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The Imams of Yemen, later also titled the Kings of Yemen, were religiously consecrated leaders belonging to the Zaidiyyah branch of Shia Islam. They established a blend of religious and temporal-political rule in parts of Yemen from 897. Their imamate endured under varying circumstances until the end of the North Yemen Civil War in 1970, following the republican revolution in 1962. Zaidiyyah theology differs from Isma'ilism and Twelver Shi’ism by stressing the presence of an active and visible imam as leader. The imam was expected to be knowledgeable in religious scholarship, and to prove himself a worthy headman of the community, even in battle if this was necessary. A claimant of the imamate would proclaim a "call" (dawah), and there were not infrequently more than one claimant.
Al-Mansur al-Qasim, with the cognomen al-Kabir, was an Imam of Yemen, who commenced the struggle to liberate Yemen from the Ottoman occupiers. He was the founder of a Zaidi kingdom that endured, under many vicissitudes, until 1970.
Al-Mu'ayyad Muhammad was an Imam of Yemen (1620–1644), son of Al-Mansur al-Qasim. He managed to expel the Ottoman Turks entirely from the Yemenite lands, thus confirming an independent Zaidi state.
Al-Mahdi Ahmad was an Imam of Yemen, who ruled in 1676–1681. He belonged to the Qasimid family that was descended from Muhammad.
Al-Mahdi Muhammad bin Ahmed, also known as Ṣāḥib al-Mawāhib, was an Imam of Yemen who ruled in 1689–1718. He belonged to the Qasimid family that was descended from the Islamic prophet Muhammad and dominated the Zaidi imamate in 1597–1962.
Al-Mansur al-Husayn (1669–1720) was an Imam over parts of Yemen, who ruled in rivalry with other competitors in 1716–1720. He belonged to the Qasimid family who dominated the Zaidi imamate of Yemen in 1597–1962.
Al-Mu'ayyad Abbas was an Imam of Yemen who ruled briefly in 1850. He belonged to the Qasimi family, descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, who dominated the Zaidi imamate of Yemen between 1597 and 1962. Abbas bin Abd ar-Rahman was a scholar who descended from Imam al-Mutawakkil Isma'il in the sixth generation. He was a disciple of the renowned Yemeni scholar Muhammad ash-Shawkani. After the abortive Ottoman intervention in highland Yemen in 1849, the remains of the Zaidi state became the prey of political rivalries. The current imam al-Mansur Ali II was an alcoholic and commanded little respect; tribal groups rebelled, and the court in San'a was dominated by the oppressive minister al-Misri. Certain Sayyids and qadis in San'a defected to Sa'dah far to the north, where al-Mansur Ahmad bin Hashim posed as imam. Al-Mansur Ahmad besieged San'a in 1850. However, the elite of San'a chose Abbas as their imam, under the name al-Mu'ayyad Abbas. The new imam appointed Muhammad ash-Shawkani's son Ahmad as his qadi. His soldiers and emirs held out for a while against the attackers in the qasr (fortress) of the city. Finally he had to surrender to al-Mansur Ahmad and was imprisoned. The victor, however, could only maintain his position in San'a for three months before he was forced to flee to the Arhab tribe. In the following year 1851, the contenders for the Zaidi imamate agreed to appoint al-Hadi Ghalib. Al-Mu'ayyad Abbas withdrew to a life of scholarship and teaching until his demise in 1880.
Al-Hadi Sharaf ad-Din was a claimant for the Zaidi imamate of Yemen in the years 1878–1890, acting in opposition to the Ottoman occupiers of the country. His period saw a tribal embryo of a state taking form in the highlands of Yemen, which would be strengthened by his successors as imams, and eventually usher into the expulsion of the Ottoman Turks in the early 20th century.
Al-Mansur Ahmad was a Zaydiyya imam who claimed the rulership over Yemen in the years 1849–1853. His strife-ridden career spelt the end of the Zaydi Imamate of Yemen as a coherent force.
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Al-Mansur al-Qasim al-Iyyani was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen who briefly reestablished a comprehensive Zaidi realm in the years 999–1002.
Al-Mahdi Ahmad bin al-Husayn (1216-1258) was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen who ruled in the period 1248–1258. He was considered by some a sacred figure on account of his violent end in battle.
Ad-Da'i Yusuf was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen who ruled for two highly turbulent terms.
Al-Mukhtar al-Qasim was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen, who held or claimed power from 936 to 956.
al-Mahdi al-Husayn was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen who ruled in the years 1003–1013, in rivalry with another imam.
Imam Al-Mutawakkil Ali al-Mutahhar was a ruler of Yemen from Sana’a who reigned from 1436 to 1474. He belonged to the Qasimid family who were descendants Muhammad, He ruled by the Quran and the Sunnah and he left a number of writings on Hadith including poetry praising Mohammad.
Al-Muʽid li-Din Illah was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen who reigned in the period 1027–1030.
Abu'l-Fath an-Nasir ad-Dailami was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen who ruled from c. 1038 to 1053.
Al-Muhtasib al-Mujahid Hamzah was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen who ruled from 1060 to 1067.
Al-Mutawakkil Ahmad bin Sulayman (1106–1171) was an imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen who revived the polity after a long interregnum, wielding power in 1138–1171.
References
- ↑ The filiation was: al-Qasim ar-Rassi - al-Husayn - Abdallah - Yahya - Abd ar-Rahman - Abu Hashim al-Hasan.
- ↑ The beginning of his imamate is sometimes dated in 1027 or 1035.
- ↑ Cesare Ansaldi, Il Yemen nella storia e nella leggenda. Roma 1933, p. 134.
- ↑ H.C. Kay, Yaman; Its Early Medieval History. London 1892, p. 229.