The Siege of Baghdad
Everything Everywhere Daily
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The History of the Abbasid Empire
For about a 300 year period between the years 900 to 1200, Baghdad was the largest city in the world. At its peak, it had a population of about 1.2 million people - probably becoming the first city to reach the million mark since ancient Rome. The success of Baghdad wasn't just a function of the number of people, it was also the quality of the city and what it represented. After five centuries, as with most empires, the Abbasid Caliphate began to go into decline. In January of 1258 that the Mongols finally arrived at the gates of Baghdad.
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