“Often the test of courage is not to die but to live” (Vittorio Alfieri, n.d.). Strong leader, influential visionary, ambitious builder and tenacious survivor, Abd al-Rahman (731-788) had every single opportunity to surrender to the Abbasids’ domination and abandon his ancestral roots. This man, being one of the few survivors of his slaughtered Umayyads’ family, fought back with more power, wealth and terror than ever before. This future emir came from a background that helped him achieve remarkable deeds and create a long-lasting Empire in Cordoba.
To start off, Abd al-Rahman, overnight becoming a lone survivor in his early twenties, went through horrible events that humans in modern years could not even begin to comprehend. During their century-long rule, the Umayyads had settled in their capital of Damascus in the south-western Syria and established the most authoritative and powerful empire of the Islamic world. Accused of having un Islamic behaviours by forcing people to bow down to the caliph, in 755, “…the Umayyads were eradicated by the rival Abbasids, who seized control of the great empire…” (Menocal, p. 5). His native home, along with his father Mu'awiyah ibn Hisham and mother Ra'ha, and most of his family members violently massacred were everything he ever known in his lifetime. This young refugee abandoned his home in Damascus and headed down across North Africa and continued his journey west until he encountered the Berber tribes to which his mother had belonged. Abd al-Rahman would from there accomplish glorious missions and make homage to his childhood years in Damascus.
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To continue, Abd al-Rahman’s conquest of Cordoba represented a reclaim over Umayyads’ political, legal and social system. With the precious help of his Berber army and the Saqualibra (slave soldiers), this future emir recreated the Umayyad court and repeated the history of the mosque in Damascus. Messages of strength had to be shared throughout kingdoms and legitimacy gained with demonstrations of power. In order to respect the prior conditions, Abd al-Rahman had to maintain a strong army, build an active government (bureaucracy), build the highest and biggest monuments, unify the population with the power of religion, establish a strong economy, sponsor the culture and artistic activities, promote a functioning trade organization and preserve public services such as roads and irrigation systems. In summer of 786, Abd al-Rahman built one of his biggest achievements: The Primitive Mosque of Cordoba, intended to be a symbol of power, but also of awareness of their previous architectural styles. Abd al-Rahman, previously victim of the Abbasids, was now the most powerful ruler of the entire world.
To finish, Abd al-Rahman, born and dead in the most powerful times of Islamic Spain, did play a major role in carrying his ancestors’ stories everywhere he went. He was a true ambassador of the Umayyads’ family. His history indeed made him the courageous and outgoing person he once was and therefore helped him achieve remarkable actions.
References
- Menocal, M.R, (2002). Ornament of The World. New York: Little, Brown and Company.
- Vittorio Alfieri Quotes. (n.d.). BrainyQuote.com. Retrieved February 28, 2019, from BrainyQuote.com Web site: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/vittorio_alfieri_176947
- 'Abd al-Rahman I.' (n.d. Encyclopedia of World Biography. . Retrieved February 26, 2019 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and- maps/abd-al-rahman-i
- Manjikian, Sevak. “Islamic Spain Lectures” Vanier College, January 2019.
- Goodyear, M. (2019, January 09). Abd al-Rahman I. Ancient History Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.ancient.eu/Abd_al-Rahman_I
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