Jarrahids
| Banu al-Jarrah | |
|---|---|
| BedouinPrincely Clan | |
| Parent house | Banu Tayy |
| Country | Fatimid Caliphate Byzantine Empire |
| Founded | 970s CE |
| Founder | Daghfal ibn al-Jarrah (circa 971) |
| Final ruler | Fadl ibn Rabi'ah(circa 1107) |
| Estate(s) | Ramla Bayt Jibrin Nablus Balqa Jibal al-Sharat Jabal Tayy |
| Dissolution | Mid-11th/Early 12th centuries |
| Cadet branches | Al Fadl |
| Historical Arab states and dynasties |
|---|
 |
TheJarrahids(Arabic:بنو الجرَّاح,romanized:Banū al-Jarrāḥ) were anArabdynasty that intermittently ruledPalestineand controlledTransjordanandnorthern Arabiain the late 10th and early 11th centuries. They were described by historianMarius Canard(1888–1982) as a significant player in theByzantine–Fatimid warsin Syria who "created for themselves, in their own best interests, a rule of duplicity, treason and pillage".[1]They were the ruling family of theTayytribe, one of the three powerful tribes ofSyriaat the time; the other two wereKalbandKilab.
The Jarrahids first emerged in the Muslim sources as allies of theQarmatians,and grew prominent under their chieftainMufarrij ibn Daghfal ibn al-Jarrah.In 973, the latter secured the governorship of Palestine, withRamlaat its center, from theFatimid Caliphatein reward for military services. Mufarrij lost favor with the Fatimids, who drove the Jarrahids out of Palestine when they plundered Ramla in 981. Afterward, the Jarrahids raidedMecca-boundHajjpilgrim caravans and vacillated between the Fatimids, Byzantines and individual Muslim rulers in Syria. By 1011–12, the Jarrahids controlled all of interior Palestine up toTiberiasand defied the Fatimids by declaring their own caliph,al-Hasan ibn Ja'far,at Ramla. The Fatimid caliphal-Hakimthen paid Mufarrij to end the rebellion, but not long after dispatched an expedition against the Jarrahids in which they were driven from Palestine.
Mufarrij died in 1013 and was succeeded by his sonHassan,who regained control of Palestine. He entered the Tayy into an alliance with Kalb and Kilab, which dominated Syria until itsdefeat by the Fatimids in 1029.As a result, the Jarrahids moved their encampments close to their Byzantine allies nearAntioch.They fought alongside the Byzantines in several confrontations with regional Muslim powers. After 1041, there were only scattered mentions of the Jarrahids, namely regarding Hassan's nephews,Hazim ibn Aliand Humayd ibn Mahmud in the 1060s, and Hazim's grandson,Fadl ibn Rabi'ah,who at times was an ally of the Fatimids,Crusaders,Mazyadidsor theSeljuks.He became the progenitor of theAl Fadldynasty whose emirs came to dominate theBedouinof thesteppeuntil the 18th century.
Territory[edit]
The Jarrahids intermittently held territory inPalestine,theBalqaplain east of theJordan River,theSharat mountainssoutheast of the Jordan, and the northArabianmountain ranges ofJabal AjaandJabal Salma.[2]Their presence in Palestine was intermittent; they controlled the region in 977–981/82, 1011–1013, 1024–1029,[2]and circa 1041.[1]During a period of conflict with the Fatimids, the Jarrahids had relocated to the vicinity ofPalmyrain 1030 and in 1031 relocated their encampments toal-Ruj,an area between Antioch andHoms.[1]
History[edit]
Beginnings[edit]
The Jarrahids (Banu al-Jarrah) were the ruling clan of theTayytribe.[3][4]The Jarrahids initially controlled fortresses in theSharat mountains.[5]The first member of the Banu al-Jarrah to be mentioned in the historical record was Daghfal ibn al-Jarrah, an ally of theQarmatians.[6]He was based inal-Ramla,the center ofJund Filastin(District of Palestine).[6]Daghfal provided safe haven for an officer of the Qarmatian ruler,Abu Tahir al-Jannabi,when the latter departed to lead an expedition againstFatimidEgypt in 972 CE.[6]Two years later, a certain Hassan ibn al-Jarrah (possibly the same person as Daghfal) was a commander of auxiliaries in the Qarmatian army during a second invasion of Egypt.[6]Hassan accepted a bribe to defect by the Fatimid caliphal-Mu'izz,and his defection resulted in the rout of the Qarmatian force at the outskirts ofCairoand the subsequent Fatimid reoccupation of Palestine and Syria as far asDamascus.[6][7]
Reign of Muffarij[edit]
Daghfal's son,Mufarrij,entered the historical record during the Fatimid struggle withAlptakin,a Qarmatian-backedBuyidcommander who took over Damascus.[2]Alptakin was defeated at theBattle of Ramlain 977, and Mufarrij captured him betweenKafr SabaandQalansawato collect the 100,000 gold dinar-bounty placed on his head by the Fatimid caliphal-Aziz.The Jarrahids detained Alptakin either atYubnaorTell es-Safiin southern Palestine before transferring him to the Fatimids.[2][8]In return for the Jarrahids' support, al-Aziz made Mufarrijwālī(governor) of Ramla.[9]
In 979, the Fatimid general Fadl ibn Salih offered theHamdanidemirAbu Taghlibcontrol of Ramla in place of the Jarrahids; by doing this, Fadl sought to stifle a brewing alliance between the main regional Arab powers at the time, the Jarrahids, Hamdanids andUqaylids.[10]Abu Taghlib and his Uqaylid allies attacked Ramla in August, but were defeated and captured on 29 August by the Jarrahids, who by then regained Fadl's support.[9]The latter requested Mufarrij hand over Abu Taghlib to Caliph al-Aziz, but fearing Abu Taghlib could be potentially used by the Fatimids against him, Mufarrij killed him and sent his head to the caliph instead.[2][9]Mufarrij's execution of Abu Taghlib spelled the official end of the Hamdanids ofMosul.[9]
Fadl soon after turned against Mufarrij, but was recalled to Cairo by Caliph al-Aziz, essentially leaving the Jarrahids as the virtual rulers of Palestine.[2]Between 979 and 980, the Jarrahids plundered and laid waste to al-Ramla and the countryside of Palestine,[2][9]prompting a Fatimid expedition against them in 981.[2]That year, the Jarrahids revolted against the Fatimids while their army was besieging Damascus.[3]The Jarrahids were joined by the remnants of Abu Taghlib's army and the Arab governor ofTiberias,a certain Bishara.[3]The Jarrahids were ultimately driven out of Palestine that year by the Fatimids and fled toward theHejaz.[3]In June 982, they plundered theHajjpilgrim caravan on its return to Syria fromMecca.[2]Another Fatimid punitive expedition was launched against them, but was routed by the Jarrahids atAyla.Afterward, Mufarrij returned to Palestine, only to be defeated again by the Fatimids.[3]This time, Mufarrij fled north towardHomswhere he was given safe haven by the Hamdanids'Circassiangovernor,Bakjur,in late 982.[2][3]During the next ten years, Mufarrij vacillated between theByzantines,Bakjur and the Fatimids.[2]By 997, the Jarrahids had attempted to sack Ramla, but were forced back and fled to the Jabal Aja and Salma mountains in northernArabia,the ancestral territory of the Tayy.[2]
In later years, Mufarrij had his sons Ali,Hassanand Mahmud, aid the Fatimid caliphal-Hakimin his military campaigns.[2]According to historianMarius Canard,"an opportunity occurred for Mufarrij to play a part of genuine political significance" in 1012 when the disgraced Fatimid vizier,Abu'l Qasim al-Husayn,took refuge with Mufarrij's son Hassan.[2]HistorianHugh Kennedyasserts that this represented the "high point in the fortunes of the Jarrahid leaders".[11]At that point, the Jarrahids controlled the entire interior of Palestine from the boundary with Egypt up to Tiberias.[11]Under Hassan and Abu'l Qasim's initiative, the Jarrahids attacked and captured Yarukh, al-Hakim's appointee to the governorship of Damascus, in the vicinity of Gaza while he was on his way to Damascus.[2]They concurrently occupied Ramla, and soon after Hassan had Yarukh killed.[2]They further challenged al-Hakim's authority by proclaimingal-Hasan ibn Ja'far,theSharif of Mecca,as caliph in Ramla.[2]Al-Hakim bribed the Jarrahids to end their revolt, and afterward al-Hasan returned to Mecca, while Abu'l Qasim fled to Iraq.[11]The Jarrahids continued to dominate Palestine and sought to entrench their rule by appealing for support among the local Christians.[2]To that end, Mufarrij contributed to the restoration of theChurch of the Holy Sepulchre,which al-Hakim destroyed in prior years.[2]
Reign of Hassan[edit]
Al-Hakim switched his approach to the Jarrahids from diplomacy to punitive military force in August 1013.[12]Ali and Mahmud surrendered to the advancing Fatimid army, while al-Hakim had Mufarrij poisoned to death.[1]Hassan, whose ambition was to rule Palestine, fled but later gained a pardon from al-Hakim, who restored to him Mufarrij'siqtaʿatin Palestine.[1]Afterward, Hassan assisted al-Hakim in his expeditions against Aleppo.[1]
In 1019,[13]Hassan, as a representative of the Tayy, entered his tribe into an alliance with theKalbunder Sinan ibn Sulayman and theKilabunderSalih ibn Mirdas.[1]Such an alliance between the three principal Arab tribes of the Levant was unprecedented and was meant to prevent outsider dominance of the Syrian desert and steppe.[13]According to the pact's terms, the Jarrahids would rule Palestine, while the Kalb and Kilab (under theMirdasids) would rule Damascus and Aleppo, respectively.[1]Al-Hakim's reign ended with his mysterious death in 1021 and he was succeeded by CaliphAli az-Zahir.[1]
In 1023, the Fatimids installedAnushtakin al-Dizbarias the military governor of Palestine, which the Jarrahids opposed. In 1024, one of Hassan's sons and another Bedouin chieftain sacked Ayla andal-Arish,which the Fatimid central government was unable to respond to.[14]Instead, Anushtakin took the initiative to extract taxes from Hassan'siqtaʿatBayt Jibrinand deprive him of the revenues, which ended with the killing of Anushtakin's soldiers.[15]This escalated the conflict with the Jarrahids, particularly after Anushtakin imprisoned two of Hassan's chief aides inAscalon.[15]The Jarrahids launched an all out war in September to release their men, destroying Tiberias, besieging Ramla and freeing their men by forging release authorization documents.[15]They forced al-Dizbari to flee Ramla, which they plundered, and gained a Fatimid concession to grantNablusas aniqtaʿ,but not Jerusalem.[15]
The Tayy, Kalb and Kilab renewed their alliance in 1024/25, but their appeal for support from the Byzantines was rebuffed by EmperorBasil II.[1]Nonetheless, they overcame a Fatimid army dispatched by az-Zahir that year at Ascalon and Hassan entered Ramla.[1]After Sinan's death, his nephew and successor defected to the Fatimids, while the Jarrahids and Mirdasids continued their rebellion. They were defeated in theBattle of al-UqhuwananearLake Tiberiasby the Fatimids under general al-Dizbari in 1029, after which Hassan fled Palestine.[1]The Fatimids consequently transferred the Jarrahids'iqtaʿatin Palestine to more friendly Arab tribes.[16]
The Jarrahids and the Byzantines struck an alliance in 1030.[1]Hassan's envoys were received by the Byzantines in Antioch and given a cross-adorned flag to represent Hassan and a message promising them the restoration of Palestine to their tribe.[1]The tribe also nominally embracedChristianityas part of the Jarrahid agreement with the Byzantines.[16]A Jarrahid-Byzantine coalition was soon after defeated by the Mirdasids. Hassan rekindled his former alliance with the Kalb and together their tribesmen attacked the Fatimids inHawranuntil being driven toPalmyrain the desert.[1]Afterward, EmperorRomanus IIIpersuaded Hassan and the Tayy to relocate their encampments to Byzantine territory near Antioch and the 20,000-strong Tayy migrated to al-Ruj in northwestern Syria.[1]There, they faced down two Fatimid assaults atQastunandInab.The Jarrahids later raided Afamiya on behalf of the Byzantines and assisted the latter with capturing the fortress ofal-Maniqain theJabal Ansariyarange.[1]
The Byzantines and Fatimids entered into peace negotiations in 1032 and Hassan was present in the discussions in Constantinople.[1]The Byzantines stipulated the restoration of Jarrahid governorship in Palestine under Fatimid suzerainty as a condition for peace, but az-Zahir refused.[1]The Fatimids' rejection of this condition contributed to the collapse of the peace talks.[16]The following year, the Jarrahids offered their loyalty to al-Dizbari in exchange for their formeriqtaʿatin Palestine, but the attempt failed.[16]The Fatimids and Byzantines ultimately concluded a ten-year peace treaty, without consideration of the Jarrahids' interests, in 1035.[17]Afterward, Hassan and his sonAllafare mentioned on occasion, such as their assistance in the Byzantine defense ofEdessafrom theMarwanidsandNumayridsin 1035/36.[1]In 1038, the Jarrahids participated in al-Dizbari's conquest of Mirdasid-held Aleppo.[18]As a result, Hassan was forced into confinement in Constantinople until 1040 as a means to prevent his tribe, with its unstable allegiances, from potentially attacking Antioch.[18]The last mention of Hassan is in 1041, by which point the Jarrahids had been permitted by the Fatimids to re-enter Palestine.[1][18]Hassan's rule at the time was opposed by the Fatimid governor of Damascus.[1]
Later chieftains[edit]
The Jarrahids were mentioned in the sources in 1065/66, when Hassan's nephewsHazim ibn Aliand Humayd ibn Mahmud likely backed Abd al-Sharif ibn Abi'l Jann in his attempt to wrest control of Damascus from the troops of Fatimid vizierBadr al-Jamali.[1]Afterward, the nephews were captured and jailed in Cairo. Their release was requested by the Fatimid general and descendant of the Hamdanids,Nasir al-Dawla ibn Hamdan,in 1066/67.[1]Hazim had sons named Badr and Rabi'a.[19]According to Syrian historian Mustafa A. Hiyari, information on Rabi'a in the medieval sources is confused, though he most likely was an emir of Bedouin auxiliaries for theBuridruler of Damascus,Toghtekin(r. 1103–1128).[19]Nothing more about him is mentioned in the sources, but the military activities of his sons, Mira and Fadl, are noted.[19]His other sons were Daghfal, Thabit and Faraj.[19]
Fadl is described in the 13th-century chronicle ofIbn al-Athir(d. 1233) as an emir, who, in 1107/08, vacillated between theCrusaders,who conquered the Levantine coast in 1099, and the Fatimids, whose rule had been limited to Egypt since 1071.[20]This prompted Toghtekin to expel Fadl from Syria, after which he formed an alliance with Sadaqa, the chieftain of the ArabMazyadiddynasty in Iraq, before defecting to theSeljuks.[20]According to Ibn al-Athir, after Fadl's entry intoAnbarto block the desert route to Sadaqa "was the last that was heard of him".[20]
Canard describes the Jarrahids as a "turbulent family who were not without significance as pawns on the chess-board of Syria in the 10th–11th centuries, whom the Fatimids alternately attacked and wooed, whom the Byzantines succeeded in using, but who seem to have created for themselves, in their own best interests, a rule of duplicity, treason and pillage".[1]
Descendants[edit]
Fadl ibn Rabi'ah was the progenitor of theAl Fadlclan,[21]while Mira and Faraj became the ancestors of the Al Mira and Al Faraj clans, respectively.[19][22]Collectively, these clans formed the Banu Rabi'a, and together with their allies, they dominated the desert and steppe regions between theEuphratesvalley in the north to the centralNajdand northernHejazin the south.[23]DuringAyyubidrule in Syria (1182–1260), the emirs of Al Fadl and Al Faraj alternated asumara al-'ʿarab( "commanders of the Bedouin tribes"; sing.amir al-ʿarab). However, under theMamluks(1260–1516), the post became hereditary within the house of Al Fadl,[24]who had authority over the Bedouin of northern Syria and held numerousiqtaʿat,including Palmyra,Salamiyah,Maarrat al-Nu'man,SarminandDuma.[13]The Al Mira's emirs held similar authority under the Mamluks and were known asmuluk al-arab( "kings of the Bedouin tribes; sing.malik al-'arab) in the southern Syrian Desert.[24]The Al Fadl continued to wield influence duringOttomanrule.[25]
List of chieftains[edit]
| Name | Reign | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Daghfal ibn al-Jarrah | 971–mid-970s | First Jarrahid to be noted in medieval sources. |
| Mufarrij ibn Daghfal | 977–1013 | Son of Daghfal. Governed Palestine on behalf of the Fatimids, whom he often rebelled against and reconciled with. |
| Hassan ibn Mufarrij | 1013–1041(?) | Son of Mufarrij. Governed Palestine on behalf of Fatimids and later became an ally of the Byzantines. |
| Hazim ibn Aliand Humayd ibn Mahmud | circa 1065–1067 | Nephews of Hassan. Little is known of them other than their rebellion against the Fatimids. |
| Rabi'ah ibn Hazim | early 12th century. | Nothing is known of his activities. |
| Fadl ibn Rabi'ah | circa 1107 | Son of Rabi'ah.Progenitorof theAl Fadldynasty which dominated the Bedouin of Syria until the 18th century |
References[edit]
- ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyCanard 1965, p. 484.
- ^abcdefghijklmnopqrsCanard 1965, p. 483.
- ^abcdefGil 1997, p. 358.
- ^Cappel 1994, p. 124.
- ^Lancaster, William; Williams, Fidelity (1999).People, Land and Water in the Arab Middle East: Environments and Landscapes in the Bilad ash-Sham.Amsterdam: Harwood Academic Publishers. p. 36.ISBN90-5702-322-9.
- ^abcdeCanard 1965, p. 482.
- ^Abu Izzedin, p. 50.
- ^Gil 1997, p. 351.
- ^abcdeGil 1997, p. 355.
- ^Gil 1997, pp. 354–355.
- ^abcKennedy 2004, p. 286.
- ^Canard 1965, pp. 483–484.
- ^abcBakhit, Muhammad Adnan (1993). "Muhanna, Banu". In Bosworth, C. E.; et al. (eds.).Encyclopedia of Islam, Volume 7(2nd ed.). Leiden: Brill. pp. 461–462.
- ^Lev 2003, p. 47.
- ^abcdLev 2003, pp. 48–49.
- ^abcdCappel 1994, p. 125.
- ^Cappel 1994, pp. 125–126.
- ^abcCappel 1994, p. 126.
- ^abcdeHiyari 1975, p. 513.
- ^abcRichards, D. S. (2010).The Chronicle of Ibn Al-Athir for the Crusading Period from Al-Kamil Fi'L-Ta'Rikh.: The Years 491-541/1097-1146 the Coming of the Franks and the Muslim Response.Ashgate Publishing. p.126.ISBN9780754669500.
- ^Hiyari 1975, pp. 513–514.
- ^Hiyari 1975, p. 515.
- ^Hiyari 1975, pp. 512–513
- ^abHiyari 1975, pp. 516–517.
- ^Bakhit, Muhammad Adnan (1982).The Ottoman Province of Damascus in the Sixteenth Century.Librairie du Liban. p. 201.ISBN9780866853224.
Bibliography[edit]
- Canard, Marius(1965)."D̲j̲arrāḥids".InLewis, B.;Pellat, Ch.&Schacht, J.(eds.).The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition.Volume II: C–G.Leiden: E. J. Brill. pp. 482–485.OCLC495469475.
- Cappel, Andrew J. (1994). "The Byzantine Response to the 'Arab (10th–11th Centuries)". In Dyck, Andrew Roy; Takács, Sarolta A. (eds.).Presence of Byzantium: Studies Presented to Milton V. Anastos in Honor of his Eighty-Fifth Birthday.A. Hakkert.ISBN9789025610722.
- Kennedy, Hugh(2004).The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates: The Islamic Near East from the 6th to the 11th Century(Second ed.). Harlow: Longman.ISBN978-0-582-40525-7.
- Gil, Moshe(1997) [1983].A History of Palestine, 634–1099.Translated by Ethel Broido. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.ISBN0-521-59984-9.
- Hiyari, Mustafa A. (1975). "The Origins and Development of the Amīrate of the Arabs during the Seventh/Thirteenth and Eighth/Fourteenth Centuries".Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies.38(3): 509–524.doi:10.1017/s0041977x00048060.JSTOR613705.S2CID178868071.
- Lev, Yaacov (2003)."Turks in the Political and Military Life of Eleventh-Century Egypt and Syria".In Hidemitsu, Kuroki (ed.).The Influence ff Human Mobility In Muslim Societies.Kegan Paul.ISBN0710308027.
- Salibi, Kamal S.(1977).Syria Under Islam: Empire on Trial, 634–1097, Volume 1.Delmar: Caravan Books.ISBN9780882060132.