Al Muntasir’s sudden passing took the caliphate into uncharted political territory. It had only been six months since the plot against his father had succeeded, and he was still much too young for succession planning. The Turks tried to capitalize on this disaster: in an attempt to make the most out of the situation they installed a figurehead in command, one they could control with impunity. Little did they know that in doing so they were kicking Pandora’s box wide open.