Al-Qaʿqāʿ ibn ʿAmr ibn Mālik Al-Tamīmī () was an Arab Muslim commander and general in the

Rashidun army The Rashidun army () was the core of the Rashidun Caliphate's armed forces during the early Muslim conquests in the 7th century. The army is reported to have maintained a high level of discipline, strategic prowess and organization, grantin ...

who belonged to the tribe of

Banu Tamim The Banū Tamīm () are an Arab tribe that originated in Najd and Hejaz in the Arabian Peninsula. It is mainly present in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Oman, Jordan and Lebanon, and has a strong presence in Algeria, and Morocco, Palestine, ...

. He and his tribe converted to

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

possibly during the time of Ahnaf ibn Qais. He is known as a successful military commander who took part in two important victorious battles in the early

Muslim Conquest The Muslim conquests, Muslim invasions, Islamic conquests, including Arab conquests, Arab Islamic conquests, also Iranian Muslim conquests, Turkic Muslim conquests etc. *Early Muslim conquests **Ridda Wars **Muslim conquest of Persia ***Muslim conq ...

, the Battle of Yarmouk against the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

(commanded by

Khalid ibn al-Walid Khalid ibn al-Walid ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi (; died 642) was a 7th-century Arabs, Arab military commander. He initially led campaigns against Muhammad on behalf of the Quraysh. He later became a Muslim and spent the remainder of his career ...

) and the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah against the

Sassanian Empire The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

which was led by

Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas ibn Wuhayb al-Zuhri () was an Arab Muslim commander. He was the founder of Kufa and served as its governor under Umar ibn al-Khattab. He played a leading role in the Muslim conquest of Persia and was a close companion of the ...

. The Caliph

Abu Bakr Abd Allah ibn Abi Quhafa (23 August 634), better known by his ''Kunya (Arabic), kunya'' Abu Bakr, was a senior Sahaba, companion, the closest friend, and father-in-law of Muhammad. He served as the first caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, ruli ...

praised him as an equal to eleven thousand men so in return the caliph's successor, caliph

Umar Umar ibn al-Khattab (; ), also spelled Omar, was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () and is regarded as a senior companion and father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Mu ...

, only sent Qaʿqāʿ and a handful of bodyguards in the first wave of reinforcements to Al-Qadissiyah.

Life

Ridda wars

Qa'qa ibn Amr At-tamimi converted along with his tribe, in the Year of the Delegations, 631 CE. But, for a brief period, he and other Tamim joined the force of the false prophetess Sajah bint al-Harith before she was subdued during the

Ridda wars The Ridda Wars were a series of military campaigns launched by the first caliph Abu Bakr against rebellious Arabian tribes, some of which were led by rival prophet claimants. They began shortly after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in ...

. Later on he carried on a successful military campaign under Khalid bin Walid, suppressing another false prophet, Tulayha, in the

Battle of Buzakha The Battle of Buzakha took place between Khalid ibn al-Walid and Tulayha, in September 632. Strength Khalid had 6,000 men under his disposal while Tulayha had 35,000 men. General engagement Tuhlaya himself took up a position somewhere ...

.Ibn al-Athir, Usd al-Ghaba fī ma'rifat al-Sahaba ("The lions of the forest in the knowledge of the Companions"), 7 vols., Muhammad Ibrahim al-Banna, Muhammad Ahmad 'Ashur, Mahmud al Wahhab Fā'id (edd.), Cairo , Kitab al-Sha'b, 1393/1973, IV, p. 409, n. 4309. After the Ridda wars ended he continued to follow Khalid's campaign to Syria and Iraq.

Muslim conquest of Iraq and Syria

Qa'qa took part in the

Battle of Chains The Battle of Sallasil ( ''Dhat al-Salasil''), often referred to as the Battle of Chains, was the first battle fought between the Rashidun Caliphate and the Sasanian Empire, Sasanian Persian Empire in April 633. The battle was fought in Kazima ( ...

and on one occasion when Qa'qa saw Khalid duelling the Sassanid champion Hormuzan, Qa'qa immediately rushed as he saw Hormuz had sent five to six soldiers to aid him, swarming over Khalid to intercept the duel. Then Qa'qa and Khalid overcame Hormuzan and his guards, killing all the Sassanid soldiers who intended to kill Khalid during the duel in the process, along with Hormuzan. During this battle it is reported that Qa'qa said: "We did trample Hormuz with fury restrained...". Later, as incensed Christian Arabs of this area sought revenge for their leader Aqqa who fell in the Battle of Al-Anbar, they contacted the Persian commander named Bahman who in turn divided the Persian-Arab forces into two field armies and sent them off from Ctesiphon. The first force under Ruzbeh moved to Husaid, and the other, under Zarmahr, moved to Khanafis. For the moment these two armies were located in separate areas for ease of movement and administration, but they were not to proceed beyond these locations until the Christian Arabs were ready for battle. Bahman planned to concentrate the entire imperial army to either await a Muslim attack or march south to fight the Muslims at Hira. This situation had been anticipated by Khalid before his arrival at Hira from Dumat Al-Jandal, as he divided the Muslim garrison of Hira into two corps, one of which he placed under Qa'qa' and the other under Abu Laila. Khalid sent them both to Ain-ul-Tamr, where he would join them a little later after the troops who had fought at Dumat Al-Jandal had been rested. The forces of Qa'qa' consisted of two divisions of migratory tribe warriors named "The Righteous"(''al-Bararah'') and "The Best"(''al-Khiyarah''), whereas the al-Khiyarah division was led by 'Ismah ibn Abdallah. As the forces of Qa'qa' met Zarmahr in the Battle of Husayd, while Abu Laila met Ruzbih in Khanafis, Qa'qa' immediately commanded his forces to gallop forward, as per the instruction of Khalid, whenever they met an enemy force on their march. Zarmahr in response immediately asked Ruzbih, who was blocked by the forces of Abu Laila, to aid his forces rather than engaging Abu Laila. Qa'qa' personally slew Zarmahr while Ruzbih in turn was killed by 'Ismah. Thereafter the Muslims charged. As the battle continued, the Persians and their allies started to realize their losses and retreated to Khanafis. When the Persian garrison at Khanafis came to know of the Persian defeat at Huseid and of the death of their own Commander Zarmahr, Mabhuzab and his forces abandoned Khanafis and with his forces moved to Muzayyah further north, where more forces were available and defenses were stronger. When the Muslim forces under Abu Leila arrived at Khanafis, they found that there were no Persian forces to meet them. Later, Khalid made a detour to return to his main headquarters to rendezvous with Qa'qa' and Abu Laila, further chasing the Persians and their Arab allies towards Muzayyah. Khalid rode on his camel instead of his horse during his return to Ayn al Tamr. In the famous battle of Yarmouk under Khalid, Qa'qa' served as Khalid's subordinate officer in the mobile guard elite cavalry, subsequently taking part as 'Fire Brigade' role, plugging all weak points or reinforcing the routed line within the Muslim ranks. The Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattāb sent Al-Qa'qa' ibn 'Amr to take part in the battle of Qadisiyya. On 17 November 636, his units reached the battlefield at noon. Before arriving, Qa'qa' divided his troops into several smaller groups and instructed them to appear on the battlefield one after the other, giving the impression that large reinforcements were arriving. Qa'qa' was busy raising morale and arranging his companions to the place from where he parted from them the previous day. The Persian army's elephants were a serious obstacle for the Muslims. To solve this problem, Qa'qa' resorted to an ingenious device. The camels in his army were disguised to look like weird monsters. These "monsters" were moved to the Sassanid front and, upon seeing them, the Sassanid horses turned and fled. With the disorganization of the Sassanid cavalry, the Persian infantry at the left and center became exposed and vulnerable. Saad ordered an all-out attack by the Muslims. After the Persian army was routed Qa'qa' ibn Amr went into pursuit and killed the Persian general Bahman, who commanded the Sasanian army at the Battle of the Bridge. When the battle resumed on 18 November 636, al-Qa'qa' led a vanguard cavalry of three hundred, accompanied by Qays bin Hazim who led the Hashim tribe kinsmen from

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

together with local Iraqi tribal warriors. This time they were involved in melee combat against the Sassanid elephant corps. The Muslim cavalry blinded the elephants and severed their trunks with spears and other melee weapons while the Muslim archers struck down the elephant riders. The situation became dire for the Muslims later on that day, despite having already annihilated the elephant corps, because the Sassanids fought even more ferociously, resulting in al-Qa'qa's fellow kinsmen, Khalid bin Yamar al-Tamimi, being killed during the night. Consequently, al-Qa'qa' was tasked with the initiative of reinvigorating the Muslim army. Mohammad adil rais-day-4-phase-1

At sunrise of 19 November 636, the fighting had ceased, but the battle was still inconclusive. Al-Qa'qa', with the consent of Saad, was now acting as a field commander of the Muslim troops. He is reported to have addressed his men as follows: The Muslims' left center led by al-Qa'qa' surged forward and attacked the Sassanid right center, followed by the general attack of the Muslim corps. The Sassanids were taken by surprise at the resumption of battle. The Sassanids' left wing and left center were pushed back. Al-Qa'qa' again led a group of Mubarizun against the Sassanids' left center and by noon, he and his men were able to pierce through the Sassanid center. During the Battle of Jalula Mihran engaged his troops in an open battlefield, and Hashim ibn Utbah decided to carry out his maneuver. He dispatched a strong cavalry regiment under one of his most illustrious cavalry commanders, Qa'qa' ibn Amr, to capture the bridge over the entrenchments. The bridge was not heavily guarded as virtually all the Persian troops available were used to assault Muslim army's main rank. Qa'qa' maneuvered around the Persian right flank and quickly captured the bridge at their rear. The news of a strong Muslim cavalry detachment in their rear was a serious setback to Persian morale. Hashim launched a frontal attack with Muslim infantry while Qa'qa' struck at the Persian rear with his cavalry. Thus the Sassanid Army were trapped and routed as a result. After the campaign in Jalula was ended he stayed and held a military post for a while in

Kufa Kufa ( ), also spelled Kufah, is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates, Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000. Along with Samarra, Karbala, Kadhimiya ...

Defense of Emesa

In 638, Emesa was laid in siege by the coalition forces of Arab Christian tribes from Jazira which mustered by

Heraclius Heraclius (; 11 February 641) was Byzantine emperor from 610 to 641. His rise to power began in 608, when he and his father, Heraclius the Elder, the Exarch of Africa, led a revolt against the unpopular emperor Phocas. Heraclius's reign was ...

in an attempt to stymie the losses of Byzantine territories due to rapid expansion of the Rashidun caliphate in the Levant. On the orders of Umar, Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas immediately sent Qa'qa' with 4,000 soldiers with him to aid the defenders of Emesa which were led by his former superiors during the battle of Yarmouk, Abu Ubaydah and Khalid ibn Walid. Later as the Christian Arab coalitions abandoned the siege, Khalid and Qa'qa' immediately came out of the fort to pursue the enemy and inflicted heavy losses to the fleeing Arab Christian coalition forces.

First Muslim civil war

During the uprising against the rule of Caliph

Uthman Uthman ibn Affan (17 June 656) was the third caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, ruling from 644 until his assassination in 656. Uthman, a second cousin, son-in-law, and notable companion of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, played a major role ...

, Qa'qa' quickly suppressed the rebellious potential brought by Yazid bin Qays al-Arhabi. Many times he went using his own reputation as the hero of The Caliphate, who was respected and feared by peoples of Kufa, to cool down the heated political atmosphere before and after caliph Uthman was murdered. He even tried to mediate the factions of caliph Ali and

Aisha Aisha bint Abi Bakr () was a seventh century Arab commander, politician, Muhaddith, muhadditha and the third and youngest wife of the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad. Aisha had an important role in early Islamic h ...

to ensuing peaceful negotiation, although his attempts were fruitless and the

Battle of the Camel The Battle of the Camel, also known as The Battle of Basra () took place outside of Basra, Iraq, in 36 AH (656 CE). The battle was fought between the army of the fourth caliph Ali (), on one side, and the rebel army led by Aisha, Talha and ...

occurred anyway. After the civil war was ended he was dismissed by Caliph Muawiyah I together with other Ali supporters from Kufa and exiled to

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

Death

Despite the exile he later went back to live in Kufa, where he allegedly died later in retirement.

References

Notes

Bibliography

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