User:Mohammad adil/sandbox835

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For other sieges laid upon the city of Jerusalem in history, see Siege of Jerusalem.
Siege of Jerusalem (637)
Part of the
Byzantine-Arab Wars

The Al-Aqsa Mosque, Jerusalem, is said to be the third most sacred site of the Muslims.
DateNovember 636 – April 637 A.D
Location
Jerusalem
Result Rashidun victory, Jerusalem captured by Rashidun Caliphate.
Belligerents
Byzantine Empire Rashidun Caliphate
Commanders and leaders
Patriarch Sophronius
Sharjeel ibn Hassana
Strength
~20,000 unknown

Jews were allowed to live and practice their religion freely in Jerusalem by Caliph Umar after nearly 500 years of expulsion from the Holy Land by the Romans.[1]

Prelude

Jerusalem was the capital of the Byzantine province of

Jews, who were oppressed in their Roman-controlled homeland, aided the Persians. The True Cross was captured and taken to Ctesiphon as a battle-captured holy relic, it was later bought back to Jerusalem by Emperor Heraclius once he was victorious against the Persias.[3]
Mobile guard leading the advance. The Muslims arrived at Jerusalem around early November, and the Byzantine garrison withdrew into the fortified city.[5]

The siege

Jerusalem was an important city of the Byzantine province of Palestina prima. The town was well fortified, a reason why Muslims had so far not attempted any closed siege of the city, it is however noted that all the routes to the city were under potential danger of the Arab forces since 634 and it was though not encircled but was in a state of siege since Muslims captured the neighboring forts of

siege warfare, decided to press the siege until Byzantines run short of supplies and a bloodless surrender could be negotiated.[8]
The details of the siege are not recorded in history
Madinah, Khalid ibn Walid should be sent forward as the caliph, as he was very similar in appearance to Umar.[12][13]
The subterfuge however did not work. Rather Khalid was too famous in Syria, or there may have been Christian Arabs in Jerusalem who had visited Madinah and had seen both Umar and Khalid, noting the differences. Consequently, the Patriarch of Jerusalem refused to negotiate. When Khalid reported the failure of this mission,
Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah wrote to caliph Umar about the situation, and invited him to come to Jerusalem and accept the surrender of the city.[14]

Surrender of Jerusalem

Holy Sepulchre, where Sophronius invited caliph Umar to offer Salah
.

Umar arrived in

Amr ibn al-A'as was left as commander of the Muslim army besieging Jerusalem.[16]
On Umar's arrival to Jerusalem a pact was drawn up, which surrendered Jerusalem and gave guarantees of civil and religious liberty for
Abdur Rahman bin Awf and Muawiyah and in late April 637 CE, Jerusalem was surrendered to the caliph.[17]
It has been recorded in the annals of Muslim chronicles that when the at the
Holy Sepulchre, but Umar declined fearing to endanger the Church's status as a Christian temple and that the Muslims may not break the treaty to make it a mosque as the Caliph had prayed in it.[18] By his command the ground of the Temple Mount was prepared for the foundation of a Masjid al-Aqsa
. After staying 10 days at Jerusalem, the caliph returned to Medina.

Aftermath

Following the Caliph's instructions, Yazid ibn Abu Sufyan proceeded to

invaded and conquered Egypt
.

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^ Moshe Gil, page: 70-71
  2. ^ Greatrex-Lieu 2002, p. II, 198.
  3. ^ Haldon, p.46.
  4. ^ Bernard Lewis, p.65.
  5. ^ Akram, A. I, p.431.
  6. ^ Moshe Gil, p.51.
  7. Battle of Yarmouk
    fought just two months before the siege
  8. ^ Edward Gibbon, vol.6, p.321
  9. ^ Muslim historians differ in the year of the siege while Tabari says it was 636, al buladhuri placed its date of surrender in 638. A.I.Akram believe 636-637 to be the most possible date.
  10. ^ Akram, A. I, p.432.
  11. ^ Meron Benvenisti, p.14
  12. ^ Waqidi, vol.I, p.162,
  13. ^ Isfahani, Vol.15, pp. 12, 56.
  14. ^ Akram, A. I, p.433.
  15. ^ Moshe Gil, p.52
  16. ^ Akram, A. I, p.434.
  17. ^ Moshe Gil, p.54.
  18. ^ Edward Gibbon, vol.6, p.321.
  19. ^ Akram, A. I, p.438.

References

  • Gil, Moshe (February 1997). A History of Palestine, 634-1099. Cambridge University Press.
  • Al-Waqidi, Futuh al-Sham (Conquest of Syria).
  • Imad ad-Din al-Isfahani
    , al-Fath al-Qussi fi-l-Fath al-Qudsi.
  • Akram, A.I. (1970). The Sword of Allah: Khalid bin al-Waleed, His Life and Campaigns. Rawalpindi: National Publishing House.
    ISBN 0-710-10104-X
    .
  • Meron Benvenisti, City of Stone: The Hidden History of Jerusalem Publisher,
    ISBN 0520207688
    , 9780520207684
  • Edward Gibbon, The history of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, Volume 6 Publisher J.D. Morris, (1862).
  • Haldon, John (1997). Byzantium in the Seventh Century: the Transformation of a Culture. Cambridge.
    ISBN 0-521-31917-X
    .
  • Bernard Lewis: The Arabs in History,
  • Dodgeon, Michael H.; Greatrex, Geoffrey; Lieu, Samuel N. C. (2002). The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars (Part II). Routledge.
    ISBN 0-415-003423
    .

Category:Islamic history Jerusalem Jerusalem Jerusalem Jerusalem 637 Category:Islam in Jerusalem Category:7th century in the Byzantine Empire Category:636 Category:637 Jerusalem

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