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Khalid was the only man
who inflicted a tactical defeat on the Holy Prophet-at Uhud. He
was the first Muslim commander to leave Arabia and conquer foreign
lands; the first Muslim to humble two great empires, one after the
other. Almost all his battles are studies in military leadership,
especially Uhud, Kazima, Walaja, Muzayyah, Ajnadein and Yarmuk.
His finest battle was Walaja, while his greatest was undoubtedly
Yarmuk.
Khalid was essentially a soldier. He also
administered the territories which he conquered, but this he did
as a routine responsibility of a high-ranking general, who had not
only to conquer territory but also to rule it as a military governor.
His plans and manoeuvres show a superb military intellect; but towards
such things as learning and culture he was in no way inclined. Khalid
was pure, unadulterated, undiluted, unspoilt soldier. It was his
destiny to fight great battles and vanquish mighty foes.... to attack,
kill, conquer. This destiny became apparent only when, with the
rise of Islam, the prospect of holy war arose in Arab lands. And
it was only after he had accepted the new faith and submitted to
the Prophet that this destiny came into full play. Wherever Khalid
marched, enemies stood up to oppose him, as if some unkind fate
had condemned them to death by his sword. Wherever Khalid passed,
he left behind a trail of glory. From the Battle of Uhud up to the
time of his dismissal, over a period of 15 years, Khalid fought
41 battles (excluding minor engagements), of which 35 were concentrated
in the last seven years. And he never lost a single one! Such was
Khalid, the irresistible, all-conquering master.
It is interesting to speculate what would
have happened if he had remained in command of the Muslim army in
Syria and had been launched to conquer the Byzantine Empire, Since
Khalid never lost a battle, there is no doubt that he would have
taken the whole of Asia Minor and reached the Black Sea and the
Bosphorus. But it was not to be. By the end of 17 Hijri Khalid's
race was run. Thereafter the stage of history was crowded by other
players.
In 641, Ayadh bin Ghanam died. In this year,
too, died Bilal the Muazzin and Khalid's defeated foe, Heraclius,
Emperor of Rome. The following year it was Khalid's turn to go.
Some time in 642 (21 Hijri), at the age
of 58, Khalid was taken ill. We do not know the nature of his illness,
but it was a prolonged one and took the strength out of him. As
with all vigorous, active men upon whom an inactive retirement is
suddenly thrust, Khalid's health and physique had declined rapidly.
This last illness proved too much for him; and Khalid's sick bed
became his death bed. He lay in bed, impatient and rebellious against
a fate which had robbed him of a glorious, violent death in battle.
Knowing that he had not long to live, it irked him to await death
in bed.
A few days before his end, an old friend
called to see him and sat at his bedside. Khalid raised the cover
from his right leg and said to his visitor, "Do you see
a space of the span of a hand on my leg which is not covered by
some scar of the wound of a sword or an arrow or a lance?"
The friend examined Khalid's leg and confessed
that he did not. Khalid raised the cover from his left leg and repeated
his question. Again the friend agreed that between the wounds farthest
apart the space was less than a hand's span.
Khalid raised his right arm and then his
left, for a similar examination and with a similar result. Next
he bared his great chest, now devoid of most of its mighty sinews,
and here again the friend was met with a sight which made him wonder
how a man wounded in so many places could survive The friend again
admitted that he could not see the space of one hand span of unmarked
skin.
Khalid had made his point. "Do you
not see?" he asked impatiently. "I have sought
martyrdom in a hundred battles. Why could I not have died in battle?"
"You could not die in battle", replied the friend.
"Why not?"
"You must understand, O Khalid," the friend explained,
"that when the Messenger of Allah, on whom be the blessings
of Allah and peace, named you Sword of Allah, he predetermined that
you would not fall in battle. If you had been killed by an unbeliever
it would have meant that Allah's sword had been broken by an enemy
of Allah; and that could never be."
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