Chapter 21 The Muslim Empiresy

Taj Mahal

Most famous architectral acheivement of Mughal India; originally built as a mausoleum for the wife of Shah Jahan, Mumtaz Mahal

Babur

"The Tiger" Founder of the Mughal dynasty in India; descended from Turkic warriors; first led invasion of India in 1526; died in 1530; didn't launch his conquest out of religious fervor -most of his followers were from Turkic/mixed nomadic origins -wanted to gain booty to support his calmpaigns to win back Ferghana -fine military strategist -fierce fighter who went into battle alongside his troops -very cultured -wrote one of the great histories of India, fine musician, designed wonderful gardens for *capital: Dellhi* -better conqueror than administrator -his death = signal for his enemies to strike from all sides

Sikhs

sect in northwest India; early leaders tried to bridge differences between Hindu and Muslim, but Mughal persecution led to anti-Muslim feeling -further strained the declining resources of an imperial system that was clearly overextended

Global Connections

Gunpowder Empires: -highly centralized politically -organized around absolute and hereditary rulers -dependent on new military technologies and modes of military organization deployed on both land and sea -new discoveries in the sciences dropped off during this period -influences artists/architects from each of these Muslim empires exerted on each other -retained active programs of overseas trade -didnt take rising threat from europe seriously -A British empire in India = actively forming by the end of the early modern centuries -Europeans' gains in ways to generate wealth and economic growth meant increasing losses for Muslim societies and political systems -failure of Muslim efforts to compete politically/militarily w/their Christian rivals

Isfahan

Safavid capital under Abbas the Great; planned city laid out according to shah's plan; example of Safavid architecture -great mosques

Mughal Gender Relations

-Akbar legally prohibited sati -tried to provide relief for women trapped in purdah

The Sultans and their court

-Ottomans = absolute monarchs -commerce within empire = in the hands of Christian and Jewish merchants (dhimmis: under the protection of the Ot. rulers) -effective administration/tax relief for the peoples of areas annexed to the empire -Ottoman sultans grew more distant from their subjects as empire increased in size and wealth -decadence -Islamic principles of political succession = vague, the sons of rulers competed for succession

Ottoman Decline

-able to ward off powerful enemies who surrounded their domains on all sides for nearly 4 centuries -endured for over 600 yrs - MATCHED BY NO OTHER DYNASTY IN ALL HUMAN HISTORY -long decline = reflects great strength of the institutions on which the empire was built -empire = too large to be maintained bad resource base, primitive state of transport/communications in the preindustrial era -state = built on war/steady territorial expansion -corruption among Ottoman officials -local officials squeezed the the peasants and laborers who worked lands for additional taxes and services -peasant uprisings/flight resulted in the abandonment of cultivated lands and in social dislocations that further drained the resources of the empire -successors started to be isolated b/c kings feared that they would attack for the throne - produced monarchs far less prepared to rule than those in formative centuries of the dynasty (decadence) -civil strife increased, discipline/leadership of the armies on which the empire depended for survival deteriorated

Rise of the Safavids

-arose from the struggles of rival Turkic nomadic groups in the wake of the Mongol and Timurid invasions of the 13th and 14th centuries -rose to prominence as the frontier warrior champions of a highly militant strain of Islam -Safavids = Shi'a (believed that only the 4th successor, [Ali, Mohammed's cousin and son-in-law] had the right to succeed the prophet) -had its origins in a family of Sufi mystics and religious preachers

Ottoman and Safavid comparisons

-bitter political rivals/religious adversaries -social systems = very similar -dominated by warrior aristocracies -warrior aristocrats gradually retreated to the estates, making life increasingly difficult for the peasants on whom they depended for the support of their grand households and many retainers -demands of the landlord class grew harsher -spread of banditry, peasant uprisings, and flight from the land further drained the resources of both empires and undermined their legitimacy -Early rulers: encouraged growth of handicraft production/trade, est. imperial workshops, lavishly patronized public works projects -some persued policies that they believed would increase international/internal trade *Ottomans gained in the short run from the fact that large-scale traders in their empire often were from minority groups (ex. Christians and Jews) who had extensivve contacts w/overseas traders that the bazaar merchants of the Safavid realm lacked* *Safavid economy remained much more constricted, less market oriented and more technically backward than Ottoman rivals*

Mughal Architecture

-blends what is finest in Persian and Hindu traditions -fuses Islamic genius for domes, arches, and minarets, and balances them w/Hindu love for ornament -strove to create paradise on Earth

Safavid state and religion

-early shahs such as Isma'il wrote in Turkish unlike their Ottoman rivals -after Chaldiran, Persian supplanted Turkish as lang. of court/bureaucracy Persian Influence: -organization of court rituals -exalted position of Safavid shahs (padishah: king of kings) -decadence in both Ottoman and Safavid -Faith became major pillar of dynasty and empire -bulk of Iranian population converted to Shi'ism during Safavid rule -Shi'ism provided ideological and institutional support for the Safavid dynasty, come to be an integral part of Iranian identity, setting the people of the region off from most of their Arab/Turkic neighbors

Mughal warrior aristocrats

-formed core of the supporters of the Mughal dynasty -granted peasant villages for their support -court/central bureaucracy supported by tribute paid by military retainers and taxes on lands set aside for the support of the imperial household -shortage of administration -local notables (many Hindu) = left in place as long as they swore allegiance to Mughal rulers/paid taxes on time -control/welfare of the village population in the hands of the military retainers/local power brokers

Politics & War under Safavid Shahs

-from defeat at Chaldiran onward, warrior leaders posed constant threat to the Safavid monarchs -Safavid rulers recruited Persians for positions at the ccourt -Struggle for power/influence bbetween Turkic & Persian notables = complicated by recruiting into the bureaucracy/army slave boys who were captured in campaigns in Southern Russia -Like Janissaries, slaves rose to positions of power

Economy of Ottomans

-geared to warfare and expansion Turkic cavalry --> warrior aristocracy -granted control over land/peasant producers for support of their household and military retainers -vied w/religious leaders/administrators drawn from other social groups for control of the expanding Ottoman bureaucracy -power of the warrior aristocracy shrank at the center - built up regional and local bases of support -Ottoman regime closely regulated commercial exchanges and handicraft production -standard weights and measures, artisans organized into guilds, monitored quality of the goods they produced -by the 17th century, the Turkish language of the Ottoman court had become the preferred mode of expression for poets and historians as well as the language of the Ottoman bureaucracy -main legacy = architecture

Mughal Empire

Established by Babur in India in 1526; the name is taken from the supposed Mongol descent of Babur, but there is little indication of any Mongol influence in the dynasty; became weak after rule of Aurangzeb in first decades of 18th century (Babur/4 rulers who succeeded him didn't launch conquests out of religious fervor)

Demise of the Safavid Empire

-quick collapse -weak grandson of Abbas was placed on the throne -Able shahs like Abbas II = too few to save the empire -factional disputes/rebellions -nomadic raiders -Ottoman/Mughal armies reduced Safavid territory -Isfahanwas besieged by Afghani tribes (city fell/Safavid power ended)

Military decline of Ottomans

-reliance on huge siege guns, Janissaries' determination to block all military changes that might jeopardize the power they had gained within the state --> Ottomans fell farther behind their European rivals in the critical art of waging war -defeat by combined Spanish/Venetian fleet at Lepanto -control of eastern Mediterranean had been lost -outflanked by Portuguese seafarers -failure of Ottomans and their Muslim allies in the Indian Ocean to drive the Portuguese from Asian waters = far more harmful in the long run than Ottoman defeats in the Mediterranean -trading goods carried by Portuguese around Africa and back to Europe enriched Ottomans' Christian rivals -merchants and tax collectors in the Ottoman Empire lost critical revenues -Ottomans = falling behind Christian rivals -mainly in trade and warfare -conviction that little of what happened in Europe was important -blocked out much of the Western-inspired innovations that reform-minded sultans and their advisors tried to introduce

Role of Women in Ottoman/Safavid

-restrictive codes for women mostly on the elite (many struggled against these restrictions) -wives/concubines continued to exert influence behind throne and remained deeply involved in palace conspiricies -some active in trade/some in money-lending -overwhelming majority of women disappeared from the history of two of the great centers of Islamic civilization

Key themes in the rise of 3 major Muslim Dynasties

1. from Turkic-speaking nomadic groups in central Asia 2. warrior leaders who founded these dynasties took advantage of the power vacuum left by the breakup of the Mongol empire and the devastation wrought by Timur's assaults on the Islamic heartlands of the Middle East and Muslim-ruled northern India 3. armies relied heavily on large cannons and increasingly on muskets 4. Wars between the three empires and the constant need for their rulers to be attentive to shifting alliances and military innovations introduced by rival dynasties also go far toward explaining the inward-looking quality of much of Islamic society in this era 5. tolerance for faiths of non-Muslim people who became their subjects, no tolerance for rival Muslim sects

Imams

According to Shi'ism, rulers who could trace descent from the successors of Ali

Sail al-Din

Early 14th-century Sufi mystic; began militant campaign to purify and reform Islam and spread Muslim teachings among the Turkic tribes of the region; first member of Safavid Dynasty -gained increasing support in the chaos that followed the collapse of Mongol authority

Aurangzeb

Mughal emperor who succeeded Shah Jahan; known for his religious zealotry -determined to extend Mughal control over whole Indian subcontinent -believed it was his duty to purify Indian Islam/rid it of Hindu influences he was convinced were steadily corrupting it

Red Heads

Name given to Safavid followers because of their distinctive red headgear; as their numbers grew and as they began to preach Shi'a doctrines, their enemies multiplied

Safavid dynasty

Originally a Turkic nomadic group; family originated in Sufi mystic group; espoused Shi'ism; conquered territory and established kingdom in region equivalent to modern Iran; lasted until 1722

vizier

Ottoman equivalent of the Abbasid wazir; head of the Ottoman bureaucracy; after 5th century often more powerful than sultan

Janissaries

Ottoman infantry divisions that dominated Ottoman imperial armies; forcibly conscripted as boys in conquered areas of Balkans, legally slaves; translated military service into political influence, particularly after 15th century; sometimes parents willingly turned sons over to Ottoman recruiters b/c of the opportunities for advancement that came with service to the Ottoman sultans; controlled artillery and firearms (vital to Ottoman success in warfare w/Christian and Muslim adversaries); given schooling, converted to Islam; growing importance contributed to the steady decline of the role of the aristocratic cavalry; eventually tried to translate military service into political influence

Mehmed II

Ottoman sultan called the "Conqueror"; responsible for conquest of Constantinople in 1453; destroyed what remained of Byzantine Empire; ordered his gunners to batter a portion of the walls with their massive siege cannon; had the cathedral of Saint Sophia converted into one of the grandest mosques in the Islamic world

Din-i-Ilahi

Religion initiated by Akbar in Mughal India; blended elements of the many faiths of the subcontinent; key to efforts to reconcile Hindus and Muslims in India, but failed

Shah Abbas I (Abbas the Great)

Safavid ruler from 1587-1629; extended Safavid domain to greatest extent; created slave regiments based on captured Russians, who monopolized firearms within Safavid armies; incorporated Western Military technology -no big increase in territory under _____ - about establishing his empire as a major center of international trade and Islamic culture -encouraged Iranian merchants to trade w/Portuguese and later the Dutch and English -great mosques that he built at Isfahan = glory of his reign -founded several colleges -became paranoid - killed/blinded all who would succeed him

Chaldiran

Site of battle between Safavids and Ottomans in 1514; Safavids severely defeated by Ottomans; checked western advance of Safavid Empire *this was a clash between the champions of the Shi'a and Sunni variants of Islam* -battle intensified by long-standing Safavid persecution of Suunnis and slaughter or Shi'a living in Ottoman territories by the forcesof the Ottoman sultan, Selim -battle demonstrated the imortance of muskets and field cannon -Ottomans couldn't follow up the battle w/conquests that would have put an end to their Safavid rivals -withdrawl of Ottoman armmies gave Safavids space to regroup their forces and reoccupy much of the territory they had originally conquered - defeat at _____ put an end to Isma'il's dreams of further westward expansion -checked the rapid spread of conversions to Shi'a Islam in the western borderlands that had resulted from the Safavid's recent successes in battle (Shi'ism would be concentrated in Persia)

Nadir Khan Afshar

Soldier-adventurer following fall of Safavid dynasty in 1722; proclaimed himself shah in 1736; established short lived dynasty in reduced kingdom

Humaya

Son and succccessor of Babur; expelled

Akbar

Son and successor of Humayan; oversaw building of military and administrative systems that became typical of Mughal rule in India; pursued policy of cooperation w/Hindu princes; attempted to create new religion to bind Muslim and Hindu populations of India -fine military commander -illiterate but edudcated in many fields -his armies greatly extended the empire with conquests throughout north and central India -social policies/administrative genius made it possible to establish the foundations of a lasting dominion in the subcontinent -abolished jizya -tolerance -created Din-i-Ilahi -saught to improve calendar, establish living quarters for large population of beggars/vagabonds, and regulate consumption of alcohol -legally prohibited sati

Humayan

Sonand successor of Babur; expelled from India in 1540, but restored Mughal rule by 1556; died shortly thereafter -fled to Persia and was an embarrased guest at the Safavid court -launched a series of campaigns into India that restored Mughalrule to the northern plains by 1556 -fell down the stairs and died

Ismå'il

Sufi commander who conquered city of Tabriz in 1501; first Safavid to be proclaimed shah or emperor -his followers conquered most of Persia, drove out Ozbegs, advanced into what is now Iraq -In the battle of Chaldiran, his cavalry were no match for the well-armed Ottomans - defeat at Chaldiran put an end to ____'s dreams of further westward expansion -depressed about his defeat at Chaldiran --> became secluded -his seclusion & struggles between the factions backing each of his sons for the right to succeed him --> opennings for subordinate Turkic chiefs to attempt to sieze power

Ottoman

Turkic people who advanced from strongholds in Asia Minor across the Bosporus straits into Europe during 1350s; conquered large part of Balkans; unified under Mehmed I; captured Constantinople in 1453; established empire from Balkans that included most of Arab world; collapse of Seljuk Turkic kingdom of Rum after invasion of the Mongols --> opened way for the _____s to seize power; fleeing the Mongols/in search of easy booty flooded into the region (Anatolia) in the last decades of the 13th century; lead by Osman; began to build a new empire based in Anatolia; ______ rulers extended empire into Syria, Egypt, and across north Africa, brought under their rule the bulk of the Arab World; became a formidable naval power in the Mediterranean sea, drove the Venetians and Genoese from much of the eastern Mediterranean and threatened southern Italy with invasion on several occasions; had risen to become the protectors of the Islamic heartlands and the scourge of Christian Europe; remained a major force in European politics until the late 19th century

Mughal decline

UNDER AURANGZEB -internal decay/growing dangers from external enemies -endless warfare during reign of Aurangzeb -drained treasury/further enlarged inefficient bureaucracy/army w/out gaining corresponding increases in revenues to support them -wars diverted Aurangzeb's attention from administrative tasks/reforms -peasant uprisinggs and revolts -growign autonomy of local leaders -incursions by Persian and Afghan warrior bands were increasing -religious policies weakened internal alliances and disrupted social peace established by Akbar -continued to employ Hindus in imperial service -reinstated Jizya -forbade building of new temples

Marattas

Western India ppl who rebelled against Mughal control early in 18th century -internal rebellions -put an end to effective Mughal control over large areas

Nur jahan

Wife of Jahangir; amassed power in court and created faction of male relatives who dominated Mughal empire during later years of Jahangir's reign -became a major patron of charities

Mumtaz Mahal

Wife of Shah Jahan; took an active political role in Mughal court; entombed in thhe Taj Mahal

Ozbegs

a neighboring nomadic people of Turkic stock -ancient enemies of Safavids -driven back into the central Asian steppes

Constantinople

capital of the Ottoman empire; richly combined disparate elements of their extensive territories; construction benefited greatly from architectural advances the Ottomans derived from the Byzantine heritage; aqueducts built, city's defenses were repaired -sultans/powerful administrators built mansions, rest houses, religious schools, hospitals, gardens -city stretched along both sides of the Bosporus -great bazaars = filled with merchants and travelers from throughout the empire and places as distant as England and Malaya -offered spices of East Indies, ivory of Africa, slaves, forest products from Russia, fine carpets from Persia -Coffeehouses = played major role in cultural life

Purdah

seclusion in their homes imposed on women -Akbar encouraged merchants of Delhi and other cities to set aside market days for women only

Jahangir/Shah Jahan

in thheir reigns Mughal India reached the peak of its splendor HOWEVER -much poverty -lack of discipline/training of soldiers -invention and science of India had fallen far behind western Europe -Mughal India = one of the major overseas destinations for European traders -Indian textiles won large market among the working and middle classes in Britain and elsewhere in Europe -continued Akbar's policy of tolerance -little attempt to change administrative apparatus they had inherited from Akbar -fought their wars in same way founders of the dynasty had -decadent -2 of the greatest patrons of fine arts in human history

Tahmasp I

new shah after Isma'il, set about restoring the power of the dynasty -Turkic chiefs were foiled in their bid for power -Ozbegs driven from Safavid domains

Suleyman the Magnificent

one of the most successful Ottoman sultans; built Suleymaniye mosque = most spectacular

Sherley brothers from England

provided instruction in hte casting of cannons and trained Abbas's slave infantry and a special regiment of musketeers recruited from the Iranian peasantry

Mullahs

qlocal mosque officials and prayer leaders within the Safavid empire; agents of Safavid religious campaign to convert all of population to Shi'ism -required to curse the first 3 caliphs and mention the Safavid ruler in the Friday sermon

Anatolia

raided by but not directly ruled by the Mongols; in warfare for successor state of the Seljuk Sultans; became base of Ottoman empire

Sati

ritual in India of immolating surviving widows with the bodies of their deceased husbands