Abu Nasr Muhammad ibn Bugha ( ar, أبو نصر محمد بن بغا) was a ninth-century military officer in the service of the

Abbasid Caliphate The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Mutta ...

. He was the son of

Bugha al-Kabir Bugha al-Kabir (), also known as Bugha al-Turki (), was a 9th-century Khazar general who served the Abbasid Caliphate. He was of Khazar origin, and was acquired along with his sons as a military slave ('' ghulam'') by al-Mu'tasim in 819/820.Gor ...

, a

Turkic Turkic may refer to: * anything related to the country of Turkey * Turkic languages, a language family of at least thirty-five documented languages ** Turkic alphabets (disambiguation) ** Turkish language, the most widely spoken Turkic language * ...

slave soldier (''

ghulam Ghulam ( ar, غلام, ) is an Arabic word meaning ''servant'', ''assistant'', ''boy'', or ''youth''. It is used to describe young servants in paradise. It is also used to refer to slave-soldiers in the Abbasid, Ottoman, Safavid and to a lesser ...

'') and prominent army general. He is first mentioned during the civil war of 865–866, when he was responsible for seizing and defending the town of

al-Anbar Al Anbar Governorate ( ar, محافظة الأنبار; ''muḥāfaẓat al-’Anbār''), or Anbar Province, is the largest governorate in Iraq by area. Encompassing much of the country's western territory, it shares borders with Syria, Jordan, ...

on behalf of

al-Mu'tazz Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar ( ar, أبو عبد الله محمد بن جعفر; 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 to 86 ...

. He later played a leading role in the deposition of al-Mu'tazz in 869, when he,

Salih ibn Wasif Salih ibn Wasif ( ar, صالح بن وصيف; died January 29, 870) was a Turkic officer in the service of the Abbasid Caliphate. The son of Wasif, a central figure during the Anarchy at Samarra, Salih briefly seized power in the capital Samarra ...

, and Bayakbak headed the party that arrested the caliph. Following the arrival of his brother

Musa ibn Bugha Musa ibn Bugha al-Kabir (died 877) was an Abbasid military leader of Turkic origin. Musa was the son of Bugha al-Kabir, one of the leading Turkish generals under Caliph al-Mu'tasim (r. 833–842). He may have participated in or at least organized ...

Samarra Samarra ( ar, سَامَرَّاء, ') is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Saladin Governorate, north of Baghdad. The city of Samarra was founded by Abbasid Caliph Al-Mutasim for his Turkish professional ar ...

that same year, Muhammad joined his side and was subsequently ranked as one of the senior commanders in his faction. During the breakdown in relations between the caliph

al-Muhtadi Abū Isḥāq Muḥammad ibn al-Wāthiq ( ar, أبو إسحاق محمد بن هارون الواثق‎; – 21 June 870), better known by his regnal name Al-Muhtadī bi-'llāh (Arabic: , "Guided by God"), was the Caliph of the Abbasid Calipha ...

and the Turkish leadership in June 870, Muhammad and his brother were targeted by attempts to incite the residents of Samarra against them. Following accusations that he and Musa were guilty of expropriating revenues, Muhammad was seized and placed into prison, and was shortly afterwards put to death. His fate contributed to the decision by the Samarran regiments to overthrow al-Muhtadi later that month.

Notes

References

* * * {{EI2 , last1=Zetterstéen , first1=K. V. , author1-link=Karl Vilhelm Zetterstéen , last2=Bosworth , first2=C. E. , author2-link=C. E. Bosworth , title=al-Muhtadī , volume = 7 , pages=476–477 , url =https://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_5437 870 deaths 9th-century Turkic people 9th-century executions by the Abbasid Caliphate 9th-century people from the Abbasid Caliphate