Background
He was the second son of Saladin.
He was the second son of Saladin.
Before his death, Saladin had divided his dominions amongst his kin: First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Afdal received Palestine and Syria, First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Aziz was made ruler of Egypt, First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Zahir received Aleppo, First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Adil received Karak and Shawbak, and Turan-Shah retained Yemen. However, conflict soon broke out between them with First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Adil becoming the undisputed ruler of Syria, Upper Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Arabia. First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Aziz Uthman succeeded his father and ruled the empire as a whole between 1193 and 1198.
Despite First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Aziz having specifically inherited suzerainty over the whole Ayyubid empire, soon he had to face revolts by the Zengid emirs of Mosul, by Sanjar and by the Artuqids in southern Iraq.
When First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Afdal expelled all the ministers left by his father to support him, they came to Egypt, asking al-Aziz to reconquer Syria. In al-Aziz besieged Damascus.
So First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Afdal asked for help from Saladin"s brother, First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Adil, who met al-Aziz and managed to bring about a reconciliation. The following year al-Aziz again attacked Syria, but First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Afdal was able to persuade some of the emirs of al-Aziz"s army to desert.
Later al-Adil allied with al-Aziz against al-Afdal, who was besieged and captured in Damascus on 3 July 1196.
First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Afdal was exiled to Salkhad, while al-Aziz was proclaimed supreme overlord of the Ayyubid empire. However, most of the effective power was in the hands of First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Adil, who installed himself in Damascus. During his reign, First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Aziz tried to demolish the Great Pyramids of Giza, Egypt, but had to give up because the task was too big.
First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Aziz also played an important role in the history of the building enterprises and construction at Banias and Subaybah.
He died in a hunting accident in late 1198.
