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| Yaqub Al-Mansur | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amir al-Mu'minin | |||||
.jpg) Yaʿqūb al-Manṣūr's unfinished mosque in Rabat | |||||
| Ruler of theAlmohad Caliphate | |||||
| Reign | 1184–1199 | ||||
| Predecessor | Abu Yaqub Yusuf | ||||
| Successor | Muhammad al-Nasir | ||||
| Died | 23 January 1199(1199-01-23) (aged 38–39) Marrakesh | ||||
| Burial | |||||
| Spouse | Ammet Allah bint Abu Isaac[1] Safiya bint Abu Abdallah ben Merdnych[2] | ||||
| Issue | Muhammad al-Nasir Idris al-Ma'mun | ||||
| |||||
| Dynasty | Almohad | ||||
| Father | Abu Yaqub Yusuf | ||||
| Religion | Islam | ||||
Abū Yūsuf Yaʿqūb ibn Yūsuf ibn Abd al-Muʾmin al-Manṣūr (Arabic:أبو يوسف يعقوب بن يوسف بن عبد المؤمن المنصور; d. 23 January 1199), commonly known asYaqub al-Mansur (يعقوب المنصور) orMoulay Yacoub (مولاي يعقوب), was the thirdAlmohadcaliph.[3] Succeeding his father, al-Mansur reigned from 1184 to 1199. His reign was distinguished by the flourishing of trade, architecture, philosophy and the sciences, as well as by victorious military campaigns in which he was successful in repelling the tide of theReconquista in theIberian Peninsula.
Al-Mansur's father was killed inPortugal on 29 July 1184; upon reachingSeville with his father's body on 10 August, he was immediately proclaimed the new caliph.[3] Al-Mansur vowed revenge for his father's death, but fighting with theBanu Ghaniya delayed him in Africa. After inflicting a new defeat on the Banu Ghaniya, he set off for theIberian Peninsula to avenge his father's death.
His 13 July 1190siege of Tomar, center of thePortuguese Templars, failed to capture the fortress. However, further south he in 1191 recaptured a major fortress,Paderne Castle and the surrounding territory near Albufeira, in theAlgarve – which had been controlled by thePortuguese army ofKing Sancho I since 1182. Having inflicted other defeats on the Christians and captured major cities, he returned to the Maghreb with three thousand Christian captives.
Upon Al-Mansur's return to Africa, however, Christians inIberian Peninsula resumed the offensive, capturing many of the Moorish cities, includingSilves,Vera, andBeja.
When Al-Mansur heard this news, he returned to the Iberian Peninsula, and defeated the Christians again. This time, many were taken in chained groups of fifty each, and later sold in Africa as slaves.
While Al-Mansur was away in Africa, the Christians mounted the largest army of that period, of over 300,000 men, to defeat Al-Mansur. However, immediately upon hearing this, Al-Mansur returned again to Iberia and defeatedCastilian KingAlfonso VIII Alfonso's army in theBattle of Alarcos, on 18 July 1195. It was said that Al-Mansur's forces killed 150,000 and took money, valuables and other goods "beyond calculation". It was after this victory that he took the titleal-Mansur Billah ("Made Victorious by God").[3]
During his reign, Al-Mansur undertook several major construction projects. He added a monumental gate to theKasbah of the Udayas inRabat and he may have been responsible for finishing the construction of the currentKutubiyya Mosque inMarrakesh. He also created a vastroyal citadel and palace complex in Marrakesh which subsequently remained the seat of government in the city for centuries afterward. This royal district included theKasbah Mosque (or El-Mansuriyya Mosque) in Marrakesh and was accessed via the monumental gate of Bab Agnaou, both dating from al-Mansur's time. He also embarked on the construction of an even bigger fortified capital in Rabat, where he attempted to build what would have been the world'slargest mosque. However, construction on the mosque and on this new citadel stopped after his death. Only the beginnings of the mosque had been completed, including a large part of its massive minaret now known as theHassan Tower.
Some of Rabat's historic gates, most notablyBab er-Rouah, also date from this time,[4][5][6] one of Al-Mansur's famous works is theBimaristan of Marrakesh, the first hospital in Morocco to be ever built, Al-Mansur embellished it with luxurious ornaments and sculptures, it had gardens, water canals attached to it and it was Funded personally by Almohad's government, it is said thatAverroes worked there for some time.[7][8]
Al-Mansur protected the philosopherAverroes and kept him as a favorite at court. Like many of the Almohad caliphs, Al-Mansur was religiously learned. He favored theZahirite or literalistschool of Muslimjurisprudence per Almohad doctrine and possessed a relatively extensive education in the Muslimprophetic tradition; he even wrote his own book on therecorded statements and actions of theprophetMuhammad.[9] Mansur's Zahirism was clear when he ordered his judges toexercise judgment only according to theQur'an, said recorded statements andabsolute consensus. Mansur's father Abu Yaqub appointed Cordoban polymathIbn Maḍāʾ as chief judge, and the two of them oversaw the banning of all non-Zahirite religious books during theAlmohad reforms;[10] Mansur was not satisfied, and when he inherited the throne he ordered Ibn Maḍāʾ to actually undertake the burning of such books.[11]
He died on 23 January 1199 in Marrakesh.[12] He was buried temporarily in his palace in Marrakesh before being taken to his final burial place inTinmal, where previous Almohad caliphs andIbn Tumart were also buried.[6]: 109
His victory inAlarcos was remembered for centuries later, when the tide of war turned against the Muslim side. It is recounted by the historianIbn Abi Zar in his 1326Rawd al-Qirtas ("History of the Rulers of the Maghreb").[13]
The town ofMoulay Yacoub, outside ofFez, Morocco, is named after Al-Mansur,[citation needed] and is best known for its therapeutic hot springs.
| Preceded by | Almohad Caliph 1184–1199 | Succeeded by |
...had as mother a legitime wife (of his father) Ammet Allah (servant of God), daughter of the sid Abou Ishac ben Abd el-Moumen ben Aly
His mother... Safya ... daughter of emir Abou Abd Allah ben Merdnych
