Abû 'Umar ibn Sa'îd

Who was Abû 'Umar ibn Sa'îd?

Abû ‘Umar ibn Sa’îd was son of Abû 'Uthmân Sa'îd ibn Hakam al Qurashi and last ra’îs of Manûrqa.

In his first year in government, King Peter III of Aragon and his fleet stopped by Manurqa on their way to the city of Constantine. Bugron, the Lord of Constantine, had secretly plotted with Peter to convert to Christianity and surrender the city to the Crown of Aragon. According to Ramon Muntaner’s Cronica, Abû ‘Umar sent messengers to North Africa letting know of this plot. The consequences were that Bugron was executed and Peter’s surprise invasion was discovered.

Years later, Peter and King James II of Majorca, came into a dispute. Peter’s son King Alfons III of Aragon set out from Salou the 22 November 1286 with an invasion force against Manûrqa. This was both to avenge Abû ‘Umar ibn Sa’îd and James II. He arrived 5 January 1287. Abû ‘Umar ibn Sa’îd prepared himself with mercenary troops from North Africa. The first battle took place 17 January. Alfons won this battle and Abû ‘Umar ibn Sa’îd and a few of his followers fled to the fortress near Madina al Jazira, nowadays known as the fortress of Santa Àgueda.