Al-Ma'mun

Abu al-Abbas Abd Allah ibn Harun al-Rashid, better known by his regnal name al-Ma'mun, was the seventh Abbasid caliph, who reigned from 813 until his death in 833. He succeeded his half-brother al-Amin after a civil war, during which the cohesion of the Abbasid Caliphate was weakened by rebellions and the rise of local strongmen; much of his domestic reign was consumed in pacification campaigns. Well educated and with a considerable interest in scholarship, al-Ma'mun promoted the Translation Movement, the flowering of learning and the sciences in Baghdad, and the publishing of al-Khwarizmi's book now known as "Algebra". He is also known for supporting the doctrine of Mu'tazilism and for imprisoning Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the rise of religious persecution (mihna), and for the resumption of large-scale warfare with the Byzantine Empire.

14 September 0768

Born on the same birth day (14 September): Anton Mahnič • David Desharnais • Deryck Cooke • Frances Bergen • Guo Zongxun • Josh Outman • Kay Medford • Kid Nichols • Larry Brown (basketball) • Lawrence Gellert • Mary Crosby • Mattias Marklund • Nas • Nathalie Roussel • Patrick van Balkom • Petr Průcha • Roger Lyons • Ron DeSantis • Ronald Lengkeek • Shayne Topp • Walter Koenig • Yumi Adachi