born 786, Baghdad, Iraq
died August 833, Tarsus, Cilicia
Seventh caliph (r. 813833) of the Abb 0101; sid dynasty .
He was the son of the celebrated H 0101; r 016B; n al-Rash 012B; d and after his father's death (809) defeated his brother al-Am 012B; n in a civil war (813) to assume the caliphate. Attempting to reconcile Sunnite and Sh 012B; 02BD; ite Muslims, he designated as his heir a Sh 012B; 02BD; ite, 02BD; Al 012B; al-Ri 1E0D; 0101; , which failed to satisfy Sh 012B; 02BD; ite extremists and angered Sunnites. In any event, al-Ma 02BE; m 016B; n was predeceased by his heir. He became a supporter of the Mutazilite s, a theological school whose opinions on such issues as the nature of God and man's free will were at variance with accepted doctrine and found little popular support. His sponsorship of translations of Greek philosophical and scientific works and his building of observatories and libraries proved a more lasting legacy.