al-Muʿizz

Abū Tamīm Maʿadd al-Muʿizz li-Dīn Allāh (ابو تميم معد المعزّ لدين الله, DMG Abū Tamīm Maʿadd al-Muʿizz li-Dīn Allāh ; * approx. 930 in Mahdiya; † 975 in Cairo ) was the fourth caliph of the Fatimids and the 14th imam of the Ismailis . During his reign (953–975) the center of power of the Fatimids shifted from Ifrīqiya to Egypt , with science and the arts flourishing in Egypt. He himself devoted himself to philosophy , literature , astrology and spoke several languages.

The Fatimid Caliphate

Life

In 953 he took over the caliphate after the death of his father Ismail al-Mansur (r. 946–953) .

After the Fatimids under his father put down the Abu Yazid uprising , they began again under al-Muizz with the attempt to enforce their caliphate in the entire Islamic world and overthrow the Abbasids . From 955, under General Dschauhar as-Siqillī, they first fought the Berber tribes in Morocco and the Umayyads (see: Caliphate of Córdoba ). Even if the Umayyads could not be subjugated, the Fatimid rule in the Maghrebian areas was largely secured until 968. At the same time, the Fatimid campaigns of conquest against Italy made it possible to maintain naval rule in the western Mediterranean against Byzantium (armistice 967).

After securing their western flank with the conquests of Tunisia , Algeria , parts of Morocco and Sicily , they turned against their main target, Egypt and the Arabian Peninsula . When the Ischidid dynasty there was weakened as a result of an economic crisis and the Abbasids did not seem to pose any threat, the Fatimids under Jahar al-Siqillī conquered Egypt in 969 without much resistance. In the years 969–970 Mecca and Medina submitted to al-Muizz's leadership.

Several campaigns against the Qarmatians and Hamdanids in Syria were carried out from Egypt . After the conquest of Syria in 970, the new province was lost to the Qarmatians a year later, who tried in vain to conquer Egypt in 971.

After final preparations, al-Muizz relocated the residence of the empire from al- Mahdiya (Tunisia) to Egypt in the 969 newly founded residence city of al-Qahira al-Muizziyya ("The Victorious of al-Muizz"; Cairo), thus ending the local one Abbasid Caliphate. After defending against a renewed invasion of the Qarmatians in 974, al-Muizz conquered Damascus and concluded a peace treaty with the Qarmatians. This made the Fatimids the dominant Muslim power in the eastern Mediterranean. In the old ancestral seat of the Fatimids in Ifriqiya, Buluggin Ibn Ziri was appointed governor and founded the Zirid dynasty (972–1148) in Qairawan (Tunisia ).

When al-Muizz probably died on December 25, 975, his son al-ʿAzīz († 996) succeeded him.

Reforms

Gold dinar of the Caliph al-Muizz, Egypt , Cairo , 969 AD

Al-Muizz spent most of his life in the Maghreb . In Egypt itself he only spent three years before his death. Despite this, his reign had a lasting influence on the local political, religious, cultural and social life. Al-Muqaddasi described the new Fatimid capital Cairo in 987 as the largest and most important metropolis in the Middle East.

With the help of Yaqub Ibn Killis , the tax system was centralized and the economy made more effective. The old Ichidic currency was replaced by the gold dinar, which became the standard currency in the southeastern Mediterranean during the Fatimid era. To protect maritime trade from piracy , al-Muizz initiated the establishment of a fleet. According to al-Maqrizi , the help of Europeans was used:

"The Franks were hired as artisans to make weapons for the fleet and perform other services in Cairo."

In order to expand the shipping trade, shipyards were built on the coast of Egypt, the Red Sea and along the Nile . The semantic similarities between the Arabic term for shipyard (dār al-ṣināʿa) and the term arsenal, which has been adopted in the European language area , prove that these innovations did not go unnoticed . Another example is the designation of the Fatimid naval commander Amīr al-Baḥr as an admiral .

The al-Azhar University (969), which became a religious center for the training of Ismaili missionaries (dāʿī), was founded in the time of al-Muizz . Although Cairo became the starting point of the Ismaili mission, the Fatimids made little effort to spread their doctrine among the Egyptian people. Of greater importance was the first missionary work outside of Fatimid rule, which was aimed particularly at the Qarmatians. With their support, further Abbasid provinces in the east were to be conquered.

Relationship with the Copts

The Christian Copts were given a lot of freedom under al-Muizz. They could rise to the highest offices and live out their beliefs freely. Under al-Muizz, the Copt Quzman Ibn Mina was appointed governor of Syria, while Abu al-Yamn Yussuf held the office of tax administrator for Egypt and Palestine . With a few exceptions, the Copts were allowed to publicly celebrate their New Year festival, Nayrūz.

The Fatimid ruler's respectful treatment of non-Muslims has become the starting point for several legends . One of these legends tells of a bet that arose after a dispute between Yakub Ibn Killis, who converted to Islam, and the Coptic Pope Abraham of Alexandria. Al-Muizz asked the Pope to go to Mount Muqattam in the east of Cairo and to quote a passage from the Gospel of Matthew ( Mt 17.20  EU ):

“Amen, I tell you: If your faith is even as big as a mustard seed, then you will say to this mountain: Back from here to there! And it will move away. Nothing will be impossible for you. "

According to Coptic sources, Abraham of Alexandria then instructed the Coptic community to hold a vigil and pray for three days and nights. On the third night, the Coptic Pope had a dream in which the Virgin Mary instructed him to look for a man with a jug of water in the streets. The legend goes on to say that after the Pope found the person named Simon the cobbler in the market, he went with him to Mount Muqattam, where thanks to their common prayers, the latter started moving.

This legend is recorded in the book " Alexandrian Patriarchal History " by Sawirus ibn al-Muqaffa ' . Later Coptic sources spin the legend further, claiming that as a result of the miracle, al-Muizz converted to Christianity and was baptized in the Church of Saint Mercury in Cairo, now known as the "Baptistery of the Sultan". After this baptism, al-Muizz is said to have given the throne to his son and spent the rest of his life in a monastery.

progeny

In addition to the four known sons, al-Muizz had seven daughters, of which only three are known by name:

• Abu Ali Tamim († between 984 and 986).
• Abdallah († February 8, 975), designated successor.
• Abu'l-Mansur Nizar († October 13, 996), successor as Caliph al-Aziz .
• Aqil
• Abda al-Kubra
• From there
• Rashida

literature

• Ulrich Haarmann: History of the Arab World. CH Beck, Munich 2001, ISBN 3-406-47486-1 .
• Heinz Halm : The Empire of the Mahdi. The rise of the Fatimids (875–973). CH Beck, Munich 1991, ISBN 3-406-35497-1 .
• Heinz Halm: princes, princesses, concubines and eunuchs at the Fatimid court. In: Maurice A. Pomerantz, Aram A. Shahin (eds.), The Heritage of Arabo-Islamic Learning (2015), pp. 91–110.
• Stephan Ronart, Nandy Ronart: Lexicon of the Arab World. A historical-political reference work. Artemis Verlag, Zurich 1972, ISBN 3-406-35497-1 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Al-Muqadassī: Asān at-Taqasīm fī Maʿrifat al-Aqālīm (The most beautiful division, dealing with the knowledge of the countries) . De Goeje, Leiden 1907, p. 197.
2. ↑ Al-Maqrīzī: Al Mawāʿīẓ wa-l-iʿtibār bi-ḏikr al-ḫiṭaṭ wa-l-āṯār (Admonitions and reflections on countries and traditions) . Matabāt al-Adab, Cairo 1996, Volume 1, p. 444.
3. ↑ M. Th. Houtsma: First Encyclopaedia of Islam 1913-1936 , Brill, Leiden 1993, p. 918.
4. ↑ A. von Kremer: Culturgeschichte des Orients und den Chalifen , Vienna 1875, p. 251, note 1.
5. ↑ Farhad Daftary : A short history of the Ismailis: traditions of a Muslim community , Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 1998, pp. 77-78.
6. ^ Aziz Atiya: A History of Eastern Christianity . Butler and Tanner, London 1968, p. 87.
7. ↑ Tadrous Y. Malaty: Introduction to the Coptic Orthodox Church . St. George Coptic Orthodox Church, Alexandria 1993, p. 139.
8. ↑ Shmuel Moreh: Live theater and dramatic literature in the medieval Arab world . Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 1998, p. 46
9. ↑ St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church: The Coptic Synaxarium Volume II . Maktabāt al-Maḥaba, Cairo 1976, pp. 200–202
10. ↑ St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church: The Coptic Synaxarium Volume I . Maktabāt al-Maḥaba, Cairo 1978, pp. 173–177
11. ↑ See Halm (2015), p. 95.

predecessor	Office	successor
Ismail al-Mansur	Ruler of Ifrīqiya ( Fatimid dynasty ) 953–972	Buluggin ibn Ziri ( Zirid Dynasty )
Abu l-Fawaris ( Ichschidid Dynasty )	Ruler of Egypt ( Fatimid Dynasty ) 969–975	al-ʿAzīz