Chapter 4 Study Guide
UMAYYADS
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RISE Civil War – Umayyads take control
set up a hereditary (family) dynasty (P)
Move capital to Damascus
KPATTS east and west
Used bureaucracy – use of departments/agencies to govern huge empire
(P)
o Caliph
 Emir (governor)
 Used local leaders help govern
PEAK United empire by using common coinage and common language –
Arabic (culture)
Pilgrimage – shared empires language and culture (MOPPI)
FALL Deadly Dinner – All Umayyad leaders (except AAR) killed (KPATTS)
DD marks the start of both the Abbasid and Spanish Umayyad Empires
ABBASIDS
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RISE Form strong standing army
Moved capital to Baghdad (H)
Used policy of inclusion to persuade people to join empire (P)
Trade and industry flourished, Abbasids get even richer (E)
PEAK Advances – calligraphy, bookmaking, literature, mathematics,
astronomy, medicine, trade, banking system, taxes, credit,
Farming/agriculture (culture, E)
FALL corruption
Lost important trade routes,
Over taxing,
Loss of strong army
Factions, revolt, weaken empire
Fatimids Revolt take over North African portion of empire
 Seljuk Turks concur then Mongol Mangling
UMAYYAD SPAIN
 RISE Abd al-Rahman (H) – deadly dinner escapee gathers Umayyad
supporters on the Iberian Peninsula, made treaties with other Muslim
groups.
 756 KPATTSed rest of factions. Declares himself Emir of Al-Andulas and
makes Cordoba his capital (H)
 Thousands of Umayyads move west to join empire greatly strengthening
army (G-MOPPI)
 Abd-al-Rahman III builds huge standing army. Puts down all internal
revolts, expands empire south into North Africa, names himself Caliph of
Cordoba (H)
 PEAK Cordoba is largest city in Western Europe - had paved streets,
lamps and running water- prospered in trade, industry, and agriculture –
was huge cultural center with 70 libraries. Made advances in math,
astonomy, geography, medicine, philosophy (culture)
 FALL - Different Muslim factions fought for control, Muslim groups
broke away and formed their own smaller kingdoms, Christians in the
north took advantage of this disarray and launched attacks, By the
1240s, Christians had pushed as far south as Córdoba and Seville (H)