Everything Everywhere Daily: History, Science, Geography & More - Khalid Ibn al-Walid: The Sword of Allah (Encore)

Starting point is 00:00:00 The following is an encore presentation of Everything Everywhere Daily. In the 7th century, the world saw the rise of one of the most important religious and political forces in history. Islam. Springing forth from the Arab Peninsula, within a matter of years, the Islamic Caliphate had become one of the largest empires on earth. Much of that growth was due to one man. He wasn't a religious leader, and he wasn't the head of the empire. He was one of the greatest military leaders in history. Learn more about Khalid Ibn El-Walid, the sword of Allah,

Starting point is 00:00:33 this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. What if your perceptions about the past were wrong? ThruLine is a podcast that takes you back in time to uncover the parts of the story that may have gone unnoticed. It effectively turned day into night. And how it shaped the world now. Time travel with us every week on the ThruLine podcast from NPR. Khalid was born Khalid Ibn El-Walid, Ibn al-Muqhira, El-Mugira, El-Mu-Hira, El-Mu-Meghira,

Starting point is 00:01:19 Makhzumi in the town of Mecca and what is today Saudi Arabia. There isn't a lot we know about his early life other than where he was born in his family. He was probably born sometime around the year 585. He was born in the Banu Maksum clan, which was one of the elite clans in the Karais tribe. His father was the local equivalent of a judge and ruled on matters that were brought to him. His grandfather introduced foreign trade to Mecca, bringing goods from Yemen and Ethiopia. And his uncle was the Lord of Mecca, and the Makhzum was considered a noble and wealthy clan. When the Prophet Muhammad began preaching and spreading his new religion in the early 7th century, the Maksum were the primary opponents of Muhammad.

Starting point is 00:01:57 Muhammad was also in the Qarash tribe, but in the Hashim clan. The Makhshu saw Muhammad and his new religion as a threat to their power and control over Mecca and the greater Hajaz, which today is the western part of Saudi Arabia bordering the Red Sea. The Maksum led the Quresh against Muhammad and his followers. There were several military confrontations between the Qarish and the followers of Mohammed, and for the most part, the Muslims won all of them, save for the Battle of Uhood in the year 625. At the Battle of Uhood, one of the Qarajic leaders was Khalid,

Starting point is 00:02:28 who brought his units to the rear of Muhammad's forces, resulting in a route. This was the first battle which he led, and, shockingly enough, it was against Muhammad. Nonetheless, he won. After that, the Qaraj and the Muslim signed the Treaty of Hudebiyah, which created a peace between Mecca and Muhammad's forces in Medina, and also allowed Muhammad's followers to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. In the year 629, Khalid converted to Islam and moved to Medina. There, he put all his energy into Islam and the creation of a Muslim state.

Starting point is 00:02:58 You can sort of make an analogy between Khalid and St. Paul. Both of them persecuted members of the religion to which they eventually converted, and both of them were instrumental in the growth of that religion. But I don't want to make too much about the comparison, however, because beyond those two facts, their lives and how they went about spreading their religions were very, very different. In 629, Khalid took part in the conquest of Mecca, which resulted in most of the citizens of the city converting to Islam. He also saved an ill-fated Islamic expedition that had traveled north to what is today the country of Jordan.

Starting point is 00:03:30 There the Muslims clash with the largest power in the region for the very first time, the Romans, aka the Byzantine Empire. He managed to get the Romans to retreat through the use of subterfuge and deception, to make it seem as if the Muslim forces were larger than they actually were. When he returned to Mecca, he was given the title Safe Allah by Muhammad, which means the sword of God. He was then given responsibility for converting other towns in the vicinity of Mecca and the Hajjas. He was highly successful, if at times a bit overzealous. In one case, he executed the leaders of one tribe, even though they had already converted. When the Prophet Muhammad died in 632, many of the clans and towns which had pledged allegiance to Muhammad, broke their allegiances, and ceased paying tribute. Khalid was given command of an army by the new leader of Mecca, Abu Bakar, and was sent to bring the wayward tribes back into the fold. Known as the Rida Wars, Khalid spent the next year

Starting point is 00:04:23 moving through the Central Arabian Peninsula. Everywhere he went, he was victorious. Within the span of a little over a year, he brought the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula under the control of Mecca. Gathering troops, he then took an unauthorized detour into modern Iraq and marched up the Euphrates River. He met the Persians in what is today Kuwait, and defeated them. He marched his troops up the western bank of the Euphrates River conquering and converting towns along the way. He eventually met a combined Roman and Persian army of 60,000 men near the town of Faraz. Despite being vastly outnumbered, he managed to flank the Romans at a river crossing and surrounded them in a Pinser movement. Their defeat ensured Muslim control of Mesopotamia.

Starting point is 00:05:04 In 634, he was then ordered by Abu Bakar to send relief to a Muslim force that had become bogged down in Syria. He famously led 800 men into the desert to get to Syria. There was one stretch where they had to cross a desert which was six days between watering holes. His men didn't have enough storage for that much water, so he took extra camels, which he slaughtered every day to access the stored water in their humps. This desert crossing is probably the most famous story of Khalid Ibn al-Walid in Islamic literature. Syria at the time was firmly in control of the Byzantines. He won several smaller engagements with smaller towns.

Starting point is 00:05:39 and then in August of 6.35, he laid siege to and conquered the city of Damascus. According to legend, he received intelligence about the city celebrating the birthday of the emperor's son, and used that to attack the weakest gate in the city while everyone inside was occupied. This was all a lead-up to what would become the most significant battle in the career of Khalid, and one of the most important battles in world history, the Battle of Yarmuk in 636. If you haven't heard of the Battle of Yarmuk, you probably should. I'm definitely going to devote a full episode to it in the future. This was the showdown that pitted the Byzantines against the Arabs, and more importantly, Christians against Muslims.

Starting point is 00:06:18 It was a clash of civilizations that would have ramifications that would echo for centuries. The battle took place near what is today where the Syrian, Jordanian, and Israeli borders all meet, southeast of the Sea of Galilee, near the Yarmuk River. The combined Muslim forces were around 25 to 40,000 men. According to contemporary sources at the time, the Byzantines with their Persian allies had about 140,000 men, although some modern historians only put the number at about 40,000. Either way, Khalid and his men were outnumbered. Over a period of six days, Khalid defeated the larger Byzantine force through a series of brilliant tactical decisions, whereas the Byzantines tried to succeed with their large numbers and using traditional military doctrine.

Starting point is 00:07:01 He used the speed of his mounted forces to compensate for his lack of numbers, ever allowed the enemy to amass their large force. Several years earlier in 632, Abu Bakar died and Omar became the new caliphate. After the Battle of Yarmuk in 638, Omar dismissed Khalid as the Supreme Military Commander. There isn't a consensus among historians as to why he did this, but there are several reasons which are offered. He was concerned about how Khalid would often disregard orders and act independently. There were issues of his past regarding morality, and probably most importantly,

Starting point is 00:07:34 Khalid was extremely popular, especially amongst the soldiers. Khalid was the biggest potential threat to Omar, so he relieved him, but did so in a way that allowed him to keep most of his military honors and dignity. Khalid died in 642, but the details surrounding his death are vague. He died either in Medina or in Ham's Syria. Hams is the place that claims to have his tomb, and it's been the site of a large mosque since at least the 12th century. The legacy of Khalid Ibn El-Walid has only grown over time. He is widely considered to be the greatest Muslim general in history. His techniques were later used by Islamic armies after him to expand throughout the Middle East, Central Asia,

Starting point is 00:08:13 and North Africa. It is believed that Khalid was the commander in 100 battles and never lost a single one. A hundred and O undefeated. This makes Khalid Ibn El-Walid, not just one of the most successful generals in Islamic history, but in world history. The executive producer of Everything Everywhere Daily is Charles Daniel. The associate producers are Thor Thompson and Peter Bennett. I just want to thank everyone, including the show's producers, who support the show over on Patreon. If you'd like to support the show, just head over to patreon.com, which is currently the only place where you can get show merchandise. Also, if you want to talk to other listeners about the show, head over to our Facebook group or Discord server, both of which have links in the show notes.

Everything Everywhere Daily: History, Science, Geography & More - Khalid Ibn al-Walid: The Sword of Allah (Encore)

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