Muslim Conquest of Sicily (827–902): The Emirate of Sicily

The Muslim conquest of Sicily was a long war, from 827 to 902, in which armies from Aghlabid North Africa took the island from the Byzantine Empire. It created the Emirate of Sicily, with Palermo as its capital, and began more than two centuries of Islamic rule. The period left lasting marks on Sicilian agriculture, language and culture.

Background

Sicily had been part of the Byzantine Empire since the 6th century and was an important naval base and source of grain. From the mid-7th century, Arab fleets from North Africa raided it repeatedly, but they did not attempt a permanent conquest.

In 800 the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid recognised Ibrahim ibn al-Aghlab as hereditary governor of Ifriqiya, roughly modern Tunisia. His Aghlabid dynasty ruled from Kairouan and soon looked across the narrow sea to Sicily.

The opportunity came from a Byzantine quarrel. In 826 Euphemius, a naval commander in Sicily, rebelled against the emperor Michael II. He proclaimed himself emperor, but after losing support he fled to Ifriqiya and asked the emir Ziyadat Allah I for help.

The invasion of 827

The emir sent a force commanded by Asad ibn al-Furat, a respected jurist and judge of Kairouan then about seventy years old. Arabic sources put the army at around 10,000 foot soldiers and 700 horsemen, carried in roughly 70 to 100 ships. The fleet landed at Mazara, on the island’s south-western coast, in June 827.

Asad defeated a Byzantine army and marched on Syracuse, the main city, but the siege failed. Disease broke out in the camp, and Asad himself died in 828. Euphemius was killed by Byzantine defenders soon after. The invaders were close to defeat but were saved by reinforcements from Ifriqiya and by a fleet from al-Andalus that joined them in 830.

A conquest by sieges

The decisive early success was the capture of Palermo in 831 after a long siege. It became the Muslim capital, called simply al-Madina, “the city”. From there the conquest advanced slowly, town by town, across a mountainous island defended by strong fortresses:

• Messina fell around 842–843, giving control of the straits.
• Enna (Castrogiovanni), a nearly impregnable hilltop fortress in the centre of the island, was taken in 859.
• Syracuse fell on 21 May 878 after a nine-month siege and was sacked.
• Taormina was captured on 1 August 902 by the Aghlabid emir Ibrahim II in person.

Small Byzantine pockets held out longer; Rometta, near Messina, did not fall until 965.

The Emirate of Sicily

The Aghlabids were overthrown in 909 by the Fatimids (see Fatimid caliphate), who took control of Sicily. From 948 the island was governed by the Kalbid family, emirs who were largely autonomous.

Palermo grew into one of the largest and richest cities of the Mediterranean. The traveller Ibn Hawqal, who visited around 972–973, described its markets, gardens and very many mosques. The island’s population remained mixed, with Arab and Berber settlers, converts and large Greek Christian communities, especially in the east.

Sicily under Muslim rule is often credited with spreading crops such as citrus fruits, sugar cane and cotton, along with improved irrigation, although the extent of each introduction is debated. Many Sicilian place names, such as Marsala and Caltanissetta, and words in the Sicilian dialect have Arabic origins.

Decline and the Norman conquest

In the 11th century the emirate broke apart into rival local rulers. The Byzantines attempted a reconquest under George Maniakes in 1038–1040, winning victories but failing to hold the island. Soon afterwards, one Muslim emir invited the Normans of southern Italy to help against his rivals.

Under Roger I and his brother Robert Guiscard, the Normans took Messina in 1061 and Palermo in 1072. Noto, the last Muslim stronghold, surrendered in 1091. The Norman kings kept many Arabic administrative practices and employed Muslim scholars and craftsmen, creating the mixed culture of the Kingdom of Sicily.

Key people

• Euphemius (d. c. 828): Byzantine naval commander whose rebellion and appeal to Ifriqiya opened the way for the invasion.
• Ziyadat Allah I (r. 817–838): Aghlabid emir who ordered the expedition, probably in part to direct restless soldiers and scholars towards holy war abroad.
• Asad ibn al-Furat (c. 759–828): jurist of the Maliki school and commander of the first expedition, who died before Syracuse.
• Ibrahim II (r. 875–902): Aghlabid emir who completed the conquest by taking Taormina and died soon after while campaigning in Calabria.
• Ibn Hawqal: 10th-century geographer whose description of Palermo is a key source for the Islamic city.

Timeline

• 826: Euphemius rebels against Byzantine rule and flees to Ifriqiya.
• 827, June: Aghlabid army under Asad ibn al-Furat lands at Mazara.
• 828: Asad dies during the failed siege of Syracuse.
• 831: Palermo falls and becomes the capital.
• 859: Capture of Enna (Castrogiovanni).
• 878, 21 May: Syracuse falls after a nine-month siege.
• 902, 1 August: Ibrahim II takes Taormina.
• 909: Fatimids replace the Aghlabids.
• 1072: Normans capture Palermo.

Why it matters

The conquest brought Sicily into the Islamic world for more than two centuries and made Palermo a major Mediterranean city. Together with al-Andalus, Islamic Sicily became one of the main points of contact between Muslim and Christian Europe, and its legacy shaped the unique culture of Norman and later Sicily.