Ubaydallah ibn al-Mahdi
عبيد الله بن محمد المهدي
Governor of Arminiya
In officec. 788 – 791
PredecessorYazid ibn Mazyad al-Shaybani
SuccessorAbd al-Qadir (791) then Al-Fadl ibn Yahya
Governor of Egypt
In office795 – 795
(first term)
PredecessorAbdallah ibn al-Musayyab
SuccessorMusa ibn Isa
In office796 – 797
(second term)
PredecessorMusa ibn Isa
SuccessorIsma'il ibn Salih
Born771
Baghdad, Abbasid Caliphate
Died810/11
Baghdad, Abbasid Caliphate, now Iraq
Burial
Baghdad
Names
Ubaydallah ibn Muhammad al-Mahdi ibn Abdallah al-Mansur
DynastyAbbasid
FatherAl-Mahdi
MotherRaytah
ReligionIslam

Ubaydallah ibn Muhammad al-Mahdi (Arabic: عبيد الله بن محمد المهدي, romanized: ʿUbayd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Mahdī)[1] (771–810/11) was an Abbasid prince. He was the son of al-Mahdi, the third caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate, and Raytah, daughter of the first Abbasid caliph Abu al-Abbas al-Saffah.[2]

Life

In 761, Al-Mahdi (future caliph) married Raytah as his first wife after his return from Khurasan.[3] She was the daughter of Caliph al-Saffah and his wife Umm Salamah, a Makhzumite.[4] Raytah gave birth to two sons, Ubaydallah and Ali.[3]

During the reign of his half-brother Harun al-Rashid (r. 786–809), Ubaydallah was appointed as governor of Arminiyah and the northwestern provinces in 788/9, succeeding Yazid ibn Mazyad al-Shaybani.[5] He was later appointed to two brief stints as governor of Egypt, in 795 and 796.[6]

In 810 or 811 Ubaydallah died in Baghdad. His nephew al-Amin led the prayers at his funeral.[7]

Siblings

Ubaydallah was contemporary and related to several Abbasid caliphs, princes and princesses. He had total ten half-siblings and he had one full brother named Ali ibn Muhammad al-Mahdi.

No. Abbasids Relation
1 Musa al-Hadi Half-brother
2 Harun al-Rashid Half-brother
3 Abbasa bint al-Mahdi Half-sister
4 Ali ibn al-Mahdi Brother
5 Mansur ibn al-Mahdi Half-brother
6 Aliyah bint al-Mahdi Half-sister
7 Ulayya bint al-Mahdi Half-sister
8 Abdallah ibn al-Mahdi Half-brother
9 Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi Half-brother
10 Banuqa bint al-Mahdi Half-sister
11 Isa ibn al-Mahdi[8] Half-brother

Notes

  1. ^ Le Strange 1922, p. 218 notes that he is sometimes mistakenly referred to as "Abdallah ibn al-Mahdi."
  2. ^ Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi 2011, p. 310; Ibn Hazm 1982, p. 22.
  3. ^ a b Abbott 1946, p. 25.
  4. ^ Abbott 1946, p. 11.
  5. ^ Bosworth 1989, p. 103; Al-Baladhuri 1916, p. 330. Numismatic evidence for this appointment is summarized by Bates 2019, p. 20. Al-Ya'qubi (Gordon et al. 2018, p. 1178) does not note Ubaydallah's governorship, saying instead that Ibn Mazyad was succeeded by Abd al-Kabir ibn Abd al-Hamid. Łewond (Bedrosian 2006, ch. 41), claims that following a conflict between Harun and Ubaydallah the empire was split in two, with Ubaydallah receiving the northern provinces of Atropatene, Armenia, Iberia/Georgia, and Aghuania; this assertion is however disputed by Bonner 1988, pp. 88–89, who notes that the Arabic sources from the period make no reference to any sort of conflict between the two brothers. Ibn Qutaybah n.d., p. 380, refers to Ubaydallah as a governor of the Jazira.
  6. ^ Al-Kindi 1912, pp. 137–38; Ibn Taghribirdi 1930, pp. 93, 101; Khalifah ibn Khayyat 1985, pp. 463–64 (noting only one appointment to Egypt). During his first governorship he was placed in charge of both prayers/security (salah) and finances (kharaj); in his second administration he is mentioned as only being in charge of the salah.
  7. ^ Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi 2011, p. 310; Ibn Taghribirdi 1930, p. 101.
  8. ^ Abbott 1946, p. 31.

References

Preceded byAbd al-Malik ibn Salih Governor of Egypt 795 Succeeded byMusa ibn Isa ibn Musa al-Hashimi Preceded byMusa ibn Isa ibn Musa al-Hashimi Governor of Egypt 796–797 Succeeded byIsma'il ibn Salih ibn Ali al-Hashimi
Categories