Abu-Yahya Abu-Bakr

Abu Yahya Abu Bakr II ( ; died 19 October 1346) was the Hafsid caliph of Ifriqiya from 1318 to 1346. He was the son of Abu-Zakariyya Yahya III, emir of Béjaïa and grandson of Abu Ishaq Ibrahim I. Under his rule the former unity of the Hafsid domains was restored.

Rise to power After 1309 his brother Abu-l-Baqa Khalid An-Nasr came to power in Tunis and made him governor of Constantine. Shortly after this he revolted. In 1311 his brother was overthrown and Abu-Yahya Abu-Bakr seized the opportunity to take Bejaïa in 1312 with the new ruler of Tunis, Abd al-Wahid Zakariya ibn al-Lihyani, powerless to respond. In 1315 or 1316 the attacks on Tunis began; in 1317 al-Lihyaní fled the country and abdicated in favor of his son Abu-Darba Muhammad who resisted for another nine months, but in early 1318 Abu-Yahya Abu-Bakr II made his entrance into the capital. Until 1332 there were numerous rebellions but Abu-Yahya Abu-Bakr II was gradually able to restore control. To maintain the cohesion of his states he entrusted the government of the provinces from 1320 to his sons assisted by chamberlains. One of the most significant developments of his rule was the establishment of corsair fleets in Hafsid ports, and from this period piracy began to be a significant source of income for the region. However the Black Death ravaged the Hafsid domains in 1349 and his government was not popular. There were soon rebellions against Marinid rule, forcing him to abandon Tunis by ship in December 1349. Early in 1350 the Hafsid prince Al-Fadl of Béjaïa was proclaimed caliph, but in July Ibn Tafragin returned and raised his brother Abu Ishaq Ibrahim II in his place, putting Al-Fadl to death.