Khalil Ibn Ishaq Al-Tamimi
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Khalil ibn Ishaq al-Tamimi () was a
Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...
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 ...
military commander, in the service of the
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, i ...
as head of the Arab '' jund'' of
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 active as early as 913. From 937 to 941 he was the governor of
Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...
, leading the brutal suppression of a large-scale anti-Fatimid revolt. He was captured and killed in 944, during the anti-Fatimid rebellion of
Abu Yazid Abū Yazīd Makhlad ibn Kaydād Dajjal (; – 19 August 947), was a member of the Ibadi sect. He opposed the Ismaili Shia rule of the Fatimids in North Africa and sought to restore Ibadi dominance in the region. Known as the Man on the Donke ...
.


Early career

Khalil was a
Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...
Arab, and is first attested in 913, when he was the commander of the Arab settler militia () of
Kairouan Kairouan (, ), also spelled El Qayrawān or Kairwan ( , ), is the capital of the Kairouan Governorate in Tunisia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city was founded by the Umayyads around 670, in the period of Caliph Mu'awiya (reigned 661 ...
, the capital of
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 ...
. During that year, the Fatimid heir-apparent, al-Qa'im, suppressed the revolt of
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 ...
, which had rebelled in the previous year against the overbearing presence of the Fatimids'
Kutama The Kutama (Berber: ''Ikutamen''; ) were a Berber tribe in northern Algeria classified among the Berber confederation of the Bavares. The Kutama are attested much earlier, in the form ''Koidamousii'' by the Greek geographer Ptolemy. The Kutama p ...
Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...
soldiery. In order to pacify the city and signal good will to its inhabitants, after its surrender in June 913, the Kutama were replaced as garrison by men of the Arab under Khalil. During this time, Khalil also began the reconstruction of the city's main mosque. In 927, he commanded the contingents from all Ifriqiya in al-Qa'im's campaign against the
Zenata The Zenata (; ) are a group of Berber tribes, historically one of the largest Berber confederations along with the Sanhaja and Masmuda. Their lifestyle was either nomadic or semi-nomadic. Society The 14th-century historiographer Ibn Khaldun repo ...
Berbers of Muhammad ibn Khazar, who were successfully resisting Fatimid rule and threatening the Fatimid outpost of
Tahert Tiaret () or Tahert () is a major city in northwestern Algeria that gives its name to the wider farming region of Tiaret Province. Both the town and region lie south-west of the capital of Algiers in the western region of the Hautes Plaines, i ...
.


Governorship of Sicily

A large-scale revolt against the Kutama-dominated and taxation-heavy Fatimid regime broke out in Sicily in April 937. The rebellion began at
Agrigento Agrigento (; or ) is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy and capital of the province of Agrigento. Founded around 582 BC by Greek colonists from Gela, Agrigento, then known as Akragas, was one of the leading cities during the golden ...
, but spread quickly to the capital,
Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...
, and other cities. The longtime Fatimid governor, Salim ibn Asad ibn Abi Rashid, found himself forced to lay siege to his own capital, and requested reinforcements from the Fatimid heartland in
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 ...
. The Fatimid caliph, al-Qa'im bi-Amr Allah, selected Khalil ibn Ishaq al-Tamimi to lead the reinforcements. Khalil arrived at Palermo on 23 October 937, and pursued the suppression of the city with great vigour: the city gates were removed, and a new citadel was constructed on the southeast side of the harbour and named (), which gave its name to the quarter of
Kalsa Kalsa or Mandamento Tribunali is a historical quarter of the Italian city of Palermo in Sicily. It is sometimes referred to as la Kalsa or the Kalsa. Names The common name of the quarter, ''Kalsa'', derives from the district's historic Arabic ...
.. According to the chronicler
Ibn Idhari Abū al-ʽAbbās Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn ʽIḏārī al-Marrākushī () was a Maghrebi historian of the late-13th/early-14th century, and author of the famous '' Al-Bayan al-Mughrib'', an important medieval history of the Maghreb (Morocco, No ...
, his treatment of the Sicilians, both Muslim and Christian, was so brutal that many Muslims fled to Byzantine territory, where they converted to Christianity. In March 938, he moved against Agrigento, laying siege to the city. The siege dragged on as the inhabitants of the city defended it vigorously, with almost daily sorties, and the onset of winter forced Khalil to withdraw to Palermo in October. The successful defence of Agrigento fanned the flames of rebellion in the rest of the island:
Mazara Mazara del Vallo (; is a city and in the province of Trapani, northwestern Sicily, Italy. It lies mainly on the left bank at the mouth of the Mazaro river. It is an agricultural and fishing centre and its harbor, port gives shelter to the lar ...
and other cities rose in revolt as well. The Sicilian Muslims even sent a letter to the Byzantine emperor in
Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...
asking for his assistance. Emperor
Romanos I Lekapenos Romanos I Lakapenos or Lekapenos (; 870 – 15 June 948), Latinisation of names, Latinized as Romanus I Lacapenus or Romanus I Lecapenus, was Byzantine emperor from 920 until his deposition in 944, serving as regent for and senior co-ruler of ...
indeed dispatched a fleet with some troops and supplies to the rebels. Khalil also asked for reinforcements, and went on the offensive against the rebel strongholds. Over 939 and 940, he captured Mazara, Qal'at al-Ballut (modern
Caltabellotta Caltabellotta (Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Cataviḍḍotta'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Agrigento, in the Italy, Italian region Sicily, located about south of Palermo and about northwest of Agrigento. In addition to ...
), Qal'at Abi Thawr (
Caltavuturo Caltavuturo ( Sicilian: ''Caltavuturu'') is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Palermo, Sicily, Italy. The neighboring comunes are Polizzi Generosa, Scillato and Sclafani Bagni. History According to many scholars, the name and ...
), Qal'at al-Sirat (
Collesano Collesano (; Sicilian: ''Culisanu'') is a small town in the Metropolitan City of Palermo, Sicily. It is situated roughly from the provincial capital of Palermo. It lies in the Madonie Park between the hills and the Tyrrhenian Sea and is also ...
), and, in March 940, Qal'at Ablatano on the river Platani. Agrigento finally capitulated on 20 November 940 against guarantee of safe passage for the garrison, a promise which was immediately broken. The remaining rebel strongholds began to capitulate after that, and in September 941, Khalil was able to return to Ifriqiya. On the high sea, he had the captive notables of Agrigento put on a ship and sunk it, killing all of them. So many Sicilian Muslims again fled from the brutal suppression of the revolt to Byzantine territory, that the Fatimids agreed to renounce the Byzantine payment of tribute in exchange for truce, lest the Byzantines left the refugees to starve to death.


Revolt of Abu Yazid

In February 944, a
Kharijite The Kharijites (, singular ) were an Islamic sect which emerged during the First Fitna (656–661). The first Kharijites were supporters of Ali who rebelled against his acceptance of arbitration talks to settle the conflict with his challeng ...
revolt broke out among the Berbers of the
Aurès Mountains The Aures Mountains (, known in antiquity as ) are a subrange of the Saharan Atlas in northeastern Algeria. The mountain range gives its name to the mountainous natural and historical region of the Aurès. Geography The Aures mountains are the ...
, led by the ascetic preacher
Abu Yazid Abū Yazīd Makhlad ibn Kaydād Dajjal (; – 19 August 947), was a member of the Ibadi sect. He opposed the Ismaili Shia rule of the Fatimids in North Africa and sought to restore Ibadi dominance in the region. Known as the Man on the Donke ...
. The rebellion spread quickly, taking the Fatimid regime by surprise: towns fell one after another, Kutama forces that tried to oppose the rebels were defeated, and on 7 August, the city of
Laribus :''see Lares (disambiguation) for namesakes'' Lares, also called Laribus, was a city of Roman Africa and medieval Ifriqiya, located at modern Henchir Lorbeus, Tunisia. Names The site of present-day Lorbeus was called ''Laribus'' in Roman times. T ...
fell to Abu Yazid's men. Reacting to this unforeseen threat, al-Qa'im dispatched his chief commanders to secure the main cities of Ifriqiya. Khalil with a thousand of his men was to hold Kairouan, where he busied himself with repairing the city's fortifications. On 13 October, Abu Yazid's forces appeared before the Aghlabid-era palace-city of
Raqqada Raqqāda () is the site of the second capital of the 9th-century dynasty of Aghlabids, located about ten kilometers southwest of Kairouan, Tunisia. The site now houses the National Museum of Islamic Art. History In 876, the ninth Aghlabid emi ...
, which they plundered. Khalil resisted his officers' calls to march out and confront the rebel army, awaiting the arrival of the main Fatimid army under Maysur al-Fata, who also hesitated to move decisively against the rebels. As a result, the disgruntled and unpaid soldiers of the began deserting to the rebels, until Khalil was left with only 400 men. Unable to man the city walls with this small a force, he withdrew to the governor's palace next to the
Great Mosque of Kairouan The Great Mosque of Kairouan (), also known as the Mosque of Uqba (), is a mosque situated in the UNESCO World Heritage town of Kairouan, Tunisia and is one of the largest Islamic monuments in North Africa. Established by the Arab general U ...
. His efforts to contact Maysur failed because the
messenger pigeon The homing pigeon is a variety of domestic pigeon (''Columba livia domestica''), selectively bred for its ability to find its way home over extremely long distances. Because of this skill, homing pigeons were used to carry messages, a practice ...
s refused to take flight, and as Abu Yazid's troops entered Kairouan on 14 October, Khalil began to negotiate a writ of safety () with the rebels. Most of his men used a rope to escape from the back of the palace, but Khalil, the city's chief , the army treasurer and thirty others were taken prisoner and led to Abu Yazid in Raqqada. The rebel leader initially intended to spare Khalil's life, but his teacher, Abu Ammar, pointed out that dangerous foes should be killed. As a result, Abu Yazid, had Khalil and the chief ''qadi'' executed.


Family

His brother Ya'qub was a Fatimid military commander who led the
Fatimid sack of Genoa The Fatimid Caliphate conducted a major raid on the Ligurian coast in 934–935, culminating in the sack of its major port, Genoa, on 16 August 935. The coasts of Spain and southern France may also have been raided and the islands of Corsica and Sa ...
in 934.


References


Sources

* * {{portal bar, Biography, Fatimid Caliphate, History 9th-century births 944 deaths 10th-century people from Ifriqiya 10th-century people from the Fatimid Caliphate Banu Tamim Fatimid governors of Sicily Fatimid people of the Arab–Byzantine wars Generals of the Fatimid Caliphate Executed military leaders Governors of Tripoli, Libya Sunni Muslims