Abbasid revolution

The Abbasid revolution (Arabic: اَلثَّوْرَة اَلْعَبَّاسِيَّةِ, romanized: aṯ-Ṯawra al-ʿAbbāsiyyah), was the overthrow of the Umayyad Caliphate (661–750), the second major caliphate, by the Hashimiyya movement, resulting in the establishment of the Abbasid Caliphate (750–1517), the third major caliphate. The Abbasid revolt originated in the eastern province of Khorasan in the mid-8th century, fueled by widespread discontent with Umayyad rule. The Abbasid dynasty—descendants of Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, an uncle of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad—capitalized on various grievances, including discrimination against non-Arabs, heavy taxation, and perceived impiety of Umayyad rulers. Led by a Persian revolutionary using the nom-de-guerre Abu Muslim, Abu Muslim's strategy lay in unifying the grievances of the native Iranian landowning class (dehqans) with the Persianized Arab settler minority in Khorasan, both heavily disillusioned with Umayyad rule. Non-Arab converts (mawālī) and local supporters participated significantly in the movement; however, they formed part of a broader anti-Umayyad coalition rather than constituting an exclusively or overwhelmingly Persian ethnic uprising. Marching under black banners, they formed a powerful force that swept westward in open revolt, defeating Umayyad forces. The decisive Battle of the Zab in 750 saw the Abbasid army triumph over the last Umayyad caliph, Marwan II. This victory led to the fall of the Umayyad dynasty and the establishment of Abbasid rule, marking a significant shift in the caliphate's power base from Syria to Iraq and ushering in a new era of Islamic governance.