Thomas the Presbyter

Thomas the Presbyter was a 7th-century Middle Eastern Jacobite author of anti-chalcedonian Syriac writings whose manuscripsts are preserved in the British library of Syriac Manuscripts.

The writings provide an eye witness account to the events that took place in mid 7th century Iraq.

In the year 947 (635—36), indiction 9, the Arabs invaded the whole of Syria and went down to Persia and conquered it. The Arabs climbed the mountain of Mardin and killed many monks there in the monasteries of Qedar and Bnata. There died the blessed man Simon, doorkeeper of Qedar, brother of Thomas the priest.

In January the people of Homs took the word for their lives and many villages were ravaged by the killing of the Arabs of Muhmd and many people were slain and taken prisoner from Galilee as far as Beth.

On the twenty-sixth of May the Saqilara went from the vicinity of Homs and the Romans chased them.

On the tenth of August the Romans fled from the vicinity of Damascus and there were killed many people, some ten thousand. And at the turn of the year the Romans came. On the twentieth of August in the year nine hundred and forty-seven there gathered in Gabitha a multitude of the Romans, and many people of the Romans were killed, some fifty thousand.

References

• Seeing Islam As Others Saw It: A Survey and Evaluation of Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian Writings on Early Islam (Studies in Late Antiquity and Early Islam) Robert G. Hoyland