The Abbasid Caliphate

[Bluegazer]

Assalamu Alaikum [Peace be upon you],


History has always fascinated me. And one of the things I like to study are the dynasties that ruled and their family trees.

The Abbasids were the descendants of Al-Abbas [may Allah be pleased with him]. He was the paternal uncle of Prophet Muhammad [peace be upon him] and his Companion. Al-Abbas' son, Abdullah, was also a Companion of the Prophet [peace be upon him] and a great scholar. The Abbasids were further descended from him.

They ruled from the year 132 AH (around 750 CE) until 656 AH (1258 CE) from their base in Iraq. After Hulagu's capture of Baghdad, survivors from the Mongol massacre fled to Egypt, and they continued to rule (in name only) under the protection of the Mamluks until 923 AH (1517 CE), when Selim I became the first Caliph of a new dynasty, the Ottomans.

And it's important to remember that even in their time in Iraq, the Abbasids were not always independent. Only the first 100 years were called the 'time of strength', and then they came under the influence and control of the Turks, the Buwaihids and the Seljuks respectively. Only in the last few decades before 656 AH did they regain their independence. And by then, the parts of the Muslim World under their control were much smaller than in 132 AH.

Anyway, the folllowing is the family tree of the Abbasids. Those in green ruled (sometimes in name only) from Iraq, while those in yellow ruled (in name only) from Egypt:

Regards,

Bluegazer

 

[Bluegazer]

Thank you for your kind words, brother ayman1. I'm glad you liked the chart. I must admit that I did not draw it.


You wrote in post #2:

I don't recognize the names: Al-Musta'im and Al-Mustadi though.

There's a spelling mistake in the name posted "Al-Musta'im". The last letter should be an "n" instead of an "m". So, hist title was "Al-Musta'in", not "Al-Musta'im".

There was no spelling mistake in the title of Al-Mustadi. His name is written in Arabic as المستضئ.


There are several points worth mentioning about the titles of the Abbasid Caliphs:

1- It's very common that the Caliph is known solely by his title rather than his first name. That's the fact in most cases. For example, Al-Mustadi's own first name was Al-Hassan. Yet many people (including myself) didn't know this until further research.

2- Sometimes, the first name and the title of the Caliph are well known to the public. The best example is Harun Ar-Rashid. His first name was "Harun", and his title was "Ar-Rashid".

3- Every Caliph had a Kunya [title meaning "father of ....]. Most were not well known to the public, but there are a few exceptions. The first two Caliphs were known by their Kunyas and their titles. They were Abu Al-Abbas [father of Al-Abbas] As-Saffah and Abu Ja'far [father of Ja'far] Al-Mansur. It's interesting to note that both of them had the same first name; Abdullah. That's strange because they were brothers.

4- The most distinctive feature in the Abbasid names were the titles they had. Every one of them had a title.

The first seven Abbasid Caliphs were known by their full titles; As-Saffah, Al-Mansur, Al-Mahdi, Al-Haadi, Ar-Rashid, Al-Amin and Al-Ma'mun.

The rest had titles as well, but the public basically used half the title. For example, Al-Mustadi's full title was "Al-Mustadi' bi'amri''llaah" المستضئ بأمر الله. This roughly translates to "the enlightened by the command of Allah". I don't think that he meant the Allah commanded his enlightened state. I believe he meant that by implementing Allah's commands, he seeks to be enlightened.

His son, An-Naasir, had the full title of "An-Naasir li deeni'llaah". This roughly translates to "The Supporter/Champion of the Religion of Allah".

It's these titles that make up one of the most beloved things (in my view) of the Abbasids. It signals that they saw themselves as implementing Allah's laws and His religion, and/or seeking His aid and help. That does not mean that each and every one of them was shining example of the best ruler. Some were good and some were not.

May Allah have mercy on them and all the deceased Muslims. Aameen.


Best regards,

Bluegazer

 

[Bluegazer]

Thank you for your kind comments.


You brought up an excellent point; the case of the Fatimids. As you corrcetly stated, they too used compound titles.


However, I have two major problems with the Fatimids:

1- They claimed to be the Caliphs of the whole Muslim World. And it's pretty well known that there couild only legitimately be one Caliph for all the Muslims. And that means that they disputed the legitimacy of the Abbasids as Caliphs.

2- They were from the Isma'ili sect of the Shi'a, so their creed [basic doctrinal beliefs] was very different from that taught by Allah and His Prophet [peace be upon him].


The Fatimid 'Caliphate' was ended by the famous (and beloved) Muslim hero; the Kurdish ِAn-Naasir Salah-ud-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub [known to the West as Saladin]. This may have a been an intended action in preparation of full scale attack on the Crusaders. By uniting Misr [Egypt] and As-Shaam [present day Syria, Jordan, Lebanon..etc.], Salah-ud-Din was able to focus his efforts on liberating the Holy Lands. May Allah reward him greatly and have mercy on him. Aameen.

 

[Bluegazer]

You wrote:

I wish the Ayyubid era in Egypt lasted longer.

I would have loved that too. It's sad how it ended.


By the way, you wrote:

I consider Salaah-ud-Deen to be the most influential single Muslim figure in the last 1000 years.

I agree with you that he's high on the list of the most influential Muslims in the last one thousand years. But I have two names to add to that list:

1- Ahmad ibn Adbus-Salaam ibn Taymiyyah

To me he was very influential. He defended the practise of Islam based upon the Qur'an and the authentic Sunnah, as understood by the Comapnions.


2- Muhammad II son of Murad II, the Ottoman Sultan and the Conquerer of Constantinople.

He realized the dream of many Muslim generations of bringing that city under Muslim rule.

 

[Bluegazer]

As to who is the most influential in the last one thousand years? Well, that's really worth debating!

 

[Bluegazer]

I made a mistake of calling Muhammad II a Caliph. In that stage of history, the Ottomans did not claim that title. That came later with Selim I.


I apologize for the mistake.

 

[ahmed_indian]

jazaak Allah khair for the info.

so can u post some info and chart for Umayyad and Othman empires as well?