The Umayyad Empire

1. By Seth Archer and Jaehyeong Lee Block 4B, AP World History, Mr. Cleland 9/23/10 The Umayyad Empire

2. Quraysh Bedouin Tribe and the Umayyad Clan Founded Mecca Wealth of the Meccan merchants enhanced Ka’ba in the city. • Ka’ba attracted people into the city – this means that the merchant have more people to sell to. http://morrisonworldnews.com/?p=24147

3. Umayyad Expansion The expansion of the Islamic empire spread because of the weakness of the Arabs. • Conquered in Mesopotamia, Africa and Persia • The land added to Islamic Empire was controlled by Arab elites • They were appointed by the Umayyads. • Didn’t care for the people they ruled. http://being.publicradio.org/programs/faceoftheprophet/images/islamicpath.gif

4. Ali (the current Caliph) and the Umayyads Battle of the Camel (655) Ali won, many Arabs sided with him against Umayyads Umayyads center: Mecca and Provinces of Syria Ali almost defeated Umayyads, Battle of Siffin (657), decided to meditate. • Cost him many followers • Umayyads regrouped forces, added Egypt to provinces (backed their claims) • Mu’awiya: new leader of Umayyads • Proclaimed caliph in Jerusalem directly challenged Ali • Year later :Ali assassinated, Umayyads pressured son Hasan to renounce claims to Caliph http://www.kidspast.com/images/ali.jpg

5. Ali (the current Caliph) and the Umayyads Decades later, Sunnis/Shiites developed • Sunnis  Umayyad • Shiites  Ali • Shiites recognize only Caliph Ali. • None of the earlier caliphs. Sunnis vs. Shiites • Who will succeed Muhammad? Both grow farther apart: • Difference in opinion; • Ritual laws • Beliefs Shiites are even more subdivided due to break-off sects. Sunnis/Shiites still remain today. http://www.hf.uib.no/i/religion/popularikonografi/bilder/01b.jpg

6. Ali (the current Caliph) and the Umayyads Tensions rise between the Hasayn and the Umayyad • Hasayn were abandoned by clans in southern Iraq that had promised to support him. • Hasayn and a small party were assassinated by the Umayyads in 680 • Because of Hasayn’s murder, the Shiites mounted sustained resistance against the Umayyads

7. The Umayyad Empire During the last half of the 7th century Muslim armies broke into central Asian and spread Islam throughout. Rivaled Buddhism. By the 8th century Islam had spread down into Northwest India The western Muslim armies swept through Northern Africa to take Spain and Threaten France. Muslim Warriors and Sailors dominated the Mediterranean Conquered key islands like Sicily, Crete and Sardinia by the 9th century. http://religions.iloveindia.com/images/buddhism.jpg

8. The Umayyad Empire The empire spanned from Spain in the west to the Steppes of Central Asia • No other Empire had ever been this big since the Romans • None had grown this Rapidly. Mecca still remained the holy center but the politics shifted to Damascus in Syria. • In Damascus a Umayyad bureaucracy formed to help keep control of the vast domain the Muslims had captured, http://www.pakistanpatriot.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/islam_map-ummayads.jpg?w=128

9. The Umayyad Empire Muslim Arabs • Only they could be at the top of the social classes • Only they received a part of the booty from the ongoing conquests. • They comprised most of the Muslim army • The Umayyads kept the warriors in garrison towns so that the warriors wouldn’t marry non Muslims and convert them limiting the number of people the Muslims could tax.

10. The Umayyad Empire Muslim Arabs (cont.) • Recent converts, or Malawi, still had to pay property tax and sometimes they even had to pay jizya, or the tax on non-Muslims. • They also didn’t receive any of the booty • They couldn’t get positions politically or Militarily • Not accepted as part of the Umayyads • Number of converts low because of this • Dhimmi • “people of the book” • This originally meant Christians and Jews who had a holy book but it spread to accommodate everyone that wasn’t Muslim. • They had to pay Jizya. http://www.loveisanorientation.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/Bible.jpg

11. AN INTERESTING FACT… • The funny thing about all this is: • Muhammad married his wife • Who was 15 years older than him • Was his employer(ette) • And Kadijah (the wife) asked Muhammad to marry her, • AND NOBODY DISAGREED!!! (muslims, family, nobody.) • Now, history goes on to say the Koran that Muhammad wrote led to more and more restrictions on freedom, but his wife still owned a business, was able to remarry, and could inherit his property. • What an ironic couple. While praying towards Mecca, Muslim men gather on the outside of and center of the mosque. Women pray in the sides, back, or screened balconies (by pillars) or carved panels in the walls. Key Point: They worship separately.

12. Family and Gender Roles • Women - More recognized and powerful - Often accompanied the Military - Scribes -Muhammad’s wives compiled the Qur’an -Pursued Careers (Scholarship, Law, and Commerce)

13. Family and Gender Roles • Muhammad • Promoted kindness and fairness for women • Encouraged Marriage instead of sexual liaisons • Denounced adultery • Allowed daughters to have a say in who they married • Bride price paid to bride instead of the brides father Men allowed 4 Wives and women not allowed multiple husbands.

14. Umayyad decline and Fall • Caliphs • Lazy & accustom to luxury • This angered some Muslims • Not like Muhammad • Sparked small uprisings throughout the Empire.

15. Umayyad decline and Fall • Merv • 50,000 frontier warriors • Married locals • Not receiving Booty • New troops sent from Damascus • Started great revolt throughout the empire • Started Marching under a black banner and the Abbasid Party • Leader: Abu al-Abbas • Support from Shiites and Mawali • Met the Umayyads at the Battle of the River Zab • They won! • Captured the capitol city of the Umayyads • Invited to dinner and slaughtered • One escaped

16. Overall Theme/Importance in World History Importance: Would eventually cover 5 million square miles, largest empire to its time. The 5th largest continuous empire ever. The largest Arab-Muslim state in history. Established Arabic as the administrative language in their time. Created famous monuments like the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem and the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. Were negatively looked at by purists of Islam. However, the Umayyad Empire never looked at themselves as messengers, but “deputies”. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umayyad_Caliphate

17. Key terms • Caliph- the political and religious successor to Muhammad. • Abu Bakr- one of Muhammad’s earliest followers and closest friends and caliph from 632-634. • Ridda Wars- Wars that followed Muhammad’s death in 632; resulted in defeat of rival prophets and some of larger clans; restored unity of Islam. • Bedouin- Nomadic pastoralists of the Arabian Peninsula; culture based on camel and goat nomadism; early converts to Islam. • Jihads- struggle; often used for wars in defense of the faith. • Zoroastrianism- Animist religion that saw material existence as battle between forces of good and evil; stressed the importance of moral choice; righteous lived after death in “House of Song”; chief religion of Persian Empire. • Copts- Christian sect of Egypt; tended to support Islamic invasions of this area in preference to Byzantine rule. • Nestorians- A Christian sect found in Asia; tended to support Islamic invasions of the area in preference to Byzantine rule; cut off from Europe by Muslim invasions. • Uthman- Third caliph and member of Umayyad clan; murdered by mutinous warriors returning from Egypt; death set off civil war in Islam between followers of Ali and the Umayyad clan. • Battle of Siffin- fought in 657 between forces of Ali and Umayyads; settled by negotiation that led to fragmentation of Ali’s party.

18. Key terms part 2 • Mu’awiya- Leader of Umayyad clan; first Umayyad caliph following civil war with Ali. • Sunnis- Political and theological division within Islam; supported the Umayyads. • Shi’a- Also known as Shi’ites; political and theological division within Islam; followers of Ali. • Karbala- Site of defeat and death of Husayn, son of Ali; marked beginning of Shi’aresistence to Umayyad caliphate. • Damascus- Syrian city that was capital of Umayyad caliphate. • Mavali- New Arab converts to Islam. • Jizya- Head tax paid by all nonbelievers in Islamic territories. • Dhimmi- Literally “People of the book”; applied as inclusive term to Jews and Christians in Islamic territories; later extended to Zoroastrians and even Hindu. • Hadith- traditions of the prophet Muhammad. • Abassid- Dynasty that succeeded the Umayyads; resulted in conquest of Syria and capture of Umayyad capital. • Battle of the River Zab- Victory of Abassids over Umayyads, resulted in conquer of Syria and capture of Umayyad capital.