Harun al-Rashid

Harun ar-Rashid /763, Rei - 809, Tus/ - the fifth Caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate in 786-809. The time of his reign was a time of economic prosperity and victorious campaigns against Christian Byzantium.

Father - caliph al-Mahdi (ruled in 775-785), mother - al-Khayzuran. Ar-Rashid's tutor was Yahya ibn Khalid of the Iranian Barmakid dynasty. The Barmakids - the famous Persian family, from which many advisers and viziers of the Abbassid caliphs came - played in the political and cultural life Caliphate prominent role.

As a young man, Harun led two military expeditions against Byzantium. During the first campaign in 779-780. the Arabs took the fortified city of Samala, and during the second campaign in 781-782. Arabs reached the Bosphorus for the first time. After returning from the campaign, he is appointed ruler of Ifriqiya (modern Tunisia), Syria, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

In 786, al-Rashid became caliph and immediately appointed his tutor Yahya ibn Khalid al-Barmaki as his vizier. Together with his sons al-Fadl and Jafar Yahya, he remained in power for about 17 years.

It is known that Caliph Harun al-Rashid made a great contribution to the Islamization of the provinces of Daylam and Tabaristan. He also saw his main religious duty in the wars with Byzantium. The Arab-Byzantine wars took place under him almost every year, and he personally took part in many military expeditions. Under him, a special border area was allocated administratively with fortified city-fortresses, which played an important role in the wars of subsequent centuries. In 797, taking advantage of internal political strife in Byzantium and its war with the Bulgarians, Harun al-Rashid captured the fortress of al-Safsaf and penetrated far into the depths of Byzantine possessions with an army. Empress Irina, at first the regent of her young son, and later the ruler (797-802), was forced to conclude a peace treaty with Harun. However, Emperor Nicephorus, who replaced her in 802, resumed hostilities. Harun sent his son Kasim with an army against Byzantium, and later personally led the campaign. In 803-806. the Arab army captured many cities and villages on the territory of Byzantium, including Hercules and Tiana, and reached Ankara. Attacked by the Bulgarians from the West and suffered a series of defeats from the Arabs, Nicephorus was forced to conclude a humiliating peace and pledged to pay tribute to the Arabs.

Harun ar-Rashid was the first among the Abbasid rulers who drew attention to sea power. In 805, the Arabs launched a successful sea campaign against Cyprus, and in 807, on the orders of Harun, the Arab commander Humaid raided the island of Rhodes.

Harun ar-Rashid constantly emphasized the religious nature of his power. He repeatedly performed the Hajj and severely persecuted for any manifestation of heresy. The last time Harun traveled to Mecca was in 804. Weekly, on Fridays, the caliph delivered sermons in the capital's mosque as the head of the Muslim community.

The caliph wanted to make his capital not only the center of a powerful state, but the main center of cultural life. His Barmakid ministers, with the approval of the caliph, patronized the activities of translators who introduced the Muslim society to the works of Indian, Iranian and Greek authors.

Trade flourished during his reign. Muslim merchants conducted trade operations in a vast area from China to East Africa made his name famous all over the world. In Europe, there was even a legend about the exchange of gifts between Harun and Charlemagne and giving Charlemagne special rights in Jerusalem. The court of the caliph was the center of traditional Arab arts.

The personality of Harun ar-Rashid is described in detail in medieval Arabic sources (the works of al-Tabari, al-Masudi, etc.). The fabulous image of the Caliph is presented in the tales of the Thousand and One Nights.

Caliph Haroun al-Rashid was sitting in disguise one evening in the company of dervishes. One of those present said: - Rules can operate only among those people for whom they were directly developed. Harun, dressed as a visiting merchant, objected: - ...

Once upon a time, in Old Baghdad, there lived a man named Hasan who had been content with his share all his life. He led a modest life according to his needs and kept a small shop in which he worked with his mother. But time passed and he...

Caliph Harun al-Rashid had two sons. One, named Amin, was the son of his wife, and the other, named Mamun, was the son of his servant. The Caliph wanted the power to pass to the servant's son after his death, but his wife opposed this. One day Harun...

Once Caliph Haroun al-Rashid, during a conversation with his mentor, said: - Teacher, you yourself know that by nature I am a seeker. I have all the blessings of this world, everything that most mortals dream of. Don't you think that since I'm freed from...

• One day, Haroun al-Rashid and Abbas went out to visit Fudayl ibn Iyad, and when they reached his door, they heard that he was reciting the verse of the Koran: “Surely those who did bad deeds thought that we would do them on an equal basis with who believed and...

  Caliph Omar used to secretly get out of the house and wander in disguise through the streets of his city in order to be able to see for himself that laws and justice were observed. Later, Harun al-Rashid of Baghdad followed his example. One night...

  It is said that Ja'far Barmakid shared a meal with al-Rashid one evening and al-Rashid said to him: - O Ja'far, it dawned on me that you bought such and such a slave, and I have long been striving to buy her, because she is beautiful and mine. heart filled with love...

  One noble man saw Harun ar-Rashid on Arafat barefoot, with his head uncovered, standing on hot ground, raising his hands and saying: - God! You are you. And I am me. My property is to return every day to disobedience to you, and your property is ...

In September 786, the 5th Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid (in another transcription Harun ar-Rashid) came to power, under whose rule the Muslim state reached the zenith of its glory, prosperity and culture. He is well known to a Russian person from the tales of "A Thousand and One Nights" and the poem by Nikolai Glazkov, which says that:

"He, posing as a merchant,
Visited caravanserais
And, drinking wine, from the drunk
Learned about all the flaws.

Harun al-Rashid was Caliph,
But he did not believe in flattering phrases,
Not combed reports-myths,
And I tried to be closer to the masses!”

Harun, twenty-two years old, born in 763, succeeded his brother al-Hadi, who ruled from 785-786.

Medieval Arabic sources [the works of the Arab historian and theologian Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (838 - 923), the historian and geographer Abu-l-Hasan al-Masudi (died in 956) and others] give us a fairly reliable picture of his reign, and it is worth to say that it is very far from the one that came to us in the legends and myths about the ideal Muslim caliph.

He hardly looked like a character from fairy tales, and the Arab state of that time did not look much like an ideal caliphate created by the imagination of the next generations, although the years of his reign really became the time of the economic and cultural flourishing of the Arab statehood, and were also remembered for victorious campaigns against Byzantium. But it was under al-Rashid that the political disintegration of the empire and the general decline of its administrative system began. These were the first sprouts of trouble, which, during the reign of his successors, grew into a civil war. Apparently, the difficult years that followed his reign made Muslims remember the fifth caliph of the Abbasids with warmth, idealizing him and his time in every possible way.

Harun al-Rashid was the third son of Caliph al-Mahdi and his second son by a Yemeni slave girl, al-Khayzuran, whom the Caliph married and freed her in 775. His mother, On al-Khayzuran, played a very significant role both in the fate of the Abbasid caliphate and in the fate of her sons. In the harems of the caliphs, as, indeed, of all noble Muslims, there was a fierce struggle between numerous wives, and each of them sought to place her son as the main heir. And about the ability of al-Khayzuran to weave intrigues, even in those years, there were legends.

Harun's childhood passed in luxury - the boy grew up in the caliph's palace. Yahya ibn Khalid, who came from the Iranian dynasty of the Barmakids, was appointed his tutor. This famous Persian clan under the Abbasids rose to a very high level, and Khalid with his sons al-Fadl and Yahya practically ruled the caliphate. One was the tutor of the heir, the second was the adviser to the caliph al-Mahdi.

Yahya's mother and mentor, trying to raise the prestige of the heir and clear the way for him to the throne, persuaded the caliph to appoint al-Rashid the head of two military expeditions against Byzantium. It is clear that the young man (and the future caliph was only 16 years old during the first campaign) was a purely nominal head, and experienced military leaders were in charge of everything. But, nevertheless, the goal was achieved, the military glory of two successful campaigns - during the first campaign in 779 - 780 the Samalu fortress was captured, and during the second in 781 - 782 the Bosphorus was reached - went to him. Upon his return from campaigns, Harun was appointed ruler of Ifriqiya (modern Tunisia), Syria, Armenia and Azerbaijan, that is, he actually became the highest administrator in the caliphate. Yahya's mentor became the head of his office.

However, al-Rashid was still second in line to the main throne. But thanks to a series of intrigues carried out by his mother and the faithful Yahya al-Mahdi, the caliph decided to appoint Harun as his first successor and went to Gurgan with the intention of forcing Musa, the ruler of this province, to abandon his turn to the throne. On the way, al-Mahdi died unexpectedly, and under very mysterious circumstances, which suggests that Musa's supporters were also on the alert.

The manager of the caliph's court forced the capital to swear allegiance to Musa, and he ascended the throne under the name al-Hadi. Supporters of Harun tried to raise a rebellion, which was quickly suppressed, and Harun himself ended up in prison, where he was forced to renounce any claims to the throne. Yahya, a supporter of al-Hadi, was accused of disbelief and threatened with death. But al-Hadi died in 786 as suddenly as his predecessor, and also under very strange circumstances, and the path to the throne for Harun was cleared. Rumors blamed the death of al-Hadi on the mother of Haroun al-Khayzuran and Yahya, but it is difficult to say how true this is, although the logic of the development of the situation suggests that the suspicions were not unfounded. Note that Harun did practically nothing for his accession, for the time being he was only a pawn in the hands of an experienced mother and no less experienced teacher. Yahya was immediately appointed vizier, and Harun actually removed himself from the control of the caliphate. Even the vizier reported on his work not to the caliph, but to his mother. It is difficult to say which of them ruled: the mother or the teacher. But Harun was clearly not to blame.

Unrest on the outskirts of the Caliphate. Campaigns to Byzantium

Unrest continued on the outskirts of the caliphate, in 788 and 794 anti-Abbasid uprisings broke out in Egypt, which had mainly social roots: the richest province was crushed by taxes on the army sent to Ifriqiya. The uprisings were suppressed, but the unrest in the state did not stop: the Berbers no longer wanted to live under the rule of the Arabs, and in 789 the power of the local Idrisid dynasty was established in Morocco, and a year later, in Ifriqiya and Algeria, the Aghlabids. Then, in 794-795, a rebellion broke out in Kairawan (Tunisia), which was also suppressed, but in 797, during another uprising, Harun was forced to entrust the rule of Ifriqiya to the local emir Ibrahim ibn al-Aghlab, demanding from him an annual submit in the amount of 40 thousand dinars.

In 795, a rebellion also broke out in Yemen under the leadership of Haytham al-Hamdani; it lasted nine years.

Syria was in constant unrest, and in 796 the caliph even had to send an army there, led by Barmakid Jafar. It was the unrest in Syria that became the main reason for Harun's move from Baghdad to Raqqa on the Euphrates, where he began to spend O most of the time, occasionally going on military campaigns against Byzantium or on a pilgrimage to Mecca. In Baghdad, which Harun did not like, he tried to appear as rarely as possible.

Other problems also arose: the inhabitants of the provinces of Daylam and Tabaristan, as well as, in fact, of the other eastern possessions, accepted Islam, although completely, but not completely, and, according to one of the historians, Harun was forced to personally engage in the planting of Islam in Tabaristan. But he did not succeed in completely eradicating pagan beliefs. The propaganda of the opponents of the Abbasids was very easily superimposed on the unstable faith, and in 792 one of the Alids, Yahya ibn Abdallah, with the support of the local nobility, raised an uprising in Dailam. Al-Fadla went there, who, having promised a lot of things, including amnesty to all participants in the uprising, achieved its termination and the extradition of Yahya. Harun, however, canceled the amnesty under a fictitious pretext, and Yahya ended up in prison.

The Kharijites also continued their speeches, which became especially active in the provinces of North Africa, North Mesopotamia and in Sijistan. Participants in the uprising in Mesopotamia in 794 under the leadership of al-Walid ash-Shari not only captured Nisibin, but also attracted the tribes of al-Jazira to their side. Troops were sent against them, and the troublemakers were dispersed. The uprising in Sijistan led by Hamza al-Shari in 795 turned out to be much more powerful, and the rebels, having captured Harat, extended their power to the Iranian provinces of Kirman and Fars. Harun did not manage to cope with them until the very end of his reign.

Khorasan and some neighboring regions were also engulfed in unrest. So it is hardly possible to talk about the "golden time of Harun al-Rashid". He himself, trying not to pay attention to internal moods, tried to fulfill his religious duty, as he understood it, and still capture Byzantium. Various skirmishes with the troops of the empire took place every year, and several times the caliph personally led the most significant campaigns. Harun even created a special border region with fortified city-fortresses, which served as both a springboard for attacks and a shield for the caliphate.

In 797, taking advantage of the ongoing strife in Byzantium and its war with the Bulgarians, Harun captured the fortress of as-Safsaf and went quite far into the depths of Byzantine territory. Empress Irina, who was already ruling in her own name, was forced to conclude another peace treaty with him, further infringing on the rights of Byzantium.

Emperor Nicephorus, who replaced her in 802, did not like this treaty, and he resumed hostilities. Harun first sent his son Kasim to Byzantium with an army, and later personally led the campaign. The campaign turned out to be very successful: during the years 803 - 806, the Muslims captured many Byzantine cities and villages, including Hercules and Tiana, and reached Ancyra. Nicephorus, who found himself between a rock and a hard place - after all, the war with the Bulgarians continued - was forced to conclude peace with Harun on even more difficult terms than the terms of the previous agreement.

By moving the capital to Baghdad, the Abbasids ceased to be interested in mediterranean sea. Harun also began to revive the fleet and in 805 undertook a successful sea campaign against Cyprus, and in 807 made a trip to the island of Rhodes.

Fall of the Barmakids

For the first seventeen years of Harun al-Rashid's reign, the caliphate was almost entirely ruled by the Barmakids. Yahya was a vizier, his son Al-Fadl was a governor in Iran, Armenia and Azerbaijan, and the second son of Yahya, Jafar, although he did not hold an official position, his influence on the caliph was also very great. He was best friend Haruna and was with him almost inseparably. However, Al-Tabari claims that the point here is not at all friendship, but homosexual inclinations, which in those distant times were not something out of the ordinary. If this is so, then Yahya's not too good attitude towards the friendship of his son with the Caliph can be explained very simply.

About 790, the mother of Harun al-Khayzuran, Yahya's companion in many affairs, died, and the influence of the Barmakids began to gradually disappear. Immediately after the death of his mother, Harun took away from Jafar state seal, and the enemy of the Barmakids, al-Fadl ibn Rabia, was appointed hajib instead of Barmakiya. Also, already in 796, a certain Ali ibn Isa ibn Mahan became the governor of Khorasan, despite the fact that Yahya very strongly objected to this candidacy.

The Barmakids were gradually pushed aside from real power, although they retained the status of the caliph's closest assistants. Harun himself was already trying to rely on those mavalis who completely depended on his will and at the decisive moments in the life of the caliphate more than once proved their devotion to Harun.

On January 29, 803, Harun gave the order to kill Jafar, and send Yahya and his family members to prison. Many perceived these actions as a sudden change in his character, but we see that the fall of the Barmakids was prepared by Harun for many years. He explained his actions, as such things were often explained in those days, by the desire to return to true Islam.

Medieval historians, however, did not believe Harun too much, arguing that the Barmakids were very pious, built public buildings in many, improved the irrigation system, repaired wells and were fair in resolving various disputes. Al-Masudi even wrote that "the prosperity of the empire declined after the fall of the Barmakids, and everyone was convinced how imperfect the actions and decisions of Harun al-Rashid were and how bad his rule was." Perhaps he was right, since the decisions of the last period of the reign of al-Rashid largely contributed to the intensification of the civil war and the subsequent collapse of the empire. Harun, for example, despite many reports about the bad rule of the governor Ali ibn Isa, refused to remove him from his post, continuing to accept valuable gifts from him. This, in the end, led to an uprising in Khorasan, which in 806 almost destroyed the caliphate, and only after that Harun removed the governor. The decision was belated: Khorasan had actually ceased to obey Baghdad. Harun personally, accompanied by two sons, al-Mamun and Salih, and with a large army, went there to restore order, but fell ill and was forced to stop in Tus. In Isfahan, at that time, in the rear of his army, an uprising of the Khurramites broke out - a sect that combines Shiite views with Zoroastrianism. In 809, Harun al-Rashid died, having failed to eliminate the unrest.

Religion and culture

Harun al-Rashid repeatedly emphasized the religious nature of his power. He himself regularly performed the hajj and severely punished heretics. Even the general amnesty announced by him upon accession to the throne did not affect those who "pervert the faith."

But, interestingly, with all the religious persecution, Harun encouraged the Barmakid ministers, who patronized the activities of translators who opened Indian, Iranian, and later Greek authors to Muslims. He apparently did not understand that such literature often leads people away from Islam, instilling in them freedom of thought and showing people other points of view. Although, perhaps, the love of glory outweighed here, and Harun always wanted to make his capital a world center of culture.

Under Harun, for the first time in a long time, the Gentiles began to be subjected to severe persecution. In 806, he ordered the destruction of all churches along the Byzantine frontier, and a year later he renewed the old restrictions on non-Muslims. From now on, they had to wear ropes instead of belts, quilted hats on their heads and even shoes that were not the same as those of Muslims. They were also forbidden to ride horses, and they could only use donkeys, and instead of tassels on saddle bows, they had to use wooden knobs.

Another interesting nuance: Harun was the first caliph who did not write his Friday sermons himself. In the mosque on Fridays, he read texts that his secretaries wrote for him. Whether this is explained by the desire to make their speeches more eloquent or by neglect of worship is hard to say. However, contemporaries remember Harun as a man who firmly fulfilled all the commandments. However, asceticism was clearly not inherent in him: for example, the caliph spent 50 million dirhams from the treasury on his wedding. His court in general was the focus of luxury, which entered the legends. It is clear that such a luxurious lifestyle required a clear organization of tax collection, which the caliph did personally and in 800 even specially came from his residence to Baghdad to collect arrears. Those who didn't pay were beaten and sent to prison. The people of Baghdad generally have not too good memories of Harun. As, however, also with many of his contemporaries. In 796, for example, when Harun was in Hira, the inhabitants of neighboring Kufa even tried to kill him.

In addition to the rapid development of culture during the reign of Harun, trade also developed very strongly, and Muslim merchants were known from China to East Africa. It is to this fame that many historians attribute the legend of the exchange of gifts between Harun and Charlemagne and the granting of special rights to the latter in Jerusalem. There is no mention of these rights and gifts in Arabic sources, so most likely these are just legends invented by the Franks, or, as they say today, PR.

But, undoubtedly, the main political mistake of Harun was the division of power between his heirs, sons from different wives - al-Mamun and al-Amin. After the death of Harun, this led to a bloody civil war, and the caliphate ceased to be single state, splitting into many small provinces, where the power of the "commander of the faithful" was recognized only nominally.

Is the ideal ruler a myth?

Harun went down in history as an ideal ruler. Alas, we often encounter the fact that the people's memory, creating a legend, pays little attention to the facts and true events. The same thing happened to Harun.

The whole personality that appears before us in fairy tales has little in common with the real image of the sixth Abbasid caliph. There is not a word in the legends about Harun's ascension to the throne, nor about the fact that he had practically nothing to do with actual power for a long time, nor about the numerous uprisings that shook the foundations of Muslim statehood, nor even about successful military campaigns, which he very much I loved.

It is also not mentioned that at first the caliph gave his power to the Barmakids, and then treacherously and cruelly dealt with them. Legends, by the way, praise the Barmakids, carefully avoiding the inglorious end both for them and for the caliph. With full understanding, however, referring to the whims and despotism of the caliph - in the Middle Ages, such behavior was the norm.

Many legends describe Harun's personal interest in the fate of an individual common man, his participation in the affairs of Baghdad merchants, artisans, poets and musicians, forgetting that in Baghdad the caliph not only practically did not live, but also had hostility towards him.

It is unlikely that such a lover of luxury, as the historians of the caliph imagine, could wander, looking for entertainment, around Baghdad at night with his faithful vizier Jafar and his bodyguard-executioner Masrur, dressed in beggarly rags.

Interestingly, in the legends, Jafar appears as a negative character - an official functionary unloved by the people and an obedient executor of the will of the caliph, and not as one of the most influential people in the management of the caliphate, which he undoubtedly was.

Well, the people dreamed of an ideal - kind and omnipotent - ruler and got him - at least as a character in legends.

Charlemagne, son of King Pepin the Short of the Franks, was born in 742. The father early began to accustom his son to state affairs. In 761 and 762, he already accompanied his father on the Aquitanian campaigns. In 768, after the death of Pepin, Charles himself became king and inherited huge lands that stretched like a crescent from the Pyrenees to the borders of present-day Bohemia.

The first years, Karl did not justify his future nickname. He traveled to his numerous estates, rested, made contributions to monasteries and was entirely under the influence of his mother, the dowager queen Bertrada.

But in 772 something happened to him. He suddenly separated from his wife Desiderata and sent her to Italy to her father, King Desiderius; laid a hand on the inheritance of his brother Carloman, who died in 771 (who owned more than half of present-day France) and became the sole king of the Franks.

The road to conquest was open to him. From that moment in the chronicle of the reign of Charlemagne there were no more than two or three peaceful years. The rest of the time - invasions, campaigns, sieges.

Charlemagne was one of those commanders who understood that without a well-placed intelligence there is neither an army nor victory. Therefore, he owes his success in all his wars to small or large intelligence operations that preceded or accompanied them.

Did Charles have any far-reaching plan for wars of conquest? Hard to say. Every autumn the army disbanded, and in the spring it was recruited again. But reconnaissance was carried out constantly.

In 786, Charles's agents reported that his ally, the Bavarian Duke Tassilon, having colluded with the enemies of Charles in southern Italy, weaves intrigues and secretly agrees on joint actions with the nomadic Avars.

Busy with other things, Karl for the time being pretends that he does not know anything. But his envoys "process" the vassals of the treacherous duke. In 787 Charles "remembers" Tassilon and demands from him an immediate personal appearance. Thassilon dodges. Then the king, knowing that the vassals of Tassilon are opposed to him (Karl), surrounds Bavaria with troops. Most of Thassilon's vassals immediately take the side of the Frankish king.

Realizing the hopelessness of his situation, Tassilon comes to Charles and takes an oath of allegiance. However, in next year Charles summons him to the General Diet. Accused by his own vassals, Thassilon admits that he led continuous intrigues against Charles, conspired about joint actions with the enemies of the Frankish state, was not going to fulfill his oaths and secretly prepared to kill all the supporters of Charles in his country. The Franks unanimously sentenced Thassilon to death. But Charles showed mercy and replaced the execution with the exile of Thassilon, his wife and children to a monastery. So, one might say, without shedding blood, Charles conquered Bavaria.

But not always his victims got off so easily. One of the pagan tribes that were at enmity with Karl and caused him a lot of trouble were the Avars - warlike nomads, pagans and robbers, with whom the Duke of Tassilon concluded a secret alliance on the eve of his fall. In their conspiracy against the Franks, the Avars united with their enemies - the Lombards, Saxons and Bavarians.

The attack on the Franks was scheduled for the same year, 788, when Thassilon was condemned. Apparently, the Avars did not know about this either and, hoping for the support of the duke, invaded the Frankish state, as planned.

Thus began this terrible and merciless war, which lasted seven years. By 795, the Franks defeated the Avars and "fire and sword" walked through their land, destroying everything and everything. When bishops and priests were sent to baptize the conquered people, it turned out that there was no one to baptize - the people were exterminated, not a single inhabitant remained alive. It was no coincidence that the Old Russian proverb said: "They died like obre", that is, "They died like obras (Avars)".

Now about the elephant of Haroun al-Rashid. The legend tells that one day Charles, seeing the tusk of an elephant, desired to see a living elephant. And this is supposed to explain the subsequent events. But most likely the elephant was just a pretext.

In 797, Charles sent an embassy to the caliph of Baghdad Harun al-Rashid, which, as always, included not only diplomats, but also scouts (which, however, then meant the same thing) - proxies kings Lanfrid and Sigmund, as well as the Jew Isaac. The official purpose of the embassy was to "get and bring the elephant."

The caliph did indeed send an elephant to Charles, which Isaac, in 802, after long ordeals, brought safely to Aachen. Even earlier, the caliph had given permission to the church mission from Jerusalem to take Charles the blessing of the patriarch, as well as various relics, including the keys to Jerusalem.

Why did the representatives of Karl so interested the eastern ruler? On what basis could the Christian Aachen (the capital of Charles) and Muslim Baghdad get closer? They found common rivals and enemies. First of all, they included the future caliphs of the Spanish Cordoba, who were thinking of destroying the Baghdad Abbasids. (But it was Charles who fought with the caliphs, and this war became fierce after 800.)

Even more, Charles and Harun al-Rashid were united by the policy towards Byzantium. The fact is that Byzantium and its emperors looked upon themselves as the only legitimate heirs of Rome, Caesar and Augustus. And Charles, proclaimed emperor on December 25, 800, dealt a mortal blow to the Byzantine idea of ​​the "unity" of the empire. It is no coincidence that at the moment when Pope Leo III, according to the current concepts of "agent of influence" of Charles, placed the imperial crown on Charles, he expressed dissatisfaction with this, wanting to show that he was not going to turn into a rival of the Byzantine emperor, but since it happened, then It is not he who is to blame, but Pope Leo III. Karl even sent a special embassy to Constantinople with proposals of "hands and hearts" to the Byzantine Empress Irene. The embassy was received favorably.

The Great Empire, uniting East and West, was on the eve of its creation. The Roman Empire would have been restored, and Charles, who at that time had achieved success in Spain, penetrated into Palestine, and had his agents in the main cities of North Africa - Carthage and Alexandria, would become the greatest of the monarchs.

But the unexpected happened. Irina was overthrown, and the Byzantine throne was taken by Emperor Nicephorus. However, the cunning move conceived by Karl still played a role. Nicephorus, misled by Charles, broke off all relations with the pope, but continued to negotiate with Charles. Still, he needed an ally, because the Muslim caliphate threatened him.

A reconnaissance and diplomatic game began, accompanied by military operations. Karl and Haroun again exchange embassies.

Realizing good relations with Baghdad, Karl increases pressure on Byzantium. At the same time, he exchanges embassies with the Jerusalem patriarch, sending his people to Palestine, sending large sums of money there, erecting churches, interfering in disputes about church dogma and trying to tear off entire regions from the spiritual influence of Byzantium.

Byzantium, squeezed from the east and west, could not resist for long, and in 812 the new Byzantine emperor Michael I formally recognized the imperial title of Charlemagne.

As for the elephant, he died in 810, and the chronicles paid more attention to this event than to the death of Charlemagne's son Pepin, King of Italy, who died at the same time.

Shortly before the death of Charlemagne, an event occurred that went down in history as a miracle. In early January 814, the word "princeps" (leader. — lat.), which was part of the imperial title. This was regarded as a terrible omen. Indeed, on January 28, 814, the king, who was not ill, suddenly died. He was buried in the same basilica.

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In the Arabian tales "A Thousand and One Nights" the ruler of Baghdad Haroun al-Rashid is described as a wise and just ruler, patron of the arts. In fairy tales, he, disguised as a merchant, accompanied by his vizier Jafar Barmakid, wanders through the night streets of Baghdad to find out the troubles and aspirations of ordinary people.

His image turned out to be so colorful that the name of the caliph became a household name for characterizing a fabulously rich and generous person who helps ordinary people.

Harun al-Rashid, known to us from the tales of the Thousand and One Nights, had a real historical prototype - the Baghdad caliph Harun ar-Rashid. Perhaps, the fabulous Harun and the real Harun had only one thing in common. Both of them loved to wander incognito around Baghdad at night, accompanied by their friend and vizier Jafar Barmakid. Only a real sultan executed his real friend Jafar. So reality is much harsher than fairy tales.

On the way to the throne

Harun al-Rashid was born in 766 in ancient city Ray, located southwest of Tehran. He was the son of the third caliph of the Abbasid dynasty - al-Mahdi. Harun's grandfather - al-Mansur - was the actual founder and creator of a huge empire that went down in history as the Abbasid Caliphate.

This empire stretched from the Atlantic to the borders of China and from the Caucasus to India in Asia and the Sudan in Africa. Al-Mansur also founded the city of Baghdad, which by the time of the birth of Harun ar-Rashid had already become the largest and most magnificent city in the East. In Baghdad, there were about 20 thousand mosques and prayer places, 10 thousand baths and about 2.5 million inhabitants.

The air in Baghdad was cooled with the help of felt, which was stretched and then moistened with water, which, evaporating, saved from the heat of the day. About half of the entire area of ​​​​Baghdad was occupied by markets, which made this city the center of eastern trade.

But the main decoration of Baghdad was the caliph's palace, which seemed fabulous. It contained ponds of mercury and tin, trees skillfully crafted from precious metals, on which mechanical birds chirped. Around the pools were palm trees, their trunks up to the crown lined with carved teak, fastened with gilded metal hoops.

Although Harun spent his childhood in the Caliph's palace, in the luxury and servility of the eunuchs and freedmen around him, it cannot be said that he grew up pampered and lazy. On the contrary, he grew up pious, educated and strong. It is said that Harun wielded a sword superbly, shot accurately from a bow and sat firmly in the saddle. From childhood, he was guarded by advisers from the noble Persian family of the Barmakids. Yahya ibn Khalid, a representative of this family, was his mentor, and the young Jafar Barmakid became his best friend.

Intrigue in the harem

At the age of 16, his father appointed Harun to command military campaigns against Byzantium. It is clear that, due to his youth, he only formally led military expeditions. In fact, they were led by his experienced advisers, but nevertheless, the son of the caliph showed himself worthy in these campaigns. Moreover, in the second of them, under his command, the Arabs reached the Bosphorus for the first time.

It is curious that the young Harun became a military leader thanks to his mother al-Khayzuran, once a Yemeni slave, whom the caliph first granted freedom, and then married her in 775.

Al-Khayzuran was not the only wife of al-Mahdi. And all the wives intrigued against each other, trying to move their children closer to the caliph. So al-Khayzuran persuaded the caliph to entrust military leadership to their 16-year-old son, believing that this would have a favorable effect on his future career.

And I was not mistaken. After returning from the campaign, Harun was appointed ruler of Ifriqiya (modern Tunisia), Syria, Armenia and Azerbaijan. He was second in line to the Caliph throne after Musa, his elder brother.

After the death of al-Mahdi, Musa became caliph under the name al-Hadi. He imprisoned Harun's rival and forced him to swear an oath that he would renounce any claim to the throne.

But his mother al-Khayzuran and his mentor Yahya ibn Khalid did not take such an oath. They say that it was they who eliminated al-Hadi, who, under mysterious circumstances, passed into another world in 786 (there is a version that he was strangled in a dream). And then they elevated Harun to the throne.

Harun al-Rashid went down in history as a brilliant politician, patron of sciences and arts, a brilliant commander and a fearless warrior. However, this is not entirely true. Although Harun became caliph, but in fact the caliphate was ruled by others - those who brought him to power. His mentor Yahya ibn Khalid remained in power for a long time and only al-Khayzuran gave an account of his actions, which in political life the caliphate played a dominant role.

Politician without mercy

Only after the death of his mother, three years after his accession to the throne, Harun began to take the reins of government into his own hands, gradually removing the Barmakids from government. And then he decided to get rid of them altogether. On January 29, 803, by order of Harun, his friend, Jafar Barmakid, was killed. A former mentor Yahya and many members of his family were thrown into prison.

It is said that Jafar was not only a friend, but also Harun's lover. And there is a legend about his death. Once the caliph and his vizier had a merry feast together, and after the feast, Harun ordered the eunuch to bring him the head of Jafar. When a eunuch with a sword in his hands appeared before the vizier and announced that he had been sentenced to death by the order of the caliph, Jafar began to beg for mercy.

He convinced that the caliph gave the order under the influence of wine, and in the morning he would oversleep and execute the eunuch for his execution. The eunuch doubted and, together with the vizier, went to the caliph. Harun, seeing them, said menacingly to the eunuch: "I asked you not to bring Jafar, but to bring his head." And the servant immediately cut off the vizier's head.

The reign of Harun al-Rashid is called the "golden time" of the Abbasid Caliphate. But most likely, the world fame of the wise and just ruler Harun was brought by Arab merchants. What flourished under him was trade. Its merchants conducted trading operations in a vast area from China to East Africa. They told all over the world about their great caliph and his wealth.

Harun was a good military leader. He successfully fought against Byzantium and created a fleet in his caliphate, which raided the islands of Cyprus and Rhodes. He also patronized the arts. But mostly - the arts associated with religious activities. Unlike the fairy-tale Harun, the real Harun was a stingy man. He did not give to the poor. On the contrary, in order to maintain the luxury of his court, the caliph was merciless in collecting taxes.

Harun was a pious, but by no means a kind ruler. Upon accession to the throne, he proclaimed a general amnesty. But he left in prison the so-called zindiks - those who deviated from the traditional Muslim religion. In relation to the Gentiles, he often showed cruelty. I made restrictions for them. For example, they were not supposed to wear the same shoes as the faithful. Zindiki were supposed to ride not on horses, but on donkeys. And in 806, the caliph ordered the destruction of all Christian churches in the territories conquered and bordering on Byzantium.

The caliph's not always considered decisions and the forcible imposition of Islam on the subject territories were also reflected in the calmness in the Abbasid empire. The most dangerous were the performances of representatives of one of the currents of Islam - the Kharijites - in the provinces of North Africa, North Mesopotamia and in Sijistan.

Every now and then, uprisings broke out against the power of the Abbasids in Central Asia, Egypt, Syria and Tunisia. The caliph himself often had to lead an army to suppress rebellions. During a military campaign to suppress the uprising of Rafi ibn Leys in Central Asia, he was overtaken by death in 809. Already departing to another world, the caliph whispered: "Oh Immortal, forgive the mortal."

The collapse of the empire

Harun al-Rashid had three sons: Muhammad Al-Amin, which means "Reliable", Abdallah Al-Mamun - "Worthy of trust", Muhammad al-Mutasim - "Confident". He established for his sons the order of succession to the throne. But after his death, they disobeyed their father's covenant and staged a strife, which first led to a civil war in the country, and then to the collapse of the Abbasid Caliphate.

Oleg LOGINOV