Wanderlust World Wanderlust World From 831 to 1072, Sicily was ruled by the Emirate of Sicily, a Muslim state established after the Aghlabid dynasty began its conquest in 827. The emirate was later governed by the Fatimids and then the Kalbids. By 902, Muslim forces controlled the entire island.
During this period, slavery was practiced. Muslim rulers enslaved Christians and Jews, using them as laborers, domestic servants, and concubines. The slave trade connected Sicily to wider Mediterranean and Islamic markets, and many captives were exported to North Africa and the Middle East.
The Norman conquest, completed in 1091, ended Muslim rule. The Normans, led by Roger I, restored Christian governance and gradually abolished slavery, integrating the population into a feudal society. The transition marked the beginning of Sicily's Latin Christian era.