The Growth of the Religion The Islamic World The Growth of the Religion

Islam How did a small religion with few followers that was created in a world that harbored two major religions flourish?

Islam The Death of Mohammad Most of the Arabian world had been converted to Islam at the time of Mohammad’s death However Mohammad died unexpectedly someone needed to take his place A caliph or a military and religious leader, head of state, and chief judge and lawmaker was selected to rule the Muslim Empire

Mohammed selects Ali

Islam Abu Bakr One of the first followers of Mohammad and Mohammad’s father in law became the first caliph

Islam The Umayyad Dynasty (661-750 C.E.) Moved the capital of Islam out of Mecca and to Damascus Syria Mecca still remained the religious center for the religion Gold and silver became the standard currency Arabic became the official language of Islam Conquered people were encouraged to convert However they were not required to convert and if they did not they had to pay a tax

Islam Expansion Military Conquest By the end of the 700’s the Umayyad had broken out of the Middle East and had conquered The Persian Empire Ruled Iraq, Syria, Egypt, most of North Africa, modern day Pakistan, Spain, parts of Italy and most importantly Palestine.

Islamic Expansion Military Conquest Several times the Islamic Empire under the Umayyads attacked the Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire was able to hold back the Muslims and kept eastern Europe out of the hands of the Islamic Empire

Islamic Expansion Military Conquest After the Muslims were turned back by the Byzantine Empire they turned their attention to western Europe and Spain The Muslims advanced through Spain and into France The Muslim Empire was stopped short of Paris by Charles Martel The Muslims would control most of Spain until 1491.

The Umayyad Caliphate Success Problems The Dome of the Rock was built in Jerusalem Expansion of the Islamic Empire Problems While the empire expanded to actually overextended itself and problems arose over control Shi’ite and Sunni problems of who was to control the empire

Class Question How does overexpansion lead to over overextension? What are some of the symptoms overextension? What are some of the empires in history that overexpanded and have caused problems and the destruction of those empires.

The Umayyad Caliphate Destruction of the Umayyad Caliphate The Shi’ite (Shia) begin to assert control over the Muslim community In a civil war the supporters of Ali or the Shi’ite defeated the Umayyad empire and replaced it with the Abbasid Dynasty

The Abbasid Dynasty

The Abbasid Dynasty

The Abbasid Dynasty Ruled from 750 C.E. to 1258 C.E. Built the capital city in Baghdad Baghdad would become one of the great cultural and spiritual centers of the world Achieved a Golden Age

The Abbasid Dynasty The Abbasid Dynasty and the Islamic world was built around trade Under the Abbasid there were some unique ideas about trade The introduction of credit This freed traders from carrying coins and from being robbed A system of receipts and bills for goods Allowed merchants to control inventory and account for the sale of goods

The Abbasid Dynasty Islamic Advancements Medicine Mohammad al-Razi publishes medical encyclopedias unheard of in the world at this time Mathematicians expanded the knowledge of math learned in India and this contributed to the growth of algebra

The Abbasid Dynasty Islam Preserves the West A significant role that the Muslim and Abbasid Dynasty did was to preserve western culture The Arabs did not dismiss the past cultures of the world as Europeans of the time did Instead they studied classical writings from Greece Rome They translated the writings of Plato, Aristotle into Arabic Many ancient writings were translated and preserved in Muslim libraries Without the Muslims saving these works many would have been lost forever

The Abbasid Dynasty During the Crusades the classical writings that the Muslims saved would again be exchanged between Muslims and Christians The Europeans would discover their past and this would lead Europe out of the Dark Ages an into the Renaissance

The Abbasid Dynasty Islamic Toleration While the Islamic Empire tried to convert as many people as possible, the Islamic Empire and especially under the Abbasid were often tolerant of local people and customs in areas that they conquered This was similar to the Romans Those who did not covert had to pay a tax This flexibility of the Islamic Empire and the Islamic religion helped lead to its rapid growth in many parts of the world

The Abbasid Dynasty The Sufis Islamic mystics They stressed a personal relationship with Allah Encouraged followers to practice Islam in their own ways This flexibility allowed people to easily convert or to adapt Islam to their own religions The Sufis became excellent missionaries and actually converted many to Islam

The Abbasid Dynasty Women In Arabic society women were seen as more of property then people Infanticide was practiced on baby girls In Islamic society women were still subservient to men however they were equal before Allah Infanticide was prohibited Women were highly respected and protected However women Had to remain veiled in public Testimony in court was only given half its weight Had to be loyal to an care for the males

Class Question Something to ponder George Carlin once stated Patriarchal societies are always preparing for war, going to war or recovering from war. Do you think this is true? Why or why not?

The Abbasid Dynasty The End Overextention was a serious problem The Muslim Empire had a hard time controlling so many diverse people Different languages, customs and ethnic backgrounds Internal Civil Wars Shi’ites and Sunnis were constantly fighting for control of the empire Military Threats The Crusades and wars with the Byzantine Empire would drain a large portion of Muslim soldiers and money from the empire and this would allow for other areas of the empire to break free Nomadic Movements The Mongols would drive into the heart of the Muslim empire in 1258 C.E. and destroy the Abbasid Empire. The remaining Muslims would flee to Egypt and remain powerless until the rise of the Ottoman Empire