50 likes | 392 Views
From`Abbasid Baghdad to Umayyad Cordoba, 750-1000. 750: Abbasids overcome Umayyads. Al-Mansur and after Taxation: Fiscal centralization took money from provinces to capital, Baghdad Reform over time; constant source of friction Military:
E N D
750: Abbasids overcome Umayyads • Al-Mansur and after • Taxation: • Fiscal centralization took money from provinces to capital, Baghdad • Reform over time; constant source of friction • Military: • Kurasani military elite based in Baghdad, rewarded with property • Troops used mainly to control provinces, collect taxes • Al-Mu`tasim developed private army, Turkish slaves. This group would create problems as time went on. • Administrative network: • Separate branches of Government (diwans) with secretaries • Head of administration: visir • Chamberlain, personal assistant to caliph • Continuous line of caliphs source of strength
Harun al-Rashid (786-809) and after • Cultural Revival • Thousand and One Nights • “Microcultures”: religious and literary, development of specialized disciplines • Adab: “polite education”; compare to Greek term Paidaea • Exemplary stories • Barmakids • Dominant family, ran most of the government • Successfully oversaw centralization of tax system • 803: al-Rashid had them destroyed • Royal women • Less powerful than Merovingian queens • Had wealth and personal administrations
Controversies • In the Sunni Tradition: Basis for Islamic Law (Shari’a) • Legislation: by precedent • Reasoning from Qu’ran: by principles • Expanded literary sources: by tradition (hadith) • By 900: “Closing of the gate of independent reasoning” • Applies to Islamic law, but not legal practice. What’s the difference? • Authority of Qu’ran • Word of God, part of God • Part of created order • Al-Ma’mum: wanted caliph to have more power • Former position prevailed, leading to lessening of caliph’s authority
Breakup of Abbasid Empire; Al-Andalus • Breakup of Caliphate: • Reasons? • Al-Andalus • How does it resemble the rest of the Islamic world? • How does it maintain ties with its Visigothic past? • How does it resemble other western European states?