled in Mérida
Merida
Places of the world named Mérida or Merida include:*Mérida, Spain, capital city of the Spanish Community of Extremadura*Mérida, Yucatán, capital city of the Mexican state of Yucatán*Merida, Leyte, a municipality in Leyte province in the Philippines...
.
Much of the next few months was spent in an intercenine Arab civil war, the Berber question relegated to a secondary concern. Eventually, tiring of war, the parties, appealed to the Ifriqiyan emir Handhala ibn Safwan al-Kalbi
Handhala ibn Safwan al-Kalbi
Handhala ibn Safwan al-Kalbi was an Umayyad governor of Egypt from 721 to 724 and again 737 to 741, and subsequently governor of Ifriqiya from 741 to 745.-Governor in Egypt:...
to resolve the matter. Handhala dispatched his cousin Abu al-Khattar ibn Darar al-Kalbi
Abu l-Hattar al Husam ibn Darar al-Kalbi
Abu l-Hattar al Husam ibn Darar al-Kalbi was Umayyad governor of Al Andalus from May 743 until August 745. He was succeeded by Tuwaba ibn Salama al-Gudami....
as the new governor for al-Andalus. Abu al-Khattar arrived in May 743
743
Year 743 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 743 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.- Europe :* After an interregnum of seven years,...
and immediately set about restoring peace in Andalusia, liberating prisoners (Arab and Berber) and figuring a resolution to the displaced Syrian troops. He decided to distribute the various Syrian junds across Spain, carving out regimental fiefs in hitherto thinly-held areas: the Damascus jund was established in Elvira (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...
), the Jordan jund in Rayyu (Málaga
Málaga
Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...
and Archidona
Archidona
Archidona is a town and municipality in the province of Málaga, part of the autonomous community of Andalusia in southern Spain. The municipality is situated approximately 50 kilometres from the city of Málaga and 20 from Antequera. It has a population of approximately 8,500 residents. The natives...
), the Palestine jund in 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...
and Jerez, the Emesa (Hims) jund in Seville
Seville
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...
and Niebla
Niebla
-Places:* Niebla, Chile, a coastal town in the municipality of Valdivia* Niebla, Huelva, a municipality in Huelva province, Spain* Taifa of Niebla, a medieval taifa kingdom of the Iberian peninsula-People:* Mr...
and the Qinnasrin jund in Jaén
Jaén, Spain
Jaén is a city in south-central Spain, the name is derived from the Arabic word Jayyan, . It is the capital of the province of Jaén. It is located in the autonomous community of Andalusia....
. The Egypt jund was divided between Beja
Beja (Portugal)
Beja is a city in the Beja Municipality in the Alentejo region, Portugal. The municipality has a total area of 1,147.1 km² and a total population of 34,970 inhabitants. The city proper has a population of 21,658....
(Algarve) in the west and Tudmir (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...
) in the east. (Al-Maqqari refers to an additional jund from Wasit (Iraq) that was settled in Cabra
Cabra, Spain
Cabra is a municipality in the province of Córdoba, Andalusia, Spain. It is also the name of the former ruling family of that area. As of 2005 the municipality had a population of 20,940 while its seat, the town of Cabra had 19,523 .-Geography:...
, but this jund is not recorded in other sources). The Syrian junds were allocated a third of the tax revenues collected in their regions, and given responsibilities of tax-collection and military service to the Andalusian governor.
The arrival of the Syrian junds would have tremendous implications for subsequent Spanish history. They increased substantially the Arab element on the Iberian peninsula, and, as such, were instrumental in deepening the Muslim hold on the south, what would become the heart of al-Andalus. But they also brought trouble. Unwilling to be governed, the Syrian junds carried on an existence of autonomous feudal anarchy, severely destabilizing the power of the governor of al-Andalus.
Later years
It is common to denote 742742
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...
or 743
743
Year 743 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 743 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.- Europe :* After an interregnum of seven years,...
as the 'end' of the Great Berber Revolt, after the failure of the Berber armies to seize Kairouan or 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...
. But the Berber hold on Morocco would continue.
Sources
- al-Maqqari (1840-43 transl. by P. de Gayangos) The History of the Mohammedan dynasties in Spain, 2 vols, London: Royal Asiatic Society.
- Blankinship, Khalid Yahya (1994). The End of the Jihad State: The Reign of Hisham Ibn 'Abd Al-Malik and the Collapse of the Umayyads. SUNY Press. ISBN 0-7914-1827-8
- Fournel, Henri (1857) Étude sur la conquête de l'Afrique par les Arabes, Paris, Impermerie Imperiale.
- Heath, Jeffrey M (2002). Jewish and Muslim Dialects of Moroccan Arabic. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-7007-1514-2
- Holt, P M, Lambton, Ann K S. and Lewis, Bernard (1977). The Cambridge History of Islam. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-29137-2
- Hrbek, Ivan (1992), Africa from the Seventh to the Eleventh Century, 3rd, University of California Press,
- Ibn Khaldun (1852 transl.) Histoire des Berbères et des dynasties musulmanes de l'Afrique, Algiers.
- Lévi-Provençal, E. (1950)Histoire de l'Espagne musulmane, Tome 1, 1999 ed., Paris: Larose.
- Julien, Charles-André, Histoire de l'Afrique du Nord, des origines à 1830, édition originale 1931, réédition Payot, Paris, 1961
- Kennedy, Hugh (1996) Muslim Spain and Portugal: A Political History of al-Andalus, New York and London: Longman.
- Mercier, E. (1888) Histoire de l'Afrqiue septentrionale, V. 1, Paris: Leroux. Repr. Elibron Classics, 2005.
- Roth, A M and Roth, Norman (1994). Jews, Visigoths and Muslims in Medieval Spain: Cooperation and Conflict. Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 90-04-09971-9
- Taha, Abd al-Wahid Dhannun (1989) The Muslim conquest and settlement of North Africa and Spain, London, Routledge.