著者

菟原 卓

出版者

東海大学

雑誌

東海大学紀要. 文学部 (ISSN:05636760)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.69, pp.94-104, 1998

---

It is well known that Islam favors commerce. Especially in the medieval period, trade was regarded as an honorable occupation, and prosperous merchants were highly esteemed in social life. Merchants were active not only in the field of economy, but also in the development of Islamic culture, and sometimes in politics. People of high standing were also sometimes involved in commerce. In the present article, I would like to show that the Fatimid ruling circles were also engaged in trade during the early period of their dynasty. According to the primary sources, the Isma'ili imams, including the first Fatimid caliph al-Mahdi, disguised themselves as affluent merchants until the establishment of their dynasty. It is very likely that they were actually operating a kind of trading firm. After the establishment of their state in North Africa, the caliphs ceased to engage themselves personally in commercial activities. However, a crown prince was active in business before his accession to the throne, and other members of the royal household were associated with merchants in the market. As for courtiers of the dynasty, a prominent major-domo owned one or more commercial ships, and his profit from trade was so enormous that he could even support the expansion of the Fatimid state financially.

著者

菟原 卓

出版者

東海大学

雑誌

東海大学紀要. 文学部 (ISSN:05636760)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.78, pp.250-240, 2002

---

This paper is intended as a supplement to my three articles hitherto published on the administrative offices and the civil servants under the Fatimids. The purpose here is twofold : to give a clearer understanding of the categories of civil servants by collating the information that I have so far acquired ; and to consider the meanings and usages of "Tawqi" as an administrative term in order to complement the explanation of the functions of civil servants, which I have previously published.

著者

菟原 卓

出版者

東洋史研究會

雑誌

東洋史研究 (ISSN:03869059)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.41, no.2, pp.321-362, 1982-09-30

---

This essay investigates the actual conditions of the vizirate during the latter half of the Fatimid dynasty and systematically comprehends its character in an attempt to consider its historical significance. When one traces the transition of the latter vizirate, the following points are confirmed : first, that all the viziers had come from the military class ; secondly, that in most cases they had had direct or indirect recourse to military force in establishing their accession ; and thirdly, that the entire climate of the political process during the latter period mostly evolved around the vizier. Speaking from an institutional perspective, the vizier controlled the highest authorities of the army, the administrative organization and the organization for religious affairs. The vizier was the actual controller of the state. Their supreme position is also verifiable from other aspects, including their exceptional remuneration, supervision of the mazalim, high status in ritual ceremonies, hereditary political position, and title of malik. The latter viziers who possessed such a great jurisdiction, occupying such a supreme position, threatened the supreme spiritual authority of the caliph. So the rule of the Fatimid dynasty based on the ideology of Isma'iliyya became nominal by degrees. At the same time, however, there was also a limit to their power ; namely, their having established their economic base in a deteriorating traditional system of tax collection. For this reason, the control of the Fatimids was not yet completely overturned and was able to continue to exist, despite the viziers having seized actual political power until Salah al-Din had put the military iqta' system into effect to the extent of establishing a new state organization.