The Battle of The Confederates 5 A.H.
Battle of the Confederates, also known as ‘Al-Ahzab’ (الاحزاب) and ‘Al-Khandaq’ (الخندق), took place during the month of Shawwal in 5 A.H. This battle is known to be the biggest war between the Muslims and the Quraysh, as the Quraysh had many powerful tribes across the Arabian Peninsula as their allies who supported them in this battle. Therefore, the war came to be known as ‘The Battle of the Confederates’. To protect themselves from this imminent attack, the Muslims had dug a trench around the northern front of Madinah. Thus, the battle is also known as the battle of trench or ‘Al-Khandaq’.
In this battle, the number of casualties was very low as it was a siege and not a full-fledged war. Six soldiers were martyred amongst the Muslims while 10 soldiers were killed from the confederate army. This war was won by the Muslims, despite their meagre numbers.
Causes of the Battle of the Confederates
The first cause of the battle was that the leader of the Quraysh had already pledged to fight against the Holy
Prophet
when the battle of Uhud had ended. Abu Sufyan had raised his voice and said the following words to the Holy
Prophet
:
إنكم واجدون في قتلاكم مثلا، واللّٰه ما رضيت ولا نهيت ولا أمرت، إلّا أنّ موعدكم بدر الصفراء على رأس الحول، فقال رسول اللّٰه صلى اللّٰه عليه وسلم: قل: نعم، بيننا وبينكم موعد.
Indeed, you will find your martyrs mutilated, By Allah! I am not happy with it, (however) I did not stop it, nor gave order for it, but it is a promise to you (that we will meet for battle) at Badr Al-Sufra next year. The Messenger of Allah () said (to Umar ): Say (to Abu Sufyan): Yes, between us and you all, it is a promise.
When the time came, Abu Sufyan did not want to go in to battle, as the people of Makkah were facing a drought. Thus, the battle did not take place the next year. However, he still yearned to fight the Muslims and finish them. Hence, when the leader of the Banu Nadheer tribe, Huyai ibn Akhtab along with a delegation of about 13-19 other leaders went to Makkah, they easily managed to convince the Quraysh to ally with them and attack the Muslims in a decisive manner.
Since the Jews were known as the knowledgeable ones, and the people of the book, their word had great value for the Quraysh, in terms of religion. After the Quraysh and Banu Nadhir had pledged their loyalty to each other and agreed upon a single goal, Abu Sufyan asked the Jews about who was on the right path, the Quraysh, or the Holy
Prophet
? The Jews responded deceptively and declared that the Quraysh were on the right path as they provided water to the pilgrims and were firm on the religion of their forefathers.
The assurance from the Jews further instigated the Quraysh and consolidated their decision of waging war against the Muslims. The Quraysh and the Jews of Banu Nadhir had the same goal in this war, to destroy the religious and political power of
Islam
, in its entirety. However, the Banu Ghatfan tribe had another motive. They wanted economic benefits in return for participating in this battle. So, Huyai ibn Akhtab offered Banu Ghatfan half of the crops which were harvested at Khayber. This offer was too good to be refused, so even the Banu Ghatfan tribe accepted it and pledged to fight against the Muslims.
After spreading the word and instigating the tribes to support the Quraysh from near and far, Banu Asad, Banu Sulaim and Banu Ghatfan joined the Quraysh and Banu Nadhir, and together they assembled a well-equipped army of 10,000 men under the general leadership of Abu Sufyan.
Information about the Confederates’ Plan of Attack
Muslims were aware of the threats they had beyond their borders and thus, would pay close attention to the movement of the enemies. So, as the confederate armies moved towards Madinah, the tribe of Banu Khuza’a informed the Holy
Prophet
about it, and he called an emergency war council.
The war council consisted of participants from the Ansaar and Muhajireen. The Holy
Prophet
asked every member of the council to give an opinion on this matter, because this was the most dangerous situation that the Muslims had ever faced. During the meeting, Salman Farsi
suggested something unique, something the Arabs had never heard or encountered before. He proposed to dig a trench outside the city to prevent the enemy forces from entering the holy city of Madinah. According to him, the Persians used this method to stop the enemy from entering their lands. This strategy was unanimously accepted and the Holy
Prophet
also approved it. The Holy
Prophet
then motivated his companions and gave them assurance of success in battle if they stayed strong, patient, and resilient at all times.
Digging the Trench
After careful evaluation and consultation with the companions, the Holy
Prophet
decided to dig the trench on the northern front of Madinah, in front of Mount Sela,
which was a famous mountain on the outskirts of Madinah. This location was intentionally chosen because an army as big as the confederates could only enter the city using the northern front, as the rest of the city was surrounded by gardens and mountains.
To dig the trench, the Muslims borrowed the required tools from the Banu Quraydha tribe. Then, the Holy Prophet divided the volunteers in groups of ten men each and assigned them specific locations. Each group was assigned to dig 40 yards in length in the designated position. The children were not allowed to participate in the digging, so they were returned from Mount Sela. Overall, 3000 companions started digging, led by
Prophet
Muhammad
, who did not take the mere luxury of supervision, but equally participated with his fellow companions as a true leader would.
Saeed Al-Khudri quotes that he could see the Holy
Prophet
digging the trench side by side his companions and his upper body was covered with dust. Abu Bakr
and Umar
were working side by side as well. They would dig and then carry the dirt in their clothes since they did not have a basket.
Everyone worked relentlessly to complete the trench before the confederate army’s arrival. Even young companions like Abdullah ibn Umar ibn Khattab , Zaid ibn Sabit , Abu Saeed Al-Khudri and Barra ibn ‘Aazib joined the digging because they insisted to help. They were 15 years of age and after the trench was completed, they were returned home.
Even in such a critical situation, the hypocrites did their best to harm the interests of the Muslims in any way they could. Since they could not stop the Muslims, they would try to avoid the hard work and leave for their homes without asking or informing anyone.
Miraculous Meal for Thousands of People
The digging went on for days, and due to lack of resources, the Holy
Prophet
and his companions had nothing to eat. One day, Jabir
saw the effects of hunger and tiredness on the blessed face of the Holy
Prophet
. So, he went home and told his wife about the Holy
Prophet’s
condition, and asked her if there was any food that he could offer the Holy
Prophet
. Jabir’s
wife responded that there was a small amount of barley and a small goat which she could prepare for the Holy
Prophet
. He went to the Holy
Prophet
and invited him for a meal. After getting his invitation, the Holy
Prophet
invited all of his companions to Jabir’s
house. Upon seeing this, Jabir ibn Abdullah
got extremely worried as he did not have enough food to feed everyone. He informed his wife about the situation who then comforted him and said that the Holy
Prophet
ﷺ knew best. The Holy
Prophet
arranged the companions into groups of ten and asked them to come on their turns, take out the bread from the tandoor (an oven made of clay) and meat from the pot, then cover them both after taking what they needed. The groups came one after the other and took as much as they liked, but, miraculously, instead of reducing, the number of breads and the food in the pot looked as if they were untouched.
After everyone had satisfied their hunger, then, the Holy
Prophet
ate. This feast is among one of the miracles which were granted to Holy
Prophet
by
Allah
Almighty, in which he fed thousands from food prepared for a few people.
Glad Tidings about Kisra, Caesar and Ethiopia
The Muslims continued to dig the trench, when one of the groups came across a huge boulder, which prevented them from digging any further. The rock was so tough that nobody was able to break it. In fact, it even broke some of the tools. The companions were not even able to move it. Since they did not want to change the designated boundaries, they informed the Holy
Prophet
about this problem and asked for his help. Thus, the Holy
Prophet
took the axe from Salman Farsi
and struck the rock with a heavy blow which resulted in a bright flash. The Holy
Prophet
chanted ‘
Allah
is the Greatest’. Then, the Holy
Prophet
struck the rock with a second blow and it resulted in the same flash and the Holy
Prophet
shouted ‘
Allah
is the Greatest’ and the companions
shouted with him. With these blows, the rock started to crack and disintegrate. Then, the Holy
Prophet
struck the rock with a final blow and the rock shattered to pieces. Seeing the Holy
Prophet
chanting takbeer after every blow, Salman Farsi
told the Holy
Prophet
that he had never seen him do that before. The Holy
Prophet
looked at his companions and asked them whether they agreed with Salman Farsi
. The companions agreed with Salman Farsi
and said that they had never seen the Holy
Prophet
do something like that. Then, the Holy
Prophet
gave them the glad tidings, which
Allah
Almighty had bestowed upon His beloved
Prophet
for the struggles of war that he and his followers were facing.
The Holy
Prophet
himself explained it in the following words:
...«فإني حين ضربت الضربة الأولى رفعت لي مدائن كسرى وما حولها ومدائن كثيرة، حتى رأيتها بعيني» قال له من حضره من أصحابه: يا رسول اللّٰه صلى اللّٰه علیه وسلم، ادع اللّٰه أن يفتحها علينا ويغنمنا ديارهم، ويخرب بأيدينا بلادهم، فدعا رسول اللّٰه صلى اللّٰه علیه وسلم بذلك، «ثم ضربت الضربة الثانية، فرفعت لي مدائن قيصر وما حولها، حتى رأيتها بعيني»، قالوا: يا رسول اللّٰه صلى اللّٰه علیه وسلم، ادع اللّٰه أن يفتحها علينا ويغنمنا ديارهم، ويخرب بأيدينا بلادهم، فدعا رسول اللّٰه صلى اللّٰه علیه وسلم بذلك، «ثم ضربت الثالثة، فرفعت لي مدائن الحبشة وما حولها من القرى، حتى رأيتها بعيني»، قال رسول اللّٰه صلى اللّٰه علیه وسلم: «عند ذلك دعوا الحبشة ما ودعوكم، واتركوا الترك ما تركوكم»
He said: ‘When I struck the first blow, the city of Kisra and their environs were shown to me, and many other cities, and I saw them with my own eyes’. Those of his companions who were present, said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, pray to Allah to grant us victory and to give us their lands as spoils of war, and to destroy their lands at our hands.’ So, the Messenger of Allah prayed for that. (Then he said:) ‘Then I struck the second blow and the cities of Caesar and their environs were shown to me and I saw them with my own eyes.’ They said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, pray to Allah to grant us victory and to give us their lands as spoils of war, and to destroy their lands at our hands.’ So, the Messenger of Allah prayed for that. (Then he said:) ‘Then I struck the third blow and the cities of Ethiopia were shown to me and the villages around them and I saw them with my own eyes,’ but the Messenger of Allah at that point said: ‘Leave the Ethiopians alone so long as they leave you alone, and leave Turks alone so long as they leave you alone’.
After receiving these glad tidings, the Muslims continued to work and overall, it took them six days to complete the trench which could protect the city from the invading forces. Furthermore, when the hypocrites heard about these glad tidings, they made fun of the Muslims. As the
Holy Quran
states:
وَإِذْ يَقُولُ الْمُنَافِقُونَ وَالَّذِينَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ مَرَضٌ مَا وَعَدَنَا اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ إِلَّا غُرُورًا12
And when the hypocrites and those in whose hearts was a disease began to say: Allah and His Prophet promised us nothing but deceit.
The Hypocrites mocked the glad tidings given by the Holy
Prophet
as they were observing that the Muslims were on the verge of an attack by a massive army, while the Holy
Prophet
was promising them the treasures of Kisra and Caesar,
which did not seem possible at that time. However, history has shown that all these glad tidings turned out to be true.
Surprise for the Confederates
When the confederate army reached Madinah, they were surprised to see the trench. As they were not prepared for a long siege, they started pondering upon different options. The invading army scouted all corners of the trench to find a vulnerable point and a way to cross it, but failed. The Holy
Prophet
had positioned groups of soldiers to stop the enemy from crossing the trench. With the trench hindering the confederate army from crossing it, the battle turned in to a siege and both armies had no option but to fight with arrows and rocks. Days passed by, but a proper hand to hand combat that the Quraysh anticipated, did not take place.
The Betrayal of Banu Quraydha
Banu Quraydha was the last remaining Jewish tribe in Madinah, and it had pledged loyalty to the Holy
Prophet
. Huyai ibn Akhtab secretly went to the fortress of Banu Quraydha and tried to convince them to commit treason and join the confederates. However, the leader of Banu Quraydha Ka’b ibn Asad denied his entry in the fortress and told him that he will not break his agreement with the Holy
Prophet
, as the
Messenger
of
Allah
was a man of truth and honor, while Huyai ibn Akhtab was nothing but an ominous and deceitful man. Huyai kept on insisting and managed to convince Ka’b to open the doors and grant him entry. Huyai then talked to Ka’b and managed to persuade him that the confederate army would not leave until they won the war. He also gave a contingency plan to Ka’b that if the Quraysh lost, then Huyai would stand by Banu Quraydha at all cost. This tactic managed to convince Ka’b ibn Asad to break the agreement with the Holy
Prophet
and ally with the confederates.
However, some of the Jews of Banu Quraydha namely, Amar ibn Su’da, Asad, Usaid and Th’alaba were not in favor of this betrayal and opposed Ka’b’s decision. They reminded Ka’b ibn Asad about the agreement with the Holy
Prophet
and recommended that if Banu Quraydha did not help the Muslims in this war, they should refrain from breaking the agreement and not interfere in this battle.
The news of this betrayal reached the Holy
Prophet
. Thus, the he sent Saad ibn Muaz
, Saad ibn Ubadah
, Abdullah ibn Ruwaha
and Khuwwat ibn Jubair
to confirm the information and notify the Holy
Prophet
in a secret manner, so that it would not cause panic amongst the Muslim army. Saad ibn Muaz
and Saad ibn Ubadah
confirmed the news and informed the Holy
Prophet
about Banu Quraydha’s betrayal.
At first the Muslims had only one front to defend, but now, the Muslims needed to defend the city from the external threat (northern front) and internal dangers (attacks within the boundaries of the city) as well. Thus, Holy
Prophet
deployed 500 soldiers within the city to protect the women and children in case of an attack from the Jews of Banu Quraydha.
Ansars’ Reassurance to Fight till death
The Muslims were now surrounded by the enemies on both fronts, so the Holy
Prophet
had to take equal measures to counter the escalating situation. He knew the intentions of the Jews and the Quraysh, as they only wanted to destroy the Muslim nation at all costs. However, the case of the Jewish tribe i.e., Banu Ghatfan was a little different as it was only supporting the confederate army for economic benefits. So, the Holy
Prophet
planned to offer one third of the harvest of Madinah to the Banu Ghatfan tribe if they broke their alliance with the Quraysh and returned home. The Holy
Prophet
consulted this matter with the Ansar and other companions, as most of the crops belonged to them. They asked the Holy
Prophet
whether he gave this proposal on his own or did he plan this for the convenience of the companions. The Holy
Prophet
ﷺ told them that he strategized this plan solely to ease the situation and help his companions. The Ansar comforted the Holy
Prophet
and suggested not to execute this plan, as they were willing to fight till the end.
Individual Duels
The trench managed to keep the enemy at bay, but a small group of the enemy’s horsemen, namely Ikrimah ibn Abu Jahal, Naufil ibn Abdullah, Dhiraar ibn Khattab, Hubaira ibn Abu Wahab and Amar ibn Abdul Wud found a vulnerable point of the trench, a place which was not as heavily guarded as the rest of the area. Some of the soldiers of the confederates managed to cross the trench and called the Muslims for individual battles. Amar ibn Abdul Wud, a skilled fighter of the Quraysh, called for a duel. His call was responded by Ali ibn Abi Talib , who stepped forward for the fight. The Holy
Prophet
blessed Ali
with his prayers and showed confidence in the young warrior. Amar laughed and made fun of Ali
and asked him to go back, as he was not willing to fight a young man like Ali ibn Abi Talib
. Ali ibn Abi Talib
provoked him by saying that he would love to fight and kill him. This response infuriated Amar. He got down from his horse and the duel began. It was not a lasting fight, as Ali ibn Abi Talib
killed him with a few strikes and the Muslims chanted Takbeer. Seeing this, the rest of the enemy started retreating and were chased off by Zubair ibn Al-Awam
and Umar ibn Al-Khattab
. While fleeing, Naufil fell in the trench and was stoned to death.
The Quraysh offered 10,000 dinars for his body, but the Holy
Prophet
returned the body without accepting any form of ransom.
Nu’aim ibn Masood’s Role in Breaking the Confederate Alliance
Nu’aim ibn Masood belonged to the tribe of Banu Ghatfan. He secretly crossed the trench, went to the Holy
Prophet
, embraced
Islam
and offered his services to help the Muslims. The Holy
Prophet
asked him to keep his conversion a secret and do whatever he could to help the Muslims. Nu’aim ibn Masood
went to Banu Quraydha and offered them his advice. He explained that the agreement between them and the Quraysh had left the Quraydha tribe at a complete disadvantage. If the war ended in favor of the Muslims, the Quraysh would not help Banu Quraydha and simply return to Makkah, which would leave Banu Quraydha at the mercy of the Muslims. So, the only way to equal the odds was to ask the Quraysh to send their senior most men to the tribe of Banu Quraydha. Banu Quraydha would keep these men as guarantee. This would stop the Quraysh from retreating even if the odds became against them. Banu Quraydha agreed on this proposal. Nu’aim ibn Masood
then met the Quraysh leaders and expressed his loyalty towards the Quraysh and asked them to keep the information that he is about to offer as a secret. The leaders of the Quraysh agreed, so, Nu’aim ibn Masood
informed them that Banu Quraydha was reconsidering their decision and wanted to make emends with the Muslims. They promised to hand over the leaders of Quraysh to the Holy
Prophet
in order to regain their lost trust. So, if the Banu Quraydha demanded the Quraysh to send their senior most men to them for assurance, the Quraysh should not send a single man. Nu’aim ibn Masood
then went to the Ghatfan tribe and used the same strategy.
The Quraysh and Banu Ghatfan sent their representatives to Quraydha and asked them to attack the Muslims from within, so that the armies outside could cross the trench. Banu Quraydha asked them to send their leaders first, as assurance. The envoys headed back to the leaders of the Quraysh and informed them about Banu Quraydha’s demands. The Quraysh immediately realized that Nu’aim ibn Masood was correct and the Banu Quraydha tribe was trying to make emends with the Muslims. The Quraysh denied to handover a single man to Banu Quraydha. When Banu Quraydha heard about this decision, they realized that Nu’aim ibn Masood had been truthful about the Quraysh. Thus, the alliance of the confederates was broken, and the Muslims became secure from any attacks from within the city.
Allah Almighty Helps the Muslim Army
Despite these developments, the siege continued. The Holy
Prophet
asked
Allah
Almighty for help against the confederates.
Allah
Almighty answered
Prophet
Muhammad’s
call and sent a destructive desert storm. This is narrated in the
Holy Quran
as:
يَاأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اذْكُرُوا نِعْمَةَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ جَاءَتْكُمْ جُنُودٌ فَأَرْسَلْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ رِيحًا وَجُنُودًا لَمْ تَرَوْهَا وَكَانَ اللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرًا 9
O believer! Remember the Grace of Allah, (bestowed) on you, when there came down on you hosts (to overwhelm you): But We sent against them a hurricane and forces that you did not see; but Allah sees (clearly) all that you do.
The strong cold winds destroyed the encampments of the confederate army. It extinguished the fires and left them in complete darkness. Furthermore, the winds tore their camps apart and destroyed their food supplies. To make matters worse for the enemies,
Allah
Almighty sent down Angels to put fear and terror in the hearts of confederate army.
In order to know how much damage had been caused to the enemy, the Holy
Prophet
chose Huzaifa ibn Yamaan
to spy on the confederate army. Although Huzaifa
himself did not have the strength to take up such a dangerous task, but the love and devotion for the Holy
Prophet
had far more significance for him then his own life. So, he obeyed the Holy
Prophet
and went to the enemy encampments. The storm was still at its destructive peak, but due to the prayers of the Holy
Prophet
, Huzaifa
did not feel any pain and felt warm in the cold and freezing winds of the storm.
He entered the enemy’s camp site and no one recognized him in the dark windy night. He observed that the storm had completely destroyed the camp. Huzaifa
also saw Abu Sufyan, asking the army to retreat, as the storm had destroyed everything and the siege could not continue in such a critical situation.
Huzaifa returned to the Holy
Prophet
and gave him the good news, upon which the Holy
Prophet
thanked
Allah
for his help. The Holy
Prophet
then assured his companions that this was the last time they had to face a war at their doorstep. After this war, the enemies would no longer go on the offensive and wage war against the Muslims, but rather, the Muslims would wage war against them.
Thus, the confederate army, despite their huge numbers, returned home, defeated by a small force of Muslims who were led by the best leader of all times,
Prophet
Muhammad
.