Al-Walid I commissions the construction of a…

The first task to which Qutayba set himself had been the suppression of the rebellion in Lower Tokharistan, which had been accomplished swiftly with the reconquest of Balkh.

Qutayba had then secured the submission of the local princes in the upper Oxus valley, most notably of Tish, king of al-Saghaniyan, who invites Qutayba to aid him in his dispute with the ruler of nearby Akharun (or Akhrun) and Shuman, in the northern mountainous districts of Tokharistan.

After extensive negotiations led by Sulaym the Persian, the tarkhan Nizak, ruler of the Hephthalite principality of Badghis, surrenders to Qutayba, and pledges to accompany him in his expeditions.

Qutayba occupies himself in 706–709 with the long and bloody conquest of Sogdia.

The Sogdians are at this time divided by civil war in which Bukhara had been seized by the ruler of nearby Wardana, the Wardan Khudah, while another local magnate, Khunuk Khudah, had declared himself king of Bukhara (Bukhar Khudah).

Taking advantage of the conflict, Qutayba is able to easily capture the city of Baykand after a two-month siege.

He leaves a small garrison there and departs, but the inhabitants launch a revolt soon after.

The Arab army then turns back and proceeds to sack the city.

The men of fighting age are executed, the women and children sold off as slaves, and enormous booty amassed, especially in armor and weapons, which equips the Arab army.

The brutal punishment meted out to Baykand shocks the region: the Sogdians patch up their quarrels and the Sogdian princes of Kish and Nasaf unite behind the Wardan Khudah.

Arab accounts mention the participation of Turgesh troops as well, but this is probably an anachronism.

Qutayba is able to capture two outlying towns, Tumuskath and Ramithana, in the campaign of 707 before he is threatened in his rear by the allied Sogdian army.

Qutayba avoids a battle, and engages in negotiations to gain time, before executing a rapid retreat to safety through the Iron Gate to beyond the Oxus, crossing the river at Tirmidh.

A number of Maronite historians claim that their people were the descendants of the Canaanites or Phoenicians, or also the Mardaites, residents in parts of Caliphate province of Bilad al-Sham, who have kept their identity under both Eastern Roman and Arab authorities.

The reason for their adoption of the name is disputed and historians disagree whether it refers to Mar Maron, a fourth-century Syriac Christian saint, or to John Maron, the first bishop of Lebanon.

The Maronites make up the bulk of the Maradite army, the so-called "Brass Wall" that shields Constantinople and its empire from Arab expansion.

In 686, the Maradites had used their power and importance to choose John Maron, one of their own, as Patriarch of Antioch and all the East.

John had received the approval of Pope Sergius I, and had become the first Maronite Patriarch of the oldest see in Christianity.

The emperor Justinian II had feared the growing power of the Maradite army, and was angered that his approval had not been sought for the appointment of John as Patriarch.

He had sent his army to defeat the Maradites and capture John.

They managed to win battles against the Maradites, overrun Antioch, and destroy the monastery there, killing five hundred monks in the process.

John, however, had escaped to Lebanon.

When Justinian's army followed, the Maradites, under the leadership of John's nephew Ibrahim, had defeated them decisively, sending them home empty-handed.

John had then founded the monastery of Reesh Moran (head of our Lord) in Kefer Hay, Lebanon, and moved his see to Mount Lebanon.

The Maradites have sealed themselves off from the outside, and founded their own national and religious identity, though still part of the Catholic Church, with John seen as one of their great founders.

The Maronites have developed a distinct political and communal organization by the time of John Maron’s death in 707.

The Balearic Islands—imperial power having receded precipitously in the western Mediterranean after the fall of Carthage and the Exarchate of Africa to the Umayyad Caliphate in 698—submit in 707 to the generous terms of an Umayyad fleet, which allows the residents to maintain their traditions and religion as well as a high degree of autonomy.

Justinian considers himself sufficiently strong, after three years of preparation, to invade Bulgaria and restore his rule over the Zagora lands.

An imperial force reaches the Anchialus fortress and sets their camp there unaware of the fact that the Bulgarian army is in the vicinity.

While the invaders are gathering food, Tervel and his cavalry charge the outermost imperial troops.

At the same time, the infantry attacks the camp.

The imperial troops are surprised and confused; most of them perish in the battle or are captured as well as many horses and arms.

The emperor is one of the very few who manage to reach the fortress and escape to Constantinople on a ship.

The Bulgarians secure the new territorial gains for centuries.

Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik is the son of the Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (reigned 685–705) and half-brother of the caliphs al-Walid I (r. 705–715), Sulayman (r. 715–717), Yazid II (r. 720–724) and Hisham (r. 724–743).

Maslama himself had been excluded from the line of succession as his mother was an enslaved woman.

He is first mentioned as leading, along with his nephew al-'Abbas ibn al-Walid, the annual summer campaign (ṣawā'if) against the Empire in 705.

His first major expedition is the 707–708 campaign against the imperial city of Tyana in southeastern Asia Minor, which had been launched in retaliation for the defeat and death of the distinguished general Maimun the Mardaite the year before.

The siege lasts through winter and the Arab army faces great hardship, but after the Arabs defeat an imperial relief force in spring 708, the city surrenders.

A few months later, in the summer, …

…Maslama leads another expedition into Asia Minor and defeats an imperial army near Amorium.

Pope Sergius’s death in 701 had ended his twenty-four-year reign; John VI had succeeded him.

On his death in 705, John VII became pope, but only for two years.

Sisinnius had succeeded him in 708, but did not last the year; he is succeeded by Constantine.

The Founding of Mont-Saint-Michel

In 708, Aubert, Bishop of Avranches, establishes a Benedictine abbey on a rocky islet in the Bay of Mont-Saint-Michel, about one mile (1.6 km) off the northwest coast of France in the English Channel. The abbey, dedicated to Saint Michael the Archangel, soon becomes a major religious center and an important site of pilgrimage in medieval Europe.

Over the centuries, Mont-Saint-Michel evolves into a remarkable architectural marvel, blending Romanesque and Gothic styles as it expands. Its strategic location makes it both a revered monastic sanctuary and a fortified stronghold, resisting sieges, including those during the Hundred Years’ War.

Today, Mont-Saint-Michel stands as one of France’s most iconic landmarks, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With its dramatic silhouette rising above the tidal flats, it attracts over three million visitors annually, continuing its legacy as a place of both historical and spiritual significance.

Qutayba’s campaign of 708 had also been a failure, which had drawn the ire of al-Hajjaj.

For 709, al-Hajjaj draws up a new plan for his subordinate: the Arabs launch a direct attack on Bukhara, which catches the alliance—possibly weakened by the death of its leader, the Wardan Khudah—by surprise.

The city is taken by storm, a tribute of two hundred thousand dirhams imposed, and an Arab garrison installed.

In its direct aftermath, Tarkhun, the ruler of Samarkand, sends envoys to Qutayba and becomes a tributary vassal to the Caliphate.

The Hephthalite princes of Tokharistan rebel against the Arabs later in the year, but are swiftly subdued by Qutayba.