Yazid was the son of a Persian princess who had been given as a concubine to Caliph al-Walid I. First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Tabari quotes a couplet of Yazid"s on his own ancestry:
I am the son of Chosroes, my ancestor was Marwan.
He reigned for six months, from April 15 to October 3 or 4, 744, and died in that office. Caesar was my grandsire and my grandsire was Khagan. Tabari further records descriptions of Yazid as being tall and handsome.
Yazid slipped into Damascus and deposed Walid in a coup, following this up with a disbursement of funds from the treasury.
According to Yazid"s own account, Yazid sent Abd al-Aziz ibn al-Hajjaj to meet Walid at al-Bakhra". "Abd al-Aziz offered to set up a tribal assembly (shura) to decide the future of the realm.
Walid rejected this offer and attacked, by which action he lost his life. Yazid had Walid"s head hoisted "on a lance and paraded around Damascus".
Yazid then imprisoned Walid"s sons "Uthman and Hakam, whom Walid had designated as his heirs.
On accession, Yazid explained that he had rebelled on behalf of the Book of Allah and the Sunna of His Prophet, and that this entailed ensuring that the strong not prey upon the weak. He promised "to engage in no building works, squander no money on wives or children, transfer no money from one province to another" without reason, "keep no troops on the field too long", and not to overtax the ahl al-dhimma. Instead, he would eschew discrimination and would make his payments on time.
He promised abdication if he failed to meet these goals, and held in principle to al-amr shura - to an elected caliphate.
Tabari records Yazid"s nickname "the Diminisher (Naqis)", given because he reduced military annuities by 10%, whereas his predecessor had promised a raise. According to Islamic popular tradition, recorded in an apocalyptic style, Yazid would go himself into the marketplace.
The city of Hims refused allegiance to Yazid, and there were several other dissident movements against him. Marwan eventually rallied around Yazid.
Yazid appointed Mansur ibn Jumhur to replace Yusuf ibn "Umar as governor of Iraq.
On May 15, Yazid wrote a letter, preserved from oral sources in al-Mada"ini (reproduced in Tabari) and in al-Baladhuri. At the end, Tabari"s rendition has Yazid exhorting the Iraqis to follow Mansur ibn Jumhur. Yusuf ibn "Umar was subsequently imprisoned and later killed by the son of Khalid ibn "Abdallah al-Qasri.
Mansur attempted to dismiss the Khurasani governor Nasr ibn Sayyar, but Nasr refused to accept this.
Facing opposition from Juday al-Kirmani, Nasr invited al-Harith ibn Surayj to return from his thirteen-year stay in Turgesh territory. First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Harith arrived wearing a fine suit of armour the Khaqan had given him and gained the support of many people in Khurasan.
Yazid fell ill of a brain tumour and died on October 3 or 4, 744. Ibrahim duly succeeded him.
