The Arab Caliphate is the territory of modern states. Caliphates

Islam appears, the birth of which dates back to the 7th century and is associated with the name of the prophet Muhammad, who professed monotheism. Under his influence, a community of co-religionists was formed in Hadjiz, on the territory of Western Arabia. Further Muslim conquests of the Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, Iran and a number of other states led to the emergence of the Arab Caliphate - a powerful Asian state. It included a number of conquered lands.

Caliphate: what is it?

The word “caliphate” itself translated from Arabic has two meanings. This is both the name of that huge state created after the death of Muhammad by his followers, and the title of the supreme ruler under whose rule the countries of the caliphate were. The period of existence of this public education, marked high level development of science and culture, went down in history as the Golden Age of Islam. It is conventionally accepted to consider its borders to be 632-1258.

After the death of the caliphate there are three main periods. The first of them, which began in 632, was due to the creation of the Righteous Caliphate, which was led in turn by four caliphs, whose righteousness gave the name to the state they ruled. The years of their reign were marked by a number of major conquests, such as the capture of the Arabian Peninsula, the Caucasus, the Levant and large parts of North Africa.

Religious disputes and territorial conquests

The emergence of the caliphate is closely connected with the disputes about his successor that began after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. As a result of numerous debates, the supreme ruler and religious leader became close friend the founder of Islam - Abu Bakr al-Saddik. He began his reign with a war against the apostates who deviated from the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad immediately after his death and became followers of the false prophet Musailima. Their army of forty thousand was defeated at the Battle of Arkaba.

Subsequent ones continued to conquer and expand the territories under their control. The last of them - Ali ibn Abu Talib - became a victim of rebellious apostates from the main line of Islam - the Kharijites. This put an end to the election of supreme rulers, since Muawiya I, who seized power by force and became caliph, at the end of his life appointed his son as successor, and thus a hereditary monarchy was established in the state - the so-called Umayyad Caliphate. What it is?

New, second form of caliphate

This period in the history of the Arab world owes its name to the Umayyad dynasty, from which Muawiyah I came. His son, who inherited supreme power from his father, further expanded the boundaries of the caliphate, winning high-profile military victories in Afghanistan, Northern India and the Caucasus. His troops even captured parts of Spain and France.

Only the Byzantine emperor Leo the Isaurian and the Bulgarian Khan Tervel were able to stop his victorious advance and put a limit to territorial expansion. Europe owes its salvation from the Arab conquerors primarily to the outstanding commander of the 8th century, Charles Martel. The Frankish army led by him defeated the hordes of invaders in the famous Battle of Poitiers.

Restructuring the consciousness of warriors in a peaceful way

The beginning of the period associated with the Umayyad Caliphate is characterized by the fact that the position of the Arabs themselves in the territories they occupied was unenviable: life resembled the situation in a military camp, in a state of continuous combat readiness. The reason for this was the extremely religious zeal of one of the rulers of those years, Umar I. Thanks to him, Islam acquired the features of a militant church.

The emergence of the Arab Caliphate gave birth to a large social group of professional warriors - people whose only occupation was participation in aggressive campaigns. To prevent their consciousness from being rebuilt in a peaceful way, they were forbidden to take possession of land and become settled. By the end of the dynasty, the picture had changed in many ways. The ban was lifted, and, having become landowners, many of yesterday's warriors of Islam preferred the life of peaceful landowners.

Abbasid Caliphate

It is fair to note that if during the years of the Righteous Caliphate for all its rulers, political power in its importance gave way to religious influence, now it has taken a dominant position. In terms of its political greatness and cultural flourishing, the Abbasid Caliphate deservedly acquired the greatest fame in the history of the East.

Most Muslims know what it is these days. Memories of him strengthen their spirit to this day. The Abbasids are a dynasty of rulers that gave their people a whole galaxy of brilliant statesmen. Among them were generals, financiers, and true connoisseurs and patrons of art.

Caliph - patron of poets and scientists

It is believed that the Arab caliphate under Harun ar Rashid - one of the most prominent representatives ruling dynasty - reached the highest point of its heyday. This statesman went down in history as the patron of scientists, poets and writers. However, having devoted himself entirely to the spiritual development of the state he headed, the caliph turned out to be a bad administrator and a completely useless commander. By the way, it is his image that is immortalized in the century-old collection of oriental tales “A Thousand and One Nights.”

“The Golden Age of Arab culture” is an epithet that was most deserved by the caliphate headed by Harun ar Rashid. What it is can be fully understood only by becoming familiar with the layering of Old Persian, Indian, Assyrian, Babylonian and partly Greek cultures that contributed to the development of scientific thought during the reign of this enlightener of the East. He was able to combine all the best that was created by the creative mind of the ancient world, making for this the basic basis Arabic. That is why the expressions “Arab culture”, “Arab art” and so on have come into our everyday life.

Trade development

In the vast and at the same time orderly state, which was the Abbasid Caliphate, the demand for the products of neighboring states increased significantly. This was a consequence of an increase in the general standard of living of the population. Peaceful relations with neighbors at that time made it possible to develop barter trade with them. Gradually, the circle of economic contacts expanded, and even countries located at a considerable distance began to be included in it. All this gave impetus to the further development of crafts, art and navigation.

In the second half of the 9th century, after the death of Harun ar Rashid, in political life the caliphate, processes emerged that ultimately led to its collapse. Back in 833, the ruler Mutasim, who was in power, formed the Praetorian Turkic Guard. Over the years, it became such a powerful political force that the ruling caliphs became dependent on it and practically lost the right to make independent decisions.

The growth of national self-awareness among the Persians subject to the caliphate also dates back to this period, which was the reason for their separatist sentiments, which later became the reason for the breakaway of Iran. The general disintegration of the caliphate was accelerated due to the separation from it in the west of Egypt and Syria. The weakening of centralized power made it possible to assert their claims to independence and a number of other previously controlled territories.

Increased religious pressure

The caliphs, who had lost their former power, tried to enlist the support of the faithful clergy and take advantage of their influence on the masses. The rulers, starting with Al-Mutawakkil (847), made the fight against all manifestations of freethinking their main political line.

In the state, weakened by the undermining of the authority of the authorities, active religious persecution began against philosophy and all branches of science, including mathematics. The country was steadily plunging into the abyss of obscurantism. The Arab Caliphate and its collapse were a clear example of how beneficial the influence of science and free thought is on the development of the state, and how destructive their persecution is.

The end of the era of the Arab caliphates

In the 10th century, the influence of the Turkic military leaders and emirs of Mesopotamia increased so much that the previously powerful caliphs of the Abbasid dynasty turned into petty Baghdad princes, whose only consolation were the titles left over from previous times. It got to the point that the Shiite Buyid dynasty, which had risen in Western Persia, having gathered a sufficient army, captured Baghdad and actually ruled there for a hundred years, while representatives of the Abbasids remained the nominal rulers. There could be no greater humiliation for their pride.

In 1036, a very difficult period began for all of Asia - the Seljuk Turks began an aggressive campaign, unprecedented at that time, which caused the destruction of Muslim civilization in many countries. In 1055, they drove the Buyids who ruled there out of Baghdad and established their dominance. But their power also came to an end when early XIII century, the entire territory of the once powerful Arab caliphate was captured by the countless hordes of Genghis Khan. The Mongols finally destroyed everything that had been achieved by Eastern culture over the previous centuries. The Arab Caliphate and its collapse are now just pages of history.

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, Western India, and North-West Africa were captured.

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 Martell.

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 separate 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 the cultural achievements of the 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, the spiritual head of all Muslims, lived.

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 influence on the spiritual life of Western Europe, posing a significant military threat throughout the Middle Ages .

§ 9. Conquests of the Arabs and the creation of the Arab Caliphate

The beginning of the conquest of the Arabs

The death of Muhammad led to uprisings of opponents of the Islamic state that broke out in different parts of Arabia. However, these protests were quickly suppressed, and the Muslims began to conquer other countries. The main opponents of the Arabs were the Byzantine Empire and Iran.

Arabian warrior

Muhammad also sent a message to the Byzantine emperor calling on him to accept Islam. It said: “Submit (accept Islam) and you will be saved. Allah will give you double reward. O people of the Book! Unite around the Word that is common to us and you!” The ruler of Constantinople did not consider it necessary to answer the prophet, but he soon felt the power of the Muslim weapons. The Byzantine army was unable to withstand the onslaught of the Arab cavalry, inspired by the new religion. Muslims joyfully accepted death, hoping to taste the heavenly bliss promised by the prophet.

Muslim military successes

During their campaigns of conquest, the Arab army led by the caliphs subjugated the richest countries of the Middle East. Syria, Palestine, and Mesopotamia were taken by him from the Byzantines. The Arabs captured the largest city in Syria, Damascus, and the holy city of Christians and Jews, Jerusalem. After several defeats, the Iranian state ceased to exist. In Africa, the Arabs captured Egypt. The Byzantine army was unable to resist the conquerors here either. The largest city in Egypt, Alexandria, surrendered to the Muslims without a fight, who promised not to touch Christian churches for a rich ransom. Of their eastern possessions, the Byzantine emperors managed to preserve only Asia Minor. The Arabs besieged Constantinople more than once, but were unable to take it.

Muslims storm a fortress in Syria. Medieval drawing

Having subjugated North Africa, the Arabs crossed the Strait of Gibraltar and landed in Spain at the beginning of the 8th century. A small army of Arabs defeated the army of the Visigothic king. Despite stubborn resistance, the Visigothic cities fell one after another. By 718, all of Spain, except for a small area in the north of the country, was in Arab hands. They then invaded the Frankish kingdom and were stopped only by Charles Martell at the Battle of Poitiers.

Remember in what era and by whom the city of Alexandria was founded.

By the middle of the 8th century, as a result of the conquests, a huge Muslim state arose - the Arab Caliphate. It included lands with fertile soils - Egypt and Mesopotamia, which used to be the granaries of Ancient Rome and Byzantium. The Arabs captured all the gold deposits known at that time. They brought under their control the sea and land trade routes that connected the markets of the Mediterranean with the countries of the Far East, Central Asia, inland Africa. All this made the caliphate the richest state in the world.

Campaigns and conquests of the Arabs. Arab Caliphate

The first caliphs and the schism in Islam

The first caliphs in their way of life were not much different from ordinary Muslims. Like the Prophet Muhammad, they had temporal and spiritual power. During the period of conquest, the caliphs had to be military leaders. Caliph Omar (634–644) became famous for his talent as a commander. He was known as a stern but fair ruler who did not strive for personal enrichment, although the Arab army took possession of enormous treasures.

Mosque of Omar in Jerusalem

After Omar's death, Osman (644–656) was elected caliph. The new caliph came from a family that was initially hostile to Muhammad, but then converted to Islam. When distributing wealth captured during campaigns and appointing him to important positions, Osman gave preference to his relatives. The governors of the conquered regions, who possessed real military power, listened less and less to the caliph who lived in Medina. The Muslim nobility organized a conspiracy against Osman, and the caliph was killed on the doorstep own home. At the same time, the ruler’s blood got on the list of the Koran, which he was holding in his hands.

Even more dramatic events unfolded under Caliph Ali (656–661). The internecine war and the subsequent murder of Ali led to the split of Muslims into warring factions - Sunnis And Shiites. After the death of Ali in 661, the governor of Syria declared himself caliph. He did not go to Mecca or Medina, but remained in Damascus, founding the Umayyad dynasty.

The inner life of the Arab Caliphate

At the end of the 7th century, the caliphs from the “deputies” of the Prophet Muhammad turned into unlimited rulers, and their power from an elective one became hereditary. The untold wealth flowing from the conquered countries was concentrated in the hands of the caliphs. Every year, tons of silver and gold arrived in their capital in the form of tribute. The rulers could dispose of them at their own discretion. Big influence The affairs of the state were influenced by the Muslim nobility, which consisted not only of Arabs, but also of representatives of other peoples inhabiting the caliphate. Noble Muslims - generals and provincial governors - quickly forgot the calls of the Prophet Muhammad to despise wealth and share their property with the poor. Imitating the nobles of the conquered countries, they erected magnificent palaces filled with treasures.

Trade at the Muslim bazaar. Medieval drawing

The lands conquered by the Arabs were declared the property of the entire Muslim community. People living on these lands had to pay a land tax or convert to Islam. In the conquered lands, the Arabs did not at first force the local population to become Muslims. “People of the Book” - Christians and Jews who recognized one God, were allowed to live according to the laws of their faith, but they had to pay a special poll tax. Muslims were intolerant of pagans: under pain of extermination, they were offered to convert to Islam. It was beneficial for the population of the conquered countries to convert to the new faith, since they were immediately exempt from taxes. Muslims paid only alms to the poor.

Why were Muslims tolerant of the faith of Christians and Jews?

However, after a few decades, the attitude of Muslims towards people of other religions changed, and their oppression began. One of the caliphs issued a decree in which he ordered Christians and Jews to “from now on wear a yellow dress; do not wear a white dress, so as not to look like Muslims; destroy newly built churches, double the poll tax; do not allow them to enter Muslim baths... do not take Muslims for personal services...” A Christian who dared to hit a Muslim was subject to the death penalty.

Caliph Harun al-Rashid with his entourage. Medieval miniature

What has changed in the attitude of Muslims towards representatives of other religions?

Collapse of the Arab Caliphate

The rule of the Umayyads caused discontent among the people, which was taken advantage of by the opponents of the caliphs. In 750, the power of the Umayyads was overthrown, and they themselves were exterminated. The Abbasids became the new rulers of the Muslim state, making the capital of the caliphate the city of Baghdad on the Tigris River in Mesopotamia. In the 8th–9th centuries, the Arab Caliphate reached the peak of its power. However, the decline of this power was already close. About 80 million people lived in the lands of the caliphate. The majority of the population were conquered peoples who converted to Islam. It was difficult to govern such a large state, and the caliphs maintained their power only by force of arms. Here and there, riots and uprisings broke out, which undermined the Islamic state. His strength was also undermined by the ongoing hostility between Sunnis and Shiites. The governors of remote provinces refused to submit to the authority of the Baghdad caliph and did not send him the due tribute. Gradually they created their own independent states.

Muslim warriors. Arabian miniature

Gradually, by the 10th century, the caliphate lost most of its possessions, retaining only the lands around Baghdad under its rule. Having become a mere toy in the hands of their army, the caliphs lost their secular power, retaining authority only in religious matters. In place of a huge power, many Muslim states arose in which Arabic was spoken. Despite the collapse of the Arab Caliphate, the faith of the Prophet Muhammad spread far beyond the borders of Arabia. It was carried to the countries of Asia, Africa, and Europe not only by warriors, but also by merchants and preachers.

Using the map, list the countries and peoples conquered by the Arabs. Name the places of the most important victories and greatest defeats of the Arabs.

Muslim culture

The culture of the Arab Caliphate and the states that formed in its place was closely connected with Muslim religion.

Education in madrasah. Arabic drawing

Learning to read, write and arithmetic was considered necessary for understanding and mastering the Qur'an. His text was memorized, trying to apply the wisdom of this book in all life situations. Primary schools were created to educate children aged 5-10 years.

The state cared about the education of its subjects. By order of the caliphs, they were created madrasah, where teenagers and adults continued their education.

Muslim Library. Medieval drawing

They gathered around the teacher, who read out ancient texts and works of scientists, explaining incomprehensible places. In the madrasah they studied the history and foundations of Islam, mathematics, medicine, geometry and other sciences.

Pages from an Arabic manuscript on medicine

The respect for knowledge that Muslims showed was combined with intolerance towards everything that, in their opinion, was contrary to Islam. Often during conquests, Muslims destroyed and destroyed what they considered alien to their faith. At the court of the caliphs in Baghdad and elsewhere major cities“Houses of Wisdom” arose - a kind of academies of sciences. Here scientists were engaged in translations of the authors’ works into Arabic different countries and eras, including famous sages of antiquity: Plato, Aristotle, Archimedes. It was the Arabs who introduced some of these works to medieval Europeans.

Remember what Plato, Aristotle, and Archimedes were famous for.

Trade and travel made the Arabs experts in geography. The maps and geographical works they compiled contained a description of all areas of the then Muslim world from Spain to India. Muslims knew about China, Korea, and Siberia. The works “Wonders of Countries”, “Wonders of the Earth”, in the “Book of Paths and States”, as well as in the “Book of Pictures of the Earth” contained detailed information about nature, peoples, cities, and occupations of the inhabitants of various lands.

Miniature from an Arabic book

From distant India, Arab scientists borrowed a convenient decimal counting system, adopting from the Indians the numbers that we now call Arabic. The science of algebra, which also appeared in India, became known in Europe under the Arabic name “al-jabr”.

Great Mosque in Damascus. 8th century

Far beyond the borders of the Muslim world, the name of the scientist Ibn Sina, who lived at the end of the 10th and beginning of the 11th centuries (in Europe his name was Avicenna), was known. He authored the medical works “The Book of Healing” and “The Canon of Medical Science.”

The fusion of various cultural streams led to the emergence of Muslim poetry. She glorified victories in battles, sublime feelings of love, and the joys of life.

Arabs loved to listen and tell tales. Wandering storytellers collected, composed and brought fantastic stories to different parts of the Muslim world. Gradually they compiled a huge collection called “A Thousand and One Nights.” It included tales of not only Arabs, but also Greeks, Persians, Indians and other peoples. The most famous stories are about the brave Baghdad merchant Sinbad the Sailor, who made his risky journeys to distant lands.

View of the city of Aleppo in Syria. Medieval drawing

The laws of the Muslim religion prohibit depicting God. Therefore, on the walls of buildings and in books you can only see intricate patterns and ornaments made up of Arabic letters forming words. Often these were quotes from the Koran or sayings of the Prophet Muhammad. In the Muslim East it became widespread calligraphy. The Arabic language and Arabic writing were known in all countries whose inhabitants professed Islam.

Let's sum it up

The Arab conquests led to the emergence of the huge Arab Caliphate. In the countries that were part of it, people's lives were organized in accordance with the requirements of the Islamic religion. Muslim Arabs sought to expand their knowledge of the world around them. They created a special world of culture that was closely connected with the Muslim religion. Many of the achievements of the scientists of the Arab Caliphate exceeded the level of science in European countries of that time.

Shiites - supporters of one of the groups in Islam who recognize the Koran as the only holy book, who consider only Ali and his descendants to be the legitimate caliph.

Madrasah – educational institution in Islamic countries.

Calligraphy – the art of beautiful and clear writing.

750 year. Overthrow of the Umayyads, beginning of the Abbasid dynasty.

Prophet Muhammad

1*. Tell us about the progress of the Arab conquests. Why did the Muslim Arabs manage to quickly conquer many countries of the East?

2. What was the attitude of the Arabs towards the conquered peoples? How did it change? Why?

3. What power did the caliphs have?

4. What changes took place in the Arab state by the 10th century compared to the time of the first caliphs?

5. Name the reasons for the collapse of the Arab Caliphate.

6. What influence did Islam have on the culture of the Arab Caliphate?

7. What knowledge did Muslim scholars value most? Why do you think?

8. What scientific knowledge did Europeans learn from Muslims?

1. The famous book of fairy tales “A Thousand and One Nights” tells about a conversation between a caliph and a learned girl. “O Tawaddud, what sciences do you know well?” - asked the Caliph. The girl answered: “I know grammar, poetry, law, interpretation of the Koran and vocabulary, I am familiar with music and the science of shares of inheritance, and counting, and division, and land surveying, and the legends of the first people... I studied the exact sciences, and geometry, and philosophy , and healing, and logic, and rhetoric, and explanation, and remembered a lot of theology. I was committed to poetry and played the lute, I learned where the sounds are on it, and I know how to strike the strings so that they are in motion or at rest... In short, I reached a point that only people who have established themselves in science."

Name the sciences that were familiar to the Arab girl. Which of them are considered sciences today?

2. Using the text of the paragraph and illustrations, write a story about life in a medieval Muslim city, using the words: caliph, palace, mosque, minaret, madrasah, bazaar.