Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Victoria and Albert Museum

	~Chronology
	Muhammad and his followers flee from persecution in Mecca and establish the first independent Muslim community in Medina. The beginning of the Islamic era is calculated from this event, known as the Hijrah (Hegira).
	Muhammad dies in Medina. Muslim leadership passes to four close associates, known as caliphs, who oversee the rapid growth of an Islamic empire: Egypt, Syria, Iraq, and Iran are conquered.
	The caliphate passes to the Umayyad dynasty. The capital of the empire moves to Damascus, Syria. Spain, North Africa, Central Asia, and part of India are conquered.
	The Dome of the Rock is completed on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, a site identified with Muhammadís night journey to heaven. It is the oldest surviving Muslim building.
	The caliphate passes to the Abbasid dynasty, descended from the Prophetís uncle, al-'Abbas. New capitals, including Baghdad, are founded in Iraq.
	A member of the Umayyad dynasty, 'Abd al- Rahman, escapes to Spain, where his descendants rule from their capital at Córdoba until 1031.
	A rival caliphate is established in North Africa by the Fatimids, descended from the Prophetís daughter, Fatimah, and her husband, 'Ali.
	The Abbasid caliph in Baghdad is reduced to a religious figurehead after the Buyid family gains control of Iraq and Iran.
	A Fatimid army conquers Egypt, where Cairo is founded as the new capital.
	Seljuk Turks from Central Asia conquer Baghdad.
	The Seljuks defeat the Byzantines in Anatolia, and the Turks begin to occupy what is now Turkey.
	Christian forces on the First Crusade conquer Jerusalem and other cities. The Crusaders remain in the Middle East until 1291.
	Salah al-Din (Saladin) gains control of Egypt and replaces the Fatimid caliphate with his ownAyyubid dynasty. In 1187 he recaptures Jerusalem.
	The Ayyubids are replaced by sultans drawn from the dynasty's own household troops, known as Mamluks, who rule from Cairo until 1517.
	Mongol invaders led by Hulagu Khan, grandson of Chinggis (Genghis) Khan, conquer Baghdad and kill the last Abbasid caliph. Hulagu’s descendants, the Ilkhanids, rule Iraq, Iran, and parts of Anatolia until 1335.
	Seljuk rule in Anatolia ends. The region is eventually reunited under the Ottoman Turks.
	Timur (Tamerlane) begins to create a vast empire in Central and Western Asia. He is the founder of the Timurid dynasty, which rules until 1507.
	Sultan Mehmet II captures the Byzantine capital, Constantinople, which becomes the capital of the Ottoman empire under the name Istanbul.
	Granada, the last Muslim stronghold in Spain, is conquered by the armies of Aragon and Castile.
	Shah Isma'il I, the founder of the Safavid dynasty, begins the unification of Iran.
	The Ottoman Turks conquer Syria and Egypt, paving the way for the great age of Ottoman art under Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent (1520–1566) and his immediate successors.
	The Safavid ruler Shah Abbas I ascends the throne, ushering in a period of artistic flowering. He moves his court to Isfahan in 1597.
	The Safavid state collapses in the face of an Afghan invasion. After a period of instability, unity is reestablished under the Qajar dynasty (1779–1924).
	The last Ottoman sultan is deposed by the new Turkish Republic.