Ghazawat al-Nabi
- Author died
- 1439 AH
- Editions
- Dar wa-Maktabat al-Hilal
Ghazawat al-Nabi (The Expeditions of the Prophet) is a historical treatise on the prophetic military campaigns by the Egyptian scholar al-Sayyid al-Jumayli (d. 1439 AH) .
Background and Composition
The author completed the work in Ramadan 1414 AH / March 1993 CE in al-Ma'adi, Cairo . In his preface, al-Jumayli dedicated the book to the historian Husayn Mu'nis . He noted that the maps featured throughout the text were adapted, with modifications and substantial abridgment, from Mu'nis's Atlas Ta'rikh al-Islam (Atlas of Islamic History) .
Contents and Structure
The book opens with an introduction discussing the rationale behind warfare and military expeditions in Islam, framing the revelation of the permission to fight in Medina as a means to repel oppression, suppress corruption, and establish religious observances . It also highlights the strategic purpose of early military reconnaissance patrols in demonstrating Muslim strength and monitoring movements surrounding Medina . The author tallies the total number of prophetic campaigns at twenty-seven expeditions (ghazawat) led personally by Muhammad ﷺ—in nine of which he actively fought—alongside thirty-eight dispatched raiding parties and delegations (saraya and bu'uth) .
The main text chronologically examines these expeditions and detachments :
- Early reconnaissance missions and initial expeditions: including the detachments of Hamza ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib to Sayf al-Bahr, 'Ubayda ibn al-Harith, and Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas, followed by the expeditions of al-Abwa' (Waddan), Buwat, Karz ibn Jabir al-Fihri, al-'Ushayra, and the detachment of 'Abdullah ibn Jahsh .
- Major early battles and campaigns: the Battle of Badr al-Kubra, Banu Sulaym, Banu Qaynuqa', the killing of Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf, the Battle of Uhud (along with an analysis of its legal rulings and psychological dimensions), Hamra' al-Asad, the detachment of Bi'r Ma'una, Banu al-Nadir, Dhat al-Riqa', Badr al-Akhira, Dumat al-Jandal, al-Muraysi', and the Battle of the Trench (al-Ahzab) .
- Later expeditions and final campaigns: concluding with expeditions such as Mu'ta, the Conquest of Mecca, Hunayn, al-Ta'if, and Tabuk, through to the final detachment of Usama ibn Zayd to the Levant .
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