The Fatimid Caliphate was an Ismaili Shia Muslim state that arose in North Africa and rivalled the Sunni Abbasid caliphs in Baghdad. Its rulers claimed descent from Fatima, the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad. After establishing power in Ifriqiya, the Fatimids conquered Egypt in the tenth century and founded the city of Cairo as their capital, with the mosque and university of al-Azhar. At its height the state controlled much of North Africa, Sicily, the Hejaz and parts of Syria, and its trade linked the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean. Internal strife and the Crusades weakened it, and it was ended by Saladin.
Before and after
- 9th centuryHanbalism
- 10th centuryConstruction of Pannonhalma Archabbey
- c. 907 CEOrigins of Bratislava
- from 907 CE to 960 CEFive Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period
- from 909 CE to 1171Fatimid Caliphate
- 2 September 909 CEConstruction of Cluny Abbey
- from 910 CE to 1833Kingdom of Leon
- c. 910sAl-Razi distinguishes smallpox from measles
- from 913 CE to 927 CEByzantine–Bulgarian War of 913–927
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- 710 CEConstruction of Al-Aqsa Mosque
- 990 CEConstruction of Château de Montsoreau
- from 11th century to 18th centuryHouse of Habsburg
- from 1206 to 1368Mongol Empire
- 1239Construction of Alhambra
- 1420Construction of Kremlin
The era
This moment belongs to the Medieval world (500 CE to 1500 CE), kingdoms, faiths and trade routes. You can also browse everything in the 10th century.