The Abbasid Revolution

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The Abbasid Revolution

• Islamic History the First 150 Years

Richard Cawley Centre for Lifelong Learning,
Cardiff University
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Session Plan

1. The Banu al-Abbas
2. Mukhtars Legacy, the Black Flags the Fall of
   the Umayyads
3. The First 150 Years of Islam a Brief Overview

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Section I The Banu al-Abbas
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The Banu al-Abbas

• The Banu al-Abbas (or family of Abbas) are named
  after al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (see Family
  Tree)
• In other words, Abbas was the paternal uncle of
  Muhammad and Ali
• He was therefore an important figure within the
  Bani Hashim
• Abbas does not seem to have immediately become a
  Muslim
• However, after his conversion, given his
  relationship to Muhammad, Abbas was an important
  figure within the early Muslim community (dying
  in 32AH or 652CE)
• His descendents were also important
• His son, Abdullah ibn Abbas was an important
  companion of Muhammad and later became an
  acknowledged expert on Quranic exegesis (tafsir)
• Abdullah seems to have died in 68AH/687CE

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The Banu al-Abbas

• Both Abbas and his son Abdullah were supporters
  of Ali, although they remained on reasonable
  terms with Muawiya
• Abdullah seems to have paid homage to Yazid I
• He also seems to have been particularly close to
  Alis third son Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya
• An apocryphal source, Akhbar al-Abbas, states
  that Muawiya attempted to place Abdullah at the
  head of the Hashim clan, which failed (fol. 13a,
  Omar, 61)
• At any rate, both Muhammad and Abdullah were
  expelled from Mecca by Ibn al-Zubayr for failing
  to pledge allegiance
• Abdullahs son Ali appears to have been the first
  member of the family with overtly political
  ambitions
• Known as al-Sajjad (The Prostrator) and Dhu
  al-Nafathat (Owner of Callouses)
• Ali was thus viewed by the Umayyads as a
  potential threat and was thus watched closely
• Despite this, he seems to have a good
  relationship with Abd al-Malik

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The Banu al-Abbas

• Under Abd al-Maliks son, al-Walid, Ali was twice
  flogged
• For marrying the widow of Abd al-Malik
• Political intrigues
• He was also accused of murdering his brother
  Salit ibn Abdullah and was exiled to Humayma, in
  the Syrian countryside on the road to Mecca
• Ali died in 118AH/736CE and his son Muhammad then
  became prominent
• Muhammad seems to have continued and expanded his
  fathers intrigues and also seems to have been
  particularly close to ibn al-Hanafiyyas son,
  Abdullah (known more widely as Abu Hashim)
• Abu Hashim was also a suspect in the eyes of the
  Umayyad and was forced to live in Damascus

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Section II Mukhtars Legacy, the Black Flags
the Fall of the Umayyads
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Mukhtars Legacy

• As we saw last week, the revolt of al-Mukhtar
  al-Thaqafi involved a number of interesting
  religious ideas
• We also looked at Mukhtars claim to be the
  representative of ibn al-Hanafiyya
• Although defeated, some supporters of Mukhtar
  continued to believe in the charisma of Ibn
  al-Hanafiyya
• As we saw, some of them believed that he was the
  Mahdi and held that he had not actually died, and
  would soon return as an avenging Messianic figure
• Others believed that he had died and that his
  legacy and authority (in religious and political
  terms) had passed to his son Abu Hashim
• Our sources state that some among these groups
  believed that the imam was more than merely human
• Although such ideas do seem to have circulated
  amongst these groups, we also have to account for
  the bias of our sources
• Generally speaking, such beliefs are considered
  heretical and are labelled extremist (ghuluww)

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Abu Hashim

• At any rate, the main point is clear
• Abu Hashim was the leader of a small group of
  devoted followers
• Some of these followers believed he had magical
  powers and was more than simply human
• Furthermore, it is also interesting to note that
  there do seem to have been differences of
  belief/opinion within the Hashim clan
• That is, the Hasanid, Husaynid and Jafarid lines
  were essentially debating who was the real imam,
  or the inheritor of Alis legacy
• The claims of Abu Hashim and the Abbasids also
  reveal further differences of opinion
• In any case, Abu Hashim dies in 98AH/716-717CE,
  without issue
• Our sources indicate that before his death, Abu
  Hashim passed on his imamate (or rather his claim
  to it) to Muhammad ibn Ali ibn Abdullah ibn Abbas
• In other words, Muhammad was now the imam of Abu
  Hashims supporters
• As this claim was the original justification for
  the Abbasid revolution we might justly wonder
  about its actual authenticity

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Abu Hashim

• In some senses, however, its veracity is of
  secondary importance the important point being
  that it was accepted as such
• Baladhuri (Ansab al-Ashraf fol. 746b) states that
  Abu Hashim was poisoned by the Umayyadsm
• We thought that the Imamate and the affair the
  caliphate were in us but now there is no doubt
  that you are the Imam and the caliphate is in
  your sons
• Other sources differ somewhat in the details, but
  this is unimportant for our purposes
• Muhammad seems to have begun organising his
  followers into an effective underground movement
• However, his moves came to the notice of the
  Umayyad government
• Hashim ibn Abd al-Malik is said to have sharply
  criticised him
• Wait for the realm which you expect and on
  which you relate traditions ascribed to the
  Prophet and put up your youngsters as candidates
  for it
• Wait for the black flags and your debt will be
  paid (Ansab fol. 748b Akhbar fol. 82a)

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The Dawa

• Most tellingly, he is also said to have remarked
  that the
• Bani Hashim have turned the Prophet into a
  market selling false traditions ascribed to
  him (Ansab fol. 72a)
• Although this can be seen as Umayyad propaganda,
  it also suggests that there were an increasing
  number of Prophetic Traditions in circulation
• Muhammads supporters began drawing others to
  their cause
• He concentrated particularly upon Kufa (the home
  of the Shia)
• He also concentrated upon the Arab tribes based
  in Khurasan
• As we saw previously, these were made of large
  contingents from Kufa and Basra (many of whom
  were the most disruptive)
• Muhammads organisation was simply known as
  al-Dawa (The Call) and based itself on calls
  for vengeance for the Ahl al-Bayt and by
  stressing that they had a better title to rule
  than the Umayyads
• In other words, the Dawa was part of the broad
  Shiite milieu and must, therefore, be considered
  as another expression of the ideas we looked at
  in the last session

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Al-Rida min Aal Muhammad

• The Dawa seems to have strictly organised and to
  have prohibited premature uprisings, as well as
  any support for Alid contenders
• It thus did not co-operate in Zayds revolt, nor
  in that of Abdullah ibn Muawiya
• Their most famous slogan was to appoint the
  Chosen from the family of Muhammad (al-Rida min
  Al Muhammad)
• This meant that the exact leader of the movement
  was kept secret
• This was presumably to escape Umayyad hands, as
  well as attempting to appeal to as broad a Shiite
  audience as possible
• After Muhammads death in 125AH/742-3CE,
  leadership passed to his son Ibrahim
• With Ibrahim, an active and militant phase began
• Propaganda efforts were stepped up a number of
  new agents were recruited
• The most important of these was a man called Abu
  Muslim
• Abu Muslim (whose name literally means Father of
  Muslim) seems to have been a Persian
• However, there is much uncertainty about this
  mans origins

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The Death of Ibrahim ibn Muhammad

• At any rate, Abu Muslim was able to recruit a
  large number of malcontents into the Abbasid
  organisation
• In other words, the time for action was fast
  approaching
• However, before these plans could come to
  fruition, the Umayyad government discovered the
  identity and whereabouts of the Abbasid leader
  Ibrahim
• He was swiftly arrested and executed in
  131AH/749CE
• This was a devastating blow to the Abbasid
  movement and his two brothers barely escaped
• Leadership then passed to the senior brother,
  Abdullah (who became the first Abbasid caliph,
  al-Saffah)
• At this point, no doubt realising that is was now
  or never, al-Saffah ordered his agents and
  partisans to proclaim the revolt publicly
• Abu Muslim is then said to have unfurled the
  black flags of the movement in Khurasan
• These black were understood to be apocalyptic
  symbols and were apparently modelled on
  Muhammads own standard

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The Black Flags of Khurasan

• Abu Muslims revolt could not have come at a
  worse time for the Umayyad forces in Syria
• Marwan II, who had only recently become caliph,
  was facing widespread rebellion
• Indeed, Sulaiman (a disgruntled relative) had
  made off with most of his treasury
• There were also a number of revolts throughout
  the empire, including a number of khariji
  inspired uprisings
• Abu Muslims forces quickly outmanoeuvred the
  governor Khurasan, Nasr in Sayyar, who soon found
  himself besieged in Merv
• A revolt at Kufa was also instigated by the
  Abbasid agent there, Abu Salama
• Thus the Umayyad Syrian troops based at Wasit in
  Iraq were effectively tied down
• Although the details are complex, Abu Muslims
  forces (said to be some 50,000 strong) swept into
  Iraq
• Marwans forces marched to the Zab river to await
  the onslaught
• And in 132AH, the two sides met in battle (Battle
  of the Zab)
• Tabari gives quite a long account of the battle
  and its various phases (see Tab. 3.38) onwards

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Abbasid Victory

• Umayyad forces were completely routed and the
  Khurasani troops of the Abbasids entered Damascus
• Once firmly established there, the Abbasid
  general ordered a purge of the Umayyad family
• The sources relate that almost the entire Umayyad
  clan was put to death
• Despite this, an Umayyad prince managed to escape
  to Spain where he eventually founded a small,
  rival caliphate at Corduba
• With the Abbasid capture of Damascus, the
  conflict effectively ceased
• However, there was not an immediate return to
  stability
• Al-Saffah died shortly afterwards and his
  brother, known as al-Mansur (the Victorious)
  became caliph
• Before his rule was established, he had to face a
  serious Alid uprising in Kufa and Medina
• This was led by Muhammad ibn Abdullah, better
  known to history as Muhammad al-Nafs al-Zakiyya
  (or the Pure Soul)
• This marked the effective end of Abbasid links
  with the broad Shia milieu from which it emerged
• Subsequent Abbasid caliphs based their rule on a
  supposed testament from the Prophet to al-Abbas
  (thereby circumventing Ali)

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• Questions?

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Section III The First 150 Years a Brief Overview
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Overview

• Essentially, in this overview, we will attempt to
  draw together our study of the first 150 years of
  Islamic history through a number of key themes
• Sources
• Impact of Muhammad
• Claiming Muhammad's legacy
• Sources
• As we have seen, there is a vast range of sources
  for early Islamic sources
• Although each individual source has its
  particular strengths and weaknesses, they can be
  drawn together to form a reasonably coherent
  whole
• We have seen that a number of scholars have done
  this, from within and beyond the Islamic
  tradition
• Methodological approaches to these sources have
  given rise to differing accounts
• The traditional Muslim picture
• The revisionist accounts of scholars such as
  Crone and Wansbrough

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Overview

• Impact of Muhammad
• Although we have not looked at the life of
  Muhammad during this course, the figure of the
  Prophet looms large
• Muhammads life and teaching radically altered
  the religious, cultural, social and political
  norms of Arabian life
• These changes are wrapped up in the concept of
  Prophetic Sunna
• Muhammads role as the last Prophet also seems to
  have been generally acknowledged almost
  immediately
• That is, the early Muslim community seems to have
  been aware from its very beginnings that there
  would be no prophet after him
• This again underlined his importance, especially
  with regards to the attention given to preserving
  the revelation he received (the Quran) and his
  own apparent words (the Hadith)
• Claiming Muhammads Legacy
• His importance is again strongly emphasised by
  subsequent Islamic history which, in many senses,
  was about a debate (often violent) about had
  the right to hold and develop his legacy
• Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali
• Growth of a religious party
• Use of Prophetic statements to support all manner
  of ideas and beliefs