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Muhammad was a common merchant born in 570 CE to parents who soon orpahned him. Muhammad was raised by his grandfather and uncle. He became a merchant and was married at 25, with 4 children. He was a meditative man who regularly prayed and reflected.
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It was at this time, when Muhammad was forty years old, that the angel Gabriel revealed himself to Muhammad and told him to spread the word of God, as revealed to Muhammad through Gabriel. Muhammad then transmitted these message to people who were paid to remember them.
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The Hijra marks the date that Muhammad left Mecca for Medina in search of a more receptive home for Islam and himself. Year One of the Islamic calendar begins with the Hijra.
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Also known as the "Rightly Guided" Caliphs, these first four substitues for Muhammad shared family ties to the prophet, but faced many issues as Muhammad never left an heir or a set of guidelines for choosing one. As a result, this period was marked with unrest, including the murder of three of these four caliphs.
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The division between the two main groups within Islam, the Sunnis and Shi'ites, consists of a disagreement over the caliph. Shi'as believe that the caliph should be chosen from the family of the prophet. Sunnis believe that the umma should choose a caliph who best represents the example set by Muhammad.
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On this date, the prophet Muhammad died of poisoning following his conquest of the Jewish settlement Khaibar. He was 62 years of age.
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The Umayyads ruled from 661-750 in the imperialistic, mostly secular style of the Byzantine and Persian Empires. They established their capital in Damascus.
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The Abbasids overthrew the Umayyads in 750 C.E. and established an empire that ruled with far more religious influence than that of the Umayyad. The Abbasids also focused less resources on expasion and more on internal betterment.
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Baghdad was created by the Abbasid Caliph al-Mansur to serve as the capital of Islam, and was to be known as the "City of Peace". It was positioned strategically in a place where it could use both the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to control trade routes and supply inhabitants with water.
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Muhammad and the Muslims sought to reclaim their sacred city. They invaded the city and destroyed the polytheistic relics of the Ka'aba and replaced them with Islamic relics.
