A Concise History of Sunnis and Shi’i by John Mc Hugo (review)

A good survey on the Shi‘a/Sunni history has never been so needed as today. John Mc Hugo’s book A Concise History of Sunnis and Shi‘is is an endeavour to meet that need. It covers almost the entire history of Islam from the time of the Prophet Muhammad (S), when there was no Shi‘a and Sunni split, to the contemporary conflicts in the Middle East and the rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

The first two chapters that deal with the early history of the division between Shi‘a and Sunni right after the demise of the Prophet are well written and well summarised, although it is based entirely on one source i.e. Wilferd Madelung’s The Succession to Muhammad. There are of course details that may not satisfy Muslim scholars from either sect, such as the claim that the Prophet had died rather suddenly and thus had not made arrangements for his succession.

The author shows that right after the Prophet passed away, a rivalry for succession began. The Muslim community in Medina comprised two main groups: the Anṣār (helpers) and the Muhājirūn (emigrants). The Muhājirūn were the group of Muslims who left Mecca for Medina and the Anṣār (helpers) where the native residents of Medina who converted to Islam. This split could potentially cause a political division. The Anṣār, who as the book argues, made more sacrifices in the early battles of Uḥud and Badr, were eventually left out with none of them succeeding as Caliph. From the early days, the argument was made in favour of the Quraysh, the Prophet’s own tribe in Mecca, and that the successor must be one of them. ʿAli (A) on the other hand, was favoured by the Anṣār. This may have caused some concerns amongst the companions from the Quraysh that eventually led to excluding ʿAli (A) from process of selecting a successor. This was despite the fact that ʿAli (A) had all the credentials to succeed the Prophet (S) and thus had not believed he needed the support of the Quraysh. He was not only a distinguished companion and the first male believer but also a close relative of the Prophet who had proved himself to be a great warrior.

After the death of ʿUthmān (the third Caliph), people gathered around ʿAli (A) and the Quraysh and Anṣār division emerged once again. ʿAli’s opponents from the Quraysh who were concerned about the main source of his support the Anṣār and the non-Qurayshi warriors gathered in Mecca. Around this time the allegation that ʿAli (A) was responsible for ʿUthmān’s death was made public by Aisha, the Prophet’s widow. This helped Muʿāwiya’s campaign against ʿAli (A) by providing some kind of legitimacy. Now Muʿāwiya could claim that he was seeking justice for ʿUthmān. ʿUthmān’s relative Muʿāwiya, was appointed as the governor of Syria. ʿAli (A) dismissed him from the position but he refused to step down, leaving ʿAli (A) with no choice other than forcing him to go.

The author goes on to describe the battle of Ṣiffīn, which consolidated Muʿāwiya’s grip on Syria. After Imam ʿAli’s martyrdom, Muʿāwiya eventually extended his power, called himself the ‘Commander of the Faithful’ and established a dynastic Caliphate that came to be known as the Umayyads. By this time, the young Muslim community had suffered several civil wars and a deep division, yet the division was more of a political rather than a sectarian nature.

According to the author, Sunnism and Shi‘ism crystallised as sects during the two centuries after the Abbasids took power. During this period, the distinction between the concept of imam and khalifa widened and a class of Muslim scholars knows as fuqaha (singular faqih) began to emerge. Faqih as the expert on...