after the war was to prove to be short and violent. His brothers Abu Ahmad, who had been responsible for his victory in the war, and al-Mu'ayyad were both thrown in prison in 866, with al-Mu'ayyad dying a short time later. Meanwhile, infighting among the military soon flared up again, and numerous officers, including Wasif and Bugha, were killed. Finally, due to the inability of the caliph to pay them, in July 869 a group of Turkish, North African and Ferghanan soldiers forced al-Mu'tazz to abdicate and he died from maltreatment a few days later. The only member of the Abbasid family to benefit from the conflict in the long term was Abu Ahmad. He developed strong connections with the Turkish leadership, and this relationship was what possibly prevented al-Mu'tazz from killing him when he was imprisoned the following year. In spite of his imprisonment and subsequent exile, he remained a powerful figure in the government and was a possible contender for the caliphate in 869. From the ascension of al-Mu'tamid in 870, he was the de facto ruler of the empire with the title of al-Muwaffaq, although he never formally became caliph. Thanks to his close ties to the Turks, he became the chief military commander of the state. His son al-Mu'tadid actually did become caliph in 892, and all subsequent Abbasid caliphs were descended from him. Al-Musta'in's defeat resulted in Samarra remaining the capital city of the caliphate. It would continue to serve as such until 892, during the caliphate of al-Mu'tadid; thereafter the seat of the caliphs remained at Baghdad. Notes References Christensen, Peter. The Decline of Iranshahr. Denmark: Museum Tusculanum Press & the Author, 1993. Gordon, Matthew S. The Breaking of a Thousand Swords: A History of the Turkish Military of Samarra (A.H. 200-275/815-889 C.E.). Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 2001. Kennedy, Hugh. When Baghdad Ruled the Muslim World: The Rise and Fall of Islam's Greatest Dynasty. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Da Capo Press, 2004. Levy, Reuben. Orientalism: Early Sources, Volume XII: The Social Structure of Islam. 1957. New York, NY: Routledge, 2000. Al-Mas'udi, Ali ibn al-Husain. Les Prairies D'Or, Tome Septieme. Trans. C. Barbier de Meynard. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1873. Northedge, Alastair. "Samarra." Medieval Islamic Civilization, Volume 2. Ed. Josef W. Meri. New York, NY: Routledge, 2006. Shaban, M.A. Islamic History, A New Interpretation, Volume 2: A.D. 750-1055 (A.H. 132-448). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,