MUAWIYA IBN ABI SUFYAN

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Muawiyah I was the founder and first caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate and fifth Caliph of Islam, serving from 661 until his death. He became caliph less than 30 years following the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad (his brother in law) and very shortly after the reign of the four "rightly guided" (Rashidun) caliphs. Although considered to be lacking in the justice and piety of the Rashidun, Muawiyah was also the first caliph whose name appeared on coins, inscriptions, or documents of the nascent Islamic empire.