Abbasid Cultivation of Iranian Dissent in Khorasan

This paper looks at how the cultivation of dissent towards the ruling Umayyad dynasty among the native Iranian population of Khorasan was immensely beneficial to accomplishing the goals of the Abbasid revolution. It is argued that the conquest of Khorasan by the revolutionaries was accomplished through a skillful clandestine propaganda campaign by the Abbasids, which culminated in simultaneous popular uprisings that overwhelmed Umayyad forces in the region and forced them to capitulate control of Khorasan. These popular uprisings then allowed the core of the revolutionary Abbasid forces to build a solid base and consolidate their power in Khorasan, without having to suffer any significant losses. The paper looks at how the Abbasid propaganda seized on the grievances of the local Iranian population living under Umayyad rule, and how it used these grievances as a means of conquering Khorasan without having to risk significant losses to their relatively outnumbered armed forces. The causes of the resentment of local Iranian populations of Khorasan towards the Umayyads are briefly addressed, as is the form of propaganda that the revolutionaries may have used to cultivate and organize popular uprisings, based on primary source accounts of speeches by leaders of the revolutions. Secondary sources are also used to shed light on how significant the underlying grievances of the Iranian population towards Umayyad rule may have been in facilitating support for the Abbasids’ quest to conquer Khorasan and ultimately overthrow the Umayyad dynasty.