Ja'far ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Mutawakkil ʿalā Allāh (); March 82211 December 861, commonly known by his regnal name al-Mutawwakil ala Allah (), was the tenth Abbasid caliph from 847 until his assassination in 861. He succeeded his brother, al-Wathiq (). He was deeply religious, and is remembered for discarding the Muʿtazila, ending the Mihna (a period of persecution of Islamic scholars), and releasing Ahmad ibn Hanbal. He is also known for his tough rule, especially with respect to non-Muslim subjects. The Caliphate reached its maximum extent during his reign.
He was assassinated on 11 December 861 by the Turkic guard with the support of his son, al-Muntasir, marking the beginning of the period of civil strife known as the "Anarchy at Samarra".
Early life Al-Mutawakkil was born on 31 March 822 to the Abbasid prince Abu Ishaq Muhammad (the future al-Mu'tasim) and a slave concubine from Khwarazm named Shuja. His early life is obscure, as he played no role in political affairs until the death of his older half-brother, al-Wathiq, in August 847.
Al-Mutawakkil was born during his uncle al-Ma'mun's reign. His full name was Jaʽfar ibn Muhammad and his Kunya was Abu al-Fadl. The young prince's early life coincided with what is called the golden age of the Abbasid Caliphate. During his youth his father was an important official of his uncle, caliph al-Ma'mun, who ruled until his death in 833. According to the account of al-Tabari, on his deathbed al-Ma'mun dictated a letter nominating his brother, rather than al-Abbas, as his successor, and Abu Ishaq was acclaimed as caliph on 9August, with the laqab of al-Mu'tasim (in full al-Muʿtaṣim bi’llāh, "he who seeks refuge in God"). His father became the eighth Abbasid caliph of the Caliphate in 833. His father ruled the caliphate for eight years and he was succeeded by his elder son al-Wathiq.
As a young prince, Ja'far's first and elder son Muhammad (the future al-Muntasir) was born in 837. Al-Muntasir's mother was Hubshiya, a Greek Umm walad. At the time of his birth Ja'far was 14 years old. His other sons Ahmad (the future al-Mu'tamid) and Talha (the future al-Muwaffaq) were born in 842 and 843, respectively. The future al-Mu'tamid's mother was Kufan Umm walad called Fityan.
As a prince, Ja'far lead the pilgrims in 842 (the year of al-Wathiq's accession). Al-Wathiq's mother Qaratis accompanied him, intending to make the pilgrimage, but she died in al-Hirah on 4th Dhu al-Qadah (14 August 842) and was buried in Kufah in the Abbasid palace of Dawud ibn Isa. Ja'far remained a courtier during his brother's reign.
Caliphate
Al-Wathiq's death was unexpected, and although he had a young son, he had not designated a successor. Consequently, the leading officials, the vizier Muhammad ibn al-Zayyat, the chief qādī, Ahmad ibn Abi Duwad, the Turkish generals Itakh and Wasif al-Turki, and a few others, assembled to determine his successor. Ibn al-Zayyat initially proposed al-Wathiq's son Muhammad (the future al-Muhtadi), but due to his youth he was passed over, and instead, the council chose the 26-year-old Ja'far, who became the caliph al-Mutawakkil. The officials hoped that the new Caliph would prove a pliable puppet, like al-Wathiq. However, al-Mutawakkil was resolved to restore the authority of the caliphal office and restore its independence by destroying the coterie of civil and military officials, raised by his father, that effectively controlled the state.
Al-Mutawakkil's first target was the vizier, Ibn al-Zayyat, against whom he harboured a deep grudge over the way he had disrespected him in the past. According to al-Tabari, when al-Wathiq had grown angry and suspicious at his brother, al-Mutawakkil had visited the vizier in hopes of persuading him to intercede with the Caliph. Not only had Ibn al-Zayyat kept the Abbasid prince waiting until he finished going through his correspondence, but even mocked him, in the presence of others, for coming to him seeking assistance. Not only that, but when the dejected prince left, Ibn al-Zayyat wrote to the Caliph to complain about his appearance, noting that he was dressed in an effeminate fashion and that his hair was too long. As a result, al-Wathiq had his brother summoned to court. Al-Mutawakkil came in a brand-new court dress, hoping to mollify the Caliph, but instead, al-Wathiq ordered that his hair be shorn off, and al-Mutawakkil was struck in the face with it. In later times, al-Mutawakkil confessed that he had never been so distressed by anything in his life than by this public humiliation. Thus, on 22 September 847, he sent Itakh to summon Ibn al-Zayyat as if for an audience. Instead, the vizier was brought to Itakh's residence, where he was placed under house arrest. His possessions were confiscated, and he was tortured to death.
This was the apogee of Itakh's career: he combined the positions of chamberlain (ḥājib), head of the Caliph's personal guard, intendant of the palace, and head of the barīd, the public post, which doubled as the government's intelligence network. In 848, however, he was persuaded to go to the hajj, and laid down his powers, only to be arrested on his return. His possessions were confiscated—reportedly, in his house alone the Caliph's agents found one million gold dinars (equivalent to over 4 tons). He died of thirst in prison in 849.
He released from prison the famous jurist Ahmad ibn Hanbal ibn Hilal ibn Asad al-Shaybani, who opposed the Mutazilites in their opinion that the Quran was created. Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the founder of the Hanbali madhhab, was arrested and tortured throughout the reigns of father al-Mutasim, and his brother al-Wathiq.
During his reign, a man named Mahmud ibn al-Faraj al-Nayshapuri arose claiming to be a prophet. He and some followers were arrested in Baghdad. He was imprisoned, and beaten to death on 18 June 850. In the same year of 850 (236 AH), al-Mutawakkil issued a decree requiring all Christians and Jews in his realm, including Jerusalem and Caesarea, to wear a yellow (honey-colored) hood and belt to distinguish them from Muslims.
Suppression of Armenian Revolt In 851–852 (237 AH), Armenian revolt; in 852 Al-Mutawakkil entrusted Bugha al-Kabir with responsibility of its suppression. Setting out from his base at Diyar Bakr, he first focused on the southern half of Armenia, i.e. the regions of Vaspurakan and Lake Van, before moving north to Dvin, Iberia and Albania. During these campaigns, he also defeated the renegade governor, Ishaq ibn Isma'il, and sacked and burned Tiflis. By the end of 853, Bugha had successfully subdued the region and made many Caucasian magnates and princes (the eristavi and nakharar) captive, including Grigor-Derenik Artsruni, his uncle Gurgen Artsruni and his father Ashot Artsruni, all sent to caliphal capitalHovannisian (2004), pp. 140–141 of Samarra.Gordon (2001), p. 90 Bugha completed his campaign over the course of three years. He systematically occupied Armenia, beginning in the south with Taron and Vaspurakan, then reaching the Araxe and Kur river basins. By the time of Bugha's return to Samarra in 855, most of the princes of Arminiya, both Christian and Muslim, were captives in the Caliph's court along with their sons.
Improvements to Abbasid Navy and port cities of Egypt In 853 the Byzantine regime tried a new approach: instead of attacking Crete (Muslim conquered Island under Abbasids) directly, they tried to sever the island's lines of supply, principally from Egypt, which was, in the words of Alexander Vasiliev, "the arsenal of the Cretan pirates". The Arab historian al-Tabari reports that three fleets, totalling almost 300 ships, were prepared and sent on simultaneous raids of Muslim naval bases in the Eastern Mediterranean. The precise targets of the first two fleets are unknown, but the third, comprising 85 ships and 5,000 men under a commander known from Arab sources only as "Ibn Qaṭūnā", headed for the Egyptian coast. The Byzantine fleet arrived at Damietta on 22 May 853. The city garrison were absent at a feast for the Day of Arafah, organized by the governor Anbasah ibn Ishaq al-Dabbi in Fustat. Damietta's inhabitants fled the undefended city, which was plundered for two days and then torched by the Byzantine troops. The Byzantines carried off some six hundred Arab and Coptic women, as well as large quantities of arms and other supplies intended for Crete. The fleet then sailed east and attacked the strong fortress of Ushtum. Upon taking it, they burned the many artillery and siege engines found there before returning home. In the immediate aftermath of the surprise attack on Damietta, according to the Arab chroniclers, the raid led to the realization of Egypt's vulnerability from the sea. After a long period of neglect, Egypt's maritime defences were urgently strengthened by governor Anbasah. Within nine months of the raid, Damietta was refortified, along with Tinnis and Alexandria. Various works were undertaken at Rosetta, Borollos, Ashmun, at-Tina, and Nastarawwa, while ships were constructed and new crews raised. Most seamen were forcibly conscripted from among the Copts and the Arabs of the interior, which earned Anbasah a bad reputation in contemporary sources, and complaints against him were directed to caliph al-Mutawakkil. Later Arabic sources like al-Maqrizi and Coptic sources confirm that the new fleet was used in raids against the Byzantines in subsequent years. Anbasah had received an order from al-Mutawakkil to build fortifications around Damietta to protect it from future attack, and construction was begun in the following year.
Suppression of minor revolts of Homs In 854 (240 AH), the police chief in Homs killed a prominent person stirring an uprising. The uprising occurred in October–November 854, when the city inhabitants rose up and attacked the chief of security police Abu al-Mughith Musa ibn Ibrahim. According to the chronicler al-Tabari, the unrest had been provoked by Abu al-Mughith's killing of one of the City's one of the local prominent person, although the reason for this act is not known. In the resulting fighting, several of Abu al-Mughith's men were killed and he was forced to flee to Hama, while the supervisor of taxation was also expelled from the city.; ; . Upon learning what had transpired, the caliph al-Mutawakkil dispatched Attab ibn Attab al-Qaid and Muhammad ibn Abdawayh ibn Jabalah to the city. Attab was instructed by the caliph to present Ibn Abdawayh to the Homsis, offering him as a replacement to Abu al-Mughith; if they however refused the choice and continued to resist, he was to request that troops be sent against the city. In the end the inhabitants agreed to the offer, allowing Ibn Abdawayh to establish himself in Homs and assume Abu al-Mughith's former position there.
Twelve months after the first revolt, a second rebellion broke out in Homs, this time directed against Ibn Abdawayh. On this occasion some of the city's Christians became involved in the unrest, with several supporting the rebel cause.; (who does not note the Christian role in the revolt); . No reasons are specified by the sources for this round of violence, although grievances regarding taxation may have been a factor. The government response to the revolt was swift. Ibn Abdawayh sent a report about the incident to al-Mutawakkil, who responded by instructing him to resist the rioters. Reinforcements soon arrived from Damascus, whose garrison and governor Salih al-Abbasi had been ordered by the caliph to assist Ibn Abdawayh, as well as from the troops at Ramla in Palestine. Bolstered by this support, the governor was able to defeat the revolt, and several of its leaders were soon placed into custody.; ; .