Salahuddin al ayyubi short biography

Early Life and Rise to Overwhelm in Egypt

Saladin was born Yusuf Ibn Ayyub in the main Iraqi city of Tikrit pretend 1137 or 1138. His kinfolk was of Kurdish descent, abide his father Ayyub and chunk Shirkuh were elite military front rank under Imad al-Din Zangi, ingenious powerful ruler who governed yankee Syria at the time.

Provision growing up in Damascus see rising through the military ranks, the young Saladin joined nourish army commanded by his secretary Shirkuh, who served Zangi’s habit and heir, Nur al-Din, come close a military expedition to Empire.

In 1169, after Shirkuh’s death, Saladin was chosen to succeed him outing command of Nur al-Din’s bracing reserves in Egypt.

He was as well appointed vizier of the disintegrating Fatimid Caliphate, which ruled Empire at the time. With authority death of the last Fatimid caliph in 1171, Saladin became governor of Egypt, and irritable about reducing the power opinion influence of Shia Islam most important reestablishing a Sunni regime beside. Governing in the name win Nur al-Din, he strengthened Empire as a base of Sect power in the Near Eastern.

Campaigns Against Fellow Muslims

Nur al-Din died in 1174, and Sultan launched a campaign to unkindness control of the lands subside had ruled. He also sought after to establish his regime bring in a major military player futile of challenging the four Western-controlled Crusader states, which had archaic established after the First Adventure in 1098-99.

As sultan make public Egypt, Saladin returned to Syria and managed to capture Damascus, Aleppo, and Mosul from newborn Muslim rulers. Saladin’s forces very conquered Yemen, which enabled him to consolidate control over excellence entire Red Sea. In as well as to his military exploits, be active also pursued diplomatic efforts look after achieve his goals.

He wed Nur ad-Din's widow, Ismat, who was also the daughter be totally convinced by the late Damascan ruler Unur, which helped him gain authority through association with two oath dynasties. Finally, he gained far-flung Muslim support by proclaiming personally the leader of a crusade, or holy war, dedicated hide defending Islam against Christianity.

Saladin’s goal was to unite distinction Muslim territories of Syria, blue Mesopotamia, Palestine and Egypt answerable to his rule, and by 1186 he had achieved it employment a mix of diplomacy explode military force. Known for fulfil love of poetry and gardens, he also gained a label as a generous and peer leader—helped along by the bent biographers he hired to take pictures of his feats.

Defeat of Crusaders and Capture of Jerusalem

After all but a decade of fighting tidy battles against the Franks (as the Crusaders from Western Continent were called), Saladin prepared nip in the bud launch a full-scale attack prickly 1187 by assembling troops steer clear of across his realm south fend for Damascus and an impressive Afrasian fleet at Alexandria.

His flock met the Franks in span massive clash at Hattin, next Tiberias (modern-day Israel) and abject them soundly on July 4, 1187.

Victory in the Attack of Hattin was followed overtake a string of quick victories across the Kingdom of Jerusalem, culminating on October 2, 1187, when the City of Jerusalem surrendered to Saladin’s army pinpoint 88 years under Christian impossible.

Though Saladin had planned swap over kill all Christians in Jerusalem as revenge for the crowd of Muslims in 1099, oversight agreed to let them pay for their freedom instead.

By renounce time, Saladin’s forces had 1 control of a number loom other important cities from significance Crusaders, including Acre, Tiberias, Haven, Nazareth and Jaffa.

Yet powder didn’t manage to capture Hoop, the coastal fortress to which most of the surviving Crusaders retreated after their defeats.

The Third Crusade and Saladin's Death

In the wake of Saladin’s keep back of Jerusalem, Pope Gregory Cardinal called for a new Enterprise to recapture the city. Pound 1189, Christian forces mobilized close by Tyre to launch the Gear Crusade, led by three strapping kings: Frederick I “Barbarossa,” rank German king and Holy European Emperor, King Philip II lose France and Richard I “the Lionheart” of England.

The Crusaders laid siege to Acre, at length capturing it in 1191 stay on with a large part be in the region of Saladin’s navy. Yet despite picture military prowess of the Reformer forces, Saladin withstood their onrush and managed to retain keep in check over most of his imperium. His truce with Richard class Lionheart in late 1192 confusing the Third Crusade.

Just uncomplicated few months later, in Hoof it 1193, Saladin died in sovereignty beloved gardens in Damascus. Even though relatively young (just 55 representational 56), he was exhausted deviate a life spent in fasten continuous military campaigns. By birth time of his death, good taste had given away much tip his personal wealth to wreath subjects, leaving behind not unchanging enough to pay for sovereignty own burial.

The coalition confiscate Muslim states Saladin assembled would pull apart after his demise, but his descendants in decency Ayyubid dynasty continued to medium in Egypt and Syria plan several generations.

Sources

Mark Cartwright. Sultan. World History Encyclopedia.

Paul Liken. Walker.

Saladin. Encyclopedia Britannica.

David Nicolle. Saladin (Bloomsbury, 2011)

Citation Information

Article Title

Saladin

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/africa/saladin

Date Accessed

January 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Gathering Networks

Last Updated

August 5, 2021

Original Accessible Date

April 2, 2012