The Caliphs

Recent Episodes

Episode 81: Splintering of the Shi’a

Posted March 3, 2024 • 00:33:01

Cataloguing the tapestry of Islamic traditions is a task that lies well beyond our scope, but every now and again the topic overlaps with the subjects...

Episode 80: Al Muktafi

Posted February 11, 2024 • 00:30:29

Reading about this caliph’s reign in our sources is a bewildering experience: everything is simultaneously great and on the brink of destruction....

Episode 79: Fortune favors the brute

Posted January 28, 2024 • 00:31:33

Before you even hit play it should already be clear to you that the caliphate is only going to get stronger over the course of our discussion today....

Episode 78: Al Mu’tadid

Posted January 7, 2024 • 00:34:03

Get ready for a blast from the past! Perhaps I should have prepared you for a weak pun instead. Hearing about this caliph’s reign will transport us...

Episode 77: His brother’s keeper

Posted December 17, 2023 • 00:27:25

Al Mu’tamid’s reign lasted from 870 to 892. The Abbasid Caliphate was reborn during these decades, midwifed by the caliph’s brother Talha, better...