Qutayba Ibn Muslim - Origin and Early Life

Origin and Early Life

Qutayba was born in 669 CE in Basra, where his family was influential. His father, Muslim ibn ʿAmr, had enjoyed the favour of the Umayyads, and fell at the Battle of Maskin at the close of the Second Islamic Civil War. Qutayba rose at first as the protege of Anbasa ibn Sa'id, but was noticed by the powerful governor of Iraq and the East, al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, during the suppression of the revolt of Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn al-Ash'ath in 700/701. Under al-Hajjaj's patronage, he took Rayy from the rebel Umar ibn Abi'l-Salt in 701, and became the city's governor.

Then, in late 704 or early 705, Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan appointed Qutayba as governor of Khurasan. The choice of Qutayba, who hailed from the relatively weak Bahila tribe, was intended by al-Hajjaj to heal the destructive feud between the South Arab or "Yemeni" (Azd and Rabi'ah) and North Arab (Qaysi) tribal confederations in Khurasan by providing a governor who did not belong to either. The Bahila were neutral between the two groups, but generally allied themselves to the Qays, thus furthering al-Hajjaj's policy of emasculating Azdi power, which had been dominant in Khurasan during the governorship of Yazid ibn al-Muhallab. Furthermore, as Qutayba lacked a strong tribal base of his own, he could be expected to remain firmly attached to his patron. Qutayba would spend the next ten years of his life in Central Asia, consolidating and expanding Muslim rule there. In this endeavour, both his military and diplomatic and organisational abilities came him in good stead; most importantly, he was able to enlist the support of the local Iranian population and the powerful dihqan (the Iranian "gentry") class.