Abd al-Wahid Zakariya ibn al-Lihyani
Abd al-Wahid Zakariya ibn al-Lihyani (1253–1326) was the Hafsid caliph of Ifriqiya from 1311 to 1317. Born into the Hafsid dynasty, he rose to power through a long career in government and war.
In 1295 he was made the senior official known as the sheikh of the Almohads, which gave him control over the army and foreign affairs. He helped arrange the succession between Abu Asida Muhammad II and Abu-l-Baqa Khalid An-Nasr of Béjaïa. In 1305 he negotiated a commercial treaty with Venice and maintained friendly ties with James II of Aragon, even discussing Arab and Catalan mercenaries in Tunis. He helped negotiate a ten-year truce between Tunis and Aragon in 1301, and a letter from James II in 1302 praised him for his wise counsel.
As commander of the army, al-Lihyani led an expedition in 1306 to try to free Djerba from Christian control. The mission failed, and he instead joined a caravan to Mecca for the pilgrimage. He returned to Tripoli and was there when Abu Asida died in 1309. When Abu-l-Baqa’s brother Abu Bakr began to rebel in Béjaïa, al-Lihyani moved toward Tunis with an army raised from Tripolitanian tribes. The arrival of Sicilian ships and a revolt of the Catalan mercenary guard helped him seize power in Tunis.
Once caliph, al-Lihyani kept up secret talks with James II of Aragon, using the Catalan guard commander as an intermediary. He even hinted at converting to Christianity to seek Aragonese support. He was known for piety and lawfulness, and he worked to bring Hafsid lands in line with the Maliki school of Islamic law. He once surrendered his own son to the qadi when his son was accused of murder, showing his commitment to justice.
In 1314–1315 the famous missionary Ramon Llull visited Tunis, carrying letters from James II. Llull studied and wrote in Tunis, and his works were directed in part to al-Lihyani and his scholars. Llull’s visit helped fuel intellectual exchange during al-Lihyani’s reign.
Through much of his rule, Abu Bakr of Béjaïa pressed from the west. In 1316 al-Lihyani began to prepare for the end of his rule, gathering valuables, including the Hafsid library, to raise money. By March 1317 he left Tunis for Gabès, effectively abdicating. Abu Bakr soon advanced, and al-Lihyani’s son Abu Darba Muhammad Al-Mustansir was released from prison and proclaimed caliph, but he held power for only about nine months before fleeing as Abu Bakr entered Tunis. He sought help from the Zayyanids of Tlemcen but had to flee again. He went to Tlemcen and died there in 1323. Al-Lihyani then moved to Tripoli and later boarded a ship provided by Frederick III of Sicily to exile in Alexandria, where he lived comfortably for his final years and died in 1326.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 06:49 (CET).