909 to 921

The Mahdi in Ifriqiya

Ismaili missionaries win over the Kutama Berbers of eastern Algeria, and their army overthrows the Aghlabid emirs of Ifriqiya, today's Tunisia, in 909. Their imam, Abdallah, is proclaimed caliph with the title al Mahdi. The dynasty claims descent from Fatima, daughter of the Prophet, and builds a fortified capital on the coast, Mahdia.