Mamlūks
At a glance:
- Series: Magill’s Guide to Military History
- Categories: Military History
- Subcategories: Generals, Military Officers, Soldiers, Slavery, Slaves, Islam, Muslims, Mosques
- Curriculum: African History, Asian History, Middle Eastern History
- Geographical Location: Egypt, South Asia, India
- Date: Ninth through nineteenth centuries
Article abstract: Military significance: Throughout the Islamic world, mamlūks (military slaves) were recruited into elite regiments, forming a mainstay of military power for many medieval Muslim dynasties.
Mamlūk is a technical Arabic term meaning “military slave” (also called ghulam). Large-scale institutionalized recruitment of slaves as soldiers began in the 800’s under the ʿAbbāsid caliph al- Muʿtasim, who formed a Turkish Mamlūk regiment to counteract the power of disloyal factions. Mamlūks were soon appointed as military commanders and...
[The entire page is 363 words long]
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