Rise
After Muhammad’s death, Abu Bakr [Sufyan], a close friend of the prophet, and his friends tried to become caliphs which are like modern-day police officers, but the kingdoms could not agree on who should become the next caliphs. At this time, the group was known as the umma. The military leader and his caliphs, grew power hungry. They started attacking nearby towns that had expunged Islam. Soon, the towns were under the control of the umma and were converted to Islam. The umma began to grow larger and eventually had control of all Arabia and were on the fringes of the Byzantine and Sassanid empires. The Islamic warriors of the umayyad began to attack both empires at times of weakness. Both empires had been in a quarrel with one another and were still recovering. This was the perfect time for the Umayyad to attack.
Expansions
Because of difficulties like overtaxed peasants and other internal conflicts, the Umayyad were able to take over portions of each empire including Palestine and Syria, which had been under the Byzantines, and much of Mesopotamia, which belonged to the Sassanids. This was accomplished within the span of four years (633 CE- 637 CE). Into the 640s, the umayyad were able to conquer Byzantine Egypt and the rest of North Africa. At the beginning of the 650s, they had taken over the Sassanids and acquired the rest of Mesopotamia. In 711, they took over the Hindu Kingdom of Sind and between 711 and 718, they began to travel farther into northwestern Africa. From there, they crossed the Strait of Gibraltar, gaining control of the Iberian peninsula. They then were threatening the kingdoms in Gaul, which is modern-day France. By the first half of the eighth century CE, they had extended their rule from Arabia to India, the Asian steppes, north Africa, and into Europe.
Rulers/Caliphs
Abu Bakr, the 1st Caliph
|
At the beginning, the Arab clans chose four caliphs that were agreed upon by each clan. The problem with this was the cultural differences between each caliph, and this caused tension. Jerry H. Bentley and Herbert F. Ziegler write: “ ...disputes soon lead to the rise of factions and parties within the Islamic community” (Traditions and Encounters: A Global Perspective of the Past 354). These disagreements led to a split and the Shia emerged. The support of Abu Bakr was large and wide and he became the first of the four caliphs. Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, served as the fourth caliph for five years (656-661 CE). He was assassinated by his enemies and the partisans of Ali created the Shia. After the assasination of Ali, the rule of Islam was forced on everyone under the control of the Umayyad.
|