Setting Sail in the Caliphate: The Umayyads Embrace Aksumite Maritime Technology
TL;DR:
The vast Umayyad Caliphate (661-750 CE) was a sea power in the making. Emerging from the deserts of Arabia, the Umayyads needed a fleet to control the vital sea lanes of the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Looking across the waters to their powerful trading partners, the Aksumites, they found inspiration in an unexpected place: their ships.
This adop…
