The Use of Charity as a Means of Political Legitimation in Umayyad al-Andalus

Abstract

The principal aim of this study is to examine the use of charity as a factor of political legitimation by the ruling elite of al-Andalus in the Umayyad period. Accordingly, it explores the degree to which charity was an instrument in the hands of the authorities, and the manner in which this strategy was decisive in the process of consolidating power. In a broader sense, this analysis enables us to deepen our knowledge of the political elite in al-Andalus and to elucidate how charitable attitudes reflected a particular conception of power.