The Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate, 1924: Debates and Implications

This book explores the decision by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in 1924 to abolish the caliphate. The Ottoman sultans had long borne the title of caliphs of Islam, with all the prestigious authority throughout the Muslim world that went with it, and in the aftermath of the First World War the caliphate still retained great symbolic relevance.The book considers the questions that arose with its abolition, including whether or not the caliphate should be revived, reformed or replaced by other forms of political affiliation and organization. It also assesses more general issues concerning identity and legitimate authority, and how to reconcile time-honoured religious institutions and concepts with modernity, the nation-state and affiliations of an ethnic and religious nature. The book additionally addresses the debates within the pan-Islamic congresses concerning the fate of the caliphate, and the implications of its abolition for Kurdish–Turkish relations and for the British and French Empires with their large Muslim populations.

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The Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate, 1924: Debates and Implications

This book explores the decision by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in 1924 to abolish the caliphate. The Ottoman sultans had long borne the title of caliphs of Islam, with all the prestigious authority throughout the Muslim world that went with it, and in the aftermath of the First World War the caliphate still retained great symbolic relevance.The book considers the questions that arose with its abolition, including whether or not the caliphate should be revived, reformed or replaced by other forms of political affiliation and organization. It also assesses more general issues concerning identity and legitimate authority, and how to reconcile time-honoured religious institutions and concepts with modernity, the nation-state and affiliations of an ethnic and religious nature. The book additionally addresses the debates within the pan-Islamic congresses concerning the fate of the caliphate, and the implications of its abolition for Kurdish–Turkish relations and for the British and French Empires with their large Muslim populations.

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The Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate, 1924: Debates and Implications

The Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate, 1924: Debates and Implications

The Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate, 1924: Debates and Implications

The Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate, 1924: Debates and Implications

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Overview

This book explores the decision by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in 1924 to abolish the caliphate. The Ottoman sultans had long borne the title of caliphs of Islam, with all the prestigious authority throughout the Muslim world that went with it, and in the aftermath of the First World War the caliphate still retained great symbolic relevance.The book considers the questions that arose with its abolition, including whether or not the caliphate should be revived, reformed or replaced by other forms of political affiliation and organization. It also assesses more general issues concerning identity and legitimate authority, and how to reconcile time-honoured religious institutions and concepts with modernity, the nation-state and affiliations of an ethnic and religious nature. The book additionally addresses the debates within the pan-Islamic congresses concerning the fate of the caliphate, and the implications of its abolition for Kurdish–Turkish relations and for the British and French Empires with their large Muslim populations.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781032613451
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Publication date: 12/26/2025
Series: Durham Modern Middle East and Islamic World Series
Pages: 198
Product dimensions: 6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Elisa Giunchi is a Professor at the University of Milan, Italy

Nicola Melis is an Associate Professor at the University of Cagliari, Italy

Table of Contents

List of contributors vii

Abbreviations x

Introduction 1

ELISA GIUNCHI AND NICOLA MELIS

1 The Tradition of the Ottoman Caliphate and Its End 13

AZMI ÖZCAN

2 The Pamphlet Battle of Deputy Hocas: The Caliphate Versus the Grand National Assembly 26

YASEMIN TÜRKKAN TUNALI

3 The Caliphate Debates in Turkey and Beyond: Dissensus and Politicization 41

NURULLAH ARDIÇ

4 The Caliphate and Absent Authority 65

REZA PANKHURST

5 The Abolition of the Caliphate, Secularization and Kurdish Nationalism 78

MARTIN VAN BRUINESSEN

6 Pan-Islamism and Defence of the Ottoman Caliphate in Some Writings of Sulayma-n al-Baru-nı - 93

FEDERICO CRESTI

7 The Caliphate Congresses and the Ottoman Sultans 120

NICOLA MELIS

8 “The Spiritual Authority of the Caliph”: Unpacking British Policymaker’s Perceptions of Caliphal Authority and Its Implications for British Imperial Goals 151

SEAN OLIVER-DEE

9 Debating the Future of the French Colonial Empire on the Eve of the Ottoman Caliphate 168

FATIMA-EZZAHRAE TOUILILA

Index 181

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