a year.

Nothing of political importance happened in Egypt under the long reign
of Hisham, the only events noticed by the Christian historians being
those which relate solely to their ecclesiastical history. The 108th
year of the Hegira saw the death of Alexander, the forty-third Koptic
Patriarch of Alexandria. Since the conquest of Egypt by Omar, for a
period of about twenty-four years, the patriarchate had been in the
hands of the Jacobites; all the bishops in Egypt belonged to that sect,
and they had established Jacobite bishops even in Nubia, which they had
converted to their religion. The orthodox Christians elected Kosmas as
their patriarch. At that time the heretics had taken possession of all
the churches in Egypt, and the patriarch only retained that of Mar-Saba,
or the Holy Sabbath. Kosmas, by his solicitations, obtained from
Hisham an order to his financial administrator in Egypt, Abd Allah ibn
es-Sakari, to see that all the churches were returned to the sect to
which they belonged.

After occupying the patriarchal throne for only fifteen months,
Kosmas died. In the 109th year of the Hegira (a. d. 727-28) Kosmas was
succeeded by the patriarch Theodore. He occupied the seat for eleven
years. His patriarchate was a period of peace and quiet for the church
of Alexandria, and caused a temporary cessation of the quarrels between
the Melchites and the Jacobites. A vacancy of six years followed his
death until, in the year 127 of the Hegira (749 a. d.), Ibn Khalil was
promoted to the office of patriarch, and held his seat for twenty-three
years.

Walid II. succeeded to the caliphate in the year 749. One of his first
acts was to take the government of Egypt from Hafs, in spite of the
kindness of his rule, the wisdom and moderation of which had gained
for him the affection of all the provinces which he governed. He was
replaced by Isa ibn Abi Atta, who soon created a universal discontent,
as his administrative measures were oppressive.

In the year 750 the Ommayads were supplanted by the Abbasids, who
transferred the capital from Damascus to Baghdad. The first Abbasid
caliph was Abu'l-Abbas, who claimed descent from Abbas, the uncle of
Muhammed. The caliph Merwan II., the last of the Ommayads, in his flight
from his enemies came to Egypt and sent troops from Fostat to hold
Alexandria. He was now pursued to his death by the Abbasid general Salih
ibn Ali, who took possession of Postat for the new dynasty in 750. The