Hasan ibn al-Nu'man
Encyclopedia
Hasan ibn an-Nu`uman al-Ghasani ( Hasān ibn an-Nu‘umān al-Ghasānī) (d. ca. 700), amir (general) of the Umayyad army in North Africa. The nisba indicates he either came from Ghassān in Yemen
or was part of an Arab
tribe originally from that area.
(work cited below), other medieval sources give a range of 4 years before and after.
He was appointed governor of the Maghreb
about the year 692 CE. At this time, the Arab forces had still not managed to entirely defeat the Byzantine
Greeks in North Africa. He captured the Byzantine
city of Carthage
after defeating Ioannes the Patrician and Tiberios III
at the Battle of Carthage
in 698 CE. After a defeat by the Berber
warrior queen al-Kahina, he retired to Libya
for several years, then returned to Ifriqiya
and killed al-Kahina in battle. This effectively brought Ifriqiya
(modern Tunisia and eastern Algeria) under Arab control.
He appointed Abu Salih as emir over Ifriqiya
while keeping the emirates of Cyrenaica
and other parts of Libya
for himself. He returned to Kairouan
and re-established it as the capital of Ifriqiya
, building (or re-building) the mosque, establishing official registers and levying land taxes (against Muslims) and poll taxes (against Christians).
Having completed this task, he returned to Damascus
in about 695-698 to report to the Umayyad
caliph Abd al-Malik, having left a deputy in charge of Cyrenaica
. As he passed through Egypt, he was "relieved" of his captives by the caliph's brother Abd al-Aziz, who was governor of Egypt. It is said that they included two hundred Berber
slave girls each worth a thousand dinar
s.
In his absence, a Byzantine
naval raiding force attacked Cyrenaica
and occupied it for upwards of a month. Hasan's deputy fled to Egypt, and his trusted lieutenant Zuhayr was killed while attempting to repel the Greeks. Eventually a scratch force of Arabs drove the intruders out, after which Abd al-Aziz put one of his freed slaves in charge of Cyrenaica
.
When Hasan attempted to return to North Africa, he asked Abd al-Aziz to remove his slave from Libya, but the Egyptian governor refused. Hasan then threatened to go to the caliph, whereupon Abd al-Aziz told him "Go". Hasan returned to Damascus, where he and Abd al-Malik learned that Abd al-Aziz had made Musa bin Nusair
emir over Ifriqiya
, deposing Abu Salih. Abd al-Malik disliked Musa, and prepared to use this as a pretext to do something about Abd al-Aziz. Unfortunately Hasan, who had been ill since leaving Egypt, died suddenly. This was in about 698 (according to some sources, up to 10 years after this!).
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
or was part of an Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
tribe originally from that area.
Biography
Dates in this section are according to Ibn Abd al-HakamIbn Abd-el-Hakem
Ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥakam was an Egyptian chronicler who wrote the History of the Conquest of Egypt and North Africa and Spain.His work is invaluable as the earliest Arab account of the Islamic conquests of those countries. This work was written about 150-200 years after the events it describes, and...
(work cited below), other medieval sources give a range of 4 years before and after.
He was appointed governor of the Maghreb
Maghreb
The Maghreb is the region of Northwest Africa, west of Egypt. It includes five countries: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Mauritania and the disputed territory of Western Sahara...
about the year 692 CE. At this time, the Arab forces had still not managed to entirely defeat the Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
Greeks in North Africa. He captured the Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
city of Carthage
Carthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
after defeating Ioannes the Patrician and Tiberios III
Tiberios III
Tiberios III was Byzantine emperor from 698 to 21 August 705. Although his rule was considered generally successful, especially in containing the Arab threat to the east, he was overthrown by the former emperor Justinian II and subsequently executed.-Rise to power:Tiberius was a Germanic naval...
at the Battle of Carthage
Battle of Carthage (698)
The Battle of Carthage was fought in 698 AD between a Byzantine expeditionary force and the armies of the Umayyad Caliphate. Having lost Carthage to the Muslims, Emperor Leontius sent the navy under the command of John the Patrician and the droungarios Tiberius Apsimarus. They entered the harbor...
in 698 CE. After a defeat by the Berber
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
warrior queen al-Kahina, he retired to Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
for several years, then returned to Ifriqiya
Ifriqiya
In medieval history, Ifriqiya or Ifriqiyah was the area comprising the coastal regions of what are today western Libya, Tunisia, and eastern Algeria. This area included what had been the Roman province of Africa, whose name it inherited....
and killed al-Kahina in battle. This effectively brought Ifriqiya
Ifriqiya
In medieval history, Ifriqiya or Ifriqiyah was the area comprising the coastal regions of what are today western Libya, Tunisia, and eastern Algeria. This area included what had been the Roman province of Africa, whose name it inherited....
(modern Tunisia and eastern Algeria) under Arab control.
He appointed Abu Salih as emir over Ifriqiya
Ifriqiya
In medieval history, Ifriqiya or Ifriqiyah was the area comprising the coastal regions of what are today western Libya, Tunisia, and eastern Algeria. This area included what had been the Roman province of Africa, whose name it inherited....
while keeping the emirates of Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica is the eastern coastal region of Libya.Also known as Pentapolis in antiquity, it was part of the Creta et Cyrenaica province during the Roman period, later divided in Libia Pentapolis and Libia Sicca...
and other parts of Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
for himself. He returned to Kairouan
Kairouan
Kairouan , also known as Kirwan or al-Qayrawan , is the capital of the Kairouan Governorate in Tunisia. Referred to as the Islamic Cultural Capital, it is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The city was founded by the Arabs around 670...
and re-established it as the capital of Ifriqiya
Ifriqiya
In medieval history, Ifriqiya or Ifriqiyah was the area comprising the coastal regions of what are today western Libya, Tunisia, and eastern Algeria. This area included what had been the Roman province of Africa, whose name it inherited....
, building (or re-building) the mosque, establishing official registers and levying land taxes (against Muslims) and poll taxes (against Christians).
Having completed this task, he returned to Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
in about 695-698 to report to the Umayyad
Umayyad
The Umayyad Caliphate was the second of the four major Arab caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. It was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty, whose name derives from Umayya ibn Abd Shams, the great-grandfather of the first Umayyad caliph. Although the Umayyad family originally came from the...
caliph Abd al-Malik, having left a deputy in charge of Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica is the eastern coastal region of Libya.Also known as Pentapolis in antiquity, it was part of the Creta et Cyrenaica province during the Roman period, later divided in Libia Pentapolis and Libia Sicca...
. As he passed through Egypt, he was "relieved" of his captives by the caliph's brother Abd al-Aziz, who was governor of Egypt. It is said that they included two hundred Berber
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
slave girls each worth a thousand dinar
Islamic gold dinar
The modern Islamic gold dinar is a currency that aims to revive the historical gold dinar which was a leading coin of early Islam. They consist of minted gold coins, Dinar, and silver coins, Dirham.-Dinar history:According to Islamic law, the Islamic dinar is a coin of pure gold weighing...
s.
In his absence, a Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
naval raiding force attacked Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica is the eastern coastal region of Libya.Also known as Pentapolis in antiquity, it was part of the Creta et Cyrenaica province during the Roman period, later divided in Libia Pentapolis and Libia Sicca...
and occupied it for upwards of a month. Hasan's deputy fled to Egypt, and his trusted lieutenant Zuhayr was killed while attempting to repel the Greeks. Eventually a scratch force of Arabs drove the intruders out, after which Abd al-Aziz put one of his freed slaves in charge of Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica is the eastern coastal region of Libya.Also known as Pentapolis in antiquity, it was part of the Creta et Cyrenaica province during the Roman period, later divided in Libia Pentapolis and Libia Sicca...
.
When Hasan attempted to return to North Africa, he asked Abd al-Aziz to remove his slave from Libya, but the Egyptian governor refused. Hasan then threatened to go to the caliph, whereupon Abd al-Aziz told him "Go". Hasan returned to Damascus, where he and Abd al-Malik learned that Abd al-Aziz had made Musa bin Nusair
Musa bin Nusair
Musa bin Nusayr al-Balawi was a balawi who served as a governor and general under the Umayad caliph Al-Walid I. He had ruled over the Muslim provinces of North Africa , and directed the islamic opening of the Visigothic kingdom in Hispania....
emir over Ifriqiya
Ifriqiya
In medieval history, Ifriqiya or Ifriqiyah was the area comprising the coastal regions of what are today western Libya, Tunisia, and eastern Algeria. This area included what had been the Roman province of Africa, whose name it inherited....
, deposing Abu Salih. Abd al-Malik disliked Musa, and prepared to use this as a pretext to do something about Abd al-Aziz. Unfortunately Hasan, who had been ill since leaving Egypt, died suddenly. This was in about 698 (according to some sources, up to 10 years after this!).