The Moslem (Muslim) Empire

The Religion of Islam The Five Pillars The Quran- Religious text Confession of Faith “There is no other God but Allah and Mohammed is his Prophet.” Prayer Muslims must pray five times a day, while facing East, towards Mecca. Charity Muslims must give money to the poor and pay taxes to the mosque Fasting During the month of Ramadan, Muslims cannot eat or drink during daylight. Pilgrimage If physically able, a Muslim must make a pilgrimage to Mecca.

Islamic Caliphates After Mohammed died, a group of Muslim leaders chose a new leader, whom they called a Caliph. After some instability with early caliphs, the Umayyad Caliphate was founded. Most Muslims followed this caliphate. They became known as Sunnis. The small group of Muslims who did not follow the Umayyad Caliphate were known as Shiite Muslims. They believed only Mohammed’s decedents could be Caliphs. They moved the capital to Damascus A new caliph formed, the Abbasids, after 750 Focused on trade rather than war Built new capital at Baghdad

Islamic Cultural Achievements Madrassas- Islamic School Mosque- Place of worship Merchant economy- economy based on trade Sharia- practical guide to Muslim daily life Sultanate- kingdom ruled by sultan Theocracy- ruled with religion Universalizing religion- a religion that seeks to include all people

Islamic Caliphate and India In the 11th and 12th centuries, Turkish Muslims invaded India Muslims established independent kingdoms in Northern India known as Sultanates. The most famous were the Sultans of Delhi Unlike prior conquerors, the Muslims never fully adopted Indian ways. At the end of the 14th century the Mongol ruler Tamerlane destroyed the city of Delhi and slaughtered its inhabitants. The Delhi Sultanate never fully recovered from this blow.

Mughal Empire In 1526, Babur, a descendant of both Tamerlane and Chinggis Khan defeated the Sultan of Delhi and founded the Mughal Empire in India. The most famous Mughal ruler was Akbar the Great. Her set out to unite all Muslim and Hindu subjects by promoting religious toleration. Ended special Taxes paid by Hindus Made use of Hindu officials in government Encouraged cultural improvement His grandson, Shah Jahan showed less sympathy to Hindus. Reinstated special taxes paid by Hindus Ordered destruction of many Hindu sites Under him many converted to Islam Under his the Taj Mahal was built- a tomb for his wife.