Year 637 (DCXXXVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 637 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
The Muslim conquest of Persia, also called the Muslim conquest of Iran, the Arab conquest of Persia, or the Arab conquest of Iran, was a major military campaign undertaken by the Rashidun Caliphate between 632 and 654. As part of the early Muslim conquests, which had begun under Muhammad in 622, it led to the fall of the Sasanian Empire and the eventual decline of Zoroastrianism, which had been predominant throughout Persia as the nation's official religion. The persecution of Zoroastrians by the early Muslims during and after this conflict prompted many of them to flee eastward to India, where they were granted refuge by various kings.
The Battle of Walaja was fought in Mesopotamia in May 633 between the Rashidun Caliphate army under Khalid ibn al-Walid and Al-Muthanna ibn Haritha against the Sassanid Empire and its Arab allies.
The Battle of Ayn al-Tamr took place in modern-day Iraq (Mesopotamia) between the early Muslim Arab forces and the Sassanians along with their Arab Christian auxiliary forces. Ayn al-Tamr is located west of Anbar and was a frontier post which had been established to aid the Sassanids.
The Muslim conquest of the Levant, or Arab conquest of Syria, was a 634–638 CE invasion of Byzantine Syria by the Rashidun Caliphate. A part of the wider Arab-Byzantine Wars, as well as the larger Muslim colonial project, the Levant was brought under Arab Muslim rule and developed into the provincial region of Bilad al-Sham. Clashes between the Arabs and Byzantines on the southern Levantine borders of the Byzantine Empire had occurred during the lifetime of Muhammad, with the Battle of Muʿtah in 629 CE. However, the actual conquest did not begin until 634, two years after Muhammad's death. It was led by the first two Rashidun caliphs who succeeded Muhammad: Abu Bakr and Umar ibn al-Khattab. During this time, Khalid ibn al-Walid was the most important leader of the Rashidun army.
The Battle of Ullais was fought between the forces of the Rashidun Caliphate and the Sasanian Persian Empire in the middle of June 633 AD in Iraq, and is sometimes referred to as the Battle of Blood River since, as a result of the battle, there were enormous amounts of Persian Sasanian and Arab Christian casualties.
Umar was the second Rashidun Caliph and reigned during 634–644. Umar's caliphate is notable for its vast conquests. Aided by brilliant field commanders, he was able to incorporate present-day Iraq, Iran, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Syria, Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon, Egypt, and parts of Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and south western Pakistan into the Caliphate. During his reign, the Byzantines lost more than three fourths of their territory and in Persia, Umar became the king (ruler) of Iran after the fall of the Sassanid Empire.
The Rashidun Caliphate consisted of the first four successive caliphs (lit. 'successors') who led the Muslim community following the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in 632 – Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali. During the Caliphate's existence, the empire was the most powerful economic, cultural, and military force in West Asia and Northeast Africa. In Sunni Islam, the caliphate is considered to have been 'rightly guided', meaning that it constitutes a model to be followed and emulated from a religious point of view. The caliphs are also known in Muslim history as the "orthodox" or "patriarchal" caliphs.
Hashim ibn Utba ibn Abi Waqqas, was a Muslim army commander. He was Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas's nephew through his father, and was a companion of Muhammad. Hāshim participated in the Ridda wars to force rebellious Arab tribes to return to Islam after the death of Muhammad. He fought the Byzantines in the Battle of Yarmouk under the command of Khalid ibn al-Walid. He played a vital role in the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah that led to the conquest of Al-Mada'in by Muslims. He died in the Battle of Siffin fighting on the side of Ali.
The Battle of al-Qadisiyyah was an armed conflict which took place in 636 CE between the Rashidun Caliphate and the Sasanian Empire. It occurred during the early Muslim conquests and marked a decisive victory for the Rashidun army during the Muslim conquest of Persia.
Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas ibn Wuhayb al-Zuhri was an Arab Muslim commander. He was the founder of Kufa and served as its governor under Umar ibn al-Khattab. He played a leading role in the Muslim conquest of Persia and was a close companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
Arfajah ibn Harthama al-Bariqi was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He was a member of the Azd branch of the Bariq clan that inhabited Southwestern Arabia.
Al-Qaʿqāʿ ibn ʿAmr ibn Mālik Al-Tamīmī was an Arab Muslim commander and general in the Rashidun army who belonged to the tribe of Banu Tamim. He and his tribe converted to Islam possibly during the time of Ahnaf ibn Qais. He is known as a successful military commander who took part in two important victorious battles in the early Muslim Conquest, the Battle of Yarmouk against the Byzantine Empire and the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah against the Sassanian Empire which was led by Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas. The Caliph Abu Bakr praised him as an equal to eleven thousand men so in return the caliph's successor, caliph Umar, only sent Qaʿqāʿ and a handful of bodyguards in the first wave of reinforcements to Al-Qadissiyah. Qaʿqāʿ was one of the most illustrious military figures of his era.
The Arab conquest of Mesopotamia was carried out by the Rashidun Caliphate from 633 to 638 AD. The Arab Muslim forces of Caliph Umar first attacked Sasanian territory in 633, when Khalid ibn al-Walid invaded Mesopotamia, which was the political and economic centre of the Sasanian state. From 634 to 636 AD, following the transfer of Khalid to the Byzantine front in the Levant, the hold of Arab forces on the region weakened under the pressure of Sasanian counterattacks. A second major Arab offensive in 636 and ended in January 638 with the capture of Mosul and the consolidation of Arab control over and exclusion of Sasanid influence from the whole Mosul-Tikrit region.
Piruz Khosrow, also known as Piruzan or Firuzan, was a powerful Persian aristocrat who was the leader of the Parsig (Persian) faction that controlled much of the affairs of the Sasanian Empire during the Sasanian civil war of 628-632. He was killed at the Battle of Nahāvand in 642.
Mihran-i Bahram-i Razi, better simply known as Mihran Razi, was an Iranian military officer from the Mihran family. He was killed in 637 at the battle of Jalula.
The Battle of Burs was a minor engagement in 636 AD at Burs or Birs Nimrud, now in central Iraq, during the Muslim conquest of the Sassanid Empire. The Rāshidūn commander, Zuhra ibn al-Ḥawiyya, defeated Busbuhra, the Sassanid commander of the town, in single combat, and the garrison offered little further resistance.
The siege of Ctesiphon took place from January to March, 637 between the forces of Sasanian Empire and Rashidun Caliphate. Ctesiphon, located on the eastern bank of the Tigris, was one of the great cities of Persia, the imperial capital of the Parthian and Sassanid Empires. The Muslims managed to capture Ctesiphon ending the Persian rule over Mesopotamia.
Dhiraar ibn al-Khattab was a warrior participating in the early Islamic conquests. Dhiraar's father, al-Khattab bin Mirdas bin Kathir, was the head of the Banu Fihr clan of Quraish subclan are found throughout his works. Khattab bin Mirdas has lineage through their grandfather, Fihr ibn Malik, with the Prophet. His mother was Hind bint Malik Umm Dhiraar bint Amr, and His uncle was Hafs bin Mirdas.
Qays ibn Makshuh al-Muradi, or also known as Qays ibn Hubayrah; was a companion of Muhammad. He converted to Islam during the life of Muhammad. He later rebelled during Ridda Wars after the killing of Al-Aswad al-Ansi, only to be defeated by Ikrima ibn Abi Jahl.
