The Arab raid against Rome took place in 846. Arab raiders plundered the outskirts of the city of Rome, sacking the basilicas of Old St Peter's and St Paul's-Outside-the-Walls, but were prevented from entering the city itself by the Aurelian Walls.
The Arab raid against Rome took place in 846. Arab raiders plundered the outskirts of the city of Rome, sacking the basilicas of Old St Peter's and St Paul's-Outside-the-Walls, but were prevented from entering the city itself by the Aurelian Walls.
Abu'l-Abbas Muhammad I ibn al-Aghlab (Arabic: أبو العباس محمد الأول بن الأغلب) (died 856) was the fifth emir of the Aghlabid dynasty, who ruled over Ifriqiya, Malta, and most of Sicily from 841 until his death. He also led the raid of Rome.
Muhammad I was the son of the dynasty's fourth emir, Abu Iqal (838–841). Muhammad I turned out to be a great commander and economic strategist, like his uncle Ziyadat Allah I of Ifriqiya and his rival Asad ibn al-Furat. Under his reign, the Aghlabids continued their expansion into the Mediterranean, conquering Messina, Taranto, large parts of Apulia and supporting Emir Kalfün with the establishment of an Islamic Bari.
Pope Leo IV (died 17 July 855) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 10 April 847 to his death in 855. He is remembered for repairing Roman churches that had been damaged during the Arab raid against Rome, and for building the Leonine Wall around Vatican Hill to protect the city. Pope Leo organized a league of Italian cities who fought and won the sea Battle of Ostia against the Saracens.