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Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr
Companion (sahaba) of the Islamic prophet Muhammad From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abi Bakr (Arabic: عبد الرحمن بن أبي بكر; c. 596 or 605–675),[1] was an Arab Muslim military commander in the service of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and the Rashidun caliphs Abu Bakr (r. 632–634), and Umar (r. 634–644). His mother was Umm Ruman, his father was the first Rashidun caliph Abu Bakr and he was the full brother of Aisha.
Unlike the rest of his family, including his father Abu Bakr and sister Aisha, he did not convert to Islam until the Treaty of Hudaybiyah in 628.[2]
Four generations of Abd al-Rahman's family had the distinction of being the companions (sahaba) of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, namely Abd al-Rahman, his father Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, his grandfather Uthman Abu Quhafa and his son Abu Atiq Muhammad. It was believed that no other family held this distinction.[1]
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Biography
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While still a non-Muslim, Abd al-Rahman fought on the side of Quraish in the Battles of Badr and Uhud.
In the Battle of Badr, he had an opportunity to kill his father, Abu Bakr, but he turned in another direction. Years later, after becoming a Muslim, he told his father about it. Thereupon Abu Bakr replied: "If I had had such an opportunity, I would not have spared you."[3]
In the Battle of Uhud before the fighting began, he came forward and threw down a challenge for a duel. Abu Bakr accepted the challenge, but Muhammad stopped him, saying, "Sheathe your sword, and let us continue to profit by your wise counsels."[4]
After becoming a Muslim, Abd al-Rahman participated in all the battles fought by the Muslims and gained fame as a fierce warrior, especially in the Muslim conquest of Syria. He was one of the Mubarizun champions and fought duels in the battles for the Muslim army. The mubarizun unit of the Rashidun army was composed of elite warriors who were champion swordsmen, lancers and archers. In the battlefield his role was to undermine the morale of the enemy before the beginning of the battle by slaying their champions in duels.
In the Battle of Yamama he killed Muhakkam al-Yamama, the general commanding the forces of Musaylima.
In the Battle of Yarmouk, the commander in chief of the Byzantine force chose five selected warriors from the Byzantine side, and they challenged the Muslims to duels. It was Abd al-Rahman who accepted the challenge. Scores of duels were fought on the plains of Yarmouk. Abd al-Rahman killed all of them one after the other.[5]
When Umar was stabbed to death, Abdurrahman saw the perpetrator, Abu Lu'lu'ah, preparing the day before, "Last night I passed Abu Lu'lu'ah, while he was meeting secretly with Jufaynah and Hurmuzan. When I came to them, they jumped and a dagger with two blades and a handle fell in the middle of them."[6]
At the Battle of Busra in Syria, he entered the city of Busra through a subterranean passage and then dashing towards the city gates opened them for the main Muslim army to enter.[7]
Later, Abd al-Rahman was mentioned again as being involved in the Muslim campaign to Bahnasa.[8] The Byzantine Sudanese forces fled to Bahnasa town and locked the gates. They were followed by the Muslims who besieged the town, while the enemy were reinforced by the arrival of 50,000 troops according to the report of al-Maqqari.[9][10] The siege dragged on for months, until Khalid ibn al-Walid commanded Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, Dhiraar ibn al-Azwar and other commanders to intensify the siege. He assigned the commanders to lead around 10,000 Companions of the Prophet, with 70 among them being veterans of the Battle of Badr.[11] Abd al-Rahman was mentioned as one of the Rashidun commanders.[11] The Byzantines and their Copt allies showered the Rashidun army with arrows and stones, until the Rashidun overcame the defenders, as Dhiraar, the first emerge, came out from the battle with his entire body stained in blood, while confessing to personally slaying about 160 Byzantine soldiers during the battle.[11] The Muslim army managed to breach the gate and storming the city forced the surrender of the inhabitants.[Notes 1] [Notes 2] According to the chronicles, the siege of Bahnasa were so fierce that in this battle alone, 5,000 Companions of the prophet (Sahabah) perished, as the thousands of their tombs could still to be seen there in the modern day.[11]
Later, the Muslim forces besieged Barqa (Cyrenaica) for about three years to no avail.[15] Then Khalid ibn al-Walid, who had previously participated in the conquest of Oxyrhynchus, offered a radical plan to erect a catapult that would be filled with sacks of cotton.[15] Then as the night came and the city guard slept, Khalid ordered his best warriors including Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr, Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, his son Abd Allah, Fadl ibn Abbas, Abu Mas'ud al-Badri, and Abd al-Razzaq to step into the catapult platform which was then filled with cotton sacks.[15] The catapult launched them one by one to the top of the wall and allowed these warriors to climb the top of the city walls, open the gates and kill the guards, thus allowing the Muslim forces to enter and capture the city.[15]
After his death, Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr was buried in Mecca.[16] [citation needed].
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Role in the First Fitna
Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr's role in the First Fitna was not prominent. Though he assumed the significant post of Basra's treasury leader[17] after its capture by the forces led by his half-sister, Aisha, he is not reported to have fought directly. Despite his initial lack of opposition to the Umayyad faction at the Battle of the Camel and his absence from the Battle of Siffin, he subsequently became a notable opponent of the Umayyads. His opposition was confirmed when he sought to save his half-brother, Muhammad, and appealed to Amr ibn al-As to intercede for him[18]. Muhammad was subsequently captured and executed by Mu'awiya ibn Hudayj, effectively establishing his opposition.
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During the caliphate of Mu'awiya I
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During the caliphate of Mu'awiya I, Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr became a primary voice of opposition in Medina against Mu'awiya's plan to install his son, Yazid, as his successor.
In 56 AH (675–676 CE), Mu'awiya called on all subjects, including those in the outlying territories, to pledge allegiance to Yazid as the future Caliph. Several prominent figures withheld their allegiance, including Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr, Abd Allah ibn Umar, al-Husayn bin Ali, Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr, and Abd Allah ibn Abbas. When Mu'awiya later visited Medina, he summoned and threatened these five individuals. Ibn Kathir notes that Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr was the sharpest and firmest in his address to Mu'awiya, contrasting with the soft-spoken nature of Abd Allah ibn Umar.[19]
The tension escalated when Marwan ibn al-Hakam, Mu'awiya's governor of the Hijaz, delivered a sermon urging the people of Medina to pledge allegiance to Yazid. Abd al-Rahman publicly challenged Marwan, prompting the governor to order his arrest. Abd al-Rahman sought refuge in the house of his half-sister, Aisha. Marwan then reportedly accused Abd al-Rahman of being the subject of the Qur'anic verse: "It is he (‘Abd al-Rahman) about whom Allah revealed this Verse: 'And the one who says to his parents: 'Fie on you! Do you hold out the promise to me..?'" On that, 'Aisha said from behind a screen, "Allah did not reveal anything from the Qur'an about us except what was connected with the declaration of my innocence (of the slander)."
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