Idris I, Almohad Caliph
Encyclopedia
Abu al-Ala Idris al-Mamun was an Almohad rival caliph who reigned in part of the empire from 1227 until his death.
At the death of his brother Abdallah al-Adil, a civil war broke out between Idris and Yahya al-Mutasim, who had the support of the capital Marrakech
. Idris asked the Christian king Ferdinand III of Castile
for help, receiving 12,000 knights who allowed him to conquer that city and to massacre the sheikhs that had supported Yahya.
Idris abandoned the Mahdi
doctrine, in favour of the Sunni one. Due to his incapability to pay Ferdinand, he accepted the construction of a Christian church in Marrakech in 1230, which was anyway destroyed two years later. The side changes of Idris soon lost him popular consent. In the early 1232, when he was besieging Ceuta
, Yahya took the occasion to capture Marrakech. Idris died during the march to reach the city, and was succeeded by his son Abd al-Wahid II
.
At the death of his brother Abdallah al-Adil, a civil war broke out between Idris and Yahya al-Mutasim, who had the support of the capital Marrakech
Marrakech
Marrakech or Marrakesh , known as the "Ochre city", is the most important former imperial city in Morocco's history...
. Idris asked the Christian king Ferdinand III of Castile
Ferdinand III of Castile
Saint Ferdinand III, T.O.S.F., was the King of Castile from 1217 and León from 1230. He was the son of Alfonso IX of León and Berenguela of Castile. Through his second marriage he was also Count of Aumale. He finished the work done by his maternal grandfather Alfonso VIII and consolidated the...
for help, receiving 12,000 knights who allowed him to conquer that city and to massacre the sheikhs that had supported Yahya.
Idris abandoned the Mahdi
Mahdi
In Islamic eschatology, the Mahdi is the prophesied redeemer of Islam who will stay on Earth for seven, nine or nineteen years- before the Day of Judgment and, alongside Jesus, will rid the world of wrongdoing, injustice and tyranny.In Shia Islam, the belief in the Mahdi is a "central religious...
doctrine, in favour of the Sunni one. Due to his incapability to pay Ferdinand, he accepted the construction of a Christian church in Marrakech in 1230, which was anyway destroyed two years later. The side changes of Idris soon lost him popular consent. In the early 1232, when he was besieging 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...
, Yahya took the occasion to capture Marrakech. Idris died during the march to reach the city, and was succeeded by his son Abd al-Wahid II
Abd al-Wahid II
Abu Muhammad ar-Rashid Abd al-Wahid was an Almohad rival caliph who reigned from 1232 until his death.Abd al-Wahid succeeded his father Idris I, who had died while marching against Yahya, who was in control of the capital Marrakech. His reign marked the beginning of the final fragmentation of...
.
Sources
- Julien, Charles-André. Histoire de l'Afrique du Nord, des origines à 1830, Payot, Paris, 1994.