1. Chapter 7: Abbasid Decline – Spread of Islam to South & Southeast Asia

2. Late Abbasid Era 4th Abbasid caliph: al-Mahdi
Drained the economy, taste for luxury, monumental buildings, concubines,
Political divisions: continued Shi’a revolts & assassinations
Problem of succession: original heir (son) poisoned

3. Late Abbasid Era 5th Abbasid caliph: Harun al- Rashida (786-809)
Extravagance of cities amazed visitors, even Charlemagne was impressed by mosques, palaces & treasures
Scientific, cultural & religious prosperity, arts & literature flourished
Built House of Wisdom: university/library
“The Book of One Thousand and One Nights” – palace intrigue, displayed wealth & luxury of Harun, weaknesses shown…fantasy novel?
Civil war ensued after his death

4. Decline of Abbasid Rule
6th Abbasid caliph: al-Amin ( )
Son of Harun, Killed off by brother
7th Abbasid caliph: al-Ma’mun ( )
Other son of Harun, killed brother al-Amin for power
Power shifts to military w/ instability
Assassinations common
Caliphs try to move capital away from Baghdad for protection
Expensive, cost of new palaces/capitals + mercenaries = high taxes
Peasants revolt due to this & encouraged by Shi’a

5. Declining Position of Women
Islamic world was initially open to equal treatment of women around time of Muhammad
Abbasid courts had thousands of concubines, wives & sex slaves secluded in restricted zones in palaces, known as harems
Women gain freedom by bearing healthy sons
Buying/selling of female & male slaves – prized for beauty & intelligence
Slaves & concubines often had more freedom than wives
Free women & wives required to wear veils in public, not slaves
Upper class women/wives had no career outside of home, focused on sons
Lower class women could farm, weave clothing, raise silkworms…better?

6. Abbasids Rule in Name Only
Several nomadic kingdoms try to take over power
945: Buyids of Persia invade & capture Baghdad
Used title of “sultan” meaning victorious
Took control of caliph & court but Abbasid leader technically in power
1055: Seljuk Turks replace Buyids (also ruled in name of caliphs)
Turks were Sunnis – purged Shi’a officials
Kept Byzantines from taking over
Laid foundations for future Ottoman Empire

7. Crusades Nine Crusades 1096-1291
Called on by Pope Urban II in for Christians to protect the Holy Land in return for penance
First Crusade: Crusaders (Christians) capture Jerusalem
Third Crusade: Muslims reconquer Jerusalem, Saladin allows Christians to peacefully pilgrimage to city
Saladin: Muslim sultan
Richard the Lionhearted: king of England
Overall: Muslims technically
200 years of battle had little effect on power of Muslim princes

9. Impact of Crusades
Impact much greater on Christians (Crusaders), Muslims show little interest in the west
Increased European borrowing from Muslims:
Weapons – Damascene sword
Fortifications/castles – William the Conqueror used styles in England
Muslim physicians, best in world?
Recovered Greek learning, mastered Arabic, decimal system
Rugs and tapestries, cloth, chess, troubadours, chivalry, coffee, yogurt
Little interest in Western European world, except for Italian merchants that remained after wars

11. Growth of Learning through Islamic culture
After 10th c.: Persian replaced Arabic at Abbasid court
Achievements:
Literature and poetry were a blend of mystical and commonplace
Muslims made corrections to algebraic & geometric theories of ancient Greeks, est. trigonometry
Classification of material substances into animal, vegetable and mineral
Star and navigation maps, Supreme hospitals, Work on optics & bladder ailments
Paper-making, silk-weaving, ceramic firing (adapted from China)

12. Religious Trends
Ulama Muslims: strict orthodox beliefs, hostile to non-Islamic ideals, the Koran is supreme law
Sufi Muslims: mystical sect, “religious experts”
true to strict monotheism, believed in a clear distinction between Allah & humans
healers, miracle workers, some militant
some used drugs, songs & medications to find Allah

13. Nomadic Invasions and End of the Caliphate
1220s: Genghis Khan unties Mongols to form Mongolian Empire
Mongols: nomads from central Asia
Smashes through Turko- Persian kingdoms
Hulagu Khan: Genghis’ grandson invaded Islamic civilizations
1258: took over Abbasid capital at Baghdad & killed last caliph
Mamluks: Turkish slaves who ruled Egypt, stopped Mongol advance into Israel/Egypt

14. Mongols
Nomads, skilled archers & riders, known for savage killing & burning
Genghis Khan: founder & ruler of Mongol Empire
Vicious conqueror but religiously tolerant
expanded Mongolia
used cruelty as a weapon
Created postal system
Unified silk roads under a political system
Had so many wives & raped so many women that 16 million alive today are descendants

18. Islam Moves Into South Asia
First wave – late 600s
Islam spreads into Western India through conquests
some towns willingly surrendered to Muslims b/c lower taxation & more religious tolerance
Arabs treated conquered Hindus & Buddhists as protected “people of the book” and many were allowed to stay in same their political positions
Indian Influences on Islam
“Arabian Nights”
Alchemy & palmistry, Arabic numerals, chess
Indian dress, hairstyles, foods, dressed like & rode on elephants like the Hindu kings called Rajas

19. Islam Moves Into South Asia
Second Wave- mid 900s
Mahmud of Ghazi: ruler of Ghaznavid Dynasty (Turkey/Iran), led 17 raids into western India on the Hindus
Later, Muslims would est. the capital of their empire in India at Delhi & call themselves “sultans of Delhi”
Merchants & Sufi Muslims played huge roles in spreading Islam
Sufis shared much with Indian gurus, magical & healing powers
Sufis welcomed low-caste & outcaste Hindus as converts
After their deaths, the tombs of Sufi mystics would become objects of veneration for many
Buddhism survived in northern India until Muslims invasions
Buddhists made up the majority of Indians who converted to Islam

20. Religious Accommodations
Overall, Islam made little impression on India as a whole
High-caste Hindus saw Islam as polluting outcastes
Hindus staffed the Muslims bureaucracies and made up a good portion of their armies, but remained socially aloof from one another; genuine relationships between the two were rare
Some Muslim rulers would adopt practices that were Hindu-inspired & contrary to the Koran; some proclaimed divine descent (not a Muslim belief), some minted coins w/ images on Hindu gods
System of hierarchy became established, in order from top to bottom:
Recently arrived Muslims, but divided depending on if Arab, Turk, or Persian
High-caste Hindus
“clean” artisan and merchant groups
Lower-castes and untouchables remained at the bottom
…this would help explain why conversions within these groups were not as numerous as expected

21. Islamic Challenge & Hindu Revival
Muslim influx had unfortunate consequences for women
Married at young age, widows re-marrying was prohibited, widows burned w/ deceased husband (sati)
Hindus found Islam impossible to absorb & combine with – beliefs & rituals too distinct
Placed great emphasis on devotional cults of gods & goddesses: bhaktic cults
This had helped India lessen the challenge of Buddhism years before
Cults, religious writers & poets, saints all allowed women and untouchables
Kabir: Muslim poet who attempted to downplay the differences in Islam & Hinduism by claiming they could both provide spiritual fulfillment
…but Hindus remained the overwhelming majority of population before Himalayas

22. Islam Moves into Southeast Asia
8th c: Sumatra & Malaya become active in Indian Ocean trade
Asian countries traded luxury items – aromatic woods from Borneo & Sumatra, spices such as cloves, nutmeg, and mace from Indonesia
Muslims began to control trade & after trading empire Shrivijaya on Strait of Malacca fell, Islam began to filter in
Coastal ports receptive to conversion
Malacca, Demak, Java, Celebes, Mindanao
But, mainland Southeast Asia remained mostly Buddhist
However, women had stronger positions here, merchants, family line often traced through mother

26. The Silk Roads

27. Mesopotamian Egyptian, Chinese, and Indus River Valley Civilizations

28. Umayyad, Abbasid, Sassanid, and Byzantine Empires

29. Roman Empire, Phoenicia, Carthage, and Greek city-states

30. Maurya, Gupta, Qin, and Han Empires