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THE HISTORY OF
AL-TABARI
VOLUME XXVIII (28)
Abbasid Authority Affirmed
The Early Years of al-Mansur
A.D. 753-763/A.H. 136-145
Jane Dammen McAuliffe, translator
326 pages March 1995 Paperback
The initial years (126-145) of al-Mansur's reign presented
several significant challenges to nascent Abbasid hegemony, and the resulting
confrontations constitute the central focus of this section of Tabari's Tarikh.
After Abu Jafar succeeded his brother Abu al-Abbas as caliph, the second of the
Abbasid dynasty, he moved against his recalcitrant uncle, Abdallah b. Ali, and
against the potential threat that he perceived in the person of the commander in
Khurasan, Abu Muslim. Eliminating the latter and containing the former freed the
caliph to address a series of other onslaughts and insurrections.
Starting with the year 144, however, Tabari turned to this volume's principal
preoccupation, to which half of the book is devoted. Judging by the attention
given to it, he clearly perceived the Hasanid rebellions of Muhammad b. Abdallah
(the Pure Soul) and of his brother Ibrahim to be the most substantial attack on
Abbasid authority to arise in the first years of that dynasty. Tabari's
description of the prolonged search for Muhammad and Ibrahim and of the caliphal
vengeance visited upon their father and family provides an extended prelude to
the vivid battle and death scenes in Medina and Bakhamra. Yet, elaboration of
these events does not eclipse mention of all other Abbasid activity. To bridge
the account of Muhammad's defeat and that of Ibrahim's uprising, Tabari inserted
a narrative interlude depicting the site selection and preliminary construction
of al-Mansur's most celebrated achievement, the City of Peace, Baghdad.
THE HISTORY OF
AL-TABARI
VOLUME IX(29)
Al-Mansur and al-Mahdi A.D. 763-786/A.H. 146-169
Hugh Kennedy - Translator
Paperback 281 Pages
This volume opens when the caliph al-Mansur has just
defeated the rebellion of Muhammad the Pure Soul in 145/762-3 and is now
securely established in power. The main concerns of the remaining thirteen years
of his reign are the building of his new capital at Baghdad, on which al-Tabari's
text contains details not previously published in English, and his efforts to
have his nephew 'Isa b. Musa replaced as heir apparent by his own son Muhammad
al-Mahdi, a maneuver that required all his political skills.
The circumstances of al-Mansur's death in 158/775 are described in vivid detail,
and this section is followed by a series of anecdotes, some serious, some
humorous, most vivid and lively, that illustrate his character and habits.
The last section of the volume describes the reign of al-Mahdi, more pious than
his father but also more liberal and open-handed. Along with routine
administration, space is devoted to the bizarre intrigues that accompanied the
rise and fall of the vizier Ya'qub b. Dawud and the mysterious circumstances of
the caliph's own death in 169/785, followed by a short collection of character
stories. In addition, the volume also contains important information about
warfare on the Byzantine frontier and in Khurasan.
Table Of Contents
Preface
Abbreviations
Translator's Foreword
The Caliphate of al-Mansur
The Events of the Year 146 (763/764)
The Events of the Year 147 (764/765)
The Events of the Year 148 (765/766)
The Events of the Year 149 (766/767)
The Events of the Year 150 (767/768)
The Events of the Year 151 (768/769)
The Events of the Year 152 (769/770)
The Events of the Year 153 (770)
The Events of the Year 154 (770/771)
The Events of the Year 155 (771/772)
The Events of the Year 156 (772/773)
The Events of the Year 157 (773/774)
The Events of the Year 158 (774/775)
Some Stories about al-Mansur and His Conduct
Information about His Wills
The Caliphate of al-Mahdi
The Events of the Year 158 (cont'd) (774/775)
The Events of the Year 159 (775/776)
The Events of the Year 160 (776/777)
The Events of the Year 161 (777/778)
The Events of the Year 162 (778/779)
The Events of the Year 163 (779/780)
The Events of the Year 164 (780/781)
The Events of the Year 165 (781/782)
The Events of the Year 166 (782/783)
The Events of the Year 167 (783/784)
The Events of the Year 168 (784/785)
The Events of the Year 169 (785/786)
Some of the Doings of al-Mahdi and Stories about Him
Bibliography of Cited Works
Index
A volume in the SUNY series,
Near Eastern Studies
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