Today is Friday; 3rd of the Iranian month of Aban 1398 solar hijri; corresponding to 26th of the Islamic month of Safar 1441 lunar hijri; and October 25, 2019, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1179 solar years ago, on this day in 840 AD, Iranian adventurer, Ya’qoub Ibn Layth Saffar, who founded the short-lived Saffarid Dynasty, was born in Sistan in the small town of Karnin (Qarnin), located east of Zaranj and west of Bast, in what is now Afghanistan. A coppersmith by profession, he led an ascetic life and gradually started gathering fighting men around him in Sistan in the town of Zaranj, which is currently in Afghanistan, to annihilate the “khwarej” (renegades) in the region. This earned him fame, and he soon brought the whole of Sistan under his control. He turned to the east and after taking Bast, captured Kabul, before turning west to seize Herat from the fellow Iranian dynasty of Tahirids, who ruled Khorasan. In 868 he set out for Kerman, and wrested Shiraz from the control of the Abbasids, but continued to call himself a vassal of the caliph. In 869, he returned to Zaranj, his capital, and in 871, during the caliphate of Mo’tamid, he again descended on Shiraz and advanced towards Khuzestan. The caliph was able to prevent him from invading Iraq by appointing him the Abbasid governor of Balkh, Fars, Kerman, Sistan and Sind. In 873, Yaqoub bin Layth brought all of Khorasan under his control by seizing its capital, Neishabour, from where he marched to Gorgan and Tabarestan (present-day Mazandaran) and then as far as Chalous, before withdrawing to Rayy after collecting taxes of the Caspian region. This brought him offers from Caliph Mo’tamid of the governorship of Khorasan, Tabaristan, Gorgan, Rayy, and also the position of security-chief in Baghdad. Proud of his victories, Yaqoub bin Layth rejected the offer and invaded Khuzestan, but at Dayr al-Aqoul, some seventy km from Baghdad, he was defeated by the Abbasid forces and returned to Khuzestan, to prepare for another attack, when he died. There are conflicting reports about Yaqoub’s religious beliefs, with claims that he had Ismaili Shi’ite tendencies. He died in Jondi Shapour in Khuzestan at the age of 39, due to severe stomachache, and was succeeded by his brother Amr.

1153 lunar years ago, on this day in 288 AH, the mathematician and astronomer, Sabet ibn Qurrah al-Harrani, died at the age of 77 in Baghdad. He was from Harran, which is presently under the control of Turkey although historically and culturally it is part of Mesopotamia. He belonged to the Sabian creed of star-worshippers, while some say he followed the Mandean creed that considers Prophet Yahya or John the Baptist to be the principal figure and last messenger of God. Sabet was invited to Baghdad by the Iranian scientists, the Banu Musa brothers, and translated scientific texts from Greek and Syriac languages into Arabic, thus significantly contributing to the development of sciences during the heyday of the Islamic civilization. It is not known whether or not he became a Muslim, but his sons became Muslims. His grandson, Ibrahim ibn Sinan, was a mathematician and astronomer who studied geometry and in particular tangents to circles for making sundials. He also made advances in the theory of integration. Sabet ibn Qurrah is said to have translated more than 130 books, and has left behind valuable compilations of his own.

811 lunar years ago, on this day in 630 AH, as part of his string of victories to consolidate the Muslim rule in northern India, Sultan Shams od-Din Altamash captured the important Rajput fortress of Gwalior after eleven months of siege. A Persianized Turkic slave of Sultan Muiz od-Din Mohammad, the Iranian ruler of Ghor (in present day Afghanistan), he served as lieutenant to Qutb od-Din Aibak, the founder of the Slave (Mamluk) Dynasty of India, and later became the latter's son-in-law. He was fluent in Turkic, Persian and Arabic, and was highly educated by his masters in Bukhara, Baghdad and Ghazna. Slaves in Islam are children of non-Muslims bought and brought up as Muslims and equivalent to adopted sons, and on no account should be confused with the concept of slavery in western and other non-Muslim cultures, where such persons are denied all basic rights and treated like chattels. In 1211, Altamash seized power from Aibak's weak son, Aram Shah, to become Sultan and shifted his capital from Lahore to Delhi, where he remained the ruler until his death 25 years later on May 1, 1236. A wise man, he carried out reforms, invited scholars to his court from Khorasan and Central Asia, defended the country against Mongol attacks, and built several public projects, such as the "Hauz-e Shamsi" water reservoir in Delhi, which is still in use. The famous Iranian Islamic scholar, Fakhr od-Din Razi used to visit India when Altamash was governor of Lahore. During his reign, several translations of Arabic books into Persian were undertaken, including the renowned Iranian Islamic scientist, Abu Rayhan al-Berouni's book on pharmacology titled "Saydana" – a translation printed in Tehran.

872 solar years ago, on this day in 1147 AD, Seljuq Turks led by Masoud I completely annihilated a 200,000-strong invading force of German crusaders led by Conrad III at the Battle of Dorylaeum in what is now southwestern Turkey. The crusade miserably failed and Conrad fled to the army led by Louis VII of France.

872 solar years ago, on this day in 1147 AD, after a siege of four months, crusader hordes led by Afonso Henriques occupied the Muslim city of Lisbon, which is now the capital of Portugal. The occupiers forcibly converted several Muslims to Christianity, while the majority who refused to be converted fled to other parts of the Islamic world, primarily Muslim Spain and North Africa. All mosques were either destroyed or converted into churches. As a result of the end of over four centuries of Muslim rule, spoken Arabic gradually lost its place in the everyday life of the city and disappeared altogether. Lisbon was liberated on 6 August 711 by Muslims from the occupation of Vandals. The Muslims built many mosques and houses, rebuilt the city wall and established administrative control, while permitting the diverse population (Muladi, Mozarabs, Berbers, Arabs, Jews, Zanj and Saqaliba) to maintain their socio-cultural lifestyles. Mozarabic was the native language spoken by most of the Christian population although Arabic was widely known as spoken by all religious communities. The Muslim influence is still visible present in the Alfama district, an old quarter of Lisbon that survived the 1755 Lisbon earthquake. Many place-names are derived from Arabic and Alfama (oldest existing district of Lisbon) was derived from the Arabic "al-hamma".

619 solar years ago, on this day in 1400 AD, English poet, Geoffrey Chaucer, died at the age of 57. He composed his magnum opus “The Canterbury Tales” in the colloquial language of the ordinary English masses, rather than the church language Latin or the court language French, thus paving the way for emergence of English as the official language of the people of England.

604 solar years ago, on this day in 1415 AD, during the Hundred Years' War, Henry V of England and his lightly-armoured infantry and archers defeated the heavily-armoured French cavalry in the Battle of Agincourt. The French had outnumbered Henry’s troops, but Welsh longbows turned the tide of the battle.

308 solar years ago, on this day in 1711 AD, the first traces of ruins of the two ancient Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, in Italy, were accidentally discovered by a farmer. Pompeii was built in the early years of 6th century BC, and was a burgeoning port until the 1st century AD. It was notorious for its promiscuous and lewd way of life, and its destruction is viewed as a divine wrath. These two cities were buried under the lava and ashes of the volcano, Mount Vesuvius, in 79 AD. Following discovery of these cities, archeologists launched wide-scale explorations and have managed to dig out a large number of monuments.

219 solar years ago, on this day in 1800 AD, British historian and politician, Thomas Babington Macaulay, was born in Leicestershire in a Scottish highlander family. He studied laws, worked as an attorney, before turning to politics. He became a member of parliament, and after resigning was sent to India as Secretary to the Board of Control. An expert of the English language, during his 4-year tenure in British-ruled India from 1834 to 1838, he made English compulsory and discouraged the use of Persian which for centuries had been the court and official language of the Subcontinent, besides being the strategic cultural and religious link of the Muslims of South Asia with Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia. He was scornful of the wisdom of the east, including the rich Arabic, Persian, and Sanskrit heritage of India. He made English the medium of education in order to create Anglicised Indians, detached from their native culture and serving the interests of their colonial masters. Till this day in Indian culture, the term “Macaulay's Children” is used to refer to people born of Indian ancestry who adopt western culture as a lifestyle, or display attitudes influenced by the colonisers. On his return to Britain, Macaulay was elected to the parliament and later appointed war minister. He died at the age of 59.

186 solar years ago, on this day in 1833 AD, the brave Iranian crown prince, Abbas Mirza, died at the age of 44 in holy Mashhad, while restoring order in Khorasan Province. Son of Fath-Ali Shah, the second king of the Qajarid dynasty, he developed a reputation as a military commander during wars with expansionist Russia and the Ottoman Empire. He was intelligent, possessed literary taste, and modernized the Iranian army. At the same time he was noteworthy for the comparative simplicity of his life. As commander of the Iranian forces, his aid was solicited by both England and Napoleon, anxious to checkmate one another in the East. Abbas Mirza defended Iran against Russian attacks, but the French failed to provide him assistance, and the court in Tehran was also slow in realizing the situation on the borders, as a result of which he was defeated in the Battle of Aslanduz in 1813. Iran was forced to sign the Treaty of Golestan, ceding large parts in the Caucasus including present-day Georgia, Daghestan, and most of the Republic of Azerbaijan. In 1821 when the Ottomans attacked Iran, Abbas Mirza defeated them in the Battle of Erzurum, and through the Treaty of 1823, ensured Iran’s sovereignty. His second war with Russia, which began in 1826 with initial success, ended in 1828 with a string of costly defeats after which Iran was forced to cede nearly all of its Armenian territories as well as Nakhchivan, as per the Treaty of Turkmanchay. In 1834 when Fath-Ali Shah died, Abbas Mirza’s eldest son, Mohammed Mirza, was crowned the king of Iran.

138 solar years ago, on this day in 1881 AD, Spanish painter, Pablo Picasso, was born. He founded the Cubism style, which swiftly spread among French painters. He has created a large number of paintings in his peculiar style. The painting “Avinion Maidens” marks the start of the Cubism movement. His Cubist masterpiece is called Guernica. In this painting, Picasso has depicted his fright in the wake of bombardment of the city of Guernica amid Spain’s civil war. Picasso died in April, 1973

102 solar years ago, on this day in 1917 AD, during the struggles of the Russian people against the despotic rule of the Czars, communists seized power by manipulating events. Seven decades later communism collapsed and resulted in the disintegration of the USSR.

96 solar years ago, on this day in 1923 AD, British colonialists forced the weak Qajarid king of Iran, Ahmad Shah to appoint the unlettered defence minister Reza Khan as prime minister, after the latter had threatened and forced the legal prime minister, Moshir od-Dowlah to resign. Two years later, when Ahmad Shah was touring Europe, the British formally installed Reza Khan as king of Iran, under the surname of Pahlavi, thus starting a bleak period in Iranian history, when people’s freedoms were curtailed, their culture distorted, their religious aspirations suppressed, and their dress changed. In 1941, the British replaced Reza Khan with his son, Mohammad Reza on the Peacock Throne. In 1979, the Pahlavi regime was thrown into the dustbin of history by the triumph of the Islamic Revolution.

93 solar years ago, on this day in 1926 AD, famous Pakistani painter, Ismail Gulgeez, was born in Peshawar in an Ismaili Shi’a Muslim family. A graduate of Aligarh University and an engineer by profession, as a self-taught artist, he won the topmost awards of Pakistan. Influenced by Islamic calligraphy, he painted some very excellent works that brought him international fame. Gulgeez, his wife Zarrin, and a maid, were victims of sectarian terrorism, and were found dead in their house on December 19, 2007, with hands tied behind their back and mouths gagged with cloth.

27 solar years ago, on this day in 1992 AD, Iranian poet, satirist, and translator, Abu'l-Qassem Halat, passed away. He started writing poems at the age of 16. He was a master of satires, and was fluent in Persian, English, French, and Arabic. He translated in verse the sayings of Prophet Mohammad and of Imam Ali (peace upon them). He titled these works "The Light of Insight", and "The Blossoms of Wisdom". His poems includes odes and quatrains that contain ethical admonitions.

19 solar years ago, on this day in 2000 AD, Iranian poet, Fereydoon Moshiri, passed away at the age of 74 in his hometown Tehran. Born in a literary family, he learned poetry from his mother, who was a poet herself. Because of his father’s job, the family moved to the holy city of Mashhad, where he finished his junior high school. Since childhood he became familiar with the works of prominent Persian poets and memorized most of their poems. Moshiri started composing poems as a teenager, and his first published poem titled "Our Tomorrow" drew the attention of men of letters. Soon he published the collection titled “Thirsty for Typhoon”. This was followed by other publications and his poems were printed in different art and literary journals.

AS/SS