Battle of Ayn al-Warda 685
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Year | 685 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
|---|---|---|
| Era | Medieval (500–1499) | derived from year |
| Location | Syria | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Asia | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Second Fitna | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 36.8408, 40.0792 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Ayn al-Warda (Arabic: مَعْرَكَة عَيْن ٱلْوَرْدَة) was fought in early January 685 between the Umayyad army and the Penitents (Tawwabin). The Penitents were a group of pro-Alid Kufans led by Sulayman ibn Surad, a companion of Muhammad, who wished to atone for their failure to assist Husayn ibn Ali in his abortive uprising against the Umayyads in 680. Pro-Alid Kufans had urged Husayn to revolt against the Umayyad caliph Yazid but then failed to assist him when he was killed in the Battle of Karbala in 680. Initially a small underground movement, the Penitents received widespread support in Iraq after the death of Yazid in 683. They were deserted by most of their supporters shortly before the departure to northern Syria where a large Umayyad army under the command of Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad had mustered in preparation for an offensive against Iraq. In the three-day long battle that ensued at Ras al-Ayn, the small Penitent army was annihilated and its senior leaders, including Ibn Surad, were killed. Nevertheless, this battle proved to be a forerunner and source of motivation for the later more successful movement of Mukhtar al-Thaqafi.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Ayn al-Warda (revision 1380046136), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
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Other battles of the Second Fitna
- Battle of Karbala 680
- Battle of al-Harra 683
- Siege of Mecca (683) 683
- Battle of Marj Rahit (684) 684
- Battle of Khazir 686
- Battle of Maskin 691
- Siege of Mecca (692) 692
All 8 battles of the Second Fitna →
Browse more: battles in Syria · Asia · Medieval battles