Al-Mu'tadid at chess when al-Qasim ibn Ubaydallah entered

المعتضد يلعب الشطرنج فيدخل عليه القاسم بن عبيد الله

892 CE · 279 AH

Baghdad

Al-Mu'tadid was playing chess when al-Qasim ibn Ubaydallah came in. The caliph recited a line by Ali ibn Bassam; seeing al-Qasim, he was embarrassed and told him to silence Ibn Bassam. Al-Qasim hurried to do so until the caliph told him to desist 1.

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Early Abbasid Caliphate
Region
Levant & Iraq

In time

880890900910
Abbasid Fragmentation

In space

Baghdad

Map: Natural Earth, public domain · places and route from the graph

Overview

Al-Mu'tadid was playing chess when his vizier al-Qasim ibn Ubaydallah came in. The caliph quoted a line by Ali ibn Bassam; on seeing al-Qasim he was embarrassed and told him to silence Ibn Bassam. Al-Qasim hurried to do it until the caliph told him to stop. 1

The event is tied to the caliph al-Mu'tadid and the vizier al-Qasim ibn Ubaydallah. The text does not date the scene; it falls within al-Mu'tadid's reign (279–289 AH) 2 3.

Connections

Explore the connections

Occurred at
Baghdad
Part of
The Early Abbasid Caliphate
Had participant
al-Mu'tadid bi-llah· al-Qasim ibn Ubaydallah
During the reign of
al-Mu'tamid ala Allah· al-Mu'tadid bi-llah

People and things also explored

Abu Ahmad Imprisons His Son Abu al-Abbas al-Mu'tadid· Chess match of al-Suli and al-Mawardi before al-Muktafi· Baraz al-Rawz palace· Al-Muwaffaq's three wishes: Abu Dawud settles at Basra, c. 272/885· The appointment of Amr ibn al-Layth over the lands beyond the Balkh river· Demolition of a Church in Baghdad· The Annexation of Dar al-Qattan to the Mosque of al-Mansur· Kharijite Rebellion of 866–896

Sources

  1. Muruj al-Dhahab — al-Masʼudi , p. 660
  2. Muruj al-Dhahab — al-Masʼudi , p. 598
  3. Muruj al-Dhahab — al-Masʼudi , p. 634
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Al-Mu'tadid at chess when al-Qasim ibn Ubaydallah entered”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/mutadid-at-chess-when-al-qasim-entered/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-11-09.

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Related

Abu Ahmad Imprisons His Son Abu al-Abbas al-Mu'tadid

In 275 al-Muwaffaq imprisoned his son Abu'l-Abbas — the future caliph al-Mu'tadid — and the prince's men and ghilman armed and riotous filled Baghdad until al-Muwaffaq rode out to al-Rusafa and told them: 'What is with you? Do you think you have more pity on my son than I? He is my son and I needed to discipline him' — and they dispersed, on Tuesday 6 Shawwal.