Mubārak al-Saqlabi and Muẓaffar al-Saqlabi were jointly the first emirs of the

Taifa of Valencia The Taifa of Valencia () was a medieval Muslim kingdom which existed in and around Valencia, Spain. It gained independence from the Caliphate of Córdoba circa 1010 and became its own small kingdom, or ''Taifa'', for most of the 11th century. It ...

between 1010 and 1018. They were brothers and

Saqaliba Saqaliba (, singular ) is a term used in medieval Arabic sources to refer to Slavs, and other peoples of Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe. The term originates from the Middle Greek '' slavos/sklavenos'' (Slav), which in Hispano-Ara ...

, originally

Slavic Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to: Peoples * Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia ** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples ** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples ** West Slav ...

children that were captured, castrated, sold as slaves in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, and educated in the

Islamic Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

culture and religion. They became slaves of another slave named Mufaris who was chief of police in the palace of

Almanzor Abu ʿĀmir Muḥammad ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn Abi ʿĀmir al-Maʿafiri (), nicknamed al-Manṣūr (, "the Victorious"), which is often Latinized as Almanzor in Spanish, Almansor in Catalan language, Catalan and Almançor in Portuguese ( 938 – 8 A ...

in the

Medina Azahara Madinat al-Zahra or Medina Azahara () was a fortified palace-city on the western outskirts of Córdoba in present-day Spain. Its remains are a major archaeological site today. The city was built in the 10th century by Abd ar-Rahman III (912–96 ...

. There are no records until 1010, when they became administrators of irrigation of

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 ...

and were responsible for the water supply and food supply of the city. As the result of a military coup, of which the details have been lost, they became joint rulers of Valencia in 1010. Their administration was known for collecting 120,000 dinars of taxes a month, which was an extremely large sum at the time. Mubarak died in a riding accident in 1018, and shortly thereafter Muzaffar was killed in an uprising. They were succeeded by Labib al-Saqlabi, also a former slave, who had been governor of

Tortosa Tortosa (, ) is the capital of the '' comarca'' of Baix Ebre, in Catalonia, Spain. Tortosa is located at above sea level, by the Ebro river, protected on its northern side by the mountains of the Cardó Massif, of which Buinaca, one of the hi ...

between 1015 and 1016, and probably was responsible for the rebellion against Muzaffar.

External links

* Spanish Royal Academy of History biography page fo
Mubarak
an
Muzaffar

References

Taifa of Valencia 11th-century monarchs in Al-Andalus Saqaliba Slaves in al-Andalus {{Al-Andalus-royal-stub