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2 episodes with Abbasid Caliphate
2 episodes with Abbasid Caliphate
fWotD Episode 2838: Siege of Baghdad Welcome to Featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia’s finest articles.The featured article for Monday, 10 February 2025 is Siege of Baghdad.The siege of Baghdad took place in early 1258 at Baghdad, the historic capital of the Abbasid Caliphate. After a series of provocations from its ruler, Caliph al-Musta'sim, a large army under Hulegu, a prince of the Mongol Empire, attacked the city. Within a few weeks, Baghdad fell and was sacked by the Mongol army—al-Musta'sim was killed alongside hundreds of thousands of his subjects. The city's fall has traditionally been seen as marking the end of the Islamic Golden Age; in reality, its ramifications are uncertain.After the accession of his brother Möngke Khan to the Mongol throne in 1251, Hulegu, a grandson of Genghis Khan, was dispatched westwards to Persia to secure the region. His massive army of over 138,000 men took years to reach the region but then quickly attacked and overpowered the Nizari Ismaili Assassins in 1256. The Mongols had expected al-Musta'sim to provide reinforcements for their army—the Caliph's failure to do so, combined with his arrogance in negotiations, convinced Hulegu to overthrow him in late 1257. Invading Mesopotamia from all sides, the Mongol army soon approached Baghdad, routing a sortie on 17 January 1258 by flooding their camp. They then invested Baghdad, which was left with around 30,000 troops.The assault began at the end of January. Mongol siege engines breached Baghdad's fortifications within a couple of days, and Hulegu's highly-trained troops controlled the eastern wall by 4 February. The increasingly desperate al-Musta'sim frantically tried to negotiate, but Hulegu was intent on total victory, even killing soldiers who attempted to surrender. The Caliph eventually surrendered the city on 10 February, and the Mongols began looting three days later. The total number of people who died is unknown, as it was likely increased by subsequent epidemics; Hulegu later estimated the total at around 200,000. After calling an amnesty for the pillaging on 20 February, Hulegu executed the caliph. In contrast to the exaggerations of later Muslim historians, Baghdad prospered under Hulegu's Ilkhanate, although it did decline in comparison to the new capital, Tabriz.This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:30 UTC on Monday, 10 February 2025.For the full current version of the article, see Siege of Baghdad on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm neural Justin.
Se'adya Gaon was a prominent rabbi, gaon, Jewish philosopher, and exegete who was active in the Abbasid Caliphate. Se'adya is the first important rabbinic figure to write extensively in Judeo-Arabic. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this episode of History 102, 'WhatIfAltHist' creator Rudyard Lynch and co-host Austin Padgett examine the medieval decline of Asia, analyzing how regions that were once the world's centers of culture, economics, and technology—particularly China, India, and the Islamic world—gradually lost their dominance between 1000-1500 AD. --
THIS WEEK! We are joined by Nicholas Morton, and we discuss his recent book "The Mongol Storm". How did the Mongols help reshape geopolitical area of the 13th Century middle east? How did empires such as the Ayubids, The Seljuk Turks, or the once mighty Abbasid Caliphate fall so easilly to the Mongol storm? And how did the Mongols deal with their recently conquered areas of the middle east? Find out This week on "Well That Aged Well".You can find professor Morton on social media here: Twitter/X: @NicholasMorto11Instagram: @nicholasmorton123Bluesky: @NicholasMorto11Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/well-that-aged-well. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Abbasid caliphs sat at the head of a vast Islamic empire that stretched from Tunisia to the frontiers of India, which they ruled over for several centuries. But how did they first come to power? What tools did they utilise to control such a significant swathe of land? And to what extent were they responsible for a 'Golden Age of Islam'? Speaking to Emily Briffett, Hugh Kennedy charts the rise and fall of a multicultural medieval empire and answers your top questions – on everything from the harem of the strictly structured court to the enormous amount of scholarship that flowed through the caliphate. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
On this episode of Unsupervised Learning Razib talks to professor Sean Anthony about his book Muhammad and the Empires of Faith: The Making of the Prophet of Islam. Anthony is a historian in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures at The Ohio State University. He earned his Ph.D. with honors in 2009 at the University of Chicago in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, and has a mastery of Arabic, Persian, Syriac, French, and German. Anthony's interests are broadly religion and society in late antiquity and medieval Islam, early canonical literatures of Islam (Koran and Hadith) and statecraft and political thought from the foundational period of Islam down to the Abbasid Caliphate over a century later. Razib and Anthony discuss the state of the controversial scholarship about the origins of Islam, which often comes to conclusions that challenge the orthodox Muslim narrative. This earlier generation of scholars, like Patricia Crone, challenged the historicity of Muhammad, the centrality of Mecca in early Islam and even the distinctive religious identity of the early 7th century's Near East's Arab conquerors. This revisionist school serves as the basis for Tom Holland's 2012 book, In the Shadow of the Sword: The Birth of Islam and the Rise of the Global Arab Empire. While Holland's work was an accurate summary of research before the 2010's, Anthony argues that since then new findings have updated and revised the revisionism itself. A Koran dating from the mid-7th century seems to confirm the antiquity of this text and traditions around it, while contemporaneous non-Muslim sources refer to Muhammad as an Arabian prophet. While it is true that coinage did not bear the prophet's name until the end of the 7th century, it may be that earlier generations of scholars were misled by the lack of access to contemporary oral sources themselves necessarily evanescent. Razib and Anthony also discuss whether the first Muslims actually self-identified as Muslims in a way we would understand, as opposed to being a heterodox monotheistic sect that emerged out of Christianity and Judaism. Though classical Islam qua Islam crystallized under the Abbasids after 750 AD, it now seems quite clear that the earlier Umayyads had a distinct identity from the Christians and Jews whom they ruled.
This episode of History 102 explores the fascinating rise of Islam, its Golden Age, and its decline, unpacking the cultural, political, and economic factors that shaped this pivotal period in history. WhatifAltHist creator Rudyard Lynch and Erik Torenberg talk about the cultural and scientific achievements of the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliph - a period of unprecedented growth and innovation in the Islamic world. Then, uncover the reasons behind the decline of the Abbasid Caliphate, from internal conflicts and moral decay to the rise of the Turks and the shift from scientific progress to religious conservatism. – SPONSOR: BEEHIIV Head to Beehiiv, the newsletter platform built for growth, to power your own. Connect with premium brands, scale your audience, and deliver a beautiful UX that stands out in an inbox.
Tonight we are joined by DRx Wilke who runs the Holy Hermetic Heterodox Heresy channel on Youtube. The show is kicked off by audio of a "Pagan prayer to Thoth" from his channel of which he says the following about: We are the inheritors of the Gnostic Current as revealed to the seventh generation of Adam Kadmon in the Enochian Covenant, a recognized People of the Book as affirmed by the courts of the Abbasid Caliphate. We honor the 7 Noahide Laws of the righteous gentiles and keep the Golden Axiom: "To do good is only second, First do no harm." We preserve and protect the dwindling light of the mysteries and the cultus near extinguished at the close of Late Antiquity. Our messenger is the dual god Thoth-Hermes, called Hermes Trismegistus, first called Logos and Son of Man. We perceive Hermes Mercurius Trismegistus as the rightful heir to the Olympian Throne, as prophesied by the primordial Gaia regarding the line of titanic Metis. We likewise honor Metis' daughter Pallas Athena Minerva as Sophia to his Logos. We recognize the doctrine of metempsychosis, affirming the transmigration of souls, and acknowledge the unity of all as stated in the formula of the Emerald Tablet: “As above, so below”. You can check out the channel directly here: What *IS* the Holy Hermetic Heterodox Heresy? (youtube.com) #thoth #hermes #hermeticism #gnosticism #ifyouhaveghostsyouhaveeverything #alanbishopdistiller #alchemistoftheblackfores #thekinginyellow #keeperoftheblueflame --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/alan-bishop3/support
Cataloguing the tapestry of Islamic traditions is a task that lies well beyond our scope, but every now and again the topic overlaps with the subjects we are interested in. It's important to understand where the Qaramita and Fatimids came from, because these two foes will face the Abbasid Caliphate until its effective takeover by a rival dynasty. As these two communities emerged from Ismaili Shi'ism, we'll take the time to properly define and ground these terms before moving on. Please keep in mind that you are in no way getting a round-up of the religious or sectarian situation at the time; there were many more groups than the ones we're discussing. Refer back to the start of this paragraph for more information.
Al Mu'tamid's reign lasted from 870 to 892. The Abbasid Caliphate was reborn during these decades, midwifed by the caliph's brother Talha, better known in history by his title al Muwaffaq. The new Abbasid state understood its limits and adopted a pragmatic but uncompromising approach towards rebuilding its power. It developed formidable armies to fight off the many existential threats that faced it, then used this military edge to force its neighbors into relative submission.
What if we told you that the teachings of Prophet Muhammad were considered radical at the time? As we journey through the intricate world of Islamic history, we take the time to demystify common misconceptions about Muslims and their beliefs. We'll shine a light on the life of Prophet Muhammad and the golden age of the Abbasid Caliphate. You'll be surprised to learn about the crusaders' siege of Nicaea, an action that seemed at odds with their Christian faith. Prepare to be fascinated as we dive into the rise and fall of the Seljuk Empire. The Seljuks left a significant imprint on the Islamic world, including the establishment of Islamic colleges and the flourishing of Persian culture under their rule. We'll also explore their military strategies, their transition from shamanistic beliefs to Islam, and the wider impact they had on the Islamic world. Join us in this riveting exploration of history's lesser-known chapters.Support the showShow Notes: https://www.thepithychronicle.com/resourceshttps://www.tiktok.com/@thepithychroniclershttps://www.instagram.com/the.pithy.chronicle/
As the Assassin's Creed franchise returns to its roots in West Asia for Assassin's Creed: Mirage, allowing players to explore the splendor of Baghdad during the Abbasid Caliphate in the 9th Century, Ubisoft has recruited a Persian legend to help bring this story to life. An icon in Iranian and many other SWANA communities and beyond, Shohreh Aghdashloo has paved the way for SWANA actors to have roles that transcend beyond the stereotypes we're too often limited to, even though these nuanced roles for our communities remain highly limited. Aghdashloo has played many roles throughout her storied career, but it was clear, for many reasons as we spoke, that to take the role of the Persian Master Assassin Roshan, mentor of the main character Basim Ibn Ishaq (Lee Majdoub), had unique significance in Assassin's Creed: Mirage.
Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-Bukhari, commonly referred to as Imām al-Bukhāri or Imām Bukhāri, was a 9th-century Muslim muhaddith who is widely regarded as the most important hadith scholar in the history of Sunni Islam. Al-Bukhari's extant works include the hadith collection Sahih al-Bukhari, Al-Tarikh al-Kabir, and Al-Adab al-Mufrad. Born in Bukhara in present-day Uzbekistan, Al-Bukhari began learning hadith at a young age. He traveled across the Abbasid Caliphate and learned under several influential contemporary scholars. Bukhari memorized thousands of hadith narrations, compiling the Sahih al-Bukhari in 846. He spent the rest of his life teaching the hadith he had collected.
The Dabuyid Dynasty, otherwise known as the Gaubarid Dynasty, was an Iranian Zoroastrian Dynasty ruled by a group of independent kings, called Ispahbads. Most of what is known about the Dabuyid Dynasty is from the later historian Ibn Isfandiyar's Tarikh-I Tabaristan, written in the 13th Century. Although the dynasty was founded by Gil Gavbara in 642 CE, it was named after his son, Dabuya, who controlled the kingdom after his father's death. Dabuyid rule extended over Tabaristan and western Khorasan until the Abbasid conquest in 760. The dynasty ended with the suicide of Khurshid after a surprise invasion by the Abbasid Caliphate. Thank you to Amineh Najam-ud-din for this article.
The sack of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258 was a devastating event in history that marked the end of the Islamic Golden Age and the destruction of one of the world's most splendid and culturally advanced cities. Here is a summary of the key points:Background: Baghdad was the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate, one of the most powerful and influential Islamic empires. At its height, the city was a center of learning, culture, and trade, known for its libraries, scholars, and wealth.Mongol Invasion: The invasion was led by Hulagu Khan, a grandson of Genghis Khan. He arrived in the region with a massive Mongol army, determined to conquer the Islamic heartland.Siege: In January 1258, the Mongols laid siege to Baghdad. The city was poorly prepared for the assault, and its defenses crumbled under the Mongol onslaught.Sack of the City: After a lengthy siege, the Mongols breached the walls of Baghdad in February 1258. The city fell, and what followed was a brutal and destructive rampage. Tens of thousands of residents were killed, and the city was plundered and set ablaze.Loss of Knowledge: One of the most tragic aspects of the sack was the loss of countless books and manuscripts from Baghdad's libraries and centers of learning. The Tigris River was said to have run black with ink from the countless books thrown into the river.End of the Abbasid Caliphate: The sack of Baghdad effectively ended the Abbasid Caliphate as a significant political and cultural force. Although nominal caliphs continued to exist, their power was greatly diminished.Impact on the Islamic World: The destruction of Baghdad had a profound and long-lasting impact on the Islamic world. It marked the beginning of a period of fragmentation and decline, with the center of Islamic power shifting to other regions.Legacy: The sack of Baghdad is often seen as a symbol of the destructive power of the Mongol Empire and its impact on world history. It also serves as a cautionary tale about the vulnerability of great civilizations to external forces.In summary, the sack of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258 was a tragic and pivotal event that led to the destruction of a once-magnificent city and had far-reaching consequences for the Islamic world and world history.(commercial at 8:13)to contact me:bobycapucci@protonmail.comThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5080327/advertisement
The sack of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258 was a devastating event in history that marked the end of the Islamic Golden Age and the destruction of one of the world's most splendid and culturally advanced cities. Here is a summary of the key points:Background: Baghdad was the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate, one of the most powerful and influential Islamic empires. At its height, the city was a center of learning, culture, and trade, known for its libraries, scholars, and wealth.Mongol Invasion: The invasion was led by Hulagu Khan, a grandson of Genghis Khan. He arrived in the region with a massive Mongol army, determined to conquer the Islamic heartland.Siege: In January 1258, the Mongols laid siege to Baghdad. The city was poorly prepared for the assault, and its defenses crumbled under the Mongol onslaught.Sack of the City: After a lengthy siege, the Mongols breached the walls of Baghdad in February 1258. The city fell, and what followed was a brutal and destructive rampage. Tens of thousands of residents were killed, and the city was plundered and set ablaze.Loss of Knowledge: One of the most tragic aspects of the sack was the loss of countless books and manuscripts from Baghdad's libraries and centers of learning. The Tigris River was said to have run black with ink from the countless books thrown into the river.End of the Abbasid Caliphate: The sack of Baghdad effectively ended the Abbasid Caliphate as a significant political and cultural force. Although nominal caliphs continued to exist, their power was greatly diminished.Impact on the Islamic World: The destruction of Baghdad had a profound and long-lasting impact on the Islamic world. It marked the beginning of a period of fragmentation and decline, with the center of Islamic power shifting to other regions.Legacy: The sack of Baghdad is often seen as a symbol of the destructive power of the Mongol Empire and its impact on world history. It also serves as a cautionary tale about the vulnerability of great civilizations to external forces.In summary, the sack of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258 was a tragic and pivotal event that led to the destruction of a once-magnificent city and had far-reaching consequences for the Islamic world and world history.to contact me:bobycapucci@protonmail.comThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5003294/advertisement
伊斯蘭政權統治伊比利半島800年，留下的不只是考古遺址！從語言、建築、文化到藝術，阿拉伯與伊斯蘭元素早已深植於西班牙這個國家的DNA裡。這集我們從伊斯蘭的角度切入，聊聊安達魯西亞，特別著重在伊斯蘭時期的前半，以及當時伊比利半島甚至整個歐洲最重要的都市：哥多華。節目中我們會聊到以下這些問題—— 西班牙究竟受阿拉伯與伊斯蘭文化影響有多深？ 伊斯蘭教如何進入伊比利半島，讓一個已經被推翻的王朝續命300年？ 直布羅陀海峽最窄處不是才13公里寬嗎，為什麼不蓋一座橋或隧道把兩個大陸連起來？ 哈里發、酋長（埃米爾）、蘇丹到底有什麼不同？哈里發國時期的哥多華有多厲害？ 要真正認識西班牙，就不能不了解伊斯蘭教在它身上留下的印記。讓我們回到西元第七世紀的伊比利半島，發現來自阿拉伯半島的奧瑪雅王朝在此建立的輝煌過往吧！ 簡易年表 711 齊亞德帶領摩爾人軍隊跨過直布羅陀海峽，進攻伊比利半島 750 奧瑪雅王朝滅亡，王室後代退守至伊比利半島 756–929 哥多華酋長國 Emirate of Córdoba 929–1031 哥多華哈里發國 Caliphate of Córdoba 來自阿拉伯語的西班牙語單字舉例 hatta → hasta 直到 inshallah → ojala 但願如此 al-Qasr → Alcázar 堡壘、宮殿 al hamra → Alhambra 紅色（的宮殿），阿罕布拉宮 哈里發、埃米爾和蘇丹有什麼不同？ 哈里發（Caliph）意為「繼承者」，是先知穆罕默德的正統接班人、整個伊斯蘭世界宗教與政治的最高領導者，地位近似於皇帝、教宗。歷史上曾經統治大部分伊斯蘭世界、且稱領導人為哈里發的政權包括： 拉什敦哈里發國（Rashidun Caliphate，四大哈里發時期，632–661） 奧瑪雅哈里發國（Umayyad Caliphate，661–750） 阿拔斯哈里發國（Abbasid Caliphate，750–1258） 鄂圖曼帝國（1517-1924） 埃米爾（或稱酋長、大公，Emir）意為「指揮」，原本是由哈里發指派、管理特定地區的統治者，類似封建社會中親王、大公、分封王的概念，後來常被用來指地區性的伊斯蘭政權領導者。 蘇丹（Sultan）意為「權威」，指一個伊斯蘭國家政治性的統治者，目前也被用作許多伊斯蘭國家元首的頭銜。 白衣大食、黑衣大食與綠衣大食 中國古代典籍稱阿拉伯為大食，其中又按照衣著的顏色分為： 白衣大食：奧瑪雅王朝 Umayyad Dynasty 黑衣大食：阿拔斯王朝 Abbasid Dynasty 綠衣大食：法提馬王朝 Fatimad Dynasty ✅ 本集重點： (00:00:16) 前言：讓旅行超越踩點，以伊斯蘭文化串起安達魯西亞的旅程！ (00:04:35) 這些西班牙文單字全部都來自阿拉伯文！西班牙到底受伊斯蘭文化影響多大？ (00:10:10) 伊斯蘭政權如何進入伊比利半島，從穆罕默德說起，四大哈里發、奧瑪雅王朝與阿拔斯王朝 (00:15:51) 直布羅陀海峽，歐洲與非洲之間的跳板，才13公里蓋一座橋有那麼難嗎？奧瑪雅王朝如何開啟伊比利半島的伊斯蘭時代 (00:23:18) 哈里發國首都哥多華，穆斯林、基督教徒與猶太教徒相安無事，宗教多元學風鼎盛，甚至一度超越君士坦丁堡？ (00:26:51) 旅行推薦：哥多華清真寺，還是哥多華大教堂？一望無際的馬蹄型拱門與紅白相間的獨特結構 (00:32:11) 清真寺以外：Roman Bridge、Calahorra Tower、Alcazar、Medina Azahara (00:36:02) 結語，下集預告 Show note https://ltsoj.com/podcast-ep148 Facebook https://facebook.com/travel.wok Instagram https://instagram.com/travel.wok 意見回饋 https://forms.gle/4v9Xc5PJz4geQp7K7 寫信給主廚 travel.wok@ltsoj.com 旅行熱炒店官網 https://ltsoj.com/
As the morning sun shines on the Golden Gate Palace, brother and sister Hisham and Asma prepare for the journey of a lifetime. It is 791 CE, and the Abbasid Caliphate is at the height of its power, stretching from India to North Africa. With over half a million inhabitants, its capital city of Madinat al-Salaam, also known as Baghdad, is the largest in the Islamic Empire, possibly the world. And it's only 30 years old.当晨曦照耀在金门宫时，希沙姆和阿斯玛兄妹正在为一生难忘的旅程做准备。现在是公元 791 年，阿拔斯哈里发正处于权力的顶峰，从印度一直延伸到北非。其首都古城萨拉姆（也称为巴格达）拥有超过 50 万居民，是伊斯兰帝国中最大的城市，可能是世界上最大的城市。而且才30岁。Asma and Hisham will leave at sunset for the hajj, the holy pilgrimage to Mecca. Most people make the journey when they're older and wealthier, but Hisham and Asma have wanted to make this journey together since they were children.Asma 和 Hisham 将在日落时分前往麦加朝圣地朝圣。大多数人在年长和富有的时候开始了这段旅程，但 Hisham 和 Asma 从小就想一起完成这段旅程。They intend to travel with the big hajj caravan that is protected by the caliph soldiers. The caliph Al-Rashid himself is also traveling with the caravan this year. The hajj caravan is like a massive mobile city, with soldiers, cooks, doctors and merchants, servants and enslaved people. The journey is long, with dangers like disease, robbery, and dehydration. Because of these perils, Hisham and Asma want to travel with the larger group— but a last-minute mishap threatens to undo months of careful planning.他们打算乘坐由哈里发士兵保护的大朝觐商队。哈里发拉希德本人今年也与大篷车同行。朝觐商队就像一个巨大的移动城市，有士兵、厨师、医生和商人、仆人和奴隶。旅途漫长，伴随着疾病、抢劫和脱水等危险。由于这些危险，Hisham 和 Asma 想和更多人一起旅行——但最后一刻的意外可能会让数月的周密计划化为乌有。When the siblings visit the market to check on the supplies they've purchased, the merchant tells them one of their camels has fallen ill, and he doesn't have any replacements.Without the camel, the siblings won't be able to depart with the caravan. They search the marketplace, bustling with people from different ethnic backgrounds, such as Persians, Arabs, Turks, Africans, and Indians, and following different religions like Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and Zoroastrianism. The market sells everything from locally made pottery, Egyptian glass, and paper from Samarkand, to Chinese silk, gold from Africa, and fox fur from the distant north. But with the caravan leaving tonight, no one has a camel available.当兄妹俩去市场检查他们购买的物资时，商人告诉他们他们的一只骆驼病了，他没有任何替代品。没有骆驼，兄妹俩将无法离开与大篷车。他们搜索市场，熙熙攘攘的人群来自不同的种族背景，如波斯人、阿拉伯人、土耳其人、非洲人和印度人，信奉不同的宗教，如伊斯兰教、犹太教、基督教和祆教。市场出售各种商品，从当地制造的陶器、埃及玻璃和撒马尔罕的纸张，到中国的丝绸、非洲的黄金和遥远北方的狐皮。但是今晚大篷车离开，没有人有骆驼可用。Though the hajj is primarily a religious journey, the siblings have other, personal hopes for it. Hisham and Asma come from a wealthy family and both had tutors as children.Hisham is studying to become a scholar, progressing from Arabic grammar to Islamic law and Persian love poetry, then to Indian-inspired mathematics and Greek philosophy and medicine. With scholars from all over the empire traveling to Mecca and important intellectual centers on the way, the hajj is a great learning opportunity.虽然朝觐主要是一次宗教之旅，但兄弟姐妹对此还有其他个人希望。 Hisham 和 Asma 都来自一个富裕的家庭，从小都有家庭教师。Hisham 正在学习成为一名学者，从阿拉伯语法到伊斯兰法律和波斯爱情诗歌，然后是印度启发的数学和希腊哲学和医学。来自帝国各地的学者前往麦加和途中的重要知识中心，朝觐是一个很好的学习机会。Asma, meanwhile, has literary ambitions. As a woman, a life of formal scholarship is not available to her. Instead, she is honing her skills as a poet. She hopes to compose poetry about the journey that will catch the attention of important women in the city, and maybe even Queen Zubayda.The siblings split up to search for a camel. Hisham heads toward the library complex to ask the scholars' advice. An elderly scholar studying Galen and Hippocrates tells him how to treat a wound. An Aramaic translator from Damascus shares a list of useful herbs for upset stomach on the road. A Persian poet wants to share his latest poetry, but Hisham doesn't see how that will get him the camel for tonight, so he kindly refuses. As he says goodbye, they give him the names of important theology scholars to visit in Medina, on the way to Mecca. But to get there, he'll need a camel.与此同时，阿斯玛也有文学抱负。作为一名女性，她无法享受正规奖学金的生活。相反，她正在磨练自己作为诗人的技能。她希望创作有关旅程的诗歌，以引起城市中重要女性的注意，甚至可能引起祖拜达女王的注意。兄弟姐妹分手寻找骆驼。 Hisham 前往图书馆大楼征求学者们的意见。一位研究盖伦和希波克拉底的年长学者告诉他如何治疗伤口。来自大马士革的阿拉姆语翻译分享了一份在路上治疗胃部不适的有用草药清单。一位波斯诗人想分享他最新的诗歌，但 Hisham 不明白这将如何让他成为今晚的骆驼，所以他善意地拒绝了。在他告别时，他们给了他重要神学学者的名字，让他在前往麦加的途中去麦地那拜访。但要到达那里，他需要一头骆驼。Meanwhile, Asma visits an older, married cousin. An enslaved girl opens the door, and takes Asma to the women's quarters, where men cannot enter. Her cousin wants to hear Asma's latest poetry, but Asma tells her she's in a hurry and explains their predicament. She's in luck— her cousin's husband has a camel to offer them.With their arrangements secure at last, they make their final preparations. At the designated times for men and women, each performs a ritual ablution at one of Baghdad's many public bathhouses.与此同时，阿斯玛拜访了一位年长的已婚堂兄。一个被奴役的女孩打开门，把阿斯玛带到了男人不能进入的女性宿舍。她的表妹想听听阿斯玛最新的诗歌，但阿斯玛告诉她她很着急，并解释了他们的困境。她很幸运——她表哥的丈夫有骆驼可以送给他们。随着他们的安排终于确定下来，他们进行了最后的准备。在指定的男女时间，每个人都会在巴格达众多公共浴室之一进行仪式沐浴。As the sun sets, the city's criers announce the caravan's departure, and the townspeople flock to watch the pilgrims leave.太阳落山时，城市的告示者宣布商队出发，市民蜂拥而至观看朝圣者离开。
The Aghlabids were an Arab Dynasty of Emirs that ruled Ifriqya, a historical region consisting of Tunisia, Libya, and Algeria and parts of Southern Italy and Sicily, for about a century beginning in 800 CE. The Aghlabids gained power when Ibrahim al-Aghlab was appointed Emir of the region. Under Aghlabid rule, Ifriqya became the first autonomous state in the Abbasid Caliphate. The capital of Ifriqya was in the present-day Tunisian city of Kairouan, which became the most important center of academics in the Maghreb under Aghlabid rule. Aghlabid rule over Ifriqya ended around 900 CE when the Fatimids came to power. Thank you to Kirsten Mullin for this article.
Once the Seljuks had taken over the last vestiges of the Abbasid Caliphate, they came into direct contact with the Fatimid Caliphate and the Roman Empire. Despite being outnumbered, the Seljuks proved themselves to be masters in the art of war and conquest. Within a few decades Seljuks had conquered the HolyLand, and most of Anatolia... suddenly taking their place on the world stage.The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events of the Greek People from the fall of Constantinople in 1453 to the Greek War of Independence in 1821-1832, through to the Greco-Turkish War from 1919 to 1922 to the present day.Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.comMusic by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com
The Muslim soldiers of the Abbasid Caliphate prepare to face off with the Chinese soldiers of the Tang Dynasty.
The Abbasid caliphate (750-1258) and its associated "golden age of Islam" is famous for a range of achievements in science, literature, and culture. The preservations and translations of ancient Greek texts to Arabic and the flow of discussion, philosophy, the merging of Persian, Greek and Arabic thought with Islam the countless inventions and new paths in science, mathematics and astronomy. All these are more or less known widely. Huge achievements. A mass of ancient texts were preserved for our eyes thanks to Persian scientists. But what about...Pickles?! What do we know about this superb condiment I say?!!?Well let's try and get a sense of place and a starting point to our story!Baghdad was founded in 762 as The City of Peace.The Abbasid empire stretched from the edges of India to the borders of Europe. Baghdad was the heart of the Islamic world and the centre of political rule. It was also the centre of the Translation Movement, when scholars from around the world came together at the House of Wisdom in Baghdad, translating ancient Greek and Roman texts on subjects like algebra, medicine, and astronomy. Music, poetry and art flourished. The society of the Abbasid Caliphate was diverse and open. Think of it a little bit like the “Citadel” in Game of Thrones.As a Metropolis of a vast empire, Baghdad it was a sprawling city with houses of main thoroughfares, connected by narrow, winding and shade-giving streets; all within earshot of the local mosque. Business and trade were kept to the main streets and public squares, bustling and noisy with its food stalls and many other traders. Gardens both public and private, were an imitation of paradise with attention and care to details. Huge water-raising machines could be seen pumping water from rivers into the fields and to the cities and houses.In this hugely influential cultural city al-Baghdadi was born in 1239AD. He was a scribe, and was a compiler of an early Arabic cookbook of the Abbasid period, The Book of Dishes. Originally with 160 recipes but later 260 more were added.Thank you and see you soon!Music by Pavlos Kapralos and Motion Array (Arabian Nights, Barren Sands)Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. If you love to time-travel through food and history why not join us at https://plus.acast.com/s/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Battle of Talas was a pivotal moment in history and one of the earliest engagements between Muslim and Chinese forces. This battle involved the forces of the new Abbasid Caliphate, going up against a resurgent Tang Dynasty. Both empires wanted to secure their hold over Central Asia and its valuable Silk Road routes. This episode discusses the origins of the two sides in this conflict.
In this weeks episode we take a look at the fall of the infamous Caliphate of The Abbasids, And the Mongol Conquest of Baghdad in 1258. What was the Abbasid Caliphate like in 1258? What caused the Mongols to sucseed in the conquest of Baghdad? Find out this week on "Well That Aged Well". With "Erlend Hedegart".Find Medievalist.net here:https://www.medievalists.net/Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/well-that-aged-well. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In 751 A.D., the forces of Tang China, led by a Korean general, met a distant foe on a battlefield in what is now Kyrgyzstan: the Muslims of the Abbasid Caliphate.What resulted was a key turning point in human history, though one seldom appreciated in the Western world.
The Caliph al-Mahdi and Patriarch Timothy I had a famous debate at the height of the Abbasid Caliphate about the differences between Christianity and Islam, over a thousand years ago. It stands as one of the greatest examples of mutual understanding and respect between the two faiths.
In this episode we visit The 10th Century Islamic world, and the Fatimid Caliphate. We discuss how they rose to power, and their height and fall, and what their rule was like, from their arcitecthure and their rivalry with the Abbasid Caliphate. This week on "Well That Aged Well", With "Erlend Hedegart"- Links where you can find professor Pruitt here: https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/khamseen/short-form-videos/2020/al-aqmar-mosque/https://wisc.academia.edu/JenniferPruitthttps://arthistory.wisc.edu/staff/jennifer-pruitt/Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/well-that-aged-well. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Abbasid Caliphate had made it so far East that they came face to face with another superpower in the east. The Chinese Tang Dynasty was also expanding its borders West, and when the two superpowers met in the narrow valley of Talas... the epic battle between the Chinese and the Arabs happened in the year 751.The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events of the Greek People from the fall of Constantinople in 1453 to the Greek War of Independence in 1821-1832, all the way through to the Greco-Turkish War from 1919 to 1922.Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.comMusic by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com
750 - 945 - The Abbasid Caliphate marked the Golden Age of Arabic culture when Baghdad became the cultural and economical centre of the world, but many dynastic entities rose to power creating an empire of intense competition.
The Abbasid Caliphate existed for hundreds of years longer than its Islamic predecessors. Dr Harry Munt, University of York, returns to the show to explain their reign and longevity.
Widely regarded as Islam's Golden Age, the Abbasid Caliphate was best known for its immense contributions to science, literature, and religion. Modern Cameras, Algebra, Air Conditioner, 1001 Nights, Modern Medicine, Qandil Lamp, Water Clock, Irrigation Methods, and so so much more were all invented during the Abbasid Caliphate. Along with an intelligence surveillance network, massive cross-continental trade routes, and a sophisticated taxation system, the Abbasid Caliphate lasted nearly 500 years. Thank you to Heba Assem for sharing all your knowledge on this fascinating and immense empire. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
The Mongols were known for unleashing a series of unrelenting horrors upon the Islamic world, from the catastrophic destruction of the Khwarezmian Empire under Chinggis Khan, to the sack of Baghdad under his grandson Hulegu, where the Caliph himself was killed on Mongol order. No shortage of Islamic authors over the thirteenth century remarked upon the Mongols as a deathblow to Islam, a punishment sent by God for their sins. Yet, many of the Mongols of the west end of the empire even before the end of the thirteenth century converted to Islam, and in time some of the heirs of Chinggis Khan held the sharia over the yassa. In today's episode, we explore why so many Mongols chose to convert to Islam. I'm your host David, and this is Kings and Generals: Ages of Conquest. The Mongolian interaction with Islam began in the twelfth century, as Muslim merchants came to Mongolia with expensive goods such as textiles or metal weapons and tools to exchange for furs and animals to sell in China or Central Asia. Some of these merchants took up valued roles among the up and coming Mongol chiefs; at least two Muslims, Hasan the Sartaq and Ja'far Khoja, were among the warlord Temujin's close allies during his fabled escape to lake Baljuna, where they swore long lasting loyalty to him. Hasan's arrival brought much need flocks of sheep to help feed Temujin's starving men, while Ja'far Khoja was supposedly a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad. Ja'far served Temujin in valued roles for the rest of his life, acting as an embassy to the Jin Emperor and as daruqachi, or overseer, over the Jin capital of Zhongdu and its environs once the Mongols took it in 1215. When Temujin took the title of Chinggis Khan and began to expand the Mongol Empire, initially Muslims found little reason to lament the expansion of the Great Khan. Muslim merchants continued to serve in prominent roles, acting as emissaries and spies on behalf of Chinggis Khan, who rewarded them handsomely: gladly did Chinggis give them gifts and overpay for their wares in order to encourage them to make the difficult journey to Mongolia, as well as bring him useful information of Central Asia. One such Central Asian, Mahmud, served as Chinggis' loyal envoy to the Khwarezm-Shah Muhammad. His actions earned him the title of Yalavach, becoming Mahmud the Messenger. In the Tarim Basin in 1218, the local Muslim population had suffered oppression under the Naiman prince Kuchlug, who had usurped power in the Qara-Khitai Empire. When Chinggis Khan's great general Jebe Noyan entered the region pursuing Kuchlug, he proclaimed that all those who willingly submitted would be free to worship as they chose. The region largely seems to have swiftly thrown out Kuchlug's garrisons and officers and happily accepted Mongol rule, not as conquerors but liberators. This, of course, was not the case for the next stage of Mongol expansion. The highly destructive campaign against the Kwarezmian Empire launched in 1219 resulted in the deaths of perhaps millions of people from what is now Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan through eastern Iran and Afghanistan, a predominatly Muslim region. There are no shortage of accounts of horrendous atrocities suffered throughout the former domains of the Khwarezm-shahs. Though most of what is now modern Iran submitted peacefully to the Mongol commander Chormaqun over the 1230s, with the arrival of Hulegu in the 1250s a new wave of massacres were unleashed, culminating in the infamous sack of Baghdad in 1258 and death of the ‘Abbasid Caliph, an immense blow the psyche of the ummah. At the end of the 1250s it seemed reasonable to anticipate that soon the whole of the remaining Muslim world would become the subject of the Grand Khan. The initial period after the Mongol conquest was, for many Muslims, not easier. Statements by modern writers of Mongol religious toleration have been greatly over-exaggerated. While it is true that the Mongols in the early years of the Empire generally did not persecute on the basis of religion, the Mongols did persecute on the basis on specific beliefs that they felt ran contrary to steppe custom or the laws of Chinggis Khan, the great yassa. For example, for slaughtering animals the Mongols forbid the spilling of blood. This differed greatly from Muslim and Jewish halal and kosher slaughter, that mandated the draining of it. This in particular became a frequent source of conflict over the thirteenth century, with the Mongols feeling the spilling of blood on the earth would bring misfortune. We are told from the Persian writer Juvaini, a member of Hulegu's entourage in the 1250s, that Chinggis Khan' second son Chagatai so thoroughly enforced this prohibition that “for a time no man slaughtered sheep openly in Khorasan, and Muslims were forced to eat carrion.” Essentially, the Mongol viewpoint was that as long as a given religion adherents remained loyal and did not perform the tenets the Mongols forbid, then the worshippers could practice freely. But such freedoms could be revoked: Khubilai Khan in the 1280s, upon feeling insulted when a group of Muslims at his court refused to eat meat he offered them, banned halal slaughter and circumcision, on pain of property loss and death, for almost the entire decade. A Khwarezmian refugee to the Delhi Sultanate writing around 1260, Juzjani, wrote of his sincere belief that Chagatai and other members of the Mongol leadership intended a genocide of the Muslims. Why then, did Islam succeed in converting the Mongols of western Asia, after such a low-point? It was a matter of proximity. The majority of the population in the major centres in the Golden Horde, Ilkhanate and Chagatai Khanate were Muslims, ensuring that not only could sufis and others proselytize to the Mongol leadership, but also their military. Efforts by Buddhists or various Christian representatives, be they Catholic, Syriac or Nestorian, lacked comparable resources or presence, and their efforts were generally restricted to attempting to convert the highest ranking Mongols. While this brought them some influence, in contrast to the image in most historical narrative sources monarchs tended to convert once enough of their followers had done so for it to be a sound decision for their legitimacy. More Mongols simply had closer proximity to Muslims populations than they ever did Christian or Buddhist, leading to a more thorough conversion than any Franciscan friar could ever accomplish. Similar proximity prompted the slow sinicization of the Mongols in Yuan China. While the Mongols disliked certain tenets of Islam, they still found use of it. Islamic craftsmen, administrators and healers were quickly spread across the Mongol Empire, accompanying every Khan and Noyan everywhere from campaigns to their personal camps. In short order they commanded armies, often of their own locally raised forces, to fight for the khans. The various Islamic peoples of Central Asia, be they Turkic or Iranic, could provide a plethora of skills and manpower the Mongols found useful or themselves lacked. Various Mongol armies, particularly the tamma garrison forces, were stationed in close proximity to Islamic centres for extended periods of time. Mongol princes from the highest ranks of the empire, including Chinggis Khan and his own sons, took Muslim wives and concubines. For the lower ranking soldiers forced to leave their families behind in Mongolia, they took Muslim wives and began new Muslim families which replaced their own. By the reign of Chinggis Khan's son and successor Ogedai, Muslims made up many of the highest ranking members of the bureaucracy and administration from eastern Iran to Northern China. Some of these men, such as Mahmud Yalavach, his son Mas'ud Beg, and ‘Abd al-Rahman, served as heads of the Branch Secretariats the Mongols established to govern Asia. These men were answerable only to the Great Khan, and held immensely powerful positions. The proximity of high ranking Muslims throughout the Mongol government and army in significant numbers made them an influential force. The presence of well educated Islamic jurists in the courts of the Khans is very well attested, and a merchant who showed great fiscal ability could find himself richly rewarded in lucrative ortogh arrangements with Mongol princes, where a Mongol prince would provide silver and other currencies, taken via conquest, tribute and taxation, to a merchant as a loan, who would then use it for trade, make money and pay back the prince. Sometimes a well connected merchant could even be rewarded with prominent government position once they won the favour of a prince or khan. The Mongol search for whatever skills they saw as useful particularly rewarded Muslims with aptitude in alchemy and astrology. The Khans of the Ilkhanate spent considerable sums of money on the alchemists who claimed to be able to produce gold or prolong life, much to the chagrin of the Ilkhanid vizier and historian Rashid al-Din. Astrologists who could help determine the future or courses of action also received great reward, for the Mongols put great stock in this, as it was a position similar to the occupation of their own shamans. With the mention of the shamans, we should give a brief account of the Mongols pre-Islamic religion, and in what ways it helped pave the way for their conversions. Though often dubbed “shamanism,” this is a poor description. Shamans occupied only a part of the Mongol folk religion, which was a series of practices relating to the appeasement and interpretation of spirits which inhabited every part of the natural world. It was the fear of offending these spirits which was behind the Mongols' own methods of slaughter, refusing to spill blood on the earth, place dirty things into running water or urinate or place knives into fire and ashes. It was the job of shamans to communicate, appease or harness these spirits, and ensure no misfortune befell the family or, after 1206, the Empire. The duties of shamans strictly fell to influencing events within the current life, rather than with a next level of existence. Thus, for the Mongols it was useful to accumulate other holymen who could interact with the supernatural on their behalf beyond what their own shamans did. It also demonstrates why, once they did convert, the Mongols saw it fit to continue to commune with shamans, and makes it so difficult for many to accept the conversion of the Mongols as sincere. In fact, as historians like Devin DeWeese or Peter Jackson have thoroughly argued, we are in no place to gauge the authenticity of any Mongol's conversion. Our vantage point centuries later, and nature of our sources, leaves us unable to actually determine the conviction of each convert, and makes it inappropriate to reduce the story of a given khan's conversion to simply a matter of political convenience. The Mongols actively selected aspects of sedentary societies which benefitted themselves, and therefore could choose to profess Islam while continuing observe shamanic practices and standard cultural actions, all the while seeing no juxtaposition between this. The earliest conversions of the Mongols or their servants began in the 1230s and 40s. One of the earliest, most prominent figures to convert was not even a Mongol, but a Uyghur named Korguz, Ogedai's appointment to the new Branch Secretariat of Western Asia, covering Iran and the Caucasus, towards the end of his life. Korguz was one of the most powerful civilian officials in the empire, and his conversion to Islam from Buddhism at the start of the 1240s marked the highest profile convert yet in the Mongol government, though he was killed in 1244 on the order of Ogedai's widow, the regent Torogene. Batu, shortly before the climactic battle against the Hungarians at Mohi in 1241, certainly had a number of Muslims in his army. According to Juvaini, while preparing for the confrontation Batu ascended a hill to pray to Eternal Blue Heaven, and asked the Muslims in his army to pray for victory as well. It is unclear if they were Muslim troops raised from Central Asia and the steppe, or Mongol converts to Islam in his army. The exact mechanics of conversion are unknown. Though the historical sources like to portray the people following a prominent prince or khan's conversion, it seems generally that it was the other way around, where the lower ranks converted in enough numbers to make it useful or safe for a prince to convert. For example, one of the primary army units in Mongol expansion and consolidation were the tamma, a sort of garrison force permanently stationed in a region, made up of a mixed body of nomadic and sedentary troops. The Mongols in these troops were usually forbidden to have their wives and families accompany them. Separated from their homeland, families or local shamans, and taking new, local wives who were generally Muslims, these Mongols were largely removed from the infrastructure that would have encouraged the maintenance of their traditional religion and made them more susceptible to conversion. If not themselves, then their children. Perhaps the best example comes from the tamma commander Baiju, stationed in the Caucasus and Anatolia from the early 1240s until the start of the 1260s. Over the twenty or so years of his career, he appears in a variety of historical accounts, which demonstrate not only the presence of a great number of Muslims in his camp, as advisers, administrators and sufis, but also demonstrate the gradual conversion of his men. By the end of his life, according to sources like the Mamluk encyclopedist al-Nuwayri, Baiju himself became a Muslim and asked to be washed and buried in the Muslim fashion on his death. Perhaps the most famous convert though, was Berke. A son of Jochi and grandson of Chinggis Khan, Berke is most well known for his war against his cousin Hulegu over the Caucasus. Conflicting accounts are given for his conversion, with some having him raised a Muslim, while others suggest a conversion in the 1240s, drawn to Islam through the efforts of the sufi Shaykh Sayf al-Din Bakharzi. Certainly by the 1250s Berke was a Muslim, and quite a sincere one: the Franciscan Friar William of Rubruck remarks during his trips through the Jochid territories in 1253 that Berke was a Muslim, and forbid the consumption of pork in his camp. Juvaini reported that meat at Mongke Khaan's enthronement feast in 1251 was slaughtered in halal fashion out of deference to Berke, and Juzjani in distant Delhi had learned of Berke's Islam by 1260. Mamluk accounts present him having a Muslim vizier and showing great respect for qadis and other Muslim holymen. Yet, the Mamluk embassy also remarked that Berke still continued to dress and wear his hair in the distinctive Mongolian style, rather than don Islamic clothing. While Berke's war with Hulegu is often portrayed as his anger over the death of the Caliph, it seems this was a secondary concern to him. His own letter to Sultan Baybars remarks on his anger over Hulegu's infringement of the yassa of Chinggis Khan, by failing to send Berke loot from Baghdad and Iraq or consult with him. The fact that war began three years after Baghdad's fall, and that Hulegu occupied Jochid territory in northern Iran and the Caucasus after Mongke's death, suggests that Berke's immediate concerns were more strategic than spiritual. Islam for the early converts like Berke was not a change of identity, but an acceptance alongside their existing beliefs and incorporated into a Chinggisid world view. Almost certainly Berke, like his Islamic successors, continued to consult with shamans and the yassa, yet never felt disloyal to the sharia. While Berke's conversion was accompanied by some of his brothers and commanders, it did not precipitate the Islamization of the emerging Golden Horde. Following Berke's death around 1266, it took some 14 years for another Islamic Khan to sit on the throne of the Jochids. At the start of the 1280s, both the westernmost khanates of the Mongol Empire saw the enthronement of Muslim rulers: Töde-Möngke taking the throne in the Golden Horde between 1280 and 1282,, and from 1282 to 1284 Tegüder Ahmad in the Ilkhanate. Once more, the sources hint that shaykhs and sufis were behind the conversion of both men, and continued to be held in great esteem in both courts. For the Ilkhan Tegüder, who upon his enthronement went by the name of Sultan Ahmad, we have a variety of sources which describe his commitment to Islam, which vary widely and demonstrate why it remains difficult for many to accept the authenticity of the early conversions. In a letter Tegüder sent to the Mamluk Sultan Qalawun, Tegüder spoke of establishing sharia law in the Ilkhanate, protected pilgrimage routes and built new religious buildings, similar claims to what Töde-Möngke made in his first letter to the Mamluks around similar time. Tegüder argued that based on the fact of their now shared religion it was easier for the Mamluk Sultans to submit to him. Cilician Armenian writers like Het'um of Corycus and Step'annos Orbelian generally portray Tegüder as a prosecutor of Christians. Yet at the same time the Syriac churchman Bar Hebraeus wote of Tegüder as a friend to Christians, an upholder of religious toleration who exempted them from taxation and allowed Hebraeus to build a new church, while the Mamluks were largely skeptical of his conversion. Ghazan, the great reformer of the Ilkhanate, sought to portray himself as a powerful Muslim monarch and an heir to the defunct ‘Abbasid Caliphate, but also as the first true Muslim Ilkhanate. For this reason, his two predeceassers who were attached to Islam, Tegüder and Baidu, were both denigrated in official accounts from his reign. Ghazan was raised a Buddhist, and only came to Islam a few weeks before his enthronement, urged to convert by his commander Nawruz Noyan and the Shaykh Sadr al-Din al-Hamuwayi during his rebellion against Ilkhan Baidu. While his biographer Rashid al-Din desperately sought to portray Ghazan's conversion causing his commanders and soldiers to follow suit, it seems almost certain that it was in fact the opposite, and that by converting Ghazan hoped to gain the wavering support of Baidu's Muslim followers. Ghazan did so successfully, and overthrew Baidu only a few months after he had himself seized the throne. Upon becoming IlKhan, on the instigation of his zealous general Nawruz, Ghazan order the destruction of Christian, Jewish, Buddhist and Zoroastrian centres in Muslim cities in his empire and imposed the jizya. However, these harsh measures were quickly rescinded by 1297 with the downfall of Nawruz, though Buddhists did not return to the prominence they had previously enjoyed. Ghazan before the end of the 1290s donned a turban and even declared jihad against the Mamluks. Though some Mamluk scholars, none more famous than the jurist and scholar Ibn Taymiyya, were not convinced of Ghazan's Islam. Outside of Damascus in 1300, Ibn Taymiyya insulted both Ghazan and his vizier, the Jewish convert to Islam Rashid al-Din, of being false Muslims. Ghazan, he stated, continued to worship Chinggis Khan in place of sharia. The life of Ghazan's brother and successor Oljeitu demonstrates perhaps the most extreme example of a Mongol prince's flexible approach to religion. His father Arghun had the young Oljeitu baptized a Nestorian Christian and given the name of Nicholas, supposedly after the Pope Nicholas IV, with whom Arghun was attempting to ally with against the Mamluks. As a teen, he converted to Buddhism, when he took the Buddhist name of Oljeitu. Under the influnece of a wife, he then converted to Sunni islam, taking the name of Muhammad Khudabanda, servant of God, which became the source of rude puns on his name: kharbunda, donkey driver. First he attached himself to the Sunni school of Hanafism, then to Shafi'ism, before frustration with fighting between the schools turned him back to Buddhism, before in 1309 returning to Islam, but this time abandon the Sunnis for Shi'ism. A number of different sources offer explanations for what drove Oljeitu to become a Shi'a, generally focusing on how a various princes, commanders, scholars and others convinced upon Oljeitu the merits of Shi'a Islam. One particularly detailed account has a Shi'a Scholar describe the succession of the first of the Rashidun Caliphs, those accepted in Sunni Islam, to the Prophet Muhammad instead of 'Ali, remarking to Oljeitu it would be as if a non-Chinggisid general were to succeed Chinggis Khan. According to the Mamluk sources, Oljeitu's conversion to Shi'ism prompted a series of rebellions across Ilkhanid Iraq. In some accounts, Oljeitu converted back to Sunni Islam shortly before his death in 1316. His son, Abu Sa'id, followed him to the throne, a Sunni Muslim who did not waver in his faith as his father. Following Ghazan's reign from 1295 until 1304, the Ilkhanate became an Islamic state, with the majority of its army and upper echelons converted to Islam. The process was slower in the Golden Horde and Chagatai Khanate. After Töde-Möngke's deposition in 1287, the Golden Horde would not have another Muslim monarch until the reign of Özbeg, who took the throne in 1313. It seems he converted shortly after his accession, seemingly to gain the support of influential noyans within the Horde. In legendary accounts Özbeg was converted by a sufi named Baba Tükles, who proved the veracity of his religion when he comfortably survived an oven wearing nothing but chain maille, while the shaman he challenged was burnt to death in his oven. However, Baba Tükles does not enter into accounts of Özbeg's life until centuries after his death. It seems likely that Özbeg was converted by influential sufi and islamic jurists in his entourage, and the increased islamization of members of military and aristocracy making it a viable political choice to convert as well. To cement his reign and his religion, Özbeg ordered the executions of over a hundred Chinggisid princes and noyans. Other prominent converts, such as Ghazan in the Ilkhanate and Tughluq Temur in the eastern Chagatai Khanate, also carried out large scale purges though none matched those of Özbeg. So extensive was Özbeg's purge that within a generation, the line of Batu had died out within the Golden Horde. In the Chagatai Khanate, Islamization proceed in stops and starts. In the western half of the Chagatai realm, centered as it was around the trade cities of Transoxania and closer to the Iranian world, islamization went quicker, more or less winning out by the mid 14th century. It would take another century in the eastern half of the Chagatai realm, Moghulistan, where steppe lifestyle maintained greater influence. Not until the reign of Tughluq Temur's grandson, appropriately named Muhammad Khan, in the fifteenth century did Islam win out most of the remaining holdouts, according to the mid-sixteenth century source of Mirza Haidar Dughlat. For the eastern Chagatais, where the local islamic population was much smaller, there was much less interaction with the faith, and thus it took much longer for the military and the noyans to fully convert, despite the conversion of the Khans themselves. Still, in policy men like Özbeg, Ghazan and Oljeitu largely matched their forebears in providing taxation exemptions, favours and other privileges to Christians, especially Franciscan missionaries, though on a lesser scale than earlier in the thirteenth century. Their successors, Özbeg's son Janibeg and Oljeitu's son Abu Sa'id, proved less welcoming, as even Christians found their privileges revoked. Janibeg ordered his men to dress in the fashion of Muslims, while Abu Sa'id sought to become the protector of the Holy Cities of Mecca and Medina, one year even sending an elephant there for inexplicable reasons. Still, these monarchs showed themselves to continue in their traditions, such as acts of levirate marriage, that is marrying their father's wives, something forbidden by Islam. Islam proved an aspect of these monarch's identities, but it took many generations in Iran for all elements of Mongol culture and Chinggisid ideology to be driven out, and in the steppes the process, it can be argued, never truly fully replaced the memory of the house of Chinggis Khan. Our series on the Mongols will continue, and we will visit in detail the topic of Mongol religious tolerance very soon, which ties closely to this matter, so be sure to subscribe to the Kings and Generals Podcast. If you'd like to help us continue to bring you great content, please consider supporting us on patreon at www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. Please also consider leaving us a positive review and rating on the podcast catcher of your choice, and sharing us with your friends; each one helps the podcast out alot. This episode was researched and written by our series historian, Jack Wilson. I'm your host David, and we'll catch you on the next one.
In this episode we dive into the history of homosexuality, same-sex desire, and gay love in Islamic societies. We examine the realm of religion, scripture, literature, and medicine and what they tell us about same-sex desire. We recount the lives of famous gay and lesbian figures from the early Muslim community through the Abbasid Caliphate,...
In this special episode of the Blood Brothers Podcast, Dilly Hussain speaks with Shaykh Mohamed Yaffa from Halifax, Canada. #BloodBrothersPodcast #ShaykhMohamedYaffa #BlackHistoryMonth Shaykh Yaffa explains the daily challenges of being black, Muslim and immigrant in Canada at a time of heightened racism and Islamophobia. He also also shares his thoughts on the ignored Islamic history of Africa and anti-black racism which began during the Abbasid Caliphate. Topics of discussion also include Shaykh Yaffa's experience while studying in Pakistan and the forced conversion of African slaves to Christianity by European colonialists. This episode of the Blood Brothers Podcast was in partnership with Family Break: https://familybreak.org.uk/
(NOTE: This is Pt. 1 or 2. The Full Episode & all other bonus content is available via Patreon.com/thehistoryofchina) Mongke has ascended as the Great Khan of the Mongols and set loose his younger brother, Hulegu Ilkhan to bring the Islamic world to heel. The Caliph of the Abbasid Dynasty, al-Mustasim, sits ensconced in his citadel city of Baghdad - the jewel of Islam - and believes that Allah above and his loyal subjects beneath will be more than a match for barbarian hordes. He's about to learn a lesson neither he - nor the world - will ever forget... Time Period Covered: 1258-1259 CE Major Historical Figures: Mongol Empire: Hülegü Ilkhan [ca. 1215-1265] General Kitbukha [d. 1260] General Baiju [1201-1260] Abbasid Caliphate: al-Musta'sim-Billah Abu-Ahmad Abdullah bin al-Mustansir Billah, 37th Caliph [1213-1258] Governor Shahab al Din Sulaiman shah [d. 1258] Vizier Ibn al Alkami [1197-1258] Major Sources Cited: Al-Din, Rashid. Jami al Tararikh (Compendium of Histories). Al-Din, Rashid (tr. John Andrew Boyle). The Successors of Genghis Khan. Chugtai, Mizra Azeem Baig. “The Fall of Baghdad” in The Annal of Urdu Studies. Daftary, Farhad. The Isma'ilis: Their History and Doctrines. Hillenbrand, Robert. “Propaganda in the Mongol ‘World History'” in British Academy Review, issue 17 (March 2011). Hodgson, M. G. S. “The Isma'ili State” in The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol. 5: The Saljuq and Mongol Periods. Jamal, Nadia Eboo. Surviving the Mongols: Nizari Quhistani and the Continuity of Ismaili Tradition in Persia. Marozzi, Justin. Baghdad: City of Peace, City of Blood. Paris, Matthew of (tr. John Allen Giles). Chronica Majora (Matthew Paris's English History From the Year 1235 to 1273, Volume 1). Saunders, J.J. The History of the Mongol Conquests. van Ruysbroeck, Willem (tr. W. W. Rockhill & Peter Jackson). The journey of William of Rubruck to the eastern parts of the world, 1253-55, as narrated by himself, with two accounts of the earlier journey of John of Pian del Carpine. Wiet, Gaston. Baghdad: Metropolis of the Abbasid Caliphate.
(NOTE: This is Pt. 1 or 2. The Full Episode & all other bonus content is available via Patreon.com/thehistoryofchina)Mongke has ascended as the Great Khan of the Mongols and set loose his younger brother, Hulegu Ilkhan to bring the Islamic world to heel. The Caliph of the Abbasid Dynasty, al-Mustasim, sits ensconced in his citadel city of Baghdad - the jewel of Islam - and believes that Allah above and his loyal subjects beneath will be more than a match for barbarian hordes.He's about to learn a lesson neither he - nor the world - will ever forget...Time Period Covered:1258-1259 CEMajor Historical Figures:Mongol Empire:Hülegü Ilkhan [ca. 1215-1265]General Kitbukha [d. 1260]General Baiju [1201-1260]Abbasid Caliphate:al-Musta’sim-Billah Abu-Ahmad Abdullah bin al-Mustansir Billah, 37th Caliph [1213-1258]Governor Shahab al Din Sulaiman shah [d. 1258]Vizier Ibn al Alkami [1197-1258]Major Sources Cited:Al-Din, Rashid. Jami al Tararikh (Compendium of Histories).Al-Din, Rashid (tr. John Andrew Boyle). The Successors of Genghis Khan.Chugtai, Mizra Azeem Baig. “The Fall of Baghdad” in The Annal of Urdu Studies.Daftary, Farhad. The Isma’ilis: Their History and Doctrines.Hillenbrand, Robert. “Propaganda in the Mongol ‘World History’” in British Academy Review, issue 17 (March 2011).Hodgson, M. G. S. “The Isma’ili State” in The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol. 5: The Saljuq and Mongol Periods.Jamal, Nadia Eboo. Surviving the Mongols: Nizari Quhistani and the Continuity of Ismaili Tradition in Persia.Marozzi, Justin. Baghdad: City of Peace, City of Blood.Paris, Matthew of (tr. John Allen Giles). Chronica Majora (Matthew Paris’s English History From the Year 1235 to 1273, Volume 1).Saunders, J.J. The History of the Mongol Conquests.van Ruysbroeck, Willem (tr. W. W. Rockhill & Peter Jackson). The journey of William of Rubruck to the eastern parts of the world, 1253-55, as narrated by himself, with two accounts of the earlier journey of John of Pian del Carpine.Wiet, Gaston. Baghdad: Metropolis of the Abbasid Caliphate. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Abu Tahir was the leader of a mystical offshoot of mainstream Islam known as Qarmatians. He created a communist society, and defended it from the Abbasid Caliphate. But soon his hatred would drive him to do something that would cement his place in Islamic history as one of the most hated men to ever have existed. Attributions/Notes: hhttps://anthologyofheroes.wordpress.com/2021/01/25/bahrain-abu-tahir-al-janabi/ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
At the beginning of the 11th century, the Abbasid Caliphate was shattered and rival forces like the Roman Empire and the Shia Islam Fatimid Caliphate were carving up the region that would one day house the Outremer States between themselves. Yet, within the century, a new group would arrive to unite nearly all of the Caliphate's possessions under the rule and deal such crippling blows to the Romans that they would be forced to call in Frankish allies to recover their lost territory. In this episode, learn all about the origins of the Seljuk Turks in the Eurasian Steppe and their grand arrival into the Middle East. As always, maps and sources available at https://historyoftheoutremer.wordpress.com/ (historyoftheoutremer.wordpress.com )and new episodes every other week.
In 869, a poet arrives in Basra, part of the Abbasid Caliphate. Taking on the moniker “The African”, he leads the slaves in a revolt that threatens the world’s most powerful empire. Can this ambitious challenger upset the world order, or will the side with more money win out in the end?
narrated by Chris Gratien featuring Hugh Kennedy, Joshua White, Fahad Bishara, Maryam Patton, and Jeannie Miller | The first decades of Islam were characterized by a rapid territorial expansion accompanied by conflicts over leadership following the death of the Prophet Muhammad. Despite opposition from the supporters of Ali ibn Abi Talib, Muawiya Ibn Abi Sufyan would become Caliph and establish a dynasty for his clan: the Banu Umayyah. The next centuries of Islamic history would be defined by the imperial Caliphates of the Umayyads and Abbasids, who controlled empires stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to India. This episode of The Making of the Islamic World focuses on the creation of these Islamic empires, their institutional legacy, and the intellectual life of the Abbasid Caliphate during its height. We conclude with the Abbasid luminary al-Jahiz and what his writings tell us about the changing social fabric of the Abbasid world during the 9th century. « Click for More »
narrated by Chris Gratien featuring Hugh Kennedy, Joshua White, Fahad Bishara, Maryam Patton, and Jeannie Miller | The first decades of Islam were characterized by a rapid territorial expansion accompanied by conflicts over leadership following the death of the Prophet Muhammad. Despite opposition from the supporters of Ali ibn Abi Talib, Muawiya Ibn Abi Sufyan would become Caliph and establish a dynasty for his clan: the Banu Umayyah. The next centuries of Islamic history would be defined by the imperial Caliphates of the Umayyads and Abbasids, who controlled empires stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to India. This episode of The Making of the Islamic World focuses on the creation of these Islamic empires, their institutional legacy, and the intellectual life of the Abbasid Caliphate during its height. We conclude with the Abbasid luminary al-Jahiz and what his writings tell us about the changing social fabric of the Abbasid world during the 9th century. « Click for More »
After reaching its zenith under Harun al-Rashid, the Abbasid Caliphate enters into a period of stark decline. Differences of religion and ethnicity threaten to divide the Islamic empire, even as the Caliphs become increasingly reliant on slave armies. Can the Abbasid Caliphate survive, or is it doomed to fail?Music courtesy of https://www.bensound.com
1141A.D-The Kara Kitai Turkomans defeat the Seljuks at Amu Darya. 1144A.D-The Seljuks, under Zengi, recapture Edessa.Pope Eugene declares the Second Crusade.1145A.D-The Second Crusade collapses in Anatolia but succeeds in capturing Lisbon in Portugal.End of the Murabitun rule in Andalus.1146A.D-The al Muhaddithin captures Morocco.The assassins murder Seljuk Emir Zengi. 1149A.D-Al Zafir becomes the Fatimid Caliph. 1150A.D-The University of Paris is established. 1151A.D-Al Idrisi constructs a map of the then known world. 1154A.D-The Kurdish officer Nuruddin, in Seljuk service, takes Damascus.Al Faiz becomes the Fatimid Caliph in Cairo. 1157A.D-The al Muhaddithin captures Andalus. 1160A.D-Al Mustanjid becomes the Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad.Al Adid, the last of the Fatimids, becomes the Caliph in Cairo. 1163A.D-The Seljuks and the Crusaders compete for influence in Fatimid Egypt. 1166A.D-Death of Shaykh Abdul Qader Jeelani of Baghdad, called Shaykh ul Mashaiq, founder of the Qadariya Sufi order.Death of the geographer, al Idrisi.1167A.D-Establishment of Oxford University in England.1170A.D-Salahuddin takes Egypt from the Fatimids.Al Mustadi becomes the Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad. 1171A.D-End of the Fatimid era. Egypt reverts to the Abbasid Caliphate.1173A.D-Ghiasuddin Ghori established the kingdom of Ghor in Afghanistan. 1175A.D-Salahuddin consolidates his hold on Syria and Egypt.Death of Ahmed al Rifai, founder of the Rifaiyah Sufi brotherhood.1177A.D-Muhammed Ghori adds Multan, Uch, Dera Ismail Khan and Sindh to his dominions.1179A.D-Muhammed Ghori starts campaigns to capture Peshawar and Sialkot. 1182A.D-Khwaja Muhammed Ghouse of Sindh introduces the Qadariya order into India and Pakistan. 1187A.D-Battle of Hittin. Salahuddin triumphs and recaptures Jerusalem --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/history-of-islam/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/history-of-islam/support
1031A.D.-Al Qaim becomes the Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad.1032A.D.-The Church of Constantinople breaks with the Church of Rome over the issue of icons in the Church.1036A.D.-Taghril Beg becomes Seljuk Sultan.Al Mustansir becomes the Fatimid Caliph.1037A.D.-Death of Abu Ali ibn Sina, one of the greatest of physicians.Ferdinand I, king of Castille, captures Leon.1038A.D.-Death of Al Hazen, noted physicist.1043A.D-The Fatimid Empire begins to crumble. Mecca, Madina, Yemen and North Africa are lost by the Fatimids.1048A.D-Death of al Bairuni, historian, author of Kitab ul Hind.1050A.D-The Christians advance in Sicily.1051A.D-Beginning of the Murabitun revolution in West Africa.1056A.D-The Seljuk Taghril Beg and the Buyid Basisiri contest the control of Baghdad.1058A.D-Taghril Beg is anointed by Abbasid Caliph Kaim as “sultan of the east and the west” for his role in protecting the Abbasid Caliphate.1060A.D-The Seljuk Turks advance into Persia, Azerbaijan and Armenia.The Crusaders raid the coast of North Africa.1061A.D-The Murabitun capture Morocco.The Murabitun establish the city of Marrakesh as their capital.1063A.D-Taghril Beg dies childless. His nephew Alap Arsalan becomes the Seljuk sultan.1068Beginning of the Songhay Empire in West Africa.1072A.D-Battle of Manzikert. The Seljuk Turks under Alap Arsalan defeat the Byzantines under Emperor Romanus and open up Anatolia for Turkish settlement.The Christians capture Palermo in Sicily.1075A.D-The Seljuk Sultan Malik Shah retakes Syria from the Fatimids.Al Muqtadi becomes the Abbasid Caliph.1077A.D-Birth of Abdul Qader Jeelani, celebrated Sufi sage.1085A.D-Alfonso I of Castile captures Toledo, the ancient capital of Visigoth Spain. The extensive libraries of Toledo become accessible to Christian Europe.1086A.D-The Murabitun emir, Yusuf bin Tashfin, advances into Spain at the head of a powerful African force.The Nizamiya College is founded in Baghdad by Nizam ul Mulk, grand vizier to Sultan Malik Shah. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/history-of-islam/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/history-of-islam/support
In this week's #podcast episode we will talk about stories from #Sudan, #Kyrgyzstan, #Scotland, #Israel, #Botswana and celebrate news from the World Health Organization that the Africa is now officially free of polio. Visit the blog (https://taplink.cc/tunukamedia) for pictures and references.
In the dusty flood plain, 100,000 men and many times that in horses surround the walls of Baghdad. Catapults lob stones relentlessly into the city walls, hauled from great distance. Here, towers collapse under the barrage; there, ladders bring Mongol and subject peoples onto the fortifications, seizing them from the disorganized and panicking garrison. Arrows, some bearing messages, bring both confusion and injury where they land. The mighty Tigris River, the city’s lifeblood, is now part of the trap; pontoon bridges, from them dangling nets embedded with iron hooks, rest both north and south of the city to catch those trying to flee. The final ‘Abbasid Caliph sits frightened and overwhelmed in his palace, as the grasp of Hulegu Khan closes around him. Today, we discuss the fall of Baghdad, 1258. But first, we’d like to remind you that for those of you who enjoy the podcast, your support would be highly appreciated and would help us keep going. We have a patreon available for monthly or even one-time donations or, if you aren’t able to support us financially, positive reviews on Apple Podcasts or other review sites really helps us out. And now, I’m your host David, and this is Kings and Generals: Ages of Conquest. We left our previous episode off with Hulegu destroying the Nizari Ismaili state, better known at the Order of Assassins, who had controlled a series of fortresses across eastern and northern Iran. By the end of 1256, Hulegu had reduced them to but a few holdouts, and he could begin to look to his next target. Considered heretics of the worst variety by most Sunni Muslims, the Persian writer Juvaini, a member of Hulegu’s retinue, described his victory over the Nizaris in glowing terms, Hulegu as a sword of Islam carrying out God’s will. Juvaini presents Hulegu’s war as a more ‘civilized’ form of conquest compared to that of his grandfather, Chinggis Khan. Destruction was limited to Ismaili territories and the towns and fortresses that failed to submit, as opposed to the veritable tsunami of bloodshed Chinggis Khan wrought on the Khwarezmian empire over thirty years prior. What Hulegu was soon to do in Baghdad and to the titular head of Sunni Islam would not be so praised, and it is perhaps no coincidence that Juvaini’s own chronicle ends with the fall of the Ismailis. As Hulegu left Ismaili territory in the final month of 1256, his eye was drawn to the ‘Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad. In Islam, the spiritual leader of the religion was whoever was considered the successor to the Prophet Muhammad. For Shi’a Muslims, this was the imam- for Nizari Ismailis, the Imam was the ruler of Alamut, who had just been put to death on Mongol orders. For the majority of Muslims, known as Sunnis, the head of their faith was the Caliph, literally meaning ‘successor.’The first four Caliphs to succeed the Prophet were the “Rightly Guided,” the Rashidun, whose legitimacy is generally unquestioned by most Muslims. The Rashidun were succeeded by the Umayyads, who greatly extended Muslim rule east and west, across North Africa into Spain and across Eastern Iran into Central Asia. In 750, the Umayyad Caliphs were overthrown in the ‘Abbasid revolution. Claiming descent from the Prophet’s uncle ‘Abbas, it was under the early ‘Abbasids that the Caliphal capital was moved from Damascus to the newly established Baghdad along the Tigris River. Never comparable to the power of the Umayyads at their height, from the 9th century onwards the still vast ‘Abbasid empire fragmented with threat from all directions: the Fatimids in Egypt, the Samanids, Buyids and Saffarids of Iran and finally from the steppes, the Great Seljuqs, all of which ground the ‘Abbasids down until their state hardly stretched past the walls of Baghdad. The weakening of the Seljuqs after Sultan Malik-Shah’s death in 1092 allowed the ‘Abbasids to gradually reclaim independence and some authority, even repulsing a Seljuq army attacking Baghdad in 1157. The long reigns of Caliph al-Nasir and al-Mustansir, from 1180 until 1242, saw the ‘Abbasids reclaim much of central and southern Iraq. A far cry from the sweeping power they had held in the 8th century, by the 13th century they still remained influential and held prestige. For 500 years they had been the heads of Islam, and had long cultivated an useful image as invioable and holy, above temporal affairs though they were more often than not mired in them. For instance, in the late 12th century Caliph al-Nasir was in conflict with the Seljuqs who continued to rule in Iran. He allied with the rising power northeast of the Iranian Seljuqs, the Khwarezmian Empire. Once vassals of the Great Seljuqs, the Khwarezm-shahs now butted heads with them as they expanded southwards, and the reigning Khwarezm-Shah, Tekesh bin Il-Arslan, was happy to ally himself with the Caliph. In 1194 at Rayy, modern Tehran, Tekesh defeated and killed the last Seljuq Sultan in Iran, Toghrul III, ending the dynasty and sending the Sultan’s severed head to al-Nasir in Baghdad. Rather than provide freedom for the Caliphate, Tekesh now wanted to step into the place of Seljuqs. The Seljuqs’ territory in Iran was largely annexed by Tekesh Khwarezm-shah, who soon began making aggressive motions to the Caliph. Al-Nasir encouraged the Khwarezmians’ eastern neighbours, the Ghurids, in their war with Tekesh. Tekesh died in 1200, succeeded by his son Muhammad II as Khwarezm-shah who, through luck, timely assassinations and military victories, overcame the Ghurids, consolidated power over Iran and in 1217 tried to march on Baghdad itself. Muhammad’s march on Baghdad was halted by a vicious snowstorm as he crossed the Zagros mountains, forcing him back. Returning to the northeast of his empire, Muhammad would there make the poor decisions which led to the Mongol Invasion of Khwarezm, covered way back in episode 9 of this podcast. Now, some authors of the period assert that Caliph al-Nasir actually invited Chinggis Khan to attack Muhammad of Khwarezm- when placed in the context of the Caliph switching to support whoever was on the eastern side of his current foe, there is definitely a logic to it. However, as we described in detail in episode 8 of the podcast, the cause of the Mongol invasion can be found in the foolery of Muhammad Khwarezm-shah alone. Had the Mongols come on the invitation of the Caliph, then surely they would have publicized that to justify the attack and sow further confusion among the Khwarezmians. In fact, in 1221 when detachments of Jebe and Subutai’s army penetrated into northern Iraq, Caliph al-Nasir was hardly welcoming. Along with the rulers of northern Iraq’s most important cities, Muzaffar ad-Din of Irbil and Badr al-Din Lu’lu’, the de facto ruler of Mosul, the Caliph organized a short lived military coalition, which proved unnecessary as the Mongols soon withdrew. Evidently, the ‘Abbasids spread a rumour that their army was absolutely gargantuan, their power unassailable and heavenly protected, and the Mongols were hesitant to commit. Had they paid close attention in the following years, they might have called the Caliph’s bluff. In 1225 that favoured Khwarezmian rapscallion, Jalal al-Din Mingburnu, defeated a Caliphal army after the ‘Abbasids failed to provide him assistance. Jalal al-Din chased the survivors right to the suburbs of Baghdad, then went north, defeated an army from Irbil sent to assist the Caliph and captured Irbil’s ruler, Muzaffar ad-Din. Caliph al-Nasir, by then elderly, paralyzed and blind for three years, died soon after Jalal al-Din’s attack, and was succeeded by his son, az-Zahir, as the 35th Caliph… for nine months. On Caliph az-Zahir’s death in 1226, he was succeeded by his own son, al-Mustansir, the 36th and penultimate ‘Abbasid Caliph of Baghdad. As Caliph, al-Mustanir continued to try to strengthen ‘Abbasid control in Iraq and expand the army, but Mongol rule steadily spread over the region. By the start of the 1230s, Chormaqun Noyan and his lieutenants brought the submission of most of Iran and cast Mongol authority over the Caucasus. For Caliph al-Mustansir, the Mongol empire was a vast crescent to his north and east, where it stretched seemingly indefinitely. By 1235, Mongol forces mainly under Chagatai Noyan, “the Lesser,” were probing northern Iraq and directly, but hesitantly, testing ‘Abbasid hegemony in the region. In June 1237, Chagatai Noyan captured Irbil in what is now Iraqi Kurdistan, though the Citadel held out and in August Caliphal forces relieved the city. In February of 1238, an attack was launched on Baghdad, and a panicked Caliph al-Mustansir sent messages to the remaining independent Muslim powers from the Jazira and Syria down to Egypt for aid. Only 2,000 troops from the Ayyubid Sultan of Egypt, al-Kamil, reached Baghdad, and in June 1238 a caliphal army was defeated near the city. However, the defences of Baghdad itself remained formidable and the city stood defiant while the Mongols turned back from the walls, unprepared for both a long siege and or the fearsome Iraqi summer. Possibly, the Mongols suffered some sort of reverse while attacking Baghdad; some sixty years later, when the Persian historian Wassaf [vassaf] visited Baghdad, he recorded a Mongol defeat outside the walls, though this goes unmentioned by the other sources. While Baghdad remained independent, the Mongols continued to take cities in the region. Chormaqun’s successor Baiju brought the submission of the Seljuqs of Anatolia in 1243; in 1244, the Mongol general Yasa’ur rode into Syria, dislodging the remnants of Jalal al-Din’s Khwarezmians. The Ayyubids of Syria, the successors of the once mighty empire of Saladin Ayyubi, largely submitted over 1244-5, and even Antioch, one of the last of the Crusader Kingdoms, offered its submission. In late 1245 another attack on Baghdad was launched but soon aborted. The new Caliph since 1242, al-Mustasim ibn al-Mustansir, was lucky the attack was called off, for he was rather rapidly running out of allies. It seem that the new Caliph managed to avoid further attacks with a token submission: the Franscisan Friar John de Plano Carpini, present at the coronation of Guyuk Khaan in 1246, noted ‘Abbasid envoys were present in Karakorum and believed they paid a regular tribute. The 38th and final ‘Abbasid Caliph of Baghdad, al-Mustasim, was not the equal of his father or great-grandfather. While al-Nasir and al-Mustansir sought to strengthen the Caliphate, al-Mustasim was more interested in the luxury of Baghdad, and was nearly universally condemned for decadence. A great lover of music, he sponsored an entire neighbourhood in Baghdad to house musicians, including the most famous of the age, Saif al-Din Urmawi. A lover of pigeon racing, art, calligraphy and treasures, al-Mustasim was also indecisive and easily swayed by factions in his court, some of whom, such as the vizier, sought accomodation with the Mongols, while others urged to meet them in battle. As we will see shortly, the result was al-Mustasim vacillating in policy, wavering between antagonizing the Mongols and sending them gifts. Essentially, the worst sort of man to have in power when Hulegu marched on him with upwards of 100,000 men. Neither was weak leadership the only problem. Corruption and decadence of Baghdad’s elite alienated the lower classes. A weak currency and high food prices contributed to revolts; many of Baghdad’s soldiers increasingly found themselves unpaid and resorted to bandity or desertion. Topping off years of natural disasters- heavy rain, storms, annual flooding, in 1256, the Tigris, the river which runs through Baghdad, flooded for over a month, washing away much of Baghdad’s lower city. Attributed to divine displeasure at the decadent al-Mustasim, for decades afterwards this flood was remembered as the “Mustasimid flood.” As Mongol armies approached the city, pestilence killed many hundreds, if not thousands. The Caliph stood in a precarious position. Likely in late 1255, Hulegu sent a message to Caliph al-Mustasim demanding, as Hulegu had done with other rulers across the region, that Baghdad supply troops to help in the attack on the Nizari Isamilis. Al-Mustasim refused. As the ‘Abbasids had been sending tribute in the previous years and were considered vassals, such a refusal was a declaration of independence. Hulegu, having been sent in part to find how sincere the Caliph’s submission was, now had his casus belli, for to the Mongols, the Caliph of Baghdad was now in open revolt. War with the Caliph was not intended to punish Islam specifically; had the Mongols caught the Pope and considered him a rebel, certainly he would have shared a similar fate. What mattered to the Mongols was submission to their divinely mandated rule; refusal to submit was blasphemy of the highest order. After the fall of Alamut in December 1256, and spending some time near the still-resisting Nizari fortress of Lammasar, Hulegu stayed in Qazwin, just south of Alamut, until March 1257. From Qazwin he undertook a somewhat repetitive journey: from Qazwin he went to Hamadan, then to Dinavar, then Tabriz, then back to Hamadan, then back to Tabriz, then back to Hamadan in September 1257, from whence he would finally march on Baghdad. The reasons for this were multiple, and not just because Hulegu really liked northwestern Iran, though it did give him good time to evaluate the region. Firstly, Hulegu did not want to besiege Baghdad in the summer months, and instead needed to time the march so he arrived outside the city in the winter. Secondly, it provided time for his lieutenants to secure the neighbouring theaters: Kitbuqa Noyan secured through force and diplomacy Luristan and the passes through the Zagros mountains, ensuring Hulegu’s main army could march unimpeded when the time came. In Anatolia, Baiju Noyan had needed to put down a Seljuq revolt, culminating in the battle of Aksaray in October 1256. Baiju then needed to move back east, in order to march on Baghdad from the west when the time came. Thirdly, Hulegu and the Caliph engaged in an entertaining round of diplomatic fisti-cuffs. Hulegu offered the Caliph another chance to surrender, repudiating him for his failure to send troops against the Nizaris. Hulegu’s threat, as recorded by the Ilkhanid vizier Rashid al-Din, went as follows: “Previously we have given you advice, but now we say you should avoid our wrath and vengeance. Do not try to overreach yourself or accomplish the impossible, for you will only succeed in harming yourself. The past is over. Destroy your ramparts, fill in your moats, turn the kingdom over to your son, and come to us. If you do not wish to come, send all three, the vizier [al-Alqami], Sulaymanshah, and the Dawatdar, that they may convey our message word for word. If our command is obeyed, it will not be necessary for us to wreak vengeance, and you may retain your lands, army, and subjects. If you do not heed our advice and dispute with us, line up your soldiers and get ready for the field of battle, for we have our loins girded for battle with you and are standing at the ready. When I lead my troops in wrath against Baghdad, even if you hide in the sky or in the earth, ‘I shall bring you down from the turning celestial sphere; I shall pull you up like a lion. I shall not leave one person alive in your realm, and I shall put your city and country to the torch.’ “If you desire to have mercy on your ancient family’s heads, heed my advice. If you do not, let us see what God’s will is.” The Caliph refused Hulegu’s demands, and when he sent back Hulegu’s envoys, they were harassed by the people of Baghdad; the Caliph’s vizier, ibn al-Alqami, had to send soldiers to protect the envoys to ensure they weren’t killed. When Hulegu learned of the incident, he derided the Caliph as a total incompetent, and then flew into a rage when he heard the official response, which called Hulegu a young and inexperienced man: somewhat humorous, considering al-Mustasim was only four years older than Hulegu. Hulegu’s response was about as subtle as you’d expect. Again, as per the account of Rashid al-Din, quote: “God the eternal elevated [Chinggis] Khan and his progeny and gave us all the face of the earth, from east to west. Anyone whose heart and tongue are straight with us in submission retains his kingdom, property, women, children, and life. He who contemplates otherwise will not live to enjoy them. Love of status and property, conceit, and pride in transitory fortune have so seduced you that even the words of your well-wishers have no effect on you. Your ear cannot hear the advice of the compassionate, and you have deviated from the path of your fathers and forebears. You must get ready for battle, for I am coming to Baghdad with an army as numerous as ants and locusts. Be the turning of the celestial sphere how it may, the power to command is God’s.” Upon hearing this message, al-Mustasim’s vizier ibn al-Alqami understood the colossal danger they were in, and fervently argued for the Caliph to appease the Mongols. Al-Alqami has something of a bisecting reputation in the Islamic world. For some, reading the Mamluk sources, the Shia Muslim ibn al-Alqami was a conspirator, plotting with Hulegu to topple the head of Sunni Islam for his own gain. For those reading from Persian and Ilkhanid sources, ibn al-Alqami was earnestly trying to steer the Caliph away from annihilation and save as many lives as he could. On this last response from Hulegu, al-Alqami was able to convince al-Mustasim to send gifts, only for the Caliph to be talked out of it by the dawatdar, Mugahid al-Din Aybek, the Caliphate’s top military man and a staunch supporter of resistance against Hulegu. Convincing the Caliph to abandon the expensive gifts, al-Mustasim sent the following message to vizier al-Alqami to assuage his worries: “Do not fear the future, and do not talk fables, for there is friendship and unity, not enmity and hostility, between me and Hülägü and [Mongke Khaan]. Since I am their friend, they are of course friendly and benevolent toward me. The envoys’ message is false. Even if these brothers contemplate opposition to or treachery against me, what has the Abbasid dynasty to fear, when the monarchs of the face of the earth stand as our army and obey our every command? If I request an army from every country and mount to repulse the foe, I can incite Iran and Turan against these brothers. Be of stout heart, and do not fear the threats of the Mongols, for although they are powerful upstarts, they pose nothing but an empty threat to the House of Abbas.” If Rashid al-Din is accurate in recording this message, then it goes some way to demonstrate just how greatly al-Mustasim misunderstood the situation. al-Mustasim’s next letter to Hulegu spoke of monarchs who had attacked the ‘Abbasids and suffered divine retribution for it, noting specifically Muahmmad Khwarezm-shah, who for his attack on Baghdad in 1217 suffered the power of Hulegu’s grandfather. Hulegu sent another threat, promising to bring the Caliph “down miserably into the jaws of a lion,” and had enough of parlay. Hulegu had only to check with the astrologers and diviners of his retinue in order to ensure the assault had good fortune. Variously they warned of failure, catastrophe, and death for harming the Caliph. Finally, Hulegu turned to the famed Iranian scholar rescued from the Nizari fortresses, Nasir al-Din Tusi, and asked what he thought of the matter. After thinking for a moment, Tusi told Hulegu that none of these things would happen. Hulegu asked what would. Tusi replied, “Hulegu Khan will take the Caliph’s place.” And that was enough for Hulegu. The border passes were now secured, and the march on Baghdad could begin. As Hulegu marched through Kermanshah, massacres followed him. His army approached Baghdad in three directions. Kitbuqa took a route through Luristan, and would march on Baghdad from the south. Baiju Noyan came through northern Iraq, crossing the Tigris near Irbil and closing in on Baghdad’s west and north. Hulegu took the main army through the Hulwan pass and would close off Baghdad from the east, thus encircling the city. As the armies entered Iraq, cities and towns across Mesopotamia surrendered to them. In January 1258 as the Mongols closed in on the city, the Caliphal army under the Dawatdar tried to repulse Baiju’s army. They were lured into a feigned retreat; a dyke was broken and their camp flooded. Few survivors escaped back to Baghdad. By January 22ned, the Mongol armies had linked up around the city. Not just Mongols, but subject Iranians, Turks, Georgians and Armenians made up this force, with a thousand Chinese siege engineers. The defenders of Baghdad were outnumbered and without hope. For a week, the Mongols prepared their siege lines. Pontoon bridges were built across the Tigris, nets and iron hooks hanging from them to ensure none could escape either up or downriver. No stones for the catapults were within the area, so they needed to be hauled in from elsewhere. A ditch was dug around the city, the earth from the ditch used to build a rampart with gates set in it. Protective coverings were built for the siege engines. With the typical thoroughness of the early Toluids, Baghdad was closed off, its fate sealed. The assault began on January 29th. An incessant barrage of stones and arrows brought the defenders to their knees. The artillery upon the walls of Baghdad was poorly maintained and outranged by that of the Mongols, useless in the words of one source. Under mobile wooden shelters, the Mongols advanced on the walls, sending arrows deeper into the city. One of the Caliph’s daughters was killed when an arrow passed through a window in his palace. Messages were tied to arrows, proclaiming that all those who did not resist would be spared. By the start of February, towers and bastions along the walls were collapsing. By February 3rd, Mongol forces were capturing the walls. When one of Hulegu’s commanders was killed by an arrow sent from the city, he angrily forced his army on at greater speed. Realizing just how monumentally he had erred, al-Mustasim sent envoys, among them the once bellicose Dawatdar, to discuss terms with Hulegu. They were quickly put to death. Nothing but the unconditional surrender of the Caliph himself was good enough. Finally, on February 10th, al-Mustasim and his family came out from Baghdad, and put his life in the hands of Hulegu. Initially, the Caliph was treated respectfully. Other notables came out to submit to Hulegu, and many others fled out of the city to escape the pestilence which had already claimed thousands within. These who came out were trapped between the walls of Baghdad and the Mongol palisade. Once the garrison and its weapons were collected, on the 13th of February, the sack of Baghdad began. In popular culture, the sack of Baghdad is uncontrolled, disorganized, horrifically violent and results in the city’s utter destruction and death of a million people. In reality it was controlled, organized, horrifically violent and resulted in only most of the city’s destruction and deaths of thousands. Rather than wiping Baghdad from the map, it was more of an organized dismemberment. Evidence comes from multiple accounts, but we’ll focus on that of the musician, Urmawi. In contrast to the image of the mob running wild over Baghdad, Urmawi’s account, recorded by the Mamluk historian Shihab al-Din al-’Umari, records the Mongols meticulously planned the sacking. Depending on rank, commanders were given 1 to 3 days to collect loot from sections of the city allotted to them. In Urmawi’s case, his neighbourhood was allotted to Baiju Noyan and his retinue- notably just men Baiju picked to bring into the city with him, rather than a whole portion of his army. Urmawi greeted Baiju with gifts and hosted a feast for him, entertaining him with music and ingratiating himself to the Noyan. Baiju was so pleased he urged Urmawi to come with him to play before Hulegu. Hulegu enjoyed a concert before the walls of Baghdad, ordered Urmawi’s neighbourhood spared and protected with picked men, and even granted Urmawi gardens which had belonged to the Caliph. Likewise, various sources note that a number of segments of the populations were spared and their property protected: Christians, notably Nestorian priests; Shi’ites and Alids; Khurasani merchants, Qadis, scholars, shaykhs and in one source, Jews. Individuals are mentioned petitioning Hulegu to spare their homes- likely for a hefty payment, of course- but in order to follow these orders, the forces looting the city had to be disciplined enough to actually take note of addresses. Even the oft-repeated statement that the Tigris River ran black with ink of the books of Baghdad’s library must be re-examined, for Nasir al-Din Tusi took many with him to Maragha, where he built his famous observatory. A number of sources indicate the city’s looting lasted only a week, rather than a full month. Clemency was extended to multiple groups… but for the majority of the city’s population who did not fall into these categories, it appears no quarter was given. For all the gated neighbourhoods like Urmawi’s which were protected, many more were gutted and looted. Treasures collected over the city’s 500 years were stolen, the finest architecture of the ‘Abbasids ruined and torn down. Hulegu entered the city on February 15th, visiting the Caliph’s palace, where al-Mustasim was forced to reveal where he had hidden his wealth. 12,000 severed ears were brought before Hulegu to mark the slain citizenry. The dead littered the street; after a few days, the heat and stench of the rotting bodies led Hulegu to end the looting by February 20th. Notably, the city was not to be left to brigandage: a governor and Mongol officials were appointed, ibn al-Alqami kept his position as vizier, to clean up the bodies and restore the city. On the 20th of February, Hulegu moved to the village of Waqaf to avoid the foul air of Baghdad, from which he apparently fell sick. At Waqaf, Hulegu had al-Mustasim put to death, most likely rolled into a carpet and stomped upon to avoid spilling his blood on the earth. His family soon followed him. In European accounts, the popular version was that Hulegu locked Mustasim in his treasury, where he starved to death in an ironic punishment to mark the Caliph’s failures to pay for troops and defences. So ended the 500 year old ‘Abbasid Caliphate. The impact on Islam is hard to understate. Since the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632, there had been a widely recognized successor to him in the form of the Caliphs -Rashidun, Umayyad and ‘Abbasid. Most Muslims saw him as the spiritual, if not the actual political, head of Islam. For the Caliphate, seemingly inviolable and permanent, to come to such a violent and sudden end sent shockwaves throughout the Islamic world. Caliphates had been overthrown before; previous dynasties like the Buyids and Seljuqs had held the Caliphs as puppets and militarily defeated them, while the Nizari Assassins had claimed the lives of at least two; but never before had the Caliphate actually been erased from existence by a power claiming universal sovereignty in its place. Distant relations of al-Mustasim were eventually set up in Mamluk Cairo as new Caliphs, but were never widely recognized. The Ottoman Sultans would also claim the title of Caliph in time, but none have ever been able to step into the position held by the ‘Abbasids. It’s no surprise that many Muslims throughout the following centuries have referred to the sack of Baghdad as a scar of the psyche of the ummah, one which it has not recovered from today. With the fall of Baghdad, Hulegu could now cast his eyes onto Syria, down the Levantine coast to the newly established Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt. The sense was real that Hulegu was about to bring the whole of Islam under the authority of the house of Chinggis. Our next episode takes us to the Mongol drive to the Meditteranean- and the famous clash of ‘Ayn Jalut, an episode you won’t want to miss. Be sure to subscribe to our podcast, and to help up continue bringing you great content, consider supporting us on Patreon at www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. I’m your host David, and we’ll catch you on the next one.
Before we get into this week's episode, I want to give a shout out to another podcast that we’ve recently discovered here at Ages of Conquest! Pax Britannica is a narrative history podcast on the British Empire. Season 1 covered the start of English colonisation in North America and the Caribbean, the first decades of the East India Company, and the ruthless politics of the British Isles. Season 2 has just begun on the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Civil war and revolution erupt in England, Ireland, and Scotland, pitting the forces of Charles I against his own subjects. By the end, the king will be dead, the monarchy abolished, and Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell will be at the head of a militarised and expansionist Commonwealth. If any of this sounds even remotely appealing, go give Pax Britannica a listen; available where all fine podcasts are downloaded. And now, on with OUR show! “You are to go with a large army and innumerable force from the borders of Turan to the country of Iran. Observe Chinggis Khan’s customs and yosun and yasa in all matters large and small. From the River Oxus to the farthest reaches of the land of Egypt, treat kindly and affectionately and reward sufficiently whoever obeys and submits to your orders. Grind beneath the feet of your wrath those who resist, along with their wives, children, and kith and kin. Begin with Quhistan and Khurasan, and destroy the fortresses and castles. Rip up GirdKoh and [Lammasar] fortress and turn them upside down! Neither let any bastion remain in the world nor leave a pile of dust standing! When you are finished there, head for Persia and eliminate the Lurs and Kurds who constantly practice brigandage along the highways. If the Caliph of Baghdad comes out to pay homage, harass him in no way whatsoever. If he is prideful and his heart and tongue are not one, let him join the others. In all cases make your clear-sighted intelligence and golden mind your guide and leader, and be awake and sober in all situations. Let the subjects be free of excessive taxes and impositions. Return devastated lands to a flourishing state. Conquer the realm of the rebellious through the might of the great god so that your summer and winter pastures may be many. Consult Doquz Khatun on all matters.” So were the orders Mongke Khaan, Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, gave to his brother Hulegu on the outset of his campaign in 1253, according to the Ilkhanid vizier Rashid al-Din. Among the most famous of the Mongol campaigns, Hulegu led Mongol armies to destroys the Ismaili Assassins in Iran, the ‘Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad and into Syria, the prelude to the famous clash at Ayn Jalut. As this is perhaps the Mongol campaign with the greatest surviving detail, and one of the most well known, we’re going to take you on a thorough look at Hulegu’s western march, beginning with the destruction of the so-called “Order of Assassin.” I’m your host David, and this is Kings and Generals: Ages of Conquest. Hulegu, the famed sacker of Baghdad, was the younger brother of Great Khan Mongke and Kublai, the third son of Tolui with Sorqaqtani. As mentioned back in episode 23, Mongke Khaan took the throne in 1251 with a renewed drive to complete the Mongol conquest of the world. He organized administrative reforms, censuses, and new taxes to levy the forces of the empire for this goal. In 1252, he held a meeting in Mongolia to put this next round of conquest in motion, placing his brothers at the head of two great armies. Kublai was sent against the Kingdom of Dali, in China’s modern Yunnan province, as the opening move in the conquest of Song Dynasty. Hulegu meanwhile was to march west and subdue the few independent powers of the Islamic world: specifically, the Nizari Ismailis, popularly known as the Assassins; the Kurds and Lurs of western Iran, who annoyed the Great Khan through their brigandage, and the ‘Abbasid Caliph of Baghdad. There is discrepancy in the sources as to what precisely Hulegu’s mandate was. A number of later authors of the Ilkhanate- the state which emerged from Hulegu’s conquests- assert that Mongke intended for the area from the Amu Darya River to the Meditteranean to be ruled by Hulegu as another ulus, or Khanate of the empire, a counterbalance to those of Jochi and Chagatai, a sort of Toluid axis across Asia sandwiching the Chagatayids. This is hardly agreed upon however. Other sources present Hulegu’s command as a temporary military one. The Ilkhanid vizier and historian Rashid al-Din wrote that Mongke told Hulegu to return to Mongolia once he had achieved his tasks; Hulegu had to confer with his commanders on all strategic decisions, which included representatives from the houses of Jochi, Chagatai and even Ogedai, a first amongst equals rather than an almighty prince; and when Hulegu began to seize Jochid possessions in Iran, Khurasan and the Caucasus after Mongke’s death, it seems to have taken them quite by surprise, for in the early 1250s Mongke confirmed grants of Caucasian territory to the house of Jochi. It’s likely that Mongke had intended for Iran and much of the Middle East to be dominated by the Central Imperial Government, but did not intend to remove land rights the other branches of the family enjoyed in the region. So, who was Hulegu? Born in 1217, he was two years younger than Kublai, almost ten years younger than Mongke, and a few years older than their youngest brother, Ariq Boke. His life before the ascension of Mongke is almost totally unknown to us, but he presumably received similar education in both governing and warfare to his brothers. While Mongke was groomed for the possibility of stepping into the imperial throne, Hulegu, to our knowledge, was not provided any such pretensions. He was well exposed to other religions and cultures; his mother, Sorqaqtani was a Nestorian Christian, as was his most influential wife, Doquz Khatun, who had been a widow of his father Tolui. Despite this, he showed more personal interest in Buddhism, though he took part in shamanistic practices throughout his recorded life. He was interesedt in science, especially astronomy, though for Hulegu this was more so in the form of astrology, which he often consulted for major decisions. He was a heavy drinker, with the lovely combination of often flying into horrific rages. Even reading pro-Ilkhanid sources like Rashid al-Din, who long served the descendants of Hulegu, one is shocked by the regularity in which Hulegu fell into a towering rage, which tended to be quite dangerous for whomever it was targeted at. His final years were marked by ill health, brought on excessive drinking, and at least one source indicates he suffered from epilepsy. With the quriltai of 1252, the plan to finalize the conquest of western Asia was set, and Hulegu put in motion. A member of Mongke’s keshig was provided for Hulegu’s command, Kitbuqa of the Naiman tribe, also a Nestorian Christian. Kitbuqa departed as Hulegu’s vanguard in August 1252 with 12,000 men, beginning operations against the Ismailis in eastern Iran. Various sources give Hulegu’s own departure from Mongolia as Autumn 1253 or 1254. By the 1250s, the Mongols had an absolutely massive army: some estimates put the nomadic soldiers at their disposal upwards of one million men, and many more among the sedentary peoples across Eurasia to be called upon. Mongke provided Hulegu with a relatively small contingent of Mongols at the outset: perhaps as low as a tumen, 10,000 men, for Hulegu in addition to the 12,000 Kitbuqa had already set out with. As Hulegu moved west, his army snowballed, as contingents from across the empire met with him. 1,000 Chinese siege engineers and crossbowmen were provided for him. Most of the former warriors of the house of Ogedai were conscripted for Hulegu’s army. He was joined by a contingent of Oirats under Buqa Temur, the brother of Hulegu’s first senior wife, named somewhat amusingly, Guyuk. A grandson of Chagatai, Teguder, headed the perhaps 10,000 Chagatayid troops provided for Hulegu as he marched through their ulus. As many as 30,000 troops under the Jochid princes Balaghai, Quli and Tutar were provided by Batu. Tamma forces stationed in Kashmir and in the Caucasus, under Baiju Noyan, would also link up with Hulegu, and forces were supplied by all the client sultans, maliks, and atabegs of Iran, the Caucasus and Anatolia. By the time Hulegu’s army converged on Baghdad at the start of 1258, he commanded perhaps 150,000 men if not more. Extensive preparation was necessary for this army’s movement. We are told that roads were cleared of obstructions, bridges built and boats readied to cross rivers. All the pastures and meadows on Hulegu’s route were reserved for the feeding of his army’s horses and livestock. Flour and skins of wine were levied from across the subject populations and stored at depot stations along the way. Thanks to the census launched at the start of Mongke’s reign, the imperial government had a good idea of what could be called upon to provide for Hulegu’s army. By Autumn 1255 Hulegu was near Samarkand, where he rested for 40 days, feasting with the head of the Secretariat for Central Asia, Mas’ud Beg. Another month was spent at Kish, about 80 kilometres south of Samarkand and the later birthplace of amir Temur, or Tamerlane. There, Hulegu feasted with the head of the Secretariat for Iran and Western Asia, Arghun Aqa. These were not just engagements for drinking (though there certainly was that) but to confer with the regional administrators and line up further provisions, troops and intelligence. At Kish, messengers were sent to vassals across Iran calling upon them to provide troops and assistance against the Ismaili assassins, whose territory Hulegu entered in the spring of 1256. This takes us to Hulegu’s first target, the Assassins, which we’ll introduce and address some popular myths. Though popularly known as the Order of the Assassins, this is quite the misnomer; more accurately called the Nizari Ismaili state, they controlled a number of fortresses and settlements in three general regions; in Syria, centered around Masyaf; in the rugged eastern Iranian region called Quhistan; and in northwestern Iran’s Alburz mountain, where their leadership was based across several mountain fortresses, most famously Alamut. Leadership of the branches in Quhistan and Masyaf was generally appointed by Alamut, but were autonomous otherwise. Shi’a Muslims, specifically Ismailis, in the late 1080s and 1090s the Ismaili Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt suffered a succession dispute as to who would succeed the Imam, the rather distant successor to the Prophet Muhammad and ehad of Shi’a Islam. The supporters of one candidate, Nizar, were known as Nizaris, and hence, Nizari Ismailis. For the majority of Muslims, who were Sunnis, the Nizaris were seen as a sect within a sect, and heretics par excellence. At the same time as this succession dispute an Ismaili revolt broke out in Seljuq ruled Iran. In 1090, Hassan-i Sabbah captured the fortress of Alamut, while other adherents seized territory in Quhistan and elsewhere. The last of the Great Seljuqs, Sultan Malik-Shah I, attempted to crush them, but his untimely death, and the ensuing succession risis which splintered the vast Seljuq Empire, allowed the Ismailis to consolidate. Geographically spread out and lacking great economic or military power, they had to rely on other means to protect themselves and convince their neighbours to not attack them. One tool was assassinations, making a big splash with the murder of the Great Seljuq Vizier Nizam al-Mulk in 1092. Alongside well defended and inaccessible fortresses, it was a useful deterrent for any would-be conqueror. The assassinations were often public and dramatic to make the message as loud as possible. One method was for Ismailis to infiltrate the households of powerful figures as servants: they could then kill the man when he became too great a danger, or leave a warning, such as a knife, on the sleeping man’s pillow. The threat of assassination was as effective as an actual assassination, and soon anyone could be worried he had a secret Nizari Ismaili hiding in his entourage. Because of this, popular myths that the Ismaili imbued copious amounts of hashish before going on assassinations can be ignored. There is no evidence for this, and it’s unlikely considering the patience and planning that went into these missions. However, the appellation of them as heavy users of hashish stuck, hashishiyya, which became “assassin.” So the Nizaris carried on for over a century. Hassan-i Sabbah and his successors, without any clear imam after Nizar’s death in 1095, basically stepped into the role themselves. The Ismaili leaders -popularly known in the West as ‘the Old Man of the Mountain,’- were generally long reigning without succession disputes, withstanding outside pressures while they mulled over doctrine, all the while being decried as just the worst sort of heretic by Sunni Muslims. In 1210, the ascension of the new imam and Ismaili leader, Hassan III, brought something of a rapprochement. Generally, the Ismailis had poor relations with the head of Sunni Islam, the ‘Abbasid Caliphs in Baghdad. They had after all claimed responsibility for the murders of two Caliphs in the 1130s. Yet Hassan III dramatically declared he followed the Sunni Sharia and fostered better relations with both the Caliph and other neighbouring Sunni rulers, such as Ozebg, the Eldeguzid Atabeg of Azerbaijan, and Muhammad II Khwarezm-shah. According to ‘Ata-Mailk Juvaini, a member of Hulegu’s entourage, Hassan III was also the first monarch west of the Amu Darya to submit to Chinggis Khan. Despite his state being largely surrounded by the Khwarezmian Empire, Ismaili fortresses in the Elburz Mountains and Quhistan were spared Mongol attacks. Indeed, Quhistan was a veritable island of security as the Mongols overran the Khwarezmian Empire. Juzjani, a Sunni Khwarezmian refugee who fled to Quhistan before later finding refuge in Delhi, describes the Ismailis in glowing terms. Hassan III’s successor, ‘Ala al-Din Muhammad III, abandoned the overtures to the ‘Abbasid Caliph, but maintained the ties with the Mongols. When Jalal al-Din Mingburnu returned to western Iran in the mid 1220s, the Ismailis had no love for him and assassinated at least one of his lieutenants. When major Mongol forces returned to the region under Chormaqun Noyan at the start of the 1230s, the Ismailis provided valuable information on the whereabouts and weaknesses of Jalal al-Din, and within a year the Khwarezmian Prince was driven to his death. The details of the Mongol relationship with the Ismails for the next decade is difficult to discern. In 1246 Ismaili representatives came to the coronation of Guyuk Khaan in Mongolia, where they were insulted and sent off. Precisely what occurred is unclear. A possible reconstruction is offered by historian Timothy May in his article on the “Mongol-Ismaili Alliance.” He suggests the positive Mongol-Ismaili relationship was a case of “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.” No record is made of Mongol demands for troops or tribute from the Ismailis, and it may have been that while powerful Khwarezmian elements were still extant, relative Ismaili independence was permitted as they were useful allies. After Mingburnu’s death in 1231, and especially after the death of Chormaqun in 1241, Mongol demands on the Ismailis may have increased, and in the early 1230s the Mongols annexed Ismaili controlled Damghan. The Ismailis were so concerned that in 1238, the English Monk Matthew Paris recorded that representatives of “the Old Man of the Mountain,” had come to England and France trying to organize a Christian-Muslim alliance against the Mongols, warning the King of England that “if they themselves could not withstand the attacks of such people, nothing remained to prevent their devastating the countries of the west.” Three years later, Mongol armies under Subutai and Batu crossed the Carpathian Mountains into Hungary. Back in the Middle East, one Mongol commander, Chagatai Noyan “the Lesser,” may have moved to enforce demands on the Ismailis, and was assassinated at some point in the early 1240s. Perhaps intended as just a warning, the Ismailis realised this was a mistake and sent representatives to Guyuk’s coronation in 1246. The Mongols were never forgiving of such things, and the destruction of the Ismailis was added to the agenda. An opportunity to actually do this didn’t present itself until the reign of Mongke Khan. The qadi of Qazwin, a city south of Alamut and quite antagonist to the Ismailis, came to Mongke’s court and revealed, in quite the breach of etiquette, that he had a suit of maille worn underneath his robes, claiming that his fear of the Ismailis was so great even in the Mongol court he needed this protection. When the Franciscan Friar William of Rubruck came to Mongke’s court in 1253, he heard rumours that 400 assassins had been dispatched to kill Mongke, and the Mongols were concerned enough that they were checking and interrogating everyone entering Karakorum. The threat of the assassins was taken seriously, and on Mongke’s directive Hulegu would treat the assassins very seriously By then, the only independent power within proximity to Alamut was, somewhat ironically, the Caliph in Baghdad. The Ismailis stood alone against the incoming might of Hulegu. In the winter of 1255, as Hulegu stood at the border of Ismaili Quhistan, the imam ‘Ala al-Din Muhammad was murdered, quite likely on the instigation of his young and inexperienced son, Rukn al-Din Khwurshah, who then ascended to the imamate. ‘Ala al-Din was long on bad terms with his son, and seems to have suffered some sort of mental decline as news of Hulegu’s overwhelming force approached. Rukn al-Din may have thought himself capable of maneuvering them out of the impending disaster, but would have no success in the matter. In the spring of 1256, Hulegu and his ever growing army entered Quhistan. Kitbuqa had been campaigning throughout the region since 1253, but had had no success in holding settlements like Tun, Ismaili Quhistan’s chief city, taking them only to lose them once he moved on. The Ismaili fortresses, built on imposing mountains and hard to access sites, proved beyond his means to siege. On Hulegu’s arrival, the dynamic was quickly changed. Vague ‘incidents’ mentioned by Juvaini and Rashid al-Din as Hulegu entered the region may refer to Ismaili attacks in some form, but Hulegu’s army was beyond compare. The chief cities of Quhistan fell within days, and by the summer Kitbuqa led the vanguard to Mazandaran and raiding parties probed towards Alamut. Once Quhistan was subdued, Hulegu moved west, skirting around the edge of Iran’s uninhabitable Great Salt Desert, the Dasht-e Kevir, to arrive at the eastern endof the Alburz mountains. Near Damghan stood the Ismaili fortress of Girdkuh; Kitbuqa had first attempted to attack it in May of 1253. Hulegu committed more troops for it, then moved on. The castle, receiving only minor reinforcement from Alamut, held out until 1271. Such was the design of these fortresses when properly defended. Rukn al-Din Khwurshah was within the fortress of Maymundiz, downstream of Alamut towards the western end of the Alburz mountains. As Hulegu moved westwards along the Alburz, he sent messengers to Rukn al-Din, demanding his submission. He was nervous, and as Hulegu’s second set of messengers arrived at the beginning of September 1256, Rukn al-Din was convinced to offer submission by the captive scholar, polymath, mathematician, astronomer and theologian, Nasir al-Din Tusi. Tusi was a much, much smarter man than Rukn al-Din Khwurshah and well respected. Having lived through Chinggis Khan’s destruction of Khwarezm, Tusi calculated that a lengthy Mongol siege wouldn’t be very healthy for anyone left inside the citadel. Therefore, on Tusi’s urging, Rukn al-Din sent his brother to Hulegu, offering the submission of the Ismailis. Hulegu thought this was nice, and treated Rukn al-Din’s brother well. He then sent another embassy with demands that Rukn al-Din tear down the Ismaili forts. Rukn al-Din was slow to respond; Hulegu was quick to advance. The token attempt by the Ismaili leader to abate Hulegu by abandoning 5 lesser castles and demolishing a few towers on Alamut, Maymundiz and Lammasar did not succeed. Unwittingly, Rukn al-Din was caught in a nerge, a Mongol hunting circle, as multiple armies converged on him from several directions and trapped him. As the armies neared Maymundiz, taking castles and settlements as they went, Rukn al-Din frantically sent a son and another brother to Hulegu, to no avail, hoping to at least stall until the cold of winter set in. By the 7th of November 1256, the three armies had Maymundiz surrounded. Hulegu needed a quick victory. So many troops and horses needed a vast quantity of feed, the local environment was depleted and winter was forthcoming. Hulegu demanded provisions from across Iran and the Caucasus be delivered and, as if the seasons themselves adhered to the bidding of the Great Khan, the winter was mild and refused to hampher the Mongols as they approached Maymundiz. Once the armies were arrayed outside of the fortresses, Hulegu surveyed the site. Like so many Ismaili fortresses, Maymundiz was perched on a mountaintop, and hard to access. But Hulegu had his plan. Fighting began on November 12th, 1256. The first weapons Hulegu brought forth were the kaman-i-gav, as they were known in Persian sources, generally taken to refer to the ox-bow, a Chinese siege machine which was essentially a large, mounted crossbow. These were not for destroying walls, but for picking off defenders. The writer ‘Ata-Malik Juvaini, who accompanied Hulegu on his sieges of the Ismaili cities describes “meteoric shafts,” from these weapons “burning up” the “devil-like heretics” of Maymundiz, in constrast to stones cast by the defenders which could only hurt single persons. Historian Stephen Haw postulates that this is a reference to gunpowder weapons being used by the Mongols, in the form of explosives tied to the shafts fired from the oxbow, perhaps propelling it as an early rocket. A common critique of this argument is that such poetic language is rather typical of Juviani’s writing, and nowhere else in Hulegu’s campaign does he appear to use such dramatic weapons. By November 17th, Hulegu’s teams had constructed their catapults and hauled them to a nearby hilltop. It’s possible that these were not just traction style Chinese catapults, but those of the counterweight variety- trebuchets. It’s not specified in written sources that Hulegu used them, but we know they were used by the Mongols by the 1270s, in addition to artwork from later in the century depicting them. Some modern authors like Michael S. Fulton believe the speed at which the major fortresses and cities of the region fell to Hulegu, even those of stone as opposed to stamped earth or mud brick, indicate the usage of counterweighted artillery. Far more powerful with greater range than man-powered traction catapults, instead of teams of men hauling on ropes, the counterweight catapult relied on, well, a counterweight instead, using gravity to propel the projectile with much greater force. Some authors also assert that the Chinese had their own counterweight catapult which the Mongols also used, but the matter is contentious, our sources providing no illumination. The Mongols differed in their usage of artillery by relying on constant barrages. Their access to a large number of knowledgeable engineers, teams of specialists and overseers allowed them to keep up an unceasing rate of fire day and night, often from dozens of machines at once. For the defenders huddled behind the walls, psychologically it was exhausting. Aside from stones, naphtha, a petroleum-based weapon, was hurled into the city to start fires. Gunpowder bombs may have been lobbed as well. Unused to such weapons, especially in the form of the noise and smell they made, the impact must have seemed unearthly. After less than a week of bombardment, Rukn al-Din Khwurshah surrendered, and the Mongols soon demolished Maymundiz. Hulegu received the Khwurshah kindly, for he needed him. Through his mediation, Rukn al-Din convinced some 40 odd Ismaili strongholds to surrender to Hulegu and tear down their walls. Alamut and Lammasar held out, and both were put under siege. Rukn al-Din was able to get Alamut’s garrison to come to terms, and it surrendered by December 15th. Briefly, Hulegu went sight-seeing around the castle after it surrendered, amazed by the size of the mountain, the many storerooms and indomitable defenses. It certainly saved him some time to not have to storm it! ‘Ata-Malik Juvaini was able to get permission to take some of the rare and useful tomes from Alamut’s library before the fortress was destroyed and its books burnt. Lammasar took a year to fall, but fall it did. Hulegu kept Rukn al-Din with him until the great majority of the Ismaili fortresses in Iran had submitted or been torn down. He humoured Rukn al-Din, granting him a Mongol wife and watching Rukn al-Din’s favourite sport of camel fighting. Helping the Mongols avoid many lengthy, difficult sieges on the well defended Ismaili strongholds saved Hulegu considerable effort, but personally Hulegu found him repellent. Once his usefulness was over, in early 1257 Hulegu shipped him off to Mongke Khaan to deal with. According to Rashid al-Din, when Mongke learned the Khwurshah was in Karakorum, he was annoyed and said, “why are they bringing him and tiring a horse uselessly?” then ordered Rukn al-Din’s death. Upon learning of this, Hulegu ordered the deaths of the rest of Rukn al-Din’s captive family, sparing only a young son. Some Ismaili traditions attest another son was snuck away and kept safe, raised as the next imam in secret, but such beliefs never found widespread acceptance. As far as we are concerned, the Nizari Ismaili state ceased to exist by the end of 1256, sparing a few holdouts in Iran and their castles in Syria, as yet untouched by the Mongols. Hulegu had completed the first of his tasks. After wintering near Lammasar and then Qazwin, in the early months of 1257 he set out west for the greatest target of the campaign: Baghdad, and the 500-year-old Abbasid Caliphate. So be sure to subscribe to the Kings and Generals Podcast to pick up with that next week. To help us continue bringing you great content, consider supporting us on Patreon at www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. I’m your host David, and we will catch you on the next one.
From Anatolia to Central China; from northern Korea to the eastern edge of Europe; from the forests of Siberia to the borders of India. This was the empire of Grand Khan Mongke, perhaps the single most powerful monarch in history. No other king, sultan or emperor could compare to the sheer swath of humanity that Mongke ruled over, a man who reformed, centralized and expanded the empire even further. Yet, he was to be the last as uncontested Khan of the Empire, and on his death, the dream of Mongol unity was to be shattered. Today’s episode will present the reign of Mongke Khaan and his efforts to strengthen the Mongol Empire in the 1250s, while our following episodes will take us through the conquests launched and completed under his orders. I’m your host David, and this is Kings and Generals: Ages of Conquest. Mongke, as we covered in episode 21, came to the throne in what historians call “the Toluid Revolution.” On Chinggis Khan’s death back in 1227, it seemed the throne was to remain in the line of his third son, Ogedai. After the death of Ogedai’s son, Guyuk Khaan in 1248, the next Khan was the son of Ogedai’s brother Tolui, supported by the descendants of Jochi. Mongke, the oldest son of Tolui and his wife Sorqaqtani Beki, was enthroned in 1251 in Mongolia. A failed attempt to oust Mongke resulted in a great purge against the line of Ogedai, seizing most of their territory. Several figures of the Chagatai lineage were killed and the Chagatai Khan replaced, while top officials were forced into a very bloody retirement. The new line of the Great Khans held the throne with the permanent animosity of many of the surviving Ogedaids and Chagatayids. But with the full support of the Toluids and the Jochids under Batu Khan, Mongke had the strength to keep everyone in line. A Toluid Khan without that support would find it very difficult to extend his authority westwards, but that’s getting ahead of ourselves… Enthroned as the fourth Great Khan in summer 1251, Mongke immediately set out reorganizing government. Mongke came to the throne with a view of ‘getting things back on track,’ since the death of Ogedai. The empowerment of the ortoq merchants as tax collectors, the strengthening of regional Mongol princes at the expense of the central government and infighting was a distraction to the Empire’s true purpose: bringing everything under Heaven under Mongol rule. That this had not yet been accomplished was an embarrassment as far as Mongke was concerned. Everything Mongke did was for this goal, this destiny, and none would stand in his way. The house of Ogedai had shown resistance, and for this had been crushed. Though raised to the throne by the efforts of Batu and Sorqaqtani, Mongke was no puppet. Sorqaqtani died soon after her son became Khaan, and Batu and Mongke reached an agreement, wherein Batu was essentially viceroy of the west. Given great autonomy and little imperial interference in his affairs with the integrity of the Jochid realm confirmed, Batu, until his death in 1255, was a staunch supporter of the new Khaan. Mongke presented himself as the ideal Mongol ruler in the mould of Chinggis Khan. With his brother closest in age, Kublai, the two had a proudly shared experience with their famous grandfather. On a hunting trip with the old Chinggis, the young boys had fat from the kill spread on their fingers by the Great Khan himself. Considering how many grandchildren Chinggis had in his final years, to be singled out in any manner was a proud thing. Mongke’s father Tolui was often on campaign, leaving Mongke to be raised under the auspices of Sorqaqtani. Alongside the necessary riding, hunting and warfare abilities ingrained into all Mongol children, Mongke and his brothers were also taught leadership skills, administration, how to read and write Mongolian and were introduced to foreign cultures. Mongke was groomed to be a ruler. Taking part in the great western campaign, Mongke made it as far as Kiev, and led in various theaters, battles and sieges, forging a reputation as a skilled general. By Guyuk’s death in 1248, Mongke was a well respected and leading figure among the third generation of Chinggisids. Intelligent, brave, and ambitious, he stepped into the mantle of leadership easily. Vengeful, domineering and merciless to those he deemed as standing in his way, he was a dangerous foe. Mongke’s reign from 1251 to the beginning of 1258 was largely focused on political and administrative needs in order to support large military campaigns across Asia. In contrast to the campaigns of his grandfather Chinggis, the conquests of the 1250s come across almost as an institutionalized form. For Chinggis Khan, government was somewhat of an accidental creation out of military-tribal structures and conquests: necessary, but minimal. For Mongke, the government served as a tool of organizing conquest, an arm of the Khan with which to pursue his will. Mongke’s control was not totalitarian by any modern sense, but it dominated the system in its most influential levels. Not constrained by any pesky constitutions or parliaments to pass laws through, Mongke wielded a level of power that perhaps no other figure in history could truly compare to. To complete the conquest of the world, Mongke needed a stable and efficient government to take stock of the resources and materials necessary for expansion at an enormous scale. For this project, Mongke had a fine group of men to fall upon. The top officials of the empire came from each Khan’s keshig, the imperial bodyguard. Part guard, part retinue, part administration, the men in Mongke’s keshig were a varied lot, a number of whom had served in the keshig of Tolui, and even Chinggis Khan. Intensely loyal, they had eaten, drank, lived and fought alongside one another for years. They had also prepared for the possibility of stepping into the lead roles of state. It’s no surprise than that Mongke’s #1 and #2 were both from his keshig. The first was Menggeser Qorchi, a Jalayir Mongol who was inquisitor, judge, and executor in Mongke’s purges. He served as chief judge of the empire, head of the imperial guard and head of the Central Secretariat; essentially, Mongke’s Chancellor, replacing the late Chinqai. #2 was Bulghai of the Kereyit, a Nestorian Christian in charge of the many, many scribes and chamberlains of the Central Secretariat and the capital. An entire third of Karakorum was set aside for them. A good many were translators. Every edict of the Great Khan was translated into the main languages of the empire- Mongolian, Uighur, Persian, Chinese, Tangut and Tibetan, in order for them to be distributed properly. Upon Menggeser’s death in 1253, Bulghai was promoted to his position as well. From Mongke’s keshig, the holes made by the destruction of Ogedaid officials were filled. In the words of historian Thomas Allsen, describing Mongke’s keshig: “These people, recruited from his own household staff, were the only individuals with whom Mongke ever willingly shared power.” With the Central Secretariat in reliable hands, Mongke looked to the regional Secretariats. Here Mongke kept some continuity with Guyuk. Mahmud Yalavach was reinstated as the head of the Secretariat for North China, and his son Mas’ud Beg back to the Central Asian Secretariat. Under Guyuk, a Secretariat for Iran, the Caucasus and Anatolia was created, headed by the Oirat Mongol Arghun Aqa, who Mongke confirmed in this position. Another secretariat was ordered for the Rus’ territory in 1257, headed by a man called Kitai. All were competent enough and not too closely associated with the Ogedeids to have survived the purges. Mongke envisioned a return to the regular taxation system under the early years of Ogedai proposed by Yelu Chucai. The tax farming of ‘Abd al-Rahman could not do; not out of a sense of empathy to the civilian populations of Asia, but because it was terribly inefficient. Beggaring the taxbase in a single year reduced revenues for years to come, simply unacceptable when armies needed to be supported for long campaigns. Yalavach, Mas’ud Beg and Arghun Aqa were able bureaucrats associated with economic rebuilding and reliable taxation, rather than personal enrichment. But to tax efficiently, the government needed to know what resources and how many people lived in each region, to ensure the most efficient demands could be made. For this end, Mongke ordered an empire wide census. This was not unusual: the Mongols had employed censuses for decades. Guyuk had made such an order shortly before his untimely demise. The new Khan did not just want a population count though. He wanted to know the resources of the empire, numbers and locations of skilled craftsmen, who could provide what and what could be mobilized. Knowing the local population, their economic status and quality of local resources allowed the government to set taxes at appropriate levels- and made it harder for government intermediaries to skim off the top, when the Central Secretariat had its own registers to compare to. At the same time, if the population was found to be too low or too poor to pay their current rate, it could be adjusted to fit the location. This also affected recruitment, allowing the government to allocate skilled craftsmen and engineers to each army as needed. The census moved relatively quickly given the scale of the operation: beginning in north China and Central Asia in late 1252, by 1259 Novgorod, the northernmost Rus’ principality and furthest outpost of the empire, was registered. After being surveyed, supplementary censuses were launched to catch the floating population or accommodate newly conquered territories, ensuring the Central Secretariat had reasonably up-to-date information for setting their demands. Registers were carried out by imperial agents alongside representatives of the regional Mongol prince and local rulers, for assistance and protection. In Novgorod, the famed prince Alexander Nevsky had to provide military protection for the census takers against an agitated Rus’ populace. Under Mongke, three main categories of taxation existed, varying if the given population was nomadic, agricultural or urban. The first was the qubchir, a head tax. For nomads, 1 in every 100 head in a herd was paid in tax. Less than 100 animals, and no tax was paid. In most of the Muslim territories, this was imposed on all adult males and paid in silver dinars; in China, this was assessed on household, and could be paid in silver or precious goods like silk. For populations without coinage like the Rus’, furs and other valued commodities were accepted tender. Khalan was an agricultural tax, paid in kind in rural areas based on local tradition, while tamgha was basically a sales tax, collected in urban markets and customs stations. This tax was placed on services and products manufactured, including artisans, fisherman and prostitutes! In general the Mongols encouraged payment in coinage, and local mints were established throughout Iran, the Caucasus and Central Asia to produce large volumes of coins. In 1253, they even began circulating paper money in China, each stamped with the seal of Mongke Khaan. No effort was made to collect unpaid taxes from before Mongke’s enthronement, setting everyone on a clean slate. Tax exemptions for clergy continued, but many who had gained exemption under Guyuk, such as a fair number of merchants, had their exemptions rescinded. Mongke was not going to disregard the merchants though; he paid the outstanding debts of Guyuk and the regents, despite the resistance of some top ministers, leading to the Persian writer Rashid al-Din to remark “in what history has it ever been read that a king paid another king’s debt?” Also rescinded were numerous paizas and gerege, that is, the passports allowing an individual use of the yam system, the vast continental messenger stations. The gerege, depending on the material it was made from, granted an individual use of the horses and resources of a given station to allow them swift passage over the empire, changing horses and getting provisions at each station to continue at speed. Intended for members of the dynasty, envoys and messengers of the Khan, under Guyuk and the regents many a merchant had been given a gereg, and thus saw fit to travel the yam leisurely, enriching himself as he went. On Mongke’s order, all gerege were handed back to the Central Secretariat and redistributed on a more limited basis, greatly reducing the pressure on the local populations who supplied the resources for the stations. The yam itself was improved and routes set up by regional Khans were tied into the main imperial system. For these regional Mongol princes, new restrictions were forced on them, forbidding them to intervene on fiscal matters or set new taxes without approval from the Central Secretariat. These measures helped reduce the power of local forces who could compete with Mongke’s interests. The rebuilding of devastated regions was ordered and destruction while on campaign was to be limited. How successful these initiatives were is hard to measure, but a few Mongol officers were punished for transgressions in these areas. Mongke placed agents who reported directly back to him across the Secretariats to keep him informed of such matters and enforce his will. This was not an innovation of government, but a domination of it. The Central Secretariat wielded greater authority than ever, supported by a highly energetic and motivated emperor. Mongke, certainly more than his predecessor, understood the value of image. Knowing that the movement from the line of Ogedai to Tolui brought shade upon his legitimacy, Mongke strived to portray himself as the very embodiment of the words and laws of Chinggis Khan. Guyuk, Torogene and Oghul Qaimish were portrayed in as negative a light as possible, while Mongke and his father Tolui were elevated. Posthumously, Tolui was promoted to Great Khan, a position he had never held in life. In 1252, Mongke established an official Cult of Chinggis Khan and his worship. An entire department of government was made responsible for dealing with sacrifices, shamans, fortune tellers and more, suggested by Thomas Allsen to have been the ‘managers’ of the Chinggis cult. We might say these propaganda efforts were successful: almost all of our written sources from the empire come from regions ruled by the Toluids, and as such Mongke seems ever the greater and his predecessors all the more inept. Per the suggestion of historian Christopher Atwood, the famed Secret History of the Mongols may have been a result of this program, written at a quriltai in 1252. As our only surviving Mongolian language history from the 13th century, the Secret History of the Mongols was a chronicle intended for the royal family, and is hugely influential on how we view the early Mongol empire. Further, it influenced several of the later histories we also rely upon. In the Secret History, several embarrassing stories are told of Jochi, Chagatai, Ogedai, and Guyuk, the last appearing as a peutlent, whiny brat. Tolui and Mongke are treated much more reverently in the Secret History, which has Chinggis Khan give allowance for another branch of the family to take over should the line of Ogedai prove incapable. A rather useful clause to suddenly uncover; one, we may note, not found in other sources. In this vein, he also understood the importance of maintaining the Mongol policy of religious toleration. Mongke was quite effective at it, as there were both Christians and Muslims at the time convinced Mongke had converted to their religion. Mongol religious toleration was not the same as our modern liberal sense of toleration, but more in the sense it was literally tolerated, as long as the given religion did not oppose the Mongols. The Mongols generally wanted to ensure religious figures were on their side: their prayers, and those of their followers, were useful for ensuring divine favour for the Khaan. Having religious leaders and priests persuade and preach about how important it was to be a loyal subject of the Mongol Khaan also served as a useful means of maintaining order. Our previous episode briefly detailed the encounter of the European Franciscan Friar, William of Rubruck, with Mongke, and that probably best encapsulates Mongke’s own view on religion. Just as there are five fingers leading to the palm, Heaven had provided multiple means to the same end. To Mongke, no religion was more true than another, but all were equally useful for his goals. While Mongke’s armies would destroy the ‘Abbasid Caliphate, this was not done out of a need to spite Islam, but because the Caliph had failed to submit to the Khaan. As Mongke firmly believed Heaven had decreed the world to belong to the Chinggisids, resistance against the Chinggisids was therefore resistance against Heaven’s decree. Everything Mongke did was through this worldview and the belief in the eventuality of Mongol dominion. With internal matters set and the resources of the empire being recorded, Mongke could plan for outward expansion- the topics of the next episodes in our series. In early summer 1252, a quriltai was held to plan for the subjugation of the rest of the world. It is this quriltai that Dr. Atwood suggests the Secret History was composed at, where Mongke made his plans for the future. His brothers were to lead armies both to the south and the west. To the south lay the Song Dynasty, controlling southern China. Warfare with the Song had begun in the 1230s, but progress was slow and the fighting inconclusive. Mongke’s brother Kuublai was granted much of north China under his princely jurisdiction, and then was to lead the opening move of the new round of warfare with the Song. Kublai was not to move directly against them, but against the smaller Kingdom of Dali, in what is now China’s Yunnan province. On the Song Dynasty’s southwesten border, the conquest of Dali would open a second front against the Song. In the west, their younger brother Hulegu was to lead a massive army against the remaining independent Muslim powers, first the Order of the Assassins, and then the Caliph in Baghdad. From there, presumably Hulegu would drive right to the Meditteranean. Both brothers set out in later 1253, and we will pick up with their campaigns in following episodes. Armies were also sent to complete the conquests of Tibet and Korea. By the mid 1250s, Tibet was mostly subjugated, though Korea was a bit more complicated. Our next episode will cover the Mongol-Korean wars from start to finish, and look at how this peninsula managed to prove such a thorn in Mongol efforts for decades. Kublai was to be the prince overseeing most of China, and Hulegu most of the Muslim world west of the Chagatai Khanate. It was hardly a coincidence that Mongke’s two closest brothers were being situated to command two of the most valuable economic regions of the continent. Mongke envisioned a sort of Toluid axis across Asia, keeping tight imperial control across distant regions through brotherly ties. But if they overstepped their bounds, Mongke was not above reproaching them. After Kublai completed the conquest of Dali by the early months of 1254, he returned to oversee matters in North China, promoting government reform and reconstruction efforts. Lil’ Kublai started to get a bit too big for his britches however. In 1256 Kublai began building a summer residence in what is now Inner Mongolia- in time it would be called Shangdu, the Xanadu of Marco Polo. It suspiciously looked a bit too much like a capital, though. Rumours of Kublai’s ambitions reached Mongke, and on pretexts of irregularities in Kublai’s revenue collection, Mongke sent investigators into his brother's domains. Administrative records were seized, Kublai’s officials harshly tortured and numerous infractions found. Some of Kublai’s officials were executed, others dismissed, extraordinary levies placed on his domains and Kublai himself saw his administrative power reduced. We are told Kublai had to be convinced out of a hasty retaliation by his advisers, and was not able to get Mongke’s forgiveness until the start of 1258. While the Chinese sources depict it as an act of brotherly attachment, the two weeping in each others’ arms, the reality is that Mongke had need of Kublai again. The Khaan was about to launch an invasion of the Song Dynasty, and needed to secure loose ends. One such loose end was well suited to Kublai and his inclination to Chinese culture: a rather violent, ongoing conflict between Buddhists and Taoists in Northern China threatening to undermine local stability. Kublai was ordered to bring this matter to a close, which he largely accomplished at a famous debate between leading members of both creeds in later 1258. The Buddhists had the better of the debate, no doubt aided by Kublai’s own Buddhist leanings and support of his ardent Buddhist wife, Chabi. The result was an end to the ascendency of the Taoists, begun, somewhat accidentally, by Chinggis Khan and his support of the Taoist Master Qiu Chuji back in the 1220s. Taoist texts deemed forgeries were destroyed, they were forced to return occupied Buddhist temples and other privileges were lost. In turn, Buddhism saw an ascendence in influence among the Mongols, not for the last time. Mongke also needed Kublai to lead one of the armies in the multi-pronged assault on the Song, in what was to be a massive operation. Planning for the Song campaign was thorough, intending to completely overwhelm the Dynasty from multiple points. The census efforts came to full fruition: Mongke had an enormous, well prepared army drawn from across Asia. Contingents from as far west as the Alans of the Northern Caucasus were mobilized for this assault. Setting out in 1258, nothing would quite go as expected, putting true the old adage that no battle plan ever survives first contact with the enemy. One area Mongke’s foresight proved remarkably poor was his failure to nominate an heir to succeed him. Not that we’re foreshadowing anything in that regard… But, we’ll return to Mongke’s war with the Song in a few episodes time. Prior to that, we will be exploring the other campaigns launched during his reign, first in Korea and then his brother Hulegu’s western campaign, so be sure to subscribe to the Kings and Generals podcast and to continue helping us bring you more outstanding content, please visit our patreon at www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. Thank you for listening, I am your host David and we will catch you on the next one
AsSalaam Alkuim,Please check our lastest entry of The Caliphate Extended Play Vol. 3https://soundcloud.com/haqq-dawah-media/haqq-dawah-media-presents-the-caliphate-ep-vol-3Fe Aman Allah
AsSalaam Alkuim,Please check out our lastest entry to The Caliphate Extended Play Vol. 3https://soundcloud.com/haqq-dawah-media/haqq-dawah-media-presents-the-caliphate-ep-vol-3Fe Aman Allah
AsSalaam Alkuim,Please check out our lastest entry to The Caliphate Extended Play Vol. 3https://soundcloud.com/haqq-dawah-media/haqq-dawah-media-presents-the-caliphate-ep-vol-3Fe Aman Allah
AsSalaam Alkuim,Please check out our lastest entry to The Caliphate Extended Play Vol. 3https://soundcloud.com/haqq-dawah-media/haqq-dawah-media-presents-the-caliphate-ep-vol-3Fe Aman Allah
AsSalaam Alkuim,Please check out our lastest entry to The Caliphate Extended Play Vol. 3https://soundcloud.com/haqq-dawah-media/haqq-dawah-media-presents-the-caliphate-ep-vol-3Fe Aman Allah
AsSalaam Alkuim,Please check out our lastest entry to The Caliphate Extended Play Vol. 3https://soundcloud.com/haqq-dawah-media/haqq-dawah-media-presents-the-caliphate-ep-vol-3Fe Aman Allah
AsSalaam Alkuim,Check out our lastest Ep The Caliphate Vol. 3https://soundcloud.com/haqq-dawah-media/haqq-dawah-media-presents-the-caliphate-ep-vol-3Fe Aman Allah
In this special episode of the Blood Brothers Podcast in collaboration with West Canada's 'United Islam Awareness Week' (UIAW), Dilly Hussain speaks with Shaykh Mohamed Yaffa. #BloodBrothersPodcast #ShaykhMohamedYaffa #BlackHistoryMonth Shaykh Yaffa explains the daily challenges of being black, Muslim and immigrant in Canada at a time of heightened racism and Islamophobia. He also shares his thoughts on the ignored Islamic history of Africa and anti-black racism which began during the Abbasid Caliphate. Topics of discussion also include Shaykh Yaffa's experience while studying in Pakistan and the forced conversion of African slaves to Christianity by European colonialists. Please support us: Patreon.com/themadmamluks or via PayPal themadmamluks.com/donate Support our sponsors! ============== www.halfourdeen.com Half our Deen is the private Muslim Matrimonial website. www.MyWassiyah.com Receive an exclusive discount by using the link below to sign up with MyWassiyah.com http://6mywassiyah.refr.cc/themadmamluks ============== E-mail us your feedback and questions at: info@themadmamluks.com Follow us on Twitter, Instagram & Facebook @TheMadMamluks Contact SIM on Twitter: @ImranMuneerTMM
Welcome to From Complex to Queens, the podcast from Amazin’ Avenue focusing on the Mets’ minor league system. The Abbasid Caliphate effectively fell on this date back in 1258, as Baghdad was surrendered to the Mongols, and Steve, Ken, and Thomas try to decide what desserts are preferable from the regions it controlled in Promote, Extend, Trade. After, the team talks about the different things that go into evaluating prospects and how those things get weighed and factored in. Finally, Steve, Ken, and Thomas compare and contrast their individual lists and give their thoughts as to why they ranked certain players where they did. As always, you can listen or subscribe to the podcast through Apple Podcasts, where we encourage you to leave a review if you enjoy the show. It really helps! And you can find us on the Stitcher app, Spotify, or listen wherever you get podcasts. Got questions? Comments? Concerns? You can email the show at fromcomplextoqueens@gmail.com, and follow us on Twitter: Steve (@stevesypa), Ken (@kenlavin91), and Thomas (@sadmetsszn). Until next week, #lovethemets #lovethemets! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The much anticipated second installment of the VanDeGraph and Ibxtoycat podcast where we pay homage to our new Chinese Overlords Follow up of Canadian Election Results: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Canadian_federal_election Local Chinese Elections: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elections_in_China#Direct_elections Hukou Internal Passport system: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hukou Canada's Investor Immigrant System: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Immigrant_Investor_Program Apparently this program was ended in 2014 https://canadianvisa.org/canada-immigration/business/investor-visa However Quebec has its own special immigration system which continued to have this program until it was suspended on November 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020 which was before the recording date of this podcast on October 30, 2019 https://www.immigration.ca/quebec-immigrant-investor-program Chinese Language Family: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinitic Myriad: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myriad A time zone which certainly does not exist: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xinjiang_Time Peking vs Beijing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_of_Beijing Beijing is the romanization as according to the People's Republic of China standard of 1958, where as Peking was the romanization by French Missionaries in the 17th and 18th century. During this time difference language shifts may have occurred as well as the specific dialect chosen as the standard may have been slightly different. Torii Gates: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torii Picture of people taking pictures of the Leaning Tower of Pisa: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/Travel/2016/September/pisa-pictures-of-tourists-l.jpg?imwidth=1400 Sino-Soviet Split: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sino-Soviet_split China Three Worlds Theory: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Worlds_Theory Western Three Worlds Model: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-world_model Crossover Episodes! War of the Heavenly Horses: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_the_Heavenly_Horses Battle of Talas with the Abbasid Caliphate: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Talas An Lushan Rebellion where a Turkic and Sogdian (Iranian group just north of Afghanistan in what is now Tajikistan) General launched a rebellion: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Lushan_Rebellion Special Economic Zones of China: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_economic_zones_of_China Hong Kong Canadians: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong_Canadians Passport Index: https://www.passportindex.org/byRank.php Chinese Dual citizenship is not recognized by the Chinese Government (except Hong Kong and Macau passports which are different) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_nationality_law American Citizens living abroad may need to pay US taxes: https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/taxpayers-living-abroad Cantonese: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cantonese Father of Modern China: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Yat-sen United Front: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_United_Front New Democracy (explains Chinese Flag): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Democracy Landlords who are no longer with us: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Land_Reform Socialism with Chinese Characteristics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialism_with_Chinese_characteristics Kuomintang which still exists and can win democratically in Taiwan: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuomintang One China Policy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-China_policy Two Chinas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_Chinas One Country, Two Systems: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_country,_two_systems Hundred Flowers Campaign: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hundred_Flowers_Campaign Five Barbarians (Wu Hu, who also are no longer with us): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wei-Jie_war
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The mighty Abbasid Caliphate had disintegrated into a collection of warring city states, while Shi'ite authorities had come to dominate the Muslim world. A new power was rising in the East, however, which would bring about a Sunni revival and stretch to the gates of the Byzantine Empire. The rising Seljuk Turkish state would come to dominate the Caliphate, institute a new era of Sunni conservatism and frighten Europe enough to spark the Crusades.
Toslima is a PhD student at SOAS and her research topic studies the Abbasid Caliphate's trade with Europe and India.
A fugitive Imam in a remote prison in the Sahara was an unlikely candidate to establish the most powerful state in the Muslim world. With the Abbasid Caliphate in decline, the Isma'ili Shi'a established a rival Caliphate whose capital, Cairo, would grow to be the largest city in the world and the center of the Arab/Islamic world for centuries. Although we associate Shi'a with Iran and Persia today, this Arab Shi'ite empire would be the foundation of the modern Arab world as we know it.
By the eleventh century, the great Abbasid empire was beginning to crumble. The Caliphs had been weakened, the Turkish military dominant. On the periphery of the empire, rebellious groups were forming new states. Among these, the Isma'ili Shi'a would become the most powerful, establishing a rival caliphate that overshadowed the Abbasids. The line of Isma'ili Imams continues to this day. In this episode, we look at the Isma'ili Shi'a: where they came from, what they believe and why they posed a threat to the Abbasid Caliphate.
Welcome back to The Emancipation Podcast Station - the place to hear about history researched and retold through the eyes of Middle school and HS students. Byzantine Empire: 600 - 1450 Regional and interregional interactions European Middle Ages: feudalism and serfdom: Audrey - The Middle Ages lasted from the fall of the Western Roman Empire, which was a little before 500 AD, to 1500 AD. There are three major sections of the Middle Ages, the Early Middle Ages, lasting from the fall of the Western Roman Empire to 1000 ad, was the first, the High Middle Ages, from 1000 ad to 13 ad, which was a high point for the Middle Ages, and last, the late Middle Ages, this lasted from 1300 to 1500 ad and it wasn't a very pleasant time to live in Europe. Gabe - feudalism is where if your poor you live on some land that you don't own a really rich guy called a baron or duke owns it and you still don't have money so you share a plow with your neighbor and you combine your ox together just to plow the ground so you can make a little money and you cant even leave with permission from your landlord you're a serf in a serfdom which is a state of being a feudal laborer so your like a slave who gets paid enough to survive Ella - A Roman Emperor by the name of Charlemagne conquered Northern Italy, around modern day France, and many other places including Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium. Charlemagne was able to unify most of Western Europe and was considered a defining figure of the early middle ages. Emma - The word feudal comes from the medieval latin word feudum which means “landed estate”. It is a really broad term that refers to many types of landowner-tenant living situations that took place during the middle ages in Europe. In the seventeenth century, historians and lawyers studying the middle ages wanted to give a name to these types of lifestyles in this era, thus naming it feudalism. Modern day historians don’t necessarily agree that they should all be lumped under one name. Ben - And at that time around 1100 AD Rome was losing land to the Muslims that conquered some of the Byzantine area, So they sent some crusaders in 1096 to take the land back, (especially the holy land) and when they did, they decided instead of adding the land back into the byzantine empire they would just make some crusader kingdoms, so they made separate kingdoms that only advanced the divide between the east and west empires. Skylar - Peasant revolting was also called popular uprisings. The peasants revolted in England in 1831. The revolted because they felt that they were not getting treated equally as everyone else, ex. they were working harder than everyone else and barely surviving. Other reasons for popular uprisings/peasant revolting is the government taxing certain people more, cultural issues, and religious issues. 7.Ethan- The Byzantine Iconoclasm was the destroying of religious stuff. This brought up much controversy that lasted about a century. This also further differed the East and the West. The Western Church used religious images often and the Iconoclasm didn’t affect them as much. Origins of Islam: Audrey - The closest translation of the word Islam to English is surrender, and in the context of the Islamic faith it would be the surrender to the will of God. A Muslim is someone who practices Islam, and submits to the will of God. The central text of Islam is the Quran, which is believed by Muslims that it is the word of God revealed by the messenger Muhammad. Especially in older texts Islam might be referred to as Muhammadism, like Christianity, but this is incorrect because the Muslims didn’t view Muhammad as a divine figure but as someone God spoke through. Ella - Muslims and Christians biggest difference is that muslims do not believe in the crucifixion or the resurrection. They also don’t believe that Jesus is the son of god. They belief he was only and early prophet. Muslims also believe in a system of 5 pillars. These pillars are made up of faith, prayer, charity, fasting and pilgrimage. Emma - Islam is similar to Christianity in many ways. For example, they believe that Moses, Abraham, and Jesus were all doing God’s work. They also believe that parts of the Bible are indeed God’s word though they also believe that Muhammad is another of God’s messengers and that they word he conveyed is also divinely inspired. Ben - The biggest figure in Islam is Muhammad, Muhammad was born in 570 BC, sadly his mother died in 576 BC and his grandfather died in 578 BC. He got married in 595 BC. After he saw revelations and visions from god he went down to the big cube and told everyone “hey your gods are fake” but as expected, everyone got mad at him so he had to move to a place with a Christian king. He went to where is now Ethiopia and preached his teachings. Gabe - he started preaching in mecca and the Quraysh tribe did not like that so he moved to Medina or Yathrib and here he kind of became a spiritual ruler over the city And they actually fight the quraysh tribe 3 to 1 because there's only about 300 of them and there's 900 quraysh and they win this battle and quraysh fight them again in the battle of uhud and now there’s 750 so they are building in numbers but there’s 3300 And the quraysh win and then they have another war which is the battle of the trench and they actually dug a trench around the city and they fought 3000 to 10000 so three to one again and the muslims won and this is all by account of the muslims though because they are the only record we have of that time 6.Ethan- Muslims consider Muhammad as the last person in the line of disciples. These disciples include, Moses, Abraham, and Jesus. Also, as soon as Muhammad was born most of the Middle East abandoned polytheism. Skylar - the early part of Islamic faiths are center around revelations of the prophet, Muhammad. A lot of the revelations with Muhammad are about surrendering to god. Muslims believe that the Quran is the final testament. Sunni and Shia Islam: Ella - After the death of Muhammed, these two divisions known as Sunni and Shia came into play. 90% of the world's 1.6 billion muslims are Sunni and 10% are Shia. The word Sunni comes from the word Sunnah which is referring to Muhammad. The word Shia comes from Shi'atu ‘Ali which means followers of Ali. Audrey - The general division, between the Sunnis and the Shias, is who should succeed Muhammad, after his death, as leader of the Muslim community. The Shias believe that members of Muhammad’s family, especially his descendants, should become leader. The Sunnis disagree, and believe that it doesn’t really matter who succeeds Muhammad. Ben - As the divide gets more and more intense it causes the “Battle of the Camel” named after Aisha’s camel in 656 BC, then after that the “Battle of Siffin” happens merely a year after in 657 BC. Gabe - the shias believe even more so that ali should be his successor after a speech saying he is mawla and ali is also mawla and when muhammad died his very close friend abu bakr takes his place and then umar and then uthman who is assassinated and ali finally takes his place Emma - Ali became caliph in the year 656 AD, after the assassination of Uthman. At this time, Muawiya was the governor of Damascus and he felt that Ali was not putting in a full effort to punish the people who commited the crime. Because of this, he refuses to pledge his allegience to Ali. This started the Fist Fitna, or first Muslim civil war. Skylar - Muhammad was born in the year 570. He starts having revelations to god in the year 610, the Muslim calendar doesn’t start until 622 though. Muhammad married Khadijah and had several kids with her, one being named, Fatimah. Fatimah then married Ali, the son of Abu Talib. That’s where the word shi’atu ali comes from. 7.Ethan- The Shia are mainly based in places like Iraq and Iran, but are spread throughout the world itself. As you can probably guess, the Sunni are in many different places, since 9/10 Muslim are Sunni. Much blood was spilled through these 2 denominations throughout time.. Age of Islam: Ella - The Islamic Empire Grew as it obtained information from other civilizations such as the Byzantine and Persian empires. The collected knowledge and cultural ideas from surrounding empires and people they would meet around their area such as the Indians and the Chinese. Audrey - They collected and obtained this information all throughout the Umayyad dynasty but most of it happened during the Abbasid Caliphate. The Abbasid Caliphate built Baghdad and moved the of the empire there. Ben - In 786 Al-Ma’mun was born, but later in his life (813 BC) he created the Baghdad house of wisdom. The baghdad house of wisdom contained almost all advanced human knowledge from at the time, from mathematics to astronomy, the house of wisdom contained all great wisdoms, even those that were fictional such as poetry. Gabe - they built baghdad right on the route between europe and asia making it the place a prime spot to trade in allowing the abbasids very wealthy because they imported all sorts of good like silk glass tile paper ivory soap honey diamonds Emma - During this time, something called the translation movement took place. Some of the caliphs like al-Rashid and al-Ma’mun wanted to make popular Greek texts accessible to the Arab world, so they encouraged scholars to translate Greek works into Arabic. They were trying to preserve the thoughts of great scholars such as Aristotle. 6.Ethan- The Abbasid Dynasty built Baghdad which is the capital of Iraq. While this was not always so, Damascus was the original capital city. At the time, this was the perfect place for the capital, for it was by the Tigris and Euphrates river. Thus made is ideal for crop production which allowed larger population. Skylar - Al-Kwarizmi was a persian mathematician who studied at the house of wisdom. Al-Kwarizmi is the inventor of algebra. The word algebra comes from the Arabic word al-jabr. He also created the Hindu numerals. The Great Schism: Audrey - Emperor Nero had these purges of Christians like the Roman fire or fire of rome in 64 ad. Nero blamed the Christians for the fire and was lighting them alive for punishment. Many historians believe that the apostles Peter and Paul were killed in these purges. Ben - Around the early 4th century a new emperor comes along and we’ve talked about him previously, Constantine. But today I’m going to go more in depth into Constantine’s life. He was born in 280 AD. His father was the previous western emperor before him, being made emperor in 305 AD. At Constantine’s thirties he was fighting for power within the western region, becoming victorious and being crowned emperor in 312 AD, and later became emperor of not just western rome but all of it in 324. He instilled multiple laws protecting christian people and converted to christianity/was baptised on his deathbed. He died in 337 AD. Gabe - after constantine there was theodosius who made christianity the main religion of rome and persecuted other religions he was also the last to rule both sides of rome when he died the germanic tribes took the west side of rome leaving justinian to the east side who conquered modern day italy back from the germanic tribes leaving the germanic tribes with modern day france and modern day germany and modern day france is owned by the franks the tribe of france which is why you have french and german but they were actually just german to begin with Ella - The Christians of the time were missionaries, going around and spreading their beliefs to other Roman Civilizations. In some cases families were split apart when half of the family decided to abandon Roman practices. Emma - Under the rule of Justinian, there was a power struggle in the Roman Empire. There were many people who possessed large amounts of power with different titles. There was obviously the Emperor, but then there was also the Bishop of Rome, now known as the Pope, who considers himself to somewhat the head of Christianity. There were also several other patriarchs across the Empire who held power and influence over the people. Skylar - Christianity started from the Roman Empire, it started from a jewish sect in Judea and Galilee, from early ministries. Going into the third century christianity was becoming pretty big. There were more purges. In 312 Constantine wins the battle at Milvian Bridge, and shortly after christianity becomes legal, and the christians are no longer persecuted for doing something they believe in. Ethan- The Holy Roman Empire was called this by Voltaire, “It is neither holy, nor an empire”. This Voltaire was a french Enlightenment writer/speaker. Otto der Grosse or Otto the Great was a Roman emperor who originated in Germany. He unified the Empire around the 10th century. It started to split around the 11th century. The Crusades: Gabe - it was called the crusades because it was a war but from the pope so the pope wanted some land and he convinced a mighty Lord to go fight for him and his land so he goes and dies of starvation there and nevers sees his land again Audrey - Crusades were wars but they were considered just warfare. A war could be considered just if it had a just cause legitimate authority and the right intention. Ella - Eventually after losing a lot of territory, the Byzantine Empire was able to take back some of the Anatolian Peninsula from a muslim group called the Seljuk Turks. Supposedly, the crusades were made for the Byzantine Empire to get back the territory they lost, but the crusades usually took the land for themselves. Skylar -The Byzantine empire was losing the holy land, as the Arabians started to overrun it. Crusades were wars declared by the pope. Pope Urban II told all the christians they need to fight against the muslims to get the holy land back, and whoever fights will be forgiven of their sins. Emma - The crusades made a big impact on the expansion of European kingdoms and territories. In the north and est, crusading helped to expand parts of the Kingdoms of Sweden and Denmark. It also influenced the establishment of new political systems like Prussia. Ben - The one they hired to lead the charge against the Muslims that were taking over Jerusalem was Pope Urban II. This took place in 1095. His famous speech hat launched the crusades was, “Under Jesus Christ, our Leader, may you struggle for your Jerusalem, in Christian battle line, [that] most invincible line, even more successfully than did the sons of Jacob of old—struggle, that you may assail and drive out the Turks, more execrable than the Jebusites, who are in this land, and may you deem it a beautiful thing to die for Christ in that city in which he died for us. But if it befall you to die this side of it, be sure that to have died on the way is of equal value, if Christ shall find you in his army” 7.Ethan- The First Crusade was Jerusalem’s first military order. These military orders were more of taking on things like communal poverty, chastity, and obedience. But also violence… lots of violence… for the Christian faith of course. Examples consist of the Knights Templar, the Knights Hospitaller, and the Teutonic Knights. 8. Medieval Japan: Gabe - medieval japan becomes a militaristic japan and it gets kind of fragmented and doesn't get reunited till around the modern period every wonder why japanese and chinese is a lot alike because the japanese borrowed many ideas from the chinese because there so close together china was like your older sibling influencing you Skylar - The Heian period was a golden age for Japan. The Heians were very powerful. The Heian period was known for architecture, culture, arts, and philosophy. They had amazing cultural advancement for their time, around the year 1000. The women had a say in thing, like emperial arts. Lady Murasaki is known as the first novelist. A Shogun is a military dictator, the first Shogun was Minamoto Yuritomo. Audrey - China had a huge influence on Japan even though China never conquered Japan because of how close they are Japan borrowed many ideas from China in the Classical period. Japanese rulers sent delegations to China in the 7th century to better understand what the Chinese do to run their government. Ella - In the time he ruled, Oda Nobunaga took advantage of guns. He was able to use them to put most of the other lords into submission. He also worked towards unifying Japan. The next two rulers Tokugawa Ieyasu and Toyotomi Hideyoshi continued working towards unify Japan. Ben - (Y’all better be ready for me to correct your pronunciation since I’m learning Japanese. Nah Jk) The capital of Japan during the heian period was Heian-kyo (today’s Kyoto). Also another little fact about the golden age of Japan was that woman that were in the family of very important political figures had a significant amount of power themselves, unlike other civilizations like Rome. Japan in its early state was famous for taking things and ideas from other people and making their own version. This is how they became one of the first truly industrialized countries. Emma - The structure of Medieval Japan under the Bakufu system, or shogunate, was actually very similar to a lot of the European systems, and was even called a feudal system by some. In this time, the position of Emperor still existed, but all the power belonged to the Shogun who was a sort of military leader. Under the shogun there were several daimyo, which could be compared to lords. Beneath them was the warrior class of samurai, which are very similar to the knights of europe. Ethan- The Edo period is named for the castle Edo. This castle was ruled by the Tokuwaga shogunate which is still going. The shogun is at the top of the chain which how the bakufu system normally works. This system is considered the reason Japan began to be unified. Maya, Aztec, and Inca Skylar - The Aztec Empire starts to form when Azcapotzalca gets in a civil war, Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan for a triple alliance and conquer Azcapotzalca. The Aztec empire was very small at the time with only three city-states. The Inca empire called themselves the Tawantinsuyu, they called their ruler Inca. Gabe - after a while in the Aztec empire Tenochtitlan which was once the weaker city state before in entered the aztec empire actually became the capital of the Aztec empire and the Aztec empire is actually around for another hundred years When hernando cortes comes and conquered it in 1521 Audrey - The Aztec civilization and the Aztec empire are different from each other because the Aztec civilization was made up of broad groups of people over hundreds of years where the Aztec empire was a very specific entity that was formed in the hundred years before the Spanish colonization. Ella - Hernando Cortes was able to convince several hundreds of conquistadors to conquer empires for him. He collected people from neighboring city states who were having problems with the Mexico or Aztec Empires. He eventually took over the city of Tenochtitlan and it became a very advanced civilization. Ben - One of the biggest ways the English were able to conquer ancient Mexico was with the bringing of smallpox which the native Americans never really had before. Even before they started calling themselves the Inca, they already had a sort of advanced civilization. They taxed their citizens, but not in a traditional way, since they didn’t use a coin or currency system, citizens had to dedicate some of their working time to the government. Emma - The advancements of Inca Empire are on their own monumental, but to put it into perspective, from the historical evidence we currently have, there is no proof that the Incas had a written language. They did have a system of knots that they used, but that was the extent of and record keeping. Ethan- The Mayans were well known for their astronomics, mathematics, and their calendar. Their civilization was based in southeastern Mexico and Guatemala. There was also El Salvador, Belize, and Honduras. That’s all the time we have for today. THank for joining us outside of the box that is learning.
Welcome back to The Emancipation Podcast Station - the place to hear about history researched and retold through the eyes of Middle school and HS students. Byzantine Empire: 600 - 1450 Regional and interregional interactions European Middle Ages: feudalism and serfdom: Audrey - The Middle Ages lasted from the fall of the Western Roman Empire, which was a little before 500 AD, to 1500 AD. There are three major sections of the Middle Ages, the Early Middle Ages, lasting from the fall of the Western Roman Empire to 1000 ad, was the first, the High Middle Ages, from 1000 ad to 13 ad, which was a high point for the Middle Ages, and last, the late Middle Ages, this lasted from 1300 to 1500 ad and it wasn't a very pleasant time to live in Europe. Gabe - feudalism is where if your poor you live on some land that you don't own a really rich guy called a baron or duke owns it and you still don't have money so you share a plow with your neighbor and you combine your ox together just to plow the ground so you can make a little money and you cant even leave with permission from your landlord you're a serf in a serfdom which is a state of being a feudal laborer so your like a slave who gets paid enough to survive Ella - A Roman Emperor by the name of Charlemagne conquered Northern Italy, around modern day France, and many other places including Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium. Charlemagne was able to unify most of Western Europe and was considered a defining figure of the early middle ages. Emma - The word feudal comes from the medieval latin word feudum which means “landed estate”. It is a really broad term that refers to many types of landowner-tenant living situations that took place during the middle ages in Europe. In the seventeenth century, historians and lawyers studying the middle ages wanted to give a name to these types of lifestyles in this era, thus naming it feudalism. Modern day historians don’t necessarily agree that they should all be lumped under one name. Ben - And at that time around 1100 AD Rome was losing land to the Muslims that conquered some of the Byzantine area, So they sent some crusaders in 1096 to take the land back, (especially the holy land) and when they did, they decided instead of adding the land back into the byzantine empire they would just make some crusader kingdoms, so they made separate kingdoms that only advanced the divide between the east and west empires. Skylar - Peasant revolting was also called popular uprisings. The peasants revolted in England in 1831. The revolted because they felt that they were not getting treated equally as everyone else, ex. they were working harder than everyone else and barely surviving. Other reasons for popular uprisings/peasant revolting is the government taxing certain people more, cultural issues, and religious issues. 7.Ethan- The Byzantine Iconoclasm was the destroying of religious stuff. This brought up much controversy that lasted about a century. This also further differed the East and the West. The Western Church used religious images often and the Iconoclasm didn’t affect them as much. Origins of Islam: Audrey - The closest translation of the word Islam to English is surrender, and in the context of the Islamic faith it would be the surrender to the will of God. A Muslim is someone who practices Islam, and submits to the will of God. The central text of Islam is the Quran, which is believed by Muslims that it is the word of God revealed by the messenger Muhammad. Especially in older texts Islam might be referred to as Muhammadism, like Christianity, but this is incorrect because the Muslims didn’t view Muhammad as a divine figure but as someone God spoke through. Ella - Muslims and Christians biggest difference is that muslims do not believe in the crucifixion or the resurrection. They also don’t believe that Jesus is the son of god. They belief he was only and early prophet. Muslims also believe in a system of 5 pillars. These pillars are made up of faith, prayer, charity, fasting and pilgrimage. Emma - Islam is similar to Christianity in many ways. For example, they believe that Moses, Abraham, and Jesus were all doing God’s work. They also believe that parts of the Bible are indeed God’s word though they also believe that Muhammad is another of God’s messengers and that they word he conveyed is also divinely inspired. Ben - The biggest figure in Islam is Muhammad, Muhammad was born in 570 BC, sadly his mother died in 576 BC and his grandfather died in 578 BC. He got married in 595 BC. After he saw revelations and visions from god he went down to the big cube and told everyone “hey your gods are fake” but as expected, everyone got mad at him so he had to move to a place with a Christian king. He went to where is now Ethiopia and preached his teachings. Gabe - he started preaching in mecca and the Quraysh tribe did not like that so he moved to Medina or Yathrib and here he kind of became a spiritual ruler over the city And they actually fight the quraysh tribe 3 to 1 because there's only about 300 of them and there's 900 quraysh and they win this battle and quraysh fight them again in the battle of uhud and now there’s 750 so they are building in numbers but there’s 3300 And the quraysh win and then they have another war which is the battle of the trench and they actually dug a trench around the city and they fought 3000 to 10000 so three to one again and the muslims won and this is all by account of the muslims though because they are the only record we have of that time 6.Ethan- Muslims consider Muhammad as the last person in the line of disciples. These disciples include, Moses, Abraham, and Jesus. Also, as soon as Muhammad was born most of the Middle East abandoned polytheism. Skylar - the early part of Islamic faiths are center around revelations of the prophet, Muhammad. A lot of the revelations with Muhammad are about surrendering to god. Muslims believe that the Quran is the final testament. Sunni and Shia Islam: Ella - After the death of Muhammed, these two divisions known as Sunni and Shia came into play. 90% of the world's 1.6 billion muslims are Sunni and 10% are Shia. The word Sunni comes from the word Sunnah which is referring to Muhammad. The word Shia comes from Shi'atu ‘Ali which means followers of Ali. Audrey - The general division, between the Sunnis and the Shias, is who should succeed Muhammad, after his death, as leader of the Muslim community. The Shias believe that members of Muhammad’s family, especially his descendants, should become leader. The Sunnis disagree, and believe that it doesn’t really matter who succeeds Muhammad. Ben - As the divide gets more and more intense it causes the “Battle of the Camel” named after Aisha’s camel in 656 BC, then after that the “Battle of Siffin” happens merely a year after in 657 BC. Gabe - the shias believe even more so that ali should be his successor after a speech saying he is mawla and ali is also mawla and when muhammad died his very close friend abu bakr takes his place and then umar and then uthman who is assassinated and ali finally takes his place Emma - Ali became caliph in the year 656 AD, after the assassination of Uthman. At this time, Muawiya was the governor of Damascus and he felt that Ali was not putting in a full effort to punish the people who commited the crime. Because of this, he refuses to pledge his allegience to Ali. This started the Fist Fitna, or first Muslim civil war. Skylar - Muhammad was born in the year 570. He starts having revelations to god in the year 610, the Muslim calendar doesn’t start until 622 though. Muhammad married Khadijah and had several kids with her, one being named, Fatimah. Fatimah then married Ali, the son of Abu Talib. That’s where the word shi’atu ali comes from. 7.Ethan- The Shia are mainly based in places like Iraq and Iran, but are spread throughout the world itself. As you can probably guess, the Sunni are in many different places, since 9/10 Muslim are Sunni. Much blood was spilled through these 2 denominations throughout time.. Age of Islam: Ella - The Islamic Empire Grew as it obtained information from other civilizations such as the Byzantine and Persian empires. The collected knowledge and cultural ideas from surrounding empires and people they would meet around their area such as the Indians and the Chinese. Audrey - They collected and obtained this information all throughout the Umayyad dynasty but most of it happened during the Abbasid Caliphate. The Abbasid Caliphate built Baghdad and moved the of the empire there. Ben - In 786 Al-Ma’mun was born, but later in his life (813 BC) he created the Baghdad house of wisdom. The baghdad house of wisdom contained almost all advanced human knowledge from at the time, from mathematics to astronomy, the house of wisdom contained all great wisdoms, even those that were fictional such as poetry. Gabe - they built baghdad right on the route between europe and asia making it the place a prime spot to trade in allowing the abbasids very wealthy because they imported all sorts of good like silk glass tile paper ivory soap honey diamonds Emma - During this time, something called the translation movement took place. Some of the caliphs like al-Rashid and al-Ma’mun wanted to make popular Greek texts accessible to the Arab world, so they encouraged scholars to translate Greek works into Arabic. They were trying to preserve the thoughts of great scholars such as Aristotle. 6.Ethan- The Abbasid Dynasty built Baghdad which is the capital of Iraq. While this was not always so, Damascus was the original capital city. At the time, this was the perfect place for the capital, for it was by the Tigris and Euphrates river. Thus made is ideal for crop production which allowed larger population. Skylar - Al-Kwarizmi was a persian mathematician who studied at the house of wisdom. Al-Kwarizmi is the inventor of algebra. The word algebra comes from the Arabic word al-jabr. He also created the Hindu numerals. The Great Schism: Audrey - Emperor Nero had these purges of Christians like the Roman fire or fire of rome in 64 ad. Nero blamed the Christians for the fire and was lighting them alive for punishment. Many historians believe that the apostles Peter and Paul were killed in these purges. Ben - Around the early 4th century a new emperor comes along and we’ve talked about him previously, Constantine. But today I’m going to go more in depth into Constantine’s life. He was born in 280 AD. His father was the previous western emperor before him, being made emperor in 305 AD. At Constantine’s thirties he was fighting for power within the western region, becoming victorious and being crowned emperor in 312 AD, and later became emperor of not just western rome but all of it in 324. He instilled multiple laws protecting christian people and converted to christianity/was baptised on his deathbed. He died in 337 AD. Gabe - after constantine there was theodosius who made christianity the main religion of rome and persecuted other religions he was also the last to rule both sides of rome when he died the germanic tribes took the west side of rome leaving justinian to the east side who conquered modern day italy back from the germanic tribes leaving the germanic tribes with modern day france and modern day germany and modern day france is owned by the franks the tribe of france which is why you have french and german but they were actually just german to begin with Ella - The Christians of the time were missionaries, going around and spreading their beliefs to other Roman Civilizations. In some cases families were split apart when half of the family decided to abandon Roman practices. Emma - Under the rule of Justinian, there was a power struggle in the Roman Empire. There were many people who possessed large amounts of power with different titles. There was obviously the Emperor, but then there was also the Bishop of Rome, now known as the Pope, who considers himself to somewhat the head of Christianity. There were also several other patriarchs across the Empire who held power and influence over the people. Skylar - Christianity started from the Roman Empire, it started from a jewish sect in Judea and Galilee, from early ministries. Going into the third century christianity was becoming pretty big. There were more purges. In 312 Constantine wins the battle at Milvian Bridge, and shortly after christianity becomes legal, and the christians are no longer persecuted for doing something they believe in. Ethan- The Holy Roman Empire was called this by Voltaire, “It is neither holy, nor an empire”. This Voltaire was a french Enlightenment writer/speaker. Otto der Grosse or Otto the Great was a Roman emperor who originated in Germany. He unified the Empire around the 10th century. It started to split around the 11th century. The Crusades: Gabe - it was called the crusades because it was a war but from the pope so the pope wanted some land and he convinced a mighty Lord to go fight for him and his land so he goes and dies of starvation there and nevers sees his land again Audrey - Crusades were wars but they were considered just warfare. A war could be considered just if it had a just cause legitimate authority and the right intention. Ella - Eventually after losing a lot of territory, the Byzantine Empire was able to take back some of the Anatolian Peninsula from a muslim group called the Seljuk Turks. Supposedly, the crusades were made for the Byzantine Empire to get back the territory they lost, but the crusades usually took the land for themselves. Skylar -The Byzantine empire was losing the holy land, as the Arabians started to overrun it. Crusades were wars declared by the pope. Pope Urban II told all the christians they need to fight against the muslims to get the holy land back, and whoever fights will be forgiven of their sins. Emma - The crusades made a big impact on the expansion of European kingdoms and territories. In the north and est, crusading helped to expand parts of the Kingdoms of Sweden and Denmark. It also influenced the establishment of new political systems like Prussia. Ben - The one they hired to lead the charge against the Muslims that were taking over Jerusalem was Pope Urban II. This took place in 1095. His famous speech hat launched the crusades was, “Under Jesus Christ, our Leader, may you struggle for your Jerusalem, in Christian battle line, [that] most invincible line, even more successfully than did the sons of Jacob of old—struggle, that you may assail and drive out the Turks, more execrable than the Jebusites, who are in this land, and may you deem it a beautiful thing to die for Christ in that city in which he died for us. But if it befall you to die this side of it, be sure that to have died on the way is of equal value, if Christ shall find you in his army” 7.Ethan- The First Crusade was Jerusalem’s first military order. These military orders were more of taking on things like communal poverty, chastity, and obedience. But also violence… lots of violence… for the Christian faith of course. Examples consist of the Knights Templar, the Knights Hospitaller, and the Teutonic Knights. 8. Medieval Japan: Gabe - medieval japan becomes a militaristic japan and it gets kind of fragmented and doesn't get reunited till around the modern period every wonder why japanese and chinese is a lot alike because the japanese borrowed many ideas from the chinese because there so close together china was like your older sibling influencing you Skylar - The Heian period was a golden age for Japan. The Heians were very powerful. The Heian period was known for architecture, culture, arts, and philosophy. They had amazing cultural advancement for their time, around the year 1000. The women had a say in thing, like emperial arts. Lady Murasaki is known as the first novelist. A Shogun is a military dictator, the first Shogun was Minamoto Yuritomo. Audrey - China had a huge influence on Japan even though China never conquered Japan because of how close they are Japan borrowed many ideas from China in the Classical period. Japanese rulers sent delegations to China in the 7th century to better understand what the Chinese do to run their government. Ella - In the time he ruled, Oda Nobunaga took advantage of guns. He was able to use them to put most of the other lords into submission. He also worked towards unifying Japan. The next two rulers Tokugawa Ieyasu and Toyotomi Hideyoshi continued working towards unify Japan. Ben - (Y’all better be ready for me to correct your pronunciation since I’m learning Japanese. Nah Jk) The capital of Japan during the heian period was Heian-kyo (today’s Kyoto). Also another little fact about the golden age of Japan was that woman that were in the family of very important political figures had a significant amount of power themselves, unlike other civilizations like Rome. Japan in its early state was famous for taking things and ideas from other people and making their own version. This is how they became one of the first truly industrialized countries. Emma - The structure of Medieval Japan under the Bakufu system, or shogunate, was actually very similar to a lot of the European systems, and was even called a feudal system by some. In this time, the position of Emperor still existed, but all the power belonged to the Shogun who was a sort of military leader. Under the shogun there were several daimyo, which could be compared to lords. Beneath them was the warrior class of samurai, which are very similar to the knights of europe. Ethan- The Edo period is named for the castle Edo. This castle was ruled by the Tokuwaga shogunate which is still going. The shogun is at the top of the chain which how the bakufu system normally works. This system is considered the reason Japan began to be unified. Maya, Aztec, and Inca Skylar - The Aztec Empire starts to form when Azcapotzalca gets in a civil war, Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan for a triple alliance and conquer Azcapotzalca. The Aztec empire was very small at the time with only three city-states. The Inca empire called themselves the Tawantinsuyu, they called their ruler Inca. Gabe - after a while in the Aztec empire Tenochtitlan which was once the weaker city state before in entered the aztec empire actually became the capital of the Aztec empire and the Aztec empire is actually around for another hundred years When hernando cortes comes and conquered it in 1521 Audrey - The Aztec civilization and the Aztec empire are different from each other because the Aztec civilization was made up of broad groups of people over hundreds of years where the Aztec empire was a very specific entity that was formed in the hundred years before the Spanish colonization. Ella - Hernando Cortes was able to convince several hundreds of conquistadors to conquer empires for him. He collected people from neighboring city states who were having problems with the Mexico or Aztec Empires. He eventually took over the city of Tenochtitlan and it became a very advanced civilization. Ben - One of the biggest ways the English were able to conquer ancient Mexico was with the bringing of smallpox which the native Americans never really had before. Even before they started calling themselves the Inca, they already had a sort of advanced civilization. They taxed their citizens, but not in a traditional way, since they didn’t use a coin or currency system, citizens had to dedicate some of their working time to the government. Emma - The advancements of Inca Empire are on their own monumental, but to put it into perspective, from the historical evidence we currently have, there is no proof that the Incas had a written language. They did have a system of knots that they used, but that was the extent of and record keeping. Ethan- The Mayans were well known for their astronomics, mathematics, and their calendar. Their civilization was based in southeastern Mexico and Guatemala. There was also El Salvador, Belize, and Honduras. That’s all the time we have for today. THank for joining us outside of the box that is learning.
From the hieght of its power, the Abbasid Caliphate was to begin a slow decline, with caliphs reduced to virtual figureheads. Yet during this time, some of the greatest achievements of Islamic civilization would come. In this episode, we look at what happened to a caliphate that seemed to be riding high, and how this long period of decline began.
Did the Muslims invent the modern sciences that fueled the European Renaissance, or were they merely translators and transmitters of knowledge from the ancient Greeks? In this episode, we consider the Islamic contributions to science in the early period of the Abbasid Caliphate and examine the claim that the Muslims developed the scientific method as we know it.
The true Golden Age of Islam is considered the Abbasid Caliphate, which lasted from 750 to 1258 AD and whose capital, Baghdad was the grandest city on earth - the center of intellectual, scientific and cultural achievement. The reality was more complicated and often didn't match the legend. In this episode, we look at how this great caliphate came to power and what made it unique.
In this episode we talk about the end of the Umayyads with the Abbasid revolt, focusing not only on the major battles, but why the Abbasids were successful in overthrowing the Umayyad Caliphate. We discuss how the caliphate changes over time and how the historical circumstances of the Abbasids, geography, and technology shape the new...
If this episode we are going to look at captive taking and slavery in the Viking Age. Buckle your seat belts, this is going to be a dark one. Along the way we’ll mourn the death of King Aed of Tara, introduce the Abbasid Caliphate and tell the story of a monk named Findan. First though we’ll need to return to Ireland, and catch up on events there during the 8 years between 813 and 821 CE which saw a lull in Vikingar activity. Then we’ll then move forward and look at what happened when Vikingar finally returned, focusing on a new tactic which may only have been possible thanks to the fledgling Norse bases in Scotland. Namely: The taking of captives for ransom or slavery.
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Battle of Talas, a significant encounter between Arab and Chinese forces which took place in central Asia in 751 AD. It brought together two mighty empires, the Abbasid Caliphate and the Tang Dynasty, and although not well known today the battle had profound consequences for the future of both civilisations. The Arabs won the confrontation, but the battle marks the point where the Islamic Empire halted its march eastwards, and the Chinese stopped their expansion to the west. It was also a point of cultural exchange: some historians believe that it was also the moment when the technology of paper manufacture found its way from China to the Western world. GUESTS Hilde de Weerdt, Professor of Chinese History at Leiden University Michael Höckelmann, British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of History at King's College London Hugh Kennedy, Professor of Arabic at SOAS, University of London Producer: Thomas Morris.
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Battle of Talas, a significant encounter between Arab and Chinese forces which took place in central Asia in 751 AD. It brought together two mighty empires, the Abbasid Caliphate and the Tang Dynasty, and although not well known today the battle had profound consequences for the future of both civilisations. The Arabs won the confrontation, but the battle marks the point where the Islamic Empire halted its march eastwards, and the Chinese stopped their expansion to the west. It was also a point of cultural exchange: some historians believe that it was also the moment when the technology of paper manufacture found its way from China to the Western world. GUESTS Hilde de Weerdt, Professor of Chinese History at Leiden University Michael Höckelmann, British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of History at King's College London Hugh Kennedy, Professor of Arabic at SOAS, University of London Producer: Thomas Morris.
This is Part 2 of our series on Rabban Sauma.We begin with a brief review of the political scene into which Rabban Sauma's story fits.Trade between the Roman Empire and the Far East was established as early as the First Century. But this trade was conducted by intermediaries. No single Western merchant made the entire trek to China, nor vice-versa. Goods traveled a ways from East to West or West to East by local caravans, which deposited them at a market, to be picked up by another caravan local to that region to continue the journey. After the Fall of the Han dynasty in the 3rd Century, and the ensuing chaos of the 4th thru 6th Centuries in China, trade stopped. With the emergence of the Tang Dynasty in the 7th Century, trade resumed. Goods flowed from the Middle East to China and back. But still, no Westerner met with his Chinese counterpart. The West prized Chinese silk and porcelain, while the East wanted frankincense, myrrh, jasmine, horses, and camels. Trade increased as Chinese dynasties and Islamic caliphates grew stronger. When they were in decline, trade did as well because of increased raids by brigands and the various protection schemes of money hungry local warlords.In these early centuries, trade flowed between Western and Eastern Asia. Europe wasn't involved because Medieval Feudalism simply had no market for Eastern goods. That changed with Europe's emergence from the Middle Ages and the new appetite for Eastern goods stimulated by the Crusades. The foothold Europeans established in the Outremer during that time opened routes between the Middle East and Europe that brought goods to the marketplace the newly emerging Middle Class were able to afford. It wasn't long before silk began to adorn the wardrobe of the rich, and in a trend that's existed since time immemorial, what the rich wear, the poor aspire to.The Mongol conquests of the 13th Century saw an increase in trade between East & West and the first contact between Europeans and Chinese. By the end of the 1270's the Mongols controlled more territory than any other empire in history, from Korea and South China, large parts of what would later be Russia, all Central Asia, a large portion of the Middle East and all Persia.In the 12th Century, mythical stories of a Christian Ruler in the East named Prester John motivated a handful of Europeans to initiate contact in the hope of an alliance to back down the threat from Islam. The legend of Prester John was stoked by Christian communities in the Middle East who knew vaguely of the Nestorian Church of the East and had heard tales of a Central Asian ruler named Yelu Tashih, King of Khara Khitay who'd' defeated the Muslims of his realm. They just assumed he must be a Christian. He wasn't. But why let a little detail like that mess up a perfectly good story that might illicit assistance from Europeans in launching a Crusade that would lift the Muslim heel form the necks of Middle Eastern Christians?As the Mongols moved steadily westward in the early 13th Century, King Bela of Hungary sent a Dominican emissary named Julian to learn more about what was obviously a very real threat. Julian never reached the Mongol base. He was met instead by Mongol envoys dispatched by the Mongol ruler Batu with an ultimatum of unconditional surrender and the release to the envoys of several enemies of the Mongols who'd fled to Bela for refuge.Julian returned to Hungary with the ultimatum and an account of the Mongol army, which he said, was formidable due to its mobility. He reported it was the Mongol ambition to conquer all the way to Rome and add to their already ridiculous wealth by sacking the richest parts of Europe.The Mongol conquest of the cream of Hungary and Poland's elite warriors and armies in 1240 by what was just the Mongol front screen put all Western Europe on notice about the new threat from the East. But Europe as fractured and disunited. The Pope and Holy Roman Emperor were at odds over who had supremacy. The call for yet another Crusade to liberate the Holy Land from the infidel floundered due to this disunity while the Christian cities in the Outremer pleaded for assistance.Three embassies were sent over the course of 1245 & 6 to the Mongols in an attempt to gather information about their intentions. Only one of them, lead by John of Plano Carpini was successful. He traveled all the way to the Mongol capital of Khara Khorum where he delivered a letter from the Pope, urging the Mongols to convert to Christianity and to leave off any further conquests in the West. While there, John witnessed the ascension of Genghis' grandson Guyug to the position of Great Khan.Why the Mongols forsook their long history as a loose collection of nomadic tribes ruled by local chieftains to a massed nation under a supreme leader is a matter for a different study and podcast. Of our interest is the liberal policy the Mongols took toward religion in the years of their early expansion. The native religion of Mongolia was shamanism. Most of the tribes were originally ruled by a chieftain in conjunction with a shaman n a power-sharing mode. But shamanism wasn't well suited to the ruling of the settled populations the Mongols began conquering in China and the Middle East. These peoples tended to be more literate and sophisticated and needed a Faith that reflected deeper interests than shamanism could address. As a result, the Khans either adopted the predominant religion of the region they conquered, or they maintained a policy of toleration that allowed several faiths to prosper. As a result, Buddhism, Islam, and Christianity were all accepted forms of Faith in Mongol realms. What wasn't appreciated by Mongol rulers were demands they embrace a particular faith. So the Pope's demand he convert and forsake an invasion enraged the Great Khan Guyug. John of Plano was sent home with a letter to Pope Innocent and al Europe's leaders to submit to the Mongols. If they balked, Guyug boasted, it would be a war the likes of which Europe had never seen.John's embassy to the East was a disaster. Not only had he failed to convert the Mongols, he'd managed to alienate the very people the West had hoped to ally with in a campaign against the resurgent Muslims of the Middle East. And while his mission was unfruitful, John's written account of what he experienced in the East proved to be a major boon as it lifted the veil of ignorance the West had to the East. If the Mongols had been shrouded in mystery up to that point, the mystery was dispelled with John's comprehensive, though at times inaccurate, description of their way of life. After John of Plano Carpini's mission, there were several attempts by Western rulers like France's Monarch Louis to forge an alliance with the Mongols against the Muslims. Some emissaries were official, while other missions were undertaken in a more covert fashion. Western insistence on the conversion of Mongol rulers to Christianity and Mongol intransigence on European submission were perennial sticking points. At one point Nestorian emissaries sent by The Great Khan Guyug to King Louis fabricated the lie that Guyug HAD converted and that he was married to the daughter of the fabled Prester John. Impressed, Louis sent two embassies to the Mongol court. Since Guyug was now dead, the Great Khanate became a prize rivals wrangled over; creating an impossible situation for the Western envoys when they became part of the prize being fought for.Relations between the Mongols and Europe remained unproductive until 1256 when The Great Khan Mongke's brother Hulegu was sent on a mission to enlarge their territory at the expense of hostile Muslim dynasties in the Middle East. It was well-known that Hulegu's wife was an ardent Nestorian who figured prominently in her husband's counsels. With Nestorian support, the Mongols under Hulegu captured a portion of Armenia, known then as Cilicia, and two years later overthrew the Abbasid Dynasty and entered Baghdad, executing the last Caliph. The Mongols thus became the rulers of Persia and surrounding territories of the Middle East. In 1261, Hulegu took the title of Ilkhan, meaning under-khan. The Mongol rule of wider Persia became forever after known as the Ilkhanate. It was technically subservient to the domains of the Great Khans but for all practical purposes ended up becoming just another region of Mongol dominance until a resurgent Islam was able to push out the weakening Mongols.After the conquest of Baghdad, Hulegu's forces continued Westward toward the Mediterranean. After taking territory in Syria, as so often happened in Mongol history, Hulegu was obliged to head home to Mongolia for the selection f the next Great Khan. His brother Mongke had died and as the tradition was among the Mongols, the next Khan would be selected by vote or the subordinate Mongol leaders, who themselves had all risen to position by merit, an innovation devised by the legendary Genghis. Before he departed for home, Hulegu appointed one of his commanders too continue the struggle against the Muslims by taking the key city of Damascus. Once Damascus fell, the rest of Syria would quickly follow. Up to this point, the Mongolian forces had seemed irresistible. But a change in Egypt meant a new state of affairs. In 1249, Turkish mercenaries of the Ayyubid dynasty revolted against their masters and established the Mamluk Dynasty. Fielding a far more powerful army, they set out to face the Mongols in Syria.Both armies were large and the Mongols had early success. They captured Damascus but were handed a serious defeat at the famous Battle of Ayn Jalut on Sept 3, 1260. This was the Mongols first defeat in the West. The Mongol commander was killed and the Mamluks retook Damascus. They then swept the Mongols from the rest of Syria.When word reached Hulegu of the defeat, he turned around without ever reaching Khara Khorum, rallied his defeated forces, determining to avenge his dead. Hulegu feared the Mamluk victory would embolden the Muslims under his rule in Persia to revolt. Since they were in the majority, a rebellion would prove devastating. But disunity in the Mongol world kept Hulegu from dealing with the Mamluks. To his north was his cousin Berke, ruler of the Mongol Golden Horde in what is today Russia. Berke and Hulegu were at odds with each other over the adjoining region of Azerbaijan, a rich plateau needed for the raising of their mounts, crucial for their style of warfare. Azerbaijan was also the region through which the increasingly rich East-West trade flowed, bring vast wealth. Exacerbating the tension between the cousins was Berke's conversion to Islam. He wasn't at all happy Hulegu had ended the Abbasid Caliphate and was now embroiled in hostilities with the Muslim Mamluks. So these two regions of Mongol dominance were at odds rather than united. With the defeat of the Ilkhanate at the Battle of Ayn Jalut, Berke allied with the Mamluk's against Hulegu.Joining the fray against the Ilkhanate in Persia was the Mongol realm lying to the East in Central Asia, the Chaghadai Khanate. The tensions here were the same as those between Hulegu & Berke – over territory and religion.Surrounded by hostile realms, Hulegu sought allies to bolster his hold on Persia. Persia and the Middle East simply didn't provide the pasturage the Mongol army required to wage effective warfare. Defeating the Mamluks and Golden Horde meant bolstering his forces with capable allies. His alliance with the ruler of Armenia provided some assistance, but Hulegu realized their addition could only forestall defeat, not attain the victory that would end the incessant conflicts.Hulegu's alliance with his brother, the Great Khan Khubilai was more a thing of theory than practice. In Khubilai's contest with their other brother, Arigh Boke, for the Khanate, Hulegu backed Khubilai, but due to the distance, wasn't able to offer anything more than verbal support. The same as now true in reverse. While Khubilai supported Hulegu and the Ilkhanate of Persia, he wasn't able to provide any forces to the contest. The result was Hulegu's turn to the West for allies. To defeat the Mamluks and regain Syria, he'd need Christian Europe's help. He figured they'd be open to such an alliance since they still possessed few holdings in the Outremer after the disasters of the Crusades and a resurgent Islam. Hulegu realized the haughty demands of his predecessors would not endear Western rulers to ally with him against the Mamluks. He'd have to appeal to them as equals.What Hulegu didn't know about was the disunity among Europe's rulers at the same time as such disorder in the Mongol realms. Also, the year 1260, when Hulegu began casting his net for allies to the West was only 20 years after the harrowing defeat of Hungary and Poland's military elite at the hands of the Mongols. Europe was terrified of them. Since treachery was a standard part of Mongolian warfare, offers of an alliance would be regarded as ploys for conquest rather than sincere overtures of alliance. From Europe's perspective, neither the Mamluks nor Mongols were a safe bet for alliance against the other. The best course was deemed as neutrality, and the hope the Mongols and Mamluks would duke it out in a war that would effectively cripple both. The Crusaders could then sweep in and take over.But Hulegu was ignorant of these Western impulses and dreamed of an alliance with the Christian West in a campaign against the Mamluks. Once the threat to his south and west was contained, the Ilkhans would be free to deal with the Golden Horde to their Northeast. While Hulegu's dream of a Mongol-European alliance was never realized, after his death in 1265, his successor carried on the same hope, putting feet to it in the career of the remarkable Rabban Sauma, whose tale we'll return to in our next episode.
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