Muawiyah I (602-1 May 680) was Caliph from 661 to 680, succeeding Ali and preceding Yazid I. He was the first caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate after ousting the Rashidun Caliphate from power.
Biography[]
Muawiyah was born in 602, and although he initially opposed the spread of Islam, he converted in 630 at the behest of Muhammad. He stood out in the campaign to seize Syria from the Byzantine Empire, and he was appointed Governor of Damascus. After the assassination of Caliph Uthman, Muawiyah did not recognize the rule of his successor Ali, leading to the Battle of Siffin and the First Fitna, during which Aisha bint Muhammad and some other sahaba joined Muawiyah's cause. He became caliph in 661 after Ali was assassinated, and during his tenure, the Arabs made advances against the Byzantine Empire, and he died in 680 at the age of 72.