Mu'awiya II

Mu'awiya was born in Bilad al-Sham in c. 664 during the caliphate of his grandfather Mu'awiya I (r. 661–680), the founder and first caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate. Mu'awiya II's father was Yazid I (r. 680–683), the second Umayyad caliph. Mu'awiya's unknown mother belonged to the Kalb tribe. She is often confused with Umm Hashim Fakhita bint Abi Hashim, mother of Mu'awiya's half-brother Khalid ibn Yazid.[1]

Yazid I died in November 683 and he nominated Mu'awiya II as his successor. Upon his accession, Mu'awiya's authority was supported by the Kalb tribe and likely only recognized in Damascus and southern Syria, with Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr claiming the caliphate from his base in the Hejaz.[1]

Mu'awiya's reign would have lasted for about 20 days to 4 months, but likely no more than 2 months. Given the short span of time, few events were possible, and some of those transmitted may be unreliable political and sectarian fabrications. These include:[1]

• Being a member of the Qadariyya, resulting from the belief that Mu'awiya abdicated before his death.
• Denouncing his predecessors' tyranny and injustice towards the Alids.[2]
• Having the kunya Abu Layla ("Father of Layla"),[3]^{: 428–429} a name often applied to weak persons. This was suspicious because he had no children.
• Abdication before his death,[3]^: 468 originating from later Marwanid propaganda.

What does seem certain, is that Mu'awiya continued his father's policy and remitted a third of the taxes.[4] During his reign, Mu'awiya suffered from ill health and so had to stay in the Umayyad palace (al-Khaḍrā’) in Damascus. His adviser Al-Dahhak ibn Qays al-Fihri took care of practical affairs.[1]

Approximate map of areas under Ibn al-Zubayr's influence after the death of Mu'awiya II in c. 684, during the Second Fitna

By early 684, Mu'awiya died from an illness or plague in Damascus without designating a successor.[5] This left a leadership void in Syria as there were no suitable successors among Mu'awiya I's Sufyanid house.[6] Mu'awiya's brothers Abd Allah and Khalid were considered too young for the caliphate.[7] The governors of the Syrian junds (military districts) of Palestine, Homs and Qinnasrin subsequently gave their allegiance to Ibn al-Zubayr.[8] Umayyad power temporarily collapsed until Marwan I (r. 684–685) was chosen caliph in a shura of pro-Umayyad tribes in June 684.[9]

It is unclear how Mu'awiya died, although jaundice and a plague have been named as causes. Since he had no children and either refused[3]^: 577 or was not given the opportunity to appoint a successor, the campaigns against Ibn al-Zubayr's revolt came to a complete stop.

In his al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya, Ibn Arabi (d. 1240) believed Mu'awiya II to be a 'spiritual pole' (ghawth) of his time and one of the few in history having such a spiritual degree combined with a temporal power, like the Rashidun Caliphs and Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz (r. 717–720).[10]

• Bosworth, C.E. (1991). "Marwān I b. al-Ḥakam". In Bosworth, C. E.; van Donzel, E. & Pellat, Ch. (eds.). The Encyclopaedia of Islam, New Edition, Volume VI: Mahk–Mid. Leiden: E. J. Brill. pp. 621–623. ISBN 978-90-04-08112-3.
• Chodkiewicz, Michel (1986). The Seal of the Saints: Prophecy and Holiness in the Doctrine of Ibn 'Arabi. Paris: Gallimard. ISBN 978-2-07013-795-4.
• Donzel, E.J. van (1993). E.J. Brill's First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913–1936. S - Ṭaiba, Volume 7. E.J. Brill. ISBN 978-9-00409-793-3.
• Duri, Abd al-Aziz (2011). Early Islamic Institutions: Administration and Taxation from the Caliphate to the Umayyads and ʿAbbāsids. Translated by Razia Ali. London and Beirut: I. B. Tauris and Centre for Arab Unity Studies. ISBN 978-1-84885-060-6.
• Hawting, G. R. (1986). The First Dynasty of Islam The Umayyad Caliphate AD 661-750. Carbondale : Southern Illinois University Press. p. 49. ISBN 9780415240734. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
• Wellhausen, Julius (1927). The Arab Kingdom and its Fall. Translated by Margaret Graham Weir. Calcutta: University of Calcutta. OCLC 752790641.