Battle of Siffin
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Siffin occurred during the First Fitna
, or first Muslim civil war, with the main engagement taking place from July 26 to July 28. It was fought between Ali ibn Abi Talib and Muawiyah I
, on the banks of the Euphrates
river, in what is now Ar-Raqqah, Syria
. Following the controversial murder of Uthman ibn Affan, Ali had become Caliph but struggled to be accepted as such throughout the Muslim Empire. Muawiyah, the governor of Syria, was a kinsman of the murdered Caliph, and wanted the murderers brought to justice. He considered that Ali was unwilling to do this, and so Muawiyah rebelled against Ali, who attempted to put down the rebellion. The result was the engagement at Siffin. However, the battle was indecisive, and the two parties agreed to an arbitration, which was equally indecisive. The battle and arbitration served to weaken Ali's position, but did not resolve the tensions that were plaguing the empire. To the Shia, Ali ibn Abi Talib was the first Imam. To Sunnis, Ali ibn Abi Talib was the fourth Rashidun
Caliph, and Muawiyah the first Caliph of the Ummayyad dynasty. The events surrounding the battle are highly controversial between Sunni and Shia, and serve as part of the split between the two groups.
to Kufa
in Rajab
of 36 A.H. (January 657). He decided to transfer the capital of his government to Kufa from Medina
because it was more centrally placed in the Muslim Empire, and he could halt Muawiyah’s progress into Iraq
. Ali ibn Abi Talib tried to settle matters peacefully by sending an envoy to Syria. He chose Jarir, who was the chief of Banu Bajila and governor of Hamdan. However, negotiations proved fruitless, and Muawiyah's army pledged an oath that they would not wash or sleep a night at home, until the murderers of Uthman were brought to justice. Moreover, they also swore to bring to justice all those who sheltered the murderers - by which they meant Ali ibn Abi Talib and his followers.
Seeing that war was inevitable, Ali gathered his forces, and, after at first planning to invade Syria from the North, he attacked directly, marching through the Mesopotamian desert. Arriving at Riqqa, on the banks of the Euphrates, the Syrian vanguard was sighted, but it withdrew without engagement. The people of Riqqa were hostile to Ali, and his army had great difficulty crossing the river. Eventually, Malik al-Ashtar threatened the townspeople with death, which forced their co-operation. So, finally, the army managed to cross the river, by means of a bridge of boats. Ali's army then marched along the right bank of the Euphrates, until they came across the Syrian outpost of Sur al-Rum, where there was a brief skirmish, but Ali's advance was not slowed. So in Dhu al-Hijjah
36 (May 657), the army of Ali ibn Abi Talib came into sight of Muawiyah’s main forces, which were encamped on the river plain at Siffin.
Mu'awiyah refused to submit to Ali ibn Abi Talib as Caliph until those complicit in Uthman's murder were brought to justice. This demand was of course unacceptable to Ali, who saw Mu'awiyah as motivated by ambition. Moreover, Ali's position began to harden; regarding the murder of Uthman, he is said to have stated "I will not say that he was wrongly attacked, nor will I say that the attack was justified." As compromise was impossible, the negotiations remained deadlocked, but both sides were reluctant to fight, because it would mean killing fellow Muslims. This situation lasted 110 days.
36 (26 July 657) Ali gave the order for a full attack, and the major part of the Battle of Siffin began.
According to the traditional accounts, the first day passed without major events. On 27 July, the right wing of Ali's army advanced toward Muawiyah's pavilion, but Muawiyah's elite troops stand against them and Ibn Maslama's with the left wing attacked with all of his forces to them. The right wing consisting of Yemen
ites troops was pushed back, leaving their commander Abd Allah Ibn Budayl and about three hundred of his forces completely disintegrated. Ali sent Sahl ibn Hunayf with the Ansar
to back them up, but they were too pushed by the Syrian toward the center. Then Ali sent Malik al-Ashtar to rally the retreating men on the right. He succeeded to restore the right wing and forced Maslama's left wing back.
Despite his age (he was now 58), Ali attacked personally with his Medinan troops in the centre, with his troops from Basra
and Kufa on the flanks. Muawiyah watched the battle from a pavilion on the field, surrounded by his Personal Guard. Amr ibn al-Aas led Muawiyah's cavalry against the Kufa flank with great success, and almost broke through to kill Ali. However, Ali's personal bravery inspired his troops, and the attack was stalled. At the head of the Basra troops was al-Ashtar and 300 qari (reciters), who led the assault on Muawiyah's forces. The attack was quite successful, and almost drove Mu'awiyah from the field.
The fighting continued fiercely onto a third day, and casualties mounted, including Hashim ibn Utba and Ammar ibn Yasir
, both Companions of the Prophet(Ammar ibn Yasir a very close companion of the Prophet sided with Ali). Both sides had by now ran out of ammunition for their quivers and so the battle was fought hand-to-hand. Both Ali and Muawiyah were unhappy at the heavy losses both sides were taking, but Muawiyah was particularly dejected, believing that the battle would eventually be lost. Amr al-Aas suggested that single combat between the two leaders could resolve the battle without further bloodshed, but Muawiyah was unwilling to do this. Both men were old but Ali was still vigorous and almost certain to win such a duel against Muawiyah. But Muawiyah did take Amr's second suggestion - he told his bodyguards to put pages from the Qu'ran on their lances, and shout "The law of the Lord! That shall decide between us!" By this it was meant that the two sides should cease fighting and settle matters by peaceful arbitration
under Islamic law
. Muawiyah and Amr did not necessarily think that all of Ali's army would accept an arbitration, but they were sure that some of them would favour this, and so at the least it would cause dissension in Ali's army. It was soon after that that Ali cried one of the most famous quotes in Islamic history, "For Allah!"
Ali's entire army quickly began chanting along with Muawiyah's men. Ali urged his army to fight on, saying that Muawiyah was simply using a trick and was on the point of defeat, but the soldiers did not listen. Ali and al-Ashtar spent a long time arguing against their men, but they could not change their minds. In fact the soldiers became impatient and attacked al-Ashtar with whips, calling him a warmonger
; they even threatened to send Ali to Muawiyah as a prisoner if he did not accept the arbitration. With his army in mutiny against him, Ali had no choice but to accept the arbitration.
While waiting for the arbitration, Muawiyah ruled over Syria, Ali over the rest of the Muslim Empire. In Ramadan
37 (February 658), the arbiters arrived at Dumat-al-Jondel. There are differing accounts of the arbitration. It seems that Abu Musa al-Ash'ari restored the one nonnegotiable term, Muawiyah should submit to Ali then proper trial would take place to prosecute those responsible of Uthman's killing. Amr, insisted no such thing will occur unless the murders are slain first. At any rate the arbitration was indecisive, and the situation continued as before, with Mu'awiyah ruling over Syria and later Egypt, and Ali ruling the rest of the Muslim territories. Ali continued to be recognised as Caliph, Mu'awiyah did not claim the title, no new shura held, and both sides remained hostile to each other. This uneasy situation continued until Ali was assassinated by the Kharijites in 661.
First Fitna
The First Islamic Civil War , also called the First Fitna , was the first major civil war within the Islamic Caliphate. It arose as a struggle over who had the legitimate right to become the ruling Caliph...
, or first Muslim civil war, with the main engagement taking place from July 26 to July 28. It was fought between Ali ibn Abi Talib and Muawiyah I
Muawiyah I
Muawiyah I was the first Caliph of the Umayyad Dynasty. After the conquest of Mecca by the Muslims, Muawiyah's family converted to Islam. Muawiyah is brother-in-law to Muhammad who married his sister Ramlah bint Abi-Sufyan in 1AH...
, on the banks of the Euphrates
Euphrates
The Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia...
river, in what is now Ar-Raqqah, Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
. Following the controversial murder of Uthman ibn Affan, Ali had become Caliph but struggled to be accepted as such throughout the Muslim Empire. Muawiyah, the governor of Syria, was a kinsman of the murdered Caliph, and wanted the murderers brought to justice. He considered that Ali was unwilling to do this, and so Muawiyah rebelled against Ali, who attempted to put down the rebellion. The result was the engagement at Siffin. However, the battle was indecisive, and the two parties agreed to an arbitration, which was equally indecisive. The battle and arbitration served to weaken Ali's position, but did not resolve the tensions that were plaguing the empire. To the Shia, Ali ibn Abi Talib was the first Imam. To Sunnis, Ali ibn Abi Talib was the fourth Rashidun
Rashidun
The Rightly Guided Caliphs or The Righteous Caliphs is a term used in Sunni Islam to refer to the first four Caliphs who established the Rashidun Caliphate. The concept of "Rightly Guided Caliphs" originated with the Abbasid Dynasty...
Caliph, and Muawiyah the first Caliph of the Ummayyad dynasty. The events surrounding the battle are highly controversial between Sunni and Shia, and serve as part of the split between the two groups.
Start of hostilities
After the Battle of the Camel, Ali returned from BasraBasra
Basra is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009...
to Kufa
Kufa
Kufa is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000....
in Rajab
Rajab
Rajab is the seventh month of the Islamic calendar. The lexical definition of Rajaba is "to respect", of which Rajab is a derivative.This month is regarded as one of the four sacred months in Islam in which battles are prohibited...
of 36 A.H. (January 657). He decided to transfer the capital of his government to Kufa from Medina
Medina
Medina , or ; also transliterated as Madinah, or madinat al-nabi "the city of the prophet") is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia, and serves as the capital of the Al Madinah Province. It is the second holiest city in Islam, and the burial place of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, and...
because it was more centrally placed in the Muslim Empire, and he could halt Muawiyah’s progress into Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. Ali ibn Abi Talib tried to settle matters peacefully by sending an envoy to Syria. He chose Jarir, who was the chief of Banu Bajila and governor of Hamdan. However, negotiations proved fruitless, and Muawiyah's army pledged an oath that they would not wash or sleep a night at home, until the murderers of Uthman were brought to justice. Moreover, they also swore to bring to justice all those who sheltered the murderers - by which they meant Ali ibn Abi Talib and his followers.
Seeing that war was inevitable, Ali gathered his forces, and, after at first planning to invade Syria from the North, he attacked directly, marching through the Mesopotamian desert. Arriving at Riqqa, on the banks of the Euphrates, the Syrian vanguard was sighted, but it withdrew without engagement. The people of Riqqa were hostile to Ali, and his army had great difficulty crossing the river. Eventually, Malik al-Ashtar threatened the townspeople with death, which forced their co-operation. So, finally, the army managed to cross the river, by means of a bridge of boats. Ali's army then marched along the right bank of the Euphrates, until they came across the Syrian outpost of Sur al-Rum, where there was a brief skirmish, but Ali's advance was not slowed. So in Dhu al-Hijjah
Dhu al-Hijjah
Dhu al-Ḥijjah is the twelfth and final month in the Islamic calendar.This is a very sacred month in the Islamic calendar, marking the end of the year. It is in this month in which the Hajj takes place....
36 (May 657), the army of Ali ibn Abi Talib came into sight of Muawiyah’s main forces, which were encamped on the river plain at Siffin.
The fight for the river
Muawiyah had stationed his general, Amr ibn al-Aas, with 10,000 men on the river to stop Ali ibn Abi Talib's army having access to the water. Ali gave command of his army to the general Malik al-Ashtar, who led the attack; after heavy fighting, Amr's forces were dislodged from the river bank. However, Ali did not immediately press forwards with his attack; instead, the two sides remained encamped facing each other for 110 days while attempts were made at a negotiated settlement. During this time, there were at least 90 skirmishes between tribal columns in the two armies, but no general battle.Mu'awiyah refused to submit to Ali ibn Abi Talib as Caliph until those complicit in Uthman's murder were brought to justice. This demand was of course unacceptable to Ali, who saw Mu'awiyah as motivated by ambition. Moreover, Ali's position began to harden; regarding the murder of Uthman, he is said to have stated "I will not say that he was wrongly attacked, nor will I say that the attack was justified." As compromise was impossible, the negotiations remained deadlocked, but both sides were reluctant to fight, because it would mean killing fellow Muslims. This situation lasted 110 days.
The main engagement
Ali made one final demand for Muawiyah's army to submit to him as Caliph, but they refused. As a result, on 8th SafarSafar
Safar is the second month in the Islamic calendar.The root of the name, صفر ṣafr, has three basic areas of meaning: 1) whistle, hiss, chirp; 2) be yellow, pale ; 3) to be empty, devoid, vacant...
36 (26 July 657) Ali gave the order for a full attack, and the major part of the Battle of Siffin began.
According to the traditional accounts, the first day passed without major events. On 27 July, the right wing of Ali's army advanced toward Muawiyah's pavilion, but Muawiyah's elite troops stand against them and Ibn Maslama's with the left wing attacked with all of his forces to them. The right wing consisting of Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
ites troops was pushed back, leaving their commander Abd Allah Ibn Budayl and about three hundred of his forces completely disintegrated. Ali sent Sahl ibn Hunayf with the Ansar
Ansar (Islam)
Ansar is an Islamic term that literally means "helpers" and denotes the Medinan citizens that helped Muhammad and the Muhajirun on the arrival to the city after the migration to Medina...
to back them up, but they were too pushed by the Syrian toward the center. Then Ali sent Malik al-Ashtar to rally the retreating men on the right. He succeeded to restore the right wing and forced Maslama's left wing back.
Despite his age (he was now 58), Ali attacked personally with his Medinan troops in the centre, with his troops from Basra
Basra
Basra is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009...
and Kufa on the flanks. Muawiyah watched the battle from a pavilion on the field, surrounded by his Personal Guard. Amr ibn al-Aas led Muawiyah's cavalry against the Kufa flank with great success, and almost broke through to kill Ali. However, Ali's personal bravery inspired his troops, and the attack was stalled. At the head of the Basra troops was al-Ashtar and 300 qari (reciters), who led the assault on Muawiyah's forces. The attack was quite successful, and almost drove Mu'awiyah from the field.
The fighting continued fiercely onto a third day, and casualties mounted, including Hashim ibn Utba and Ammar ibn Yasir
Ammar ibn Yasir
ʻAmmār ibn Yāsir al-Ansi was one of the companions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He was one of the Muhajirun, and referred to as by Shia Muslims as one of the Four Companions....
, both Companions of the Prophet(Ammar ibn Yasir a very close companion of the Prophet sided with Ali). Both sides had by now ran out of ammunition for their quivers and so the battle was fought hand-to-hand. Both Ali and Muawiyah were unhappy at the heavy losses both sides were taking, but Muawiyah was particularly dejected, believing that the battle would eventually be lost. Amr al-Aas suggested that single combat between the two leaders could resolve the battle without further bloodshed, but Muawiyah was unwilling to do this. Both men were old but Ali was still vigorous and almost certain to win such a duel against Muawiyah. But Muawiyah did take Amr's second suggestion - he told his bodyguards to put pages from the Qu'ran on their lances, and shout "The law of the Lord! That shall decide between us!" By this it was meant that the two sides should cease fighting and settle matters by peaceful arbitration
Arbitration
Arbitration, a form of alternative dispute resolution , is a legal technique for the resolution of disputes outside the courts, where the parties to a dispute refer it to one or more persons , by whose decision they agree to be bound...
under Islamic law
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
. Muawiyah and Amr did not necessarily think that all of Ali's army would accept an arbitration, but they were sure that some of them would favour this, and so at the least it would cause dissension in Ali's army. It was soon after that that Ali cried one of the most famous quotes in Islamic history, "For Allah!"
Ali's entire army quickly began chanting along with Muawiyah's men. Ali urged his army to fight on, saying that Muawiyah was simply using a trick and was on the point of defeat, but the soldiers did not listen. Ali and al-Ashtar spent a long time arguing against their men, but they could not change their minds. In fact the soldiers became impatient and attacked al-Ashtar with whips, calling him a warmonger
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
; they even threatened to send Ali to Muawiyah as a prisoner if he did not accept the arbitration. With his army in mutiny against him, Ali had no choice but to accept the arbitration.
While waiting for the arbitration, Muawiyah ruled over Syria, Ali over the rest of the Muslim Empire. In Ramadan
Ramadan
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which lasts 29 or 30 days. It is the Islamic month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, spirituality, humility and...
37 (February 658), the arbiters arrived at Dumat-al-Jondel. There are differing accounts of the arbitration. It seems that Abu Musa al-Ash'ari restored the one nonnegotiable term, Muawiyah should submit to Ali then proper trial would take place to prosecute those responsible of Uthman's killing. Amr, insisted no such thing will occur unless the murders are slain first. At any rate the arbitration was indecisive, and the situation continued as before, with Mu'awiyah ruling over Syria and later Egypt, and Ali ruling the rest of the Muslim territories. Ali continued to be recognised as Caliph, Mu'awiyah did not claim the title, no new shura held, and both sides remained hostile to each other. This uneasy situation continued until Ali was assassinated by the Kharijites in 661.