The Rise of The Umayyad Dynasty

The Umayyad Dynasty

The Umayyad dynasty ruled over most of the Islamic world in the years 661-750 CE (Hodgson 217). Non-Muslims enjoyed autonomy but paid a special tax to enjoy policing by the caliphate (Hodgson 44) Religious freedom was allowed and non-Muslims settled their judicial problems within their laws. Egger (40) states that the rights of the old Arab families were given preference over those of the other families.

The rights of the new Arab converts to Islam were subservient to those of the old families that converted earlier. With regard to non-Arab Muslims, the special tax that applied to non-Muslims was equally applicable to them. This encouraged non-Arab Muslims to learn Arabic in what was to eventually turn the Islamic caliphate to the Arab Kingdom.

Abbasid Dynasty

This caliphate ruled in the years 750-1258 CE after defeating the Umayyads (Egger 80). The capital of the new dynasty was moved from Damascus to Baghdad. The Abbasids embraced the non-Arab Muslims to be equal with those of Arab descent. The superiority of the Arab culture over others was discarded during the reign of the Abbasids.

Non-Muslims were tolerated but had to convert to Islam eventually. Some were allowed to maintain their status quo due to the special role they played in transmitting pre-Islamic knowledge to the West (Egger 140). These included the Berbers and Slavs who were recruited into the army. Arabs in this dynasty did not receive any special status and this led to schisms within the caliphate.

Difference between Rashidun and later caliphates

The Rashidun caliphate (The Rightly Guided) 632-661 CE was different from the other caliphates in that they adhered strictly to Islamic law. While the Umayyad and Abbasid dynasties were based on inheritance as rulers, the Rashidun elected their leaders based a council of electors. Instead of the rightly guided person to be chosen, fathers gave leadership to their sons as an inheritance under the Umayyads.

Hodgson (70) asserts that the Rashidun caliphate was more concerned with expanding Islam across its borders militarily through Jihad while the later caliphates ruled indirectly through the payment of tribute by the subdued territory. While the Rashidun focused on expanding and strengthening Islam, the latter pursued worldly interests and power. Material gain in terms of taxes and tribute was the major driving force of the Umayyad while the Islamic religion was favored by the Rashidun.

Another difference was that the Umayyad used material possession to win favor in certain areas so as to entrench their authority (Najibabadi 253). To gain influence and power, they lavished gifts on those whom they wanted to support their rule. This was contrary to the Rashidun who ruled without using the treasury for personal interests. The treasury was used to cater for the needs of the population.

The difference between the Rashidun and the Abbasids was that the former emphasized on the spread of Islam as a religion while the latter favored the spread of knowledge which included theology, philosophy and science (Hodgson 315) The Abbasids encouraged centers of knowledge based on science and philosophy while the Rashidun gave the body lore of Islam pre-eminence.

The last difference between the Rashidun and the other two dynasties was the interpretation of Islam. The Rashidun observed a stricter version due to the fact that most of them were close companions of Prophet Muhammad. Najibabadi (22) asserts that they lived for the pleasure of Allah contrary to what was adopted by the later caliphates.

Works Cited

Egger, Vernon O. History of the Muslim World to 1405: The Making of a Civilization, Pearson Prentice Hall, 2004.

Hodgson, Marshall G. S. The Venture of Islam: Conscience and History in a World Civilization, University of Chicago Press, 1977.

Najibabadi, A. S. (2001). The History of Islam (Vol. II), Riyadh: Darussalam