Siege of Baghdad

Two sons of Harun al-Rashid fought over the throne. Baghdad was besieged for over a year and al-Amin was killed.

The site of the battle on the 800 map. Shaded: Abbasid Caliphate, c. 800, Umayyad emirate of Cordoba.

Key facts

When: 812 to 813
Where: Baghdad, Iraq
Sides: al-Ma'mun vs al-Amin
Commanders: Tahir ibn Husayn vs Caliph al-Amin
Result: Victory for al-Ma'mun
Type: Internal wars
Chapter: 3. The Abbasids, the Crusades and the Mongols

Who led it

Harun al-Rashidc. 763 to 809
The best known Abbasid caliph, whose Baghdad is the setting of the Thousand and One Nights.
al-Ma'mun786 to 833
Won the throne from his brother al-Amin and made Baghdad's House of Wisdom a great centre of translation and science.

The wider picture: The Abbasid golden age

The Abbasids built a new capital at Baghdad in 762. Under Harun al-Rashid and al-Ma'mun, the House of Wisdom translated Greek, Persian and Indian science into Arabic, and al-Khwarizmi wrote the book that gave algebra its name. The four Sunni schools of law took shape in these years.

See the 800 map Read chapter 3

More internal wars battles

All 10 internal wars of the early caliphates battles · Battle explorer

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