Give an account of the election of Abu Bakr and the expedition he sent to Syria soon after becoming caliph.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (May/June 2021). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. 3(a) Give an account of the election of Abu Bakr and the expedition he sent to Syria soon after becoming caliph.
2. Use the AO1 Marking Grid
3. Candidates may include some of the following information. All other relevant information must be credited.
4. Candidates need to begin this answer by writing about the election of Abu Bakr as caliph after the passing of the Prophet (pbuh). It could be said that as the final rites of the Prophet (pbuh) were in progress it was brought to the attention of 'Umar that the Ansars were holding a meeting in the Saqifa e Banu Saida to elect a successor to the Prophet (pbuh).
5. 'Umar, Abu Bakr and Abu 'Ubaydah ibn al Jarra hurried to the meeting where the Ansars had almost elected Sa'ad ibn 'Ubaydah from the Khazraj tribe as the leader.
6. Abu Bakr made a persuasive speech as to why the Quraysh should lead the Muslims. On hearing this argument an Ansar, Khubbab ibn Mundhar, suggested that there be two rulers one from the Quraysh and one from the Ansars.
7. It was at this point that Abu 'Ubaydah said to the Ansars that: 'you were the first to uphold Islam, do not be the first to sow seeds of dissension in it'. The Ansars quickly withdrew their claim.
8. Abu Bakr put forward the name of Abu 'Ubaydah as caliph but 'Umar stepped forward and nominated Abu Bakr as caliph. He went on to pledge his loyalty to him followed by Zaid ibn Thabit and the rest followed.
9. (He was the natural choice, after Ali he was the first to accept Islam; was with the Prophet (pbuh) at the time of migration; led the prayers during Prophet's illness; was chief of a hajj caravan, his qualifications and eligibility were undisputed by all.)
10. The speech made by Abu Bakr upon assuming caliphate can also be referred to and seen as development of the answer.
11. Continuing with the policy of the Prophet (pbuh) Abu Bakr dispatched the Muslim force to Syria under the command of Usama ibn Zaid ibn Haritha the son of the Muslim commander Zaid ibn Haritha who was martyred in the Battle of Muta.
12. Abu Bakr was advised to delay the despatch of the army or at least to send it under the command of an experienced leader but Abu Bakr rejected these suggestions saying, 'Who was he to revoke a decision that the Prophet (pbuh) had taken in his lifetime'. The army led by Usama left 3 weeks after the Prophet's demise and was successful.
13. 3(b) Explain the most significant action Abu Bakr took as caliph.
14. Use the AO2 Marking Grid
15. Candidates may include some of the following information. All other relevant information must be credited.
16. Candidates need to choose any one action of Abu Bakr as caliph and say why in their opinion it was the most significant. It could be said that defeating the false prophets was the most important as they were corrupting the faith and leading the Muslims astray.
17. Candidates could also write about how Abu Bakr fought the tribes who refused to pay zakat and upheld the Pillar of Islam. His expansion of the Islamic state could be yet another choice.
18. The compilation of the Qur'an or even the Syrian expedition they wrote about in Part (a) could be seen as his most significant action.