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Islamiyat IGCSEPDF 169
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they left Madina with the caliph still in place. Hazrat Usman promised to listen to the
grievance of the rebels and addressed them but he did not agree to step down from the office
of caliph. He however refused to call the army to flight his fellow Muslims.
Summary/Main events of caliphate: Hazrat Usman succeeded to the caliphate in 24
AH/644AD, chosen by the council of six persons (Shura) set up by Hazrat Umar as he was
dying. He adopted a shorter title than he predecessors, Khalifat Allah, though he continued
many of Hazrat Umar’s policies, including the expansion of Islamic rule. Persia, Armenia,
North Africa, and parts of the Eastern Mediterranean were all brought under the growing
empire during his 12 years in the caliphate and the Islamic state expanded from Morocco to
Kabul. Hazrat Usman placed close relatives as governors over many of the new provinces.
Hazrat Umar had, already appointed his nephew Muawiya Ibn Abi Sufiyan, governor of Syria
but now he was granted control over more territory. Other relatives of the caliph i.e Abdullah
bin Aamir, Walid bin Uqba and Abdullah bin Saad were appointed governors of Basra and
Kufa in Southern Iraq and of Egypt, and he also made his relatives his close advisors. His
reason for doing this may well has been to ensure loyalty towards himself and to secure the
unity of the empire. But to many Muslims, this action appeared to be favoring his own family
unfairly. During the course of Hazrat Usman’s caliphate, criticisms of his actions grew
steadily stronger. When he decided to allocate to his governors the wealth amassed in the
campaigns, rather than divide it between the fighting men themselves, he was accused of
favoring his own family though he may well have been trying to place funds for state
purposes with the officials best able to administer them. And when he burnt the false copies
of the Quran which had been gathered from the different parts of the empire, when he
circulated the official version prepared by Zaid Ibn Sabit, (this has been known as the
“uthmanic version” ever since), he was condemned for destroying the Word of Allah, though
he may have intended to ensure that only the correct version should be read. Some Muslims
also thought him to be surrounded by people who gave bad advice and took advantage of his
age and weakness. He continued the administrative reforms of Hazrat Umar e.g Majlis-e-
Shura was maintained. He used to hear pulic complaints after Friday prayer. He relaxed
some of Hazrat Umar’s restrictions e.g by allowing Arabs to purchase or exchange land
outside Arabia. A dam was built for the supply of drinking water. For the first time a fleet of
500 ships was built to fight against the Greeks. He raised the salaries and allowances upto
25%. Disquiet about Hazrat Usman’s policies, and his ability to rule, erupted after six years
of his caliphate. First there was an uprising in Iraq, then in Kufa, a then in Egypt. Finally, in
35 AH/656AD, troops from all three provinces advanced on Medina to take their complaints
directly to the caliph. The force from Egypt arrived first and angrily besieged Hazrat Usman
DEATH: The rebels besieged the Khalifa in his house. They did not allow food and water to
reach him. Hazrat Ali deputed his sons, Hassan and Hussain and Zubair sent his son
Abdullah to protect Hazrat Usman. Some companions who were successful in reaching
Hazrat Usman during the siege, wanted to help him and fight the rebels or send for troops to
fight them. But Hazrat usman refused and said that he did not want to shed Muslim blood.
The siege lasted for fifty days when some of the rebels jumped into Hazrat Usman’s house. It
is said that they came upon him while he was reading the Quran, and that his blood was shed
on its pages. As the sword pierced the caliph’s forehead the first drops of his blood fell on
verse 137 of sura Al-Baqarah. The Khalifa’s wife Naila tried to save her husband but she was
pushed away and her fingers were cut off. This tragic event took place on Friday, 18th of Zil
Hajj, 35 A.H. He was buried in Jannat ul Baqi in Madinah.