Ismāʿīl ibn Yūsūf ūʾl-Ukhayḍir ibn Ibrāhīm ibn Mūsā al-Jawn ibn ʿAbd Allāh al-Kāmīl ibn al- Ḥasan al-Muthannā ibn al- Ḥasan al-Mujtabā ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib was a

Hasanid The Ḥasanids ( or , ) are the descendants of Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī, brother of Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī and grandson of Muhammad. They are a branch of the Alids (the descendants of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib), and one of the two most important branche ...

Alid The Alids are those who claim descent from Ali ibn Abi Talib (; 600–661 CE), the fourth Rashidun caliph () and the first imam in Shia Islam. Ali was also the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. The main branches are the ...

who rose in revolt against 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 ...

in the

Hejaz Hejaz is a Historical region, historical region of the Arabian Peninsula that includes the majority of the western region of Saudi Arabia, covering the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif and Al Bahah, Al-B ...

in 865–866, during the

Anarchy at Samarra The Anarchy at Samarra () was a period of extreme internal instability from 861 to 870 in the history of the Abbasid Caliphate, marked by the violent succession of four caliphs, who became Puppet ruler, puppets in the hands of powerful rival milit ...

. His grandfather Ibrāhīm was the grandson of

Abd Allah al-Mahd Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Ḥasan ibn al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib al-Hāshimī al-Qurashī (; , better known as ʿAbd Allāh al-Maḥḍ () and ʿAbd Allāh al-Kāmīl (), was an Islamic scholar, theologian and hadith narr ...

, the grandson of

Hasan ibn Ali Hasan ibn Ali (; 2 April 670) was an Alids, Alid political and religious leader. The eldest son of Ali and Fatima and a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, Hasan briefly ruled as Rashidun caliphate, Rashidun caliph from January 661 unt ...

. The uprising began in

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

in April 865, when Isma'il and his supporters forced the local Abbasid governor, Ja'far ibn al-Fadl ibn Isa ibn Musa, to flee the city. The resistance of the local garrison was overcome. Isma'il then proceeded to plunder the city, even removing the valuable objects from the

Ka'aba The Kaaba (), also spelled Kaba, Kabah or Kabah, sometimes referred to as al-Kaba al-Musharrafa (), is a stone building at the center of Islam's most important mosque and holiest site, the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is consi ...

and emptying the treasury of money and valuables, as well as extorting 200,000

gold dinar The gold dinar () is an Islamic medieval gold coin first issued in AH 77 (696–697 CE) by Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan. The weight of the dinar is 1 mithqal (). The word ''dinar'' comes from the Latin word denarius, which was ...

s from the inhabitants. The motives for his rebellion are not clear, but may be connected to the renewed persecution of the Alids under the Abbasid caliphs from

al-Mutawakkil Ja'far ibn al-Mu'tasim, Muḥammad ibn Harun al-Rashid, Hārūn al-Mutawakkil ʿalā Allāh (); March 82211 December 861, commonly known by his laqab, regnal name al-Mutawwakil ala Allah (), was the tenth Abbasid Caliphate, Abbasid caliph, rul ...

's reign onward. After fifty days he left for

Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...

, but although the governor of the latter made no attempt to resist and went into hiding, Isma'il returned to Mecca and laid siege to it. As the siege dragged on, famine spread in Mecca, and a lot of its inhabitants died; after 57 days, the Alid left Mecca and made for

Jeddah Jeddah ( ), alternatively transliterated as Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; , ), is a List of governorates of Saudi Arabia, governorate and the largest city in Mecca Province, Saudi Arabia, and the country's second largest city after Riyadh, located ...

. There he repeated his exactions, confiscating wealth, merchandise, and food. In January 866, on the

Day of Arafah The Day of Arafah () is an Islamic holiday that falls on the ninth day of Dhu al-Hijjah of the lunar Islamic calendar. It is the second day of the Hajj pilgrimage and is followed by the holiday of Eid al-Adha. At dawn of this day, Muslim pilg ...

, he attacked the

Hajj Hajj (; ; also spelled Hadj, Haj or Haji) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for capable Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetim ...

pilgrims and their accompanying Abbasid military escort, sent by Caliph

al-Mu'tazz Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Muʿtazz bi-ʾLlāh (; 847 – 16 July 869), better known by his regnal title al-Muʿtazz bi-ʾLlāh (, "He who is strengthened by God") was the Abbasid caliph from 866 t ...

. After killing some 1100 pilgrims, the rest fled into Mecca, and did not dare exit the city, while Isma'il returned to Jeddah unmolested. He died in March/April 866 of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

. Isma'il's brother Muhammad succeeded him, but in the event he was pushed by Abbasid forces into the Yamama region in central Arabia, where he founded the Ukhaydhir dynasty.

References

Sources

* * * {{Hajj incidents, state=collapsed 866 deaths 9th-century Arab people 9th-century people from the Abbasid Caliphate Hasanids Hejaz under the Abbasid Caliphate Incidents during the Hajj 9th-century rebels Rebels from the Abbasid Caliphate