WARRIORS OF THE ABBASID CALIPHATE

Author(s): Adam Ali

Source: Medieval Warfare , SEP / OCT 2018, Vol. 8, No. 4, IN THIS ISSUE: THE BIRKEBEINER
RISE TO POWER IN 12TH-CENTURY NORWAY (1177-1202) (SEP / OCT 2018), pp. 44-48
Published by: Karwansaray BV

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/48577987

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SPECIAL

DIVERSITY IN MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC ARMIES

WARRIORS OF THE
This h
eavily a
rmore
m a
d
n
ABBASID CALIPHATE
“When troops are all of one race dangers arise; they lack zeal
valry
sani ca
Khura k on t he and they are apt to be disorderly. It is necessary that they
e a tan
was lik lef ield .
al batt should be of different races.”
mediev lia Lilo
© Ju

By Adam Ali
n

T
hese are the words of the elev-
enth-century Seljuk vizier, Nizam
al-Mulk, in the Siyasat Nameh, a
medieval Persian political treatise.
He goes on to give the example of
sultan Mahmud of Ghazni, whose
army was composed of “various
races such as Turks, Khurasanis, Arabs, Hindus,
men of Ghur and Daylam. When he was on an ex-
pedition, every night he used to detail several men
of each group to go on guard and allotted each
group their station; and for fear of one another no
group dared to move from their places; they kept
watch until daybreak in competition with one an-
other and did not go to sleep. And when it was
the day of battle, each race strove to preserve their
name and honour, and fought all the more zeal-
ously lest anyone should say that such-and-such
race showed slackness in battle.”
Al-Mulk was not alone in thinking that armies
should be ethnically diverse, and many rulers of the
medieval Muslim world found practical military reasons
for such practices. They enlisted men from various eth-
nic and religious backgrounds who brought their unique
weapons, fighting styles, and specialized skills with them.

44 Medieval Warfare VIII-4

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The Abbasid period (750-1258) saw a great
increase in the diversity of the caliphate’s
army. After the decline of the caliphs’ pow-
er and the fragmentation of the caliphate in
the ninth century, the Abbasid armies re-
mained the model upon which the Muslim
armies of the emerging polities were mod-
eled. The following is a list and description
of five of the most famous and deadliest
groups during the Abbasid period.
The Khurasanis
The Abbasids came to power after over-
throwing the Umayyad dynasty through
a revolution in 750. Their uprising was
launched from Khurasan, the large east-
ern province of the caliphate, and the
majority of the troops that fought against
the Umayyad armies were men from this
region. The Khurasani military was a force
composed of Arabs, Iranians, and the de-
scendants of mixed marriages between
these two groups. Its ranks were filled with
veterans who had participated in military
campaigns defending the eastern frontier
of the caliphate from nomadic incursions.
The region of Khurasan had a rich and
varied military history and traditions, and
its warriors had a profound impact on the
Muslim armies that conquered the region.
Al-Jahiz, a medieval Arab writer, describes
the Khurasanis in the Abbasid army as being
heavily armored cavalrymen, probably refer-
ring to the dihqāns or lower nobility of the
region that had survived from the Sassanian
period. He also states that other Khurasanis
were infantrymen or mounted infantry who
rode to the battlefield and dismounted to
fight. The soldiers from this region were also
renowned for their expertise in both offen-
sive and defensive siege warfare.
The Khurasani soldiers’ arms and ar-
mor were heavily influenced by both Ira-
nian and steppe military traditions. They
wore a combination of quilted, chain mail,
and lamellar cuirasses, and helmets with
camails and nose guards. They wielded an
array of weapons including lances, straight
broadswords, sabers, axes, and maces, and
were excellent marksmen both on foot and
mounted. In the mid-eighth century they
formed one of the largest and most pow-
erful elements of the early Abbasid army.
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Although most of the Khurasanis remained
in Khurasan, a significant group of them,
the Abna, settled in Iraq.
The Abna
The Abna (‘sons’) were the backbone
and elite of the early Abbasid army.
They were the descendants of the
Khurasani revolutionaries and lived
in and around Baghdad. They feature
prominently in sources describing
military accounts during the early to
mid-ninth century. Although they proud-
ly acknowledged their Khurasani descent,
they viewed themselves first and foremost
as the loyalists of the Abbasid caliphs and
as Baghdadis. They even clashed with their
Khurasani brethren during the Abbasid Civil
War (811-819). In this conflict the Abna
supported the interests of Baghdad, Iraq,
and the ruling caliph, al-Amin, against
those of his brother, al-Mamun, who was
the governor of Khurasan.
The merit of the Abna lay in their ver-
satility, as they fought both on foot and
on horseback. However, al-Jahiz describes
the Abna as infantry par excellence. Heav-
ily armored and armed with long
n
spears, axes, daggers, swords,
and arrows, they excelled at ur-
ban combat. According to the sources,
they were unrivalled at fighting in trenches,
on bridges, in streets and alleys, in market
antry were
places, and in prisons. They were also adept Abna heavy inf
ban combat
at combat in villages, on fields, in defiles, on experts at ur
fare.
and siege war
broken terrain, and at sea. Their proximity to
© Julia Lilo
the Abbasid caliphs, their fierce loyalty, and
their versatility made the Abna the elite of
the Abbasid armies until the incorporation
of the Turks into the military after the mid-
ninth century. The Abna are last mentioned
in the sources in 870 after having repeatedly
failed in their struggle for military promi-
nence against the ascendant Turks.
The Daylamis
The region of northern Iran that cradles the
Caspian Sea was known as Daylam in the
Middle Ages. This area was mountainous,
heavily wooded, and isolated from much of
the world around it; it was considered back-
ward and uncivilized in the contemporary
Arabic and Persian sources. This region main-
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Medieval Warfare VIII-4
45
 tained its autonomy during both the Sassanian
and Islamic periods due to its inaccessibility.
The Daylamis exploded onto the politi-
cal and military scene during the tenth cen-
tury. These hardy highlanders were a warlike
people and made a name for themselves as
formidable mercenaries in medieval Islamic
armies. They were present in the forces of the
Samanids and the Ghaznavids in the eastern
parts of the Muslim world; they served the Ab-
basid caliphs in Iraq, and were also present
as far west as Egypt at the court of the Fatim-
ids. Several Daylami soldiers of fortune such
as Makan ibn Kaki, Mardavij ibn Ziyar, and
the Buyid brothers were also able to carve out
principalities for themselves. In the case of the
Buyids, the three brothers Ali, al-Hasan, and
Daylamis were
tough Ahmad were able to conquer a large empire
highlanders fr
om North-
ern Iran who we that included Iraq, western Iran, and large
re adept
at fighting both parts of Khurasan, and to establish a dynasty
on broken
terrain and in that ruled from 934 to 1062.
shield wall
formation on
flat ground. Like other famous medieval merce-
© Julia Lilo naries from mountainous regions, such as
the Swiss and the Almughavars, the Day-
n
lamis fought as infantrymen. Their primary
weapons were a set of zupins, short two-
pronged spears or javelins, which they
both hurled and used for close combat,
and they carried large brightly color-
ed and highly decorated
shields. Other arma-
ments in their arsenal
included battle axes,
bows and arrows,
and swords that they
hung from baldrics.
Some of the wealthier
warriors wore heavy
armor, but most Day-
lamis were lightly
armored or
unarmored.
In battle,
they advanced on their enemies
using a shield-wall formation from
behind which they used their bat-
tle axes and zupins. In open battle-
fields the Daylami infantrymen were at
a disadvantage due to their inability to
maneuver or flee and regroup as quickly
as cavalry. The Daylamis were adept at
fighting in difficult mountainous, bro-
ken, wooded, and forested terrain, and
46 Medieval Warfare VIII-4
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on such landscapes they had a definite ad-
vantage over and could outfight even the
most elite cavalry. During the tenth and
eleventh centuries, the Daylamis came to
form the elite infantry of the armies of the
Muslim world, while the elite cavalry was
comprised of Turks.
Africans
Africans were present in Muslim armies
from the inception of Islam in the form of
Ethiopian ex-slave converts. The use of
black soldiers in Muslim armies continued
throughout the Middle Ages. For example,
there was a contingent of around 800 black
soldiers in Tariq Ibn Ziyad’s army that invad-
ed the Iberian Peninsula in 711.
A large proportion of these African sol-
diers were military slaves who had been
brought across the Sahara. They had a signifi-
cant presence in the Abbasid military. For ex-
ample, there was a contingent of 4,000 black
soldiers in Mosul in 751. An elite unit of
forty black slaves formed Harun al-Rashid’s
bodyguard, while his son, al-Amin, created
the Ghurabiyya, or the ‘Raven Corps’, which
was composed of Ethiopians. Large numbers
of black soldiers also defected to the Abbasid
army from the ranks of the rebels towards the
end of the Zanj rebellion (a major slave re-
volt in Southern Iraq). However, the records
show the reduction and eventual disappear-
ance of Africans in Abbasid armies, prob-
ably due to the rise of rival dynasties such as
the Aghlabids in North Africa and the Tulu-
nids, Ikhshidids, and Fatimids in Egypt, who
blocked the routes along which these slaves
were transported to Syria and Iraq.
African slave soldiers played a much more
significant role in the armies of North African
dynasties. The founder of the Tulunid dynasty,
Ahmad ibn Tulun, initially had 12,000 Afri-
can soldiers in his army, in addition to other
elements including Turks and Iranians. The
Tulunids became rivals of the Abbasids with
their power base in Egypt, and at the peak of
their military power their black slave soldiers
numbered 40,000-45,000. Egypt returned to
the Abbasid fold for a short period before it
split off again, this time under the Ikhshidids.
Half of the Ikhshidid forces were composed of
black slaves. This is not surprising due to the
geographical proximity of the source for this
manpower, and also because Kafur, a former
black slave, eunuch, and tutor to the princes
of the dynasty, seized power for himself.
The Fatimids conquered Egypt in 969.
Initially, their forces were composed of Ber-
ber tribesmen, but eventually they included
Turks, Africans, Saqaliba, and Armenians. In
fact, in the late Fatimid period the Africans
formed the core of the Fatimid army, num-
bering between 40,000 and 50,000 soldiers.
They presented the main force of resistance
against Saladin during his rise to power. They
were destroyed in their failed attempt to over-
throw him in order to restore Fatimid rule.
Black slave soldiers fought primarily as
infantrymen. Early Muslim sources describe
encounters with Nubians and state that they
were excellent bowmen and adept at fight-
ing with javelins. However, many African sol-
diers fought primarily as heavy infantrymen in
the armies of the Fatimids and the Tulunids,
armed with swords, spears, and shields.
The Turks
The Turks arguably formed the most important
and powerful element of the armies of the Ab-
basid caliphate. In fact, they dominated the
militaries of the Muslim world for a millen-
nium between the ninth and nineteenth cen-
turies. The first contacts between the Muslims
and the Turks occurred in the mid-seventh
century as Islam expanded eastward toward
Central Asia. Initially, the Turks fought against
the caliphate, although some of them did end
up in its armies. However, it was not until the
early ninth century that the they entered the
Muslim domains in large numbers as merce-
naries, in tribal migrations, and as slaves. They
were almost always incorporated into the mil-
itaries of the Muslim rulers and were viewed
as the best soldiers in the Muslim world.
Tribal Turkic warriors, known as Turk-
men, were light cavalrymen. They were
skilled horsemen and, according to the
sources, peerless when it came to mounted
archery. Turkmen armies often wore down
their enemies with a hail of arrows without
engaging them until they had caused so
much confusion and disarray in their ranks
that they could not present an effective de-
fense. They also used the feigned retreat
tactic to draw their enemies into an impetu-
ous pursuit into an ambush or a counter-
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attack. In close combat, Turkmen warriors
used lances, sabers, and maces. They were
especially adept at using lassoes to entan-
gle their enemies and pull them off their
mounts. Although Turkmen were a military
asset due to their mobility, speed, and dis-
cipline in battle, they were also an unruly
lot during times of peace. Their
martial nature made them
difficult to con-
trol, and
they often clashed
with both the urban and the
rural populations. Rulers often
tried to relegate these nomadic
warriors to the frontiers of their
realms so that they could expend
their energies beyond the borders and
far away from the agricultural, econom-
ic, and urban centers.
The Turkic slave soldiers, referred to
as ghilman and mamluks, were the best war-
riors of the Muslim world for centuries. It
can be argued that they were the best trained
and most elite soldiers of the medieval pe-
riod. Although they were purchased as slaves
from a young age, they were in fact more like
retainers and household guards than slaves.
They were very well equipped and
highly paid for their services, ei-
ther in the form of stipends or in iqtas,
which were plots of land from which these
n
soldiers collected revenues. Due to the high
costs in educating, maintaining, and equip- rdy
iers were ha
African sold
ping these warriors, only the rulers and the avy infan tr ymen
and reliable he
most powerful magnates could afford to shot s w ith both
and excellent
employ them. These mamluks formed a part lin.
bow and jave
of their patron’s household, where they re- © Julia Lilo
ceived the highest quality training and edu-
cation. Upon the completion of their training
they were often manumitted, but continued
to serve their patrons. In fact, slave soldiers
were extremely loyal to their masters, and
the medieval sources abound with accounts
of mamluks refusing to abandon their defeat-
ed masters and fighting to the last man de-
fending them, even after the battle was lost.
As members of a caliph’s or a sultan’s
household, the mamluks with the highest
potential often rose to become adminis-
trators, ministers, and army commanders.
These high-ranking mamluks in the army
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47
 OTHER WARRIORS IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD The Kurds rose to prominence Armenians featured most promi-
under Saladin. They formed nently in the late Fatimid army,
A number of Franks deserted one of two major elements in which they dominated for a while,
and joined the armies of vari- the Ayyubid army next to the serving as cavalry, infantry, and arch-
ous Muslim principalities. Most Turks. They declined in impor- ers. They were also present in the
of them served as heavy cavalry. tance during the Mamluk pe- Abbasid military, especially the new
The Saqaliba were elite infantry
and cavalry slave soldiers of Cau- riod, but continued to serve as army created by al-Mutawakkil to
casian (especially Slavic) back- infantry and cavalry auxiliaries. counter the rising power of the Turks.
ground who served primarily in
the armies of Islamic Spain, North The Shakiriyya, initially small
Africa, and the Ikhshidid and Fa- groups of aristocrats’ retain-
timids rulers of Egypt. ers, was a unit of heavy
cavalry in the Abbasid army
The Zutt, originally from northern India, had that originated from Eastern
been settled in Iraq and the Persian Gulf Iran and Central Asia.
region by the Sassanians. They were adept
at fighting in the marshes and served as
auxiliaries in the armies of the caliphate.

The Dihqans were Iranian landed gentry. Many

were descendants of the vaunted savaran/asawira
heavy cavalry of the Sasanians, and they contin- Hindus were recruited into the
ued serving in that capacity in the Abbasid army. Muslim armies in the east. There
was an exceptionally heavy pres-
ence of them in the Ghaznavid
Berber tribesmen, hardy and By the early Abbasid period, military, including archers, spear-
disciplined light infantry, were Arabs no longer played an im- men, and war elephant drivers.
The Maghariba (‘westerners’) was
recruited by the dynasties that portant role in the regular army,
a light infantry unit in the Ab-
ruled Muslim Spain and North Af- but served in Muslim armies as
basid army that was composed of
rica, and by the Fatimids in Egypt. light cavalry, infantry archers,
men from Egypt and North Africa.
and urban militia auxiliaries.

ers,
mobile skirmish and the government commanded their own mamluk regi-
Able to act as , the
k ca va lry
and shoc ments and were very wealthy, often owning palaces, vast
heavy cavalry, s on e of
warrior wa
Turkic mamluk rs atile tracts of land, and huge quantities of livestock. For example,
, and m os t ve
the best-trained pe rio d. Alp-Tegin was a slave who served the Samanid dynasty dur-
m ed iev al
soldiers of the Lilo ing the tenth century in eastern Iran. He rose to the position
© Julia
n

of head of the royal guard; he was later given the governor-

ship of the city of Balkh, and eventually became the governor
of Khurasan and the commander in chief of the Samanid army.
At the height of his power he had a personal guard of 2,000
mamluks. He owned palaces in every major city of the Samanid
Empire, including Bukhara and Samarqand,
and possessed land and estates amounting
to 500 villages. According to Nizam al-Mulk,
he also had 1,000,000 sheep and over 100,000
horses, camels, and mules. This slave was
wealthier and more powerful than all the
freeborn aristocracy of the realm and
even his own master. The Samanid
army in Khurasan, number-
ing between 30,000 and
100,000 men, was also
loyal to him. Alp-Tegin
had a falling out with
his master and departed
to Ghazna, in modern-
day Afghanistan, where he founded a rival empire
that eventually conquered the Samanid domains. MW

Adam Ali is a lecturer at the University of Toronto.

48 Medieval Warfare VIII-4

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