Editing History of Saudi Arabia (section)

==Spread of Islam==
{{Main|History of Islam}}
[[File:Pre Islamic Arabian Tribes (Harold Dixon).svg|thumb|280x280px|The [[tribes of Arabia]] at the time of the [[spread of Islam]] (expandable map)]]

[[Muhammad]], the [[Prophet of Islam]], was born in [[Mecca]] in about 570 and first began preaching in the city in 610, before [[Hijra (Islam)|migrating]] to [[Medina]] in 622. From there, he and his companions united the [[tribes of Arabia]] under the banner of [[Islam]] and created a single Arab Muslim religious polity in the Arabian Peninsula.

Following Muhammad's death in 632, [[Abu Bakr]] became leader of the Muslims as the first [[caliph]]. After putting down a rebellion by the Arab tribes (known as the [[Ridda wars]], or "Wars of Apostasy"), Abu Bakr attacked the [[Byzantine Empire]]. On his death in 634, he was succeeded by [[Umar]] as caliph, followed by [[Uthman ibn al-Affan]] and [[Ali ibn Abi Talib]].

The period of these first four caliphs is known as the [[Rashidun Caliphate]] (''al-khulafā' ar-rāshidūn''). Under the Rashidun caliphs, and, from 661, their [[Umayyad Caliphate|Umayyad successors]], the Arabs rapidly expanded the territory under Muslim control outside of Arabia. In a matter of decades, Muslim armies decisively defeated the [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine army]] and destroyed the [[Sassanid Empire|Persian Empire]], [[Early Muslim conquests|conquering huge swathes of territory]] from the [[Iberian Peninsula]] to India. The political focus of the Muslim world then shifted to the newly conquered territories.<ref>See: Holt (1977a), p.57, Hourani (2003), p.22, Lapidus (2002), p.32, Madelung (1996), p.43, Tabatabaei (1979), p.30–50</ref><ref name="L. Gardet">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Islam|encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia of Islam Online|author=L. Gardet|author2=J. Jomier}}</ref>

[[File:Mohammad adil-Rashidun-empire-at-its-peak-close.PNG|thumb|left|The Rashidun Caliphate reached its greatest extent under Caliph [[Uthman]], {{circa|654}}]]

Nevertheless, Mecca and Medina remained the spiritually most important places in the [[Muslim world]]. The [[Quran]] requires every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it, as one of the [[five pillars of Islam]], to make a pilgrimage, or [[Hajj]], to Mecca during the [[Islamic calendar|Islamic month]] of [[Dhu al-Hijjah]], at least once in his or her lifetime.<ref>Farah, Caesar (1994). Islam: Beliefs and Observances (5th ed.), pp. 145–147 {{ISBN|978-0812018530}}</ref> The [[Masjid al-Haram]] (the Grand Mosque) in Mecca is the location of the [[Kaaba]], Islam's holiest site, and the [[Masjid al-Nabawi]] (the Prophet's Mosque) in Medina is the location of Muhammad's tomb; as a result, from the 7th century, Mecca and Medina became pilgrimage destinations for large numbers of Muslims from across the Muslim world.<ref>Goldschmidt, Jr., Arthur; Lawrence Davidson (2005). ''A Concise History of the Middle East'' (8th ed.), p. 48 {{ISBN|978-0813342757}}</ref>