The Islamic caliphate was originally thought only…
929 CE
The Islamic caliphate was originally thought only to belong to the prince who ruled over the sacred cities of Mecca and Medina, and Abd-ar-Rahman’s ancestors had contented themselves with the title of emir, but the force of this tradition had weakened over time.
Abd-ar-Rahman’s Fatimid rivals had assumed the caliphal title in 910; to compete with their auto-elevation, he creates the Caliphate of Cordoba on January 16, 929.
With the Abbasids, that makes three concurrent caliphates.
The title increases Abd-ar-Rahman's prestige with his subjects, both in Iberia and Africa.
He bases his claim to the caliphate on his Umayyad ancestors, who had held undisputed control of the caliphate until they were overthrown by the Abbasids in 750.
Abd ar-Rahman's move makes him both the political and the religious leader of all the Muslims in al-Andalus, as well as the protector of his Christian and Jewish subjects.
The symbols of his new caliphal power are a scepter(jayzuran) and the throne (sarir).
In the mint he had founded in November 928, Abd ar-Rahman starts to coin golden dinars and silver dirhams, replacing the "al-Andalus" specification with his name.