Al-Mutawakkil
10th Abbasid caliph (822–861, r. 847–861)
Ja'far ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Mutawakkil ʿalā Allāh (Arabic: جعفر بن محمد بن هارون, romanized: Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn); March 822 – 11 December 861, commonly known by his regnal name al-Mutawwakil ala Allah (Arabic: المتوكل على الله, romanized: al-Mutawakkil ʿalā Allāh, lit. 'He who relies on God'), was the tenth Abbasid caliph from 847 until his assassination in 861. He succeeded his brother, al-Wathiq (r. 842–847). He was deeply religious, and is remembered for discarding the Muʿtazila, ending the Mihna (a period of persecution of Islamic scholars), and releasing Ahmad ibn Hanbal. He is also known for his tough rule, especially with respect to non-Muslim subjects. The Caliphate reached its maximum extent during his reign.
Al-Mutawakkil relied on Turkic statesmen and slave soldiers to put down rebellions and lead battles against foreign empires, notably the Byzantines. His reliance on Turkic soldiers would come back to haunt him. Al-Mutawakkil would have his Turkic commander-in-chief killed. This, coupled with his extreme attitudes towards Shia Muslims, made his popularity decline rapidly. He was assassinated on 11 December 861 by the Turkic guard with the support of his own son al-Muntasir, marking the beginning of the period of civil strife known as the Anarchy at Samarra.
“Al-Mutawakkil” enters the record as 10th Abbasid caliph (822–861, r. 847–861). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Al-Mutawakkil, 10th and Abbasid can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 23, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q220789. VIAF identifies the subject as 292149102. The Library of Congress control number is n2001057918. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
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