Fatimid Caliphate

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• published: 03 Oct 2014
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The Fatimid Caliphate (Arabic: الفاطميون, al-Fāṭimiyyūn) was a Shia Islamic caliphate, which spanned a large area of North Africa, from the Red Sea in the east to the Atlantic Ocean in the west. The dynasty ruled across the Mediterranean coast of Africa and ultimately made Egypt the centre of the caliphate. At its height, the caliphate included in addition to Egypt varying areas of the Maghreb, Sudan, Sicily, the Levant, and Hijaz. The Fatimids were descended from Fatima bint Muhammad (Arabic: فاطمة بنت محمد), the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, according to Fatimid claims. The Fatimids conquered North Africa and their Fatimid state took shape among the Kutama, in the Western North of Africa, particularly Algeria. In 909 Fatimid established the Tunisian city of Mahdia as their capital. In 948 they shifted their capital to Al-Mansuriya. In 969 they conquered Egypt and established Cairo as the capital of their caliphate, and Egypt became the political, cultural, and religious centre of the whole state. This video is targeted to blind users. Attribution: Article text available under CC-BY-SA Creative Commons image source in video