Encyclopedia of Islam

sultan

  

643  J

---

the two wings of government under one Sunni 

umbrella. It was during the Seljuk period that the 

ideal government of the sultanate was spelled out 

by Nizam al-Mulk (d. 1092), the 

vizier

 to the sul-

tan Alp Arslan and Malikshah. Whereas the caliph 

was primarily a religious figurehead, the sultan 

should defend Islam from external attack, ensure 

internal justice by upholding sharia and support-

ing religious leaders, and develop “civilization” by 

maintaining roads, 

mosqUe

s, schools, 

bazaar

s, and 

other infrastructure.

In the 12th century the Abbasid Caliphate was 

able to regain some of its power, but only within 

Iraq, while the rest of the empire was divided 

up among regional sultans. When Baghdad was 

destroyed by the Mongols in 1258 even these mini-

mal gains came to an end. Although a survivor of 

the Abbasid house was proclaimed caliph in c

airo

,

authority for the Islamic heartlands remained in 

the hands of the m

amlUk

 sultans of Cairo and, 

after them, the Ottoman sultans in i

stanbUl

.

When Islam spread to South and Southeast 

Asia most rulers continued to use titles derived 

from the local languages, but they also adopted 

the title of sultan, which conveyed the authority 

and legitimacy of a Muslim ruler. In the modern 

period some monarchies continue to use the title 

of sultan, such as the Sultanate of Brunei and the 

Sultanate of Oman.

See also i

slamic

 

government

; o

ttoman

 

dynasty

.

Heather N. Keaney