Al-Hafiz

Al-Ḥāfiz ( ) (died 1149) was the eleventh Caliph of the Fāṭimids (r. 1130–1149) Al-Ḥāfiz assumed the caliphate as the cousin of the murdered Al-Amir (1101-1130). Since al-Amir had not named an heir when he died, the succession of al-Ḥāfiz was not uncontested - a group of Shī‘ah recognised al-Amīr's son Ṭayyib Abī al-Qāṣim as rightful heir, leading to a new schism. Additionally, AbuAli Ahmad bin AlAfdal, whose father was regent to AlMusta'li before he was thrown when AlAmer succeeded him, challenged and jailed alHafiz and in fact ruled for a brief while before he was assassinated, presumably by supporters of AlHafiz. Under al-Ḥāfiz, Fāṭimid power was confined to Egypt , and even there it was not unchallenged. There were constant power struggles between ministers, governors and generals, hampering the ability of the empire to resist the expansion of the Crusader states .

Al-Ḥāfīz (c. 1076 – 8 October 1149), ( ) was the eleventh Caliph of the Fāṭimids (r. 1130–1149) Al-Ḥāfiz assumed the caliphate as the cousin of the murdered al-Āmir (1101–1130). Since al-Āmir had not named an heir when he died, the succession of al-Ḥāfiz was not uncontested - a group of Shī‘ah recognised al-Āmir 's son aṭ-Ṭayyib Abī al-Qāṣim as rightful heir, leading to a new schism. Additionally, al-Afdal Shahanshah , whose father was regent to al-Mustā‘lī before he was overthrown when al-Āmir succeeded him, challenged and jailed al-Ḥāfiz and in fact ruled for a brief while before he was assassinated, presumably by supporters of al-Ḥāfiz.

Abu'l-Maymūn ʿAbd al-Majīd ibn Muḥammad ibn al-Mustansir , better known with his regnal name as al-Ḥāfiz li-Dīn Allāh ( ), was the eleventh caliph of the Fatimids from 1132 to his death in 1149, and the 21st imam of Hafizi Isma'ilism . Al-Hafiz first rose to power as regent after the death of his cousin, al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah , in October 1130. Al-Amir had only left an infant son, al-Tayyib , as a possible successor, so al-Hafiz became regent as the oldest surviving member of the dynasty. Al-Tayyib was apparently sidelined and possibly killed by the new regime, which was in turn overthrown within a few days by the army under Kutayfat . The latter imprisoned al-Hafiz, and moved to depose the Fatimids and replace Isma'ilism with a personal regime, possibly based on Twelver Shi'ism , with himself as the Hidden Imam 's all-powerful vicegerent. Kutayfat's regime was toppled when he was murdered by Fatimid loyalists in December 1131, and al-Hafiz was freed and restored as regent. On 23 January 1132, al-Hafiz proclaimed himself as the legitimate Isma'ili imam and caliph. While necessary in view of the lack of another heir, the succession was highly irregular, as the Isma'ili imamate had previously only been passed from father to son, by explicit designation ( naṣṣ ). Al-Hafiz was largely accepted in the Fatimid-ruled territories, but many Isma'ili followers abroad refused to recognize him and regarded the vanished al-Tayyib as their imam, causing the Hafizi – Tayyibi schism in Musta'li Isma'ilism . Even in Egypt, his legitimacy was repeatedly challenged for the duration of his reign, which was troubled by constant uprisings and power struggles. Al-Hafiz's reign was mostly quiet on the external front. Despite continuing hostilities with the Kingdom of Jerusalem around Ascalon , both powers were preoccupied elsewhere for the most part. The Fatimid court also maintained contact with the Burids in Syria and King Roger II of Sicily , who at this time began his expansion into the former Fatimid domains of Ifriqiya , and adopted many of the practices of the Fatimid court for his own administration. As ruler, al-Hafiz tried to rein in his over-mighty viziers with mixed success, as he was repeatedly forced to give way to the demands of various military factions, and was ultimately unable to halt the evolution of the vizierate into a de facto sultanate independent of the caliph. Thus al-Hafiz's own son Hasan forced him to name him vizier in 1134, ousting another of the Caliph's sons from the post; Hasan's reign proved tyrannical and he was overthrown by the army in March 1135. The appointment of the Christian Bahram al-Armani to the vizierate after that caused a severe reaction among the Muslim population due to Bahram's pro-Christian policies, leading to another uprising and the appointment of the Sunni Ridwan ibn Walakhshi to the vizierate in 1137. Ridwan not only instituted anti-Christian and anti-Jewish measures, but even aimed to overthrow al-Hafiz and replace the Fatimid dynasty with a Sunni regime headed by himself. With the support of the Cairo populace, al-Hafiz managed to thwart his ambitions and oust Ridwan in 1139. This period was plagued by uprisings and natural disasters, but al-Hafiz persevered until his death in October 1149. His successors would be reduced to puppets at the hands of powerful viziers, until the end of the Fatimid Caliphate in 1171.

Fatimid Dynasty caliph from 1132 to 1149 Abūʾl-Maymūn ʿAbd al-Majīd ibn Muḥammad ibn al-Mustanṣir , better known by his regnal name as al-Ḥāfiẓ li-Dīn Allāh ( ), was the eleventh Fatimid caliph , ruling over Egypt from 1132 to his death in 1149, and the 21st imam of Hafizi Isma'ilism . Al-Hafiz first rose to power as regent after the death of his cousin, al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah , in October 1130. Al-Amir had only left an infant son, al-Tayyib , as a possible successor, so al-Hafiz—as the oldest surviving member of the dynasty—became regent . Al-Tayyib was apparently sidelined and possibly killed by the new regime, which was in turn overthrown within a few days by the army under Kutayfat . The latter imprisoned al-Hafiz, and moved to depose the Fatimids and replace Isma'ilism with a personal regime, possibly based on Twelver Shi'ism , with himself as the Hidden Imam 's all-powerful vicegerent. Kutayfat's regime was toppled when he was murdered by Fatimid loyalists in December 1131, and al-Hafiz was freed and restored as regent. On 23 January 1132, al-Hafiz proclaimed himself as the legitimate Isma'ili imam and caliph. While necessary in view of the lack of another heir, the succession was highly irregular, as the Isma'ili imamate had previously only been passed from father to son, by explicit designation ( naṣṣ ). Al-Hafiz was largely accepted in the Fatimid-ruled territories, but many Isma'ili followers abroad refused to recognize him and regarded the vanished al-Tayyib as their imam, causing the Hafizi – Tayyibi schism in Musta'li Isma'ilism . Even in Egypt, his legitimacy was repeatedly challenged, and his reign was troubled by constant uprisings and power struggles. Al-Hafiz's reign was mostly quiet on the external front. Despite continuing hostilities with the Kingdom of Jerusalem around Ascalon , both powers were preoccupied elsewhere for the most part. The Fatimid court also maintained contact with the Burids in Syria and King Roger II of Sicily , who at this time began his expansion into the former Fatimid domains of Ifriqiya , and adopted many of the practices of the Fatimid court for his own administration. As ruler, al-Hafiz tried to rein in his over-mighty viziers with mixed success. He was repeatedly forced to give way to the demands of various military factions, and was ultimately unable to halt the evolution of the vizierate into a de facto sultanate independent of the caliph. Thus al-Hafiz's own son Hasan forced him to name him vizier in 1134, ousting another of the Caliph's sons from the post. Hasan's reign proved tyrannical and he was overthrown by the army in March 1135. The appointment of the Christian Bahram al-Armani to the vizierate after that caused a severe reaction among the Muslim population due to Bahram's pro-Christian policies. This led to another uprising and the appointment of the Sunni Ridwan ibn Walakhshi to the vizierate in 1137. Ridwan not only instituted anti-Christian and anti-Jewish measures, but aimed to overthrow al-Hafiz and replace the Fatimid dynasty with a Sunni regime headed by himself. With the support of the Cairo populace, al-Hafiz thwarted his ambitions and ousted Ridwan in 1139. This period was plagued by uprisings and natural disasters, but al-Hafiz persevered until his death in October 1149. His successors would be reduced to puppets at the hands of powerful viziers, until the end of the Fatimid Caliphate in 1171.