First Fitna

First Fitna
Part of the Islamic Civil Wars
Region under the control of the Rashidun (Ali ibn Abi Talib)   Region under the control of Muawiyah I   Region under the control of Amr ibn al-As
Date 656 – 661 Location Arabian peninsula Result Rebellion successful, peace treaty signed; Muawiya I begins the Umayyad dynasty
Belligerents
Rashidun Caliphate (Kharijites)[a]	Aisha's forces Muawiya's forces Other rebellions (Kharijites)[a]
Commanders and leaders
Ali ibn Abi Talib Malik al-Ashtar	Aisha bint Abu Bakr Talha ibn Ubayd-Allah Zubair ibn al-Awam Muawiya I 'Amr ibn al-'As[b]
The Kharijites were a portion of Ali's supporters that defected and later opposed both parties. 'Amr ibn al-'As was originally a supporter of Ali, but subsequently sided with Muawiya.

The First Islamic Civil War (656–661), also called the First Fitna (Arabic: فتنة مقتل عثمان; Transliteration: Fitnat Maqtal Uthmān "The Fitna of the killing of Uthman"), was the first major civil war within the Islamic Caliphate. It arose as a result of the death of the previous Caliph Uthman.

The Fitna began as a series of revolts fought against first Imam and fourth and final of the Sunni Rightly Guided Caliphs Ali ibn Abi Talib, caused by the controversial assassination of his predecessor, Uthman Ibn Affan. It lasted for the entirety of Ali's reign, and its end is marked by Muawiyah's assumption of the caliphate (founding the Umayyad dynasty), and the subsequent recorded peace treaty between him and Hassan ibn Ali.

Background

Main article: Siege of Uthman

Uthman was besieged in his house by rebels and rioters, culminating in his assassination in July 656. Main reason for their dissatisfaction with Uthman was, his appointing family members as governors in key Islamic provinces. Ali ibn Abi Talib was then chosen by public as fourth Caliph (see Ali#Election as Caliph).

Battle of Bassorah

Main article: Battle of Bassorah

Ali was first opposed by a faction led by Talhah, Al-Zubayr and Muhammad's wife, Aisha bint Abu Bakr. First they gathered in Mecca then moved to Basra with the expectation of finding the necessary forces and resources to mobilize people in what is now Iraq. The opposers encamped close to Basra, and the subsequent heated exchange & protests during the parley turned from words to blows, leading to loss of life on both sides. When Ali asked them for obedience and a pledge of allegiance, they refused. The two parties met at the Battle of Bassorah (Battle of the Camel) in 656, where Ali emerged victorious.

Battle of Siffin

Main article: Battle of Siffin

Later Ali was challenged by Muawiyah I, the governor of Levant and the cousin of Uthman, who refused Ali's demands for allegiance and called for revenge for Uthman. Ali opened negotiations with him with the hope of regaining his allegiance but Muawiyah insisted on Levant autonomy under his rule. Muawiyah replied by mobilizing his Levantine supporters and refusing to pay homage to Ali on the pretext that his contingent had not participated in his election. The two armies encamped themselves at Siffin for more than one hundred days, most of the time being spent in negotiations. Although Ali exchanged several letters with Muawiyah, he was unable to dismiss the latter, nor persuade him to pledge allegiance. Skirmishes between the parties led to the Battle of Siffin in 657. After a week of combat was followed by a violent battle known as laylat al-harir (the night of clamor) the Muawiyah's army were on the point of being routed when Amr ibn al-Aas advised Muawiyah to have his soldiers hoist mushaf (thin parchments inscribed with verses of the Qur'an) on their spearheads in order to cause disagreement and confusion in Ali's army.

Arbitration

The two armies finally agreed to settle the matter of who should be Caliph by arbitration. The refusal of the largest bloc in Ali's army to fight was the decisive factor in his acceptance of the arbitration. The question as to whether the arbiter would represent Ali or the Kufans caused a further split in Ali's army. Ash'ath ibn Qays and some others rejected Ali's nominees, `Abd Allah ibn `Abbas and Malik al-Ashtar, and insisted on Abu Musa Ash'ari, who was opposed by Ali, since he had earlier prevented people from supporting him. Finally Ali was forced to accept Abu Musa.

Battle of Nahrawan

Main article: Battle of Nahrawan

Kharijites (schismatics), who initially had forced Ali to accept Abu Musa Ashari's arbitration were left bemused when the arbitration resulted in the Abu Musa being tricked by Amr bin Aas and Amr propagated from the Arbitration pulpit his support to the Caliphate of Muawiya. The Kharijites (or Khwarij), having seen the arbitration not gone in their favour turned rebellious toward Ali and argued Ali's decision to give in to their own demand for arbitration. Their rebellion turned bloody when they started killing Ali's followers and when they killed the pregnant wife of one of Ali's supporters and tore the mother's womb to bring out and kill the unborn child. Not compromising on their open enmity, Ali had to fight with them in the Battle of Nahrawan.^{[citation needed]}

Before the Battle of Nahrawan, Ali had prepared to attack Muawiya but after this battle expedition to Syria was abandoned.^{[citation needed]}

Loss of All Provinces Except Kufa

Muawiyah's army invaded and occupied cities, which Ali's governors couldn't prevent and people didn't support him to fight with them. Muawiyah overpowered Egypt, Yemen and other areas.

Last days of Ali

On the nineteenth of Ramadan, while Ali was praying in the mosque of Kufa, the Kharijite Abd-al-Rahman ibn Muljam assassinated him with a strike of his poison-coated sword. Ali, wounded by the poisonous sword, lived for two days and died on the 21st of Ramadan in the city of Kufa in 661 A.D.

Hasan caliphate

Upon the death of Ali ibn Abi Talib, Kufi Muslims pledged allegiance to his eldest son Hasan without dispute.

References

• Ali ibn Abi Talib (1984). Nahj al-Balagha (Peak of Eloquence), compiled by ash-Sharif ar-Radi. Alhoda UK. ISBN 0940368439. 
• Holt, P. M.; Bernard Lewis (1977). Cambridge History of Islam, Vol. 1. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521291364. 
• Lapidus, Ira (2002). A History of Islamic Societies (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521779333. 
• Madelung, Wilferd (1997). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521646960. 
• Tabatabae, Sayyid Mohammad Hosayn; Seyyed Hossein Nasr (translator) (1979). Shi'ite Islam. Suny press. ISBN 0-87395-272-3. 

Encyclopedia

• Encyclopædia Iranica. Center for Iranian Studies, Columbia University. ISBN 1568590504.