What do you think?
Rate this book
Harun al-Rashid & The World of 1001 Nights
Harun al-Rashid, the legendary caliph portrayed in The Thousand and One Nights, was the son of a Yemenite slave who cleared Harun’s path to power, very probably by poisoning her eldest son.
Harun reigned for a quarter of a century, his empire spreading over south-west Asia and into north Africa. He waged war on the Byzantine Empire, and dealt ruthlessly with the religious and social insurrections which threatened his kingdom, executing almost the entire Barmakid family when they threatened to become too powerful.
As well as being a ruthless soldier and politician Harun was also a great patron of the arts, and highly esteemed by Charlemagne. He turned Baghdad into a brilliant centre of culture and learning, which witnessed unprecedented economic development, its merchants and navigators carrying the caliph’s renown to the farthest corners of the known world.
Surrounded by his wives, concubines, musicians and learned men in his palace in Baghdad, ‘Harun the Good’ remains a potent symbol of the fabled Orient. In this remarkable account André Clot explores the man behind the legend, revealing his development as a ruler of an empire that was shaken to the core by religious and social revolt.
André Clot (1909-2002) was a French historian and journalist. He lived in Turkey and the countries of the near and Middle East for many years and was an expert on Islam. His other works include Suleiman the Magnificent, also by Saqi Books.
Harun reigned for a quarter of a century, his empire spreading over south-west Asia and into north Africa. He waged war on the Byzantine Empire, and dealt ruthlessly with the religious and social insurrections which threatened his kingdom, executing almost the entire Barmakid family when they threatened to become too powerful.
As well as being a ruthless soldier and politician Harun was also a great patron of the arts, and highly esteemed by Charlemagne. He turned Baghdad into a brilliant centre of culture and learning, which witnessed unprecedented economic development, its merchants and navigators carrying the caliph’s renown to the farthest corners of the known world.
Surrounded by his wives, concubines, musicians and learned men in his palace in Baghdad, ‘Harun the Good’ remains a potent symbol of the fabled Orient. In this remarkable account André Clot explores the man behind the legend, revealing his development as a ruler of an empire that was shaken to the core by religious and social revolt.
André Clot (1909-2002) was a French historian and journalist. He lived in Turkey and the countries of the near and Middle East for many years and was an expert on Islam. His other works include Suleiman the Magnificent, also by Saqi Books.
268 pages, Paperback
First published November 20, 1986
6 people are currently reading
184 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
April 30, 2023
useful but a little simplistic
February 14, 2012
3.5 stars. I had never heard of Andre Clot before I read his biography of Suleiman the Magnificent, and I have to say that I feel lucky to have stumbled upon his work. Now I wish he had written more and that more of his books were translated into English. Although I think that his work on Suleiman is better, this was also highly interesting to read. I knew absolutely nothing about the Abbasid empire and its greatest Caliph, Harun al-Rashid, before coming to this book, but Clot does a fine job of really bringing this period to life. He balances fact and narrative quite well so the book flows and rarely feels dry, but one can tell that it is mainly an academic text. This brings me to one of the problems I had with the book - and actually, that's not fair, it's really my problem. I simply didn't know enough going into it, and so although Clot usually writes well, he takes for granted that you have at least a basic understanding of, say, what the One Thousand and One Nights is, and its basic content... an easy enough problem to fix thanks to Wikipedia, however. Then there's his writing: while it normally is easy to understand and pleasant to read, at times he is not as clear as he should be. Nevertheless, this is a great book to read if one is interested in the height of Islamic culture.
October 8, 2014
As a biography this was disappointing. I had hoped to learn more of Harun al Rashid but ended up not really knowing any more than I had already gleaned from more general books on the Abbasid era. That said, after a half time dressing down it redeemed itself in the second half. The more general second half of the book dealing with the wider world of the Abbasid era was excellent and contained much fascinating detail on everything from trade to cookery. So as a general intro to the period it's a gold mine but if you are specifically interested in HalR you'll need to look elsewhere for complete satisfaction.
March 16, 2019
Andre Clot, bizi hem Harun Reşid öncesine götürüyor ve böylece Harun’u hazırlayan şartları görmüş oluyoruz, hem Harun Reşid sonrasına götürüyor ve böylece Harun’un zirveye çıkardığı devletin nasıl bir çöküşe hazırlandığını anlıyoruz.
Abbasiler hakkında derli toplu bir metin okunmak isteniyorsa bence çok faydalı ve güzel bir çalışma. Harun Reşid dahil aslında neredeyse bütün halifelerin ve buradan yola çıkarak papaların dini nasıl kullandıklarını, dini kullanarak nasıl saltanatlar kurduklarını görüyoruz. Eli fazlaca kanlı olan her hükümdar bir vicdan muhasabesiyle bol bol dini yapı da yaptırmış. Bizans’tan bir örnek; Justianus. Harun da böyle. Veziri, Bermekileri öldürtmesi, Ali soyundan korkması.
Abbasi meliklerinin nasıl israfa düşkün olduğunu öğrendim. Osmanlılardaki o meşhur Surname’ye konu olan şehzade düğünleri gibi düğünleri okurken, ağır vergiler altında inim inim inleyen halkı düşündüm.
Bir ara Hristiyanlara getirilen özel renk kıyafet uygulamasını, Kudüs’te Selahaddin’in yaptığıyla ve Osmanlı’da da bir dönem Hristiyanlara uygulanan kıyafet ayrımcılığını düşünerek okudum.
Okurken bu insanlar gerçekten İslam’a inanıyorlar mıydı, diye sorup durdum kendime. Bu kadar şaşaa, bu kadar debdebe....
Hep kendime şunu sorarım; hangi ülkede olursa olsun bu kadar özgürlüğe sahip krallar/melikler insanoğlunun birincil ihtiyacı cinsellikte hep aynı düzlemde gitmiş olamazlar. Mesela Sultan Ahmet’in küçük yaştaki kızlara düşkünlüğünü okumuştum. Burada da Harun’un çocuklarından birinin oğlan düşkünlüğünü öğrendim. Hiç şaşırtmadı, şaşırtmıyor bu yeni bilgiler. İnsanın olduğu yerde bu tür durumlar var. İnsan elinin altında istediğini yapabilme gücünü bulunca yapıyor. Fransa kralı III. Henri’nin annesi ile Abbasi meliki Memun’un annesinin oğullarının durumu karşısında yapıp ettiklerini düşündüm.
İnsanoğlunun yaşantısını bıçakla keser gibi ayıramayacağımızı zaten biliyordum ama bir kez daha öğrendim ki ortaçağlarda dahi sınırlar istendi mi pekala aşılabilir. Bizans’tan kaçıp Abbasilere gelenler, Abbasilerden Bizans’a geçenler vs.
Kitabı çok beğendim. Bize sadece Abbasileri ya da Harun’u anlatmıyor bu kitap. Bir metodoloji de sunuyor. Binbir Gece Masallarından yaptığı kısmi alıntılarla bende yeniden Binbir Gece Masallarını okuma isteği uyandırdı.
Abbasiler, bir yanda servet, alabildiğine genişlemiş sınırlar; öte yanda kanlı eller, ayak kaydırmalar, düşkünü ezmeler...
Dünyanın yapısı hiç değişmiyor sanırım. Değişen sadece içindeki oyuncular...
Abbasiler hakkında derli toplu bir metin okunmak isteniyorsa bence çok faydalı ve güzel bir çalışma. Harun Reşid dahil aslında neredeyse bütün halifelerin ve buradan yola çıkarak papaların dini nasıl kullandıklarını, dini kullanarak nasıl saltanatlar kurduklarını görüyoruz. Eli fazlaca kanlı olan her hükümdar bir vicdan muhasabesiyle bol bol dini yapı da yaptırmış. Bizans’tan bir örnek; Justianus. Harun da böyle. Veziri, Bermekileri öldürtmesi, Ali soyundan korkması.
Abbasi meliklerinin nasıl israfa düşkün olduğunu öğrendim. Osmanlılardaki o meşhur Surname’ye konu olan şehzade düğünleri gibi düğünleri okurken, ağır vergiler altında inim inim inleyen halkı düşündüm.
Bir ara Hristiyanlara getirilen özel renk kıyafet uygulamasını, Kudüs’te Selahaddin’in yaptığıyla ve Osmanlı’da da bir dönem Hristiyanlara uygulanan kıyafet ayrımcılığını düşünerek okudum.
Okurken bu insanlar gerçekten İslam’a inanıyorlar mıydı, diye sorup durdum kendime. Bu kadar şaşaa, bu kadar debdebe....
Hep kendime şunu sorarım; hangi ülkede olursa olsun bu kadar özgürlüğe sahip krallar/melikler insanoğlunun birincil ihtiyacı cinsellikte hep aynı düzlemde gitmiş olamazlar. Mesela Sultan Ahmet’in küçük yaştaki kızlara düşkünlüğünü okumuştum. Burada da Harun’un çocuklarından birinin oğlan düşkünlüğünü öğrendim. Hiç şaşırtmadı, şaşırtmıyor bu yeni bilgiler. İnsanın olduğu yerde bu tür durumlar var. İnsan elinin altında istediğini yapabilme gücünü bulunca yapıyor. Fransa kralı III. Henri’nin annesi ile Abbasi meliki Memun’un annesinin oğullarının durumu karşısında yapıp ettiklerini düşündüm.
İnsanoğlunun yaşantısını bıçakla keser gibi ayıramayacağımızı zaten biliyordum ama bir kez daha öğrendim ki ortaçağlarda dahi sınırlar istendi mi pekala aşılabilir. Bizans’tan kaçıp Abbasilere gelenler, Abbasilerden Bizans’a geçenler vs.
Kitabı çok beğendim. Bize sadece Abbasileri ya da Harun’u anlatmıyor bu kitap. Bir metodoloji de sunuyor. Binbir Gece Masallarından yaptığı kısmi alıntılarla bende yeniden Binbir Gece Masallarını okuma isteği uyandırdı.
Abbasiler, bir yanda servet, alabildiğine genişlemiş sınırlar; öte yanda kanlı eller, ayak kaydırmalar, düşkünü ezmeler...
Dünyanın yapısı hiç değişmiyor sanırım. Değişen sadece içindeki oyuncular...
October 28, 2019
This makes great reading for anyone with an interest in the history of the Middle East or the Arab world. Living in the eighth century AD, Harun al-Rashid was perhaps the most highly esteemed Muslim Caliph ever. The personage of the Caliph is something like that of the Sultan but the Caliph was notably invested with absolute religious authority over the entire kingdom of Islam stretching from Saudi Arabia to Morocco, whereas the role of Sultan was essentially monarchic.
I particularly liked the sheer detail of insight offered by Andre Clot into the richness of life during this epoch. Matters of architecture, literature, arts, crafts and philosophy are covered in some depth as Clot explains how, compared with his predecessors, Harun ruled less like a warlord and more like a patriarch. Yet despite his benign tendencies and love of poetry and learning, Harun does not seem to have entirely neglected Jihad and the forceful Islamic drive to conquer.
Since the Thousand and One Nights is such a defining work of Medieval literature, I'd anticipated more here by way of a companion piece to that text. What you get instead is a biographical account of Harun al-Rashid's life sprinkled with countless references to the collection of folktales also known as the Arabian Nights. However this cannot be said to constitute its main theme and on this point I did feel the book's subtitle was perhaps somewhat misleading.
Nevertheless there's plenty to chew on and my perseverance was rewarded. Especially since there's so much real-life intrigue: plotting, family feuds, marriages to various concubines etc, and so on that just keeps you going. But what I really liked about it was the way Andre Clot is very careful to delineate historical fact from uncorroborated hearsay. He always makes clear whether certain stories surrounding court dignitaries are mere fanciful rumours or verifiable truth. Overall this is a great book and benefits immensely from both Andre Clot's great wealth of academic knowledge plus John Howe's brilliantly rendered translation.
I particularly liked the sheer detail of insight offered by Andre Clot into the richness of life during this epoch. Matters of architecture, literature, arts, crafts and philosophy are covered in some depth as Clot explains how, compared with his predecessors, Harun ruled less like a warlord and more like a patriarch. Yet despite his benign tendencies and love of poetry and learning, Harun does not seem to have entirely neglected Jihad and the forceful Islamic drive to conquer.
Since the Thousand and One Nights is such a defining work of Medieval literature, I'd anticipated more here by way of a companion piece to that text. What you get instead is a biographical account of Harun al-Rashid's life sprinkled with countless references to the collection of folktales also known as the Arabian Nights. However this cannot be said to constitute its main theme and on this point I did feel the book's subtitle was perhaps somewhat misleading.
Nevertheless there's plenty to chew on and my perseverance was rewarded. Especially since there's so much real-life intrigue: plotting, family feuds, marriages to various concubines etc, and so on that just keeps you going. But what I really liked about it was the way Andre Clot is very careful to delineate historical fact from uncorroborated hearsay. He always makes clear whether certain stories surrounding court dignitaries are mere fanciful rumours or verifiable truth. Overall this is a great book and benefits immensely from both Andre Clot's great wealth of academic knowledge plus John Howe's brilliantly rendered translation.
December 8, 2024
3.5 stars
I liked book overall as an introductory text to the period and biography of Harun al-Rashid. I am peripherally familiar with the period but this was interesting to read. The writing unfortunately was never compelling - perhaps it was the translation or perhaps it was the structure of the book itself.
The first 6 chapters are the life of Harun with Ch 7-9 covering broader fields like the capital city, the economy and the arts. Ch 10 is more of a epilogue. All of this were fine but the latter half read a bit awkwardly - more a collection of general facts than specific to the caliph. It felt a bit like they were shoehorned in to justify the subtitle of the book ("The World of the 1001 Nights"). While that was a great hook I dont think the latter chapters worked. Perhaps if these chapters were woven with the first half this would have been more engaging.
As a result, I am not sure how much of the history I will actually retain. Nonetheless, as of writing this, I do find this to be a good introduction and something that made me want to read more detailed books. So I think this served its purpose well overall.
I liked book overall as an introductory text to the period and biography of Harun al-Rashid. I am peripherally familiar with the period but this was interesting to read. The writing unfortunately was never compelling - perhaps it was the translation or perhaps it was the structure of the book itself.
The first 6 chapters are the life of Harun with Ch 7-9 covering broader fields like the capital city, the economy and the arts. Ch 10 is more of a epilogue. All of this were fine but the latter half read a bit awkwardly - more a collection of general facts than specific to the caliph. It felt a bit like they were shoehorned in to justify the subtitle of the book ("The World of the 1001 Nights"). While that was a great hook I dont think the latter chapters worked. Perhaps if these chapters were woven with the first half this would have been more engaging.
As a result, I am not sure how much of the history I will actually retain. Nonetheless, as of writing this, I do find this to be a good introduction and something that made me want to read more detailed books. So I think this served its purpose well overall.
March 24, 2023
Decent popular history of the Caliphate of Harun al-Rashid, originally written in French in 1986 and translated into English in 1989 (so some of the terms feel a bit out of date). The author makes free with numerous quotes from THE ONE THOUSAND AND ONE NIGHTS (as well as various contemporary poems). The book deals with the rise of the Abbasid dynasty, Harun's biography, and the civil war that followed his death. The author touches briefly on the rise of the Islamic empire, and well as the gradual dissolution of the Caliphate from Harun's death to the Mongol destruction of Baghdad in 1258. The book also includes sections on Baghdad itself, government, the military, economics and trade, diplomacy, religion, science and medicine, poetry and literature, and entertainment in the Abbasid empire; since the book is only 268 pages (including footnotes), it is not a deep dive, but rather a general history. Good, not great. 3 stars.
March 15, 2024
Good use of drama to construct history! I'm thinking of the caliph Harun's response to the Byzantine emperor's "studiously insulting" letter ("to Nicephoros, Dog of the Rum: I have read your letter, O disloyal son. My answer will reach you sooner than you wish ..."), the two Islamic judges who were so devoted to conspicuous poverty that they "possessed only one turban and one garment between them, so that when one went out, the other had to stay at home," and the Imam who died after "eating too many grapes" (hmm).
August 6, 2019
Harun al- Rashid, the legendary caliph portrayed in the Thousand and One Nights, was a son of a Yemenitw slave who cleared Harun's path to power, very probably poisoning her eldest son.
The book is a journey of power starting from 7th centrury till Suleiman the Magnificient.
The book is a journey of power starting from 7th centrury till Suleiman the Magnificient.
Read
January 2, 2022The most shitty book i read so far
June 13, 2012
Full of interesting details and social historical anecdotes on an otherwise niche topic.
January 30, 2026
Mengenangkan...
for-biography-channel
September 20, 2008Stop , Ginnie, I can't possibly read all this, I'm dyslexic!!!
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews