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Hello, the Abbasid Caliphs were the dynastic rulers of the Islamic world between the middle of the 8th and the 10th centuries

They had in a Muslim empire that extended from Tunisia through Egypt, Syria, Arabia and Persia to Uzbekistan and the frontiers of India

Unlike previous conquerors, the Abbasid Caliphs presided over a multicultural empire where conversion was a relatively peaceful business

As Vikings raided the shores of Britain, the Abbasids were developing sophisticated systems of government, administration and court etiquette

The eras or the flowering of Arabic philosophy, mathematics and Persian literature

The Abbasids were responsible for patronizing the translation of classical Greek text and transmitting them to Europe

Back to Europe emerging from the dark ages

So who were the Abbasid Caliphs and how did they come to power?

What was their cultural significance? What factors can account for their decline and fall and why do they represent a golden age of Islamic civilization?

With me to discuss the Abbasid Caliphs, a Hugh Kennedy professor of Middle Eastern history at the University of St. Andrews

Amira Benison, senior lecturer in Middle Eastern and Islamic studies at the University of Cambridge

And Robert Irwin, senior research associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London

Hugh Kennedy, who were the Abbasid Caliphs and what was their power?

The Abbasid Caliphs were the descendants of the Prophet Muhammad's uncle Abbas

And that was an important part of their claim to power and fame was that they were connected with the family of the Prophet himself

They came to power in 750 AD as a result really of a massive revolution in the Middle East

The previous rulers of the Islamic world had been the Amir dynasty based in Damascus in Syria

And the Abbasids and the Umayyad regime was very much an Arab-dominated regime

That most of the ruling class were people who were of Arab Bedouin or Arab origin

The coming of the Abbasids was in a sense a revolt against this Arab domination

...