The Islamic World to 1600
With the death of Umar in 644, the rapid expansion of the Islamic world was temporarily halted and its unity was tested. Uthman, who was chosen as Umar's successor by a council of Muhammad's companions, was not necessarily the strongest candidate for the position, but he was a distant relative of the powerful Umayyad family that would later establish the first Islamic dynasty. Ali's supporters, who had been fighting for his right to the leadership position since Muhammad's death, were angry that Ali had been passed over for a third time.
Although Uthman did not expand the Islamic empire to the same degree as Umar, his military conquests were not insignificant. His armies thwarted the Byzantine attempt to reconquer Alexandria in 645, and in 647 he conducted raids west of Egypt, further into Byzantine North Africa. Meanwhile, Uthman named his cousin, Mu'awiya, governor of Syria, and commissioned the construction of a Muslim fleet to guard the Mediterranean against Byzantine naval attacks. The new naval capabilities of the Islamic empire helped in the conquest of the island of Cyprus in 649. The conquest of Persia, begun by Umar, was completed in 653 when Muslim forces occupied Khurasan, the eastern-most Persian province, and the eastern boundary of the old Sassanid empire.
A page from the Qur'an Courtesy of About Islam and Muslims www.unn.ac.uk/societies/islamic/ |
Despite these military accomplishments, Uthman's reign was marred by political difficulties. His promotion of his Umayyad kin to positions of power in his administration provoked criticism, as did the decrease in the treasury, which resulted from the Caliph's lavish spending habits and his belief that God would always provide for his people. Perhaps the one action which caused the most controversy for Uthman during his reign, however, was his attempt to develop a definitive text of the Qur'an at the expense of all others. His aim was simply to establish one true text of the revelation, in order for all Muslims to know what the Qur'an consisted of, what order it should be in, and how it should be written. Despite the controversy, Uthman was able to complete this task, which has since been recognised as a significant achievement in Islamic history. It reduced the number and frequency of disagreements over dogma, but many devout believers at the time accused Uthman of tampering with the sacred book.
All of these factors combined to create a climate of discontent throughout the new Islamic empire, and in June 656, a group of Egyptian rebels assassinated Uthman in his home. From that point on, the caliphate ceased to be a sacred position of leadership for the entire Muslim community, and became instead a prize to be violently fought over.
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