by S Pay · 2015 · Cited by 6 — Moreover, during time of Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman, caliph represented all Keywords: History of Islam, Islamic Institutions, Caliphate, Imamate, Abolition of
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International Journal of Business and Social Science Vol. 6, No. 4 ; April 2015 107 The Journey of Caliphate from 632 to 1924 * Salih Pay Associate Professor Department of History of Islam, Faculty of Theology Turkey Abstract Caliphate signifies maintenance of administrative affairs, led by Muhammad (a.s.) regarding the state and society, following his demise; while caliph is the person to carry out mentioned affairs . In Muslim societies, various terms have been used for caliph; besides, persons holding different offices have been called this way. In Quran, the words fikhalifa,fl fikhilafatfl and fikhulafafl do not bear any sense of head of the state; nev ertheless, hadith sources employed such nominations together with expression that relate wi th leadership. For accession to caliphate, election – like methods were put to use during Rashidun era; nevertheless, the method was abandoned in upcoming periods. Moreover, during time of Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman, caliph represented all Muslims , while poli tical dissolution began in Muslim society together with accession of Ali, and disputes became even m ore apparent in upcoming periods. Hereby study analyses transformations, accession methods, influence and abolition of caliphate, as well as the interest of Western colonialist powers in the institution, beginning from its appearance in 632 after decease of Muhammad (a.s.) until the abolition in 1924. Keywords: History of Islam, Islamic Institutions, Caliphate, Imamate, Abolition of Caliphate Introduction Caliphate, one of the most discussed issues among Muslims following the death of Muhammad (a.s.), si mply means succession of a person by another. It is derived from the word khalf which means fito be behind,fl fito succeed,fl or fireplacefl one. The word caliph is a conjugate, explained as fiperson who replaces one and maintains his office.fl Plural forms are khalaif or khulafa . Appointment of a caliph is called istihlaf or tahlif . The word is employed principally in two domains, namely, politics and Sufism. In po litical terminology, caliph signifies the person who succeeds Prophet in order to maintain administrative affairs of Muslim society. Caliphate means replacing Muhammad (a.s.) so as to protect the religion and to conduct worldly affairs pursuant to r eligiou s policy. Therefore, caliphate merges two types of leadership, namely, religious and earthly. 1 Qur™an and Hadith sources frequently mention the terms khalifa, khalaif and k hulafa . Ayahs mostly treat persons who take due responsibility and are sent to earth as caliph of Allah 2 in order to realise the rightful and just attitude of man and to carry out useful and benevolent works; besides, the ayahs mention certain blessings to man, 3 and indicate how tribes are brought to replace their predecessors and made do minant on earth. 4 * Hereby study is supported by Office of Scientific Research Projects within HDP(D) – 2013/32) 1 Ibn Manzur, Abu al – Fadl Jamal al – Din Muhammad ibn Mukarram al – Misri (711 – 1311), fiHalefefl, Lisan al – Arab , al – Turath al – Arabi, Beirut 1999, I – XVIII, IV, 181 – 192; Ibn Khaldun, Abd al – Rahman ibn Muhammad (808 – 1405 – 6), Muqaddimah , Dar Ihya al – Turath, B eirut, undated, 191; Sheikh Saleh al – Sharif, fiDin ve Devlet yahud Hilâfet ve Saltanatfl, Sabil al – , V/1, 149; Mehmet Zeki , I – III, Istanbul 1993, I, 815; XVII, 540; Istanbul University, , 23 (2013 – 2), p. 169 – 185. 2 Ankara University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 18 (1970), p. 71 – 80. 3 Al – Baqara 2/30; Al – An™am, 6/165; Al – A™raf 7/169; Yunus, 10/73; An – Naml, 27/62; Maryam 19/59; An – Nour 24/55; Fatir, 35/39; Sad, 38/26. 4 Al – A™raf 7/69; Yunus, 10/14 .
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ISSN 2219 – 1933 (Print), 2219 – 6021 (Online) © Center for Promoting Ideas, USA www.ijbssnet.com 108 Hence, no ayah explicitly treats caliph as a title to be used for successor of Muhammad (a.s.) as he ad of the state. 5 However, in hadith sources, the mentioned words are used in the sense of head of the state, governor and leader , together with the words imam and emir . 6 The term caliph was for Abu Bakr before anyone else. He preferred, however, the title khilafat al – Rasulallah , signifying the person who acts for Muhammad (a.s.) in order to fulfil divine verdicts. The term include s fulfilment of all powers and activities of Muhammad (a.s.), except for his duty of prophecy that ended upon his demise. Abu Bakr 7 and Umar 8 among Rashidun, as well as Umayyad caliph Umar ibn Abd al – Aziz, rejected to have the title khalifullah . 9 Rumour ha s it, however, that the third caliph Uthman was addressed as khalifullah . 10 Besides, use of the title became widespread among Umayyad, Abbasid and subsequent rulers. Umar is the caliph of Muha mmad™s caliph. Nevertheless, since it would not be practical to u se a title such as khaliftu khalifti rasulallah , Umar preferred the term Amir al – Muminin that lays stress on leadership . 11 Throughout history of Islam, the title of caliph is assigned exclusively to the head of the state at the highest level. In fact, caliph was used to call certain treasury officers at central government during Umayyad era, persons to assume some powers of the sheikh in certain orders in following periods, successor of the mahdi in m ahdi movements, female attendant who overlooked all m aids in the palace during Mughal Empire, and court clerks in late Ottoman era. The title kalfa , used in Ottoman Empire for the assistant of local school teachers, is also derived from the word khalifa . In Morocco, lieutenant governors are called caliph , wh ile the denomination is used for craftsmen such as tailors, barbers and cooks in India and Pakistan. Alfa , a transformation of caliph, signifies Muslim hodjas and even all Muslims in Togo and West Africa. 12 Imam , literally fithe one in front,fl becomes synon ymous with emir al – muminin and caliph within conceptual context . The community whom imam governs and leads is named ummah . Therefore, imam is the person to undertake the direction of ummah, while imamate is the duty imam assumes. Accordingly, imam and imamate are used for the person who leads the salat in mosque, due to his position in front of community. Nevert heless, the former is called imamate al – sughra (lesser imamate), and the latter is named imamate al – kubra (greater imamate) so as to prevent con fusion. In addition, the title imam is employed in Sunni tradition for ulama (scholars) who lead their field, such as Imam al – A™zam, Imam Shafi™i, Imam Ghazali and Imam Bukhari. Likewise, Shiite tradition often puts the title to use. Shiites, however, empl oy it in very different manners. After all, according to common principal view of all Shiite orders, a descendant of Ali is the highest imam and ruler of Mus lim world. 13 5 For meanings of the word ficaliphfl and the ayahs including the word, see Halifesi Midir?fl, Atatürk University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 15 (2001), p. 169 – fiKur™an™a Göre Halifelik ve Toplumsal Süreklilikfl , Bilimname , 1 (2003/1), p. 15 – 40; Ankara University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 45 (2004/1), p. 15 – 38. 6 Al – Bukhari, Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Ismail, Sahih al – Bukhari , I – VIII, Istanbul 1979, Ahkâm 2, 51, Enbiya 1, – Hüseyn Müslim b. Haccâc, Sahîh – i Müslim , I – V, Beir Sulayman ibn al – Ash™ath, Sunan , Istanbul 1981, Sünnet 8; At – Tirmidhi, Muhammad ibn Isa, Sunan , I – V, Istanbul 1981, slerin Tetkiki , ( PhD fiEhl – i Sünnet – Siyaset Hilafetle Rivayetlerin Rolüfl, , 8/24, p. 143 – 156. 7 Ibn Sa™d, Abu Muhammad Abd Allah ibn Muslim (230/845), Al – Tabaqat al – Kabir , I – VIII, Dar Sadir, Beirut ts., III, 183; Ibn Khaldun, Muqaddimah , 191. 8 Al – Tabari, Abu Ja™far Muhammad ibn Jarir (310/922), Tarikh al – Umam wa al – Muluk ( Muhammad Abu al – Fadl Ibrahim, I – XI, Dar al – Suwaidan, Beirut, undated, IV, 209. 9 , XVII, 539. 10 On the use of the expression fikhalifatullahfl, see Lambton, A.K.S., fiKhalifa: ii. In Political Theoryfl, The Encyclopedia of Islam New Edition (EI 2 ) , IV, 947 – 950; Arnold, fiCaliphfl, , V/1, 149 ; Crone, Patricia – Hinds, Martin, fi Halifetullahfl (tra. Mehmet Azimli – Ali Akay, Dicle University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 9 (2007/2), p. 171. 11 Sourdel et al, fiKhalifafl, The Encyclopedia of Islam New Edition (EI 2 ) , IV, 937 – 953; Fayda, Mustafa, fiEmîru™l – Müminînfl, , XI, 156. 12 Sourdel et al, fiKhalifafl, EI 2 , IV, 937 – 953; Arnold, fiCaliphfl, , V/1, 149. 13 Lisan al – Arab , I, 213 – 215; Madelung, W., fiImamefl, The Encyclopedia of Islam New Edition (EI 2 ) , Tarih Deyimleri
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International Journal of Business and Social Science Vol. 6, No. 4 ; April 2015 109 In political and legal terms, the concept of imamate signify the post and title of a p erson who undertakes government of Muslim society at the highest level following Muhammad (a.s.); nonetheless, the concep t is treated in various manners in kalam, fiqh and political history. Kalam and fiqh scholars often put forth the ir view about politica l theories under the topic of imamate, while historians use the word ficaliphatefl with respect to his torical events that begin with Abu Bakr and continue until the end of Ottoman Empire. Imamate makes referenc e to head of the state in a more theoretical sen se, whereas caliphate underlines actual authority. According to Al – Mawardi and Ibn Khaldun, imamate is an institution to protect the religion and substitute for prophecy in ea rthly government. 14 Such descriptions principally reflect Sunni and Mu™tazila appr oach. The point of view of Zaidiyya, on the other hand, differs from all other Shiite sects. According to Zaidiyya, there may be more tha n one imams at the same time, or none of them in a given period. According to Shiite sects other than Zaidiyya, ima mate represents an institution that is continuation of prophet in terms of not only earthly authority, bu t also both corporal and spiritual authorities. According to Isna asheri (twelve) and Isma™ilism, the word fiimam fl is synonymous with caliph. However, they employ it in the form of fake imam for first three of Rashidun, and Umayyad and Abbasid caliphs. According to them, the duty of true imam is continuation of guidance an d messenger character of prophets; it is a divine mission in the form of government and administration of humanity in the wake of prophet. Therefore, there can be only one legitimate, true imam. Such person should b e a descendent of Ali and Fatimah, in other words, a grandchild of Muhammad (a.s.). Imam is the rightful caliph of Ali and his su ccessors. Besides, he has the right of earthly sovereignty over Muslim world, as well as the title o f highest spiritual guidance in Islam. In conservative Shia, theory of imam has undergone ceaseless am endments. Hence, some disputes and messianic issues ca me to light among the family and supporters of imam. Consequently, as various imam families came to an end, concepts such as gaib imam, hidden imam, expected imam emerged. 15 Methods of Accession to Caliphate Muhammad (a.s.) was not only a prophet, but also had some other duties such as army commander and head of the state. As a prophet, he was religious leader of the faithful who believed in and set their heart s on him. In addition, he was in search of a method for coexistence with members of other reli gions in and around Medina, and he signed certain agreements with them. Thereupon, he became political leader of a society including non – Muslim as well. Since he was also the prophet and since obedience to prophet is synonymous with obedience t o Allah, no objections or doubts arouse in Muslim society about his political leadership. Consequently, during t he lifetime of Muhammad (a.s.), no dispute took place among Muslim regarding administration of society. Following h is death, however, there was no prescribe d rule about who and how to replace him as, for example, head of state and other earthly posts, other than prophecy. Thereupon, Muslim society had to resolve the problem of administ ration in the most reasonable and comprehensive manner possible even before the interment of Muhammad (a.s.). 16 Each of Rashidun took office in a different way. More importantly, even though prominent figures amo ng Sahabah knew Muhammad (a.s.) the best and spent most time with him, they could not maintain a simila r approach durin g designation of first caliph. Indeed, Abu Bakr was assigned upon recommendation of a small council among Sahabah, including himself; Umar was appointed pursuant to testament of Abu Bakr, whil e Uthman became caliph through resolution by a council formed by Umar and six surviving Sahabi who were promised paradise. Ali, the fourth of Rashidun, took charge in an entirely different manner. He beca me caliph at a really hard time under extraordinary circumstances. An insurgent group had come from Basra, Kufa and Egypt, occupied Medina, the capital of Islam state, before martyring Uthman. Büyük Türkçe Sözlük , XXII, 178; Mustafa Öz – , fiImamatefl, , XXII, 201. 14 Al – Mawardi, Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Habib Abu al – Hasan al – Basri (450/1058), Al – Ahkam al – Sultania , Dar al – Fikr, Beirut 2002, 5; Ibn Khaldun, Muqaddimah , 191 . 15 Ivanov, fiImamfl, , V/2, 981; Mustafa Öz – fiImamatefl, , XXII, , , 14 (2009), p. 67 – 121. 16 Ibn al – Athir , Ebu™l – Hasan Ali b. Muhammed (630/1232) , Al – Kamil fi al – Tarikh , I – IX, Beirut 1986, II, 291, 292; III, 26, 27, 98, 99; Ibn Qutaybah, Abu Muhammad Abd – Allah ibn Muslim al – Dinawari (276/889), Al – Imama wa al – Siyasa Tâhâ Muhamed Zeynî), I – II, Cairo 1967, I, 14, 26, 27, 46, 47 .
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ISSN 2219 – 1933 (Print), 2219 – 6021 (Online) © Center for Promoting Ideas, USA www.ijbssnet.com 110 They threatened to kill prominent Sahabah unless one of Ali, Az – Zubayr or Talhah accepted caliphate; whereupon, Ali had to defer to caliphate so as to prevent further chaos in so ciety. 17 Election of Rashidun witnessed influence of some elements, such as tribalism, which Muhammad (a.s.) strived to vitiate. Moreover, it is interesting that Ansar reminded the importance of service and assistance to Islam and Muslims, while the Hashemite emphasised blood relation with Muhammad (a.s.) in favour of Ali. Besides, there is another crucial point to take into account in determination of first caliphs. That is, no candida te or party put forth a dogma, ayah or hadith as evidence in order to have their views cemented or admitted during negotiations with respect to accession to power as head of the state. Allegations caliphate should be entrusted t o a descendent of Ali or a member of Quraysh tribe 18 are no exception. When Abu Bakr was appoin ted caliph, even though Sa™d ibn Ubadah of Ansar and Ali of Hashemite wanted to took the title, they did not furnish ayahs or had ith as counterproof. Hence, not a given dogma, but presence of a quality to ensure unity in Muslim society was influential in a ssignment of Rashidun. In the wake of assassination of Ali, his son Hasan ibn Ali succeeded. Even though Ali never declared his son as heir, in practice, son of a caliph replaced him. Thus, contrary to previous methods, determination o f fifth Muslim cali ph hinted first signs of hereditary system for head of the state. Indeed, following the caliphate of Hasan ibn Ali for six months, a new page was turned in history of caliphate when he withdrew in favour of Muawiyah upon political and military oppression b y the latter. Muawiyah concluded hereditary caliphate on the ground of his concerns about a repeat of havoc previously suffered around caliphate. Moreover, he declared Yazid, his son, as the caliph to succeed himself, and took his homage, regardless of whe ther the son was competent for such a title. In fact, Abu Bakr had also bequeathed caliphate to Umar. Nevertheless, the two situations are differ ent. Firstly, Umar was neither son nor relative, and not even from the tribe of Abu Bakr. Secondly, Umar was co mpetent for caliphate. In this respect, sensibility of Umar in determining his successor is also worth noting. I ndeed, Umar added his son Abdullah as the seventh member of the council that elected Uthman, in order to prevent any deadlock in case of equalit y of votes. Nevertheless, Abdullah solely had a right of vote in case of equality. Umar did not grant his son the right to stand for election, even though he was capable for caliphate, so as not to become the person to pave way for sultanate. In fact, the same can be said of Ali. He too gave no affirmative or negative response to the call fito suggest his son Hasan as his caliph,fl following a fatal assassination attem pt by a Kharijite, and denied a leading role in transformation of caliphate into a hereditar y process. Inheritance system for title of head of the state stared when Muawiyah declared his son Yazid as hei r; the system was adopted by almost all Umayyad, Abbasid and Ottoman caliphs and rulers of other Islamic states. A mong the exceptions, Umayyad caliph Muawiyah II (684 – 684 forty days) abdicated without naming any heir, 19 Umar ibn Abd al – Aziz ( 717 – 720 ) thought of abolishing inheritance system, 20 and Abbasid caliph Al – Ma™mun ( 813 – 833) pointed out as successor not one of his descendants or relatives, but Ali al – Ridha ibn Musa Kadhim, the grandson of Shiite imam Ja™far al – Sadiq . 21 17 For methods of caliph elections, see Ibn Hisham, Abu Muhammad ‚Abd al – Malik al – H imyari (218/833), As – Sirah an – Nabawiyyah ( editors: Mustafa as – Saqa, Ibrahim al – Ibyari, Abd al – Hafiz Shalabi), I – IV, Beirut, undated, IV, 310; Al – Tabari, Tarikh al – Umam , III, 206 – 221, 428 – 433; IV, 227 – 237, 391 – 434; Ibn Sa™d, at – Tabaqat , II, 269, 270, III, 61, 62, 67 – 73, 182, 274, 339 – 344; Ibn al – Athir, Al – Kamil fi al – Tarikh , II, 292, III, 26, 27, 35, 37, 90, 98, 99; Ibn Qutaybah, Al – Imama wa al – Siyasa , I, 13 – 17, 28 – 29, 45 – 47; Muhammad Tawit al – Süleyman Demire l University, Faculty of Theology Periodical, I (1994), 53 – Periodical , 13 (2003/1), 389 – 418; University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 11 (2006/1), p. 25 – 36; Mehmet Azimli, fiHulefa – , 7 (2007/1), p. 35 – 59; Sir William Muir, The Caliphate: its Rise, Decline, and Fall, from Original Sources , Edinburgh 1915, p. 1 – 4, 77 – 78, 193 – 198, 234 – 235; Süleyman Genç, fiHz. Ali™nin Halife Seçimlerindeki Tutum ve Dokuz Eylül University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 26 (2007), p. 148. 18 Bukhari Müslim fiHilâfet – – , III/56 (1323), p. 49 – Ankara University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 23 (1978), p. 147. 19 Ibn Qutaybah, Al – Imama wa al – Siyasa , II, 10 – 11; Tabari, Tarikh al – Umam , V, 503, 530 – 531, 534 – , 4/8 (2006), p. 187 – 206. 20 Apak, Âdem, 21 Ibn al – Athir, Al – Kamil , V, 179, 180.
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International Journal of Business and Social Science Vol. 6, No. 4 ; April 2015 111 Unfortunately, Muslim societies were unable to develop a different method about accession to calipha te, unt il the last caliph Abdulmecid II was appointed via act of Turkish Grand National Assembly on 18 November 19 22. Influence of Caliphate A few months before death of Muhammad (a.s.), a separatist movement called Riddah [Apostasy] began among Arabs outside Hejaz region. The revolt snowballed following his demise. Nevertheless, Muslims manage d to quench the rebel in no time and dominated Syria and Egypt, the most important provinces of two super powers of the day, namely, S assanid and Byzantine Empires. Thereupon, the caliph became one of the richest and most influential statesmen on the world as the leader of Muslims. In those days, caliph was both the comm ander – in – chief of conquering armies with the title of Amir al – Mu™min in and the person who guided the community at salat with title of Imam . Therefore, a caliph expected his people to respect him like they did Muhammad (a.s.), and the community often paid due homage. When Muawiyah stipulated a hereditary system for accessio n to caliphate, the conception of government with respect to caliphate underwent a change, which in turn led to a differ ent perception of the post among people. Indeed, most Umayyad caliphs kept leading the salat as imam pur suant to traditions; but apart f rom Umar ibn Abd al – Aziz, their religious sensibility was below expected. Criticising Umayyad policies, Abbasids won the heart of people, started a kind of grassroots movement and seized institution of caliphate; accordingly, their attitude in relation to patronage of religion and religious institutions differed from that of their predecessors. 22 Umayyad caliphs could maintain their title mostly thanks to support of southern or northern Arab tri bes; on the contrary, Abbasids owed their power to notable con tribution of non – Arab elements, firstly Persians and then Turks. This fact may be construed as a loss of influence for the part of Abbasid caliphs. However, i t may also point out dawn of a new era where non – Arab Muslims have their share in government by co ntrast with characteristic Arab dominance in Umayyad period. Another factor on decreasing influence of Abbasid c aliphs is the strengthening of bureaucracy due to ever – growing power of vizier. The main danger came forth, however, when political integrity of the state underwent degradation and breakup, and independent emirates began to emerge in various provinces. In the process, political influence of caliph continuously diminished d own to walls of Baghdad; by 946, caliph had no actual power at all. In the p eriod, Abbasid caliph became a puppet in the hands of first Shiite Buyids and then Sunni Seljukians; nevertheless, ulama continued to consider him as an authority in Muslim world; and for independent governors and rulers, it was still a privilege to obtain their respective titles from the hands of caliph. 23 The period when Abbasid caliphs lost their political influence witnessed emergence of two rival cali phates: One was Fatimid Caliphate, established within Shiite – Ismaili tradition in 909 in the west of Mu slim world, namely, Mahdia in North Africa; the other was Caliphate of Cordoba, founded by Sunni Umayyads in Andalusia i n 928. However, neither was lasting. Caliphate of Cordoba was annihilated after almost a century, in 1031, by ulama and prominent figure s in the wake of a severe domestic turbulence; while Saladin destroyed Fatimid Caliphate in 1171. In fact, Muslims under rule of various Islamic states have a long history of obedience to diff erent caliphs. As a matter of fact, Ali and Muawiyah, who unders tood they could not overcome one another during the battles after Appointment of Arbitrators, divided hitherto united Muslim state in two in 660. The treaty of peace intended to stop civil war; as a result, the provinces of Syria and Egypt were left to Mua wiyah, while Ali got Yemen, Hejaz, Basra and Kufa provinces. Besides, both were recognised as caliph by their respective people. Prior to Battle of Siffin, true objective of camel troop including Al – Zubayr and Talhah under guidance of Aisha was to establis h a separate centre of caliphate in Basra. Nonetheless, the attempt came to no avail thanks to timel y intervention by Ali. 22 Sourdel et al, fiKhalifafl, EI 2 , IV, 937 – 953; Arnold, fiCaliphfl, , V/1, 150. 23 Muir, The Caliphate , p. 577 – 586; Dokuz Eylül University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 16 (2002), p. 3 – Dokuz Eylül University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 17 (2003), p. 228; Mehmet Salih Geçit, fiMâverdî™nin Hilafet EKEV Akademi Periodical , 17/57 (Güz 2013), p. 316 – 325.
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ISSN 2219 – 1933 (Print), 2219 – 6021 (Online) © Center for Promoting Ideas, USA www.ijbssnet.com 112 A notable part of Islam society somehow acknowledged the caliphate of Muawiyah in the wake of Rashid un; nevertheless, severe react ions followed when he declared his son Yazid, an unworthy personality, as heir and turned caliphate into sultanate. The first reaction came from Iraq region. People of Kufa renounced their homage to Umayyads and invited Husayn ibn Ali in 680, indicating th ey would recognise and obey him as their caliph. The movement, however, was repressed on the onset with Battle of Karbala, and events left deep wound s in hearts of all Muslims, including Sunnis, until today. The two other caliphs emerged in Hejaz, due to s everal economic motives 24 in addition to Karbala incident. The reputation of Yazid, thus of Umayyads, was degraded in Hejaz region. Apart from Ta™if, the two major cities in Hejaz, namely, Mecca and Medina, saw Abd Allah ibn Al – Zubayr and Abd Allah ibn Hanz ala proclaim their caliphate, respectively. The caliphate in Medina was destroyed via Battle of Al – Harrah in a bloody manner before taking hold or spreading. In Mecca, Abd Allah ibn al – Zubayr proclaimed caliphate in 683, and the caliphate of Mecca got the chance to spread even outside Hejaz due to weakness of Umayyad rule and hatred against Umayyads after Battles of Karbala and Al – Harrah. At one stage, Mecca caliphate made its presence felt in all provinces but Damascus. Nevertheless, this establishme nt was also totally neutralised in almost ten years, in 692 . During Umayyad period, there are some examples of rebellions similar to that by Husayn ibn Ali, Abd Allah ibn Hanzala and Abd Allah ibn al – Zubayr. But only the movement initiated in 718 by Abbasid fami ly could attain and maintain its objective for some time. 25 As is seen in the examples above, some caliphs could not obtain obedience among all Muslims, thus th e institution of caliphate could not always seize entire Islamic geography. Abu Bakr, the first caliph, is no exception. Indeed, Sa™d ibn Ubadah, the candidate of Ansar, never recognised Abu Bakr; likewise, the Hashemite, including Ali, did not obey Abu Bakr and recognise his caliphate for a while. Despite being appointe d by unanimity of Muslims, Ut hman also suffered disobedience, albeit only after some time. In the second six – year tenure of his caliphate, certain unease and related havoc and disorders came in sight. A group of Mu slims, including Sahabis who appointed Uthman as caliph, withdrew their support. In terms of homage, Umar is the luckiest caliph, while Ali is the unluckiest. Since his first day in charge till his death, Umar nev er suffered opposition or problem of homage. Nevertheless, apart from opposition by Muawiyah and Umayyads, there w ere Ansar and muhajirs who did not recognise Ali as caliph. In 1258, Mongol ruler Hulagu Khan killed Abbasid caliph Musta™sim during siege of Baghdad; Musta™sim had no heir, and his death led to an unmatched catastrophe in the history of Islam. 26 Having two, even three caliphs at the same time once, Muslims were now deprived of any caliph. The period lasted for three years, until tw o members of Abbasid dynasty escaped massacre by Mongols and resorted to Baibars, Mamluk Sultan in Egypt. One of them was Al – Mustansir Billah (1261 – 1262), uncle of Al – Musta™sim, and he was appointed caliph in Cairo and seated after a glorious ceremony. However, he was killed by Mongol forces during an attempt to conquer Bagh dad with an insufficient army provided by Baiba rs; thereupon, Al – Hakim bi – Amr Allah (1262 – 1301), the other member of Abbasid dynasty, ascended to caliphate in Cairo in 1262. Abbasid caliphs in Cairo got any kind of re spect, but had no political power. 27 24 Apart from religious and political motives, for economic reasons behind Battle of Al – Harrah, see M. J. Kister, fiThe Battle of The Harra – Some Socio – Economic Aspectsfl, Studies in Memory of Gaston Wiet (ed. Myriam Rosen Ayalon), Institute of Asian and African Studies, Jerusalem 1977, pp. 33 – Mülahazalarfl, Cumhuriyet University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 4 (2000 /1), pp. 317 – 324. 25 About revolts in claim of caliphate during first four centuries of Islam, see Al – Dahabi, Shams al – Din Muhammad ibn Dicle University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 1 (1999), pp. 205 – 220. 26 Arnold, fiCaliphfl, , V/1, 151. 27 Muir, The Caliphate , p. 590 – Gaziantep University, Social Sciences Periodical , 10 (2011/2), p. 641 – 645.
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ISSN 2219 – 1933 (Print), 2219 – 6021 (Online) © Center for Promoting Ideas, USA www.ijbssnet.com 114 Attitude of Western states towards caliphate brought along an indirect pressure on Grand National As sembly; consequently, it stirred not only Sunni sphere, but entire Muslim world, including even extremist Sh iites. Aga Han, the imam of Shii te Isma™ilism, sent Ankara a letter on behalf British Muslim Association, requesting fireinforcement of caliphate instead of its abolition.fl Indian Muslims were also in the opinion that Ankara Government, which they provided with financial support during Wa r of Independence, would take into account their request against abolition of caliphate. 37 As is seen, caliphate lately transformed into an institution which many parties were either interest ed in or wanted to make use of. As Ottoman Empire sought to stren gthen its hand via caliphate and produced new and effective policies to that end, major states gradually increased the attempts to downgrade and siege the Empir e by means of the same institution. Britain led the way in this respect, since it controlled Ind ia and Egypt, two great Muslim lands, and tried to take effect in Iran and Afghanistan. The British paid more attention to caliphat e as of the second half of 19 th century, especially as Abdul Hamid II strengthened the policies regarding caliphate and union of Islam. In this context, the British endeavoured to control and manage both the opponents, such as Arab Caliphate Movement, and defendants, such as Indian Khilafat Movement, 38 of Ottoman Caliphate, and were often successful. 39 Due to its Muslim colonies , France was the other Western state deeply interested in caliphate. In this respect, France tried to invent and construct Caliphate of Maghreb so as to save its colonies from influence of Ottoman caliphate and to prevent French colonies from acknowledging a possible caliphate under British control. Russia also had a word and was a side in problem of caliphate. Pursuant to Constantinople Agreement, the fi rst secret agreement between Allied Powers during World War I, Russia sent England and France a note on the outcome of caliphate on 20 March 1915, indicating fiRussia considers it more suitable if caliphate is separated from Ottomans.fl Sykes – Picot Agreement, the best known secret Allied agreement, which bears the surnames of British and French foreign ministe rs and was finalised on 10 – 23 October, 40 also stipulated establishment of independent Arab caliphate for respective regions under French and British rule. 41 Therefore, despite its feeble reputation, even the weakest presence of an independent caliphate did a nnoy major colonialist powers, whereupon they intended to create their respective caliphates under their control. Abolition of caliphate disappointed Muslims not only in Turkey, but also those who strived to surviv e under various Western colonialist governments. Indeed, they considered War of Independence, led by Mustafa Kemal against Western states, as a defence of honour of caliphate in a sense. In this respect, the most di stinguished personalities in Muslim world were in despair. The luminaries inc luded Abdelhamid Ben Badis, the spiritual leader of Algeria, Muhammad Iqbal, the great Islam thinker and poet from Indian land, Sheikh Ahmed S enussi, the great leader of North African Muslim community of Senussis and actual supporter of Turkish War o f Inde pendence, Abdurresid Ibrahim, famous Islam inviter who introduced the religion in Japan, Musa Yarull a Bigiev, a scholar in Northern Muslim world from Kazan, and Ahmed Shawqi, the Arab poet who likened M ustafa Kemal Pasha to the great commander Khalid ibn a l – Walid on the side of Muhammad (a.s.). 37 , 18 Nisan 2005 . 38 Support by Indian Muslims in favour of Ottoman caliphate is allegedly due to their objective of susp ending British fr om the region as soon as possible. See Hoca Halil Halkî et al, Hâkimiyet – i Milliye ve Hilâfet – i Islamiye Ankara 1341, p. 19. 39 – 1909fl, , 2, (1998), p. 49 – 71; Kara, Hilâfet Hareketifl, , XVIII, 109 – 111; Mehmet , fiHindistan™da Hilafet Numanî Ve Hilafet M akalesifl, Sakarya University, Faculty of Theology Periodical , 15 (2007), p. 153 – 160; Saad Omar Khan, fiThe fiCaliphate Questionfl: British Views and Policy toward Pan – Islamic Politics and the End of the Ottoman Caliphatefl, The American Journal of Islamic Soci al Sciences , 24/4 (Fall 2007), p. 11 – 14. Al – Khilafah al – Islamiyya , Dar al – Khilafah al – Udma, Marmara University, Facul ty of Theology Periodical , 5 – 6 (1987 – 1988), p. 27 – 54. 40 Sean Oliver – Dee, The Caliphate Question The British Government and Islamic Governance , Lexington Books: Lanham, 2009, p. 50. 41 Derin Tarih , 12 (Ma rt 2013), p. 50 – 51.
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