The Rise and Fall of the Early ʿAbbāsid Political and Military Elite

Abstract

: This paper explores the composition and role of the military and political elite of the early ʿ Abb ā sid caliphate (750 – 809) whose support enabled the caliphs to maintain sovereignty over their far-flung domains. It considers the im-portance of different groups, including members of the ʿ Abb ā sid family, military commanders from Khur ā s ā n and members of powerful and wealthy families like the Muhallab ī s and the Shayb ā ni tribal chiefs. The paper concludes with a discussion of the reasons for the disappearance and effective extinction of this elite in the years after the great civil war that followed H ā r ū n al-Rash ī d ’ s death in 809.