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The Fatimid Ismaili Dynasty of Egypt, Syria and North Africa
On 17th of the Islamic month of Jamadi as-Sani in 420 AH (1029 AD), the 8th caliph of the Fatimid Ismaili Shi’ite Dynasty of Egypt, Syria and North Africa, Mohammad Ibn az-Zahir al-Mustansir, was born in Cairo and eight months afterwards was declared to succeed his father. He ascended the throne on 15th Sha’ban, 427 AH at the age of 7 years. His period of caliphate lasted for 60 years and four months, the longest of all the caliphs, either in Egypt or elsewhere in any Islamic state.
The Fatimid rulers, who first established themselves in Mahdia in Tunisia, claimed descent from Ismail, the son of Prophet Mohammad’s (SAWA) 6th Infallible Successor, Imam Ja’far as-Sadeq (AS). They soon shifted their seat of power to Egypt and established the city of Cairo, where they built the famous Islamic academy, al-Azhar, as a derivative of “az-Zahra” (the Radiant), the epithet of the Prophet’s Immaculate Daughter, Hazrat Fatema (SA). During their rule, they publicly revived in the “Azan” the original phrases of the daily call to prayer: “Ash-hado anna Amir al-Momineen Aliyan Wali-Allah” (I beat testimony that the Commander of the Faithful, Ali, is the Friend of God), and “Hayya ala khayr-il-amal” (Hasten towards the best of deed). The Fatimid caliphate lasted for 270 years, and at its height, in addition to Egypt, it included varying areas of the Maghreb (North Africa), Sudan, Sicily, the Levant, and Hijaz.
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