Yazid III was the twelfth Umayyad caliph who ruled from April to October 744. He promised fiscal responsibility and equality among citizens. Yazid III died of a brain tumor and was succeeded by his brother Ibrahim, who abdicated after two months out of fear of political opponents. Ibrahim was succeeded by Marwan II, who faced rebellion from the Hashimiyya movement that sought to overthrow the Umayyads and install the Abbasids in their place. By 750, the Abbasids had defeated the Umayyads and killed many of their members, marking the end of the Umayyad Caliphate.

1. Umayyad Caliphate rulers
By :
Dr. Abdul Wahid

2. Yazid III
• Yazīd ibn al-Walīd ibn ʿAbd al-Malik (701 – 3/4 October 744.
• Usually known simply as Yazid III was the twelfth Umayyad caliph. He
reigned for six months, from April 15 to October 3 or 4, 744, and he
reigned until his death.

3. Accession
• On accession, Yazid explained that he had rebelled on behalf of the Book of Allah and the
Sunna of His Prophet, and that this entailed ensuring that the strong not prey upon the
weak. He promised "to engage in no building works, squander no money on wives or
children, transfer no money from one province to another" without reason, "keep no
troops on the field too long", and not to overtax the ahlal-dhimma instead, he would
eschew discrimination and would make his payments on time. He promised abdication if
he failed to meet these goals, and held in principle to al-amr shura – to an elected
caliphate.[
• Yazid's nickname “The Diminisher given because he reduced military annuities by
10% whereas his predecessor had promised a raise. According to Islamic popular
tradition, recorded in an apocalyptic style,Yazid would go himself into the marketplace.
• The city of Homs refused allegiance to Yazid, and there were several other dissident
movements against him. Another cousin, Marwan ibn Muhammad ibn Marwan,
governor of Armenia, had initially supported Walid and on Walid's death entered Iraq to
avenge him. Marwan eventually rallied around Yazid.

4. Death..
• Yazid fell ill of a brain tumour and died on October 3 or 4, 744.
Ibrahim duly succeeded him

5. Ibrahim ibn al-Walid
• Ibrāhīm ibn al-Walīd ibn ʿAbd al-Malik (died 25 January 750) was
an Umayyad caliph, and a son of Caliph al-Walid I (r. 705–715). He
ruled from 4 October 744 to 4 December 744. He was the
penultimate Caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate.

6. Reign
Yazid III named his brother Ibrahim as his successor .Yazid fell ill of a
brain tumour and died on October 3 or 4, 744. Ibrahim duly succeeded
him. Ibrahim ruled for two months in 744 before he abdicated, and
went into hiding out of fear of his political opponents.

7. Abdication
• Ibrahim was named heir apparent by his brother Yazid III. Marwan
II decided to oppose Yazid III, and even though he later gave
allegiance to Yazid, on the early death of that caliph, Marwan
continued his own ambitions. Ibrahim requested and was granted
Marwan's assurance of personal safety. He travelled with Marwan to
former Caliph Hisham's residence at Rusafah in Syria. Like most
members of the Umayyad family, Ibrahim was executed by
the Abbasids in 750.

8. Marwan ibn Muhammad
• As soon as Marwan ibn Muhammad became Caliph, he had to face a
renewed anti-Umayyad fervor. An underground movement called the
Hashimiyya had been active in recruiting members since the end of
the Second Fitna in the late 7th century. The Hashimiyya found a lot
of popularity among Shia Muslims, especially Persians–who suffered
from the heavy taxation imposed upon them by the Umayyads–and
Arab tribes that viewed the current dynasty as usurpers.

9. Cont….
• The Umayyad Civil War was the perfect opportunity for the
Hashimiyya to boost their recruitment efforts and enroll Abu Muslim
Al Khorassani, a charismatic and popular Persian Commander. In 747,
the latter declared open rebellion against the Umayyads in Khorassan
and quickly conquered the province in the name of the movement. At
that time, the Hashimiyya was led by the Abbasids, an Arab Clan
related to the prophet, and led by Abu Al-Abbas, known as As-Saffah
(the Blood-Shedder).

10. Cont…
• Iraq fell to the rebels in 749, and Abu Al-Abbas was declared Caliph.
The following year, the Umayyad suffered numerous defeats at the
hands of the Abbasids and lost Damascus. Marwan II was forced to
flee to Egypt, where he was eventually caught and killed. The final
straw came in late 750, when Abu Al-Abbas issued pardons to
Umayyad princes, only to gather them and slaughter them at a
“reconciliation celebration.”

11. Downfall of Umayyad
• The Umayyad Caliphate had to face constant legitimacy issues. Many
Muslims strongly resented the way Mu’awiyya I came to power and
the massacres perpetrated by his relatives. The Umayyads also
imposed heavy taxation on non-Muslims and converts. Finally, the
Damascus governorship was based strongly on pre-Islamic
equilibriums between tribes, where Syrian and Yemenites Arabs had
distinct privileges compared to other groups in society. All of these
factors contributed to a growing distaste towards the Umayyad
dynasty, which exploded into a full-on revolt at the first signs of
weakness.

12. Cont….
• The reign of the Umayyad dynasty began to unravel after the empire
became overextended. By 717, the Umayyad's were having trouble
defending frontiers and preventing insurrections, and the financial
situation of the empire had become untenable, despite attempts by
the caliph ʿUmar to stave off disintegration. Playing off broad
discontent, the ʿAbbāsids spurred a successful rebellion that
eventually upended the Umayyad's in 750.