Sirah Atlas
Rashidun Caliphate Timeline: The Rightly Guided Caliphs ﵃ (632–661 CE)
The Rashidun Caliphate is the era of the four Rightly Guided Caliphs ﵃: Abu Bakr ﵁, Umar ﵁, Uthman ﵁ and Ali ﵁, who led the Muslim community from the death of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ in 632 CE (11 AH) until 661 CE (40 AH). This timeline lists the key events of those three decades in chronological order, dated in both the Hijri and Gregorian calendars.
Last updated: 30 June 2026
Explore the interactive atlasAbu Bakr as-Siddiq ﵁11–13 After Hijra · 632–634 CE
And then there will be a rightly guided khilafah..
Abu Bakr ﵁ before the khilafah
An extensive portrait of the life of Abu Bakr ﵁ before 11 AH: descent from Banu Taym, friendship with the Prophet ﷺ from before the revelation, the freeing of Bilal ﵁ and other slaves, the cave of the Hijra, Badr, Uhud, Hudaybiyyah, Tabuk and the Hajj of 9 AH.
Read the full article →Saqifah of Banu Saʿidah and the first baiʿah
The afternoon after the passing of the Prophet ﷺ. The Ansar gather in the Saqifah; Abu Bakr ﵁, ʿUmar ﵁ and Abu ʿUbaydah ﵁ intervene, ʿUmar ﵁ stretches out the first hand and the baiʿah to Abu Bakr ﵁ is completed.
Read the full article →The public baiʿah and the first khutbah of Abu Bakr ﵁
The day after Saqifah. Abu Bakr ﵁ ascends the minbar of the Masjid an-Nabawi and delivers his famous inaugural address: 'I have been placed in authority over you, and I am not the best of you...'
Read the full article →The expedition of Usama ibn Zayd ﵁ carried through
Against the advice to recall the army, Abu Bakr ﵁ maintains Usama ﵁'s expedition to Syria. He accompanies the army on foot to al-Jurf and affirms: 'I will not untie a standard that the Messenger of Allah has tied.'
Read the full article →The Ridda begins, Abu Bakr ﵁'s stance on the zakat
Tribes in Najd refuse the zakat. ʿUmar ﵁ advises reconciliation; Abu Bakr ﵁ replies: 'By Allah, I will fight over his refusal, even if it were only a hobbling rope that the Prophet ﷺ received.' The zakat is held on a par with the salat.
Read the full article →Khalid ﵁ against Banu Asad & Ghatafan (+ death of Fatimah ﵂)
Jumada al-Akhirah 11 AH. Khalid ibn al-Walid ﵁ marches toward Najd; ʿUkkashah ibn Mihsan ﵁ and Thabit ibn Aqram ﵁ fall as shuhada. In Medina, Fatimah az-Zahra ﵂ passes away, twenty-four years old, six months after her father ﷺ.
Read the full article →Battle of al-Yamamah and the fall of Musaylimah the Liar
End of 11 AH. Khalid ﵁ against Musaylimah at al-Yamamah. After days of siege the liar is killed by the same Wahshi ﵁ who once killed Hamzah ﵁. Seventy companion huffaz fall as martyrs.
Read the full article →Compilation of the Mushaf (Zayd ibn Thabit ﵁)
After the seventy huffaz martyrs of Yamamah, ʿUmar ﵁ urges the gathering of the Quran. Abu Bakr ﵁ appoints Zayd ibn Thabit ﵁: 'You are a sensible young man and we have no doubts about you.' The suhuf are later kept with Hafsah ﵂.
Read the full article →Ridda in Bahrain, Oman, Mahra and Yemen
Four expeditions at once: al-ʿAlaʾ ibn al-Hadrami ﵁ to Bahrain (victory at Jawatha), ʿIkrimah ﵁ to Oman, al-Muhajir ﵁ to Hadramawt (Nujayr), and Ziyad ibn Labid ﵁ against the renegades of Yemen.
Read the full article →Governance, bait al-mal, humility and poverty
A portrait of Abu Bakr ﵁'s style of khilafah: the bait al-mal at as-Sunh without a guard, the allowance of half a sheep per day, milking goats for the widows, and the words: 'We took for ourselves neither a dinar nor a dirham.'
Read the full article →Battle of the Chains (Dhāt al-Salāsil)
Safar 12 AH. Khalid ibn al-Walid ﵁ advances from Central Arabia to the southeastern frontier of Iraq, unites with al-Muthanna ibn Haritha ﵁, and defeats the Persian marzban Hormuz, who had bound his infantry together with iron chains to make flight impossible.
Read the full article →Khalid ﵁'s Iraqi campaign, Ubullah & Madāʾin Kisra
After the Ridda, Abu Bakr ﵁ sends Khalid ﵁ to the land of Basra. He overruns Ubullah and takes Madāʾin Kisra, 'partly by treaty and partly by force'. (Note: Suyuti's reading; historically, Madāʾin only fell under ʿUmar ﵁.)
Read the full article →The Hajj of 12 AH
After ʿUmar ﵁ had led the Hajj of 11 AH, Abu Bakr ﵁ himself leads the Hajj of 12 AH, the first khalifah to lead the pilgrims to Mecca. (Note: Suyuti's reading; according to other narrations, ʿUmar ﵁ or ʿAttab ibn Asid ﵁ led the Hajj of 12 AH.)
Read the full article →ʿAmr ibn al-ʿAs ﵁ to Syria, Ajnadayn & Marj as-Suffar
Jumada al-Ula 13 AH. ʿAmr ﵁ leads the Syrian campaign. At Ajnadayn, ʿIkrimah ibn Abi Jahl ﵁ and Hisham ibn al-ʿAs ﵁ fall; at Marj as-Suffar, al-Fadl ibn al-ʿAbbas ﵁ falls. The news reaches Abu Bakr ﵁ on his deathbed. (Note: Ajnadayn falls in 13 AH; the decisive battle at Marj as-Suffar is dated by many sources to 14 AH / 635.)
Read the full article →The death of Abu Bakr ﵁ and the appointment of ʿUmar ﵁
Eight days before the end of Jumada al-Akhirah 13 AH. Abu Bakr ﵁ dictates his testament to ʿUthman ﵁ and appoints ʿUmar ﵁ as successor. Sixty-three years old, washed by Asmaʾ bint ʿUmays ﵂, buried at night beside the Prophet ﷺ in the Hujrah ash-Sharifah.
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ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ﵁13–23 After Hijra · 634–644 CE
Biographical portrait, ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ﵁
An extensive portrait of the life of ʿUmar ﵁ before and during the khilafah: lineage from Banu ʿAdi, conversion in the sixth year of prophethood (three accounts: Surah al-Haqqah, the conversion of his sister Fatimah ﵂, and Surah Taha), his merits in hadith ('If there were a prophet after me, it would be ʿUmar'), his judicial rulings and the letter to Abu Musa al-Ashʿari ﵁.
Read the full article →Bayʿah of ʿUmar ﵁, Abu Bakr ﵁'s nomination and public bayʿah
Tuesday, eight days before the end of Jumada al-Akhirah 13 AH. On the day Abu Bakr ﵁ dies, he dictates his testament to ʿUthman ﵁ and appoints ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ﵁ as his successor. The bayʿah is carried out that same day in Medina.
Read the full article →First khutbah & the title "Amir al-Muʾminin"
ʿUmar ﵁ ascends the minbar of the Masjid an-Nabawi: 'I have been tested by you and you by me, and I have come to the khilafah after my two companions.' He is the first to be called Amir al-Muʾminin and the first to date events from the Hijrah.
Read the full article →Governance, justice and humility: the woollen cloak and nightly patrols
A sketch of ʿUmar ﵁'s style of khilafah: his patched woollen cloak, the nightly patrols through Medina, his letter to Abu Musa al-Ashʿari ﵁ on adjudication, and his words: 'O Allah, I am harsh, make me gentle; I am weak, strengthen me; I am miserly, make me generous.'
Read the full article →Further conquests: Damascus, Hims, Saʿd ﵁ in Iraq
14-22 AH. Suyuti: 'In the year 14 AH Damascus was opened partly by treaty and partly by force, and Hims and Baʿlabek by treaty, and Basra and Ubullah by force.' A year-by-year overview of the futuhat during ʿUmar ﵁'s khilafah.
Read the full article →Battle of Yarmuk
Rajab 15 AH. On the banks of Wadi al-Yarmuk, the Byzantine armies of Heraclius are crushingly defeated. Suyuti: 'In the year 15 AH all of Jordan was opened by force, except Tiberias, which was opened by treaty.'
Read the full article →Battle of al-Qadisiyyah
15-16 AH. Saʿd ibn Abi Waqqas ﵁ leads the Muslims against Rustam and the main Sassanid army at al-Qadisiyyah. A key moment of the Persian campaign; immediately after the battle Saʿd ﵁ founds Kufa.
Read the full article →Fall of Madāʾin Kisra (Ctesiphon) & division of the treasure
Safar 16 AH. Suyuti: 'In the year 16 AH Ahwaz and Madāʾin were opened, and in Madāʾin Saʿd ﵁ established the Jumuʿah prayer in the great hall of Khosrau, the first Jumuʿah prayer held in Iraq.'
Read the full article →Establishment of the Hijri calendar
Rabīʿ al-Awwal 16 AH. Suyuti: 'In Rabīʿ al-Awwal the dating was started from the Hijrah on the advice of ʿAli ﵁.' The Muslim calendar is formally fixed from the year of the Hijra to Medina. (Note: 16 AH is the majority dating; a variant gives 17 AH.)
Read the full article →Fall of Jerusalem, the Umariyya pact and khutbah al-Jabiyyah
16-17 AH. ʿUmar ﵁ travels to Syria and receives Bayt al-Maqdis from Patriarch Sophronius. The Umariyya pact (al-ʿUhdah al-ʿUmariyyah) is set down, and at al-Jabiyyah he delivers his famous khutbah.
Read the full article →Founding of Kufa and Basra
14-17 AH. Suyuti: 'Saʿd ﵁ founded Kufa, and ʿUmar ﵁ established regular stipends for the warriors, registers, and he distributed the allowances according to priority.' Basra is established by Utbah ibn Ghazwan ﵁ as a port and garrison town.
Read the full article →Expansion of Masjid al-Haram and Masjid an-Nabawi
17 AH. Suyuti: 'In the year 17 AH ʿUmar ﵁ enlarged the Mosque of the Prophet ﷺ.' The Masjid al-Haram in Mecca is likewise expanded to receive the growing flow of pilgrims.
Read the full article →Year of Ashes (Ramadah) and the Plague of Amwas
18 AH. The Hijaz is struck by a terrible drought, the 'Year of Ashes'. In Syria the plague of Amwas breaks out; many of the sahabah ﵁ pass away, including Abu ʿUbaydah ibn al-Jarrah ﵁.
Read the full article →Conquest of Egypt: ʿAmr ﵁, the Babylon fortress and Alexandria
19-21 AH. ʿAmr ibn al-ʿAs ﵁ leads the Egyptian campaign. Suyuti: 'In the year 20 AH Egypt was opened by force. It is also said that all of Egypt was opened by treaty, except Alexandria, which was opened by force.' Fustat is founded as the new capital.
Read the full article →Establishment of the Diwan / stipend register
Muharram 20 AH. ʿUmar ﵁ consults with the Muslims and establishes the diwan: a register of the Muslim warriors with allowances according to priority (precedence in Islam, kinship with the Prophet ﷺ).
Read the full article →Expulsion of non-Muslims from the Hijaz (Najran and Khaybar)
20 AH. Suyuti: 'In that year ʿUmar ﵁ expelled the Jews from Khaybar and Najran, and he divided Khaybar and Wadi al-Qura among those who had been present at the original battles of the Prophet ﷺ.'
Read the full article →Battle of Nahavand, Fath al-Futuh
21 AH. At Nahavand the remnants of the Sassanids are broken for good. Suyuti: 'After this battle the Persians could no longer raise an army.' Hence: fath al-futuh, the opening of openings.
Read the full article →The last Hajj of ʿUmar ﵁ (23 AH)
Dhul-Hijjah 23 AH. ʿUmar ﵁'s final pilgrimage. On his return from Mina he makes his camel kneel, prostrates himself, and prays: 'O Allah! I have advanced in years, my strength has weakened, and my subjects have grown numerous, take me to You without my wasting or falling short.'
Read the full article →Martyrdom of ʿUmar ﵁, Abu Luʾluʾa
Wednesday, four days before the end of Dhul-Hijjah 23 AH. During the Fajr prayer Abu Luʾluʾa the Magian, slave of al-Mughirah, stabs ʿUmar ﵁ with a two-headed dagger. Six Muslims die with him. ʿUmar ﵁ passes away four days later, on Sunday at the new moon of Muharram.
Read the full article →Shura of Six & the Selection of ʿUthman ﵁
23–24 AH. ʿUmar ﵁'s testament: a Shura of six, ʿAli, ʿUthman, az-Zubayr, Talha, Saʿd, ʿAbd ar-Rahman ibn ʿAwf ﵃, must choose a khalifah within three days. ʿAbd ar-Rahman ﵁ becomes arbiter; after consultation the bayʿah falls upon ʿUthman ibn ʿAffan ﵁.
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ʿUthman ibn ʿAffan ﵁24–35 After Hijra · 644–656 CE
Bayʿah of ʿUthman ﵁ — Shura of Six & Public Bayʿah
Muharram 24 AH, three days after the burial of ʿUmar ﵁. ʿAbd ar-Rahman ibn ʿAwf ﵁ arbitrates the Shura of Six and consults the Muslims; the bayʿah falls upon ʿUthman ﵁ as the third khalifah.
Read the full article →First Khutbah & the Year of the Nosebleeds
ʿUthman ﵁ ascends the minbar of the Masjid an-Nabawi. Suyuti: 'In that year many nosebleeds occurred among the people, so that it became known as The Year of the Nosebleeds.' ʿUthman ﵁ even had to skip the Hajj and send a deputy.
Read the full article →Administration and Governors — Saʿd → Walid → Saʿid → Marwan → ʿAmr (25–33 AH)
ʿUthman ﵁'s appointments of the Banu Umayya governors: Saʿd ibn Abi Waqqas ﵁ over Kufa, then al-Walid ibn ʿUqbah ﵁ (dismissed after the wine incident), Saʿid ibn al-ʿAs ﵁, Marwan ibn al-Hakam ﵁ as secretary, and ʿAmr ibn al-ʿAs ﵁ over Egypt. Suyuti via az-Zuhri: 'For six years he ruled without the people criticizing him.'
Read the full article →Expansion of the Masjid al-Haram & Masjid an-Nabawi under ʿUthman ﵁
26 and 29 AH. Suyuti: 'In the year 26 AH ʿUthman ﵁ enlarged and expanded the Masjid al-Haram, and he bought adjoining plots for the extension.' In 29 AH the Masjid an-Nabawi was enlarged, rebuilt with dressed stone, stone pillars and a roof of teak wood (160 × 150 cubits).
Read the full article →Conquest of Cyprus & the First Islamic Fleet
27 AH. Muʿawiyah ﵁ undertook a naval expedition to Cyprus, with Ubadah ibn as-Samit ﵁ and his wife Umm Haram bint Milhan ﵂ on board. Umm Haram ﵂ fell from her mount and died on the island as a shahidah. Cyprus concluded a treaty on the basis of jizya. (Note: Suyuti dates this to 27 AH; Tabari and Ibn Kathir ﵏ place the expedition in 28 AH / 649.)
Read the full article →Battle of Sbeitla & the Conquest of Ifriqiya
27 AH. ʿAbdullah ibn Saʿd ibn Abi Sarh ﵁ led an expedition against North Africa and opened it, both the plains and the mountains, to Islam. Patriarch Gregorius fell; every man in the army received one thousand dinars, and it is also said three thousand. In that same year Andalus was opened.
Read the full article →Continuation of the Conquests — Khurasan, Sijistan, Armenia, Darabjird (28–31 AH)
Suyuti: 'In the year 29 AH Persepolis was opened by force, and Yasa and other places. In 30 AH Jur was opened and many provinces of Khurasan; Naysabur by treaty (also said: by force). Tus and Sarakhs by treaty, and Marw and Bayhaq likewise.' The treasury of ʿUthman ﵁ filled from every direction.
Read the full article →The Compilation of the Mushaf of ʿUthman ﵁
Circa 30 AH. Hudhayfa ibn al-Yaman ﵁ returned from the northern campaigns with the warning that Muslim soldiers on the frontiers of Armenia and Azerbaijan were beginning to dispute over the text of the Quran.
Read the full article →Prosperity, Distribution of Spoils & Criticism of Wealth Distribution
When the vast provinces were opened, ʿUthman ﵁'s revenues became abundant. Suyuti via az-Zuhri: 'He assigned Marwan the khums of North Africa, and he gave his family and relatives wealth.
Read the full article →The burning of divergent codices
Around 30 AH, just after the completion of the official Mushaf. On the advice of Hudhayfa ibn al-Yaman ﵁ and with the agreement of the senior Sahaba ﵃, ʿUthman ﵁ had the master copies sent to Mecca, Kufa, Basra and Damascus and ordered that all personal codices not matching the official Mushaf be burned.
Read the full article →The banishment of Abu Dharr ﵁ to Rabadha
30 AH. The ascetic Sahabi Abu Dharr al-Ghifari ﵁, known for his stern rejection of amassing wealth, comes into conflict in Damascus with governor Muʿawiyah ﵁ over the interpretation of verse 9:34 (the warning against hoarding gold and silver).
Read the full article →Buildup of the Fitna & the First Uprising (33–34 AH)
Suyuti via Saʿid ibn al-Musayyab ﵀: 'During the last six years he favored the tribe of his paternal uncle. He appointed them and let no one share with them ... His amirs began to produce things that the companions of Muhammad ﷺ rejected.' Complaints from Egypt against ʿAbdullah ibn Saʿd ﵁; earlier friction with Ibn Masʿud ﵁, Abu Dharr ﵁ and ʿAmmar ibn Yasir ﵁.
Read the full article →Battle of Dhat al-Sawari — The Battle of the Masts
34 AH. Off the Lycian coast near Phoenix (Finike) the Byzantine fleet of Emperor Constans II, under the command of ʿAbdullah ibn Saʿd ﵁, is crushingly defeated, the first great Islamic naval victory over Byzantium. The Muslims lashed their ships together with ropes so the Byzantines could not ram them; from the masts of the sunken enemy ships the battle took its name.
Read the full article →Siege of the house of ʿUthman ﵁ (Dhul-Hijjah 35 AH)
The rebels from Egypt, Kufa and Basra encircled Medina; ʿUthman ﵁'s house was surrounded and he was denied water. al-Hasan ﵁ stood at the door until his garment turned red with blood; ʿAli ﵁ sent his sons to protect it; ʿUthman ﵁ refused to draw the sword against Muslims.
Read the full article →The Martyrdom and Biographical Sketch of ʿUthman ﵁
On Friday, 18 Dhul-Hijjah 35 AH, in the midst of the days of Tashriq, ʿUthman ﵁ was killed in his house while reciting the mushaf. Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr seized his beard; when ʿUthman ﵁ reminded him of his father Abu Bakr ﵁, he drew back, and two others struck.
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ʿAli ibn Abi Talib ﵁35–40 After Hijra · 656–661 CE
The pledge of allegiance to ʿAli ﵁
After the murder of ʿUthman ﵁ in Dhul-Hijjah 35 AH, the Muslims of Medina gather and give baiʿah to ʿAli ibn Abi Talib ﵁ as the fourth khalifah; the Muhajirun and Ansar pledge allegiance in the Masjid an-Nabawi.
Read the full article →First administration and replacement of governors
In the first weeks of his caliphate ʿAli ﵁ replaced most of the Umayyad governors that ʿUthman ﵁ had appointed; these early decisions fed the tensions with Muʿawiya ﵁ in Damascus and with those seeking vengeance in Mecca.
Read the full article →Conflict with Talha ﵁, Zubayr ﵁ and Aisha ﵂
Talha ﵁, Zubayr ﵁ and the Mother of the Believers Aisha ﵂ left Mecca for Basra, demanding qisas for the blood of ʿUthman ﵁. ʿAli ﵁ set out from Medina; the two armies drew near each other on the plain outside Basra.
Read the full article →The Battle of the Camel
On 10 Jumada al-Thani 36 AH (9 December 656 CE) the armies of ʿAli ﵁ and the Basra coalition camp of Aisha ﵂, Talha ﵁ and Zubayr ﵁ clashed; the battle took its name from the camel bearing Aisha ﵂'s palanquin. Talha ﵁ and Zubayr ﵁ fell; ʿAli ﵁ had Aisha ﵂ returned to Medina with honor.
Read the full article →The relocation of the capital to Kufa
After the Battle of the Camel, ʿAli ﵁ moved the seat of the caliphate from Medina to Kufa, to be closer to his troop base and to the eastern provinces, a break with the earlier three Rashidun khulafa.
Read the full article →Negotiations with Muʿawiya ﵁
From Kufa, ʿAli ﵁ sent envoys to Muʿawiya ﵁ in Damascus to obtain the baiʿah of Sham; Muʿawiya ﵁ first demanded qisas for the blood of ʿUthman ﵁, his kinsman, before he would pledge allegiance. The diplomatic stalemate lasted until the summer of 37 AH.
Read the full article →The Battle of Siffin
Safar 37 AH. On the west bank of the Euphrates at Siffin, south of present-day Raqqa, the Iraqi army of ʿAli ﵁ and the Syrian army of Muʿawiya ﵁ met in a weeks-long confrontation. At the decisive moment the Syrians raised leaves of the mushaf on their lances, 'the judgment of Allah ﷻ', and the fighting was suspended for arbitration.
Read the full article →The martyrdom of ʿAmmar ibn Yasir ﵁ at Siffin
During the actual days of fighting at Siffin in Safar/Rabi 37 AH, ʿAmmar ibn Yasir ﵁, over ninety years old and in the front lines of ʿAli ﵁'s army, fell by the spear of Abu al-Ghadiya from the Shami side.
Read the full article →The Arbitration and the First Fitna
In Ramadan 37 AH (September 657 CE) the arbiters Abu Musa al-Ashʿari ﵁ on behalf of ʿAli ﵁ and ʿAmr ibn al-ʿAs ﵁ on behalf of Muʿawiya ﵁ met at Adhruh in southern Jordan. The outcome, politically humiliating for ʿAli ﵁'s camp, marked the definitive break of the Khawarij and sealed the first fitna.
Read the full article →The rise of the Khawarij
Twelve thousand men from ʿAli ﵁'s army refused to accept the arbitration, 'la hukma illa lillah', and split off to Harura outside Kufa; later they moved to the Nahrawan canal and began killing travelers who did not endorse their position.
Read the full article →The Battle of Nahrawan
On 9 Safar 38 AH (17 July 658 CE) ʿAli ﵁ struck down the main force of the Khawarij at the Nahrawan canal; only a handful escaped. He would later say that he pursued them on the basis of the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ about an apostate sect with shaven heads and short garments.
Read the full article →The loss of Egypt and the death of Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr ﵁
In 38 AH ʿAmr ibn al-ʿAs ﵁ invaded Egypt on behalf of Muʿawiya ﵁; ʿAli ﵁'s governor, Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr ﵁, son of Abu Bakr as-Siddiq ﵁, was captured and killed. With Egypt out of ʿAli ﵁'s control, the finances and strategic position of Kufa weakened considerably.
Read the full article →The final years and governance
39 AH. From Kufa ʿAli ﵁ tried to restore order in a fragmenting caliphate: tax reform, letters to his governors, including the famous letter to Malik al-Ashtar ﵁ concerning Egypt, and repeated, failed calls for a new campaign against Sham. Raids by Muʿawiya ﵁'s troops reaching as far as the Hijaz further eroded his authority.
Read the full article →Martyrdom and legacy
On 17 Ramadan 40 AH the Khariji ʿAbd ar-Rahman ibn Muljam stabbed ʿAli ﵁ during the fajr prayer in the masjid of Kufa with a poisoned sword; he died on 19 Ramadan / 26 January 661 CE and was buried in Najaf. With his death the Rashidun period ended; after the brief caliphate of al-Hasan ﵁, rule passed to the Umayyads under Muʿawiya ﵁.
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Sources
The events in this timeline are based on the classical sources, in particular as-Suyuti's Tarikh al-Khulafa, supplemented by at-Tabari's Tarikh and Ibn Kathir's al-Bidaya wa'n-Nihaya.