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Abu Bakr as the First Caliph

 Appointment/Election
 The Apostasy Movement:
 Ridda Wars and Refusal to Pay Zakat
 False Prophets
 Expeditions to the Byzantine Empire
 First Expedition to Syria
 Second Expedition to Syria and the Battle of Ajnadayn
 Expeditions to the Persian Empire
 Administration
 Death

Appointment:
 On his deathbed, the Holy Prophet had not set a successor to the Islamic
empire, instead leaving this choice to his Ummah 
 Thus, to elect the next executive and spiritual head, many prominent
Muslims met at Saqifah-e-Bani Saidah
 Upon hearing about this, Abu Bakr departed for there with Hazrat Umar
and Ubaidah
 Arguments for Caliphate:
 There, the Muhajireen argued that, as the Prophet was from the tribe of
Quraish, they reserved the right to appoint the next successor from among
them
 It would also be easier for the common people to accept being ruled by a
Prophet’s family member
 On the other hand, the Ansaar listed their various sacrifices for Islam, due
to which they felt that they deserved the gift of Caliphate
 Khabab bin Mundhar even suggested that there should be two ‘Ameers’
 Coming to a decision:
 The suggestion of two Ameers was struck down by Hazrat Umar, who
realized that conflicting views in the administration would break the unity
of the Muslim Ummah
 Upon hearing this, Bashir bin Naumab, a prominent Ansaar, gave up his
demand of the Caliphate being Ansaar
 He did not want any dispute to arise between the members of the Muslim
Ummah, instead backing down on his ideas for the greater good
 The Ansaars should stay helpers, not leaders, as they were during the time
of the Prophet 
 Now that the Ansaars had relinquished their demands, Abu Bakr put forth
two candidates for the Caliphate: Hazrat Ubaidah bin Jarrah and Umar
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 They both refused, not seeing themselves as worthy of the responsibility,

and also believing themselves ulterior to Abu Bakr, the Prophet’s greatest
friend
 Eventually, Hazrat Zaid gave his preference for Abu Bakr to be the Caliph,
following which he was given the title of “Khalifa-tul-Rusul-Allah”
(successor of the messenger of Allah). He was a worthy choice as:
 He was the closest companion to the Prophet and also one of his closest
aides in difficult times
 He was the first male to accept Islam 
 He helped convert many early prominent Muslims
 He accompanied the Prophet during migration and was with him during
the stressful events in Cave Thaur 
 When the Prophet was ill or away, he was appointed the Imam
 He was appointed the chief of the Hajj caravan
 He was esteemed in the Quraish
 Upon taking up the caliphate, he gave an excellent speech which reflected
his humility and reminded them that he would not supersede the supreme
Allah and the Prophet

The Apostasy Movement: 

Ridda Wars and the Refusal to Pay Zakat:
Ridda Wars:
 The tribal unrest during the Prophet’s life reached its peak when he was no
longer around to quell it after his demise
 They openly rebelled against Islam, refusing to pay Zakat, accept the
Caliphate, and allying with the false Prophets
 These movements cropped up all over the Arabian Peninsula in 11 AH
 To the North, in Daumat al Jandal and Tabuk
 To the East, in Yamamh and Hijaz
 To the South, in Hadhramaut and Yemen
 To the East coast, in Bahrain and Oman
 In Central Arabia, in Butah and Buzakha
 Close to Madina, in Dhu Qissa
 In fact, the only few safe places were Makkah, Madinah, and Taif
 Even though the Shura believed that they should not be confronted in
order to prevent weakening and division in the Ummah, Abu Bakr took the
hard line to prevent this movement from becoming unstoppable
 The Muslim army was divided into 11 battalions to combat this. Each was
sent to a respective part of Arabia with clear instructions
 When they approached their target, they were to call Azaan and ask the
tribe to confirm their submission to Islam and payment of Zakat. If this
was answered positively, they were not to be attacked
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 All apostates who killed Muslims were to be killed 

 A battalion under the command of Ala bin Hadrami defeated Bahrani and
killed their leader, Hatim 
 Other places, such as Oman and Mahran, were defeated too, after which
the country-wide uprising was quelled 

Refusal to Pay Zakat:

 Many tribes did not join Islam sincerely
 Instead, seeing the booty Islam was gaining and fearing its power, they
joined its alliance for material instead of spiritual purposes
 Upon hearing about the preoccupation of the Muslism battalions, many
tribes, such as the Banu Asad, Ghatafan, Abbas, and Murrah, raised their
opposition to paying Zakat
 They proclaimed that they would only renew their terms with the Caliph if
they were exempted from paying Zakat 
 Again, the Shura advised not to oppose this, this time because the Muslim
army was already very busy in the Ridda wars
 Again, Abu Bakr took the hard line, saying that he would take action
against those who didn’t pay even a single goat of Zakat
 Due to this, the aforementioned tribes decided to leave Islam and attack
Madinah at night
 Abu Bakr took them by surprise and defeated them, causing many to flee
and many to offer their allegiance to Islam again 
False Prophets:
Al-Aswad Al-’Ansi:
 He was the leader of the Yemeni ‘Ans tribe
 Due to his dark complexion, he was known as al-Aswad (the black man)
 Due to the veil he wore on his face to create an aura of mystery around
himself, he was known as the veiled Prophet
 He declared his Prophet hood during the later years of the Prophet’s life
 In order to convince others of the divine inspiration he had received, he
used tricks as false miracles
 He amassed a large army and invaded and captured Najran and most of
Yemen
 In response, the Prophet sent an expedition led by Firuz-al-Dhalaymi, a
Persian Muslim, who defeated and killed him
 Upon the news of the Prophet’s demise reaching his followers regrouped
and revolted under the leadership of Qais ibn ‘Abd Yaghus
 They were defeated by the same commander, Firuz, following which they
surrendered

Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid:

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 He was the leader of the Bani Asad and extremely wealthy and a good
warrior
 Initially, he opposed Islam, but converted in 630 AD. 
 However, he proclaimed himself a Prophet during the later years of the
Prophet’s life, but the Prophet died before he could take action
 In the meantime, he gained quite a large following 
 Khalid bin Walid was sent to quell this rebellion, and defeated Tulayha at
the Battle of Buzakha
 Tulayha himself escaped to Syria while many of his supporters surrendered
 When Syria was conquered by Islam, he once again converted and fought
in the Muslim army in the battles of Jalula, Qadissiyah, and Nihawand 

Sajjah Bint-Al-Harith:
 Sajjah was a Christian soothsayer from Bani Taghlb
 After the Prophet’s death, she took advantage of the rejection of Islam by
her tribesmen to declare herself a Prophetess
 She amassed a following of 4000 and marched towards Madinah, but heard
of Tulayha’s defeat along the way and changed her intentions 
 Instead, she sent a letter to Musailmah, elaborating her fear. 
 She was summoned to Yamamh, where she married Musailmah and
accepted his Prophethood
 When her husband was defeated and killed in the Battle of Yamamh, she
returned to her people and lived a quiet life
 When the Muslims conquered Iraq, she again accepted Islam

Musailmah and the Battle of Yamamah:

 Musailmah was from the powerful tribe of Banu Hanifa and was extremely
wealthy and influential
 During the Prophet’s life, he visited him and observed how he would
receive revelations and the sensations he would receive during them 
 He copied this and even parodied verses of the Quran and invented some of
his own to convince others of his Prophet hood. This was successful – he
gained a following of 40,000
 Other reasons for his many converts was the fact that he made permissible
what was forbidden in Islam, appealing to the animalistic desires of his
surrenders
 During the Prophet’s life, he wrote Muhammad (PBUH) a letter, declaring
his Prophet hood and asking for the division of Arabia
 The Prophet declared him “al-Kazzab” (a liar) 
 He only revolted after the Prophet’s death against Abu Bakr, which
resulted in the Battle of Yamamh 
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 His 40,000 men encamped at Yamamah. In order to defeat them, Ikramah

and Shuhrbeel bin Hasanah were sent with two armies from different
directions with orders not to launch their combined attack until they had
met 
 However, this was disobeyed – Ikramah reached first and attacked alone,
due to which he was defeated. Following this, the lone army of Shurhbeel
was defeated, too
 Following this, Khalid bin Walid was sent, which a force of 13,000, to
attack Musailmah at Yamamh
 It resulted in a long and drawn out battle due to the harsh resistance of
Musailmah’s army 
 Eventually, it was decided when a few soldiers were sent to attack his
camp, following which Wahshii killed Musailmah
 As this battle took place in a fortified garden and a lot of bloodshed
occurred (800 Muslims were martyred, 360 of which were companions and
72 of which were Huffaz), it came to be known as ‘Battle of the Garden of
Death’

Expeditions to the Byzantine Empire:

 Syria was a part of the Byzantine Empire
First Expedition to Syria:
Reasons for Sending:
 This rivalry dating back to 8 AH and the Battle of Moutah, which was
initiated due to the killing of an ambassador
 Its result was undecided due to the excellent tactical retreat of the Muslim
army
 In order to clarify it, the Prophet had planned to send out a second army,
but this was interrupted by his demise
 After achieving power, Abu Bakr decided to finish what had been started 

Opposition:
 Many companions believed the army should not be sent as it was needed in
Madinah, where the apostates were about to invade
 They also presented dissatisfaction at the Prophet’s appointed General,
Hazrat Usamah, who they believed was too young 
 Hazrat Abu Bakr did not change his decision, however, not wanting to go
against the Prophet

Result:
 Usama left for Syria 3 weeks after the Prophet’s demise
 After 40 days, he returned victoriously
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  This battle was crucial in establishing Abu Bakr’s belief in the Prophet 
 It also showed his firmness

Second Expedition to Syria and the Battle of Ajnadayn:

 Four armies were sent led by Abu Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah, Amrs ibn al-A’s,
Yazid ibn Abu Sufyan, and Shurahbil in al-Hassanah with a total force of
27,000 to Syria 
 They were largely succesful, but when Heraclius heard about this, he
dispatched a large army led by his brother, Theodorus
 When Abu Bakr heard of this, he ordered Khalid bin Walid, who was
leading a campaign in Iraq, to become commander of the Syrian forces
 In 18 days he and 9000 of his best men marched to Syria, where he met
with the other Muslim battalions
 They fought the Byzantine army at Ajnadayn, which was a decisive victory
for the Muslims despite the fact that the Byzantine army was larger and
better equipped 
 Following this, they laid siege to Damascus, but this was interrupted by
Abu Bakr’s death
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Expeditions to the Persian Empire:
Reasons:
 The tribes on the borders were aggressing against the Muslims
 They had blocked trade with Syria
 Chosroe’s rejection of the Muslim letter 

Build-up:
 Musannid was sent to Iraq, where he was successful and gained a large
amount of booty
 Then, since the Muslims had an underlying fear of the Persian army,
Khalid bin Walid, a legendary commander, was ordered to assist
Musannah after defeating Musailmah.
 He set out for there with 10,000 men after defeating Musailmah

Battle of Kazima:
 The first major battle between the Persian and Muslims occurred at
Kizima
 The Muslim army was led by Khalid bin Walid while the Persians were led
by Hurmuz
 Before the battle, they were offered peace if they converted to Islam or
agreed to pay Jizya and repent 
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 Before the battle, Hurmuz challenged Khalid bin Walid to single combat,
during which Hurmuz was slain
 This caused the Persian army to fall into disarray, due to which they fled
 As one battalion chained themselves together to prevent fleeing, this battle
is known asd “The Battle of Chains”
 Muslims gained plenty of booty and Prisoners of Wars during this battle

Other Battles:
 There were also smaller clashes at places like Mazar, Walja and Ullis
 At Mazar, the Persian army, led by Qiran, was defeated by Khalid’s harsh
attack which resulted in 30,000 Persian deaths 
 At Walaja, after a fierce battle, the Persians fled
 To get revenge, the Christian members of the Banu Bakr tribe started
preparations to fight Muslims at Ulais, but they were defeated before they
could get aid from the Persians
 The provincial capital, Hira, was a famous port near the River Euphrates
 It was laid siege to, after which they surrendered and paid Jizya
 After this, the Muslim army marched towards Anvarm an important
outposts
 It was a fort surrounded by a deep trench which was defended by many
archers. In order to cross it, weaker camels were slaughtered and used as a
bridge to cross over and defeat Anbar
 Then, he aided Ayaz bin Ghanam to defeat Dumat-ut Jandal
 Following this, he marched towards Firaz, a border city
 There, he defeated the combined forces of the Persians, Romans, and
Christian Arabs. Finally, the Iraqi campaigns had ended

Administration:
Provincial Administration:

 The Arabian peninsula was divided into 10 provinces, with Medina being
the capital
 Each province had a Waali who was in charge of:
 Leading prayers
 Commanding the army
 Collecting taxes
 Maintaining law and order
 Administering justice
 They were appointed on the basis of merit and were not allowed to go
against their rules
 They were aided by an Aamil, who collected revenue, and Qazi (judge)
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Democracy:
 Every decision was made in consultation with the Shura, which consisted of
prominent companions

Bait ul Maal:
 There was no department for finance as the Bait ul Maal fulfilled its role 
 The revenue collected by the Aamils via taxes such as Zakat and Jizya was
sent there
 Some was retained for the purchase of weapons and horses while the rest
was distributed amongst the poor and needy

Military:
 It was divided into different corps with separate commanders
 All the commanders were to report to the commander-in-chief
 These commanders had 13 few special instructions, including fear of Allah,
treating men long, being exemplary, how the nature of commands should
be, and how their conduct should be
 The troops were instructed:
 Not to kill women, children, the elderly, and the pious
 Not to be cruel
 Not to destroy crops and fruit bearing trees
 Not to destroy places of worship
 Protect those who paid Jizya

Preservation of the Quran:

 See document about the Quran

Death:
 On the 7th of Jamdi-us-Sani, Abu Bakr became ill with a severe fever
 It caused his demise on the 22nd of Jamadi-us-Sani, 13AH, when he was 63
– 2 years after he had become the Caliph
 He was buried next to the Holy Prophet and Masjid-e-Nabwi
Titles:
Al-Siddique:
 After Shab-e-Miraj, he confirmed the events that the Prophet had narrated
as true, earning himself the title of (Testifier of the Truth)

Savior of Islam:
 He prevented the breakup of the Muslim Ummah due to the false Prophets
and apostates
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 He protected Islam against outside enemies

 He protected the sanctity of Islamic compulsions such as Zakat
 He compiled the Quran