Yahya ibn Yahya

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Yahya II
يحيى الثاني
Emir of Morocco
Reign863–866
PredecessorYahya I ibn Muhammad
SuccessorAli II
Bornunknown
Died866
Names
Yahya ibn Yahya ibn Muhammad ibn Idris ibn Idris
DynastyIdrisid
ReligionIslam

Yahya ibn Yahya (Arabic: يحيى بن يحيى) was the sixth Idrisid ruler of Morocco, and the last of the main branch of the dynasty.

Life[edit]

Yahya was the namesake son of the fifth Idrisid emir, Yahya ibn Muhammad, and came to power in 863.[1] Unlike the consolidating tendencies of his two predecessors, he was a weak ruler who preferred the luxuries of palace life to government.[2] He parcelled out the Idrisid realm to his relatives: his uncle Husayn received much land to the south of the capital, Fes; his great-uncle, al-Qasim, received the western half of Fes itself, along with the eastern frontier provinces of the Berber tribes of Luwata and Kutama; and another great-uncle, Dawud ibn Idris, who ruled the country of the Hawwara Berbers, also increased his domains.[1]

Yahya's reign in Fes appears to have been secure, as coins with his name are known, unlike his father.[3] Nevertheless, Yahya's dissolute life soon led to scandal, which forced him to flee the palace into the Andalusian quarter of Fes, where he died in unclear circumstances.[4] A powerful citizen of Fes, Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Sahl al-Judhami, tried to seize power, but Yahya's widow called upon her father, Ali ibn Umar from the collateral Banu Umar branch of the Idrisids, for aid.[4] Ali gained control over Fes, but his power was challenged by Kharijite rebels, and power eventually passed to the Banu Qasim branch of the family.[3][4]

Genealogy[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Eustache 1971, p. 1035.
  2. ^ Eustache 1971, pp. 1035–1036.
  3. ^ a b Benchekroun 2018.
  4. ^ a b c Eustache 1971, p. 1036.

Sources[edit]

Preceded by Idrisid emir of Morocco
863–866
Succeeded by