Islam's rise is a major turning point; tracing key phases in the life of Muhammad (PBUH); the founding of the faith through his years of opposition; his establishment of Islam as a religious and political entity; the global impact of these events.

The establishment of the Umayyad caliphate's capital in Damascus is a key event in early Muslim history; the Umayyads' achievements; locating the empire's capital away from the Arabian peninsula; the shift from an Islamic empire to imperial power.

The events surrounding the incursion of Berber-Arab armies into the Iberian peninsula in 711; Muslim domination of the region lasts 800 years; the fateful Battle of Guadalete; the Arabs' advance north; the invasion's impact on European history.