Battle of Ajnadayn
| Battle of Ajnadayn | |||||||||
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| Part of the Muslim conquest of Syria (Arab–Byzantine wars) | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Byzantine Empire | Rashidun Caliphate | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Vardan † Theodore |
Khalid ibn al-Walid Abu Ubaydah ibn al-Jarrah Amr Ibn al-As Sharhabeel ibn Hasana Yazid ibn Abu Sufyan Dhiraar bin Al-Azwar |
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| Strength | |||||||||
| max. 10,000 – ca. 20,000 | max. 10,000 – ca. 20,000 | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 50,000 (Al-Waqidi), Modern estimates unknown. |
575 (Al-Waqidi) Modern estimates unknown. |
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The Battle of Ajnadayn (Arabic: معركة أجنادين) was fought in July or August 634 (Jumada I or II, 13 AH), in an unknown location close to Beit Guvrin in present-day Israel; it was the first major pitched battle between the Byzantine (Roman) Empire and the army of the Arab Rashidun Caliphate. The result of the battle was a decisive Muslim victory. The details of this battle are mostly known through Muslim sources, such as the ninth century historian al-Waqidi.
According to David Nicolle, the Rashidun army left the capital Medina probably in the autumn of 633, but possibly at the beginning of 634. They first engaged and defeated the Byzantines at Dathin on February 4; after that Emperor Heraclius, then stationed in Emesa, had reinforcements sent south to protect Caesarea Maritima. As a possible reaction, commander Khalid ibn al-Walid was ordered to interrupt operations against the Sassanian Empire and reach Syria, which brought him to engage and defeat the Byzantine-allied Ghassanids by April 24, permitting him to enter almost unopposed in Bosra. At this point, Khalid converged with several armies, led by generals such as Abu Ubaydah ibn al-Jarrah, Yazid ibn Abu Sufyan, Amr ibn al-A'as and Shurahbil Ibn Hasanah.
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