Changes

Shortly after the death of Muhammad in 632, his followers divided themselves into factions that sought control over the community of believers of what would become known as Islam. Early Islamic thinkers and leaders believed that under the new religion, the “church” and state should be combined in one government hierarchy, known as a <i>caliphate</i>, and ruled by a single autocratic ruler or <i>caliph</i>. Throughout early Islamic history many despots claimed the status of caliph, but few the early dynasties that claimed to be the caliphate fit the criteria of having the majority of the Muslims under its rule and by having control of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. Scholars generally consider the Umayyad and Abbasid dynasties to be the first two caliphates, with the Ottoman Empire being the third great Islamic caliphate.