Abd al-Rahman al-Nasir Takes the Title Commander of the Faithful

al-Suyuti reports that Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad al-Umawi, ruler of al-Andalus, took the title Amir al-Mu'minin, al-Nasir li-Din Allah. This was at a time when the Abbasid state had grown weak. ¹

al-Suyuti says that Abd al-Rahman declared that he was the most entitled of people to the caliphate, and he seized most of al-Andalus. He describes him as a man of dignity, of jihad and of praiseworthy conduct, and says that he conquered seventy forts. He adds that those called Amir al-Mu'minin had become three: the Abbasid in Baghdad, this one in al-Andalus, and al-Mahdi in Qayrawan. ¹

Needs an additional source: al-Suyuti places the account under the year 325 without specifying the year of the title, so the recorded date is approximate and derived.