Aḥamed ibn Ṭūlūn
Aḥamed ibn Ṭūlūn ; c. 20 September 835 – 10 May 884
Aḥamed ibn Ṭūlūn was the founder of the Tulunid dynasty that ruled Egypt and Syria between 868 and 905. soldier,
In 868, the Abbasid caliph sent Ibn Tulun to Egypt as governor. Within four years, Ibn Tulun had established himself as a virtually independent ruler through the caliph’s tax agent, Ibn al-Mudabbir,
to expel from the country, take control of Egypt’s finances, and establish a large military force personally loyal to itself.
The unstable political situation in the Abbasid court and the preoccupation of the Abbasid regent, al-Mawaffaq, with the wars against the Saffarids and the Zanj rebellion facilitated this process.
Aḥamed ibn Ṭūlūn also ensured efficient administration in Egypt. After tax system reforms,
repairs to the irrigation system and other measures, the annual tax revenue grew significantly.
As a symbol of his new regime, he built a new capital, al-Qata’i, north of the old capital Fustat.
After 875/6 he entered into open conflict with al-Muwafaq, who tried in vain to overthrow him. In 878, Aḥamed ibn Ṭūlūn, with the support of al-Muwaffaq’s brother, Caliph al-Mu’tamid, took over the administration of Syria,
as well as the border districts with the Byzantine Empire,
although control over Tarsus in particular proved weak. During his absence in Syria, his eldest son and deputy,
Abbas, to take power in Egypt, leading to the capture of Abbas and the appointment of Ibn Tulun’s second son, Khumarawayh,
as his heir. The defection in 882 of a high commander, Lu’lu’, to al-Muwafaq, and the defection of Tarsus, forced Ibn Tulun to return to Syria. Now almost powerless,
al-Mu’tamid attempted to escape from his brother’s control to Ibn Tulun’s domains, but was captured by al-Muwaffaq’s agents, and Ibn Tulun convened a meeting of jurists in Damascus to denounce al-Muwaffaq as a usurper.
His attempt to bring Tarsus into line in the autumn of 883 failed and he fell ill. He returned to Egypt, died in May 884, and Khumarawayh succeeded him.
Ibn Tulun has the distinction of being the first governor of a major province of the Abbasid Caliphate not only to establish himself as his master independently of the Abbasid court, but also to transfer power to his son.
He was therefore also the first ruler since the Ptolemaic pharaohs to make Egypt an independent political power again.
with a sphere of influence that included Syria and parts of the Maghreb, and set the tone for later Egypt-based Islamic regimes, from the Ikhshidids to the Mamluk. Sultanate of Cairo.
Mosque of Ibn Tulun
Ahmad Ibn Tulun was of Turkish origin and sent by the Caliph of Baghdad to rule Cairo in the years 868-884.
His rule was characterized by independence.
The construction of his mosque started in 876 AD. B.C. and completed in 878/879, making the mosque the oldest surviving building in Cairo.
Not the oldest mosque because that is the mosque of Amr.
The mosque was constructed on a small hill known as Gebel Yashkur, or “The Hill of Thanksgiving”
A local legend says that this is where Noah’s Ark came to rest after the Flood, rather than on Mount Ararat in Saudi Arabia.
The Great Mosque was intended as the focal point of Ibn Tulun’s capital al-Qata’i, which served as the center of administration for the Tulunid dynasty.
Originally the mosque was located next to Ibn Tulun’s palace and a door next to it
the minbar (A minbar is a pulpit in the mosque where the imam (prayer leader) stands to deliver sermons) gave him direct access to the mosque.
Al-Qata’i was founded in the early 10th century AD. B.C. destroyed and the mosque is the only surviving structure.
The mosque is built in the Samaritan style common in Abbasid constructions.
mosque is built around a courtyard, with a covered hall, along the longest wall is the qibla, towards Mecca.
The original mosque featured a fountain in the center of the sahn (courtyard), as per traditional Islamic architecture, where every mosque has a sahn surrounded by an arcade.
covered a gilded dome supported by ten marble columns and surrounding it were 16 marble columns and a marble pavement. Under the dome was a large marble basin.
A distinctive sebil (sebil is a small kiosk in the Islamic architectural tradition where water is freely provided to the public by an attendant behind a grilled window) with a tall trumpet dome,
At the end of the 13th century, Mamluk Sultan Lajin replaced the fountain in the central courtyard with it.
The minaret has a spiral external staircase so that you can climb it completely.
It is also said that you can climb these stairs on a horse
Legend has it that Ibn Tulun himself was accidentally responsible for the design of the structure,
Presumably while sitting with his officials, he absentmindedly wound a piece of parchment around his finger.
When someone asked him what he was doing, he embarrassedly replied that he was designing his minaret.
However, many of the architectural features point to a later construction,
in particular the way in which the minaret does not fit properly into the main structure of the mosque,
something that would have happened if the minaret and mosque had been built at the same time
Some believe Sultan Lajin, who restored the mosque in 1296, constructed the current minaret.
There are six prayer niches (mihrab) in the mosque, five of which are flat and the main concave niche.
The main niche which stands in the center of the qibla wall and is the largest of the six.
Sultan Lajin redecorated it, adding a top of painted wood.
the shahada in a band of glass mosaics and a bottom of marble panels.
The same qibla wall has a smaller niche to the left of the main niche. Its stalactite work and naskhi calligraphy indicate an early Mamluk origin
The two prayer niches on the pillars,
flanking the dikka (dikka is a term in Islamic architecture for a tribune resting on columns state and from which the Quran is recited and prayers are offered by the imam of a mosque) are decorated in a unique medallion with a star hanging on a chain.
Kufic shahada inscriptions on both niches mention that Ali was not Shi’a Fatimids in power,
westernmost prayer niche, the mihrab of al-Afdal Shahanshah, is a replica of the original and
preserved in the Museum of Islamic Art in Cairo. Its ornate decoration reflects influences from Persia.
The Kufic inscription mentions the Fatimid caliph al-Mustansir,
at whose orders the niche was made, as well as the Shi’a shahada including Ali as God’s wali (is an Arabic word whose literal meaning “master”, “authority”, “custodian”, “protector” and “friend”) after declaring the
unity of God and the prophethood of Muhammad.
On the pier to the left are the remains of a copy of al-Afdal’s mihrab. However, it differs by too
referring to Sultan Lajin instead of al-Mustansir and the absence of Ali’s name.
