Episode 79: Fortune favors the brute

Before you even hit play it should already be clear to you that the caliphate is only going to get stronger over the course of our discussion today. Al Mu’tadid seems to have been incapable of doing any wrong; his decisive leadership reinvigorated the state far beyond what his predecessors had managed. He displayed both courage and cunning during his time in charge, a potent mix that reduced his rivals without the need for open conflict. Although he possessed some disturbing traits al Mu’tadid remains one of the best caliphs to grace the Abbasid throne. 

Map

Glossary

• Al Mu’tadid: as much as I hate to admit it, al Mu’tadid was a really great caliph. I just can’t get over the brutality stuff, he really seems to have enjoyed torturing people. Although I stand firm by my decision to highlight this indefensible moral hazard, I may have given it too much attention. It certainly prevented me from mentioning some of al Mu’tadid’s more positive contributions. He built a famous hospital for the people of Baghdad, and promoted a skilled polymath – Abu Bakr al Razi – as its director. Al Razi just means that he was from Rayy, but it’s come to be known as his name. Al Razi wrote a treatise critiquing Galen, and more importantly, a book of medical and pharmacological advice for the everyman who couldn’t afford to be treated by a doctor. Al Mu’tadid also promoted other scholars, especially those translating Greek works to Arabic. His mother was Greek so the caliph spoke the language as well, and that may have had something to do with his passion for importing Greek studies to the caliphate.
• ‘Amr ibn Layth al Saffar: the leader of the Saffarids suffered a career-ending defeat at the hands of the impressive Isma’il ibn Saman. ‘Amr’s young grandson succeeded him as the dynasty’s nominal ruler, but the youth was dominated by his powerful army-chief until the latter’s death. For some reason it’s kind of pleasing to see the political dynamics that caused the Abbasids so much grief play out in other dynasties. ‘Amr spent the rest of his life in al Mu’tadid’s dungeons in Baghdad. He may have expected al Mu’tadid’s son and heir to free him once he ascended, but he was put to death in secret right after al Mu’tadid died, so the incoming caliph never had the chance to pardon him. 
• Rafi’ ibn Harthama: the adventurer of Khurasan was an ex-Tahirid loyalist who led the counter-rebellion against the Saffarids. After the caliphate made peace with the Saffarids, he turned to the Zaydis for support against them both, and he managed to make a mess of Khurasan for about a decade before finally being defeated.
• Mohammad ibn Zayd: son of the Hashemite who had first come to live among the people of Daylam and Tabaristan, Mohammad was an influential presence in the region. While these lands had pre-existing nobility and kings, the Hashemites occupied a large place in local identity after the spread of their cause. Mohammad led his armies to Gorgan, but like ‘Amr al Saffar before him, he faced a decisive end against the Samanids in battle. 
• Isma’il ibn Saman: while Isma’il is the main figure we hear about, he was not technically the leader of the Samanids. He had a sort of Talha thing going on though, where he was by far the most influential member of his house by being the most adept on the battlefield. He will go on to expand the Samanid domain and bequeath his predecessor with the means to continue further still.
• Khumarwayh ibn Tulun: the son of Ahmad ibn Tulun proved to be the last effective leader of his house, making their enterprise more of a family business than a dynasty. I could not find any authoritative pronunciation for his strange name, so I used the two that I felt approximated it best in Arabic (the name itself must have been Uighur, or perhaps Uzbek). Khumarwayh lived large and managed to keep his father’s commanders united during his tenure. He died under mysterious though overtly personal circumstances. This is a PG show so I didn’t want to spell anything out, but if I had to guess I would say his servants killed him because he abused them in ways our formal sources found unspeakable.
• Jaysh and Haroon: Khumarwyah’s children were puppets controlled by powerful factions within the state. Jaysh only lasted on the throne for 8 months, while the 8 year old Haroon ruled for almost 6 years before the whole dynasty collapsed in on itself.