Which territories were included in the caliphate? Characteristic features of the Muslim social system

After the death of Muhammad, the Arabs were ruled caliphs- military leaders elected by the entire community. The first four caliphs came from the inner circle of the prophet himself. Under them, the Arabs for the first time went beyond the borders of their ancestral lands. Caliph Omar, the most successful military leader, spread the influence of Islam throughout almost the entire Middle East. Under him, Syria, Egypt, and Palestine were conquered - lands that previously belonged to the Christian world. The closest enemy of the Arabs in the struggle for land was Byzantium, which was going through difficult times. The long war with the Persians and numerous internal problems undermined the power of the Byzantines, and it was not difficult for the Arabs to take a number of territories from the empire and defeat the Byzantine army in several battles.

In a sense, the Arabs were “doomed to success” in their campaigns. Firstly, superior light cavalry provided the Arab army with mobility and superiority over infantry and heavy cavalry. Secondly, the Arabs, having captured the country, behaved in it in accordance with the commandments of Islam. Only the rich were deprived of their property; the conquerors did not touch the poor, and this could not but arouse sympathy for them. Unlike Christians, who often forced the local population to accept a new faith, the Arabs allowed religious freedom. The propaganda of Islam in new lands was more of an economic nature. It happened as follows. Having conquered the local population, the Arabs imposed taxes on them. Anyone who converted to Islam was exempt from a significant portion of these taxes. Christians and Jews, who had long lived in many Middle Eastern countries, were not persecuted by the Arabs - they simply had to pay a tax on their faith.

The population in most conquered countries perceived the Arabs as liberators, especially since they retained a certain political independence for the conquered people. In the new lands, the Arabs founded paramilitary settlements and lived in their own closed, patriarchal-tribal world. But this state of affairs did not last long. In rich Syrian cities, famous for their luxury, in Egypt with its centuries-old cultural traditions, noble Arabs became increasingly imbued with the habits of the local rich and nobility. For the first time, a split occurred in Arab society - adherents of patriarchal principles could not come to terms with the behavior of those who refused the custom of their fathers. Medina and the Mesopotamian settlements became the stronghold of the traditionalists. Their opponents - not only in terms of foundations, but also in political terms - lived mainly in Syria.

In 661, a split occurred between two political factions of the Arab nobility. Caliph Ali, the son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, tried to reconcile traditionalists and supporters of the new way of life. However, these attempts came to nothing. Ali was killed by conspirators from the traditionalist sect, and his place was taken by Emir Muawiya, the head of the Arab community in Syria. Muawiyah decisively broke with the supporters of the military democracy of early Islam. The capital of the caliphate was moved to Damascus, the ancient capital of Syria. During the era of the Damascus Caliphate, the Arab world decisively expanded its borders.

By the 8th century, the Arabs had subjugated all of North Africa, and in 711 they began an attack on European lands. What a serious force the Arab army was can be judged by the fact that in just three years the Arabs completely captured the Iberian Peninsula.

Muawiyah and his heirs - the caliphs of the Umayyad dynasty - in a short period of time created a state, the likes of which history has never known. Neither the possessions of Alexander the Great, nor even the Roman Empire at its peak, extended as widely as the Umayyad Caliphate. The caliphs' dominions stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to India and China. The Arabs owned almost all of Central Asia, all of Afghanistan, and the northwestern territories of India. In the Caucasus, the Arabs conquered the Armenian and Georgian kingdoms, thereby surpassing the ancient rulers of Assyria.

Under the Umayyads, the Arab state finally lost the features of the previous patriarchal-tribal system. During the birth of Islam, the caliph - the religious head of the community - was elected by general vote. Muawiyah made this title hereditary. Formally, the caliph remained the spiritual ruler, but was mainly involved in secular affairs.

Supporters of a developed management system, created according to Middle Eastern models, won the dispute with adherents of old customs. Caliphate began to resemble more and more the eastern despotism of ancient times. Numerous officials subordinate to the caliph monitored the payment of taxes in all lands of the caliphate. If under the first caliphs Muslims were exempt from taxes (with the exception of the “tithe” for the maintenance of the poor, commanded by the prophet himself), then during the time of the Umayyads three main taxes were introduced. The tithe, which previously went to the income of the community, now went to the treasury of the caliph. Apart from her, all the residents caliphate had to pay a land tax and a poll tax, the jiziya, the same one that was previously levied only on non-Muslims living on Muslim soil.

The caliphs of the Umayyad dynasty cared about making the caliphate a truly unified state. For this purpose they introduced as state language Arabic in all territories under their control. The Koran, the holy book of Islam, played an important role in the formation of the Arab state during this period. The Koran was a collection of sayings of the Prophet, recorded by his first disciples. After the death of Muhammad, several texts-additions were created that made up the book of Sunnah. On the basis of the Koran and Sunnah, the Caliph's officials conducted court, the Koran determined everything critical issues Arab life. But if all Muslims accepted the Koran unconditionally - after all, these were sayings dictated by Allah himself - then religious communities treated the Sunnah differently. It was along this line that a religious split occurred in Arab society.

The Arabs called Sunnis those who recognized the Sunnah as a holy book along with the Koran. The Sunni movement in Islam was considered official because it was supported by the caliph. Those who agreed to consider only the Koran as the holy book formed the sect of Shiites (schismatics).

Both Sunnis and Shiites were very numerous groups. Of course, the schism was not limited to religious differences. The Shiite nobility was close to the family of the Prophet; the Shiites were led by relatives of the murdered Caliph Ali. In addition to the Shiites, the caliphs were opposed by another, purely political sect - the Kharijites, who advocated a return to the original tribal patriarchy and squad orders, in which the caliph was chosen by all the warriors of the community, and the lands were divided equally among everyone.

The Umayyad dynasty held power for ninety years. In 750, the military leader Abul Abbas, a distant relative of the Prophet Muhammad, overthrew the last caliph and destroyed all his heirs, declaring himself caliph. The new dynasty - the Abbasids - turned out to be much more durable than the previous one, and lasted until 1055. Abbas, unlike the Umayyads, came from Mesopotamia, a stronghold of the Shiite movement in Islam. Not wanting to have anything to do with the Syrian rulers, the new ruler moved the capital to Mesopotamia. In 762, the city of Baghdad was founded, becoming the capital of the Arab world for several hundred years.

The structure of the new state turned out to be in many ways similar to the Persian despotisms. The first minister of the caliph was the vizier; the whole country was divided into provinces, ruled by emirs appointed by the caliph. All power was concentrated in the palace of the caliph. Numerous palace officials were, in essence, ministers, each responsible for their own area. Under the Abbasids, the number of departments increased sharply, which initially helped manage the vast country.

The postal service was responsible not only for organizing the courier service (first created by the Assyrian rulers in the 2nd millennium BC). The duties of the postmaster general included maintaining state roads in good condition and providing hotels along these roads. Mesopotamian influence manifested itself in one of the most important branches of economic life - agriculture. Irrigation agriculture, practiced in Mesopotamia since ancient times, became widespread under the Abbasids. Officials from a special department monitored the construction of canals and dams, and the condition of the entire irrigation system.

Under the Abbasids, military power caliphate has increased sharply. The regular army now consisted of one hundred and fifty thousand warriors, among whom were many mercenaries from barbarian tribes. The caliph also had at his disposal his personal guard, warriors for which were trained from early childhood.

By the end of his reign, Caliph Abbas earned the title “Bloody” for his brutal measures to restore order in the lands conquered by the Arabs. However, it was thanks to his cruelty that the Abbasid Caliphate for a long time turned into a prosperous country with a highly developed economy.

First of all, agriculture flourished. Its development was facilitated by the thoughtful and consistent policy of the rulers in this regard. The rare diversity of climatic conditions in different provinces allowed the caliphate to fully provide itself with all necessary products. It was at this time that the Arabs began to attach great importance to gardening and floriculture. Luxury goods and perfumes produced in the Abbasid state were important items of foreign trade.

It was under the Abbasids that the Arab world began to flourish as one of the main industrial centers in the Middle Ages. Having conquered many countries with rich and long-standing craft traditions, the Arabs enriched and developed these traditions. Under the Abbasids, the East began to trade in steel of the highest quality, the like of which Europe had never known. Damascus steel blades were extremely highly valued in the West.

The Arabs not only fought, but also traded with the Christian world. Small caravans or brave single merchants penetrated far to the north and west of the borders of their country. Items made in the Abbasid Caliphate in the 9th – 10th centuries were found even in the Baltic Sea region, in the territories of Germanic and Slavic tribes. The fight against Byzantium, which the Muslim rulers waged almost incessantly, was caused not only by the desire to seize new lands. Byzantium, which had long-established trade relations and routes throughout the known world at that time, was the main competitor of Arab merchants. Goods from the countries of the East, India and China, which had previously reached the West through Byzantine merchants, also came through the Arabs. No matter how badly Christians in the European West treated the Arabs, the East for Europe already in the Dark Ages became the main source of luxury goods.

The Abbasid Caliphate had many common features both with the European kingdoms of their era, and with the ancient Eastern despotisms. The caliphs, unlike European rulers, managed to prevent the emirs and other high-ranking officials from becoming too independent. If in Europe land, provided to local nobility for royal service, almost always remained hereditary property, then the Arab state in this regard was closer to the ancient Egyptian order. According to the laws of the caliphate, all land in the state belonged to the caliph. He allocated money to his associates and subjects for their service, but after their death, the allotments and all property returned to the treasury. Only the caliph had the right to decide whether to leave the lands of the deceased to his heirs or not. Let us remember that the reason for the collapse of most European kingdoms during the Early Middle Ages was precisely the power that the barons and counts took into their hands on the lands granted to them by the king as hereditary possession. Royal power extended only to lands that belonged personally to the king, and some of his counts owned much more extensive territories.

But there was never complete peace in the Abbasid Caliphate. Residents of countries conquered by the Arabs constantly sought to regain independence, raising revolts against their co-religionists-invaders. The emirs in the provinces also did not want to accept their dependence on the favor of the supreme ruler. The collapse of the caliphate began almost immediately after its formation. The first to separate were the Moors - North African Arabs who conquered the Pyrenees. The independent Emirate of Cordoba became a caliphate in the mid-10th century, consolidating sovereignty at the state level. The Moors in the Pyrenees maintained their independence longer than many other Islamic peoples. Despite constant wars against Europeans, despite the powerful onslaught of the Reconquista, when almost all of Spain returned to Christians, until the middle of the 15th century there was a Moorish state in the Pyrenees, which eventually shrank to the size of the Granada Caliphate - a small area around spanish city Granada, the pearl of the Arab world, shocked its European neighbors with its beauty. The famous Moorish style came to European architecture namely through Granada, which was finally conquered by Spain only in 1492.

Starting from the middle of the 9th century, the collapse of the Abbasid state became irreversible. One after another, the North African provinces separated, followed by Central Asia. In the heart of the Arab world, the confrontation between Sunnis and Shiites has intensified even more sharply. In the middle of the 10th century, the Shiites captured Baghdad and for a long time ruled the remnants of the once powerful caliphate - Arabia and small territories in Mesopotamia. In 1055, the caliphate was conquered by the Seljuk Turks. From that moment on, the world of Islam completely lost its unity. The Saracens, who had established themselves in the Middle East, did not give up their attempts to take possession of Western European lands. In the 9th century they captured Sicily, from where they were later driven out by the Normans. In the Crusades of the 12th and 13th centuries, European crusader knights fought against Saracen troops.

The Turks moved from their territories in Asia Minor to the lands of Byzantium. Over the course of several hundred years, they conquered the entire Balkan Peninsula, brutally oppressing its former inhabitants - the Slavic peoples. And in 1453, the Ottoman Empire finally conquered Byzantium. The city was renamed Istanbul and became the capital of the Ottoman Empire.

Interesting information:

• Caliph - the spiritual and secular head of the Muslim community and the Muslim theocratic state (caliphate).
• Umayyads - dynasty of caliphs that ruled from 661 to 750.
• Jiziah (jizya) - a poll tax on non-Muslims in the countries of the medieval Arab world. Only adult men paid jizya. Women, children, old people, monks, slaves and beggars were exempt from paying it.
• Koran (from the Arabic “kur’an” - reading) - a collection of sermons, prayers, parables, commandments and other speeches delivered by Muhammad and which formed the basis of Islam.
• Sunnah (from the Arabic “way of action”) is a sacred tradition in Islam, a collection of stories about the actions, commandments and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad. It is an explanation and supplement to the Koran. Compiled in the 7th – 9th centuries.
• Abbasids - a dynasty of Arab caliphs that ruled from 750 to 1258.
• Emir - feudal ruler in Arab world, a title corresponding to a European prince. He had temporal and spiritual power. At first, emirs were appointed to the post of caliph, later this title became hereditary.

After the death of Muhammad, the Arabs were ruled by caliphs. - heirs of the Prophet. Under the first four caliphs, his closest associates and relatives, the Arabs went beyond the Arabian Peninsula and attacked Byzantium and Iran. The main force their troops were cavalry. The Arabs conquered the richest Byzantine provinces - Syria, Palestine, Egypt and the vast Iranian kingdom. At the beginning of the 8th century. in North Africa they subjugated the Berber tribes and converted them to Islam. In 711, the Arabs crossed to Europe, to the Iberian Peninsula, and almost completely conquered the kingdom of the Visigoths; But later, in a collision with the Franks (732), the Arabs were driven back to south. In the east they subjugated the peoples of Transcaucasia and Central Asia, breaking their stubborn resistance. Having then conquered Eastern Iran and Afghanistan, the Arabs penetrated into North-West India.

So during the 7th - first half of the 8th century. A huge state arose - the Arab Caliphate, stretching from the shores of the Atlantic Ocean to the borders of India and China. Damascus became its capital.
In the middle of the 7th century. Under Caliph Ali, Muhammad's cousin, civil strife broke out in the country, leading to a split of Muslims into Sunnis and Shiites.

Sunnis recognize not only the Koran as sacred books, but also the Sunna - a collection of stories from the life of Muhammad, and also believe that the caliph should be the head of the Muslim church. Shiites reject the Sunnah as a holy book and demand that believers be led by imams - spiritual guides from the clan of Ali.

After the assassination of Ali, the caliphs from the Umayyad dynasty, relying on the Sunnis, seized power. The Shiite uprising against the Umayyads began in Central Asia and spread to Iran and Iraq, which the Abbasids - the descendants of Muhammad's uncle, Abbas - took advantage of. The caliph's troops were defeated, the caliph himself fled to Syria, and then to Egypt, where he was killed by the rebels. Almost all the Umayyads were exterminated (one of the fleeing Umayyads created an independent Arab state in Spain - the Emirate of Kardoba, and from the 10th century - the Cordoba Caliphate). In 750, power in the caliphate passed to the Abbasid dynasty. Iranian landowners who supported the Abbasids received high positions in the state. They could even occupy the post of vizier - a senior official, assistant to the caliph.
All land in the state was the property of the caliph. Emirs (governors) from among his closest relatives collected taxes in the provinces, supported the army at this expense, and led the campaigns of conquest. Tax relief for Muslims forced many residents of conquered countries to convert to Islam. As a result, during her time Islam was adopted by the majority of the population of Syria, Egypt, a large part of Africa, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, parts of Hindustan and Indonesia.

Under the Abbasids, the conquests of the Arabs almost ceased: only the islands of Sicily, Cyprus, Crete and part of the south of Italy were annexed. At the intersection of trade routes on the Tigris River, a new capital was founded - Baghdad, which gave the name to the state of the Arabs under the Abbasids - the Baghdad Caliphate. Its heyday was during the reign of the legendary Harun al-Rashid (766-809), a contemporary of Charlemagne.
In the VIII-IX centuries. A series of uprisings swept through the caliphate. Particularly significant was the movement of the Qarmatians (one of the branches of the Shiites), who even managed to create their own state, which lasted for about a century and a half.

The huge caliphate did not remain united for long. The guard, recruited from captive Turks (immigrants from Central Asia), and the governor-emirs, who became independent rulers, acquired increasing power in it. In the 9th century. Egypt and other provinces in North Africa, Central Asia, Iran and Afghanistan separated from the Baghdad Caliphate. Only Mesopotamia was under the rule of the caliph, but the caliph remained the head of the Sunni Muslims.
In the middle of the 11th century. The Seljuk Turks (named after their leader Seljuk), who had by that time captured part of Central Asia, conquered most of the Arab possessions in the Middle East. In 1055 they captured Baghdad. The Caliph crowned the ruler of the Seljuk Turks and gave him the title of Sultan.

On the territory of the Arabian Peninsula already in the 2nd millennium BC. lived Arab tribes that were part of the Semitic group of peoples. In the V-VI centuries. AD Arab tribes dominated the Arabian Peninsula. Part of the population of this peninsula lived in cities, oases, and was engaged in crafts and trade.

The other part roamed the deserts and steppes and was engaged in cattle breeding. Trade caravan routes between Mesopotamia, Syria, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Judea passed through the Arabian Peninsula. The intersection of these paths was the Meccan oasis near the Red Sea. In this oasis lived the Arab tribe Quraysh, whose tribal nobility, using geographical position Mecca, received income from the transit of goods through their territory.

In addition, Mecca became the religious center of Western Arabia. The ancient pre-Islamic temple of the Kaaba was located here. According to legend, this temple was erected by the biblical patriarch Abraham (Ibrahim) with his son Ismail. This temple is associated with a sacred stone that fell to the ground, which has been worshiped since ancient times, and with the cult of the god of the Quraysh tribe, Allah (from Arabic: ilah - master).

In the VI century. n, e. in Arabia, due to the movement of trade routes to Iran, the importance of trade decreases. The population, having lost income from the caravan trade, was forced to seek sources of livelihood in agriculture. But there was little land suitable for agriculture. They had to be conquered.

This required strength and, therefore, the unification of fragmented tribes, who also worshiped different gods. The need to introduce monotheism and unite the Arab tribes on this basis became increasingly clear.

This idea was preached by adherents of the Hanif sect, one of whom was Muhammad (c. 570-632 or 633), who became the founder of a new religion for the Arabs - Islam. This religion is based on the tenets of Judaism and Christianity: belief in one God and his prophet, doomsday, reward after death, unconditional submission to the will of God (Arabic: Islam - submission).

The Jewish and Christian roots of Islam are evidenced by the names of prophets and other biblical characters common to these religions: biblical Abraham (Islamic Ibrahim), Aaron (Harun), David (Daud), Isaac (Ishak), Solomon (Suleiman), Ilya (Ilyas), Jacob (Yakub), Christian Jesus (Isa), Mary (Maryam), etc. Islam shares common customs and prohibitions with Judaism. Both religions prescribe the circumcision of boys, prohibit depicting God and living beings, eating pork, drinking wine, etc.

At the first stage of development, the new religious worldview of Islam was not supported by the majority of Muhammad's fellow tribesmen, and primarily by the nobility, as they feared that the new religion would lead to the cessation of the cult of the Kaaba as a religious center, and thereby deprive them of income. In 622, Muhammad and his followers had to flee persecution from Mecca to the city of Yathrib (Medina).

This year is considered the beginning of the Muslim calendar. The agricultural population of Yathrib (Medina), competing with the merchants from Mecca, supported Muhammad. However, only in 630, having gathered the required number of supporters, he was able to form military forces and capture Mecca, the local nobility of which was forced to submit to the new religion, especially since they were satisfied that Muhammad proclaimed the Kaaba the shrine of all Muslims.

Much later (c. 650) after the death of Muhammad, his sermons and sayings were collected into a single book, the Koran (translated from Arabic as reading), which became sacred to Muslims. The book includes 114 suras (chapters), which set out the main tenets of Islam, prescriptions and prohibitions.

Later Islamic religious literature is called Sunnah. It contains legends about Muhammad. Muslims who recognized the Koran and the Sunnah began to be called Sunnis, and those who recognized only one Koran - Shiites. Shiites recognize only his relatives as the legitimate caliphs (viceroys, deputies) of Muhammad, the spiritual and secular heads of Muslims.

The economic crisis of Western Arabia in the 7th century, caused by the movement of trade routes, the lack of land suitable for agriculture, and high population growth, pushed the leaders of the Arab tribes to seek a way out of the crisis by seizing foreign lands. This is reflected in the Koran, which says that Islam should be the religion of all peoples, but for this it is necessary to fight the infidels, exterminate them and take their property (Koran, 2: 186-189; 4: 76-78, 86).

Guided by this specific task and the ideology of Islam, Muhammad's successors, the caliphs, began a series of conquests. They conquered Palestine, Syria, Mesopotamia, and Persia. Already in 638 they captured Jerusalem. Until the end of the 7th century. The countries of the Middle East, Persia, the Caucasus, Egypt and Tunisia came under Arab rule. In the 8th century Central Asia, Afghanistan were captured, Western India, North West Africa.

In 711, Arab troops under the leadership of Tariq sailed from Africa to the Iberian Peninsula (from Tariq’s name came the name Gibraltar - Mount Tariq). Having quickly conquered the Pyrenees, they rushed to Gaul. However, in 732, at the Battle of Poitiers, they were defeated by the Frankish king Charles Martel.

By the middle of the 9th century. The Arabs captured Sicily, Sardinia, the southern regions of Italy, and the island of Crete. At this point, the Arab conquests stopped, but a long-term war was waged with the Byzantine Empire. The Arabs besieged Constantinople twice.

The main Arab conquests were carried out under the caliphs Abu Bekr (632-634), Omar (634-644), Osman (644-656) and the Umayyad caliphs (661-750). Under the Umayyads, the capital of the caliphate was moved to Syria to the city of Damascus.

The victories of the Arabs and their seizure of vast areas were facilitated by many years of mutually exhausting war between Byzantium and Persia, disunity and constant hostility between other states that were attacked by the Arabs. It should also be noted that the population of the countries captured by the Arabs, suffering from the oppression of Byzantium and Persia, saw the Arabs as liberators who reduced the tax burden primarily for those who converted to Islam.

The unification of many formerly disparate and warring states into a single state contributed to the development of economic and cultural communication between the peoples of Asia, Africa and Europe. Crafts and trade developed, cities grew. Within the Arab Caliphate, a culture quickly developed, incorporating Greco-Roman, Iranian and Indian heritage.

Through the Arabs, Europe became acquainted with cultural achievements eastern peoples, primarily with achievements in the field of exact sciences - mathematics, astronomy, geography, etc.

In 750, the Umayyad dynasty in the eastern part of the caliphate was overthrown. The Abbasids, descendants of the Prophet Muhammad's uncle, Abbas, became caliphs. They moved the capital of the state to Baghdad.

In the western part of the caliphate, Spain continued to be ruled by the Umayyads, who did not recognize the Abbasids and founded the Cordoba Caliphate with its capital in the city of Cordoba.

The division of the Arab Caliphate into two parts was the beginning of the creation of smaller Arab states, the heads of which were provincial rulers - emirs.

The Abbasid Caliphate waged constant wars with Byzantium. In 1258, after the Mongols defeated the Arab army and captured Baghdad, the Abbasid state ceased to exist.

The Spanish Umayyad Caliphate also gradually shrank. In the 11th century As a result of internecine struggle, the Cordoba Caliphate broke up into a number of states. The Christian states that arose in the northern part of Spain took advantage of this: the Leono-Castilian, Aragonese, and Portuguese kingdoms, which began to fight the Arabs for the liberation of the peninsula - the reconquista.

In 1085 they recaptured the city of Toledo, in 1147 Lisbon, and in 1236 Cordoba fell. The last Arab state on the Iberian Peninsula - the Emirate of Granada - existed until 1492. With its fall, the history of the Arab caliphate as a state ended.

The caliphate as an institution for the spiritual leadership of the Arabs and all Muslims continued to exist until 1517, when this function passed to the Turkish Sultan, who captured Egypt, where the last caliphate lived spiritual head all Muslims.

The history of the Arab Caliphate, dating back only six centuries, was complex, controversial and at the same time left a significant mark on the evolution of human society on the planet.

The difficult economic situation of the population of the Arabian Peninsula in the VI-VII centuries. in connection with the movement of trade routes to another zone, it became necessary to search for sources of livelihood. To solve this problem, the tribes living here took the path of establishing a new religion - Islam, which was supposed to become not only the religion of all peoples, but also called for the fight against infidels (non-believers).

Guided by the ideology of Islam, the caliphs carried out a broad policy of conquest, turning the Arab Caliphate into an empire. The unification of formerly scattered tribes into a single state gave impetus to economic and cultural communication between the peoples of Asia, Africa and Europe.

Being one of the youngest in the east, occupying the most offensive position among them, having absorbed the Greco-Roman, Iranian and Indian cultural heritage, the Arab (Islamic) civilization had a huge impact on spiritual life Western Europe, posing a significant military threat throughout the Middle Ages.

Before the formation of the Arab Caliphate, the vast majority of the population of Arabia were nomadic pastoralists who were at the stage of tribal relations. They inhabited vast areas of the Arabian steppes and semi-deserts, known as “Badawi”. This word passed into European languages ​​in the form of Arabic plural- Bedouin. The Bedouins were engaged in cattle breeding, mainly camel breeding.
Each tribe (depending on its size and the size of the territory it occupied) consisted of a large or small number of clans and clans.
At the head of each tribe was its leader - the seyid (lord); in a time closer to us, they began to call him a sheikh.
Separate clans and large groups nomads also had their sayyids. In peacetime, the seiyid was in charge of migrations, chose a place for the camp, was a representative of his tribe and negotiated on its behalf with other tribes. If the tribe did not have a judge, he would deal with disputes and litigation among his fellow tribesmen, and in special cases he could perform the duties of a minister of religious worship. In raids and war, the Sayyid commanded the armed detachment of his tribe; then he was called rais (leader).
Each tribe, or even a large clan, was a completely independent organization, independent of anyone.
The main reason Since the emergence of the state, the Arabs had a class stratification. In addition, the economic crisis associated with overpopulation and the need to increase the area of ​​pastures was of no small importance. The Arabs needed new territories and sought to invade Iran and Byzantium. The crisis contributed to the unification of Arab tribes into alliances and the creation of a single Arab state throughout Arabia.
The desire for unification found its ideological expression in the teachings of the Hanifs, who preached faith in one god - Allah, and in Islam (“submission”) - a Mohammedan religious teaching, the founder of which is considered to be Muhammad, who lived from approximately 570 to 632.
Islam originated in Central Arabia. Its main center is Mecca, where the founder of Islam, Muhammad, was born and lived. The city of Mecca stood in the way of large trade caravans that were heading from Yemen and Ethiopia to Mesopotamia and Palestine. This point, which grew into a city large by Arabian standards, acquired ever-increasing religious significance in ancient times.

Muhammad belonged to the Hayshim family, which did not possess wealth and did not enjoy influence. Consequently, he and his inner circle could well be imbued with the interests and needs of the middle and small Meccan trading people.
The activities of the first Muslims in Mecca ended in complete failure. Having received no support either from the population of the city or from the Bedouins from the surrounding areas, the first Muslims decided to move to Yathrib Medina. There the Meccan settlers began to be called Muhajirs. They had to commit a formal act of voluntary dissolution of family ties with their fellow tribesmen.
Further, a special organization was formed in Medina - the ummah (community of believers). The Muslim Ummah, in which fellow believers united, was a theocratic organization. The believers who entered it were convinced that they were ruled by Allah through his messenger. A few years later, the entire Arab population of Medina had already become part of the Muslim community, and the Jewish tribes were evicted and partially exterminated. As a religious teacher who constantly communicated with Allah, Muhammad served as the ruler of Medina, judge and military leader.
On January 13, 624, the first battle of Muslims led by Muhammad with the Meccans took place. The battle lasted only a few hours. The Muslims were victorious and captured rich booty. Muhammad acted wisely with the prisoners: he released the captive women and children. Muhammad's generosity did its job. A recent opponent, Malik Ibn Auf, who commanded a Bedouin tribe in a battle with Muhammad, himself converted to Islam. The Bedouin tribes under his control followed his example. So Muhammad expanded his influence step by step.
After this, Muhammad decided to push back the Jews. The latter could not withstand the siege and, starved to death, surrendered. They had to leave Arabia and settle in Syria. Over time, other tribes of Central Arabia surrendered to Muhammad, and he became the most powerful ruler in the region.
Muhammad died in Medina in 632. The death of Muhammad raised the question of his successor as the supreme head of the Muslims. By this time, Muhammad's closest relatives and associates (tribal and merchant nobility) had consolidated into a privileged group. From among them they began to choose individual Muslim leaders.
Abu Bekr, Muhammad's closest ally, was proclaimed the head of the community. In accordance with the gradually developing Islamic law, the appointment of Abu Bekr as heir was made through elections and legitimized by an oath taken by shaking hands, with those present giving a solemn ceremony
a marriage promise for those who were absent. Abu Bekr took the title of caliph, which means “deputy”, “successor”.
The caliphs Abu Bekr (632-634), Omar (634-644), Osman (644-656) and Ali (656-661) were called “righteous.” Their accession to the throne was still elective. During their reign, numerous territories in Asia and Africa were conquered, which were part of the Byzantine Empire and the Iranian kingdom. As a result of these conquests, the vast state of the Arab Caliphate was formed.

Arab Empire

The history of the Arab Caliphate can be represented by the following main periods: period - the decomposition of the tribal system and the formation of the state (VI-VII centuries); The period is Damascus, or the period of Umayyad rule, during which the heyday of the state falls. The Caliphate becomes a feudal state (661-750); The period is Baghdad, or the period of Abbasid rule. The creation of a vast Arab empire, its further feudalization and the collapse of the state (750-1258) are associated with it.
The collapse of the Caliphate began in the 8th century. In 756, the Emirate of Cordoba in Spain separated from it, which in 929 became an independent caliphate. Later, Tunisia and Morocco, and then other parts of the empire, seceded from the Caliphate. In the middle of the 9th century. Egypt separated. The power of the caliph was preserved by the middle of the 10th century. only in Arabia and part of Mesopotamia adjacent to Baghdad.

In 1055, after the Seljuk Turks captured Baghdad, the Arab Caliphate lost its independence.
In 1257-1258 As a result of the invasion of Genghis Khan, the remnants of the once powerful state - the Arab Caliphate - were destroyed.

Middle Ages in the East.

The emergence of Islam.

Arab Caliphate

Basic terms and concepts: Islam, Sunnis, Shiites, caliph, caliphate, calligraphy, Ottoman Empire, Seljuk Turks, Arabization, theocratic state.

Middle Ages in the East

In the history of the East, the concept of the Middle Ages was transferred from Europe. The Middle Ages of the East is the period between antiquity and the beginning of colonialism, i.e. active penetration European countries to the East. It should be noted that this happened in different territories in different time frames. The development of the Middle Ages of the West and the East has its own specifics, in particular, in certain regions it has different time frames. In European history, the content of the Middle Ages is feudalism, which has a specific form of feudal property: land that feudal lords owned on a contractual basis, the exploitation of dependent peasants. In vassal-feudal relations, feudal lords had a certain degree of independence from the supreme power. In the East, the feudal system differs from the European one, primarily in that the state, in the person of the ruler, remained the supreme owner of the land, and representatives of the ruling power possessed their wealth to the extent of their involvement in the supreme power and were not separated from the state. In the East, the type of power-property and redistribution of rent-hire by the state that was formed in ancient times was dominant. This guaranteed stability social structure and the dependence of the individual on the state. He was consumed by it. Each was entitled to as much as tradition prescribed, in accordance with his status

Peasants were exploited and their labor was appropriated.

Instability of the social structure, predatory wars Man depended, first of all, on his master. Wealth was conquered and appropriated. The feudal lord could give land to the most distinguished warriors and the latter became a feudal lord.

2. Specific form of private property: The state is the supreme owner of the land. Representatives of the ruling classes possessed their wealth according to their involvement in the supreme power. There was an eastern type of power-property, formed in ancient times.

The word Islam means "submission". Islam is also called Islam, and the followers of this religion are called Muslims. Islam is a monotheistic religion. Islam recognizes the existence of one god - Allah, the Creator of the world and humanity. The sacred scripture of Muslims is the Holy Book - the Koran, which contains the Divine revelation sent down through the Archangel Jebrail (Archangel Gabriel) to the Prophet Muhammad. In Islam, the cult, ritual side is important. The cult of Islam is based on the “five pillars of faith”:

1.Dogma - “There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet”;

2.Daily five times prayer;

3. Uraz - fasting in the month of Ramadan;

4. Zakat is obligatory charity;

5.Hajj - pilgrimage to Mecca - the holy city for Muslims.

As Islam progresses, additions and changes appear. So, in addition to the Holy Scripture, a Holy Tradition arose - an addition to the Koran, which is called the Sunnah. The appearance of this addition is associated with the division of Islam into Shiism and Sunnism.

Shiites limit themselves to the veneration of the Koran. It is believed that only his direct descendants can be the heirs of Muhammad's mission.

Sunnis recognize both the holiness of the Koran and the holiness of the Sunnah, and exalt a number of caliphs whom the Shiites do not recognize.

Islam is heterogeneous, has a number of sects and branches. Islam world religion, it is followed by about one and a half billion followers.

Arab Caliphate

After the death of Muhammad, the Arabs began to be ruled by caliphs - the heirs of the prophet. Under the first four caliphs, his closest associates and relatives, the Arabs went beyond the Arabian Peninsula and attacked Byzantium and Iran. Their main strength was cavalry. The Arabs conquered the richest Byzantine provinces - Syria, Palestine, Egypt and the vast Iranian kingdom. At the beginning of the 8th century. In North Africa they subjugated the Berber tribes and converted them to Islam. In 711 The Arabs crossed to Europe, to the Iberian Peninsula, and almost completely conquered the kingdom of the Visigoths. But later, in a clash with the Franks (732), the Arabs were thrown back to the south. In the east, they subjugated the peoples of Transcaucasia and Central Asia, breaking their stubborn resistance. The caliph combined the functions of a secular and spiritual ruler and enjoyed unquestioning authority among his subjects. In Islam there is such a thing as “jihad” - zeal and special zeal in the spread of Islam. Initially, jihad was understood as a spiritual movement. But soon jihad began to be understood as a war for the faith of “Gazavat”. Jihad initially called for the unification of the Arab tribes, but then turned into a call for wars of conquest. The Arabs conquered Eastern Iran, Afghanistan, and penetrated into Northwestern India. So, during the 7th – first half of the 8th centuries. A huge state arose - the Arab Caliphate, stretching from the shores of the Atlantic Ocean to the borders of India and China. Its capital was the city of Damascus.

In the middle of the 7th century. Under Caliph Ali, civil strife broke out in the country, leading to the split of Islam into Sunnis and Shiites. After the assassination of Ali, the Umayyad caliphs seized power. Under them, the caliph became the supreme owner and administrator of the land. The strengthening of the power of the caliphs was facilitated by the Arabization of the multi-ethnic population of the caliphate. Arabic was the language of religion. Unified land use procedures emerged. The lands of the caliph and his relatives were not taxed. Officials and civil servants received land for their service. The land was cultivated by peasants and slaves. The basis of the Arab caliphate was the religious community. The structure of the community was created by Sharia - the path predetermined by Allah.

In 750 Power in the caliphate passed to the Abbasid dynasty. Under the Abbasids, Arab conquests almost ceased: only the islands of Sicily, Cyprus, Crete and part of southern Italy were annexed. At the intersection of trade routes on the Tigris River, a new capital was founded - Baghdad, which gave the state the name Baghdad Caliphate. Its heyday occurred during the reign of the legendary Harun ar-Rashid (766-809). The huge caliphate did not remain united for long.

In the IX-X centuries. a number of Turkic tribes living in Central Asia converted to Islam. Among them stood out the Seljuk Turks, who in the middle of the 11th century. They reached Baghdad, captured it, and their head began to be called the “Sultan of the East and West.” By the end of the 12th century. The Seljuk state broke up into several states. IN last decade XII century Sultan Osman I subdued the Seljuks and became the ruler of the Ottoman Empire. In the XIV century. The Ottoman Empire included almost all the lands of the Arab Caliphate, as well as the Balkans, Crimea, and part of Iran. The army of the Turkish sultans was the strongest in the world, the Turkish fleet dominated the Mediterranean Sea. The Ottoman Empire became a threat to Europe and the Moscow State - future Russia. In Europe the empire was called the "Splendid Porte".

Questions and tasks for self-control

1.What was the significance of the emergence and spread of Islam for world history?

2. Why is Islam called world history?

3.How are Islam and Christianity related?

4.What is a theocratic state?

5.What role did the Ottoman Empire play in European history?

TOPIC 11

ANCIENT SLAVS

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