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( Muslim conquest of Egypt)
Early conflicts
Mutah&_160;– Tabouk&_160;– Dathin&_160;– Firaz
At the commencement of the Muslim conquest of Egypt, Egypt was part of the Byzantine Empire with its capital in Constantinople. However, it had been occupied just a decade before by the Persian Empire under Khosrau II (616 to 629 AD). It was also religiously alienated. The Dyophysitism of the Byzantines held to the doctrine of Christ having two natures, one divine and one human. In Egypt however the christological position of Miaphysitism (Oriental Orthodox Christianity) that prevailed, which supported the doctrine of Christ having one united nature were the Divinity and Humanity were inseperably united. Although the Christian Council of Chalcedon, held in 451, had ruled in favor of the Dyophysite position, Egypt had remained a stronghold of Orthodoxy from the viewpoint of the Oriental Churches. So, with the restoration of Byzantine political control in 629, Emperor Heraclius began persecuting the Copts whom he erroneously considered Monophysites, expelling their patriarch (Oriental Orthodox are in fact miaphysites and not monophysites). It was in the context of this state of affairs that an army of some 4,000 Arabs, led by Amr ibn al-As, was sent by the Caliph Umar to spread Islam in the land of the ancient pharaohs. The Arabs crossed into Egypt from Palestine in December 639 and advanced rapidly into the Nile Delta. The imperial garrisons retreated into the walled towns like Babylon Fortress, where they successfully held out for a year or more. But the Arabs sent for reinforcements and the invading army, joined by another 5,000 men in 640, defeated a Byzantine army at the Battle of Heliopolis. Amr next proceeded in the direction of Alexandria, which was surrendered to him by a treaty signed on November 8, 641. The Thebaid seems to have surrendered with scarcely any opposition.
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