Conflicts & Resolutions · War

First Fitna

656–661 CE · 7th century

The First Fitna was the first civil war within the Muslim community, fought in 656–661 CE after the assassination of Caliph Uthman. It pitted Caliph Ali against opponents including Mu'awiya, governor of Syria, and ended with Ali's assassination and Mu'awiya's founding of the Umayyad Caliphate. It closed the era of the Rashidun Caliphate and laid the roots of the Sunni–Shi'a division.

First Fitna
Image: Al Ameer son · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

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Rashidun CaliphateGovernance, Decline

Battles and settlements

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). First Fitna. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/first-fitna
MLA
“First Fitna.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/first-fitna. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “First Fitna.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/first-fitna.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘First Fitna’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/first-fitna (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻