Dawud ibn Yazid ibn Hatim al-Muhallabi

Dawud ibn Yazid ibn Hatim al-Muhallabi (Arabic: داود بن يزيد بن حاتم المهلبي) (died 820 or 821) was a provincial governor for the Abbasid dynasty in the late eighth and early ninth centuries. A member of the prominent Muhallabid family, he was briefly governor of the western provinces of Ifriqiyah (787 or 788) and Egypt (790-791), after which he was appointed to the eastern province of al-Sind (800), where he served for the remainder of his life.

Career

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Dawud was the son of Yazid ibn Hatim, who served as the governor of Ifriqiyah for the caliphs al-Mansur, al-Mahdi, al-Hadi, and al-Rashid. Yazid died early in the reign of al-Rashid, at which point Dawud temporarily succeeded him as governor. His leadership, however, proved to be inadequate, and the government's authority within the province began to weaken. As a result, al-Rashid appointed Dawud's uncle Rawh ibn Hatim to take control of Ifriqiyah instead.[1] Following this, Dawud was appointed over Egypt in 790. After serving as governor there for slightly more than a year, he was dismissed from that post as well and replaced with the Abbasid prince Musa ibn 'Isa.[2]

In 800 Dawud was invested with the governorship of al-Sind[3] and tasked with pacifying the province, which was plagued by a longstanding conflict between the Arab tribes there. He initially sent his brother al-Mughirah to take control of al-Mansurah, but the city's inhabitants rebelled and expelled him. Dawud then entered al-Sind in force and laid siege to al-Mansurah, which he managed to take several months later. He then proceeded to secure the other cities of al-Sind, thereby firmly reestablishing Abbasid control over the province.[4]

Dawud spent the next two decades as governor of al-Sind, setting a record for the longest tenure of any governor in the early Abbasid period.[5] Conditions in the province remained quiet for the remainder of his administration.[6] He died in 820 or 821 and was succeeded by his son Bishr.[7]

Notes

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  1. ^ Al-Ya'qubi, v. 2: p. 496; Khalifah ibn Khayyat, pp. 441, 446, 464; Crone, p. 360
  2. ^ Al-Kindi, pp. 133-4
  3. ^ Al-Tabari, v. 30: p. 173; Khalifah ibn Khayyat, p. 463
  4. ^ Ya'qubi, v. 2: p. 494
  5. ^ Kennedy, p. 76
  6. ^ Al-Baladhuri, v. 2: p. 231
  7. ^ Crone, p. 360; al-Tabari, v. 32: p. 106. Khalifah ibn Khayyat, p. 470, dates Dawud's death to 815-6.

References

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  • Al-Baladhuri, Ahmad ibn Jabir. The Origins of the Islamic State, Part II. Trans. Francis Clark Murgotten. New York: Columbia University, 1924.
  • Crone, Patricia. "Muhallabids." The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Volume VII. New Ed. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1993. ISBN 90-04-09419-9
  • Kennedy, Hugh N. The Early Abbasid Caliphate, a political History. London: Croom Helm, 1981. ISBN 0-389-20018-2
  • Khalifah ibn Khayyat. Tarikh Khalifah ibn Khayyat. Ed. Akram Diya' al-'Umari. 3rd ed. Al-Riyadh: Dar Taybah, 1985.
  • Al-Kindi, Muhammad ibn Yusuf. The Governors and Judges of Egypt. Ed. Rhuvon Guest. Leydon and London: E. J. Brill, 1912.
  • Al-Tabari, Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Jarir. The History of al-Tabari. Ed. Ehsan Yar-Shater. 40 vols. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1985-2007.
  • Al-Ya'qubi, Ahmad ibn Abu Ya'qub. Historiae, Vol. 2. Ed. M. Th. Houtsma. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1883.
Preceded by Governor of Ifriqiyah
787 or 788
Succeeded by
Preceded by Governor of Egypt
791–792
Succeeded by
Preceded by Governor of al-Sind
800–820
Succeeded by