DINESH UTTAM GAIKWAD SAGAR S.

SHINDE

RIZVI COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE

BAGHDAD , IRAQ
GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION:
With a metropolitan area estimated at a population of 7,000,000, it is the largest city in Iraq. It is the second-largest city in the Arab world (after Cairo) and the second-largest city in southwest Asia (after Tehran) Although there is dispute over its Iranian origin, there have been several rival proposals as to its specific etymology. The most reliable and most widely accepted among these is that the name is a Middle Persian compound of Bhaga"god" + dd "given", translating to "god-given" or "God's gift", hence Modern Persian Badd, Arabic Badd. Another leading proposal is that the name comes from Middle Persian Bgh-dd "The Given Garden".

 BAGHDAD province is located at the center of Iraq . Iran is located at East side , Turkey is located at north , Syria located at north-west , Saudi Arabia located at south-west and Kuwait located south side of Iraq at presnet . Baghdad is the largest city in Iraq and is situated on both sides of the Tigris River at a point 40 miles from the Euphrates River . The city is approximately 300 miles from the northern, southern, and western borders of the country. The city is located on a vast plain bisected by the Tigris River . The Tigris splits Baghdad in half, with the Eastern half being called 'Risafa' and the Western half known as 'Karkh'. The land on which the city is built is almost entirely flat and low-lying, being of alluvial origin due to the periodic large floods which have occurred on the river.

BAGHDAD PERIOD:
8th century AD

In their new city of Baghdad the Abbasid caliphs adopt the administrative system of the long-established Persian empire. Persian Muslims are as much involved in the life of this thriving place as Arab Muslims. Here Islam outgrows its Arab roots and becomes an international religion. Here the Arabic and early Persian languages coalesce to become, from the 10th century, what is now known as Persian - combining words from both sources and using the Arabic script. Here Mesopotamia briefly recovers its ancient status at the centre of one of the world's largest empires.
At no time is this more evident than in the reign of the best-known of the Abbasid caliphs, Harun al-Rashid. The luxury and delight of Harun al-Rashid's Baghdad, in the late 8th century, has been impressed on the western mind by one of the most famous works of Arabic literature - the Thousand and One Nights . Some of the stories are of a later date, but there are details in them which certainly relate to this period when for the first time a Muslim court has the leisure and prosperity to indulge in traditional oriental splendour.

The caliphate is now at its widest extent, with reasonable calm on most borders. The international fame of Harun himself can be judged by the emphasis of Charlemagne's biographers on the mutual esteem of these two contemporary potentates, who send each other Rich gifts.

An increasingly nominal caliphate: from the 9th c. AD

From the 9th century the rule of the Abbasid caliphs in Baghdad is often, in many parts of the Muslim world, more nominal than real. In Palestine and Syria there are uprisings from supporters of the previous Umayyad dynasty, whose base was Damascus. In the rich province of Egypt, governors are increasingly unruly (as many as twenty-four are appointed and then dismissed during the 23-year caliphate of Harun al-Rashid). In the further extremes of the empire independence from the Abbasids is even more marked. Spain is ruled by Umayyads. North Africa has Berber dynasties from 790. And eastern Persia, by about 870, is in the hands of Persians hostile to Baghdad.

The weakness of the caliphs tempts them into a measure which makes the problem worse. They acquire slaves from the nomadic Turks of central Asia and use them in their armies. The slaves, who become known as Mamelukes (from the Arabic mamluk, 'owned'), are excellent fighters. They distinguish themselves in the service of the caliphate and are often given positions of military responsibility. Well placed to advance their own interests, they frequently take the opportunity.

One of the first Mamelukes to seize power is Ahmad ibn Tulun. In the early 870s he takes control of Egypt. By 877 he has conquered the Mediterranean coast through Palestine and up into Syria.
This half of the Fertile Crescent has been ruled from Egypt at many periods of history. Separated from Mesopotamia by a broad swathe of desert, it is easier to control from Cairo than from Baghdad. Palestine and Syria remain under Egyptian dominance for most of the next two centuries. The Tulunid dynasty, founded by Ahmad ibn Tulun in the 870s, rules the region until 905. The Ikhshidids, another Turkish dynasty, control it from 935 to 969, when they in their turn are replaced by the Fatimids - masters of an even broader swathe of Mediterranean coastline.

Persian independence from Baghdad: 9th century AD

From about 866 the whole of eastern Persia, to Kabul in the north and Sind in the south, is gradually overrun by a Persian from a family of metal-workers; he is known as al-Saffar ('the coppersmith'), giving his short-lived dynasty the name of Saffarids. In 876 he is strong enough to march on Baghdad, though he is prevented from reaching it by the army of the caliph.
In 900 the Saffarids are defeated by another Persian dynasty, the Samanids. The new rulers are aristocrats, descended from a nobleman by the name of Saman Khudat. They preside over the first conscious revival of Persian culture since the Arab conquest.

The slow end of the Abbasids: 10th - 16th century There are times in the 10th century when the caliphs have little power outside the confines of Baghdad itself, but from the 11th century their prestige is to some degree restored. This is thanks to the Seljuk Turks, who recover a large empire and rule it from Baghdad - accepting the subordinate title of sultan and deferring to the caliphs as the superior religious authority. For a few brief spells the caliphs even recover some secular power, asserting themselves over their Seljuk sultans. But the final disaster is suffered in 1258, when Hulagu Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan, arrives in Mesopotamia. The caliph in Baghdad, al-Musta'sim, risks the impossible. In January 1258 he sends an army against the approaching Mongols. The Muslim army is routed by Hulagu, who orders the caliph to appear before him and to destroy the walls of the city. When the caliph declines, Hulagu besieges and sacks Baghdad. It is said that 800,000 of the inhabitants are killed, including the caliph - who is executed by being kicked to death.

Destruction and decline: 15th - 20th century AD Mesopotamia now becomes a border region of little consequence, fought over by more powerful neighbours. The city of Baghdad is sacked by Timur in 1401. It is taken by the shah of Persia, Ismail I, in 1508; by the sultan of Turkey, Suleiman I, in 1534; by the Persians again in 1623; and finally by the Turks once more in 1638. The region remains a sleepy part of the Ottoman world until the demise of the Turkish empire in World War I.

Abbasid Caliphs in Baghdad

Al-Mansur 754 775 Al-Mahdi 775 785 Al-Hadi 785 786 Harun al-Rashid 786 809 Al-Amin 809 813 Al-Ma'mun 813 833 Al-Mu'tasim 833 842 Al-Wathiq 842 847 Al-Mutawakkil 847 861 Al-Muntasir 861 862 Al-Musta'in 862 866 Al-Mu'tazz 866 869 Al-Muhtadi 869 870 Al-Mu'tamid 870 892 Al-Mu'tadid 892 902 Al-Muktafi 902 908 Al-Muqtadir 908 932 Al-Qahir 932 934 Ar-Radi 934 940 Al-Muttaqi 940 944

Al-Mustakfi 944 946 Al-Muti 946 974 At-Ta'i 974 991 Al-Qadir 991 1031 Al-Qa'im 10311075 Al-Muqtadi 10751094 Al-Mustazhir 10941118 Al-Mustarshid 11181135 Ar-Rashid 11351136 Al-Muqtafi 11361160 Al-Mustanjid 11601170 Al-Mustadi 11701180 An-Nasir 11801225 Az-Zahir 12251226 Al-Mustansir 12261242 Al-Musta'sim 12421258

BAGHDAD ARCHITECTURE-

Madrasa Sharabiyya, or Bishriyya Location - Baghdad, Iraq Century - 13th Style/Period - Abbasid

This two-storied, brick historic monument is situated close to the left bank of the Tigris River in the al-Maiden neighborhood of Baghdad. While there is much contention over the original date of the site, stylistically it was probably constructed during al-Mustansir's caliphate, dating it to the late Abbasid period (1175-1230). Excavations and restoration efforts provide evidence that it most likely functioned as a madrasa rather than a palace.

Great Mosque of al-Ja'fariya Location - Samarra Century - 9th Style/Period - Abbasid

Between 859 and 861, al-Mutawakkil relocated the Abbasid caliphate temporarily from Samarra to a new settlement that he named Ja'fariya, a site just up the river to the north. The Mosque of Abu Dulaf became the new main congregational mosque not unlike the Great Mosque in Samarra. The walls of the mosque barely remain, just remnants of the northern faade. Similar to the Great Mosque, the Mosque of Abu Dulaf is enclosed by two ziyadas, the outer one measuring 350 x 362 meters and the lesser enclosure 213 x 135 meters. Its minaret also recalls that of the Great Mosque as it is positioned to the north of the mosque and includes a spiral ramp rising from a square base adorned with small recesses on each side. Later excavations show that the minaret was surrounded by a court with blind arcades like the ones on the socle. This court featured two cisterns.

Madina al-salam (City of Peace), Round City of al Mansur Location - Baghdad Century - 8th Style/Period - Abbasid

In 754, al-Mansur became the Abbasid Caliph, succeeding his brother asSaffah in rule. By 762 he had commissioned the construction of a new eastern capital, choosing Baghdad as his site. Builders from the greater region came to work for him by the thousands. What followed would be a grand model of urban design notable for its circular plan. The city was designed with ash drawings onto the ground for al-Mansur to view prior to construction, which began that same year. By its completion in 766-7, it has been posited that the Round City measured 2000 meters in diameter. It featured four main gates, equidistant from each other: the southwest gate was the Kufa Gate; the southeast was Basra; the Khurasan Gate extended to the northeast and the Damascus Gate to the northwest. The walls were constructed out of mud brick with reed supports, while the domes and vaults were composed in baked brick.