Episode 35: Turgesh troubles

Khurasan and the East remained as volatile as ever, and Hisham had to contend with the new threat of the Turgesh throughout his long reign. We’re fortunate that our sources contain so much information on the region during this chaotic time, especially because the area will be of pivotal importance to the caliphate before too long. The Arab struggle in the region reveals how riven by disagreements the umma had become East of Iraq.

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Glossary

• Asad: brother of the governor of Iraq Khalid il Qasri, Asad did pretty well during his time in charge. He is faulted for being excessively close to the Qahtanis, but given how bad his successors did, it really seems like you had to pick a side to get anything done in Khurasan, so I’m not sure how far it counts against him.
• Ashras: we’re told Ashras meant well when he started, and that he thought all Mawali should be treated the same as Arabs so that the two could fight the Turgesh. He reversed his policies within the year though, and provoked the mawali in the process. The local nobility quickly allied with the Turgesh wherever they could, and the Arabs had to defend hard just to win a chance to retreat from most frontier areas.
• Junayd: Ashras’ replacement tried being aggressive in Khurasan as he had been in Sindh, but it got him nowhere against the Turgesh. Under him the Arabs suffered their second major defeat during the battle of the pass, a battle few of his forces survived. The umma was crippled in the region following this disastrous loss.
• Hareth ibn Surayj: an Arab from the region who sympathized deeply with the mawali. He criticized the Umayyads and their governor, was punished for it, then started a rebellion after Junayd passed away. He called on muslims to join him and rise against the unjust rule of the caliph etc.
• ‘Asim: the Syrian governor had no luck in commanding the various contingents nominally under his control. He still managed to rebuff Hareth’s attacks on the provincial capital, but could do little more than that. The weakness of the Arab position following the two major losses against the Turgesh is especially apparent during his time in charge.
• Asad’s return: this is when Asad came back to power, and he used his fresh forces and his old Qahtani connections to make an impression this time around. He shored up the Arab position in Khurasan with some quick attacks while the Turgesh were away, and defeated both them and Hareth when he met them in battle. He passed away soon after of natural causes.
• Nasr ibn Sayyar: Hisham’s final governor of the East was a Adnani leader who seems to have been the perfect man for the job. He had made good connections with the locals during his long life and career in Khurasan, and he was respected by the Arabs as well. He had a fascinating journey which we will perhaps revisit in a future episode.

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