Bugha al-Sharabi

Bugha al-Sharabi ("Bugha the Cupbearer"), also known as Bugha al-Saghir ("Bugha the Younger") to distinguish him from his unrelated contemporary Bugha the Elder, was a senior Turkic military leader in the mid-9th century Abbasid Caliphate.

Bugha al-Sharabi
Native name	Bugha al-Saghir
Born	Abbasid Caliphate
Died	c. 868 Samarra, Abbasid Caliphate (now Iraq) Cause of death: Executed
Allegiance	Abbasid Caliphate
Service / branch	Abbasid Turkic regiment
Years of service	c. 850s – 867

He served under Caliph al-Mutawakkil (r. 847–861) in Azerbaijan, but later led the conspiracy among the Turkic troops who killed the caliph. Closely allied to another Turkic officer, Wasif, Bugha held power at court under the caliphs al-Muntasir (r. 861–862) and al-Musta'in (r. 862–866), during the "Anarchy at Samarra". He fell into disgrace under al-Mu'tazz (r. 866–869), however, who resented both his influence and his role in the murder of al-Mutawakkil, his father. In 868, Bugha was imprisoned and executed at the Caliph's orders.

Sources

• Kraemer, Joel L., ed. (1989). The History of al-Ṭabarī, Volume XXXIV: Incipient Decline: The Caliphates of al-Wāthiq, al-Mutawakkil and al-Muntaṣir, A.D. 841–863/A.H. 227–248. SUNY Series in Near Eastern Studies. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-88706-874-4.
• Sourdel, D. (1960). "Bughā al-Sharābī". In Gibb, H. A. R.; Kramers, J. H.; Lévi-Provençal, E.; Schacht, J.; Lewis, B. & Pellat, Ch. (eds.). The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Volume I: A–B. Leiden: E. J. Brill. p. 1287. OCLC 495469456.