Arwa al-Sulayhi

Timeline

1. c. 1048–1067Haraz Mountains · YemenBorn into a Sulayhid noble family in Yemen, she received an Ismaili education from childhood and later married Sultan Ahmad ibn Sulayman, entering the dynasty's inner political circle.
2. 1084–1138Jabla · YemenAfter her husband's death she took power as regent and then ruled the Yemeni highlands independently for over half a century. She consolidated her capital at Jabla, built irrigation works and religious buildings, maintained ties with the Fatimid caliph, and used steady diplomacy to deal with neighboring tribes and Abbasid pressure.