WORLD FUTURE FUND
http://www.worldfuturefund.org
INTRODUCTION DESCRIPTION CITIZEN
GUIDES READING
LIST SITE INDEX
REPORTS NEWS MULTIMEDIA
SEARCH HOW
TO CONTRIBUTE HELP WANTED
VOLUNTEERS
GRANTS
PUBLICATIONS
PRINCIPLES COPYRIGHT
NOTICE CONTACT
US
Timeline of the Life of Muhammad and Key Historical Events
Historical events outside of Muhammad's life will be in red font.
We are including these to show the important events happening in the world during his lifetime.
DISCLAIMER: This is a work in progress. This is not the final product. We don't claim to have all the early Islamic historical events. We have just put this up for educational purposes.
570 AD - Muhammad was born in Mecca. His birthday is believed to be in the month of Rabi' al-awwal, which is the third month of the Islamic lunar calendar. The 12th of Rabi' al-awwal is the agreed upon date of Muhammad's birthday for most Sunni scholars, while most Shia scholars regard 17th Rabi' al-awwal as the accepted date. The Islamic lunar calendar is not the same as the Gregorian calendar.
595 AD - Muhammad married Khadijah.
602 AD - A super power conflict began, the start of the Byzantine–Sasanian War. This was the final and most devastating of the series of wars fought between the Byzantine (Roman Empire) and the Sasanian Empire of Iran (The Sasanians were the last Persian Empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th centuries). This became a decades-long conflict, the longest war in the series, and was fought throughout the Middle East: in Egypt, the Levant, Mesopotamia, the Caucasus, Anatolia, Armenia, the Aegean Sea and before the walls of Constantinople itself.
Muhammad Received His First Revelation:
610 AD - When he was 40, Muhammad reported being visited by the angel Gabriel in the Cave of Hira and receiving his first revelation from God.
613 AD - Muhammad started preaching these revelations publicly, proclaiming that "God is One," that complete "submission" (islām) to God is the right way of life, and that he was a prophet and messenger of God, similar to the other prophets in Islam.
613 AD - The Persians conquered the Syrian cities of Damascus, Apamea, and Emesa.
614 AD - A period of heavy persecution against the followers of Muhammad began in Mecca.
614 AD - The Persians conquered Jerusalem.
615 AD - Muhammad sent some of his followers to Abyssinia (what is Ethiopia today) to escape ongoing persecution.
618 AD - The Persian conquest of Egypt took place between 618 and 621 CE, when the Persian army defeated the Byzantine forces in Egypt and occupied the province.
618 AD - The Tang Dynasty in China is founded, ending hundreds of years of political chaos after the collapse of the Han Dynasty.
619 AD - "The year of sorrow" happened. Muhammad's wife Khadijah and uncle Abu Talib both died. Once Abu Talib died, Muhammad lost his protection in Mecca from the Banu Hashim Clan, which put Muhammad in danger.
621 AD - Muhammad's reported ascension to heaven, his night journey, happened. According to Islamic sources, the Night Journey of Muhammad, also known as Isra and Mi'raj, refers to the miraculous journey of the Prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem and then to the heavens, where he received divine revelations and met with previous prophets and angels.
The Hijra and After:
622 AD, July 16th - Muhammad and his followers migrated from Mecca to Medina (then known as Yathrib). This event is the Hijra, it marks the beginning of the Muslim calendar.
622 AD - The Byzantine Emperor Heraclius launched a counter-offensive against the Persians, and forced their troops in Anatolia to reteat. Up until this point the Persians had been winning the war, but now the Byzantines began to experience a resurgence.
624 AD - Battle of Badr. On March 13, 624, Mohammed led Muslims to victory in the Battle of Badr, a major turning point in the spread of Islam.
628 AD - The Treaty of Hudaybiyyah was drawn in January 628. This was a pivotal treaty between Muhammad and the Quraysh in Mecca. Later the clause would be breached in 630. So, the treaty lasted two years.
628 AD - The end of the Byzantine–Sasanian War. The Roman Emperor Heraclius defeated the Persian armies sent against him and then eventually threatened the Persian capital. In a panic, the Persians killed their king and replaced him with a new ruler who was willing to negotiate with the Byzantines. However, by the end of the conflict, both sides had exhausted their human and material resources.
628 AD - Beginning of the Sasanian Civil War.
628 AD - According to Islamic historical sources, after the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, Muhammad decided to send letters to many world leaders inviting them to Islam. This included the Sasanian Emperor, the Roman Emperor, the King of Ethiopia, the Governor of Bahrain, the Muqawqis of Egypt, and the Ruler of Oman. In response to the letter, Oman was the first country to convert to Islam without any war. It is said that the Prophet Muhammad made a prayer for the Omani people that they will never have enemies from outside.” The letter is an important display at the National Museum at an area dedicated to the Islamic history of Oman.
630 AD - Muhammad and his forces conquered Mecca.
632 AD - End of the Sasanian Civil War.
632 AD - Muhammad died. By this point, most of the Arabian area around Mecca had converted to Islam.
Historical Events After the Life of Muhammad
The Rashidun Caliphate
Caliph Abu Bakr:
632 AD - Abu Bakr came to power as Islam's first caliph. He presided over the Rashidun Caliphate, the first caliphate to succeed the prophet Muhammad. Abu Bakr's reign lasted for 27 months.
632 - 633 AD - Consolidation of Power in Arabia. The Ridda Wars. These were a series of military campaigns launched by the first caliph Abu Bakr against rebellious Arabian tribes. They began shortly after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in 632 and concluded the next year, with all battles won by the Rashidun Caliphate. These wars secured the caliphate's control over Arabia and restored its nascent prestige.
634 AD - In the last months of his rule, Abu Bakr sent Khalid ibn al-Walid on conquests against the Persians in Mesopotamia and against the Byzantine Empire in Syria. Then Abu Bakr fell ill and died.
Caliph Umar - His Conquests Rival Alexander the Great
634 AD - Umar became Islam's second caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. Under Umar, the caliphate expanded at an unprecedented rate, conquering all of Persia and more than two-thirds of the Byzantine Empire. His attacks against the Sasanian Empire resulted in the conquest of Persia in less than two years (642–644 AD). According to Jewish tradition, Umar set aside the Christian ban on Jews and allowed them into Jerusalem and to worship. See more at Military conquests of Umar's era.
Victory in The West
636 AD, August 15-20 - The Battle of Yarmuk. This was a major battle between the army of the Byzantine Empire and the Muslim forces of the Rashidun Caliphate. The result of the battle was a complete Muslim victory that ended Byzantine rule in Syria. The Battle of the Yarmuk is regarded as one of the most decisive battles in military history, and it marked the first great wave of early Muslim conquests after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, heralding the rapid advance of Islam into the then-Christian Levant.
640 - 642 AD - The Rashidun army conquered most of Egypt. Amr ibn al-As was one of the four commanders originally sent to the Byzantine frontier by Abu Bakr. He appeared before Umar with the proposition of another conquest. Egypt had long rested in the hands of the Eastern Roman Empire. Yet repressive Byzantine policies ensured that an invasion would not be met with stiff resistance. Umar, however, was not inclined to order an advance, and it took great persuasion on the part of Amr to convince him otherwise. From Egypt, the Byzantines threatened Muslim lands to the north. Amr took on an imperial army at Heliopolis (640 AD) and secured a decisive victory. Two years later, most of Egypt had been taken by the Rashidun army.
Victory in The East
636 AD, November - The Battle of al-Qadisiyyah. This was an armed conflict between the Rashidun Caliphate and the Sasanian Empire. This was the second Muslim invasion of the territory, which happened under Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas. A key victory at the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah led to the permanent end of Sasanian control west of modern-day Iran.
642 AD - The Battle of Nahavand. This battle marked a victory of the Rashidun Caliphate over the Sasanian Empire and a near collapse of Sasanian Empire.
Death
644 AD - Umar was assassinated.
Caliph Uthman:
644 AD - Uthman became the third caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate. Under Uthman's leadership, the Islamic empire expanded into Fars (present-day Iran) in 650, and some areas of Khorāsān (present-day Afghanistan) in 651. The conquest of Armenia had begun by the 640s. His reign also saw widespread protests and unrest that eventually led to armed revolt and his assassination in 656.
646 - 655 AD - The Muslims won a series of victories in the Mediterranean. After defeating the Byzantine fleet attempting to retake Alexandria (646), the Muslims went on the offensive. Cyprus fell in 649, followed by Rhodes in 654, and in 655, the Byzantine naval authority was crushed with a victory at the Battle of the Masts. Muslims held uncontested control over the Mediterranean and sent raiding parties as far as Crete and Sicily.
650 AD - Uthman ordered a standardized version of the Quran to be compiled.
656 AD - Uthman was assassinated.
Caliph Ali:
656 AD - A li became caliph.
656–661 AD - The first Muslim civil war happened, also known as The First Fitna. It led to the overthrow of the Rashidun Caliphate and the establishment of the Umayyad Caliphate. The civil war involved three main battles between the fourth Rashidun caliph, Ali, and the rebel groups.
661 AD - Ali was assassinated.
The Umayyad Caliphate:
661 AD - The Umayyad Caliphate began. The first caliph of this dynasty was Mu'awiya I.
674–678 AD - The first Arab siege of Constantinople was a major conflict of the Arab–Byzantine wars, and the first culmination of the Umayyad Caliphate's expansionist strategy towards the Byzantine Empire, led by Caliph Mu'awiya I.
680–692 AD - The second Muslim civil war happened, also known as The Second Fitna. The Second Fitna was a period of general political and military disorder and civil war in the Islamic community during the early Umayyad Caliphate. It followed the death of the first Umayyad caliph Mu'awiya I in 680 AD, and lasted for about twelve years. With the victory of Abd al-Malik, Umayyad authority was restored and hereditary rule in the caliphate was solidified. Abd al-Malik and his descendants, in two cases his nephews, ruled for another fifty-eight years, before being overthrown by the Abbasid Revolution in 750 AD.
688-692 AD - The Dome of the Rock was constructed. There are debates about when exactly it was started, but the general historical consensus is that it started sometime around the Second Fitna under the orders of Abd al-Malik, a caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate. The Dome of the Rock is the world's oldest surviving work of Islamic architecture.
717–718 AD - The Second Arab siege of Constantinople was a combined land and sea offensive by the Muslim Arabs of the Umayyad Caliphate against the capital city of the Byzantine Empire, Constantinople.
750 AD - The Umayyad Caliphate ended.
The Abbasid Caliphate
747–750 AD - The Abbasid Revolution, also called the Movement of the Men of the Black Raiment, was the overthrow of the Umayyad Caliphate by the Abbasid Caliphate.
750 AD - The Abbasid Caliphate began.
751 AD, Between May–September - The Battle of Talas happened. This was a military encounter and engagement between the Abbasid Caliphate along with its ally, the Tibetan Empire, against the Chinese Tang dynasty. In July 751, Tang and Abbasid forces met in the valley of the Talas River to vie for control over the Syr Darya region of central Asia. According to Chinese sources, after several days of stalemate, the Karluk Turks, originally allied to the Tang dynasty, defected to the Abbasid Army and tipped the balance of power, resulting in a Tang rout. The defeat marked the end of the Tang westward expansion and resulted in Islamic control of Transoxiana for the next 400 years.
1258 AD - The Abbasid Caliphate ended.
Related Links: