Slave Soldiers and Islam_ The Genesis of a Military System - Daniel Pipes

Appendix 5

207

(wrote 366/977):

"al-MuCtas.im

asked cAbdallh

b..Thir Jr.

213-30/828-45]
(or

wrotetohim

asking)whattherewastobe

enviedinKhurasanandTransoxiana.cAbdallh
b..Thir

dis-

patchedtheletterto
Nfih.

b.Asadb.Smn,whowrotebackto

al-MuCta.sim:

’Khurasan andTransoxianahave300,000

villages.

Ifone

horseman and one
infantryman

were taken from each, the

population

wouldnotnoticealoss.’

KhurasanisandTransoxianians"aremostsubmissivetotheir

notablesandmostcarefulto
please

theirrulers.

These

qualities

encouraged

theAbbasid

caliphs

to

bring

recruitsfromTran-

soxiana.
The Turks formed their armies thanks to their

superiority

overall

otherarmies.The

dihq{zns

servedastheir

officers.
[TheTurks] distinguishedthemselvesfromallother

soldiers
by

their

great courage, temerity,

and fortitude; this

pushedthemaheadoftheothers.

"Onaccountoftheir

agreeableservice,eagerobedience,and

fine
bearing

in

government

uniform,the

dihqns

ofTransoxiana

becomecommanders,theretinue,andtheelite
guard

ofkhdims.

They

becametheretinueofthe

caliphate

anditstrusted

agents.

"Theleadersofthe

camps,

suchasthe

Faraghanians

andthe

Turks,
providedthepoliceforce forthe
caliph’s

palace.

"Turkswhotookcontrolofthe

caliphate(on

accountoftheir

courage

and

daring)

included:al-Afshin;the

family

of

Abfi’s-Sj

fromUshrusana;theIkhshidfrom
Samarqand;

al-Marzubnb.

Taraksafi;Ujayfb.Anbasafrom
Soghdia;

theBukhrtkho-

dhh; and other
leading

amirs, commanders, and soldiers"

(al-Maslik,pp.291-92,

and

2rat

al-Ard.,pp.467-68).

10. AI-Balawi
    (late

4th/10th

century):

"When

al-Mutas.im

bi-llh
singled

outthe Turksand humbledtheArabians,he

made theTurks the

support (ar)

ofhis

dynasty

and the

mainstay

of his movement

(aClm

daCwati) (Srat

Ah.mad

b.

Tln,
p.

32).

11.

Miskawayh

(421/1030):

"al-MuCta.sim’s

Turkishghulms

werenon-Arabians
(CAjam)

whomhehad

trained(#t.anaCa).

He

sawexcellent
qualities

inthem."

(Tajrib

al-Uman,

p.

478).

12. ath-Thalibi(429/1038):

"AI-Mans.fir

wasthe

first

caliph

to
acquire

Turks Subsequentcaliphsandeveryone

elsefol-