Uthman ibn Affan (577-17 June 656) was the Caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate from 644 to 656, succeeding Umar and preceding Ali.
Biography[]
Uthman was born in 579 in Ta'if to the Banu Umayya (Umayyad) clan of the Quraysh of Mecca, seven years after Muhammad was born. He was 19 years older than his brother Abu-Sufyan ibn Affan, the father of the future Caliph Muawiyah I of the Umayyad Caliphate. Uthman's father Affan ibn Umayyah died while traveling abroad in 579 when Uthman was 20. In 611, when he returned from Syria, Uthman found out about Muhammad's mission, and Uthman was convinced by his friend Abu Bakr to convert to Islam. His clan was angered by his conversion, but Uthman accompanied Muhammad to Abyssinia and Medina, serving as one of his sahaba. Uthman was loyal to Abu Bakr when he became Caliph on Muhammad's death in 632, and during the Ridda Wars Uthman stayed at Medina as an adviser to Abu Bakr. When Abu Bakr's successor Umar died in 656, he proclaimed Uthman as his successor.
Uthman angered the army by ordering that all households in conquered lands would remain with their previous owners rather than the Muslim conquerors, and Muslims and non-Muslims both enjoyed prosperity under his rule. During the rule of Uthman, the Muslims completed the conquest of Aegyptus and conquered most of Afghanistan and parts of the Sindh region of Pakistan. He also conquered Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Libya. However, his conquests were not enough to appease his enemies, who began an armed revolt after a coup in Egypt. He was besieged in his own house until some climbed through the back and blew him over the head before stabbing him, killing him as he was reading the Quran.
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