AP REVIEW OF THE ISLAMIC CALIPHATES

Arabia pre-Islam

Nomadic traders Organized by tribes and clans

Inter-clan rivalries prevented unity Polytheistic

Had contact with Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians

Some Arabs were monotheistic Mecca

Governed by Umayyad clan Important religious and trading center Big money maker

Muhammad

Orphaned, raised by uncle Became respected merchant Starting in 610, received revelation from

the angel Gabriel Islam = submission to the will of god Muslim= one who submits

By 620 a fair minority of Meccans followed Muhammad

Monotheism challenged polytheism in Mecca (remember, MONEY) Forced to flee Mecca Hijra- Muhammad’s flight to Medina

Early Islam

Muhammad = political and religious leader Series of wars against the Umayyads in Mecca Raids of caravans, etc Conquered Mecca in 630

Forced conversion of elites Destroyed pagan shrines (only Ka’ba remained) Imposed monotheistic theocratic government

By 632, most of Arabia under Muhammad’s control

After Muhammad’s Death

no established line of succession Recently conquered territories broke away

from Muslim control Under the leadership of the caliph (deputy of

Islam), Muslim dominance was reasserted AND expanded beyond the borders of Arabia 1st caliph = Abu Bakr Substitutes from Muhammad (NOT PROPHETS) Purpose of later expansion was for political and

economic reasons, not for religious conversion

Expansion

633-637 Syria & Palestine (Byzantine territory) Mesopotamia (Sassanid territory)

640s Egypt & North Africa(B)

651 Took down the Sassanid Empire (Persia)

711 Northwest India (Sind)

711-718 North Africa and Iberian Peninsula

First Islamic Civil War

First four caliphs chosen by negotiation between more powerful clans 3rd Caliph (Uthamn) assissinated Issue over the election of 4th Caliph, Ali (relative

of Muhammad) Umayyad clan rejected Ali Ridda Wars

Civil War created two major branches in Islam Sunni (majority)- any good Muslim could be Caliph Shi’ia (minority)- Caliph must be relative of Ali and

Muhammad Ali martyred, Umayyads reign supreme!

Umayyad Caliphate

Renewed conquest (latter half 7th c) Spain-central Asian steppes

Shift from Mecca to Damascus Small Arab Muslim aristocracy ruled over the

people Arabs = first class citizens Made up core of army, imperial administration, and

received share in booty Taxed only for charity Separated from non-Muslim majority

Sought to prevent mass conversion (keep the jizya tax base and keep booty for the umma only!)

Conquerors and the Conquered Intermarriage between urbanized Bedouins and

non-Arab non-Muslim conquered folk Some voluntary converts (Mawali)

did not gain political or social status Still had to pay jizya even though Muslim Not considered full members of the umma Low numbers of conversion

Dhimmis (people of the book) Originally Christians and Jews

As Arab territory expanded, included Zoroastrians and Hindus

Communities and legal systems left intact

Umayyad treatment of women Early days of Islam

Women gained status Important members of religious community,

translating and passing down hadiths, etc As Islam urbanized and spread, status of

women decreased (especially upper class women) Seclusion Veiling

Umayyad Luxurious Decline

Soft, luxurious living Increasingly large harems Abandonment of conquest Excesses ticked off more devout Muslims

Abbasid party overthrew Umayyads From Iranian boarder lands Resented foreign dictates and lack of booty

sharing Led by Abu al-Abbas

Support of Shi’ites and malawi Rejected Umayyad legitimacy and repressed by

Umayyads

Collapse and Rebirth of the Umayyads Damascus fell in 750 Abd al-Rahman (Umayyad) fled to Spain

756 established self as Imir- 2nd Caliphate Spain in Islamic world of its own!

Abbasids 750-1258

Moved capital from Damascus to Baghdad Wiped out former rivals and rejected old allies

(especially Shi’ias) Established centralized absolutist control

Abbasid rulers placed selves above other Muslims Glittering palaces and expanding bureaucracies Wazir- chief administrator- head of Caliph’s

councils = super important in administration Little chance of gaining an audience with the Caliph

Mawali Experience

Full integration of converts into umma Desire to gain new converts

No more booty division, so no monetary reason to prevent conversion

Most conversions were peaceful Tax breaks! Better education! Better jobs in

government! Persians dominated bureaucratic offices

(after conversion)

Urban Growth

Growing wealth and status of merchant class Time of urban expansion Revival of Afro-Eurasian trading network

Abbasids and Tang and Song central to trading Dhows (sailing vessels)- influenced later Western ship

design Muslim, Christian and Jewish merchants

Increased production of handicrafts Countryside- ayan (wealthy landed elite) Slaves used for unskilled labor

Some slaves in government, rose to high rank and status

Learning and the House of Wisdom Open to intellectual traditions of

conquered territories (Hellenistic, Persian, Indian, Egyptian, Mesopotamian)

Recovered and preserved learning (esp. math and science) of earlier civilizations

Fall of the Abbasids

Weakening political control + too much territory = disaster for Abbasid Caliphs

Look up the rest in chapter 7, I’m tired.