Background
Ethnicity:
His family was of Kurdish ancestry, and had originated from the city of Dvin in medieval Armenia.
Saladin was born in Tikrit in modern-day Iraq in 1137.
Artistic representation of Saladin.
Sculpture of Saladin in Cairo
Ethnicity:
His family was of Kurdish ancestry, and had originated from the city of Dvin in medieval Armenia.
Saladin was born in Tikrit in modern-day Iraq in 1137.
For several years, the young Saladin lived in Damascus, receiving all-round education (including theological). During his studies he was more interested in religion than joining the military.
Under the supervision of his uncle Asad al-Din ibn Shirkuha Shadi - Saladin completed his military education in the wars with the Fatimid caliphate in the 60's of the XII century. Saladin was able to answer questions on Euclid, the Almagest, arithmetic, and law.
From about 1130 Zengi, the Turkish atabeg (regent) of Mosul and his son, Nur-ad-Din (Nureddin), who succeeded him in 1146, undertook a holy war to unify Syria. Saladin Arabic, Salah-ad-Din Yusuf ibn Aiyub) served with his uncle, Shirkuh, under Nur-ad-Din and was strongly impressed with the need to complete the unity of Islam under orthodox rule.
After several expeditions into Egypt, where the Fatimid dynasty remained the most important of the successor kingdoms established after the fall of the Abbasid empire, Saladin assumed full military power on the death of Shirkuh in 1168. He was successful in repulsing the combined French-Byzantine invasion of Amalric, King of Jerusalem, a victory which opened the way for him to move his armies up into the Transjordan area. The Fatimid caliphate was crushed by 1171, and on the death of Nur-ad-Din 3 years later, Saladin began the conquest of the Frankish lands and of the old Zengid empire. He shortly occupied Damascus. He thus faced increased hostility from two sides: from the Zengid rulers at Mosul, who were in no way enthusiastic about his conception of the jihad, or holy war, and from the Latin forces under Baldwin IV, the Leper King. The complexities of operating on two fronts at the same time were reduced somewhat by diplomatic negotiations with Baldwin and Raymond of Tripoli as well as with the Byzantine emperor and certain of the Italian maritime cities. In the former case the result was essentially negative. A series of provisional treaties served to forestall an attack on the vulnerable western side, for Baldwin proved to be quite capable of containing Saladin, although he was unable to do him any damage. But in the latter case not only were assurances of nonintervention given, but material aid was obtained.
By the end of 1185 Saladin had imposed his authority in northern Syria and Mesopotamia, and he was ready to turn his full attention to the crusading kingdom. After the unfortunate betrayal of a peace treaty by a Western knight, the jihad was declared in the beginning of 1187. Drawing troops from Syria as well as from Egypt, Saladin brought his combined forces to face the Latin army at Hattin near Tiberias in July. The star-crossed monarchy in Jerusalem, born of the antagonisms among the leaders of the First Crusade, was never able to operate from a position of strength, and once again personal jealousies were responsible for the overwhelming defeat by the Moslem forces. Saladin set a trap for the crusaders; they marched into it and were annihilated. By any measure Hattin was a disaster for the West, and in rapid sequence most of the other important towns, Acre, Sidon, Jaffa, Caesarea, Ascalon, fell into Moslem hands. Finally, Jerusalem was occupied on October 2. Further campaigning reduced the extent of Frankish power in Syria to Tyre, Antioch, and Tripoli.
The kings of western Europe responded to the fall of Jerusalem by taking the cross and then by gathering their knights together in the expeditions known to history as the Third Crusade. Their chief victory was the successful siege and relief of Acre, which capitulated in July 1191. King Richard I of England defeated Saladin at Arsuf and then concluded an armistice in the fall of 1192 without having been able to retake Jerusalem. Nevertheless, Richard's presence in the East clearly prevented Saladin from capitalizing fully on his victory at Hattin. After 12 days of illness, Saladin died on March 4, 1193.
He is known in the West for his opposition to the forces of the Third Crusade and for his capture of Jerusalem. In the nineteenth century, Saladin achieved a great reputation in Europe as a chivalrous knight, due to his fierce struggle against the crusaders and his generosity.
The coat of arms of Egypt is known as the 'Eagle of Saladin', and it represents the unity between Arab states.
In 1898, German Emperor Wilhelm II visited Saladin's tomb to pay his respects.
A province in Iraq is named Salah ad Din Governorate, after the great Sultan of Egypt. Kudistan's city of Arbil, houses the 'Salahaddin University', and a community called 'Masif Salahaddin', both named as a tribute to this ruler.
Strong in his faith, he was orthodox to the point of intolerance, as in the summary murder of as-Suhrawardi, a heretical preacher of Aleppo. It should be remembered that it was Saladin who carried on the work of Nur-ad-Din and completed the unity of Islam, although his success did not long survive him.
Quotations:
"I have become so great as I am because I have won men's hearts by gentleness and kindliness."
"If you want to destroy any nation without war, make adultery or nudity common in the young generation."
"I warn you against shedding blood, indulging in it and making a habit of it, for blood never sleeps."
"European merchants supply the best weaponry, contributing to their own defeat."
"It is not the custom of kings to kill kings."
Saladin is described in the pages of his biographer, Baha ad-Din, as one who was entirely committed to the justice of the jihad against the unbelievers. Of medium height and gentle manners, courageous, even ruthless, but generous and humane, he was respected by his followers and by his adversaries for the steadfast manner in which he kept his promises.
Not much is known of Saladin's wives or slave-women. He married Ismat al-Din Khatun, the widow of Nur al-Din Zengi, in 1176. She did not have children. One of his wives, Shamsah, is buried with her son al-Aziz in the tomb of al-Shafi'i.
His father was a Kurdish soldier and politician from Dvin. He is eponymous of the Ayyubid dynasty founded by Saladin.
