THE ENTRY OF ISLAM TO ALGERIA IN 647 AD
The Islamic State extended during the reign of Caliph Uthman Ibn Affan (23-35 AH) over a vast area from Khorasan and Azerbaijan in the east to Tripoli in the west. The first expeditionary campaigns carried out by the Islamic armies towards the Maghreb since 27 AH aim to test the Byzantine army, which retreated to the northern regions of Africa, but the conquest of the Maghreb took a relatively long period of time during which several campaigns until the arrival in the Maghreb and Andalusia. This conquest paved the way for the convergence of Islamic and African cultures, which resulted in radical civilizational transformations involving all cultural, scientific, social and urban fields, which introduced the country of Morocco as an actor in human civilization.
This article aims to identify the most important stages of the conquest of the Maghreb and its cultural repercussions.
I - Stages of the spread of Islam in the Maghreb (27 - 82 AH)
The process of conquest of the Maghreb was not easy, with numerous military campaigns and several difficulties that eventually led to the spread of Islam throughout North Africa and Andalusia.
1. The first phase of the conquest of the Maghreb countries (27-64 AH)
Since the reign of Caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab, Amr ibn al-'Aas thought of conquering Africa in 22 AH after he conquered present-day Libya, but Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab did not agree. It is not African, but the treacherous treacherous treacherous not invaded by anyone left "(bin Abdul Hakam, Fattouh African and Andalusia, p. 33).
- The campaign of Abdullah bin Saad bin Abi Sarh: When appointed by the Caliph Othman bin Affan as a worker on Egypt, he made the first military campaign towards Africa in 27 AH / 647 AD, and he managed to advance and met the Byzantine army at the outskirts of Sbeitla, and the Islamic army won and killed the Byzantine leader, arugula. The campaign was enough to achieve the first victory over the Byzantines in the Maghreb and collected the spoils and got an agreement between Abdullah bin Saad and tribal leaders to take them money and get out of their country did not pay anyone. This first campaign was merely a test of the strength of the Byzantine defenses and to identify and explore the nature of the region in preparation for the subsequent campaigns.
- Campaigns Muawiya bin Hodaij: carried out three campaigns to open the country of Morocco was the first with the army of Abdul Malik bin Marwan in 34 AH, where he headed from Fustat to the country of Qumuniya (locality of the city of Kairouan) and then led a second campaign in 40 AH and a third year 46 AH and settled in Mount Century North of Kairouan and sent armies to open nearby areas opened Abdullah bin Zubair Sousse and Abdul Malik bin Marwan Jalula.
- Campaign obstacle bin Nafi Fihri: headed to Africa in 50 AH 670 AD coming from the desert and with ten thousand Persia took Kairouan camp and chose its location on a flood plain where pastures and forests Zayatin is far from the sea to avoid the Byzantine invasions and make it a base for the Islamic Army and the capital of the entire country Morocco, West, sunset. He continued his obstacle to the west, avoiding a clash with the Byzantines on the northeast coast of Africa. In 55 AH, Abu Muhajir was appointed Dinar governor of Kairouan. He adopted a flexible policy with the Berbers that led to the decline of the spoils and levies. The Umayyads decided to reinstate the obstacle of Ibn Nafi as governor of Africa and Morocco in 62 AH. He continued his campaign against the Berber tribes such as Lawata, Hawara, Zenata, and Broom, and reached Tangier and Laila. Weevils and reached the Atlantic Ocean. The Berber tribes had prepared themselves to avenge and retaliate against the obstacle and used the Byzantine army and exploited the survival of the obstacle in a few soldiers to be tobacco in Biskra, south of the Aras Mountains with an army of 50,000 soldiers led by Kisila al-Barbari, killing the obstacle in 64 AH 684 AD, and this battle marked the end of the Islamic victories The first in the Maghreb and the beginning of a period of difficulties encountered the spread of Islam.
2 - The stage of difficulties and the continuation of the opening towards the west
The death of 'Uqba ibn Nafi' had a strong positive impact on the Berber tribes who rejected the spread of Islam and the Byzantines who ruled the coast of Africa. They adopted an armed movement aimed at repelling campaigns from the east.
A - Movement Ksila: settled Berber leader Ksila Kairouan after being abandoned by a large number of Muslims towards Egypt after the killing of Uqba ibn Nafi, and thus became power in Africa divided between Ksila Kairouan and Byzantines Carthage. This phase ended in 69 AH when he sent Caliph Abdul Malik bin Marwan Zuhair bin Qais al-Balawi in an army to restore Africa. The battle took place in Mims, west of Kairouan, in which Kassila was killed and the Muslims regained control of the entire Maghreb to the borders of the Moulouya River. Zuhair was forced to return to the east after the outbreak of the movement of Abdullah bin Zubair, and on the way back attacked by a Byzantine fleet in Cyrenaica, Libya, was killed in 71 AH. The influence of political events in the Islamic Levant continued in the conquest of the Maghreb, where the campaigns were disrupted until the Zubairian movement was eliminated.He sent the Umayyad Caliph Hassan ibn al-Nu'man at the head of an army of 40,000 fighters in 76 AH.Hassan was able to subdue Kairouan and conquer the Byzantines and the Berbers and entered Carthage and expelled the Byzantines from them.
B - priesthood movement: Another barbaric resistance movement led by the nomadic Zenat tribes emerged in the mountains of Oras in the Middle Maghreb (Algeria) and led by a woman, Dahia bint Mattia Ben Tifan, called the priesthood and equipped an army to prevent the advancement of Muslims and turned to them a battle in the Oras Mountains ended with the victory of the priestess The Islamic Army retreated to al-Juraid and then to Gabes and eventually settled in Cyrenaica. Thus, the priestess was able to extend its influence over the whole of the country of Morocco again and rebuilt the Kingdom of Kassila while the Arab presence in the region of Cyrenaica subsided.
The priestess adopted the policy of the scorched earth, ruining urbanism, burning the planting, uprooting trees and ruining the country so that the Muslims would not covet. However, this policy caused the resentment of a large number of Berbers, Africans and Romans to the priestess and fled towards the Muslim armies. In 82 AH, a battle took place in central Africa, which ended with the victory of Hassan ibn al-Nu'man and the murder of the priestess. The Muslims regained their influence over the whole of the Maghreb again. This victory contributed to the spread of Islam and the Arabic language among the Berber tribes, which did not reject the new religion, but were mostly driven behind the aspirants of the establishment. Berber Principality.
In general, the process of conquest of the Maghreb was difficult and slow for nearly half a century, affected by the crises of the Islamic Caliphate in the East, as well as by the attempts of confrontation led by some Berber leaders and supported by the Byzantine Roman.
C- Conquest of Al-Aqsa and Al-Andalus
The Umayyad authority appointed Musa ibn Nusayr as the new governor of Morocco in 85 AH. Kairouan took the capital of his mandate and continued his military campaigns towards the Maghreb. He subdued the western regions of the Valley of Malawi and reached the Atlantic Ocean and made the city of Tangier a naval base to equip the army and fleet to enter Andalusia, taking advantage of the spread of Islam among the Berbers who They merged into the Islamic Army as well as the political divisions in Andalusia.
The first raids began on the southern coast of Andalusia since the year 91 AH and then appointed Musa bin Naseer Tariq ibn Ziyad, of Berber origin to an army of 7000 fighters, mostly from the Berber tribes such as Meknas, Zenata and Huara ... The fleet was launched from Tangier in 92 AH / 711 AD and achieved A decisive victory over the army of Dhirak, Musa ibn Nusayr joined Andalusia to enter Toledo, Zaragoza and Sevilla in 94 AH and did not stop the Islamic conquests but continued on the whole of Andalusia.Abdulrahman al-Ghafiqi arrived in the French city of Poitiers in 114 AH / 732 AD and was defeated by Charles Martal.
These battles and campaigns led by Muslims in Africa and the Maghreb to Andalusia emphasize the importance of the civilization project carried out by Muslims in the Maghreb of spreading the Islamic religion and its teachings to remove these areas from the control of the Roman and Byzantine Christians on the one hand and other religions that spread among the Berbers. The length of time required by the conquest of the Maghreb was only evidence of the importance of the conflict between the call for Islam and resistance led by political and social influences who reject the new religion, which robbed them of that leadership and influence and removed from them all the power to extend their control over the indigenous population of the region, the Berbers. These events also show that most Berber tribes entered Islam convinced and rejected previous beliefs and did not recognize the unity of the sword.This is evidenced by the ease of integration of Berbers in Islamic civilization and their contribution to its spread and advancement, as Tariq bin Ziyad, a barbarian of the conqueror army of al-Andalus, despite the multiplicity of Arab leaders. The Islamic civilization of the Maghreb testifies to the intensity of the integration of the original Berber element into the new Islamic society through the cultural, scientific and architectural features of the Maghreb, in which the Berbers played an active and constructive role.
II - The civilizational dimensions of the spread of Islam in the country of Morocco
There have been many manifestations of the cultural prosperity of the Maghreb countries after the Islamic conquest, including the integration of Berbers in the Arab-Islamic civilization that continues to the present day and enriching human civilization with an important number of scientists, thinkers and creators, as well as the development of arts such as architecture and decoration.
1 - Integration of Berbers in Islamic civilization
The Islamic armies of the Maghreb faced barbarian tribes who were proficient in the art of fighting and practiced in wars alongside the regular Byzantine army. These tribes were often free from loyalties or alliances that united them and the rest of the tribes, apart from common interests, so that there were no manifestations of unity that brought them together and made them solidarity and allied to stand up to external challenges. This is why North Africa has been exposed since the dawn of history to the successive invasions of the Phoenicians, Romans, Byzantines and Vandals ... The absence of common destiny and unity of faith and culture have made the Berber tribes looking for their identity separated between the loyalty of some of the Byzantines and the independence of others on its territory as long as it can defend it . As Islam came it was a factor of cultural, social, ideological and political unity around which various tribes gathered to play a role to build this giant edifice of "the best nation brought out to the people" and contribute to the consolidation of gains such as the spread of Islam in Andalusia and support Islamic civilization milestones and scientific figures still impact This people's day. The role of the Islamic religion in this area is similar to the role it played in the Arabian Peninsula when the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) urged the establishment of a political system that transcends the tribal framework and led to the emergence of an Islamic state in which all people are equal regardless of their tribal affiliations.
While the beginning of the process of integration of the Berbers is slow, it expanded according to the policy followed by the governors, where Abu Muhajir encouraged Dinars - a non-Arab - Berbers to convert to Islam and was flexible with them and many of them as the leader as a means.
In the year 65 AH was one-third of the army of Zuhair ibn Qais Balawi of the Berbers, and as a way to enter Kairouan did not destroy and secure her family as did the priestess. On the other hand, the policy of leader Hassan bin al-Nu'man contributed to the integration of the Berbers in the Islamic civilization, when the defeated tribes stipulated about 12,000 hostages to spread among them the Islamic religion and supported them by the army to achieve victories.These hostages also contributed to spreading Islam among their relatives and participated in the conquests. The spoils are from the land and many have risen in military ranks. All these examples are Islamic examples of how leaders deal with indigenous people, since Muslims did not reach the countries of Morocco looters, saboteurs, oppressors and tyrants, but they came to a higher message and a higher vision is to spread the word of monotheism and raise the banner of Islam as far as circumstances and possibilities allow. Similarly, the Berbers, where most of the tribes have embraced Islam and are integrated into the new Islamic society, not by the power of the sword, but by the conviction and consolidation of the Islamic faith among large segments of the population.
It is no wonder that this new civilization in the Maghreb has appointed the wali, an Arab, a Berber man, Tariq bin Ziyad, to lead the Islamic army to conquer Andalusia, and that Musa ibn Nusayr's recruits should consist of 17,000 Arabs and 12,000 Berbers. Within the Maghreb abroad, both Arabs and Berbers became in line to confront the Visigoths and to spread Islam in Andalusia.
These monuments came to establish a new civilization unprecedented among the indigenous people, Musa bin Nusair ordered the teaching of the Koran to the Berbers and sent Caliph Omar bin Abdul Aziz ten scholars to the country of Morocco to consolidate the Koran and the Sunnah and the teachings of Islam among the Berbers.
The settlement of Arabs in the Maghreb and their mixing with the indigenous people also contributed to the building of the new Islamic society. Since the first conquests, more than 180,000 Arab fighters fought in the country, most of whom later settled in Kairouan. Yacoubi wrote, "In the city of Kairouan, mixtures of people from Quraish and other Arab stomachs" It is harmful and Rabia and Qahtan and the varieties of the Agam of the people of Khorasan and it was received with the workers of Bani Hashim soldiers and Agam of the Agam of the country Berbers and Romans and the like that "(Yaqubi, countries p. 348).
The manifestations of the Islamic civilization in the Maghreb did not stop there, but included previously unknown fields such as science, arts and architecture.
2 - the development of science in the countries of Morocco after the Islamic conquest
The Islamic Maghreb has witnessed a scientific renaissance highlighting its features through the multiplicity of science centers such as the Oqba Mosque in Kairouan, the Zitouna Mosque in Tunis, the Mosque of the Villagers in Fez and the Mosque of Córdoba in Andalusia. Several languages such as Berber, Romanian and Sudanese. He emerged in Africa, many scientists graduating from the University of Kairouan famous in language and literature Ibn Tarmah and Ahmed pearl and Mohammed bin Jafar Qazzaz, and in philosophy Abu Bakr Al-Qamoudi and Saeed bin Al-Haddad. A medical school was established in Kairouan, where a number of doctors such as Ishaq bin Omran and Mohammed bin al-Jazzar, especially Ahmad ibn al-Jazzar, the author of Zad al-Musafer, were renowned.
Geography has also developed and used for practical purposes such as trade, history and genealogy. Ibn Hayyan, Ibn Hazm al-Qurtubi and Qadi al-Nu'man were famous.
The Islamic West has contributed effectively to the enrichment of Islamic civilization, especially in the intellectual field.Numerous thinkers emerged, most notably Ibn Rushd al-Faqih, the judge, the philosopher and the doctor who was born in 530 AH / 1126 CE in Cordoba, and the contemporary philosopher Ibn Tufail and the doctor Ibn Zahr.He lived Ibn Rushd between Andalusia and Morocco. He has authored several books, most important of which are "The Rush of Rush", "The Separation of the Essay between Sharia and the Wisdom of Communication", "The Disclosure of Evidence Methods in the Creeds of Milli" and "Colleges of Medicine" in which Ibn Rushd classified drugs according to their activities and effects. Ibn Rushd explained Aristotle's philosophy and its transmission to the West, summarized Galen's works in medicine, and the Christian West accepted his works as the most prominent thinkers of rationalism within Arab-Islamic thought and an important reference in European thought, thus forming a point of interaction and interaction between Islamic and Christian cultures.
The Islamic civilization in the Maghreb also produced a world famous for its geographic works, although he wrote in Botany and Medicine, an Idrissi who was born in the city of Ceuta, Morocco in the late fifth century AH. His family is attributed to the Alawite Idrisi supervisors, he studied in Córdoba, then moved in several countries and wrote several books, the most important of which are: "The Longing Outing in Breakthrough Horizons" and "Single Medicines". Al-Idrisi based his geography on correct scientific concepts, the most important of which are the spherical Earth, the existence of the equator, the climatic regions and the impact of mountains in climate adaptation and the direction of wind and precipitation.Al-Idrisi also completed the map of the world known at the time in a spherical form, before modern science proved this form.
The scientific radiation of the Maghreb went beyond the borders of the African region, where Idrisi moved to the island of Sicily and lived in the palace of King Roger II, who commissioned him to write a comprehensive book describing his kingdom and the countries known in that era. Ibn Khaldun referred to this relationship when he wrote "We are in line with what happened in the book Nuzhat al-Mushtaq, which was written by the Alaoui Idrissi Hammoudi of the Sicilian King of the Franks, Roger bin Rogar when he was descending upon him in Sicily ... His book was written in the middle of the sixth hundred and collected him many books Al-Masoudi, Ibn Khurdazbeh, al-Haqali, Ibn Ishaq al-Munajim, Ptolemy, al-Athri, and others ... "(Ibn Khaldun, Introduction, p. 68).
