كتاب الدولة المرابطية بين الولاء والانتماء رسالة بن أبي الخصال إلى جند بلنسية نموذجاً

Abstract

This study examines the development of the Chancery (Diwan al-Insha') during the Almoravid era and analyzes the evolving relationship between the Andalusian elite and Almoravid rulers, centered on a contextual and critical reading of Ibn Abi al-Khisal’s famous letter to the troops of Valencia. The paper traces the transition of the Almoravid state from its nomadic tribal origins to a structured bureaucratic administration heavily reliant on Andalusian scribes following the fall of the Taifa kingdoms. It highlights how cultural and ethnic friction between the urbanized Andalusians and the nomadic Almoravid "veiled warriors" (al- Mulathameen) led to a surge of political satire and implicit resistance against Almoravid rule. Furthermore, the study explores the historical and psychological factors—such as the Almoravid military setbacks against Alfonso I of Aragon (Ibn Radmir) and the personal political marginalization of Ibn Abi al-Khisal—that influenced the exceptionally harsh and vitriolic tone of the letter. Transgressing the traditional etiquette of royal correspondence, the text serves as a stark historical manifestation of cultural alterity and the Andalusian intellectual reaction against Almoravid hegemony