User:Al Ameer son/Mamluk provinces
Overview[edit]
The Mamluk Sultanate was generally divided into two principle regions, the Egyptian homelands (al-diyar al-Misriyya) and the Syrian kingdoms (al-mamalik al-Shamiyya). The subdivisions of Syria were called mamalik (kingdoms) as they were generally successors to the Ayyubid principalities of that region.[1] The offices of the mamalik of Damascus and Aleppo were the most the most important in Syria and the governor of Damascus was the preeminent emir of the region. He held equal importance to the viceroy of Egypt, i.e. the second highest ranking official of the sultanate after the sultan.[1] The governor of Syria held the title of na'ib al-umara, while the viceroy of Egypt was titled na'ib al-kafil.
Syria[edit]
Syria was divided into six mamalik (sing. mamlaka), which were provinces or viceregencies. The mamalik were, from north to south, Halab (Aleppo), Hama, Tarabulus (Tripoli), Dimashq (Damascus), Safad and Karak.[2] First-tier subdivisions of the mamalik were called ′amal. Third-tier subdivisions were called iqlim.
In the case of Damascus, the province's first-tier subdivisions were called safaqa (region or march, pl. safaqat[2]), while amal and iqlim were third and fourth-tier subdivisions, respectively. Damascus also included administrative zones outside of the safaqat, namely the barr (countryside [of Damascus])[3] and the balad (city [of Damascus]).[4]
Permanent provinces[edit]
- Halab (Aleppo) – Province.
- Hama – Province.
- Tarabulus (Tripoli) – Province.
- Dimashq (Damascus) – Province. Because of its large size, it was divided into four safaqat.[2] Its southern provincial border was marked by the deep gorge of Wadi Mujib in Transjordan.[5]
- Al-Balad – City of Damascus.
- Al-Safaqa al-Shamaliyya (Northern Region) – Included the Beqaa Valley, the mountain regions west of it and the coastal area between Sidon and Beirut.[2]
-
- Hims – 'Amal.
- Misyaf – 'Amal.
- Qarah – 'Amal.
- Al-Salamiyah – 'Amal.
- Tadmur – 'Amal.
- Qal'at Ja'bar – 'Amal.
- Al-Safaqa al-Qibliyya (Southern Region) – Included the southern inland regions south of Damascus and the part of Transjordan north of Wadi Mujib.[2] Capital was Adhri'at (modern-day Dara'a).[7]
- Baysan – 'Amal.
- Baniyas – 'Amal.
- Al-Sha'ra – 'Amal.
- Nawa – 'Amal.
- Adhri'at – 'Amal.
- Ajlun – 'Amal.
- Sarkhad – 'Amal.
- Busra – 'Amal.
- Zura'ah – 'Amal.
- Balqa – 'Amal. Southernmost District. 300 villages, including as-Salt, Amman, al-Zarqa, which were all fortified under the Ayyubids,[5] and Hisban (the capital in the first half of the 14th century[8]). The town of Zizah (modern al-Jeezah) was the main southern station town before Mamlakat Karak.[5]
Sawad - Region. Included Beit Ras and Fahl.[5] Jabal Awf - Region. Included the fortified town of Ajlun.[5] Upper Ghawr - Region. Northeastern Jordan Valley. Included small fortified town of al-Qusayr (modern Northern al-Shunah), which was its center. Middle Ghawr - Region. Southeastern Jordan Valley. Centered around the town of Amatah, known as Abu Ubaydah because it was the burial place of Abu Ubaydah.[5]
- Safad – Province.
- Karak – Province. Its northern boundary was marked by the deep gorge of Wadi Mujib in Transjordan.[5] Its southernmost point was Ayla (modern Aqaba).[9] Its western boundary was marked by the Dead Sea and the province stretched eastward into the badiya (desert, empty space).[9]
Non-permanent provinces[edit]
- Gaza – Mamlaka.
- Hims – Mamlaka.
References[edit]
- ^ a b Holt, p. 149.
- ^ a b c d e f g Salibi, p. 63.
- ^ Bakhit, p. 35.
- ^ Guo, p. 118.
- ^ a b c d e f g McPhillips and Walmsley, pp. 120–121.
- ^ a b Salibi, p. 65.
- ^ Salibi, Kamal S. (1998). The Modern History of Jordan. I. B. Tauris. p. 25.
- ^ Walker, pp. 119–120.
- ^ a b c d e Johns, Jeremy (1994). "The Longue Duree: State and Settlement Strategies in Southern Transjordan Across the Islamic Centuries". In Rogan, Eugene; Tell, Tariq (eds.). Village, Steppe and State: The Social Origins of Modern Jordan. British Academic Press. p. 17.
Bibliography[edit]
- McPhillips, Stephen; Walmsley, Alan (2007). "Fahl during the Early Mamluk Period: Archaeological Perspectives" (PDF). Mamluk Studies Review. 11 (1).
- Salibi, Kamal S. (1988). A House of Many Mansions: The History of Lebanon Reconsidered. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520071964.