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Brown - Expansion under Muhammad, 622–632
Pink - Expansion during the Rashidun Caliphate, 632–661
Yellow - Expansion during the Umayyad Caliphate, 661–750 -
The first revelation to the prophet Muhammad. Islam was just beggining at this time.
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Muhammad returns to Mecca from Medina some of his followers. They enter peacefully and without any bloodshed. Soon after all of its citizens accepted Islam. Muhammad cleared the idols from the Kaaba and rededicates it to God alone.
Note: Most conquests were peaceful. The Muslims tried to create the least amount of bloodshed as possible. -
Islam is just begging to spread among the Arabs at this time. Most Muslims were located in Mecca and the surrounding areas. Most of the spread of Islam was due to trade. New areas would here about the religion and then convert.
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Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and Iraq
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Byzantine states of Syria, Palestine, and Lebanon were conquered by the Muslim armies.
The battle was against the Rashidun Caliphate and Eastern Roman Armies. This battle marked the start of the Muslim conquests. -
Muslims conquered Sassanid Empire in Iraq and gradually conquering more and more of Iraq over the next dozen years. It was very important in the conquest over persia.
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Jerusalem surrendered to the Muslim armies. This taking over of Jerusalem solidified the Muslim power over Palestine. The control wasn't under threat until the first crusade in the 11th century.
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The conquest of Alexandria marks the fall of Egypt to Muslim rule. Egypt was a rich area and the wealth created for the Muslim was great.
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The siege was ordered by Caliph Umar. By the end of 709 most of North Africa was under Muslim control.
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This ends the rule of the four righteous caliphs and the beggining of Umayyad rule.
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This was a major conflict of the Arab Byzantine Wars. Constantinople was the powerhouse of the Byzantine and the failure to capture the city in this seige had great impact on Muslim expansion.
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Hispania was the Latin name given to the whole Iberian Peninsula (covering the territories of present day Spain and Portugal).
Arab armies conquered the Iberian Peninsula with ease due to the centralized rule of the Visigoths. After the defeat of Roderick, the Visigoth all over the Iberian peninsula fell apart. This allowed for an easy Islamic quest. -
Trade relations have existed between the Arabs and the Indians for a long time. These interactions have cause India to start converting to Muslim. Most conquests of India actually took place in the later centuries.
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Muslims are defeated at Potiers in France by Charles Martel. This kept Christianity as the main religion for a period of time.
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Abbasids begin rule.
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This expedition's failure weakened the Umayyad. The Muslim quest over Constantinople was abandoned after the second failed attempt. The Arab Byzantine relations were now stabelized as a result of the quest failture. This is the most famous Muslim expedition against Byzantium.
