First Fitna: Difference between revisions
Albertatiran (talk | contribs) (2nd attempt!) removed the footnote from the infobox for aesthetic reasons. Kharijites (and other parties involved) are introduced in detail in the body of the article |
added more info in the leads based on the info below; this article has to be a Good Article; look at Second Fitna; Fourth Fitna and other fitna articles; plz make this a GA |
||
Line 24: | Line 24: | ||
}} |
}} |
||
The '''First Fitna''' ({{lang-ar|فتنة مقتل عثمان|fitnat maqtal ʻUthmān|[[Fitna (word)|strife/sedition]] of the killing of [[Uthman]]}}) was |
The '''First Fitna''' ({{lang-ar|فتنة مقتل عثمان|fitnat maqtal ʻUthmān|[[Fitna (word)|strife/sedition]] of the killing of [[Uthman]]}}) was the first civil war among the Islamic community which resulted in the overthrowing of the [[Rashidun Caliphate]] and the establishment of the [[Umayyad Caliphate]]. It began after the assassination of the third caliph [[Uthman]] in 656. The war involved the suppression of two challenges to the Rashidun Caliphate, the first by Syria's governor [[Mu'awiya I]] and his supporters, and the second by the [[Kharijites]]. |
||
The roots of the first civil war goes back to the assassination of the second caliph [[Umar]]. Before dying, Umar formed a six-member council to elect the next caliph, which eventually chose Uthman. During the last years of Uthman's caliphate, he was accused of nepotism, and eventually killed by rebels in 656. After Uthman's assassination, [[Ali]] was chosen as the fourth caliph. Aisha, Talha and Zubayr revolted against Ali's caliphate and demanded that a new caliph be chosen. The both parties fought in the [[Battle of the Camel]] in December 656, which resulted Ali being victorious. Afterwards, Mu'awiya I demanded Uthman's assassinators to be killed, and called fo retribution. After Ali refused, Mu'awiya I declared war and gained the support of the Umayyads. Soon after, Mu'awiya I gained control of [[Egypt]], after having an agreement with the general [[Amr ibn al-As]]. Ali and Mu'awiya's forces engaged in the [[Battle of Siffin]], occurring in July 657. It resulted in a stalemate arbitration, which was resented by the [[Kharijites]]. The Kharijites declared Ali and Mu'awiya to be infidels and declared war on both. Ali's forces defeated the Kharijites in the [[Battle of Nahrawan]]. |
|||
Angered by the defeat, Kharijites decided to kill Ali, Amr ibn al-As and Mu'awiya I. In 661, Ali was assassinated by the Kharijite soldier [[Abd al-Rahman ibn Muljam]]. After Ali's death, his heir, [[Hasan ibn Ali]], was recognized as caliph. He concluded a [[Hasan–Muawiya treaty|peace treaty]], acknowledging the rule of Mu'awiya, who founded the Umayyad Caliphate and then ruled as its first caliph. |
|||
==Background== |
==Background== |
Revision as of 17:21, 20 December 2021
First Fitna | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of the Fitnas | ||||||||
Region under the control of Caliph Ali
Region under the control of Mu'awiya | ||||||||
| ||||||||
Belligerents | ||||||||
Rashidun Caliphate |
Aisha's forces Muawiyah's forces | Kharijites[a] | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | ||||||||
Ali Hasan ibn Ali Ammar ibn Yasir † Malik al-Ashtar Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr † Hujr ibn Adi |
Aisha Talha † Zubayr ibn al-Awwam † Muawiyah I 'Amr ibn al-'As[b] | Abd Allah ibn Wahb al-Rasibi |
The First Fitna (Arabic: فتنة مقتل عثمان, romanized: fitnat maqtal ʻUthmān, lit. 'strife/sedition of the killing of Uthman') was the first civil war among the Islamic community which resulted in the overthrowing of the Rashidun Caliphate and the establishment of the Umayyad Caliphate. It began after the assassination of the third caliph Uthman in 656. The war involved the suppression of two challenges to the Rashidun Caliphate, the first by Syria's governor Mu'awiya I and his supporters, and the second by the Kharijites.
The roots of the first civil war goes back to the assassination of the second caliph Umar. Before dying, Umar formed a six-member council to elect the next caliph, which eventually chose Uthman. During the last years of Uthman's caliphate, he was accused of nepotism, and eventually killed by rebels in 656. After Uthman's assassination, Ali was chosen as the fourth caliph. Aisha, Talha and Zubayr revolted against Ali's caliphate and demanded that a new caliph be chosen. The both parties fought in the Battle of the Camel in December 656, which resulted Ali being victorious. Afterwards, Mu'awiya I demanded Uthman's assassinators to be killed, and called fo retribution. After Ali refused, Mu'awiya I declared war and gained the support of the Umayyads. Soon after, Mu'awiya I gained control of Egypt, after having an agreement with the general Amr ibn al-As. Ali and Mu'awiya's forces engaged in the Battle of Siffin, occurring in July 657. It resulted in a stalemate arbitration, which was resented by the Kharijites. The Kharijites declared Ali and Mu'awiya to be infidels and declared war on both. Ali's forces defeated the Kharijites in the Battle of Nahrawan.
Angered by the defeat, Kharijites decided to kill Ali, Amr ibn al-As and Mu'awiya I. In 661, Ali was assassinated by the Kharijite soldier Abd al-Rahman ibn Muljam. After Ali's death, his heir, Hasan ibn Ali, was recognized as caliph. He concluded a peace treaty, acknowledging the rule of Mu'awiya, who founded the Umayyad Caliphate and then ruled as its first caliph.
Background
Following Muhammad's death in 632, Abu Bakr became the new leader of the Muslim community. After reasserting Muslim control over the dissident tribes of Arabia, he sent the Muslim armies against the empires of Byzantium and Sassanian Persia, initiating a wave of conquests which were continued by his successor Umar (r. 634–644), bringing about almost complete collapse of the Sassanians, and restricting the Byzantine Empire to Anatolia, North Africa, and its European holdings.[1] The conquests brought Muslims bounteous revenue and lands.[2] Particularly in Iraq, the former crown-lands and the lands of the Persian aristocracy were now in Muslim hands. These became communal property administered by the state. The revenue was distributed among the conquering armies, who had settled in Iraq.[3] Umar also left the provincial administration to the respective governors, who ruled with considerable autonomy, and provincial surplus was spent on the settlers of the conquered territories instead of being sent to the capital.[4]
Uthman succeeded Umar after the latter's assassination in 644. His policies earned him discontent of the Muslim elite and accusations of nepotism. He began centralizing the power by reliance on his Umayyad relatives, the clan who had long opposed Muhammad, to the exclusion of other Quraysh,[a] who had enjoyed significant authority during the reign of his two predecessors. He appointed his kinsmen to all of the provincial governorships.[5]
Although he continued the expansion in eastern Persia and west of Egypt, the conquests came to a halt in roughly the later part of his reign.[6] The influx of spoils slowed, and the economic issues that had previously been ignored by the conquest tribesmen due to incoming revenue started coming to the fore.[7] This was coupled with the dislike of the Arab nomads for central authority which had hitherto been superseded by the continued war effort.[8] The continued migration of tribes from Arabia to the conquered territories also resulted in reduced payments from the revenue of the lands, which led to resentment in the old settlers.[9] Uthman's interference in the provincial affairs, that consisted of his declaration of the crown lands of Iraq as the state assets, and his demand that provincial surplus be forwarded to the caliph in Medina, brought about widespread opposition to his rule, especially from Iraq and Egypt, where majority of the conquest armies had settled.[10] The old settlers also saw their status threatened by the land grants in conquered territories to prominent Quraysh like Talha ibn Ubayd Allah and Zubayr ibn al-Awwam and the caliph allowing late arriving tribal chiefs, such as Ashath ibn Qays, to acquire lands there in exchange for their lands in Arabia.[11]
Encouraged by the Medinese elite including the companions like Talha, Zubayr, Amr ibn al-A's, the conqueror of Egypt whom Uthman had deposed, and Muhammad's widow A'isha, the provincial opposition subsequently broadened into open rebellion and dissidents from Egypt and Iraq marched on Medina, killing the caliph in June 656.[12]
Ali, Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law, was subsequently recognized caliph.[13]
Battle of the Camel
Muhammad's widow, A'isha bint Abi Bakr, and two of Muhammad's prominent companions, namely, Talha ibn Ubayd Allah and Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, opposed Ali's succession and gathered in Mecca, where they called for vengeance for Uthman's death and election of a new caliph through a council, presumably either Talha or Zubayr.[14] The leading roles of Talha and A'isha against Uthman are well-cited.[15] The rebels raised an army and invaded Basra, inflicting heavy casualties and taking it from Ali's governor with the intention of strengthening their position.[16] Ali sent his son, Hasan, to raise an army in Kufa.[17] He soon followed them and the combined army marched to Basra.[18]
The two armies met outside of Basra. After three days of failed negotiations, the battle began in the afternoon of 8 December 656 and lasted until the evening.[19] Zubayr left the field without fighting but was pursued and killed by the troops of al-Ahnaf bin Qays, a chief of the Banu Sa'd who had remained on the sidelines of the battle, likely for the dishonorable act of leaving his fellow Muslims behind in a civil war for which he was partly responsible.[20] Talha was killed by the Umayyad's Marwan, another notable rebel, possibly to rid Muawiya of a serious contender for the caliphate.[21]
With the death Talha and Zubayr, the fate of the battle was sealed in favor of Ali. However, as the rallying point of her army, the fight continued until Ali's troops succeeded in killing A'isha's camel, from which the battle received its name.[22] After admonishing A'isha, Ali sent her back to Medina, escorted by her brother.[23] Ali also announced a public pardon and set the prisoners free.[24] This pardon was also extended to high-profile rebels such as Marwan, who soon joined the court of Muawiya as a senior advisor.[25]
Battle of Siffin
Shortly after assuming power, Ali moved to dismiss most of Uthman's governors whom he considered corrupt, including Muawiya, Uthman's cousin.[26] Muawiya refused to step down and instead, through a representative, informed Ali that he would recognize the caliphate of Ali in return for the governorship of Syria and Egypt for life.[27] Ali rejected this proposal.[28] Earlier, he had also refused to temporarily confirm as governor Muawiya, whom Ali viewed as a contemptible man.[29]
Muawiya now declared war on Ali on behalf of the Syrians, with the objectives of vengeance for Uthman's death, deposing Ali, and establishing a Syrian council to appoint the next caliph, presumably Muawiya.[30] In a letter to him, Ali wrote that Muawiya was welcome to bring his case for Uthman to Ali's court of justice. Ali then challenged Muawiya to offer any evidence that would incriminate him in the murder of Uthman. He also challenged Muawiya to name any Syrian who would qualify for a council.[31] Following Muawiya's declaration of war, Ali called a council of Islamic ruling elite which urged him to fight Muawiya.[32]
The two armies met at Siffin, west of the Euphrates, early in the summer of 657 CE.[33] There, the two sides negotiated for weeks.[34] Notably, Muawiya repeated his proposition to recognize Ali in return for Syria and Egypt, which was rejected again.[35] In turn, Ali challenged Muawiya to a one-on-one duel to settle the matters and avoid the bloodshed. This offer was declined by Muawiya.[36] The negotiations failed on 18 July 657 and the two side readied for the battle.[37] The main battle began on Wednesday, 26 July, and lasted for three or four days.[38] By its last day, the balance had gradually moved in Ali's favor.[39] Before noon, however, some of the Syrians raised copies of the Quran on their lances, shouting the same line, "Let the book of God be the judge between us." The fighting stopped.[40]
Arbitration
Part of a series on Muhakkima |
---|
Islam portal |
Muawiya carried out the above strategy of appealing to the Quran when he was informed that his army could not win the battle.[41] Faced with an appeal to their holy book, Ali's forces stopped fighting, despite Ali's warnings that raising the Quran was for deception.[42] Compelled by the strong peace sentiments in his army and threats of mutiny, Ali accepted the arbitration proposal.[43]
The majority in Ali's army now pressed for the reportedly neutral Abu Musa al-Ashari as their representative, despite Ali's objections about Abu Musa's political naivety.[44] In the final agreement on 2 August, 657 CE, Abu Musa represented Ali's army while Muawiya's top general, Amr ibn al-As, represented the other side.[45] The two representatives committed to adhere to the Quran and Sunnah, and to save the community from war and division.[46]
The two arbitrators met together, first at Dumat al-Jandal and then at Udhruh, and the proceedings likely lasted until mid April 658 CE.[47] At Dumat al-Jandal, the arbitrators reached the verdict that Uthman had been killed wrongfully and that Muawiya had the right to seek revenge.[48] This was a political verdict according to Madelung, rather than a judicial one, and a blunder of the naive Abu Musa.[49] This verdict strengthened the Syrians' support for Muawiya and weakened the position of Ali.[50]
The second meeting at Udhruh likely broke up in disarray when, at its conclusion, Amr violated his earlier agreement with Abu Musa.[51] The Kufan delegation reacted furiously to Abu Musa's concessions.[52] He was disgraced and fled to Mecca, whereas Amr was received triumphantly by Muawiya on his return to Syria.[53] After the conclusion of the arbitration, Syrians pledged their allegiance to Muawiya in 659 CE as the next caliph.[54] Ali denounced the conduct of the two arbitrators as contrary to the Quran and began to organize a new expedition to Syria.[55]
Battle of Nahrawan
Following the Battle of Siffin, a group separated from Ali when he agreed to settle the dispute with Muawiya through arbitration, a move considered by the group as against the Quran.[56] Most of them had earlier forced Ali to accept the arbitration, but now exclaimed that the right to judgment belonged to God alone.[57] While Ali largely succeeded in regaining their support, the remaining opponents of arbitration gathered in Nahrawan, on the east bank of the Tigris.[58] In view of their exodus, this group is known as the Kharijites, those who secede.[59]
The Kharijites denounced Ali as caliph, declared him, his followers, and the Syrians as infidels, and instead elected Abd Allah ibn Wahb al-Rasibi as their caliph. They declared the blood of such infidels to be licit.[60] The Kharijites later started the practice of interrogating civilians about their views on Uthman and Ali, and executing those who did not share their views.[61] In a notable incident, the Kharijites disemboweled a farmer's pregnant wife, cut out and killed her unborn infant, before beheading the farmer.[62] Kharijites have been viewed as the forerunners of Islamic extremists.[63]
Ali received the news of the Kharijites' violence and moved to Nahrawan with his army.[64] There, he asked the Kharjites to surrender the murderers and return to their families.[65] The Kharijites, however, responded defiantly that they were all responsible for the murders as they all considered it licit to kill both Ali's followers and the Syrians.[65] After multiple failed attempts for deescalation, Ali announced an amnesty (that did not apply to murderers) and barred his army from commencing hostilities.[66] The remaining Kharijites, estimated at 2800, attacked and were vanquished by the vastly superior army of Ali. The injured, estimated at 400, were pardoned by Ali.[67] In January 661, when praying at the Mosque of Kufa, Ali was assassinated by the Kharijite Abd al-Rahman ibn Muljam.[68]
Peace treaty with Hasan
After the assassination of Ali in January 661, his eldest son, Hasan, was elected caliph in Kufa.[69] Muawiya shortly marched on Kufa with a large army, while Hasan's military response suffered defections in large numbers, in part facilitated by military commanders and tribal chiefs who had been swayed to Muawiya's side by promises and offers of money.[70] After a failed assassination attempt on his life, a wounded Hasan, who by now only ruled the area around Kufa, agreed to a peace treaty with Muawiya in 661.[71] Under this treaty, Hasan ceded the caliphate to Muawiya in exchange for a general amnesty for the people and the return of the caliphate to Hasan after Muawiya's death.[72] However, Hasan died in 669 at the age of forty six.[73] It is believed that he was poisoned at the instigation of Muawiya.[74] Muawiyah was crowned as caliph at a ceremony in Jerusalem in 661.[75]
Notes
- ^ Grouping of the Meccan clans to which Muhammad and the caliphs, including Uthman, belonged.
References
- ^ Lewis (2002, pp. 49–51)
- ^ Donner (2010, p. 148)
- ^ Kennedy (2016, p. 59)
- ^ Kennedy (2016, pp. 60)
- ^ Wellhausen (1927, pp. 41–42). Lewis (2002, p. 59)
- ^ Donner (2010, p. 148). Lewis (2002, p. 60)
- ^ Wellhausen (1927, pp. 43)
- ^ Lewis (2002, p. 60)
- ^ Donner (2010, p. 148). Kennedy (2016, p. 63)
- ^ Kennedy (2016, pp. 61–62)
- ^ Donner (2010, pp. 149–150). Kennedy (2016, p. 63)
- ^ Kennedy (2016, pp. 64–65). Lewis (2002, p. 60)
- ^ Kennedy (2016, p. 65)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 157, 158). Rogerson (2006, pp. 289, 291)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 107, 118, 119). Abbas (2021, pp. 122, 123, 125, 135). Hazleton (2009, pp. 87, 89, 93, 95, 102, 103). Bodley (1946, pp. 349, 350). Jafri (1979, pp. 62, 64). Rogerson (2006, p. 289). Tabatabai (1977, pp. 52, 53). Poonawala (1982). Veccia Vaglieri (2021). Veccia Vaglieri (2021b)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 162, 163). Hazleton (2009, p. 107). Rogerson (2006, p. 294). Abbas (2021, p. 137). Veccia Vaglieri (2021b)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 166). Hazleton (2009, p. 107). Rogerson (2006, p. 295). Poonawala (1982). Veccia Vaglieri (2021). Veccia Vaglieri (2021b)
- ^ Donner (2010, p. 158–160)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 169, 170). Rogerson (2006, p. 295). Poonawala (1982). Gleave (2008)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 170, 171). Rogerson (2006, pp. 295, 296). Veccia Vaglieri (2021b)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 171, 172, 181). Hazleton (2009, pp. 117, 118). Abbas (2021, p. 140)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 172, 173). Hazelton (2009, pp. 118–121) . Abbas (2021, p. 140). Rogerson (2006, pp. 296, 297). Veccia Vaglieri (2021b)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 168–174)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 175, 179, 180). Hazleton (2009, p. 122). Abbas (2021, p. 141). Rogerson (2006, p. 298). Veccia Vaglieri (2021b)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 168–174, 180, 181). Hazleton (2009, p. 118). Abbas (2021, pp. 140, 141). Veccia Vaglieri (2021b)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 148, 197). Abbas (2021, p. 134). Hazleton (2009, p. 183)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 203). Gleave (2021)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 204). Hinds (2021)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 148). Hazleton (2009, p. 129)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 204, 205). Hazleton (2009, pp. 130, 136)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 205, 206)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 215). Rogerson (2006, pp. 303, 304)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 226). Donner (2010, pp. 161)
- ^ Lecker (2021)
- ^ Hazleton (2009, p. 196)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 135). Hazleton (2009, p. 197). Rogerson (2006, p. 306)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 231). Bowering et al. (2013, p. 31) . Donner (2010, pp. 161)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 232). Rogerson (2006, p. 307). Donner (2010, pp. 161)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 238). Hazleton (2009, p. 198). Rogerson (2006, pp. 307, 308)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 238). Hazleton (2009, pp. 198, 199). Rogerson (2006, p. 308). Bowering et al. (2013, p. 31)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 238). Abbas (2021, p. on Amr's cunning advice). Hazleton (2009, p. 198). Rogerson (2006, p. 308). Mavani (2013, pp. 98) . Aslan (2011, p. 137). Bowering et al. (2013, p. 43) . Glassé (2001, p. 40)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 238). Abbas (2021, pp. you have been cheated). Rogerson (2006, pp. 308). Hazleton (2009, pp. 199–201)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 238, 241). Donner (2010, pp. 161)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 241, 242). Hazleton (2009, p. 211). Rogerson (2006, p. 308). Bowering et al. (2013, p. 43) . Donner (2010, pp. 161). Veccia Vaglieri (2021c)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 241–243). Abbas (2021, p. politically ambitious Kufan). Hazleton (2009, pp. 210, 211). Rogerson (2006, p. 308). Bowering et al. (2013, p. 43)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 243). Abbas (2021, p. the mandate of the arbitration). Rogerson (2006, p. 309)
- ^ Donner (2010, p. 162). Madelung (1997, pp. 254, 255). Hazleton (2009, p. 210)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 255). Abbas (2021, p. Uthman had indeed been wrongfully killed). Aslan (2011, p. 137)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 256). Rogerson (2006, p. 312)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 255). Jafri (1979, p. 65). Momen (1985, p. 25). Bowering et al. (2013, p. 31) . Donner (2010, pp. 162, 163)
- ^ Rogerson (2006, pp. 311, 312). Madelung (1997, p. 257). Glassé (2001, p. 40). Donner (2010, p. 165). Poonawala (1982)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 257). Hazleton (2009, p. 212)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 257). Hazleton (2009, pp. 212). Rogerson (2006, p. 312)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 257). Hazleton (2009, pp. 212). Rogerson (2006, p. 312). Bowering et al. (2013, p. 31) . Donner (2010, p. 163). Hinds (2021)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 257). Glassé (2001, p. 40). Poonawala (1982). Veccia Vaglieri (2021)
- ^ Poonawala (1982). Hazleton (2009, p. 141)
- ^ Poonawala (1982). Hazleton (2009, p. 141). Veccia Vaglieri (2021)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 248, 249, 251, 252). Abbas (2021, pp. brought many of them out). Rogerson (2006, pp. 311, 313). Donner (2010, p. 163). Wellhausen (1901, p. 17) . Poonawala (1982). Veccia Vaglieri (2021)
- ^ Levi Della Vida (1978, pp. 1074, 1075) . Poonawala (1982). Veccia Vaglieri (2021)
- ^ Donner (2010, p. 163). Wellhausen (1901, pp. 17–18) . Hazleton (2009, p. 145)
- ^ Wellhausen (1901, pp. 17–18) . Hazleton (2009, p. 143). Madelung (1997, p. 254)
- ^ Hazleton (2009, pp. 143, 144). Madelung (1997, pp. 254, 259)
- ^ Hazleton (2009, p. 144). Abbas (2021, p. 152)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 259, 260)
- ^ a b Madelung (1997, p. 259)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 260). Wellhausen (1901, p. 18)
- ^ Morony (2021)
- ^ Wellhausen (1901, p. 18)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 311). Glassé (2003, p. 423)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 317–320). Momen (1985, p. 27)
- ^ Madelung (1997, pp. 319, 322)
- ^ Momen (1985, p. 27). Madelung (1997, p. 322)
- ^ Momen (1985, p. 28)
- ^ Madelung (1997, p. 331). Momen (1985, p. 28)
- ^ Avi-Yonah (2001)
Sources
- Donner, Fred M. (2010). Muhammad and the Believers, at the Origins of Islam. Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-05097-6.
- Holt, P. M.; Bernard Lewis (1977). Cambridge History of Islam, Vol. 1. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-29136-4.
- Lapidus, Ira (2002). A History of Islamic Societies (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-77933-3.
- Kennedy, Hugh (2016). The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates: The Islamic Near East from the 6th to the 11th Century (Third ed.). Abingdon, Oxon and New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-138-78761-2.
- Lewis, Bernard (2002). Arabs in History. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780191647161.
- Madelung, Wilferd (1997). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-64696-0.
- Tabatabai, Muhammad Husayn (1977). Shi'ite Islam. Translated by Nasr, Hossein. State University of New York Press. pp. 52, 53. ISBN 9780873952729.
- Wellhausen, Julius (1927). The Arab Kingdom and Its Fall. Translated by Margaret Graham Weir. Calcutta: University of Calcutta. OCLC 752790641.
- Abbas, Hassan (2021). The Prophet's Heir: The Life of Ali ibn Abi Talib. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300252057.
- Hazleton, Lesley (2009). After the Prophet: The Epic Story of the Shia-Sunni Split in Islam. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 9780385532099.
- Rogerson, Barnaby (2006). The Heirs of the Prophet Muhammad: And the Roots of the Sunni-Shia Schism. Abacus. ISBN 9780349117577.
- Bowering, Gerhard, ed. (2013). "Ali b. Abi Talib". The Princeton Encyclopedia of Islamic Political Thought. Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691134840.
- Jafri, S.H.M (1979). Origins and Early Development of Shia Islam. London: Longman.
- Glassé, Cyril (2001). The new encyclopedia of Islam. AltaMira Press. ISBN 9780759101890.
- Aslan, Reza (2011). No god but God: The origins, evolution, and future of Islam. Random House. ISBN 9780812982442.
- Momen, Moojan (1985). An introduction to Shi'i Islam. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780853982005.
- Avi-Yonah, Michael (2001). History of Israel and the Holy Land. A&C Black. ISBN 9780826415264.
- Nasr, Seyyed Hossein; Afsaruddin, Asma (2021). "Ali". Encyclopedia Britannica.
- Poonawala, I.K. (1982). "Ali b. Abi Taleb I. Life". Encyclopaedia Iranica (Online ed.).
- Veccia Vaglieri, L. (2021). "Ali b. Abi Talib". Encyclopaedia of Islam (Second ed.). Brill Reference Online.
- Gleave, Robert M. (2021). "Ali b. Abi Talib". Encyclopaedia of Islam (Third ed.). Brill Reference Online.
- Veccia Vaglieri, L. (2021b). "Al-Djamal". Encyclopaedia of Islam (Second ed.). Brill Reference Online.
- Bodley, R.V.C. (1946). The Messenger; the Life of Mohammed. Doubleday & Company, Inc.
- Morony, M. (2021). "Al-Nahrawan". Encyclopaedia of Islam (Second ed.). Brill Reference Online.
- Veccia Vaglieri, L. (2021c). "Al-Ashari, Abu Musa". Encyclopaedia of Islam (Second ed.). Brill Reference Online.
- Hinds, M. (2021). "Muawiya I". Encyclopaedia of Islam (Second ed.). Brill Reference Online.
Further reading
- Djaït, Hichem (30 October 2008). La Grande Discorde: Religion et politique dans l'Islam des origines. Editions Gallimard. ISBN 978-2-07-035866-3. Arabic translation by Khalil Ahmad Khalil, Beirut, 2000, Dar al-Tali'a.
- "Encyclopedia Iranica". Encyclopædia Iranica. Center for Iranian Studies, Columbia University. March 1997. ISBN 1-56859-050-4.