What is a caliphate? Meaning, history and the groups that want one

The short answer. What is a caliphate? It is an Islamic state ruled by a caliph, a title meaning "successor" to the Prophet Muhammad as leader of the Muslim community.¹ The last widely recognised caliphate, the Ottoman one, was abolished on 3 March 1924.² As of October 2026 no state is a caliphate. Groups that still pursue the idea include Islamic State, which declared one in 2014 and lost its land in 2019, and Hizb ut-Tahrir, which seeks one by political means and is banned in Britain and Germany and listed as a prohibited hate group in Australia.

Key facts #

• Classical Sunni law, as set out in the manual Reliance of the Traveller, says appointing a caliph is a duty by scholarly consensus, and only one caliph may hold office at a time.¹
• The same manual says a caliph must be a Muslim man, free, sane, of the Quraysh tribe and able to reason independently about Islamic law.¹
• Turkey's Grand National Assembly abolished the sultanate in November 1922 and the caliphate on 3 March 1924.²
• On 29 June 2014 Islamic State's spokesman, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, declared a caliphate. On 4 July Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi preached in Mosul as caliph.⁴
• The Syrian Democratic Forces announced the end of Islamic State's last territory, at Baghouz in Syria, on 23 March 2019.⁸
• In September 2014 more than 120 Muslim scholars signed an open letter saying it is forbidden to declare a caliphate without the consensus of all Muslims.⁶
• Britain banned Hizb ut-Tahrir as a terrorist organisation in January 2024, after the Home Office said its praise of the 7 October 2023 attacks, and its description of Hamas as "heroes" on its central website, amounted to promoting terrorism.⁹¹⁰
• Australia listed Hizb ut-Tahrir as a prohibited hate group on 5 March 2026. A parliamentary committee reported in May 2026 that it found no reason to disallow the listing.¹¹¹²

What is a caliphate? The meaning of the word #

A caliphate is a state whose ruler claims to succeed Muhammad as head of the Muslim community, the umma. The medieval jurist al-Mawardi, quoted in Reliance of the Traveller, says the office exists to guard the religion and manage worldly affairs.¹ The manual is a Sunni text of the Shafi'i school. Its account is the classical baseline against which modern claims can be tested.

Source for the table: the manual's section on the caliphate.¹ Mainstream scholars today still agree in principle. The 2014 open letter to Islamic State says scholars agree a caliphate is an obligation, but that a new one needs consensus from Muslims across the world.⁵

How did the caliphate begin and end? #

The caliphate began after Muhammad's death. Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, who died in 634, is counted by Sunnis as the first caliph.⁴ The manual says the Companions of the Prophet swore an oath to him.¹ The office then lasted about 1,300 years, but real power often passed to others, as the table shows.

After 1924, Muslim leaders and groups from North Africa to Southeast Asia called for the caliphate to be restored.⁴ The 2014 open letter says Muslims have lacked a caliphate since 1924.⁵

Who wants a caliphate today? #

Several Islamist movements share the aim. They differ sharply on how to reach it.

For the wider goals of Islamists, see what an Islamist wants and the Sharia law guide.

What was the Islamic State caliphate of 2014? #

The Islamic State caliphate was a self-declared state that the group proclaimed on 29 June 2014 after it conquered much of western Iraq, including Mosul.⁴ In an audio address, al-Adnani announced that the group would now be called simply "the Islamic State". Its sovereignty, he said, was to extend across the whole world.⁴

Five days later Baghdadi, titled amir al-mu'minin (commander of the faithful), preached from the great mosque of Mosul. He was presented as a descendant of the Prophet's Quraysh tribe, one of the classical qualifications. He quoted the accession speech of Abu Bakr.⁴

The group followed the classical script. Al-Adnani said it had come to possess "all the constituent elements of the caliphate". He said the decision came from "those who loose and bind", the body the manual names for choosing a caliph. All Muslims were told to swear allegiance.⁴ On 23 March 2019 the Syrian Democratic Forces announced that Islamic State had lost Baghouz, its last territory.⁸ The group still operates as an insurgency. See our Islamic State guide.

Why did Muslim scholars reject it? #

They said it lacked the consensus the law requires. The open letter was signed by more than 120 scholars.⁶ Signatories included Egypt's Grand Mufti, Shawqi Allam, and a former Grand Mufti, Ali Gomaa.⁵ It said announcing a caliphate without consensus is sedition, because it puts most Muslims outside it. A group of no more than several thousand, it said, had appointed itself "ruler of over a billion and a half Muslims".⁵

Yusuf al-Qaradawi, head of the International Union of Muslim Scholars, called the declaration "void under Sharia" on 5 July 2014.⁷ Even jihadist scholars objected. Before the declaration, Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi and Abu Qatada denied that the group was a real state. Al-Maqdisi warned that declaring one too early was dangerous.⁴

What is Hizb ut-Tahrir? #

Hizb ut-Tahrir, meaning "Party of Liberation",¹¹ is an international Sunni Islamist political organisation. It was founded in Jerusalem in 1953 by Taqiuddin an-Nabhani and is active in at least 32 countries, with its headquarters in Beirut, according to the UK government.¹⁰ The UK also says its long-term goal is to unify Muslims worldwide and establish a caliphate ruled under Islamic law.¹⁰

The group says it seeks the caliphate only in the Muslim world. The Counter Extremism Project, quoted in an Australian parliamentary report, says it insists it does not seek one "in any of the western countries", yet uses anti-Western propaganda.¹² Neither Britain nor Australia says it carried out an attack there. Both cases rest on what it published and said.

Is Hizb ut-Tahrir banned? #

Hizb ut-Tahrir is banned in the UK and Germany and listed as a prohibited hate group in Australia. The laws differ. A 2026 Australian parliamentary report, citing public sources, says at least 13 countries have banned it or listed it as terrorist, many of them Muslim-majority.¹²

Hizb ut-Tahrir banned in the UK #

Home Secretary James Cleverly announced the ban on 15 January 2024. The Home Office called it an "antisemitic organisation" that "actively promotes and encourages terrorism". The order was due to take effect on 19 January 2024 if Parliament agreed.⁹ The Home Office's list shows it proscribed in January 2024.¹⁰ The reasons were articles on its central website that celebrated the 7 October 2023 attack and called Hamas "heroes".¹⁰

Belonging to the group, inviting support for it or displaying support in public became criminal offences. Certain offences carry up to 14 years in prison.⁹ See Islamist terrorism in the UK.

Hizb ut-Tahrir in Australia #

Australia did not use terrorism law. The regulations listing Hizb ut-Tahrir as a prohibited hate group were signed on 5 March 2026 and took effect on 6 March.¹¹ It was the first use of a regime created by the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws) Act 2026, passed in January 2026.¹² Membership, recruiting and fundraising are now offences.¹²

The stated reason is that it repeatedly praised attacks that would be hate crimes if committed in Australia, including the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023. The explanatory statement adds that it had previously inspired acts of violence through propaganda and rhetoric.¹²

The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security reviewed the listing. It received 10 submissions. Its May 2026 report found that the criteria were met, the listing was properly made and there was no reason to disallow it.¹² The Australian Jewish groups AIJAC and ECAJ, and the government's Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism, backed the listing.¹²

Others objected. Former members said the regime targets ideology rather than proven crimes and that none had been convicted in Australia. The committee replied that conviction is not the legal threshold.¹² See Islamism in Australia.

Hizb ut-Tahrir in Germany #

Germany has banned the group's activities since January 2003, according to the German-language reference work Wikipedia, which cites a 2022 academic study. It also reports that a challenge failed at the European Court of Human Rights in 2012.¹³

What cuts the other way? #

• Wanting a caliphate is not terrorism. Many mainstream scholars hold that a caliphate is an obligation in principle.⁵ What separates them from Islamic State is method and consent.
• Hizb ut-Tahrir's bans are contested. Critics say executive listings without convictions set a precedent and lack independent review.¹² The Australian committee called the safeguards significant.¹²
• The Brotherhood's talk exceeded its action. Bunzel found its caliphate rhetoric was a long-term goal rather than an immediate plan.⁴
• Muslims led the rebuttal of Islamic State. The scholars who rejected its caliphate came from Egypt, Jordan, Nigeria, Bosnia and the United States.⁵

Questions people ask #

What is a caliphate? #

A caliphate is an Islamic state led by a caliph, who claims to succeed the Prophet Muhammad as leader of all Muslims. Classical Sunni law calls appointing one a communal duty and allows only one at a time. No state is a caliphate today. The last was the Ottoman caliphate, abolished in 1924.

What does caliph mean? #

Caliph comes from the Arabic for "successor". A caliph is the person who claims to take the Prophet Muhammad's place as head of the Muslim community. Classical Sunni law says he must be Muslim, male, free, sane, of the Quraysh tribe and learned in Islamic law. He guards the religion and runs worldly affairs.

When was the Ottoman caliphate abolished? #

The Ottoman caliphate was abolished on 3 March 1924 by Turkey's Grand National Assembly. The assembly had already abolished the sultanate in November 1922 and named Abdulmecid as caliph. After 1924, groups across the Muslim world called for the caliphate to be restored.

Is Hizb ut-Tahrir banned in the UK? #

Yes. Britain proscribed Hizb ut-Tahrir as a terrorist organisation in January 2024 under the Terrorism Act 2000. The Home Office said it had praised the 7 October 2023 Hamas attacks and called Hamas "heroes" on its central website. Membership, inviting support and displaying support in public are offences, with penalties of up to 14 years in prison for certain crimes.

Is Hizb ut-Tahrir banned in Australia? #

Yes, but under hate-group law, not terrorism law. It was listed as a prohibited hate group on 5 March 2026, effective 6 March. Membership, recruiting and funding are now crimes. A parliamentary committee reviewed the listing in May 2026 and found no reason to disallow it. Former members dispute the decision.

Did Islamic State have a real caliphate? #

Islamic State declared a caliphate on 29 June 2014 and held territory in Iraq and Syria until 23 March 2019. Egypt's Grand Mufti was among more than 120 scholars who said it was invalid because it lacked the consensus of Muslims. It lost its last land at Baghouz in 2019.

Related guides #

• Islamic State (ISIS): the group that declared the 2014 caliphate and where it operates now.
• The Muslim Brotherhood: the movement that put the caliphate at the front of Islamist politics.
• What jihad means: the doctrine behind the claim that the caliph declares war.
• Islamist terrorism in the UK: the Hizb ut-Tahrir ban in context.
• Islamism in Australia: the hate-group listing and Australian counter-terrorism laws.
• Sharia law: the legal system a caliphate would enforce.

Cite as: The Analyst, "What Is a Caliphate? Meaning, History, Hizb ut-Tahrir", Fighting Islamists, updated 13 October 2026. https://fightingislamists.com/caliphate.html

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