Almohad dynasty was a series of rulers based in Morocco from about A.D. 1130 to 1269. Their empire at its peak extended throughout northwestern Africa and into what are now southern Spain and Portugal.
During the early 1100’s, tensions developed between the Masmuda, a Berber group of the Atlas Mountains, and the Almoravids, the region’s ruling dynasty. Muhammad ibn Tūmart, a Muslim scholar, emerged as a leading figure of the Masmuda. He preached that society under the Almoravids had departed from the true Islamic faith and needed reform. Between 1121 and 1124, Muhammad ibn Tūmart wrote a doctrine on faith, worship, social behavior, and human relations. It combined ideas from Sunni legal schools, religious sects, and Sufism (Islamic mysticism). Muhammad ibn Tūmart preached about tawhīd (the oneness of God) and declared himself the Mahdī (divinely appointed guide). His followers, called al-muwahhidūn (those who believe in the unity of God), became known as the Almohads through a Spanish mispronunciation.
In about 1129, the Almohads attacked the Almoravids in Marrakech but were defeated. Muhammad ibn Tūmart died in 1130, but he left behind a strong movement. The Almohads chose Abd al-Mu’min, from what is now Algeria, to be his successor. Al-Mu’min became known as amīr al-mu’minīn (commander of the faithful). Under Abd al-Mu’min, the Almohads put an end to Almoravid rule in 1147. Almohad rule extended over most of North Africa by 1160. Abd al-Mu’min died in 1163.
In Spain, some Muslim cities recognized Almohad authority in the 1140’s and 1150’s. In the late 1100’s, Abd al-Mu’min’s son, Abū Ya`qūb Yūsuf, brought the rest of southern Spain under Almohad control. The Almohad empire achieved great prosperity. Architecture, art, and intellectual life flourished under the Almohads. They built the famous mosque of the Kutubiyya in Marrakech. Their empire lasted until 1269, when it was conquered by the Marīnids, another Berber dynasty.
