Fatimid history is a chapter of both Mediterranean and Islamic history. In the period covered by the book (10th-12th centuries) profound changes took place in the Eastern Mediterranean affecting the history of the region. Divided into three parts this study deals with the political history of the Fatimid period, the structure of the Fatimid state and the interplay between state and society. The book is a contribution to the study of Islamic military history addressing such topics as: the formation and upkeep of black slave armies, the role of Christian-Armenian troops in twelfth-century Egypt and military and naval aspects of the Fatimid wars with the Crusaders. Other topics examined are the internal policies of the Fatimid state: notably, among them, the religious policies of the Fatimid regime, the involvement of the state in the urban life of the Fatimid capital city, Fustat-Cairo, and Fatimid attitudes toward non-Muslim communities.

This book deals with both Mediterranean and Islamic history. It outlines the political history of the Fatimid period, and Fatimid relationships with Byzantium. Other topics discussed are the structure of the Fatimid state, Fatimid army and navy, and the wars with the Crusaders.

I.B.Tauris in association with the Institute of Ismaili Studies Emerging from a period of long seclusion, the leader of the burgeoning community of Ismaili Shi'i Muslims was declared the first Fatimid Imam-caliph in the year 909. Abd Allah al-Mahdi founded the only sustained Shi'i dynasty (909-1171) to rule over substantial parts of the medieval Muslim world, rivalling both the Umayyads of Spain and the Abbasids. At its peak, the Fatimid Empire extended from the Atlantic shores of North Africa, across the southern Mediterranean and down both sides of the Red Sea, covering also Mecca and Medina. This accessible history, the first of two volumes, tells the story of the birth and expansion of the Fatimid Empire in the 10th century. Drawing upon eyewitness accounts, Shainool Jiwa introduces the first four generations of Fatimid Imam-caliphs -- al-Mahdi, al-Qa'im, al-Mansur, and al-Mu'izz -- as well as the people who served them and those they struggled against. Readers are taken on a journey through the Fatimid capitals of Qayrawan, Mahdiyya, and Mansuriyya and on to the founding of Cairo. In this lively and comprehensive introduction, readers will discover various milestones in Fatimid history and the political and cultural achievements that continue to resonate today.

I.B.Tauris in association with the Institute of Ismaili Studies The Fatimids ruled much of the Mediterranean world for over two centuries. From the conquest of Qayrawan in 909 to defeat at the hands of Saladin in 1171, the Fatimid caliphate governed a vast area stretching, at its peak, from the Red Sea in the East to the Atlantic Ocean in the West. Their leaders - the Ismaili Shi`i Imam-caliphs - were distinctive in largely pursuing a policy of tolerance towards the religious and ethnic communities of their realm, and they embraced diverse approaches to the practicalities of administering a vast empire. Such methods of negotiating government and diversity created a lasting pluralistic legacy. The present volume, edited by Farhad Daftary and Shainool Jiwa, brings together a series of original contributions from a number of leading authorities in the field. Based on analyses of primary sources, the chapters shed fresh light on the impact of Fatimid rule. The book presents little explored aspects of state-society relations such as the Fatimid model of the vizierate, Sunni legal responses to Fatimid observance, and the role of women in prayer. Highlighting the distinctive nature of the Fatimid empire and its legacy, this book will be of special interest to researchers in mediaeval Islamic history and thought.

This Variorum volume is a collection of articles dealing with Egypt under the Fatimids, originally published in diverse journals and books between 1984 and 2013. The Fatimids came to power in North Africa in 910 CE, and ruled in Egypt from 969 to 1171 CE. As Imams and Caliphs, they claimed authority for the faith and the government of the Muslim world. In Egypt and Syria, they both reigned and ruled over the state. In North Africa and Sicily, the Hijaz and latterly the Yemen, they reigned but did not rule. In the rest of the Muslim world, they pursued their aim for recognition, notably through their missionaries active in Iraq and Iran A core theme is the evolution of the population and its passage from a Coptic to a Muslim majority. Two articles deal with the murderous history of the Wazirs of the Pen before the Armenian Badr al-Jamali began the rule of the Wazirs of the Sword. Four articles deal with the question of Fatimid diplomacy followed by three dealing with Badr al-Jamali and his revival of the dynasty, including his relations with the Yemen, his use of the Coptic church to extend Fatimid influence to Christian Nubia and Ethiopia, and his employment of his military as tax-farmers, creating a system which culminated in the Mamluk regime of the 13th to the 16th century. The final articles concern the Fatimid response to the Crusades which ended with Saladin and the death of the last Imam Caliph, leaving Ismailism to the breakaway sects of the Nizaris in Iran and the Tayyibis in the Yemen.

This book deals with the evolution of Islamic state and society from the 10th to the 14th centuries, focusing on the history of the Arab society under the iqṭā‘ (allocated tax revenue) system. The book offers a well documented study of the system with its use of hitherto unpublished Arabic manuscripts. The introductory chapter deals with the historical origins of the iqṭā‘ system, while chapters that follow discuss the history of the system in Iraq, Syria and Egypt, including systematic studies on the rural life and peasantry in Egypt. State and Rural Society in Medieval Islam is the first thorough, book-length study to show how this system may explain various historical phenomena in medieval Islam. The iqṭā‘ system now can be seen as a system with a comprehensive life of its own.

This first full-length study of women and the Fatimids is a groundbreaking work investigating an unexplored area in the field of Islamic and medieval studies. The authors have unearthed a wealth of references to women, thus re-inscribing their role in the history of one of the most fascinating Islamic dynasties, the only one to be named after a woman. At last some light is thrown on the erstwhile silent and shadowy figures of women under the Fatimids which gives them a presence in the history of women in medieval and pre-modern dynasties. Basing their research on a variety of sources from historical works to chronicles, official correspondence, documentary sources and archaeological findings, the authors have provided a richly informative analysis of the status and influence of women in this period. Their contribution is explored first within the context of Isma'ili and Fatimid genealogical history, and then within the courts in their roles as mothers, courtesans, wives and daughters, and as workers and servants. Throughout the book comparison is drawn with the status and roles of women in earlier, contemporary and subsequent Islamic as well as non-Islamic courts.

A complete history of the Fatimids, showing the significance of the empire to Islam and the wider worldThe Fatimid empire in North Africa, Egypt and Syria was at the centre of the political and religious history of the Islamic world in the Middle Ages, from the breakdown of the aAbbasid empire in the tenth century, to the invasions of the Seljuqs in the eleventh and the Crusaders in the twelfth, leading up to its extinction by Saladin. As Imam and Caliph, the Fatimid sovereign claimed to inherit the religious and political authority of the Prophet, a claim which inspired the conquest of North Africa and Egypt and a following of believers as far away as India. The reaction this provoked was crucial to the political and religious evolution of mediaeval Islam. This book combines the separate histories of Isma'ilism, North Africa and Egypt with that of the dynasty into a coherent account. It then relates this account to the wider history of Islam to provide a narrative that establishes the historical significance of the empire.Key FeaturesThe first complete history of the Fatimid empire in English, establishing its central contribution to medieval Islamic historyCovers the relationship of tribal to civilian economy and society, the formation and evolution of the dynastic state, and the relationship of that state to economy and societyExplores the question of cultural change, specifically Arabisation and IslamisationGoes beyond the history of Islam, not only to introduce the Crusades, but to compare and contrast the dynasty with the counterparts of its theocracy in Byzantium and Western Europe

The rise of Saladin to power in Egypt is a chapter of both Mediterranean and Islamic history. In the period covered by this study, the second half of the twelfth century, profound changes took place in the Eastern Mediterranean affecting the history of the region. The book is divided into two parts. The first deals with the rise of Saladin to power in Egypt (1169-1174) and offers a new interpretation for the demise of the Fatimid state. The second part deals with topics such as the formation of Saladin's army in Egypt, the creation of the navy and the role of the navy in the battle for Acre. The author also addresses topics such as the religious policies of Saladin in Egypt and his attitudes toward the non-Muslim communities.

This volume focusses on the interplay between war and society in the Eastern Mediterranean, in a period which witnessed the Arab conquests, the Seljuk invasion, the Crusades, and the Mongol incursions. The military aspects of these momentous events have not been fully discussed so far. For the first time this book offers a synthesis of trends in military technology and its effect on society in the period from the Arab conquests to the establishment of an Ottoman hegemony. War and Society in the Eastern Mediterranean provides for medievalists an Oriental context to the military aspects of the Crusades, and for scholars of both Middle Eastern and military history a coherent treatment of an important topic over a long period and covering many different cultures.