Since the rebel of Mahdia seized the town in mid-1199, the Sahel between Mahdia and the plain of Tunis has been a war zone: Almohad officers sent to replace him were attacked on landing, and within the Hijri year 596 he will march on Tunis by land and sea and plunder the villages on his retreat.
Sousse and Monastir lie in it, their allegiance unrecorded.
How things stand that morning
Open war between the rebel and the Almohads; how far either controls the Sahel that winter is not recorded.
Who raids here
The rebel of Mahdia's men against the Almohad governor of Tunis; Arab raiders of the plain on both.
Anchors on each side
Mahdia (rebel); Tunis and Hammamet (Almohad).
Last campaign
Mid-1199 (the revolt and the fight with the governors sent from Tunis); the siege of Tunis falls in 596 AH (from 22 October 1199), month not pinned.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: The war is attested; its extent and timing that winter are inferred.
Sources and studies
- Ibn Khaldun, Histoire des Berberes, tr. de Slane, vol. 2 (1854): the Banu Ghaniya and Qaraqush (pp. 100-111), the Almohads (pp. 224-228), the Hafsids (pp. 291-293); read through the archive.org full-text search
- Arabic Wikipedia, Banu Ghaniya (after Ibn al-Athir, al-Tijani, Ibn Idhari, Ibn Khaldun, Bel 1903): Mahdia seized in Sha'ban 595; battle near Gafsa 597; Tunis entered 7 Rabi II 600 (15 December 1203)
- Arabic article on the revolts against the Almohads, Journal of Tikrit University for the Humanities (after Ibn Khaldun, Ibn Idhari, al-Zarkashi): the Mahdia revolt of 595, the siege of Tunis in 596, the siege of Mahdia in 597
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.