This is a very rough summary of books 18 to 20 of the English translation.

The first of these at Tabari files has comments on his range and capacity and the poverty of this attempt to precis his work. This file was last updated on November 8, 2006. Here are described highly important years and events of the greatest significance. In future this summary may be more effectively rewritten, but still will fail to suggest more than a glimmer of the full work. at Tabari vol. 18, transl. Michael G. Morony (UCLA), SUNY, Albany, 1987 text pp 2-226. At present (14/10/2006) about a hundred of these are briefly summarized below. Preface (p. 1): This relatively thin account relies heavily on two sources (Abu Mikhnaf and Umar ibn Shabbah). Much of the material in this volume has not previously been available in English. A.H. 40 (17/5/660-6/5/661): Hasan ibn Ali ordered peaceful acceptance of Mu'awiyah. A.H. 41 (7/5/661-25/4/662): Mu'awiyah sought peace with Hasan's commander Qays. Hasan, stabbed, and his brother Husayn left for Medina. Mu'awiyah ordered the release of Ziyad's (Ali's commander in Fars) sons. A.H. 42 (26/4/662-14/4/663): Mu'awiyah made appointments. Kharijites selected Mustawrid as leader. Ziyad met Mu'awiyah, settled accounts and moved to Kufa. A.H. 43 (15/4/663-3/4/664): Mu'awiyah appointed Abdallah to succeed his deceased father as Egypt's governor. Some Kharijites were arrested for plotting rebellion. Hajjar ibn Abjar noticed Kharijites with weapons. He did not inform. Mustawrid led Kharijites off and was pursued. Fiercely kharijites fought. Finally foes defeated them, both commanders (Mustawrid and Ma'qil ibn Qays) killing each other. A.H. 44 (4/4/664-24/3/665): Arabs attacked Byzantines by land and sea. Mu'awiyah replaced Abdallah, Basra's governor. A.H. 45 (25/3/665-13/3/666): Mu'awiyah appointed Ziyad Basra's governor. Ziyad imposed order. A.H. 46 (13/3/666-2/3/667): Abd ar Rahman fought the Byzantines. Mu'awiyah feared his popularity and had ibn Uthal kill him. Khalid ibn ar Rahman killed ibn Uthal. A.H. 47 (3/3/667-19/2/668): Malik ibn Hubayrah fought Byzantines. Mu'awiyah ibn Hudayi became Egypt's governor, Hakim ibn Amr al Ghifari Khurasan's. A.H. 48 (20/2/668-8/2/669): Arabs fought Byzantines. A.H. 49 (9/2/669-28/1/670): Arabs fought Byzantines. Mu'awiyah replaced Marwan, Medina's governor, with Sa'id ibn al As. Kufah suffered plague. A.H. 50 (29/1/670-17/1/671): Kufah's governor Mughirah died. Ziyad now held firmily Basra and Kufah. Mu'awiyah had Muhammad's pulpit brought to Syria. 'Uqbah was dismissed. He had taken Ifriqiyyah and founded Qayrawan ("156 km south of Tunis"). Mu'awiyah replaced Mu'awiyah ibn Hudayi with Maslamah ibn mukhallad. He gave Muhajir Ifriqiyyah. Farazdaq avoided Ziyad and moved to Medina and Mecca. A.H. 51 (18/1/671-7/1/672): Fadalah ibn 'Ubay raided Byzantines. Hujr ibn Adi spoke boldly before patient Governor Mughirah. Ziyad clamped Hujr in irons, sent him to Mu'awiyah who executed him. Some of Hujr's companions offered freedom if they cursed Ali preferred death. Ziyad appointed Rabi Khurasan's governor. Rabi took Balkh peacefully and Quzistan by force. A.H. 52 (8/1/672-26/12/672): Byzantines were raided. A.H. 53 (27/12/672-15/12/673): Muslims conquered Rhodes. Yazid later withdrew Muslims from the island. Ziyad got an infection and died. Mu'awiyah appointed Samurah Basra's governor and then replaced him. Rabi died in Khurasan. A.H. 54 (16/12/693-5/12/674): An island near Constantinople fell. Mu'awiyah appointed Marwan Medina's governor, Abdallah ibn Amr Basra's and Ubaydallah Khurasan's. Ubaydallah took Bukhara.

A.H. 55 (6/12/674-24/11/675): Muslims fought Byzantines. Mu'awiyah replaced Abdallah ibn Amr with Ubaydallah as Basra's governor. A.H. 56 (25/11/675-13/11/676): Muslims fought Byzantines. Sa'id ibn Uthman became Khurasan's governor and Mu'awiyah named Yazid heir. A.H. 57 (14/11/676-2/11/677): Muslims fought Byzantines. Dahhak was Kufah's governor. A.H. 58 (3/11/677-23/10/678): Muslims fought Byzantines. Mu'awiyah appointed Abd ar Rahman Kufah's governor. Rebelling Kharijites were defeated. A.H. 59 (23/10/678-12/10/679): Muslims fought Byzantines. Mu'awiyah appointed Abd ar Rahamn Khurasan's governor. Yazid ibn Mufarrigh satirized Ziyad's sons and was forgiven. A.H. 60 (13/10/679-30/9/680): Mu'awiyah died. His accomplishments, deeds, lineage, etc. are mentioned. He appointed his son Yazid to succeed him. vol. 19 "The Caliphate of Yazid b. Mu'awiyah" transl. I.K.A. Howard of the University of Edinburgh, SUNY, Albany, 1990. Foreward: Yazid's caliphate is largely described as the opposition to him by Husayn and Abdallah. Accounts of the six people Mu'awiyah sought to win to Yazid's side could refer to the Council selecting the successor. They did not appoint Yazid. Sources for at Tabari such as Dinawari and Yakubi and others such as Baladhuri, Mas'udi and al Mufid provide valuable roles in the corraboration of him and demonstrating his high degree of detail and specified chains of transmission. There is also the hagiograpgical literature. Baladhuri has fuller and chronoligically more accurate accounts of events in Mecca. A.H. 60 (Cont. 22/4/680-30/9/680): Mu'awiyah died on April 22, 680. Yazid received allegiance. Marwan failed in his mission to secure support for Yazid from Husayn and Abdallah ibn Zubayr. Yazid ordered Amr lead an army. There was fighting in Mecca. Kufans invited Husayn. Yazid received reports Kufans favoured Husayn and commanded Ubatdallah secure the city. Decisively he did so. Husayn was advised to remain in Hijaz, even go to Yemen. He set out for Kufah. Ubaydallah defended Kufah. Husayn offered to depart for Arabia, to Yazid or a frontier post. Ubaydallah refused. Hurr, a cavalry commander, defected to Husayn. Husayn and his small party were defeated on October 10, 680. A.H. 61 (1/10/680-19/9/681): There are some one hundred pages here describing details of the martyrdom of Imam Husayn and its immediate aftermath. A list of those killed with Husayn indicates the swath hereby cut in the descendants of Ali. The fight was long and there was hesitation to kill Husayn as many did not want his blood on their hands. Captives (women and children and sick Ali, son of Husayn) were spared. Their utterances confirm the nobility of this family. A.H. 62 (20/9/681-9/9/682): Summoned to Yazid, Amr explained his actions concerning Zubayr. A Medinan deligation met Yazid. They returned and denounced him. Mundhir ibn Zubayr went to Basrah. Yazid ordered Mundhir imprisoned, but Ubaydallah allowed him to leave for Medina. He spoke even more harshly against Yazid. A.H. 63 (10/9/682-29/8/683): Many in Medina repudiated Yazid and moved against Umayyah clan members there. Informed Yazid sent a large force under Muslim ibn Uqbah. On the Syrians' approach, the Umayyah swore not to harm other Medinans and left the City. Muslim urged Medinans to accept Yazid, so without combat he could pass on to Mecca. They replied they would oppose this. Medinans lost. Some prominent survivors were executed. Ali ibn Husayn who had not fought was spared on Yazid's previous order. A.H. 64 (30/8/683-17/8/684): Muslim died on the way to Mecca. His dying words praised his taking of Medina and held the appointment of his successor, Husayn ibn Numayr, as Yazid's command. Meccans lost. The Ka'bah's covering was damaged by fire. News came of Yazid's death, aged thirty eight or thirty five.

vol. 20 "The Collapse of Sufyanid Authority and the Coming of the Marwanids" tr. G.R. Hawting (of U. London), SUNY, Albany, 1989 Foreward (pp. xi-xviii): This volume covers early years of the second civil war. Three groups (Zubayrid, Shi'ite, Kharijite) contended with Umayyids. Tribal allegiances were important. Much of this volume comes from two sources, Umar ibn Shabbah and Hisham ibn Muhammad al Kalbi. A.H. 64 (30/8/683-17/8/684): Fighting halted at Mecca. Zubayr remained there. Ubaydallah was opposed in Iraq. He fled Basra at night sitting behind Harith on Harith's mule. Basrans chose Abdallah ibn Harith leader. There was inter tribal conflict. Masud supporting Ubaydallah was killed. Ubaydallah fled to Syria. Amr ibn Masud was chosen leader in Kufa. Marwan became caliph in Syria. Dahhak, Zubayr's man in Damascus, was opposed in the mosque and defeated in battle. Salm was governor in Khurasan until Yazid's death. Muhallab succeeded him. Salm appointed two men commander of Marwan. They contended. There was fighting in Herat. In Kufa penitents regretted not supporting Husayn. Ibn Ziyad had strenuously pursued the Khawarij. They had gone to Abdallah ibn Zubayr in Mecca. After Yazid's death, they left ibn Zubayr. Ibn Zubayr levelled the very damaged Ka'bah, extended its foundations and entrusted its contents to the gatekeepers. A.H. 65 (18/8/684-7/8/685): Penitents raised the cry, "Avenge Husayn" in Kufa. Several thousand went to Husayn's tomb and mourned him. They advanced and outnumbered fell fighting. In Ramadan (April/May 685) Marwan was suffocated to death with a pillow. He had appointed his two sons heirs. A Syrian force failed to take Medina. Many died of plague in Basra. Muhallab ibn Abi Sufra defeated Kharijites threatening Basra. Ibn Zubayr rebuilt the Ka'bah. Fighting continued in Khurasan. A.H. 66 (8/8/685-27/7/685): Mukhtar ibn Abi Ubayd rose in Kufa to avenge Husayn. He seized the governor's residence, obtained the nine million dirhams in the treasury and paid his some ten thousand men some three million. He appointed commanders in Armenia, Adharbayjan, Mada'in, Upper, Central and Lower Bihqubadh and Hulwan.

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