The caliphs were the first leaders of Islam after Muhammad’s death. A dispute arose over who should be the caliph after the fourth one, leading to the division of Islam into Shia and Sunni sects. The Umayyads and Abbasids controlled the caliphate, with the latter ruling over North Africa. The office of the caliph has been divisive, and most countries rely on local Imams for spiritual leadership. The caliphate was officially abolished in 1924, but it remains within the authority of the Turkish government to reinstate it.
Caliphs were the first leaders of the Islamic religion and people, appointed after Muhammad’s death in 632 AD Caliph, sometimes spelled Kalif, means representative or successor, and the caliphate is the earliest Islamic form of government under the caliph. Sometimes the term caliph is also linked to the Imam, or religious leader.
United Islam accepted the first caliphs, but problems arose after the death of the fourth caliph, Ali ibin Abi Talib. At that time, an exceptionally powerful family called the Umayyads came forward to offer a candidate to replace Ali. A dispute ensued because some Muslims believed that the caliph must be a blood relative of Muhammad, as the first four caliphs had been. Others thought that a caliph should be determined by election and that blood ties to Muhammad were not a prerequisite.
This dispute led to the legendary division of Islam into Shia and Sunni sects. The Shiites would support no caliph but a relative of Muhammad, and the Sunnis supported the first Umayyad caliph, Muawiyah 1. Another minor sect of Islam, the Ibadis, held that a caliph should be chosen for his or her abilities as a great leader . They did not feel that a direct relationship with Muhammad was necessary.
The schism in the Islamic religion following Umayyad control of the caliphate was not complete until the fall of the Umayyad dynasty in 750 CE. At this point, another powerful family called the Abbasids seized power. While they were marginally related to Muhammad, they were not related to the first caliph, Ali. This disappointed the Shia and resulted in complete schism with Sunni and Ibadi Islamic groups.
The Abbasids controlled the caliphate for a whopping 300 years, and the Shiites started an alternative caliphate. As Islam now controlled a very large territory stretching from Spain to Africa, the Abbasids claimed power mainly over the northern lands, while the Shia Caliph line mainly ruled over North Africa.
Due to the arguments regarding the proper right to hold the title of caliph, some leaders of Islam styled themselves sultans or emirs. This was the official title of the rulers of the Ottoman Empire who controlled the caliphate, for both Sunni and Shia Islam, until 1875. In 1924, in the then-defunct Ottoman Empire stronghold in Turkey, the caliphate was officially abolished. It remains within the authority of the Turkish government to reinstate it and reappoint a caliph. This is an unlikely possibility.
In most cases, especially since the schism in Islam, the office of the caliph has been a divisive force, and most countries now rely more heavily on local Imams to lead them in spirituality-related matters of governance. It should be noted that while Sunnis have supported a democratic or elective process in deciding who should run for caliph, there are many countries with predominantly Islamic populations that do not have general elections. A country’s leaders are more likely to be nominated or to take power. However, Islamic countries’ styles of governance continue to change, sometimes rapidly.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
