Al-Mansur Abu Bakr

Abu Bakr
Al-Malik al-Mansur
Sultan of Egypt
Reign 17 June 1341–5 August 1341
Predecessor An-Nasir Muhammad
Successor Al-Ashraf Kujuk
Born 1321
Cairo, Mamluk Sultanate
Died November 1341 (aged 20)
Qus, Mamluk Sultanate
Spouse Daughter of Emir Tuquzdamur al-Hamawi
Full name
Al-Malik al-Mansur Sayf ad-Din Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Qalawun
House Qalawuni
Dynasty Bahri
Father An-Nasir Muhammad
Religion Islam

Al-Malik al-Mansur Sayf ad-Din Abu Bakr (Arabic: الملك المنصور سيف الدين أبو بكر‎), better known as al-Mansur Abu Bakr (Arabic: المنصور أبو بكر‎), (ca. 1321 – November 1341) was the Bahri Mamluk sultan in 1341. From an early age, Abu Bakr received military training in the desert town of al-Karak. His father, Sultan an-Nasir Muhammad (r. 1310–41), groomed him as a potential successor to the throne and made him an emir in 1335. He was consistently promoted in the following years, becoming the na'ib (governor) of al-Karak in 1339. He became the first son of an-Nasir Muhammad to succeed him as sultan, although his reign was short-lived. A few months after Abu Bakr's accession, he was deposed and arrested by his father's senior emir, Qawsun. After being sent to prison in the Upper Egyptian city of Qus with several of his brothers in August 1341, he was executed on Qawsun's orders two months later. Abu Bakr was succeeded by his five year old half-brother, al-Ashraf Kujuk, but Qawsun was effectively the strongman of Egypt.

Early life and career

Abu Bakr was born around 1321. His father was Sultan an-Nasir Muhammad (r. 1310–41) and one of latter's concubines, Narjis.[1] Narjis also gave birth to Abu Bakr's younger full brothers Ramadan (died 1343) and Yusuf (died 1346).[1] Information about Abu Bakr's early childhood is absent in the Mamluk-era sources.[2] The first mention of Abu Bakr was in 1332.[2] At that time, Abu Bakr had been sent to the desert fortress of al-Karak to join his half-brothers Ahmad and Ibrahim in their military training.[2] In 1332, Abu Bakr was on his way to join his father and half-brothers Anuk and Ahmad at al-Aqaba and from there to Mecca to perform the Hajj pilgrimage. However, an-Nasir Muhammad decided at the last minute to send his sons to al-Karak.[3]

In 1335 Abu Bakr was recalled to Cairo and made an emir by his father.[2] The event was marked by a royal procession led by Emir Qawsun, in which Abu Bakr was dressed in the attire of an emir.[2] At around the same time, an-Nasir Muhammad arranged Abu Bakr's marriage to a daughter of Emir Tuquzdamur al-Hamawi, who married Abu Bakr's mother Narjis some time earlier.[2] Sometime during his 59-day reign, Abu Bakr would also marry two slave girls, spending 100,000 dinars for each of their bridal veils.[4] In 1337/38, Abu Bakr was promoted to an amir arba'in (emir of forty [mounted mamluks]).[5]

Abu Bakr was sent to al-Karak in 1339 to replace Ahmad as na'ib of the province. By then, Ahmad had been discarded by an-Nasir Muhammad as a potential successor.[5] Anuk was the sultan's favored son for his replacement, but with Ahmad deemed unfit to rule, Abu Bakr became the runner-up to Anuk.[5] Sometime that year, Abu Bakr paid a visit to his father with a gift of 200,000 dirhams that he apparently extorted from the inhabitants of al-Karak.[5] He later returned to al-Karak where he remained until 17 July 1340.[5] At that point, Anuk had been dropped as a potential successor by the sultan, who invited Abu Bakr back to Cairo.[5] There, an-Nasir Muhammad had his emirs swear an oath of allegiance to Abu Bakr.[5]

Abu Bakr then set off for al-Karak until he was recalled to Cairo once more in January 1341, arriving on 24 January.[5] When he returned, he brought his father a sum of 100,000 dirhams, while an-Nasir Muhammad issued another order recalling all of Abu Bakr's mamluks and soldiers in al-Karak to Cairo.[5] Abu Bakr remained in Cairo effectively waiting for his ill father to die. In the months prior to an-Nasir Muhammad's death, Abu Bakr was given a large iqta (fief), his interests were put under the care of Emir Bashtak and he was transferred a large number of wafidiyya (immigrant, typically Mongol, soldiers) from Aleppo and other soldiers.[6] On 4 June 1341, while on his deathbed, an-Nasir Muhammad had all of his emirs recognize the transfer of the sultanate to Abu Bakr in the event of his death.[6] Moreover, he accorded Abu Bakr the title of the latter's grandfather Qalawun (r. 1277–90), "al-Malik al-Mansur", along with Qalawun's sword.[6] An-Nasir Muhammad died on 7 June and power peacefully passed to Abu Bakr.[6]

Reign

Although Abu Bakr was made sultan, the reins of power were held by an-Nasir Muhammad's senior emirs, chief among whom were his son-in-law Qawsun and Bashtak.[7] According to historian Amalia Levanoni, al-Mansur Abu Bakr sought to restore the traditional concepts of mamluk-master relations and the modes of hierarchical advancement set by his grandfather Qalawun and abrogate the permissiveness set by his father.[8] However, the mamluk norms of conduct proved too resilient for Abu Bakr.[8] In the view of the emirs and the low and middle-ranking mamluks, Abu Bakr was to solely play the role of a figurehead and not disturb the system created by his father. Thus, Abu Bakr's attempts to rule in his own right were consistently stymied by the emirs.[7] Of the latter, the most prominent was Qawsun, who sought to become the mudabbir ad-dawla (organizer of the state), in effect the strongman of the sultanate. After neutralizing Bashtak, his principal rival, he moved against Abu Bakr; Qawsun feared that Abu Bakr would attempt to imprison him.[7]

On 5 August 1341, Qawsun had Abu Bakr arrested on concocted charges of frivolity.[7] Abu Bakr and six of his brothers were subsequently sent to Qus in Upper Egypt where they were imprisoned.[7] In November 1341, Abu Bakr was executed by the governor of Qus on orders from Qawsun.[7] After Abu Bakr's death, Qawsun installed Abu Bakr's infant half-brother Kujuk as sultan and became the sultan's regent.[7] Meanwhile, dissent mounted against Qawsun in Syria and Cairo and he was ousted in a revolt.[9] The new sultan, Abu Bakr's half-brother Ahmad, later had Qawsun and the governor of Qus (who apologized for killing Abu Bakr) executed in early 1342.[10]

References

  1. 1 2 Bauden 2009, p. 63.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bauden 2009, p. 74.
  3. ↑ Bauden 2009, p. 68.
  4. ↑ Levanoni 1995, p. 187.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Bauden 2009, p. 75.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Bauden 2009, p. 76.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Drory 2006, p. 20.
  8. 1 2 Levanoni 1995, pp. 79–80.
  9. ↑ Drory 2006, p. 24.
  10. ↑ Drory 2006, p. 25.

Bibliography

Regnal titles
Preceded by
An-Nasir Muhammad		 Mamluk Sultan
June 1341 – August 1341 		Succeeded by
Al-Ashraf Kujuk
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