The Caliph Documentary

Watch Full Beautiful Documentary Caliphate

A caliphate (Arabic: خِلافة‎ khilafah) is a state under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (Arabic: خَليفة‎ khalifah, a person considered a religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of the entire ummah .Historically, the caliphates were polities based in Islam which developed into multi-ethnic trans-national empires.During the medieval period, three major caliphates succeeded each other: the Rashidun Caliphate (632–661), the Umayyad Caliphate (661–750) and the Abbasid Caliphate (750–1258). In the fourth major caliphate, the Ottoman Caliphate, the rulers of the Ottoman Empire claimed caliphal authority from 1517. During the history of Islam, a few other Muslim states, almost all hereditary monarchies, have claimed to be caliphates.

The first caliphate, the Rashidun Caliphate, was established immediately after Muhammad's death in 632. The four Rashidun caliphs, who directly succeeded Muhammad as leaders of the Muslim community, were chosen through shura, a process of community consultation that some consider to be an early form of Islamic democracy.The fourth caliph, Ali, who, unlike the prior three, was from the same clan as Muhammad (Banu Hashim), is considered by Shia Muslims to be the first rightful caliph and Imam after Muhammad. Ali reigned during the First Fitna (656–661), a civil war between supporters of Ali and supporters of the assassinated previous caliph, Uthman, from Banu Umayya, as well as rebels in Egypt; the war led to the establishment of the Umayyad Caliphate under Muawiyah I in 661.

However, after Muhammad passed away, a group of Muslims left Ali and gathered at Saqifa. In what has been described as a coup d'état, Umar pledged allegiance to Abu Bakr, after which Abu Bakr assumed power. This was followed by an attack on the house of Ali and Fatimah in an attempt to defeat any opposition to Abu Bakr.

Ali's caliphate and the rise of the Umayyad dynasty

Ali's reign was plagued by turmoil and internal strife. The Persians, taking advantage of this, infiltrated the two armies and attacked the other army causing chaos and internal hatred between the companions at the Battle of Siffin. The battle lasted several months, resulting in a stalemate. In order to avoid further bloodshed, Ali agreed to negotiate with Mu'awiyah. This caused a faction of approximately 4,000 people, who would come to be known as the Kharijites, to abandon the fight. After defeating the Kharijites at the Battle of Nahrawan, Ali was later assassinated by the Kharijite Ibn Muljam. Ali's son Hasan was elected as the next caliph, but handed his title to Mu'awiyah a few months later. Mu'awiyah became the fifth (or second by Shia reckoning) caliph, establishing the Umayyad Dynasty, named after the great-grandfather of Uthman and Mu'awiyah, Umayya ibn Abd Shams.

Umayyad Caliphate (661–750)

Abbasid Caliphs at Baghdad

Fatimid Caliphate (909–1171)

Ottoman Caliphate (1517–1924)

Abolition of the Caliphate (1924)

On 3 March 1924, the first President of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, as part of his reforms, constitutionally abolished the institution of the caliphate. Its powers within Turkey were transferred to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, the parliament of the newly formed Turkish Republic. The title was then claimed by Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca of Hejaz, leader of the Arab Revolt, but his kingdom was defeated and annexed by ibn Saud in 1925.

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