Rashidun Caliphate

¹ Amir al-Mu'minin (أمير المؤمنين), Caliph (خليف) Southern Ancient Arab states Arab empires and caliphates Eastern dynasties Western dynasties and caliphates Arabian Peninsula East Africa Current monarchies v t e The Rashidun Caliphate ( ), also known as the Rightly-Guided Caliphate , comprising the first four caliphs in Islam 's history, was founded after Muhammad 's death in 632. At its height, the Caliphate extended from the Arabian Peninsula , to the Levant , Caucasus and North Africa in the west, to the Iranian highlands and Central Asia in the east. It was the one of the largest empires in history up until that time .

Today part of 33 countries (or regions) Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Bahrain Cyprus Egypt Georgia Iran Iraq Israel Italy Jordan Iraqi Kurdistan Kuwait Lebanon Libya Oman Pakistan Palestine Qatar Rojava Russia Saudi Arabia Sudan Syria Tajikistan Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Yemen Amir al-Mu'minin ( أمير المؤمنين ), Caliph ( خليفة ) Southern Ancient Arab states Arab empires and caliphates Eastern dynasties Western dynasties and caliphates Arabian Peninsula East Africa Current monarchies v t e The Rashidun Caliphate ( al-Khilāfah ar-Rāshidah , c. 632–661) is the collective term comprising the first four caliphs —the "Rightly Guided" or Rashidun caliphs ( al-Khulafā’ ar-Rāshidūn )—in Islamic history and was founded after Muhammad 's death in 632 (year 11 AH in the Islamic calendar ). At its height, the Caliphate controlled a vast empire from the Arabian Peninsula and the Levant , to the Caucasus in the north, North Africa from Egypt to present day Tunisia in the west, and the Iranian plateau to Central Asia in the east. It was the largest empire in history by land area up until that point.

( Learn how and when to remove this message ) Amir al-Mu'minin ( أمير المؤمنين ), Caliph ( خليفة ) Southern Ancient Arab states Arab empires and caliphates Eastern dynasties Western dynasties and caliphates Arabian Peninsula East Africa Current monarchies v t e The Rashidun Caliphate ( , al-Khilāfah ar-Rāšidah ) was the first of the four major caliphates established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad . It was ruled by the first four successive caliphs (successors) of Muhammad after his death in 632 CE ( AH 11). These caliphs are collectively known in Sunni Islam as the Rashidun , or "Rightly Guided" caliphs ( اَلْخُلَفَاءُ ٱلرَّاشِدُونَ al-Khulafāʾ ar-Rāšidūn ). This term is not widely used in Shia Islam as Shia Muslims do not consider the rule of the first three caliphs as legitimate. The Rashidun Caliphate is characterized by a twenty-five year period of rapid military expansion , followed by a five-year period of internal strife . The Rashidun Army at its peak numbered more than 100,000 men. By the 650s, the caliphate in addition to the Arabian Peninsula had subjugated the Levant , to the Transcaucasus in the north; North Africa from Egypt to present-day Tunisia in the west; and the Iranian plateau to parts of Central Asia and South Asia in the east. The caliphate arose out of the death of Muhammad in 632 CE and the subsequent debate over the succession to his leadership . Abu Bakr , a close companion of Muhammad from the Banu Taym clan, was elected the first Rashidun leader and began the conquest of the Arabian Peninsula . He ruled from 632 to his death in 634. Abu Bakr was succeeded by Umar , his appointed successor from the Banu Adi clan, who continued the conquest of Persia , eventually leading to the fall of the Sasanian Empire in 651. Umar was assassinated in 644 and was succeeded by Uthman , who was elected by a six-person committee arranged by Umar. Under Uthman began the conquest of Armenia , Fars and Khorasan . Uthman was assassinated in 656 and succeeded by Ali , who presided over the civil war known as the First Fitna (656–661). The war was primarily between those who supported Uthman's cousin and governor of the Levant, Muawiyah , and those who supported the caliph Ali. The civil war permanently consolidated the divide between Sunni and Shia Muslims, with Shia Muslims believing Ali to be the first rightful caliph and Imam after Muhammad. A third faction in the war supported the governor of Egypt, Amr ibn al-As . The war was decided in favour of the faction of Muawiyah, who established the Umayyad Caliphate in 661. Abu Dawud , Kitaab us-Sunnah, Chapter on the Khulafaa, Hadith no. 4647 فريد, أحمد [in Arabic] . Modern reformist thought in the Muslim world . The Middle East: A History (6th ed.). Managing Diversity in Organizations: A Global Perspective . There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).

First Islamic caliphate (632–661) The Rashidun Caliphate ( Arabic : ٱلْخِلَافَةُ ٱلرَّاشِدَةُ , romanized : al-Khilāfah ar-Rāšidah ) is a title given for the reigns of the first caliphs (lit. "successors") — Abu Bakr , Umar , Uthman , and Ali collectively — believed to represent the perfect Islam and governance who led the Muslim community and polity from the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad (in 632 AD), to the establishment of the Umayyad Caliphate (in 661 AD). The reign of these four caliphs is considered in Sunni Islam to have been "rightly-guided", meaning that it constitutes a model to be followed and emulated from a religious point of view. This term is not used by Shia Muslims , who reject the rule of the first three caliphs as illegitimate. Following Muhammad's death in June 632, Muslim leaders debated who should succeed him . Unlike later caliphs, Rashidun were often chosen by some form of a small group of high-ranking companions of the Prophet in shūrā ( lit. ' consultation ' ) or appointed by their predecessor. Muhammad's close companion Abu Bakr ( r. 632–634 ), of the Banu Taym clan, was elected the first caliph in Medina and began the conquest of the Arabian Peninsula . The only Rashidun not to die by assassination, he was succeeded by Umar ( r. 634–644 ), his appointed successor from the Banu Adi clan. Under Umar, the caliphate expanded at an unprecedented rate, conquering more than two-thirds of the Byzantine Empire and nearly the entire Sasanian Empire . After Umar's assassination, Uthman ( r. 644–656 ), a member of the Umayyad clan , was chosen as caliph. He concluded the conquest of Persia in 651 and continued expeditions into the Byzantine territories. Uthman was assassinated in June 656 and succeeded by Ali ( r. 656–661 ), a member of the Banu Hashim clan, who transferred the capital to Kufa . Ali presided over the civil war called the First Fitna as his suzerainty was unrecognized by Uthman's kinsman and Syria's governor Mu'awiya ibn Abu Sufyan ( r. 661–680 ), who believed that Uthman's murderers should be punished immediately. Additionally, a third faction known as Kharijites , who were former supporters of Ali, rebelled against both Ali and Mu'awiya after refusing to accept the arbitration in the Battle of Siffin . The war led to the overthrow of the Rashidun Caliphate and the establishment of the Umayyad Caliphate in 661 by Mu'awiya. E. ; Marín, Manuela; Ayalon, A. In Bearman, P. ; Bianquis, Th. ; Bosworth, C. There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).