Abū Yūsuf Yaʿqūb ibn Yūsuf ibn Abd al-Muʾmin al-Manṣūr (; d. 23 January 1199), commonly known as Yaqub al-Mansur () or Moulay Yacoub (), was the third Almohad caliph. Succeeding his father, al-Mansur reigned from 1184 to 1199. His reign was distinguished by the flourishing of trade, architecture, philosophy and the sciences, as well as by victorious military campaigns in which he was successful in repelling the tide of the Reconquista in the Iberian Peninsula.
Personal history
His father was described as a Berber, whilst his mother was Sub-Saharan slave. He would later acquire the name Ya'qub the Victorious.
Military actions
Al-Mansur's father was killed in Portugal on 29 July 1184; upon reaching Seville with his father's body on 10 August, he was immediately proclaimed the new caliph. one of Al-Mansur's famous works is the Bimaristan of Marrakesh, the first hospital in Morocco to be ever built, Al-Mansur embellished it with luxurious ornaments and sculptures, it had gardens, water canals attached to it and it was Funded personally by Almohad's government, it is said that Averroes worked there for some time.
Philosophy and religion
thumb|"The Disgrace of Averroes": al-Mansur banishes Averroes from his court ([[Louis Figuier, 1867 illustration)]]
Al-Mansur protected the philosopher Averroes and kept him as a favorite at court. Like many of the Almohad caliphs, Al-Mansur was religiously learned. He favored the Zahirite or literalist school of Muslim jurisprudence per Almohad doctrine and possessed a relatively extensive education in the Muslim prophetic tradition; he even wrote his own book on the recorded statements and actions of the prophet Muhammad. Mansur's Zahirism was clear when he ordered his judges to exercise judgment only according to the Qur'an, said recorded statements, and absolute consensus. Mansur's father Abu Yaqub appointed Cordoban polymath Ibn Maḍāʾ as chief judge, and the two of them oversaw the banning of all non-Zahirite religious books during the Almohad reforms; Mansur was not satisfied, and when he inherited the throne, he ordered Ibn Maḍāʾ to actually undertake the burning of such books.
Death and legacy
He died on 23 January 1199 in Marrakesh. He was buried temporarily in his palace in Marrakesh before being taken to his final burial place in Tinmal, where previous Almohad caliphs and Ibn Tumart were also buried.
The town of Moulay Yacoub, outside of Fez, Morocco, is named after Al-Mansur, and is best known for its therapeutic hot springs.