Al-ʿAbbās ibn Aḥmad ibn Ṭūlūn was the eldest son of the founder of the

Tulunid dynasty The Tulunid State, also known as the Tulunid Emirate or The State of Banu Tulun, and popularly referred to as the Tulunids () was a Mamluk dynasty of Turkic origin who was the first independent dynasty to rule Egypt, as well as much of Syria, s ...

Ahmad ibn Tulun Ahmad ibn Tulun (; c. 20 September 835 – 10 May 884) was the founder of the Tulunid dynasty that ruled Egypt in the Middle Ages, Egypt and Bilad al-Sham, Syria between 868 and 905. Originally a Turkic peoples, Turkic slave-soldier, in 868 Ibn ...

, and heir-apparent until his failed attempt to usurp his father in 879. After a failed attempt to take over

Ifriqiya Ifriqiya ( '), also known as al-Maghrib al-Adna (), was a medieval historical region comprising today's Tunisia, eastern Algeria, and Tripolitania (roughly western Libya). It included all of what had previously been the Byzantine province of ...

, he was imprisoned in Egypt and executed shortly after the succession of his younger brother,

Khumarawayh Abu 'l-Jaysh Khumārawayh ibn Aḥmad ibn Ṭūlūn (; 864 – 18 January 896) was a son of the founder of the Tulunid dynasty, Ahmad ibn Tulun. His father, the autonomous ruler of Egypt and Syria, designated him as his successor. When Ibn Tulun ...

, in May 884.

Biography

Abbas was the eldest son of

, the son of a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

slave who had ruled

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 ...

since 868. By exploiting the dissensions in 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 ...

between Caliph

al-Mu'tamid Abu’l-ʿAbbās Aḥmad ibn Al-Mutawakkil, Jaʿfar ibn al-Mu'tasim, Muḥammad ibn Harun al-Rashid, Hārūn al-Muʿtamid ʿalā’Llāh (; – 14 October 892), better known by his regnal name al-Muʿtamid ʿalā 'llāh (, 'Dependent on God'), ...

and his brother

al-Muwaffaq Abu Ahmad Ṭalḥa ibn Al-Mutawakkil, Jaʿfar ibn al-Mu'tasim, Muḥammad ibn Harun al-Rashid, Hārūn al-Muwaffaq bi'Llah (; 29 November 843 – 2 June 891), better known by his as Al-Muwaffaq Billah (), was an Abbasid dynasty, Abbasid prince ...

, Ibn Tulun soon managed to establish his autonomy from the Abbasid government, and proceeded to expand his control over

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

as well. Preoccupied with the conquest of Syria, Ibn Tulun appointed Abbas as his deputy in Egypt. Within a short time, however, his entourage persuaded him to try and seize power for himself. Forewarned by the

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 ...

al-Wasiti, Ibn Tulun returned from Syria in April 879 and thwarted his son's ambitions. Taking the treasury with him, Abbas and his supporters—as well as an armed force numbering some 800 cavalry and 10,000 black African infantry—fled first to

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

and then to

Barqa Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika (, , after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between the 16th and 25th meridians east, including the Kufra District. The coastal region, als ...

. Ibn Tulun tried to persuade him to return and even offered him a pardon, but Abbas refused. Instead, he resolved to take over

by invading it with his army, augmented by local contingents on the way, and deposing the local

Aghlabid dynasty The Aghlabid dynasty () was an Arab dynasty centered in Ifriqiya (roughly present-day Tunisia) from 800 to 909 that conquered parts of Sicily, Southern Italy, and possibly Sardinia, nominally as vassals of the Abbasid Caliphate. The Aghlabids ...

. To legitimize his move, Abbas claimed that he had received nomination as Ifriqiya's governor by al-Mu'tamid, but the Aghlabid emir Ibrahim II responded by sending a cavalry force to meet him. Abbas defeated the local Aghlabid governor, Muhammad ibn Qurhub, sacked the town of Labda, and marched on

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis (from , meaning "three cities") may refer to: Places Greece *Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in the Pelasgiotis district, Thessaly, near Larissa ...

. The

Ibadite Ibadism (, ) is a school of Islam concentrated in Oman established from within the Kharijites. The followers of the Ibadi sect are known as the Ibadis or, as they call themselves, The People of Truth and Integrity (). Ibadism emerged around 60 ...

leader and governor of Tripoli and

Jabal Nafusa The Nafusa Mountains () () is a mountain range in the western Tripolitania region of northwestern Libya. It also includes the regions around the escarpment formed where the northern end of the Tripolitanian Plateau meets the Mediterranean coasta ...

, Ilyas ibn Mansur al-Nafusi, mobilized resistance to the invader. His 12,000–strong army defeated Abbas in winter 880/1. Abbas, with the remnants of his army, fled east and was defeated and captured outside Alexandria by troops loyal to his father. Brought as a prisoner to the Egyptian capital,

Fustat Fustat (), also Fostat, was the first capital of Egypt under Muslim rule, though it has been integrated into Cairo. It was built adjacent to what is now known as Old Cairo by the Rashidun Muslim general 'Amr ibn al-'As immediately after the Mus ...

, he was publicly paraded seated on a mule, and was commanded to execute or mutilate the most prominent of his followers, who were held responsible for urging him to rebel, by gouging their eyes and cutting off their arms. Ibn Tulun reportedly had hoped that his son might refuse this command, and was dismayed when Abbas complied. Weeping at Abbas's cruelty and untrustworthiness, Ibn Tulun ordered him flogged and imprisoned. His place in the succession was taken up by his younger brother

in 882. When Ibn Tulun died in May 884, Khumarawayh, enjoying the backing of the Tulunid elites, succeeded him without trouble, and Abbas was executed.

References

Sources

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Abbas Ibn Ahmad Ibn Tulun 884 deaths 9th-century births 9th-century executions Egyptian rebels Tulunids Emirs of Ifriqiya Executed Egyptian people Heirs apparent who never acceded Executed royalty