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Shuwabah in 1258. The troops of al-Mahdi Ahmad were defeated and fled the field. The imam was left almost alone on the battlefield. He was surrounded by enemies and killed. His head was severed and carried to Shams ad-Din Ahmad. Miraculous occurrences were reported at his grave in
Shuwaba. The battle supposedly took place on the same day as
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accepted him. In 1257, a Zaidi convent declared al-Mahdi Ahmad deposed. Shams ad-Din took command over the insurgents and received support from the
Rasulid sultan al-Muzaffar Yusuf. Al-Mahdi Ahmad tried to maintain his position with his remaining followers. The opposing forces eventually met in
75:. He received a setback when he had to abandon San'a after less than a year. Instead, he bought the Birash stronghold from Asad ad-Din, whose loyalty to his kinsman the Rasulid sultan was doubtful. Al-Mahdi Ahmad entered into negotiations with al-Muzaffar Yusuf, the new sultan of the
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as laid down by
Zaydiyyah tradition. Al-Mahdi Ahmad's popularity also decreased due to some cases of extortion. Dissatisfied Zaidis rallied behind Shams ad-Din Ahmad, a son of al-Mansur Abdallah, whom they proclaimed imam in 1254. With the help of the ever-vacillating
47:. His exact relationship to previous imams of Yemen is disputed, but according to one pedigree he was a descendant of al-Qasim ar-Rassi (d. 860) in the eleventh degree. He was a trained jurist who was well acquainted with the doctrines of the
130:. The killing of the imam was followed by further internal strife among the Zaidis. Shams ad-Din Ahmad attempted to secure his claim and acknowledged the overlordship of the Rasulids. However, he was immediately challenged by Sharif
51:. His religious credentials were acceptable, since he was consistent in prayers and fasting. He was proclaimed in the mountain stronghold Thula in June 1248, becoming imam with the approval of the family of the former imam
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Rasulids and the Zaidi imam were too obvious, and a falling-out ensued. Al-Muzaffar Yusuf sent assassins to kill al-Mahdi Ahmad. The imam was injured by a dagger, but his life was saved by his attendants.
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governed. Asad ad-Din withdrew to the nearby fortress Birash, from where he tried to disturb the imam's moves. Nevertheless, al-Mahdi Ahmad's sphere of power soon stretched as far south as
167:
The filiation was al-Qasim ar-Rassi - Abu
Abdallah Muhammad - al-Qasim - Ahmad - Abu'l-Barakat - Ahmad - al-Qasim - Abdallah - al-Qasim - Ahmad - al-Husayn - al-Mahdi Ahmad.
101:, Shams ad-Din marched into Sa'dah and al-Mahdi fled. In the same year, Shams ad-Din and his brother Sarim ad-Din Da'ud visited the Rasulid sultan in
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The family of al-Mansur
Abdallah soon became dissatisfied with al-Mahdi Ahmad. The imam was accused of lacking the prescribed qualifications for the
59:, from the Sulaimanids, and extended his sway over 20 fortresses. The Zaidi positions were helped through the murder of the powerful
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who ruled in the period 1248–1258. He was considered by some a sacred figure on account of his violent end in battle.
210:
Madeleine
Schneider, 'Les inscriptions arabes de l'ensemble architectural de Zafar-Dhi Bin (Yémen du Nord)',
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248:, Vol. I. Leiden 1906, p. 150. Alternatively, the date of the battle is given as 7 March 1258.
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sultan Nur ad-Din Umar in 1250. In the same year, al-Mahdi Ahmad managed to seize
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which ruled much of Yemen from the lowland. However, the differences between the
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and were received as royals. Another claimant to the imamate was the Sharif
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109:. The people was enjoined to support his candidature in 1256, and certain
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55:. The new imam took the traditional capital of the Zaidi imams,
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246:The Pearl-Strings; A History of the Resuli dynasty
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134:who was also proclaimed as the new imam.
160:
7:
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178:Yaman; Its Early Medieval History
39:Ahmad bin al-Husayn was a Yemeni
226:, Vol, V, Leiden 1986, p. 1241.
192:, Vol. V, Leiden 1986, p. 1241.
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43:who belonged to the house of
67:, where the Rasulid kinsman
17:Al-Mahdi Ahmad bin al-Husayn
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260:interregnum, preceded by
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35:Assumption of the imamate
317:13th-century Arab people
235:H.C. Kay, 1892, p. 321.
201:H.C. Kay, 1892, p. 321.
224:Encyclopaedia of Islam
190:Encyclopaedia of Islam
88:The battle of Shuwabah
312:13th century in Yemen
180:. London 1892, p. 189
297:Zaydi imams of Yemen
126:, was killed by the
327:13th-century Zaydis
279:al-Hasan bin Wahhas
132:al-Hasan bin Wahhas
107:al-Hasan bin Wahhas
19:(1216-1258) was an
214:273 1985. p. 94-5.
53:al-Mansur Abdallah
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276:Succeeded by
212:Journal asiatique
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69:Asad ad-Din
291:Categories
176:H.C. Kay,
155:References
49:Zaydiyyah
27:state in
138:See also
128:Mongols
124:Baghdad
94:imamate
61:Rasulid
45:Rassids
23:of the
120:caliph
111:ulemas
73:Dhamar
57:Sa'dah
41:Sayyid
103:Zabid
81:Sunni
65:San'a
29:Yemen
25:Zaidi
21:imam
122:of
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