Al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam ibn Khuwaylid al-Asadi (; ) was an Arab Muslim commander in the service of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, his first cousin and brother-in-law, and caliphs Abu Bakr () and Umar ().
An early convert to Islam, Zubayr was a commander in the Battle of Badr in 624, in which the latter was instrumental in defeating the opponent forces of the Quraysh. He participated in almost all of the early Muslim battles and expeditions under Muhammad. In the Battle of the Trench, due to his military service, Muhammad bestowed the title Hawari Rasul Allah ('Disciple of the Messenger of God') upon him. After Muhammad's death, Zubayr was appointed a commander in the Ridda Wars by caliph Abu Bakr. He was involved in the defense of Medina and the Battle of Yamama. During Umar's reign, Zubayr served in the Muslim conquests of Egypt, Levant, Persia, Sudan, and Tripolitania.
After Umar's assassination, Zubayr became an important political figure of the caliphate, being the chief advisor of the Shura that elected the third caliph Uthman. During the latter's caliphate, Zubayr advised the caliph on political and religious issues. After Uthman was assassinated, Zubayr pledged allegiance to the fourth caliph Ali, though later withdrew allegiance, after Ali refused to avenge Uthman's death. Zubayr's forces engaged with Ali's forces in the Battle of the Camel in December 656. In the aftermath, while Zubayr was prostrating in prayer, he was killed by Amr ibn Jarmuz.
Zubayr is generally considered by historians to be one of early Islam's most accomplished commanders. The Sunni Islamic tradition credits Zubayr with being promised paradise. The Shia Islamic tradition views Zubayr negatively. The general's descendants, known as the Zubayrids, are found worldwide.
Ancestry and early life His father was the brother of Khadija, Al-Awwam ibn Khuwaylid of the Asad clan of the Quraysh tribe. His mother was Muhammad's aunt, Safiyya bint Abd al-Muttalib. Hence Zubayr was Muhammad's first cousin and brother-in-law.
Zubayr ibn al-Awwam was born in Mecca in 594. He had two brothers, Sa'ib and Abd al-Kaaba; and two sisters Hind bint al-Awwam, who would later marry Zayd ibn Haritha, and Zaynab bint al-Awwam who will mary her paternal cousin Hakim ibn Hizam. He has also a half-brother, Safi ibn al-Harith, son of Safiyya bint Abd al-Muttalib precedent wedding with Harb ibn Umayya.
Al-Awwam died while Zubayr was still young, the day of Al Ablaa, the third year of the Fijar War.Ibn Qutayba al-Dīnawarī, al-Maʿārif, p. 219. p. 89. His mother, Safiyya, would beat him severely in order to make him "bold in battle". While he was still a boy, Zubayr fought an adult man and beat him up so fiercely that the man's hand was broken. Safiyya, who was pregnant at the time, had to carry the man home.
Conversion to Islam Zubayr is said to have entered Islam at the age of 16. He was one of the first men to accept Islam under the influence of Abu Bakr,Muhammad ibn Ishaq. Sirat Rasul Allah. Translated by Guillaume, A. (1955). The Life of Muhammad. Oxford: Oxford University Press. and is said to have been the fourth or fifth adult male convert.
Zubayr was one of the first fifteen emigrants to Abyssinia in 615, until he returned there in 616. During his stay in Abyssinia, a rebellion against Najashi, king of Aksum and benefactor of the Muslim emigrants, broke out. Najashi met the rebels in battle on the banks of the Nile. The Muslims were greatly worried and decided to send Zubayr to seek news from Najashi. By using an inflated waterskin, he swam down the Nile river until he reached the point where the battle was raging. He watched until Najashi had defeated the rebels and then swam back to the Muslims to report the victory. However, another version recorded Zubayr as crossing the Red Sea from the coast of the Arabian Peninsula.
Zubayr was among those who returned to Mecca in 619 when he heard that the Meccans had converted to Islam. However, as they approached Mecca, they learned that the report was false, and they had to enter the town under the protection of a citizen or by stealth. While he stayed with early converts of Islam in Mecca, Zubayr was given a shared responsibility as a hafiz, someone who memorized every verse of the Quran, along with Abu Bakr, Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf, Talha and Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas. Zubayr joined the general emigration to Medina in 622. At first he lodged with Al-Mundhir ibn Muhammad. It is disputed who became Zubayr's sworn brother, as various traditions name different people, including Abd Allah ibn Mas'ud, Talha, Ka'b ibn Malik, or Salama ibn Salama. As a shrewd merchant, Zubayr diverted his trading business route from Mecca to Medina at the beginning of the emigration.
Military career
Zubayr served as one of three main commanders of the Muslim forces in the Battle of Badr, along with Hamza ibn Abd al-Muttalib and Ali ibn Abi Talib. In the course of the battle, he killed the Qurayshi champion Ubayda ibn Sa'id of the Banu Umayya.
At the Battle of Uhud, Zubayr volunteered to take up Muhammad's sword, though Muhammad chose to give the sword to Abu Dujana instead. When the tides of the battle turned against the Muslim forces and many fled after Khalid ibn Al-Walid's counterattack, Zubayr was among the few to stand with Muhammad.
Not long after the battle of Uhud, Muhammad sent Zubayr and Abu Bakr to chase the Quraysh forces in Hamra al-Asad, where they captured a Qurayshi soldier from Banu Jumah, Abu Azzah al-Jumahi. Muhammad then ordered Zubayr to execute Abu Azzah for breaking his promise with Muhammad at the battle of Badr to not involve himself in the war against them anymore.
Later, after the invasion of Banu Nadir which resulted in their exile from Medina, their landed estates, which included palm-date gardens and cultivation fields along with their fortress residences, were confiscated and divided among the Muslims. Zubayr and Abu Salama ibn Abd al-Asad were acquired a shared property of al-Buwaylah from this campaign.
Battle of the Trench During the Battle of the Trench, Zubayr fought and killed Nawfal ibn Abd Allah ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi in a duel. However, other chroniclers such as Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani recorded the man killed by Zubayr as Uthman ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi. The Muslim defenders cheered and praised the sharpness of the sword which Zubayr used, only for Zubayr to reply that it is not his sword which need to be complimented, but the strength of the arm which held the sword. Zubayr caused the enemy horsemen to flee after he defeated a Qurayshi warrior named Hubayr ibn Abi Wahb al-Makhzumi, cutting the entire body of Hubayr into two pieces, along with his horse armour and crupper of Hubayr's horse in a single strike. He then played a critical reconnaissance role when the coalition forces besieged Medina; when Muhammad asked for volunteers to infiltrate and gather intelligence on the betrayals of the Banu Qurayza tribe, Zubayr was the only one who stepped forward multiple times. Recognizing his exceptional bravery and willingness to go when others hesitated, Muhammad praised him, stating: "Every Prophet has a disciple, and my disciple is Al-Zubayr."
After the battle, Muhammad immediately instructed the Muslim army to march without ceasing or resting to the settlement of Banu Qurayza, a Jewish tribe who had reportedly betrayed the Muslims in the previous battle. Banu Qurayza was besieged for several days before the Muslim soldiers, including Zubayr, broke through with a battering ram, and forced the surrender and execution of the garrison.
Pledge of the Tree
In March 628 CE (6 AH), Muhammad set out for Mecca to perform the ritual pilgrimage of Umrah. The Quraysh denied the Muslims entry into the city and posted themselves outside Mecca, determined to offer resistance even though the Muslims did not have any intention or preparation for battle, which caused Muhammad to send Uthman ibn Affan as his envoy to meet with the leaders of Quraysh and negotiate their entry into the city. The Quraysh had Uthman stay longer in Mecca than they originally planned, which caused Muhammad to believe that Uthman had been killed. In response, Muhammad gathered his nearly 1,400 Sahaba and called them to pledge to fight until death and avenge the death of Uthman. After the pledge, verses were revealed in the Qur'an commemorating and appreciating the pledge and those who made it:
Due to this verse, the pledge is also known as the Pledge of Acceptance as it was believed in Islam to be a cause for God's blessing towards those who took pledge, including Zubayr, while at the same day, the ratification of treaty of Hudaybiyyah also occurred.
Battle of Khaybar In 628, Zubayr participated in the Battle of Khaybar, defeating the Jewish champion Yasir in single combat. Afterward, the Muslims commented on how sharp his sword must have been; Zubayr replied that it had not been sharp but he had used it with great force. Later during the battle, Zubayr fought and killed another opposing champion in a duel. After the Muslims had conquered most of these eight Khaybar fortresses, the Jewish treasurer, Kinana, was brought to Muhammad, but he refused to reveal where their money was hidden. However, later Muhammad ibn Maslama decapitated Kinana, in retaliation for his brother Mahmud,Muhammad ibn Umar al-Waqidi. Kitab al-Maghazi. Translated by Faizer, R., Ismail, A., and Tayob, A. K. (2011). The Life of Muhammad. Oxford & New York: Routledge. who had been killed in the battle a few days earlier. Zubayr was later made one of the eighteen chiefs who each supervised the division of a block of the spoils of victory.
Later, as the Muslim forces returned to Medina from Khaybar, they passed one more hostile Jewish fortress in Wadi al-Qura. During this battle Zubayr facing at least two enemy who challenged him to a duel; Zubayr accepted and defeated them both.
Conquest of Mecca until death of Muhammad In December 629, on the eve of the Conquest of Mecca, Zubayr and Ali brought back to Muhammad a letter from a spy intended for the Quraysh, making Muhammad confident that the Muslims would now take Mecca by surprise. When Muhammad entered Mecca, Zubayr held one of the three banners of the Emigrants and commanded the left wing of the conquering army.
Later, during the Battle of Hunayn in 630 CE (8 AH), the Hawazin tribe forces under Malik ibn Awf ambushed the Muslims under the valley, which drove almost the entire Muslim army into retreat except Muhammad and several of his men. Most scholars, including Bukhari, Muslims, Tirmidhi, and Albani accept the primary report that only Muhammad and two of his uncles, Abu Sufyan ibn Harb and Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, stood their ground. possibly including Zubayr. However, the Hawazin forces paused as they almost surrounded Muhammad and his followers, giving time for the Muslim army to regroup. After they consolidated themselves and rescued Khalid, who has been gravely injured during the first clash, the Muslims commenced a general counterattack, with Zubayr on the front of the Rashidun cavalry. The Hawazin forces were immediately driven out of the valley by the frontal attack led by Zubayr after a short engagement. Nafi' ibn Jubayr reported that he saw Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib passing instructions from Muhammad to Zubayr to plant the rallying flag. After the battles in Awtas, the Muslims engaged in the lengthy Siege of Ta'if, although they did not succeed in forcing an immediate surrender of the Hawazin. Later, Zubayr participated in the last campaign with Muhammad, the Expedition of Tabuk.