16. The Early Middle Ages, 284--1000: The Splendor of the Abbasid Period

The Early Middle Ages, 284--1000 (HIST 210)
In this lecture, Professor Freedman discusses the Abbasid dynasty, which ruled the Islamic Caliphate beginning in 750. The Abbasids moved the capitol of the Caliphate to the newly-built city of Baghdad and created a state characterized by a strong administration and well-organized tax system. The state sponsored a cultural flowering, based in part on the translation of classical Greek and Roman texts. Professor Freedman ends the lecture by focusing on developments in mathematics and astronomy.
00:00 - Chapter 1. The Rise of the Abbasids
15:47 - Chapter 2. Cultural Flowering
28:28 - Chapter 3. Assimilation of conquered peoples and ideas
40:00 - Chapter 4. Mathematics
Complete course materials are available at the Yale Online website: online.yale.edu
This course was recorded in Fall 2011.