Hishām b. ʿAbd al-Malik (b. 72/691, r. 105–25/724–43), was the tenth Umayyad caliph. His twenty-year reign marked the apogee of Umayyad territorial expansion and was characterised by sustained stability, in sharp contrast to the years that followed his death. Hishām was born in 72/691, his mother was ʿĀʾisha bt. Hishām b. Ismāʿīl al-Makhzūmī. Nothing has been preserved regarding his childhood and education. He reportedly led raids into Byzantine territory in 87/706, but did not otherwise make any a…