Al-Fadl ibn Marwan (; c. 774–864) was a

Christian Arab Arab Christians () are the Arabs who adhere to Christianity. The number of Arab Christians who live in the Middle East was estimated in 2012 to be between 10 and 15 million. Arab Christian communities can be found throughout the Arab world, bu ...

official of the

Abbasid Caliphate The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 CE), from whom the dynasty takes ...

, who rose to become

vizier A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...

under Caliph

al-Mu'tasim Abū Isḥāq Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Rashīd (; October 796 – 5 January 842), better known by his laqab, regnal name al-Muʿtaṣim biʾllāh (, ), was the eighth Abbasid Caliphate, Abbasid caliph, ruling from 833 until his death in 842. ...

(

reign A reign is the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation (e.g., King of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia, List of Belgian monarchs, Belgium, Co-princes of Andorra, Andorra), of a people (e.g., List of Frankish kin ...

ed 833–842). He was the first of a series of Iraqi Christian officials who would come to play a significant role in the Caliphate's administration during the 9th century. Fadl began his career in the reign of

Harun al-Rashid Abū Jaʿfar Hārūn ibn Muḥammad ar-Rāshīd (), or simply Hārūn ibn al-Mahdī (; or 766 – 24 March 809), famously known as Hārūn al-Rāshīd (), was the fifth Abbasid caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate, reigning from September 786 unti ...

(r. 786–809) as a retainer of

Harthama ibn A'yan Harthama ibn A'yan (; died June 816) was a Khurasan-born general and governor of the early Abbasid Caliphate, serving under the caliphs al-Hadi, Harun al-Rashid and al-Ma'mun. He played an important role in the victory of al-Ma'mun in the Abbasid ...

, at the time head of the caliphal bodyguard. His administrative talent brought him to the attention of Harun, who appointed him a secretary in the '' diwan al-kharaj'' (the "Bureau of the

Land Tax A land value tax (LVT) is a levy on the value of land without regard to buildings, personal property and other improvements upon it. Some economists favor LVT, arguing it does not cause economic inefficiency, and helps reduce economic inequali ...

"). During the

civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

that followed Harun's death, Fadl retired to his estates in

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. It was there that he came to the attention of Abu Ishaq, the younger brother of Caliph

al-Ma'mun Abū al-ʿAbbās Abd Allāh ibn Hārūn al-Maʾmūn (; 14 September 786 – 9 August 833), better known by his regnal name al-Ma'mun (), was the seventh Abbasid caliph, who reigned from 813 until his death in 833. His leadership was marked by t ...

(r. 813–833) and future Caliph al-Mu'tasim, who valued is expert knowledge on taxation and agriculture. In 828, Abu Ishaq took him along to

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

and then appointed him to head the ''diwan al-kharaj''. During al-Ma'mun's absence on campaign against the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

in 832–833, Fadl remained in

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

as the Caliph's deputy, and it was he who had the oath of allegiance (''

bay'ah ''Bayʿah'' (, "Pledge of allegiance"), in Islamic terminology, is an oath of allegiance to a leader. It is known to have been practiced by the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In Bedouin culture it was a procedure for choosing the leader of the trib ...

'') sworn to al-Mu'tasim when news came of al-Ma'mun's death. In September 833, he was appointed as vizier with wide-ranging powers, but his attempts to limit expenditure, and especially the Caliph's largesse to his courtiers, brought about his dismissal in February 836. He continued to serve Mu'tasim and his successors as an advisor on taxation issues until his death in 864, aged about 90.

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fadl Ibn Marwan 770s births 864 deaths Arab Christians in Mesopotamia Viziers of the Abbasid Caliphate 8th-century Arab people 9th-century Arab people 9th-century government officials