Ordinances of Government

work by al-Māwardī

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July 1, 2026

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Al-Māwardī's Ordinances of Government is a significant work in Islamic political theory. Written around 1058, it aimed to outline the ideal authority and functions of the caliph, adapting traditional Islamic political thought to the realities of the time. The book addressed the rights, duties, and qualifications of a caliph, serving as an influential statement on Muslim political theory. It sought to reassert caliphal authority during a period when the caliphs in Baghdad were under the temporal control of the Buyid emirs. The work is theoretical but not abstract, adjusting orthodox ideals to contemporary circumstances.1

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al-Māwardī
His Ordinances of Government became an influential statement of Muslim political theory. Although it is essentially theoretical (as a design for the restoration of the Sunnite caliphate), the work was not, as some scholars have suggested, an abstract description of caliphal authority; it did, however, adjust…
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His Ordinances of Government became an influential statement of Muslim political theory. Although it is essentially theoretical (as a design for the restoration of the Sunnite caliphate), the work was not, as some scholars have suggested, an abstract description of caliphal authority; it did, however, adjust…
Read More