The Arab Empire and Its Successors Chapter 6, Section 2 Creation of an Arab Empire

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1 The Arab Empire and Its Successors Chapter 6, Section 2 Creation of an Arab Empire Muhammad became a leader of the early Muslim community Muhammad s death left no leader he never named a successor and had no sons Arab Conquest Arab Rule In 632,, Muhammad s father- in- law, was named (Arabic: successor), the highest title in Islam Abu Bakr had been with Muhammad since he moved to Medina in 622 and had been a chief advisor A caliph was a leader Abu Bakr united Arabia by 634 under Islam through a series of wars against those who did not follow Muhammad s teachings. o (Arabic: struggle in the way of God) is permitted by the Quran United under Islam, the Arabs took over in 636, Egypt and northern Africa in 642, and the Empire in 650 Arab soldiers were particularly dedicated because they believed they would be guaranteed a place in heaven as capital of the Arab Empire Abu Bakr died in 634 and conflict arose over who the next caliph should be The next 3 caliphs after Abu Bakr were In areas ruled, Muslims recognized Jews and Christians as also followers of revelations made by God Muslims made with People of the Book in conquered areas. They could not build churches or synagogues in Muslim cities or dress like Muslims. In return, Muslims would not attack the conquered people. 1

2 Those who converted to Islam were exempt from a special on non- Muslims. It benefited the Arab Empire to be they got more money from taxes and didn t have to worry about uprisings. The Umayyads & Muawiyah : general Muawiyah of the Umayyad family becomes caliph Muawiyah makes the caliphate He establishes the He moves the Arab capital to where his family was from Arab Expansion under the Umayyads The Arab Empire expanded to the Mediterranean Coast, along North Africa in 710; they converted the people who lived there They then took over Spain in ; parts of Spain remained under Muslim control for the next Arabs were defeated in 732 when trying to expand into In 717, they pushed into the in the north, but were defeated thus beginning a continuing struggle between the Byzantine Christians and Muslim Arabs. By, Umayyads took over parts of Mesopotamia, Persia, and Central Asia. New areas and new ethnic groups brought new ideas and influences to the Arab Empire, especially from The End of the Umayyads and the Shia- Sunni Split resented their treatment Financial Difficulties with running a In 680,, the grandson of Muhammad, stirred up a revolt against Umayyad rule. This ultimately led to the Shia- Sunni split: 2

3 o believe only descendents of Muhammad should be caliphs o accepted the Umayyads as caliphs. o Most of the Muslim world is Sunni, but are Shia Muslims. The Abbasid Dynasty : Abu al- Abbas overthrows the Umayyads and founds the Abbasid dynasty Abbasids the Arab Empire to make it easier to rule such a vast area 762: new capital of closer to trade routes and Persia Abbasids tried to between Arabs and non- Arabs this opened up Arab culture to other civilizations Persian influence changed the ideals: were now valued more than All Muslims not just Arabs were allowed to hold civil and military offices; Arabs began with other groups Abbasid Trade The Arab Empire was a ; its location meant easy access to Africa, Asia and Europe Traders to distant lands brought their culture with them Islam spread to, Indonesia, and and Arabic influenced many languages Trade brought many new products to the empire, making people rich: porcelain, gunpowder, cotton, rice, oranges, ivory, slaves, gold, salt Under the Abbasid rule, the Arab Empire became a blend of many peoples and cultures. Achievements under the Abbasids Harun al- Rashid: 5 th Abbasid caliph and supporter of artists, writers, intellectuals 3

4 Under Abbasids an was built to study astronomy Classical works were translated Abbasids were able to conquer the richest parts of what was the Roman Empire Baghdad became the center of a The Abbasid government became more complicated the grew and a advised the caliph. Division After Harun al- Rashid died, there were disputes over which son would succeed him All the money led to meant non- Arabs came to dominate the government positions Local governments began to break away from the Empire and establish their own. The Muslim world was divided in. The Seljuk Turks Nomadic people from Worked as in Abbasid army moved into Iran and Armenia and took over from Abbasids : sultan captures Baghdad and takes political control of the empire o caliph still had religious authority : expanding into the Byzantine Empire, defeating Byzantines and taking over Anatolian Peninsula Byzantine Empire is desperate to keep Turks out asks Western Europe for help, despite their differences in The Crusades 4

5 emperor Alexius I asked Western European leaders to help defend his land against the Turks : Western Europe agreed to help their fellow Christians against the Muslims saw this as a holy war ( taking of the cross ) Crusaders successful at first 1169: takes control of Egypt, names himself sultan, invades Jerusalem and defeats Christian forces Saladin allowed Christians left in the region to live and even continue There would be numerous crusades in the years to come, causing hatred between Christians and Muslims The Mongols While Europe and the Middle East were occupied with the crusades, the Mongols became a growing threat. pastoral, horse- riding people from the led Mongols to take over Northern China in the early 13 th century. They were able to invade most of They the people they conquered burnt their towns down, destroyed sources of food, killed anyone in their way. Mongol Invasions Mongols took over and, ending the Abbasid caliphate at Baghdad. : Mongol leader Hülegü captures Baghdad and destroys the city, killing at least 1 million people Mongols unable to take over Mongols eventually, integrate into local population, rebuild cities they destroyed 14 th century: Mongol Empire breaks apart, becomes new center of Islam 5