Ali ibn Ahmad al-Jarjara’i | |
|---|---|
| Fatimidvizier | |
| In office 1027 – 27 March 1045 | |
| Succeeded by | Sadaqah ibn Yusuf al-Falahi andAbu Sa'd al-Tustari |
| Personal details | |
| Born | |
| Died | (1045-03-27)27 March 1045 |
Abu’l-Qāsim ʿAlī ibn Aḥmad al-Jarjarāʾī was aFatimid official ofIraqi origin, who served as the Fatimidvizier from 1027 until his death on 27 March 1045.
As hisnisba shows, he came from the locality ofJarjaraya, south ofBaghdad.[1] He came toEgypt along with his brotherAbu'l-Barakat al-Husayn al-Jarjara'i, and held a succession of offices in theFatimid bureaucracy.[1] He entered the service ofSitt al-Mulk, before becoming secretary to the police chief ofCairo. He was convicted of disloyalty when he opened letters of the secret services in 1013, as a result of which his hands were cut off. However the Caliphal-Hakim soon regretted this harsh punishment, and took him back into the palace and promoted him to high office.
In 1015/6 he was appointed head of thedīwān al-nafaḳāt (bureau of expenditure), before rising to the post ofwāsiṭa (the official intermediary between Caliph and the people) in 1021/2, and finally achieving the post of vizier in 1027. He held the post under the caliphsAli az-Zahir andal-Mustansir until his death in March 1045.[1]
During his tenure, after the pacification of Syria byAnushtakin al-Dizbari, al-Jarjara'i, concerned himself with improving relations with theByzantine Empire. A ceasefire had been in place since 1027, and after fresh fighting in 1036 a peace treaty was agreed. The main point of contention was the suzerainty over theEmirate of theMirdasids inAleppo, which both powers made claim to. In practice a kind of dual control came into operation.
Al-Jarjara'i assumed the regency during Caliph al-Mustansir's early reign, though his rule was moderated for its duration by the influence of the caliph's powerful motherRasad.
| Preceded by | Vizier of theFatimid Caliphate 1027–1045 | Succeeded by |
