Write about the events surrounding the Treaty of Hudaybiyya and the main terms in it.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (May/June 2016). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [10] (a) The Prophet had a dream where he entered Makka and did tawaf around the Ka'ba. In 628, he and a group of 1,400 Muslims marched peacefully towards Makka, in an an attempt to perform umrah. The Muslims had left Madina in a state of ihram, so were prohibited from fighting. The group camped outside of Makka, and the Prophet tried to negotiate entry to the Ka'ba with the Quraysh, through intermediaries. The Quraysh were unwilling to let the Prophet enter. Bait al-Ridwan influenced the Quraysh into negotiating a treaty. They sent Suhayl ibn 'Amr to negotiate a peace treaty, whereby the Muslims would go back to Makka and not return for the pilgrimage until the next year. The treaty was for ten years; each party was to be secure from the other; if a person from the Quraysh was to migrate to Madina, he would be sent back to Makka; however, if a person from the Prophet's side went to the Quraysh, they did not have to hand him back; the Muslims were to go back to Madina without performing umrah and return the next year for three days. 'Umar asked why the Muslims were demeaning their religion, and was reassured by Abu Bakr and the Prophet. 'Ali was chosen to write the treaty. When the Prophet asked him to write 'In the name of Allah, the merciful, the compassionate' or that the Prophet was the 'Messenger of Allah', Suhayl objected and instead the Prophet erased it and had 'Ali write, 'In your name, O God' and 'Muhammad, son of 'Abd Allah', to which the Muslims protested. The Khuza'a tribe made a pact with the Muslims and the Banu Bakr made a pact with the Quraysh. At that point, Abu Jandal came to the Prophet asking to be freed, but the Prophet kept to the terms of the treaty and told him to be patient. Once they completed the document, the Prophet asked the Muslims to sacrifice their animals and shave their heads. The Prophet said that Muslims had been victorious and was supported in this by new revelation: 'Verily we have granted thee a manifest victory'. (48:1) Candidates may mention the treaty was dissolved two years later after the Banu Khuza'a were attacked by the Quraysh, but it is not necessary for this answer, which is about the forming of the treaty itself.
2. [4] (b) The Prophet kept his word to the Quraysh for the duration of the treaty. Even before the treaty was finished being written, he sent Abu Jandal back to the Quraysh, on account of an agreement having been made verbally. This shows the importance of promising to do something, then fulfilling that action, even if it has not been put into writing. As all actions and agreements are recorded by angels, God knows what has been promised and by fulfilling promises, no matter how hard it is, then God will reward you accordingly. So, e.g. politicians should not go back on the things they promise when they want to be elected, or people should not take back something that they have promised to give a friend. Candidates can give other examples, but should expand on their answer with reasons.