Islam Notes

        •Prolonged drought on the Arabian peninsula

        •Desire of Islam ’s leaders to channel the energies of their new

         converts

        •Planned by the ruling elites of Mecca to extend their trade routes                   and bring surplus-producing regions under their control

        •Administration was generally tolerant

Succession Problems and the Rise of The Umayyads (661-750)

        •Challenge to Abu Bakr’s selection as first caliph

        •Umar succeeded Abu Bakr

        •Uthman succeeded Umar in 656, but was assassinated

        •Muhammad Ali (656 -661), assassinated in 661

        •Mu’awiyah became caliph in 661

        •Made his own family, the Umayyads, hereditary rulers

        •Beginning of the eighth century new attacks launched by Arab armies

        •Tariq, 710, crossed into Spain

        •Battle of Tours, 732

        •Constantinople attacked and Muslim fleet defeated, 717

        •Succession Problems

        •Shi’ites and Sunnis

        •Revolt led by Abu al-Abbas in 750 leads to overthrow of Umayyads                   and establishment of Abbasid dynasty

The Abbasids (750-1258)

        •Opened all offices to all Muslims (whether Arab or non -Arab)

        •Capital at Baghdad

        •Reign of Harun al-Rashid (786-809) often called the golden age

        •Ma’mun (813-833), son of Harun al-Rashid

        •Patron of learning

        •Trade Caliphs took on more regal rule and life

        •Advised by a council, diwan, with a vizier as prime minister

        •Civil war between Amin and al-Ma’mumafter Harun’s death

        •Disintegration

Seljuk Turks

        •Nomadic people from central Asia

        •Capture Baghdad (1055); leader took the title of sultan, “holder of                  power”

        •Battle of Manzikert , 1071, Turks took over most of Anatolia

The Crusades

        •Byzantine emperor Alexius I, 1096, asked for help against the Turks;                   used the Holy Land as the excuse

        •Saladin (1174-1193) controlled Egypt and Syria

        •Invaded Jerusalem in 1187 and destroyed the Christian forces

        •The last Christian stronghold, Acre, fell in 1291

The Mongols

        •Pastoral people out of the Gobi Desert to seize Persia and                            Mesopotamia

        •Found it difficult to adjust to settled conditions of the Middle East

        •When they conquered cities, they:

        •Wiped out whole populations (even pets)

        •Razed cities

        •Destroyed agricultural works (irrigation dams, etc)

        •Destroyed the economy        

        •Elites converted to Islam

        •By 14th century began to split into separate kingdoms and then                   disintegrate

        •The Ottoman Turks now emerged on the Anatolian Peninsula

Islamic Civilization

        •The Wealth of Araby: Trade and Cities in the Middle East

        •Trade flourished during this period

        •Development of banking, currency, and letters of credit

        •Urbanization

        •Several centers flourished throughout this period

        •Exquisite palaces built for the caliph and great mosques

        •Eating habits varied according to economic class

Islamic Society

        •All equal in the eyes of Allah

        •Upper class

        •Senior officials, tribal elites, wealthiest merchants

        •Farmland eventually in the hands of the wealthy

        •Slavery: came from non-Muslim peoples

        ~Women

                •To be treated with respect

                •Had right to own and inherit property

                •Polygamy permitted

                •Right of divorce restricted to the husband

                •Adultery and homosexuality strictly forbidden

                •Women were cloistered in their homes nor permitted social

                  contacts with males outside their own family

                •Covering all parts of the body common in urban areas

Culture of Islam

        ~Philosophy and science

                •The Arab Empire was responsible for preserving the spreading

                  ideas and achievements of ancient civilizations

                •Ibn Rushd (Averroës) helped reintroduce Europe to Greek                          works

                •Manufacturing of paper begin in the eighth century

                •Adopted numerical system from India; Iranian system of                          Algebra (al-jebr);

                •set up observatory to study the stars; were aware that the

                   earth is round

                •Advanced medicine using Galen’s (c. 180-200) ancient texts

                •Ibn Sina (Avecinna), 980-1037, compiled medical encyclopedia

        ~Islamic Literature

                •Koran was considered the greatest literary work

                •Omar Khayyam, Rubaiyat

                •The Tales from 1001 Nights

                •Rumi in the 13th century adopted beliefs of Sufism to his                          poetry

                •al-Mus’udi (b. 896) was the first great Islamic historian

Islamic Art and Architecture

        •Blend of Arab, Turkish, and Persian traditions

        •Mosques

        •Great Mosque of Samarra is the largest mosque

        •Mosque of Córdoba

        •Palaces

        •Alhambra in Spain

        •Woolen rugs

        •Young girls learned the technique from their mothers

        •Eventually manufactured by professional artisans

        •Decorations on all forms of Islamic art were Arabic script,

         plant and figurative motifs, geometrical designs

        ~No representation of the Prophet Muhammad was made

                •Muhammad warned against trying to imitate God

                •After the Dome of the Rock, there is no figurative                                   representations in religious art

The Reign of Justinian (527 – 565)

        •Well trained and determined to reestablish the Roman Empire over                   the entire Mediterranean world

        •Belisarius defeated the Vandals and the Ostrogoths

        •His new empire fell within three years of his death

        ~The Codification of Roman Law

                •Justinian’s most lasting contribution

                •Was the basis of imperial law in the east until 1453

                •Was the basis of the European legal system

        ~Life in Constantinople: The Emperor’ s Building Program

                •Rebuilt Constantinople after revolt of 532

                •City important as chief port of exchange of goods from East                          to West

                •Public works, churches

                •Royal palace, Hagia Sophia, Hippodrome

From Eastern Roman to Byzantine Empire

        •Problems after Justinian’s death

        •Developed a new system of defense

        •New administrative unit, the theme

        •Combined civilian and military offices

        •Most serious challenge to the east was Islam

        •Problems in the Balkans and the Bulgars

        •Beginning of eighth century saw it as just an eastern Mediterranean                   state

        •Now had unique civilization of its own: Byzantine

The Byzantine Empire in the Eighth Century

        •Greek was the language of the empire

        •Christianity was the religion of the empire

        •Widespread use of icons led to the iconoclastic controversy

        •Leo III outlawed the use of icons

        •The Roman Popes opposed the edits

        •Will move both sides toward the separation between Roman                            Catholicism and Greek Orthodoxy

        •Emperor was absolute and thought to be chosen by God

        •West owed much to the Byzantine Empire

The Zenith of Byzantine Civilization

        •In the seventh and eighth centuries lost much of its territory

        •By 750 only Asia Minor, lands in the Balkans and the southern coast                   of Italy remained

        ~Revival under Michael III (842-867)

                •Reforms and noticeable intellectual renewal

                •Problems

                •Religious controversy over revised Nicene Creed

The Macedonian Dynasty (867 – 1056)

        •Remarkable number of achievements

        •Cultural influence

        •Period of capable rulers and strong civil service

New Challenges to the Byzantine Empire

        •After the Macedonian dynasty, empire has series of incompetent                   rulers

        •Problem of growing division between the Roman Catholic church and                   the Greek Orthodox church

        •Eastern Orthodox church would not accept the Pope ’s claim as the

         sole head of the church

        •Pope Leo IX and Patriarch Michael Cerularius excommunicated each                   other

        •Renewed external threats

        •A new dynasty, the Comneni, will revive the empire

        •Impact of the Crusades

        •Problems with the crusaders

        •Will no longer be a Mediterranean power