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1520 BCE
1520
The Ottoman Empire reached the peak of its power during the rule of Selim's son, Suleiman the Magnificent (ruled 1520 -66) and his grandson Selim II. Suleiman becomes ruler of the Ottoman empire. During his reign, the empire grows and enjoys a golden age. -
1300 BCE
1300
Another Mongol leader, Timur the Lame, or Tamerlane, led his armies into the Middle East. Though he was a Muslim, Tamberlane's ambitions led him to conquer Muslim as well as non-Muslim lands. -
1258 BCE
1258
Hulagu, grandson Genghiz, burned and looted Baghdad, killing the last Abbassid caliph. -
1216 BCE
1216
Genghiz Khan led Mongols out of Central Asia across Persia and Mesopotamia. Mongol armies returned again and again. -
1187 BCE
1187
The Muslim general Salah al-Din, or Saladin, ousted Christians from Jerusalem. -
1099 BCE
1099
After a long bloody seige, Christian crusaders from Europe captured Jerusalem from the Muslims. -
1095 BCE
1095
Reports of Seljuk interference with Christian pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem led Popo Urban II to call for the First Crusade. -
1055 BCE
1055
Seljuk sultan, or authority, controlled Baghdad, but he left the Abbassid caliph as a figurehead. As the Seljuks pushed into Asia Minor, they threatened the Byzantine empire. -
900 BCE
900
The Seljuk Turks migrated into the Middle East from Central Asia. They adopted Islam and built a large empire across the Fertile Crescent. -
850 BCE
850
Abbassid control over the Arab empire fragmented. In Spain, Egypt, and elsewhere, independent dynasties ruled separate Muslim states. -
750 BCE
750
A lot of Muslims did not like the Umayyads, so some discontented Muslims found a leader Abu al-Abbas, who captured Damascus. Abu al-Abbas establishes the Abbasid dynasty. Over the next several centuries, Muslim merchant ships travel around the Abbasid empire and beyond. -
732 BCE
732
Muslim armies were defeated at the battle of Tours. The Muslim advance into Western Europe was halted. -
711 BCE
711
Muslim armies crossed the Strait of Gibraltar into Spain and pushed north into France. -
661 BCE
661
Ali was murdered, buried in Iraq (now a pilgrimage site). Sunnis : followers of the 3rd Caliph of Muhammed and of elected leaders thereafter capital of empire moved to Damascus, location more central, also provided greater contact with Hellenic civilization and the still existing reservoirs of western and ancient knowledge. Ommayad Dynasty-a member of the dynasty that ruled at Damascus a.d. 661–750, claiming descent from Omayya, cousin of the grandfather of Muhammad the Prophet. -
632 BCE
632
Death of Muhammad