ABSTRACT
By manipulating a strong religious identity and the dissatisfaction of many Muslims, ‘Ubayd Allah broke the authority of the Abbasids in North Africa and began the Fatimid dynasty. From early in his life, ‘Ubayd Allah claimed descent from Fatima, daughter of the prophet Muhammad. In 902 and 904, ‘Ubayd Allah became known to the wider world when he led attacks against Abbasid authorities in Syria in order to become the province's imam, or leader. He must have had significant religious authority to rally the kind of support he did, because Syria was at the heart of the Abbasid Empire. ‘Ubayd Allah successfully challenged the centralizing tendency of Islam and forced it into independent polities and rival sects that never reunited under one state again. The emergence of the Fatimid dynasty under ‘Ubayd Allah represented a major transformation of Islam.
