Page "Abd al-Rahman I" Paragraph 13

The river was, for the first time in years, overflowing its banks, heralding the end of a long drought.

Nevertheless, food was still scarce, and Abd al-Rahman's army suffered from hunger.

In an attempt to demoralize Abd al-Rahman's troops, al-Fihri ensured that his troops not only were well fed, but also ate gluttonous amounts of food in full view of the Umayyad lines.

An attempt at negotiations soon followed in which it is likely that Abd al-Rahman was offered the hand of al-Fihri's daughter in marriage and great wealth.

Abd ar-Rahman, however, would settle for nothing less than control of the emirate, and an impasse was reached.

Even before the fight began, dissension spread through some of Abd al-Rahman's lines.

Specifically, the Yemeni Arabs were unhappy that the prince was mounted on a fine Spanish steed.

And the prince's mettle was untried in battle, after all!

The Yemenis observed significantly that such a fine horse would provide an excellent mount to escape from battle.