We are back today to the pages of history, as we spoke in an earlier article about the life of Pope Mikhail I, the absence of a Patriarch father for a long time, and about one of the most important events in the ninth century; the theft of the body of St. Mark the Apostle from Alexandria and sending it to Venice, then restoring it in 1968 by St. Kyrillos VI who placed it with great reverence in a special shrine underneath the Great Cathedral of St. Mark.
At that time, Egypt was ruled by Harun, who succeeded his brother Jaysh Ibn Khumarawayh in 283 AH (896 AD).
Harun Ibn Khumarawayh 283 – 292 AH (896 – 905 AD)
Abu Musa Harun Ibn Khumarawayh Ibn Ahmed Ibn Tulun, the fourth ruler of the Tulunid state. He took over the rule of Egypt after the murder of his brother, some historians believe that he took over the rule of Egypt on the day he ousted his brother Jaysh, who was imprisoned and died few days later. Harun was then still a 14-year-old boy; so Abu Jaafar Ibn Abi was made to be his guardian and he was the mastermind of all the state affairs. The state was not settled during his reign as it was of conflicts and unrest, the Levant was a field for furious wars between the army of Harun and the army of a man called Al Qarmati -An alleged Alawite who assumed rule to himself, he was followed by a number of people – where Al Qarmati defeated the army of Harun. This news reached the ears of the Abbasid Caliph Al-Muktafi; who sent a large army led by Mohammed Ibn Salman.
Al Qarmati felt Salman’s coming, so he left Damascus, heading to Homs, where he killed and captivated its people. He became great, and his followers increased, so speeches were made for the sake of his name, he called himself Al Mahdi, and had men to rule the country he suppressed.
When things got worse with Al Qarmati, the army of Al Muktafi fought with him. However, Al Qarmati was greatly defeated, so he went to Kufa where he was arrested together with his companions; he was sent afterwards to the Caliph who took him and his companions to Baghdad where they all were killed.
The Caliph ordered his commander, Mohammed Ibn Salman to go to Egypt and fight Harun Ibn Khumarawayh. So, he first went to the Levant, then headed to Egypt with his army after some of Harun’s soldiers – who had been at hostility with their leader – joined him. During that time, Harun moved to Al Abbasa where he got murdered.
There are numerous accounts of historians about his murder: Some mentioned another story saying that Harun ruled Egypt with no adversaries until Caliph Al Muktafi took over the rule of the Abbasid state after the death of his brother, Al Mu’tadid, and the conditions of Egypt were in turmoil. The situation worsened when Al Qarmati revolted, and issues happened – as we mentioned earlier – until war broke out between the army of Caliph Al Muktafi and the army of Harun. They fought until the army of Harun was defeated. When Harun knew about the defeat, he went to Al Abbasa with some his family, after many of his soldiers abandoned him. There, his uncles Shayban and Adiy plotted against him and murdered him. His uncle Shayban then succeeded him in ruling Egypt.
Others recounted that Harun was injured by an arrow of Moroccans who were among his army and raised disputes and quarrels, Harun worked to end disputes among the army rows, so he was murdered. And other narratives exist. Harun Ibn Khumarawayh died in 292 AH (905 AD) after ruling Egypt along eight years and eight months, he was a contemporary of Caliphs Al Mu’tadid and Al Muktafi. His uncle, Shayban Ibn Ahmad Ibn Tulun, made himself a ruler of Egypt after the death of Harun and people supported him. However, he ruled for twelve days only as he got defeated in a war, about which we will speak later. This was during the reign of Caliph Al Muktafi Ibn Al Mu’tadid …And stories never end in beautiful Egypt!
General Bishop
Head of Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center
