Abbasid Caliphate
Iraq, 750 CE–1258. Draft, not yet reviewed
The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire was the third Islamic caliphate, ruled by the Abbasid dynasty. The Abbasids rose to power in 750, when the Abbasid Revolution overthrew the preceding Umayyad Caliphate. In 762 the second caliph al-Mansur founded the city of Baghdad and made it the capital, and Baghdad became a center of science, culture, arts, and invention, ushering in what became known as the Golden Age of Islam. The caliphate effectively ended in 1258 with the sack of Baghdad by the Mongols under Hulagu Khan and the execution of Caliph al-Musta'sim.
Seat of power: Baghdad
Rulers
Al-Mansur
Abbasid caliph, 754 CE–775 CE
He was the second Abbasid caliph, reigning from 754 to 775, succeeding his brother al-Saffah. He founded the 'Round City' of Madinat al-Salam, which was to become the core of imperial Baghdad.
Portrait of Al-Mansur: 1598 author, Public domain, file
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Harun al-Rashid
Abbasid caliph, 786 CE–809 CE
His reign is traditionally regarded to be the beginning of the Islamic Golden Age. Harun established the legendary library Bayt al-Hikma ("House of Wisdom") in Baghdad in present-day Iraq, and during his rule Baghdad began to flourish as a world center of knowledge, culture and trade.
Portrait of Harun al-Rashid: 8/9th-century master(s), CC BY-SA 2.5, file
al-Maʾmun
Abbasid caliph, 813 CE–833 CE
Al-Ma'mun promoted the Graeco-Arabic translation movement, the flowering of learning and the sciences in Baghdad, and the publishing of al-Khwarizmi's book now known as "Algebra". Al-Ma'mun succeeded his half-brother al-Amin after a civil war, and much of his reign was spent on peace campaigns.
Portrait of al-Maʾmun: Classical Numismatic Group; [1], CC BY-SA 3.0, file
Al-Mu'tamid
Abbasid caliph, 870 CE–892 CE
His reign marks the end of the "Anarchy at Samarra" and the start of the Abbasid restoration, but he was largely a ruler in name only. Power was held by his brother al-Muwaffaq, who held the loyalty of the military.
Portrait of Al-Mu'tamid: CNG Coins, Public domain, file
Al-Muqtadir
Abbasid caliph, 908 CE–932 CE
He came to the throne at the age of 13, the youngest Caliph in Abbasid history, as a result of palace intrigues. Al-Muqtadir enjoyed a longer rule than any of his predecessors, but was uninterested in government.
Portrait of Al-Muqtadir: CNG Coins, Public domain, file
Al-Muti
Abbasid caliph, 946 CE–974 CE
Al-Muti's reign represented the nadir of the Abbasid caliphate's power and authority. Al-Muti' was raised to the throne by the Buyids and was effectively reduced to a rubber-stamp figurehead, albeit with some vestiges of authority over judicial and religious appointments in Iraq.
Portrait of Al-Muti: Classical Numismatic Group; [1], Public domain, file
At-Ta'i
Abbasid caliph, 974 CE–991 CE
He was in office during the domination of Iraq by the Shi'a Buyid dynasty, and as a result is generally considered a powerless figurehead under the thumb of the Buyid emirs.
Portrait of At-Ta'i: Classical Numismatic Group; [1], CC BY-SA 3.0, file
Al-Qadir
Abbasid caliph, 991 CE–1031
Although still under Buyid tutelage and with limited real power even in Baghdad, al-Qadir was able to gradually increase the authority of his office over time, exploiting the rivalries of the Buyid emirs and the caliphate's role as a fount of legitimacy and religious guidance.
Portrait of Al-Qadir: Classical Numismatic Group; [1], CC BY-SA 3.0, file
Al-Qa'im
Abbasid caliph, 1031–1075
Al-Qa'im's reign coincided with the end of the dominance of Buyid amirs over the Caliphate and the rise of the Seljuk sultans.
Portrait of Al-Qa'im: Classical Numismatic Group; [1], CC BY-SA 3.0, file
Al-Muqtadi
Abbasid caliph, 1075–1094
He was the Abbasid caliph in Baghdad from 1075 to 1094. He succeeded his grandfather caliph al-Qa'im in 1075 as the twenty-seventh Abbasid caliph.
Portrait of Al-Muqtadi: Homo sapiens History, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
Al-Mustazhir
Abbasid caliph, 1094–1118
The main and important events during his reign are the appearance of the First Crusade in Western Syria, Muslim protest in Baghdad against crusaders, and his efforts to help Mawdud to organize several expeditions to reconquer lands from the Crusaders.
Al-Mustarshid
Abbasid caliph, 1118–1135
He was son of his predecessor, caliph al-Mustazhir. He succeeded his father in the year 1118 as the Abbasid caliph.
Portrait of Al-Mustarshid: anonymous, Public domain, file
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Al-Muqtafi
Abbasid caliph, 1136–1160
The continued disunion and contests between Seljuks afforded al-Muqtafi opportunity of not only maintaining his authority in Baghdad, but also extending it throughout Iraq.
Al-Nasir
Abbasid caliph, 1180–1225
He continued the efforts of his grandfather al-Muqtafi in restoring the caliphate to its ancient dominant role and achieved a surprising amount of success as his army even conquered parts of Iran. He was able to gain full control over Mesopotamia after 200 years of nominal rule by the Abbasids since the overtake in 945 by the Shia Buyids and later the Seljuks.
Portrait of Al-Nasir: Friedrich Paul Theodor Sarre (22 June 1865, in Berlin – 31 May 1945, in Neubabelsberg), Public domain, file
Al-Mustansir
Abbasid caliph, 1226–1242
He was the 36th Abbasid caliph, ruling from 1226 to 1242. He was the penultimate caliph to rule from Baghdad.
Portrait of Al-Mustansir: Unknown authorUnknown author, CC BY-SA 2.5, file
Culture
- The city hosted several key academic institutions, such as the House of Wisdom, as well as a multi-ethnic and multi-religious population, which made it famous as a centre of learning across the world.
- The Abbasid period was marked by the use of bureaucrats in government, including the vizier, as well as a growing inclusion of non-Arab Muslims in the ummah (Muslim community) and among the political elites.
- The so-called translation movement was the state-sponsored translation of scientific and literary works of antiquity into Arabic.
Picture
The mosque in Samarra was commissioned in 848 CE and completed in 851 by the Abbasid caliph Al-Mutawakkil.
Image: Fakhri Mahmood, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.