هارون الرشيد

Harun al-Rashid (RH)

Also known as: Harun ar-Rasyid, Haroun al-Rashid

c. 145–193 AH · c. 763–809 CE

Reigned 786–809 CE

Rulers Abbasid Caliphate

Abbasid caliph in whose reign Baghdad was at its height, patron of Abu Yusuf and the scholars of his age.

Harun al-Rashid was the fifth Abbasid caliph, ruling from 786 to 809 when Baghdad was at its height as a centre of trade and learning. He went on Hajj many times and led campaigns against Byzantium.

He appointed Abu Yusuf, the student of Abu Hanifah, as the first chief judge, and Abu Yusuf wrote Kitab al-Kharaj, on taxation and justice, at his request. He is reported to have heard Malik's Muwatta' in Madinah. His fall-out with the powerful Barmakid family in 803 marked his later years, and his court became legendary through later tales such as the Thousand and One Nights.

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