Reassessing the Fatimid succession to Imam al Mustansir
The lecture begins at 17.00 UK time.
The succession following the death of the Fatimid Imam-Caliph al-Mustansir produced one of the most significant turning points in Ismaili history. The division between Nizari and Mustaʿli (Tayyibi) communities has endured for centuries. Yet the circumstances that produced this split remain disputed. Scholars continue to debate the available evidence, the reliability of contemporaneous reports, and the political dynamics that shaped the transition.
In this lecture, Professor E. Paul Walker revisits the key issues and reassesses the sources that have defined modern understandings of the succession.
He highlights a previously overlooked account written close to the time of the schism. It offers new insights into how early narratives developed and circulated within the daʿwaLit. ‘summons’, ‘mission’ or invitation to Islam. Amongst Shi’i Muslims, it was the invitation to adopt the cause of the Imamat. It also refers more specifically to the hierarchy of…. His analysis clarifies long-standing ambiguities and provides a more grounded basis for interpreting this transformative moment in the Fatimid period.
The session will include an introduction and a discussion with Dr Fârès Gillon, before opening up to Q&A with the audience.
Paul Walker
Paul Walker is well known for his many publications on Ismaili and Fatimid topics, among them Early Philosophical Shiism (Cambridge University Press, 1993), The Advent of the FatimidsMajor Muslim dynasty of Ismaili caliphs in North Africa (from 909) and later in Egypt (973–1171) More (2000), Orations of the Fatimid Caliphs (2009), Master of the Age (2007), and most recently, The Fatimids; Select papers on their governing institutions, social and cultural organization, religious appeal, and rivalries (Brill, 2023). He is currently Deputy Director for Academic Programs, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University of Chicago.
Dr Fârès Gillon
Fârès Gillon is maître de conférences in Islamic Studies and Arabic language at Aix-Marseille University. He obtained his doctorate in Arab and Islamic studies from the École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE, PSL). His recent publications include The Book of Unveiling, Early Fatimid Ismaili Doctrine in the Kitāb al-Kashf, attributed to Jaʿfar b. Manṣūr al-Yaman (2024). His research focuses primarily on Fatimid Ismailism, especially in its relations with its Shiʿi roots and with the parallel tradition of Nusayrism on which he has published several scholarly articles. He is also interested in the history of ideas in Islam, as well as in Islamic philosophy. He co-edited, with Mathieu Terrier, a bilingual anthology of philosophy in Islam (forthcoming).
Islamic History and Thought Lecture Series
Designed to invite scholars of various international academic institutions, specialising in intellectual, social and political aspects of medieval and early modern Islamic societies, to present and discuss their research.
Find out more
Cover image: Golden Dinar | Image credits: Ismaili Special Collections Unit
Please note filming and photography may take place during the event, and may be used across our website, newsletters and social media accounts. This may include broad shots of the audience and lecture theatre, of speakers during the talk, and of audience members participating in Q&A.
Views expressed in this lecture are those of the presenting scholars, not necessarily of IIS, the Ismaili community or its leadership. Promotion of this lecture is not an explicit endorsement of the ideas presented.
