Read The Great Arab Conquests Online
Authors: Hugh Kennedy
The Great Arab Conquests (61 page)
The failure of Muslim sea power before the walls and navies of Constantinople marked a major change in the balance of power between the Arabs and the Byzantines. It was the last time Muslim ships were to reach the Sea of Marmara before the late eleventh century. Sea power saved Constantinople and prevented the Muslims from achieving this ultimate triumph.
The other area of naval activity during the early Muslim conquests was the North African coast and Sicily. The first Muslim naval expedition to Sicily had been launched in 652, long before North Africa had been effectively conquered. A Muslim force of 200 ships plundered the coasts of the island for a month, taking booty from churches and monasteries before returning to Syria.
17
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With the foundation of Tunis, the Arabs began to develop a naval base in North Africa. The foundation of the city was probably begun by the governor Hassān in about 700 in the immediate aftermath of the fall of Carthage. The reason for choosing the new site, rather than simply using the Byzantine harbour of Carthage, is not clear. It may be that the earlier harbour had silted up or was becoming unusable for other reasons, but it is most likely that the attraction of Tunis was that it was not on the open sea, vulnerable to Byzantine naval attacks, but on a lagoon that was then connected to the sea by a short canal. This made it much easier to fortify. The city throve as the main naval base in Africa, though the centre of government remained at inland Qayrawān.
It was shortly after this that the Muslims made their first conquests in the Mediterranean islands with the taking of Pantelleria, probably in 700. A few years later, probably in 703, a large Egyptian fleet under the command of Atā b. Rāfi arrived in North Africa.
18
It was already autumn and storms were to be expected. The governor, Mūsā b. Nusayr, warned against undertaking a campaign that year but Atā had his eye on the potential booty that the islands could offer and was not prepared to wait. They decided to raid Sardinia. All went well until the return journey. When they had almost reached their home port of Tunis, a sudden storm struck and most of the fleet was wrecked. On the nearby shore the governor’s son Abd al-Azīz collected the corpses of the drowned and the remains of their ships and cargoes. The surviving ships and their crews took shelter in Tunis where Mūsā looked after them. Perhaps as a result of the charity he showed these men, they were to form the basis of the naval force with which Mūsā invaded Spain nine years later.
18
It was already autumn and storms were to be expected. The governor, Mūsā b. Nusayr, warned against undertaking a campaign that year but Atā had his eye on the potential booty that the islands could offer and was not prepared to wait. They decided to raid Sardinia. All went well until the return journey. When they had almost reached their home port of Tunis, a sudden storm struck and most of the fleet was wrecked. On the nearby shore the governor’s son Abd al-Azīz collected the corpses of the drowned and the remains of their ships and cargoes. The surviving ships and their crews took shelter in Tunis where Mūsā looked after them. Perhaps as a result of the charity he showed these men, they were to form the basis of the naval force with which Mūsā invaded Spain nine years later.
This maritime disaster has left an interesting echo in the Egyptian papyri. Among a number of letters from the Arab governor to the pagarch (local landowner and official) of Aphrodito in Upper Egypt is one in which the governor enquired what had happened to the sailors, probably all Copts, from the town who had joined the fleet. With a fairly heavy-handed bureaucratic inquisitiveness, he wants to know how many have returned home and how many have stayed in the Maghreb.
19
He also wants more details of those who have not returned, of who has died and why some have remained in Africa. We have only the governor’s letter, not the pagarch’s reply, but the papyrus letter shows two points very clearly: how closely the fleet was supervised by the governor and how even Aphrodito, some 500 kilometres from the sea, was obliged to send men for the expedition.
19
He also wants more details of those who have not returned, of who has died and why some have remained in Africa. We have only the governor’s letter, not the pagarch’s reply, but the papyrus letter shows two points very clearly: how closely the fleet was supervised by the governor and how even Aphrodito, some 500 kilometres from the sea, was obliged to send men for the expedition.
After the foundation of the arsenal at Tunis, the fleet of North Africa was essentially independent of the Muslim fleets in the eastern Mediterranean and was under the command of the local governor. It was essentially a band of corsairs, independent sailors operating in effect as pirates, raiding the islands and vulnerable coastlines of the central Mediterranean for booty and slaves. As we have seen, the North African fleet could provide 360 armed ships to aid the Muslims in the attack on Constantinople in 718. Sometimes the corsairs encountered naval opposition. In 733 they were caught off Sicily by a Byzantine flotilla which used Greek fire to burn many of the Arab ships
20
and the next year another group encountered Byzantine ships and lost its stock of prisoners. In 740 a much larger-scale campaign was undertaken. This time the objective was the capital of Byzantine Sicily at Syracuse, and the Arabs brought horses with them on campaign. This might have marked the real beginning of the Arab conquest of Sicily, except that the next year, 741, saw the massive Berber revolt in North Africa against Arab tax gatherers and slavers. The Arabs were temporarily driven out of much of North Africa and were certainly in no position to launch any offensive raids.
20
and the next year another group encountered Byzantine ships and lost its stock of prisoners. In 740 a much larger-scale campaign was undertaken. This time the objective was the capital of Byzantine Sicily at Syracuse, and the Arabs brought horses with them on campaign. This might have marked the real beginning of the Arab conquest of Sicily, except that the next year, 741, saw the massive Berber revolt in North Africa against Arab tax gatherers and slavers. The Arabs were temporarily driven out of much of North Africa and were certainly in no position to launch any offensive raids.
Fleets are difficult and expensive to maintain and they require dedicated resources devoted to them for maintenance and upkeep of ships, even when they are not making any money. At a pinch a land army of volunteers could be assembled quite cheaply. The men would serve in the expectation of booty and they would provide their own equipment and pay for their own food. It is true that by the eighth century regular soldiers were being paid salaries, but when it came to the
jihād
against the unbelievers many of the troops were still volunteers.
jihād
against the unbelievers many of the troops were still volunteers.
Naval warfare was very different. Ships need to be built well in advance of a campaign. Even if some already exist they need to be fitted out and refurbished. Fighting men might serve as volunteers in the hope of booty but skilled sailors and oarsmen needed either compulsion or payment to induce them to serve. This means that naval organization left traces, even in the very patchy administrative records that we have from early Islamic times.
Naval organization was centred on arsenals. The English word, which comes from the Italian, is ultimately derived from the Arabic
Dar al-Sinūa
or House of Manufacturing. It is a term that was already in use in the ninth century, if not before, to describe the naval bases used by the Muslim fleets. The first naval bases were in Syria and Egypt. The earliest one in Syria seems to have been at Acre, but it was moved to Tyre by the caliph Hishām (723-41) because the local landowner in Acre refused to sell the required property to the caliph: no question of compulsory purchase here. In Tyre he built a hotel (
funduq
) presumably to house the workers, and a granary
21
(
mustaghal
). At about this time the Anglo-Saxon St Willibald visited Tyre twice in the course of the pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 724-6, and it was from Tyre that he took ship on his way home. He recorded with glee how he was able to take some of the precious and holy balsam of Jericho through the Arab customs by disguising it in a flagon of mineral oil. He also noted that the port was in a security zone and anyone visiting without permission would be arrested.
22
We have several descriptions of Tyre from Arab geographers in the ninth and tenth centuries. One geographer describes it as ‘the chief of the coastal cities, housing the arsenal. From here the government ships sail on expeditions against the Greeks. It is beautiful and well-fortified’.
23
Another writes: ‘Tyre is a fortified city on the sea and one enters through one gate only, over a bridge, and the sea lies all around, the rest of it is enclosed by three walls which rise straight out of the sea. The ships enter every night and then a chain is drawn across ... there are workmen there, each with his own speciality.’
24
Dar al-Sinūa
or House of Manufacturing. It is a term that was already in use in the ninth century, if not before, to describe the naval bases used by the Muslim fleets. The first naval bases were in Syria and Egypt. The earliest one in Syria seems to have been at Acre, but it was moved to Tyre by the caliph Hishām (723-41) because the local landowner in Acre refused to sell the required property to the caliph: no question of compulsory purchase here. In Tyre he built a hotel (
funduq
) presumably to house the workers, and a granary
21
(
mustaghal
). At about this time the Anglo-Saxon St Willibald visited Tyre twice in the course of the pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 724-6, and it was from Tyre that he took ship on his way home. He recorded with glee how he was able to take some of the precious and holy balsam of Jericho through the Arab customs by disguising it in a flagon of mineral oil. He also noted that the port was in a security zone and anyone visiting without permission would be arrested.
22
We have several descriptions of Tyre from Arab geographers in the ninth and tenth centuries. One geographer describes it as ‘the chief of the coastal cities, housing the arsenal. From here the government ships sail on expeditions against the Greeks. It is beautiful and well-fortified’.
23
Another writes: ‘Tyre is a fortified city on the sea and one enters through one gate only, over a bridge, and the sea lies all around, the rest of it is enclosed by three walls which rise straight out of the sea. The ships enter every night and then a chain is drawn across ... there are workmen there, each with his own speciality.’
24
In 861 the caliph Mutawwakil moved the naval base back to Acre and later, probably in the 870s, the semi-independent governor of Egypt, Ibn Tūlūn, undertook major improvement to the harbour and its defences. We have a description of the work from the Arab geographer Muqaddasī which provides the fullest account we have of the construction of an early Muslim port .
25
He recounts with considerable pride his grandfather’s contribution to the work:
25
He recounts with considerable pride his grandfather’s contribution to the work:
Acre is a fortified city on the sea-coast ... the defences of which were greatly strengthened after Ibn Tūlūn visited it. He had already seen the fortifications of Tyre where the harbour was protected by an encircling wall and he wanted to fortify Acre on similar lines. Engineers [
sunū
c
] were brought from all over the province but when the plan was described to them they all responded that no one could lay foundations under water. Then someone mentioned my grandfather Abu Bakr the architect [
bin’
] and said that if it were possible to do such a thing, he was the man who could undertake it. So Ibn Tūlūn ordered his governor of Jerusalem to send my grandfather to him. When he arrived they asked his opinion ‘No problem,’ he replied. ‘Bring big strong sycamore beams!’ They were floated on the surface of the water as you would for a castle built on the land and tied together. A big gate was left on the west [sea] side. He then raised a structure of stone and cement [
shayyid
] on them strengthening it by inserting great columns every five courses [
dawmis
]. The beams began to sink under the weight. As soon as they rested on the sandy bottom of the harbour, he stopped building for a year to allow the structure to settle. Finally he connected these defences to the old walls of the city and built a bridge across the entrance to the port. Whenever there were ships in the harbour, a chain was stretched across the entrance as at Tyre. Before this was done, the enemy [the Byzantines] used to do serious damage to the ships collected there. My grandfather is said to have been given one thousand dinars besides robes of honour, horses and other gifts as his reward and his name was inscribed over the work.
Nothing of the work survives above water now but we can imagine it quite clearly. The reuse of classical columns, laid horizontally through the fabric to strengthen it, is very typical of Crusader architecture on the Levantine coast and it is interesting to see it in use at this early date.
In about 780 another naval base was established at Tarsus in Cilicia. Tarsus had been an important Byzantine city and the original home of St Paul. It seems to have been ruined and deserted in the immediate aftermath of the Muslim conquests when it was in the no man’s land between Byzantine and Arab territory. The caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd ordered that it should be fortified and it became a centre for volunteers from all over the Muslim world who came to join in the
jihād
against the Byzantines. The ships were probably moored in the estuary of the river which connected Tarsus to the sea, and there is no record of any built harbour. In 900 the then caliph ordered that all the ships should be burned, apparently because he was told that the inhabitants were of doubtful loyalty. ‘About fifty ships, on which large sums of money had been spent and which could never be replaced at that time, were destroyed. The loss endangered the Muslims, lessened their power and increased that of the Greeks who were now safe from attack by sea.’
26
Despite this pessimistic assessment, Tarsus soon recovered its role because in 904 the Muslim ships raided along the Mediterranean coast of Anatolia to Antalya. The city was taken by force, about five thousand prisoners were taken and four thousand Muslim prisoners of war released. Sixty Byzantine ships were taken and loaded with booty, including gold, silver, goods and slaves. Every Muslim who took part in this raid received about a thousand dinars. The Muslims rejoiced at the news.
27
At a time when the Byzantine army was increasingly effective against Muslim overland raids, this sort of booty must have made naval warfare look very attractive.
jihād
against the Byzantines. The ships were probably moored in the estuary of the river which connected Tarsus to the sea, and there is no record of any built harbour. In 900 the then caliph ordered that all the ships should be burned, apparently because he was told that the inhabitants were of doubtful loyalty. ‘About fifty ships, on which large sums of money had been spent and which could never be replaced at that time, were destroyed. The loss endangered the Muslims, lessened their power and increased that of the Greeks who were now safe from attack by sea.’
26
Despite this pessimistic assessment, Tarsus soon recovered its role because in 904 the Muslim ships raided along the Mediterranean coast of Anatolia to Antalya. The city was taken by force, about five thousand prisoners were taken and four thousand Muslim prisoners of war released. Sixty Byzantine ships were taken and loaded with booty, including gold, silver, goods and slaves. Every Muslim who took part in this raid received about a thousand dinars. The Muslims rejoiced at the news.
27
At a time when the Byzantine army was increasingly effective against Muslim overland raids, this sort of booty must have made naval warfare look very attractive.
Naval bases were established in Egypt very soon after the Muslim conquest and, as we have already seen, Coptic sailors were in action in the Sea of Marmara and in North Africa at the beginning of the eighth century. As on the Syrian coast, the naval bases in Egypt were developed in Byzantine ports. The most famous of these was of course Alexandria. This certainly remained a port in the years after the Muslim conquest. The pilgrim Arculf arrived there after a voyage of forty days from Jaffa in Palestine. He found a city so large that it took a day to walk across, surrounded by walls and towers. He also describes the ancient lighthouse, the Pharos, as still being in operation.
28
Unfortunately Arabic sources tell us almost nothing about the city and its port. We know that an Arab garrison was maintained there but there is no mention of naval forces.
29
The other important base on the Mediterranean coast was Faramā. But again the sources have little to say about it. There were also bases at Rosetta and Damietta. A letter written on papyrus and dated to 710 contains orders for supplies to be sent to Damietta ‘for the raiding fleet’, but our fullest information about the city comes from an account of a Byzantine raid in the early summer of 853. It was the time of the feast that marked the end of Ramadan and the governor of Egypt had incautiously ordered the local garrison to go to the capital at Fustāt to join the celebrations. While they were gone a Byzantine fleet of a hundred
shalandiya
vessels, each carrying between fifty and a hundred men, attacked. They burned the Friday mosque and the churches. They took furnishings, candy (
qand
) and flax, which were waiting to be transported to Iraq. They also found military and naval equipment, 1,000 lances on their way to the Arab forces fighting in Crete, and they burned the storehouse containing ships’ sails. Some six hundred women, both Muslim and Copt, were taken captive and many more women and children drowned as they tried to escape across the shallow lake. The marauders then moved on towards the island city of Tinnis but found the lake was too shallow for their heavily laden ships. They had to content themselves with sacking the little town of Ushtum, which had recently been fortified with a wall and iron gates on the caliph’s orders. Here they found and burned an arsenal of siege engines, both
manjanīq
and
arrādat
. Then, unmolested by any Muslim forces on land or sea, they returned home. We hear of fortified towns and military and naval equipment but there do not seem to have been any Muslim ships in the area to defend it.
28
Unfortunately Arabic sources tell us almost nothing about the city and its port. We know that an Arab garrison was maintained there but there is no mention of naval forces.
29
The other important base on the Mediterranean coast was Faramā. But again the sources have little to say about it. There were also bases at Rosetta and Damietta. A letter written on papyrus and dated to 710 contains orders for supplies to be sent to Damietta ‘for the raiding fleet’, but our fullest information about the city comes from an account of a Byzantine raid in the early summer of 853. It was the time of the feast that marked the end of Ramadan and the governor of Egypt had incautiously ordered the local garrison to go to the capital at Fustāt to join the celebrations. While they were gone a Byzantine fleet of a hundred
shalandiya
vessels, each carrying between fifty and a hundred men, attacked. They burned the Friday mosque and the churches. They took furnishings, candy (
qand
) and flax, which were waiting to be transported to Iraq. They also found military and naval equipment, 1,000 lances on their way to the Arab forces fighting in Crete, and they burned the storehouse containing ships’ sails. Some six hundred women, both Muslim and Copt, were taken captive and many more women and children drowned as they tried to escape across the shallow lake. The marauders then moved on towards the island city of Tinnis but found the lake was too shallow for their heavily laden ships. They had to content themselves with sacking the little town of Ushtum, which had recently been fortified with a wall and iron gates on the caliph’s orders. Here they found and burned an arsenal of siege engines, both
manjanīq
and
arrādat
. Then, unmolested by any Muslim forces on land or sea, they returned home. We hear of fortified towns and military and naval equipment but there do not seem to have been any Muslim ships in the area to defend it.
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