30 Aralık 2010 Perşembe

MEDIEVAL INDIA



       6th to 15th centuries, political and religious diversity
       Small kingdoms and military aristocracies,
       RAJPUTS and autonomous villages
       Scholasticism and ritualistic religion
       8th century Abbasid invasion from the north
       Central Asian Islam penetrates via raids & sufism

Afghano-Turkic Islamic Raids in the 1000s
       Turks, Afghans, Persians and Mongols entered into India, most prominently from Ghazni (today in Afghanistan)with Mahmud of Ghazni (998-1030) making the Punjabi region a gateway to Islam
       North Indians, low-caste Hindus and Buddhists converted

The Delhi Sultanate
       The first Muslim state 1206 in Delhi by Qutb-ud-din Aybak constantly expanding and contracting
       Mixing very well with the indidgenous populaces
       Divided into 5 dynasties : the Tughluqs were crushed by Timur from Samarkand (1398-99) desolating the entire sultanate but the last dynasty (Lodis) nonetheless survived until 1526
       The Delhi Sultanate : saving South Asia from the Empire of Cengiz Khan but establishing a stronger Mongol legacy together with Islam

23 Aralık 2010 Perşembe

Medieval Near Eastern Societies

Non-Muslim Communities in the Early Islamic World

Ahl al-dhimma (“Protected People”): dhimmi
-obliged to pay poll tax (jizya) and land tax (kharaj)
-allowed to practice and organize own religion
-dhimmi women allowed to marry Muslim men (but not vice-versa); children would be Muslim
-conversion of Muslims not permitted
-allowed to hold positions in administration
-generally held to be inferior in social standing to Muslims

Who were the ahl al-dhimma?

Ahl al-kitab (“People of the Book”)
1. Jews (Banu Isra’il, Yahud)
-isra’iliyyat (stories about Hebrew prophets and Biblical figures)

2. Christians (Nasara / Nasrani: “from Nazareth”): Monophysites, Chalcedonians, Nestorians
-monasticism
-transmission of ancient Greek learning

Extension of ahl al-kitab (and dhimmi) status:
1. Zoroastrians (Majus – “Magians”)
-dualist religion
-written scriptures (Avesta)
2. Sabians (Sabi’un)
a. Judeo-Christian baptising sects esp. in Iraq
b. Pagan star-worshippers of Harran

Manicheaism (zandaqa; zindiq):
-not included among the ahl al-dhimma
-dualist teachings of 3rd c. prophet Mani
-zandaqa came to mean “heresy”
-repressed and persecuted



Page from a Qur’an manuscript, probably Iraq, 9th c., parchment
Kufic script

Translation movement:
-began under Abbasid caliph al-Mansur
-continued for some 200 years
-inspired by Sasanian imperial ideology
-Bayt al-hikma (“House of Wisdom”) in Baghdad
-initially translations from Pahlavi (Middle Persian)
-later translations from Greek

Subjects covered by the Translation Movement (750-950):
-Quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music)
-Entire field of Aristotelian philosophy
-metaphysics -ethics -logic -physics -zoology -botany
-Health sciences (medicine, pharmacology, veterinary science)
-Occult sciences: (magic, alchemy, astrology)

Revival of the Persian literary in the 10th c.:
Samanid dynasty (819-1005):
-Iranian aristocratic family
-establish a state in Eastern Iran and Central Asia

capital Bukhara
-active sponsorship of learning and New Persian literature (esp. poetry)
-translations from Arabic into Persian
-Shahnama (“Book of Kings”)
– Persian national epic of the pre-Islamic Iranian kings by the poet Firdawsi: highly influential text for later Iranian and Turkish societies.

Religious and Political Fragmentation in the Islamic World




Abbasid Revolution 749-50
Al-Andalus: first breakaway province: Umayyad state


Political fragmentation of the Islamic world in the 9th c.


Khariji movement:
-begins with opposition to ‘Ali regarding the decision to arbitrate over the punishment of ‘Uthman’s assassins
-responsible for the assassination of ‘Ali in 661
-first definite dissent and division in the Islamic community
(kharijis: “those who went out”)
-emphasis on egalitarian and morally puritannical leadership

Ibadi movement:
-later development from the Kharijis
-formed groups of opposition to the Abbasids in N. Africa among native Berber people
Rustamid dynasty (761-909)
-anti-Abbasid independent state
-conceived as a “correction” to past and present Islamic states

Sect: a dissenting or schismatic religious group, sometimes considered extreme or heretical by opponents… (sectarian, sectarianism)
Shi‘a: party or faction
Shi‘at ‘Ali: party (supporters) of ‘Ali and ‘Alids
Shi‘i: a member of Shi‘at ‘Ali
‘Alid: a descendent of ‘Ali


Genealogy of the Shi‘i imamate

Principles of the Shi‘i imamate as developed in the 8th c.:

-divinely-guided

-sovereign in religious and political terms

-keeper of authority and secret knowledge for the interpretation of the Qur’an, hadith, law

-free from sin and error (infallibility)

-explicity designated by his predecessor (nass)

-a necessary institution

Divisions within Shi’ism:

- “Fiver” / Zaydi
- “Sevener”/Isma‘ili
- “Twelver” / Imami


Fatimids:
-‘Ubayd Allah claims to be the manifestation (zuhur) of the Hidden Imam :took the title al-Mahdi
-909: Declaration of the Fatimid Caliphate (title: amir al-mu’minin) in N. Africa: ideological and military challenge to the Abbasids
-969: Conquest of Egypt

The Caliphate: From Medina to Damascus and Bagdad

Succession to the leadership of the Prophet Muhammad (632)
—possible choices:
- ‘Ali (cousin and son-in-law) ?
-Ansar (supporters from Medina) ?
-Muhajirun (emigrants from Mecca) ?

The Rightly-Guided Caliphs (“Rashidun”):

Abu Bakr (632-34)
‘Umar (634-44)
‘Uthman (644-56)
‘Ali (656-61)

imam = supreme leader of the Muslim community (umma)
imama = supreme leadership, imamate

khalifa (“deputy”) = caliph
khilafa = caliphate
amir al-mu’minin (“commander of the faithful”) = caliph



misr / amsar (garrison town/s): Kufa, Basra, Fustat, Kairawan

diwan: register of Arab soldiers
sabiqa: social priority based on the time of conversion to Islam, used to determine salaries of soldiers, etc.

ahl al-dhimma: “protected people” (Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians) living in conquered lands
dhimmi: a member of the ahl al-dhimma
jizya: poll tax on dhimmis

mawla (pl. mawali): non-Arab (Muslim) clients of Arab tribes

First Civil War (656-661)

-Assassination of ‘Uthman after an uprising in Kufa (656)
-‘Ali became 4th caliph

-Unresolved issue of the punishment of ‘Uthman’s assassins fueled the First Civil War

- ‘Ali challenged by Mu’awiya (governor of Syria)

‘Ali agreed to arbitration on issue of punishment

- Assassination of ‘Ali (661); Mu’awiya became caliph



Mu’awiya:
-governor of Syria
-member of Banu Umayya clan
-became caliph in 661
-established the Umayyad Caliphate (661-750)




Umayyad Caliphate (661-750)
-capital: Damascus


‘Abd al-Malik (r. 685-705):

-ended the Second Civil War in 692 by force

-administrative reforms to create a centralized empire
-Arabic as official language

-monetary reforms

-establishment of a state with all necessary institutions



‘Abd al-Malik’s monetary reform:
-central issues
-standard weight
-inscriptions instead of images

Dinar (gold coin): 696-7
Dirham (silver coin): 698-9


Dome of the Rock (Jerusalem), built in 691-2 on the site of the old Jewish Temple (destroyed prior to Islam)




Caliph al-Walid I (r. 705-15)
Conquest of Central Asia
Conquest of Spain


Great Mosque of Damascus, begun 705/6 by Caliph al-Walid I (r. 705-15)

Problems faced by the Umayyads in the 8th c.:
1. Dissatisfaction of the Shi’is regarding the basis of Umayyad power (believed to be illegitimate)
2. Resentment against Syria from the provinces
Resentment against Arabs by non-Arabs

749: Abbasid Revolution (led by descendents of the Prophet’s uncle ‘Abbas)
750: Establishment of Abbasid Caliphate
-new capital established by caliph al- Mansur-- Baghdad

Religion in the Irano-Mediterranean World


Islamic World (“Dar al-Islam”) up to the 9th c.


Late Antiquity
3rd to 7th centuries:
Byzantine and Sasanian Empire


Christianity, 4th – 5th c.

-Debates over the true nature of Jesus Christ (Human? Divine? Both?)
-3 main Christological positions:

-Nestorian: Human nature
-Nestorian Church (Iraq, Iran and Asia)

-Monophysite: Divine nature
-Eastern Christian Churches [Armenian, Syrian, Coptic (Egyptian)]

-Chalcedonian: Both natures united in one person
-Orthodox Church (official church of the Byz. Empire)

Sasanian Empire: 221-651
-capital: Ctesiphon
-wars with Byzantine Empire: 602-28
Dualist religions (cosmic struggle between good and evil deities):

Zoroastrianism
-teachings of Zoroaster (11th c. BC)
-state religion of the Sasanian Empire
-Ahura Mazda (supreme god, principle of good)
-Ahriman (deity responsible for evil)

Manicheism
-teachings of Mani (3rd c.)
-universal message, drawing on Christianity, Zoroastrianism, etc.
-conflict between good and evil
-missionary activities in Iran, Central Asia and Inner Asia




•Arabian society in the 6th c.

-pastoralists
-agriculturalists
-merchants

•Tribal customs instead of government
•Arabic as common language


Mecca, 19th c. view of the Haram (“holy site”) with the Ka’ba in the center




Lineage of the Prophet Muhammad


Tribe: Quraysh
Clan: Banu Hashim
570: birth
610: first revelation

622: hijra (emigration) to Medina (Yathrib)
-emergence of the Muslim community (umma)
-Constitution of Medina
-struggles against Mecca (until 630)



Ka‘ba, Haram of Mecca

Revelation of the Qur’an, 610-632:
First Revelation:

Recite (iqra’): In the name of your Lord who created
Created mankind from a clot of blood.

Recite: And your Lord is most generous
He who instructed with the pen
Instructed mankind what he knew not.

(Opening verses of Chapter 96)
Q – R – ‘ (root)
 iqra‘ : recite, read (imperative)
 Qur’an : recitation

Central message of the Qur’an:

God (Allah):
-almighty, all-knowing, eternal, omnipresent Creator
-transcendent (no associates in any form)
-One (doctrine of tawhid: Unity of God)
-merciful and compassionate
Bismillah al-rahman al-rahim (basmala)

21 Aralık 2010 Salı

Feudal Japan





Until the 12th century, Japan was a monarchy with a civilian aristocracy. However, in the 12th century, a new warrior class, namely the samurai, emerged as a new political power so as to shape the medieval times in Japan until the Meiji Restoration of 1867.


This came about with the rise of land owners who had freedom from taxation called shoen and thus could deny government officials of agents entrance to their estates. The rise of the Shôen was directly related to the rise of the Japanese warrior. This meant the establishment of a system of parcellized power in the hands of a new warrior class which replaced the Heian aristocracy as the ruling class of the country and founded a feudal government, the Bakufu or the tent government without challenging the sanctity of the imperial throne. Ever since the abandonment of military conscription in 792 local governors and shoen managers relied upon their own military recruits selected form among local chieftains. These local chieftains formed lord and vassal relationships with the shoen managers.


At the center of the class of warriors termed as samurai meaning servant were the chieftains of the great clans of the Taira and Minamoto whose rivalry formed the drama of political history in the rise of a military society. Both clans were led by men of arictocratic origin or royal blood who were descendents from an offsrping of the imperial family made into separate families and settled in the countryside. Family and pride of ancestry were important elements of a warlike spirit anda tradition of loyalty. These were unruly storng men who were warlike and the cause of much internal dissent and chaos in the countryside.


Above is a picture of a samurai armor. It was indeed used by a samurai, as you can see from the bullet
hole in the middle. This armor, which belonged to an ancestor of Emperor Meiji, was sent by Meiji to
Abdulhamid II as a gift to enhance Ottoman-Japanese diplomatic relations.

15 Aralık 2010 Çarşamba

New Schedule

Dear all,

Since we cancelled the lecture on December 15, we have changed the schedule so as to compensate the one-hour loss. Therefore, Wednesday's cancelled lecture will be held on Friday, and Friday's on Monday etc. According to this new schedule, we will also have a proper lecture on December 31.

14 Aralık 2010 Salı

Tomorrow's Lecture - 15 December

Dear all,

Tomorrow's lecture will be cancelled due to Professor Oya Pancaroglu's health issues. 

Apologies for the late notice.

9 Aralık 2010 Perşembe

Medieval Europe: Towns and Urban Institutions

Feudal structure allowed the formation of a distinct relationship between the rural and the urban (urbs means city in Latin). Earlier, cities were formed, or at least supported, by a central political authority. Think of Rome that had 1.000.000 residents. Yet, there was no authority to support the feudal cities. In other words, the relationship between a city and the countryside during the medieval ages requires a closer scrutiny, for it is the product of a new relationship.
The medieval “town” was paradoxical in the sense that whereas the feudal agriculture was based on serfdom (or in other words, unfree labor), the citizens of a town were free. It had its own jurisdiction, meaning if there was a dispute between the residents, it was not the lord who looked over the affair. Even though the town in a way represented the limits of the landlords, it was also promoted by them, for they saw profit in doing so. Almost half the towns in medieval Europe were established by feudal lords due to the immense financial gains.
Two points are important in speaking of towns:
1)      They were the main centers of trade.
2)      They were autonomous centers of commodity production.

Thus, in the dichotomy of the rural and the urban, couple of things require emphasis:
-          Division of Labor between the town and the countryside. The residents of a town were mainly the consumers of the goods produced in the countryside. They were people who were tied to the countryside for their survival.
-          Guilds: The residents of the towns, because they were not engaged in agricultural production, were craftsmen, thus they engaged in another form of production. Their labor could directly be utilized in the market, strengthening the town’s role as the center of trade. These craftsmen sometimes belonged to the guilds, and thus the guild-system became an important tool in the social, economic and political life of the towns. The artisans who formed the guilds even had their own courts of justice.
-          Fortification: These towns which were centers of trade required protection since they acquired the wealth that other places lacked. Therefore, the medieval towns in Europe were mostly fortified. Indeed, in German, the word for fortress is “burg,” and “bourgeoisie” derives from this word.

Some towns in Europe are described as the best examples of town-formation. Italy, which did not have any sort of political authority after the fall of the Roman Empire, characterizes the feudal city-formation in the best possible way. Its flourishing cities such as Venice, Florence, Mantua etc. are the places where we may observe how “free” the city was and how it fed on its rural hinterland. Moreover, as the Italian cities started to control the Mediterranean sea-trade, they also became important monetary centers – and we see the formation of banking systems in Italy in the twelfth century.

Medieval Crafts


San Gimignano


Medieval European Politics: Popes and Bishops

POPE

Definition: “Father” in Greek, or, Papa
Head of the Catholic Church, one of the oldest institutions on earth.
Ruler of the independent mini-state of the Vatican.
Apostolic succession: Vicar of St. Peter. Vicar of Christ. Roman Pontiff.
First used in A.D. 495.



Donation of Constantine


Election
Carried out by secret ballot by a full vote of the Sacred College of Cardinals.
Election takes place in the Sistine Chapel.
Cardinals meet in “conclave” (cum clavi)

Political Power of The Papacy
Excommunication
Anathema
Dogma


Emblem of The Papacy


Pentarchy
Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem
Council of Chalcedon (451)


The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople
Primus Inter Pares in the Eastern Orthodox Faith
Seen by followers as the One, Holy, and Apostolic Church


Papal Infallibility
The Pope must be speaking as the Roman Pontiff that is the heir of St. Peter.
He must be speaking ex cathedra “that is in the discharge of his office as a shepherd and teacher of all Christians, and by virtue of his apostolic authority...”
He must clearly state that whoever opposes this ruling will be excommunicated.
He must be speaking of a matter of faith or morals.
His declaration must be made for the whole church.

6 Aralık 2010 Pazartesi

Medieval European Politics: Kings and Vassals

Dynamics of Feudalism

Parcellization of sovereignty
Combination of jurisdiction with economic exploitation
Vassalage
Nature of the relationship of the producers to the means of production
Feudalism as the first mode of production to allow autonomous development of commodity production
Dynamic opposition of town and country
Contradiction at the summit of the feudal chain: Primus Inter Pares
The potential for centralization and decentralization




Roland pledges his fealty to Charlemagne

Cleric, Knight, Peasant
Serfs on land


Knight in Armour

Medieval West (Political History)

In 5th and 6th centuries, Western Europe was under the dominion of Germanic Kingdoms.
Around 7th century, three main political powers emerged in the continent: Britain under the rule of Anglo-Saxons, Franks under Merovingian dynasty, and Papacy.
In this early phase, all these different cultures combined some Roman institutions with their own indigenous culture:

Merovingians:
Ø  The Merovingian king was the master of the booty of war. He was in charge of the redistribution of conquered wealth among his followers.
Ø  Merovingian kings owed their rule to establishing a good alliance with big aristocratic families.
Ø  The kings appointed magnates to be counts, charging them with defense, administration, and the judgment of disputes. The counts had to provide armies that were endowed with land in return. These armies were subject to the king's call for military support.
This system developed in time into feudalism.        

Carolingians:
In 8th century a new dynasty emerged in France. In 751, Pepin the Short deposed the last Merovingian King and started the Carolingian Dynasty. The source of their power was
Ø  Allying with the papacy
Ø  Suppressing the power of local aristocrats
Ø  Invasion of foreign lands.
Charlemagne (768-814) is the most famous king of the Dynasty. He was crowned imperator Augustus by Pope Leo III in 800 becoming the First Holy Roman Emperor.

Rebarbarization:
In 9th century, the Carolingian rule slowly disintegrated by various rebellions and new invasions. Europe entered in a period of rebarbarization defined by wars and famine, out of which the institution of Feudalism was born.

Feudal Society

Feudalism:
Feudal society, then, was a society dominated by a vast network of mutual relationships based almost entirely on personal loyalty and service. 
This loyalty was ensured by an oath which was not only oral but also written so that there were legal ties between the vassal and the lord. That is why Feudalism is a contractual relationship and also an institution that was able to survive for several centuries.
      
Lords gave their vassals pieces of land called fief in return for military and political support. The fief was inhabited by peasants who were bound to the lord through serfdom.
 The general effect of such a practice was fragmenting the land and authority from the highest to the lowest levels.
Over time the occupation of land gradually led to claims of hereditary possession. Such a practice became a legally recognized principle and laid the grounds for claims to real ownership. Fiefs given as royal donations became hereditary possessions.

Fiefs: A self-sufficient stationary estate, or fief that was under the control of a lord who enjoyed a variety of rights over it and the peasants attached to it by means of serfdom.
Manorialism or Seigneurialism was the organizing principle of rural economy and society widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe. Manors each consisted of up to three classes of land
Serf was the statue of the peasants working under a lord. There was a complex set of personal relationships which defined the obligations between serf and lord. In return for security and the right to cultivate fields and to pass their holdings on to their sons, the serf had many obligations to their lord.
Ø  Bound to the land, they could not leave the manor without the lord's consent.
Ø  In addition to working their own land, the serfs also had to work the land of their lords. (Rent in Labor) The lord's land had to be harvested by the serfs before they could harvest their own land.
Ø  The serfs had to give part of the produce of their own land to the Lord. (Rent in Kind)
Ø  In general, more than half of a serf's workweek was devoted to rendering services to the lord. (Labor Dues)The serf also paid a variety of dues to the lord: the annual capitation or head tax (literally, a tax on existence) (Money Rent)

Parcelization of Sovereignty: Political power is a private possession. The responsibilities of the state are divided between a network of lords and vassals. This political parcelization creates the basic contradiction of Feudal institution. Every system needs stability in order to continue its existence yet Feudalism itself tends to instability.      

Medieval Europe: Rural Society

FEUDALISMA system of economic and social control of the instruments of production.
Developed in Europe after the collapse of the Roman Empire in 495 A.D.
Völkerwanderung
The main source of all wealth was agriculture.
Serf/serfdom
Feudal lords (aristocracy)
Free peasants
Allodial holdings




Three Forms of Rent
Labour rent
Rent in produce (rent in kind)
Money rent






Coronation of Charlemagne by Pope Leo III

BYZANTIUM TO BYZANTINE EMPIRE




Byzantine civilization is not only composed of Roman roots. It also merges the ancient Greek past and Orthodox Christianity together with Roman legacy.

THE CRISIS OF THE THIRD CENTURY, SURVIVAL OF THE EAST AND COLLAPSE OF THE WEST, THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH

The third century reforms could not ease the situation in the West, nevertheless the East survived because it was more urbanized and cultured, it had a healthier economy, thanks to Eastern diplomacy, thanks to Constantinople, and also there were more Christians in the East.

Religious Conflicts
These are the heresies which attempted to define the exact nature of Christ and the relationship among the members of the Holy Trinity:
1.Donatism,
2.Arianism,
3.Nestorianism,
4.Monophysitism.

External Threats
Germanic invasions in the third, fourth and fifth centuries were the most serious external threat for both the eastern and the western halves of the empire. While the Byzantine state was able to expel these peoples, the Western half was not able to do so, and collapsed in the end in 476.














JUSTINIANIC AGE, NEW ENEMIES, AND“THE DARK AGE”

Justinian I (527-565) wanted to create a strong empire covering the Mediterranean with a single religion and with a proper legal system. To attain his goal, he attempted a number of recuperative efforts:
1.Legal reform,
2.Religious unity,
3.Administrative efficiency,
4.Reconquest of the Western provinces,
5.Building program,
6. lasting peace with the Persians

New Enemies and the “Dark Age”
The seventh century is actually a period of crisis. After Justinian, Byzantine Empire had to endure new problems such as the plague and external enemies who were the Slavs, Avars, Bulgars, Sassanids, and Arabs.

FROM THE ICONOCLASTIC CONTROVERSY TO THE GREAT SCHISM

Byzantium overcame the “dark age” thanks to its new military structure, survival of taxation and maybe iconoclasm.



Iconoclasm
Iconoclasm means image-smashing. A number of reasons are attested for this movement:
Losses of battles against Arabs, (This approach does not stand firm, though.) and the rise of monasteries.

Macedonian Dynasty
With the recovery of economy, Byzantine state changed its defensive strategy to offensive and reconquered much territory that it lost. However, the empire again had new enemies: Seljuk Turks, Normans and Pechenegs.

FROM THE AGE OF CRUSADES TO THE OTTOMAN CONQUEST

In the early eleventh century the empire was large, rich and cultured, but it had some issues with the westerners concerning religion. The issue was called Great Schism. The primary causes of the Schism were disputes over papal authority.

SAVING THE STATE
In battlefield
Alexios, his son and his grandson fought against these three enemies as well as Crusaders.

In fiscal issues
He completely reformed the coinage.
In 1204, Crusaders seized Constantinople and cruelly sacked it. They established the Latin Empire (1204–61). There were the Byzantine successor states: Epirus, Nicaea and Trebizond.

RECONQUEST OF CONSTANTINOPLE, THE FALL OF THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE

With the reconquest of Constantinople, new challenges and problems awaited Michael Palaiologos, and his successors like the reconquest of the lost territories. By 1350s, this entire edifice had crumbled as a result of a civil war in (1342–54). The Byzantine Empire became tributary to the Ottomans.

Byzantium as an Ottoman vassal and its end
Byzantines asked for Western help to get rid of the Ottoman yoke. Thus they accepted the church union, by which they got under the papal suzerainty. However, after a siege by land and by sea, the city of Constantine was conquered by Mehmed II in 1453.
Mehmed II and Gennadios Scholarios (First Patriarch after the Conquest)