Umar ibn Abdul Aziz: The Rightly Guided Caliph

Umar ibn Abdul Aziz became the Emir (Caliph) by a coincidence of history. When the Omayyad prince Suleiman (714-717) lay on his deathbed, he was advised that he could earn the pleasure of God by following the example of the early Caliphs and nominating someone besides one of his own sons as the next Emir. He therefore dictated in his will that Umar ibn Abdul Aziz, a distant cousin, was to succeed him and Umar ibn Abdul Aziz was to be followed by Yazid ibn Abdul Malik.