Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿal-ʿAbbās or Muḥammad al-Imām (679/80 - 743) was the father of the two first 'Abbâsid caliphs, Al-Saffah and Al-Mansur , and as such was the progenitor of the Abbasid dynasty .
114-414: Abū Jaʿfar ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Manṣūr ( / æ l m æ n ˈ s ʊər / ; Arabic : أبو جعفر عبد الله بن محمد المنصور ; 95 AH – 158 AH/714 CE – 6 October 775 CE) usually known simply as by his laqab al-Manṣūr (المنصور) was the second Abbasid caliph , reigning from 136 AH to 158 AH (754 CE – 775 CE) succeeding his brother al-Saffah ( r. 750–754 ). He is known for founding
228-508: A great degree of local autonomy. In 1803 the city was captured by the First Saudi State , which held Mecca until 1813, destroying some of the historic tombs and domes in and around the city. The Ottomans assigned the task of bringing Mecca back under Ottoman control to their powerful Khedive (viceroy) and Wali of Egypt, Muhammad Ali Pasha . Muhammad Ali Pasha successfully returned Mecca to Ottoman control in 1813 . In 1818,
342-554: A great quantity of alms for the support of those who were staying in Mecca and Medina". While in Mecca, prayers were made for (not to) the King of Iraq and also for Salaheddin al-Ayyubi , Sultan of Egypt and Syria at the Ka'bah. Battuta says the Ka'bah was large, but was destroyed and rebuilt smaller than the original. According to Ibn Battuta, the original Kaaba, prior to the conquest of Makkah by
456-540: A growing concern from the chief towns in Iraq , Basra , and Kufa that there was lack of solidity within the regime after the death of Abu'l 'Abbas (later known as al-Saffah ). Another reason for the construction of the new capital was the growing need to house and provide stability for a rapidly developing Abbasid bureaucracy forged under the influence of Iranian ideals. The medieval historians al-Tabari and al-Khatib al-Baghdadi would later claim that al-Mansur had ordered
570-642: A growing interest in ancient Iranian heritage and a Persian revivalist movement which al-Mansur sponsored. The translation and study of works in Pahlavi , a pre-Islamic language of Persia, became fashionable among intellectuals and authors who supported the Abbasid caliphate . Government secretaries of Persian descent in al-Mansur's administration sponsored translations of Pahlavi texts on the history and principles of royal administration. Popular Arabic translations were produced by Ibn al-Muqaffa of texts that documented
684-493: A hero of the early Muslim conquests ; his third was an Iranian servant. He also had a minimum of three concubines: an Arab , a Byzantine, nicknamed the “restless butterfly," and a Kurd . Al-Saffah died after a short five-year reign and al-Mansur took on the responsibility of establishing the Abbasid caliphate by holding on to power for nearly 22 years, from Dhu al-Hijjah 136 AH until Dhu al-Hijjah 158 AH (754 – 775). Al-Mansur
798-579: A location called the Garden of the Bani Amir on the high road to Iraq at the age of sixty-three. According to this narration, he was buried in Mecca with his face uncovered because he was wearing the ihram clothing . 100 graves were dug around Mecca with the intention to thwart any attempt to find and violate his bones. A different narration from Fadl ibn Rabi'ah , who claimed to have been with Mansur at his time of death, states that he died at al-Batha' near
912-495: A matter of public policy . While al-Mansur's regime did not intrude into the private realm of elites, orthodoxy was promoted in public worship , for example through the organization of pilgrim caravans . Al-Mansur's harsh treatment towards the Alids led to a revolt in 762–763, but they were eventually defeated. Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq became the victim of harassment by the Abbasid family and in response to his growing popularity among
1026-414: A mirror in which he could descry his enemy from his friend." Al-Mansur's secret service extended to remote regions of his empire, and were cognizant of everything from social unrest to the price of figs, making Mansur very knowledgeable of his domains. He rose at dawn, worked until evening prayer . He set the example for his son and heir. According to historic sources al-Mansur advised his son: “put not off
1140-624: A reference to Mecca, similar to the Quran at Surah 3:96 In the Sharḥ al-Asāṭīr , a commentary on the Samaritan midrashic chronology of the Patriarchs, of unknown date but probably composed in the 10th century CE, it is claimed that Mecca was built by the sons of Nebaioth , the eldest son of Ismāʿīl or Ishmael . Thamudic inscriptions Some Thamudic inscriptions which were discovered in
1254-597: A safe-conduct by al-Mansur and the Caliph al-Saffah, but after surrendering the town, he was executed with a number of his followers. According to The Meadows of Gold , a history book in Arabic written around 947 CE, al-Mansur's dislike of the Umayyad dynasty is well documented and he has been reported saying: "The Umayyads held the government which had been given to them with a firm hand, protecting, preserving and guarding
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#17327754404591368-617: A state like that of eaten straw. Economy Camel caravans, said to have first been used by Muhammad's great-grandfather, were a major part of Mecca's bustling economy. Alliances were struck between the merchants in Mecca and the local nomadic tribes, who would bring goods – leather, livestock, and metals mined in the local mountains – to Mecca to be loaded on the caravans and carried to cities in Shaam and Iraq . Historical accounts also provide some indication that goods from other continents may also have flowed through Mecca. Goods from Africa and
1482-568: A stomach ailment and called the Christian Syriac -speaking physician Jurjis ibn Bukhtishu from Gundeshapur to Baghdad for medical treatment. In doing so al-Mansur started the tradition among Abbasid caliphs, who would pay physicians of the Nestorian Christian Bukhtishu family to attend to their needs and to write original Arabic medical treatises, as well as translate medical texts into Arabic. In 751
1596-528: A synonym for Makkah , it is said to be more specifically the early name for the valley located therein, while Muslim scholars generally use it to refer to the sacred area of the city that immediately surrounds and includes the Ka'bah . The Quran refers to the city as Bakkah in Surah Al Imran (3), verse 96: "Indeed the first House [of worship] , established for mankind was that at Bakkah". This
1710-478: A threat to Mecca, as in 575 CE they protected it from a Yemeni invasion, led by its Christian leader Abraha . The tribes of southern Arabia asked the Persian king Khosrau I for aid, in response to which he came south to Arabia with foot-soldiers and a fleet of ships near Mecca. By the middle of the 6th century, there were three major settlements in northern Arabia , all along the south-western coast that borders
1824-567: A year-round population of scholars, pious Muslims who wished to live close to the Kaaba, and local inhabitants who served the pilgrims. Due to the difficulty and expense of the Hajj, pilgrims arrived by boat at Jeddah, and came overland, or joined the annual caravans from Syria or Iraq. Mecca was never the capital of any of the Islamic states . Muslim rulers did contribute to its upkeep, such as during
1938-577: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Mecca Mecca ( / ˈ m ɛ k ə / ; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah , commonly shortened to Makkah ) is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia ; it is the holiest city according to Islam . It is 70 km (43 mi) inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea , in a narrow valley 277 m (909 ft) above sea level. Its metropolitan population in 2022
2052-477: Is an obligation upon all able Muslims. The Great Mosque of Mecca , known as the Masjid al-Haram , is home to the Ka'bah , believed by Muslims to have been built by Abraham and Ishmael . It is Islam's holiest site and the direction of prayer ( qibla ) for all Muslims worldwide. Muslim rulers from in and around the region long tried to take the city and keep it in their control, and thus, much like most of
2166-600: Is just a few kilometers outside the main sites of the Hajj, Mina, Muzdalifah and Arafat. Mecca is not served by any airport, due to concerns about the city's safety. It is instead served by the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah (approx. 70 km away) internationally and the Ta'if Regional Airport (approx. 120 km away) for domestic flights. The city today is at the junction of
2280-403: Is known of Ja'far and he likely was not involved in politics or had marriage or issue. However, his death is recorded at 802 AD by palace records suggesting he lived into adulthood and continued to live at court rather than having been banished or dying before adulthood. Another concubine was Qali-al Farrashah. She was a Greek, and was the mother of al-Mansur's son Salih al-Miskin. Another concubine
2394-702: Is reported as having said “he who has no money has no men, and he who has no men watches as his enemies grow great.” The Alids , a group descended from Muhammad 's closest male relative and cousin Ali ibn Abi Talib , had fought with the Abbasids against the Umayyads. They wanted the power to be given to the Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq , a great-grandson of Ali and one of the most influential scholars in Islamic jurisprudence at
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#17327754404592508-454: Is said to have been the name of the city at the time of Ibrahim and it is also transliterated as Baca, Baka, Bakah, Bakka, Becca and Bekka , among others. It was a name for the city in the ancient world. Makkah is the official transliteration used by the Saudi government and is closer to the Arabic pronunciation. The government adopted Makkah as the official spelling in
2622-567: Is synonymous with the Desert of Paran mentioned in the Old Testament at Genesis 21 :21. Arab and Islamic tradition holds that the wilderness of Paran, broadly speaking, is the Tihamah coastal plain and the site where Ishmael settled was Mecca. Yaqut al-Hamawi , the 12th-century Syrian geographer, wrote that Fārān was "an arabized Hebrew word, one of the names of Mecca mentioned in
2736-682: The Banu Tamim . Other regional powers such as the Abyssinians , Ghassanids, and Lakhmids were in decline leaving Meccan trade to be the primary binding force in Arabia in the late 6th century. Muhammad was born in Mecca in 570 CE, and thus Islam has been inextricably linked with it ever since. He was born into the faction of Banu Hashim in the ruling tribe of Quraysh . It was in the nearby mountain cave of Hira on Jabal al-Nour that Muhammad began receiving divine revelations from God through
2850-634: The Battle of the Trench in 627 CE, the combined armies of Arabia were unable to defeat Muhammad's forces (as the trench surrounding Muhammad's forces protected them from harm and a storm was sent to breach the Quraysh tribe). In 628 CE, Muhammad and his followers wanted to enter Mecca for pilgrimage, but were blocked by the Quraysh. Subsequently, Muslims and Meccans entered into the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah , whereby
2964-585: The Dabuyid ruler, Khurshid , who was paid with money from the treasures. Al-Mansur ordered a force of 10,000 under Abbasid commander Jahwar ibn Marrar al-lijli to march without delay to Khorasan to fight the rebellion. Sunpadh was defeated and Khorasan reclaimed by the Abbasids. Al-Mansur sent an official to take inventory of the spoils collected from the battle as a precautionary measure against acquisition by his army. Angered by al-Mansur's avarice, general Jahwar gained support from his troops for his plans to split
3078-570: The Emirate of Córdoba . In 768 the envoys of Pippin III returned to Francia along with caliph al-Mansur's ambassadors. Pippin III received al-Mansur's delegation in Aquitaine and gifts were exchanged as a sign of the new alliance. This alliance was solidified when between 797 and 807 king Charlemagne and caliph Harun al-Rashid established embassies. Al-Mansur's treatment of his Christian subjects
3192-475: The First World War . This plan was later carried out by the Saudi government, which connected the two holy cities of Medina and Mecca with the modern Haramain high-speed railway system which runs at 300 km/h (190 mph) and connects the two cities via Jeddah, King Abdulaziz International Airport and King Abdullah Economic City near Rabigh within two hours. The haram area of Mecca, in which
3306-820: The Ghassanids and the Himyarites of the south supports the Arabic sources tradition that associates Quraysh as a branch of the Ma'add and Muhammad as a direct descendant of Ma'ad ibn Adnan . Historian Patricia Crone has cast doubt on the claim that Mecca was a major historical trading outpost. However, other scholars such as Glen W. Bowersock disagree and assert that Mecca was a major trading outpost. Crone later on disregarded some of her theories. She argues that Meccan trade relied on skins, hides, manufactured leather goods, clarified butter, Hijazi woollens, and camels. She suggests that most of these goods were destined for
3420-629: The Hejaz region, the city has seen several regime changes . The city was most recently conquered in the Saudi conquest of Hejaz by Ibn Saud and his allies in 1925. Since then, Mecca has seen a tremendous expansion in size and infrastructure, with newer, modern buildings such as the Abraj Al Bait , the world's fourth-tallest building and third-largest by floor area , towering over the Great Mosque. The Saudi government has also carried out
3534-591: The Negus of Axum . It gained widespread fame, even gaining attention from the Byzantine Empire . Abraha attempted to divert the pilgrimage of the Arabs from the Ka'bah to al-Qullays, effectively converting them to Christianity. According to Islamic tradition, this was the year of Muhammad 's birth. Abraha allegedly sent a messenger named Muhammad ibn Khuza'i to Mecca and Tihamah with a message that al-Qullays
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3648-501: The Old South Arabian root M-K-R-B which means "temple". Another name used for Mecca in the Quran is at 6:92 where it is called Umm al-Qurā ( أُمّ ٱلْقُرَى , meaning "Mother of all Settlements"). The city has been called several other names in both the Quran and ahadith . Another name used historically for Mecca is Tihāmah . According to an Islamic suggestion, another name for Mecca, Fārān ,
3762-736: The Red Sea , but piracy had been increasing. Another previous route that ran through the Persian Gulf via the Tigris and Euphrates rivers was also being threatened by exploitations from the Sassanid Empire , and was being disrupted by the Lakhmids , the Ghassanids , and the Roman–Persian Wars . Mecca's prominence as a trading center also surpassed the cities of Petra and Palmyra . The Sassanids however did not always pose
3876-729: The Siege of Kut . The British intelligence agent T.E. Lawrence conspired with the Ottoman governor, Hussain bin Ali , the Sharif of Mecca to revolt against the Ottoman Empire and it was the first city captured by his forces in the 1916 Battle of Mecca . Sharif's revolt proved a turning point of the war on the eastern front. Hussein declared a new state, the Kingdom of Hejaz , declaring himself
3990-651: The Umayyad dynasty . In 762 two descendants of Hasan ibn Ali rebelled in Medina and Basra. Al-Mansur's troops defeated the rebels first in Medina and then in Basra. This would be the last major uprising against the caliph al-Mansur. To consolidate his power al-Mansur founded the new imperial residence and palace city Madinat as-Salam ( the city of peace ), which became the core of the Imperial capital Baghdad . Al-Mansur laid
4104-626: The archangel Jibreel in 610 CE, according to Islamic tradition. Advocating his form of Abrahamic monotheism against Meccan paganism, and after enduring persecution from the pagan tribes for 13 years, Muhammad emigrated ( hijrah ) in 622 CE with his companions, the Muhajirun , to Yathrib (later renamed Medina ). The conflict between the Quraysh and the Muslims is accepted to have begun at this point. Overall, Meccan efforts to annihilate Islam failed and proved to be costly and unsuccessful. During
4218-619: The destruction of several historical structures and archaeological sites , such as the Ajyad Fortress . However, many of the demolitions have officially been part of the continued expansion of the Masjid al-Haram at Mecca and the Prophet's Mosque in Medina and their auxiliary service facilities in order to accommodate the ever-increasing number of Muslims performing the pilgrimage ( hajj ). Non-Muslims are prohibited from entering
4332-421: The local tribes , but once a year they would declare a truce and converge upon Mecca in an annual pilgrimage. Up to the 7th century, this journey was intended for religious reasons by the pagan Arabs to pay homage to their shrine, and to drink Zamzam . However, it was also the time each year that disputes would be arbitrated, debts would be resolved, and trading would occur at Meccan fairs. These annual events gave
4446-534: The 'Round City' of Madinat al-Salam , which was to become the core of imperial Baghdad . Modern historians regard al-Mansur as the real founder of the Abbasid Caliphate, one of the largest polities in world history, for his role in stabilizing and institutionalizing the dynasty. According to al-Suyuti 's History of the Caliphs , al-Mansur lived 95 AH – 158 AH (714 CE – 6 October 775 CE). Al-Mansur
4560-637: The 1980s, but it is not universally known or used worldwide. The full official name is Makkah al-Mukarramah ( Arabic : مكة المكرمة , lit. 'Makkah the Honored';). Makkah is used to refer to the city in the Quran in Surah Al-Fath (48), verse 24. The word Mecca in English has come to be used to refer to any place that draws large numbers of people, and because of this some English-speaking Muslims have come to regard
4674-416: The 1st century BCE in his work Bibliotheca historica , describing a holy shrine: "And a temple has been set up there, which is very holy and exceedingly revered by all Arabians". Claims have been made this could be a reference to the Ka'bah in Mecca. However, the geographic location Diodorus describes is located in northwest Arabia, around the area of Leuke Kome , within the former Nabataean Kingdom and
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4788-544: The An Lushan rebellion in the Yangzhou massacre (760) , The Byzantine emperor Constantine V had used the weakness of the Umayyad caliphate to regain land from Muslim rulers. After the Umayyad caliphate was defeated by al-Mansur's predecessor al-Saffah , Constantine V invaded Armenia and occupied parts of it throughout 751 and 752. Under al-Mansur's rule Muslim armies conducted raids on Byzantine territory. Al-Mansur
4902-578: The Arab tribes of Quraysh, Kinanah, Khuza'a and Hudhayl united in the defense of the Ka'bah and the city. A man from the Himyarite Kingdom was sent by Abraha to advise them that Abraha only wished to demolish the Ka'bah and if they resisted, they would be crushed. Abdul Muttalib told the Meccans to seek refuge in the hills while he and some members of the Quraysh remained within the precincts of
5016-403: The Arabic translation of Zij al-Sindhind became widely adopted by Muslim scholars. During al-Mansur reign Greek works were also translated, such Ptolemy 's Almagest and Euclid 's Elements . Al-Mansur had Persian books on astronomy, mathematics, medicine, philosophy and other sciences translated in a systematic campaign to collect knowledge. The translation of Persian books was part of
5130-627: The Far East passed through en route to Syria including spices, leather, medicine, cloth, and slaves; in return Mecca received money, weapons, cereals and wine, which in turn were distributed throughout Arabia. The Meccans signed treaties with both the Byzantines and the Bedouins , and negotiated safe passages for caravans, giving them water and pasture rights. Mecca became the center of a loose confederation of client tribes, which included those of
5244-550: The Islamic prophet, Muhammad . Al-Mansur's brother al-Saffah began asserting his claim to become caliph in the 740s and became particularly active in Khorasan , an area where non-Arab Muslims lived. After the death of the Umayyad caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik in 743 a period of instability followed. Al-Saffah led the Abbasid Revolution in 747 and his claim to power was supported throughout Iraq by Muslims. He became
5358-424: The Kaaba. Abraha sent a dispatch inviting Abdul-Muttalib to meet with Abraha and discuss matters. When Abdul-Muttalib left the meeting he was heard saying: "The Owner of this House is its Defender, and I am sure he will save it from the attack of the adversaries and will not dishonor the servants of His House." Abraha eventually attacked Mecca. However, the lead elephant, known as Mahmud, is said to have stopped at
5472-520: The Khorasanian rebel leaders gave their allegiance to his brother al-Saffah. Ibrahim died in captivity and al-Saffah became the first Abbasid Caliph. During his brother's reign, al-Mansur led an army to Mesopotamia where he received a submission from the governor after informing him of the last Umayyad Caliph's death. The last Umayyad governor had taken refuge in Iraq in a garrison town. He was promised
5586-421: The Kinana tribe and destroy the Ka'bah. Ibn Ishaq further states that one of the men of the Quraysh tribe was angered by this, and going to Sana'a, entering the church at night and defiling it; widely assumed to have done so by defecating in it. Abraha marched upon the Ka'bah with a large army, which included one or more war elephants , intending to demolish it. When news of the advance of his army came,
5700-401: The Prophet, contained images of angels and prophets including Jesus (Isa in Islamic tradition), his mother Mary (Maryam in Islamic tradition), and many others - Ibn Battuta however states these were all destroyed by the Prophet in the year of victory. Battuta describes the Ka'bah in his time as an important part of Mecca due to the fact that many people make the pilgrimage to it. Battuta describes
5814-468: The Quraysh and their allies promised to cease fighting Muslims and their allies and promised that Muslims would be allowed into the city to perform the pilgrimage the following year. It was meant to be a ceasefire for 10 years; however, just two years later, the Banu Bakr , allies of the Quraish, violated the truce by slaughtering a group of the Banu Khuza'ah, allies of the Muslims. Muhammad and his companions, now 10,000 strong, marched into Mecca and conquered
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#17327754404595928-409: The Red Sea, in a habitable region between the sea and the Hejaz mountains to the east. Although the area around Mecca was completely barren, it was the wealthiest of the three settlements with abundant water from the renowned Zamzam Well and a position at the crossroads of major caravan routes. The harsh conditions and terrain of the Arabian peninsula meant a near-constant state of conflict between
6042-424: The Roman army, which is known to have required colossal quantities of leather and hides for its equipment. Mecca is mentioned in the following early Quranic manuscripts: The earliest Muslim inscriptions are from the Mecca- Ta'if area. Islamic narrative In the Islamic view, the beginnings of Mecca are attributed to the Biblical figures , Adam , Abraham , Hagar and Ishmael . It was Adam himself who built
6156-409: The Roman province of Arabia Petraea . Ptolemy lists the names of 50 cities in Arabia, one going by the name of Macoraba. There has been speculation since 1646 that this could be a reference to Mecca. Historically, there has been a general consensus in scholarship that Macoraba mentioned by Ptolemy in the 2nd century CE is indeed Mecca, but more recently, this has been questioned. Bowersock favors
6270-422: The Saud were defeated again but survived and founded the Second Saudi State that lasted until 1891 and led on to the present country of Saudi Arabia. In 1853, Sir Richard Francis Burton undertook the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina disguised as a Muslim. Although Burton was certainly not the first non-Muslim European to make the Hajj ( Ludovico di Varthema did this in 1503), his pilgrimage remains one of
6384-409: The Sharif of Mecca was overthrown by the Saud family, and Mecca was incorporated into Saudi Arabia. Under Saudi rule, much of the historic city has been demolished as a result of the Saudi government fearing these sites might become sites of association in worship besides Allah ( shirk ). The city has been expanded to include several towns previously considered to be separate from the holy city and now
6498-415: The Sharif of the state and Mecca his capital. News reports in November 1916 via contact in Cairo with returning Hajj pilgrims, stated that with the Ottoman Turkish authorities gone, the Hajj of 1916 was free of the previous massive extortion and monetary demands made by the Turks who were agents of the Ottoman government. Saudi Arabian conquest and modern history Following the 1924 Battle of Mecca ,
6612-483: The Torah." In 2010, Mecca and the surrounding area became an important site for paleontology with respect to primate evolution, with the discovery of a Saadanius fossil. Saadanius is considered to be a primate closely related to the common ancestor of the Old World monkeys and apes . The fossil habitat, near what is now the Red Sea in western Saudi Arabia, was a damp forest area between 28 million and 29 million years ago. Paleontologists involved in
6726-506: The Well of Maimun in which he would have been buried at al-Hajun at sixty-five years of age. In this narration, Mansur was sitting in a domed room hallucinating about ill-omen writings on the wall. When al-Rabiah replied "I see nothing written on the wall. Its surface is clean and white," al-Mansur replied, "my soul is warned that she may prepare for her near departure." After reaching the Well of Maimun, he reportedly said "God be praised" and succumbed to death that very day. When al-Mansur died,
6840-438: The boundary around Mecca and refused to enter. It has been theorized that an epidemic such as by smallpox could have caused such a failed invasion of Mecca. The reference to the story in Quran is rather short. According to the 105th Surah of the Quran, Al-Fil , the next day, a dark cloud of small birds sent by Allah appeared. The birds carried small rocks in their beaks, and bombarded the Ethiopian forces, and smashed them to
6954-454: The caliphate's treasury contained 600,000,000 dirhams and fourteen million dinars . On his deathbed, Mansur said, “We have sacrificed the life to come for a mere dream!” Muhammad ibn Ali ibn Abdallah He was the son of Ali ibn Abd Allah ibn al-Abbas and great-grandson of al-‘Abbas ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib , the uncle of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad . When al-Mukhtar announced the revenge of Imam al-Husayn , he showed himself as
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#17327754404597068-401: The capital to Damascus in Syria and the Abbasid Caliphate to Baghdad , in modern-day Iraq, which remained the center of the Islamic Empire for nearly 500 years. Mecca re-entered Islamic political history during the Second Fitna , when it was held by Abdullah ibn az-Zubayr and the Zubayrids. The city was twice besieged by the Umayyads in 683 CE and 692 CE, and for some time thereafter,
7182-407: The city . Under the Saudi government, Mecca is governed by the Mecca Regional Municipality, a municipal council of 14 locally elected members headed by the mayor (called Amin in Arabic) appointed by the Saudi government . In 2015, the mayor of the city was Osama bin Fadhel Al-Barr; as of January 2022 , the mayor is Saleh Al-Turki. The City of Mecca amanah , which constitutes Mecca and
7296-405: The city figured little in politics, remaining a city of devotion and scholarship governed by various other factions. In 930 CE, Mecca was attacked and sacked by Qarmatians , a millenarian Shi'a Isma'ili Muslim sect led by Abū-Tāhir Al-Jannābī and centered in eastern Arabia. The Black Death pandemic hit Mecca in 1349 CE. One of the most famous travelers to Mecca in the 14th century
7410-424: The city. The pagan imagery was destroyed by Muhammad's followers and the location Islamized and rededicated to the worship of Allah alone. Mecca was declared the holiest site in Islam ordaining it as the center of Muslim pilgrimage ( Hajj ), one of the Islamic faith's Five Pillars . Muhammad then returned to Medina, after assigning ' Attab ibn Asid as governor of the city. His other activities in Arabia led to
7524-435: The dead body, and kept it several days in order to glut his eyes with the spectacle." The Execution of Abu Muslim caused uproars throughout the province of Khorasan . In 755 Sunpadh , an Iranian nobleman from the House of Karen , led a revolt against al-Mansur, taking the cities of Nishapur , Qumis , and Ray . In Ray, he seized the treasuries of Abu Muslim. He gained many supporters from Jibal and Tabaristan , including
7638-625: The demolition of the Khosrow palace in Ctesiphon so that the material could be used for the construction of the city of peace . Al-Mansur pursued his vision of a powerful centralized caliphate in the new Muslim imperial capital of Baghdad. The city was populated with men and women of different faiths and cultures from all over the Islamic world. The Baghdad populace included Christian , Zoroastrian and Jewish minorities and communicated in Arabic. Al-Mansur pursued Islamization by staffing his administration with Muslims of varied backgrounds. Baghdad became one of al-Mansur's lasting achievements. His rule
7752-432: The designated successor when al-Mansur was crowned caliph. This change in succession was opposed by parts of the Abbasid family and some allies of Isa ibn Musa in Khurasan , but was supported by the Abbasid army. Al-Mansur had cultivated support for his son's accession since 754, while undermining Isa ibn Musa's position within the Abbasid military. Al-Tabari writes in his History of Prophets and Kings : "Abu Ja'far had
7866-422: The eastern part of his empire on lands that were once part of Persia. Some historians credit al-Mansur with starting the Abbasid–Carolingian alliance . In fact, it was the first Carolingian king Pippin III who initiated a new era of Franconian diplomacy by sending diplomatic envoys to al-Mansur's Baghdad court in 765. It is probable that Pippin III sought an alliance with al-Mansur against their common enemies,
7980-499: The first Abbasid caliph al-Saffah had defeated the Chinese Tang dynasty in the Battle of Talas . Chinese sources record that al-Mansur sent his diplomatic delegations regularly to China. Al-Mansur's delegations were known in China as Heiyi Dashi ( Black Clothed Arabs ). In 756 al-Mansur sent 3,000 mercenaries to assist Emperor Suzong of Tang in the An Lushan rebellion. A massacre of foreign Arab and Persian Muslim merchants by former Yan rebel general Tian Shengong happened during
8094-420: The first God's house in Mecca according to a heavenly prototype but this building was destroyed in the Noahic Flood . The civilization of Mecca is believed to have started after Ibrāhīm (Abraham) left his son Ismāʿīl (Ishmael) and wife Hājar (Hagar) in the valley at Allah 's command. Some people from the Yemeni tribe of Jurhum settled with them, and Isma'il reportedly married two women, one after divorcing
8208-513: The first caliph of the Abbasid caliphate in 750 after defeating his rivals. Shortly before the overthrow of the Umayyads by an army of rebels from Khorasan that were influenced by propaganda spread by the Abbasids , the last Umayyad Caliph Marwan II , arrested the head of the Abbasid family, Al Mansur's other brother Ibrahim. Al-Mansur fled with the rest of his family to Kufa where some of
8322-606: The first, on Ibrahim's advice. At least one man of the Jurhum helped Ismāʿīl and his father to construct or according to Islamic narratives, reconstruct, the Ka'bah ('Cube'), which would have social, religious, political and historical implications for the site and region. Muslims see the mention of a pilgrimage at the Valley of the Bakha in the Old Testament chapter Psalm 84 :3–6 as
8436-498: The foundations of Baghdad near the old capital of al-Mada'in , on the western bank of the Tigris River , a location acceptable to him and his commanders. The circular city of about 2.4 km diameter was enclosed by a double-thick defensive wall with four gates named Kufa, Syria, Khorasan, and Basra. In the center of the city al-Mansur erected the caliph's palace and the main mosque . Al-Mansur had built Baghdad in response to
8550-399: The gift granted them by God. But then their power passed to their effeminate sons, whose only ambition was the satisfaction of their desires and who chased after pleasures forbidden by Almighty God...Then God stripped them of their power, covered them with shame and deprived them of their worldly goods". Mansur's first wife was a Yemeni woman from a royal family; his second was a descendant of
8664-412: The identity of the former, with his theory being that "Macoraba" is the word " Makkah" followed by the aggrandizing Aramaic adjective rabb (great). The Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus also enumerated many cities of Western Arabia, most of which can be identified. According to Bowersock, he did mention Mecca as "Geapolis" or "Hierapolis", the latter one meaning "holy city" potentially referring to
8778-430: The increasing power of the Abbasid general Abu Muslim , who gained popularity among the people, al-Mansur carefully planned his assassination. Abu Muslim was conversing with the Caliph when, at an appointed signal, four (some sources say five) of his guards rushed in and fatally wounded the general. John Aikin , in his work General Biography , narrates that Mansur, not content with the assassination, committed "outrages on
8892-472: The latter's assassination. The vacant secretary role was granted to Aban ibn Sadaqa until the death of the caliph al-Mansur. In 757 CE, al-Mansur sent a large army to Cappadocia which fortified the city of Malatya . In this same year, he confronted a group of the Rawandiyya from the region of Greater Khorasan that were performing circumambulation around his palace as an act of worship. When in 758/9
9006-576: The most famous and documented of modern times. Mecca was regularly hit by cholera outbreaks . Between 1830 and 1930, cholera broke out among pilgrims at Mecca 27 times. Hashemite Revolt and subsequent control by the Sharifate of Mecca In World War I , the Ottoman Empire was at war with the Allies . It had successfully repulsed an attack on Istanbul in the Gallipoli campaign and on Baghdad in
9120-598: The people of Khorasan rioted against al-Mansur in the battle of Al Hashimiya , Ma'n ibn Za'ida al-Shaybani , a general from the Shayban tribe and companion of Yazid ibn Umar al-Fazari , the Umayyad governor of Iraq , appeared at the scene of the uprising completely masked, and threw himself between the crowd and Mansur, driving the insurgents away. Ma'n reveals himself to al-Mansur as "he whom you have been searching" and upon hearing this, al-Mansur granted him rewards, robes of honor, rank, and amnesty from previously serving
9234-582: The people of the city as being humble and kind, and also willing to give a part of everything they had to someone who had nothing. The inhabitants of Mecca and the village itself, he says, were very clean. There was also a sense of elegance to the village. Under the Ottomans In 1517, the then Sharif of Mecca, Barakat bin Muhammad, acknowledged the supremacy of the Ottoman Caliph but retained
9348-405: The people was eventually poisoned on the orders of the caliph in the tenth year of al-Mansur's reign. According to a number of sources, Abu Hanifa an-Nu'man , who founded a school of jurisprudence , was imprisoned by al-Mansur. Malik ibn Anas , the founder of another school, was flogged during his rule, but al-Mansur himself did not condone this. Al-Mansur's cousin, the governor of Madinah at
9462-446: The population was closer to 10,000 individuals, a figure extrapolated from data taken from historical records about the Battle of Badr and other military expeditions , emigrants to both Abyssinia and Madinah , and Muhammad’s own household. Al-Ateeqi, a researcher from Kuwait who has written extensively about the early history of Mecca, also makes deductions about the numbers of women, children, servants, and slaves living in Mecca at
9576-528: The reigns of ' Umar (r. 634–644 CE) and ' Uthman ibn Affan (r. 644–656 CE) when concerns of flooding caused the caliphs to bring in Christian engineers to build barrages in the low-lying quarters and construct dykes and embankments to protect the area around the Kaaba. Muhammad's return to Medina shifted the focus away from Mecca and later even further away when ' Ali , the fourth caliph, took power and chose Kufa as his capital. The Umayyad Caliphate moved
9690-527: The representative of Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah , the Promised Mehdi according to him. After the death of Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah , the imamate of the Kaysanite Shia transferred to his son Abu Hashim , who transferred it to Muhammad, paving the way for the Abbasid dawa and the Abbasid Revolution . This biographical article about a person notable in connection with Islam
9804-722: The research hope to find further fossils in the area. The early history of Mecca is still largely shrouded by a lack of clear sources. The city lies in the hinterland of the middle part of western Arabia of which there are sparse textual or archaeological sources available. This lack of knowledge is in contrast to both the northern and southern areas of western Arabia, specifically the Syro-Palestinian frontier and Yemen, where historians have various sources available such as physical remains of shrines, inscriptions, observations by Greco-Roman authors, and information collected by church historians. The area of Hejaz that surrounds Mecca
9918-622: The sanctuary of the Kaaba . Patricia Crone , from the Revisionist school of Islamic studies on the other hand, writes that "the plain truth is that the name Macoraba has nothing to do with that of Mecca [...] if Ptolemy mentions Mecca at all, he calls it Moka, a town in Arabia Petraea ". Procopius ' 6th century statement that the Ma'ad tribe possessed the coast of western Arabia between
10032-467: The south Jordan contained names of some individuals such as ʿAbd Mekkat ( عَبْد مَكَّة , "Servant of Mecca"). There were also some other inscriptions which contained personal names such as Makki ( مَكِّي , "Makkan, of Makkah"), but Jawwad Ali from the University of Baghdad suggested that there's also a probability of a tribe named "Makkah". Sometime in the 5th century, the Ka'bah
10146-547: The surrounding region, is the capital of the Mecca Province, which includes the neighbouring cities of Jeddah and Ta'if , even though Jeddah is considerably larger in population than Mecca. Prince Khalid bin Faisal Al Saud has been the provincial governor of the province since 16 May 2007. Mecca has been referred to by many names. As with many Arabic words, its etymology is obscure. Widely believed to be
10260-537: The systems and hierarchies of the Sasanian Empire . Al-Mansur was greatly interested in the quality of the translation and paid al-Ḥajjāj ibn Yūsuf ibn Maṭar to translate Euclid's Elements twice. Al-Mansur paid for the physician Jabril ibn Bukhtishu to write Arabic translations of medical books, while the first Arabic translations of medical texts written by Galen and Hippocrates were done by al-Mansur's official translator. In 765 al-Mansur suffered from
10374-411: The time, had ordered the flogging and was punished for doing so. Muhammad and Ibrahim ibn Abdallah , the grandsons of Imam Hassan ibn Ali , grandson of Muhammad , were persecuted by al-Mansur after rebelling against his reign. They escaped his persecution, but al-Mansur's anger fell upon their father Abdallah ibn Hassan and others of his family. Abdallah's sons were later defeated and killed. Al-Mansur
10488-641: The time, pointing out that some wealthy individuals, such as Abdullah ibn Jud’an , had as many as 100 slaves. The first clear reference to Mecca in non-Islamic literature appears in 741 CE, long after the death of Muhammad, in the Byzantine-Arab Chronicle, though here the author places the region in Mesopotamia rather than the Hejaz. Possible earlier mentions are not unambiguous. The Greek historian Diodorus Siculus writes about Arabia in
10602-405: The time. When it became clear that the Abbasid family had no intention of handing the power to an Alid, groups loyal to Ali moved into opposition. When al-Mansur came to power as second Abbasid caliph he started to suppress what he perceived as extreme elements in the broad Muslim coalition that had supported the Abbasid Revolution . He would be the first Abbasid caliph to uphold Islamic orthodoxy as
10716-632: The treasures evenly, and revolted against the caliph. This raised alarm in the caliph's court and al-Mansur ordered Mohammad ibn Ashar to march towards Khorasan . Jahwar, knowing his troops were at a disadvantage, retired to Isfahan and fortified in preparation. Mohammad's army pressed the rebel forces and Jahwar fled to Azerbaijan . Jahwar's forces were defeated, but he escaped Mohammad's pursuit. This campaign lasted from 756 to 762 CE (138 to 144 AH). In 759, al-Mansur sent an army under his generals Abu al-Khaṣīb Marzuq and Khazim ibn Khuzayma to Tabaristan to punish Khurshid for his support to Sunpadh. Khurshid
10830-498: The tribes a sense of common identity and made Mecca an important focus for the peninsula. The Year of the Elephant (570 CE) The " Year of the Elephant " is the name in Islamic history for the year approximately equating to 570–572 CE , when, according to Islamic sources such as Ibn Ishaq , Abraha descended upon Mecca, riding an elephant, with a large army after building a cathedral at San'aa , named al-Qullays in honor of
10944-511: The two most important highways in all of the Saudi Arabian highway system, Highway 40, which connects the city to Jeddah in the west and the capital, Riyadh and Dammam in the east and Highway 15, which connects it to Medina , Tabuk and onward to Jordan in the north and Abha and Jizan in the south. The Ottomans had planned to extend their railway network to the holy city, but were forced to abandon this plan due to their entry into
11058-531: The unification of the Arabian Peninsula under the banner of Islam. Muhammad died in 632 CE. Within the next few hundred years, the area under the banner of Islam stretched from North Africa into Asia and parts of Europe. As the Islamic realm grew, Mecca continued to attract pilgrims from all across the Muslim world and beyond, as Muslims came to perform the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Mecca also attracted
11172-414: The use of this spelling for the city as offensive. Nonetheless, Mecca is the familiar form of the English transliteration for the Arabic name of the city. Macoraba, another ancient city name mentioned by Claudius Ptolemy Felix' Arabia Felix , was also claimed to be Mecca. Some studies have questioned this association. Many etymologies have been proposed: the traditional one is that it is derived from
11286-455: The work of today until tomorrow and attend in person to the affairs of state. Sleep not, for thy father has not slept since he came to the caliphate. For when sleep fell upon his eyes, his spirit remained awake.” Notably frugal, al-Mansur was nicknamed Abu al-Duwaneek (“the Father of Small Change”), kept close tabs on his tax collectors , and made sure public spending was carefully monitored. He
11400-504: Was 2.4 million, making it the third-most populated city in Saudi Arabia after Riyadh and Jeddah. Around 44.5% of the population are Saudi citizens and around 55.5% are Muslim foreigners from other countries. Pilgrims more than triple the population number every year during the Ḥajj pilgrimage , observed in the twelfth Hijri month of Dhūl-Ḥijjah . With over 10.8 million international visitors in 2023, Mecca
11514-487: Was Isa, one of al-Mansur's uncles. She died during al-Mansur's caliphate. Another wife was Fatimah . Her father was Muhammad, one of the descendants of Talhah ibn Ubaydullah . She had three sons, Sulayman , Isa, and Ya'qub. One of his concubines was a Kurdish woman. She was the mother of al-Mansur's son Ja'far 'Ibn al-Kurdiyyah' ( Nasab translating to "Son of the Kurdish woman"). Unlike his other adult half-brothers, little
11628-434: Was Umm al-Qasim, whose son al-Qasim died at aged ten. Al-Masnur's only daughter Aliyah was born to an Umayyad woman. She married Ishaq ibn Sulayman . Al-Mas'udi writes that Mansur died on Saturday 6, Dhu al-Hijja 158 AH/775 CE. There are varying accounts of the location and circumstances of al-Mansur's death. One account narrates that al-Mansur was on a pilgrimage to Mecca and had nearly reached, when death overtook him at
11742-429: Was a Moroccan scholar and traveler, Ibn Battuta . In his rihla (account), he provides a vast description of the city. Around the year 1327 CE or 729 AH, Ibn Battuta arrived at the holy city. Immediately, he says, it felt like a holy sanctuary, and thus he started the rites of the pilgrimage. He remained in Mecca for three years and left in 1330 CE. During his second year in the holy city, he says his caravan arrived "with
11856-667: Was a place of worship for the deities of Arabia's pagan tribes . Mecca's most important pagan deity was Hubal , which had been placed there by the ruling Quraish tribe. and remained until the Conquest of Mecca by Muhammad . In the 5th century, the Quraish took control of Mecca, and became skilled merchants and traders. In the 6th century, they joined the lucrative spice trade , since battles elsewhere were diverting trade routes from dangerous sea routes to more secure overland routes. The Byzantine Empire had previously controlled
11970-469: Was born at the home of the Abbasid family in Humeima (modern-day Jordan ) after their emigration from the Hejaz in 714 (95 AH). His mother was Sallamah , a slave woman. Al-Mansur was a brother of al-Saffah . Both were named Abd Allah, and to distinguish between them, al-Saffah was referred to by his kunya Abu al-Abbas. Al-Mansur was a great great-grandson of Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib , an uncle of
12084-510: Was both much better than other houses of worship and purer, having not been defiled by the housing of idols. When Muhammad ibn Khuza'i got as far as the land of Kinana , the people of the lowland, knowing what he had come for, sent a man of Hudhayl called ʿUrwa bin Hayyad al-Milasi, who shot him with an arrow, killing him. His brother Qays who was with him, fled to Abraha and told him the news, which increased his rage and fury and he swore to raid
12198-450: Was characterized by its remote, rocky, and inhospitable nature, supporting only meagre settled populations in scattered oases and occasional stretches of fertile land. The Red Sea coast offered no easily accessible ports and the oasis dwellers and bedouins in the region were illiterate. While one individual has suggested that Mecca’s population at the time of Muhammad was around 550, research published by Binimad Al-Ateeqi in 2020 shows that
12312-556: Was defeated and Abu al-Khasib was appointed as the governor of the region. After relieving former vizier ibn Attiya al-Bahili, al-Mansur transferred his duties to Abu Ayyub al-Muriyani from Khuzestan . Abu Ayyub was previously a secretary to Sulayman ibn Habib ibn al-Muhallab, who in the past, had condemned al-Mansur to be whipped and flogged to pieces. Abu Ayyub had rescued al-Mansur from this punishment. Nevertheless, after appointing him as vizier, al-Mansur suspected Abu Ayyub of various crimes, including extortion and treachery, which led to
12426-402: Was largely peaceful as he focused on internal reforms, agriculture and patronage of the sciences, thus he paved the way for Baghdad to become a global center of learning and science under the rule of the seventh Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun . In 764 al-Mansur's son al-Mahdi was made the designated heir to the caliphate, taking precedence over al-Mansur's nephew Isa ibn Musa , who had been named
12540-555: Was one of the ten most visited cities in the world. Mecca is generally considered "the fountainhead and cradle of Islam ". Mecca is revered in Islam as the birthplace of the Islamic prophet Muhammad . The Hira cave atop the Jabal al-Nur ("Mountain of Light"), just outside the city, is where Muslims believe the Quran was first revealed to Muhammad. Visiting Mecca for the Ḥajj
12654-533: Was proclaimed Caliph on his way to Mecca in the year 753 (136 AH) and was inaugurated the following year. Abu Ja'far Abdallah ibn Muhammad took the name al-Mansur ("the victorious") and agreed to make his nephew Isa ibn Musa his successor to the Abbasid caliphate. This agreement was supposed to resolve rivalries in the Abbasid family, but al-Mansur's right to accession was particularly challenged by his uncle Abdullah ibn Ali . Once in power as caliph, al-Mansur had his uncle imprisoned in 754 and killed in 764. Fearing
12768-399: Was severe; he "collected from them capitation with much vigor and impressed upon them marks of slavery." Al-Mansur's first wife was Arwa known as Umm Musa, whose lineage went back to the kings of Himyar . Her father was Mansur al-Himyari. She had a brother named Yazid. She had two sons, Muhammad (future Caliph al-Mahdi ) and Ja'far . She died in 764. Another wife was Hammadah. Her father
12882-420: Was the first Abbasid caliph to hold a ransom meeting with the Byzantine Empire . Diplomats in the service of Constantine V and al-Mansur first negotiated the exchange of prisoners in 756. In 763 al-Mansur sent his troops to conquer al-Andalus for the Abbasid empire . But the Umayyad caliph Abd al-Rahman I successfully defended his territory. Al-Mansur withdrew and thereafter focused his troops of holding
12996-670: Was the first Abbasid caliph to sponsor the Translation Movement . Al-Mansur was particularly interested in sponsoring the translations of texts on astronomy and astrology . Al-Mansur called scientists to his court and became noted as patron of astronomers. When al-Mansur's Baghdad court was presented with the Zij al-Sindhind , an Indian astronomical handbook that included tables to calculate celestial positions, al-Mansur ordered for this major Indian work on astronomy to be translated from Sanskrit to Arabic. The astronomical tables in
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