al-Mustansir (Abbasids)
Al-Mustansir ( Arabic أبو جعفر المنصور بن محمد الظاهر المسنتصر بالله, DMG Abū Ǧaʿfar al-Manṣūr b. Muḥammad aẓ-Ẓāhir al-Mustanṣir bi-'llāh ; * 1192 ; † December 5, 1242 ) was the thirty-eighth Abbasid caliph from 1226–1242 .
Abu Jafar al-Mansur ibn Muhammad az-Zahir al-Mustansir bi-'llah succeeded his father Az-Zahir of (1225-1226). He was an energetic, pious and just ruler. In 1234 he founded a theological college named after him in Baghdad ( Mustansiriyya University ), in which the four Sunni schools of law ( Madhhab ) were taught.
Politically, the situation of the caliphate was initially shaped by the Khorezmian threat under Sultan Jalal ad-Din and, after his death (1231), by the expansion of the Mongols in Iran . Al-Mustansir tried to establish good relations with the Ayyubids in Egypt and the Rum Seljuks in Anatolia , but no active alliance against the Mongols was achieved.
After the Mongols had already conquered parts of northern Iraq, they attacked Baghdad in 1237, but were repulsed by the Abbasids. In 1238, al-Mustansir's army suffered a heavy defeat against the Mongols, which, however, retreated to Iran because of the strong fortifications of Baghdad. In the last years of his government, al-Mustansir was mainly occupied with reinforcing his army and fortifying his capital.
After the death of al-Mustansir on December 5, 1242, al-Musta'sim (1242–1258) became the last Abbasid caliph in Baghdad.
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| Az-Zāhir bi-amr Allāh | Abbasid Caliph 1226–1242 |
al-Musta'sim bi-'llah |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Mustansir, al- |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Abu Jafar al-Mansur ibn Muhammad al-Zahir al-Mustansir bi-'llah |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | 36. Abbasid Caliph (1226–1242) |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1192 |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 5, 1242 |