Ottoman Caliphate: How the Caliphate Passed to the Ottomans

The caliphate passed to the Ottomans with Selim I’s Egyptian campaign of 1516–1517. The Mamluk Sultanate was destroyed, and Mecca and Medina came under Ottoman protection. The story that the last Abbasid caliph handed over the caliphate in a ceremony, however, emerged in later centuries. Ottoman sultans had been using the title of caliph in their own lands since Murad I.

Quick Summary

The caliphate passed to the Ottomans with the conquest of Egypt in 1517.
Selim I took on the protection of Mecca and Medina and received the title “hadimü’l-Haremeyn.”
The first known record of the story of a ceremonial transfer dates from the late eighteenth century.
The Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca (1774) is the first official Western document to recognize the sultan as caliph.
The Grand National Assembly abolished the sultanate on 1 November 1922 and the caliphate on 3 March 1924.

What is the caliphate?
Ottoman sultans and the title of caliph
The Egyptian campaign
The title hadimü’l-Haremeyn
The story of the transfer ceremony
The holy relics
The debate under Suleiman
Küçük Kaynarca and after
The abolition of the caliphate
Frequently asked questions

What Is the Caliphate?

The caliphate is the office that represents the political leadership of Muslims after the death of the Prophet of Islam. The word caliph means “successor.” After the period of the four caliphs, the office passed to the Umayyads and then to the Abbasids. Although the Abbasid caliphs lost their political power over time, they kept their spiritual prestige. We described the general picture of this period in our article on the Abbasid era.

When the Mongols destroyed Baghdad in 1258, the Abbasid caliphate was briefly interrupted. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, the Mamluk sultan Baybars invited Abu al-Qasim Ahmad, a member of the dynasty, to Cairo. Ahmad was proclaimed caliph on 9 June 1261 with the regnal title al-Mustansir bi’llah. According to the encyclopedia, the Abbasid caliphs in Cairo had no real authority. Their names were mentioned on coins and in the Friday sermon together with those of the Mamluk sultans.

Ottoman Sultans and the Title of Caliph

The Ottoman sultans had begun to use the title of caliph long before the Egyptian campaign. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, it was accepted that sultans who upheld justice could use the attribute of caliph in their own lands. The Ottoman sultans followed this tradition from Murad I onward. In this period the title was seen mainly as an expression of sovereignty.

The caliphs in Cairo, meanwhile, sent diplomas of sovereignty to other rulers. According to the encyclopedia, after his victory at Nicopolis Bayezid I had received the title of sultan from the caliph al-Mutawakkil I. This event helped the Ottomans become better known in the Islamic world.

The Egyptian Campaign and the End of the Mamluks

After his victory over the Safavids at Çaldıran, Selim I turned against the Mamluks. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, the Mamluk army was routed at Marj Dabiq on 24 August 1516. Firearms played an important role in this battle. The Mamluk sultan Qansuh al-Ghawri also lost his life during the battle. You can find a general assessment of the period in our article on the Ottoman state under Selim I.

According to the encyclopedia, the Abbasid caliph al-Mutawakkil, who was with the Mamluks, fell into Ottoman hands after the battle. Selim received the caliph in Aleppo with great respect. The Mamluks, however, regrouped by electing Tuman Bay as sultan. The Ottoman army defeated the Mamluks at Ridaniya on 22 January 1517, and the road to Cairo was opened. Tuman Bay was captured some time later and executed.

Selim stayed in Egypt for a while and organized its administration. According to the encyclopedia, on his return he sent al-Mutawakkil and his relatives, the ulema, craftsmen and some merchants to Istanbul with the fleet. The holy relics and the captured goods were carried the same way.

Ottoman scene symbolizing the caliphate question after Selim I’s Egyptian campaign

The Title Hadimü’l-Haremeyn

The conquest of Egypt also left the protection of Mecca and Medina to the Ottomans. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, the emir of Mecca, Sharif Barakat II, sent his son Abu Numayy to Cairo. The delegation declared allegiance to the sultan and presented the keys of the Kaaba. According to the encyclopedia, Selim formally took on the protection of the Two Sanctuaries on 6 July 1517.

With this development the Ottoman sultans began to use the title “hadimü’l-Haremeyn,” that is, “Servant of the Two Holy Sanctuaries.” According to the encyclopedia, the first ruler to use this title was Saladin. According to one account, a preacher referred to Selim in the Friday sermon as “hakimü’l-Haremeyn” (ruler of the Two Sanctuaries). The sultan corrected him and asked to be called “hadim,” that is, servant.

Scene showing the bond of the caliphate formed through the pilgrimage routes and holy cities under Ottoman protection

How Accurate Is the Story of a Transfer Ceremony?

In textbooks this question is usually told through a single ceremony. According to this story, al-Mutawakkil was brought to Istanbul. He then handed over the caliphate to Selim in a ceremony held in Hagia Sophia or in the Eyüp Mosque. The TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, however, states that there is no such record in the sources from Selim’s reign.

According to the encyclopedia, the first account of the ceremony appears in the work of D’Ohsson, written in the late eighteenth century. For this reason some modern historians think the story was produced later. The same entry, however, also draws attention to an important point. Under Islamic law, no such ceremony was needed for the caliphate to pass. The legitimacy of the title of caliph did not depend on a handover either.

Selim’s claim to the caliphate in his own time can be seen in another document. According to the encyclopedia, the sultan sent a letter to the Shirvanshah Sheikh Ibrahim. In the letter he wrote that the Mamluks had proved unable to protect the pilgrimage route. He stated that God had granted him the task of establishing order in the region. He also asked the Shirvanshah to recognize his title of caliph and to have the Friday sermon read in his name.

The Holy Relics and Istanbul

Another result of the Egyptian campaign was the arrival of the holy relics in Istanbul. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, an important part of the relics was brought during and after Selim’s conquest of Egypt. Among them were mementos that the Abbasid family, fleeing Baghdad, had taken to Cairo. Today the relics are preserved in the Chamber of the Holy Relics at Topkapı Palace.

The presence of the relics strengthened the view of the sultan as the protector of Islam. Still, what was truly decisive was that the Ottomans had the power to protect the pilgrimage routes and the holy cities. According to the encyclopedia, during the First World War Fahreddin Pasha also sent some of the relics in Medina to Istanbul. 605 pieces of these items are today in the Chamber of the Holy Relics.

Historical depiction of the holy relics at Topkapı Palace and the symbolism of the caliphate

The Debate on the Caliphate under Suleiman

The main objection raised against the Ottoman caliphate was that the sultans did not descend from the Quraysh. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, this issue first came up in the time of Suleiman the Magnificent. Grand Vizier Lutfi Pasha argued that there was no requirement of Qurayshi descent to become caliph. In his view, Sultan Suleiman was the imam of the age.

Suleiman himself, in a letter to the emir of Mecca, stated that God had raised him to the throne of the sultanate and the caliphate. The emir repeated the same expression in his reply. We discussed the conception of the state in this period in our article on the Ottoman Empire under Suleiman the Magnificent.

Küçük Kaynarca and After

From the eighteenth century onward, the title of caliph came increasingly to the fore in foreign policy. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca of 1774 is a turning point in this respect. The treaty is the first official document in which a Western state recognized the Ottoman sultan as caliph of all Muslims. Although Crimea was declared independent, the sultan was accepted as the religious leader of the Crimean Muslims.

The encyclopedia points out that the title had been used before as well. For example, in 1727 Ahmed III described himself as “caliph of all Muslims” in a treaty with the Afghan ruler Ashraf Khan. You can find the background of relations with Russia in our article on the Ottoman-Russian wars.

Similar examples appear in later years too. According to the encyclopedia, when a treaty was being made with Spain in 1782, the Ottomans regarded helping the Muslims of North Africa as a duty of the caliphate. The British also asked Sultan Selim III to mediate in the matter of Tipu Sultan in India. The sultan sent Tipu Sultan a letter of advice.

In the nineteenth century, Muslim communities under colonial rule began to ask Istanbul for help. Under Abdülhamid II, the caliphate became one of the main instruments of the policy of Islamic unity. We discussed this period in detail in our article on the reign of Abdülhamid II.

The Abolition of the Caliphate

In the last years of the Ottoman state, the caliphate took on a new meaning. On 1 November 1922 the Grand National Assembly of Turkey separated the sultanate from the caliphate and abolished it. The caliphate was left only as a religious institution. According to the encyclopedia, Abdülmecid Efendi was elected caliph in place of Vahdeddin, who had left the office.

This arrangement did not last long. According to the encyclopedia, on 3 March 1924 a motion by the Urfa deputy Sheikh Saffet Efendi and fifty-three of his colleagues came before the assembly. The motion was accepted the same day, and the caliphate was abolished. Members of the Ottoman dynasty were also sent abroad. We described the broad background of this process in our article on the fall of the Ottoman Empire.

Frequently Asked Questions

In which sultan’s reign did the caliphate pass to the Ottomans?

It passed in the reign of Selim I, with the conquest of Egypt in 1517. In the same year the sultan also took on the protection of Mecca and Medina.

Was the caliphate handed over in a ceremony?

There is no record of such a ceremony in the sources from Selim’s reign. The story of the transfer ceremony was first written down in the late eighteenth century.

What does hadimü’l-Haremeyn mean?

It means “servant of Mecca and Medina.” The Ottoman sultans used this title from Selim I onward.

When was the caliphate abolished?

The Grand National Assembly of Turkey abolished the caliphate by a law it adopted on 3 March 1924.

Conclusion

The caliphate passed to the Ottomans not through a single ceremony but through a process that began with the conquests of 1517. The capture of Egypt and the protection of the Two Sanctuaries increased the sultan’s prestige in the Islamic world. After Küçük Kaynarca the title gained even more importance in foreign policy. The caliphate passed into history when it was abolished on 3 March 1924.