Umayyad invasions of Egypt (657–658)
| Umayyad invasions of Egypt | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of First Fitna | |||||||||
 | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
|
Rashidun Caliphate Pro-Alids |
Umayyad Syria Uthmaniyya | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Ali ibn Abi Talib Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr  Malik al-Ashtar X Muhammad ibn Abi Hudhayfa Kinana ibn Bishr al-Tujibi † Al-Harith ibn Juhman al-Jufi † Ibn Mudahim al-Kalbi † |
Mu'awiya I Amr ibn al-As Mu'awiya ibn Hudayj al-Sakuni Abu al-A'war Maslama ibn Mukhallad al-Ansari Busr ibn Abi Artat Yazid ibn al-Harith al-Kinani | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 2,500+ | 6,000+ | ||||||||
The Umayyad invasions of Egypt (657–658) were a series of raids and military expeditions ordered by Mu'awiya I and led by Amr ibn al-As, against the fourth Rashidun caliph Ali's control over Egypt, which was being ruled by his governor Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr. The Syrian army swiftly defeated Ali's forces, led by Muhammad, resulting in the annexation of Egypt by Mu'awiya and the reinstatement of Amr as its governor.
Background
In 656, the third Rashidun caliph Uthman ibn Affan was assassinated by Egyptian rebels after the siege of his residence. Following his death, Ali ibn Abi Talib, the son-in-law and cousin of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, took over the leadership of the Caliphate. Ali's authority was rejected by several supporters of Uthman, including by Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan, the long-time governor of Greater Syria. In the subsequent First Muslim Civil War, Egypt became a critical battleground for legitimacy. It was divided between the supporters of Ali and a powerful faction of Uthmaniyya (partisans of Caliph Uthman), based in Kharbita and led by Yazid ibn al-Hārith, who demanded retribution for Uthman's murder.[1]
Initially, the province was seized by Muhammad ibn Abi Hudhayfa, who had led the Egyptian mutineers against Uthman's governor, Abd Allah ibn Sa'd.[2] Although Ibn Abi Hudhayfa was recognized by Ali as governor after his accession, Mu'awiya and his top general Amr ibn al-As managed to entice Ibn Abi Hudhayfa to the border at Arish, where he was captured and imprisoned in Syria. He was later killed while attempting to escape, with historical accounts differing on the specific circumstances of his death.[3] Following his removal, Ali appointed his loyalist Qays ibn Sa'd, who adopted a policy of de-escalation by allowing Uthmanid rebels, led by Maslama ibn Mukhallad, to remain neutral in exchange for peace.[4]
Prelude
The stability established by Qays ended in 657 when he was recalled by Ali and replaced by Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr, who was Ali's foster son and the leader of the Egyptian rebels involved in Uthman's assassination, which included his commander Kinana ibn Bishr. Consequently, this appointment immediately proved unpopular among supporters of Uthman, leading to increased tension between Ali's loyalists and those who sought revenge for Uthman’s death, and a lack of popular support for Ali’s rule in the region.[5] Unlike his predecessor, Muhammad abandoned the policy of neutrality and issued an ultimatum to the rebels to either pledge allegiance to Ali or depart from Egypt.[6] This demand triggered an active revolt led by Mu'awiya ibn Hudayj. Muhammad attempted to suppress the uprising by dispatching an offensive under al-Harith ibn Jumhan al-Ju‘fi, who was killed in the engagement. A second expedition led by Ibn Mudahim al-Kalbi similarly failed to defeat the Uthmanids, leaving the governor's limited forces overstretched.[7] Recognizing the impending collapse of his authority, Ali dispatched Malik al-Ashtar from Nisibis to take supreme command of Egypt. However, Al-Ashtar was poisoned at Qulzum, an act widely attributed to the instigation of Mu'awiya.[8] Al-Ashtar's death was celebrated at Damascus, Mu'awiya's capital in Syria, and left Muhammad isolated at his post.[9]
Invasion of Egypt
In mid-658, Mu'awiya I ordered a full-scale military intervention to support the local Uthmanids and annex the province. He dispatched a Syrian army of approximately 6,000 troops under the command of Amr ibn al-As, the original conqueror of Egypt and its first Arab governor.[10] Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr, whose authority had been weakened by failed expeditions against the rebels at Kharbita, was able to muster only 2,500 loyalist troops to defend the governorship.[11]
The two forces met at the Battle of al-Musanna, located between Heliopolis and Fustat.[12] Despite a determined defense by Ibn Abi Bakr's commander Kinana ibn Bishr, the numerically superior Syrian and Uthmanid coalition swiftly overwhelmed the Egyptian loyalists. Kinana was killed in the heat of the battle, leading to the total collapse of Muhammad’s lines.[13] Following the defeat, Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr attempted to flee but was captured and executed by the forces of Mu'awiya ibn Hudayj.[14]
The Umayyad victory resulted in the reinstatement of Amr ibn al-As as the governor of Egypt, bringing the province under the control of Mu'awiya's Uthmanid coalition. This annexation was a decisive turning point in the First Fitna, as it deprived Ali of the region's vast agricultural wealth and tax revenue while securing Mu'awiya's southern flank.[15]
See also
References
- ^ Wellhausen, Julius (1927). The Arab Kingdom and Its Fall. Translated by Weir, Margaret G. University of Calcutta. p. 95.
- ^ Wellhausen, Julius (1927). The Arab Kingdom and Its Fall. Translated by Weir, Margaret G. University of Calcutta. p. 96.
- ^ Madelung, Wilferd (1996-08-29). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. p. 154. ISBN 9780521646963.
- ^ Madelung, Wilferd (1996-08-29). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. p. 153. ISBN 9780521646963.
- ^ Calder, Norman; Mojaddedi, Jawid Ahmad; Rippin, Andrew (2013). Classical Islam: A Sourcebook of Religious Literature. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-50507-9.
- ^ Muir, William (1891). The Caliphate: Its Rise, Decline, and Fall. Religious Tract Society. p. 289.
- ^ Madelung, Wilferd (1996). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. p. 153. ISBN 9780521646963.
- ^ Wellhausen, Julius (1927). The Arab Kingdom and Its Fall. Translated by Weir, Margaret G. University of Calcutta. p. 95.
- ^ Muir, William (1891). The Caliphate: Its Rise, Decline, and Fall. Religious Tract Society. p. 289.
- ^ Muir, William (2024-02-28). Annals of the Early Caliphate. From Original Sources. BoD – Books on Demand. ISBN 978-3-385-35713-6.
- ^ Mikaberidze, Alexander (2011-07-22). Conflict and Conquest in the Islamic World: 2 volumes [2 volumes]. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 978-1-59884-337-8.
- ^ Kennedy, Hugh (1998). "Egypt as a Province in the Islamic Caliphate, 641–868". In Petry, Carl F. (ed.). Cambridge History of Egypt, Volume One: Islamic Egypt, 640–1517. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 62–85. ISBN 0-521-47137-0.
- ^ Madelung, Wilferd (1996). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. p. 196. ISBN 9780521646963.
- ^ Madelung, Wilferd (1997). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. p. 268. ISBN 0-521-64696-0.
- ^ Lev, Yaacov (2020-03-02). Administration of Justice in Medieval Egypt: From the 7th to the 12th Century. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-1-4744-5926-6.