Influential Muslim women engaged in charity work and patronised good causes. As Islamic law clearly stipulated their rights in terms of income and inheritance, many could do so on the basis of generous funds allocated for their personal use. They played a vital role in consolidating Islamic society by promoting support and solidarity between the various social classes. Many commissioned mosques and other public buildings for posterity. Thus, in Morocco, the Fihri sisters built both the Qarawiyin
Mosque and the Andalusian
Mosque in
Fez during the 3rd / 9th century. In Turkey, Nilüfer
Hatun, the mother of Murad I, had a religious structure built in Iznik in 789 / 1388, while
Sultan Abdülaziz’s mother built the Pertevniyal
Mosque Complex in Istanbul in 1288 / 1871, including a shrine, fountain, school and library.