ACT I: Hisham II and al-Mughira
Planet of Hats
Donor
With thanks to XanXar for rekindling my interest in actually sharing my first honest-to-goodness TL publicly, and more broadly to everyone who's discussed al-Andalus on these forums over the years for leaving behind a massive body of discussion to trawl through over the past several months, and of course to the authors of the various primary and academic sources drawn upon, adapted and thrown for a loop to inform what's here. Let's see how this goes, and how much damage the butterflies from a few changes in a distant corner of medieval Europe can do to everything else in the world.
---
A palm tree I beheld in ar-Rusafa
Far in the West, far from the palm-tree land:
I said: You, like myself, are far away, in a strange land;
How long have I been away from my people!
You grew up in a land where you are a stranger,
And like myself, are living in the farthest corner of the earth:
May the morning clouds refresh you at this distance,
And may abundant rains comfort you forever!
- Abd ar-Rahman I, Emir of Cordoba (r. 756-88)
~
Excerpt: The Rise and the Fall of the Mohammedan Caliphs of al-Andalus - Muhallab ibn Jalil al-Dani, AH 1056 (AD 1646)
On the eve of the death of the Caliph al-Hakam al-Mustansir, his son Hisham, surnamed al-Mu'ayad-billah, who was perhaps twelve years old at the time, succeeded to the throne. It was, however, a narrow thing, and the years that followed him were uncertain ones for the Córdoban Caliphate.
The historian, ibn Hayyan, tells us that among his multitude of virtues, al-Hakam, a wise and vigorous man whose reign saw the Caliphate enjoy such relative steadiness as so precipitously situated an institution could in those dark days, possessed paternal love in such a degree that it blinded his prudence. In his love, he appointed as his successor his only son, then a child, in preference to any of his brothers or nephews, men of mature age and wisdom, with the experience and capability of making their mandates obeyed.
Perhaps it is that love of a father for a son that blinded al-Hakam to the folly of his decision, or perhaps an expectation of a longer life in which to prepare the boy. Though he doted upon his son, others rose in his young life. Prominent among them was a man, Mohammed ibn Abi Aamir, the manager of the child's estates and a favourite of Sobha, his mother. The influence ibn Abi Aamir held upon the boy Hisham and his mother cannot be understated, nor the ambition he demonstrated. Among them, too, was the hajib, the Berber named Ja'far al-Mushafi, a man of obscure lineage who may have counted himself among Hisham's supporters but whom we are told by the historians saw opportunities in the lad - for with the ascent of the youth, he believed, the empire would be in his hands, but with the ascent of another sovereign his soldiers would lose all power and authority.
Thus was the circumstance on the eve of the second day of Safar, AH 366[1], when al-Hakam swooned and perished. All eyes turned to the child, Hisham al-Muayad.
It has been observed by the histories of the day that the first to know of the death of the Caliph were two of his eunuchs, of the saqaliba[2] - the master of the tiraz[3], Fa'iq al-Nizami, and the faulconer, Judhar. Together they were among the foremost of some thousand saqaliba present within the palace of Córdoba, as well as within the palace guard. Even as al-Hakam al-Mustansir breathed his last, these two men, foreseeing the troubles and calamities that might arise from the ascent to the throne of a mere child, conceived of the idea to replace Hisham in the line of succession instead with a brother of al-Hakam, al-Mughira, son of the late Abd ar-Rahman III by the concubine, Mushtaq.
Their first move was to summon the hajib, Ja'far al-Mushafi. Before he arrived, however, the two spoke of their plan. "Methinks," Fa'iq is said to have said to Judhar, "we shall never be able to carry our plans into execution as long as Ja'far al-Mushafi lives. He must die."
"And are we," said Judhar to Fa'iq, "to begin our undertaking by slaying an old man, who is our master and protector?"
"By God! I can see no other way," Fa'iq said.
What actually transpired in the ensuing meeting, behind closed doors, was witnessed by none. The histories tell us only of what happened when the doors opened, and the two siqlabi conspirators exited, and left behind the corpse of al-Mushafi, his life having been taken from him.
In the hours thereafter, a detachment of the royal guard, perhaps twenty saqaliba in number, travelled to the house of al-Mughira, finding him in complete ignorance of what had occurred. To his credit, the young man appears to have been totally innocent of any political aspirations at that time, though not lacking for hope in his younger years. At the receipt of the news of his brother's end, al-Mughira was thunderstruck; but soon after recovering, he said, "I hear and obey the orders of my new master," and swore to Hisham his loyalty.
More difficult was the man, ibn Abi Aamir, who commanded the loyalty of some in the court - particularly his contacts were strong among the Berbers, among whom he once served on behalf of the Caliph. The saqaliba, too, attended the house of ibn Abi Aamir. It was a journey less to win his loyalty than to neutralize him, a man who did not yet know of the death of the Caliph.
Upon receipt of the news, the wily ibn Abi Aamir feigned acceptance. Within, he chafed at it mightily, for it is said that he was a man of the greatest ambition - a man who decided from a young age that his goal would be to become the most powerful man in the Caliphate. He made a show of bowing his head and going along with things, while resolving to maneuver himself, somehow, even closer to power.
Thus it was that the machinations of the saqaliba came to fruition. In truth, al-Mushafi was a man buoyed in his position in the main by the patronage of al-Hakam, for he had no base of power in Córdoba, and many of the oldest families felt his ascent to power an affront, and considered his removal the righting of a grievance. Many loyal to the Umayyad line rallied behind the heir of al-Hakam, some out of love of the dynasty, others sensing the opportunity of winning the favour of a Caliph still but a child. And yet, faced with the reluctance of a thunderstruck al-Mughira to push aside his brother's son, and faced with critical eyes in many corners of the court, a compromise could be found.
It was announced that a coup had been foiled - an attempt to undermine the Banu Umayya by al-Mushafi, to raise the child as a figurehead to be manipulated by the hajib, who was interested only in their own greed. This tale was readily accepted by many in the establishment, for al-Mushafi had long been viewed among the great families as a Berber upstart, widely despised at court. An agreement was struck: Hisham would be raised to the throne, but in his stead for now would stand al-Mughira, not as Caliph but as hajib and protector of his nephew, to guide him in his minority and to stand aside when the boy became a man strong enough to rule.
Thus it was that the boy-Caliph, Hisham II, ascended to the height of power, his uncle al-Mughira standing uneasily behind him to guide him.
It was not an enviable ascent. The boy, the man, supported by much of the court and by the saqaliba, held precariously in their hands a strong land, but one deeply divided against itself, riven by internal struggles for power, surrounded on all sides by the Christian and the Berber, reft by the simmering tensions of centuries since founding between Arab and Berber and Muladi and others. More immediately, upon the sidelines stood the ambitious ibn Abi Aamir, the favourite of the umm al-walad[4], Sobha, herself infuriated by the course of events but powerless to change them. To guide the Caliphate in these days, the most pivotal of al-Andalus, was the challenge suited for a great man.
The years ahead would test the boy's capacity to rise to that greatness.
[1] September 29, 976.
[2] "Slavs" - Slaves of eastern European origin, often eunuchs. They form a nascent but powerful military class in Andalusi society as slave-soldiers and are in some ways analogous to mamluks.
[3] The official wardrobe.
[4] Mother of the son. Specifically a concubine who bears her master's child.
* Reprinted with permission from the Qapraqan el-Usuli Library, Shillah, Cawania
---
We are crescent moons, whose light
Banishes the shades of night;
Wheresoe'er we sit, we bring
Glory to the gathering.
Fate, the traitor, may efface
Wrongfully our pride of place;
Fate may take our most; yet whole
Still abides our pride of soul.
- Ibn Adha (1098-1145), OTL
Banishes the shades of night;
Wheresoe'er we sit, we bring
Glory to the gathering.
Fate, the traitor, may efface
Wrongfully our pride of place;
Fate may take our most; yet whole
Still abides our pride of soul.
- Ibn Adha (1098-1145), OTL
A palm tree I beheld in ar-Rusafa
Far in the West, far from the palm-tree land:
I said: You, like myself, are far away, in a strange land;
How long have I been away from my people!
You grew up in a land where you are a stranger,
And like myself, are living in the farthest corner of the earth:
May the morning clouds refresh you at this distance,
And may abundant rains comfort you forever!
- Abd ar-Rahman I, Emir of Cordoba (r. 756-88)
~
Excerpt: The Rise and the Fall of the Mohammedan Caliphs of al-Andalus - Muhallab ibn Jalil al-Dani, AH 1056 (AD 1646)
Chapter 6
The Days Between the Death of al-Hakam II al-Mustansir
and the Ascendancy of Hisham II al-Mu'ayad
The Days Between the Death of al-Hakam II al-Mustansir
and the Ascendancy of Hisham II al-Mu'ayad
On the eve of the death of the Caliph al-Hakam al-Mustansir, his son Hisham, surnamed al-Mu'ayad-billah, who was perhaps twelve years old at the time, succeeded to the throne. It was, however, a narrow thing, and the years that followed him were uncertain ones for the Córdoban Caliphate.
The historian, ibn Hayyan, tells us that among his multitude of virtues, al-Hakam, a wise and vigorous man whose reign saw the Caliphate enjoy such relative steadiness as so precipitously situated an institution could in those dark days, possessed paternal love in such a degree that it blinded his prudence. In his love, he appointed as his successor his only son, then a child, in preference to any of his brothers or nephews, men of mature age and wisdom, with the experience and capability of making their mandates obeyed.
Perhaps it is that love of a father for a son that blinded al-Hakam to the folly of his decision, or perhaps an expectation of a longer life in which to prepare the boy. Though he doted upon his son, others rose in his young life. Prominent among them was a man, Mohammed ibn Abi Aamir, the manager of the child's estates and a favourite of Sobha, his mother. The influence ibn Abi Aamir held upon the boy Hisham and his mother cannot be understated, nor the ambition he demonstrated. Among them, too, was the hajib, the Berber named Ja'far al-Mushafi, a man of obscure lineage who may have counted himself among Hisham's supporters but whom we are told by the historians saw opportunities in the lad - for with the ascent of the youth, he believed, the empire would be in his hands, but with the ascent of another sovereign his soldiers would lose all power and authority.
Thus was the circumstance on the eve of the second day of Safar, AH 366[1], when al-Hakam swooned and perished. All eyes turned to the child, Hisham al-Muayad.
It has been observed by the histories of the day that the first to know of the death of the Caliph were two of his eunuchs, of the saqaliba[2] - the master of the tiraz[3], Fa'iq al-Nizami, and the faulconer, Judhar. Together they were among the foremost of some thousand saqaliba present within the palace of Córdoba, as well as within the palace guard. Even as al-Hakam al-Mustansir breathed his last, these two men, foreseeing the troubles and calamities that might arise from the ascent to the throne of a mere child, conceived of the idea to replace Hisham in the line of succession instead with a brother of al-Hakam, al-Mughira, son of the late Abd ar-Rahman III by the concubine, Mushtaq.
Their first move was to summon the hajib, Ja'far al-Mushafi. Before he arrived, however, the two spoke of their plan. "Methinks," Fa'iq is said to have said to Judhar, "we shall never be able to carry our plans into execution as long as Ja'far al-Mushafi lives. He must die."
"And are we," said Judhar to Fa'iq, "to begin our undertaking by slaying an old man, who is our master and protector?"
"By God! I can see no other way," Fa'iq said.
What actually transpired in the ensuing meeting, behind closed doors, was witnessed by none. The histories tell us only of what happened when the doors opened, and the two siqlabi conspirators exited, and left behind the corpse of al-Mushafi, his life having been taken from him.
In the hours thereafter, a detachment of the royal guard, perhaps twenty saqaliba in number, travelled to the house of al-Mughira, finding him in complete ignorance of what had occurred. To his credit, the young man appears to have been totally innocent of any political aspirations at that time, though not lacking for hope in his younger years. At the receipt of the news of his brother's end, al-Mughira was thunderstruck; but soon after recovering, he said, "I hear and obey the orders of my new master," and swore to Hisham his loyalty.
More difficult was the man, ibn Abi Aamir, who commanded the loyalty of some in the court - particularly his contacts were strong among the Berbers, among whom he once served on behalf of the Caliph. The saqaliba, too, attended the house of ibn Abi Aamir. It was a journey less to win his loyalty than to neutralize him, a man who did not yet know of the death of the Caliph.
Upon receipt of the news, the wily ibn Abi Aamir feigned acceptance. Within, he chafed at it mightily, for it is said that he was a man of the greatest ambition - a man who decided from a young age that his goal would be to become the most powerful man in the Caliphate. He made a show of bowing his head and going along with things, while resolving to maneuver himself, somehow, even closer to power.
Thus it was that the machinations of the saqaliba came to fruition. In truth, al-Mushafi was a man buoyed in his position in the main by the patronage of al-Hakam, for he had no base of power in Córdoba, and many of the oldest families felt his ascent to power an affront, and considered his removal the righting of a grievance. Many loyal to the Umayyad line rallied behind the heir of al-Hakam, some out of love of the dynasty, others sensing the opportunity of winning the favour of a Caliph still but a child. And yet, faced with the reluctance of a thunderstruck al-Mughira to push aside his brother's son, and faced with critical eyes in many corners of the court, a compromise could be found.
It was announced that a coup had been foiled - an attempt to undermine the Banu Umayya by al-Mushafi, to raise the child as a figurehead to be manipulated by the hajib, who was interested only in their own greed. This tale was readily accepted by many in the establishment, for al-Mushafi had long been viewed among the great families as a Berber upstart, widely despised at court. An agreement was struck: Hisham would be raised to the throne, but in his stead for now would stand al-Mughira, not as Caliph but as hajib and protector of his nephew, to guide him in his minority and to stand aside when the boy became a man strong enough to rule.
Thus it was that the boy-Caliph, Hisham II, ascended to the height of power, his uncle al-Mughira standing uneasily behind him to guide him.
It was not an enviable ascent. The boy, the man, supported by much of the court and by the saqaliba, held precariously in their hands a strong land, but one deeply divided against itself, riven by internal struggles for power, surrounded on all sides by the Christian and the Berber, reft by the simmering tensions of centuries since founding between Arab and Berber and Muladi and others. More immediately, upon the sidelines stood the ambitious ibn Abi Aamir, the favourite of the umm al-walad[4], Sobha, herself infuriated by the course of events but powerless to change them. To guide the Caliphate in these days, the most pivotal of al-Andalus, was the challenge suited for a great man.
The years ahead would test the boy's capacity to rise to that greatness.
[1] September 29, 976.
[2] "Slavs" - Slaves of eastern European origin, often eunuchs. They form a nascent but powerful military class in Andalusi society as slave-soldiers and are in some ways analogous to mamluks.
[3] The official wardrobe.
[4] Mother of the son. Specifically a concubine who bears her master's child.
* Reprinted with permission from the Qapraqan el-Usuli Library, Shillah, Cawania
SUMMARY:
976: Al-Hakam II, Caliph of Córdoba, dies. After an internal power struggle in which the hajib, Ja'far al-Mushafi, is killed, the late Caliph is succeeded by his young son, Hisham II, under the regency of al-Hakam's youngest brother, al-Mughira. Mohammed ibn Abi Aamir, the man who would be Almanzor in another time, remains a strong figure at court, but the saqaliba gain the upper hand in the political battles in Córdoba.