Husayn ibn Ali (Arabic: حسين ابن علي, romanized: Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī; 11 January 626 – 10 October 680 CE) was the second son of Ali and Fatima, a younger brother of Hasan and a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He is the third Imam in Shia Islam, succeeding Hasan. Husayn is a prominent member of the Ahl al-Bayt and Ahl al-Kisa, and a participant in the Event of the mubahala. Muhammad described Hasan and Husayn as the leaders of the youth of paradise.
During Ali's caliphate, Husayn accompanied him in the military campaigns of the First Fitna. After the assassination of Ali, Husayn obeyed Hasan in recognizing the peace treaty with the first Umayyad caliph, Mu'awiya I. During the nine-year period between Hasan's abdication and his death, Husayn withdrew with his brother to Medina, seeking to remain removed from political involvement. Prior to his death, Mu'awiya appointed his son Yazid as his successor, making the caliphate hereditary. When Mu'awiya died, Yazid demanded that Husayn pledge allegiance, but Husayn refused and took refuge in Mecca. While in Mecca, the people of Kufa sent him numerous letters, inviting him to overthrow Umayyad rule, and pledging their allegiance to him.
Husayn first sent his cousin, Muslim ibn Aqil, to Kufa to assess the situation and the genuineness of their support. After receiving a favorable report from Muslim, Husayn accepted their invitation and traveled toward the city. On his way to Kufa with about 72 men, including his family members, Husayn's caravan was intercepted by a 1,000-strong army of the caliph. He was forced to head north and encamp at the plain of Karbala on 2 October, where another 4,000-strong Umayyad army arrived. Negotiations failed after the Umayyad governor Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad refused Husayn safe passage without submitting to his authority, a condition declined by Husayn. The Battle of Karbala ensued on 10 October, during which Husayn was killed along with most of his family members and companions. In the subsequent Second Fitna, Kufan partisans organized two separate campaigns to avenge the blood of Husayn; the first one by the Tawwabin and the other one by Mukhtar al-Thaqafi and his supporters.
Husayn's death at Karbala gave the early political party of pro-
Alids, which had not yet developed specific theological doctrines and set of rituals, a distinct religious identity and helped transform and consolidate it into a separate religious sect.
Heinz Halm writes: There was no religious aspect to Shi'ism prior to 680. The death of Husayn and his followers marked the 'big bang' that created the rapidly expanding cosmos of Shi'ism and brought it into motion.
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