Write about any two major events that took place during the caliphate of Abu Bakr.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (May/June 2015). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. Many important events took place during the caliphate of Abu Bakr. Expedition to Syria, the wars with the false prophets, the apostasy movement (the ridda wars) as well as the conquests of Persia and Byzantine, and of course the compilation of the Qur'an. Candidates need to choose any two events and give an account of them. The mark is not divided 5 + 5 between the two events but the answer as a whole is to be read and a global mark should be given.
2. From the two events the candidate has chosen to write about in Part (a) he/she needs to choose one and say why that one event is more significant than the other e.g. if it is the compilation of the Qur'an which has been selected as the most significant event then the candidate has to back up his/her answer by saying that if the compilation had not taken place what could have happened etc. All valid responses must be credited.