Maribel Fierro is Research Professor at the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas in Madrid. Her work focuses on the intellectual history of the Islamic West, particularly with respect to law, religion, historiography and political thought. She is the author of ‘Abd al-Rahman III: The First Cordoban Caliph, which is also published by Oneworld.

‘Maribel Fierro, an internationally acclaimed authority on the Almohads, presents an accessible account of the true founder of the Almohad empire, ‘Abd al-Mu’min… Despite their importance, ‘Abd al-Mu’min and the Almohads rarely receive the coverage they deserve in surveys of the Islamic world and Fierro uses her deep erudition to address the balance in a way that will intrigue the novice and encourage the expert to think again.’

• Foreword  1  ‘Abd al-Mu’min, the Zanata Berber Who Built an Empire and Became Prince of the Believers 2  Looking for Knowledge: The Encounter with Ibn TumartTravelling East in Hammadid territory: Mallala and Ibn TumartTravelling West Through Almoravid territory to Igiliz: MahdismTravelling North: Tinmal and the PurgesIbn Tumart’s Death and ‘Abd al-Mu’min’s SuccessionHistory, Legend and Anthropology 3  From the Mountains to Empire: Submission to the Almohad Cause (al-tawhid) Through JihadDiscrediting and Fighting the AlmoravidsThe Long Road to Marrakesh, the Rebellion of al-Massi and the Great PurgeThe Expansion Eastwards, the Rebellion of Ibn Tumart’s Brothers and the Fight Against Arabs and NormansThe Conquest of al-Andalus and ‘Abd al-Mu’min’s DeathJihad, the Army and the Collection of Taxes 4  Balancing Power to Achieve Dynastic Rule: The Almohad Hierarchies Ibn Tumart’s Family and Inner Circle: The Ahl al-Dar and the Council of TenThe Almohad Tribes, the Council of Fifty and the ShaykhsPurging the Almohads (Tamyiz and I‘tiraf) and Facing Rebellion‘Abd al-Mu’min’s Family and GenealogiesThe Sayyids, the Talaba, the Huffaz and the Husaba’ 5  Establishing God’s order (al-Amr al-‘Aziz): How to be a Maghribi caliphMahdism, Caliphate and al-Amr al-‘AzizThe Writings of Ibn Tumart and ‘Abd al-Mu’minBerber and Arabic, Igiliz/Tinmal and Mecca/MedinaThe Square: Coins, Drums, BooksThe Caliph, Provider of Happiness and Baraka: Banquets and Itinerancy 6  Giving Shape to the Caliphate: Buildings, Religious Practices, Law and PhilosophyBuilding the Caliphate: Mosques, High Minarets, Towns and GardensPurity, Islamic Rituals and the ‘Uthmanic MushafForced Conversion: The Abolition of the DhimmaMalikism, Law and the JudgesRe-imagining Ibn Tumart and ‘Abd al-Mu’min: Ibn Tufayl and Ibn Tahir 7  The Caliph’s Men and the Rest: Administration and KnowledgeSecretaries, Viziers nd PreachersPoets, Historians and GrammariansDoctors, Philosophers and AstronomersThe Ghuraba’, the Mystics and the SaintsShifting Trajectories and the Non-Almohads 8  ‘Abd al-Mu’min’s Significance and Legacy Sources and Select BibliographyIndex