Tarikh (al-Tabari) 3452
The Year 258 AH
قَتْلِ يَحْيَى بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ الْبَحْرَانِيِّ وَفِي سنة ثمان وخمسين ومائتين أُسِرَ يَحْيَى بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الْبَحْرَانِيُّ قَائِدُ صَاحِبِ الزَّنْجِ، وَكَانَ سَبَبُ ذَلِكَ أَنَّهُ لَمَّا سَارَ نَحْوَ نَهْرِ الْعَبَّاسِ لَقِيَهُ عَسْكَرُ أَصْعَجُورَ عَامِلِ الْأَهْوَازِ بَعْدَ مَنْصُورٍ، وَقَاتَلَهُمْ، وَكَانَ أَكْثَرَ مِنْهُمْ عَدَدًا، فَنَالَ ذَلِكَ الْعَسْكَرُ مِنَ الزَّنْجِ بِالنُّشَّابِ، وَجَرَحُوهُمْ، فَعَبَرَ يَحْيَى النَّهْرَ إِلَيْهِمْ، فَانْحَازُوا عَنْهُ، وَغَنِمَ سُفُنًا كَانَتْ مَعَ الْعَسْكَرِ، فِيهَا الْمِيرَةُ، وَسَارُوا بِهَا إِلَى عَسْكَرِ صَاحِبِ الزَّنْجِ عَلَى غَيْرِ الْوَجْهِ الَّذِي فِيهِ عَلِيُّ بْنُ أَبَانٍ، لِتَحَاسُدٍ كَانَ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ يَحْيَى. وَوَجَّهَ يَحْيَى طَلَائِعَهُ إِلَى دِجْلَةَ، فَلَقِيَهُمْ جَيْشُ أَبِي أَحْمَدَ الْمُوَفَّقِ سَائِرِينَ إِلَى نَهْرِ أَبِي الْأَسَدِ، فَرَجَعُوا إِلَى عَلِيٍّ، فَأَخْبَرُوهُ بِمَجِيءِ الْجَيْشِ، فَرَجَعَ مِنَ الطَّرِيقِ الَّذِي كَانَ سَلَكَهُ، وَسَلَكَ نَهْرَ الْعَبَّاسِ، وَعَلَى فَمِ النَّهْرِ شَذَوَاتٌ لِحَمِيَّةٍ مِنْ عَسْكَرِ الْخَلِيفَةِ، فَلَمَّا رَآهُمْ يَحْيَى رَاعَهُ ذَلِكَ، وَخَافَ أَصْحَابُهُ فَنَزَّلُوا السُّفُنَ ( وَعَبَرُوا النَّهْرَ، وَلَقِيَ يَحْيَى وَمَنْ مَعَهُ بِضْعَةَ عَشَرَ رَجُلًا، فَقَاتَلَهُمْ هُوَ وَذَلِكَ النَّفَرُ ) الْيَسِيرُ، فَرَمَوْهُمْ بِالسِّهَامِ، فَجُرِحَ ثَلَاثَ جِرَاحَاتٍ ; فَلَمَّا جُرِحَ تَفَرَّقَ أَصْحَابُهُ عَنْهُ، ( وَلَمْ يُعْرَفْ حَتَّى يُؤْخَذَ )، فَرَجَعَ حَتَّى دَخَلَ بَعْضَ السُّفُنِ وَهُوَ مُثْخَنٌ بِالْجِرَاحِ. وَأَخَذَ أَصْحَابُ السُّلْطَانِ الْغَنَائِمَ، وَأَخَذُوا السُّفُنَ، وَعَبَرُوا إِلَى سُفُنٍ كَانَتْ لِلزَّنْجِ فَأَحْرَقُوهَا، وَتَفَرَّقَ الزَّنْجُ عَنْ يَحْيَى بَقِيَّةَ نَهَارِهِمْ، فَلَمَّا رَأَى ( تَفَرُّقَهُمْ رَكِبَ سُمَيْرِيَّةً، وَأَخَذَ مَعَهُ طَبِيبًا لِأَجْلِ الْجِرَاحِ، وَسَارَ فِيهَا، فَرَأَى ) الْمَلَّاحُونَ سُمَيْرِيَّاتِ السُّلْطَانِ، فَخَافُوا، فَأَلْقَوْا يَحْيَى وَمَنْ مَعَهُ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ، فَمَشَى وَهُوَ مُثْقَلٌ، وَقَامَ الطَّبِيبُ الَّذِي مَعَهُ فَأَتَى أَصْحَابَ السُّلْطَانِ فَأَخْبَرَهُمْ خَبَرَهُ. فَأَخَذُوهُ وَحَمَلُوهُ إِلَى أَبِي أَحْمَدَ، فَحَمَلَهُ أَبُو أَحْمَدَ إِلَى سَامَرَّا، فَضُرِبَ بَيْنَ يَدِيِ الْمُعْتَمِدِ مِائَتَيْ سَوْطٍ، ثُمَّ قُطِعَتْ يَدَاهُ وَرِجْلَاهُ مِنْ خِلَافٍ، ثُمَّ خُبِطَ بِالسُّيُوفِ ثُمَّ ذُبِحَ ثُمَّ أُحْرِقَ. وَلَمَّا بَلَغَ خَبَرُهُ صَاحِبَ الزَّنْجِ أَسِفَ عَلَى ذَلِكَ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: لَقَدْ خُوطِبْتُ فِيهِ، فَقِيلَ لِي: قَتْلُهُ كَانَ خَيْرًا لَكَ ; لِأَنَّهُ كَانَ شَرِهًا يُخْفِي مِنَ الْمَغَانِمِ خِيَارَهَا. وَقَدْ كَانَ هَذَا اللَّعِينُ - أَعْنِي صَاحِبَ الزَّنْجِ الْمُدَّعَى إِلَى غَيْرِ أَبِيهِ يَقُولُ لِأَصْحَابِهِ: لَقَدْ عُرِضَتْ عَلَيَّ النُّبُوَّةُ فَخِفْتُ أَنْ لَا أَقُومَ بِأَعْبَائِهَا، فَلَمْ أَقْبَلْهَا.
Translation
✧ The killing of Yaḥyā b. Muḥammad al-Baḥrānī In the year 258 AH, Yaḥyā b. Muḥammad al-Baḥrānī, the commander of the leader of the Zanj, was taken captive. The reason for that was that when he marched toward Nahr al-ʿAbbās, he encountered the army of Aṣʿajūr, the governor of al-Ahwāz after Manṣūr, and fought them. He had greater numbers than they, but that army struck the Zanj with arrows and wounded them. Then Yaḥyā crossed the river toward them, and they withdrew from him. He seized ships that were with the army, carrying provisions, and they sailed with them to the camp of the leader of the Zanj by a route other than the one in which ʿAlī b. Abān was, because of the mutual envy between him and Yaḥyā. Yaḥyā sent his scouts toward the Tigris, and the army of Abū Aḥmad al-Muwaffaq, marching toward Nahr Abī al-Asad, met them. They returned to ʿAlī and informed him of the army's coming. So he turned back from the road he had taken and took Nahr al-ʿAbbās. At the mouth of the river there were war-boats of a protective force from the caliph's army. When Yaḥyā saw them, that alarmed him, and his companions feared, so they brought down the ships (and crossed the river. Yaḥyā and those with him, a dozen or so men, met a small force and fought them, he and that small band). They shot arrows at them, and he was wounded three times. When he was wounded, his companions scattered from him, (and he was not recognized until he was taken). He retreated until he entered one of the ships, severely wounded. The sultan's men took the spoils and seized the ships. They crossed to ships belonging to the Zanj and burned them. The Zanj dispersed from Yaḥyā for the rest of their day. When he saw (their dispersal, he boarded a sumayriyyah and took a physician with him for the wounds. He sailed in it, and) the sailors saw the sultan's sumayriyyahs and became afraid. They put Yaḥyā and those with him ashore. He walked while heavily wounded, and the physician who was with him went to the sultan's men and told them his news. They seized him and carried him to Abū Aḥmad. Abū Aḥmad took him to Sāmarrā, where he was flogged before al-Muʿtamid with two hundred lashes, then his hands and feet were cut off from opposite sides, then he was struck with swords, then slaughtered, then burned. When his news reached the leader of the Zanj, he grieved over that, then said: "I was addressed concerning him, and it was said to me: His death was better for you, because he was greedy and concealed the best of the spoils." And this accursed one—I mean the leader of the Zanj, the pretender to a father other than his own—used to say to his companions: "Prophethood was offered to me, but I feared that I would not bear its burdens, so I did not accept it."
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