Banu Tujib facts for kids

The Banu Tujib (Arabic: بنو تجيب), also known as the Tujibids, were an Arab family that became very powerful in a region of Al-Andalus (what is now Spain) from the 800s to the 1000s. They were given control of important cities like Zaragoza and Calatayud by the Umayyad rulers. This was done to balance the power of other local leaders who wanted to be independent. Over time, the Banu Tujib gained more freedom in Zaragoza. This led them to create their own independent state, called the Taifa of Zaragoza, after the main Caliphate fell apart. They ruled this state from 1018 until another Arab family, the Banu Hud, took over in 1039. A smaller part of the Banu Tujib family, called the Banu Sumadih, then became rulers of the Taifa of Almería and held it for three generations until 1090.

Who Were the Banu Tujib?

Historians believe the Banu Tujib family came to Spain in the early 700s. Two brothers, ʿAmira and ʿAbd Allah, are said to have arrived with the Muslim leader Musa ibn Nusayr. They settled in the Aragon region. ʿAmira even served as governor of Barcelona for a short time.

In the late 800s, the ruler of Córdoba, Emir Muhammad I of Córdoba, needed help fighting a rebel group called the Banu Qasi. He asked the Banu Tujib family for support. He gave them money and control over several towns, including Daroca. He also rebuilt Calatayud and gave it to ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAziz in 862 or 863. The Banu Tujib family became very important in the region known as the Upper March.

Banu Tujib in the 900s

Zaragoza Leaders

Muhammad ibn ʿAbd al-Rahman

In 890, Muhammad ibn ʿAbd al-Rahman became the governor of Zaragoza. He tricked the previous governor and took control. He made Zaragoza almost independent, but he remained loyal to the main ruler in Córdoba. He also continued fighting the Banu Qasi rebels.

Muhammad was a strong leader. He captured towns like Roda de Isábena and Monzón. He also helped the Caliph (the main ruler) in campaigns against Christian kingdoms like Pamplona. When Muhammad died in 925, his son Hashim ibn Muhammad took over. The family in Zaragoza became known as the Banu Hashim.

Muhammad ibn Hashim

After Hashim died in 930, his son Muhammad ibn Hashim wanted to become governor. The Caliph, ʿAbd al-Rahman III, was not sure at first. Muhammad promised loyalty and agreed to pay tribute and join military campaigns. So, he was named governor in 931.

However, Muhammad ibn Hashim later refused to join some of the Caliph's campaigns. In 934, he even allied with the Christian king Ramiro II of León against the Caliph. This led to a siege of Zaragoza by the Caliph's army in 937. Muhammad was defeated and had to temporarily give Zaragoza to the Caliph. He was allowed to return as governor but could not make deals with Christian states on his own.

In 939, Muhammad ibn Hashim fought with the Caliph's army against Ramiro II in the Battle of Simancas. The Caliph's army lost, and Muhammad was captured. After he was released, the Caliph still trusted his family. Muhammad ibn Hashim died in 950, and his son Yahya ibn Muhammad became the new governor.

Later Rulers in Zaragoza

After Muhammad, the history of the Banu Tujib leaders in Zaragoza becomes a bit unclear. Different sources give different names for the governors. Around 975, the Caliph took control of all Banu Tujib lands, including Zaragoza. But soon after, he gave them back to the family.

Later, Almanzor, a very powerful military leader, made an alliance with the Banu Tujib of Zaragoza. However, in 989, one of Almanzor's sons plotted with the Banu Tujib against his father. Almanzor found out and had the Banu Tujib leader, ʿAbd ar-Rahman ibn Muhammad, killed. To keep the family happy, Almanzor quickly replaced him with his nephew, ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn Yahya al-Tujibi. After this, the family is not mentioned much until the early 1000s, when a different branch of the family took control of Zaragoza.

Calatayud Leaders

In the late 800s, al-Mundhir, a son of ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAziz al-Tujibi, became the leader in Calatayud. He was killed in a battle in 921. His son, ʿAbd al-Rahman, took over. This ʿAbd al-Rahman and his brother Mutarrif were captured by the king of Pamplona. Mutarrif was released to get ransom money, but he betrayed his brother and took control of Calatayud.

Mutarrif later allied with his cousin Muhammad ibn Hashim against the Caliph. In 937, the Caliph's army attacked Calatayud, and Mutarrif was killed. Control of the city was given to others. However, Mutarrif's brother, al-Hakam ibn al-Mundhir, had remained loyal to the Caliph. He was made governor of Calatayud in 940 and ruled until his death in 950. His son, al-ʿAsi ibn al-Hakam, then governed until 972.

In 975, the Caliph again took all Banu Tujib lands. Calatayud was given to Hisham, al-ʿAsi's brother. Hisham was later killed by Almanzor in 981. Almanzor then put another brother, ʿAbd al-ʿAziz, in charge of Calatayud. By the 1040s, the Banu Tujib no longer controlled Calatayud.

Daroca Leaders

Daroca was given to ʿAbd al-ʿAziz, a son of ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAziz al-Tujibi. He was killed in battle. His son, Yunis ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAziz, took over. Yunis was a close ally of al-Mundhir of Calatayud. In 937, Daroca was attacked as part of the Caliph's campaign against Zaragoza, and Yunis was killed. His children fled to Zaragoza.

Later, in 940, the Caliph gave Daroca to al-Hakam ibn al-Mundhir al-Tujibi, who was also governor of Calatayud. Daroca was taken from the family in 975 but quickly given back to ʿAbd al-ʿAziz, al-Hakam's brother. He rebuilt the castle. In the 1040s, Daroca was ruled by Hisham ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAziz, and then by his son, another ʿAbd al-ʿAziz.

A great-great-grandson of Yunis, named al-Mundhir ibn Yahya, started as a simple soldier. He later became governor of Zaragoza and made it an independent state.

The Taifa of Zaragoza

A "taifa" was a small, independent Muslim kingdom that formed in Al-Andalus after the main Caliphate of Córdoba broke apart in the early 1000s.

In 1005 or 1006, al-Mundhir ibn Yahya became governor of Tudela. He had been a simple soldier before this. He was later appointed governor of the Upper March by the Caliph Hisham II. Al-Mundhir was friendly with Christian rulers like Ramon Borrell, the Count of Barcelona.

When the Caliphate was in chaos, al-Mundhir declared Zaragoza independent in 1018. He became the first emir (ruler) of the Taifa of Zaragoza. He ruled until his death in 1023 or 1024.

Al-Mundhir was followed by his son, Yahya ibn al-Mundhir. Yahya fought against his father's former ally, Ermesinde, the Countess of Barcelona. He died between 1026 and 1030. His son, al-Mundhir II, took over when he was only about 19 years old.

In 1039, al-Mundhir II was murdered by his cousin, ʿAbd Allah ibn al-Hakam al-Tujibi. ʿAbd Allah wanted to take control of Zaragoza. The people of Zaragoza did not like this, and there was unrest. ʿAbd Allah had to flee. Another family, the Banu Hud, then took control of Zaragoza. The Banu Hud family ruled Zaragoza until 1110. After ʿAbd Allah fled, the Banu Tujib family in Zaragoza disappeared from history.

The Taifa of Almería

Another branch of the Banu Tujib family, called the Banu Sumadih, came from Sumadih, a son of the early Banu Tujib leader ʿAbd al-Rahman.

A member of this family, Abu Yahya Muhammad ibn Ahmad, was governor of Huesca. But he had problems with his distant relative, al-Mundhir I of Zaragoza, and had to flee. He found safety in the Taifa of Valencia. His sons, Maʿn and Abu al-ʿUtbi, married daughters of the ruler of Valencia.

In 1038, Valencia took control of Almería, and Maʿn ibn Muhammad was made its governor. In 1042, Maʿn declared Almería independent, creating the Taifa of Almería. He ruled until his death in 1052.

Maʿn's fourteen-year-old son, Muhammad ibn Maʿn ibn Sumadih, known as al-Muʿtasim, became the next ruler. He was a noted poet and ruled for 41 years. He had four children who were also poets. When he died in 1091, the Almoravids (a powerful group from North Africa) were outside Almería. His son and successor, Ahmad Muʿizz al-Dawla, had to leave the city and fled to Algeria. This ended the Banu Sumadih rule in Almería.

Sources

See also

In Spanish: Banu Tuyib para niños