Salah al din biography for kids

At age 14, Saladin trained under his uncle Shirkuh, a high-ranking officer in the army of the Muslim Sultan, Nur al-Din. Shirkuh and Saladin led a force to victory over a Crusader army in Egypt in Shirkuh later died, and Saladin took control of the army and declared himself the Emir of Egypt. Saladin became a trusted lieutenant of the reigning Sultan.

When the Sultan died, in , Saladin marched his forces to Damascus and declared himself Sultan. He then married Nur al-Din's widow, Ismat. Saladin was the first of the new Ayyubid Dynasty. He quickly seized Aleppo, later took Hama and Homs, and eventually conquered all of what is now Syria. The lands he controlled eventually extended into Yemen and North Africa.

Other leaders didn't recognize Saladin's authority, and he spent 12 years defeating all challengers. By , he was in sole control of the Sultanate. Saladin, in firm control, set about shoring up his armies. He also made a habit of taking Crusader castles and other militarily important locations. Armies from Western Europe had seized Jerusalem and many other parts of the Holy Land during the First Crusade , even creating four new territories known as the Crusader States.

Saladin very much wanted to lead his armies to victory over the men running and defending the Crusader States. Saladin proved to be a brilliant military tactician. The emir prepared to unseat all his rivals in Syria and the Jazira, beginning with Damascus. In this emergency, the emir of Damascus appealed to Saif al-Din of Mosul a cousin of Gumushtigin for assistance against Aleppo, but he refused, forcing the Syrians to request the aid of Saladin, who complied.

Saladin rode across the desert with picked horsemen, passing through al-Kerak then reaching Bosra. According to his own account, was joined by "emirs, soldiers, and Bedouins—the emotions of their hearts to be seen on their faces. He installed himself in the castle and received the homage and salutations of the inhabitants. Leaving his brother Tughtakin ibn Ayyub as Governor of Damascus, Saladin proceeded to reduce other cities that had belonged to Nur al-Din, but were now practically independent.

His army conquered Hama with relative ease, but avoided attacking Homs because of the strength of its citadel. Saladin moved north towards Aleppo, besieging it on 30 December after Gumushtigin refused to abdicate his throne. As-Salih, fearing capture by Saladin, came out of his palace and appealed to the inhabitants not to surrender him and the city to the invading force.

One of Saladin's chroniclers claimed "the people came under his spell". Gumushtigin requested Rashid ad-Din Sinan, chief da'i of the Assassins of Syria, who were already at odds with Saladin since he replaced the Fatimids of Egypt, to assassinate Saladin in his camp. On 11 May , a group of thirteen Assassins easily gained admission into Saladin's camp, but were detected immediately before they carried out their attack by Nasih al-Din Khumartekin of Abu Qubays.

One was killed by one of Saladin's generals and the others were slain while trying to escape. To deter Saladin's progress, Raymond of Tripoli gathered his forces by Nahr al-Kabir, where they were well placed for an attack on Muslim territory. Saladin later moved toward Homs instead, but retreated after being told a relief force was being sent to the city by Saif al-Din.

Meanwhile, Saladin's rivals in Syria and Jazira waged a propaganda war against him, claiming he had "forgotten his own condition [servant of Nur ad-Din]" and showed no gratitude for his old master by besieging his son, rising "in rebellion against his Lord". Saladin aimed to counter this propaganda by ending the siege, claiming that he was defending Islam from the Crusaders; his army returned to Hama to engage a Crusader force there.

The Crusaders withdrew beforehand and Saladin proclaimed it "a victory opening the gates of men's hearts". Soon after, Saladin entered Homs and captured its citadel in March , after stubborn resistance from its defenders. Saladin's successes alarmed Saif al-Din. As head of the Zengids, including Gumushtigin, he regarded Syria and Mesopotamia as his family estate and was angered when Saladin attempted to usurp his dynasty's holdings.

Saif al-Din mustered a large army and dispatched it to Aleppo, whose defenders anxiously had awaited them. The combined forces of Mosul and Aleppo marched against Saladin in Hama. Heavily outnumbered, Saladin initially attempted to make terms with the Zengids by abandoning all conquests north of the Damascus province, but they refused, insisting he returns to Egypt.

Seeing that confrontation was unavoidable, Saladin prepared for battle, taking up a superior position at the Horns of Hama, hills by the gorge of the Orontes River. On 13 April , the Zengid troops marched to attack his forces, but soon found themselves surrounded by Saladin's Ayyubid veterans, who crushed them. The battle ended in a decisive victory for Saladin, who pursued the Zengid fugitives to the gates of Aleppo, forcing as-Salih's advisers to recognize Saladin's control of the provinces of Damascus, Homs, and Hama, as well as a number of towns outside Aleppo such as Ma'arat al-Numan.

After his victory against the Zengids, Saladin proclaimed himself king and suppressed the name of as-Salih in Friday prayers and Islamic coinage. From then on, he ordered prayers in all the mosques of Syria and Egypt as the sovereign king and he issued at the Cairo mint gold coins bearing his official title— al-Malik an-Nasir Yusuf Ayyub, ala ghaya "the King Strong to Aid, Joseph son of Job; exalted be the standard.

The Battle of Hama did not end the contest for power between the Ayyubids and the Zengids, with the final confrontation occurring in the spring of Saladin had gathered massive reinforcements from Egypt while Saif al-Din was levying troops among the minor states of Diyarbakir and al-Jazira. When Saladin crossed the Orontes, leaving Hama, the sun was eclipsed.

He viewed this as an omen, but he continued his march north. He reached the Sultan's Mound, roughly 25 km 16 mi from Aleppo, where his forces encountered Saif al-Din's army. A hand-to-hand fight ensued and the Zengids managed to plough Saladin's left-wing, driving it before him when Saladin himself charged at the head of the Zengid guard. The Zengid forces panicked and most of Saif al-Din's officers ended up being killed or captured—Saif al-Din narrowly escaped.

The Zengid army's camp, horses, baggage, tents, and stores were seized by the Ayyubids. The Zengid prisoners of war , however, were given gifts and freed. All of the booty from the Ayyubid victory was accorded to the army, Saladin not keeping anything himself. He continued towards Aleppo, which still closed its gates to him, halting before the city.

On the way, his army took Buza'a and then captured Manbij. From there, they headed west to besiege the fortress of A'zaz on 15 May. Several days later, while Saladin was resting in one of his captain's tents, an Assassin rushed forward at him and struck at his head with a knife. The cap of his head armour was not penetrated and he managed to grip the Assassin's hand—the dagger only slashing his gambeson—and the assailant was soon killed.

Saladin was unnerved at the attempt on his life, which he accused Gumushtugin and the Assassins of plotting, and so increased his efforts in the siege. A'zaz capitulated on 21 June, and Saladin then hurried his forces to Aleppo to punish Gumushtigin. His assaults were again resisted, but he managed to secure not only a truce, but a mutual alliance with Aleppo, in which Gumushtigin and as-Salih were allowed to continue their hold on the city, and in return, they recognized Saladin as the sovereign over all of the dominions he conquered.

When the treaty was concluded, the younger sister of as-Salih came to Saladin and requested the return of the Fortress of A'zaz; he complied and escorted her back to the gates of Aleppo with numerous presents. Saladin had by now agreed to truces with his Zengid rivals and the Kingdom of Jerusalem the latter occurred in the summer of , but faced a threat from the Isma'ili sect known as the Assassins, led by Rashid ad-Din Sinan.

Based in the an-Nusayriyah Mountains, they commanded nine fortresses, all built on high elevations. As soon as he dispatched the bulk of his troops to Egypt, Saladin led his army into the an-Nusayriyah range in August He retreated the same month, after laying waste to the countryside, but failing to conquer any of the forts. Most Muslim historians claim that Saladin's uncle, the governor of Hama, mediated a peace agreement between him and Sinan.

Saladin had his guards supplied with link lights and had chalk and cinders strewed around his tent outside Masyaf—which he was besieging—to detect any footsteps by the Assassins. According to this version, one night Saladin's guards noticed a spark glowing down the hill of Masyaf and then vanishing among the Ayyubid tents. Presently, Saladin awoke to find a figure leaving the tent.

He saw that the lamps were displaced and beside his bed laid hot scones of the shape peculiar to the Assassins with a note at the top pinned by a poisoned dagger. The note threatened that he would be killed if he did not withdraw from his assault. Saladin gave a loud cry, exclaiming that Sinan himself was the figure that had left the tent.

Another version claims that Saladin hastily withdrew his troops from Masyaf because they were urgently needed to fend off a Crusader force in the vicinity of Mount Lebanon. In reality, Saladin sought to form an alliance with Sinan and his Assassins, consequently depriving the Crusaders of a potent ally against him. Viewing the expulsion of the Crusaders as a mutual benefit and priority, Saladin and Sinan maintained cooperative relations afterwards, the latter dispatching contingents of his forces to bolster Saladin's army in a number of decisive subsequent battlefronts.

After leaving the an-Nusayriyah Mountains, Saladin returned to Damascus and had his Syrian soldiers return home. He left Turan Shah in command of Syria and left for Egypt with only his personal followers, reaching Cairo on 22 September. Having been absent for roughly two years, he had much to organize and supervise in Egypt, namely fortifying and reconstructing Cairo.

The city walls were repaired and their extensions laid out, while the construction of the Cairo Citadel was commenced. The chief public work he commissioned outside of Cairo was the large bridge at Giza , which was intended to form an outwork of defence against a potential Moorish invasion. Saladin remained in Cairo supervising its improvements, building colleges such as the Madrasa of the Sword Makers and ordering the internal administration of the country.

In November , he set out upon a raid into Palestine; the Crusaders had recently forayed into the territory of Damascus, so Saladin saw the truce as no longer worth preserving. The Christians sent a large portion of their army to besiege the fortress of Harim north of Aleppo, so southern Palestine bore few defenders. Saladin found the situation ripe and marched to Ascalon, which he referred to as the "Bride of Syria".

William of Tyre recorded that the Ayyubid army consisted of 26, soldiers, of which 8, were elite forces and 18, were black soldiers from Sudan. This army proceeded to raid the countryside, sack Ramla and Lod, and disperse themselves as far as the Gates of Jerusalem. Although the Crusader force consisted of only knights, Saladin hesitated to ambush them because of the presence of highly skilled generals.

On 25 November, while the greater part of the Ayyubid army was absent, Saladin and his men were surprised near Ramla in the battle of Montgisard possibly at Gezer, also known as Tell Jezar. Before they could form up, the Templar force hacked the Ayyubid army down. Initially, Saladin attempted to organize his men into battle order, but as his bodyguards were being killed, he saw that defeat was inevitable and so with a small remnant of his troops mounted a swift camel, riding all the way to the territories of Egypt.

Not discouraged by his defeat at Montgisard, Saladin was prepared to fight the Crusaders once again. In the spring of , he was encamped under the walls of Homs, and a few skirmishes occurred between his generals and the Crusader army. His forces in Hama won a victory over their enemy and brought the spoils, together with many prisoners of war, to Saladin who ordered the captives to be beheaded for "plundering and laying waste the lands of the Faithful".

He spent the rest of the year in Syria without a confrontation with his enemies. Saladin's intelligence services reported to him that the Crusaders were planning a raid into Syria. He ordered one of his generals, Farrukh-Shah, to guard the Damascus frontier with a thousand of his men to watch for an attack, then to retire, avoiding battle, and to light warning beacons on the hills, after which Saladin would march out.

In April , the Crusaders led by King Baldwin expected no resistance and waited to launch a surprise attack on Muslim herders grazing their herds and flocks east of the Golan Heights. Baldwin advanced too rashly in pursuit of Farrukh-Shah's force, which was concentrated southeast of Quneitra and was subsequently defeated by the Ayyubids.

With this victory, Saladin decided to call in more troops from Egypt; he requested al-Adil to dispatch 1, horsemen. In the summer of , King Baldwin had set up an outpost on the road to Damascus and aimed to fortify a passage over the Jordan River , known as Jacob's Ford, that commanded the approach to the Banias plain the plain was divided by the Muslims and the Christians.

Saladin had offered , gold pieces to Baldwin to abandon the project, which was particularly offensive to the Muslims, but to no avail. He then resolved to destroy the fortress, called Chastellet and defended by the Templars, moving his headquarters to Banias. As the Crusaders hurried down to attack the Muslim forces, they fell into disorder, with the infantry falling behind.

Despite early success, they pursued the Muslims far enough to become scattered, and Saladin took advantage by rallying his troops and charging at the Crusaders. The engagement ended in a decisive Ayyubid victory, and many high-ranking knights were captured. Saladin then moved to besiege the fortress, which fell on 30 August In the spring of , while Saladin was in the area of Safad , anxious to commence a vigorous campaign against the Kingdom of Jerusalem, King Baldwin sent messengers to him with proposals of peace.

Because droughts and bad harvests hampered his commissariat , Saladin agreed to a truce. Raymond of Tripoli denounced the truce but was compelled to accept after an Ayyubid raid on his territory in May and upon the appearance of Saladin's naval fleet off the port of Tartus. This was intended to cement an alliance with the Artuqids and to impress other emirs in Mesopotamia and Anatolia.

The latter demanded that Nur al-Din return the lands given to him as a dowry for marrying his daughter when he received reports that she was being abused and used to gain Seljuk territory. Nur al-Din asked Saladin to mediate the issue, but Arslan refused. Saladin was later enraged when he received a message from Arslan accusing Nur al-Din of more abuses against his daughter.

He threatened to attack the city of Malatya, saying, "it is two days march for me and I shall not dismount [my horse] until I am in the city. Saladin felt that Arslan was correct to care for his daughter, but Nur al-Din had taken refuge with him, and therefore he could not betray his trust. It was finally agreed that Arslan's daughter would be sent away for a year and if Nur al-Din failed to comply, Saladin would move to abandon his support for him.

According to Abu Shama, he intended to spend the fast of Ramadan in Egypt and then make the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in the summer. For an unknown reason, he apparently changed his plans regarding the pilgrimage and was seen inspecting the Nile River banks in June. He was again embroiled with the Bedouin; he removed two-thirds of their fiefs to use as compensation for the fief-holders at Fayyum.

The Bedouin were also accused of trading with the Crusaders and, consequently, their grain was confiscated and they were forced to migrate westward. Later, Ayyubid warships were deployed against Bedouin river pirates, who were plundering the shores of Lake Tanis. Saladin's intimates accused Majd al-Din of misappropriating the revenues of Zabid, but Saladin himself believed there was no evidence to back the allegations.

He had Majd al-Din released in return for a payment of 80, dinars. The controversial detainment of Majd al-Din was a part of the larger discontent associated with the aftermath of Turan-Shah's departure from Yemen. Although his deputies continued to send him revenues from the province, centralized authority was lacking and an internal quarrel arose between Izz al-Din Uthman of Aden and Hittan of Zabid.

Saladin wrote in a letter to al-Adil: "this Yemen is a treasure house We conquered it, but up to this day we have had no return and no advantage from it. There have been only innumerable expenses, the sending out of troops On 4 December, the crown prince of the Zengids, as-Salih, died in Aleppo. Prior to his death, he had his chief officers swear an oath of loyalty to Izz al-Din, as he was the only Zengid ruler strong enough to oppose Saladin.

Izz al-Din was welcomed in Aleppo, but possessing it and Mosul put too great of a strain on his abilities. Saladin offered no opposition to these transactions in order to respect the treaty he previously made with the Zengids. On 11 May , Saladin, along with half of the Egyptian Ayyubid army and numerous non-combatants, left Cairo for Syria.

On the evening before he departed, he sat with his companions and the tutor of one of his sons quoted a line of poetry: "enjoy the scent of the ox-eye plant of Najd , for after this evening it will come no more". Saladin took this as an evil omen and he never saw Egypt again. Knowing that Crusader forces were massed upon the frontier to intercept him, he took the desert route across the Sinai Peninsula to Ailah at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba.

Meeting no opposition, Saladin ravaged the countryside of Montreal, whilst Baldwin's forces watched on, refusing to intervene. He arrived in Damascus in June to learn that Farrukh-Shah had attacked the Galilee , sacking Daburiyya and capturing Habis Jaldek, a fortress of great importance to the Crusaders. In July, Saladin led his army across the Jordan and into Galilee , where he marched south to sack Bethsan.

He was met by a substantial Crusader force in an inconclusive battle near Belvoir Castle, but he was unable to destroy the Christian army and could not logistically sustain his own army any longer, so he withdrew across the river. In August, he passed through the Beqaa Valley to Beirut , where he rendezvoused with the Egyptian fleet and laid siege to the city.

Failing to make any headway, he withdrew after a few days to deal with matters in Mesopotamia. He complied and the truce between him and the Zengids officially ended in September Prior to his march to Jazira, tensions had grown between the Zengid rulers of the region, primarily concerning their unwillingness to pay deference to Mosul. Before he crossed the Euphrates , Saladin besieged Aleppo for three days, signaling that the truce was over.

Once he reached Bira, near the river, he was joined by Kukbary and Nur al-Din of Hisn Kayfa and the combined forces captured the cities of Jazira, one after the other. While Saladin consolidated his power in Syria, he generally left the Crusader kingdom alone, although he was usually victorious when he met the Crusaders in battle. One such victory came at the Ford of Jacob's Daughters in However, the Crusaders repeatedly provoked him.

Raynald of Chatillon , in particular, harassed Muslim trading and pilgrimage routes, and threatened to attack Mecca with a fleet on the Red Sea. Saladin captured and executed Raynald; he also captured King Guy. He then recaptured Jerusalem on October 2 , , after 88 years of Crusader rule. Soon he had taken back every Crusader city except Tyre.

Salah al din biography for kids

Hattin and the fall of Jerusalem prompted the Third Crusadeand successfully defended the city against the Third Crusade. Saladin's relationship with Richard was one of mutual respect as well as military rivalry. When Richard was wounded, Saladin even offered the services of his personal physician; at Arsuf, when Richard lost his horse, Saladin sent him two replacements.

There were even plans to marry Richard's sister to Saladin's brother.