Al-Ma'mun

This article is about an Abbasid caliph. For other uses, edly the older of the two brothers, but his mother was a
see Al-Ma'mun (disambiguation). Persian woman while al-Amin’s mother was a member
of the reigning Abbasid family. After al-Rashid’s death
Abū Jaʿfar Abdullāh al-Ma'mūn ibn Hārūn al- in 809, the relationship between the two brothers deterio-
rated. In response to al-Ma'mun’s moves toward indepen-
Rashīd (Arabic: ‫ ;ابوجعفر عبدالله المأمون‬September 786 – 9
August 833) was the seventh Abbasid caliph, who reigned dence, al-Amin declared his own son Musa to be his heir.
This violation of al-Rashid’s testament led to a succession
from 813 until his death in 833. He succeeded his brother
al-Amin after a civil war, and presided over the greatest struggle. al-Amin assembled a massive army at Baghdad
cultural and scientific flowering of Baghdad, but also over with 'Isa ibn Mahan at its head in 811 and invaded Kho-
the Mu'tazilism controversy, and the resumption of large- rasan, but al-Maʾmūn’s general Tahir ibn al-Husayn (d.
scale warfare with the Byzantine Empire. 822) destroyed the army and invaded Iraq, laying siege to
Baghdad in 812. In 813 Baghdad fell, al-Amin was be-
headed, and al-Maʾmūn became the undisputed Caliph.[2]

1 Birth
3 Internal strife
The future al-Ma'mun was born in Baghdad on the night
of the 13th to the 14th September 786 CE to Harun al-
There were disturbances in Iraq during the first several
Rashid and his concubine Marajil, from Badghis. On the
years of al-Maʾmūn’s reign, while the caliph was in Merv.
same night, which later became known as the “night of
On 13 November 815, Muhammad ibn Ja'far al-Sadiq
the three caliphs", his uncle al-Hadi died and was suc-
(Al-Dibaj) claimed the Caliphate for himself in Mecca.
ceeded by Ma'mun’s father, Harun al-Rashid, as ruler of
He was defeated and he quickly abdicated asserting that
the Abbasid Caliphate.[1]
he had only become caliph on news that al-Ma'mun had
died. Lawlessness in Baghdad led to the formation of
neighborhood watches.
2 Abbasid civil war In A.H. 201 (817 AD) al-Ma'mun forced Imam Reza to
move from Madina to Merv. Imam Reza, the Eighth de-
Main article: Fourth Fitna scendant of Muhammad, was named his heir. This was
not easily accepted by the Abbasid leaders but was widely
In 802 Harun al-Rashid, father of al-Maʾmūn and al- seen as a political move by al-Ma'mun since he was fear-
Amin, ordered that al-Amin succeed him, and al-Ma'mun ful of the widespread sympathy towards the Ahl al-Bayt.
serve as governor of Khurasan and as caliph after the Al-Ma'mun’s plan was to keep watch over Imam Reza.
death of al-Amin. In the last days of Harun’s life his However, his plans did not succeed due to the growing
health was declining and saw in a dream Musa ibn Ja- popularity of Ali Al-Rida in Merv. People from all over
far sitting in a chamber praying and crying, which made the Muslim world traveled to meet the prophet’s grandson
Harun remember how hard he had struggled to establish and listen to his teachings and guidance.
his own caliphate. He knew the personalities of both his After a debate Al-Ma'mun had set up with the greatest
sons and decided that for the good of the Abbasid dynasty, scholars of the world’s religions to humiliate the Imam,
al-Maʾmūn should be caliph after his death, which he con- the victorious Imam informed Al-Ma'mun that his grand
fided to a group of his courtiers. One of the courtiers, vizier, Fazl ibn Sahl, had not been informing him of
Fadl ibn Rabi' did not abide by Harun’s last wishes and everything. In Baghdad, the people believed that al-
convinced many in the lands of Islam that Harun’s wishes Maʾmūn was unseated, because of rumors spread by Fazl
had not changed. Later the other three courtiers of ibn Sahl. Because of this the people of Baghdad were
Harun who had sworn loyalty to Harun by supporting al- giving their allegiance to al-Mamun’s uncle Ibrahim ibn
Maʾmūn, namely 'Isa Jarudi, Abu Yunus, and Ibn Abi Mehdi. Al-Ma'mun set out for Baghdad on 12 April 818.
'Umran found loopholes in Fadl’s arguments, and Fazl ad- At Tus, he stopped to visit his father’s grave. Al-Ma'mun
mitted Harun had appointed al-Maʾmūn after him, but, was troubled by the widespread support for the prophet
he argued, since Harun was not in his right mind, his de- Muhammad’s descendant Imam Reza, and the betrayal
cision should not be acted upon. Al-Maʾmūn was report- of his grand vizier. With the aim of gaining Abbasid sup-

1
2 6 AL-MA'MUN’S REIGN

port and the establish of a new base for his rule in Bagh-
dad, Al-Ma'mun went on to depose of Ali Ar-Rida by
administering poison, and arranging the murder of Fazl
ibn Sahl. On the last day of Safar in 203 AH, Imam Reza
died. Imam Reza was buried beside Al-Ma'mun’s father
Hārūn al-Rashid. Following the death of Imam Reza a
great revolt took place in Khurasan, Persia. Al-Ma’mun
tried to show himself innocent of the crime but for all
he did, he could not get himself acquitted and prove his
innocence.

The Byzantine embassy of John the Grammarian in 829 to

4 After arrival in Baghdad Ma'mun (depicted left) from Theophilos (depicted right)

Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari states that al-Ma'mun en- In 829, Michael II died and was succeeded by his
tered Baghdad on 11 August 819 (v. 32, p. 95). He wore son Theophilos. Theophilos experienced mixed success
green and had others do so. Informed that compliance against his Arab opponents. In 830 AD the Arabs re-
with this command was despite popular opposition to the turned to Sicily and after a year-long siege took Palermo
colour, on 18 August he reverted to traditional Abbasid from their Christian opponents and for the next 200
black. While Baghdad became peaceful, there were dis- years they were to remain there to complete their con-
turbances elsewhere. In A.H. 210 (825–826) Abdullah quest, which was never short of Christian counters. The
ibn Tahir al-Khurasani secured Egypt for al-Ma'mun Caliph Al-Ma'mun meanwhile launched an invasion of
freeing Alexandria from Andalusians and quelling unrest. Anatolia in 830 AD. Al-Ma'mun triumphed and a num-
The Andalusians moved to Crete where al-Tabari records ber of Byzantine forts were taken; he spared the surren-
their descendants were still living in his day (see Emiratedering Byzantines. Theophilos did not relent and in 831
of Crete). Abdallah returned to Baghdad in 211 Hijri or captured Tarsus from the Muslims.The next year, learn-
(826–827 C.E.) bringing defeated rebels with him. ing Byzantines had killed some sixteen hundred people,
Also, in 210 h / 825–6 C.E. there was an uprising in Al-Ma'mun returned. This time some thirty forts fell
Qum sparked by complaints about taxes. After it was to the Caliphate forces, with two Byzantine defeats in
quashed, the tax assessment was set significantly higher. Cappadocia.
In 212 Hijri or 827–828 C.E., there was an uprising in Theophilos wrote to Al-Ma'mun. The Caliph replied
Yemen. In 214 (829–30) Abu al-Razi who had captured that he carefully considered the Byzantine ruler’s letter,
one Yemeni rebel was killed by another. Egypt continued noticed it blended suggestions of peace and trade with
to be unquiet. Sindh was rebellious. In 216 (831–832) threats of war and offered Theophilos the options of ac-
Ghassan ibn 'Abbad subdued it. An ongoing problem knowledging divine unity, paying tax or fighting. Al-
for al-Ma'mun was the uprising headed by Babak Khor- Ma'mun made preparations for a major campaign and
ramdin. In 214 Babak routed a Caliphate army killing its died on the way while leading an expedition in Sardis.
commander Muhammad ibn Humayd.
Al-Ma'mun’s relations with Byzantines are marked by
his efforts in the translation of Greek philosophy and
science. Al-Ma'mun gathered scholars of many religions
5 Wars with Byzantium at Baghdad, whom he treated magnificently and with tol-
erance. He sent an emissary to the Byzantine Empire
By the time al-Maʾmūn became Caliph, the Arabs and the to collect the most famous manuscripts there, and had
Byzantine Empire had settled down into border skirmish- them translated into Arabic.[3] As part of his peace treaty
ing, with Arab raids deep into Anatolia to capture booty with the Byzantine Emperor, Al-Ma'mun was to receive
and Christians to be slaves in the Abbasid Caliphate. a number of Greek manuscripts annually, one of these
The situation changed however with the rise to power being Ptolemy’s astronomical work, the Almagest.[4]
of Michael II in 820 AD. Forced to deal with the rebel
Thomas the Slav, Michael had few troops to spare against
a small Andalusian invasion of 40 ships and 10,000 men
against Crete, which fell in 824 AD. A Byzantine counter 6 Al-Ma'mun’s reign
offensive in 826 AD failed miserably. Worse still was
the invasion of Sicily in 827 by Berbers of Tunis. Even Al-Ma'mun conducted, in the plains of Mesopotamia,
so, Byzantine resistance in Sicily was fierce and not with- two astronomical operations intended to determine the
out success whilst the Arabs became quickly plagued by value of a terrestrial degree. The crater Almanon on the
internal squabbles. That year, the Arabs were expelled moon is named in recognition of his contributions to as-
from Sicily but they were to return. tronomy.
 3

Al-Ma'mun’s record as an administrator is also marked of the vast ocean expanses beyond.[7]
by his efforts toward the centralization of power and the Although al-Mahdi had proclaimed that the caliph was
certainty of succession. The Bayt al-Hikma, or House of the protector of Islam against heresy, and had also
Wisdom, was established during his reign.[5] The ulama claimed the ability to declare orthodoxy, religious schol-
emerged as a real force in Islamic politics during al- ars in the Islamic world believed that al-Ma'mun was
Ma'mun’s reign for opposing the mihna, which was ini- overstepping his bounds in the mihna. The penalties of
tiated in 833, four months before he died. the mihna became increasingly difficult to enforce as the
The 'mihna', is comparable to Medieval European inqui- ulema became firmer and more united in their opposition.
sitions in the sense that it involved imprisonment, a re- Although the mihna persisted through the reigns of two
ligious test, and a loyalty oath. The people subject to more caliphs, al-Mutawakkil abandoned it in 848. The
the mihna were traditionalist scholars whose social influ- failure of the mihna seriously damaged Caliphal author-
ence was uncommonly high. Al-Ma'mun introduced the ity and ruined the reputation of the office for succeed-
mihna with the intention to centralize religious power in ing caliphs. The caliph would lose much of his religious
the caliphal institution and test the loyalty of his subjects. authority to the opinion of the ulema as a result of the
The mihna had to be undergone by elites, scholars, judges mihna.
and other government officials, and consisted of a series The ulema and the major Islamic law schools became
of questions relating to theology and faith. The central truly defined in the period of al-Ma'mun and Sunnism, as
question was about the createdness of the Qur'an, if the a religion of legalism, became defined in parallel. Doc-
interrogatee stated he believed the Qur'an to be created, trinal differences between Sunni and Shi'a Islam began
rather than were coeternal with God, he was free to leave to become more pronounced. Ibn Hanbal, the founder of
and continue his profession. the Hanbali legal school, became famous for his oppo-
The controversy over the mihna was exacerbated by al- sition to the mihna. Al-Ma'mun’s simultaneous opposi-
Ma'mun’s sympathy for Mu'tazili theology and other con- tion and patronage of intellectuals led to the emergence
troversial views. Mu'tazili theology was deeply influ- of important dialogues on both secular and religious af-
enced by Aristotelian thought and Greek rationalism, and fairs, and the Bayt al-Hikma became an important center
stated that matters of belief and practice should be de- of translation for Greek and other ancient texts into Ara-
cided by reasoning. This opposed the traditionalist and bic. This Islamic renaissance spurred the rediscovery of
literalist position of Ahmad ibn Hanbal and others, ac- Hellenism and ensured the survival of these texts into the
cording to which everything a believer needed to know European renaissance.
about faith and practice was spelled out literally in the Al-Ma'mun had been named governor of Khurasan by
Qur'an and the Hadith. Moreover, the Mu'tazilis stated Harun, and after his ascension to power, the caliph named
that the Qur'an was created rather than coeternal with Tahir as governor for his military services in order to
God, a belief that was shared by the Jahmites and parts of assure his loyalty. It was a move that al-Ma'mun soon
Shi'a, among others, but contradicted the traditionalist- regretted, as Tahir and his family became entrenched
Sunni opinion that the Qur'an and the Divine were co- in Iranian politics and became increasingly powerful in
eternal. The fact that the Mu'tazili school had its foun- the state, contrary to al-Ma'mun’s desire to centralize
dations in the paganism of Greece further disenchanted a and strengthen Caliphal power. The rising power of the
majority of Islamic clerics. Tahirid dynasty became a threat as al-Ma'mun’s own poli-
During his reign, alchemy greatly developed. Pioneers of cies alienated them and his other opponents.
the science were Jabir Ibn Hayyan and his student Yusuf The shakiriya, which were to trigger the movement of the
Lukwa, who was patronized by Al-Ma'mun. Although he capital from Baghdad to Samarra during al-Mu'tasim's
was unsuccessful in his attempts regarding the transmuta- reign, were raised in al-Ma'mun’s time. The shakiriya
tion of gold, his methods greatly led to the patronization were military units from Central Asia and North Africa,
of pharmaceutical compounds.[6] hired, complete with their commanders, to serve under
Caliph al-Ma'mum was a pioneer of cartography hav- the Caliph.
ing commissioned a world map from a large group of Al-Ma'mun also attempted to divorce his wife during his
astronomers and geographers. The map is presently in reign, who had not borne him any children. His wife
an encyclopedia in Topkapi Sarai, a Museum in Istanbul. hired a Syrian judge of her own before al-Ma'mun was
The map shows large parts of the Eurasian and African able to select one himself; the judge, who sympathized
continents with recognizable coastlines and major seas. with the caliph’s wife, refused the divorce. Following al-
It depicts the world as it was known to the captains of the Ma'mun’s experience, no further Abbasid caliphs were to
Arab sailing dhows which used the monsoon wind cycles marry, preferring to find their heirs in the harem.
to trade over vast distances (By the 9th century, Arab sea
traders had reached Guangzhou, in China). The maps Al-Ma'mun, in an attempt to win over the Shi'a Muslims
of the Greeks and Romans reveal a good knowledge of to his camp, named the eighth Imam, Ali ar-Rida, his suc-
closed seas like the Mediterranean but little knowledge cessor, if he should outlive al-Ma'mun. Most Shi'ites real-
ized, however, that ar-Rida was too old to survive him and
4 11 FURTHER READING

saw al-Ma'mun’s gesture as empty; indeed, Al-Ma'mun 10 References

poisoned Ali ar-Rida who then died in 818. The incident
served to further alienate the Shi'ites from the Abbasids, [1] Rekaya 1991, p. 331.
who had already been promised and denied the Caliphate
by al-'Abbas. [2] Kennedy, Hugh (1986). The Prophet and the Age of the
Caliphates (2nd ed.). London and New York: Pearson
The Abbasid empire grew somewhat during the reign of Longman. pp. 148–150.
al-Ma'mun. Hindu rebellions in Sindh were put down,
and most of Afghanistan was absorbed with the surren- [3] Lee S. Tesdell, “Greek Rhetoric and Philosophy in Me-
dieval Arabic Culture: The State of the Research,” in:
der of the leader of Kabul. Mountainous regions of Iran
Discourses of Power: Grammar and Rhetoric in the Mid-
were brought under a tighter grip of the central Abbasid
dle Ages, ed. Carol Poster and Richard Utz (Evanston, IL:
government, as were areas of Turkestan. Northwestern University Press, 1999), pp. 51–58.
Shortly before his death, during a visit to Egypt in 832,
[4] Angelo, Joseph (2009). Encyclopedia of Space and As-
the caliph ordered the breaching of the Great Pyramid of
tronomy. p. 78. ISBN 9781438110189.
Giza looking for knowledge and treasure. He entered the
pyramid by tunneling into the Great Pyramid near where [5] Goldschmidt, Arthur (2002). A concise history of the Mid-
tradition located the original entrance. dle East. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press. p. 78.
ISBN 0-8133-3885-9.

[6] E.J. Brill’s First Encyclopaedia of Islam (1993), Vol. 4, p.

7 Personal characteristics 1011

[7] Rechnagel, Charles (15 October 2004). “World: Histo-

Al-Tabari (v. 32, p. 231) describes al-Ma'mun as of av- rian Reveals Incredible Contributions of Muslim Cartog-
erage height, light complexion, handsome and having a raphers”. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 5
long beard losing its dark colour as he aged. He relates March 2015.
anecdotes concerning the caliph’s ability to speak con-
cisely and eloquently without preparation, his generos-
ity, his respect for Muhammad and religion, his sense of 11 Further reading
moderation, justice and his love of poetry.
• Bosworth, C. E., ed. (1987). The History of al-
Ṭabarī, Volume XXXII: The Reunification of the
8 Death ʿAbbāsid Caliphate. The Caliphate of al-Ma'mun,
A.D. 812–833/A.H. 198–213. Albany, New York:
Al-Tabari (v.32, pp. 224–231) recounts how Al-Ma'mun State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-
was sitting on the river bank telling those with him how 88706-058-7.
splendid the water was. He asked what would go best
with this water and was told a specific kind of fresh dates. • Fishbein, Michael, ed. (1992). The History of al-
Noticing supplies arriving, he asked someone to check Ṭabarī, Volume XXXI: The War between Brothers.
whether such dates were included. As they were, he in- The Caliphate of Muhammad al-Amin, A.D. 809–
vited those with him to enjoy the water with these dates. 813/A.H. 193–198. Albany, New York: State Uni-
All who did this fell ill. Others recovered, but Al-Ma'mun versity of New York Press. ISBN 0-7914-1085-4.
died. He encouraged his successor to continue his poli- • John Bagot Glubb The Empire of the Arabs, Hodder
cies and not burden the people with more than they could and Stoughton, London, 1963.
bear. This was on 9 August 833.
Al-Ma'mun died near Tarsus. The city’s major mosque • Peter Tompkins, “Secrets of the Great Pyramid”,
(Tarsus Grand Mosque), contains a tomb reported to be chapter 2, Harper and Row, 1971.
his. He was succeeded not by his son, Al-Abbas ibn al- • E. de la Vaissière, Samarcande et Samarra. Elites
Ma'mun, but by his half-brother, al-Mu'tasim. d'Asie centrale dans l'empire Abbasside, Peeters,
2007

9 See also • Michael Cooperson, Al-Ma’mun, Oneworld Publi-

cations, Oxford, 2005
• Apology of al-Kindy • Dimitri Gutas, Greek Thought, Arabic culture: the
• House of Wisdom Graeco-Arabic translation movement in Baghdad
and early Abbasid society Routledge, London, 1998
• Al-Fadl ibn Sahl
• Hugh N. Kennedy, The Early Abbasid Caliphate, a
• Sahifah of al-Ridha political History, Croom Helm, London, 1981
 5

• John Nawas, A Reexamination of three current ex-

planations for Al-Ma’mun’s introduction of the Mi-
hna, International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies
26, (1994) pp. 615–629
• John Nawas, John The Mihna of 218 A.H./833
A.D. Revisited: An Empirical Study, Journal of the
American Oriental Society 116.4 (1996) pp. 698–
708
• Rekaya, M. (1991). “al-Maʾmūn”. The Encyclope-
dia of Islam, New Edition, Volume VI: Mahk–Mid.
Leiden and New York: BRILL. pp. 331–339. ISBN
90-04-08112-7.

12 External links
• (English) Al-Mamum: Building an Environment for
Innovation

• Berggren, Len (2007). “Maʾmūn: Abū al‐ʿAbbās

ʿAbdallāh ibn Hārūn al‐Rashīd”. In Thomas
Hockey; et al. The Biographical Encyclopedia of As-
tronomers. New York: Springer. p. 733. ISBN
978-0-387-31022-0. (PDF version)
6 13 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

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