The Role of Horses in the Politics of Late Medieval South Arabia

Abstract

Horses played a significant role in the social life, economy, and politics of the Rasulid court in late medieval South Arabia. The care and concern for horses as revealed through various administrative documents and chronicle reports, the celebration of great horsemen and the qualities associated with them, and the prominent appearance of horses in public and more private ceremonies all demonstrate the great extent to which they were valued. While previous research has focused upon the breeding and sale of horses by the Rasulids, this paper more deeply explores the ways in which they were used in the political machinations of the sultans. In this way, both the bestowal of horses as gifts in exchanges with foreign and local parties, as well as the confiscation and redistribution of horses among various groups within South Arabia, served as powerful means of mediation for the sultans to negotiate their political relations.