Abu Yaqub Yusuf

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Ruin of the minaret of the Great Mosque of Mansourah , Algeria

Abū Yaʿqūb Yūsuf an-Nāsir ( Arabic أبو يعقوب يوسف الناصر, DMG Abū Yaʿqūb Yūsuf an-Nāṣir ; † 1307 in Mansourah ) was ruler of the Merinids in Morocco from 1286 to 1307 .

Life

Abu Yaqub Yusuf succeeded his father Abu Yusuf Yaqub (ruled 1259-1286) in 1286 . First some revolts by relatives, as well as an uprising of the Banu Wattas in the Rif Mountains (1292) had to be put down before he could devote himself to the expansion of the empire. The attack on the Abdalwadid Empire began in 1295 , and the siege of Tlemcen lasted until 1307. During this siege, Abu Yaqub Yusuf had the fortress city of Mansourah ("the victorious") built near Tlemcen, which at times also served as a residence. Though Tlemcen had still not surrendered, the Merinid forces advanced further east in 1302 and captured Mostaganem and Algiers .

While Abu Yaqub Yusuf was able to keep up the pressure on the Abdalwadids, the Merinids in Al-Andalus suffered some setbacks. Thus, in 1291 , Castilian troops, in alliance with the Nasrids of Granada , conquered the heavily fortified base of Tarifa on the Strait of Gibraltar . This forced the Merinids to withdraw from Andalusia. The Nasrids even landed in Morocco in 1306 and conquered Ceuta . In addition, an uprising of the Berber tribes broke out in the Rif Mountains (1306–1307).

In this situation, Abu Yaqub Yusuf was murdered by a harem slave in Mansourah in 1307 . His successor Abu Thabit Amir (ruled 1307–1308) had to withdraw the troops from the Abdalwadid Empire and abandon most of the conquests of his ancestors because of power struggles that broke out.

Religious politics

Abū Yaʿqūb Yūsuf made a contribution to deepening Islam in the population. In addition to promoting the marabouts and brotherhoods, he introduced the Prophet's birthday on the 12th Rabīʿ al-auwal in 1292 as an official feast day in the entire Maghreb. In this context, the importance of the Idrisids as descendants of the Prophet was emphasized. He also came into contact with the Sherif of Mecca , because in 1303 he sent them a precious copy of the Koran with a caravan . A year later, the Sherif Labīda ibn Abī Numaiy came to the Maghreb and was received with great honors at the court of Abū Yaʿqūb Yūsuf.

literature

  • Herman L. Beck: L 'image d'Idrīs II, ses descendants de Fās et la politique s̱ẖarīfienne des sultans marīnides 656-869 / 1258-1465. Brill, Leiden, 1989. pp. 112-117.
  • Ulrich Haarmann: History of the Arab World . CH Beck, Munich, 2004. ISBN 3-406-47486-1
  • Arnold Hottinger : The Moors. Arab culture in Spain , Wilhelm Fink Verlag, Munich, 1995. ISBN 3-7705-3075-6
  • Stephan Ronart, Nandy Ronart: Lexicon of the Arab World. A historical-political reference work , Artemis, Zurich, 1972, ISBN 3-7608-0138-2

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Cf. Beck: L 'image d'Idrīs II . 1989, p. 112.
  2. ↑ Cf. Beck: L 'image d'Idrīs II . 1989, p. 114.
personal data
SURNAME Abu Yaqub Yusuf
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Abu Yaqub Yusuf an-Nasir (full name); أبو يعقوب يوسف الناصر (Arabic)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Ruler of the Merinids in Morocco (1286–1307)
DATE OF BIRTH 13th Century
DATE OF DEATH 1307
Place of death Mansourah