Al-'Abbas ibn 'Amr al-Ghanawi (; died 917) was an Arab military commander and provincial governor for the

Abbasid dynasty The Abbasid dynasty or Abbasids () were an Arab dynasty that ruled the Abbasid Caliphate between 750 and 1258. They were from the Qurayshi Hashimid clan of Banu Abbas, descended from Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib. The Abbasid Caliphate is divid ...

. He is known for his defeat and capture at the hands of the

Qarmatians The Qarmatians (; ) were a militant Isma'ili Shia movement centred in Al-Ahsa in Eastern Arabia, where they established a religious state in 899 CE. Its members were part of a movement that adhered to a syncretic branch of Sevener Ismaili ...

in 900.

Life

Al-'Abbas was likely born in the

Diyar Mudar Diyar Mudar () is the medieval Arabic name of the westernmost of the three provinces of al-Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia), the other two being Diyar Bakr and Diyar Rabi'a. According to the medieval geographer al-Baladhuri, all three provinces were ...

district of

al-Jazira Jazira, al-Jazira, Jazeera, al-Jazeera, etc. are all transcriptions of Arabic meaning "the island" or "the peninsula". The term may refer to: Business * Jazeera Airways, an airlines company based in Kuwait Locations * Al-Jazira, a traditional ...

. He embarked on a military career in the service of the Abbasids and is first recorded as one of the officers in charge of an expedition sent against unruly

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

tribes 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 ...

in 899. In the following year he was appointed by the caliph

al-Mu'tadid Abū al-ʿAbbās Aḥmad ibn Ṭalḥa ibn Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn (), 853/4 or 860/1 – 5 April 902, better known by his regnal name al-Muʿtaḍid bi-llāh (), was the caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate from 892 until his death ...

as governor of al-Bahrain and

al-Yamamah Al-Yamama () is a historical region in south-eastern Najd in modern-day Saudi Arabia. Only a handful of centralized states ever arose in the Yamama, but it figured prominently in early Islamic history, becoming a central theater in the Ridd ...

and tasked with driving the Qarmatians led by Abu Sa'id Jannabi out of the region. Since the Qarmatians had already successfully occupied much of al-Bahrain, including

al-Qatif Qatif Governorate ( ''Al-Qaṭīf'') is a list of governorates of Saudi Arabia, governorate and urban area located in Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia. It extends from Ras Tanura and Jubail in the north to Damma ...

, al-'Abbas assembled an army of regular soldiers,

bedouin The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu ( ; , singular ) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia (Iraq). The Bedouin originated in the Sy ...

fighters and volunteers before departing from al-Basra for the province. Shortly after their departure, al-'Abbas and his army met the Qarmatians and engaged them in battle. The first day of fighting ended in a standstill, but in the evening the bedouins and volunteers abandoned the campaign and returned to al-Basra. The following morning, the two armies resumed fighting, and al-'Abbas's depleted forces were routed; he and seven hundred of his men were compelled to surrender. The day after the battle, Abu Sa'id ordered that the captured soldiers all be put to death; al-'Abbas alone was spared and was eventually released, with instructions to warn al-Mu'tadid of the futility in opposing the Qarmatians. He returned to Iraq and was rewarded by al-Mu'tadid for his efforts. Following his failed campaign, al-'Abbas remained in military service, and in 902 he was in Fars serving under

Badr al-Mu'tadidi Abu'l-Najm Badr al-Mu'tadidi was the chief military commander of the Abbasid Caliphate during the reign of Caliph al-Mu'tadid (892–902). Originally a military slave ('' ghulam'' or ''mawla'') who served under the future al-Mu'tadid in the supp ...

, the commander-in-chief of the army. When Badr fell out of favor with the new caliph

al-Muktafi Abū Muḥammad ʿAlī ibn Aḥmad ibn Ṭalḥa ibn Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Muktafī bi'Llāh (; 877/78 – 13 August 908), better known by his regnal name al-Muktafī bi-Llāh (), was the caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate f ...

, al-'Abbas was one of several commanders who complied with the caliph's order to abandon the general and return to

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 ...

. He was subsequently made governor of

Qom Qom (; ) is a city in the Central District of Qom County, Qom province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the seventh largest metropolis and also the seventh largest city in Iran. The city is ...

and

Kashan Kashan (; ) is a city in the Central District (Kashan County), Central District of Kashan County, in the northern part of Isfahan province, Isfahan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. History Earlies ...

in 908–9, and he may have been a member of the campaign led by

Mu'nis al-Khadim Abū'l-Ḥasan Mu'nis al-Qushuri (; 845/6–933), also commonly known by the surnames al-Muẓaffar (; ) and al-Khadim (; 'the Eunuch'), was the commander-in-chief of the Abbasid army from 908 to his death in 933 CE, and virtual dictator and king ...

to defend

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 ...

against the

Fatimids 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 Fatimid dynasty, Fatimids, an Isma'ili Shi'a dynasty. Spanning a large area of North Africa ...

in 914–5. His last post was as governor of the Diyar Mudar, and he died there in 917. He was succeeded as governor by Wasif ibn al-Buktamiri following his death.Al-Tabari, p. 139 n. 682; Miskawaihi, p. 60

Notes

References

*Becker, C. H. "al-ʿAbbās (b. ʿAmr al-Ghanawī)." ''First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913–1936, Volume I.'' 1927. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1993. * * *Al-Mas'udi, Ali ibn al-Husain. ''Les Prairies D'Or, Tome Huitieme.'' Trans. C. Barbier de Meynard. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1874. *Miskawaihi. ''The Eclipse of the Abbasid Caliphate: the Concluding Portion of the Experiences of the Nations, Vol. I.'' Trans. & ed. H. F. Amedroz and D. S. Margoliouth. London, 1921. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Al-Abbas Ibn Amr Al-Ghanawi 917 deaths Generals of the Abbasid Caliphate Governors of the Abbasid Caliphate Qarmatian state of Bahrayn Year of birth unknown 9th-century Arab people 10th-century Arab people Prisoners of war