1. Islamic Empires

2. Muslim Armies Conquer Many Lands
After Muhammad’s death in 632, his followers chose Abu Bakr to be the first Caliph, successor or highest leader of Islam.   Abu Bakr quickly united all of Arabia under Islam.  Muslim armies rapidly conquered Persian and Byzantine land.

3. Growth of the Empire
Umayyad Family Dynasty •Moved the capital of the Islamic Empire to Damascus, Syria. •Conquered Central Asia, Northern India, and part of North Africa •Controlled trade in the eastern Mediterranean

4. In 711, Muslim armies invaded Spain, conquered it and then moved into France.  Christian armies at the Battle of Tours halted Islam’s move into Europe.  Muslims called Moors  ruled Spain until the 1400’s.

5. Trade Helps Islam Spread
Muslim traders carried Islam into Africa, India and Southeast Asia.  Between 1200 and 1600 Islam spread into Malaysia and Indonesia.

6. In lands the Muslims conquered, those of other faiths were allowed to practice their religion with certain restrictions.  Christians and Jews had to pay a special tax, and were not allowed to convert anyone to their religion.  In some Islamic countries today it is still illegal to spread other faiths.  

7. Ottoman Empire
In the mid 1200’s Muslim Turkish warriors began to conquer the lands of the fading Byzantine Empire.  In the lands they captured, Christian boys were enslaved, converted to Islam, and turned into fierce soldiers.  These young soldiers were the  original Janissaries. 

8. In 1453, led by Mehmed II, the Ottoman’s conquered Constantinople
In 1453, led by Mehmed II, the Ottoman’s conquered Constantinople.  He turned the great church, Hagia Sophia into a mosque.  A later Sultan (Ottoman ruler) would conquer all of Asia Minor (Turkey) Syria and Egypt.

9. The Ottoman’s reached their height under Suleyman I (The Magnificent) between 1520 and 1566.

10. The Savavid Empire
At the same time as the Ottoman’s, another Muslim empire was growing in Persia (Iran).  The Safavids were Shia Muslims.   The empire would last until the 1700’s.
A conflict between two Muslim groups developed during this time that still continues to this day.

11. Savavid Empire

12. Division of Islam
Sunni Muslims: Believe that caliphs do not have to be descended from Muhammad’s family. Shia Muslims: DO believe that caliphs have to be descended from Muhammad’s family. Most Muslims in the world are Sunnites. Only in Iran and Iraq are Shia the majority.

13. Mughal Empire
In 1526, the Turkish Muslim leader, Babur established the Mughal Empire in northern India. By the mid-1500’s emperor Akbar had conquered central India. By the early 1700’s the Mughal Empire would stretch to southern India. The Mughal’s were known for their monumental works of architecture. Mughal emperor Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal tomb for his wife in the 1600’s. The Mughal Empire fell in the late 1600’s.

14. Work Cited:
"World History Chapter 12." World History Chapter 12. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar <