Abu Bakr married four wives in all. He had six children, three sons and three daughters.
Qutaila.
His first wife was Qutaila. She belonged to the Bani Aamir tribe. She was the mother of two children, Asma and Abdullah. She did not accept Islam, and Abu Bakr divorced her. Some time after ‘Hijrat’, Qutaila went to Madina to see her daughter Asma. Asma asked of the Holy Prophet whether she could see her mother, and whether she could stay with her. The Holy Prophet permitted Asma to play host to her mother.
Umm Ruman.
Her second wife was Umm Ruman. She was the daughter of Aamir bin Umair. She was first married to Abdullah bin Harith. She had one son from Abdullah who was named Tufail. Abdullah was a friend of Abu Bakr, and on his death, Abu Bakr married Umm Ruman. She was the mother of two children of Abu Bakr, namely Abdur Rahman and Ayesha.
When Abu Bakr became a Muslim; Umm Ruman also accepted Islam. She died at Madina in 628 C.E. The Holy Prophet himself led her funeral prayers. The Holy Prophet is reported to have said, “If any one wishes to see a houri of the paradise, let him see Umm Ruman”.
Habiba.
The third wife of Abu Bakr was Habiba. She was the daughter of Zaid bin Kharijah Ansari, with whom Abu Bakr had the bond of brotherhood established by the Holy Prophet. While Umm Ruman lived at Madina, Abu Bakr resided with Habiba in Sukh, a suburb of Madina Habiba was the mother of Umm Kulsum who was born after the death of Abu Bakr.
Asma.
The fourth wife of Abu Bakr was Asma She was first married to Jafar bin Abu Talib, a brother of Ali. She migrated with Jafar to Abyssinia in 615 C.E. She had three sons from Jafar, namely, Muhammad, Abdullah, and Aun. In 630 C.E., Jafar was martyred in the battle of Mauta.
Six months later, Abu Bakr married her. She had one son from Abu Bakr who was also named Muhammad. She was a stepsister of Umm Salma, wife of the Holy Prophet. Asma was a talented lady. She was well versed in the interpretation of dreams. According to the will of Abu Bakr, Asma was authorized to prepare his dead body for the burial. After the death of Abu Bakr, Asma married Ali from whom she had a son Yahya.
Abdur Rahman.
The eldest son of Abu Bakr was Abdur Rahman. His mother was Umm Ruman, and he was the real brother of Ayesha. When Abu Bakr became a Muslim, and his other children were converted to Islam, Abdur Rahman refused to be converted to Islam. Abu Bakr accordingly separated from him. In the battles of Badr and Uhud, Abdur Rahman fought on the side of the Quraish against the Muslims. He became a Muslim after the Pact of Hudaibiya. Thereafter he participated in the various battles fought by the Muslims.
At the battle of Yamama, he killed Mahakkam al Yamama, the General Commanding the forces of Musailma. At the battle of Busra in Syria, he entered the city of Busra through a subterranean passage, and then dashing towards the city gates opened them for the main Muslim army to enter it. He died in 675 C.E,, and buried at Makkah.
Abdullah.
The second son of Abu Bakr was Abdullah. He was born of Qutaila. He was married to Atika who was the daughter of Zaid bin Amr bin Naufal. She was a cousin of Umar. She was extraordinarily beautiful, and Abdullah was so much lost in her love that he failed to participate in the various expeditions undertaken by the Muslims.
He even neglected his prayers. Abdullah was so much overwhelmed with the love of Atika that he could not attend to other duties. Abu Bakr gave vent to his anger, and told his son in plain words that his failings and shortcomings were too serious to be passed over. Abdullah placed himself at the mercy of his father Abu Bakr decreed that the penalty for such lapses was that Abdullah should divorce Atika within three days. Abdullah divorced Atika in pursuance of the command of his father. That, however, upset the mental equilibrium of Abdullah. He would neither eat nor drink. He would sob and sigh and sing heart-rending verses giving expression to his grief over the loss of his beloved. When the Holy Prophet came to know of the matter, he annulled the divorce, and the lovers were reunited.
Thereafter, Abdullah was very particular to take care that his love for Atika did not stand in the way of his duty to God. In all the campaigns that were undertaken by the Holy Prophet thereafter, Abdullah took active part and fought valiantly. Abdullah was wounded in the battle of Taif, and later died of these wounds in 633 C.E. in the first year of the caliphate of Abu Bakr. After the death of Abdullah, Umar married Atika.
Muhammad.
The third son of Abu Bakr was Muhammad born of Asma bint Asma. He was hardly two or three years old at the time of the death of Abu Bakr. Asma had two sons who both bore the name ‘Muhammad’, One was the son of Jafar and the other was the son of Abu Bakr.
After the death of Abu Bakr, Asma married Ali and Muhammad bin Abu Bakr was brought up under the care of Ali. He was a great partisan of Ali and he was very active in the coup that led to the martyrdom of Usman. During the caliphate of Ali, Muhammad became the Governor of Egypt. When Muawiyiah captured power, he had Muhammad killed.
Asma.
The eldest daughter of Abu Bakr was Asma. Her mother was Qutaila who did not become a Muslim and was divorced by Abu Bakr. When the Holy Prophet and Abu Bakr sought refuge in a cave outside Makkah on the occasion of Migration to Madina, Asma used to carry food to them under the cover of darkness. When the Holy Prophet and Abu Bakr left the cave, Asma tore her apron and tied the goods with the two belts.
For this ingenuity, she received from the Holy Prophet, the title “She of the two belts”. She was married to Zubair, a cousin of the Holy Prophet. At Madina, soon after migration, Asma gave birth to Abdullah, who was the first Muslim child to be born after migration. After the tragedy of Kerbala, Abdullah declared himself as the Caliph at Makkah. When the Umayyads stormed the city of Makkah, Abdullah consulted Asma who was then eighty years old, as to what he should do.
She advised, “If you believe your cause to be right you should be ready to die for it, if on the other hand your object is merely worldly gain, then you may certainly compromise with your enemy”. When Abdullah died and the Umayyads had his body hung at the city gate, Asma went to the dead body of her son, and she said pathetically, “The rider is still riding the horse”.
Ayesha.
The second daughter of Abu Bakr was Ayesha, who had the unique honor of being the only virgin to be married to the Holy Prophet. She became a widow at a young age. During the caliphate of Abu Bakr and Umar she enjoyed great influence. When Ali became the Caliph, she was involved in the battle against him. Thereafter she retired from politics, and lived a quiet life at Madina. She was very talented and was an authority on theological and judicial matters.
Umm Kulsum.
The third daughter of Abu Bakr was Umm Kulsum. She was born of Habiba bint Zaid Ansari. Umm Kulsum was born after the death of Abu Bakr. On coming of age, Umm Kulsum was married to Talha bin Ubaidullah. On the death of Talha, she married his brother Abdur Rahman bin Ubaidullah.
