Note 344 — Chapter XXI · RISING IN NORTHERN SYRIA. A.H. XVII. A.D. 638.

Khâlid is no great favourite of Abbasside tradition. He belonged to a branch distant from that of the Prophet, which attached itself to the Omeyyads, of whom, in the struggle with Aly, Abdallah son of Khâlid was a staunch adherent.

The general outline of Khâlid’s case is clear, though there is variety in the details. According to some accounts, Omar returned to him all the property he had confiscated. Others say that, when pressed to do so, he said, ‘Nay, that be far from me. I am but the agent of the Moslems, and am bound to administer their property faithfully. I will never give it back.’

Tabari gives yet another account. Omar wrote to Abu Obeida commanding him to arraign Khâlid; but adding that if he would confess his guilt in the affair of Mâlik ibn Noweira, he would pardon him and restore him to his Government. Khâlid repaired for counsel to his sister Fâtima, then with her husband in Syria. She dissuaded him from confessing; for if he did so, it would only give Omar—who was determined on his ruin—a handle to depose him with disgrace. He bent down, and, kissing her forehead, said: ‘It is the truth, my sister.’ So he returned to Abu Obeida, and refused to make any confession. Thereupon Bilâl, as in the text, stripped off his kerchief, and so on, as in the text. At the conclusion of the trial Abu Obeida, by order of the Caliph, confiscated half of his property, even to his sandals—taking one and leaving the other.