Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Preface
- 1 The Islamic revolution in its environment
- 2 The emergence of Abū Bakr
- 3 ‘Umar and the conquests
- 4 The breakdown of the Madīnan regime
- 5 Mu‘āwiya and the second civil war
- 6 The age of Ḥajjāj
- 7 Moderate reform, radical reform and reaction: the reigns of Sulaymān, ‘Umar II and Yazīd II
- 8 Hishām: survival of the empire
- 9 The collapse of the Marwānids
- 10 The end of an era
- Works cited
- Index
4 - The breakdown of the Madīnan regime
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Preface
- 1 The Islamic revolution in its environment
- 2 The emergence of Abū Bakr
- 3 ‘Umar and the conquests
- 4 The breakdown of the Madīnan regime
- 5 Mu‘āwiya and the second civil war
- 6 The age of Ḥajjāj
- 7 Moderate reform, radical reform and reaction: the reigns of Sulaymān, ‘Umar II and Yazīd II
- 8 Hishām: survival of the empire
- 9 The collapse of the Marwānids
- 10 The end of an era
- Works cited
- Index
Summary
Undoubtedly there could have been no better judge of the regime that he headed for almost ten years than ‘Umar himself, and the fact that he did not choose to appoint a successor is generally underrated in importance. There was no reason why he should not do so. It had seemed the most natural thing for Abū Bakr to nominate a successor, and ‘Umar had equal if not greater moral authority to do exactly the same. That he did not do so, when there were so many leaders of good standing to choose from, is a clear indication that he himself was not convinced that the office of Amīr al-Mu'minīn could adequately meet the requirements of the empire and that he was not prepared to recommend its continuation.
Although the community had so far emerged intact from the birth pangs of the ridda wars and the growing pains of the conquests, there were already clear signs of an imminent explosion. The Makkans had been quick to seize the chance of making enormous fortunes throughout the empire, as also had been the provincial governors. Not even ‘Umar's decision forcing the governors to surrender to the public treasury at Madīna half their wealth at the end of their terms of office sufficed to check this tendency.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Islamic HistoryA New Interpretation, pp. 60 - 78Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1971