20 A R A 
Tented as a man of a moft difTolute life, and was aflafiina- 
ted the following year on account of his infidelity. He 
was fucceeded by Yezid, the Ton of A 1 Walicl 1 . who died 
of the plague after a reign of lix months; and was fuc- 
ceeded by Ibrahim Ebn A 1 Walid, an imprudent and fttipid 
prince. He was depofed in the 127th year of the Hegira 
by Merwan Ebn Mahomet, governor of Mefopotamia; 
who, as an excufe for his revolt, faid, That he intended to 
revenge the murder of the k'halif A 1 Walid II. He was 
no fooner leafed on the throne, than the people of Hems 
rebelled. Again!! them the khalif marched with a pow¬ 
erful army, and fummoncd them to furrender. They 
allured him that they were difpofed to admit him into their 
city; and, accordingly, one of the gates being opened, 
Merwan entered with 300 of his troops. Thefe were im¬ 
mediately put to the fword by the inhabitants; and the 
khalif himfelf efeaped with great difficulty. However, 
lie afterwards defeated them in a pitched battle, killed a 
great number of them, difmantled the city, and crucified 
600 of the principal authors of the revolt. 
Damafcus having followed the example of Hems, and 
depofed the khalif’s governor, Merwan marched thither 
with great celerity, entered the city by (form, and brought 
to condign punilhment the authors of the revolt. Peace, 
however, was no fooner reftored at Damafcus, than Soli - 
man Ebn Hefiiam let up for himfelf at Bafar, where he 
was proclaimed khalif by the inhabitants. He alfembled 
an army of 10,000 men, with whom he marched to Kin- 
niilin, and was joined by valt numbers of Syrians, who 
flocked to him from all parts. Merwan, receiving advice 
of Soliman’s rapid progrefs, marched again!! him with all 
the forces he could alfemble, and entirely defeated him. 
In this engagement Soliman loft 30,000 men; lo that he 
was obliged to fly to Hems, where 9000 men more took an 
oath to Hand by him to the laft. Having ventured, how¬ 
ever, to attack the khalif’s forces a fecond time, he was 
again defeated, and forced to fly back to Hems. Being 
clofely purfued by Merwan, lie conllituted his brother 
Said governor of the city, leaving with him the (battered 
remains of his troops, whilft he himfelf fled to Tadmor. 
Soon after his departure Merwan appeared before the town, 
which he befieged for feven months. The citizens, being 
reduced to the laft extremity, furrender-jd, and delivered 
Said into the khalif’s hands. In conlideration of this fub- 
miflion, Merwan pardoned the rebels, and took them un¬ 
der his protection. About the fame time, another pre¬ 
tender to the khalifate appeared at Cufa; but Merwan 
took fuch meafures, that he extinguilbed the rebellion be¬ 
fore it came to any height. 
Notwithftanding the Tuccefs that had hitherto attended 
Merwan, a itrong party was formed againft him in Kho- 
rafan, by the houfe of A 1 Abbas. The firft of that houfe 
that made any confiderable figure was named Mahomet, who 
flourillied in the reign of Omar Ebn Abdalaziz. He was 
appointed chief of the houfe of A 1 Abbas about the hun¬ 
dredth year of the Hegira ; and is faid to have prophelied, 
that after his death, one of his fons, named Ibrahim, fhould 
prefide over them till lie was killed, and that his other foil 
Abdallah, furnamed Abul Abbas AL Sajfah, Ihoiild be kha¬ 
lif, and exterminate the houfe of Ommiyah. Upon this 
A 1 Saffali was introduced as the future fovereign, and tliofe 
prefent kiffed his hands and feet. After the death of 
Mahomet, his fon Ibrahim nominated as his reprefentative 
in Khorafan, Abu Moflem, a youth of nineteen years of 
age; who beginning to raile forces in that province, Mer¬ 
wan fent againft him a detachment of horfe, under the 
command of Nafr Ebn Sayer; but that general was entirely 
defeated by Abu Modem, and the greateft part of his men 
killed. The next year, the 128th of the Hegira, Merwan 
made vaft preparations to oppole Abu Modem, who after 
the late victory grew formidable to the empire; and the 
year following he brought fo powerful an army into the 
field, that the khalif’s troops could not make head againft 
him; his officers in Khorafan were therefore obliged either 
3 
B I A. 
to take an oath of allegiance to Ibrahim, or to quit the 
province within a limited time. 
In the 130th year of the Hegira, the khalif’s general 
Nafr was beaten by Kahtaba, anotherof Ibrahim’s generals, 
and forced to fly to Raya, a town of Dylam, according to 
fome, or of Khorafan, according to others. The next 
year Ibrahim having imprudently refolved to go on a pil¬ 
grimage to Mecca, attended by a numerous retinue fplen- 
didly accoutered, he was feized and put to death by Mer¬ 
wan ; and the year following Abul Abbas was proclaimed 
khalif at Cufa. As Toon as the ceremony was ended, lie 
Tent his uncle Abdallah with a powerful army to attack 
Merwan’s forces encamped near Tubar, where that khalif 
was then waiting for an account of the fuccefs of his troops 
under Yezid governor of Irak, againft Khatahba one of 
A 1 Saffah’s generals. Khatahba, receiving advice of Ye- 
zid’s approach, immediately advanced againft him, and 
entirely defeated him; but, in eroding the Euphrates, the 
waters of which were greatly fwelled, he was carried away 
by the flood, and drowned. The purfuit, however, was 
continued by his fon Hamid, who difperfed the fugitives 
fo completely, that they could never afterwards be rallied. 
At the news of this dilafter, Merwan was greatly difpiri- 
ted ; but, foon recovering himfelf, he advanced, wfith the 
(hattered remains of his army, to meet Abdallah. In the 
beginning of the battle, the khalif happened to difmount; 
and his troops, perceiving their fovereign’s horfe with¬ 
out a rider, concluded that lie was killed, and therefore 
immediately fled ; nor was it in the power of the khalif 
to rally them again, fo that he was forced to fly to Da* 
mafeus : but the inhabitants of that city, feeing his con¬ 
dition defperate, Unit their gates againft him. Upon this 
he fled to Egypt, wdiere he maintained himfelf for fome 
time; but was at laft attacked and killed by Saleh, Ab¬ 
dallah’s brother, at Bufir Kurides. The citizens..of Da¬ 
mafcus, though they had ffiamefully defected Merwan, 
refilled to open their gates to the victors-; upon which Sa¬ 
leh entered the city by ftorm, and gave it up to be plun¬ 
dered by his foldiers. 
By the total defeat and death of Mc-rwan, A 1 Saffah 
became foie mailer of the Mollem throne; but we hear 
of no very remarkable events that happened during his^ 
reign ; only that he maffacred great numbers of the par- 
tifans of the houfe of Ommiyah ; and that Cenftantine 
Copronymus, taking advantage of the inteftine divilions 
among the Modems, ravaged Syria. The khalif died of 
the fmall-pox in the 136th year of the Hegira, in the 
thirty-third year of his age ; and was fucceeded by his bro¬ 
ther A 1 Manfur. In the beginning of A 1 Manfur’sreign, 
hoftilities continued againft the houfe of Ommiyah, who 
ftill made rellftance, but were always defeated. Abdallah, 
however, the khalif’s uncle, cauled himfelf to be pro¬ 
claimed khalif at Damafcus; and, having all’embled a 
powerful army in Arabia, Syria, and Mefopoumia, ad¬ 
vanced with great expedition to the banks of the Mafius 
near Nifibus, where he encamped. A 1 Manfur, being in¬ 
formed of this rebellion, difpatched Abu Modem againft 
Abdallah. This general, having harraffed him for five 
months, at laft brought him to a general aftion, in which 
he defeated him, and forced him to fly to.Bafra. Not¬ 
withftanding all his Cervices, however, Abu Moflem was 
foon after ungratefully and barbaroufly murdered by A 1 
Manfur, under pretence of being deficient in refpedt to¬ 
wards him. 
After the death of Abu Moflem, one Sinan, aMagian, 
or adorer of fire, having made himfelf mailer of that ge¬ 
neral’s treafures, revolted againft the khalif; but he was 
foon defeated by Jamhur Ebn Morad, who had been fent 
againft him with a powerful army. In this expedition 
Jamlnir having acquired immenfe riches, the covetous 
difpolition of the khalif prompted him to lend a perlon 
exprefs to the army, to feize upon all the wealth. This 
fo provoked Jamhur, that lie immediately turned his arms 
againft his mailer; but was loon defeated, and entirely re¬ 
duced . 
