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ABBASIDS
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ABBASIDS , the name generally given to the caliphs of See also:Bagdad, the second of the two See also:great dynasties of the See also:Mahommedan em-pire. The Abbasid caliphs officially based their claim to the See also:throne on their descent from Abbas (A.D. 566—652), the eldest See also:uncle of See also:Mahomet, in virtue of which descent they regarded themselves as the rightful heirs of the See also:Prophet as opposed to the Omayyads, the descendants of Omayya. Throughout the second See also:period of the Omayyads, representatives of this See also:family were among their most dangerous opponents, partly by the skill with which they undermined the reputation of the reigning princes by accusations against their orthodoxy, their moral See also:character and their See also:administration in See also:general, and partly by their cunning manipulation of internecine jealousies among the Arabic and non-Arabic subjects of the See also:empire. In the reign of Merwan II. this opposition culminated in the See also:rebellion of See also:Ibrahim the See also:Imam, the See also:fourth in descent from Abbas, who, supported by the See also:province of See also:Khorasan, achieved considerable successes, but was captured (A.D. 747) and died in See also:prison (as some hold, assassinated). The See also:quarrel was taken up by his See also:brother Abdallah, known by the name of See also:Abu'l-Abbas as-Saffah, who after a decisive victory on the Greater Zab (750) finally crushed the Omayyads and was proclaimed See also:caliph. The See also:history of the new See also:dynasty is marked by perpetual strife and the development of luxury and the liberal arts, in See also:place of the old-fashioned austerity of thought and See also:manners. Mansur, the second of the See also:house, who transferred the seat of See also:government to Bagdad, fought successfully against the peoples of See also:Asia See also:Minor, and the reigns of See also:Harun al-Rashid (786—809) and See also:Mamun (813—833) were periods of extraordinary splendour. But the empire as a whole stagnated and then decayed rapidly. See also:Independent monarchs established themselves in See also:Africa and Khorasan (See also:Spain had remained Omayyad throughout), and in the See also:north-See also:west the Greeks successfully encroached. The ruin of the dynasty came, however, from those See also:Turkish slaves who were constituted as a royal bodyguard by Moqtasim (833—842). Their See also:power steadily See also:grew until Radi (934—941) was constrained to See also:hand over most of the royal functions to Mahommed b. Raik. Province after province renounced the authority of the caliphs, who were merely See also:lay figures, and finally Hulagu, the Mongol See also:chief, burned Bagdad (Feb. 28th, 1258). The Abbasids still maintained a feeble show of authority, confined to religious matters, in See also:Egypt under the Mamelukes, but the dynasty finally disappeared with Motawakkil III., who was carried away as a prisoner to See also:Constantinople by See also:Selim I. See See also:CALIPHATE (Sections B, 14 and C), where a detailed See also:account of the dynasty will be found. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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