Episode 34: Hard mode

Khurasan and the East remained as volatile as ever, and Hisham had to contend with the new threat of the Turgesh throughout his long reign. We’re fortunate that our sources contain so much information on the region during this chaotic time, especially because the area will be of ...  Show more

The capable Hisham protected his caliphate from the many enemies who lined its borders. These were not the only ones he had to contend with however, the umma itself was somewhat fragmented, and opposition to the Umayyads had swelled during the short and tumultuous reigns of his p ...  Show more

On his death bed, Babur tells his eldest son not to fight with his brothers however awful they will be to him. As his father passes away, Humayun inherits a fragile empire on shaky ground. And his dad’s message of peace quickly comes to the fore when his treacherous younger broth ...  Show more

In this episode of the Umayyad Caliphate, we continue our exploration of Caliph Hisham ibn Abdul Malik’s reign as the Umayyad Caliphate faces mounting crises across its vast empire. The year is 110 AH (728 CE), and the empire’s edges are on fire. In the Caucasus, Maslamah ibn Abd ...  Show more

In this episode, we explore the fragile balance of power during the later years of the Umayyad Caliphate under Caliph Hisham ibn Abdul Malik. Between 112–114 AH (731–733 CE), the empire faced crushing defeats on nearly every frontier. Yet Hisham refused to abandon his policy of c ...  Show more

Synopsis: Joseph and Hyrcanus of the Tobiad clan served as tax farmers in Coele Syria for nearly half a century, weathering the transition from Ptolemaic and Seleucid control along with the constant maelstrom of Jerusalem politics. “Hyrcanus determined not to return to Jerusal ...  Show more