Expedition of Saif al-Bahr

Historical overview

In Ramadan of 1 AH (March 623 CE), Prophet Muhammad dispatched the first military expedition in Islamic history, commanded by his uncle Hamza ibn Abd al-Muttalib. The force consisted of 30 Muhajirun cavalry and infantry carrying the first official banner of Islam, a white flag borne by Abu Marthad. Their objective was to intercept a wealthy Meccan trade caravan returning from Syria along the Red Sea coast at Saif al-Bahr near al-Ais. The caravan was escorted by 300 Quraish warriors led by Abu Jahl. As the two forces lined up in battle formation near the shore, Majdi ibn Amr al-Juhani, a local tribal chief allied with both parties, stepped in to mediate. Through his intervention, hostilities were avoided, and both sides withdrew without clash or casualties, establishing Islam's active presence along the trade routes.

Historical context and how to read this record

This record presents Expedition of Saif al-Bahr, dated in the archive as 1 AH / 623 CE and associated with Saif al-Bahr (al-Ais Coast), Hijaz. The date, place, summary, named groups, terrain features, and references shown here come from the bundled or published event record. They provide a concise entry point for study, while the linked source notes remain the place to check what each historical or religious text actually reports. A label in the archive is not, by itself, proof that every chronology, number, or interpretation is agreed across historians.

The timeline on this page is deliberately limited to information attached to the record: its displayed event date and era, its named location, and the geographic markers that the map author normalized for the scene. These map markers are not a minute-by-minute sequence of movements. They do not claim to reconstruct every decision, speech, or formation. Where historians preserve differing accounts, the distinction matters: a conventional date can help readers orient themselves, but a date recorded in a database should not be mistaken for a universally settled day or for a primary-source quotation.

The terrain is a deterministic educational model. A shared height function keeps water, formations, landmarks, and ground visually aligned; the normalized coordinates make the same record render consistently when the optional cloud archive is unavailable. This approach supports comparison of broad relationships—such as a camp in relation to a water feature, a fortified settlement against a highland, or a route beside a valley—without presenting synthetic elevation as archaeological survey data. Lighting, camera angle, and visual scale are choices for legibility, not evidence about the historical scene.

Read the forces and commanders panel as a record of the labels supplied for this map, not as an independently verified census. Estimates in classical narratives can differ because authors preserve separate transmissions, use rounded totals, or describe groups in different ways. This page keeps uncertainty notes attached to the relevant record when they are available. A missing strength estimate means the archive does not make one here; it should not be filled by inference from the size of a marker or from the appearance of the 3D scene.

The source dossier names the references bundled with this event, including Qur’anic passages or classical works where supplied. Numbering, chapter divisions, translations, and pagination can vary by edition, so a careful citation should identify the edition and translator consulted. A source title in the list is a research lead, not a claim that the entire event is established by that work alone. Compare the passages in context, separate a source’s wording from later commentary, and consult qualified scholarship when a question concerns creed, law, or a contested historical conclusion.

For an efficient study sequence, begin with the short overview, note the event date and place, then select each geographic marker in the dual reader. The camera will move to the schematic coordinate while the corresponding source note is brought into view. Next compare the land and water features, read any force labels and their uncertainty notes, and return to the source dossier before drawing conclusions. This order helps distinguish what the archive records, what the visualization illustrates, and what a reader may need to verify in a primary edition. The purpose is source-aware orientation and respectful learning, not a substitute for historical fieldwork or a scholar’s judgment.

Record timeline and tactical markers

1. Archive date: 2026-10-08 · 1 AH / 623 CE
2. Recorded setting: Saif al-Bahr (al-Ais Coast), Hijaz
3. Map feature 1: Red Sea coastal beach
4. Map feature 2: Arid coastal scrub plain
5. Map feature 3: Low rocky hills of al-Ais
6. Map feature 4: Wadi discharge channel
7. Schematic marker 1: Muslim Reconnaissance Force · Hamza ibn Abd al-Muttalib · 30 Muhajirun
8. Schematic marker 2: Quraish Caravan & Guard · Abu Jahl (Amr ibn Hisham) · 300 riders & trade caravan
9. Schematic marker 3: Mediating Tribesmen · Majdi ibn Amr al-Juhani · Neutral party

Marker ordering is a reading aid, not a chronological claim about the event.

Forces and commanders

• Muslim Reconnaissance Force — Hamza ibn Abd al-Muttalib (30 Muhajirun)
• Quraish Caravan & Guard — Abu Jahl (Amr ibn Hisham) (300 riders & trade caravan)
• Mediating Tribesmen — Majdi ibn Amr al-Juhani (Neutral party)

Geography: water and landscape

• Red Sea (Bahr al-Qulzum) (sea)
• Coastal Spring of al-Ais (oasis)
• Red Sea coastal beach
• Arid coastal scrub plain
• Low rocky hills of al-Ais
• Wadi discharge channel

Sources

• Ibn Hisham, Sirat Rasul Allah, Vol 1, p. 591
• Al-Tabari, Tarikh al-Rusul wa al-Muluk, Vol 2, p. 402
• Al-Waqidi, Kitab al-Maghazi, Vol 1, p. 9

More 3D maps

• Karbala · The Plain of 61 AH
• Battle of Badr · Wells and Two Slopes
• Khaybar · Basalt Harrat and Fortified Oases
• Hijrah Route · Makkah to Madinah
• Najaf & Kufa · The Historic Plain
• Siffin · Euphrates Campaign Landscape