Abū al-Qāsim Aḥmad ibn al-Mustanṣir (Arabic: أبو القاسم أحمد بن المستنصر; 15/16 September 1074 – 12 December 1101), better known by his regnal nameal-Mustaʿlī biʾllāh (المستعلي بالله, lit.'The One Raised Up by God'), was the ninth Fatimid caliph and the nineteenth imam[lower-alpha 1] of Musta'li Ismailism.
Although not the eldest (and most likely the youngest) of the sons of Caliph al-Mustansir Billah, al-Musta'li became caliph through the machinations of his brother-in-law, the vizieral-Afdal Shahanshah. In response, his oldest brother and most likely candidate for their father's succession, Nizar, rose in revolt in Alexandria, but was defeated and executed. This caused a major split in the Isma'ili movement. Many communities, especially in Persia and Iraq, split off from the officially sponsored Isma'ili hierarchy and formed their own Nizari movement, holding Nizar and his descendants as the rightful imams.
Throughout his reign, al-Musta'li remained subordinate to al-Afdal, who was the de facto ruler of the Fatimid Caliphate. The Caliphate's core territory in Egypt experienced a period of good government and prosperity, but the Fatimids suffered setbacks in Syria, where they were faced with the advance of the Sunni Seljuk Turks. Al-Afdal managed to recover the port city of Tyre, and even recapture Jerusalem in the turmoil caused by the arrival of the First Crusade in northern Syria. Despite Fatimid attempts to make common cause with the Crusaders against the Seljuks, the latter advanced south and captured Jerusalem in July 1099, sealing their success with a major victory over the Fatimid army led by a-Afdal at the Battle of Ascalon shortly after. Al-Musta'li died in 1101 and was succeeded by his five-year-old son, al-Amir.
Life
Origin and background
Ahmad, the future al-Musta'li, was born in Cairo on 20 Mukharram 467 AH (15 or 16 September 1074),[7][8] or perhaps on 18 or 20 Mukharram 468 AH (2 or 4 September 1075)[9] to the eighth Fatimid caliph, al-Mustansir Billah (r.1036–1094), and was most likely the youngest of all of al-Mustansir's sons.[lower-alpha 2][7][11] Another son of al-Mustansir had been born in 1060 with the same name—Abu'l-Qasim Ahmad—as the future al-Musta'li, and some later sources have confused this as al-Musta'li's birth date. It is assumed by modern scholars that this older brother had died in the meantime, allowing the name to be reused for al-Musta'li. In one source he is called Abu'l-Qasim Ahmad 'the Younger' (or possibly 'the Youngest', i.e. of all sons).[9][12]
At the time of his birth, the Fatimid Caliphate, established in Egypt with Cairo as its capital since 973, was undergoing a profound crisis: it had lost most of Syria to the Seljuk Turks, while in Egypt itself, clashes between the Fatimid army's Turkish and black African troops led to the breakdown of the central government and widespread famine and anarchy, leaving al-Mustansir as a powerless figurehead, virtually imprisoned in his palace and at the mercy of military warlords.[13] In January 1074, the general Badr al-Jamali assumed the vizierate and proceeded to restore peace and order in the country and repel a Seljuk invasion, saving al-Mustansir's life and his dynasty; but at the cost of al-Mustansir delegating all his powers over the government, army, and the religious and judicial administration to him.[14][15]
Disputed succession
A turban or shawl end produced during al-Musta'li's reign, with a tiraz proclaiming "proximate victory to the servant of Allah and his close friend Ma'add Abu Tamim, the imam Ahmad al-Qasim al-Musta'li bi-Allah and his sons"
Ahmad's oldest half-brother, Nizar ibn al-Mustansir, was apparently considered at the time as the most likely successor to their father, as had been the custom until then;[7] indeed Nizar is often stated even by modern historians to have been the designated[lower-alpha 3] successor of his father.[17][18] No formal designation of Nizar as heir is recorded by the time of al-Mustansir's death;[19][7] both Badr al-Jamali and his son and successor al-Afdal Shahanshah favoured the accession of Ahmad. Shortly before his death, al-Mustansir consented to the wedding of Ahmad with Badr's daughter Sitt al-Mulk.[7]
Al-Mustansir died on 29 December 1094, on the day of Eid al-Ghadir, the most important Shi'a festival.[8] According to the Mamluk-era historian al-Maqrizi, al-Afdal placed Ahmad on the throne and declared him caliph as al-Musta'li bi'llah (lit.'The One Raised Up by God'). He then summoned three of al-Mustansir's sons—Nizar, Abdallah, and Isma'il, apparently the most prominent among the caliph's progeny—to the palace, where they were called on to do homage to their brother. All three refused, each claiming to have been designated as successor by their father.[20][21] This refusal apparently took al-Afdal completely by surprise, and the brothers were even allowed to leave the palace; but while Abdallah and Isma'il sought refuge in a nearby mosque, Nizar immediately fled Cairo.[20][21] To add to the confusion, when learning of al-Mustansir's death, Baraqat, the chief missionary (da'i) of Cairo (and thus head of the Isma'ili religious establishment), proclaimed Abdallah as caliph with the regnal name al-Muwaffaq ('The Blessed One').[22] Soon, however, al-Afdal regained control: Baraqat was arrested (and later executed), Abdallah and Isma'il were placed under surveillance and eventually acknowledged Ahmad, and a grand assembly of officials was held, which acclaimed Ahmad as imam and caliph.[23]
In 1122, Ahmad's son and successor, al-Amir (r.1101–1130), issued a public proclamation, the al-Hidaya al-Amiriyya, to defend his father's succession, especially against the claims of Nizar's partisans.[24] In it he put forth several arguments, such as the fact that when al-Mustansir sent his sons to the provinces to protect them from the turmoil at the capital, this was supposedly done in order of rank, those closest to Cairo being the highest in rank: Abu Abdallah was to go to Acre; Abu'l-Qasim Muhammad (father of al-Hafiz, caliph in 1131–1149) to Ascalon; Nizar to the port of Damietta; and Ahmad was not even allowed to leave the palace.[11][25] Modern historians such as Paul E. Walker point out that this was a deliberately misconstrued argument, as the princes were sent away for their protection, not because of their rank.[11] According to Walker, Abu Abdallah's dispatch to Acre, where the strong army of Badr al-Jamali was stationed, is, if anything, an indication of his high importance and of his father's desire to keep him safe.[11] At the same time, since the reliable al-Maqrizi dates the event to 1068, the underage son left in Cairo was clearly not the future al-Musta'li, who had not been born yet, but rather his namesake older brother.[11]
Other pro-Musta'li traditions maintain that Ahmad was designated as heir by al-Mustansir at Ahmad's wedding banquet. On the occasion of the proclamation of the al-Hidaya al-Amiriyya, furthermore, a supposed full sister of Nizar was presented, hidden behind a veil, who affirmed that on his deathbed, al-Mustansir had chosen Ahmad as heir and left this as a bequest with one of Ahmad's sisters.[26][27][28]
Modern historians, such as Farhad Daftary, believe that these stories are most likely attempts to justify and retroactively legitimize Ahmad's accession, which they view as a de factocoup d'état by al-Afdal.[18][29] According to this view, al-Afdal chose his brother-in-law because his own position was still insecure, as he had but recently succeeded his father Badr. Ahmad, who was tied to al-Afdal by virtue of his marriage and completely dependent on him for his accession, would be a compliant figurehead who was unlikely to threaten al-Afdal's as yet fragile hold on power by attempting to appoint another to the vizierate.[18][30][31]
Nizar's revolt and the Nizari schism
After fleeing from Cairo, Nizar went to Alexandria, where he gained the support of the local governor and populace, and proclaimed himself imam and caliph with the regnal name of al-Mustafa li-Din Allah ('The Chosen One for God's Religion').[19][32][33] Nizar's partisans repulsed al-Afdal's first attempt to seize Alexandria, and Nizar's forces raided up to the outskirts of Cairo. Eventually, Nizar's forces were pushed back to Alexandria, which was placed under siege, until Nizar and his remaining followers were forced to surrender. They were taken back to Cairo, where Nizar was immured and left to die.[19][32][33] A letter sent to the queen of Yemen, Arwa al-Sulayhi, announcing al-Musta'li's accession, gives the officially disseminated version of events. According to the letter, like the other sons of al-Mustansir, Nizar had at first accepted al-Musta'li's imamate and paid him homage, before being moved by greed and envy to revolt. The events up to the capitulation of Alexandria are reported in some detail, but nothing is mentioned of Nizar's fate.[34]
These events caused a bitter and permanent schism in the Isma'ili movement, that lasts to the present day.[10][35] Although al-Musta'li was recognized by the Fatimid establishment and the official Isma'ili missionary organization (the da'wa), as well as the Isma'ili communities dependent on it in Egypt, Syria and Yemen, most of the Isma'ili communities in the wider Middle East, and especially Persia and Iraq, rejected his accession. Whether out of conviction or as a convenient excuse, the Persian Isma'ilis under Hassan-i Sabbah swiftly recognized Nizar as the rightful imam, severed relations with Cairo, and set up their own independent hierarchy (the da'wa jadida, lit.'new calling'). This marked the permanent split of the Isma'ili movement into the rival branches of Musta'li Isma'ilism and Nizari Isma'ilism.[36][37] At least one of Nizar's sons, al-Husayn, fled in 1095 with other members of the dynasty (including three of al-Mustansir's other sons, Muhammad, Isma'il, and Tahir) from Egypt to the Maghreb, where they formed a sort of opposition in exile to the new regime in Cairo.[19][33] As late as 1162, descendants, or purported descendants, of Nizar appeared to challenge the Fatimid caliphs, and were able to attract considerable followings based on lingering loyalist sentiments of the population.[38][39]
Reign
Throughout his reign, al-Musta'li was subordinate to al-Afdal.[7] According to the 13th-century Egyptian historian Ibn Muyassar, "[al-Musta'li] had no noteworthy life, since al-Afdal directed the affairs of state like a sultan or king, not like a vizier".[40] Al-Afdal even supplanted the caliph in public ceremonies, keeping al-Musta'li out of sight, confined to the palace.[41]
Al-Afdal was a capable administrator, and his good governance ensured the continued prosperity of Egypt throughout the reign.[7] Al-Musta'li is praised for his upright character by the Sunni contemporary historian Ibn al-Qalanisi, though other medieval historians stress his fanatical devotion to Shi'ism; it appears that the Isma'ili da'wa was very active during his reign.[7] The 15th-century Yemeni pro-Musta'li religious leader and historian Idris Imad al-Din preserves much information about his dealings with the Isma'ili da'wa in Yemen, particularly with Queen Arwa and the local da'i, Yahya ibn Lamak ibn Malik al-Hammadi.[7]
In foreign affairs, the Fatimids faced an increasing rivalry with the Sunni Seljuks and the Seljuk-backed Abbasid caliph, al-Mustazhir: the Seljuks expanded their rule in Syria up to Gaza and, in 1095, the Abbasid caliph published a letter proclaiming the Fatimids' claims of Alid descent to be fraudulent.[8] The Fatimids achieved some successes, with the voluntary submission of Apamea in northern Syria in 1096, followed by the recovery of Tyre in February/March 1097.[7][42] Al-Afdal also tried to conclude an alliance with the Seljuk ruler of Aleppo, Ridwan, against Duqaq, the Seljuk ruler of Damascus.[7] In early 1097, Ridwan agreed to recognize the suzerainty of al-Musta'li, and on 28 August had the Friday sermon read on behalf of the Fatimid caliph. This provoked such a backlash among the other Seljuk rulers of Syria that Ridwan was forced to backtrack after four weeks, and dropped al-Musta'li's name in favour of al-Mustazhir.[8][43]
In the same year, 1097, the First Crusade entered Syria and laid siege to Antioch. Al-Afdal sent an embassy to make contact with the Crusaders, and used the distraction provided by the Crusade to recover control of Jerusalem from its Artuqid Turkish rulers in July/August 1098.[7][44] This exposed the Fatimids to accusations by Sunni sources that they had made common cause with the Crusaders; the 13th-century historian Ibn al-Athir even claims that the Fatimids invited the Crusaders to Syria to combat the Seljuks, who previously stood ready to invade Egypt itself.[8][45] Believing that he had reached an agreement with the Crusaders, al-Afdal did not expect them to march south, and was caught by surprise when they moved against Jerusalem in 1099. The city was captured after a siege on 15 July 1099, and the subsequent defeat of a Fatimid army under al-Afdal's personal command at the Battle of Ascalon on 12 August 1099 confirmed the new status quo.[7][46] As a result of the Crusader advance, many Syrians fled to Egypt, where a famine broke out in 1099 or 1100 as a result.[7]
Al-Musta'li died on 17 Safar 495 AH (11 or 12 December 1102),[7][8] with rumours that he had been poisoned by al-Afdal.[40] He left three infant sons, of whom the eldest, the not quite five years old al-Mansur, was swiftly proclaimed caliph with the regnal name al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah.[40]
↑ An imam is a spiritual leader of the Islamic community of the faithful (ummah) as successor of Muhammad.[1] After the civil wars of the early Muslim period, the Sunni mainstream followed the caliphs as successors of Muhammad and attached few conditions to leadership positions.[2][3] On the other hand, the Shi'a gradually developed the notion of the imam as a singular, divinely invested and guided successor of Muhammad, a figure endowed with unique qualities and the living proof (hujja) of God. The position was reserved for a member of the family of Muhammad, Muhammad's son-in-law Ali ibn Abi Talib being considered the first such imam.[4][5] After the death of the imam Ja'far al-Sadiq in 765, the Isma'ilis (or Seveners) followed a line of succession from al-Sadiq's son Isma'il that led to the imam–caliphs of the Fatimid dynasty.[6]
↑ During his long reign, al-Mustansir had several offspring, but no complete list exists. Furthermore, many of his sons shared parts of their names, making their identification difficult. Historian Paul E. Walker estimated that al-Mustansir "had at the minimum seventeen sons whose names we can recover".[10]
↑ The concept of designation (nass) is central to the early Shi'a, and particularly the Isma'ili, conception of the imamate, but it also presented complications: as the imam possessed God's infallibility (isma), he could not possibly err, especially in as crucial a matter as the selection of his heir. Appointed heirs predeceasing their fathers was thus a source of considerable embarrassment. The custom therefore emerged that, though an heir might be clearly favoured during his father's reign, the nass was often withheld until shortly before the ruling imam's death, proclaimed in the latter's testament, or left as a bequest with a third party.[16]
Related Research Articles
The Fatimid Caliphate or Fatimid Empire was a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries AD under the rule of the Fatimids, an Isma'ili Shia dynasty. Spanning a large area of North Africa and West Asia, it ranged from the western Mediterranean in the west to the Red Sea in the east. The Fatimids trace their ancestry to the Islamic prophet Muhammad's daughter Fatima and her husband Ali, the first Shia imam. The Fatimids were acknowledged as the rightful imams by different Isma‘ili communities as well as by denominations in many other Muslim lands and adjacent regions. Originating during the Abbasid Caliphate, the Fatimids conquered Ifriqiya and established the city of al-Mahdiyya. The Fatimid dynasty ruled territories across the Mediterranean coast and ultimately made Egypt the center of the caliphate. At its height, the caliphate included—in addition to Egypt—varying areas of the Maghreb, Sicily, the Levant, and the Hejaz.
The Fatimid dynasty was an Arab dynasty that ruled the Fatimid Caliphate, between 909 and 1171 CE. Descended from Fatima and Ali, and adhering to Isma'ili Shi'ism, they held the Isma'ili imamate, and were regarded as the rightful leaders of the Muslim community. The line of Nizari Isma'ili imams, represented today by the Aga Khans, claims descent from a branch of the Fatimids. The Alavi Bohras, predominantly based in Vadodara also claim descent from the Fatimids.
Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Ḥusayn, better known by his regnal name al-Mahdī biʾllāh, was the founder of the Isma'ili Fatimid Caliphate, the only major Shi'a caliphate in Islamic history, and the eleventh Imam of the Isma'ili branch of Shi'ism.
Al-Afdal Shahanshah, born Abu al-Qasim Shahanshah bin Badr al-Jamali, was a vizier of the Fatimid caliphs of Egypt. According to a later biographical encyclopedia, he was surnamed al-Malik al-Afdal, but this is not supported by contemporary sources.
The Musta‘lī are a branch of Isma'ilism named for their acceptance of al-Musta'li as the legitimate nineteenth Fatimid caliph and legitimate successor to his father, al-Mustansir Billah. In contrast, the Nizari—the other living branch of Ismailism, presently led by Aga Khan IV—believe the nineteenth caliph was al-Musta'li's elder brother, Nizar. Isma'ilism is a branch of Shia Islam.
Abū Tamīm Maʿad al-Mustanṣir biʾllāh was the eighth Fatimid Caliph from 1036 until 1094. He was one of the longest reigning Muslim rulers. His reign was the twilight of the Fatimid state. The start of his reign saw the continuation of competent administrators running the Fatimid state, overseeing the state's prosperity in the first two decades of al-Mustansir's reign. However, the break out of court infighting between the Turkish and Berber/Sudanese court factions following al-Yazuri's assassination, coinciding with natural disasters in Egypt and the gradual loss of administrative control over Fatimid possessions outside of Egypt, almost resulted in the total collapse of the Fatimid state in the 1060s, before the appointment of the Armenian general Badr al-Jamali, who assumed power as vizier in 1073, and became the de facto dictator of the country under the nominal rule of al-Mustansir. He was a firm supporter of Hasan-i Sabbah and his group of assassins in their struggle against the Seljuk Empire even sending a letter promising good fortune.
Abu Ali al-Mansur ibn al-Musta'li, better known by his regnal name al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah was the tenth Fatimid caliph, ruling from 1101 to his death in 1130, and the 20th imam of the Musta'li Isma'ili branch of Shia Islam.
Abūʾl-Maymūn ʿAbd al-Majīd ibn Muḥammad ibn al-Mustanṣir, better known by his regnal name as al-Ḥāfiẓ li-Dīn Allāh, was the eleventh Fatimid caliph, ruling over Egypt from 1132 to his death in 1149, and the 21st imam of Hafizi Isma'ilism.
Abūʾl-Qāsim al-Ṭayyib ibn al-Āmir was, according to the Tayyibi sect of Isma'ilism, the twenty-first imam. The only son of Caliph al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah, al-Tayyib was an infant when his father was murdered. In the ensuing power struggle, al-Tayyib's fate is unknown: he may have died or been killed by one of the rival strongmen. By 1132, his uncle al-Hafiz declared himself as the caliph and imam in succession to al-Amir. This was not accepted by the Yemeni Isma'ilis, who upheld the rights of al-Tayyib.
Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd Allāh ibn Yūsuf ibn al-Ḥāfiẓ, better known by his regnal name al-ʿĀḍid li-Dīn Allāh, was the fourteenth and last caliph of the Fatimid dynasty, and the twenty-fourth imam of the Hafizi Isma'ili branch of Shi'a Islam, reigning from 1160 to 1171.
Abū'l-Najm Badr ibn ʿAbdallāh al-Jamālī al-Mustanṣirī, better known as Badr al-Jamali, was a vizier and prominent statesman for the Fatimid Caliphate under Caliph al-Mustansir. His appointment to the vizierate in 1073 restored the fortunes of the Fatimid state, which had faced collapse in the previous decades, but also began a period where the vizierate was dominated by military strongmen who held power through their military strength, rather than through the Caliph's appointment. An Armenian Badr al-Jamali initiated a wave of Armenian migration into Egypt, and was the first of a series of viziers of Armenian origin, who played a major role in the fortunes of the Fatimid Caliphate over the subsequent century.
Hafizi Isma'ilism was a branch of Musta'li Isma'ilism that emerged as a result of a split in 1132. The Hafizis accepted the Fatimid caliph Abd al-Majid al-Hafiz li-Din Allah and his successors as imams, while the rival Tayyibi branch rejected them as usurpers, favouring the succession of the imamate along the line of al-Hafiz's nephew, al-Tayyib.
Abu Mansur Nizar ibn al-Mustansir was a Fatimid prince, and the oldest son of the eighth Fatimid caliph and eighteenth Isma'ili imam, al-Mustansir. When his father died in December 1094, the powerful vizier, al-Afdal Shahanshah, raised Nizar's younger brother al-Musta'li to the throne in Cairo, bypassing the claims of Nizar and other older sons of al-Mustansir. Nizar escaped Cairo, rebelled and seized Alexandria, where he reigned as caliph with the regnal name al-Mustafa li-Din Allah. In late 1095 he was defeated and taken prisoner to Cairo, where he was executed by immurement.
Abu al-Husayn Ahmad ibn Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Isma'il, commonly known as Muhammad al-Taqi, was a descendant of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the ninth of the Isma'ili Imams, succeeding his father, Ahmad al-Wafi. Like his father, he lived primarily in Salamiyah, and Abd Allah ibn Maymun al-Qaddah, the chief missionary, continued to serve as the hijab for him. Known by the title Ṣāḥib al-Rasāʾil, al-Taqi is said to have prepared with his followers an encyclopedic text called the Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity. He died in 840 in Salamiyah and was succeeded by his son al-Husayn.
Al-Ma'mun al-Bata'ihi was an Egyptian vizier of the Fatimid Caliphate for four years during the caliphate of al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah. During his term, he reopened the house of knowledge, made efforts to restore shi'ite orthodoxy, and tried to reconcile the differences between the Fatimids and the Nizaris. His term ended with his execution, which was ordered by the caliph.
By the late 11th century, the Shi'a sub-sect of Ismailism had found many adherents in Persia, although the region was occupied by the Sunni Seljuk Empire. The hostile tendencies of the Abbasid–Seljuk order triggered a revolt by Ismailis in Persia under Hassan-i Sabbah.
Abū ʿAlī Ḥasan, or ʿAlī, surnamed Al-Hādī was the 20th Ismaili Nizari Imam. Born in Cairo, he was about 17 years old when his predecessor, Imam al-Mustansir, died, and 20 years old during the assumption of his Imamate in 490 AH/1097 CE. Henceforward, the seat of Ismaili Imamate was transferred from Egypt to Persia owing to the division among the Ismailis, where Hasan bin Sabbah had founded the Nizari Ismaili state.
Daoud ibn al-Adid, known by the regnal name of al-Ḥāmid liʾllāh among his followers, was the 25th imam of Hafizi Isma'ilism, and pretender to the Fatimid Caliphate.
Satr is a term used by the Isma'ili Shi'a for various periods in their history where the true imam was hidden and represented through agents. These periods of concealment might end with the renewed public manifestation of the imam, or continue until the present day. Entering into concealment did not mean that the line of imams stopped with the hidden imam; the Isma'ili concept is thus different from the concept of occultation as conceived by the Twelver Shi'a.
Walker, Paul E. (1995). "Succession to Rule in the Shiite Caliphate". Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt. 32: 239–264. doi:10.2307/40000841. JSTOR40000841.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Islamportal 
