al-Basasiri
Abuʾl-Ḥārith Arslān al-Muẓaffar al-Basāsīrī (died 15 January 1059) was a Turkoman slave-soldier (mamlūk) who rose to become a military commander of the Buwayhid dynasty in Iraq.
When the Buwayhids were ousted by the Seljuks in 1055, he transferred his allegiance to the Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt, in whose name he conquered Baghdad, which he ruled for almost a year.
The name al-Basāsīrī (or al-Fasāsīrī, al-Fasāwī) is a nisba derived from his first owner's place of origin, Basā (Fasā) in the province of Fars.
[2] Al-Basasiri took part in Jalal's conflicts with his nephew, Abu Kalijar, the emir of Fars, and with the rival Uqaylid dynasty of Mosul.
[2] In November, Quraysh captured Anbar and formally renounced Buwayhid lordship, ordering the Seljuk sultan Tughrul to be named in the public sermon (khuṭba) during Friday prayer.
[2][3] According to Ibn al-Athir's Complete History, "the estrangement of the [Abbasid] caliph and Basasiri began this year in Ramadan", that is, between 4 December 1054 and 2 January 1055.
In July 1055, during a Sunni protest, the vizier convinced some fanatics to board a ship and break some wine jars belonging to a Christian merchant and destined for al-Basasiri, then staying at Wasit with the Buwayhid sultan.
Because the wine had belonged to a Christian, al-Basasiri was able to obtain a Hanadi legal ruling (fatwā) declaring the vizier's actions illegal.
In fact, although the Fatimid chief missionary al-Mu'ayyad fi'l-Din al-Shirazi wrote to al-Basasiri, his letters did not reach him until after the arrival of Tughrul in Baghdad.
[2] From Rahba, al-Basasiri wrote to the Fatimid caliph al-Mustansir (r. 1036–1094) for permission to come to Cairo and for assistance in defending Syria and Egypt from the Seljuks.
Dubays, al-Basasiri's former protector, who had submitted to Tughrul, changed allegiance and had the Fatimid caliph's name pronounced in the khuṭba.
The army of al-Basasiri and Dubays, reinforced by the Turks and some Bedouin, marched on Sinjar, where they defeated a Seljuk force under Qutalmish and Quraysh.
On 29 January, al-Basasiri celebrated the Feast of the Sacrifice in the prayer space (muṣallā) outside the Great Mosque with Fatimid banners flying.
[2] As the new authority in Baghdad, al-Basasiri took over the Abbasid insignia, the turban (mindīl), cloak (ridāʾ) and lattice screen (shibbāk).
He allowed Quraysh to retain custody of al-Qa'im, removed from the city and confined at Haditha, but he ordered him to hand over the vizier Ibn al-Muslima, whom he paraded through the streets and executed on 16 February 1059.
He offered to pay tribute to al-Basasiri, but the latter refused demanding that the khuṭba and the coinage be made in the name of the Fatimid caliph.
He offered to leave al-Basasiri in power in Baghdad provided the khuṭba and the coinage were in his name and the Abbasid caliph was restored.
