Teacher License – History Complete Review Guide 2026–2027

4. Badr 2 AH/624 CE, Uhud 3 AH/625 CE, the Trench (al-Ahzab) 5 AH/627 CE, the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah 6 AH/628 CE, the conquest of Mecca 8 AH/630 CE, the Prophet's death 11 AH/632 CE.
5. After the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah the Prophet ﷺ sent letters to kings and rulers inviting them to Islam.
6. Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, 11–13 AH/632–634 CE: he led the Ridda wars, and the Quran was collected in his time after the Battle of Yamama.
7. Umar ibn al-Khattab, 13–23 AH/634–644 CE: he set up the diwans, dated the calendar from the Hijra, and his reign saw Qadisiyyah, Yarmouk and the conquests of Jerusalem and Egypt.
8. Uthman ibn Affan, 23–35 AH/644–656 CE: he unified the codices on one text, and the first Muslim navy was built in his reign (Battle of Dhat al-Sawari, 34 AH/655 CE).
9. Ali ibn Abi Talib, 35–40 AH/656–661 CE, with Kufa as his seat. The period of the Rightly Guided Caliphs ends with his reign.
10. The Umayyad state, 41–132 AH/661–750 CE: founded by Muawiya ibn Abi Sufyan, capital Damascus. Its last caliph was Marwan ibn Muhammad, and it fell after the Battle of the Zab (132 AH).
11. Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan Arabised the diwans and struck the Islamic dinar (around 77 AH/696 CE). Under al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik the conquests reached their widest extent, including al-Andalus in 92 AH/711 CE.
12. The hijaba under the Umayyads: the post of the hajib, who controlled access to the caliph, introduced to protect the caliph.
13. The Abbasid state, 132–656 AH/750–1258 CE: it replaced the Umayyads, al-Mansur founded Baghdad in 145 AH/762 CE, and civilisation peaked under Harun al-Rashid and al-Ma'mun (the House of Wisdom and translation).
14. The vizierate in the early Abbasid period: the vizier was the caliph's chief aide, his powers grew under the Barmakids, and the office was later divided into delegated and executive vizierates.
15. Dynasties became independent of Baghdad, among them the Umayyads in al-Andalus (138 AH/756 CE), the Fatimids (297 AH/909 CE), the Buyids and the Seljuks. The Seljuks defeated the Byzantines at Manzikert in 463 AH/1071 CE.
16. The Crusades: the First Crusade began in 1095 CE and Jerusalem fell in 492 AH/1099 CE. The Muslims regained it after Hattin in 583 AH/1187 CE under Saladin al-Ayyubi, and the Crusader presence ended with the fall of Acre in 690 AH/1291 CE under the Mamluks.
17. The Mongols under Hulagu took Baghdad in 656 AH/1258 CE. The Mamluks stopped their advance at Ain Jalut in 658 AH/1260 CE under Qutuz, with Baybars taking part.

Common mistakes in this chapter

• ✕ Mixing up the dates of the battles: Badr 2, Uhud 3, the Trench 5, Hudaybiyyah 6. Put them in order before you answer.
• ✕ Confusing the collection of the Quran under Abu Bakr (into one codex) with the unification of the codices under Uthman (standard copies sent to the provinces).
• ✕ Attributing the diwans and the Hijri calendar to Umar, and the Arabisation of the diwans and the Islamic coinage to Abd al-Malik. An option that swaps the two is wrong.
• ✕ Confusing the Umayyad capital (Damascus) with the Abbasid capital (Baghdad, with a short period at Samarra), and the Abbasids in the East with the Umayyads in al-Andalus.
• ✕ Confusing the Crusades (from Western Europe, from 1095 CE) with the Mongol invasion (from the East, Baghdad in 1258 CE). Each has different motives, battles and results.
• ✕ Confusing Hattin (583 AH, against the Crusaders, led by Saladin) with Ain Jalut (658 AH, against the Mongols, led by Qutuz and Baybars).
• ✕ Treating the Ayyubids and the Mamluks as one state. The Ayyubid state was founded in 567 AH by Saladin, the Mamluk state in 648 AH.
• ✕ Confusing the Battle of Tours (114 AH/732 CE, in France) with the conquest of al-Andalus (92 AH/711 CE, led by Tariq ibn Ziyad).