Battle of Hunayn

This is a sub-article to Muhammad after the conquest of Mecca.

The Battle of Hunayn was fought between Muhammad and his followers against the Bedouin tribe of Hawazin and its subsection the Thaqif in 630 in a valley on one of the roads leading from Mecca to al-Ta'if. The battle ended in a decisive victory for the Muslims, who captured enormous spoils. The Battle of Hunayn is one of only two battles mentioned in the Qur'an by name, in Sura Tawba.

Preparations

Background

The conquest of Mecca astounded both the Arabs and other tribes, who realized that the once persecuted minority of Muslims was gaining the upper hand in its attacks on the non-Muslim tribes. Some tribes refused to submit to Islam and favoured resistance. Ahead of these were the tribes of Hawazin and Thaqif. Nasr, Jashm, Sa‘d bin Bakr, and the tribe of Bani Hilal. According to the Muslim scholar Safi-Ur-Rahman Mubarakpuri "They thought that they were too mighty to admit or surrender to such a victory". So, they met Malik bin ‘Awf An-Nasri and made up their minds to proceed defending against attacks from the Muslims, rather than convert to Islam.

On that day the Prophet had twelve thousand armed soldiers under his standard. Out of them ten thousand were those, who had accompanied him from Madina and had taken part in the conquest of Makkah, and the other two thousand were from amongst Quraysh, who had embraced Islam recently.

The command of this group rested with Abu Sufyan.

In those days such an army was hardly found anywhere and this numerical strength of theirs became the cause of their initial defeat. It was because, contrary to the past, they prided themselves on the large number of their soldiers and ignored the military tactics and principles of war.

When Abu Bakr's eyes fell on the large number of men he said: "We shan't at all be defeated, because our soldiers far outnumber those of the enemy

Equipment Of The Muslims

Muhammad was aware of the strength and the obstinacy of the enemy. Before leaving Makkah, therefore, he called Safwan bin Umayyah and borrowed one hundred coats of mail from him and guaranteed its return. He personally put on two coats of mail, put a helmet on his head, mounted a white mule, which had been presented to him, and moved on behind the army of Islam in the rear guard. Meanwhile, the tribe of Bani Salim arrived in the passage of Hunayn under the command of Khalid bin Walid before the day had yet fully dawned.

Spy

The Hawazin and their allies, the Thaqif, began mobilizing their forces when they learnt from their spies that Muhammad and his army had departed from Medina to begin an assault on Mecca. The confederates apparently hoped to attack the Muslim army while it besieged Mecca. Muhammad, however, uncovered their intentions through his own spies in the camp of the Hawazin, and marched against the Hawazin just two weeks after the conquest of Mecca with a force of 12,000 men. Only four weeks had elapsed since quitting Medina.

Course of the battle

On Wednesday night, the tenth of Shawwal, the Muslim army arrived at Hunain. Malik bin ‘Awf, who had previously entered the valley by night, gave orders to his army to hide inside the valley and lurk for the Muslims on roads, entrances, and narrow hiding places. His orders to his men were to hurl stones at Muslims whenever they caught sight of them and then to make one-man attacks against them.

When Muslims started camping, arrows began showering intensely at them. Their enemy’s battalions started a fierce attack against the Muslims, who had to retreat in disorder and utter confusion.

It is reported that only a few soldiers stayed behind and fought, including Ali bin Abu Talib, the standard bearer, Abbas, Fazal bin Abbas, Usamah, and Abi Sufyan bin Hirith

"Come on, people! I am the Messenger of Allâh. I am Muhammad, the son of Abdullah." Then Muhammad said "O, Allâh, send down Your Help!", later Muslims’ returned to the Battlefield. Muhammad, then Picking up a handful of earth, he hurled it at their faces while saying: "May your faces be shameful." Their eyes were thick with dust and the enemy began to retreat in utter confusion, according to the Muslim scholar Safi-ur-Rahman Mubarakpuri

Enemy Flees, 70 killed

After the enemy was defeated. About seventy men of Thaqif alone were killed, and the Muslims captured all their riding camels, weapons and cattle.

The Quran verse 9:25 was also revealed in this event according to Muslim scholars:

Some of the enemies fled, and Muhammad chased after them. Similar battalions chased after other enemies, Rabi‘a bin Rafi‘ caught up with Duraid bin As-Simmah who was an old man and killed him. Durayd was an important asset of the pagan forces due to his great number of experiences in battle and knowledge of terrain and war tactics . This is mentioned by the Muslim jurist Tabari as follows:

Aftermath

Because Malik ibn Awf al-Nasri had brought the families and flocks of the Hawazin along, the Muslims were able to capture huge spoils, consisting of 6,000 women and children were taken prisoners and 24,000 camels were captured. Some Bedouins fled, and split into two groups. One group went back, resulting in the Battle of Autas, while the larger group found refuge at al-Ta'if, where Muhammad besieged them.

Islamic Primary sources

The event is mentioned in the Sunni Hadith collection Sahih Bukhari as follows:

The event is also in Imam Maliks Al-Muwatta as follows:

See also

• Muhammad as a warrior

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} The Sealed Nectar. Retrieved 17 December 2014. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Battle of Hunayn, Witness-Pioneer.com
3. ^ ^{a b c} The Life of Mahomet and History of Islam to the Era of the Hegira. Retrieved 17 December 2014. 
4. ^ ^{a b c} Lammens, H. and Abd al-Hafez Kamal. "Hunayn". In P.J. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs. Encyclopaedia of Islam Online Edition. Brill Academic Publishers. ISSN 1573-3912. 
5. ^ The sealed nectar, By S.R. Al-Mubarakpuri, Pg356
6. ^ Sha'rani, Ahmad Abdul Wahab Bin Ahmad. "alkitab.com-Source for Arabic Books: Tabaqat al-Kubra - Sha'rani - الطبقات الكبرى: History - Islamic - Sufi Studies: By Sha'rani, Ahmad Abdul Wahab Bin Ahmad". Retrieved 17 December 2014. 
7. ^ [1]
8. ^ "Reconnoitering the Enemy’s Weapons", Witness-Pioneer.com
9. ^ Revelation and Empire
10. ^ Muhammad: Victory
11. ^ Akramulla Syed. "The battle of Hunayn, Battle at Hunain, Military History of Islam, Khalid bin Al-Waleed". Retrieved 17 December 2014. 
12. ^ ln Mughazi, vol. III, page 602
13. ^ Safiur Rahman al-Mubarakpuri (2005), The Sealed Nectar, Darussalam Publications, p. 262 
14. ^ Tabari, Al (25 September 1990), The last years of the Prophet (translated by Isma'il Qurban Husayn), State University of New York Press, p. 16, ISBN 978-0-88706-691-7 

External links

• http://islamweb.net/ver2/archive/article.php?lang=E&id=40434
• http://islamanswers.net/moreAbout/Hunayn.htm
• http://hizb-ut-tahrir.org/english/books/state/chapter_27.html