Prompt A1: The Seljuk Turks were an Islamic tribe in Persia during the early eleventh century that began to expand westward. In 1071 CE, at the Battle of Manzikert, the Byzantine army battled the Seljuk Turks. Romanus IV, the emperor of the Byzantine Empire, was killed and his army obliterated. The Turks expanded their empire into Anatolia, Syria, Jerusalem, and throughout the Holy Land. Turkish zealots prevented Christian pilgrims from visiting Jerusalem and other places Christians considered sacred. (Acrobatiq, 2014) Alexius I Comnenus, the emperor of Greece, was very troubled by the expeditious expansion of the Muslim Turks and inability to stop them. This led him to contact his rival, Pope Urban II. Three hundred people attended
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After Muhammad’s death, the Umayyad was the first Muslim state. The leaders of the Umayyad dynasty came from a wealthy and prominent family. They were not powerful because of religion, but because of where they came from. Under the Umayyad dynasty, social classes developed because of discrimination. The dynasty’s stability came from unity of a strong, devoted group of Arab soldiers. Arab Muslims were the highest level of society, followed by the non-Arab Muslims, or mawali. The mawali were considered second-class citizens by the Arab Muslims and encountered degradation and discrimination. Dhimmi made up the third social class. These were the people that belonged to tolerated religions. Because the Qur’an forbids forcing “the people of the Book” to convert to Islam, Umar instituted jizya. This meant that religious people that were not Muslim could show their submission by paying a tax and would then be allowed to continue practicing their faith. Slaves made up the lower class in Umayyad society. Umar believed that Islam was intended for Arabs and non-Arab Muslims were not considered as an equal. Under Umar’s caliphate, non-Arabs were forced to leave Arabia. Marriages between Arab Muslims and non-Arab muslims were forbidden and non-Arabs couldn’t own property in conquered territories. A monthly salary was paid to all ethnic Arab Muslims. These decrees caused the rift between classes to grow. (Acrobatiq, 2014) (Tolin Schultz,
After Muhammad’s death, the Umayyad was the first Muslim state. The leaders of the Umayyad dynasty came from a wealthy and prominent family. They were not powerful because of religion, but because of where they came from. Under the Umayyad dynasty, social classes developed because of discrimination. The dynasty’s stability came from unity of a strong, devoted group of Arab soldiers. Arab Muslims were the highest level of society, followed by the non-Arab Muslims, or mawali. The mawali were considered second-class citizens by the Arab Muslims and encountered degradation and discrimination. Dhimmi made up the third social class. These were the people that belonged to tolerated religions. Because the Qur’an forbids forcing “the people of the Book” to convert to Islam, Umar instituted jizya. This meant that religious people that were not Muslim could show their submission by paying a tax and would then be allowed to continue practicing their faith. Slaves made up the lower class in Umayyad society. Umar believed that Islam was intended for Arabs and non-Arab Muslims were not considered as an equal. Under Umar’s caliphate, non-Arabs were forced to leave Arabia. Marriages between Arab Muslims and non-Arab muslims were forbidden and non-Arabs couldn’t own property in conquered territories. A monthly salary was paid to all ethnic Arab Muslims. These decrees caused the rift between classes to grow. (Acrobatiq, 2014) (Tolin Schultz,