Episode 25: Abdulmalik bin Marwan

Abdulmalik’s adept handling of the second fitna revealed him to be a shrewd mover and shaker with a disposition suitable for leadership. He did more than emulate those who came before him, he enacted changes that pushed the caliphate further into statehood and away from its roots as a tribal confederacy, cementing his family’s supremacy in the process.

Glossary

• Hassan ibn il Numan: the Ghassanid general Abdulmalik put in charge of 40,000 troops and sent to Africa.
• Al Hajjaj: Abdulmalik’s governor of Iraq dominated the narrative as soon as he arrived on the scene. He was absolutely critical to Umayyad authority in the East, although that’s something which will become increasingly clear going forward.
• Muhallab bin Sufra: perhaps the most capable military leader of his age, Muhallab had defeated foes all over the caliphate, and had most recently been decisive in vanquishing the fearsome Azariqa kharijites from around Basra and Iran. 
• Sufyan il Kalbi: in a fair world Sufyan would get more time in the spotlight, but just know him as one of Abdulmalik’s amazing Qahtani generals who got stuff done.
• Nafi’ ibn il Azraq: widely considered the founder of what became the most vicious of the Kharijite factions. They were known for killing anyone who disagreed with them, and they grew large enough to pose a real problem starting in in the early to mid 680’s, so it took at least a full decade to bring them down.
• Qatari ibn il Fuja’a: successor to Nafi’, who had died fighting al Muhallab.
• Shabib: Shabib ibn Yazid al Shaybani wielded great power in Mosul and northern Iraq at some point, but it’s difficult to ascertain exactly when. Although the lack of information does make it hard to understand what was going on, it’s clear that the unpopularity of al Hajjaj ensured anyone who successfully challenged him great sympathy and renown throughout Iraq. 
• Mutraf ibn il Mughyara: the son of the dahiya and governor of Mada’in led yet another Iraqi rebellion against Abdulmalik’s caliphate. Mutraf believed that a more pious Qurayshi would address the inequality which he blamed for pulling the umma apart. He sympathized with the mawali, and it should perhaps be noted that the city he governed was rumored to be insubordinate, and was the city Mukhtar had been raised in.