|
Islamic – Abbasid Caliphate – Al-Mahdi
AH 158-169 / AD 775-785. AR Hemidrachm
31mm, (4.07 grams), Issue of ‘Umar ibn al-‘Ala, governor in Tabaristan. First Series. Tabaristan mint. Dated PYE 120 = AH 155 (AD 771/29).
Reference: Malek 61.1–3; Album 56; ICV 104
Stylized crowned Sassanian style bust right; ‘wml in Pahlavi to right; ‘pd in Pahlavi to lower right in outer margin.
Fire altar flanked by attendants; pellets flanking flames; date to left, mint to right; alternating triple pellets and star-in-crescents in outer margin.
You are bidding on the exact item pictured, provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of Authenticity.
Abu Abdallah Muhammad ibn Abdallah al-Mansur (Arabic: أبو عبد الله محمد بن عبد الله المنصور; 744 or 745 – 785), better known by his regnal name al-Mahdi (المهدي, “He who is guided by God”), was the third Abbasid Caliph who reigned from 775 to his death in 785. He succeeded his father, al-Mansur.
Al-Mahdi’s father, Al-Mansur, died on the hajj to Mecca in 775. The throne then passed to Al-Mansur’s chosen successor, his son Al-Mahdi. According to Marozzi, ” was, by the standards of the future, blood-soaked successions of the Abbasid caliphate, a model of order and decorum.”
Al-Mahdi, whose nickname means “Rightly-guided” or “Redeemer”, was proclaimed caliph when his father was on his deathbed. His peaceful reign continued the policies of his predecessors.
Mahdi commenced his rule by releasing several political prisoners, expanding and decorating the holy places of Mecca and Medina, and building fountains and lofts for Hajj pilgrims. He expanded the mail service, increased his secret service, fortified cities, and increased judicial appointments. His charitable giving was also impressive.
Rapprochement with the Alids in the Caliphate occurred under al-Mahdi’s reign. The powerful Barmakid family, which had advised the Caliphs since the days of Abu al-‘Abbās as viziers, gained even greater powers under al-Mahdi’s rule, and worked closely with the caliph to ensure the prosperity of the Abbasid state.
Al-Mahdi reigned for ten years. He imprisoned his most trusted vizier Ya’qub ibn Dawud. In the year 167 AH/ 783 AD, al-Mahdi instituted an official inquisition which led to the execution of alleged Zindiq (heretics). He was fond of music and poetry and during his caliphate many musicians and poets received his patronage and he supported musical expression and poetry across his dominion; accordingly, his son Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi (779–839) and his daughter ‘Ulayya bint al-Mahdī (777-825) were both noted poets and musicians.
In 775, a Byzantine envoy, Tarath, travelled to Baghdad to convey the congratulations of the Byzantine emperor to Al-Mahdi on his accession to the throne. Tarath was so pleased with the hospitality he received that he offered to put his engineering knowledge to use and build a mill that would generate annual profits, of 500,000 dirhams, equal to the cost of its construction. On completion, the envoy’s forecast proved to be correct, and so, delighted, Al-Mahdi ordered that all profits should be given to the envoy, even after he left Baghdad. It is believed this continued to his death, in 780.
While the first Abbasid caliphs were distracted with cementing their authority, the Byzantines were occupied fighting Slavic clans in Macedonia and Thrace and battling the Bulgars. Once Mahdi felt secure in his rule, he fought the Byzantines with more force than his predecessors. He increased his line of control from Syria to the Armenian frontier and claimed the strategic town of Tarsus, that linked Anatolia, Syria, and northern Iraq.
In 777 AD (160 AH) he put down the insurrection of Yusuf ibn Ibrahim in Khurasan. In the same year al-Mahdi deposed Isa ibn Musa as his successor and appointed his own son Musa al-Hadi in his place and took allegiance (bayah) for him from the nobles. In 778 AD (161 AH), he subdued the rebellion of Abdullah ibn Marwan ibn Muhammad, who was leading the Umayyad remnant in Syria.
Mahdi also embarked on two important military voyages, one in 779 and another in 781 with his son Harun. In this Mahdi was teaching and training his son to be the future Caliph, just as his father had prepared him.
Al-Mahdi was poisoned by one of his concubines in 785 AD (169 AH). The concubine’s name was Hasanah and she was jealous of another female slave to who Mahdi was drawing closer. She prepared a dish of sweets and placed a poisonous pear at the top of the plate. The pit of the pear was removed and replaced with a lethal paste. She sent the dish to her adversary via a servant, however, Mahdi intercepted the plate and ate the pear without hesitation. Shortly afterward, he complained of stomach pain and died that night at 43 years old.
A separate account said Mahdi fell off his horse while hunting and died.
|
