Ali al-Sulayhi
Ali al-Sulayhi | |
---|---|
Ismaili Islam |
Ali bin Muhammad bin Ali al-Sulayhi (
Early life
Al-Sulayhi was born and raised in the village of Jabal near
Al-Sulayhi succeeded al-Zawahi as Chief Da'i of Yemen after the latter's death.
Ruler of Yemen
Following his marriage to Asma, he moved to
Establishing his capital at
Also in 1062, Ali sent Lamak ibn Malik to Cairo to serve as an embassy and representative there.[10] His original intention may have been to seek official permission from the Fatimids for Ali's attack on Mecca later that year.[10] Lamak went on to stay in Cairo and represent Sulayhid interests until Ali's death in 1067.[10]
After successfully demanding religious legitimacy from the Fatimid caliph
With full-fledged support from the Hamdani and
In late 1063 al-Sulayhi led his forces into the Hejaz and challenged the Abbasids by conquering Mecca by 1064 and installing a client king there.[5] Regarding al-Sulayhi's conquest of Mecca, Ibn al-Athir stated, "He put an end to injustice, reorganized the supply system, and increased the acts of beneficence."[12] Al-Sulayhi brought Mecca firmly into the orbit of Shia Islam and had the name of the Fatimid caliphs pronounced in the khutba.[14]
Death and aftermath
In 1066 al-Sulayhi made the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca with a large caravan that included Asma and the entourage of her court, all of the
Al-Sulayhi's caravan was highly luxurious and news of its departing spread throughout Yemen.[15] Sa'id al-Ahwal, the leader of the Najahids and son of their slain former leader, Najah, had prior knowledge of the caravan's planned route and devised an attack on al-Sulaysi to avenge Najah's death.[18] On its way to Mecca, the caravan was assaulted by al-Ahwal's force and al-Sulayhi was killed.[16]
Ibn Khaldun wrote that al-Sulayhi was notified by his brother-in-law As'ad ibn Shihab al-Sulayhi who ruled Zabid that al-Ahwal and his brother Jayyash ibn Najaj had emerged from their hiding and planned to attack the caravan. In response, al-Sulayhi dispatched a force of 5,000 Ethiopian horsemen to protect the caravan and kill the Najahid brothers if they were confronted on the route to Mecca. Jayyash and al-Ahwal successfully evaded notice while pursuing al-Sulayhi and together with a handful of their partisans attacked the caravan while it was encamped outside al-Mahjam. His Ethiopian troops refused to aid him and many of them defected. Afterward, al-Sulayhi, his brother Abdullah al-Sulayhi and 170 males from the Sulayhid family were executed by decapitation. Jayyash was believed to have been responsible for al-Sulayhi's death. Asma and 35 Qahtani princes who ruled Yemen on behalf of al-Sulayhi were captured and stripped of their principalities.[17]
According to Ibn Khalikan, al-Sulayhi and his men were camping outside the farm of al-Dulaim in the Hejaz when al-Ahwal and a handful of his partisans clandestinely entered the camp. Al-Sulayhi's guards mistook them for soldiers, but his brother Abdullah realized they were Najahid men and proclaimed, "To horse! For by Allah here is al-Ahwal and his men of whose coming we were warned yesterday by the letter which As'ad ibn Shihab wrote us from Zabid!"[19] Al-Sulayhi was "seized with terror" and remained in his spot before al-Ahwal killed him.[20] The Najahids proceeded to kill Abdullah and most of al-Sulayhi's family that was present before taking control of the caravan's mostly Ethiopian army.[20]
Yemen's inhabitants were angered and largely saddened by al-Sulayhi's slaughter. Following the latter's death and the execution or imprisonment of his family members and emirs, al-Ahwal enlisted al-Sulayhi's Ethiopian army and with them marched back toward Zabid and successfully wrested control of the former Najahid city. Ibn Shihab escaped to San'a and the severed heads of both al-Sulayhi and Abdullah were affixed to poles outside of Asma's new dwelling in Zabid. Al-Mukarram, who had succeeded al-Sulayhi as
References
- ^ a b Daftari, p.80.
- ^ a b c d e Daftari, p.92.
- ^ McLaughlin, p.97.
- ^ O'Leary, p.202.
- ^ a b c Salibi, p.108.
- ^ a b Mernissi, p.132.
- ^ a b McLaughlin, p.98.
- ^ Oliver, p.120.
- ^ a b Ibn Khalikan, p.362.
- ^ a b c Traboulsi, Samer (2000). "Lamak ibn Mālik al-H̲ammādī and Sulayhid-Fatimid Relations". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 30: 221–7. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
- ^ a b Dumper, p.10.
- ^ a b c Mernissi, p.134.
- ^ Mernissi, p.119.
- ^ Mernissi, pp.136-137.
- ^ a b Mernissi, p.137.
- ^ a b Jackson-Laufer, p.41.
- ^ a b c al-Hakami and Ibn Yakub, pp.152-153.
- ^ Mernissi, p.136.
- ^ Ibn Khalikan, p.360.
- ^ a b Ibn Khalikan, p.361.
- ^ al-Hakami and Ibn Yakub, p.154.
Bibliography
- Daftari, Farhad (2005), Ismailis in Medieval Muslim Societies, I.B. Tauris, ISBN 1845110919
- Dumper, Michael (2007). Cities of the Middle East and North Africa: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1576079195.
- Ibn Khalikan, Ahmad (1842), Ibn Khallikan's Biographical Dictionary, Printed for the Oriental translation fund of Great Britain and Ireland
- Jackson-Laugher, Guilda (1999), Women Rulers Throughout The Ages: An Illustrated Guide, ABC-CLIO, ISBN 1576070913
- McLaughlin, Daniel (2008), Yemen, Bradt Travel Guides, ISBN 978-1841622125
- Mernissi, Fatima (1997), The Forgotten Queens of Islam, University of Minnesota Press, ISBN 0816624399
- O'Leary, De Lacy (1987), A Short History of the Fatimid Khalifate, A short history of the Fatimid khalifate
- Oliver, Roland (1977), Volume 3 of The Cambridge History of Africa: From C. 1050 to C. 1600, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0521209811
- Salibi, Kamal Suleiman (1980), A History of Arabia, Caravan Books, ISBN 9780882060361