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Vizier (Fatimid Caliphate)
The vizier () was the senior minister of the Fatimid Caliphate for most of the Egypt in the Middle Ages#Fatimid period, Egyptian period of its existence. Originally it was held by civilian officials who acted as the chief civilian ministers of the caliphs, analogous to the vizier (Abbasid Caliphate), original model established by the Abbasids. When a vizier was not appointed, an "intermediary" () was designated instead. The enfeeblement of the caliph's power and the crisis of the Fatimid regime under Caliph Al-Mustansir Billah, al-Mustansir, however, led to the rise of military strongmen, who dominated the post from the 1070s until the caliphate's end. These "viziers of the sword" were also commanders-in-chief of the army who effectively sidelined the caliphs and ruled in their stead, often seizing power from their predecessors. The last vizier, Saladin, abolished the Fatimid Caliphate in 1171 (see Saladin in Egypt). History and powers During the Ifriqiyan period of the Fatimid Cal ...
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Fatimid Caliphate
The Fatimid Caliphate (; ), also known as the Fatimid Empire, was a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries CE under the rule of the Fatimids, an Isma'ili Shi'a dynasty. Spanning a large area of North Africa and West Asia, it ranged from the western Mediterranean in the west to the Red Sea in the east. The Fatimids traced their ancestry to the Islamic prophet Muhammad's daughter Fatima and her husband Ali, the first Shi'a imam. The Fatimids were acknowledged as the rightful imams by different Isma'ili communities as well as by denominations in many other Muslim lands and adjacent regions. Originating during the Abbasid Caliphate, the Fatimids initially conquered Ifriqiya (roughly present-day Tunisia and north-eastern Algeria). They extended their rule across the Mediterranean coast and ultimately made Egypt the center of the caliphate. At its height, the caliphate included—in addition to Egypt—varying areas of the Maghreb, Sicily, the Levant, and the Hej ...
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Ya'qub Ibn Killis
Abu'l-Faraj Ya'qub ibn Yusuf ibn Killis (, ), (c. 930 in Baghdad – 991), commonly known simply by his patronymic surname as Ibn Killis, was a high-ranking official of the Ikhshidids who went on to serve as vizier under the Fatimids from 979 until his death in 991. Ya'qub ibn Yusuf ibn Killis was born in Baghdad in about 930 in a Jewish family. After his family moved to Syria he came to Egypt in 943 and entered the service of the Regent Kafur. As soon as he became the household and property administrator, he was in charge of the Egyptian state's finances. Despite converting to Islam in 967, he was imprisoned by Kafur's successors after losing their favor. He was able however to purchase his freedom and went to Ifriqiya, where he put himself at the service of the Fatimid Caliph al-Mu'izz. After the Fatimid conquest of Egypt in 969, Ibn Killis returned to Egypt and was put in charge of the economy, where he was able to regularise the state finances. After the dismissal of Jawhar a ...
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Ridwan Ibn Walakhshi
Ridwan ibn Walakhshi () was the vizier of the Fatimid Caliphate in 1137–1139, under Caliph al-Hafiz li-Din Allah. He was a Sunni military commander, who rose to high offices under caliphs al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah and al-Hafiz. He participated in the coup of Kutayfat, which in 1130–1131 briefly overthrew the Fatimid dynasty, serving as gaoler of the future caliph al-Hafiz. Under al-Hafiz he rose to the powerful position of chamberlain, and emerged as the leader of the Muslim opposition during the vizierate of the Christian Bahram al-Armani in 1135–1137, when he served as governor of Ascalon and the western Nile Delta. In February 1137, he rose in revolt against Bahram, drove him from Cairo, and was in turn appointed to the vizierate with the title of "Most Excellent King" () denoting his ambitions and status as a ''de facto'' monarch in his own right. His tenure lasted two years and five months, and was marked by a reorganization of the government and by a persecution of Chris ...
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Abu'l-Fath Yanis
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, the vizier (and ''de facto'' ruler) of the Fatimid Caliphate from 1094 to 1121. In 1122/3, Yanis was promoted to head of the ''ṣibyān al-khāṣṣ''—a special corps of young men being trained for military service—and then to head of the treasury (''ṣāḥib bayt al-mal'') by the vizier al-Ma'mun al-Bata'ihi. He rose further to head chamberlain ('' ṣāḥib al-bāb'' or ''ṣāḥib al-majlis''), a rank almost equal to the vizierate, and commander-in-chief of the army. Following the death of Caliph al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah on 17 October 1130, the army raised al-Afdal's son Kutayfat to t ...
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Sahib Al-bab
The (), also known as the (), was one of the most senior offices of the Fatimid Caliphate in the 12th century. The post is first attested in the early years of the 12th century, during the vizierate of al-Afdal Shahanshah, when Husam al-Mulk Aftakin is mentioned as holding it. It effectively replaced the office of 'master of the curtain' (), which was usually held by a court eunuch of Slavic origin. Unlike the latter office, the was always held by a military officer, and was counted among the most senior rank of commanders (the 'commanders with a collar', ). From the time of Abu'l-Muzaffar Khumurtash in , the had the appellation ('the exalted, glorified'). Most of the information about the duties of the office comes from the historian, and one-time Fatimid official, Ibn al-Tuwayr. When the vizier was not of military origin, the was responsible for hearing the petitions and grievances () in the vizier's stead, taking up a seat at the Golden Gate, the entrance to the calipha ...
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Ayyubid
The Ayyubid dynasty (), also known as the Ayyubid Sultanate, was the founding dynasty of the medieval Sultan of Egypt, Sultanate of Egypt established by Saladin in 1171, following his abolition of the Fatimid Caliphate, Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt. A Sunni Muslim of Kurds, Kurdish origin, Saladin had originally served the Zengid dynasty, Zengid ruler Nur al-Din Zengi, Nur al-Din, leading the latter's army against the Crusader invasions of Egypt, Crusaders in Fatimid Egypt, where he was made vizier (Fatimid Caliphate), vizier. Following Nur al-Din's death, Saladin was proclaimed as the first Sultan of Egypt by the Abbasid Caliphate, and rapidly expanded the new sultanate beyond Lower Egypt, Egypt to encompass most of Syria (region), Syria, in addition to Hijaz, Southern Arabia, Yemen, northern Nubia, Tripolitania and Upper Mesopotamia. Saladin's military campaigns set the general borders and sphere of influence of the sultanate of Egypt for the almost 350 years of its existence. Mos ...
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Shirkuh
Asad ad-Dīn Shīrkūh bin Shādhī (; ), (died 23 March 1169) was a Kurdish Mercenary commander in service of the Zengid dynasty, then the Fatimid Caliphate and uncle of Saladin. His military and diplomatic efforts in Egypt were a key factor in establishing the Ayyubid dynasty in that country. Name The pronunciation and the meaning of Shirkuh is not quite clear: it could mean “the mountain lion” or possibly Shirguh (Sher-gue) in Kurdish “having the lion’s ear". His Arabic honorific ''Asad ad-Din'' similarly means "the lion of faith". In Latin, his name was rendered as "Siraconus"; William of Tyre, referring to the expedition of 1163, describes him as: an able and energetic warrior, eager for glory and of wide experience in military affairs. Generous far beyond the resources of his patrimony, Shirkuh was beloved by his followers because of this munificence. He was small of stature, very stout and fat and already advanced in years. Though of lowly origin, he had bec ...
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Al-malik
al-Malik (), literally "''the King''", is a name that may refer to: *The title King of Kings *One of the 99 names of God in Islam *Imam Malik *Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, Umayyad caliph * Al-Malik al-Rahim, Buyid rulers * Al-Malik al-Aziz, Buyid prince *Al-Kamil, sultan of Egypt See also *Malik Malik (; ; ; variously Romanized ''Mallik'', ''Melik'', ''Malka'', ''Malek'', ''Maleek'', ''Malick'', ''Mallick'', ''Melekh'') is the Semitic term translating to "king", recorded in East Semitic and Arabic, and as mlk in Northwest Semitic d ... {{disambig de:Al-Malik ...
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Da'i Al-du'at
A da'i (, ) is generally someone who engages in Dawah, the act of inviting people to Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world .... See also * Dawah * Da'i al-Mutlaq, 'the absolute (unrestricted) missionary' * Hujja * List of converts to Islam References {{Reflist Arabic words and phrases Ismaili da'is Islamic terminology Religious titles ...
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Qadi
A qadi (; ) is the magistrate or judge of a Sharia court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and minors, and supervision and auditing of public works. History The term '' was in use from the time of Muhammad during the early history of Islam, and remained the term used for judges throughout Islamic history and the period of the caliphates. While the and played the role in elucidation of the principles of Islamic jurisprudence () and the Islamic law (), the qadi remained the key person ensuring the establishment of justice on the basis of these very laws and rules. Thus, the qadi was chosen from amongst those who had mastered the sciences of jurisprudence and law. The office of qadi continued to be a very important one in every principality of the caliphates and sultanates of the various Muslim empires over the centuries. The rulers appointed a qadi in every region, town, and village for judicial and administrative cont ...
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Badr Al-Jamali
Abu'l-Najm Badr ibn Abdallah al-Jamali al-Mustansiri, better known as Badr al-Jamali () or by his eventual title as Amir al-Juyush (, ), was a military commander and statesman for the Fatimid Caliphate under Caliph al-Mustansir. Of Armenian origin but a convert to Islam, Badr had been brought up as a military slave () by the ruler of Tripoli, Jamal al-Dawla ibn Ammar. In the 1060s, he was appointed twice as governor of Damascus in Syria, at a time when Fatimid authority there was disintegrating, and the central government in Egypt was on the verge of collapse as a result of the Mustansirite Hardship. Badr was unable to prevent the loss of most of Syria to local potentates and Turkoman warlords, but managed to hold on to the coastal cities, making Acre his base. As the sole major military commander outside Egypt, he was called upon by al-Mustansir to help rescue the dynasty. Badr landed in Egypt in late 1073, rapidly eliminated his rivals, and was appointed vizier with plenipot ...
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Marius Canard
Marius Canard FBA (26 December 1888 – 13 September 1982) was a French Orientalist and historian. Biography He was born in a small village in the region of Morvan, where his father was a school teacher. Canard studied at the ''Collège Bonaparte'' in Autun and completed his studies in the Faculty of Letters of the University of Lyon, where he learned the Arabic, Turkish and Persian languages under the guidance of his coeval Gaston Wiet (1887–1971). His first teaching post was as a high school professor at Toulon in 1913. During the First World War, he served with the 16th Chasseurs à cheval Regiment stationed at Beaune, and was decorated with the ''Croix de Guerre'' with a silver star. After the war, he went to Morocco, where he perfected his knowledge of Arabic. In 1920 he returned to Lyon, where he taught in the ''Lycée du Parc''. In order to further his language skills, he re-entered the local university's Faculty of Letters to learn Sanskrit. Canard then visited ...
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