Ibn Ammar
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Ibn Ammar (c. 1031–c. 1086) was a Spanish Muslim poet from Silves who became prime minister of the taifa of Seville. Though he was poor and of no great reputation, his skill in poetry brought him the friendship the young Abbad III al-Mu'tamid, who named him prime minister some time after the death of his father Abbad II al-Mu'tadid. Ibn Ammar was reputed to be unbeatable at chess; according to Abd al-Wahid al-Marrakushi, his victory in a game convinced Alfonso VI of Castile to turn away from Seville.
He engineered the annexation of Murcia to the kingdom of Seville, and convinced Al-Mutamid to name him as its governor. He soon proclaimed himself its king and cut off relations with Al-Mutamid. He soon fell from power, was captured in an ambush, and was imprisoned in Seville. He and Al-Mutamid were reconciled, but not for long; shortly after his release from the dungeon, they fell out again, and the king killed the poet with his own hands.
[edit] References
- Hitti, Philip K. History of the Arabs: From the Earliest Times to the Present (London: Macmillan, 1956)
- Sordo, Enrique Moorish Spain: Cordoba, Seville, Granada. (London: Elek Books, 1963)
- Watt, W. Montgomery A History of Islamic Spain (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1965)
