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The book studies the succession and political problems during the early years of the Abb sid rule. The short reign of the first Caliph al-Saff h left to the nascent dynasty some serious political problems. Since the dynasty had been supported by many different groups and factions, once it had been established, they looked for various ways to express their interests and rivalries in the form of succession disputes and uprisings. It was l-Mans r s great task to overcome these political problems. The first challenge came from his own family, Abdall h b. Al who claimed the succession which was allegedly promised by the late caliph. The second threat came from al-Mans r s general, Ab Muslim who had rendered a great service to the Abb sids. Due to the jealousy of the Caliph and the increasing power of Ab Muslim, the Caliph brutally murdered him. The third political problem were the uprisings of the Hasanid Alids, Muhammad and his brother Ibr h m b. Abdull h who claimed their rights to the caliphate. All these political problems could successfully be handled by al-Mans r by resorting to various tactics and stratagems.

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Udjang Tholib is a lecturer of Islamic History in Faculty of Islamic History and Humanities at the State Islamic University (UIN) Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta and a Deputy Director of UIN Post Graduate School. Dr. Udjang received his Ph.D degree in Islamic History from Institute of Islamic Studies, McGill University,Montreal in 2002.

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