The Less Discussed State: The Abbasids

When Islamic history is mentioned, one of the first great dynasties that comes to mind is undoubtedly the Abbasids. Chronologically, they appear to have ruled for a period close to that of the Ottoman Empire. However, when we examine the inner workings—the political stability and central authority—we may find that they were not as unified or as solid a power as they seem.

Let us lift the grand curtains of the Abbasids and take a close look at the political realities behind them.

Emerging onto the scene after the Umayyads, who ruled for approximately a century, the Abbasids are regarded as the second great power in Islamic history according to chronology. In fact, a familiar force lay behind this transfer of power: the Turkish commander Abu Muslim al-Khurasani, who supported the Abbasids. Thanks to his military genius and backing, the Abbasids succeeded in seizing control.

When we examine maps from the Abbasid period, we see a vast territorial expanse. But here we must acknowledge an important historical fact: this extensive geography was not the result of Abbasid conquests themselves, but rather a legacy of major conquests carried out before them, especially during the era of Caliph Umar.

The Abbasid era also marks a pivotal turning point in Turkish history. For the first time, Turks entered the Islamic scene en masse as military and administrative leaders. In fact, caliphs even built special cities, such as Samarra, to provide Turks with places to live and train comfortably. Over time, the Turks’ power within the palace and army grew so significantly that they acquired the ability to install or depose rulers—effectively carrying out military coups.

The Abbasids’ greatest chronic problem, evident from their earliest days, was the weakness of central administration. They were unable to prevent autonomous states (emirates) nominally under their authority from acting independently.

Moreover, the Abbasid court remained passive and helpless in the face of independent states, particularly the Shia Fatimids and the Buyids. It was the Turks, namely the Seljuk State, who liberated the Abbasids from Buyid domination; and it was again the Seljuks who played a crucial role in neutralizing the threat posed by the Qarmatians.

After the Mongol invasion and the killing of the Abbasid caliphs, surviving members of the dynasty took refuge in the Mamluk State. There, they maintained their existence solely by symbolically representing the caliphate. Although they continued to possess spiritual and legitimizing authority—such as granting titles and sending formal decrees to rulers of other Islamic states—they never demonstrated the capacity to exercise real political or military power for most of their five-century-long tenure.

In summary, although the Abbasids ruled for a remarkably long period, they were neither as powerful nor as stable as the Ottoman State, which ruled for a comparable duration in terms of influence, central authority, and institutional strength.

We may regard the Abbasids as representing the “good phase” of Islamic civilization’s organization and emergence as a major power on the world stage; however, it is an undeniable fact that the zenith of this organizational and statecraft evolution occurred during the Ottoman period.