Home Region:  Iran (Southwest Asia)

Buyid Confederation

D G SC WF HS CC PT EQ 2020  ir_buyid_confederation / IrBuyid

Preceding Entity: Add one more here.
750 CE 946 CE Abbasid Caliphate I (iq_abbasid_cal_1)    [elite replacement]

Succeeding Entity:
No Polity found. Add one here.

The Buyid dynasty originated from Shahrud Valley in northwestern Iran. Ali b. Buya, a soldier in the Abbasid state, began taking territory by forced after being removed from his position as administrator of Karaj. By 934 CE, he had reached Fars. [1] In 945 CE the Buyids claimed Baghdad and Basra creating for themselves a stable base of power in Mesopotamia. [2]
The Buyid ruler was known as an amir or shahanshah, the latter "more a recognition of seniority within the family than an office with authority". [3] The Buyids were essentially a provincial military aristocracy with an army composed partly of Daylamite infantry and slave Turkish cavalry. The regiments of the Buyid Princes often fought one another while the central government increasingly became ineffectual. "The Buyid state was divided into several appanages, of which Shiraz and Baghdad were the most important, each held by a different member of the family." [4]
In theory the Buyid amirs were governors under the Abbasid caliph who remained in Baghdad with powers to appoint religious officials, [5] and continued to be symbolically important (in Iraq) appearing on coinage and grants of land. Although Baghdad was the most important political, economic and religious center, whose amir’s chief secretary of the bureaucracy was formally granted the title of vizier [6] , Fars was the heartland of the empire, with all civil servants being drawn from there. [7] The Buyids replaced previous established bureaucratic families with Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians.
The Buyids paid their military using iqta holdings whereby "in lieu of salary an amir would be granted the right to collect the taxes of a given area. An iqta could thus vary in size from a whole province to much smaller subdivision, to a single town or village." However, "Under the Buyids, this system was widely credited with economic disaster, as absentee amirs sought to reap the swiftest possible profits before their iqta was removed them." [8]

[1]: (Busse 1975, 253-254) H Busse. 1975. Iran under the Buyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.253-4

[2]: (Donohue 2003, 2-11) J J Donohue. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012. Leiden: Brill. p. 2-11

[3]: (Kennedy 2004) Hugh N Kennedy. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[4]: (Peacock 2015, 43) A C S Peacock. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh

[5]: (Kennedy 2004, 216) Hugh N Kennedy. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[6]: (Donohue 2003, 140) John J Donohue. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq. BRILL

[7]: (Busse 1975, 271) H Busse. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.271

[8]: (Peacock 2015, 79) A C S Peacock. 2015. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

General Variables
Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale
Hierarchical Complexity
Professions
Bureaucracy Characteristics
Law
Specialized Buildings: polity owned
Transport Infrastructure
Special-purpose Sites
Information / Writing System
Information / Kinds of Written Documents
Information / Money
Information / Postal System
Information / Measurement System
Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Religion Tolerance Coding in Progress.
Human Sacrifice Coding in Progress.
Crisis Consequences Coding in Progress.
Power Transitions Coding in Progress.

NGA Settlements:

Year Range Buyid Confederation (ir_buyid_confederation) was in:
 (947 CE 1055 CE)   Southern Mesopotamia     Susiana
Home NGA: Susiana

General Variables
Identity and Location
Utm Zone:
38 S

Original Name:
Buyid Confederation

Buyid Confederation. Buyids or the Buwayhids was the dynasty who came from a people called the Daylamites. [1]

[1]: (Kennedy 2004) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Capital:
Baghdad

Baghdad (Iraq); Shiraz (Fars); Isfahan (Khuzestan). These three cities were the capitals of the three areas of kingship of the Buyid brothers. When ’Adud al-Duala took over Mesopotamia, Shiraz became the capital, although ’Adud al-Duala never returned there and remained in Baghdad alongside the calliph. Fars continued to be the heartland of the empire, with all civil servants being drawn from there. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.271

Capital:
Shiraz

Baghdad (Iraq); Shiraz (Fars); Isfahan (Khuzestan). These three cities were the capitals of the three areas of kingship of the Buyid brothers. When ’Adud al-Duala took over Mesopotamia, Shiraz became the capital, although ’Adud al-Duala never returned there and remained in Baghdad alongside the calliph. Fars continued to be the heartland of the empire, with all civil servants being drawn from there. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.271

Capital:
Isfahan

Baghdad (Iraq); Shiraz (Fars); Isfahan (Khuzestan). These three cities were the capitals of the three areas of kingship of the Buyid brothers. When ’Adud al-Duala took over Mesopotamia, Shiraz became the capital, although ’Adud al-Duala never returned there and remained in Baghdad alongside the calliph. Fars continued to be the heartland of the empire, with all civil servants being drawn from there. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.271


Alternative Name:
Daylam State

There are several alternative spellings of Daylam and Buyid which are used throughout literature. [1] [2] Reign of the Daylam; Dawlat al-Daylam. [3]

[1]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012. Leiden: Brill.

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran Under the Būyids. In Fyre, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The Period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuqs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251

[3]: (Subani 2013, 77) Subani, Hamad. 2013. The Secret History of Iran. Lulu.com.

Alternative Name:
Buyid Dynasty

There are several alternative spellings of Daylam and Buyid which are used throughout literature. [1] [2] Reign of the Daylam; Dawlat al-Daylam. [3]

[1]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012. Leiden: Brill.

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran Under the Būyids. In Fyre, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The Period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuqs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251

[3]: (Subani 2013, 77) Subani, Hamad. 2013. The Secret History of Iran. Lulu.com.

Alternative Name:
Buwayhids

There are several alternative spellings of Daylam and Buyid which are used throughout literature. [1] [2] Reign of the Daylam; Dawlat al-Daylam. [3]

[1]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012. Leiden: Brill.

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran Under the Būyids. In Fyre, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The Period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuqs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251

[3]: (Subani 2013, 77) Subani, Hamad. 2013. The Secret History of Iran. Lulu.com.

Alternative Name:
Dailamites

There are several alternative spellings of Daylam and Buyid which are used throughout literature. [1] [2] Reign of the Daylam; Dawlat al-Daylam. [3]

[1]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012. Leiden: Brill.

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran Under the Būyids. In Fyre, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The Period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuqs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251

[3]: (Subani 2013, 77) Subani, Hamad. 2013. The Secret History of Iran. Lulu.com.

Alternative Name:
Reign of the Daylam

There are several alternative spellings of Daylam and Buyid which are used throughout literature. [1] [2] Reign of the Daylam; Dawlat al-Daylam. [3]

[1]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012. Leiden: Brill.

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran Under the Būyids. In Fyre, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The Period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuqs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251

[3]: (Subani 2013, 77) Subani, Hamad. 2013. The Secret History of Iran. Lulu.com.

Alternative Name:
Dawlat al-Daylam

There are several alternative spellings of Daylam and Buyid which are used throughout literature. [1] [2] Reign of the Daylam; Dawlat al-Daylam. [3]

[1]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012. Leiden: Brill.

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran Under the Būyids. In Fyre, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The Period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuqs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251

[3]: (Subani 2013, 77) Subani, Hamad. 2013. The Secret History of Iran. Lulu.com.


Temporal Bounds
Peak Years:
983 CE
 

The reign of Adud al-Duala from his take over of the Baghdad arm of the state, to his death. The Daylam state was nearly unified under one leader . Adud al-Duala was the first to term himself Shahanshah, King of Kings. [1]
"Buyid history can be chronologically divided, roughly, into two divisions. The first half-century, up to the death of Adud al-Dawla, greatest of the Buyid rulers, in 372/983, is one of growth and consolidation when the political initiative was firmly in the hands of the princes of the ruling dynasty. From that point, however, the Buyids were on the defensive, especially in Iraq and central Iran, and political initiative passed to the hands of groups of soldiers and administrators who strove to manipulate their nominal rulers in their own interests." [2]
Adud al-Dawla’s "rule in Fars was something of a golden age for the province as Adud al-Dawla made it the basis for his imperial schemes and, realizingthat the prosperity of the area was fundamental to his plans, took active steps to encourage both agriculture and trade." [3]

[1]: Katouzian, H. 2009. The Persians: Ancient, Mediaeval and Modern Iran. London: Yale University Press. p.87

[2]: (Kennedy 2004, 215) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[3]: (Kennedy 2004, 230) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Duration:
[932 CE ➜ 1,062 CE]
 

932 CE is the probable date of ’Ali b. Būya’s capture of the town of Karaj. It was the first of the areas of land that he conquered. From this town he was able to expand to regional control, by taking Fars; then to much greater control of large areas of Iraq and Iran. [1]
The Buyid State was plagued throughout it’s existence by succession battles. After the death of ’Adud al-Duala, a fight for the succession took place. Abu Kalijar managed to bring unification back again briefly, but his unexpected death led to further disintegration of the Daylam state, at which point foreign powers began to conquer areas of Daylam land. The empire diminished until in 1062 the Daylam heartland of Shīrāz was taken by the Saljuqs. [2]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran Under the Būyids. In Fyre, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The Period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuqs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.253-4

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.303-304


Political and Cultural Relations
Suprapolity Relations:
alliance with [---]

Daylamites were foot soldiers but "a purely Daylamite army was not really effective since they had to find allies, usually Turks, sometimes Kurds, who could provide the cavalry to make a balanced fighting unit." [1]
"Marriage links were an important way of consolidating alliances and links through the female line were more important than in much of Islamic society. This was especially true in the Buyid kingdom of Rayy, where traditional Daylamite customs seem to have been less affected by Islamic norms than in Fars or Iraq." [1]
"the alliance of Buyid princes and Farsi landowners ... was to be the foundation of the Buyid state" [2]
"Buyid and Kakuyid contenders had often actually welcomed the Seljuks as a means of defeating internal enemies." [3]

[1]: (Kennedy 2004, 211) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[2]: (Kennedy 2004, 213) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[3]: (Peacock 2015, 123) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press.


Supracultural Entity:
Perso-Islamic

Persian: "The area [of the Daylamite homeland] had been little affected by the coming of Islam and, like the mountain peoples of nearby Azarbayjan and the remoter parts of Khurasan, its inhabitants had never been effectively conquered by the Arabs, and there was no Arab settlement there. They remained isolated, ruled by kings who took pride in the preservation of old Iranian styles and beliefs." [1] However, the Buyids "were careful to show their attachment to Islam, even when they tried to revive ancient political glories." [2] Perso-Islamic: "the synthesis that had been developed since the early Abbasid period, bringing ancient Iranian, pre-Islamic ideas of kingship into an Islamic context. The tenth century had witnessed the heyday of this synthesis, as under ethnically Iranian dynasties like the Buyids ancient titles like shahanshah (king of kings) were revived." [3] Also, Buyids "openly favoured the Shi’ites, giving them appointments, allowing them to celebrate their festivals, paying handsome sums to Shi’ite poets and littérateurs." [4]

[1]: (Kennedy 2004, 210) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[2]: (Kennedy 2004, 214) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[3]: (Peacock 2015, 134-135) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press.

[4]: (Crone 2005, 221) Crone, Patricia. 2005. Medieval Islamic Political Thought. Edinburgh University Press.


Succeeding Entity:
Seljuk Empire

Seljuks overthrew the Buyids. [1]

[1]: (Kennedy 2004, 230) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Scale of Supracultural Interaction:
[3,000,000 to 3,500,000] km2

km squared. Perso-Islamic: "the synthesis that had been developed since the early Abbasid period, bringing ancient Iranian, pre-Islamic ideas of kingship into an Islamic context. The tenth century had witnessed the heyday of this synthesis, as under ethnically Iranian dynasties like the Buyids ancient titles like shahanshah (king of kings) were revived." [1]

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 134-135) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press.


Relationship to Preceding Entity:
continuity

The ruling dynasty were from "the northern Iranian provinces of Gilam and Daylam ... Gilam was the name given to the area on the south-west shores of the Caspian Sea; Daylam was the mountainous hinterland." [1]

[1]: (Kennedy 2004, 210) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

Relationship to Preceding Entity:
elite migration

The ruling dynasty were from "the northern Iranian provinces of Gilam and Daylam ... Gilam was the name given to the area on the south-west shores of the Caspian Sea; Daylam was the mountainous hinterland." [1]

[1]: (Kennedy 2004, 210) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Preceding Entity:
iq_abbasid_cal_1   elite replacement   ir_buyid_confederation
 

(Relationship): The ruling dynasty were from "the northern Iranian provinces of Gilam and Daylam ... Gilam was the name given to the area on the south-west shores of the Caspian Sea; Daylam was the mountainous hinterland." [1] , The ruling dynasty were from "the northern Iranian provinces of Gilam and Daylam ... Gilam was the name given to the area on the south-west shores of the Caspian Sea; Daylam was the mountainous hinterland." [1]
(Entity): Origin region: "Iranian plateau where this alliance with the local civilian élite was a major source of strength for the dynasty. Only in Baghdad, with its powerful Turkish soldiers and its growing religious tensions, was there serious local resistance to their rule. [2] Core region: Fars. The Buyid period was "a golden age when Fars had been the wealthy centre of an empire." [3]

[1]: (Kennedy 2004, 210) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[2]: (Kennedy 2004, 216) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[3]: (Kennedy 2004, 243) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Degree of Centralization:
confederated state

The Daylam State existed in a kind of military feudal system. The Dailamites were natural warriors and a military hierarchy had emerged which was used to rule the people under Buyid control. ’Ali b.Būya took confiscated land and gave it to his generals in lieu of payment. This system had a hereditary element.
The power system was further complicated by ’Ali b. Būya appointing his brothers as kings of areas of the empire. Rukn al-Daula ruled Isfahāhan and Ray. His coins suggest that he was sole ruler in this area since they contain only his name and the caliphs. Mu’izz al-Daula, the youngest brother, was placed in command of Buyid interests in Khūzistān, but only as a representative of ’Ali b. Būya. His coins contain his brother’s name, as well as his own and the caliphs. Therefore, there existed a partially independent, partially hierarchical kingship system within the Daylam State. [1]
Furthermore, there existed the Caliphate in Baghdad. The Caliphate were considered religious leaders chosen by God to rule the Islamic world. They had political power by nature of their religious power. ’Ali b. Būya did not seek to overthrow the ’Abbāsid Calliph at Baghdad; instead he treated with him to gain recognition as viceroy, although he never paid the agreed tribute. [2] Since the Buyid dynasty was in control of Baghdad it has been suggested the the calliph were the pawns of the Buyids. [3] There continued to be several exchanges between the caliph and the ruler of the Daylam state to establish the state of power throughout the Buyid dynasty. [4]
Once ’Adud al-Daula had unified the Empire it existed as a confederated state with one ruler and was governed by a network of Buyid princes and other tribal leaders. There were also a number of vassal states which ruled themselves, though acknowledged the overlordship of the Buyids. [5]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran Under the Būyids. In Fyre, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The Period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuqs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.259

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran Under the Būyids. In Fyre, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The Period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuqs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.256

[3]: Katouzian, H. 2009. The Persians: Ancient, Mediaeval and Modern Iran. London: Yale University Press. p.87

[4]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.277-78

[5]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.270


Language
Linguistic Family:
Indo-European
Linguistic Family:
Afro-Asiatic

Language:
Persian

Persian was the mothertongue, the first Buyid rulers were probably not fluent in Arabic, but Adud al-Daula was known as an Arabic poet. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.286

Language:
Arabic

Persian was the mothertongue, the first Buyid rulers were probably not fluent in Arabic, but Adud al-Daula was known as an Arabic poet. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.286


Religion

Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale
Population of the Largest Settlement:
[500,000 to 900,000] people
950 CE

Original code: [800,000-900,000] for 950 CE. AD: the range for 950CE has been extended to reflect some lower population estimates (the difference between 950 CE and 1000 CE was otherwise too important to be explained by pillaging and extortion).
Baghdad
900 CE 900,000 [1]
c942 CE 240,000 houses, 1500 baths (200/family). Population estimates of 1 million probably too large. : 125,000 in 1000 CE. [2]
990 CE "Al Muquddasi finds Madinat al Salam (original core of Abbasid Baghdad the "Round City of Baghdad") in ruins [3]
125,000 in 1000 CE. [1]
1058 CE Al Khatib reports "area covered by houses" 5 miles across "in breadth and width" [4]
Baghdad in decline due to lack of security from pillaging and extortion: "In Buyid times, the richest people in the city were not merchants but government servants. Tax collecting, military service and the holding of iqtas rather than commerce were the main sources of wealth. Those who did make money invested it in land rather than trade. There also seems to have been a continuous emigration of wealthy families, the Banu l-Furat for example, to Egypt where prospects were much brighter." [5]
c996 CE "Baghdad was very much an island of Buyid control in a countryside dominated by powerful bedouin tribes." [6]

[1]: (Chase-Dunn spreadsheet)

[2]: (Modelski 2003, 191 "World Cities")

[3]: (Modelski 2003, 191 "World Cities" cites: Abu-Lughod)

[4]: (Modelski 2003, 191 "World Cities" cites: Duri)

[5]: (Kennedy 2004, 224-225) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[6]: (Kennedy 2004, 237) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

Population of the Largest Settlement:
125,000 people
1000 CE

Original code: [800,000-900,000] for 950 CE. AD: the range for 950CE has been extended to reflect some lower population estimates (the difference between 950 CE and 1000 CE was otherwise too important to be explained by pillaging and extortion).
Baghdad
900 CE 900,000 [1]
c942 CE 240,000 houses, 1500 baths (200/family). Population estimates of 1 million probably too large. : 125,000 in 1000 CE. [2]
990 CE "Al Muquddasi finds Madinat al Salam (original core of Abbasid Baghdad the "Round City of Baghdad") in ruins [3]
125,000 in 1000 CE. [1]
1058 CE Al Khatib reports "area covered by houses" 5 miles across "in breadth and width" [4]
Baghdad in decline due to lack of security from pillaging and extortion: "In Buyid times, the richest people in the city were not merchants but government servants. Tax collecting, military service and the holding of iqtas rather than commerce were the main sources of wealth. Those who did make money invested it in land rather than trade. There also seems to have been a continuous emigration of wealthy families, the Banu l-Furat for example, to Egypt where prospects were much brighter." [5]
c996 CE "Baghdad was very much an island of Buyid control in a countryside dominated by powerful bedouin tribes." [6]

[1]: (Chase-Dunn spreadsheet)

[2]: (Modelski 2003, 191 "World Cities")

[3]: (Modelski 2003, 191 "World Cities" cites: Abu-Lughod)

[4]: (Modelski 2003, 191 "World Cities" cites: Duri)

[5]: (Kennedy 2004, 224-225) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[6]: (Kennedy 2004, 237) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Polity Territory:
900,000 km2

squared kilometers


Polity Population:
[4,500,000 to 5,500,000] people

McEvedy and Jones
Amirate of Baghdad: 2,300,000 for modern Iraqi borders. Perhaps 1,500,000? for mid-region to south in 1000 CE.
Amirate of Shiraz and Amirate of Rayy: 4,500,000 for modern Iranian borders. Minus the north and east, perhaps 3,500,000? [1]

[1]: (McEvedy and Jones 1978, 151-153)


Hierarchical Complexity
Settlement Hierarchy:
[4 to 5]

levels.
1. Capital city e.g. Shiraz or Baghdad
"Rule in the mediaeval Islamic world was generally city based. The Samanids, Buyids and Ghaznavids based their rule in towns, Bukhara, Shiraz and Baghdad, and Ghazna, respectively. ... Cities frequently possessed a building called the dar al-imara, or in the case of capitals, dar al-mamlaka, which served as the governor’s residence and as a physical manifestation of a ruler’s authority." [1]
2. Regional capitals3. Cities4. Towns5. Villages
(6) Shiraz, (5) Baghdad, (4) regional capitals, (3) cities, (2) towns, (1) villages [2] Don’t know what to make of this reference. In context of Buyid’s federated system Shiraz was not above Baghdad. There was no single central capital, the different kingdoms had their own central capital. Also, what do "regional capitals" mean? - ET:

[1]: (Peacock 2015, 166) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press.

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.271


Religious Level:
3

levels.
1. Caliph
"They left the caliphs in position as titular heads of state, reorganized them as the chiefs of all Sunni Muslims, conceded their right to make appointments to religious offices, and accepted the idea that their own right to make appointments to religious offices was based on caliphal recognition. The sermon at Friday prayers, government coinage, and (in Iraq) even grants of land and appointments to offices referenced the names of the caliphs. Although it was deprived of actual administrative and military power, this allowed the caliphate to mobilize the support of the Sunni population of Baghdad and to retain an important role in Baghdadi politics." [1]
Under Buyids the caliph was a religious but not administrative/military head
However, Buyids "openly favoured the Shi’ites, giving them appointments, allowing them to celebrate their festivals, paying handsome sums to Shi’ite poets and littérateurs." [2]
Religion was an interesting concept in the Buyid Dynasty. The major religion was Islam, although Christians were employed in high levels of office. [3] Amongst the Muslims; some were Sunni, some Shīīte and some Zaidites. The ruling Buyid dynasty, by descent Shīīte, seemed uninterested in installing a single religion or removing the Sunnī calliph. [4] Therefore, while the calliph was the highest religious figure in the Daylam State; he was not a personal religious figure for many of the inhabitants.
(3) calliph, (2) syndics, (1) immam [5]
1. Caliph
2. Syndics3. Imams

[1]: (Lapidus 2012, 227-228)

[2]: (Crone 2005, 221) Crone, Patricia. 2005. Medieval Islamic Political Thought. Edinburgh University Press.

[3]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.288

[4]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.287

[5]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012: Shaping Institutions for the Future. Leiden: Brill. p.303-305


Military Level:
8

levels.The army that the Buyid Dynasty controlled was comprised of two parts: the Dailamite infantry, of which the Buyid’s were the original leaders of a force of less than one hundred men, and the Turkish cavalry. They operated their own military systems and hierarchies. In charge of them all was the Amir, protected by his own personal bodyguards, the palace retainers. The Dailamite system provides the greatest number of military levels which is the value coded. There is also documentation of another system of levels, which are thought to be the levels of development of slaves in the military. [1]
1. amir
_Dailamite infantry_
2. commander-in-chief,3. commander4. chief sergeant5. sergeant6. upper grade7. middle grade8. lower grade
Turkish cavalry: chief chamberlain, chamberlain, commander, sergeant, retainer
Slave training system?: chief of stables, equerry, chief messenger, procession leader, groom, cup bearer, shield bearer, stirrup holders
"The Buyid wazirs did not confine themselves to purely administrative functions. They advised on, and sometimes decided, policy and in some cases they commanded armies in their own right. The distinction between the civil and military administration which is apparent in the later phases of Abbasid government had largely disappeared." [2]

[1]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012: Shaping Institutions for the Future. Leiden: Brill. p.196-7

[2]: (Kennedy 2004, 222) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Administrative Level:
5

levels. [1] [2]
1. Amir or shahanshah
"the title of shahanshah, effectively the presidency of the confederation. ... it was more a recognition of seniority within the family than an office with authority". [3] 983 CE succession conflict
"In theory, the Buyid brothers exercised authority as governors for the Abbasid caliphs. Given their modest social origins and their position as outsiders in the Islamic world, it was vital for them to secure the approval and authority of the caliphs for their actions." [4]
2. Secretary of the amir [5] "The viziers made appointments to the diwans or confirmed incumbents, but the secretaries of the amir also exercised this power." [5]
_Government of appanage_
"The Buyid lands formed a federation, rather than an empire. The major political units were the principalities centred on Fars, with its capital at Shiraz, al-Jibal, based on Rayy, and Iraq, including Baghdad, Basra and, very briefly, Mosul. ... Of these principalities, Fars was by far the most important... Baghdad enjoyed prestige as the centre of the caliphate and it remained a cultural and intellectual centre of great importance." [6]
"The Buyid state was divided into several large appanages, of which Shiraz and Baghdad were the most important, each held by a different member of the family." [7]
e.g. Iraq. [8]
2. wazir [9] "Administrators in other Buwayhid centers were referred to as vizier, but there is no record of their being granted the title, for the word in reality had two meanings: the chief secretary of any petty potentate was called vizier, but the title, formally granted was reserved to the secretary of the amir at Baghdad." [10]
3. Deputy-vizier"viziers maintained a deputy". among his duties was "overseeing the financial agents". [5]
3. al-Diwan (main office)4.5.
3. diwans of al-Sawad and al-Basra (Land tax) [11]
3. diwan al-jaysh (army) [11]
3. diwan al-ma’awin (security) [11]
3. diwan al-nafaqat (expenditure) [11]
3. diwan al-khizana (treasury) [5]
3. diwan al-mazalim (complaints) [11]
3. diwan al-rasa’il (chancellery) [11]
3. diwan al-barid (post) [11]
Chief judgeship. The censorship. Prefect of police. [12]
_Kakuyids_
"Much of western Iran was dominated by another Iranian family of Caspian Daylamite origin, the Kakuyids, based in Isfahan, who alternately recognised Buyid and Ghaznavid suzerainty." [7]
2. Local kingdoms3. Local bureaucracies [4]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.287

[2]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012: Shaping Institutions for the Future. Leiden: Brill. p.131

[3]: (Kennedy 2004) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[4]: (Kennedy 2004, 216) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[5]: (Donohue 2003, 135) Donohue, John J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq. BRILL

[6]: (Kennedy 2004, 217) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[7]: (Peacock 2015, 43) Peacock, A C S. 2015. The Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh

[8]: (Donohue 2003) Donohue, John J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq. BRILL

[9]: (Kennedy 2004, 213) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[10]: (Donohue 2003, 140) Donohue, John J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq. BRILL

[11]: (Donohue 2003, 143) Donohue, John J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq. BRILL

[12]: (Donohue 2003, 146) Donohue, John J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq. BRILL


Professions
Professional Soldier:
present

Soldiers were paid through a type of feudal system governed by military officers. [1]
"It has been estimated that in the early fourth/tenth century foot soldiers were being paid about six dinars a month while the cavalry received forty. This meant that the cavalry became a privileged class, anxious to preserve their position, and the conflict was made worse by the fact that the cavalry were Turks while the infantry were almost entirely Daylamites." [2]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.252

[2]: (Kennedy 2004, 220) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Professional Priesthood:
unknown

Professional Military Officer:
present

A "military aristocracy" grew out of the success of the Dalamite conquest. [1] [2]
"The iqta had been the Buyid answer to the problem of paying the military in a period when specie was in short supply: in lieu of salary an amir would be granted the right to collect the taxes of a given area. An iqta could thus vary in size from a whole province to much smaller subdivision, to a single town or village. In principle, the iqta remained in the figt of the sultan, and could be withdrawn at any moment. Under the Buyids, this system was widely credited with economic disaster, as absentee amirs sought to reap the swiftest possible profits before their iqta was removed them." [3]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.252

[2]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012: Shaping Institutions for the Future. Leiden: Brill. p.199

[3]: (Peacock 2015, 79) Peacock, A C S. 2015. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.


Bureaucracy Characteristics
Specialized Government Building:
unknown

Merit Promotion:
absent

"the Daylamites showed strong family loyalties; true, there were often disputes within the kin, but their leaders tended to think in terms of family rather than in terms of more abstract ideas of state or the Muslim community." [1]

[1]: (Kennedy 2004, 211) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Full Time Bureaucrat:
present

With power being held by those in the military profession, a system of bureaucrats was necessary to deal with the administration of the polity. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.252


Law
Professional Lawyer:
present

jurists, Shi’i legal scholars (Modaressi 1991) [1]

[1]: (https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/RARUQPN6/item-list)


Judge:
absent

Judges were semi-religious, semi-political figures. There was a heirarchy of judges: the chief judge appointed deputies in the provinces, who appointed their own deputies. [1] [2] Full-time judges seem to have been absent.

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.277

[2]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012: Shaping Institutions for the Future. Leiden: Brill. p.289-302


Formal Legal Code:
present

A sacred legal code (sharī’a) was present. [1]

[1]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012: Shaping Institutions for the Future. Leiden: Brill. p.288


Court:
present

Specialized Buildings: polity owned
Market:
present

Bazaars were part of Abud al-Daula’s building programme. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.284


Irrigation System:
present

A dam was built near Shīrāz which diverted the water from the rive Kūr for agricultural use. [1] Muizz al-Dawla restored irrigation ditches. [2] Adud al-Dawla "invested heavily in irrigation projects, one of which, a great dam known as the Band-i Amir, remains to this day as a testimony to his activities." [3] Qanats.

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.282

[2]: (Kennedy 2004, 222) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.

[3]: (Kennedy 2004, 230) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Food Storage Site:
unknown

Transport Infrastructure
Road:
present

In an effort to establish a quick postal service, Adud al-Daula concentrated on improving the roads between Baghdad and Shīrāz. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.283


Port:
present

Sīrāf was the most important port on the Persian Gulf. Adud al-Daula also held control of the ’Umān peninsula, which had ports that were very important for shipping. [1] Imports came through coastal cities Siraf and Najairam. [2]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.282

[2]: (Ring, Watson and Schellinger 2014, 644) Ring, Trudy. Watson, Noelle. Schellinger, Paul. 2014. Middle East and Africa: International Dictionary of Historic Places. Routledge.


Canal:
present

Rukn al-Duala’s canal marked the beginning of a building renaissance at Shīrāz. [1] Adud al-Dawla restored canal network in Baghdad. [2]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.281

[2]: (Kennedy 2004, 233) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2004. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates. Second edition. Pearson Longman. Harlow.


Bridge:
present

Abud al-Daula restored the bridge over the Hinduwān at Ahvaz. [1] The Amir Barrier in Fars had three purposes: join river banks (bridge), water supply for irrigation, and energy (to turn water wheels for a millstone). [2]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.284

[2]: (Mahmoudian and Mahmoudian 2012, 95) Angelakis A N, Mays L W, Koutsoyiannis, D. 2012. Evolution of Water Supply Through the Millennia. IWA Publishing.


Special-purpose Sites
Mines or Quarry:
unknown

Information / Writing System
Written Record:
present

Written records [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.286


Script:
present

Written records [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.286


Phonetic Alphabetic Writing:
present

Nonwritten Record:
unknown

Written records [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.286


Non Phonetic Writing:
absent

Mnemonic Device:
unknown

Information / Kinds of Written Documents
Scientific Literature:
present

Hospital built in Baghdad became centre for medical research and scholarship. [1] Mathematicians: "Abūl Wafā’ Būzjānī (d. 998) and Omar Khayyám (d. 1122) who conveyed, in so-called conversazioni, their knowledge to architects and artisans committed to building and decorating the religious and secular buildings." [2] "al-Daula financed considerable scientific, medical, and Islamic religious research." [3]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.287

[2]: (more official source required [1])

[3]: (Ring, Watson and Schellinger 2014, 644) Ring, Trudy. Watson, Noelle. Schellinger, Paul. 2014. Middle East and Africa: International Dictionary of Historic Places. Routledge.


Sacred Text:
present

The Quran is the sacred text of Islam and Islam was the main religion of the Daylam state. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.


Religious Literature:
present

Theologians present in society. [1] Buyids paid "handsome sums to Shi’ite poets and littérateurs." [2] "al-Daula financed considerable scientific, medical, and Islamic religious research." [3]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.287

[2]: (Crone 2005, 221) Crone, Patricia. 2005. Medieval Islamic Political Thought. Edinburgh University Press.

[3]: (Ring, Watson and Schellinger 2014, 644) Ring, Trudy. Watson, Noelle. Schellinger, Paul. 2014. Middle East and Africa: International Dictionary of Historic Places. Routledge.


Practical Literature:
unknown

Philosophy:
present

Philosophers were present in society; therefore, in a society with a significant written record, it can be inferred that they wrote down their philosophy. [1]

[1]: Donohue, J. J. 2003. The Buwayhud Dynasty in Iraq 334H./945 to 403H./1012: Shaping Institutions for the Future. Leiden: Brill. p.167


Lists Tables and Classification:
unknown

History:
present

Philologist present at court. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.286


Fiction:
present

There were poets at court, including ’Adud al-Daula. [1] Buyids paid "handsome sums to Shi’ite poets and littérateurs." [2]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.286

[2]: (Crone 2005, 221) Crone, Patricia. 2005. Medieval Islamic Political Thought. Edinburgh University Press.


Calendar:
present

Islamic calendar.


Information / Money
Token:
unknown

Precious Metal:
unknown

Paper Currency:
unknown

Indigenous Coin:
present

[1] government coinage. [2] Striking of coinage was one of the institutions of Islamic statehood. [3]

[1]: Treadwell, L. 2001. Buyid Coinage: A Die Corpus (322 - 445 A.H.). Oxford: Ashmolean Museum

[2]: (Lapidus 2012, 227-228)

[3]: (Peacock 2015, 48) Peacock, A C S. 2015. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.


Foreign Coin:
absent

"The few ninth and tenth century hoards of precious coin recovered in Bilad al-Sham reveal the continuing unified nature of the monetary system in the Islamic world, even though political unity was lost with the progressive disintegration of the Abbasid caliphate." [1] Bilad al-Sham is in Syria and not within the region occupied by the Buyids; however Buyid coins are well represented in coin hoards found here.

[1]: (Walmsley 2000, 339) Walmsley, Alan "Regional Trade in the Islamic East Mediterranean" in Hansen, Inge Lyse. Wickham, Chris eds. 2000. The Long Eighth Century. BRILL.


Article:
present

Payment in kind of taxes. [1]

[1]: (Donohue 2003, 141-142) Donohue, John J. 2003. The Buwayhid Dynasty in Iraq. BRILL


Information / Postal System
Postal Station:
present

"In an effort to establish a quick postal service, Adud al-Daula concentrated on improving the roads between Baghdad and Shīrāz." [1] The barid "post and intelligence service that had been established by the early Abbasids, and which allowed the caliphal government to keep tabs on its most far-flung provinces ... was used by both the Buyids and the Ghaznavids". [2] "Under the Buyids rapid and efficient service was established first between Baghdad and Ray, then between Baghdad and Shiraz, with couriers arriving in the capital daily (Ebn Jawzī, VI, p. 341; Helāl Ṣābeʾ, p. 18; cf. Busse, p. 311)." [3]

However, “The struggles between the different regional powers and the Abbasid caliphate of Baghdad, particularly during the time of the Buyids and later in the eleventh century with the arrival of the Turks in the Middle East, meant that the barid became progressively disorganized until only an occasional postal service remained (Sauvaget, 11; Ebn Fazlollāh al-ʿOmari, 241).” [4]

[1]: (Busse 1975, 283)

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 200) Peacock, A C S. 2015. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[3]: (Floor 1990) Floor, Willem. 1990. ČĀPĀR. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/capar-or-capar-turk

[4]: (Gazagnadou 2017, 51) Gazagnadou, D. 2017. The Iranian origin of the word ’barid’. Journal of Persianate Studies 10(1) pp. 49-56. Seshat URL https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/A2CXIP3I/library


General Postal Service:
present

"In an effort to establish a quick postal service, Adud al-Daula concentrated on improving the roads between Baghdad and Shīrāz." [1] The barid "post and intelligence service that had been established by the early Abbasids, and which allowed the caliphal government to keep tabs on its most far-flung provinces ... was used by both the Buyids and the Ghaznavids". [2] "Under the Buyids rapid and efficient service was established first between Baghdad and Ray, then between Baghdad and Shiraz, with couriers arriving in the capital daily (Ebn Jawzī, VI, p. 341; Helāl Ṣābeʾ, p. 18; cf. Busse, p. 311)." [3]

However, “The struggles between the different regional powers and the Abbasid caliphate of Baghdad, particularly during the time of the Buyids and later in the eleventh century with the arrival of the Turks in the Middle East, meant that the barid became progressively disorganized until only an occasional postal service remained (Sauvaget, 11; Ebn Fazlollāh al-ʿOmari, 241).” [4]

[1]: (Busse 1975, 283)

[2]: (Peacock 2015, 200) Peacock, A C S. 2015. Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Edinburgh.

[3]: (Floor 1990) Floor, Willem. 1990. ČĀPĀR. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/capar-or-capar-turk

[4]: (Gazagnadou 2017, 51) Gazagnadou, D. 2017. The Iranian origin of the word ’barid’. Journal of Persianate Studies 10(1) pp. 49-56. Seshat URL https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/A2CXIP3I/library


Courier:
present

"In an effort to establish a quick postal service, Adud al-Daula concentrated on improving the roads between Baghdad and Shīrāz." [1] a ’hamami’ was a "despatcher of carrier pigeons and letters from one town to another" in Iraq, Egypt and Syria: 9th, 10th 11th CE. [2]

However, “The struggles between the different regional powers and the Abbasid caliphate of Baghdad, particularly during the time of the Buyids and later in the eleventh century with the arrival of the Turks in the Middle East, meant that the barid became progressively disorganized until only an occasional postal service remained (Sauvaget, 11; Ebn Fazlollāh al-ʿOmari, 241).” [3]

[1]: (Busse 1975, 283)

[2]: (Shatzmiller 1994, 140) Shatzmiller, Maya. 1994. Labour in the Medieval Islamic World. E. J. BRILL. Leiden.

[3]: (Gazagnadou 2017, 51) Gazagnadou, D. 2017. The Iranian origin of the word ’barid’. Journal of Persianate Studies 10(1) pp. 49-56. Seshat URL https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/A2CXIP3I/library


Information / Measurement System

Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Fortifications
Wooden Palisade:
present

Abbasids used spiked wooden barriers. [1]

[1]: (Kennedy 2001, 189) Kennedy, H. 2001. The Armies of the Caliphs. Routledge. London.


Stone Walls Non Mortared:
unknown

Stone Walls Mortared:
present

There was a city wall at Medina, built to protect against Qarmatis. There was also a walled citadel in Shīrāz. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.281


Settlements in a Defensive Position:
unknown

Modern Fortification:
absent

Moat:
present

Moats were used in this region in the Middle Ages. No specific reference.


Fortified Camp:
unknown

Earth Rampart:
present

Earth ramparts were used in this region in the Middle Ages. No specific reference.


Ditch:
present

Ditches were used in this region in the Middle Ages. No specific reference.


Complex Fortification:
unknown

around Baghdad?


Military use of Metals
Steel:
present

Present in Caliphate armies. [1]

[1]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


Iron:
present

Present in Caliphate armies. [1]

[1]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


Copper:
present

Bronze:
present

Projectiles
Tension Siege Engine:
present

Ibn al-’Amīd was a famous siege engine designer [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.286


Sling Siege Engine:
absent

Abbasids had the manjaniq, a swing beam engine similiar to the Western Trebuchet. [1] Manjaniq was man-powered not gravity powered? [2] First known use of the counter-weight trebuchet 1165 CE at Byzantine siege of Zevgminon. [3]

[1]: Kennedy, The Armies of the Caliphs p. 184

[2]: (Nicolle 2003, 14) Nicolle, David. 2003. Medieval Siege Weapons (2): Byzantium, the Islamic World and India AD 476-1526. Osprey Publishing.

[3]: (Turnball 2002) Turnball, S. 2002. Siege Weapons of the Far East (1): AD 612-1300. Osprey Publishing.


Sling:
unknown

Abbasid era poem about a siege mentions "the evil man that loads the sling". [1] This could also refer to a siege engine.

[1]: (Kennedy 2001, 110) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2001. The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the early Islamic State. Vol. 352. Routledge.


Self Bow:
absent

Under the Abbasids, ’Arab’ and Persian’ bows mentioned in sources, both composite bows. [1] More powerful composite bow likely used at the expense of the self bow.

[1]: (Kennedy 2001, 177-178) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2001. The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the early Islamic State. Vol. 352. Routledge.


Javelin:
present

In the Ghaznavid armies there were "Daylamite infantrymen, who fought with their characteristic weapons of the spear and javelin". [1] Each man was equipped with three spears. [2]

[1]: (Bosworth 1998, 113) in Bosworth, C E and Asimov M S. and Bosworth CE. 1998. History of Civilizations of Central Asia, Volume 4. UNESCO.

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251


Handheld Firearm:
absent

Gunpowder Siege Artillery:
absent

Crossbow:
present

Abbasids had crossbows. [1]

[1]: Kennedy, Hugh N. The armies of the caliphs: military and society in the early Islamic state. Vol. 3 Routledge, 2001. pp. 168-182


Composite Bow:
present

Under the Abbasids, ’Arab’ and Persian’ bows mentioned in sources, both composite bows. [1] The Turks provided mounted archers to the Buyid army. [2]

[1]: (Kennedy 2001, 177-178) Kennedy, Hugh N. 2001. The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the early Islamic State. Vol. 352. Routledge.

[2]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251


Atlatl:
absent

Weapon of the Americas.


Handheld weapons
War Club:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Sassanids [2] and Abbasid Caliphate [3] had war clubs or maces.

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Wilcox 1986, Plate E) Wilcox, P. 1986. Rome’s Enemies (3): Parthians and Sassanid Persians. Osprey Publishing.

[3]: (Kennedy 2001, 24) Kennedy, H. 2001. The Armies of the Caliphs. Routledge. London.


Sword:
present

Buyids had swords. [1] Broadswords and short-swords. [2]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251

[2]: (Nicolle 1982, 20) Nicolle, D. 1982. The Armies of Islam, 7th-11th Centuries. Osprey Publishing.


Spear:
unknown

Each man was equipped with three spears. [1] -- are these thrown spears? this variable is for handheld spears, such as a lance.

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251


Polearm:
present

Long pikes may have been present, as they were under the earlier Abbasids. [1]

[1]: (Nicolle 1982, 20) Nicolle, D. 1982. The Armies of Islam, 7th-11th Centuries. Osprey Publishing.


Dagger:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Abbasids [2] had daggers.

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Nicolle 1982, 20) Nicolle, D. 1982. The Armies of Islam, 7th-11th Centuries. Osprey Publishing.


Battle Axe:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Sassanids [2] and Abbasids [3] had battle axes.

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Mitterauer 2010, 106) Mitterauer, M. 2010. Why Europe?: The Medieval Origins of Its Special Path. University of Chicago Press.

[3]: (Nicolle and Hook 1998, Cover Illustration) Nicolle D, Hook A. 1998. Armies of the Caliphates 862-1098. Osprey Publishing.


Animals used in warfare
Horse:
present

The Buyids employed the Turks to be their cavalry. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251


Elephant:
unknown

A book called ’War Elephants’ (Nossov and Nossov 2012) lists Buyids in the index. Needs checking. "But there can be little doubt that war-elephants were not used in the same numbers under the Islamic dynasties of India as they were in the early medieval period and before. We have seen that the Arabic sources described the most important ninth- and tenth-century Hindu dynasties as equipped with tens of thousands or more elephants of various kinds. Although it is unlikely that these numbers indicated war-elephants in a state of readiness - they probably included the guessed number of untamed and half-tamed ones -, and although some of the figures are contradictory, they are larger than those of later times. Certainly the Arabs of Sind, the Saffarids, and the later Buyids made almost no use of them at all." [1]

[1]: (Wink 1997, 102-103) Andre Wink. 1997. Al-Hind. The Making of the Indo-Islamic World. Volume II. The Slave Kings and the Islamic Conquest 11th-13th Centuries. BRILL. Leiden.


Donkey:
unknown

Dog:
present

"Adud al-Daula agreed to leave the Baloch if every family would furnish him with a dog. After the Baloch sent him the dogs, these were sent back with burning naphtha on their necks. In the mayhem that followed the burning dogs, the army entered the valley from the narrow pass and massacred the Baloch. With the use of this innovative tactic, he was able to burn the whole settlement of the Baloch and annihilate the population." [1]

[1]: (Dashti 2012) Dashti, Naseer. 2012. The Baloch and Balochistan: A historical account from the Beginning to the fall of the Baloch State. Trafford Publishing.


Camel:
present

Daylamites were infantry warriors and had to hire their cavalry. Likely did not have access to camels or use camel warriors. May have been used as pack animals as camels were present for postal duty: "A network of camel stations was established under the Abbasids and continued under the Buyid and Samanid successor regimes." [1]

[1]: (Irwin 2010, 152) Robert Irwin. 2010. Camel. Reaktion Books. London.


Armor
Wood Bark Etc:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Used for shields by the preceding Abbasids [2] and the Buyids used shields. [3]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178

[3]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251


Shield:
present

Buyids used shields. [1]

[1]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251


Scaled Armor:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] The Sassanids [2] had scale armour as did the Abbasids. [3]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Farrokh 2012, 16) Farrokh, Kaveh. 2012. Sassanian Elite Cavalry AD 224-642. Osprey Publishing.

[3]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


Plate Armor:
absent

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Unknown? if Sassanids used plate armour, whilst absent for the Abbasids. [2]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


Limb Protection:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Sassanids [2] and Abbasids used limb protection. [3]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Mitterauer 2010, 106) Mitterauer, M. 2010. Why Europe?: The Medieval Origins of Its Special Path. University of Chicago Press.

[3]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


Leather Cloth:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Used for shields by the preceding Abbasids [2] and the Buyids used shields. [3]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178

[3]: Busse, H. 1975. Iran under the Būyids. In Frye, R. N. (ed.) The Cambridge History of Iran. Volume 4. The period from the Arab Invasion to the Saljuq’s. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.251


Laminar Armor:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Samanid period bowls show mounted warriors wearing lamellar armor [2] and the Abbasids likely used lamellar e.g. for leg protection. [3]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Khorasani 2014) Khorasani, Manouchehr Moshtagh. 2014. The Development of Persian Armour from the Sassanian to the Qajar Period. Harnischtreffen 26-28 September 2014.

[3]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


Helmet:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] The Sassanids [2] wore helmets as did the Abbasids. [3]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Mitterauer 2010, 106) Mitterauer, M. 2010. Why Europe?: The Medieval Origins of Its Special Path. University of Chicago Press.

[3]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


Chainmail:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] The Sassanids [2] used chainmail and so did the Abbasids. "The early Islamic sources treat the coast of mail as a standard piece of military equipment." [3]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Farrokh 2012, 16) Farrokh, Kaveh. 2012. Sassanian Elite Cavalry AD 224-642. Osprey Publishing.

[3]: (Kennedy 2001, 168) Kennedy, H. 2001. The Armies of the Caliphs. Routledge. London.


Breastplate:
present

"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards." [1] Sassanid cavalrymen wore a breastplate [2] and evidence that Abbasids had breastplates. [3]

[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.

[2]: (Mitterauer 2010, 106) Mitterauer, M. 2010. Why Europe?: The Medieval Origins of Its Special Path. University of Chicago Press.

[3]: Kennedy, the Armies of the Caliphs pp. 168-178


Naval technology
Specialized Military Vessel:
present

Likely in Persian Gulf to protect sea trade.


Small Vessels Canoes Etc:
unknown

Merchant Ships Pressed Into Service:
unknown


Human Sacrifice Data
Human Sacrifice is the deliberate and ritualized killing of a person to please or placate supernatural entities (including gods, spirits, and ancestors) or gain other supernatural benefits.
Coding in Progress.
Power Transitions