{"product_id":"harun-al-rashid-and-the-world-of-the-thousand-and-one-nights","title":"Harun al-Rashid and the World of The Thousand and One Nights","description":"\u003cp\u003eA symbol of the fabled Orient, Harun al Rashid, the caliph portrayed in \u003ci\u003eThe Thousand and One Nights\u003c\/i\u003e, where we see him living grandly his palace in Baghdad, surrounded by his wives, his concubines, musicians, and learned men, is not merely a figure of legend. He was the son of a Yemenite slave who cleared his path to power, very probably by poisoning the reigning caliph, her older son. Harun reigned for a quarter-century, and was the most famous caliph of the Abbasid dynasty.\u003cbr\u003eThrough Arab chronicles, the author corrects our vision of Harun the Good', and gives a remarkable account of his development as a ruler. Though in Western countries he is remembered for the presents he sent to Charlemagne–notably the famous elephant, Abul Abbas–he was first and foremost a successful soldier who made war on the Byzantines. His empire was shaken by religious and social insurrections, and he did not shrink from annihilating the Barmecides, a powerful family whose wealth and influence he finally found unbearable. As a patron of pets and intellectuals, Harun contributed greatly to the cultural supremacy of Baghdad, whose merchants and navigators spread the name of the caliph throughout the world.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"New Amsterdam Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56399380054360,"sku":"9780941533652","price":25.99,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0278\/1295\/4195\/files\/9780941533652.jpg?v=1778709631","url":"https:\/\/agendabookshop.com\/products\/harun-al-rashid-and-the-world-of-the-thousand-and-one-nights","provider":"Agenda Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}