At the very beginning of his divine duty, Muhammad had a very miniscule group of followers, which gradually grew during the years leading up to Hijra (Watt, p. 16). Two years after his arrival in Medina, the Battle of Badr took place. Led by Muhammad, the ever-growing Muslim army went in to interrupt the Quraish, a Jewish tribe's, trading, in counter-action to the negative aggression of the tribe. Despite the fact that the Quraish army was triple the size of the Muslims, Muhammad's group was victorious, giving the Muslims a great deal of military power. The Quraish proved to be a problem in the future, although never affecting the Muslims, whom continued to grow. Jihad, fighting in the cause of Allah, was put into place, giving the Muslims motivation to fight, and they proved to be triumphant in numerous battles before the death of Muhammad, spreading and exercising their power further. In many of these instances, the Muslims were, in fact, very peaceful in solving their disputes and expanding their territory.
Most areas during the time of Muhammad, were inhabited and controlled by a tribe, ruled by a king. The tribes would all follow the same faith, usually Judaism or Christianity. In 629 CE, before too many battles were fought, Muhammad sent messengers to invite all of the important kings to accept and embrace Islam (www.al-islam.com). A vast number of them accepted his invitation, and converted their land and tribes to Islamic faith. Others were somewhat uncertain of the budding religion, and partially accepted it, with Muhammad allowing religious freedom in exchange for the payment of alms, which were taxes paid to the poor. The remaining kings refused Muhammad and Islam, some peacefully, others violently. In many cases, however, Muhammad and the army could march into an area and conquer it without any bloodshed. The most significant event of Muhammad's lifetime, aside from the revelations, was the conquering of Mecca in 630 CE.
