Mu'awiya II
Umayyad caliph from 683 to 684
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Mu'awiya ibn Yazid ibn Mu'awiya (Arabic: مُعَاوِيَة بْنِ يَزِيد بْنِ مُعَاوِيَة, romanized: Muʿāwiya ibn Yazīd ibn Muʿāwiya; c. 664–684), commonly known as Mu'awiya II, was the third Umayyad caliph. The last ruler of the Sufyanid line, he succeeded his father Yazid I in 683 (64 AH) but died after a reign of only a few months.
| Mu'awiya II مُعَاوِيَة بْنِ يَزِيد | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd Caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate | |||||
| Reign | 683 – 684 | ||||
| Predecessor | Yazid I | ||||
| Successor | Marwan I | ||||
| Born | c. 664 CE Bilad al-Sham, Umayyad Caliphate | ||||
| Died | c. 684 CE (aged 19–20) Damascus, Umayyad Caliphate (present-day Syria) | ||||
| |||||
| House | Sufyanid | ||||
| Dynasty | Umayyad | ||||
| Father | Yazid I | ||||
| Mother | Fakhitah bint Abi Hisham | ||||
| Religion | Islam | ||||
Mu'awiya II's accession occurred during the Second Fitna, a period of civil war where his authority was largely limited to Damascus and southern Syria. His rival, Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr, was recognized as caliph in the Hejaz and several other provinces. Mu'awiya II's brief tenure was marked by chronic ill health and minimal administrative activity, though he reportedly continued his father's policy of reducing taxes.
Historical accounts of his reign are often viewed as sectarian or unreliable. He is most famous for a provocative sermon recorded by Al-Ya'qubi, in which he allegedly denounced his predecessors and abdicated the throne. Because he died without heirs, his death triggered a succession crisis that eventually shifted power from the Sufyanid branch to the Marwanid branch under Marwan I. In later Islamic tradition, particularly within Sufism, he is remembered for his piety and perceived spiritual authority.
Early life
Mu'awiya was born in Syria as the son of Yazid I and an unknown mother from the Kalb tribe. She is often confused with Umm Hashim Fakhitah bint Abi Hisham, mother of Mu'awiya's half-brother Khalid ibn Yazid.[1]
His father, Yazid died on 11 November 683 in the central Syrian desert town of Huwwarin, his favourite residence, aged between 35 and 43, and was buried there.[2]
Reign
Before Yazid I died, he had the bay'ah made to his son Mu'awiya. Mu'awiya succeeded his father in Damascus in 64 AH (November 683 CE), at an age of somewhere between 17 and 23. He was supported by the Kalb tribe, but his authority was likely only recognised 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 lasted between 20 days and four months, though most historians suggest a duration of no more than two months. Given this short span, few administrative events were possible, and he reportedly suffered from ill health throughout his tenure, remaining in the Umayyad palace (al-Khaḍrā’) in Damascus while his adviser Al-Dahhak ibn Qays al-Fihri managed practical affairs.[1] What does seem certain is that Mu'awiya continued his father's policy and remitted a third of the taxes.[3]
Succession crisis and alleged abdication
Because of the brevity of his rule, many accounts of Mu'awiya II's actions are considered by historians to be unreliable political or sectarian fabrications. These include his alleged membership in the Qadariyah and a public renunciation of his predecessors.[1] In some traditions, he was mockingly given the kunya Abu Layla ("Father of Layla"), a name typically applied to weak individuals; the name was considered suspicious or derogatory as he had no children.[4]
According to the account of the historian Al-Ya'qubi, the Caliph delivered a provocative sermon from the minbar in which he explicitly abdicated his position. In this narrative, Mu'awiya II stated that his grandfather, Mu'awiya I, had struggled for power against one more entitled to it, and characterized his father Yazid I as having "pursued his desires" while lamenting his "evil downfall" in the afterlife due to the killing of the progeny of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the burning of the Ka'ba.[5]
"I am not the one to take charge of your affairs, nor the one to bear the claims you make. So do as you like; for, by God, if the world is a place of profit, we have obtained a share of it; and if it is an evil, then what the family of Abu Sufyan have obtained of it is sufficient."
This account further claims that when Marwan I urged him to rule according to the precedent of Umar ibn al-Khattab, Mu'awiya II rejected the comparison and asked where he could find one man like Umar's men before effectively retiring from his duties.[6]
Death and legacy
Mu'awiya II died in Damascus shortly after his withdrawal from public life. His age at death is disputed because while many sources place him in his early twenties, the historian Al-Tabari cites a report stating he was only thirteen years and eighteen days old.[4] It is unclear how he died, although jaundice and a plague have been named as potential causes.[1]
While some sources record that his brother Khalid ibn Yazid led the funeral prayers, others name his kinsman Uthman ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Sufyan as the leader of the service.[6] Because Mu'awiya II died without children and had not appointed a successor, Umayyad power temporarily collapsed. The campaigns against the revolt of Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr came to a halt until the Marwanid branch of the family took control under Marwan I.[1]
Despite the political chaos of his reign, Mu'awiya II later gained a reputation for piety in some mystical circles. In his al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya, the Sufi philosopher Ibn Arabi claimed that Mu'awiya II was a "spiritual Pole" or Ghawth of his time. He ranked him among the few rulers in history to combine temporal power with high esoteric authority. This group included the Rashidun, who were the four "Rightly Guided" caliphs consisting of Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali. Ibn Arabi also included Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz in this elite spiritual ranking.[7]