It is narrated from Abu Ubaydah Ma'mar bin al-Muthanna that when the delegation of the tribe of Kindah came, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) married Qutaylah bint Qays, the sister of al-Ash'ath bin Qays, in the year 10 AH. Then on the fifteenth of Safar he (peace and blessings be upon him) fell ill, and on Monday the second of Rabi' al-Awwal he (peace and blessings be upon him) passed away. By that time she had not reached him (peace and blessings be upon him), nor had he (peace and blessings be upon him) consummated the marriage with her. Some have put the time of this marriage at two months before his (peace and blessings be upon him) passing, while others claim that he (peace and blessings be upon him) married her during his illness. According to some, he (peace and blessings be upon him) left an instruction that Qutaylah be given a choice: if she wished, she would take on the veil and become forbidden to the believers, and if she wished, she could marry whomever she wanted. She chose marriage, and Ikrimah bin Abi Jahl married her in Hadramawt. When this news reached Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), he said: "I have a firm intention to set fire to the two of them." But Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "She is not one of the Mothers of the Believers; the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not consummate the marriage with her, nor was the command of the veil applied to her." Some also hold that she had apostatised.