Hafsid dynasty

For the Cretan dynasty, seeEmirate of Crete.

Hafsids
1229–1574
Left: Reconstructed flag of the Hafsid dynasty of the 15th century Right: Flag of Hafsid Tunisia according to Jacobo Russo, 1550
Realm of the Hafsid dynasty in 1400 (orange)
Capital	Tunis
Common languages	Arabic,Berber
Religion	Islam(Sunni,Ibadi),Christianity(Roman Catholic),Judaism
Government	Monarchy
Sultan
• 1229–1249	Abu Zakariya
• 1574	Muhammad VI
History
• Established	1229
•Conquest of Tunis	1535
• Disestablished	1574
Preceded by Succeeded by Almohad Caliphate Ottoman Tunisia Regency of Algiers Spanish Tripoli Kingdom of Kuku Ottoman Tripolitania
Today part of	Tunisia Algeria Libya

TheHafsids(Arabic:الحفصيونal-Ḥafṣiyūn) were aSunni Muslimdynasty ofBerberdescentwho ruledIfriqiya(modern dayTunisia,westernLibya,and easternAlgeria) from 1229 to 1574.

History

Almohad Ifriqiya

The Hafsids were ofBerberdescent,although to further legitimize their rule, they claimedArabancestry from the secondRashiduncaliphOmar.The ancestor of the dynasty (from whom their name is derived), wasAbu Hafs Umar ibn Yahya al-Hintati,a Berber from theHintatatribal confederation,which belonged to the greaterMasmudaconfederation in present-day Morocco.He was a member of the Council of Ten, one of the highestAlmohadpolitical bodies, and a close companion ofIbn Tumart,the Almohad movement's founder.

The son of Abu Hafs,Abu Muhammad Abd al-Wahid ibn Abi Hafs,was appointed by the Almohad caliphMuhammad al-Nasiras governor ofIfriqiya(generally present-dayTunisia,easternAlgeria,and westernLibya) where he ruled from 1207 to 1221.He was established inTunis,which the Almohads had chosen as the province's administrative capital.His appointment came in the wake of the defeat ofYahya Ibn Ghaniya,who had launched aserious attackagainst Almohad authority in the region. Abu Muhammad Abd al-Wahid was ultimately quite effective in keeping order. The caliph had granted him a significant degree of autonomy in governing, partly to help persuade him to accept this difficult position in the first place. This laid the groundwork for a future Hafsid state.

When Abu Muhammad Abd al-Wahid died in 1221, the Almohad chiefs in Ifriqiya initially elected his son, Abu Zayd Abd al-Rahman, as the next governor. However, the Almohad caliph in Marrakesh,Yusuf II al-Mustansir,had not consented to this and was able to overrule this and appoint his own relative to the position.As Almohad authority weakened over the following years, local opposition to the Almohad governor compelled the Almohad caliphAbdallah al-Adilto appoint another Hafsid family member to the post in 1226. He chose Abu Muhammad Abdallah, a grandson of Abu Hafs. Abu Muhammad Abdallah's brother,Abu Zakariya Yahya,arrived in Tunis before him and began to reestablish order.Whenal-Ma'mun,the brother of Abdallah al-Adil, rebelled against the latter's authority fromal-Andalus,Abu Zakariya sided with him, whereas Abu Muhammad Abdallah remained loyal to the caliph in Marrakesh. Al-Ma'mun's eventual victory resulted in Abu Zakariya being placed in charge of Ifriqiya in 1228.

Rise to power

A year later, in 1229, al-Ma'mun officially renouncedAlmohad doctrine.Abu Zakariya used this as a pretext to repudiate his authority and to declare himself independent. By this point, Al-Ma'mun did not have the means to stop him or to reassert control over Ifriqiya.Initially, Abu Zakariya had his name mentioned in thekhutba(the sermon duringFriday prayer) with the title of amir, but in 1236 or 1237 he began to adopt thecaliphaltitle ofAmir al-Mu'minin,in direct challenge to the Almohad caliph in Marrakesh.

Abu Zakariya annexedConstantine(Qusantina) andBéjaïa(Bijaya) in 1230.In 1234, he chased Yahya Ibn Ghaniya out of the countryside south of Constantine in 1234, ending this lingering threat.In 1235 he capturedAlgiersand then established his authority as far as theChelif Riverto the west.In the following years he subdued various rural tribes, such as theHawwara,but allowed some of the Banu Tujin tribes in the central Maghreb to govern themselves as small vassal states that secured his eastern borders.He welcomed many refugees and immigrants from al-Andalus who were fleeing the advance of theReconquista.He appointed some of them to important political positions and recruited Andalusi military regiments as a way of counteracting the power and influence of traditional Almohad elites.

For a time, theNasridruler ofGranadain al-Andalus,Ibn al-Ahmar,briefly acknowledged Abu Zakariya's suzerainty in an attempt to enlist his help against Christian forces. Ultimately, Hafsid intervention on theIberian Peninsulawas limited to sending a fleet to MuslimValencia's aid in 1238.Abu Zakariya showed more interest in trying to recreate some of the former authority of the Almohads over the Maghreb and he made attempts to extend his control further west. In 1242, he capturedTlemcenfrom theZayyanids,but the Zayyanid leaderYaghmurasanevaded him. The two leaders eventually came to an agreement, with Yaghmurasan continuing to rule in Tlemcen but agreeing to formally recognize Abu Zakariya's authority.That same year,SijilmasaandCeuta(Sabta) also recognized his authority,though these would later fall under Marinid control.This policy of western expansion ended with Abu Zakariya's death (1249).

Consolidation and division

Coin of the Hafsids with ornamentalKufic,fromBéjaïa,Algeria,1249–1276.

His successor,Muhammad I al-Mustansir(r. 1249–1277), focused on consolidating the Hafsid state in Ifriqiya. The state benefited from expanding trade with both Europe and theSudanregion (south of the Sahara).In the western Maghreb (present-day Morocco), the Marinids, who had not yet fully established their rule in the region, formally recognized his authority in 1258.With thefall of Baghdad,the home of theAbbasid caliphs,that same year, the Hafsids were briefly seen as the most important rulers of the Muslim world. TheSharif of Mecca,Abu Numayy,temporarily recognized him as caliph in 1259.

It was during his reign that the failedEighth Crusadetook place, led byLouis IX of France.After landing atCarthage,Louis died of dysentery in the middle of his army decimated by disease in 1270.

After al-Mustansir's death in 1277, the Hafsids were riven by internal conflict, aggravated by interference fromAragon.This resulted in a split in the dynasty: one branch ruled from Tunis in the east andanother branchruled fromBéjaïa (Bijaya)andConstantine (Qusantina)in the west. This division continued to characterize Hafsid politics for much of its history, with the balance of power sometimes shifting from one side to another and with intermittent successes at unifying both branches under one rule.After the initial split, the first successful reunification took place underAbu Yahya Abu Bakr II(r. 1318–1346), the ruler of the western branch who managed to take control of Tunis.

Marinid invasions and internal crisis

Abu Yahya Abu Bakr's rule remained unstable and he resorted to making alliances with the Zayyanids and Marinids to the west.His agreement with the Marinid ruler,Abu al-Hasan(r. 1331–1348), included a marriage to his sister, who subsequently died during afailed Marinid expedition in Spain,followed by another marriage to his daughter.When Abu Yahya Abu Bakr died in 1346, his intended heir, Abu'l Abbas, was killed in Tunis by his brother, Umar, who seized power. Abu'l Abbas's chamberlain, Abu Muhammad Abdallah ibn Tafrajin, sent a letter to Abu al-Hasan urging him to intervene and invade Ifriqiya. Abu al-Hasan, having alreadyconquered Tlemcenin 1337, seized the opportunity to further expand. He conquered Tunis in 1347 and the Hafsid governors in the region accepted his authority.

The invasion, however, disturbed the balance of power in favour of the Bedouin Arab tribes, whom the Marinids were unable to sway.Ibn Tafrajin, who had hoped to be placed in power by the Marinids, fled to Egypt. The situation in Ifriqiya devolved into further disorder and internal rivalries, and Abu al-Hasan was forced to return west in 1349, partly to deal with acoup d'étatby his son,Abu Inan.Ibn Tafrajin returned to Ifriqiya and, with Bedouin support, installed another young son of Abu Yahya Abu Bakr, Abu Ishaq, as ruler.Abu Inan, having successfully taken the throne from his father, invaded Ifriqiya again and captured Tunis in August 1357, but he was soon forced by his own troops to abandon the region. He returned west, retaining control only of Constantine and the cities of the central Maghreb for a time.

During the mid-14th century, plague epidemics brought to Ifriqiya from Sicily caused a considerable fall in population, further weakening the Hafsid realm. To stop raids from southern tribes during plague epidemics, the Hafsids turned to theBanu Hilalto protect their rural population.

Apogee

Double page from the Qur'an manuscript endowed to theKasbah Mosqueby sultanAbu Faris Abd al-Aziz IIin March 1405.Bibliothèque nationale de France.

After the Marinid threat ended, attempts to reunify the Hafsids failed untilAbu al-Abbas Ahmad II(r. 1370–1394), the emir of Béjaïa and Constantine, conquered Tunis in 1370.A capable ruler and military leader, he reestablished Hafsid authority on stronger terms, centralizing power to a greater extent than ever before. Meanwhile, the Zayyanids and Marinids were occupied by internal matters.

Abu Faris Abd al-Aziz II's reign (r. 1394–1434) was considered the apogee of Hafsid power and prosperity by contemporary writers. He further consolidated his dynasty's power in Ifriqiya and extended his influence over the Zayyanids and Marinids (and theWattasidswho succeeded the latter).

The beginning of his reign was not easy since the cities of the south revolted against him. However, the new sultan quickly regained control: he reoccupiedTozeur(1404),Gafsa(1401), andBiskra(1402), subdued tribal power in the regions of Constantine and Béjaïa (1397–1402), and appointed governors of these regions to be elected officers.He also intervened against his western and eastern neighbors. He annexedTripoli(1401) andAlgiers(1410–1411).In 1424, hedefeatedthe Zayyanid sultan, Abu Malik Abd al-Wahid, and placed another Zayyanid, Abu Abdallah Muhammad IV, on the throne of Tlemcen as his vassal.In 1428, the latter became embroiled in another war with Abu Malik Abd al-Wahid – who had now won his own support from the Hafsids – and was eventually replaced by yet another Zayyanid relative with Abu Faris Abd al-Aziz's help in 1431.Around the same time (probably in 1426), Abu Faris Abd al-Aziz also helped to installAbd al-Haqq IIon the Marinid throne in Fez – under the regency ofAbu Zakariya Yahya al-Wattasi– and thus obtained from him a recognition of Hafsid suzerainty.

In 1429, the Hafsidsattacked the island of Maltaand took 3000 slaves, although they did not conquer the island.Kaid Ridavanwas the military leader during the attack.The profits were used for a great building programme and to support art and culture. However, piracy also provoked retaliation from the Christians, which several times launched attacks and crusades against Hafsid coastal cities such as theBarbary crusade(1390), theBona crusade(1399) and the capture ofDjerbain 1423.

Abu Faris Abd al-Aziz II died in 1434 during another expedition against Tlemcen.His successor,Abu 'Amr 'Uthman,had the longest reign of any Hafsid (r. 1435–1488). He largely continued the strong rule of his predecessors but he had to contend with greater challenges, including internal politics, restive Bedouin tribes in the south, and the Wattasids in the west.

Uthman conqueredTripolitaniain 1458 and appointed a governor inOuarglain 1463.He led two expeditions to Tlemcen in 1462 and 1466 and made the Zayyanids his vassals, while the Wattasid state in Morocco also formally accepted his authority. The entire Maghreb was thus briefly under Hafsid suzerainty.

Fall

See also:Conquest of Tunis (1534),Conquest of Tunis (1535),andConquest of Tunis (1574)

In the 16th century the Hafsids became increasingly caught up in the power struggle between Spain and theOttoman Empire-supportedCorsairs.The Ottomansconquered Tunisin 1534 and held it for one year, driving out the Hafsid rulerMoulay Hassan.A year later the King of Spain and Holy Roman EmperorCharles Vseized Tunis,drove the Ottomans out and restoredMuley Hassan as a Habsburg tributary.Due to the Ottoman threat, the Hafsids were vassals of Spain after 1535. The Ottomans again conquered Tunis in 1569 and held it for four years.Don Juan of Austriarecaptured it in 1573. The Ottomans reconquered Tunis in 1574, andMuhammad VI,the last Caliph of the Hafsids, was brought toConstantinopleand was subsequently executed due to his collaboration with Spain and the desire of the Ottoman Sultan to take the title ofCaliphas he now controlled Mecca and Medina.

Economy

The Hafsids, with their location in Ifriqiya, was rich in agriculture and trade. Instead of placing the capital at inland cities such asKairouan,Tunis was chosen as the capital due to its position on the coast as a port linking the Western and Eastern Mediterranean. Christian merchants from Europe were given their own enclaves in various cities on the Mediterranean coast, promoting trans-Mediterranean trade. Under the Hafsids, commerce and diplomatic relations with Christian Europe grew significantly,howeverpiracyagainst Christian shipping grew as well, particularly during the rule ofAbd al-Aziz II(1394–1434). By the mid-14th century, the population of Tunis had grown to 100,000. The Hafsids also had a large stake in trans-Saharan trade through the caravan routes from Tunis toTimbuktuand fromTripolito sub-Saharan Africa.

Culture

Intellectual activity

The Hafsids were effective patrons of culture and education.They were the first to introducemadrasasto the Maghreb.Arabic literacy and religious education thus increased, with Kairouan, Tunis and Bijaya hosting famous university-mosques. Kairouan continued to serve as a center of theMalikischool of religious doctrine.As the political center of the country shifted to Tunis, theGreat Mosque of al-Zaytuna,the city's main mosque, became the country's leading center of learning.Of great impact on culture were immigrants from al-Andalus, whom Abu Zakariya encouraged to come to his realm in the 13th century. Among the most important figures was the famous historian and intellectual,Ibn Khaldun.

Architecture

Main article:Hafsid architecture

The minaret of theKasbah MosqueofTunis,built at the beginning of the Hafsid period in the early 1230s

The Hafsids were significant builders, particularly under the reigns of successful leaders like Abu Zakariya (r. 1229–1249) andAbu Faris(r. 1394–1434), though not many of their monuments have survived intact to the present-day.While Kairouan remained an important religious center, Tunis was the capital and progressively replaced it as the main city of the region and the main center of architectural patronage. Unlike the architecture further west,Hafsid architecturewas built primarily in stone (rather thanbrickormudbrick) and appears to have featured much less decoration.In reviewing the history ofarchitecture in the western Islamic world,scholarJonathan Bloomremarks that Hafsid architecture seems to have "largely charted a course independent of the developments elsewhere in the Maghrib."

TheKasbah Mosqueof Tunis was one of the first works of this period, built by Abu Zakariya (the first independent Hafsid ruler) at the beginning of his reign. Its floor plan had noticeable differences from previous Almohad-period mosques but the minaret, completed in 1233, bears very strong resemblance to the minaret of the earlier AlmohadKasbah Mosque in Marrakesh.Other foundations from the Hafsid period in Tunis include theHaliq Mosque(13th century) and theal-Hawa Mosque(1375). TheBardo Palace(today a national museum) was also begun by the Hafsids in the 15th century,and is mentioned in historical records for the first time during the reign of Abu Faris.The Hafsids also made significant renovations to the much older Great Mosque of Kairouan – renovating its ceiling, reinforcing its walls, and building or rebuilding two of its entrance gates in 1293 – as well as to the Great Mosque of al-Zaytuna in Tunis.

The Hafsids also introduced the first madrasas to the region, beginning with theMadrasa al-Shamma῾iyyabuilt in Tunis in 1238(or in 1249 according to some sources). This was followed by many others (almost all of them in Tunis) such as the Madrasa al-Hawa founded in the 1250s, the Madrasa al-Ma'ridiya (1282), and theMadrasa al-Unqiya(1341).Many of these early madrasas, however, have been poorly preserved or have been considerably modified in the centuries since their foundation.The Madrasa al-Muntasiriya, completed in 1437, is among the best preserved madrasas of the Hafsid period.

Flags

• Flags of Hafsids on portolans and from other sources
• 
  Early red flag with white or yellow crescent of the 14th century, reported by Marino Sanudo (ca. 1321), Angelino Dulcerta (1339) and the Catalan Atlas (1385)
• 
  Yellow with white crescent, the reconstructed flag of the 15th century
• 
  White with blue crescent according to Jacobo Russo, 1550 (last period of the kingdom)
• 
  The flag of the city of tunis in 14th century. White with black crescent[1][2]

Hafsid rulers

S. n.	Name	Birth date	Death date	Reign	Notes
–	Abu Muhammad Abd al-Wahid ibn Abi Hafs	unknown	1222	1207–1222	Not yet a sultan, just a local minor leader.
–	Abu Muhammad Abd Allah ibn Abd al-Wahid	unknown	1229	1222–1229	Not yet a sultan, just a local minor leader.
1st	Abu Zakariya Yahya	1203	5 October 1249	1229–1249
2nd	Muhammad I al-Mustansir	1228	1277	1249–1277
3rd	Yahya II al-Wathiq	unknown	1279	1277–1279
4th	Ibrahim I	unknown	1283	1279–1283
5th	Abd al-Aziz I	unknown	1283	1283
6th	Ibn Abi Umara	unknown	1284	1283–1284
7th	Abu Hafs Umar bin Yahya	unknown	1295	1284–1295
8th	Abu Asida Muhammad II	1279	September 1309	1295–1309
9th	Abu Yahya Abu Bakr ash-Shahid	unknown	September 1309	1309
10th	Abu-l-Baqa Khalid An-Nasr	unknown	1311	1309–1311
11th	Abd al-Wahid Zakariya ibn al-Lihyani	1253	1326	1311–1317
12th	Abu Darba Muhammad Al-Mustansir	unknown	1323	1317–1318
13th	Abu Yahya Abu Bakr II	unknown	19 October 1346	1318–1346
14th	Abu-l Abbas Ahmad	unknown	1346	1346
15th	Abu Hafs Umar II	unknown	1347	1346–1347
16th	Abu al-Abbas Ahmad al-Fadl al-Mutawakkil	unknown	1350	1347–1350
17th	Abu Ishaq Ibrahim II	October or November 1336	19 February 1369	1350–1369
18th	Abu-l-Baqa Khalid II	unknown	November 1370	1369–1370
19th	Ahmad II	1329	3 June 1394	1370–1394
20th	Abd al-Aziz II	1361	July 1434	1394–1434
21st	Abu Abd-Allah Muhammad al-Muntasir	unknown	16 September 1435	1434–1435
22nd	Abu 'Amr 'Uthman	February 1419	September 1488	1435–1488
23rd	Abu Zakariya Yahya II	unknown	1489	1488–1489
24th	Abd al-Mu'min	unknown	1490	1489–1490
25th	Yahya Zakariya	unknown	1494	1490–1494
26th	Abu Abdallah Muhammad IV al-Mutawakkil	unknown	1526	1494–1526
27th	Muhammad V( “Moulay Hasan” )	unknown	1543	1526–1543
28th	Ahmad III	c. 1500	August 1575	1543–1569
Ottoman conquest (1569–1573)
29th	Muhammad VI	unknown	1594	1573–1574

See also

• Banu Thabit
• List of Sunni Muslim dynasties