Musa ibn Isa ibn Musa al-Hashimi

Mūsā ibn ʿĪsā ibn Mūsā al-Hāshimī (Arabic: موسى بن عيسى بن موسى بن محمد بن علي بن عبد الله بن العباس) was an 8th-century AD Abbasid prince. The son of Isa ibn Musa, he was posted to various governorships throughout his career, including Kufa, Egypt, Damascus, Mecca, Medina, and Arminiya, and was a leading commander at the Battle of Fakhkh.

Musa ibn Isa ibn Musa al-Hashimi موسى بن عيسى بن موسى الهاشمي
Governor of Kufa
In office 783–785/786
Monarchs	Al-Mahdi, Three or four separate tenures under Harun al-Rashid
Governor of Mecca and Medina
In office 790s–790s
Monarch	Harun al-Rashid
Preceded by	Muhammad ibn Abdallah al-Raba'i
Succeeded by	Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim
Amir al-Hajj
In office 797–797
Monarch	Harun al-Rashid
In office 799–799
Monarch	Harun al-Rashid
Governor of Egypt
In office 787 – 789 (first term)
Monarch	Hārun al-Rashīd
Preceded by	Ali ibn Sulayman
Succeeded by	Maslama ibn Yahya
In office 791 – 792 (second term)
Monarch	Harun al-Rashid
Preceded by	Dawud ibn Yazid
Succeeded by	Ibrahim ibn Salih
In office 795 – 796 (third term)
Monarch	Harun al-Rashid
Preceded by	Ubaydallah ibn al-Mahdi
Succeeded by	Ubaydallah ibn al-Mahdi
Governor of Syria
In office 792–793
Monarch	Harun al-Rashid
Preceded by	Ibrahim ibn Salih
Succeeded by	Musa ibn Yahya
Governor of Arminiya
In office 794–795
Monarch	Hārun al-Rashīd
Preceded by	Al-Abbas ibn Jarir ibn Yazid al-Bajali[1]
Succeeded by	Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Harashi
Personal details
Born	c. 746 Umayyad Caliphate
Died	c. 799, 803 or 805
Spouse	Ulayya bint al-Mahdi
Relations	Abbasid dynasty
Children	Al-Abbas Ishaq
Parent	Isa ibn Musa ibn Muhammad ibn Ali ibn Abdallah ibn al-Abbās (father)
Relatives	Ali (brother) Isma'il (brother) Dawud (brother)
Military career
Battles / wars	Battle of Fakhkh

Career

Background and succession dispute

Musa was born (according to one account, in c. 746)^[2] to Isa ibn Musa, a member of the Banu al-Abbas who served as a long-running governor of Kufa during the first years of the Abbasid Caliphate.^[3] An extended relation of the Abbasid dynasty, Musa was a great-nephew of its first two caliphs al-Saffah (r. 750–754) and al-Mansur (r. 754–775);^[4] he was also connected to the ruling line by his marriage to Ulayya, daughter of the third caliph al-Mahdi.^[5]

Under the succession arrangements made by al-Saffah in 754, Musa's father Isa was originally the designated second heir-apparent to the caliphate after al-Saffah's brother al-Mansur; in 764/5, however, Isa was pressured by al-Mansur into yielding his rights and recognizing the caliph's son al-Mahdi's claims to the throne ahead of his own. According to some versions of this event, Musa feared that al-Mansur would have his father killed if he refused to step aside; he therefore worked together with the caliph and helped to convince Isa to withdraw from the succession.^[6][3]

Under al-Mahdi and al-Hadi

During the reign of al-Mahdi (r. 775–785) Isa ibn Musa was permanently stripped of his succession rights to the caliphate,^[3][7] but aside from this Musa and his family appear to have remained in good standing. In 780 he escorted the future caliph Harun al-Rashid on an expedition against the Byzantine Empire,^[8] and following the death of Isa in 783 he was given the governorship of his father's old power base of Kufa.^[9]

In 786, Musa was one of the Abbasid commanders who successfully put down a pro-Alid rebellion in Mecca at the Battle of Fakhkh, with he and al-Abbas ibn Muhammad ibn Ali leading the left wing of the army during the fighting. Despite having played a prominent role in the victory, he afterwards received criticism for his decision to execute al-Hasan ibn Muhammad, a son of Muhammad al-Nafs al-Zakiyya who had participated in the revolt. As punishment for failing to keep al-Hasan alive for judgement, the caliph al-Hadi (r. 785–786) ordered that Musa's goods and properties be confiscated, and they remained under sequestration until al-Hadi's death later that year.^[10]

Under Harun al-Rashid

Musa was particularly active following the accession of his second cousin Harun al-Rashid (r. 786–809), who appointed him to a slew of positions in the early part of his reign. During this period he was again placed in charge of Kufa on three or four separate occasions,^[11] and was also appointed governor of Mecca and Medina^[12] (and, according to some sources, the Yemen).^[13] In 797 and 799, he served as the leader of the pilgrimage in Mecca.^[14]

Under Harun Musa had three stints as governor of Egypt, in 787–789, 791–792, and 795–796. During his first governorship he reversed the anti-Christian edicts of his predecessor Ali ibn Sulayman al-Hashimi and allowed the Copts to rebuild the churches that Ali had ordered destroyed. His time in Egypt was otherwise relatively uneventful, although his second governorship was brought to an end after Harun received complaints about his conduct in the province.^[15]

In 793, Musa was appointed as governor of Damascus. Upon his arrival in Syria he undertook a monthlong expedition in the Hauran in an unsuccessful effort to hunt down the Qaysi Abu al-Haydham, who had raised the standard of rebellion a few months prior. After subsequent further attempts to kill or capture Abu Haydham likewise ended in failure, Musa was recalled by the caliph and he departed from the region, leaving Abd al-Salam ibn Humayd to manage affairs in his stead.^[16]

In 794, Musa was made governor of Arminiya, which had recently been pacified following an extensive campaign undertaken by the central government to defeat several ongoing rebel movements. He remained in the province for a year before a fresh outbreak of unrest caused the region to once again fall into turmoil; as a result he was dismissed and replaced with Yahya al-Harashi.^[17]

Death

Various dates are given for Musa's death, including 799 (at the age of 55), 803, and 805.^[18]

Notes

1. Nicol 1979, p. 105.
2. Ibn 'Asakir 1998, p. 193 and Ibn Taghribirdi 1930, p. 98 provide a claim that he died in 182/3 AH at the age of 55, placing his birth at 128 AH.
3. Sourdel 1978, p. 88.
4. Bosworth 1989, p. xxv.
5. Ibn Hazm 1982, p. 22; Al-Isbahani 1938, p. 185.
6. Kennedy 1990, pp. 21ff..
7. Kennedy 1990, pp. 177ff..
8. Kennedy 1990, p. 211.
9. Gordon et al. 2018, p. 1141; Khalifah ibn Khayyat 1985, p. 441. He retained the governorship during al-Hadi's reign; Bosworth 1989, pp. 39–40; Khalifah ibn Khayyat 1985, p. 446.
10. Bosworth 1989, pp. 25ff.; Al-Mas'udi 1861–1877, v. 6: pp. 266-67 (substituting al-Hasan for al-Husayn ibn Ali); Gordon et al. 2018, p. 1150; Khalifah ibn Khayyat 1985, p. 445.
11. Bosworth 1989, pp. 100, 304–05; Khalifah ibn Khayyat 1985, p. 462. His son al-Abbas additionally served several terms as governor during this same period.
12. Bosworth 1989, p. 304; Khalifah ibn Khayyat 1985, p. 461; Wüstenfeld 1861, p. 179.
13. Ibn 'Asakir 1998, pp. 190, 191. Ibn Taghribirdi 1930, p. 66 claims that Musa was governor of the Holy Cities and the Yemen under al-Mansur and al-Mahdi.
14. Bosworth 1989, pp. 164, 169; Al-Mas'udi 1861–1877, v. 9: p. 67 (calling him Musa ibn Isa ibn Muhammad ibn Ali, and additionally assigning him the pilgrimage of 179 AH); Gordon et al. 2018, p. 1183 (who adds that Musa was also originally selected to lead the pilgrimage of 170 AH, but was intercepted en route by the caliph); Khalifah ibn Khayyat 1985, pp. 451, 456.
15. Al-Kindi 1912, pp. 132, 134, 137; Ibn Taghribirdi 1930, pp. 66, 78 ff., 100; Bosworth 1989, pp. 134–35; Khalifah ibn Khayyat 1985, p. 463 (referring to only one governorship). According to Yarshater and Ibn Taghribirdi, Musa's second governorship was terminated after he displayed an intent to throw off his allegiance to the caliph. Clifford Edmund Bosworth (Bosworth 1989, pp. 134–35), following al-Jahshiyari, considers it more likely that Musa was dismissed for acting in an oppressive manner towards the Egyptians.
16. Cobb 2001, pp. 86–87, 138; Ibn 'Asakir 1998, p. 190; Bosworth 1989, p. 132.
17. Gordon et al. 2018, p. 1179; Nicol 1979, p. 105.
18. Ibn 'Asakir 1998, p. 193; Ibn Taghribirdi 1930, p. 98.

References

• Bosworth, C. E., ed. (1989). The History of al-Ṭabarī, Volume XXX: The ʿAbbāsid Caliphate in Equilibrium: The Caliphates of Mūsā al-Hādī and Hārūn al-Rashīd, A.D. 785–809/A.H. 169–192. SUNY Series in Near Eastern Studies. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-88706-564-4.
• Cobb, Paul M (2001). White Banners: Contention in 'Abbasid Syria, 750-880. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-7914-4879-7.
• Gordon, Matthew S.; Robinson, Chase F.; Rowson, Everett K.; et al., eds. (2018). The Works of Ibn Wadih al-Ya'qubi: An English Translation. Vol. 3. Leiden and Boston: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-35621-4.
• Ibn 'Asakir, Abu al-Qasim 'Ali ibn al-Hasan ibn Hibat Allah (1998). al-'Amrawi, 'Umar ibn Gharama (ed.). Tarikh Madinat Dimashq (in Arabic). Vol. 61. Beirut: Dar al-Fikr.
• Ibn Hazm, Abu Muhammad ibn 'Ali ibn Ahmad ibn Sa'id al-Andalusi (1982). Harun, 'Abd al-Salam Muhammad (ed.). Jamharat Ansab al-'Arab (in Arabic) (5th ed.). Cairo: Dar al-Ma'arif.
• Ibn Taghribirdi, Jamal al-Din Abu al-Mahasin Yusuf (1930). Nujum al-zahira fi muluk Misr wa'l-Qahira, Volume II (in Arabic). Cairo: Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya.
• Al-Isbahani, Abu al-Faraj (1938). Kitab al-Aghani (in Arabic). Vol. 10. Cairo: Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya.
• Khalifah ibn Khayyat (1985). al-Umari, Akram Diya' (ed.). Tarikh Khalifah ibn Khayyat, 3rd ed (in Arabic). Al-Riyadh: Dar Taybah.
• Kennedy, Hugh, ed. (1990). The History of al-Ṭabarī, Volume XXIX: Al-Mansūr and al-Mahdī, A.D. 763–786/A.H. 146–169. SUNY Series in Near Eastern Studies. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-0142-2.
• Al-Kindi, Muhammad ibn Yusuf (1912). Guest, Rhuvon (ed.). The Governors and Judges of Egypt (in Arabic). Leyden and London: E. J. Brill.
• Al-Mas'udi, Ali ibn al-Husain (1861–1877). Les Prairies D'Or (in French). Vol. 9 vols. Ed. and Trans. Charles Barbier de Meynard and Abel Pavet de Courteille. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale.
• Nicol, Norman Douglas (1979). Early 'Abbasid Administration in the Central and Eastern Provinces, 132-218 A.H./750-833 A.D. (PhD Dissertation). University of Washington.
• Sourdel, D. (1978). "ʿĪsā b. Mūsā". In van Donzel, E.; Lewis, B.; Pellat, Ch. & Bosworth, C. E. (eds.). The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Volume IV: Iran–Kha. Leiden: E. J. Brill. p. 88. OCLC 758278456.
• Wüstenfeld, Ferdinand (1861). Die Chroniken der Stadt Mekka, Vierter Band: Geschichte der Stadt Mekka (in German). Leipzig: F.A. Brockhaus.

Preceded by Ubaydallah ibn al-Mahdi	Governor of Egypt 795–796	Succeeded by Ubaydallah ibn al-Mahdi
Preceded by Dawud ibn Yazid ibn Hatim al-Muhallabi	Governor of Egypt 791–792	Succeeded by Ibrahim ibn Salih
Preceded by Ali ibn Sulayman ibn Ali al-Hashimi	Governor of Egypt 787–789	Succeeded by Maslama ibn Yahya al-Bajali