Introduction



The question of how to begin a retrospective account of a family whose prominence is still felt in a significant portion of the world is inevitably a contentious one with many differing opinions on whether to focus on the nation the family molded, the culture which thrived under it's rule, or the religious tendencies that have in some cases solidified its rule and in others brought it to ruin. In a way, I intend to fulfill the readers curiosity about all of these subjects and more, but at the same time I wish to tell a story of a dynasty of great men who in many ways shaped the modern world.



In the contemporary world this tradition of telling the stories of great men and their various deeds is one in which we try to convince ourselves that we have grown out of and instead of focusing on them history should be the enterprise of detailing historical inevitabilities, environmental factors, and pure chance such that we embrace the often times absurd tendency of painting a portrait with a wallpainters brush. This "broad stroked" approach to history certainly has it's purposes but with regards the Zayd dynasty of which we will investigate, each ruler had his own dynamic characteristics which shaped the trajectory of his domain as a whole.



Much of my research comes from the "al-Ansari"(lit. "the supporters") section of the Great Library of Baghdad which contains the assorted records, proclamations, and attributed sayings of the Zayd dynasty which, despite numerous fires and looting's over the years, remained in safety with a surprisingly negligible amount of damage.



To set the stage for our investigation it is pertinent that I share with you a few important details regarding the Zayd's and their beliefs. The Zayd's are adherents to 'Ibadism' a sect of the Islamic faith which, in the late 9th century, was a third-rate sect vying for dominance over the "Dar al-Islam"(lit. abode of Islam) in competition with the hegemony of the Sunni sect and rival upstarts from the Shia sect. The defining characteristics of this sect which stand in distinction to others include a strict dissociation with non-believers and a belief that the Islamic Caliphate should not depend on familial descent from the Prophet's tribe but rather on piety and virtue. The Zayd's themselves claim descent from Jabir ibn Zayd, one of the major founders of Ibadism, and as such saw it as their duty not only to protect the Ibadi faith within the realm but succeed in establishing a 'true' Caliphate, one without the decadence and immorality of nearly all the ones since the Prophet's death.



This disassociation, but not hostility, towards nonbelievers is one of the reasons why the Zayd's have gained their reputation of secrecy and isolationism both abroad and within their own borders and while this "tolerated distance" was a blessing many a time upon those who didn't provoke attack, it made any long term alliances with the Zayd's nearly impossible for anyone outside their sect.



"A Zayd will only tolerate your presence on three occasions: "Eid al-Fitr, Hajj, and when at War."

So goes a medieval Arabic proverb, one which many friends and foes alike kept in mind when dealing with the Zayd's and one which will guide us in our journey with this dynasty.