The Caliphate's Celebrations and Rituals

The early Muslim caliphs scorned the pomp staged by the infidel sovereigns. Although they had become the rulers of an immense empire, these caliphs liked to present themselves as simple people, who lived in modest houses with no other luxuries than the respect and veneration that emanated from their authority. Four centuries after the Hijra, in the mid-tenth century, the situation had changed significantly. The initial rejection of the ostentation of power had given way to a powerful court culture, which had evolved within the caliphal palaces and established complex protocols regulating access to the sovereign, as well as the occasions on which he made formal appearances. In the ‘Abbāsid court there was, for example, a head of protocol, the ṣāḥib al-marātib, who was responsible for ensuring that everyone was correctly placed when the caliph held audiences. In addition to residential quarters, the palaces built in newly-founded cities such as Baghdad, Samarra and Cairo had large audience halls that were used to represent the diverse aspects of caliphal sovereignty, which played a key role in the ‘institutionalization of the court ceremonial’.

In al-Andalus, the institutionalisation of court ceremonial was an especially characteristic feature of the caliphal period, yet it does not seem to have been a feature, or at least not such a prominent one, of the emirate era. During the reign of ‘Abd al-Raḥmān III, when the alcázar of Córdoba was still the main caliphal residence, solemn receptions were held to mark the arrival of embassies or religious feasts. However, following the transfer of the seat of the caliphate to Madīnat al-Zahrāʼ, and especially during the reign of al-Ḥakam II, these ceremonial events became more numerous and complex. Archaeological evidence at Madīnat al-Zahrāʼ supports this claim. It has shown that over the course of the 950s, the new alcázar that had been built between 939 and 941 in the city was extensively remodelled, and these changes were in part intended to intensify the representation of power.