Share

Buy New

$19.99

In Stock.

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Turn on 1-Click ordering for this browser

This item ships to France. Want it Friday, Oct. 19? Order within and choose AmazonGlobal Priority Shipping at checkout. Learn more

Deliver to France

Buy Used

$10.00

FREE Shipping on orders over $25.

Deliver to France

Used: Like New | Details

Sold by Balanced Advantage

Fulfilled by Amazon

Turn on 1-Click ordering for this browser

Added to

Unable to add item to List. Please try again.

Other Sellers on Amazon

Add to Cart

$14.95
+ $24.95 shipping

Sold by: sweethomeliquid2

Add to Cart

$15.36
+ $10.78 shipping

Sold by: Ambis Enterprises

Add to Cart

$15.98

Sold by: Manor26

Have one to sell? Sell on Amazon

Flip to back Flip to front

Listen Playing... Paused You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition.
Learn more

See all 3 images

When Baghdad Ruled the Muslim World: The Rise and Fall of Islam's Greatest Dynasty Paperback – March 14, 2006

by Hugh Kennedy (Author)

31 customer reviews

See all 9 formats and editions Hide other formats and editions

Price

New from

Used from

"Please retry"

$7.04

Paperback

"Please retry"

$19.99

The "golden age of Islam" in the eighth and ninth centuries was as significant to world history as the Roman Empire was in the first and second centuries. The rule of Baghdad's Abbasid Dynasty stretched from Tunisia to India, and its legacy influenced politics and society for years to come. In this deftly woven narrative, Hugh Kennedy introduces us to the rich history and flourishing culture of the period, and the men and women of the palaces at Baghdad and Samarra-the caliphs, viziers, eunuchs, and women of the harem that produced the glorious days of the Arabian Nights.

Frequently bought together

+

Total price: $37.94

Buy the selected items together

This item:When Baghdad Ruled the Muslim World: The Rise and Fall of Islam's Greatest Dynasty by Hugh Kennedy Paperback $19.99
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details
In God's Path: The Arab Conquests and the Creation of an Islamic Empire (Ancient Warfare and… by Robert G. Hoyland Paperback $17.95
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details

Customers who bought this item also bought

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

This shopping feature will continue to load items. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.

Robert G. Hoyland

31

Paperback
$17.95
Fred McGraw Donner

28

Paperback
$18.07
Colin McEvedy

51

Paperback
$13.60
Ian Mortimer

310

Paperback
$11.59
W. Montgomery Watt

13

Paperback
$14.73
James E. Lindsay

6

Paperback
$15.30

Sponsored products related to this item (What's this?)

Page 1 of 1Start overPage 1 of 1

Feedback

Russell Shorto

570

Paperback
$14.83
Feedback

Brad Borkan

Struggling to succeed against impossible odds? Discover how life or death decisions made over 100 years ago can help you push past any obstacle.

26

Paperback
$14.99
Feedback

Ibn Warraq

Ibn Warraq returns with his usual meticulous research on Islam and the history of Islamic revivalism.

21

Kindle Edition
$9.99
Feedback

Jesse Harasta

The History of the Sunni and Shia Split traces the origins of the split and the historic effects of the main divide within Islam.

101

Kindle Edition
$2.99
Feedback

Philip Gibson

What if there had been today's social media during the incredible Apollo missions to the Moon?

12

Kindle Edition
$9.99
Feedback

Nicole Waybright

A different kind of military memoir and naval history where women, warships, scandal and a diary-honest psychological journey all take center stage.

75

Kindle Edition
$6.99
Feedback

Philip Gibson

What if there had been today's social media during the first mission to land men on the Moon?

32

Kindle Edition
$6.99

Editorial Reviews

Review

Baghdad, Virtually nothing remains of the city of the early Abassid caliphs but this nineteenth-century drawing by Lieutenant J. Fitzjames, R.N., captures something of the atmosphere, the domes and palaces by the Tigris and the bridge of boats across the river.

About the Author

Hugh Kennedy has taught in the Department of Mediaeval History at the University of St. Andrews since 1972. He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2000. Professor Kennedy lives in St. Andrews, Scotland.

Product details

Paperback: 376 pages
Publisher: Da Capo Press; Edition Unstated edition (March 14, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0306814803
ISBN-13: 978-0306814808
Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 9 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 31 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #856,033 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #432 in Books > History > Middle East > Iraq
- #17626 in Books > History > Europe

Would you like to tell us about a lower price?
If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support?

Be the first video

Your name here

Sponsored products related to this item (What's this?)

Page 1 of 1Start overPage 1 of 1

Feedback

Russell Shorto

570

Paperback
$14.83
Feedback

Jesse Harasta

The History of the Sunni and Shia Split traces the origins of the split and the historic effects of the main divide within Islam.

101

Kindle Edition
$2.99
Feedback

Ibn Warraq

Ibn Warraq returns with his usual meticulous research on Islam and the history of Islamic revivalism.

21

Kindle Edition
$9.99
Feedback

Charles River Editors

Along with pictures and medieval accounts, this book looks at the history of Mecca, and how it became the epicenter for the religion of Islam.

4

Kindle Edition
$2.99
Feedback

Richard Castagner

Americans! The real history of Islam combined with hard hitting analysis with a somber realism of the current Islam world crisis! A must read!

1

Kindle Edition
$6.89
Feedback

Charles River Editors

This book examines the different political issues roiling the Middle East, including religious ideology, terrorist groups, and conflicts with Israel.

4

Kindle Edition
$6.99

Customer reviews

3.7 out of 5 stars

Write a customer review

See all 31 customer reviews

Top customer reviews

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Cassandra StrandTop Contributor: Calligraphy

When the Abbasids ruled the Muslim world (which was often not from Baghdad)...

September 17, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

When Baghdad Ruled the Muslim World claims to introduce us to the history and flourishing culture of the "golden age of Islam." Overall, there aren't too many books on the market to compare to but the scope of the work is interesting and relatively unexplored by most scholars. Unfortunately, the book doesn't live up to all of the expectations I had for it.

Hugh Kennedy admirably tries to tell the history of the Abbasids in as a story but fails to achieve the level of storytelling success that one might find in a book like Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World through Islamic Eyes by Tamim Ansary. His biggest problem with his story format is that 1. it's inconsistent and 2. it switches without notice between storytelling and history lecture in an abrupt manner that doesn't flow well. I have a bit of a love hate relationship with his writing style. He seems to desperately want to share this history as a story but fails to do so in a consistently cohesive and logical way. It seems like he often presents the most dramatic/entertaining/shocking story first as if that IS what happened but, then all of the sudden cuts it off and tells you that's just one possibility and another source says x, y, z. I would have really preferred if he could have told the story that facts confirm and then add in the miscellaneous possibilities as to what else may have occurred. It was kind of like reading "this is what happened.... or is it?" over and over again.

I loved the stories he did tell, I hated hearing once again that it was only one of several possibilities. I think the stories he did tell were perhaps how he'd like to imagine history having occurred and that by telling that story he puts his opinion first in your mind while marginally acknowledging the other possibilities so he doesn't lose credibility. This way you're more likely to remember the more interesting story as opposed to the other possibilities which are presented as more dry facts or secondary considerations. Aside from that I really enjoyed most of the content and I loved reading about Harun Al-Rashid,The Harem, and Abbassid court culture.

Unfortunately, this particular look at court culture contains essentially no information about dancers as part of the court or general culture. There are some images in the middle of the book including one from Samarra depicting two dancing girls pouring wine. It is part of a small fragment of the murals which decorated the palace. Clearly dance was present in court culture but, despite even including an image there is no real information about dance in any form. It does talk quite a bit about poets and makes some mentions of Musicians though. We can make some guesses about the possible place of dance in court culture based on the information about musicians and possibly slaves but the author made no attempt to mention anything about dance.

Although the beginning has a lot of problems with the switching between storyteller and historian writing style the later chapters don't do this as much. Instead the majority switches to more dry history. The information is interesting but, harder to follow and keep interested in. However there are occasional small instances like this throughout the books.

Another issue I had with the book is that although the author of the book is supposed to be neutral to religion but several comments and assertions of the authors opinions seemed to be rather biased against Islam. This gives me reservations about how he perceives the historic events. Considering he presents certain versions of possible history as being his story arc is it because these are products of his bias or is it historically the most viable? I don't know.

My other issue with the book is the way that it's divided into chapters. Some books like Women, Men and Eunuchs: Gender in Byzantium can take a more separate approach to a historical time period and work. this is because the scope of each chapter is very specific in what it covers. there is little to no overlap in other chapters and there is generally not much repeated. Kennedey's work however attempts to separate while weaving together in a story and it doesn't work well. It's a bit like reading a novel out of order randomly selecting which chapter you will read. It's a disjointed experience and you have to jump from one person to another and one topic to another constantly to re situate yourself in the context of what's happening. I wonder if he wouldn't have been better off using a bit more of a chronological progression throughout the book in which he could have incorporated each of the elements he tried to separate. It might have made it easier for the reader to compare military, architectural, and cultural differences between all the different caliphs while also moving forward in a logical and more story like progression.

I would still recommend this for people looking to learn more about the Abbasid Caliphs which is mostly what the book ends up talking about but most other questions about court culture or how people lived their daily lives go largely unanswered. Be aware that parts are going to quickly switch from a story to history in a split second and that jolting experience as a reader can be a problem with moving forward in the book. I do think there is a lot of good information and it is relatively accessible to the average reader (assuming you like reading history and are used to reading in that genre). It does help to examine the history and successions of the Abbasid Caliphs and tells some of the stories that make them seem more like human beings as opposed to just some distant historical figures.

4 people found this helpful

Comment

Robert J. Crawford

splendid stories, but big gaps in historical analysis

October 13, 2009

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This book is a fun read that is well written and designed for the interested layman. It never gets bogged down in academic controversies and finds the fun in the blood, sex, and civilization of a truly unique empire. Unfortunately, there were many historical details, however academic this might sound, that I was hungry to learn about and felt continually disappointed at their light treatment, i.e. how Islam was instituted in the occupied countries (or why it succeeded in taking such firm root), what the sources of Arab power were (faith, organization, economics or some combination thereof?), and why the Abbasids produced some of the greatest cultural works that humanity has ever known? While Kennedy makes it clear that he intended to tell interesting stories, I really wanted much more than he provided. As such, it is good popular history, but not dense enough for my taste.

The Abbasids took power in a revolution from the Ummayads, who were a group from the prophet Mohammed's tribe but not part of his larger family (the Abbasids were cousins of the Prophet). While we get a lot about the intrigues and military aspects, all anecdotal, there is very little about the religious side of the conflict, particularly in tribal context. The Sunnis and Shiites were not yet quite formed, crucial religious history that I wanted to better understand. Then, the Persians were included as vital allies, at the time of their conversion to Islam, also barely covered in the book. This was thus a badly incomplete picture. It is not even clear why the revolution took hold, beyond bare facts like the Ummayads were unpopular due to their Syrian base.

Once power was consolidated, there were some very interesting personalities, such as the shrewd and ruthless Mansur, who established the state's ruling structure with persian viziers and professional army. He is an austere and fascinating figure. Then there is Herun, the ruler in 1000 Arabian Nights, who exemplifies the golden age, though sowed the seeds of civil war that was to lead to the dynasty's downfall 100 years later. They created the Harem and countless other forms that set the standard for all later Islamic regimes, which never equalled their splendor or cultural sophistication and openness. There was even a period of inquiry into the Koran as an historical document, as Greek philosophical influence grew for a brief period. Once again, fun stories, but little hard fact about how the empire was run, why it reached a certain size, why it suddenly became religiously conservative and choked off the development of practical scientific enquiry, and what the foundations of power were. In other words, I wanted more geo-political and social analyses.

The fall of the Abbasids came with their inability to provide orderly successions as well as their dependence on Turkish mercenaries. As chaos rose, the provinces rebelled and even the maintenance of the waterways that had made mesopotamia a breadbasket to unique civilizations for 3000 years were allowed to fall into ruin, never again to be revived. Not only was this the passing of Arabs as a global power, but the end of a united Islam, as the Sunni-Shiite split hardened into separate sects and innumerable regional principates arose. Alas, these details are neglected in favor of personal tales of decapitations, torture, and corruption and betrayal - fun stories, but just a surface gloss.

Recommended. It is a good starting point, but less than half the history.

7 people found this helpful

Comment

Set up an Amazon Giveaway

When Baghdad Ruled the Muslim World: The Rise and Fall of Islam's Greatest Dynasty

Amazon Giveaway allows you to run promotional giveaways in order to create buzz, reward your audience, and attract new followers and customers. Learn more about Amazon Giveaway

This item: When Baghdad Ruled the Muslim World: The Rise and Fall of Islam's Greatest Dynasty

Set up a giveaway

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

This shopping feature will continue to load items. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.

Hugh Kennedy

14

Hardcover
$19.03
Robert G. Hoyland

31

Paperback
$17.95
Thomas L. Friedman

299

Paperback
$15.05
Hugh Kennedy

61

Paperback
$13.88
Hugh Kennedy

10

Paperback
$47.12
Amira K. Bennison

6

Paperback
$22.03

English United States

Conditions of Use
Privacy Notice
Interest-Based Ads
© 1996-2018, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates