Muslim History Chart

Muhammad (623-632)
.
Abu Bakr (632-634) father-in-law (Arabic, khalifah, [successor]), khalifat Rasul Allah, [successor to the Messenger of God]), 1st Caliph
Umar I (634-644) amir-al-mum-inin (Arabic, [commander of the believers], 2nd Caliph
Uthman ibn Affan (644-656) Muhammad's son-in-law, 3rd Caliph
Ali (656-661) a cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, 4th Caliph
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(Shiites)	(Khajirites)	(Umayyads)
Ali ( -661) (1st Imam) Hasan (661-669) (2nd Imam) Husayn (669-680) (3rd Imam) Jafar al-Sadiq ( -765) (or Jafar ibn Muhammad) (6th Imam) (Ismailis) (Seveners) Ismail (765- ) (7th imam, last for ismailis) (Fatimids) (through Ismail) Ubayd Allah al-Mahdi (909- ) al-Qa'im al-Mansur -972) Moizz (972- ) Al-Hakim (3rd) ( -1171) (overthrown by Saladin 1171) (other Shiites) (Twelvers) (Ithna Ashariyya) Musa al-Kazim (765- ) (7th imam, for other shiites) ( -873) (12th Imam, last for other shiites) (Buwayhids) (945- ) Adid ( -1171) (conquered by Saladin 1171) Ayyubids Saladin (1171-1193) al-Adil (1193-1218) al-Kamil (1218-1238) ( -1249) (conquered by Mamelukes 1249)	. (c. 650 - c.720) Often called the Puritans of Islam, as they demanded purity of conscience as well as body. They tended to brand everyone who did not agree with them as unbelievers. A sub-sect, the Azraqites, believed in such rigid following of the Koran as to massacre large groups of Muslims who had allegedly committed grave sins. Interestingly, Kharijites were very tolerant of non-Muslims.	Muawiyah I (661-680) related to Uthman Yazid I (680-683) (683-685) Abd al-Malik (685-705) Marwan II (..-750) (end of Umayyad) (conquered by Abbasids 750) (Spanish Umayyads) Abd-ar-Rahman III (929-1031)	Sunnites (Abbasids) descendants of Prophet's uncle Abbas Abu al-Abbas (750- ) al-Mansur (754-775) Harun ar-Rashid al-Amin (brief) (son) Abdullah al-Mamun (son) (908, one day) (by about 950, very little power) al-Mustasim ( -1258) (conquered by Mongols in 1258) (Mamelukes) (first Dynasty, Bahri) (1250-1382) (second Dynasty, Burji) (1382-1517) [two Caliphs, but just symbolic] (defeated by Selim, 1517)
(conquered by Mongols in 1258)

From about the 13th century various monarchs throughout the Muslim world, particularly the Ottoman sultans, assumed the title caliph indiscriminately without regard to the prescribed requirements of the caliphate. The title held little significance for the Ottoman sultans until their empire began to decline. In the 19th century, with the advent of Christian powers in the Near East, the sultan began to emphasize his role as caliph in an effort to gain the support of Muslims living outside his realm. The Ottoman Empire collapsed during World War I (1914-1918). After the war, Turkish nationalists deposed the sultan, and the caliphate was finally abolished (March 1924) by the Turkish Grand National Assembly.