were doing with a Chinese army in Central Asia, I don't know; but the significance of their craft was quickly recognized. Soon, the Abbasids founded paper mills in Baghdad and the industry quickly spread to Romania. Since parchment is more durable than paper, surviving books tend to be in that material; and the role of paper books in the Mediaeval book market is thus a matter of some uncertainty. That they existed, however, at least in Islam and Romania, is beyond doubt. Paper mills in Francia are first attested in Aragon in 1282.The Arabic title , amir, is important. Originally this just means "commander" and would be used for a general military officer, or even for the Caliph himself, the Amiru 'lMu'minin, "Commander of the Faithful." The military commanders then become governors, and so amir comes to mean "governor." The governors then drift into independence, and amir then can reasonably be translated "prince." The first truly independent Amirs were the Omayyads in Spain, who were content with the title for a century and a half. Later many Abbasid governors drifted into independence, and the "Emirate" becomes the basic domain of independent Islamic statehood. A title that is mostly not seen for many centuries is malik, "king." This is not really an Islamic title of rule, though it can be a proper name and is very close to one of the Names of God, Malik, "Owner, Master, Possessor." Every day, Muslims invoke God as the Maliku lYaumi dDini, "Possessor the of the Day of Judgment." Malik has largely been a post-colonial title, often an ephemeral one. The old Persian word for King, however, Shah, occurred with some frequently in Iran and India. What becomes the classic Islamic title of rule, Sult.an, "Power, Dominion, Authority," begins with the Seljuks.ABBASID CALIPHS'AbdullahasSaffah.750-754'Abdullahal-Mans.ur754-775Muh.ammadal-Mahdi775-785Musaal-Hadi785-786HarunarRashid786-809mythic and cultural height of Abbasid Caliphate; Idrisids break away in Morocco, 789; first paper mill established in Baghbad, 794-795; great earthquake in Egypt, Alexandria & Pharos Lighthouse damaged, 797Muh.ammadal-'Amin809-813'Abdullahal-Ma'mun813-833Muh.ammadal-Mu'tas.im833-842 moved to Samarra withTurkish guardHarunal-Watiq842-847Ja'faral-Mutawakkil847-861 assassinatedby Turkish guardMuh.ammadal-Muntas.ir861-862Ah.madal-Musta'in862-866Muh.ammadal-Mu'tazz866-869Muh.ammadal-Muhtadi869-870Zanj Rebellion,869-883Ah.madal-Mu'tamid870-892returned to BaghdadRecognizes Kingof Armenia, 885Ah.madal-Mu'tad.id892-902'AliMuktafi902-908Ja'faral-Muqtadir908,908-929,929-932Muh.ammadal-Qahir929,932-934Ah.madarRadi934-940 loss of authorityIbrahimal-Muttaqi940-944'Adbullahal-Mustakfi944-946d. 949under Shi'iteBuwayids, 945al-Fad.lal-Mut.i'946-974'AdulKarimat.T.a'i'974-991Ah.madal-Qadir991-1031'Abdullahal-Qa'im1031-1075under Seljuks; 1055,grants title of Sult.an'Abdullahal-Muqtadi1075-1094Ah.madal-Mustaz.hir1094-1118al-Fad.lal-Mustarshid1118-1135al-Mans.urarRashid1135-1136Muh.ammadal-Muqtafi1136-1160Yusufal-Mustanjid1160-1170al-H.asanal-Mustad.i'1170-1180Ah.madanNas.ir1180-1225Independentfrom Seljuks, 1194Muh.ammadaz.Z.ahir1225-1226al-Mans.ural-Mustans.ir1226-1242'Abdullahal-Musta's.im1242-12581258, killed byMongol Khan Hulagu;end of Abbasid Caliphate;Mamluks set upAbbasid puppetcaliphate in Egypt;continues untilOttoman conquestMilitary expansion of the Caliphate ceased under the Abbasids. Instead there soon was, in effect, a turning inward and an examination and definition of what Islam and Islamic civilization were going to mean, especially in relation to the rival religions and the heritage of Classical civilization. Thus, we find the beginning of philosophy in Islam, especially when al-Ma'mun creates the Daru-lH.ikmah, the "House of Wisdom," principally to translate Greek texts into Arabic. This gives rise to the Hellenizing tradition of falsafah, . On the other hand, we also get the independent, or antagonistic, development of Islamic theology, or Kalam, ("Talk") -- which often displays more original ideas than the strictly philosophical tradition. The height of the Abbasid period in legendary hindsight is the reign of Harun arRashid. There are several stories about him in the One Thousand and One Nights (Alf Layla waLayla), often with