Al-Hakam II
Caliph of Córdoba from 961 to 976 / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Al-Hakam II, also known as Abū al-ʿĀṣ al-Mustanṣir bi-Llāh al-Hakam b. ʿAbd al-Raḥmān (أَبُو الْعَاصٍ الْمُسْتَنْصِرِ بِاللهِ الْحَكْمِ بْن عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ; 13 January 915 – 16 October 976), was the Caliph of Córdoba. He was the second Umayyad Caliph of Córdoba in Al-Andalus, and son of Abd-al-Rahman III and Murjan. He ruled from 961 to 976. His adopted caliphal title was Al-Mustanṣir (Arabic: المستنصر).[2]
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Al-Hakam II الحکم الثاني | |||||
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Khalifa al-Mustanṣir bi-llah | |||||
2nd Caliph of Córdoba | |||||
Reign | 15 October 961 – 16 October 976 | ||||
Predecessor | Abd-ar-Rahman III | ||||
Successor | Hisham II | ||||
Born | 13 January 915 Córdoba | ||||
Died | 16 October 976(976-10-16) (aged 61) Córdoba | ||||
Spouse | Subh | ||||
Issue | Abd al-Rahman (962–970)[1] Hisham II (966–1013) | ||||
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Dynasty | Umayyad | ||||
Father | Abd-ar-Rahman III | ||||
Mother | Murjan | ||||
Religion | Islam |
Al-Hakam II was designated his father's successor as early as 919 at the age of four. During his father's reign, he participated actively in the caliph's administration and gained experience in the palace and on military campaigns.[3] The reign of Al-Hakam II saw the strengthening of the state. He pursued military expansion, both in the north and the south. In North Africa, he competed with the Fatimids for control of the trans-Saharan trade, and subdued the Idrisids of Morocco.[4] In the north, he gained enough esteem of the Christian kings that they regularly solicited his arbitration in their own disputes. During his reign, Al-Andalus was the most powerful state in Europe.[5]
A patron of art and culture, Al-Hakam's library of over 400,000 volumes and forty-four-volume catalogue was one of the largest Islamic collections of the time. Córdoba, during his reign, became one of the leading centres of Islamic culture. Historians have complemented Al-Hakam II by remarking that his period is the golden age of Al-Andalus for science and knowledge.[6]