Muhammad's Marriages of Political Necessity

Some Islamic scholars and religious leaders suggest that the Prophet Muhammad engaged in polygamy only for reasons of political necessity.

Others point out that polygamy was common in seventh-century Arabia, meaning Muhammad's conduct in marrying multiple women was morally acceptable by the standards of his time (although the Prophet is notably considered an objectively perfect role model, independent of cultural and historical contingencies).

Muhammad was given special status in the number of wives he was permitted to have. While he limited other Muslims to four wives, he at one point had eleven wives with the intention of marrying more. Upon Ghaylan ibn Salama's conversion to Islam in 630 CE, he was required to divorce six of his ten wives, even as Muhammad at that point also had ten wives.

Writings that address the question of what political circumstances necessitated Muhammad's multiple marriages, going beyond even the allowance of the four wives granted to other Muslim men, most often address the political advantages each marriage purportedly conferred, rather than on possible reasons each marriage was necessary for the survival of Islam.

The following is a list of major political crises Muhammad faced with brief notes on how each was handled.

1. 616-619. The Quraysh enforced a trade blockade against the Hashim clan in Mecca. The Muslims survived by living on the wealth of Khadijah, Muhammad's first wife. Although Muslim historians do not state this directly, the blockade was probably lifted because Muhammad agreed to the Satanic Verses compromise.
2. 622. The Quraysh pronounced a death sentence for Muhammad. He survived by escaping to Medina and moving his community there.
3. 624-627. The Jews in Medina announced that they did not believe Muhammad was the Messiah, which seriously damaged his credibility with the local pagans. He ejected two of the tribes and killed the third, becoming the "Duke" of Medina. The angel Jibreel purportedly delivered urgent messages regarding the Jews' treachery to Muhammad's wife Hind.
4. 627. The Meccans, together with a few Bedouin chiefs and exiled Jews, besieged Medina, hoping to kill Muhammad. Muhammad dug a trench around Medina and the siege failed. Muhammad then conquered a Kilab tribe and secured a trade blockade against Mecca. By the time Muhammad agreed to end the blockade, the Meccans had learned not to attack Muhammad directly.
5. 628. Muhammad took a pre-emptive strike against the surviving Jews. After a war of conquest against Khaybar, every Jew in Arabia was reduced to vassalage. There was a danger that their Ghatafan allies would retaliate, leading Muhammad to stockpile weapons in anticipation. Muhammad's wife Hind reportedly carried the first aid box to Khaybar.
6. 630. After Mecca was starved out, Muhammad mustered an army of 10,000 and marched in to conquer the city. The “Duke” of Mecca was converted by force and the city surrendered. This served as a warning to the Ghatafans, and the Yemenites negotiated an “alliance” rather than face the Muslim armies.
7. 630–632. Muhammad conquered what was left of Arabia.

Pro-Islamic writers argue that Muhammad's marriages to Aisha, Sawdah, and Hafsah were politically expedient, helping Muhammad to raise money, although he was able to acquire financial resources through plundering and taxation as well.

Muhammad's marriage to his cousin, Zaynab bint Jahsh, was the first to break his "four wives" rule and caused him substantial social embarrassment.

Muhammad's marriage to Asma, who possessed some political importance, later ended in divorce.

Four of Muhammad's wives were slave-concubines.

Three of Muhammad's marriages, all of them occurring in 628, were political to varying degrees.

1. Juwayriyah, the daughter of a petty chief, married Muhammad only after her tribe was flattened and subjugated.
2. Ramlah, the daughter of Abu Sufyan, the “Duke” of Mecca, had defected to Islam several years prior and cut contact with her father almost completely. During this time, Muhammad continued to engage in open hostilities with her family, killing her brother and sending assassins after her father. When Abu Sufyan tried to negotiate through his daughter for peace with Muhammad, she refused to cooperate.
3. Safiyah, the First Lady of Khaybar, was related to important figures in the Jewish community. Muhammad married her after he had humiliated Khaybar. On his deathbed, Muhammad nevertheless stated in her presence that he wanted all remaining Jews ejected from Arabia.