A Short History of the Fatimid Khalifate

Transcriber’s Note: The original printing of this book had numerous errors, including basic mistakes like misnumbering the chapters, and the occasional transposition of lines of...

We may rightly refer to this period as a renascence, for it meant quickening into new and other life the embers of the later Hellenistic culture, and especially of the Aristotel...

It will be noted that Zindiqism is mentioned as propagated by Ibn al-Muqaffaʿ, and is traced to Ibn Daysan amongst others, and this is precisely the same as the one whom Maqrizi...

_Ninth Grade._ In this grade the disciple was taught the doctrines of the philosophers and what they have stated about the heavens, the stars, the soul, the intelligence, and ot...

One of Ahmad’s missionaries named Husayn Ahwazi was sent to labour in the district of Kufa known as the Sawad. As he was travelling he met a man named Hamdan b. Ashhath al-Qarma...

Abu Saʿid then attempted to get possession of Oman, but was obliged to abandon this scheme. He was slain in 301 with several other Qarmatian leaders, and was succeeded by his so...

At this juncture, in 291, the Shiʿites were practically supreme in all the country west of the suburbs of Kairawan, and now Abu ʿAbdullah sent messengers over to the Mahdi invit...

Year 298 (= A.D. 910). Abu ʿAbdullah had proved himself a loyal and efficient helper, and had done more than any other to establish the Mahdi in Africa. It seems that he was a s...

The conditions of the Khalifate at this time show a close parallel with those prevailing in Europe under the later Karlings, when “the governor,—count, abbot, or bishop—tightene...

To understand this we must turn for a while to the course of events in Egypt. The Ikhshid Muhammad b. Tughj had died in 335, and had been succeeded by his son Abu l-Qasim Unjur,...

On Friday, the 8th of Dhu l-Kaada, in the _khutba_, the words were added, “O my God, bless Muhammad the chosen, ʿAli the accepted, Fatima the pure, and al-Hasan and al-Husayn, t...

Al-Moʿizz entrusted the task of organising a new system of taxation to the converted Jew, Ibn Killis, who had had experience of administrative work under Kafur, and to ʿAsluj. T...

Very early in al-Hakim’s reign there came to Egypt as a refugee the eunuch Shakar, who had been a servant of the Buwayhid prince Adhad ad-Dawla, but who had been taken prisoner...

We have already seen that strict laws against going out at night were made as the result, no doubt, of abuses arising from the nightly illuminations and merry-making. Now, in 39...

Towards the end of 394 Hakim began collecting a large store of wood on Mokattam, and this was completed in Rabiʿ I. 395. A rumour went abroad that this was intended to provide a...

Although al-Hakim, by ordering the removal of the imprecatory inscriptions against the early Khalifs had done something to conciliate public opinion, he continued to enforce str...

A curious story is told by Severus of Ashmunayn in connection with these laws of 402. A certain merchant had all his money invested in the prohibited fruit, and lost everything...

In 406 a quarrel sprung up between Murtada and Fatah Kalai who was the governor of the citadel. Murtada considered that he had been instrumental in fomenting Salih’s rebellion....

Al-Mahsin is reported as saying that Hakim went out, and that after sending back Nesim and his squire, he had as companions only a page and a young slave: at the time he was fil...

There can be no doubt that he was a perfectly earnest reformer, so far as his knowledge extended, and that some of his experiments were rash and unsuccessful does not detract fr...

Meanwhile difficult problems had arisen in Syria. The Saljuq Turks, who were now dominant in Baghdad, were fanatically orthodox and set themselves deliberately to root out the F...

The centre of interest still lies in the Crusaders who had now established a firm hold in Palestine and were threatening Egypt. In 497 they took possession of Akka (Acre), and t...

As soon as the news was brought to ʿAbbas he returned with his forces to Cairo where he soon restored order, and was without delay invested with the office of wazir. The change...

After this, in the latter part of the year, Shirkuh retired to Damascus. This seems to suggest that the Turks and Syrians had abandoned the projected conquest of Egypt. But Amal...

It is, no doubt, impossible to regard the Crusades as entirely religious in their spirit and character, but it is equally impossible to ignore the fact that religious motives pl...