Do we really know the saviour of ummah ? well, I hope this article about saladin will boost our knowledge about him. I’ve also quoted some actors from “Kingdom of Heaven” film…I hope that all readers in a best health while reading this article. Insya Allah…
Salahuddin Al Ayubi@Saladin…
Salah al-Din, (1137?-1193) , the great Muslim warrior and Ayyubid Sultan of Egypt was born in Mesopotamia of Kurdish descent. A great opponent of the Crusaders, he lived for ten years in Damascus at the court of Nur ad-Din, where he distinguished himself by his interest in Sunni theology. He accompanied his uncle, Shirkuh, a lieutenant of Nur ad-Din, on the campaigns of 1164, 1167, 1168 against the Fatimid rulers of Egypt. Shirkuh became Vizier there and on his death in 1169 was succeeded by Saladin.
Saladin later caused the name of the Shiite Fatimid caliph to be dropped from the Friday prayer, thus deposing him. After the death of Nur ad-Din, who was planning to campaign against his too-powerful subordinate, Saladin proclaimed himself sultan of Egypt, thus beginning the Ayyubid dynasty. He spread his conquests westward on the northern shores of Africa as far as Qabis and also conquered Yemen. He took over Damascus after Nur ad-Din’s death and undertook to subdue all Syria and Palestine. He had already come into conflict with the Crusaders, and he put the rulers of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem on the steadily weakening defensive. He was unsuccessful in his efforts to conquer the Assassins in their mountain strongholds, but he took Mosul, Aleppo, and wide areas from rival Muslim rulers and became the principal warrior of Islam. Gathering a large force of Muslims of various groups - all called Saracens by contemporary western Europeans - he set out to attack Christian outposts. In 1187 he defeated Christian forces in the great battle of Hattin near Tiberias, capturing Guy of Lusignan and Reginald of Chatillon, and the city of Jerusalem.
The Third Crusade was organised in 1189 and travelled to the Holy Land to try to recover the Holy City. Thus it was that Richard I of England and Saladin met in the conflict that was to be celebrated in later chivalric romance. The reputation that Saladin had among the Christians for his generosity and chivalry does not seem to have been a legend, and there seems no doubt that Saladin admired Richard as a worthy opponent. The Crusaders, however, failed in their purpose and succeeded only in capturing Akko.
In 1192, Saladin came to agreement with the Crusaders upon the Peace of Ramla, which left the Latin Kingdom only a strip along the coast from Tyre to Yafo. The Christians were never to recover from their defeat.
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