The Siege of Ta'if

The unsuccessful siege of the fortified mountain-city of Ta’if (home of the tribe Thaqif), immediately after the Battle of Hunayn in Shawwal 8 AH. Scholars usually treat Hunayn and Ta’if as one continuous campaign. It is remembered less for a conquest — there was none — than for the Prophet’s ﷺ mercy toward the very city that had once stoned him (see The Incident of Ta'if), and the theological and fiqh lessons drawn from the distribution of the Hunayn spoils that followed.

Date (Hijri / CE)

Last week of Shawwal 8 AH (630 CE); the Muslims stayed outside Ta’if less than two weeks (likely 11–13 days). Ta’if itself embraced Islam the following year (9 AH — the Year of Delegations).

Background

After routing Thaqif and Hawazin at Hunayn, the fleeing Thaqif retreated into Ta’if — a green plateau-city with thick walls, stored supplies for ~a year, and running water, virtually unassailable. Foreseeing this from Makkah, the Prophet ﷺ had already sent men (incl. Urwah ibn Mas’ud and Ghaylan ibn Salama) to the tribe of Jurash to learn siege technology.

What happened

• The Muslims deployed, for the first time ever, three siege techniques learned at Jurash: the catapult (manjaniq), the battering ram, and the testudo (tortoise shield-formation) — the Prophet ﷺ was the first Muslim to use a catapult.
• None broke the walls; defenders poured burning oil and volleys of arrows, killing a number of the sahaba. The Muslims then burned the surrounding crops and vineyards (permitted only under extreme necessity) until Ta’if begged by kinship, and the Prophet ﷺ relented.
• He announced freedom for any slave who left the city and joined — some two dozen did — and safe-conduct for any who converted. The city, however, held.
• After a second demoralising volley, the Prophet ﷺ lifted the siege. When the sahaba asked him to curse Thaqif, he instead prayed for them: “O Allah, guide Thaqif and bring them to us.” (Allah answered — they came the next year.) The army returned to Ji’ranah.

The distribution of Hunayn’s ghanima (at Ji’ranah)

This is the great sequel usually narrated with Ta’if:

• Record gifts (100 camels each) went to the muallafat al-qulub — leading Quraysh and Bedouin chiefs — while the Ansar received none of the great share and murmured; the Prophet’s ﷺ moving speech is recounted under Hunayn.
• The kharijite prototype. A man (Dhul-Khuwaysira) accused him ﷺ of injustice in the distribution — “be fair!” / “you did not do this for Allah.” The Prophet ﷺ answered, “Woe to you — who is just if I am not?” and, refusing Umar’s wish to execute him (for the Maslaha (Public Welfare) of not being seen to “kill my own Companions”), foretold: “from his ilk will come a people who recite the Quran but it will not pass their throats… they leave Islam as an arrow leaves the game.” This is the seed of the Khawarij.
• Hawazin finally converted and chose their families, which the sahaba returned free (see Hunayn); Malik ibn Awf reinstated. The Prophet ﷺ entered ihram at Ji’ranah for his third Umrah (of four — one Hudaybiyyah reward-only, Umrat al-Qada, this, and the Hajj).

Lessons

• Shura & humility of a leader — the Prophet ﷺ wanted to leave first, but let the eager younger sahaba stay; ultimately his ﷺ first counsel was best.
• Mercy over vengeance — du’a for the city that tortured him; the goal of Islam is guidance, not blood.
• This world is never total victory — even at his zenith, right after Makkah, the Prophet ﷺ did not win Ta’if and suffered ~4× the casualties of Hunayn. Loss is not a sign of divine anger; it is how Allah tests. (See also the extended Riq (the Islamic institution of bondage) discussion and the tawhid of tawakkul vs. the sabab that Yasir Qadhi draws from this campaign.)
• Islam is not anti-science — the Prophet ﷺ freely learned siege technology from others.

Reliability (schema §5)

The catapult/testudo, the burning of crops, the freeing of slaves and the du’a for Thaqif are in the maghazi tradition; the kharijite-prototype hadith and Hakim ibn Hizam are in Bukhari & Muslim. The length of the siege is genuinely disputed (2 weeks / 20 / 30 / 40 days — Yasir Qadhi favours <2 weeks).

Cross-references

The Battle of Hunayn · Ta'if · The Incident of Ta'if · Mu'allafat al-Qulub · Maslaha (Public Welfare) · Riq (the Islamic institution of bondage) · Tawakkul (Reliance on Allah) · Umar ibn al-Khattab (ra) · Malik ibn Awf al-Nasri · Muhammad ﷺ · Shura (Consultation) · Seerah Timeline

Sources

• S011 — Yasir Qadhi Seerah EP 083 & 086. Draws on Ibn Ishaq/Ibn Hisham, al-Waqidi (Maghazi), Ibn Sa’d, al-Tabari; Sahih Bukhari & Muslim (the kharijite prototype, Hakim ibn Hizam); Quran 9:60 (the eight categories of zakat, incl. muallafat al-qulub).