In the mid-eighteenth century, a controversial Islamic movement emerged in central Arabia, significantly altering the region's political landscape and Islamic thought. Founded by Muhammad ibn ʻAbd al-Wahhab, the movement argued that many Muslims were polytheists for venerating saints at tombs. He emphasized that true Muslims must worship God alone and oppose these polytheists through jihad. The narrative spans from the 1740s emergence of Wahhabism to its integration into the modern Saudi state by the 1920s, highlighting its lasting influence on groups like al-Qaʻida and the Islamic State. Cole Bunzel utilizes extensive primary sources to trace Wahhabi doctrine back to medieval theologian Ibn Taymiyya and its evolution through generations of scholars. Despite being viewed as heretical, the movement thrived in central Arabia, spreading under the Al Suʻud dynasty's authority until it was suppressed by an Egyptian invasion in 1818. However, the militant Wahhabi ethos endured into the early twentieth century, as the Saudi kingdom leveraged it for legitimacy. This comprehensive history offers a definitive account of a militant Islamic movement rooted in enmity toward non-Wahhabi Muslims, which continues to resonate in the violent ideologies of contemporary Sunni jihadis.
