The Caliph Rahdi died in the same year (940 a. d.). He was thirty years of age, and had reigned six years, ten months, and ten days. His brother, Abu Ishak Ibrahim, succeeded him, and was henceforth known by the name of Muttaki. A year later Muhammed el-Ikshid was acknowledged Prince of Egypt by the new caliph. Shortly after, he learnt that his former enemy, Muhammed ibn Raik had been killed by the Hamdanites; he thereupon seized the opportunity to recover those provinces he had granted him, and, marching into Syria, captured Damascus and all the possessions he had relinquished upon the conclusion of their treaty. Feeling now that his position was secure, he caused his son Kasim to be recognised by the emirs and the entire army as his successor.
The year 332 of the Hegira was a disastrous one in Baghdad. The office of Prince of Princes, bestowed according to the caprice of the Turkish officers upon any of their leaders, was now become a position superior even to that of caliph. It was held at this time by a Turk named Turun, who so oppressed the caliph Muttaki that the latter was forced to fly from his capital and retire to Mosul. He then besought help from the Hamdanites, who immediately rallied their forces and, accompanied by the caliph, marched upon Baghdad. They were, however, completely routed by Turun and obliged to retreat. Muttaki showed his gratitude to the two princes by conferring a mantle of honour upon them, which, for some time past, had been the only gift that Islam sovereigns had been able to bestow.
Leaving Mosul, the caliph proceeded to Rakkah, and there was invited by Turun to return to Baghdad. Seeing that his adherents, the Hamdanites, were greatly discouraged by their recent reverses, Muttaki resolved to accept the offer. When Muhammed el-Ikshid heard this, he hastened to Rakkah and offered the caliph refuge in Egypt. But the caliph refused, agreeing, however, as Muhammed el-Ikshid promised to supply him with the necessary funds, not to return to Baghdad and place himself in the power of Turun. In spite of his promise, when Turun, fearing that the caliph had found powerful friends, came to him, and, casting himself before Muttaki, paid him all the homage due to an Islam sovereign, he allowed himself to be overruled, and accompanied Turun back to Baghdad. Hardly had the unfortunate caliph set foot in his capital when he was murdered, after reigning four years and eleven months. Turun now proclaimed Abd Allah Abu’l Kasim, son of Muttaki, caliph, who, after a short and uneventful reign, was succeeded by his uncle, Abu’l Kasim el-Fadhl, who was the last of the Abbasid caliphs whom Egypt acknowledged as suzerains.
After Muttaki’s return to Baghdad, Muhammed el-Ikshid remained for some time in Damascus, and then set out for Egypt. His return was signalised by the war with Saif ed-Dowlah, Prince of Hamdan. The campaign was of varying success: After a disastrous battle, in which the Egyptians lost four thousand men as prisoners, Muhammed el-Ikshid left Egypt with a numerous army and arrived at Maarrah. Saif ed-Dowlah determined to decide the war with one desperate effort, and first secured the safety of his treasure, his baggage, and his harem by sending them to Mesopotamia. Then he marched upon el-Ikshid, who had taken his position at Kinesrin.
Muhammed divided his forces into two corps, placing in the vanguard all those who carried lances; he himself was in the rear with ten thousand picked men. Saif ed-Dowlah charged the vanguard and routed it, but the rear stood firm; this resistance saved el-Ikshid from total defeat. The two armies separated after a somewhat indecisive engagement, and Saif ed-Dowlah, who could claim no advantage save the capture of his adversaries’ baggage, went on to Maubej, where he destroyed the bridge, and, entering Mesopotamia, proceeded towards Rakkah; but Muhammed el-Ikshid was already stationed there, and the hostile armies, separated only by the Euphrates, faced one another for several days.
Negotiations were then opened, and peace was concluded. The conditions were that Hemessa, Aleppo, and Mesopotamia should belong to Saif ed-Dowlah, and all the country from Hemessa to the frontiers of Egypt remain in the possession of Muhammed el-Ikshid. A trench was dug between Djouchna and Lebouah, in those places where there were no natural boundaries, to mark the separation of the two states. To ratify this solemn peace, Saif ed-Dowlah married the daughter of Muhammed el-Ikshid; then each prince returned to his own province. The treaty was, however, almost immediately set aside by the Hamdanites, and el-Ikshid, forced to retrace his steps, defeated them in several engagements and seized the town of Aleppo.
Thus we see that the year 334 of the Hegira (a. d. 946) was full of important events, to which was soon added the death of Muhammed el-Ikshid. He died at Damascus, in the last month of the year (Dhu’l-Kada), aged sixty, and had reigned eleven years, three months, and two days. He was buried at Jerusalem. Muhammed el-Ikshid was a man possessing many excellent talents, and chiefly renowned as an admirable soldier. Brave, without being rash, quick to calculate his chances, he was able always to seize the advantage. On the other hand, however, he was so distrustful and timid in the privacy of his palace that he organised a guard of eight thousand armed slaves, one thousand of whom kept constant watch. He never spent the entire night in the same apartment or tent, and no one was ever permitted to know the place where he slept.
We are told that this prince could muster four hundred thousand men; although historians do not definitely specify the boundaries of his empire, which, of course, varied from time to time, we may nevertheless believe that his kingdom, as that of his predecessors, the Tulunites, extended over Egypt, Palestine, Syria, and Mesopotamia, as far as the Euphrates, and even included a large portion of Arabia. The Christians of the East charge him with supporting his immense army at their expense, and persecuting and taxing them to such an extent that they were forced to sell many possessions belonging to their Church before they could pay the required sums.