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{{Infobox Former Country
|native_name            = الخلافة الراشدة
|conventional_long_name = Rashidun Caliphate
|common_name            = Rashidun
|continent              = Afroasia
|region                 = Middle East
|status                 = CaliphatEmpire
|government_type        = Caliphate
|event_start            =
|year_start             = June  08, 632 A.D 632
|event_end              =
|year_end               = Jul  28, 661 A.D 661
|
|p1                     = Muhammad in Medina
|flag_p1                = Madina old.jpg
|p2                     = Byzantine Empire
|flag_p2                = LocationByzantineEmpire 550.png
|image_p2               = [[File:LocationByzantineEmpire 550.png|30px|Byzantine Empire]]
|p3                     = Egypt (Roman Province)
|flag_p3                = RomanEmpire117 Aegyptus.svg
|p4                     = Sassanid Empire
|flag_p34                = Sassanid empire map.png
|image_p34               = [[File:Sassanid empire map.png|30px|Sassanid Empire]]
|s1                     = Umayyad Caliphate
|flag_s1                = Umayyad Flag.svg
|image_flag             = Black flag.svg
|flag_type              = [[Islamic flags|Flag]]
|image_map              = Mohammad adil-Rashidun-empire-at-its-peak-close.PNG⏎
|
|image_map              = Rashidun654wVassal.png
|image_map_caption      = The Rashidun Empire reached its greatest extent under Caliph Uthman, in 654Caliphate (dark green) at its peak in 654, including its vassal states (light green).
|
|capital                = [[Medina]] (632–656)<br />[[Kufa]] (656–661), [[Kufa]]
|common_languages       = [[Arabic language|Arabic]], [[Aramaic]]/[[Syriac]], [[Armenian language|Armenian]], [[Berber language|Berber]], [[Coptic language|Coptics]], [[Georgian language|Georgian]], [[Greek language|Greek]], [[Hebrew]], [[Turkish language|Turkish]], [[Middle Persian]], [[Kurdish language|Kurdish]]
|religion               = [[Sunni Islam]]
|currency               = [[Dinar]], [[Dirham]]
|
|title_leader           = [[Amir al-Mu'minin]]¹
|leader1                = Abu Bakr
|year_leader1           =  632–634
|leader2                = Umar
|year_leader2           =  634–644
|leader3                = [[Uthman  _ibn  _Affan|Uthman]]
|year_leader3           =  644–656
|leader4                = Ali
|year_leader4           =  656–661
|
|stat_year1             =
|stat_area1             = 9000000
|stat_pop1              = 40300000
|footnotes              = ¹ [[Amir al-Mu'minin]] (أمير المؤمنين), [[Caliph]] (خليفة)
|today = {{Collapsible list
|title = 310 countries
|1 =          {{flag|Afghanistan}}
|2 =          {{flag|Armenia}}
|3 =          {{flag|Azerbaijan}}
|4 =          {{flag|Bahrain}}
|5 =          {{flag|Cyprus}}
|6 =          {{flag|Egypt}}
|7 =          {{flag|Georgia}}
|8 =          {{flag|Greece}}
|9 =          {{flag|Iran}}
|10 =          {{flag|Iraq}}
|11 =          {{flag|Israel}}
|12 =          {{flag|Italy}}
|13 =          {{flag|Jordan}}
|14 =          {{flag|Kuwait}}
|15 =          {{flag|Lebanon}}
|16 =          {{flag|Libya}}
|17 =          {{flag|Oman}}
|18 =          {{flag|Pakistan}}
|19 =          {{flagicon|Palestine}} [[Palestinian Authority]]
|20 =          {{flag|Qatar}}
|21 =          {{flag|Russia}}
|22 =          {{flag|Saudi Arabia}}
|23 =          {{flag|Sudan}}
|24 =          {{flag|Syria}}
|25 =          {{flag|Tajikistan}}
|26 =          {{flag|Tunisia}}
|27 =          {{flag|Turkey}}
|28 =          {{flag|Turkmenistan}}
|29 =          {{flag|United Arab Emirates}}
|30 =          {{flag|Uzbekistan}}
|31 =          {{flag|Yemen}}
}}
}}

{{History of the Arab States}}

The '''Rashidun Caliphate''' ({{lang-ar|الخلافة الراشدة}} ''al-khelaafah al-Raashedah''), (c. 632–661) is the collective term comprising the first four [[caliph]]s in [[Islam]]'s history and was founded after [[Muhammad]]'s death in 632 (Year 10 [[Hijri year|A.H.]] in the Islamic calendar). At its height, the [[Caliphate]] controlled a vast empire from the [[Arabian Peninsula]], the [[Levant]], to the [[Caucasus]] in the north, [[North Africa]] from [[Egypt]] to present day [[Tunisia]] in the west, and the [[Iranian plateau|Iranian highlands]] to [[Central Asia]] in the east.

==Origin==
{{Caliphate}}
{{See also|Succession to Muhammad}}
[[File:Mohammad adil-Rashidun empire-slide.gif|thumb|left|225px|Expansion of Rashidun Caliphate.]]
After Muhammad's death in 632, the [[Medina]]n [[Ansar (Islam)|Ansar]] debated which of them should succeed him in running the affairs of the [[Muslim]]s while Muhammad's household was busy with his burial. Umar (a [[Quraysh (tribe)|Quraish]]) and [[Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah]] pledged their loyalty to [[Abu Bakr]], with the Ansar and the QuraishCyprus}}
|5 =          {{flag|Egypt}}
|6 =          {{flag|Georgia}}
|7 =          {{flag|Greece}}
|8 =          {{flag|Iran}}
|9 =          {{flag|Iraq}}
|10 =          {{flag|Israel}}
|11 =          {{flag|Italy}}
|12 =          {{flag|Jordan}}
|13 =          {{flag|Kuwait}}
|14 =          {{flag|Lebanon}}
|15 =          {{flag|Libya}}
|16 =          {{flag|Oman}}
|17 =          {{flag|Pakistan}}
|18 =          {{flag|Palestine}}
|19 =          {{flag|Bahrain}}
|20 =          {{flag|Qatar}}
|21 =          {{flag|Russia}}
|22 =          {{flag|Saudi Arabia}}
|23 =          {{flag|Syria}}
|24 =          {{flag|Tunisia}}
|25 =          {{flag|Turkey}}
|26 =          {{flag|Turkmenistan}}
|27 =          {{flag|United Arab Emirates}}
|28 =          {{flag|Uzbekistan}}
|29 =          {{flag|Sudan}}
|30 =          {{flag|Yemen}}
}}
}}

{{History of the Arab States}}

The '''Rashidun Caliphate''' ({{lang-ar|الخلافة الراشدية}} ''al-khilafat ar-Rāshidīyah''), comprising the first four [[caliph]]s in [[Islam]]'s history, was founded after [[Muhammad]]'s death in [[632]], Year 10 [[Hijri year|A.H.]]. At its height, the [[Caliphate]] extended from the [[Arabian Peninsula]], to the [[Levant]], [[Caucasus]] and [[North Africa]] in the west, to the [[Iranian plateau|Iranian highlands]] and [[Central Asia]] in the east. It was the [[List of largest empires#All empires at their greatest extent|largest empire]] in history up until that time.<ref>Rein Taagepera (1979), "Size and Duration of Empires: Growth-Decline Curves, 600&nbsp;B.C. to 600 A.D.", ''Social Science History'', Vol. 3, 115-138</ref> It is also known as the '''Patriarchal Caliphate'''.

==Origin==
{{See also|Succession to Muhammad}}
[[File:Mohammad adil-Rashidun empire-slide.gif|thumb|left|225px|Expansion of Rashidun Caliphate.]]
After Muhammad's death in 632, the [[Medina]]n [[Ansar (Islam)|Ansar]] debated which of them should succeed him in running the affairs of the [[Muslim]]s while Muhammad's household was busy with his burial.  Umar (a Quraysh) and [[Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah]] pledged their loyalty to [[Abu Bakr]], with the Ansar and the [[Quraysh (tribe)|Quraish]] soon following suit. Abu Bakr thus became the first '''Khalifa Rasul Allah''' (''Successor of the Messenger of God''), and embarked on campaigns to propagate Islam. First, though, he would have to subdue the Arabian tribes which had gone back on their oaths of allegiance to Islam and the Islamic community. As a Khalifa or Caliph he was not a monarch and never claimed such a title nor did his three successors do so.

==History==
⏎
⏎
===Succession of Abu Bakr===
Abu Bakr was the oldest companion of Muhammad. When Muhammad died, Abu Bakr and Umar, the two companions, were in the Saqifa Bani Sada for the meeting among the Muslims on the selection of Muhammad's successor, while the family of Muhammad was busy in the funeral of the Prophet. Controversy among the Muslims emerged about whom to name as Caliph. The Ansar,considering themselves being the hosts and loyal companions of Prophet Muhammad, nominated Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah as their candidate for the Caliphate.<ref>http://www.taqawalife.com/2012/02/abu-ubaidah-bin-jarrah.html</ref> There was disagreement—in fact, violent disagreement—between the Meccan followers of Muhammad who had emigrated with him in 622 (the Muhajirun, or "Emigrants") and the Medinans who had become followers (the Ansar, or "Helpers"). In the end, however, Muhammad's father-in-law, Abu Bakr, was named the khalifa or "Successor" of Muhammad.<ref>http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Caliphate.html</ref> A new religion and a new circumstance had formed a new, untried political formation: the caliphate. . Troubles emerged soon after [[Abu Bakr]]'s succession, threatening the unity and stability of the new community and state. [[Apostasy]] had begun in the lifetime of Muhammad, and the first major action of the apostasy was fought and concluded while Muhammad still lived.

The first major event of the apostasy occurred in [[Yemen]] and is known as the Incident of Aswad Al Ansi,<ref>Balazuri: p. 113.</ref> who was killed on May 30, 632 (the 6th of Rabi-ul-Awwal, 11 Hijri) by a [[Persian language|Persian]] [[Muslim]] governor of [[Yemen]] named ''Firoz''.<ref>Tabari: Vol. 2, p. 467.</ref> The news of his assassination reached Medina shortly after the death of Muhammad. Most of the tribes that had taken to [[Islam]] converted in the ninth and tenth years of the [[Hijra year|Hijra]],. {{Citation needed|date=February 2010}}

The [[apostasy]] had become so general that it affected every [[tribe]] in [[Arabia]] with the exception of the people in [[Mecca]] and [[Medina]], the [[tribe]] of Thaqeef in [[Taif]], and the [[Azd]] of [[Oman]]. In some cases the entire tribe apostatised. Some withheld the ''[[zakat]]'', the alms tax, though they did not otherwise challenge Islam. Many tribal leaders made claims to prophethood; some, including [[Musaylima]], made it during the lifetime of Muhammad. The tribes claimed that they had submitted to Muhammad and that with Muhammad's death, their allegiance was ended. Abu Bakr insisted that they had not just submitted to a leader but joined the [[Muslim]] community, of which he was the new head. [[Apostasy]] is a capital offense under traditional interpretations of [[Sharia|Islamic law]], and Abu Bakr declared [[war]] on the rebels{{Citation needed|date=February 2010|reason=IS THIS A BACKWARDS IMPLICATION?? SEE TALK}}.

This was the start of the ''[[Ridda wars]]'' ([[Arabic language|Arabic]] for the Wars of Apostasy). The [[apostasy]] of central [[Arabia]] was led by self-proclaimed prophet [[Musaylima]], while the other centers of the rebels were to the south and east in [[Bahrain]], [[Mahra Sultanate|Mahra]] and [[Yemen]]. Abu Bakr planned his strategy accordingly. He divided the Muslim army into several corps. The strongest corps, and the primary force of the [[Muslim]]s, was the corps of [[Khalid ibn Walid]].  This corps was used to fight the most powerful of the rebel forces. Other corps were given areas of secondary importance in which to bring the less dangerous apostate tribes to submission. [[Abu Bakr]]'s plan was first to clear the area of [[West]] and  Central [[Arabia]] (the area nearest [[Madinah]]), then tackle [[Malik ibn Nuwayrah]], and finally concentrate against the most dangerous enemy - [[Musaylima]]. After series of successful campaigns [[Khalid ibn Walid]] finally defeated [[Musaylima]] in the [[Battle of Yamama]].<ref>Tabari: Vol. 2, p. 518</ref> The Campaign on the [[Apostasy]] was fought and completed during the eleventh year of the [[Islamic calendar|Hijri]]. The year 12 Hijri dawned, on March 18, 633, with [[Arabia]] united under the central authority of the [[Caliph]] at [[Madinah]]. According to the [[Sunni Muslim]]s, by putting down these larger insurrections and defeating the rival prophets among the [[Bedouin]] [[tribe]]s, Abu Bakr was able to solidify the rest of [[Arabia]] under [[Islam]], and helped rescue the Islamic state from collapse.{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}}

Once the rebellions had been put down, [[Abu Bakr]] began a [[war]] of conquest.{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}} Whether or not he intended a full-out imperial conquest is hard to say; he did, however, set in motion a historical trajectory that in just a few short decades would lead to one of the [[List of largest empires|largest empires in history]]. Abu Bakr began with [[Iraq]], the richest province of the [[Sassanid empire]]. He sent his most brilliant general [[Khalid ibn Walid]] to invade the [[Sassanid empire]] in 633.{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}} He thereafter also sent 4 armies to invade [[Roman Syria]], but the decisive operation was only undertaken when Khalid, after completing the conquest of Iraq, was transferred to the Syrian front in 634.{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}}

===Succession of Umar===
{{Umar}}
Despite the initial reservations of his advisers, [[Abu Bakr]] recognised military and political prowess in [[Umar]] and desired him to succeed as caliph. The decision was enshrined in his will, and on the death of Abu Bakr in 634, Umar was confirmed in office. The new caliph continued the [[Muslim conquest|war of conquests]] begun by his predecessor, pushing further into the [[Sassanid]] [[Muslim conquest of Persia|Persian Empire]], north into [[Muslim conquest of Syria|Byzantine]] territory, and west into [[Muslim conquest of Egypt|Egypt]]. It is an important fact to note that Umar never participated in any battle as a commander of Muslim Army throughout his life. He even did not kill a single person himself in any battle but never gave up and continued on expanding the Islamic state.{{citation needed|date=June 2012}}Troubles emerged soon after [[Abu Bakr]]'s succession, threatening the unity and stability of the new community and state. [[Apostasy]] had actually begun in the lifetime of  Muhammad, and the first major action of the apostasy was fought and satisfactorily concluded while Muhammad  still lived. But the real and most serious danger of apostasy arose after Muhammad's death, when a wild wave of disbelief-after-belief moved across [[Arabia]] and had to be tackled by Abu Bakr.

The first major event of the apostasy occurred in [[Yemen]] and is known as the Incident of Aswad Al Ansi,<ref>Balazuri: p. 113.</ref> who was killed on May 30, 632 (the 6th of Rabi-ul-Awwal, 11 Hijri) by a [[Persian language|Persian]] [[Muslim]] governor of [[Yemen]] named ''Firoz''.<ref>Tabari: Vol. 2, p. 467.</ref> The news of his assassination reached Medina shortly after the death of Muhammad. The chief cause of the apostasy was lack of firm Islamic faith. Most of the tribes, that had taken to [[Islam]], converted in the ninth and tenth years of the [[Hijra year|Hijra]],. {{Citation needed|date=February 2010}}

The [[apostasy]] had become so general that it affected every [[tribe]] in [[Arabia]] with the exception of the people in [[Mecca]] and [[Medina]] and the [[tribe]] of Thaqeef in [[Taif]]. In some cases the entire tribe apostatised. Some withheld the ''[[zakat]]'', the alms tax, though they did not otherwise challenge Islam. Many tribal leaders made claims to prophethood, some like [[Musaylima]] made it during the lifetime of Muhammad. The tribes claimed that they had submitted to Muhammad and that with Muhammad's  death, their allegiance was ended. Abu Bakr insisted that they had not just submitted to a leader but joined the [[Muslim]] community, of which he was the new head. [[Apostasy]] is a capital offense under traditional interpretations of [[Sharia|Islamic law]], and Abu Bakr declared [[war]] on the rebels{{Citation needed|date=February 2010|reason=IS THIS A BACKWARDS IMPLICATION?? SEE TALK}}.

This was the start of the ''[[Ridda wars]]'' ([[Arabic language|Arabic]] for the Wars of Apostasy). The [[apostasy]] of central [[Arabia]] was led by self-proclaimed prophet [[Musaylima]], while the other centers of the rebels were to the south and east in [[Bahrain]], [[Oman]], [[Mahra Sultanate|Mahra]] and [[Yemen]]. Abu Bakr planned his strategy accordingly. He divided the Muslim army into several corps. The strongest corps, and this was the primary force of the [[Muslim]]s, was the corps of [[Khalid ibn Walid]].  This corps was used to fight the most powerful of the rebel forces. Other corps were given areas of secondary importance in which to bring the less dangerous apostate tribes to submission. [[Abu Bakr]]'s plan was first to clear the area of [[West]] and  Central [[Arabia]] (the area nearest [[Madinah]]), then tackle [[Malik ibn Nuwayrah]], and finally concentrate against the most dangerous enemy - [[Musaylima]]. After series of successful campaigns [[Khalid ibn Walid]] finally defeated [[Musaylima]] in the [[Battle of Yamama]].<ref>Tabari: Vol. 2, p. 518</ref> The Campaign on the [[Apostasy]] was fought and completed during the eleventh year of the [[Islamic calendar|Hijri]]. The year 12 Hijri dawned, on March 18, 633, with [[Arabia]] united under the central authority of the [[Caliph]] at [[Madinah]]. According to the [[Sunni Muslim]]s, by putting down these larger insurrections and defeating the rival prophets among the [[Bedouin]] [[tribe]]s, Abu Bakr was able to solidify the rest of [[Arabia]] under [[Islam]], and basically rescue the Islamic state from collapse.{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}}

Once the rebellions had been put down, [[Abu Bakr]] began a [[war]] of conquest. Whether or not he intended a full-out imperial conquest is hard to say; he did, however, set in motion a historical trajectory that in just a few short decades would lead to one of the [[List of largest empires|largest empires in history]]. Abu Bakr began with [[Iraq]], the richest province of the [[Sassanid empire]]. He sent his most brilliant general [[Khalid ibn Walid]] to invade the [[Sassanid empire]] in 633. He thereafter also sent 4 armies to invade [[Roman Syria]], but decisive operation was only undertaken when Khalid, after completing the conquest of Iraq, was transferred to the Syrian front in 634.

===Succession of Umar===
{| class="wikitable" | align=right
|'''[[Abu Bakr]]'''
| valign="top" | 632
| valign="top" | 634
|-
| valign="top" | '''[[Umar]]'''
| valign="top" | 634
| valign="top" | 644
|-
| valign="top" | '''[[Uthman]]'''
| valign="top" | 644
| valign="top" | 656
|-
| valign="top" | '''[[Ali]]'''
| valign="top" | 656
| valign="top" | 661
|}
Despite the initial reservations of his advisers, [[Abu Bakr]] recognised military and political prowess in [[Umar]] and desired him to succeed as caliph. The decision was enshrined in his will, and on the death of Abu Bakr in 634, Umar was confirmed in office. The new caliph continued the [[Muslim conquest|war of conquests]] begun by his predecessor, pushing further into the [[Sassanid]] [[Muslim conquest of Persia|Persian Empire]], north into [[Muslim conquest of Syria|Byzantine]] territory, and west into [[Muslim conquest of Egypt|Egypt]]. These were regions of great wealth controlled by powerful states, but long internecine conflict between Byzantines and Sassanids had left both sides militarily exhausted, and the Islamic armies easily prevailed against them. By 640, they had brought all of [[Mesopotamia]], [[Syria]] and [[Palestine]] under the control of the Rashidun Caliphate; Egypt was conquered by 642, and the entire Persian Empire by 643.

(contracted; show full)

With the booty secured from conquest, Umar was able to support its faith in material ways: the [[Sahaba|companions of Muhammad]] were given pensions on which to live, allowing them to pursue religious studies and exercise spiritual leadership in their communities and beyond. Umar is also remembered for establishing the [[Muslim calendar]]; like the Arabian calendar, it is lunar, but the origin is set in 622, the year of the [[Hijra
 (Islam)|Hijra]] when [[Muhammad]] emigrated to [[Medina]].

Umar was mortally wounded in an assassination attempt by the Persian slave Abu Lulu Fieroz during morning prayers in 644.

===Election of Uthman===
{{Main|The election of Uthman}}
{{Uthman}}⏎
Before Umar died, he appointed a committee of six men to decide on the next caliph, and charged them with choosing one of their own number. All of the men, like Umar, were from the tribe of [[Quraysh (tribe)|Quraish]].
The committee narrowed down the choices to two: '[[Uthman  _ibn  _Affan|Uthman]] and '[[Ali]]. 'Ali was from the Banu Hashim clan (the same clan as Muhammad) of the Quraysh tribe, and he was the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad and had been a companion to the Prophet from the inception of his mission.[[Uthman]] was from the [[Umayyad]] clan of the [[Quraysh (tribe)|Quraish]]{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}.

⏎
⏎
Uthman reigned for twelve years as [[caliph]], during the first half of his reign he enjoyed a position of the most popular caliph among all the [[Rashidun]]s{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}, while in the later half of his reign he met increasing opposition{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}. This opposition was led by the Egyptians and was concentrated around Ali, who would, albeit briefly, succeed Uthman as caliph.
Despite internal troubles, Uthman continued the [[Muslim conquest|wars of conquest]] started by '[[Umar]]. The [[Rashidun army]] conquered [[North Africa]] from the [[Byzantine]]s and even raided [[Spain]], conquering the coastal areas of the [[Iberian peninsula]], as well as the islands of [[Rhodes]] and [[Cyprus]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2011}} Also coastal [[Sicily]] was raided in 652.<ref>{{citation | editor-first = Alexander | editor-last = Kazhdan |editor-link=Alexander Kazhdan | title = [[Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium]] | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 1991 | isbn = 978-0-19-504652-6 | page = 1892}}</ref> The [[Rashidun army]] fully conquered the [[Sassanid]] [[Persian Empire]], and its eastern frontiers extended up to the [[Indus|lower Indus River]].
Uthman's greatest and most lasting achievement was the formal recension of the Qur'an.⏎
⏎
{{Ali}}
[[File:Mohammad adil rais-Rashidun Caliphate-different phases.gif|thumb|right|300px|Domains of Rashidun Caliphate under four caliphs.
{{legend|#009900|Strongholds of Rashidun Caliphate}}
{{legend|#00ff00|Vassal states of Rashidun Caliphate}}
{{legend|#ef1000|Region under the control of [[Muawiyah I]] during civil war 656–661}}
{{legend|#5200FA|Region under the control of [[Amr ibn al-As]] During civil war 658–661.<ref>Egypt was conquered in 658 by Amr ibn al-As. Madelung (1997), pp. 267-269</ref>}}]]

===Siege of Uthman===
{{Main|Siege of Uthman}}
After a protest turned into a siege, Uthman refused to initiate any military action, in order to avoid civil war between [[Muslim]]s, and preferred negotiations. {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}} His polite attitude towards rebels emboldened them and they broke into Uthman's house and killed him while he was reading the [[Qur'an]]. {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}

===Crisis and fragmentation===
{{Main|First Fitna}}
After the assassination of the third Caliph, [[Uthman ibn Affan]], the Companions of Muhammad in [[Medina]] selected [[Ali]] to be the new Caliph who had been passed over for the leadership three times since the death of Muhammad. Soon thereafter, Ali dismissed several provincial governors, some of whom were relatives of Uthman, and replaced them with trusted aides such as [[Malik al-Ashtar]] and [[Salman the Persian]]. Ali then transferred his capital from Medina to [[Kufa]], a Muslim garrison city in current-day [[Iraq]].

Demands to take revenge for the assassination of Caliph Uthman rose among parts of the population, and a large army of rebels led by [[Zubayr]], [[Talha]] and the widow of Muhammad, [[Aisha|Ayesha]], set out to fight the perpetrators. The army reached Basra and captured it, upon which 4000 suspected seditionists were assassinated. Subsequently [[Ali]] turned towards Basra and the [[Caliph]]'s army met the army of Muslims who demanded revenge of Uthman. Though neither Ali nor the leaders of the opposing force, [[Talha]] and [[Zubayr]], wanted to fight, a battle broke out at night between the two armies. It is said, according to Sunni Muslim traditions, that the [[rebels]] who were involved in the assassination of Uthman initiated combat, as they were afraid that as a result of negotiation between Ali and opposing army, the killers of Uthman would be hunted down and killed. The battle thus fought was the first battle between Muslims and is known as the [[Battle of the Camel]]. The Caliphate under Ali emerged victorious and the dispute was settled. The eminent companions of Mohammad, [[Talha]] and [[Zubayr]], were killed in the battle and Ali sent his son [[Hassan ibn Ali]] to escort [[Aisha|Ayesha]] back to [[Madinah]].

After this episode of Islamic history, another cry for revenge for the blood of Uthman rose. This time it was by [[Muawiyah I|Mu'awiya]], kinsman of Uthman and governor of the province of Syria. However, it is regarded more as an attempt by [[Muawiyah I|Mu'awiya]] to assume the caliphate, rather than to take revenge for Uthman's murder. [[Ali]] fought [[Muawiyah I|Mu'awiya]]'s forces at the [[Battle of Siffin]] leading to a stalemate, and then lost a controversial arbitration that ended with arbiter [['Amr ibn al-'As]] pronouncing his support for Mu'awiya. After this Ali was forced to fight the rebellious [[Kharijites]] in the [[Battle of Nahrawan]], a faction of his former supporters who, as a result of their dissatisfaction with the arbitration, opposed both Ali and Mu'awiya. Weakened by this internal rebellion and a lack of popular support in many provinces, Ali's forces lost control over most of the caliphate's territory to Mu'awiya while large sections of the empire such as [[Sicily]], [[North Africa]], the coastal areas of [[Spain]] and some forts in [[Anatolia]] were also lost to outside empires.

[[File:Balami - Tarikhnama - Battle of Siffin (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|Combat between the forces of Ali and [[Muawiyah I]] during the [[Battle of Siffin]], from the Tarikhnama.]]

In 661 CE, Ali was assassinated by [[Ibn Muljam]] as part of a Kharijite plot to assassinate all the different Islamic leaders meaning to end the civil war, whereas the Kharijites failed to assassinate Mu'awiya and 'Amr ibn al-'As.

Ali's son [[Hasan ibn Ali]], the grandson of Muhammad, briefly assumed the caliphate and came to an agreement with Mu'awiya to fix relations between the two groups of Muslims that were each loyal to one of the two men. Mu'awiya gained control of the Caliphate and founded the [[Umayyad|Umayyad Empire]], marking the end of the Rashidun Caliphate.

==Military expansion==
{| class="wikitable" | align=right
|'''[[Abu Bakr]]'''
| valign="top" | 632
| valign="top" | 634
|-
| valign="top" | '''[[Umar]]'''
| valign="top" | 634
| valign="top" | 644
|-
| valign="top" | '''[[Uthman]]'''
| valign="top" | 644
| valign="top" | 656
|-
| valign="top" | '''[[Ali]]'''
| valign="top" | 656
| valign="top" | 661
|}
The Rashidun Caliphate expanded gradually, with the time span of 24 years of conquest a vast territory was conquered comprising [[North Africa]], the [[Middle East]], [[Transoxiana]], the [[Caucasus]], parts of [[Anatolia]], the whole of the [[Sassanid]] [[Persian empire]], the [[Greater Khorasan]], the islands of [[Cyprus]], [[Rhodes]] and [[Sicily]], the [[Iberian Peninsula]] was invaded, and [[Balochistan (Pakistan)|Baluchistan]] was conquered, the empires eastern frontiers reaching the [[Indus|lower Indus river]] in the Indian [[subcontinent]] and western frontiers to the [[Atlantic Ocean]].

The Islamic Invasion of Sassanid Persia resulted in the conquest of the whole [[Sassanid]] [[Persian empire]], after the Persians declined to submit and continued to strive to re-capture their lost territory. Unlike the [[Sassanid]] [[Persian language|Persians]], the [[Byzantine]]s after losing [[Syria]], retreated back to western [[Anatolia]] and as a result, also lost [[Egypt]], [[North Africa]], [[Sicily]], [[Cyprus]] and [[Rhodes]] to the invading [[Rashidun army]], although the civil wars among the Muslims halted the war of conquest for many years and this gave time for the [[Byzantine Empire|Eastern Roman/Byzantine Empire]] to recover.

===Conquest of the Persian empire===
{{Further|Islamic conquest of Persia}}
[[File:Mohammad adil-Khalid's conquest of Iraq.PNG|thumb|250px|Map detailing the route of Khalid ibn Walid's conquest of Iraq.]]
The first Islamic invasion of the [[Persian empire]] launched by Caliph [[Abu Bakr]] in 633 was a swift conquest in the time span of only 4 months led by legendary general [[Khalid ibn Walid]]. Abu Bakr sent Khalid to conquer [[Mesopotamia]] after the [[Ridda wars]]. After entering [[Iraq]] with his army of 18,000, Khalid won decisive victories in four consecutive battles: [[Battle of Chains]], fought in April 633; [[Battle of River]], fought in the 3rd week of April 633; [[Battle of Walaja]], fought in May 633 (where he successfully used a [[Pincer movement|double envelopment]] manoeuvre), and [[Battle of Ullais]], fought in the mid of May 633 . In the last week of May 633, the capital city of Iraq fell to the Muslims after initial resistance in the [[Battle of Hira]].⏎
-661}}
{{legend|#5200FA|Region under the control of [[Amr ibn al-As]] During civil war 658-661.<ref>Egypt was conquered in 658 by Amr ibn al-As. Madelung (1997), pp. 267-269</ref>}}]]

===Siege of Uthman===
{{Main|Siege of Uthman}}
Uthman refused to initiate any military action, in order to avoid civil war between [[Muslim]]s, and preferred negotiations. {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}} His polite attitude towards rebels emboldened them and they broke into Uthman's house and killed him while he was reading the [[Qur'an]]. {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}

===Crisis and fragmentation===
{{repetition|date=January 2012}}
After the assassination of the third Caliph, [[Uthman ibn Affan]], the Companions of Muhammad in [[Medina]] selected [[Ali]] to be the new Caliph. Soon thereafter, Ali dismissed several provincial governors, some of whom were relatives of Uthman, and replaced them with trusted aides such as [[Malik al-Ashtar]] and [[Salman the Persian]]. Ali then transferred his capital from Medina to [[Kufa]], the Muslim garrison city in what is now [[Iraq]]. The capital of the province of [[Syria]], [[Damascus]], was held by [[Muawiyah I|Mu'awiyah]], the governor of [[Syria]] and a kinsman of Uthman, Ali's slain predecessor.<ref>[http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/SHIA/ALI.HTM 'Ali] {{WebCite|url=http://www.webcitation.org/5wTrkRS55|date =2011-02-13}}</ref> Uthman's death was ironic for many reasons, including the fact that he was the first Islamic [[caliph]] to be killed by fellow [[Muslim]]s. Following the assassination of Uthman, the [[First Fitna|first Muslim civil war]] started, which continued during the brief caliphate of [[Ali ibn Abu Talib]], and ended, on the whole, by [[Muawiya I|Mu'awiya]]'s assumption of the caliphate, an event which then laid the foundation of the [[Umayyad|Umayyad Empire]]. This civil war is often called the [[Fitna (word)|Fitna]], and regretted as the end of the early unity of the [[Islam]]ic [[ummah]] (nation).

In 656, after [[Uthman ibn Affan]] was murdered by a group of rebels as he sat reading the [[Qur'an]] in his home in [[Medina]], the city fell into chaos and uproar. Citizens flocked to [[Ali ibn Abu Talib]], Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law, and a respected community leader who had been passed over for the leadership three times since the death of Muhammad.  They then urged him to take the caliphate. Initially reluctant due to the circumstances of the caliph's death, he eventually chose to accept.
{{Main|First Fitna}}
Ali then had to fight against numerous challengers to his rule. The cry of revenge of the blood of Caliph Uthman grew, and a large army of the Muslims led by [[Zubayr]], [[Talha]] and the widow of Muhammad, [[Aisha|Ayesha]] set for revenge from the rebels. As the rebels gathered from [[Egypt]], [[Kufa]] and [[Basra]], their first objective was Basra. The army reached Basra and captured it, 4000 suspected seditionists were assassinated. [[Ali]] who had already transferred his capital from Madinah to Kufa, turned towards Basra and a battle was fought between the [[Ali|Caliph Ali]]'s army and the army of Muslims who demanded revenge of Uthman. Though neither Ali nor the leaders of the opposing army [[Talha]] and [[Zubayr]] wanted to fight, a fight broke out suddenly at night between the two armies. It is said according to Sunni Muslim traditions that the [[rebels]] who were involved in the assassination of Uthman initiated combat as they were afraid that as a result of negotiation between Ali and opposing army, the killers of Uthman would be hunted down and killed. The battle thus fought was the first battle between Muslims and is known as the [[Battle of the Camel]]. After the Caliphate had won and the dispute was settled, Ali sent his son [[Hassan ibn Ali]] to escort [[Aisha|Ayesha]] back to [[Madinah]]. The eminent companions of Mohammad, [[Talha]] and [[Zubayr]] were killed in the battle after they withdrew from the battlefield refusing to fight against Muslims.

After this dark episode of Islamic history, another cry for revenge for the blood of Uthman rose. This time it was by [[Muawiyah I|Mu'awiya]], kinsmen of Uthman and governor of the province of Syria. However it is regarded as more an attempt of assuming the caliphate by [[Muawiyah I|Mu'awiya]] than to take revenge for Uthman's murder from the rebels. [[Ali]] fought Uthman's kinsman [[Muawiyah I|Mu'awiya]], the governor of [[Syria]], at the [[Battle of Siffin]] to a stalemate and then lost a controversial arbitration; and he fought his own mutinous soldiers (the first [[Kharijites]]). Large sections of the new empire created in the twenty-four years (632-656) were lost due to the civil war, like [[Sicily]], [[North Africa]], the coastal areas of [[Spain]] and some forts in [[Anatolia]]. But the [[Byzantine]]s tended not to re-capture their lost land, particularly areas in the western empire.  According to Muslim history, [[Muawiyah I|Mu'awiya]] sent a letter to the Byzantine emperor threatening him not to reclaim Islamic lands or Mu'awiya would make peace with his kinsmen (referring to Ali) and they would both together destroy the [[Byzantine Empire]].

In 661 CE, Ali was assassinated in the Mosque of Kufa by [[Ibn Muljam]], a relative of one of the rebel soldiers he had defeated and killed.  His last words were "Fuztu wa rabb al-Ka'bah" - meaning ''By The Lord of the Ka'bah, I have succeeded.''

His son [[Hasan ibn Ali]], the grandson of Muhammad, briefly assumed the caliphate upon being appointed by Ali. He came to an agreement with Mu'awiya and fixed relations between the two groups of Muslims that were each loyal to one of the two men. Mu'awiya gained control of the empire and founded the [[Umayyad|Umayyad Empire]], with it the Rashidun Caliphate dismantled.

==Military expansion==
The Rashidun empire expanded gradually, with the time span of 24 years of conquest a vast territory was conquered comprising [[North Africa]], the [[Middle East]], [[Transoxiana]], the [[Caucasus]], parts of [[Anatolia]], the whole of the [[Sassanid]] [[Persian empire]], the [[Greater Khorasan]], the islands of [[Cyprus]], [[Rhodes]] and [[Sicily]], the [[Iberian Peninsula]] was invaded, and [[Balochistan (Pakistan)|Baluchistan]] was conquered, the empires eastern frontiers reaching the [[Indus|lower Indus river]] in the Indian [[subcontinent]] and western frontiers to the [[Atlantic Ocean]].

The Islamic Invasion of Sassanid Persia resulted in the conquest of the whole [[Sassanid]] [[Persian empire]], after the Persians declined to submit and continued to strive to re-capture their lost territory. Unlike the [[Sassanid]] [[Persian language|Persians]], the [[Byzantine]]s after losing [[Syria]], retreated back to western [[Anatolia]] and as a result, also lost [[Egypt]], [[North Africa]], [[Sicily]], [[Cyprus]] and [[Rhodes]] to the invading [[Rashidun army]], although the civil wars among the Muslims halted the war of conquest for many years and this gave time for the Byzantine Empire to recover.

===Conquest of Persian empire===
{{See|Islamic conquest of Persia}}
[[File:Mohammad adil-Khalid's conquest of Iraq.PNG|thumb|250px|Map detailing the route of Khalid ibn Walid's conquest of Iraq.]]
The first Islamic invasion of the [[Persian empire]] launched by Caliph [[Abu Bakr]] in 633 was a swift conquest in the time span of only 4 months led by legendary general [[Khalid ibn Walid]]. Abu Bakr sent Khalid to conquer [[Mesopotamia]] after the [[Ridda wars]]. After entering [[Iraq]] with his army of 18,000, Khalid won decisive victories in four consecutive battles: [[Battle of Chains]], fought in April 633; [[Battle of River]], fought in the 3rd week of April 633; [[Battle of Walaja]], fought in May 633 (where he successfully used a [[Pincer movement|double envelopment]] manoeuvre), and [[Battle of Ullais]], fought in the mid of May 633 . In the last week of May 633 , the capital city of Iraq fell to the Muslims after initial resistance in the [[Battle of Hira]].

[[File:Ctesiphon, Iraq (2117465493).jpg|thumb|left|250px|Remains of [[Taq-i Kisra]], palace of [[Sassanid dynasty|Sassanid Kings]], [[Ctesiphon]], Iraq.]]
After resting his armies, Khalid moved in June 633  towards [[Al Anbar]], which resisted and was defeated in the [[Battle of Al-Anbar]], and eventually surrendered after a siege of a few weeks in July 633 . Khalid then moved towards the south, and conquered the city of Ein ul Tamr after the [[Battle of ein-ul-tamr]] in the last week of July, 633. By now, almost the whole of Iraq was under Islamic control. Khalid received a call of help from northern Arabia at daumat-ul-jandal, where another Muslim Arab gen(contracted; show full)
</ref>

After the conquest of Iraq, Khalid left Mesopotamia to lead another [[Muslim conquest of Syria|campaign at Syria]] against the [[Roman Empire]], after which Mithna ibn Haris took command in Mesopotamia. The Persians once again concentrated armies to regain the lost [[Mesopotamia]], while Mithna ibn Haris withdr
eaw from central Iraq to the region near the [[Arabian desert]] to delay war until reinforcement came from [[Madinah]]. [[Umar|Caliph Umar]] sent reinforcements under the command of Abu Ubaidah Saqfi. With some initial success this army was finally defeated by the [[Sassanid army]] at the [[Battle of the Bridge]] in which Abu Ubaid was killed. The response was delayed until after a decisive Muslim victory against the Romans in the [[Levant]] at the [[Battle of Yarmuk]] in 636 [[Caliph]] [[Umar]], was then abl(contracted; show full)et another effort to regroup and defeat the invaders. By 641 he had raised a new force, which took a stand at the [[Battle of Nihawānd]], some forty miles south of [[Hamadan]] in modern [[Iran]]. The [[Rashidun army]] under the command of Umar's appointed general Nu'man ibn Muqarrin al-Muzani, attacked and again defeated the Persian forces. The Muslims proclaimed it the Victory of victories (Fath alfotuh) as it marked the End of the [[Sassanid]]s, shattering the last strongest [[Sassanid army]].

[[Yazdegerd III|Yazdegerd]]{{Disambiguation needed|Yazdegerd|date=June 2011}} was unable to raise another army and became a hunted fugitive. In 642, [[Caliph]] [[Umar]] sent the army to conquer the whole of the [[Persian empire]]. The whole of present day [[Iran]] was conquered, followed by the conquest of [[Greater Khorasan]] (which included modern Iranian Khorasan province and modern [[Afghanistan]]), [[Transoxania]], and [[Balochistan (region)|Balochistan]], [[Makran]], [[Azerbaijan]], [[Dagestan]] ([[Russia]]), [[Armenia]] and [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], this regions were later also re-conquered during Caliph Utman's reign<ref>See: [[Uthman Ibn Affan#Military expansion|Uthman Ibn Affan: Military expansion]]</ref> with further expansion to the regions which were not conquered during Umar’s reign, and the Rashidun Caliphate’s frontiers in the east extended to the [[Indus|lower river Indus]] and north to the [[Amu Darya|Oxus River]].

===Wars against the Byzantine empire===
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====Conquest of Byzantine Syria====
{{FurtherSee|Muslim conquest of Syria}}

[[File:Mohammad adil-Muslims Invasion of Syria.PNG|thumb|right|200px|Map detailing Rashidun Caliphates invasion of Levant.]]
After, Khalid captured Iraq and firmly took control of it, Abu Bakr sent armies to Syria on the Byzantine front. Four armies were sent under four different commanders, [[Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah]] acting as their supreme commander, [[Amr ibn al-As]], [[Yazid ibn Abu Sufyan]] and [[Shurhabil ibn Hasana]]. These armies were all assigned their objectives. However their advance was halted by a concentration of the Byzantine army at Ajnadayn. Abu Ubaidah then sentd for reinforcements. Abu Bakr ordered Khalid, who by now was planning to attack [[Ctesiphon]], to march to Syria with half of his army out of Iraq. Khalid took half of his army and rather took an unconventional route to Syria. There were 2 major routes to Syria from Iraq, one passing through [[Mesopotamia]] and the other through Daumat ul-Jandal. Khalid took a route through the [[Syrian Desert]], and after a perilous march of 5 days, appeared in north-western Syria.
The border forts of [[Sawa, Syria|Sawa]], [[Arak, Syria|Arak]], [[Tadmur]], [[Sukhnah]],  [[al-Qaryatayn]] and [[Hawarin]] were the first to fall to the invading Muslims. Khalid marched on to [[Bosra]] via the [[Damascus]] road. At Bosra, the Corps of Abu Ubaidah and Shurhabil joined Khalid, after which here as per orders of Caliph Abu Bakr, Khalid took the high command from Abu Ubaidah. Bosra was not ready for this surprise attack and siege, and thus surrendered after a brief siege in July 634, ('''see''' [[Battle of Bosra]]) this effectively ending the [[Ghassanid]] Dy(contracted; show full)y was at Fahl, which was joined by survivors of Ajnadayn. With this threat at their rear the Muslim armies could not move further north nor south, thus Abu Ubaidah decided to deal with the situation, and had this garrison defeated and routed at the [[Battle of Fahl]] on 23 January 635. This battle proved to be the "Key to Palestine". After this battle Abu Ubaidah and Khalid marched north towards [[Emesa]], Yazid was stationed in Damascus while Amr and Shurhabil marched south to capture Palestine.
⏎
⏎
<ref name=autogenerated1 />
While the Muslims were at Fahl, sensing the weak defense of Damascus, [[Heraclius|Emperor Heraclius]] sent an army to re-capture the city. This army however could not make it to Damascus and was intercepted by Abu Ubaidah and Khalid on their way to Emesa. The army was routed and destroyed in the [[battle of Maraj-al-Rome]] and the [[2nd battle of Damascus]]. Emesa and the strategical town of [[Chalcis]] made peace with the Muslims for one year. This was, in fact, done to le(contracted; show full) final effort to take back Syria. They said that an army possibly two hundred thousand (200,000) strong would soon emerge to recapture the province. Khalid stopped here on June 636. This huge army set out for their destination. As soon as Abu Ubaida heard the news, he gathered all his officers to plan their next move. Khalid suggested that they should summen all of their forces present in the province of Syria (Syria, Jordan, Palestine) and to make a powerful joint force and then move towards the plain of 
Yarmouk{{Disambiguation needed|Yarmouk|date=June 2011}} for  battle.

Abu Ubaida ordered all the Muslim commanders to withdraw from all the conquered areas, return the tributes that they previously gathered, and move towards Yarmuk.<ref>http://www.swordofallah.com/html/bookchapter34page1.htm {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref> Heraclius's army also moved towards Yarmuk. The Muslim armies reached it in July 636. A week or two later, around mid July, the Byzantine army arrived.<ref>http://www.swordofallah.com/html/bookchapter33page1.htm {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref> Khalid's [[Mobile guard]] defeated Christian Arab auxiliaries of the Roman army in a [[skirmish]].
[[File:Mohammad adil-Muslim invasion of Syria-4.PNG|thumb|right|200px|Map detailing the route of Muslim's invasion of northern Syria.]]
Nothing happened until the third week of August in which the [[Battle of Yarmouk]] was fought. The battle lasted 6 days during which Abu Ubaida transferred the command of the entire army to Khalid. The five times larger [[Byzantine]] army was defeated on October 636 CE. Abu Ubaida held a meeting with his high command officers, including Khalid to decide of future conquests. They decided to conquer [[Jerusalem]]. The siege of Jerusalem lasted four months after which the city agreed to surrender, but only to Caliph Umar Ibn Al Khattab in person. Amr ibn Al As suggested that Khalid should be sent as [[Caliph]], because of his very strong resemblance with Caliph [[Umar]].

Khalid was recognized and eventually, Caliph Umar ibn Al Khattab came and [[Siege of Jerusalem (637)|Jerusalem surrendered]] on April 637 CE. Abu Ubaida sent the commanders Amr bin al-As, Yazid bin Abu Sufyan, and Sharjeel bin Hassana back to their areas to reconquer them. Most of the areas submitted without a fight. Abu Ubaida himself along with Khalid moved to northern [[Syria]] once again to conquer it with a 17,000 men army. Khalid along with his cavalry was sent to Hazir and Abu Ubaidah moved to the city of Qasreen.

Khalid defeated a strong Byzantine army in the [[Battle of Hazir]] and reached Qasreen before Abu Ubaidah. The city surrendered to Khalid. Soon, Abu Ubaidah arrived in June 637. Abu Ubaidah then moved against [[Aleppo]]. As usual Khalid was commanding the cavalry. After the [[Siege of Aleppo (637)|Battle of Aleppo]] the city finally agreed to surrender in October 637.

====Occupation of Anatolia====
[[File:Mohammad adil rais-Invasion of Anatolia and Armenia.PNG|thumb|right|240px|Map detailing the route of Khalid ibn Walid's invasion of Syria.]]
Abu Ubaida and Khalid ibn Walid, after conquering all of northern Syria, moved north towards [[Anatolia]] conquering the fort of [[Azaz]] to clear the flank and rear from Byzantine troops. On their way to Antioch, a Roman army blocked them near a river on which there was an iron bridge. Because of this, the following battle is known as the [[Battle of Iron bridge]]. The Muslim army defeated the Byzantines and [[Antioch]] surrendered on 30 October 637 CE. Later during the year, Abu Ubaida sent Khalid and another general named Ayaz bin Ghanam at the head of two separate armies against the western part of [[Al Jazira, Mesopotamia|Jazira]], most of which was conquered with  out strong resistance, including parts of Anatolia, [[Edessa, Mesopotamia|Edessa]] and the area up to the [[Ararat plain]]. Other columns were sent to [[Anatolia]] as far west as the [[Taurus Mountains]], the important city of [[Marash]] and [[Malatya]] which were all conquered by Khalid in the autumn of 638 CE. During Uthman’s reign, the Byzantines recaptured many [[Fortification|forts]] in the region and on Uthman's orders, series of campaigns were launched to regain control of it. In 647 [[Muawiyah I|Muawiyah]], the governor of Syria sent an expedition against Anatolia. They invaded at [[Cappadocia]] and sacked [[Caesarea Mazaca]]. In 648 the [[Rashidun army]] raided [[Phrygia]]. A major offensive into [[Cilicia]] and [[Isauria]] in 650–651 forced the Byzantine Emperor [[Constans II (Byzantine Empire)|Constans II]] to enter into negotiations with [[Uthman|Caliph Uthman]]'s governor of [[Syria]], Muawiyah.
The truce that followed allowed a short respite, and made it possible for Constans II to hold on to the western portions of [[Armenia]]. In 654–655 on the orders of Caliph [[Uthman]], an expedition was preparing to attack the Byzantine capital [[Constantinopole]] but did not carry out the plan due to the civil war that broke out in 656.
The [[Taurus Mountains]] in Turkey marked the western frontiers of the Rashidun Caliphate in Anatolia during Caliph Uthman's reign.

====Conquest of Egypt====
{{FurtherSee|Muslim conquest of Egypt}}
[[File:Mohammad adil-Muslim conquest of Egypt.PNG|thumb|right|250px|Map detailing the route of Muslim's invasion of Egypt.]]
At the commencement of the [[Muslim conquest of Egypt]], [[Egypt]] was part of the [[Byzantine Empire]] with its capital in [[Constantinople]]. However, it had been occupied just a decade before by the [[Persian Empire#Sassanid Persia (AD 226-650)|Persian Empire]] under [[Khosrau II of Persia|Khosrau II]] (616 to 629 [[Anno Domini|AD]]). The power of the [[Byzantine empire]] was shattered during the [[Muslim conquest of Syria]], and therefore the conquest of Egypt was much easier. In 639, some 4,000 [[Rashidun army|Rashidun troops]] led by [[Amr ibn al-As]], were sent by [[Umar|Caliph Umar]] to conquer the land of the ancient [[pharaoh]]s. The [[Rashidun army]] crossed into Egypt from Palestine in December 639 and advanced rapidly into the [[Nile Delta]]. The imperial garrisons retreated into the walled towns, where they successfully held out for a year or more. But the Muslims sent for reinforcements and the invading army, joined by another 12,000 men in 640, defeated a Byzantine army at the [[Battle of Heliopolis]]. Amr next proceeded in the direction of [[Alexandria]], which was surrendered to him by a treaty signed on November 8, 641. The [[Thebaid]] seems to have surrendered with scarcely any opposition.

The ease with which this valuable province was wrenched from the [[Byzantine Empire]] appears to have been due to the treachery of the governor of Egypt, [[Cyrus of Alexandria|Cyrus]],  <ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04597c.htm CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Cyrus of Alexandria] {{WebCite|url=http://www.webcitation.org/5wTrnwFCI|date =2011-02-13}}</ref>, [[Melchite]] (i.e., Byzantine/Chalcedonian Orthodox, ''not'' Coptic) [[Patriarch of Alexandria]], and the incompetence of the generals of the Byzantine forces, as well as due to the loss of most of the [[Byzantine army|Byzantine troops]] in [[Syria]] against the [[Rashidun army]]. Cyrus had persecuted the local [[Coptic Christianity|Coptic Christians]]. He is one of the authors of [[monothelism]], a seventh-  century heresy, and some supposed him to have been a secret convert to [[Islam]].

During the reign of Caliph [[Uthman]], an attempt was made in the year 645 to regain Alexandria for the Byzantine empire, but it was retaken by Amr in 646. In 654 an invasion fleet sent by [[Constans II (Byzantine Empire)|Constans II]] was repulsed. From that time no serious effort was made by the Byzantines to regain possession of the country.

(contracted; show full)n Zubayr]]. After the [[Battle of Sufetula]] the people of [[North Africa]] sued for peace. They agreed to pay an annual tribute. Instead of annexing [[North Africa]], the [[Muslim]]s preferred to make North Africa a [[vassal state]]. When the stipulated amount of the tribute was paid, the [[Rashidun army|Muslim forces]] withdrew to [[Barqa]]. Following the [[First Fitna]], the first Islamic civil war, Muslim forces withdraw from north Africa to Egypt. The [[Ummayad Caliphate]], re-invaded north Africa in 
[[664]].

=====Campaign against Nubia (Sudan)=====
[[File:Sudan Meroe Pyramids 2001.JPG|right|200px|thumb|At Meroë, in the Sudan, pyramids of the Kushite rulers]]
A campaign was undertaken against [[Nubia]] during the Caliphate of Umar in [[642]], but failed after the [[Kingdom of Makuria|Makurians]] took victory at the [[First Battle of Dongola]]. The army was pulled out of Nubia without any success. Ten years later, Uthman’s governor of Egypt, Abdullah ibn Saad, sent another army to Nubia. This army penetrated deeper into Nubia and laid siege to the Nubian capital of [[Dongola]]. The Muslims damaged the [[cathedral]] in the center of the city, but the [[Second Battle of Dongola|battle]] also went in favor of Makuria. As the Muslims were not able to overpower Makuria, they negotiated a peace with their king Qaladurut. According to the treaty that was signed, each side agreed not to make any aggressive moves against the other. Each side agreed to afford free passage to the other party through its territories. Nubia agreed to provide 360 [[Slavery|slaves]] to Egypt every year, while Egypt agreed to supply [[Cereal|grain]], [[horses]] and [[textiles]] to Nubia according to demand.

====Conquest of the islands of the Mediterranean Sea====
{{FurtherSee|History of Islam in southern Italy}}
[[File:Salamis gym 01.jpg|right|thumb|200px|The gymnasium, [[Salamis, Cyprus|Salamis]], [[Cyprus]].]]
During Umar's reign, the governor of Syria, [[Muawiyah I]], sent a request to build a naval force to invade the islands of the [[Mediterranean Sea]] but Umar rejected the proposal because of the risk of death of soldiers at sea. During his reign Uthman gave Muawiyah permission to build a navy after concerning the matter. In 650&nbsp;AD the Arabs made the first attack on the island of [[Cyprus]] under the leadership of [[Muawiya]]. They conquered the capital, [[Salamis, Cyprus|Salamis]] - Constantia, after a brief siege, but drafted a treaty with the local rulers. In the course of this expedition a relative of the [[Muhammad|Prophet]], Umm-Haram fell from her mule near the [[Larnaca Salt Lake|Salt Lake]] at [[Larnaca]] and was killed. She was buried in that same spot which became a holy site for both many local Muslims and Christians and, much later in 1816, the [[Hala Sultan Tekke]] was built there by the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]]{{When|date=July 2010}}. After apprehending a breach of the treaty, the Arabs re-invaded the island in 654 AD with five hundred ships. This time, however, a garrison of 12,000 men was left in Cyprus, bringing the island under [[Muslim]] influence.<ref>Nadvi (2000), pg. 522</ref> After leaving Cyprus the Muslim fleet headed towards the island of [[Crete]] and then [[Rhodes]] and conquered them without much resistance. In 652-654, the Muslims launched a naval campaign against [[Sicily]] and they succeeded in capturing a large part of the island. Soon after this Uthman was murdered, and no further expansion efforts were made, and the Muslims accordingly retreated from Sicily. In 655 Byzantine Emperor [[Constans II (Byzantine Empire)|Constans II]] led a fleet in person to attack the Muslims at [[Finike|Phoinike]] (off [[Lycia]]) but it was defeated: 500 Byzantine ships were destroyed in the [[Battle of the Masts|battle]], and the emperor himself narrowly avoided death.

====First Muslim invasion of the Iberian peninsula?====

In [[Islamic history]] the conquest of [[Spain]] was undertaken by forces led by [[Tariq ibn Ziyad]] and [[Musa ibn Nusair]] in 711 - 718 [[Common Era|C.E]], in the time of the [[Umayyad]] [[Caliph]] [[al-Walid I|Walid ibn Abd al-Malik]]. According to the [[List of Muslim historians|Muslim historian]] [[Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari]],<ref>''See'':[[History of the Prophets and Kings|Tarikh al-Tabari]]</ref> Spain was first invaded by Muslims some sixty years earlier during the caliphate of Uthman in 653 {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}. Other promenent [[Muslim]] [[historian]]s like [[Ibn Kathir]]<ref>''see '':[[Al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah|Tarikh ibn Kathir]]</ref> have repeated Al-Tabari's assertion.{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}

According to al-Tabari's account, when [[North Africa]] had been conquered by Abdullah Ibn Sa'ad, two of his generals, Abdullah ibn Nafiah ibn Husain, and Abdullah ibn Nafi' ibn Abdul Qais, were commissioned to invade coastal areas of Spain by sea.{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}

No details of the campaigns in Spain during the caliphate of Uthman are given by [[Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari|al-Tabari]]. The account is merely to the effect that an Arab force, aided by a [[Berber people|Berber]] force, landed in Spain and took possession of some coastal areas. {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}} The account is vague about what happened and where and whether or not it involved a prolonged local occupation or was merely a short lived military operation.  As these regions were  populated, an occupation would not have gone unnoticed by the inhabitants. Nor do later Muslim accounts mention any pre-Ummayad Muslim settlements or forts in the Iberian Peninsula.  Al-Tabari's assertion remains unconfirmed by independent sources.

===Treatment of Conquered Peoples===
{{See also|Dhimmi}}
The non-Muslim monotheist inhabitants - Jews, Zoroastrians, and Christians of the conquered lands were called "[[Dhimmi]]" (the protected people). Those who accepted [[Islam]] were treated in a similar manner as other Muslims, and were given equivalent rights in legal matters. Non-Muslims were given legal rights according to their faiths' law except where it conflicted with Islamic law.

[[Dhimmi]] people were allowed to "practice their religion, and to enjoy a measure of communal autonomy" and were guaranteed their personal safety and security of property in return for paying tax and acknowledging Muslim rule.<ref>Lewis (1984), pp. 10, 20</ref> ''Dhimmis'' were also subject to pay [[jizya]] (Muslims were expected to pay [[zakat]] and [[kharaj]]<ref name="Cahen">Cl. Cahen in [[Encyclopedia of Islam]] - Jizya</ref>). Disabled Dhimmis did not have to pay Jizya and, were even given a stipend by the state.

The Rashidun Caliphs had placed special emphasis on relative fair and just treatment of the ''Dhimmis''. They were also provided 'protection' by the Islamic empire and were not expected to fight; rather the Muslims were entrusted to defend them. Sometimes, in particular when there were not enough qualified Muslims, ''Dhimmis'' were given important positions in the government.

The ''Dhimmis'' were usually allowed to maintain their places of worship.Salt Lake]] at [[Larnaca]] and was killed. She was buried in that same spot which became a holy site for both many local Muslims and Christians and, much later in 1816, the [[Hala Sultan Tekke]] was built there by the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]]{{When|date=July 2010}}. After apprehending a breach of the treaty, the Arabs re-invaded the island in [[654]] AD with five hundred ships. This time, however, a garrison of 12,000 men was left in Cyprus, bringing the island under [[Muslim]] influence.<ref>Nadvi (2000), pg. 522</ref> After leaving Cyprus the Muslim fleet headed towards the island of [[Crete]] and then [[Rhodes]] and plundered them without much resistance. In 652-654, the Muslims lounched a naval campaign against [[Sicily]] and they succeeded in capturing a large part of the island. Soon after this Uthman was murdered, and no further expansion efforts were made, and the Muslims accordingly retreated from Sicily. In 655 Byzantine Emperor [[Constans II (Byzantine Empire)|Constans II]] led a fleet in person to attack the Muslims at [[Finike|Phoinike]] (off [[Lycia]]) but it was defeated: 500 Byzantine ships were destroyed in the [[Battle of the Masts|battle]], and the emperor himself narrowly avoided death.

====First Muslim invasion of Iberian peninsula (Spain)====
[[File:Mohammad adil-Rashidun-empire-at-its-peak-close.PNG|thumb|right|300px|Rashidun Empire at its peak under third Rashidun Caliph, Uthman- 654 {{legend|#009900|Strongholds of Rashidun Caliphate}}]]
In [[Islamic history]] the conquest of [[Spain]] was undertaken by forces led by [[Tariq ibn Ziyad]] and [[Musa ibn Nusair]] in 711 - 712 [[Common Era|C.E]], in the time of the [[Umayyad]] [[Caliph]] [[al-Walid I|Walid ibn Abd al-Malik]]. According to [[List of Muslim historians|Muslim historian]] [[Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari]],<ref>''See'':[[History of the Prophets and Kings|Tarikh al-Tabari]]</ref> Spain was first invaded some sixty years earlier during the caliphate of Uthman in 653 {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}. Other promenient [[Muslim]] [[historian]]s like [[Ibn Kathir]]<ref>''see '':[[Al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah|Tarikh ibn Kathir]]</ref> have also quoted the same narration {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}.
According to the account of al-Tabari {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}, when [[North Africa]] had been duly conquered by Abdullah Ibn Sa'ad, two of his generals, Abdullah ibn Nafiah ibn Husain, and Abdullah ibn Nafi' ibn Abdul Qais, were commissioned to invade coastal areas of Spain by sea.

No details of campaigns in Spain during the caliphate of Uthman are given by [[Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari|al-Tabari]] or by any other historian, leaving what actually happened unclear. The account of al-Tabari is merely to the effect that an Arab force aided by a [[Berber people|Berber]] force landed in Spain and took possession of some coastal areas {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}. It seems that Muslims may have invaded coastal areas of Spain during the caliphate of Uthman, though the account does not indicate if these conquests led to an occupation of territory or were simply military raids. One possibility is that some short-lived advance outposts were established on the coastland of southern Spain but there is no Byzantine or Visigothic account mentioning the existence of such settlements, which would have alarmed them.

===Treatment of Conquered Peoples===
{{See also|Dhimmi}}
[[File:Bas relief nagsh-e-rostam al.jpg|thumb|left|Rock-face relief at [[Naqsh-e Rustam]] of Iranian emperor Shapur I (on horseback) capturing Roman emperor Valerian (kneeing) and Philip the Arab (standing), [[Iran]].]]
The non-Muslim inhabitants of the conquered lands were given the status of [[Dhimmi]] according to [[Sharia|Islamic law]]. Those who accepted [[Islam]] were treated in a similar manner as other Muslims, and were given equivalent rights in legal matters. Non-Muslims were given legal rights according to their faiths' law.

[[Dhimmi]] peoples were allowed to "practice their religion, and to enjoy a measure of communal autonomy" and were guaranteed their personal safety and security of property in return for paying tax and acknowledging Muslim rule.<ref>Lewis (1984), pp. 10, 20</ref> Dhimmis were also subject to pay [[jizya]](muslims were expected to pay [[zakat]] and [[kharaj]],  which was considered material proof of their subjection.<ref name="Cahen">Cl. Cahen in [[Encyclopedia of Islam]] - Jizya</ref> Caliph Umar was the first Caliph to provide Allowance to non-Muslims and Muslims, after they reached old age.{{Citation needed|date=April 2011}}

==Political Administration==
[[File:Damavand3.jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[Mount Damavand]], Iran's tallest mountain is located in Alborz mountain range.]]
(contracted; show full)
# [[Egypt]] was divided into two provinces: Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt;
# [[Persia]] was divided into three provinces: [[Khorasan Province|Khorasan]], [[Azarbaijan]], and [[Fars Province|Fars]].

In his testament, [[Umar|Caliph Umar]] had instructed his successor not to make any change in the administrative set up for one year after his death. Thus for one year Uthman maintained the pattern of political administration as it stood under Umar, however lat
ter he made some amendments. Uthman made Egypt one province and created a new province comprising [[North Africa]]. [[Syria]], previously divided into two provinces, also become a single division.
During Uthman’s reign the empire was divided into twelve provinces. These were:
# [[Medina]]
# [[Mecca]]
# [[Yemen]]
# [[Kufa]]
# [[Basra]]
# [[Al Jazira, Mesopotamia|Jazira]]
# [[Fars Province|Fars]]
# [[Azerbaijan]]
# [[Khorasan Province|Khorasan]]
# [[Syria]]
# [[Egypt]]
# [[North Africa]]
[[File:Fars.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Fars Province landscape]]
[[Ali|Caliph Ali]], during his reign, with the exception of [[Syria]] (which was under [[Muawiyah I]]'s control) and [[Egypt]] (that he lost during late years of his caliphate to the rebel troops of [['Amr ibn al-'As|Amr ibn Al-A'as]]), ruled the remaining ten provinces, which kept their administrative organization as under [[Uthman ibn Affan|Caliph Uthman]].

The provinces were further divided into [[district]]s. Each of the 100 or moreThe over 100 districts of the empire, along with the main cities, were administered by a [[Governor]] or [[Wāli]]. Other officers at the provincial level were:
# ''Katib'', the [[Chief Secretary]].
# ''Katib-ud-Diwan'', the [[Military]] [[Secretary]].
# ''Sahib-ul-Kharaj'', the [[Revenue]] Collector.
# ''Sahib-ul-Ahdath'', the [[Police chief]].
# ''Sahib-ul-Bait-ul-Mal'', the [[Treasury]] Officer.
(contracted; show full)ca on the occasion of the [[Hajj]], during which people were free to present any complaint against them.  In order to minimize the chances of corruption, Umar made it a point to pay high salaries to the staff.  Provincial governors received as much as five to seven thousand [[dirham]]´s annually besides their share of the spoils of war (if they were also the commander in chief of the army of their sector).

===Judicial Administration===
As most of the administrative structure of the Rashidun Empire was set
  up by [[Umar]], the judicial administration was also established by him and the other Caliphs followed the same system without any type of basic amendment in it. In order to provide adequate and speedy justice for the people, an effective system of judicial administration was set up, hereunder justice was administered according to the [[Shariah|principles of Islam]].
(contracted; show full)

===Sunni belief===
Following the death of Muhammad, a meeting took place at [[Saqifah]]. At that meeting, Abu Bakr was elected caliph by the Muslim community. Sunni Muslims developed the belief that the caliph is a temporal political ruler, appointed to rule within the bounds of Islamic law
(The rules of life set by God in the quran (Sharia). The job of adjudicating orthodoxy and Islamic law was left to [[Ijtihad|Islamic lawyers]], judiciary, or specialists individually termed as [[Mujtahid]]s and collectively named the [[Ulema]]. The first four caliphs are called the [[Rashidun]], meaning the Rightly Guided Caliphs, because they are believed to have followed the Qur'an and the [[sunnah]] (example) of Muhammad in all things.

===Majlis al-Shura: Parliament===
{{See also|Shura|Majlis|Majlis-ash-Shura|Islamic democracy}}

(contracted; show full)nt. Rather than just relying on impeachment, [[Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani]] obliged [[rebellion]] upon the people if the caliph began to act with no regard for Islamic law. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani said that to ignore such a situation is ''[[haraam]]'', and those who cannot revolt inside the caliphate should launch a struggle from outside. Al-Asqalani used two [[ayah]]s from the Qur'an to justify this:
<blockquote>{{cite quran|33|67|end=68|expand=no|quote=...And they (the sinners on 
[[Islamic view of the Last Judgment|qiyama]]) will say, 'Our Lord! We obeyed our leaders and our chiefs, and they misled us from the right path. Our Lord! Give them (the leaders) double the punishment you give us and curse them with a very great curse'...}}</blockquote>

(contracted; show full)
[[File:First Islamic coins by caliph Uthman-mohammad adil rais.jpg|thumb|right|The coins were of Persian origin, and had an image of the last Persian emperor, Muslim added the sentence ''Bismillah'' to it.]]

A separate building was constructed for the royal treasury by the name ''bait ul maal'', which in large cities was guarded by as many as 400 guards.
In most of the historical accounts it states that among the [[Rashidun]] [[Caliph]]s [[Uthman ibn Affan]] was 
the first to strike coins, some accounts however state that [[Umar]] was thefirst to struck the coins, some accounts however states that [[Umar]] was first to do so. When [[Persia]] was conquered three types of [[coin]]s were current in the conquered territories, namely Baghli of 8 [[dang]]; Tabari of 4 [[dang]]; and Maghribi of 3 [[dang]]. [[Umar]] ( according to some accounts [[Uthman]] ) made an innovation and struck an Islamic dirham of 6 [[dang]].

The concepts of [[Welfare (financial aid)|welfare]] and [[pension]] were introduced in early [[Sharia|Islamic law]] as forms of ''[[Zakat]]'' (charity), one of the [[Five Pillars of Islam]], since the time of the Rashidun caliph [[Umar]] in the 7th century. The [[tax]]es (including ''Zakat'' and ''[[Jizya]]'') collected in the [[treasury]] of an Islamic [[government]] were used to provide [[income]] for the [[needy]], including the [[Poverty|poor]], [[Old age|elderly]], [[orphan]]s, [[widow]]s, and the [[Disability|disabled]]. According to the Islamic jurist [[Al-Ghazali]] (Algazel, 1058–1111), the government was also expected to stockpile food supplies in every region in case a [[disaster]] or [[famine]] occurred. The Caliphate was thus one of the earliest [[welfare state]]s.<ref name="Crone 2005 308–9">{{citation|title=Medieval Islamic Political Thought|first=Patricia|last=Crone|publisher=[[Edinburgh (contracted; show full)
When the [[Muslim]] traders went to foreign lands for the purposes of trade they had to pay a ten per cent tax to the foreign states. Ushr was levied on reciprocal basis on the goods of the traders of other countries who chose to trade in the Muslim dominions.
Umar issued instructions that Ushr should be levied in such a way so as to avoid hardship, that it will not 
aeffect the trade activities in the Islamic empire. The tax was levied on merchandise meant for sale. Goods imported for consumption or personal use but not for sale were not taxed. The merchandise valued at two hundred dirhams or less was not taxed. When the citizens of the State imported goods for the purposes of trade, they had to pay the customs duty or import tax at lower rates. In the case of the [[Dhimmis]] the rate was five per cent and in the case of the [[Muslim]]s 2.5 per cent. In the case of the Muslims the rate was the same as that of [[Zakat]]. The levy was thus regarded as a part of Zakat and was not considered a separate tax.

===Allowance===
⏎
⏎
====Beginning of Allowance====
After the [[Battle of Yarmouk]] and [[Battle of al-Qadisiyyah]] the Muslims won heavy spoils. The coffers at [[Medina]] became full  to the brim and the problem before [[Umar]] was as to what should be done with this money. Some one  suggested that money should be kept in the treasury for the purposes of public expenditure only. This  view was not acceptable to the general body of the [[Muslim]]s. Consensus was reached on the point that  whatever was received during a year sho(contracted; show full)ided into quarters, and each quarter was reserved for particular tribes. During the reign of Caliph Umar, there were restrictions on the building of palatial buildings by the rich and elites, this was symbolic of the egalitarian society of [[Islam]], where under all were equal, although the restrictions was latter revoked by Caliph Uthman, because of the financial prosperity of ordinary men, and the construction of double story building was permitted, as a result many palatial buildings were constructed th
roughout the empire, Uthman himself built a huge palace for himself in [[Madinah]] which was famous by the name ''Al-Zawar'', he constructed it from his personal resources.
Many buildings were built for administrative purposes. In the quarters called '''Dar-ul-Amarat''' Government offices and houses for the residence of officers were provided. Buildings known as '''Diwans''' were constructed for the keeping of official records. Buildings known as '''Bait-ul-Mal''' were constructed to house royal treasuries. For the lodging of persons suffering sentences as punishment, [[Jail]]s were constructed for the first time in [[Muslim history]]. In important cities Guest Houses were constructed to serve as rest houses for traders and merchants coming from far away places. Roads and bridges were constructed for public use. On the road from [[Medina]] to [[Mecca]], shelters, wells, and meal houses were constructed at every stage for the ease of the people who came for [[hajj]].
Military cantonments were constructed at strategic points. Special stables were provided for cavalry.  These stables could accommodate as many as 4,000 horses. Special pasture grounds were provided and maintained for ''Bait-ul-Mal'' animals.
[[Canal]]s were dug to irrigate fields as well as provide drinking water for the people. '''Abu Musa canal''' (''after the name of governor of [[Basra]] [[Abu-Musa al-Asha'ari]] '') it was a nine mile (14&nbsp;km) long, canal which brought water from the [[Tigris]] to [[Basra]]. Another canal known as '''Maqal canal''' was also dug from the [[Tigris]]. A canal known as the '''Amir al-Mu'minin canal''' ( ''after the title [[Amir al-Mu'minin]] that was assumed by Caliph Umar'') was dug to join the [[Nile]] to the [[Red Sea]]. During the famine of 639 food grains were brought from [[Egypt]] to [[Arabia]] through this canal from  the sea which saved the lives of millions of inhabitants of Arabia. '''Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas canal''' (''After the name of governor of [[Kufa]]  [[Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas]]'') dug from the [[Euphrates]] brought water to [[Anbar (town)|Anbar]]. [['Amr ibn al-'As]] the Governor of [[Egypt]], during the reign of Caliph Umar, even proposed the digging of a canal to join the [[Mediterranean]] to [[Red Sea]]. The proposal, however, did not materialize due to unknown reasons, and it was 1200 years later that such a canal was dug in the shape of the [[Suez Canal]]. Shuaibia was the port for [[Makkah]]. It was inconvenient. Caliph Uthman selected [[Jeddah]] as the site of the new [[seaport]], and a new port was built there. Uthman also reformed the [[department of Police]] in cities.

==Army==
{{Main|Rashidun Caliphate army}}
[[File:Shahnameh3-1.jpg|thumb|[[Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas]] leads the armies of the Rashidun Caliphate during the [[Battle of al-Qādisiyyah]] from a manuscript of the [[Shahnameh]].]]

The Rashidun Army was the primary military body of the [[Islam]]ic [[armed force]]s of the 7th [[century]], serving alongside the Rashidun [[Navy]]. The Rashidun Army maintained a very high level of discipline, strategic prowess, organization along with motivation and self initiative of the officer corps. For much of its history this army was one of the most powerful and effective military forces in all of the region. At the height of the [[Rashidun|Rashidun Caliphate]] the maximum size of the  army was around 100,000 troops.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/muslimwars/articles/yarmuk.aspx|title=The Battle Of Yarmuk, 636|last=Fratini|first=Dan|date=2006-04-01|publisher=Military History Online|archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/5wTrtz1Lr |archivedate = 2011-02-13|deadurl=no}}</ref>

The Rashidun army was divided into the two basic categories of [[infantry]] and [[light cavalry]]. Reconstructing the military equipment of early Muslim armies is problematic. Compared with Roman armies or later medieval Muslim armies, the range of visual representation is very small, often imprecise and difficult to date. Physically very little material evidence has survived and again, much of it is difficult to date.<ref name="Kennedy2001">{{cite book|title=The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the Early Islamic State|author=Hugh Kennedy|publisher=Routledge|location=London|year=2001|page=168|url=http://www.questia.com/reader/action/gotoDocId/102802943|chapter=CHAPTER SEVEN: Weapons and equipment in early Muslim armies|authorlink=Hugh N. Kennedy}}</ref> The soldiers used to wear [[Iron]] and [[bronze]] segmented [[helmet]] that comes from [[Iraq]] and was of [[central Asia]]n type.<ref>{{cite book|last=Kennedy|first=Hugh|title=The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the Early Islamic State|url=http://www.questia.com/reader/action/gotoDocId/102802958|year=2001|publisher=Routledge|location=London|page=183|chapter= CHAPTER EIGHT: Fortification and siege warfare }}</ref>

The standard form of protective body armor was [[chain mail]]. There are also references to the practice of wearing two coats of mail (dir’ayn), the one under the main one being shorter or even made of fabric or leather. [[Hauberk]]s and large wooden or [[wickerwork]] [[shield]]s were used as a protection in combat.<ref name="Kennedy2001"/> The soldiers were usually equipped with [[Sword]]s that were hanged in [[baldric]]. They also possessed [[spear]]s and [[dagger]]s.<ref>Augus Mcbride</ref>{{Page needed|date=April 2011}} [[Caliph]] [[Umar]] was the first [[Muslim]] ruler to organize the army as a [[State Department]]. This reform was introduced in 637. A beginning was made with the [[Quraysh (tribe)|Quraish]] and the [[Ansar (Islam)|Ansar]] and the system was gradually extended to the whole of [[Arabia]] and to [[Muslim]]s of conquered lands.

The basic strategy of early Muslim armies sent out to conquer foreign lands was to exploit every possible weakness of the enemy army in order to achieve victory. Their key strength was mobility. The cavalry had both horses and camels.  The camels were used as both transport and food for long marches through the desert (Khalid bin Walid’s extraordinary march from the Persian border to Damascus utilized camels as both food and transport).  The cavalry was the army’s  main striking force and also served as a strategic mobile reserve. The common tactic used was to use the infantry and archers to engage and maintain contact with the enemy forces while the cavalry was held back till the enemy was fully engaged.

Once fully engaged the enemy reserves were absorbed by the infantry and archers the Muslim cavalry was used as pincers (like modern tank and mechanized divisions) to attack the enemy from the sides or to attack enemy base camps.  The [[Rashidun army]] was quality-wise and strength-wise bellow standard versus the [[Sassanid army|Sassanid Persian army]] and the [[Byzantine army]].  [[Khalid ibn Walid]] was the first general of the Rashidun Caliphate to conquer foreign lands and to trigger the whole scale deposition of the two most powerful empires.  During his campaign against the [[Sassanid]] [[Persian Empire]](''Iraq 633 - 634'') and the [[Byzantine Empire]] (''Syria 634 - 638'') Khalid developed brilliant tactics, that he used effectively against both the [[Sassanid army]] and the [[Byzantine army]].

 The Caliph [[Abu Bakr]]'s way was to give his generals their mission, the geographical area in which that mission would be carried out, and the resources that, could be made available for that purpose. He would then leave it to his generals to accomplish their mission in whatever manner they chose. On the other hand Caliph [[Umar]] in the latter part of his Caliphate used to direct his generals as to where they would stay and when to move to the next target and who will be commanding the left and right wing of the army in the particular battle. This made the phase of conquest comparatively slower but provided well organized campaigns. Caliph [[Uthman]] used the same method as Abu Bakr: he would give missions to his generals and then leave it to them how they should accomplish it. Caliph [[Ali]] also followed the same method.

===Religion===
The state religion was [[Islam]]. The non-Muslim people were nominally allowed to practice whichever religion they wanted to follow. The [[Islamic Law|Sharia Law]] was exercised by the state, and nominally extended only to Muslims, but in reality had jurisdiction over non-Muslims who had commit offenses against the Muslim community.
[[File:Quran of Caliph Uthman reign-mohammad adil rais.JPG|thumb|right|This copy of the Qur'an is believed to be the oldest one, compiled during Caliph Uthman's reign.]]

Islam was the guiding force of the Caliphate. Any act of state was first to be approved by the Qur'an and the traditions of Muhammed. If there were no such guidelines available, then wisdom or Hikmat was used after which if the act would go against the established principals, norms,system etc. it was not tolerated.
Christians and Jews were—and are—considered [[People of the Book]] (Arabic: أهل الكتاب 'Ahl al-Kitāb), an Islamic term and legal status afforded to adherents of the other Abrahamic religions. Minorities had their own courts and were often treated well in the Islamic Empire. There was generally no compulsion to follow [[Islam]]. The following [[Quranic]] verse was followed: ''Let there be no compulsion in religion'' (2:256).

==See also==ough out the empire, Uthman himself built a huge palace for himself in [[Madinah]] which was famous by the name ''Al-Zawar'', he constructed it from his personal resources.
Many buildings were built for administrative purposes. In the quarters called '''Dar-ul-Amarat''' Government offices and houses for the residence of officers were provided. Buildings known as '''Diwans''' were constructed for the keeping of official records. Buildings known as '''Bait-ul-Mal''' were constructed to house royal treasuries. For the lodging of persons suffering sentences as punishment, [[Jail]]s were constructed for the first time in [[Muslim history]]. In important cities Guest Houses were constructed to serve as rest houses for traders and merchants coming from far away places. Roads and bridges were constructed for public use. On the road from [[Medina]] to [[Mecca]], shelters, wells, and meal houses were constructed at every stage for the ease of the people who came for [[hajj]].
Military cantonments were constructed at strategic points. Special stables were provided for cavalry.  These stables could accommodate as many as 4,000 horses. Special pasture grounds were provided and maintained for ''Bait-ul-Mal'' animals.
[[Canal]]s were dug to irrigate fields as well as provide drinking water for the people. '''Abu Musa canal''' (''after the name of governor of [[Basra]] [[Abu-Musa al-Asha'ari]] '') it was a nine mile (14&nbsp;km) long, canal which brought water from the [[Tigris]] to [[Basra]]. Another canal known as '''Maqal canal''' was also dug from the [[Tigris]]. A canal known as the '''Amir al-Mu'minin canal''' ( ''after the title [[Amir al-Mu'minin]] that was assumed by Caliph Umar'') was dug to join the [[Nile]] to the [[Red Sea]]. During the famine of 639 food grains were brought from [[Egypt]] to [[Arabia]] through this canal from  the sea which saved the lives of millions of inhabitants of Arabia. '''Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas canal''' (''After the name of governor of [[Kufa]]  [[Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas]]'') dug from the [[Euphrates]] brought water to {{Disambiguation needed|Anbar|date=June 2011}}. [['Amr ibn al-'As]] the Governor of [[Egypt]], during the reign of Caliph Umar, even proposed the digging of a canal to join the [[Mediterranean]] to [[Red Sea]]. The proposal, however, did not materialize due to unknown reasons, and it was 1200 years later that such a canal was dug in the shape of the [[Suez Canal]]. Shuaibia was the port for [[Makkah]]. It was inconvenient. Caliph Uthman selected [[Jeddah]] as the site of the new [[seaport]], and a new port was built there. Uthman also reformed the [[department of Police]] in cities.

==Army==

{{Main|Rashidun Caliphate army}}

The Rashidun Army was the primary military body of the [[Islam]]ic [[armed force]]s of the 7th [[century]], serving alongside the Rashidun [[Navy]]. The Rashidun Army maintained a very high level of discipline, strategic prowess, organization along with motivation and self initiative of the officer corps. For much of its history this army was one of the most powerful and effective military forces in all of the region. At the height of the [[Rashidun|Rashidun Caliphate]] the maximum size of the  army was around 100,000 troops.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/muslimwars/articles/yarmuk.aspx|title=The Battle Of Yarmuk, 636|last=Fratini|first=Dan|date=04/01/2006|publisher=Military History Online|archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/5wTrtz1Lr |archivedate = 2011-02-13|deadurl=no}}</ref> The Rashidun army was divided into the two basic categories of [[infantry]] and [[light cavalry]]. Reconstructing the military equipment of early Muslim armies is problematic. Compared with Roman armies or later medieval Muslim armies, the range of visual representation is very small, often imprecise and difficult to date. Physically very little material evidence has survived and again, much of it is difficult to date.<ref name="Kennedy2001">{{cite book|title=The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the Early Islamic State|author=Hugh Kennedy|publisher=Routledge|location=London|year=2001|page=168|url=http://www.questia.com/reader/action/gotoDocId/102802943|chapter=CHAPTER SEVEN: Weapons and equipment in early Muslim armies|authorlink=Hugh N. Kennedy}}</ref> The soldiers used to wear [[Iron]] and [[bronze]] segmented [[helmet]] that comes from [[Iraq]] and was of [[central Asia]]n type.<ref>{{cite book|last=Kennedy|first=Hugh|title=The Armies of the Caliphs: Military and Society in the Early Islamic State|url=http://www.questia.com/reader/action/gotoDocId/102802958|year=2001|publisher=Routledge|location=London|page=183|chapter= CHAPTER EIGHT: Fortification and siege warfare }}</ref> The standard form of protective body armor was [[chain mail]]. There are also references to the practice of wearing two coats of mail (dir’ayn), the one under the main one being shorter or even made of fabric or leather. [[Hauberk]]s and large wooden or [[wickerwork]] [[shield]]s were used as a protection in combat.<ref name="Kennedy2001"/> The soldiers were usually equipped with [[Sword]]s that were hanged in [[baldric]]. They also possessed [[spear]]s and [[dagger]]s.<ref>Augus Mcbride</ref>{{Page needed|date=April 2011}} [[Caliph]] [[Umar]] was the first [[Muslim]] ruler to organize the army as a [[State Department]]. This reform was introduced in 637. A beginning was made with the [[Quraysh (tribe)|Quraish]] and the [[Ansar (Islam)|Ansar]] and the system was gradually extended to the whole of [[Arabia]] and to [[Muslim]]s of conquered lands. The basic strategy of early Muslim armies sent out to conquer foreign lands was to exploit every possible weakness of the enemy army in order to achieve victory. Their key strength was mobility. The cavalry had both horses and camels.  The camels were used as both transport and food for long marches through the desert (Khalid bin Walid’s extraordinary march from the Persian border to Damascus utilized camels as both food and transport).  The cavalry was the army’s  main striking force and also served as a strategic mobile reserve. The common tactic used was to use the infantry and archers to engage and maintain contact with the enemy forces while the cavalry was held back till the enemy was fully engaged.  Once fully engaged the enemy reserves were absorbed by the infantry and archers the Muslim cavalry was used as pincers (like modern tank and mechanized divisions) to attack the enemy from the sides or to attack enemy base camps.  The [[Rashidun army]] was quality-wise and strength-wise bellow standard versus the [[Sassanid army|Sassanid Persian army]] and the [[Byzantine army]].  [[Khalid ibn Walid]] was the first general of the Rashidun Caliphate to conquer foreign lands and to trigger the whole scale deposition of the two most powerful empires.  During his campaign against the [[Sassanid]] [[Persian Empire]](''Iraq 633 - 634'') and the [[Byzantine Empire]] (''Syria 634 - 638'') Khalid developed brilliant tactics, that he used effectively against both the [[Sassanid army]] and the [[Byzantine army]]. The Caliph [[Abu Bakr]]'s way was to give his generals their mission, the geographical area in which that mission would be carried out, and the resources that, could be made available for that purpose. He would then leave it to his generals to accomplish their mission in whatever manner they chose. On the other hand Caliph [[Umar]] in the latter part of his Caliphate use to direct his generals as to where they would stay and when to move to the next target and who will be commanding the left and right wing of the army in the particular battle. This made the phase of conquest comparatively slower but provided well organized campaigns. Caliph [[Uthman]] used the same method as Abu Bakr: he would give missions to his generals and then leave it to them how they should accomplish it. Caliph [[Ali]] also followed the same method.

===Religion===
{{Expand section|date=August 2007}}

The state religion was [[Islam]]. The non-Muslim people were nominally allowed to practice whichever religion they wanted to follow. The [[Islamic Law|Sharia Law]] was exercised by the state, and nominally extended only to Muslims, but in reality had jurisdiction over non-Muslims who had commit offenses against the Muslim community.
[[File:Quran of Caliph Uthman reign-mohammad adil rais.JPG|thumb|right|This copy of the Qur'ān is believed to be the oldest one, compiled during Caliph Uthman's reign.]]
Islam was the guiding force of the Caliphate. Any act of state was first to be approved by the Qur'ān and the Traditions of Prophet Muhammed. If there were no such guidelines available, then wisdom or Hikmat was used, after which if the act would go against the established principals, norms, system etc., it was not carried on with.
Christians and Jews were - and are - considered [[People of the Book]] (Arabic: أهل الكتاب 'Ahl al-Kitāb), an Islamic term and legal status afforded to adherents of the other Abrahamic religions.

==Legacy==
{{Empty section|date=August 2007}}

==See also==
* [[Rashidun|Rashidun Caliphs]]
* [[Rashidun army]]
* [[Abu Bakr]]
* [[Umar]]
* [[Uthman]]
* [[Ali]]
* [[Ridda wars]]
* [[First Fitna]]
* [[The Four Companions]]
* [[The Ten Promised Paradise]]⏎
* [[Islamic Golden Age]]

==References==
{{Citation style|date=September 2009}}
{{reflist|30em}}

{{Rashidun Caliphs}}
{{Islam topics|state=collapsed}}
{{Caliphate}}⏎
{{Empires}}
{{Iran topics}}

[[Category:661 disestablishments]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 632]]
[[Category:History of the Middle East]]
[[Category:7th century inHistory of Egypt]]
[[Category:Islam in Egypt]]
[[Category:Muslim conquests]]
[[Category:History of Islam]]
[[Category:7th century inHistory of Iran]]
[[Category:History of Syria]]
[[Category:History of Israel]]
[[Category:Early Middle Ages]]
[[Category:History of the Levant]]
[[Category:Articles about multiple people]]
[[Category:Rashidun Caliphate| ]]
[[Category:7th century in religion]]
[[Category:States in medieval Anatolia]]
[[Category:Byzantine Empire successor states in the Greek East]]⏎
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[[ar:خلفاء راشدون]]
[[bs:Pravedne halife]]
[[ca:Califat Raixidun]]
[[cs:Volení chalífové]]
[[es:Califas bien guiados]]
[[fr:Rashidun]]
[[ko:정통 칼리파]]
[[id:Khulafaur Rasyidin]]
[[it:Califfato dei Rashidun]]
[[he:ראשידון]]
[[ka:ოთხი წმინდა ხალიფა]]
[[hu:Rásidún]]
[[mk:Праведен халифат]]
[[ms:Khulafa al-Rasyidin]]
[[ja:正統カリフ]]
[[pl:Kalifowie prawowierni]]
[[pt:Califado Rashidun]]
[[ru:Праведный Халифат]]
[[simple:Rashidun Empire]]
[[th:จักรวรรดิกาหลิบรอชิดีน]]
[[tr:Dört büyük halife]]
[[ur:خلافت راشدہ]]
[[zh:四大哈里发]]