A History of Early Al-Andalus: The Akhbār majmū’a

209 Pages·2011·1.512 MB·English

by  David James

A History of Early
Al-Andalus
- -
Akhbar majmu’a
The
David James
Culture and Civilization in the Middle East
A History of Early Al-Andalus
The A khbār majmū‘a, or ‘Collected Accounts’, deal with the Muslim
conquest of the Iberian peninsula in 711 and subsequent events in al-Andalus,
down to and including the reign of ‘ Abd al-Ra h mān III (912–961), founder
of the Umayyad caliphate of al-Andalus. No Arabic text dealing with the
early history of al-Andalus has aroused more controversy, and its contents
and origin have occupied the attention of leading scholars of Islamic Spain
since its publication in 1867.
This book gives the fi rst complete English translation of this key
contemporary text, together with notes, comments, appendices and maps.
It is introduced by a survey of scholarly opinion on the text from the
nineteenth to the twenty-fi rst centuries in which all the – often heated –
arguments around the text are explained. The translator concludes his intro-
duction with an in-depth examination of the manuscript containing the only
surviving copy of the text and presents some interesting new evidence pro-
vided by a scribe which has gone unnoticed until now. Providing new
insights into this signifi cant Arabic text, this book will be of great interest to
scholars of the history of Spain and Portugal, Islamic history and Mediaeval
European history.
David James was Special Lecturer in Arabic Studies at University College
Dublin, where he taught a course on Islamic Spain. He is the author of Early
Islamic Spain, The History o f Ibn al-Qūtīya and several books on the art of
the Islamic manuscript.
Culture and civilization in the Middle East
General Editor: Ian Richard Netton
Professor of Islamic Studies, University of Exeter

This series studies the Middle East through the twin foci of its diverse cultures and
civilisations. Comprising original monographs as well as scholarly surveys, it covers
topics in the fi elds of Middle Eastern literature, archaeology, law, history, philosophy,
science, folklore, art, architecture and language. While there is a plurality of views, the
series presents serious scholarship in a lucid and stimulating fashion.
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Zaid Ahmad
2 The Hanbali School of Law and Ibn Taymiyyah
Confl ict or concilation
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3 Arabic Rhetoric
A pragmatic analysis
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4 Arab Representations of the Occident
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5 God and Humans in Islamic Thought
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7 Al-Ghazali and the Qur’an
One book, many meanings
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8 Birth of The Prophet Muhammad
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9 Space and Muslim Urban Life
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16 German Orientalism
The study of the Middle East and Islam from 1800 to 1945
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17 Mulla¯ S.adra¯ and Metaphysics
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18 Schools of Qur’anic Exegesis
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25 The UAE and Foreign Policy
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26 A History of Early al-Andalus
The Akhbar majmu’a
David James
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28 Shi’i Theology in Iran
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29 Founding Figures and Commentators in Arabic Mathematics
A history of Arabic sciences and mathematics, Volume 1
Roshdi Rashed, translated and edited by Nader El-Bizri
A History of Early Al-Andalus
The Akhbār majmū‘a

A study of the unique Arabic manuscript in the
Bibliothèque Nationale
de France, Paris, with a translation,
notes and comments
David James
First published 2012
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa
business
© 2012 David James
The right of David James to be identifi ed as author of this work has
been asserted by him/her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced
or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means,
now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording,
or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice : Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identifi cation and
explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
ISBN 978-0-415-66943-6 (hbk)
ISBN 978-0-203-80757-6 (ebk)
Typeset in Times New Roman by Cenveo Publisher Services
Contents
Acknowledgements xiii
PART I
Introduction 1
1 The Akhbār majmū‘a : study and speculation 3
A brief history of the manuscript 4
The title 5
A brief description of the text 8
A brief description of the manuscript 13
The fi rst accounts of the Akhbār majmū‘a 14
The beginning of the dispute 15
Current theories 20
The evidence of the manuscript 33
PART II
The Akhbār majmū‘a: ‘Collected Accounts’ of the years
86–350/705–961 43
2 The conquest and the rule of the governors of Damascus 45
Synopsis 45
[1.BS] The early civil wars 47
[2.RS] Al-Walīd restores order 47
[3.BkS] The frontier of Ifr¯ıqiya 47
[4.BS] Al-Walīd summons Mūsā 48
[5.BS] Mūsā’s campaign and the situation
in al-Andalus 48
viii Contents
[6.BS] Mūsā contacts al-Walīd 49
[7.BkS] T.āriq’s advance and the battle of al-Buh.ayra 50
[8.RS] The capture of Écija, Cordova and Tudm¯ır 51
[9.BkS] The siege of the church in Cordova 53
[10.BkS] Those inside the church surrender 53
[11.BkS] T.āriq captures Toledo and the Table of
Sulaymān 53
[12.RS] The arrival of Mūsā 54
[13.BS] The capture of Seville and the siege
of Mérida 54
[14.BS] The capture of Mérida and Mūsā’s ruse 55
[15.RS] Revolt in Seville and Mūsā’s advance
to Toledo 56
[16.BS] Mūsā’s recall and the rule of ‘Abd al-‘Azīz 56
[17.RS] Ayyūb takes up residence 57
[18.BS] Events during the caliphates of Sulaymān
and ‘Umar 57
[19.RS] The rule of al-Samh. and others 58
[20.BS] The rule of ‘Uqba 59
[21.RS] The Berber revolt 61
[22.BS] Mūsā before Sulaymān 61
[23.BkS] Sulaymān accuses Mūsā 62
3 The Civil Wars 63
Synopsis 63
[24.BkS] Kulthūm is sent to Ifr¯ıqiya 65
[25.RS] The fate of the Syrian army 67
[26.BS] The arrival of H. anz. ala 67
[27.BkS] The arrival of Balj 68
[28.RS] ‘ Abd al-Malik’s sons retaliate 71
[29.BS] Al-H. us.ayn defends Balj 71
[30.RS] The rule of Tha‘laba 72
[31.BS] Abū’l-Kha.t.tār is sent to al-Andalus 72
[32.BS] The arrival of ‘ Abd al-Rah.mān
(the emir ‘Abd al-Rah.mān I (138–172/756–788)) 73
[33.RS] The fate of the Umayyads 74
[34.BkS] Massacre and fl ight of the Umayyads 74
[35.BkS] Flight of the Umayyads to Ifr¯ıqiya 75
Contents ix
[36.BkS] ‘Abd al-Rah.mān’s story 75
[37.RS] Another account 77
[38.BS] The rise of Yūsuf al-Fihrī 78
[39.RS] Civil war 79
[40.BkS] Al-S. umayl is besieged in Saragossa 81
[41.BkS] The continuation of
‘Abd al-Rah.mān’s story 83
[42.BS] Abū ‘Uthmān’s account 86
[43.BS] ‘Abdallāh and Abū ‘Uthmān meet
‘Abd al-Rah. mān 87
[44.RS] Yūsuf and al-S. umayl learn of ‘Abd al-Rah.mān’s
arrival 88
[45.BS] Yūsuf advised to return to Cordova 89
[46.BkS] Yūsuf sends messengers to
‘Abd al-Rah.mān 89
[47.BS] ‘Abd al-Rah.mān collects his supporters 91
[48.RS] Farqad’s prediction to al-S. adfūrī 92
[49.BS] ‘Abd al-Rah.mān captures Cordova 93
[50.RS] The two sides make peace 95
[51.BS] Legal action against Yūsuf and al-S. umayl 97
[52.RS] Arrival of al-Marwānī and Yūsuf’s defection 97
[53.BS] Yūsuf’s fl ight to Mérida 98
[54.RS] Yūsuf’s defeat and death 98
[55.BS] The two concubines of ‘Abd al-Rah.mān 100
[56.RS] The death of al-S.umayl 100
4 The annals of ‘Abd al-Rah.mān I 101
Synopsis 101
[57.BS] The revolt of al-Ghassānī 101
[58.RS] The revolt of Hishām al-Fihrī at
Toledo 101
[59.BS] The revolt of al-‘Alā’ at Beja 102
[60.BkS] The revolt of al-Ma.tarī at Niebla 103
[61.BkS] The revolt of Abū’l-S.abbāh. 104
[62.BS] The revolt of al-Fā.timī 104
[63.RS] The revolt of al-Yazīdī 106
[64.BS] The revolt of al-S.iqlābī in Tudmīr 106
[65.BkS] The revolt of al-Sulmī 107