Cambridge IGCSE Islamiyat: The Rightly Guided Caliphs — Revision Notes (0493)

These notes condense Paper 2 Topic 3 of Cambridge IGCSE Islamiyat 0493, The Period of Rule of the Rightly Guided Caliphs and their Importance as Leaders. For each caliph learn the dates, main events, policies, achievements and difficulties, then the lessons for leadership today, because 14-mark questions usually combine a description part with an evaluation of significance.

Syllabus coverage

0493 Paper 2, Topic 3 (2026–2027 syllabus): main events of the four rules; policies for maintaining and expanding the state; approaches to leading the community; achievements; difficulties; significance as examples of leadership; importance as models for government today and for relations with other states. (The caliphs’ lives during the Prophet’s lifetime belong to Paper 1.)

Abu Bakr (632–634)

• Election: chosen at the Saqifa of Banu Sa’ida after the Prophet’s (pbuh) death; first address promised to obey Allah and His Messenger and asked to be corrected if he went wrong.
• Usama’s expedition: sent the army the Prophet had prepared, despite advice to keep it in Madina, showing loyalty to the Prophet’s decisions.
• Ridda wars: fought tribes who refused zakat and false claimants to prophethood, including Musaylima, defeated at Yamama by Khalid ibn al-Walid.
• Compilation of the Qur’an: after many memorisers died at Yamama, Umar urged collection; Zayd ibn Thabit gathered the Qur’an into one copy, kept by Abu Bakr and later by Hafsa.
• Expansion: campaigns began into Iraq and Syria.
• Significance: preserved the unity of the community and the obligation of zakat.

Umar ibn al-Khattab (634–644)

• Appointment: nominated by Abu Bakr after consultation.
• Conquests: Syria (Yarmuk), Iraq (Qadisiyya), Jerusalem (surrendered and visited by Umar, who granted its people security), Egypt (Amr ibn al-As), parts of Persia.
• Administration: provinces under governors; the diwan (register) for paying stipends; the public treasury (bayt al-mal); the Hijri calendar; judges separate from governors; garrison towns such as Kufa, Basra and Fustat.
• Religious measures: congregational tarawih prayers in Ramadan.
• Character: simple lifestyle; patrolled at night to see people’s needs; held governors accountable.
• Death: stabbed by Abu Lu’lu’a while leading prayer; appointed a council (shura) of six to choose his successor.

Uthman ibn Affan (644–656)

• Selection: chosen by the council of six.
• Expansion: further conquests in North Africa and Persia; first Muslim navy under Mu’awiya, taking Cyprus.
• Standard Qur’an: when differences in recitation appeared, Uthman had Zayd ibn Thabit and others prepare copies from Hafsa’s text in the Quraysh dialect, sent them to the main cities and ordered other copies destroyed.
• Building: enlarged the Prophet’s Mosque in Madina.
• Difficulties: accusations of favouring relatives as governors; unrest in Egypt, Kufa and Basra; rebels besieged his house; he refused to shed Muslim blood to defend himself and was martyred while reading the Qur’an.

Ali ibn Abi Talib (656–661)

• Accession: accepted the caliphate in Madina during crisis after Uthman’s death.
• Battle of the Camel (656): against forces led by Aisha, Talha and Zubayr, who demanded punishment of Uthman’s killers.
• Capital moved to Kufa.
• Siffin (657): against Mu’awiya, governor of Syria; ended in arbitration.
• Kharijites: a group rejected arbitration and left his army; defeated at Nahrawan (658).
• Death: struck by the Kharijite Ibn Muljam in Kufa (661).
• Qualities: knowledge, justice, bravery and simple living.

Leadership lessons

Lesson	Example
Consultation (shura)	Umar’s council of six; Abu Bakr consulting before nominating Umar
Accountability	Abu Bakr asking to be corrected; Umar checking governors
Justice for all	Umar’s treaty with Jerusalem; protection of non-Muslims
Service and simplicity	Umar’s night patrols; Ali’s modest life
Protecting the faith	Abu Bakr and Uthman preserving the Qur’an
Relations with other states	Treaties granting security to conquered peoples in return for jizya

Quick timeline

Year (CE)	Event
632	Abu Bakr chosen; Usama’s expedition; Ridda wars begin
633	Battle of Yamama; Qur’an gathered into one copy
634	Umar succeeds Abu Bakr
636	Battle of Yarmuk
638	Jerusalem surrenders to Umar
644	Umar martyred; Uthman chosen by the council
656	Uthman martyred; Ali becomes caliph; Battle of the Camel
657	Battle of Siffin and arbitration
661	Ali martyred in Kufa

Worked example

Question: Was the compilation of the Qur’an the most important achievement of Abu Bakr’s rule? Give reasons. [4]

Model answer: It was very important because many memorisers had been killed at Yamama, so collecting the Qur’an into one written copy protected it from loss. However, the Ridda wars were arguably more important at the time, since without them the community and the obligation of zakat might have collapsed, and there would have been no stable state to preserve the Qur’an. Both secured the survival of Islam, but the unity achieved in the Ridda wars made the compilation possible.

Common mistakes and exam traps

• Mixing up the two compilations. Abu Bakr gathered the Qur’an into one copy; Uthman standardised and distributed copies.
• Narrating without evaluating. Part (b) questions ask about significance or lessons today.
• Including Paper 1 material. Events in the caliphs’ lives before 632 belong to Paper 1.
• Wrong order of battles. Camel (656), Siffin (657), Nahrawan (658).

Frequently asked questions

Why are they called “Rightly Guided”? Because Sunni Muslims see their rule as following closely the example of the Prophet (pbuh) and as models of just leadership.

What was the diwan? A register of people entitled to stipends from the public treasury, introduced by Umar.

Related pages

• The Rightly Guided Caliphs study guide
• Paper 2 revision notes
• Paper 2 practice questions

Source: Cambridge International, Cambridge IGCSE Islamiyat 0493 syllabus for examination in 2026 and 2027, Paper 2 Topic 3.