عَلِيُّ بْنُ أَبِي طَالِب
رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ
Ali ibn Abi Talib
Fourth Caliph · Cousin of the Prophet ﷺ · Early Muslim
may Allah be pleased with him
Quraysh — Banu Hashim · Makkah and Madinah, up to 40 AH
Raised in the Prophet's ﷺ household and among the first to accept Islam, still a boy at the time, he stayed behind in Makkah on the night of the Hijrah, became known for learning and judgement, and led the community as the fourth caliph.
Known for
The fourth caliph
He led the community from 35 AH until 40 AH.
Cousin of the Prophet ﷺ, raised in his household
He grew up in the Prophet's ﷺ home before the revelation began.
He stayed behind on the night of the Hijrah
He slept in the Prophet's ﷺ bed so the departure would not be noticed, and remained to return the deposits people had left in the Prophet's ﷺ keeping.
He was given the banner at Khaybar
He carried the banner at the expedition to Khaybar in 7 AH.
Story
His story in moments
Short episodes from his life, in order. Read one at a time.
In full
Life & legacy
Early life
Ali was the son of Abu Talib, the Prophet's ﷺ uncle and the man who had raised him. During a period of hardship in Makkah, Ali came to live in the Prophet's ﷺ household as a boy. So unlike almost everyone else in this period, he did not meet the Prophet ﷺ — he grew up with him.
He was still young when the revelation began, and he accepted Islam among the very first. The sources treat him as the first of the young to do so.
Madinah
He married Fatimah, the daughter of the Prophet ﷺ. Their sons Hasan and Husayn were the Prophet's ﷺ grandsons.
He was present through the major events of the Madinan decade, and at Khaybar in 7 AH he was given the banner — an episode the biographies record in detail.
Alongside this, he became someone people brought difficult questions to. Much of what later scholars know about the reasoning of that first generation comes through him.
The caliphate
Ali became caliph in 35 AH, after Uthman was killed, and led until 40 AH. He moved the centre of the administration to Kufa in Iraq.
His caliphate was taken up almost entirely by conflict among Muslims. This period, usually called the first fitna, is the single most contested subject in early Islamic history. The classical sources preserve sharply differing accounts of who did what and why, and Muslim communities have read those events very differently ever since.
SahabaMate records that the conflict happened and that it shaped the rest of the period. It does not narrate the disputes, assign responsibility, or present any one account as settled. A learning app is not the right place to resolve something the scholarly tradition itself has never resolved.
Ali was killed in Kufa in 40 AH.
How the sources describe him
Precise, and often asked for a ruling
The reports describe people bringing him difficult questions, and his answers being remembered.
He lived plainly, including as caliph
Connect
People around him
Family
- Abu Talibأَبُو طَالِبParent
His father, and the uncle who raised the Prophet ﷺ.
Daughter of the Prophet ﷺ. Their children included Hasan and Husayn.
- The Prophet Muhammad ﷺRelative
His cousin, who raised him in his household. Ali later married his daughter Fatimah.
A cousin, and a Companion from the earliest days in Makkah.
Alongside
The third caliph, killed in 35 AH; Ali became caliph after him.
Full timeline
- The earliest days in Makkah
Accepts Islam as a boy in Makkah
- 1 AH
Stays behind on the night of the Hijrah, then migrates
- 7 AH
Given the banner at Khaybar
- 35 AH
Becomes the fourth caliph
His caliphate was taken up by conflict among Muslims, which the sources record very differently.
- 40 AH
Killed in Kufa
Part of
Sources & review
Draft content — undergoing reviewThis content was written for SahabaMate and has not yet been checked by a reviewer against the works below. Treat it as a starting point, not a citation.
As-Sirah an-Nabawiyyahالسيرة النبوية
Classical biography · Ibn Hisham, from the recension of Ibn Ishaq
Kitab at-Tabaqat al-Kabirالطبقات الكبرى
Classical biography · Ibn Sa'd
Tarikh ar-Rusul wa'l-Mulukتاريخ الرسل والملوك
Classical history · Muhammad ibn Jarir at-Tabari
Al-Isabah fi Tamyiz as-Sahabahالإصابة في تمييز الصحابة
Classical biography · Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani
Siyar A'lam an-Nubalaسير أعلام النبلاء
Classical biography · Shams ad-Din adh-Dhahabi
SahabaMate editorial summary
Editorial summary
Where a reference names a work without a page or number, that is deliberate: SahabaMate does not publish a locator it cannot stand behind.
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