In
2014, a term returned from the past and used to inspire fear and hatred. The
Islamic State of Syria and Levant declared itself a Caliphate making many ask
the question – What is a caliphate?
Early Caliphate
A
caliphate is an Islamic state that entrenched its legitimacy from the Prophet
Mohammad itself. It began during the time of the Prophet’s death in 632 and his
followers built upon his legacy of a polity during their time in Medina. Back
then, the Prophet led Medina and built upon a state that defended the rights of
all inhabitants of the city whether believers or not of Islam. He also
demonstrated his position as a political, military, and religious leader. From
this, the Prophet’s followers convened to discuss who should succeed in the
position.
They
agreed that none should replace Mohammad as the Prophet of Allah and decided to
call the succeeding leaders as Khalifa
rasul Allah (Successor of Allah’s Prophet) or simply Caliph meaning
successor. In 632, the Muslim leadership chose Abu Bakar as the first Caliph.
After
Abu Bakar, 3 more men followed him as Caliphs and they became known as the Four
Rightly Guided Caliphs or Rashidun. Their duties included implementing of
Islamic laws, suppressing apostates, leading the prayers, and protecting
pilgrims to Mecca. Thus, a caliph commanded both political and religious
leadership of the whole Islamic community. Also, the Rashidun caliphs rose up
to the position through election. During the rule of the 4th Caliph Ali, a
cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet, a divide emerged as the process of
choosing a caliph went into question.
2
factions emerged that continued to plague Islam to this very day. The 1st
called the shia’t Ali (Followers of
Ali) or Shias in short, believed that Ali should have been the first Caliph
disregarding the first 3 Rashidun caliphs and believed as well that the Caliph
should be a relatives of the Prophet. On the other hand, the ahl al-sunna wa-l-jama’ah (people of
custom and community) or Sunnis believed that caliphs should be elected. As a
result, the position of a Caliph ceased to be a single particular man unifying
Islam but became a multiple men serving as a rallying points in the politics of
the religion. A civil war erupted between the factions ending with Ali’s death
and the rise of the Sunni Umayyad Caliphate.
Umayyads and Beyond
The
Umayyads transformed the position of Caliph from an elective to a dynastic or
hereditary position. The caliphate’s founder Muawiya found elections as a cause
for factionalism and instability. So he decided to make the position hereditary
and did so under threat of death. In a council meeting to designate Muawiya’s
successor, all those who opposed the appointment of his son as his successor
met a sword in front of him. Under such instance, none voiced opposition and
the Caliphate became a hereditary position.
The
practice of hereditary caliphate continued well into the successors of the
Umayyads – the Abbasids. Other caliphates also appeared that challenged the
leadership of another caliphate as the condition of the Cordoba Caliphate in
Spain and Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt that refused to recognize the authority of
the Abbasid Caliphate. They too also practiced the hereditary Caliphates.
A
Caliphs imbedded powers from the Prophet and leadership of the Islamic
community made its recognition important to newly forged Islamic states.
Sultanates and emirates sought the recognition of the Caliph for their
respective consolidation of powers.
In
1258, the Abbasid Caliphate ended in the hands of the Mongols. A small number
of relatives of the Abbasid caliph survived in Egypt and continued to hold the
title without much authority however.
It
was not until in 1517 that a Caliph who wielded power and authority rose again
in form of the Ottomans under Selim I. Selim conquered Egypt and made the last
Abbasid Caliph Al-Mutawakil III to transfer the title of Caliph to him. Since
then, the Sultans of the Ottomans came also to be known as Ottoman Caliphs in
the Islamic world. A title they held until the fall of the Ottomans 1924.
The
title of Caliph and the term caliphate remained dormant amidst the rise of
western style governments and secularism. Only with the rise of Islamism and ISIS
in 2014 that a renewed attention on Caliphates returned, tragically in a
negative way.
Summing Up
Caliphate
is a state ruled by a caliph or a successor of the Prophet as the leader of the
Islamic community. The early caliphates followed the tribal practice of
election until the Islamic community grew along with the ambitions of the
title’s holders. It transformed to a hereditary position similar to a King but
wielded still both religious and political authority. Politics brought numbers
of caliphate existing simultaneously erasing the caliph’s position as a leader
of a unified Islamic community. Soon it only became a mere title for the
purpose of prestige and power. Now, the caliphate and caliph gathered attention
as terrorist used this leadership position to justify their acts of terrorism.
See also:
Bibliography:
"Caliphate." In Historical Dictionary of Syria. Edited by David Commins and David Lesch. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2014.
"Caliphate." In Encyclopedia of the Medieval World. Edited by Edward English. New York, New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005.
Keaney, Heather. "caliphate." In Encyclopedia of Islam. Edited by Juan Campo. New York, New York: Facts On File, inc., 2009.
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