Module 2

MEDIEVAL WEST ASIA

Rise of Islam
Islam is believed to be one of the youngest, great world religions. Its origins
can be traced back as a monotheistic religious tradition that originated and
spread from the Middle East in the 7th century C.E. The Arabic word Islam,
when translated into literal English,means "surrender" or "submission". The
followers of this faith are known as Muslims and it is believed by them, that
the inspiration of this belief system comes straight from God and the
vehicle, chosen by him to deliver these teaching to the general population
was Prophet [Link] Holy Quran is the central and the most
sacred text of the religion. It contains various divine revelations received by
the Prophet, in form of his teachings. The main teachings of Islam is the
belief in Allah, one and true God. The followers of Islam are traditionally
divided into two main branches, namely the Sunni and Shia. Each of these
groups,though follow the same religion but their interpretation of certain
events and teachings of Islam differ. Today, Islam is the second-largest
religion in the world with around 23% of the earth's population adhering to
its teachings.

The birth of Islam is placed around 610 CE, when Muhammad a highly
spiritual and religious man, who spent months in praying and self
contemplation in the secluded cave of Hira in middle of the dessert, almost
three miles from the town of Mecca his birth place, began to receive divine
messages. The tale goes this way, one morning while at the cave,
Muhammad heard the voice of angel Gabriel and through him Allah spoke
to him, the words of infinite wisdom, these words were first recited by
Muhammad later his disciples and then were recorded as text, which came

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to known as the Holy Quran. Thus, followers of Islam consider Quran not
the work of Muhammad but direct revelations from the
[Link], returned from the cave a changed man, wizened
beyond his years with the wisdom and majesty of the divine. The first
person he preached to on his return was his wife Khadija, who became the
first disciple of this new religion. Muhammad encouraged by this, began to
preach the divine revelations received by him to public at large, through his
[Link] these public meetings he openly criticized the evils of
drunkenness and inappropriate behaviour. He also emphasized on the
oneness of God. His preaching earned him many detractors but at the
same time the number of people converting to Islam also [Link]
eloquence of the verses, spoken by the Prophet of Islam touched
numerous hearts,his divine virtues flowed through his speech and there
was no need for any debates or discussions, as people impressed by
verses of the Quran converted to Islam out of there free will. However, the
growing popularity of Islam jeopardized Muhammad's and his disciples
lives, therefore the entire community moved from Mecca to Medina in
around 622 CE. This move became a crucial event in the history of Islam
and came to be known as Hijra. The Muslim calendar begins with the day
of this migration. The people of Medina accepted, Islam with full faith and
hence the spread of this new religion gained [Link] with well
organized finances, stable statesmanship and vast army Prophet
Muhammad conquered and converted Mecca as well. He did not stop here,
but sent numerous emissaries to different parts of Arabia, in order to
spread the word of Islam. Even after his accession to heaven, this process
continued under the guidance of his successive caliphs.

Thus, today Islam remains one of the most flourishing religions across the
[Link] the death of Mohammed in 632, believers of Islam, in
search of new converts to Islam and plunder, surged out from Arabia to
conquer surrounding [Link] ruled for centuries by the mighty

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Byzantine (Eastern Roman) and Persian Empires were quickly overwhelmed.
Key lands such as Syria, Egypt, Persia, North Africa, Palestine,Iraq, Armenia,
Afghanistan, India and Spain came under control of the new Arab
[Link] 600 years, Islam was the most potent and vital religion, culture
and military force in the world. The Arab Empire was ruled by successors of
Mohammed. These new leaders were called Caliphs and the political-
religious state of the Muslim community and the peoples and lands under
their control was known as the Caliphate. The first Caliphs were Abu
Bakr,Umar, Uthman and Ali. The assassination of Uthman and the
ineffectual reign of Ali contributed to the first major split within the Muslim
community that resulted into two major groups of Muslim believers; the
Shia and the Sunni.

Teachings of Islam

. Muhammed preached one God with many prophets. Allah is all knowing,
all powerful and invisible.

. The worship of no other god is permitted in any form

. Slaves be treated generously

. Idolatry is abominable

. There should be a judgment day. The good, who obeyed the will of god
would go to heaven and those who refused to accept his teaching would go
to hell

. Muslims should be liberal, patient and humane

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Caliphate
Caliphate is the Islamic form of government representing the political unity
and leadership of the Muslim world. Caliphate can simply be called as
'government under a caliph' or the land ruled by an Islamic political leader.
The political authority of a Caliph as head of state of a Caliphate comes
from the fact that he is seen as a successor to the Islamic Muhammad.
From the time of Muhammad until 1924, successive and contemporary
caliphates were held by various dynasties, including the Umayyads (who
were driven from Damascus to Cordoba), the Abbasids (who ruled from
Baghdad and drove away the Umayyads from Damascus), the Fatimids
(who ruled from Cairo), and finally the [Link] caliphate is the only
form of governance that has full approval in traditional Islamic theology,
and is the core political concept of Sunni Islam, by the consensus of the
Muslim majority in the early centuries. The term Caliph succession from
Prophet Muhammed. He was the spiritual leader of Islam.

Immediately after his death,the elders of Medina met to choose a

successor and they designated Abu Bakr. He was the close companion and
advisor to prophet. He was also the father in law of prophet. First written
compilation of Quran took place under his rule. He was aided by an
advisory council consisted of companions. Any member can express his
opinion in the Council. There were no departments for administrative
activities.

Umar belonged to Quraysh tribe of Mecca. He transformed Islamic state in

Arabian peninsula to a world power. He was skilled in fighting and horse
back riding. He served as the counsel of Abu Bakr and instrumental in the
selection of him as Caliph. Muslim commanders encouraged Umar to
undertake a campaign against Egypt. He gave religious freedom to Non
muslims too. Non muslims were called dhimi (protected people) and were

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subjected to pay a tax called jiziya. He offered protection to people from
abusive governers and troops. He took adequate measures to handle
plague affected areas in Syria. He distributed food to the local population
of Arabia at the time of famine in 638. He introduced judges to deal with
local cases and credited or introducing special courts for dealing with
corrupt officials. He also established a permanent state treasury, Bayt-al-
Mal.

Uthman belonged to Ummayad clan of Qureshy tribe of Mecca. He travelled

extensively for trade purpose. This gave Uthman the opportunity to mingle
with people of various cultures. He compiled an official version of Quran as
by the time of Uthman, various versions of Quran were in circulation. Under
Uthman places like Alexandria, Armenia, Kerman and parts of Africa were
conquered. Ali was the cousin and son- in law of prophet Muhammed. His
Caliphate was loaded with strife and tension.

Umayyads
Muawiyah established the Umayyad dynasty following the assassination of
Ali. This caliphate was centred on the Umayyad dynasty, hailing from
Mecca. Syria remained the Umayyads' main power base thereafter,and
Damascus was their capital. The Umayyads continued the Muslim
conquests,incorporating the Caucasus,Transoxiana, Sindh, the Maghreb
and the Iberian Peninsula (Al Andalus) into the Muslim world. The Umayyad
taxation and administrative practice were perceived as unjust by some
Muslims.

Muawiah was the founder of Umayyad dynasty. He accepted Islam

only after prophet Muhammad conquered Mecca. Battle of Siffin (657) was
the first battle fought as part of the civil war in the Islamic empire, fought
between Muawiah, the governor of Syria and Ali. The context of the war
was the murder of Uthman. Muawiah held the view that it is his duty to take

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revenge on the death of Uthman.

Muawiah, made many reforms in the constitution of the [Link] recruited

a strong tribal army of Arabs in Syria. He tried his best to please the Arabs
by introducing tribal institutions in his administration. Shura, the council of
Notables and Wufud were part of the administration of Muawiah. His
purpose was to organize and centralize the administration of an expanding
Islamic empire. He erected two departments, Diwan al Khatam and Barid to
run the administration efficiently. Yazid l was the successor and son of
Muawiah. He was the second Caliph of Umayyad dynasty.

Battle of Karbala (680): The Battle of Karbala took place in Karbala, in

present day Iraq. On one side were supporters and relatives of
Muhammad's grandson Husayn ibn Ali; on the other side was a military
detachment from the forces of Yazid I, the Umayyad [Link] ibn Ali's
group consisted of notable members of Muhammad's close relatives,
around 72 men, of which some were either very old or very young. Husayn
and some members of his group were accompanied by some of the
women and children from their families. On the opposite side, the armed
forces of Yazid I were led by Umar ibn Sa'ad and contained at least 40,000
[Link] traditions state that Husayn ibn Ali's group killed over 20% of the
enemy before being defeated. It is said that Husayn himself killed 900
soldiers, despite the fact that he was thirsty and hungry for 3 days. It is
stated that he died to resurrect Islam.

The battle resulted in the military defeat of Husayn ibn Ali's group, the
death of almost all of his men, and the captivity of all women and
[Link] Battle of Karbala is one of the most significant battles in the
history of Shia [Link] battle also had significant effects on
formation of subsequent revolts against the Umayyad dynasty.

Muawiah ll: He succeeded his father Yazid l as the third Umayyad Caliph.

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Marwan Ibn Hakam , a cousin of Muawiah took over the administration with
the promise that Yazid's younger son would become the caliph after the
death of Marwan. Promise was not kept and his son Abd al Malik succeed
him. Abd al Malik brought stability to the Islamic empire. He issued coins.
Dome of Rock in Jerusalem was constructed by him.

Al Walid, succeeded Abd al Malik as Caliph. One of the prize catches

under Al Walid was the beginning of the conquest of Al Anadalus. Al Walid
was followed by his brother Sulyman as Caliph. Sulayman nominated his
Pious cousin as his successor. Many historians believed that had Umar be
continued as Caliph for some more years. Yazid ll succeeded Umar. He lost
control of his empire. Hisham who succeeded Yazid ll. He tried to retain
some of the reforms introduced by Umar ll, but internal political
disturbances turned his attention towards nurturing peace in the empire.

After a long civil war among the relatives of Umayyad dynasty, the
empire finally reached to Marwan ll. He was an able military commander,
but did not have the diplomacy to quell the emergence of an Arabian
faction that claimed decedents to prophet's uncle Al Abbas. Abbasids, as
they were called gaining influence among the discontented groups in the
Ummayyad state. They could establish their hold in Khurasan with the
support of its people. The Umayyad ruler did not have the strength and
support to the army to suppress a large scale uprising. The army was
exhausted by continuous wars. Economy was also not in order to recruit
more troops. The tribes also rose the banner of revolt against the
Umayyads. Hisham finally met the Abbasid army in 750. As anticipated, he
was overpowered by the Abbasids. Hisham fled for Egypt, but was caught
and killed by the Abbasids. The Umayyad dynasty came to an end.

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Abbasids (750-1258)
Abbasids caliphate is the second great dynasty after Umayyads. Though
the Abbasids came into power in 750, the ground for the capture of power
from Umayyads started from about 718 itself. Abbasid power was based
on the military support of their Khurasani soldiers. They asserted their
authority by restoring stability and worked out various compromises with
the groups who had opposed the Umayyads. The Abbasids built the city of
Baghdad and made it their capital. This indicated that the predominance of
Syria in the affairs of the Caliphate was ending. The Abbasids tried to
remove the differences between the Arabs and the new Muslims. They
widened the base of their power by introducing non-Arabs into the ruling
class. To hold this class together they encouraged the development of a
court oriented high culture.

As Saffah, Founder of Abbasid dynasty, he established his capital in

Kufa, thereby putting an end to the dominance of Damascus. He eliminated
the Umayyad line of family. He killed all the family members of Umayyad
and only Abd-al- Rahmn ibn Mu'awiah was escaped to al Andalus where he
established emirate of Cordoba. Thus As Saffah freed the new caliphate of
internal division and seated securely on the throne. But Alids remained
defiant. As Suffah broken the promise of declaring the Shite imam as the
caliph; with the hope that Alids would become the head of the Islamic state
and era of peace and prosperity would come. Alids considered the
caliphate of As suffah as betrayal and from the beginning, the Shite
alienated from the emperor and Abbasid caliphate.

Al Mansur, Though succeeded As suffah, he was considered as the

real founder of the Abbasid caliphate, He established the capital at Bagdad
in 762. His administration was developed on Iranian ideas. The purpose
was to provide stable basis for administration. Soon Baghdad rose as

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centre of learning and literature. He integrated the spiritual and temporal
aspects in his administration. Persian literature and scholarship was
encouraged by the caliph. He founded the House of Wisdom in Bagdad.
Islam expanded under his rule. He replaced secular judges with Islamic
judges. He succeed AI Mahdi. He persecuted the Manichaean's in his
empire. He refused to give them religious freedom.

Harun al Rashid(786-809), ruled the Islamic empire at the zenith

of its empire. And he was the most well known ruler of Abbasid dynasty. He
was immortalized in the Thousand and One Nights. He was known for
building the structure and carrier of a brilliant civilization. He could bring in
ideas from classical Greek, Indian,Buddhists and Hindu civilizations. He
established a school of translation Bait ul Hikmah, (House of Wisdom) At a
time when ancient Greek philosophy was largely unknown in Europe, the
works of Aristotle, Plato and other Greek philosophers were translated into
Arabic and stored in the 'house of Wisdom' in Baghdad. Muslim scholars
read and studied the translations. Young Muslim scholars were trained in
the Greek language so that they can translate classical Greek into Arabic.
Many of these works were translated into Latin and brought to Europe with
Arab observations and experiences added to them. By the end of the 8h
century, the first paper factories were established in Baghdad. Libraries and
book sellers soon emerged in the markets. By the 11th century, the
influence of Greek philosophy was depleted in Baghdad.

He was surrounded by men of learning. His courtiers included poets,

physicians, musician, mathematicians, writers, scientists etc. Ibn Hayyan,
the father of Chemistry was part of the Harun's court. The translation
department of Baghdad made possible the later works of al Razi, Al Maudi,
Ibn Sina, Al Hazen, Al Baruni and Ibn Rushd. Hospitals were established for
the first time in Arabia. The Islamic rule of law was strictly observed under
him. He established contact with Holy Roman emperor and sent

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ambassadors to the palace of Charlemagne. He also established alliance
with Chinese Tang dynasty.

Literature
It is a period of effloresce of Persian and Arabic literature. The Islamic
empire consisted of literature of distinct cultures spread across its
vastness. Arabic poetry extolling the Bedouin experiences of tribal life was
compiled in written form in the 8th and 9th centuries. They reflected the
simple pleasures of tribal life like wine, women, hunting, desert animals like
camels and good companionship. The Persian writers focused on legends
of kings, religious themes, romances and fables. The most significant of
the works produced in the pre-Islamic Persia was 'The Book of Lords'. 'The
Book of Kings' is the ten volume epic poem written by the Persian poet
Ferdowsi. It traces the history of the country till the arrival of Islam. Persian
literature produced its first known woman poet, Rabe'a of Qozdar. The
most famous works produced by Islamic empire and popular across the
world are Rubbiyat of Omar Khayyam and, Tales from 1001 Nights(The
Arabian Nights). Both these works were widely translated into various
western languages. The Arabian Nights was a composite of folktales,
fables, and romances of Indian and indigenous origin. The famous story of
Aladdin and the Magic Lamp was an 18th century addition. The Persian
poet Sadi was well known by his masterpiece, Rose Garden. It is a
collection of stories written in prose. Sufism also contributed to the rich
literature of Islamic empire. Thirteenth century Sufi poet Rumi enriched the
Islam empire with his mystic poetry. Al Masudi was the great historian. His
work, 'Meadows of Gold' was a rich source of information about the golden
age of Abbasid Caliphate. Equally important was Ibn Khaldun.

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Islamic Architecture
The art of Islamic empire is a blend of Arab, Turkish and Persian traditions.
Local elements can be seen in the Islamic art in places like Spain, Egypt,
Anatolia and other areas. The Mongols introduced East Asian elements.
The first example is the Dome of the Rock, built in 691. It is one of the
most revered Islamic monument. It is constructed on Byzantine lines with
octagonal shape and marble columns. Another architectural edifice is
mosque at Cordoba in Spain. Desert palaces are another attraction of
Islamic art. They are built by rulers. One of the remaining palaces of Islamic
art is in Alhambra in Spain.

Expansion of maritime trade

Trade flourished in the Islamic world at unprecedented scale under the
Abbasids. It flourished not only within the Islamic empire, but with China,
with the Byzantine empire and with south East Asia. Trade goods were
carried by ships to over seas territories. The camel caravans also a major
means of transportation of trade goods traversed the desert and from
Morocco to the countries beyond the Caspian sea. Slaves and gold came to
the Islamic empire from West Africa, silk and porcelain were brought by the
Chinese, gold, ivory and rhinoceros horn were brought to the markets from
east Africa. South Asia brought sandalwood, cotton, wheat, sugar and
spices to the Islamic empire. Within the Islamic empire Egypt contributed
grain, Iraq brought in linens, dates and precious stones. Anadalusia carried
leather goods, olives and wine to the markets of Bagdad. Western India
contributed pepper and textiles.

Banking facilities were also well developed to cater to the needs

of flourishing trade. Use of currency and letters of credit helped trade
transactions. Moreover, introduction of new technology facilitated

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transportation. The mariner compass, improved techniques in map making
and ship building and better knowledge on wind pattern contributed to the
expansion of maritime trade. The development of urban centres was the
result of flourishing trde. During the Abbasid caliphate, Bagdad was the
greatest city. Basra, Eden, Damascus, Syria and Marrakech were cities
beaming with trade activities under the [Link] Arab empire was the
most urbanized than any other empires in the world at the time. Slavery
was widespread. The supply came from sub-saharan Africa or from non-
Islamic population elsewhere in Asia.

Iqta and changes in agrarian relations

Iqta was an Islamic practice of tax farming. It is a form of administrative
grant, often translated by the European word as fief and nature of Iqta was
varied according to time and place and translation borrowed from other
systems of institutions and conceptions has served only too often to
mislead.

It is the land granted to army officials for a limited period in lieu of salary.
The system was introduced in the 9th century. Iqta emerged to relieve the
state treasury when insufficient tax revenue and little booty from
campaigns made it difficult for the government to pay army salaries. The
person who received iqta was called muqti. The land was distributed as
iqta belonged to the nonmuslims and therefore had to pay a special
property tax called kharaj. The muqti is entitled to collect kharaj from the
iqta. Out of the kahraj collected from the iqta, muqtí had to pay tithe/ushr.
The balance can be kept as the salary of the military officer. But in certain
cases, the muqti is allowed to collect tax equivalent to his salary as military
officer. By 12th century Iqta had been introduced into the provinces and the
number and size of Iqta proliferated. Sometimes Iqta is given as hereditary.
In hereditary iqtas, muqtis showed interest in agriculture and thereby to

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increase his share from the iqta.

Individual Iqta holders in Middle Eastern societies had little incentive to

provide public goods to the localities assigned to them. The power of the
Iqta was revocable and uninheritable. It was not an investment in a
particular holding of land, the Iqta-as a fiscal device-gave soldiers a vested
interest in the [Link] with other feudal-like tax farming systems, Iqta
evolved from the tribal practices. The Sultan give the right to collect
appropriate taxes. They had obligations to Sultan. The revenue got from the
Iqtas were meant for resources for him to do the same.

The revenue meant for Muqti‘s own expenses, payment and maintenance
of the troops and the rest had to be sent back to the king. The main
function of Iqtas was to collect taxes by Muqtis. Both Iqta system and the
common fief system followed in the west at same periods. The Iqtaholders
did not hold their own lands but merely assumed the right to collect the
revenue from the land and the right that the government typically reserved
the right to change. Many Iqta holders were not hold Iqta for life.

Gunpowder Empires
In the 15th and 16th centuries, great powers arose in a band across
western and southern Asia. The Ottoman, Safavid dynasties established
control over Turkey, Iran, and India respectively, in large part due to a
Chinese invention: [Link] large part, the successes of the western
empires depended on advanced firearms and cannons. As a result, they are
called the "Gunpowder Empires." This phrase was coined by U.S. historians
Marshall G.S. Hodgson and Willian H. [Link] gunpowder empires
monopolized the manufacture of guns and artillery in their areas.

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Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire was a transcontinental empire based out of modern-
day Turkey, which covered much of South eastern Europe, Western Asia
and North Africa between the 14th and early 20th centuries. It was one of
the Gunpowder Empires‘ of the late medieval period. The other one being
the Safavid Empire of [Link] Ottoman Turks, named after the Turkish
ruler Osman I who founded the empire in 1299, began a rapid expansion
into the territories of the erstwhile Byzantine Empire in the mid 14th century.
Eventually it led to the fall of Constantinople in 1453, ending the Byzantine
[Link] marked the beginning of a Turkish golden age. Indirectly,the
capture of Constantinople was one of the events that set the Renaissance
motion.

Further conquests would be made during the rule of Suleiman I,

also known as Suleiman the Magnificent. During his rule, the Ottomans
invaded Persia, captured Baghdad, took control of the island of Rhodes and
crossed the river Danube into Hungary where they won the battle of
Mohacs in 1526. Suleiman I also sought to expand his Empire‘s borders or
at least it‘s influence in the Indian subcontinent. At the helm of an
expanding empire, Suleiman personally instituted major legislative changes
relating to society, education, taxation and criminal law. His canonical law
(or the Kanuns) fixed the form of the empire for centuries after his death.
He was a distinguished poet and goldsmith; he also became a great patron
of culture, overseeing the "Golden" age of the Ottoman Empire in its
artistic,literary and architectural [Link] Ottoman Empire was
always in a perpetual rivalry with the Safavid Empire of Persia. Thrice did
Suleiman try to conquer it with various results. Following the death of the
Suleiman I in 1566, the empire maintained a flexible economy and military
through the 16th century. But the Ottoman military system began to
stagnate in contrast to those of its European rivals, Habsburg and Russian

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empires.A series of military defeats at their hands prompted the Ottoman
administration to modernise and reform itself. The empire became
relatively stable despite the loss of its Eastern European territories. Hoping
to escape diplomatic isolation and further territorial losses the Ottoman
Empire allied itself with German and eventually, the Central Powers when
World War I broke out in 1914. The Empire did end up on the losing side of
World War I. Subjected to the Treaty of Versailles,parts of its territories
were occupied by the Allied Powers resulting in its partitioning and the loss
of its Middle Eastern territories, which were divided between the United
Kingdom and France. One result of this territorial division was the drawing
up of the Sykes-Picot agreement The successful Turkish War of
Independence led by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk against the occupying Allies
led to the emergence of the Republic of Turkey in the Anatolian heartland
and the abolition of the Ottoman monarch in 1922.

Administration and Economy of the Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman administration system consisted of two main dimensions:

civilian and military. The Sultan was the highest authority. The civil system
was based on local administrative units based on the region's
characteristics.

• Though the sultan was the supreme monarch, the sultan‘s political and
executive authority was delegated. The politics of the state had advisors
and ministers part of council known as Divan.

• The Divan in the initial years of the Ottoman state was composed of the
elders of the various Turkish tribes. Its composition was modified to
include military officers and local elites

• In 1320C.E., a Grand Vizier was appointed to assume certain

responsibilities.

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• The Grand Vizier wielded considerable power,independent from that of
the sultan.

• Beginning with the late 16th century, sultans withdrew from politics and
the Grand Vizier became the de facto head of [Link] Ottoman legal
system accepted the religious law over its subjects. At the same time the
Qanun (or Kanun), a secular legal system, co-existed with religious law.
Ulema were the [Link] Ottoman Empire was always organized around
a system of local jurisprudence. Legal administration in the Ottoman
Empire was part of a larger scheme of balancing central and local authority.

The most striking feature of the Ottoman society was the

advancement of slaves of the highest position within the state. Except for
the Sultan himself, all the major officials of government and of sultan's
household as well as the officers of the army and troops were slaves. The
ruling class of slaves was truly educated.

Economic System

The Ottoman economic system closely resembled the basic concepts of

state and society of the Middle-East in which the basic idea was that it was
the state‘s duty to consolidate and extend the ruler‘s power in getting rich
resources of revenues. It believed that a productive and prosperous
population was the key to a robust [Link] Ottoman economy greatly
expanded during the early modern period, with particularly high growth
rates during the first half of the eighteenth century. By developing
commercial centres and routes, encouraging people to extend the area of
cultivated land in the country and international trade through its dominions,
the state performed basic economic functions in the Empire. But in all this,
the financial and political interests of the state were dominant.

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The Safavid empire in Persia
The Safavid dynasty was emerged in Persia. It covered Iran, Turkey and
Georgia. The Safavid shahs ruled over one of the so-called gunpowder
empires, and they ruled one of the greatest Persian empires after the
Muslim conquest of Persia and established the school of Shi'a Islam as the
official religion of their empire, marking one of the most important turning
points in Muslim history. Safavids were a Sufi order traced to Safi al- Din.
He converted to Shiism. The Safavids ruled from 1501 to 1722
(experiencing a brief restoration from 1729 to 1736) and, at their height,
they controlled all of modern Iran, Bahrain and Armenia, most of Georgia,
Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan, as well as parts of Turkey, Syria,
Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Despite their demise in 1736, the legacy that
they left behind was the revival of Persia as an economic stronghold
between East and West, the establishment of an efficient state and
bureaucracy based upon "checks and balances", their architectural
innovations and their patronage for fine arts. The Safavids have also left
their mark down to the present era by spreading Shi'a Islam in Iran, as well
as major parts of the Caucasus, Anatolia,and Mesopotamia.

Shah Abbas the Great: Shah Abbas the Great or Shah Abbas I of
Persia is generally considered the strongest ruler of the Safavid dynasty.
He was the third son of Shah Mohammad [Link] Abbas
would preside over the apex of the Iranian Safavid Empire's military,political
and economic power, he came to the throne during a troubled time for Iran.
Under his weak-willed father, the country was riven with discord between
the different factions of the Qizilbash army, who killed Abbas' mother and
elder brother. Meanwhile, Iran's enemies,the Ottoman Empire and the
Uzbeks, exploited this political chaos to seize territory for themselves. In
1588, one of the Qizilbash leaders, Murshid Qoli Khan, overthrew Shah
Mohammed in a coup and placed the 16-year-old Abbas on the throne. But

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Abbas was no puppet and soon seized power for [Link] his
leadership, Abbas created numerous opportunities for thousands of
Circassians, Georgians, and Armenians to join the civil administration and
the military. With the help of these newly created layers in Iranian society
(initiated by his predecessors but significantly expanded during his rule),
Abbas managed to completely crush and diminish the power of the
Qizilbash in the civil administration, the royal house and the military. These
actions, as well as his reforms of the Iranian army, enabled him to fight the
Ottomans and Uzbeks and reconquer Iran's lost [Link] was a
great builder and moved his kingdom's capital from Qazvin to
Isfahan,making the city the pinnacle of Safavid architecture.

Arab Science
The Islamic civilization originated in the Arabian Peninsula in the 7th
century. It rapidly expanded to the vast Persian empire, to Syria, Palestine,
North Africa eventually to Spain under the first dynasty of Umayyads. The
acquisition of new knowledge in medicine, astronomy, mathematics,
alchemy was encouraged from the beginning of the establishment of
Islamic empire. It became part of the societal culture under the Islamic rule.
Hospital and medical schools were established in the cities of Bagdad and
Rayy. Every major province had libraries and transformed into centre of
learning. In Arab medicine made golden age of Arabic –Islamic [Link]
glorious historic background of the Arabic world permits us to identify the
debt that humanity owes to the Golden Age of Arabic Science and to
evaluate the research contributions made by Arab countries to Bio-Medical
science. The Bio-Medical science of the Arabic-Islamic world underwent
remarkable development during 8th to 13th centuries C.E. It was a
flowering of knowledge and intellect that later spread throughout Europe
and greatly influenced both medical practice and education. The scientific
glory of the Arabic nation originated on the Arabian Peninsula in the 7th

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century C.E.

Mathematics
They made significant contributions to mathematics. They drew and fused
the mathematical developments of both Greece and India. They used
extensively complex geometric patterns to decorate their buildings by
raising mathematics to a form of art. The House of Wisdom set up in
Bagdad translated major Indian and Greek mathematical and astronomical
works into Arabic. Al Khwarizmi, who served as the director of the House of
Wisdom was one of the greatest Muslim mathematician. One of his
important contributions was his strong recommendation in favour of Hindu
numerical system. He recognized the power of the Hindu numerical system
to revolutionize the field of mathematics. It was adopted by the Islamic
world and later by the Europeans too. He introduced the fundamental
algebraic methods of reduction and balancing. Persian mathematician, Al
Karaj, in the 10h century further extended the mathematical knowledge by
introducing theory of algebraic calculus. He was the first to use the method
of proof by mathematical induction to prove his results. Omar Khayyam,
though popular as a poet, was a mathematician. He carried out a
systematic analysis of cubic problems, revealing there were several sorts
of cubic equations. Al Tusi was the first to treat trigonometry as a separate
mathematical discipline from astronomy. He was immensely dew from the
Greek and Indian works. His major mathematical contribution was the
formulation of the famous law of sines for plane triangles.

Astronomy
Muslims set up an observatory at Bagdad to study the position of stars.
Two observatories were erected by Calph Al-ma'mun. Shammasiyya near
Bagdad and Jabal Qasiyun in Damascaus. They wanted to check solar and

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lunar data in old Greek and Indian tables. They relied astronomy for three
purposes. Computing prayer time at different locations and dates,
determining the direction of Mecca and to fix the date of the religious
festivals. They were aware that earth was round and Muslim scholars
produced world map based on the directions in the Greco-Roman
astronomer Ptolemy. Astrolabe enabled the sailors to track their position
by means of the stars. Al Farghani wrote 'Elements of Astronomy on the
Celestial Motions'.The book gives nonmathematical presentation of
Ptolemy's system and the book was also an updating of the Arabic
knowledge on astronomy. It was a widely circulated book and translated
into Latin. The translation familiarized Ptolemy's work in the West. Al Sufi
also made use of the mapping constellation of stars explained in Ptolemy's
work. Arab astronomical tradition was also examined in the work. The book
gives extensive illustrations of each constellation.

Alchemy
Alchemy is simple term of modern chemistry. Medieval alchemists were
labeled in the class of spiritualists, philosophers and people of the occult.
Transmutation of metals means converting of one physical substance into
another. Example, base metals like lead can be turned Gold. The
alchemists tried to transmute base metals into noble meals, to find out an
elixir of life and to find a panacea for curing diseases. The medieval
tradition of alchemy led to the development of early modern science.

Al -Razi was a renowned alchemist of the Arab world. He was also

equally excelled in medical knowledge. He served the courts of no so
prominent rulers in the early days of his career as a physicist. He had
familiarized with the philosophy of Socrates and medicines of Hippocrates.
He authored two prominent works related to medicine .Kitab al Mansuri
was written for the Rayy ruler Mansur ibn Ishaq. The work is also translated

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into Latin. Second work bears the title kitab al Hawi surveyed the Greek,
Syrian, Indian and Arabic medical traditions. His treatise on small pox and
measles was quite popular across the world and translated into Lain and
Byzantine Greek. Al Razi contributed to alchemy by his classification of all
chemical substances. Al Razi classified the minerals into seven used by
alchemists. They are metals, stones, boraxes, vitriol and salts. He grouped
mercury, sulfur, orpiment and realgar and sal ammoniac in one group.
Silver, gold, copper, iron ,black lead, zinc and tin included in group 2. In his
book, Al- Asrar, Al Razi explained medical components in the substances
derived from planets, animals and minerals.

Jabir ibn Hayyan was was a chemist and alchemist, engineer,

geographer, philosopher, physicist, pharmacist, astronomer, astrologer and
physician. He has been described as the father of early chemistry. He was
sometimes called al-Harrani and al-Sufi. He was one among the founders
of pharmacy. He was known to Europeans as [Link] contributed
immensely to scientific knowledge through his practical knowledge gained
from experience and experiments. Jabir believed the influence of celestial
bodies in influencing human behavior and conduct. He gave information on
many important chemical processes. He explained the purification of
mercury. Jabir introduced laboratory equipment like water baths, furnaces
and systems of filtration and distillation to the posterity. Jabir's chemical
knowledge led to the improvement of many manufacturing processes. He
developed many techniques that made the production of perfumes easier.

Optics
The contributions of Arabs to optics are phenomenal. Ibn al Haytham made
significant strides in the field, optics. Kitab al Manazir was his work in
optics. The book was translated into Latin. Its introduction to Latin
stimulated the study of optics in Europe. The book provided the model to

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conduct experiments and influenced natural philosophers for centuries.
The book remained world's most significant investigation of vision and
optics for six hundred years. He was equally excelled in physics, asronomy,
and mathematics.

Medicine
The Islamic Medicine went through impressive developments which were
influenced medical education and practice in Europe. The intense efforts
for translation and analysis of the works of Hippocratus, Dioscorides and
Galen took place. The Arab scholars synthesized and further elaborated
knowledge they had gathered from ancient manuscripts adding to their
own experience. Numerous Arab pioneers are mentioned in medical history.
Among the most famous are Yuhanna Ibn Massuwayh who performed
dissections and described Allergy. Abu Bakr Muhammad Ibn Zakariyya al-
Razi who differentiated smallpox from measles, described the laryngeal
branch of the recurrent nerve, introduced mercurial ointments and moist
compresses in surgery, investigated psychosomatic reactions and wrote
the famous Al-Hawl, a medical encyclopedia of 30 volumes. Abu al-Qasim
al-Zahrawi known as the Father of modern surgery who performed
tracheotomy.

Ibn Sina (Avicenna) was one of the eminent physician of

his [Link] medical knowledge influenced both the Islamic and
European medical traditions. Ibn Sina wrote "The Canon of Medicine'. The
book examines the four elements- earth, air, fire and water, of which human
body is constituted. The book describes the causes and symptoms of
diseases. It covers hygiene, health and sickness and death's inevitability.
He classified diseases and an overview of dietary treatments. The book
describes compound drugs. The book was used as source of reference in
European universities. It is said that the book remained 'a medical Bible' for

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longer time than any other work.

Ibn-Zuhr (Avenzoar) who described pericarditis, and mediastinitis who

pointed out the importance of drugs for body and soul and IbnNafis who
studied and described pulmonary [Link] was apparent in all
medical fields including anatomy, surgery, anesthesia, cardiology,
orthopedics,urology, neurology, psychiatry, hygiene, and dentistry.

The medical education of the Arab-Muslim world was created from

Arabic medical studied consisted of initial training in such as basic
sciences as alchemy, anatomy and physiology which was followed by
clinical training in hospitals where students performed physical
examinations attended ward rounds and clinical [Link] were
required to pass oral and practical exams in order to be licensed.

Crusades
A series of religious wars between Muslims and Christians to secure their
control of holy sites are known as the Crusades.

Crusades History:

One of the supreme powers in the Mediterranean region is the Byzantine

empire. They lost their major territories to the Seljuk Turks. General
Alexius Comnenus entered into various chaos and civil war and seized the
Byzantine throne in 1081. Later, all other empires came under the
control of Emperor Alexius I. In 1095, Emperor Alexius I sent envoys to
Pope Urban II and requested mercenary troops from the west to tackle
the threats from the Turkish. As the relationship between east and west
Christians was already worsened this situation helped to improve the
relationship among them. Meanwhile, Pope Urban II called the western
Christians to take arms to support the Byzantines and to recapture the
holy land from Muslims. Here, the crusades begin. The request of pope
urban’s reached a vast population, many military and ordinary citizens
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joined together and started wearing ‘cross’ as a symbol of the church.
Later, they acquired the pilgrim land and protected the travellers.

First Crusade (1095– 1102)

In August 1096 the first crusade began with four armies of crusaders from
Western European regions joined and formed troops. They are Hugh of
Vermandois, Godfrey of Bouillon, Raymond of Saint-Gilles, and Bohemond
of Taranto. This band was named “People’s Crusade” and headed by
popular preacher, Peter the Hermit. Initially, Alexius asked them to take
a rest, but they ignored and crossed the Bosporus in early august. In the
first clash between the Muslims and Crusaders, the Turkish force
defeated the Europeans at Cibotus. Count Emicho headed another group
of Crusaders and carried out a series of tragedies in the various towns of
Rheinland in 1096. This act affected Jewish-Christian relations. Alexius
ordered all four main armies to take an oath to be loyal in handing over
Turks land to him.

Second Crusade (1144)

The crusaders achieved their goal in the first crusade in an unexpectedly

short period of time and many crusaders departed from their homes to
conquer territories. The crusader’s states were Jerusalem, Antioch,
Edessa and Tripoli. Till 1130, Crusaders ruled the holy land meanwhile,
Muslim forces gained power and stood against Christians for attaining
their own holy land [Link] 1144, the general of Seljuk, Zangi, the
governor of Mosul captured Edessa and Muslims acquired the
northernmost Crusader state. Then the Crusaders called another Crusade
led by two great rulers, King Louis VII of France and King Conrad III of
Germany and started the Second Crusade in 1147. In October 1147, the
Turks destroyed Conrad’s forces located in Dorylaeum. Dorylaeum was the
place where great Christians got victory during the First Crusade.
Initially, Louis and Conrad managed and assembled their armies at
Jerusalem to attack Damascus with an army of 50000 people. Meanwhile,
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Damascus’ ruler asked help from Nur al-Din, Zangi, who was the successor
of Mosul. At the end of the Second Crusades, Muslims defeated the
Crusaders.

Third Crusade (1187)

Crusaders of Jerusalem made numerous attempts to capture Egypt. In

1169, Nur al-Din’s acquired Cairo and forced the Crusader army to
evacuate from the place. After the death of Shirkuh, Saladin came to
power and began a campaign after the death of Nur al-Din in 1174. In
1187, Saladin stood against the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and
destroyed the Christian army in the battle of Hattin. At the end of this
battle, Saladin brought the majority of the territory under his
control. Muslims easily defeated the Crusaders kingdom, because of the
ageing Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, King Philip II of France, and King
Richard I of England. In September 1911 in the battle of Arsuf, Richard’s
forces defeated Saladin. This was truly known as the true battle of the
Third Crusade. After recapturing the city of Jaffa, Richard started
establishing the control of Christians in some regions and approached
Jerusalem, but he refused to siege the city. At the end of September
1192, Richard and Saladin agreed to sign a peace treaty about the re-
establishment of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

Fourth Crusade: The Fall of Constantinople

In 1198, Pope Innocent III invited a new crusade to face the

struggles created by Europe and Byzantium. He sent the Crusaders to
divert their mission and make the fall of Byzantine emperor, Alexius III
and Pope Innocent II became Alexius IV in mid of 1203. Then, Alexium IV
attempted to submit the Byzantine church to Rome but he could not
make it. In the early of 1204, Alexius IV was killed in his palace. Then,
Crusaders declared war on Constantinople and defeated them. This made
the fall of Constantinople at the end of the fourth crusade.

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In 1208 – 1229, the fifth crusades started. In 1212, the Children’s
Crusade took place, where thousands of young children were marched to
Jerusalem. But many historians won’t recognise it as the actual
crusade. The crusaders attacked Egypt both from land and sea in the
Fifth Crusade. As pope innocent III died in 1216, they got surrendered to
Muslim defender Saladin’s nephew, Al-Malik al-Kamil in 1221. In 1229, the
sixth crusade began. From 1248 to 1254, Louis IX of France built a
crusade against Egypt, but he failed. This was named the seventh
Crusade.

End of Crusades :

In 1291, the remaining one crusader city Acre came to the hands of
Muslim Mamluks. Minor crusades left out with limited goals.

Effects of the Crusades

At the end of the Crusades, Muslims defeated the Europeans. During this
period, the Roman Catholic Church experienced huge wealth, but the
power of the pope was elevated after the end of the Crusades. As a result
of the Crusades, trade and transportation improved. This war created a
constant demand for transportation and supplies in the manufacturing
and shipbuilding sectors. After the Crusades, many historians started
showing interest to learn about Europe, because it may have paved the
way for the renaissance. However, Islam followers were considered the
Crusaders as immoral, bloody and savage.

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