On this day in Islamic history: September
This is a list of events that took place throughout Islamic history in the month of September.
This will be constantly updated when new information arises. Your help in this regard would be most appreciated.
September 6:
On this day (September 6, 1566 CE {9/10 Safar, 974 AH}), the great Ottoman Sultan & Caliph, Sultan Suleiman Kanuni (Suleiman the Law Giver) - also known as Suleiman the Magnificent - passed away before an Ottoman victory at the Battle of Szigetvár in Hungary.
He was the 10th Ottoman Sultan, the 2nd Ottoman Caliph and son of Sultan Selim I, the first Ottoman Caliph.
He is arguably the greatest of all Ottoman Sultans with his reign being credited as the peak of the Ottomans both intellectually and militarily.
The Mughal Emperor Humayun in a letter to Sultan Suleiman stressed that Sultan Suleiman was Caliph of not just the Ottoman domains but that of Hind as well. Humayun was reported to have written the following:
"Truly, Sultan Suleiman is the only Emperor of the world".
Pictured below is the Tughra (Calligraphic Seal/Signature) of Sultan Suleiman Kanuni.
September 10:
On this day (3 September 1260 CE {25 Ramadan, 658 AH}), the (Bahri) Mamluk Sultanate under Saif ad-Din Qutuz achieved a decisive victory against the Mongol Ilkhanids under Hulagu Khan (grandson of Genghis Khan), at the pivotal Battle of Ain Jalut in the Jezreel Valley north of Jerusalem.
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On this day (10 September, 1623 CE {14/15 Dhul Qa’dah, 1032 AH}), ended the second reign of the 15th Ottoman Sultan, Mustafa I, and began the reign of the 17th Ottoman Sultan: Murad IV.
Sultan Murad IV was the 9th Ottoman Caliph and the son of the 14th Ottoman Sultan, Ahmed I, whom the the Blue Mosque or Sultan Ahmed Mosque (opposite Ayasofya) is named after.
Murad IV ascended the throne at the young age of 11 and though he didn't effectively take the reigns until later, he was well known for restoring the authority of the Ottoman state.
His reign was also most noteworthy for the Ottoman-Safavid war whereby he recaptured Baghdad in 1638 CE. The outcome of the wars between them also roughly shaped the borders of what constitutes today modern Turkey & Iran.
September 12:
On this day (12 September, 1686 CE {22/23 Shawwal, 1097 AH}), the Mughal Empire under the rule of its 6th Emperor - Sultan Aurangzeb - captured the Bijapur fort (in Karnataka, modern India) from the Adil Shahi dynasty (thereby ending the Adil Shahi dynasty).
September 14:
(1) On this day (14 September, 786 CE {10/11 Rabi al-Awwal, 170 AH}), ended the reign of the 4th Abbasid Caliph Musa ibn Mahdi al-Hadi due to his death. Consequently, began the reign of the 5th and arguably most prominent Abbasid Caliph, Harun al Rashid.
(2) On this day (14 September, 786 CE {10/11 Rabi al-Awwal, 170 AH}), the son of the 5th Abbasid Caliph Harun al-Rashid & future Abbasid Caliph himself, Abdullah ibn Harun al-Rashid or known by his regnal name - Al Ma'mun - was born.
(3) On this day (14 September, 1146 CE {27/28 Rabi al-Awwal, 541 AH}), Imad ad-Din Zengi, the Emir of Aleppo died.
He began uniting Muslim lands during the Crusades, a process that continued under both his son & successor Nur ad-Din Zengi and later, Salahuddin (Ayyubid Dynasty).
Imad ad-Din Zengi was the founder of the Zengid Dynasty: A dynasty of Oghuz Turk origin, which ruled parts of the Levant and Upper Mesopotamia on behalf of the Great Seljuk Dynasty.
September 16:
On this day (16 September, 1931 CE {2/3 Jumada al-Awwal, 1350 AH}), Omar Mukhtar of Libya (May Allah have mercy on him) at the age of 73, was executed and hanged by Italian colonial forces.
He displayed a deep understanding of the way of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. When asked by his fellow Muslims why he would not avenge in a similar manner the way the Muslims had been treated by the Italian colonialists, he famously responded, "They are not our teachers."
Al Fatiha!
September 20:
(1) On this day (20 September, 1187 CE {7/8 Rajab, 583 AH}), Salahuddin al-Ayyubi began his siege of Jerusalem. He would liberate the city from Crusader occupation 13 days later on October 2nd, 1187 CE (19/20 Rajab, 583 AH).
(2) On this day (20 September, 1730 CE {6/7 Rabi al-Awwal, 1143 AH}), ended the reign of the 23rd Ottoman Sultan, Ahmed III, and began the reign of Mustafa I, the 24th Ottoman Sultan.
(3) On this day (20 September, 1857 CE {29/30 Muharram, 1274 AH}), after a 3 month long siege, the city of Delhi fell to the British thereby ending the reign of the last Mughal Emperor - Bahadur Shah Zafar (Bahadur Shah II) - and bringing about the collapse and end of the Mughal Empire.
September 21:
On this day (21 September, 1687 CE {13/14 Dhul Qa’dah, 1098 AH}), during the early hours of the morning, the Mughal army under the command of Sultan Aurangzeb Alamgir stormed the fort of Golconda in Hyderabad after an 8 month long siege.
The victory of the Mughal army expanded the Mughal domains considerably in the south of India and arguably making Sultan Aurangzeb the most powerful and wealthiest monarch alive.
Credit: Mughal Imperial Archives
September 28:
On this day (28 September, 1837 CE {26/27 Jumada al-Thani, 1253 AH}), began the reign of the 19th and final Mughal Emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar or Bahadur Shah II at the age of 62, following the death of his father and 18th Mughal Emperor, Akbar II or Akbar Shah II.
Bahadur Shah Zafar's reign was very much just in name as the Mughal domains had been reduced to just modern Delhi, and some surrounding territories.
After the unsuccessful though significant Indian rebellion against the (British) East India Company in 1857 CE (1273 AH), Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled from Delhi by the British (along with some family members), and lived out the rest of his days in Yangon, modern Burma.
September 30:
On this day (30 September, 1207 CE {27/28 Safar, 604 AH}), the legendary Persian poet, Islamic scholar, jurist and theologian - Mevlana Rumi, Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi or simply Rumi - was born in Balkh, now part of modern Afghanistan.
Pictured below is a manuscript of Rumi's famous book, The Mathnawi or Mathnavi dated 1281 AH/1864-65 CE.
