Hazrat Umar’s (ra) role in the Conquests

Then mentioning Hazrat Umar’s (ra) role in these conquests, Shibli Nomani writes:

“The answer to the last question is that according to popular belief, the Caliph [Hazrat Umar (ra)] supposedly did not play much of a role in the conquests, in fact, it was the passion and resolve of the people at the time.”

He further writes:

“This is an opinion which in my view is completely incorrect”, i.e. the claim that the Caliph had nothing to do with the conquests.

“The same Muslims were present in the time of Hazrat Uthman (ra) and Hazrat Ali (ra), but what was the result? Undoubtedly, passion and power are captivating qualities, but these qualities can only be useful when the person commanding them is equally powerful and mighty.

“There is no need for speculation or conjecture; the facts are enough to decide the matter. After analysing the details of the conquests [in Hazrat Umar’s (ra) time], it becomes evidently clear that the Muslim army was like a marionette, that would move and strike according to the instructions of Hazrat Umar (ra). And the order and arrangement of the army was due to the special administration and planning of Hazrat Umar (ra). Hazrat Umar (ra) himself supervised all matters, such as arranging the army, training exercises of the army, formation of barracks, training of horses, protection of forts, ordering to attack according to the warm or cold weather, organising a system of surveillance, choosing the commanders for the army and using weapons that could break forts. Establishing them with such power and authority was an attribute of Hazrat Umar (ra).

“In the conquest of Iraq, Hazrat Umar (ra) himself discharged duties as if he was the commander-in-chief. When the army would depart from Medina, he would highlight each step of the way, in fact he would outline the entire route, which way they were to take and what to do at which place; he would send written instructions in accordance with this.

“When the army reached Qadisiyyah, he asked for a map of the area and arranged the army ranks according to it. Every commander would act according to the special instructions issued by Hazrat Umar (ra). If one studies the details of the Muslim campaigns in Iraq from Tarikh Al-Tabari, it will become evidently clear that an expert commander-in-chief was sat far away directing the army in battle and everything that transpired did so due to his instructions.

“Among the wars – that were fought over a 10-year span – the most dangerous occurrence was either in the Battle of Nahavand, when the Iranians sent their chiefs throughout the provinces of Persia in order to incite them [for war] and gathered a mighty army of over a hundred thousand to confront the Muslims.

“The second instance was when the Byzantine Emperor attacked Homs again with the help of the people of Jazirah. In both these battles, it was only the excellent strategy of Hazrat Umar (ra) that crushed a rising storm on the one hand and demolished a mighty mountain on the other.

“After reading the details of these incidents, the claim becomes clear; that throughout all of history that we know of, there has not been a conqueror equal to Hazrat Umar Farooq (ra), the Great, who was a personification of both a victor and justice”, i.e. that they attained conquests and upheld justice as well.

(Al-Faruq, Shibli Nomani, pp. 170-177, 287, Dar al-Isha‘ah, Karachi, 1991) (Urdu Da‘irah Ma‘arif Islamiyyah, Vol. 20, Under the word Muzdak, pp. 529-530, Shu‘bah Urdu Punjab University, Lahore) (Urdu Lughat, Under the word Nasturit, Vol. 19, p. 932, Urdu Lughat Board, Karachi) (Urdu Lughat, Under the word Ta‘biyah, Vol. 5, pp. 281-282, Urdu Lughat Board, Karachi) (Yaqut Ibn Abd Allah al-Hamawi, Mu‘jam al-Buldan, Vol. 1 [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah], 249-240)