THE MIDDLE EAST
Kyler Chase, Maksym Bondarenko,
Corrin Offenholley, Thomas Perskin,
Kevin Yoo
PREHISTORY - 600 B.C.E
The Middle East, cradle of civilization
• The middle east was home to the fertile crescent, and
thus provided a basis for civilizations such as Sumer,
3000-2000 BCE.
• Sumer was a collection of city states right in
Mesopotamia (Land between Tigris (north) and
Euphrates (south) rivers).
• The Fertile Crescent allowed for farming, important in
the development of civilizations everywhere.
• As a chain reaction, farming freed up people to
specialize, allowing for large cities with people living
off of administration, making goods, or trading.
Writing, technology, and culture
• Sumerian city-states, such as Ur, are known to have developed a
system of writing called Cuneiform, which involves using a wedge to
mark clay tablets.
• Ur also developed mathematics in base 60, which is where we get
360 degrees in a circle and 60 seconds in a minute
• Religion was polytheistic, with the peoples of Sumer and Egypt
worshipping similar gods, though Sumer had a darker side to the
afterlife in their religion.
• The wheel was invented in Mesopotamia
• This is all around 3000 BCE – early development.
• Also, later. In about 1700 BCE, Hammurabi created the first written
legal code, setting out crimes and the punishments to be
administered for them. It followed the principle of “an eye for an
eye.”
The Second Millennium BCE
• The Hittites ruled over Anatolia (Turkey) and were
reknowned militarily, establishing superiority on the
battlefield through the use of Chariots, and later, Iron
weapons (they may have gotten these as earlsy as the
14th century BCE).
• The peak of Egypt’s power also came during the second
half of this period with the New Kingdom of Egypt,
marked by control of areas south of Egypt and lots of
fighting with the Hittites over control of Syria.
• Ramesses II was able to establish a peace treaty with
the Hittites, though his sucessors would continue the
war later.
Into and through 1000 BCE
• Around this time period, King David established the
united kingdom of Israel by conquering Jerusalem.
• People were starting to learn how to smelt Iron, and
from that, how to make Iron weapons.
• It was also around this time that the Neo-Assyrian
empire (934-609 BCE) formed, and then proceeded to
conquer most of the Middle east, sweeping over the
Kingdom of Judah, Babylon and Egypt
• This empire eventually fell to a coalition of the people
it had conquered and tried to conquer, around 600
BCE. As that’s a nice round number, it might come up in
the exam as a CCOT essay question.
A summary
• Overall, the Middle East, and in particular
Mesopotamia saw much cultural and technological
development during ancient history, with the
development of the wheel, writing, and later, Iron
smelting.
• However, there was lots of fighting over these areas
too, with many different nations controlling the Middle
East at some point or another, such as the Hittites,
Egypt, and the Neo-Assyrian empire.
• As a change, point out who controlled the middle east,
and as continuity, point out that it remained an area of
Empires and technological progress.
600 BCE – 600 CE
600 BC- 300 BC Middle East
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The Babylonian Empire was at its greatest power. Just defeated the powerful Assyrians.
Under the rule of King Nebuchadnezzar, Babylon would become one of the most lavish
cities in the world. Most known for the hanging Gardens of Babylon, nobody is really sure
whether it really existed or not.
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Meanwhile, not far away from Babylon, the Persian Empire was rising in power. Cyrus the
Great would occupy Babylon in 538 BC.
Under Cyrus the Great and Darius I, Babylon would make breakthroughs in science and
become a center of learning.
Some achievements were maps of constellations,
and creating some theorems in mathematics and
setting the foundation for astronomy.
Hellenistic Art: Human-based, story-based themes,
lack of colors, and sculptures.
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331 BC,
Under Darius III, the Persian Empire would fall
to the rule of Alexander the Great of Macedonia.
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300BC-1BC Middle East
• After Alexander the Great’s death, his
empire was divided among his generals.
Decades of fighting between the generals
would occur.
• The city of Babylon was in horrendous
shape and a tablet from 275 BC suggests
that the people of Babylon were
transported to Seleucia.
Start of the Parthian Empire ~247 BC
• Founded in 3rd century BC by Araces I when he rebelled and conquered
the Parthia region(Present Day Iran), against the Greek Seleucid Empire.
• At its height the Empire stretched from present day eastern Turkey to
present day eastern Iran.
• Located on the Silk Road trade route, it quickly became a center of trade.
• Gained influence from the people they conquered, the Greeks.
• Known for their style of fighting, riding horses and shooting arrows.
• The constituents of the empire were allowed to rule independently,
• setting their own government, currency, and language.
• Hellenistic culture and art was still
• dominant in the Parthian Empire.
• Various religion were spread among the region,
• but Zoroastrianism gained importance as time went on.
Parthian Empire cont.
• First century BCE, the Romans and Parthians fought for
three hundred years for land that included Armenia,
Mesopotamia, and Syria. They fought primarily over Syria,
Mesopotamia and Armenia. Authority over the land would
go back and forth between the Romans and the Parthians.
• 114 CE, Roman forces fought Parthia once again, this time
claiming back all the land.
• Second century, Parthian would begin to weaken. Corrupt
government officials went against the central authority of
the throne, using tax money for their own use, not
supplying soldiers from their local city.
• 224, rebellion led by the king of Pars. The Parthian Empire
collapses.
Middle East 300AD ~ 600AD
• Remains divided between the Roman Empire in the west and the
Persian Empire in the East
• The Sasanid dynasty would rule over the Persians.
• Much more centralized government structure than the Parthians.
• Zoroastrianism was the official religion of the empire but
Christianity is also widespread.
• Iranian art and culture would form by the mix between the time
periods of Cyrus and Darius, and Hellenistic styles.
• Irrigation system, new land has been brought under cultivation,
cities have flourished, and the population has expanded. Iraq is
flourishing.
600 - 1750
Caliphates (+ Islam)
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-Prophet Muhammad: 570-632. Islam is formed when Mohammed receives messages from God
(609-632).
-Split between Shi’a and Sunni Muslims (descendants of Muhammad vs. wisest member of the
strongest tribe) led to much internal conflict, with the Sunnis prevailing in the first war, as could be
seen by the rulers of the Caliphates that followed Muhammad’s.
-Islam becomes a major religion and unifying factor while paving the way to formation of
CALIPHATES.
-CALIPHATE: a state with all power held by a religious and political leader, knows as the Caliph. The
state is based on Islam (as in Islam is the most dominant religion, Shah’ria law is implemented, etc.)
After Mohammad’s initial expansion comes the Rashidun Caliphate, then the Umayyad Caliphate
(661 – 750) with the capital in Damascus, under which greatest expansion of any Caliphate is
achieved.
Under the Umayyads, hereditary monarchy is implemented, with a bureaucratic structure utilizing
local rulers to control the vast area of the empire. Spoke Arabic and didn’t constrain local cultures
as long as the people paid their taxes; taxes were, however, deemed unfair and oppressive.
Abbasid Arabs overthrow the Umayyads in 750, take control of the Caliphate, making it the Abbasid
Caliphate. The Abbasids moved the capital to Baghdad, which becomes second largest city in the
world at the time (around 850). Abbasid Caliphate maintains power in modern Iraq until 1258.
By the middle of the 10th century, Abbasid Caliphate dissipates into smaller states due to its size,
but the large territory governed by various smaller Muslim governments is known as Dar-al-Islam.
continued
• -In the Abbasid Caliphate, Muslim traders spread
improved irrigation systems which lead to surplus of
food and thus increase in population size. Cities grew
and prospered; paper is brought in from China.
Mosques, hospitals, schools, orphanages were built all
over the Caliphate, which allowed for the spread of
important intellectual concepts such as math and
Ancient Greek philosophy, with many ancient texts
translated to Arabic.
• Women - In early Islamic society, Islam appealed to
women because they had equal status in the eyes of
God. Women were allowed to keep any personal
dowries in a marriage.
continued
• The Fatimid Caliphate is, chronologically, the last of the four major
Caliphates following Muhammad’s original one.
• It controlled a small portion of the Middle East as one can see on
the map, and controlled most of North Africa. It was known to be
very religiously tolerant (to, say, Jews and Christians).
• 909-1171 is how long the Empire of the Fatimid Caliphate lasted; it
was the Fatimides that built Cairo, made the city its capital, and
kept Egypt as the center of power in the Empire. After many
centuries, the area that is now Egypt finally was a force to be
reckoned with again.
• Interestingly enough, the Fatimid Caliphate was Shi’a, as opposed to
the rest of the Caliphates (hence the name of the Caliphate:
Fatimah was the daughter of Muhammad).
Expansion of the Early Caliphates
Abbasid Caliphate at its Height (around
850)
The Fatimid Caliphate at its Height,
(around 975)
The Great Seljuk Empire
• The Seljuks were a Turkic tribe that originated from the areas around the
Caspian sea, converted to Islam in the late 10th century, and unified with
other minor tribes in the area to build a strong military and conquer most
of the Middle East, unifying the area under one state for the first time
since the Abbasid Caliphate.
• The Seljuks mixed with the many Persians that lived in conquered
territory, adopted Persian culture and language, and are seen as the
ancestors of modern Western Turks (i.e. Azerbaijan, Turkey)
• One particular feat of the Seljuks was defeating the Byzantines in Anatolia.
This is a major point to know in history, because it was against the Seljuks
the First Crusade was directed against, to recapture Jerusalem from the
Muslim Seljuks and help the Byzantine Empire.
• The Europeans were ultimately successful in pushing the Seljuks out of
Byzantine and the Empire soon fell apart, but smaller Seljuk governments
remained throughout the region.
The Great Seljuk Empire
Crusades (+other)
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The biggest impact the Crusades had on the Middle East was the destruction it
brought unto the Byzantine Empire; the weakness of the Byzantines was showed in
later Muslim conquests of Anatolia, with the Ottomans ultimately incorporating
the peninsula into the greater Muslim world.
The Crusades also helped start up a new major trading network between the
Muslim Middle East and Christian Europe, enabling the former to export a lot and
thus prosper, and bringing many new technologies and ideas to the latter.
Although many small states lacked political unity in the Middle East after the first
Crusade and dissipation of the Great Seljuk Empire, Islam was still a unifying factor
for social unity and the many of them were able to win most of the Crusades as
Dar-al-Islam.
Otherwise social structure remained largely unchanged, with Islam influencing
every aspect of life and spreading to many other regions (i.e. Sub-Saharan Africa,
Indian Ocean basin) due to major missionary activity (particularly by the Sufis), its
tolerance for other beliefs, and the general appeal of religion (giving people
structure in life and a set of rules to follow). And also, in Early Islamic world,
women could keep their dowries in marriage and had status equal to men under
the eyes of God.
Mongol Conquests (+ Ilkhanate)
• The original Mongol Conquests of Gengis Khan himself never fully
conquered the Middle East.
• It was Gengis Khan’s grandson, and Kublai Khan’s brother, Hulagu Khan,
that would seize power in the area and form the first Ilkhanate. He sacked
Baghdad, and thus defeated the much smaller and weakened Abbasid
Caliphate, in 1258.
• Local bureaucrats were installed as governors of their respective
territories.
• Initially very open to Christianity and Buddhism, the Mongols eventually
converted to Islam in 1295 and maintaining the religious dominance of the
religion in the area.
• Mongols integrated themselves with the local people, eventually fully
integrating themselves and losing power by 1335, with the khanate
dissipating into four smaller states.
• Timur’s conquests tried to restore the khanate during his rule from 1370
until 1405, but all his efforts went to waste after he died.
The Ilkhanate
Timur (Tamerlane)
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A Muslim Turk with some Mongol blood (deadly combination) who saw himself as Gengis Khan’s
succcessor, born in the Chagatay Khanate.
Conquered vast areas of land, as seen on the map.
Initially conquered the Chagatay Khanate and set the khans there as figureheads while essentially
ruling over the area himself.
“A supernatural person ordained by God” was the justification for Timur’s rule over Muslim lands,
for he was not descended of Muhammad and could not be a Caliph. Wasn’t a descendent of Gengis
Khan either, so couldn’t officially be a khan, so only used the “amir” title, meaning “general”.
Empires, territories, rulers he conquered and defeated include Tokhtamysh of the Golden Horde
(although initially an ally, Timur helped him burn Moscow in 1382), most of Persia (which had no
centralized power at that time; he sacked Baghdad and the Mamluk Damascus and massacred
populations in both cities), the rising Ottoman Empire and its Sultan Bayezid, northern India under
the Delhi Sultanate and its Sultan
He also attacked the Ming Dynasty in China, but was unsuccessful.
Damascus and Baghdad are only some (and perhaps some of the most well-known) examples of
Timur’s brutality. It is estimated his conquests had resulted in the loss of life as massive as 17
million, accounting for 5 percent of the world’s population at the time.
Battle of Delhi – 1398; Battle of Ankara – 1402, Battle of the Terek River – 1395;
Was mostly seen in Europe as favorable to Christianity and to the fall of the Ottoman Empire
His empire lasted from 1370 to 1405.
Timurid Empire at its Height
Safavids
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The Safavids were a dynasty which ruled the Persian lands from 1501 to 1722, with
a brief resurgence in the 1730’s. Brought down by internal conflicts and wars with
Afghan tribal natives.
They were never conquered by the Ottoman Empire, and checked its power in the
middle east.
Engaged in an over 100-year long conflict over Iraq with the Ottoman Empire,
losing and gaining control over the course of the war. This resulted in more
tensions between Shia and Sunni Muslims, as the former was the primary form of
Islam in Safavid Empire while the latter was the prominent branch of Islam in the
Ottoman Empire.
Revived Iranian national identity and first dynasty to rule cohesively over an
Iranian state ever since the Sassanids and reestablished Persia as the economic
buffer between the East and the West.
Theocracy under the Shah, yet local democracy and a bureaucratic system of
checks of balances existed, albeit all under the Shah, and meritocracy was
implemented.
Gunpowder empire along with the Ottomans and Mughals and also used
conquered peoples as slaves and then warriors
Safavid Empire at its Height
Mamluk Sultanate in Egypt (Mamluks)
• The Mamluks were originally peoples used as slaves in the Abbasid
Caliphate, and then helped bring about its downfall because they were
used in the military. Spread to different regions of the Middle East and
some other parts of the world.
• The most prominent Mamluk state came to be in Egypt. Came to power by
defeating French King Louis IX at the Battle of Al –Mansurah during the
seventh crusade in 1249-1250, defeating the short-lived Ayyubid Empire in
Egypt afterwards and putting themselves in power (which had defeated
the Fatimid Caliphate beforehand), until conquered by the Ottoman
Empire in 1517.
• Fought away the Mongol invasion led by Hulagu at the battle of Ain Jalut
in 1260.
• Presented the biggest power in the Middle East (particularly mid and late
13th century and early 14th century) until the Ottoman Empire rose to
power mid 15th century.
• Highly militaristic and religious under Islam.
Mamluk Empire at its Height (1279)
Ottoman Empire
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The Ottomans were one of the many Turkic tribes in the Middle East, and formed their own state in the
northwestern corner of Anatolia in 1299. They were simply a state, albeit an expansionist one, until the fall of
Constantinople in 1453 to Sultan Mehmed II, creating the Ottoman Empire.
Other steps on the path to expansion included victory at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389, which was fought against
Serbia and its allied Christian states, and established Muslim Ottoman control in the Balkans and eliminated
Serbian control of the area.
The Battle of Nicopolis, the last great Crusade of the Middle Ages, also marked an Ottoman victory against
Christians, this time in Greece.
After loss to Timur, there followed a brief chaotic period marked by civil war.
Then Mehmed II comes to power, and, as we know, he conquered the Byzantine Empire in 1453 after capturing
Constantinople and renamed it Istanbul.
Sultan Selim I conquered Egypt and defeated the Mamluks, and defeated the Shah of Safavid Empire to gain rest
of Anatolia and Northern Iraq
Suleiman the Magnificent, perhaps the greatest Ottoman ruler, captured most of Hungary, as well as Belgrade in
1521. He also laid siege to Vienna, but was unsuccessful both times, in 1529 and in 1532. In 1535, finally
conquered Baghdad.
After a series of naval losses to Portugal and Spain and other military losses (i.e. Safavids), demarcation of
currency due to influx of Spanish gold into the New World, succession of weak rulers, and revolts, the Ottomans
Empire seemed in danger of collapse until the early 17th century when they regained Baghdad and Yerevan back
from the Safavids, and conquered Southern and Western Ukraine from Poland in 1676. The Ottomans remained a
great empire until the last failed siege at Vienna, in 1683. Thereafter in history the Ottomans only lost territory
(discard the Crimean War).
Ottoman Empire (continued)
• Law was religious in the Ottoman Empire, but local
cultures and religions were tolerated as long as a
special tax was paid, and weren’t allowed into higher
government positions. This is the civil branch of
Ottoman administration, with the military being the
second branch. The Sultan was at the head of both.
• The Ottoman military failed to utilize any navy
effectively, and employed Janissaries.
• Economy was dependent on trade and development of
large cities along major trade routes, with the main
goal being increasing state revenue without harming
the subjects
Ottoman Empire at its Greatest
1750 - 1900
The Decline of the Ottoman Empire
• By 1750, the Turks had lost much of their land in wars
(treaties of Karlowitz 1699 and Passarowitz 1718
diminished their presence in Europe)
• Continued to lose land to Austria, Russia (Peter,
Catherine)
• Also internal issues (corruption, attempted reform vs.
traditional values)
• Janissaries refused to adapt (had much political
control)
• Early 1800s: Sultans began to westernize/modernize
(education, technology, a degree of secularization)
Decline continued
• Late 1820s: Mehmet III created European style
army, navy
• Ousted the janissaries
• Tanzimat Reforms
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1839 – 1876
Greater religious tolerance for non-Muslim millets
Legal reform
Westernized schools
National telegraph + postal systems
Gave women a better chance for education
Collapse
• Nationalism and political turmoil led to
uprisings
• Serbia revolted 1807 (failed)
• 1821: Greek war of independence
• France, Britain, Russia backed Greece;
Ottomans forced to recognize its
independence in 1832
• Ottoman Empire’s collapse presented Eastern
Question
Eastern Question
• Allow Ottoman Empire to remain or not
• Wasn’t a threat; very predictable; held together volatile
parts of Eurasia
• European states tried to preserve balance of power
• Didn’t want to act suddenly; managed it carefully and
slowly
• 1869: Suez Canal makes Egypt very important
• Balkan crisis (1876 – 1878): Nationalistic Balkan states
revolt
• Congress of Berlin (1878): Balkan states gain independence;
European powers don’t allow Russia to impose too harsh of
a treaty on the Turks
Egypt and North Africa
• Napoleonic Wars (1798): Napoleon defeated Egyptian
and Turkish armies, took power temporarily in Egypt
(over Mamluks)
• Regime later restored, but badly damaged
• Muhammad Ali revolt (1805) freed Egypt
• Ali modernized Egypt (Westernized military,
modernized agriculture with an emphasis on cotton,
industrialization)
• Tried to expand (took the Sudan, went east)
• France and Britain would not let him continue his
conquest
1900 - PRESENT
Last of the Ottoman Empire and
Change of Control
• Until World War I, the Middle East was still part of the
Ottoman Empire, but the Empire was not in control
• The British were in control of the Empire, which the
Ottomans had welcomed near the end of the 19th
century
• At the end of WW1, the empire fell and the League of
Nations was put in charge of the Ottoman lands. The
central territory of the empire became Turkey.
• France was put in control of Syria and Lebanon; Britain
of Palestine, Jordan and Iraq.
• Countries in the middle east slowly gained
independence one by one
Creation of Israel
• zionists, or Jewish nationalists, believed that the Jews had the right to a homeland in Palestine, as it
was supposedly their “promised land”
• convinced British foreign secretary Arthur Balfour of this right
• Balfour declaration of 1917 issued giving Jews the right to a home in Palestine, but not removing the
Palestinians
• over next 20 years 500,000 Jews immigrated to Palestine, largely due to anti-semitic groups in Europe
and the holocaust
• In 1948, the United Nations created two Palestines – Israel and Palestine
• immediately six Arab countries attacked Israel known as the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
• Israel not only defeated the attackers but pushed back and gained more territory
• Jews continued to migrate, and wars continued to occur
• Six Days’ War (1967) --> total victory for Israelis
- Israel gained control of West Bank, Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights
Importantly, Jerusalem came with West Bank from Jordan
• yom kippur war (1973) --> victory for arabs
Camp David Accords (1977) signed between Prime Minister Begin and President Sadat. Resulted in
Israel pulling out of Sinai and Egypt. Sadat was assassinated.
Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) formed
• skirmishes and unrest in the area ever since
Iran (Formerly Persia)
• Reza Shah Pahlavi takes power in 1925
• Began to modernize and westernize Iran
• lost power, but returned to the head of Iran in the 1953 Iranian Coup
• efforts to westernize grow and gain momentum in the 1960s
• Shah institutes land reform, education reform, increased rights of women
• Women pursued education and careers; Iranians adopted western style
• Islamic Fundamentalists not too happy about this
• Islamic Revolution (1979) --> Shah ousted by Fundamentalists
• Ayatollah Khomeini takes power, Iran returned to a theocracy
• Iranian hostage crisis during revolution --> 52 Americans held for 444 days
• Iran-Iraq (1980) --> war over border disputes, neither gains much over 8 years
• also fueled by the fact that Khomeini was Shiite, while Iraq was led by Sunnis
• Iraq receiving support from US
• Cease-fire in 1988
• Ayatollah Khamenei succeeds Khomeini in 1989
• power struggle between reformists and fundamentalists every since
• fundamentalists have mostly stayed in power
• current issue in Iran is the limiting of its nuclear technology program
Afghanistan
• Stable throughout most of 20th century
• fought three wars with Britain before declaring independence in 1919
• communist faction seized power during the Cold War, but met with resistance
from the Mujahideen, or “holy warriors”
• Soviet Troops invade end of 1979/beginning of 1980
• forced to withdraw in 1982 due to heavy resistance receiving western support
• US wanted this to be soviet version of Vietnam
• also internal problems within USSR
• rival factions at war in Afghanistan for 14 years, 2 million casualties
• Taliban emerge victorious in 1996, capturing capital of Kabul
• The Taliban ruled with an Islamic Fundamentalist regime
• brought stability to Afghanistan
• housed members of Al Qaeda, particularly Osama Bin Laden
• Taliban removed by the UN (mostly the US) in 2002 after 9/11
• US proceeded to occupy Afghanistan thereafter
Oil
• Over two thirds of the world’s oil is in the middle east
• Oil became very important after industrial revolution because it was needed
for fuel
• throughout the 20th century, huge corporations rushed to the middle east
to to establish drilling rights there
• governments in the middle east began to make billions of dollars each year
• OPEC, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, was formed in
the middle east along with a few outside, oil-exporting countries such as
Venezuela
• in the 1970s, OPEC cut oil supplies and prices shot up
• OPEC members made billions of extra dollars which they could use to
modernize
• OPEC is not as strong as a group today, but its individual members each hold
huge economic power
Iraq and Persian Gulf War
• Iraq gained freedom from Britain in 1947 along with Jordan
• Saddam Hussein rose to power in 1979
• ruled Iraq with brutal dictatorship, but kept the country unified
• invaded Kuwait in 1990 with the intention of increasing oil reserves
• also would have put Iraq in position to invade Saudi Arabia, which would
also significantly increase control of oil
• Iraqi invasion put down by the UN (mainly US) in 1991 in the Persian Gulf
War
• Hussein captured by the US and Britain in 2003
• Hussein’s ruthless dictatorship had forcibly kept the country together, but
now rival factions started to fight (Sunni, Shiites, and Kurds)
• constitution ratified in 2005, distributed legislative seats by proportional
representation
• most US troops withdrawn in 2011, although Iraq still remains somewhat
unstable
Works Cited
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