Umayyad Caliphate

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Umayyad Caliphate
الخلافة الأموية
Al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawiyyah (Arabic)





The Umayyad Caliphate at its greatest extent.
Capital Damascus
Capital-in-exile Córdoba
Languages Arabic (official) – Coptic, Greek, Persian (official in certain regions until the reign of Abd al-Malik) – Aramaic, Armenian, Berber language, African Romance, Georgian, Turkic, Kurdish, Prakrit
Religion Sunni Islam
Government Caliphate
 -  661–680 Muawiya I
 -  744–750 Marwan II
 -  Muawiya becomes Caliph 661
 -  Defeat and death of Marwan II by the Abbasids 750
 -  750 CE (132 AH) 15,000,000 km² (5,791,532 sq mi)
 -  750 CE (132 AH) est. 34,000,000 
Currency Gold dinar and dirham
Today part of  Afghanistan
 Gibraltar (UK)

State of Palestine Palestinian Authority
 Saudi Arabia
 United Arab Emirates
 Western Sahara

The Umayyad Caliphate (Arabic: الخلافة الأموية‎, trans. Al-Khilāfat al-ʾumawiyya) was the second of the four major Islamic caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. This caliphate was centered on the Umayyad dynasty (Arabic: الأمويون‎, al-ʾUmawiyyūn, or بنو أمية, Banū ʾUmayya, "Sons of Umayya"), hailing from Mecca. The Umayyad family had first come to power under the third caliph, Uthman ibn Affan (r. 644–656), but the Umayyad regime was founded by Muawiya ibn Abi Sufyan, long-time governor of Syria, after the end of the First Muslim Civil War in 661 CE/41 AH. Syria remained the Umayyads' main power base thereafter, and Damascus was their capital. The Umayyads continued the Muslim conquests, incorporating the Caucasus, Transoxiana, Sindh, the Maghreb and the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) into the Muslim world. At its greatest extent, the Umayyad Caliphate covered 15 million km2 (5.79 million square miles), making it the largest empire (in terms of area - not in terms of population) the world had yet seen, and the fifth largest ever to exist.[8]

At the time, the Umayyad taxation and administrative practice were perceived as unjust by some Muslims. The non-Muslim population had autonomy; their judicial matters were dealt with in accordance with their own laws and by their own religious heads or their appointees, although they did pay a poll tax for policing to the central state.[9] Muhammad had stated explicitly during his lifetime that each religious minority should be allowed to practice its own religion and govern itself, and the policy had on the whole continued. The welfare state for both the Muslim and the non-Muslim poor started by Umar ibn al Khattab had also continued.[9] Muawiya's wife Maysum (Yazid's mother) was also a Christian. The relations between the Muslims and the Christians in the state were good. The Umayyads were involved in frequent battles with the Christian Byzantines without being concerned with protecting themselves in Syria, which had remained largely Christian like many other parts of the empire.[9] Prominent positions were held by Christians, some of whom belonged to families that had served in Byzantine governments. The employment of Christians was part of a broader policy of religious tolerance that was necessitated by the presence of large Christian populations in the conquered provinces, as in Syria. This policy also boosted Muawiya's popularity and solidified Syria as his power base.[10][11]

The rivalries between the Arab tribes had caused unrest in the provinces outside Syria, most notably in the Second Muslim Civil War of 680–692 CE and the Berber Revolt of 740–743 CE. During the Second Civil War, leadership of the Umayyad clan shifted from the Sufyanid branch of the family to the Marwanid branch. As the constant campaigning exhausted the resources and manpower of the state, the Umayyads, weakened by the Third Muslim Civil War of 744–747 CE, were finally toppled by the Abbasid Revolution in 750 CE/132 AH. A branch of the family fled across North Africa to Al-Andalus, where they established the Caliphate of Córdoba, which lasted until 1031 before falling due to the Fitna of al-Ándalus.


According to tradition, the Umayyad family (also known as the Banu Abd-Shams) and Muhammad both descended from a common ancestor, Abd Manaf ibn Qusai, and they originally came from the city of Mecca. Muhammad descended from Abd Manāf via his son Hashim, while the Umayyads descended from Abd Manaf via a different son, Abd-Shams, whose son was Umayya. The two families are therefore considered to be different clans (those of Hashim and of Umayya, respectively) of the same tribe (that of the Quraish). However Muslim Shia historians suspect that Umayya was an adopted son of Abd Shams so he was not a blood relative of Abd Manaf ibn Qusai. Umayya was later discarded from the noble family.[12] Sunni historians disagree with this and view shia claims as nothing more than outright polemics due to their hostility to the Umayyad family in general. They point to the fact that the grand sons of Uthman, Zaid bin amr bin uthman bin affan and Abdullah bin amr bin uthman got married to the Sukaina and fatima the daughters of Hussein son of Ali to show closeness of Banu hashem and Bani Ummayah. [13]

While the Umayyads and the Hashimites may have had bitterness between the two clans before Muhammad, the rivalry turned into a severe case of tribal animosity after the Battle of Badr. The battle saw three top leaders of the Umayyad clan (Utba ibn Rabi'ah, Walid ibn Utbah and Shaybah) killed by Hashimites (Ali, Hamza ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib and Ubaydah ibn al-Harith) in a three-on-three melee.[14] This fueled the opposition of Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, the grandson of Umayya, to Muhammad and to Islam. Abu Sufyan sought to exterminate the adherents of the new religion by waging another battle with Muslims based in Medina only a year after the Battle of Badr. He did this to avenge the defeat at Badr. The Battle of Uhud is generally believed by scholars to be the first defeat for the Muslims, as they had incurred greater losses than the Meccans. After the battle, Abu Sufyan's wife Hind, who was also the daughter of Utba ibn Rabi'ah, is reported to have cut open the corpse of Hamza, taking out his liver which she then attempted to eat.[15] Within five years after his defeat in the Battle of Uhud, however, Muhammad took control of Mecca[16] and announced a general amnesty for all. Abu Sufyan and his wife Hind embraced Islam on the eve of the conquest of Mecca, as did their son (the future caliph Muawiyah I).

Expansion of the caliphate under the Umayyads:
  Expansion under Muhammad, 622–632
  Expansion during the Rashidun Caliphate, 632–661
  Expansion during the Umayyad Caliphate, 661–750

Most historians[who?] consider Caliph Muawiyah (661–80) to have been the second ruler of the Umayyad dynasty, even though he was the first to assert the Umayyads' right to rule on a dynastic principle. It was really the caliphate of Uthman Ibn Affan (644–656), a member of Umayyad clan himself, that witnessed the revival and then the ascendancy of the Umayyad clan to the corridors of power. Uthman placed some of the trusted members of his clan at prominent and strong positions throughout the state. Most notable was the appointment of Marwan ibn al-Hakam, Uthman's first cousin, as his top advisor, which created a stir among the Hashimite companions of Muhammad, as Marwan along with his father Al-Hakam ibn Abi al-'As had been permanently exiled from Medina by Muhammad during his lifetime. Uthman also appointed as governor of Kufa his half-brother, Walid ibn Uqba, who was accused by Hashmites of leading prayer while under the influence of alcohol.[17] Uthman also consolidated Muawiyah's governorship of Syria by granting him control over a larger area[18] and appointed his foster brother Abdullah ibn Saad as the Governor of Egypt. However, since Uthman never named an heir, he cannot be considered the founder of a dynasty.

In 639, Muawiyah I was appointed as the governor of Syria after the previous governor Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah died in a plague along with 25,000 other people.[19][20] To stop the Byzantine harassment from the sea during the Arab-Byzantine Wars, in 649 Muawiyah I set up a navy manned by Monophysite Christian, Copt and Jacobite Syrian Christian sailors and Muslim troops. This resulted in the defeat of the Byzantine navy at the Battle of the Masts in 655, opening up the Mediterranean.[21][22][23][24][25]

Muawiyah I was a very successful governor and built up a very loyal and disciplined army from the old Roman Syrian army. He also befriended Amr ibn al-As who had conquered Egypt but was removed by Uthman ibn al-Affan.

The Quran and Muhammad talked about racial equality and justice as in the The Farewell Sermon.[26][27][28][29][30][31][32] Tribal and nationalistic differences were discouraged. But after Muhammad's passing, the old tribal differences between the Arabs started to resurface. Following the Roman–Persian Wars and the Byzantine–Sassanid Wars, deep rooted differences between Iraq, formally under the Persian Sassanid Empire, and Syria, formally under the Byzantine Empire, also existed. Each wanted the capital of the newly established Islamic State to be in their area.[33] Previously, the second caliph Umar was very firm on the governors and his spies kept an eye on them. If he felt that a governor or a commander was becoming attracted to wealth, he had him removed from his position.[34]

Early Muslim armies stayed in encampments away from cities because Umar feared that they might get attracted to wealth and luxury. In the process, they might turn away from the worship of God and start accumulating wealth and establishing dynasties.[35][36][37][38] When Uthman ibn al-Affan became very old, Marwan I, a relative of Muawiyah I, slipped into the vacuum, became his secretary, slowly assumed more control and relaxed some of these restrictions. Marwan I had previously been excluded from positions of responsibility. In 656, Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr, the son of Abu Bakr, the adopted son of Ali ibn Abi Talib, and the great grandfather of Ja'far al-Sadiq, showed some Egyptians the house of Uthman ibn al-Affan. Later the Egyptians ended up killing Uthman ibn al-Affan.[39]

After the assassination of Uthman in 656, Ali, a member of the Quraysh tribe and the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, was elected as the caliph. He soon met with resistance from several factions, owing to his relative political inexperience. Ali moved his capital from Medina to Kufa. The resulting conflict, which lasted from 656 until 661, is known as the First Fitna ("civil war"). Muawiyah I, the governor of Syria, a relative of Uthman ibn al-Affan and Marwan I, wanted the culprits arrested. Marwan I manipulated everyone and created conflict. Aisha, the wife of Muhammad, and Talhah and Al-Zubayr, two of the companions of Muhammad, went to Basra to tell Ali to arrest the culprits who murdered Uthman. Marwan I and other people who wanted conflict manipulated everyone to fight. The two sides clashed at the Battle of the Camel in 656, where Ali won a decisive victory.

Following this battle, Ali fought a battle against Muawiyah, known as the Battle of Siffin. The battle was stopped before either side had achieved victory, and the two parties agreed to arbitrate their dispute. After the battle Amr ibn al-As was appointed by Muawiyah as an arbitrator, and Ali appointed Abu Musa Ashaari. Seven months later, in February 658, the two arbitrators met at Adhruh, about 10 miles north west of Maan in Jordon. Amr ibn al-As convinced Abu Musa Ashaari that both Ali and Muawiyah should step down and a new Caliph be elected. Ali and his supporters were stunned by the decision which had lowered the Caliph to the status of the rebellious Muawiyah I. Ali was therefore outwitted by Muawiyah and Amr. Ali refused to accept the verdict and found himself technically in breach of his pledge to abide by the arbitration. This put Ali in a weak position even amongst his own supporters. The most vociferous opponents in Ali's camp were the very same people who had forced Ali into the ceasefire. They broke away from Ali's force, rallying under the slogan, "arbitration belongs to God alone." This group came to be known as the Kharijites ("those who leave"). In 659 Ali's forces and the Kharijites met in the Battle of Nahrawan. Although Ali won the battle, the constant conflict had begun to affect his standing, and in the following years some Syrians seem to have acclaimed Muawiyah as a rival caliph.[40]

Umayyad Caliphate in 750

Ali was assassinated in 661 by a Kharijite partisan. Six months later in the same year, in the interest of peace, Hasan ibn Ali, highly regarded for his wisdom and as a peacemaker, and the Second Imam for the Shias, and the grandson of Muhammad, made a peace treaty with Muawiyah I. In the Hasan-Muawiya treaty, Hasan ibn Ali handed over power to Muawiya on the condition that he be just to the people and keep them safe and secure, and after his death he not establish a dynasty.[41][42] This brought to an end the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs for the Sunnis, and Hasan ibn Ali was also the last Imam for the Shias to be a Caliph. Following this, Mu'awiyah broke the conditions of the agreement and began the Umayyad dynasty, with its capital in Damascus.[43]

After Mu'awiyah's death in 680, conflict over succession broke out again in a civil war known as the "Second Fitna". After making every one else fight,[44] the Umayyad dynasty later fell into the hands of Marwan I, who was also an Umayyad.

Syria would remain the base of Umayyad power until the end of the dynasty in 750. However, this Dynasty became reborn in Cordoba (Al Andalus, today's Portugal and Spain) in the form of an Emirate and then a Caliphate, lasting until 1031 AD. Muslim rule continued in Iberia for another 500 years in several forms: Taifas, Berber kingdoms, and under the Kingdom of Granada until the 16th century.

In the year 712, Muhammad bin Qasim, an Umayyad general, sailed from the Persian Gulf into Sindh in Pakistan and conquered both the Sindh and the Punjab regions along the Indus river. The conquest of Sindh and Punjab, in modern day Pakistan, although costly, were major gains for the Umayyad Caliphate. However, further gains were halted by Hindu kingdoms in India in the battle of Rajasthan. The Arabs tried to invade India but they were defeated by the north Indian king Nagabhata of the Pratihara Dynasty and by the south Indian Emperor Vikramaditya II of the Chalukya dynasty in the early 8th century. After this the Arab chroniclers admit that the Caliph Mahdi "gave up the project of conquering any part of India."

During the later period of its existence and particularly from 1031 CE under the Ta'ifa system of Islamic Emirates (Princedoms) in the southern half of Iberia, the Emirate/Sultanate of Granada maintained its independence largely due to the payment of Tributes to the northern Christian Kingdoms, which from 1031 began to gradually expand south at its expense.

Muslim rule in Iberia came to an end on January 2, 1492 with the conquest of the Nasrid kingdom of Granada. The last Muslim ruler of Granada, Muhammad XII, better known as Boabdil, surrendered his kingdom to Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, the Catholic Monarchs, los Reyes Católicos.



Faravahar background
History of Greater Iran
Until the rise of modern nation-states



Following Muawiyah's death in 680, he was succeeded by his son, Yazid I. The hereditary accession of Yazid was opposed by a number of prominent Muslims, most notably Abd-Allah ibn al-Zubayr, son of one of the companions of Muhammad, and Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of Muhammad and younger son of Ali. The resulting conflict is known as the Second Fitna.

In 680 Ibn al-Zubayr fled Medina for Mecca. Hearing about Husayn's opposition to Yazid I, the people of Kufa sent to Husayn asking him to take over with their support. Al-Husayn sent his cousin Muslim bin Agail to verify if they would rally behind him. When the news reached Yazid I, he sent Ubayd-Allah bin Ziyad, ruler of Basrah, with the instruction to prevent the people of Kufa rallying behind Al-Husayn. Ubayd-Allah bin Ziyad managed to disperse the crowd that gathered around Muslim bin Agail and captured him. Realizing Ubayd-Allah bin Ziyad had been instructed to prevent Husayn from establishing support in Kufa, Muslim bin Agail requested a message to be sent to Husayn to prevent his immigration to Kufa. The request was denied and Ubayd-Allah bin Ziyad killed Muslim bin Agail. While Ibn al-Zubayr would stay in Mecca until his death, Husayn decided to travel on to Kufa with his family, unaware of the lack of support there. Husayn and his family were intercepted by Yazid I's forces led by Amru bin Saad, Shamar bin Thi Al-Joshan, and Hussain bin Tamim, who fought Al-Husayn and his male family members until they were killed. There were 200 people in Husayn's caravan, many of whom were women, including his sisters, wives, daughters and their children. The women and children from Husayn's camp were taken as prisoners of war and led back to Damascus to be presented to Yazid I. They remained imprisoned until public opinion turned against him as word of Husayn's death and his family's capture spread. They were then granted passage back to Medina. The sole adult male survivor from the caravan was Ali ibn Husayn who was with fever too ill to fight when the caravan was attacked.[46]

Following the death of Husayn, Ibn al-Zubayr, although remaining in Mecca, was associated with two opposition movements, one centered in Medina and the other around Kharijites in Basra and Arabia. Because Medina had been home to Muhammad and his family, including Husayn, word of his death and the imprisonment of his family led to a large opposition movement. In 683, Yazid dispatched an army to subdue both movements. The army suppressed the Medinese opposition at the Battle of al-Harrah. The Grand Mosque in Medina was severely damaged and widespread pillaging caused deep-seated dissent. Yazid's army continued on and laid siege to Mecca. At some point during the siege, the Kaaba was badly damaged in a fire. The destruction of the Kaaba and Grand Mosque became a major cause for censure of the Umayyads in later histories of the period.

Yazid died while the siege was still in progress, and the Umayyad army returned to Damascus, leaving Ibn al-Zubayr in control of Mecca. Yazid's son Muawiya II (683–84) initially succeeded him but seems to have never been recognized as caliph outside of Syria. Two factions developed within Syria: the Confederation of Qays, who supported Ibn al-Zubayr, and the Quda'a, who supported Marwan, a descendant of Umayya via Wa'il ibn Umayyah. The partisans of Marwan triumphed at a battle at Marj Rahit, near Damascus, in 684, and Marwan became caliph shortly thereafter.

First Marwanids[edit]



Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem





Coin of the Umayyad Caliphate, based on a Sassanian prototype. Copper falus, Aleppo, Syria, circa 695.


Sulayman was succeeded by his cousin, Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz (717–20), whose position among the Umayyad caliphs is somewhat unique. He is the only Umayyad ruler to have been recognized by subsequent Islamic tradition as a genuine caliph (khalifa) and not merely as a worldly king (malik).



Hisham and the limits of military expansion[edit]


North gate of the city of Resafa, site of Hisham's palace and court.


Hisham suffered still worse defeats in the east, where his armies attempted to subdue both Tokharistan, with its center at Balkh, and Transoxiana, with its center at Samarkand. Both areas had already been partially conquered, but remained difficult to govern. Once again, a particular difficulty concerned the question of the conversion of non-Arabs, especially the Sogdians of Transoxiana. Following the Umayyad defeat in the "Day of Thirst" in 724, Ashras ibn 'Abd Allah al-Sulami, governor of Khurasan, promised tax relief to those Sogdians who converted to Islam, but went back on his offer when it proved too popular and threatened to reduce tax revenues. Discontent among the Khurasani Arabs rose sharply after the losses suffered in the Battle of the Defile in 731, and in 734, al-Harith ibn Surayj led a revolt that received broad backing from Arabs and natives alike, capturing Balkh but failing to take Merv. After this defeat, al-Harith's movement seems to have been dissolved, but the problem of the rights of non-Arab Muslims would continue to plague the Umayyads.

Third Fitna[edit]





Abbasid Revolution[edit]

Main article: Abbasid Revolution
The Caliphate at the beginning of the Abbasid revolt, before the Battle of the Zab.


Beginning around 719, Hashimiyya missions began to seek adherents in Khurasan. Their campaign was framed as one of proselytism (dawah). They sought support for a "member of the family" of Muhammad, without making explicit mention of the Abbasids. These missions met with success both among Arabs and non-Arabs (mawali), the word means "the used slaves" although the latter may have played a particularly important role in the growth of the movement.


The Great Mosque of Córdoba in Spain, built by Banu Umayya

The victors desecrated the tombs of the Umayyads in Syria, sparing only that of Umar II, and most of the remaining members of the Umayyad family were tracked down and killed. When Abbasids declared amnesty for members of the Umayyad family, eighty gathered to receive pardons, and all were massacred. One grandson of Hisham, Abd al-Rahman I, survived and established a kingdom in Al-Andalus (Moorish Iberia), proclaiming his family to be the Umayyad Caliphate revived.


Umayyad Administration[edit]

One of Muawiya's first tasks was to create a stable administration for the empire. He followed the main ideas of the Byzantine Empire which had ruled the same region previously, and had three main governmental branches: political and military affairs, tax collection, and religious administration. Each of these was further subdivided into more branches, offices, and departments.



Government workers[edit]



Coin of the Umayyad Caliphate, based on a Sassanian prototype, 695.
Golden coin of the Umayyad Caliphate, Iran

The Byzantine and Sassanid Empires relied on money economies before the Muslim conquest, and that system remained in effect during the Umayyad period. Pre-existing coins remained in use, but with phrases from the Quran stamped on them. In addition to this, the Umayyad government began to mint its own coins in Damascus (which were similar to pre-existing coins), the first coins minted by a Muslim government in history. Gold coins were called dinars while silver coins were called dirhams.[51]

Central diwans[edit]


Diwan al-Kharaj[edit]


Diwan al-Rasa'il[edit]


Diwan al-Khatam[edit]


Diwan al-Barid[edit]

Main article: Barid (caliphate)


Diwan al-Qudat[edit]

[citation needed]

In the early period of Islam, justice was administered by Muhammad and the orthodox Caliphs in person. After the expansion of the Islamic State, Umar al-Faruq had to separate judiciary from the general administration and appointed the first qadi in Egypt as early as 23H/643AD. After 661AD a series of judges succeeded one after another in Egypt under the Umayyad Caliphs, Hisham and Walid II.

Diwan al-Jund[edit]


Social Organization[edit]


The Umayyad Caliphate exhibited four main social classes:

  1. Muslim Arabs
  3. Non-Muslim free persons (Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians)
  4. Slaves




Non-Muslim groups in the Umayyad Caliphate, which included Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, and pagan Berbers, were called dhimmis. They were given a legally protected status as second-class citizens as long as they accepted and acknowledged the political supremacy of the ruling Muslims. They were allowed to have their own courts, and were given freedom of their religion within the empire. Although they could not hold the highest public offices in the empire, they had many bureaucratic positions within the government. Christians and Jews still continued to produce great theological thinkers within their communities, but as time wore on, many of the intellectuals converted to Islam, leading to a lack of great thinkers in the non-Muslim communities.[54]


Currently many Sunni scholars agree that Muawiyah's family, including his progenitors, Abu Sufyan ibn Harb and Hind bint Utbah, were originally opponents of Islam and particularly of Muhammad until the Conquest of Mecca.

However many early history books like the Islamic Conquest of Syria Fatuhusham by al-Imam al-Waqidi state that after the conversion to Islam Muawiyah's father Abu Sufyan ibn Harb and his brothers Yazid ibn Abi Sufyan were appointed as commanders in the Muslim armies by Muhammad. Muawiyah, Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, Yazid ibn Abi Sufyan and Hind bint Utbah [55][56][56][57][58][59] fought in the Battle of Yarmouk. The defeat of the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius at the Battle of Yarmouk opened the way for the Muslim expansion into Jerusalem and Syria.

In 639, Muawiyah was appointed as the governor of Syria by the second caliph Umar after his brother the previous governor Yazid ibn Abi Sufyan and the governor before him Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah died in a plague along with 25,000 other people.[60][61] 'Amr ibn al-'As was sent to take on the Roman Army in Egypt. Fearing an attack by the Romans, Umar asked Muawiyah to defend against a Roman attack.



The first real naval engagement between the Muslim and the Byzantine navy was the so-called Battle of the Masts (Dhat al-sawari) or battle of Phoenix off the Lycian coast in 655.[66] This resulted in the defeat of the Byzantine navy at the Battle of the Masts in 655, opening up the Mediterranean.[64][65][67][68][69][70][71]

Muawiyah came to power after the death of Ali and established a dynasty.

Historical significance[edit]



According to one common view, the Umayyads transformed the caliphate from a religious institution (during the rashidun) to a dynastic one.[73] However, the Umayyad caliphs do seem to have understood themselves as the representatives of God on earth, and to have been responsible for the "definition and elaboration of God's ordinances, or in other words the definition or elaboration of Islamic law."[74]


Modern Arab nationalism regards the period of the Umayyads as part of the Arab Golden Age which it sought to emulate and restore.[dubious ] This is particularly true of Syrian nationalists and the present-day state of Syria, centered like that of the Umayyads on Damascus.[citation needed] White, one of the four Pan-Arab colors which appear in various combinations on the flags of most Arab countries, is considered as representing the Umayyads.[citation needed]

Theological opinions concerning the Umayyads[edit]

Sunni opinions[edit]




Early literature[edit]

The book Al Muwatta by Imam Malik's was written in the early Abbasid period in Madina. It does not contain any anti Umayyad content because it was more concerned with what the Quran and what Muhammad said and was not a history book on the Umayyads.

Even the earliest pro-Shia accounts of al-Masudi are more balanced. al-Masudi in Ibn Hisham is the earliest Shia account of Muawiyah and he recount that Muawiyah spent a great deal of time in prayer, in spite of the burden of managing a large empire.[79]


Books written in the early Abbasid period like al-baladhuri "The Origins of the Islamic State" provide a more accurate and balanced history. Ibn Hisham also wrote about these events.

Much of the anti Umayyad literature started to appear in the later Abbasid period in Persia.

After killing off most of the Umayyads and destroying the graves of the Umayyad rulers apart from Muawiyah and Umar Ibn Adbul Aziz, the history books written during the later Abbasid period are more anti Umayyad [80] The Abbasids justified their rule by saying that their ancestor Abd Allah ibn Abbas was a cousin of Muhammad.

The books written later in the Abbasid period in Iran are more anti Umayyad. Iran was Sunni at the time. There was much anti Arab feeling in Iran after the fall of the Persian empire.[81] This anti Arab feeling also influenced the books on Islamic history. Al-Tabri was also written in Iran during that period. Al-Tabri was a huge collection including all the text that he could find, from all the sources. It was a collection preserving everything for future generations to codify and for future generations to judge if it was true or false.

Shi'a opinions[edit]

The negative view of the Umayyads by Shias is briefly expressed in the Shi'a book "Sulh al-Hasan".[82][83] According to some sources Ali described them as the worst Fitna.[84]

Bahá'í standpoint[edit]

Asked for an explanation of the prophecies in the Book of Revelation (12:3), `Abdu'l-Bahá suggests in Some Answered Questions that the "great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads," refers to the Umayyad caliphs who "rose against the religion of Prophet Muhammad and against the reality of Ali".[85][86]


List of Umayyad Caliphs[edit]

Caliph Reign
Caliphs of Damascus
Muawiya I ibn Abu Sufyan 661–680
Yazid I ibn Muawiyah 680–683
Muawiya II ibn Yazid 683–684
Marwan I ibn al-Hakam 684–685
Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan 685–705
al-Walid I ibn Abd al-Malik 705–715
Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik 715–717
Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz 717–720
Yazid II ibn Abd al-Malik 720–724
Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik 724–743
al-Walid II ibn Yazid 743–744
Yazid III ibn al-Walid 744
Ibrahim ibn al-Walid 744
Marwan II ibn Muhammad (ruled from Harran in the Jazira) 744–750
Emirs of Cordoba
Abd al-Rahman I 756–788
Hisham I 788–796
al-Hakam I 796–822
Abd ar-Rahman II 822–852
Muhammad I 852–886
Al-Mundhir 886–888
Abdallah ibn Muhammad 888–912
Abd ar-Rahman III 912–929
Caliphs of Cordoba
Abd ar-Rahman III, as caliph 929–961
Al-Hakam II 961–976
Hisham II 976–1008
Muhammad II 1008–1009
Sulayman ibn al-Hakam 1009–1010
Hisham II, restored 1010–1012
Sulayman ibn al-Hakam, restored 1012–1017
Abd ar-Rahman IV 1021–1022
Abd ar-Rahman V 1022–1023
Muhammad III 1023–1024
Hisham III 1027–1031

See also[edit]


  1. ^ "The Umayyads ruled for ninety years, taking white as their symbolic color as a reminder of the Prophet's first battle at Badr, and to distinguish themselves from the Abbasids, by using white, rather than black, as their color of mourning." Abdul Hadi, Evolution of the Arab Flag, 1986. "With its white flag, the Chinese Tang Dynasty referred to it [the Umayyad Dynasty] in historical literature as ' Baiyi Dashi,' the 'White Garment Calips.'" Li Qingxin, Maritime Silk Road, trans. W. W. Wang (2006), p. 47.
  2. ^ The Peoples, Sekene Mody Cissoko, History of Humanity:From the Seventh to the Sixteenth Century, Vol. IV, ed. M.A. Al-Bakhit, L. Bazin and S.M. Cissoko, (UNESCO, 2008), 1190.[1]
  3. ^ Jonathan Miran, Red Sea Citizens: Cosmopolitan Society and Cultural Change in Massawa, (Indiana University Press, 2009), 100.[2]
  4. ^ Khalid Yahya Blankinship, The End of the Jihad State: The Reign of Hisham Ibn 'Abd al-Malik and the Collapse of the Umayyads, (SUNY Press, 1994), 286.[3]
  5. ^ Khalid Yahya Blankinship, The End of the Jihad State: The Reign of Hisham Ibn 'Abd al-Malik and the Collapse of the Umayyads, 147.[4]
  6. ^ Stefan Goodwin, Africas Legacies Of Urbanization: Unfolding Saga of a Continent, (Rowman & Littlefield, 2006), 85.[5]
  7. ^ Islam in Somali History:Fact and Fiction, Mohamed Haji Muktar, The Invention of Somalia, ed. Ali Jimale Ahmed, (The Red Sea Press, Inc., 1995), 3.[6]
  8. ^ Blankinship, Khalid Yahya (1994), The End of the Jihad State, the Reign of Hisham Ibn 'Abd-al Malik and the collapse of the Umayyads, State University of New York Press, p. 37, ISBN 0-7914-1827-8 
  10. ^ Middle East, Western Asia, and Northern Africa By Ali Aldosari Page 185 [7]
  11. ^ The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States By Michael Haag Chapter 3 Palestine under the Umayyads and the Arab Tribe [8]
  12. ^ "Muslim Congress". Retrieved 2008-06-30. 
  13. ^ History of Prophets and Kings by Al Tabari Vol 18
  14. ^ Sunan Abu Dawud: Book 14, Number 2659
  15. ^ Ibn Ishaq (1955) 380—388, cited in Peters (1994) p. 218
  16. ^ Watt (1956), p. 66
  17. ^ Ibn Taymiya, in his A Great Compilation of Fatwa
  18. ^ Ibn Kathir: Al-Bidayah wal-Nihayah, Volume 8 page 164
  20. ^ Rahman (1999, p. 40)
  21. ^ European Naval and Maritime History, 300-1500 By Archibald Ross Lewis, Timothy J. Runyan Page 24 [9]
  22. ^ Leonard Michael Kroll, History of the Jihad, p.123
  24. ^ Prophets and Princes: Saudi Arabia from Muhammad to the Present By Mark Weston Page 61 [10]
  25. ^ p.11
  27. ^ Islam For Dummies By Malcolm Clark Page
  28. ^ Spiritual Clarity By Jackie Wellman Page 51
  29. ^ The Koran For Dummies By Sohaib Sultan Page
  30. ^ Quran: The Surah Al-Nisa, Ch4:v2
  31. ^ Quran: Surat Al-Hujurat [49:13]
  32. ^ Quran: Surat An-Nisa' [4:1]
  34. ^ Arab Socialism. [al-Ishtirakiyah Al-?Arabiyah]: A Documentary Survey By Sami A. Hanna, George H. Gardner Page 271 [11]
  35. ^ Arab Socialism. [al-Ishtirakiyah Al-Arabiyah]: A Documentary Survey By Sami A. Hanna, George H. Gardner Page 271 [12]
  36. ^ Men Around the Messenger By Khalid Muhammad Khalid, Muhammad Khali Khalid Page 117 [13]
  37. ^ The Cambridge History of Islam:, Volume 2 edited by P. M. Holt, Ann K. S. Lambton, Bernard Lewis Page 605 [14]
  38. ^ The Early Caliphate By Maulana Muhammad Ali
  39. ^ Rahman (1999, p. 53)
  41. ^ The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate By Wilferd Madelung Page 232 [15]
  42. ^ Sahih Al Bukhari Volume 3, Book 49 (Peacemaking), Number 867
  43. ^ Holt (1977a, pp. 67–72)
  44. ^ Sahih Al Bukhari Volume 6, Book 60, Number 352
  46. ^ Kitab Al-Irshad by Historian Sheikh Mufid
  47. ^ The Cambridge Shorter History of India p.131-132
  50. ^ Previté-Orton (1971), vol. 1, pg. 239
  51. ^ a b c Ochsenwald, William (2004). The Middle East, A History. McGraw Hill. p. 57. ISBN 0-07-244233-6. 
  53. ^ Ochsenwald, William (2004). The Middle East, A History. McGraw Hill. pp. 55–56. ISBN 0-07-244233-6. 
  54. ^ Ochsenwald, William (2004). The Middle East, A History. McGraw Hill. p. 56. ISBN 0-07-244233-6. 
  55. ^ Islamic Conquest of Syria A translation of Fatuhusham by al-Imam al-Waqidi Translated by Mawlana Sulayman al-Kindi Page 325 [16] Archived October 12, 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  56. ^ a b al-Baladhuri 892 [19] Medieval Sourcebook: Al-Baladhuri: The Battle Of The Yarmuk (636) Archived October 11, 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  57. ^ Islamic Conquest of Syria A translation of Fatuhusham by al-Imam al-Waqidi Translated by Mawlana Sulayman al-Kindi Page 331 to 334 [17] Archived October 12, 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  58. ^ Islamic Conquest of Syria A translation of Fatuhusham by al-Imam al-Waqidi Translated by Mawlana Sulayman al-Kindi Page 343-344 [18] Archived October 12, 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  62. ^ Encyclopedia of Islam Volume VII, page 265, By Bosworth
  65. ^ a b c The Great Arab Conquests By Hugh Kennedy, page 326
  66. ^ The Great Arab Conquests By Hugh Kennedy, page 327
  73. ^ a b Previté-Orton (1971), pg 236
  76. ^ A Companion to the History of the Middle East edited by Youssef M. Choueiri, Page 48 [19]
  77. ^ Student Resources, Chapter 12: The First Global Civilization: The Rise and Spread of Islam, The Arab Empire of the Umayyads - Converts and "People of the Book"
  79. ^ Muawiya Restorer of the Muslim Faith By Aisha Bewley Page 41
  82. ^ Sulh al-Hasan
  83. ^ [20] Chapter 24
  84. ^ Sermon 92
  85. ^ `Abdu'l-Bahá (1990) [1908]. Some Answered Questions. Wilmette, Illinois: Bahá'í Publishing Trust,. p. 69. ISBN 0-87743-190-6. 
  86. ^ `Abdu'l-Bahá (1990) [1908]. Some Answered Questions. Wilmette, Illinois: Bahá'í Publishing Trust,. p. 51. ISBN 0-87743-190-6. 

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]