Harun al-Rashid, the fifth Abbasid Caliph

---

17-3-763
Harun al-Rashid was born
Really his birth-date is debated, with various sources giving dates from 763 to 766.

Harun Mother is "al-Khayzuran".
Al-Khayzuran was a former slave girl from Yemen, but she had a strong personality who greatly influenced affairs of state in the reigns of her husband and sons.
-------------------
775
His father ( al-Mahdi) became the Abbasid caliph
-------------------
(775 – 785)
Period of reign of ( al-Mahdi)
The Barmakids became very powerful under al-Mahdi.

Note:The Barmakids were a Persian family (from Balkh) that dated back to the Barmak a hereditary Buddhist priest of Nava Vihara, who converted after the Islamic conquest of Balkh
-------------------
780
Harun had already nominally led campaigns against the Caliphate's traditional enemy, the Byzantine Empire
-------------------
782
Harun had again led campaign against the Byzantine Empire
-------------------
14-9-786
Reign of Harun al-Rashid
-------------------
from 786 to 809
Harun al-Rashid ruled Abbasid state , during the peak of the Islamic Golden Age
-------------------

786
A silver dirham minted in Harun name in Madinat al-Salam (Bagdad) .
-------------------
788
the Idrisids ruled Morocco
-------------------
796
Harun moved his court and government to Ar-Raqqah in present-day Syria.
Only once did he return to Baghdad for a short visit.
Several reasons might have influenced the decision to move to ar-Raqqa. It was close to the Byzantine border. The communication lines via the Euphrates to Baghdad and via the Balikh river to the north and via Palmyra to Damascus were excellent. The agriculture was flourishing to support the new Imperial center. And from Raqqa any rebellion in Syria and the middle Euphrates area could be controlled.

Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani pictures in his anthology of poems the splendid life in his court. In ar-Raqqah the Barmekids managed the fate of the empire, and there both heirs, al-Amin and al-Ma'mun grew up.
--------------------
798
798, Harun threw The Barmakids in prison and confiscated their land.
Al-Tabari dates this in 803 and lists various accounts for the cause: Yahya's entering the Caliph's presence without permission; Yahya's opposition to Muhammad ibn al Layth, who later gained Harun's favour; and Ja'far's release of Yahya ibn Abdallah ibn Hasan, whom Harun had imprisoned.
--------------------
799
One factual tale is the story of the clock that was among various presents that Harun sent to Charlemagne. The presents were carried by the returning Frankish mission that came to offer Harun friendship in 799.
--------------------
800
the Aghlabids ruled Ifriqiya (modern Tunisia)
--------------------

When the Byzantine empress Irene was deposed, Nikephoros I became emperor and refused to pay tribute to Harun, saying that Irene should have been receiving the tribute the whole time.
News of this angered Harun, who wrote a message on the back of the Roman emperor's letter and said "In the name of God the most merciful, From Amir al-Mu'minin Harun al-Rashid, commander of the faithful, to Nikephoros, dog of the Romans. Thou shalt not hear, thou shalt behold my reply".
After campaigns in Asia Minor, Nikephoros was forced to conclude a treaty, with humiliating terms.
--------------------
803
Harun madehis last pilgrimage to Mecca>
He had several pilgrimages to Mecca in 793, 795, 797, 802 and last in 803.
--------------------------
A major revolt led by Rafi ibn al-Layth was started in Samarqand which forced Harun al-Rashid to move to Khorasan.
He first removed and arrested Ali bin Isa bin Mahan but the revolt continued unchecked.
-------------------
808
Harun went to settle the insurrection of Rafi ibn al-Layth in Transoxania, became ill,

-------------------
24-3-809
Harun al-Rashid died very soon when he reached Sanabad village in Tus and was buried in the nearby summer palace of Humayd ibn Qahtaba, the former Abbasid governor in Khorasan.

Note: The location later became known as Mashhad ("The Place of Martyrdom") because of the martyrdom of Imam ar-Ridha in 818.
--------------------
24-3-809
Historian "Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari " says:
"It has been said that when Harun al-Rashid died, there were nine hundred million odd (dirhams) in the state treasury."
--------------------
from 809 to 827
Civil war in the islamic empire .
This war started soon after the death of Harun between his two sons, al-Amin and al-Ma'mun.
The war spiralled into a prolonged period of turmoil throughout the Caliphate, Its end came only in 827 with Ma'mun's triumph.

========================= For Arabic Text ===============

اضغط علي السطر التالي :

ـــــــــــــــــــــــــ