Who is Yazid and What Did He Do?

In the name of Allāh, the Merciful, the Beneficent

I woke up this morning to a WhatsApp text message from one of my younger cousins, who sounded a bit anxious (or should I say curious?,) asking “who is Yazid.” Considering we are in ‘Āshūrā' time when the discussions and debates and arguments if you may escalate at various levels in the Muslim communities around the world, I didn’t have to think twice about which Yazid he was asking about.

As I drafted my response to him in WhatsApp, I realized WhatsApp text format will do justice to a question like this. So, I ended up here, instead. So, if you were caught by the title, “Who is Yazid?”, then you are in the right place. Happy reading.

Who is Yazid?

Yazid was the eldest son of Mu‘āwiyah ibn Abī Sufyān, raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu. Mu‘āwiyah was one of the companions who became the Caliph after the killing of Sayyidunā ‘Ali raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu… The first Caliph was Sayyidunā Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq, then Sayyidunā ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, followed by Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān ibn ‘Affān, and then Sayyidunā ‘Ali ibn Abī Ṭālib raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhum.

Sayyidunā al-Ḥasan raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu became the Caliph after his father, Sayyidunā Ali, at the time when Sayyidunā Mu‘āwiyah raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu was the governor (not a Caliph) on Shām, which covered the region of Syria, Jordan, and Palestine. He was appointed by Sayyidunā ‘Umar, primarily in Damascus. But his territories were expanded by Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu.

Yazid was born in Damascus, 26 years after Hijrah, when his father was the ruler of Damascus. This means he was 22 years younger than Sayyidunā al-Ḥusayn ibn ‘Ali who was born in the 4^th year of Hijrah in Madīnah.

Yazid inherited the monarchy from his father Mu‘āwiyah in the 60^th year of Hijrah, at the age 34. His rule lasted for four years. That was when he died.

The Internal Conflict that Led to This

There was an internal conflict between Sayyidunā ‘Ali and Sayyidunā Mu‘āwiyah. This conflict led to the killing of ‘Ali. Those who killed ‘Ali also planned for the killing of Mu‘āwiyah concurrently, but that plan didn’t fully success, as you’ve seen. Thus, Sayyidunā al-Ḥasan, who became the Caliph after ‘Ali, stepped down for Sayyidunā Mu‘āwiyah. What? That was to stop the internal conflict that has been weakening the Muslim Ummah by the day since the beginning of the great fitnah.

Sayyidunā Mu‘āwiyah Becomes Caliph

With that Sayyidunā Mu‘āwiyah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu became a unified Caliph for the Ummah.

Unarguably, Mu‘āwiyah didn’t become caliph by inheritance. However, he, unfortunately, wrote a will for his son, Yazid to become the Caliph after him. And that’s what happened.

For Yazid to be able to rule in the peace of mind, he needed the support of all the companions of the Prophet, who were still alive at that time. Remember; Yazid was not a companion. He father was. So, his father, Sayyidunā Mu‘āwiyah managed to gather all the support he needed to secure the caliphate for his son, after his passing. Almost everyone supported expect a few.

Who Opposed Yazid Inheriting the Rule

Most people, if not all supported Yazid. Of course, his father was still the Caliph. Who could oppose him? In addition to al-Ḥusayn, the only ones who refused to support Yazid inheriting the Caliphate were the people of Madinah. These were led by ‘Abdullāh ibn al-Zubayr, ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar and ‘Abdul-Raḥmān ibn Abī Bakr. Madinah was the base of most of the remaining companions. Among them was al-Husayn, the son of Ali and Fatimah, the brother of al-Ḥasan, and the grandchild of the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ’alayhi wa sallam. Obviously he was a companion.

After the death of Mu‘āwiyah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu, Yazid automatically became the new Caliph. By inheritance; the first of its kind in the history of Islam. Because they were facing the great fitnah at that point of time, Yazid succeeded in manipulating the people of Kūfa, who were reported to have earlier announced their allegiance for Sayyidunā al-Ḥusayn to be the Caliph. Unfortunately, after her reached Kūfa in response to their invitation, they betrayed him and left him to face his fate. And one thing led to another, and al-Ḥusayn was killed. It’s hard to believe that Yazid didn’t order for his killing. But it’s a long story.

This is Yazid in short… I hope this quick piece answers “Who is Yazid” question.

Now… Who is Who?

Following are some of the companions of the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam whom we have covered so far, in The Shining Stars Series, brought to you by GSalam.Net and Al-Bushra by GSalam.

And some of our future episodes, by the will of Allah, will cover the following companions too:

Sayyidatunā Fāṭimah
Sayyidunā al-Ḥasan
Sayyidunā al-Ḥusayn

Want to Read More….?

Honestly, the question that inspired this unscheduled article came in as a surprise. This is because I’m currently writing up a series of articles that shed light on the great fitnah. The fitnah that shook the Ummah since 14 centuries and continues to do so until this very moment.

The story of Yazid and al-Ḥusayn is an extension of the great fitnah, that the series will shed light on, insha Allah. But they are not part of the series.

If this article has interested you, then the series will definitely interest you, insha Allah. So, stay tuned. To receive updates from GSalam.Net delivered right to your inbox, click here. I will be glad if you join the discussion on Facebook.

Allah knows best.
Allahu Hafiz 🙂