Abu'l-Fath Yanis

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Abu'-Fatḥ Nāṣir (or Amīr) al-Juyūsh Sayf al-Islām Sharaf al-Islām Yānis al-Rūmī al-Armanī al-Ḥāfiẓī, commonly simply known by his given name Yānis (i.e., John), was an Armenian military slave who served as vizier of the Fatimid Caliphate for nine months in 1131–1132.

Life

A Christian of Armenian origin, he became a military slave (mamlūk) of al-Afdal Shahanshah,[1][2] the vizier (and de facto ruler) of the Fatimid Caliphate from 1094 to 1121.[3] In 1122/3, Yanis was promoted to head of the ṣibyān al-khāṣṣ—a special corps of young men being trained for military service[4]—and then to head of the treasury (ṣāḥib bayt al-mal) by the vizier al-Ma'mun al-Bata'ihi.[1] He rose further to head chamberlain (ṣāḥib al-bāb or ṣāḥib al-majlis), a rank almost equal to the vizierate,[5] and commander-in-chief of the army.[1]

Following the death of Caliph

Twelver Shi'a regime instead. This aroused the reaction of the old Fatimid elites, and members of al-Amir's ṣibyān al-khāṣṣ murdered Kutayfat on 8 December 1131. Abd al-Majid was released and reinstated, initially as regent, but in February 1132 he was raised to the caliphate as al-Hafiz li-Din Allah.[6][7][8] Yanis emerged as the new strong man, and was named vizier.[5] This has been seen by some modern historians as a reward for assisting in the murder of Kutayfat and the restoration of the dynasty.[9] On the other hand, among his first moves was the elimination of about 300 of the approximately 500 ṣibyān, exactly the same corps that had been responsible for Kutayfat's murder.[5]

This severity was a hallmark of Yanis, a strong personality and disciplinarian who tried to discipline the unruly army by tough measures.[2][10] At the same time, he relied on a privately raised regiment of military slaves, which was known after him as Yānisiyya.[10] Yanis' efforts to impose control over the state extended to the administration as well, leading to the imprisonment of several prominent officials.[10] His growing power alarmed al-Hafiz, and after nine months in power, he had the vizier's ablution water poisoned.[10] After Yanis' death, the Caliph did not appoint another vizier, and for a time took governance into his own hands. It was not until 1134 that a new vizier was appointed, in the person of al-Hafiz's son and designated heir Sulayman.[5]

During his tenure, Yanis began constructing two mosques, the Masjid al-Fath and the Masjid Yanis, which were completed by his two sons, whom al-Hafiz took under his protection.[10]

References

  1. ^ a b c Dedoyan 2002, p. 281.
  2. ^ a b al-Imad 1990, p. 192.
  3. ^ al-Imad 1990, pp. 190–191.
  4. ^ Dedoyan 1997, p. 136.
  5. ^ a b c d Halm 2014, p. 186.
  6. ^ Stern 1960, p. 216.
  7. ^ Dedoyan 1997, pp. 142–143.
  8. ^ Halm 2014, p. 181.
  9. ^ Dedoyan 2002, pp. 281–282.
  10. ^ a b c d e Dedoyan 2002, p. 282.

Sources

  • al-Imad, Leila S. (1990). The Fatimid Vizierate (979-1172). Berlin: Klaus Schwarz Verlag.
    ISBN 3-922968-82-1
    .
  • Dedoyan, Seta B. (1997). The Fatimid Armenians: Cultural and Political Interaction in the Near East. Leiden, New York, and Köln: Brill.
    ISBN 90-04-10816-5
    .
  • Dedoyan, Seta B. (2002). "Yānis". In
    ISBN 978-90-04-12756-2
    .
  • ISBN 978-3-406-66163-1
    .
  • Stern, S. M. (1960). "al-Afḍal, Abū ʿAlī Aḥmad, surnamed Kutayfāt". In
    OCLC 495469456
    .
Preceded by Vizier of the Fatimid Caliphate
1131–1132 		Vacant
Title next held by
Sulayman ibn al-Hafiz
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