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

206

Appendix

5

"Whenthe

caliphate

fellto

[al-MuCtas.im],

he

persevered

in

demanding

them. He

purchased slaves in

Baghdad

whobe-

longed

tothe

people(an-ns);

in this

way,he

bought

a

large

number

ofslaves,

including:

(1) Ashnfis,themamlkof

NuCaym

b.Khfizim,thefatherof

Hfirfinb.

Nueaym;

(2) [tfikh,themamlhofSallfimb.

al-Abrash;

3

(3) Was.if,anarmorer,themamlhofthe

an-Numfin

family;

and

(4) Simfi

ad-Dimashqi,

themamlkof

Dhfi’r-Ri’fisatayn

al-Fa.dl

b.Sahl"

(KB,pp.255-56).

5. A1-Masfidi
   (334/953):
   "al-Muetaim

likedto

gather

Turks;

buyingthemfromhismawlgs,he

gathered4,000. Hedressed

themin

goldbrocade,belts,andornaments,

distinguishing

them

by

theiruniformfromtherestofhis

soldiers.

"Hetrained

(is.t.anaCa)a

group

fromtheHawf

4

of

Egypt,the

Hawfof

Yemen,

and

theHawfof

Qays

andcalledthemthe

Maghfiriba.

He

preparedmenofKhurasan,

Faraghanians,

and

othersfrom

Ushrusana,

enlarging

his

army."

"A1-Mutas.im

favoredtheTurkish

ghulgmshehadintroduced

overhisold

companions

andhisfather’s

advisers"

(MDh,

4:53;

Tanbz-h,p.354).

6.

Muahhiral-Maqdisi

(wrote355/966):"Abfi

Is.hfiq

ordered

the

acquisition

ofTurksfor

service.Hepurchasedeach ofthem

for100,000or200,000

[dirhams]"(al-Bad’,6:112).

7.

Balami(363/974):

"Mutas.im,

wholikedthe

Turks,had

[in

his

army]

many

Turkish

ghulgcms.

HewasthefirstAbbasid

caliph

totakeTurksintohis

serviceandheaccumulateda

large

numberunderhisbanners. He

placedattheirheadsomeof

those
whohad
already

beenwithhimbefore

heascendedtothe

throne,suchas
Ashnfis,
Bughfi

al-Kabir,and

]tfikh.

Thesesol-

dierswent
everyday,
morning

and

evening,

outsidetown to

practicearchery,

and

they

galloped

ontheirhorses

through

the

marketand
thestreetsof
Baghdad"(Tarjama,4:524).

8,9.

al-Is.t.akhri

(mid-4th/10th

century)

and Ibn

H.

awqal

3.Aeunuch:

Tayffir,p.

133.

4.Onthedefinitionof

al-H.

awf,see

Yqfit,

s.v.