Umar's Assurance () is an assurance of safety given by the Caliph

Umar ibn al-Khattab 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 Muh ...

to the people of Aelia, the Late Roman name for

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 ...

. Several versions of the Assurance exist, with different views of their authenticity. The traditional view ascribes it to Caliph Umar ibn Al-Khattab and the time when Muslims captured Jerusalem in AD 637 or 638. The guarantees given to Christians regarding their churches and other property makes it one of the most important documents in the history of the city. The significance of the Assurance is discussed by early Muslim historians, such as al-Waqidi (–823). The text of the document is included, abridged or in full, in works from the late 9th, 10th, and later centuries. Opinions differ on the authenticity of the different versions of the Assurance. Many historians have questioned the authenticity of the Christian versions of this pact and argue that such documents were forged by Christian scribes to secure their possession of some religious sites. Some historians consider aspects of the version of

al-Tabari Abū Jaʿfar Muḥammad ibn Jarīr ibn Yazīd al-Ṭabarī (; 839–923 CE / 224–310 AH), commonly known as al-Ṭabarī (), was a Sunni Muslim scholar, polymath, historian, exegete, jurist, and theologian from Amol, Tabaristan, present- ...

(copied from Sayf ibn Umar, who died between 786–809) to be authentic. For instance, Moshe Gil while discussing al-Tabari's version points out that "the language of the covenant and its details appear authentic and reliable and in keeping with what is known of Jerusalem at the time."

Historical background

By 637, Muslim armies began to appear in the vicinity of Jerusalem. In charge of Jerusalem was Patriarch Sophronius, a representative of the Byzantine government, as well as a leader in the Christian Church. Although numerous Muslim armies under the command of

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

'Amr ibn al-'As Amr ibn al-As ibn Wa'il al-Sahmi (664) was an Arab commander and companion of Muhammad who led the Muslim conquest of Egypt and served as its governor in 640–646 and 658–664. The son of a wealthy Qurayshite, Amr embraced Islam in and wa ...

began to surround the city, Sophronius accepted to surrender but he demanded that Umar come to accept the surrender himself. Having heard of such a condition, Umar ibn al-Khattab left Medina to Jerusalem. Umar travelled to Jerusalem and accepted the surrender. He then visited the Church of the Resurrection (today better known as the

Church of the Holy Sepulchre The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also known as the Church of the Resurrection, is a fourth-century church in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem. The church is the seat of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchat ...

) where Sophronius invited him to pray inside the church, but Umar declined so as not to set a precedent and thereby endanger the church's status as a Christian site. Instead he prayed outside, on the steps east of the church.

Historical sources

The Assurance and its significance is discussed by early Muslim historians such as al-Waqidi (–823),

al-Baladhuri ʾAḥmad ibn Yaḥyā ibn Jābir al-Balādhurī () was a 9th-century West Asian historian. One of the eminent Middle Eastern historians of his age, he spent most of his life in Baghdad and enjoyed great influence at the court of the caliph al ...

(d. 892), in addition to Ibn al-Athir (1160–1232/3) and Abu al-Fida’ (1273–1331). The text of the document is included, either abridged or as long text, in the works al-Ya'qubi (d. 897/8), Eutychius (877–940), al-Tabari (copied from Sayf ibn Umar, who died betw. 786–809), al-Himyari, Mujir al-Din al-Hanbali, and

Ibn al-Jawzi Abu al-Faraj Jamal al-Din Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Hasan Ali Al-Jawzi also known as Ibn al-Jawzi (16 June 1201) was a Muslim jurisconsult, preacher, orator, heresiographer, traditionist, historian, judge, hagiographer, and philologist who played ...

(c. 1116–1201).

Tabari's version

The text as reported by al-Tabari:

In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. This is the assurance of safety which the servant of God, ʿUmar, the Commander of the Faithful, has given to the people of Aelia. He has given them an assurance of safety for themselves, for their property, their churches, their crosses, the sick and healthy of the city and for all the rituals which belong to their religion. Their churches will not be inhabited by Muslims and will not be destroyed. Neither they, nor the land on which they stand, nor their cross, nor their property will be damaged. They will not be forcibly converted. The people of Jerusalem must pay the taxes like the people of other cities and must expel the Byzantines and the robbers. Those of the people of Jerusalem who want to leave with the Byzantines, take their property and abandon their churches and crosses will be safe until they reach their place of refuge. The villagers ho had taken refuge in the city at the time of the conquestmay remain in the city if they wish but must pay taxes like the citizens. Those who wish may go with the Byzantines and those who wish may return to their families. Nothing is to be taken from them before their harvest is reaped. If they pay their taxes according to their obligations, then the conditions laid out in this letter are under the covenant of God, are the responsibility of His Prophet, of the caliphs and of the faithful. Witnessed by: Khālid b. Walīd; ʿAmr b. al-ʿĀs; ʿAbd al-Rahmān b. al-ʿAwf; Muʿāwiya b. Abī Sufyān.''''

Historical background

Historical sources

Tabari's version

Notes

See also

References

Further reading