At a glance
- Era
- The Early Abbasid Caliphate
- Region
- Maghreb · Egypt & Nile
- Review
- Draft Completeness 2/5 · Help complete it
In time
Overview
In the days of al-Muqtadir the cause of al-Mahdi grew strong in the Maghrib, the caliphate was proclaimed for him, and the Maghrib left the command of the Abbasids. Ziyadat Allah ibn al-Aghlab fled to Egypt and then to Iraq. 2
The account
The source of the caliphs says that al-Mahdi spread justice among the people, built al-Mahdiyya, and his kingdom grew great. He marched toward Egypt with forty thousand Berbers, but the Nile came between him and it, so he returned to Alexandria. His son al-Qa'im took most of Upper Egypt. 2
Al-Mas'udi's account
According to al-Mas'udi, Abu Abd Allah al-Muhtasib, the propagandist among the Kutama and the Berbers, drove Ziyadat Allah out of Ifriqiya in 296 AH, and called for Ubayd Allah, the lord of the Maghrib. The Aghlabids had been the amirs of Ifriqiya since al-Rashid appointed Ibrahim ibn al-Aghlab in 184 AH. 3
Connections
- Had participant
- عبيد الله المهدي· زيادة الله بن الأغلب
People and things also explored
The Appearance of Abu Abd Allah al-Shi'i in the Maghreb· The end of the Aghlabid state and the flight of Ziyadat Allah· Death of al-Mahdi Ubayd Allah, ruler of the Maghrib· Abu Abdallah al-Shi'i's entry into Raqqada and the collapse of the Aghlabid state· عبيد الله المهدي· زيادة الله بن الأغلب
Sources
- Tarikh al-Khulafa — al-Suyuti (Dar al-Minhaj edition) , p. 587-590
- Tarikh al-Khulafa — al-Suyuti (Dar al-Minhaj edition) , p.587-590
- Muruj al-Dhahab — al-Masʼudi , p.647-648
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “The Ubaydid al-Mahdi's triumph in the Maghreb and its departure from Abbasid rule”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/fatimid-mahdi-maghreb/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-22.