AMIN, (MUHAMMAD) AL-

born April 787 died Sept. 24/25, 813, Iraq sixth caliph of the 'Abbasid dynasty. As the son of Harun ar-Rashid, the fifth caliph, and Zubayda, a niece of al-Mansur, the second caliph, al-Amin took precedence in the succession over his elder half brother, al-Ma'mun, whose mother was a Persian slave. In 809, al-Amin succeeded to the caliphate, and al-Ma'mun was vested with the administration of the eastern Khorasan region. Relations between the brothers soon broke down, and in 810 al-Amin declared his own son as his direct heir. Open hostilities began in 811, and by 812 al-Amin was besieged in Baghdad, the defense of which lasted more than a year. AlAmin was captured and executed, apparently against the wishes of his brother.