Abū ’Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Yūsuf ibn Hūd al-Judhamī (

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

: محمد بن يوسف بن هود, died 1238), commonly known as Ibn Hud, was a

taifa The taifas (from ''ṭā'ifa'', plural ''ṭawā'if'', meaning "party, band, faction") were the independent Muslim principalities and kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula (modern Portugal and Spain), referred to by Muslims as al-Andalus, that em ...

emir Emir (; ' (), also Romanization of Arabic, transliterated as amir, is a word of Arabic language, Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocratic, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person po ...

who controlled much of

al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...

from 1228 to 1238. He was a descendant of the Hudid dynasty which ruled the

Taifa of Zaragoza The taifa of Zaragoza () was an independent Arab Muslim state in the east of Al-Andalus (present-day Spain) with its capital in Saraqusta (Zaragoza) city. It was established in the early 11th century as one of the many Taifa kingdoms that foll ...

until 1118. After being decisively defeated by a Christian coalition at the

Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa The Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, known in Islamic history as the Battle of Al-Uqab (), took place on 16 July 1212 and was an important turning point in the ''Reconquista'' and the Spain in the Middle Ages, medieval history of Spain. The Christian ...

in 1212, Almohad control over al-Andalus entered terminal decline. Ibn Hud began a rebellion in May 1228, quickly winning popular support and defeating the governors of Murcia and

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

. Meanwhile, the Almohad caliph Idris al-Ma'mun was forced to depart

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

with his remaining soldiers to defeat his nephew and rival Yahya in

Marrakesh Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

, allowing Ibn Hud to seize most of al-Andalus relatively unopposed, except

, where he was opposed by Zayyan ibn Mardanish. Seeking to legitimise his rule, Ibn Hud pledged allegiance to the

Abbasid caliphs The Abbasid caliphs were the holders of the Islamic title of caliph who were members of the Abbasid dynasty, a branch of the Quraysh tribe descended from the uncle of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, Al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib. The family came ...

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 ...

and took the titles of ''

Amir al-Mu'minin () or Commander of the Faithful is a Muslims, Muslim title designating the supreme leader of an Ummah, Islamic community. Name Although etymology, etymologically () is equivalent to English "commander", the wide variety of its historical an ...

'' and ''al-Mutawwakil'' ('he who relies n God). However, in 1231 his troops were decisively defeated by the

Kingdom of Castile The Kingdom of Castile (; : ) was a polity in the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. It traces its origins to the 9th-century County of Castile (, ), as an eastern frontier lordship of the Kingdom of León. During the 10th century, the Ca ...

in the

Battle of Jerez The Battle of Jerez (, ) took place in 1231 near the southern Spanish city of Jerez de la Frontera during the Reconquista. King Ferdinand III of Castile and León's troops fought against those of Emir Ibn Hud of the taifa of Murcia. The Castil ...

, and by the

Kingdom of León The Kingdom of León was an independent kingdom situated in the northwest region of the Iberian Peninsula. It was founded in 910 when the Christian princes of Kingdom of Asturias, Asturias along the Bay of Biscay, northern coast of the peninsula ...

near Mérida. These defeats lost him support and earned him the nickname 'the Deprived'. In 1232

Muhammad I of Granada Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Yusuf ibn Nasr (; 22 January 1273), also known as Ibn al-Ahmar (, ) and by his honorific al-Ghalib billah (, ), was the first ruler of the Emirate of Granada, the last independent Muslim state on the Iberian Peninsula, ...

(Ibn Nasr) elevated himself to

sultan Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be use ...

in the region of Jaén and soon became Ibn Hud's most powerful opponent, forcing him to sign a truce with Castile. Though Ibn Hud was at first able to defeat Ibn Nasr in 1234, he was not able to protect Córdoba from being taken over by

Ferdinand III of Castile Ferdinand III (; 1199/120130 May 1252), called the Saint (''el Santo''), was King of Castile from 1217 and King of León from 1230 as well as King of Galicia from 1231. He was the son of Alfonso IX of León and Berengaria of Castile. Through his ...

in 1236, and had to sign another truce with both Ferdinand III and Ibn Nasr. In 1237,

Granada Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...

accepted Ibn Nasr as its ruler. Ibn Hud was

assassinated Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

in January 1238 at the gates of

Almería Almería (, , ) is a city and municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, located in Andalusia. It is the capital of the province of Almería, province of the same name. It lies in southeastern Iberian Peninsula, Iberia on the Mediterranean S ...

and was buried in Murcia.

References

Bibliography

* Meri, Josef W. Meri and Bacharach, Jere L.: ''Medieval Islamic Civilization: An Encyclopedia.'' Routledge, London 2006, . * O'Callaghan, Joseph F.: ''Reconquest and crusade in medieval Spain.'' University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia 2004, . 13th-century people from al-Andalus 13th-century Arab people 1238 deaths 13th-century monarchs in Europe Year of birth unknown Banu Hud Assassinated people of the medieval Islamic world People from the Almohad Caliphate {{Al-Andalus-bio-stub