Accounts of the Capture of Baghdad and the Political Role of Hulagu Ilkhan in “Zubdat al-Fikra”

Abstract

Zubdat al-Fikra is a significant historical source for studying the political, military, and cultural relations among the Ilkhanate, the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt, the Rum Seljuk State, and the Jochid Ulus in the second half of the thirteenth century. The purpose of this study is to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the information in Zubdat al-Fikra concerning Hulagu Ilkhan’s life and political activities during the 1250s–1260s, and to determine its historical and source-critical significance. The article examines key events such as the capture of Baghdad, the establishment of Ilkhanid power, the fall and restoration of the Abbasid Caliphate, the enthronement of al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah. Based on comparative analysis of Arabic sources, the research identifies and interprets previously unpublished excerpts from Zubdat al-Fikra, translated for the first time. These findings help clarify the chronology of Hulagu’s era and offer new insights into his political and ideological relations with the Mamluk Egypt, the Jochid Ulus, and the wider Islamic world. The methodological framework of the study includes external and internal criticism of sources, textual comparison, and historical reconstruction. The results contribute to a deeper understanding of the political history of the Ilkhanate and reassess the historical role of Hulagu within the context of Islamic civilization.