The History of al-Ṭabarī Vol. 22

The Marwānid Restoration: The Caliphate of ʿAbd al-Malik A.D. 693-701/A.H. 74-81

Everett K. Rowson

• Publisher: SUNY Press
• Year: 2015
• Print ISBN: 9780887069765, 9780887069758
• eBook ISBN: 9781438418131
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Religion

This volume chronicles the history of the Islamic state in the years A. H. 74-81 (A. D. 693-701), after the final defeat of Ibn al-Zubayr in Mecca put an end to twelve years of civil war and reunited the empire under the rule of the Marw?nid caliph 'Abd al-Malik. Syria and the Hijaz enjoyed a period of relative peace during this time, and stability and consolidation were furthered by such basic administrative reforms as the institution of an official Islamic coinage. Pacification of Iraq, where Kh?rijite rebel bands still roamed and mutiny was spreading among the government forces, was entrusted by 'Abd al-Malik to the victorious general al-?ajj?j ibn Y?suf. Al-?abar? i gives a detailed account of this iron-fisted governor's administration, concentrating on his war against the redoubtable Shabib b. Yazid, a Kh?rijite guerilla leader with a band of a few hundred men who held out against all odds and twice even entered the capital at al-Kufah and prayed in its mosque. Vivid eyewitness reports from participants on both sides of this conflict provide a valuable picture of Arab life in Iraq at this time, as well as evidence for the ideology of the Kharijites and the sources of discontent in the wider society.

Attention is also given to developments in the frontier provinces of the east, eventually also placed under the authority of al-?ajj?j. In Khurasan, the vicious tribal feuds that had interrupted the policy of continued conquest were gradually resolved and campaigning resumed. In Sijistan, a crushing defeat of Arab troops led al-?ajj?j to outfit the "Peacock Army, " a force of unprecedented size and impressiveness, which, when it rebelled under its leader, Ibn al-Ash'ath, was to offer the governor the gravest challenge of his career.

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• The History of al-Tabari: Editorial Board
• The History of al-Tabari: vol. XXII
• Copyright
• Preface
• Table of Contents
• Abbreviations
• Translator's Foreword
• The Events of the Year 74 (May 13, 693 - May 1, 694)
• The Events of the Year 75 (May 2, 694 - April 20, 695)
• The Events of the Year 76 (April 21, 695 - April 9, 696)
• The Events of the Year 77 (April 10, 696 - March 29, 697)
• The Events of the Year 78 (March 30, 697 - March 19, 698)
• The Events of the Year 79 (March 20, 698 - March 8, 699)
• The Events of the Year 80 (March 9, 699 - February 25, 700)
• The Events of the Year 81 (February 26, 700 - February 14, 701)
• Bibliography of Cited Works
• Index
• Back Cover