The Succession to Muhammad
Subtitle: A Study of the Early Caliphate
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: September 26, 1996
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 429
ISBN-13: 9780521561815
Subjects: Asian / Middle Eastern history: c 500 to c 1500; Islam; BCE to c 500 CE; Prehistory; c 1000 CE to c 1500; Medieval; History - General History; History: World; Middle East; World - General; History / Middle East; History / World; History-Medieval; Islamic Empire--History--622-661; 622-661; History; Islamic Empire
First sentence: The fundamental account about the assembly at the Saqifat Bani Sa'ida, in which the succession of Abu Bakr to Muhammad was decided, goes back to 'Abd Allah b. al-'Abbas.
Description: In a comprehensive and original study of the early history of Islam, Wilferd Madelung describes the conflict that developed after the death of the Prophet Muḥammad, between his family, Hāshim, and his tribe, Quraysh, for the leadership of the Muslim community. He pursues the history of this confict through the reign of the four 'Rightly Guided' caliphs to its climax in the first Inter-Muslim War. The outcome of the war, which marked the demise of the reign of the Early Companions, led to the establishment of dynastic despotism under the Umayyad caliphate and to the lasting schism between Sunnite and Shiʻite Islam. In contrast to recent scholarly trends, Professor Madelung emphasises ʻAlī's early claim to legitimate succession, which gained support fromthe Shiʻa, and offers a radical and convincing reinterpretation of early Islamic history after the death of Muḥammad. This important and original study will make a major contribution to the scholarship of the period and rekindle the debate over the succession to Muḥammad. -- Back cover.