"caliph" = official Islamic religious and political ruler
by end of 9th century, was a fragmented empire with centrally-ruled and allied, autonomous rulers
Baghdad remained the "ritualized court" for Sunni Islam in opposition to Shia Islam
subjected to Persian, Seljuk & other Turkic invasions
final collapse from Mongol invasion
Click expand to view map Dar al-Islam in the 10th century (click on image to enlarge):
The lands and cities of the Dar al-Islam in the 10th century, according to the geographer al-Muqaddasi
960-1279
Song Dynasty
China
1095-1492
Crusades
Europe
religion
1173-1206
Ghurid dynasty
Persian Tajiks who converted to Islam and introduced it to northern India
established Islamic capital at the ancient city, Dehli, India
South Asia
Persia, India
cultural diffusion
Islam
Hindu hegemony over South Asia directly challenged by the Ghurid dynasty, which brought Islam to India
transferred Persian culture to northern India, including literature and architecture
Ghurs were Tajik (Persian ethnic) tribes, likely from central Afghanistan, who, with other Turkic tribes frequently raided western and northern India
the Ghurs fell under the Islamic Turkic rule over Persia, Afghanistan and northern India
the Ghurs then established their own rule over Persia and expanded eastward across northern India
1206-1526
Delhi Sultanate
series of Muslim dynasties that ruled south Asia
started as Turkic rule but transformed into Indo-Muslim rule
established Islamic culture in India
South Asia
cultural diffusion
Islam
"sultan" = Arabic for "he who rules"; originally was not a hereditary title
established by a Ghurid general, a Turkish slave who became a military leader (a "Mamluk" = non-Arab slave given military and administrative duties)
at peak controlled most of the subcontinent
weakened by Tamerlane (Mongol) invasion of 1398; he plundered Dehli and then left the subcontinent
Sultanate rule was further challenged by 14th century Hindu reconquests of southern India
1526 = Mughal conquest ended the Sultanate, which by then was reduced to its original territorial rule in northern India
Mamluk Dynasty (1206-1290)
Muslim rulers tolerated but looked down upon local religions
concerned with administration, prestige and wealth more than with religious suppression, although the Sultanate conquest included destruction of Hindu and Buddhist temples and libraries, as well as sacking, massacre and sometimes total destruction
the Delhi Sultanate oversaw migration wave of West Asian Muslims fleeing Mongol invasions and spread of Islam, especially at the expense Buddhist culture in Bengal (eastern portion of subcontinent)
was one of the few Eurasian powers to repel Mongol invasions
1206-1277
Genghis Khan
Asia
Mongols
1215
Magna Carta
Europe
England
1258
Abbasid Caliphate ends
West Asia
empire
Mongol army conquered Bagdhad and killed the rule, officially ending the Abbasid Caliphate
1271-1285
Mongol invasion of Japan fails
1260
Mongol Empire divided into 4 khanates:
Yuan Dynasty (east Asia)
Golden Horde (northwest )
Ilkhanate (southwest)
Chagatai (central)
Asia
Mongols
empire
succession disputes arose among grandchildren of Genghis Khan over direction of Mongol rule as integrated into conquered areas or maintaining traditional steppe / nomadic identity
although Kublai Khan became emperor in 1260, he was nominal and not actual ("emperor in name only"). and each khanate was largely autonomous
click expand for political map of Asia in 1335 showing Mongol Khanates before further disintegration of Mongol Empire
Asia in 1335. Mongol states are Golden Horde, Ilkhanate, Chagatai Khanate & Yuan Dynasty
1271-1295
Marco Polo's travels
1260-1350
Pax Mongolia
1279
peak of Mongol Empire
1279-1368
Yuan Dynasty in China (Mongol rule)
1282
introduction of water-powered paper-mill "
China
technology
1299-1923
Ottoman Empire
1400-1600
Italian Renaissance
1324
Mansa Musa pilgrimage to Mecca
1325
Tenochitlan founded
1325-1354
Ibn Battuta's travels
1336-1572
Vijayanagara Empire
Hindu empire in southern India
stopped Islamic spread to southern India by defeating the Deccan sultanates
South Asia
India
cultural diffusion
religion
was slow to adopt cannon and other modern military technologies
fell to the sultanates when they combined and defeated the Vijayanagara army in 1565
the capital was moved and the empire divided in 1572
Vijayanagara, the capital city, was famed for wealth and learning
in 1500 was the 2nd largest city in the word (after Beijing) w/ c. 500,000
became a source of fascination to Europeans in 15th-16th centuries
the capital was sacked in 1565 by the Muslim Deccan sultanates and abandoned
1346
Black Death in China
1347-1388
Black Death in Europe
1351-1368
Red Turban Rebellion
1353
gunpower perfected in Germany
Europe
China
technology
cultural diffusion
with improved metalworking, increased firing range and durability over early Chinese and Middle Eastern guns
Europeans acquired gunpowder via Silk Road exchange with the Mongol Empire
printing and paper technologies were also transmitted over the Silk Road
gunpowder was invented in 9th century in China, called "fire medicine"
had limited use under Song Dynasty as "incendiary projectiles" but not adapted for common military use and not for cannon or guns
Medieval Islam acquired recipes which included saltpeter, which they called "Chinese snow"; having already employed naptha (petroleum-based) as an incendiary
Mongol warfare included use of gunpowder, especially in conquest of China, and possibly in attacks on Europe, which may have been part of its introduction to Europe
see Gunpowder empires for Islamic empires that made extensive use of muskets and cannon
Europeans applied it to small arms and cannon, and it was instrumental in bringing an end to calvary supremacy of European knights (see the Thirty Years War)
European gunpowder was brought to China by the Portuguese in the 15th century
1368-1644
Ming Dynasty
1399-early 1400s
Timurid relations with Europe
Europe, West Asia
Mongols
globalism
cultural diffusion
1399-1400, Turco-Mongol emperor Tamerlane defeated the Ottomans in Syria
he sought alliances with European monarchs to oppose the Ottomans
each side exchanged diplomats, gifts and information
was concurrent (same time as) to Ming dynasty overseas expeditions
similar to Franco-Mongol alliance of the early 13th century, which was designed to oppose Ottoman expansion
1st European modern world map, created by Venetian monk, Niccolò de Conti in 1450 (took several years to make; he had traveled to )
the map indicated a sea route between Europe and India around Africa
considered the first European map to be non-religious in nature or focus
it did not place Jerusalem at the longitudinal center, and it removed the Garden of Eden from the world map (which was traditionally located on the world map to the east)
Click expand to view map of the Fra Mauro Map (click on image to enlarge):
The Fra Mauro Map of the world. The map depicts Asia, Africa and Europe, with south to the top (standard for Muslim world maps). The map is considered highly accurate and the first modern map of the world, even though not correctly depicting all of Africa (or the PaciiAmericas)
1453
Ottoman conquest of Constantinople & collapse of Byzantine empire
Europe
empire
1453-1736
Gunpowder empires
Islamic empires built / expanded on use of gunpowder, especially muskets and cannon
Ottoman, Safavid, Mughal empires
the Ottomans were the first to adopt the technology & used it most effectively
South Asia
West Asia
technology
economy
used gunpowder in guns and cannon to great effect over existing technologies and strategies (broke walls, reduced effectiveness of war elephants, etc.)
Gunpowder empires created stable economies and administrative states
engaged in cultural patronage (cosmopolitan)
Click expand to view map of the Gunpowder Empires (click on image to enlarge):
Islamic Gunpowder Empires
1450s-1480s
Russia overthrows Mongol rule in Moscow
1464-1591
Songhai Empire
1469
Sikhism begins
1492
Reconquista of Spain completed
1492
Columbus's 1st voyage to Americas
1498
Vasco da Gama reaches India
1501-1722
Safavid Empire
1534
African slaves trade to Americas starts
1509-1543
Nzinga Mbemba (Afonso I) rules Kongo Empire
1517
Martin Luther's 95 Theses
1519-1521
Magellan voyage around the world
1526-1748
Mughal Empire
Babur, warrior chief from Uzbekistan
used firearms to conquer upper India
expanded under constant warfare as form of government
Akbar established imperial structure that lasted until 1720; imposed agriculture tax via which monetized peasant economy
fell to Maratha Empire (confederacy of Hindu states)
South Asia
India
religion
use of firearms (guns and cannon)
coinage
1534
France claims St. Lawrence riverway (Quebec colony)
1543
Copernicus / heliocentric universe
1545
Potosi mine opened in Bolivia
1550-1700
Scientific Revolution
1552
Russian Empire begins
1556-1605
Akbar the Great of the Mughal Empire
1571
Manila founded by Spanish
1595
Dutch "Fluyt" cargo ship introduced
1600
English East India Company founded
(later renamed "British East India Co.)
England
trade
colonialization
India
formed for Indian Ocean trade
joint-stock company
seized control of the Indian subcontinent
had a private army 260,000 soldiers (double size of British army)
produced half of the word's trade revenue during the mid-1700s to early 1800s
Britain took over in 1858 and assumed direct control of India as a colony
1600-1826
Tokugawa shogunate
1602
Dutch East India Company founded
1607
Britain begins colonizing the Americas with Jamestown
1623-1641
Tokugawa Iemitsu rules Japan
1632
Taj Mahal built
1643-1715
Louis XIV rules France
1652
Boers colonize South Africa
1674-1818
Maratha Empire or Confederacy
Hindu reconquest of the subcontinent
South Asia
religion
India
Hindu empire from the Western Deccan plateau
sought to establish "self-rule of Hindus" ("hindavi swaajya")
ended the Mughal Empire and ruled most of India until falling to the British East India Company
click Expand for maps of European colonization of Africa
Maratha Empire, as of 1760
1687
Newton publishes Principia
1682-1725
Peter the Great
westernized Russia on Enlightenment ideals and customs (imposed a "beard tax" to force Russians to shave; instituted the Julian calendar)
imposed compulsory education for nobles and built universities
Eurasia
Russia
cultural diffusion
reorganized medieval political structures to modern state, including to abolish the Duma (assembly of local lords) and replacing it with a senate
built new capital, St. Petersburg
built the Imperial Navy
warred with Swedes for control of the Baltic Sea, the Ottomans for control of the Black Sea, and the Safavids (Persian) for control of the Caspian Sea
Mary Wollstonecraft' "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman"
1793
Eli Whitney invents the cotton gin
1799-1815
Napoleonic period
1806-1826
Latin American revolutions/ Bolivar
1815
Congress of Vienna
1839-1860
Opium Wars
1839-1876
Ottoman Tanzimat reforms
1845-1849
Irish potato famine
1848
Communist Manifesto published
1848
Seneca Falls Convention
1850-1864
Taiping Rebellion
1854
Commodore Perry opens Japan
1857
Sepoy Rebellion
1859-1869
Suez Canal built
globalism
colonialism
1861
emancipation of Russian serfs
1863
Emancipation Proclamation in U.S.
1865-1909
King Leopold rule of Congo
1868
Meiji Restoration in Japan
1870-1914
Second Industrial Revolution
1871
Germany unified under Otto von Bismarck
1885
Berlin Conference & the "scramble for Africa
Africa
Europe
colonization
globalism
called "New Imperialism", 1881-1914
the only African countries to avoid colonization during this time were Liberia & Ethiopia
by 1870, most European holdings in Africa were coastal (occupying 10% of land)
industrialization and transportation advances incentivized European search for raw materials and new markets
primary British motive was control of ports for trade with India
click Expand for maps of European colonization of Africa
Areas of Africa controlled by European colonial powers in 1913 (Belgian (yellow), British (red), French (blue), German (turquoise), Italian (green), Portuguese (purple), and Spanish (pink) Empires). Only Liberia and Ethiopia remainded independent (white)European colonization of Africa, 1880 and 1913 comparison
