The Moslem (Muslim) Empire
Feb 24, 2016
The Moslem (Muslim) Empire
The Five Pillars
The Quran- Religious text
The Religion of Islam
Confession of Faith“There is no other God but Allah and Mohammed is his Prophet.”
CharityMuslims must give money to the poor and pay taxes to the mosque
PrayerMuslims must pray five times a day, while facing East, towards Mecca.
FastingDuring the month of Ramadan, Muslims cannot eat or drink during daylight.
PilgrimageIf physically able, a Muslim must make a pilgrimage to Mecca.
After Mohammed died, a group of Muslim leaders chose a new leader, whom they called a Caliph.
After some instability with early caliphs, the Umayyad Caliphate was founded. Most Muslims followed this caliphate. They became
known as Sunnis. The small group of Muslims who did not follow the
Umayyad Caliphate were known as Shiite Muslims. They believed only Mohammed’s decedents could be Caliphs.
They moved the capital to DamascusA new caliph formed, the Abbasids, after 750
Focused on trade rather than warBuilt new capital at Baghdad
Islamic Caliphates
Madrassas- Islamic SchoolMosque- Place of worshipMerchant economy- economy based on tradeSharia- practical guide to Muslim daily lifeSultanate- kingdom ruled by sultan Theocracy- ruled with religionUniversalizing religion- a religion that seeks
to include all people
Islamic Cultural Achievements
In the 11th and 12th centuries, Turkish Muslims invaded India
Muslims established independent kingdoms in Northern India known as Sultanates.
The most famous were the Sultans of Delhi
Unlike prior conquerors, the Muslims never fully adopted Indian ways.
At the end of the 14th century the Mongol ruler Tamerlane destroyed the city of Delhi and slaughtered its inhabitants. The Delhi Sultanate never fully recovered from this blow.
Islamic Caliphate and India
In 1526, Babur, a descendant of both Tamerlane and Chinggis Khan defeated the Sultan of Delhi and founded the Mughal Empire in India.
The most famous Mughal ruler was Akbar the Great. Her set out to unite all Muslim and Hindu
subjects by promoting religious toleration.
Ended special Taxes paid by Hindus Made use of Hindu officials in
government Encouraged cultural improvement
His grandson, Shah Jahan showed less sympathy to Hindus. Reinstated special taxes paid by Hindus Ordered destruction of many Hindu sites Under him many converted to Islam
Under his the Taj Mahal was built- a tomb for his wife.
Mughal Empire