Ammar ibn Aziz Ahmed

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On this day in Islamic history: June

This is a list of events that took place throughout Islamic history in the month of June.

This will be constantly updated when new information arises. Your help in this regard would be most appreciated.


June 6:

On this day, (June 6, 1719 CE {17/18 Rajab, 1131 AH}), the 10th Mughal Emperor Abu'l Barakat Shams-ud-Din Muhammad Rafi ud-Darajat, more simply known as Rafi-ud-Darajat, passed away at the young age of 19 in the city of Agra from tuberculosis.

He was the grandson of Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah I and great-grandson of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, and became Mughal Emperor in February 1719 CE but only managed to reign for just a little more than 3 months.

Before passing away, he requested that his older brother Rafi-ud-Daulah (Shah Jahan II), who consequently became the 11th Mughal Emperor, be enthroned.

📷 Credit: V&A Collections


June 10:

On this day, (June 10, 1916 CE {7/8 Sha’ban, 1334 AH}), the British-backed Hussein ibn Ali - Sharif & Emir of Makkah from 1908 CE, King of the Hejaz between 1916 and 1924 CE as well as a brief claimant to the title of Caliph - ordered his supporters to attack the Ottoman garrison in Makkah.

This is considered the proper beginning of the so-called Arab revolt against the Ottomans (though only a minority of Arabs).

Five days prior, two of Hussein's sons - Ali ibn Hussein and Faisal ibn Hussein - attacked the Ottoman garrison in the city of Madinah but they were defeated by the Ottoman defence led by Ömer Fahreddin Pasha, later nicknamed "The Defender of Madinah."


June 13:

On this day (June 13, 1261 CE {5/6 Rajab, 659 AH}), began the reign of the first Abbasid Caliph of Cairo (under the Mamluk Sultanate): Ahmad al-Mustansir.

Al-Mustansir was the uncle of the last Abbasid Caliph of Baghdad, Al-Musta'sim Billah, and escaped Baghdad whereby he hid amongst Arab tribes in the desert after the Mongol sacking of 1258 CE.

He later made his way to Cairo after the Mamluks drove out the Mongols and was installed as Caliph by Mamluk Sultan Baybars; this process continued until the Ottomans conquered Cairo from the Mamluks in 1517 CE though these Abbasid Caliphs were little more than religious figureheads with no real authority.


June 16:

On this day, (June 16, 1389 CE {11/12 Jumada al-Thani, 791 AH}), began the reign of Ottoman Sultan Bayezid I also nicknamed Yildirim (Thunderbolt or Lightning).

He was the son of Ottoman Sultan Murad I and became Ottoman Sultan after his father passed away at the (successful) Battle of Kosovo on the previous day (June 15, 1389).

In addition to adopting the title of Sultan-i-Rûm, he built one of the largest armies in the known world at the time and unsuccessfully besieged Constantinople.

He was defeated and subsequently captured after the Battle of Ankara in 1402 CE by the founder of the Timurid Dynasty, Amir Timur (Tamerlane), and his death in captivity around a year later triggered what is known as the Ottoman Interregnum.


June 20:

On this day (20 June, 656 CE (18 Dhul Hijjah, 35 AH}), the third Caliph of Islam as well as the third of the Rashidun or "Rightly Guided Caliphs", Amir-ul-Mu'minin Uthman ibn Affan (May Allah be pleased with him), was assassinated in his own home whilst reading the Qu'ran, by rebellious soldiers in the noble city of Madinah.

The ensuing political chaos would not end until the beginning of the Umayyad Caliphate under Mu'awiya ibn Abu Sufyan/Mu'awiya I in 661 AD.

Uthman ibn Affan was one of the 10 companions of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (Ashara Mubashara) who was promised Jannah (Paradise) in this life.

He was also known as al-Ghani (The Generous), and Dhun-Noorayn ("The Possessor of Two Lights") due to his marriages to two of the daughters of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ : Ruqayya and Umm Khultum (May Allah be pleased with them).

Abu Huraira reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ (peace and blessings be upon him), said, “Modesty is part of faith and the most modest of my Ummah (nation) is Uthman.” (Source: Tārīkh Dimashq).

Credit: Lost Islamic History & Hadith of the Day


June 22:

On this day (22 June, 1691 CE {24/25 Ramadan, 1102 AH}), marked the beginning of the reign of the 21st Ottoman Sultan - Sultan Ahmed II - after the death of his predecessor and brother, the 20th Ottoman Sultan: Sultan Suleiman II (they were both sons of Ibrahim, 18th Ottoman Sultan).

Suleiman II and his grand vizier Köprülüzade Fazıl Mustafa Pasha were successfully able to turn the tide of the War of the Holy League (series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League consisting of the Habsburg Monarch, Poland-Lithuania, Venice and Russia), reconquering Belgrade in 1690 CE as well as carrying out significant fiscal and military reforms.

The reign of Ahmed II very much followed on that of his brother Suleiman II, and he devoted most of his attention to the wars against the Habsburgs as well as related foreign policy, governmental and economic issues.

Among the most important features of Ahmed's reign was his reliance on the aforementioned Fazıl Mustafa Pasha - also known as Köprülü Mustafa Pasha the Wise or Gazi Fazıl Mustafa Köprülü - who was also his grand vizier.

Pictured are the tombs of Ahmed II (left) and Suleiman II (center) in the Mausoleum (Türbesi) of Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (Suleiman I) in Istanbul, Turkey.


June 25:

On this day (25 June, 1861 CE {15/16 Dhul Hijjah, 1277 AH}), began the reign of Ottoman Sultan Abdülaziz. He was the 32nd Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, the son of Sultan Mahmud II and the successor of his brother Sultan Abdulmejid I (father of Sultan Abdülhamid II).

He had a variety of interests including literature & poetry; painting & calligraphy; archery; hunting as well as wrestling (he was physically strong & muscular).

During his reign, significant developments were made in the fields of transportation & communication; vocational & technical education as well as his huge passion for the Ottoman Navy, for which he designed their ships, and which had the world's third largest fleet in 1875 (after the British and French navies).

Moreover, he was the first Ottoman Sultan who travelled to Western Europe, visiting a number of important European capitals including Paris, London and Vienna in the summer of 1867.


June 26:

On this day (26 June, 1243 CE {28/29 Dhul Hijjah, 640 AH}), marks 777 years since the Battle of Köse Dağ in modern northeastern Turkey which involved the Anatolian Seljuk Sultanate under the command of Sultan Giyaseddin Keyhusrev II (son of Sultan Ala-ad-Din Kaykubad I), and the Mongol Ilkhanids under the command of Baiju Noyan.

The Mongols achieved a decisive victory despite being (initially) less in number employing their traditional tactic of appearing to retreat and then attacking in a devastating manner thereby causing confusion and desertion amongst the Seljuk ranks.

The Battle of Kose Dag was hence disastrous for the Seljuks of Rum and from here on, until its culmination in 1308 CE, they remained a vassal state of the Mongols and had to pay a substantial tribute annually.

Season 5 of the TV series Diriliş Ertuğrul was said to be set in the time period of around 10 years after the Battle of Kösedağ.