ibn al-Nafis – Discoveries of Islamic scientists
Illustration in Ibn al-Nafis Who was ibn al Nafis? Ibn al Nafis was born in Syria in the early 1200s AD, just as the power of the Seljuks was collapsing. He studied [...]
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07, 2017
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07, 2017
Guide for the Perplexed – Maimonides
Maimonides studied in this Cordoba synagogue in Spain (1315 AD, rebuilt from Maimonides' time) What did Maimonides study? When Maimonides was a child, in the 1100s AD, he studied Jewish religious law in the Cordoba synagogue, [...]
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07, 2017
The Mamluks – Medieval Islamic history
Mamluks: A Mamluk inn for merchants in Cairo Mamluks were enslaved soldiers The Mamluks were originally enslaved bodyguards of the Abbasid caliphs of the Islamic Empire (the word "mamluk" just means "slave" in Arabic). Starting around 850 [...]
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07, 2017
Who were the Fatimids? – Medieval Islam
Fatimids built Bab Zuweila (Cairo, 1092 AD) Overthrowing the Abbasids in Egypt In 908 AD, a new family rose up in Egypt. They took control of Egypt from the Abbasids. This family [...]
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07, 2017
Saladin and the Ayyubid Dynasty
Saladin Saladin started the Ayyubids When the First Crusade defeated the Fatimid Caliphs and captured Jerusalem in 1099 AD, people were very upset. People in Egypt and Syria gradually decided that the Fatimids were too weak to [...]
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07, 2017
Fatimid Caliphate architecture
Al-Azhar Mosque, Cairo (Egypt, 900s AD) Fatimids built new mosques As soon as the Fatimid dynasty took over ruling Egypt, in 908 AD, the new rulers of Egypt needed to show how [...]
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05, 2017
Medieval African Architecture – Mosques and Churches
Medieval African architecture: Al-Azhar Mosque, Cairo (Egypt, 900s AD) Africa gets richer The Middle Ages saw a tremendous explosion of architecture all over Africa as Africans became richer than they had ever [...]
