Saladin

1137 – 4 March 1193

Saladin (Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub) was a Kurdish Muslim commander who founded the Ayyubid dynasty and ruled Egypt and Syria as sultan. He united much of the Muslim Near East, crushed the Crusader army at the Battle of Hattin in 1187, and recaptured Jerusalem after nearly a century of Crusader rule. He was widely admired, even by his enemies, for his chivalry and generosity.

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Well-documented people whose lives overlapped with Saladin.

Life events

Born in Tikrit
1137

Saladin was born in 1137 in Tikrit, Mesopotamia, into a Kurdish family; his father Ayyub was governor of the town.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Birth ✓
Raised and educated in Damascus
c. 1152

Saladin grew up in Damascus at the court of the Zengid ruler Nur ad-Din, where he received military and religious training.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Joined his uncle Shirkuh's campaigns in Egypt
1164

Saladin accompanied his uncle Shirkuh on Nur ad-Din's military expeditions into Fatimid Egypt, gaining his first major command experience.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Became vizier of Egypt
March 1169

On the death of Shirkuh in March 1169, Saladin was appointed vizier of Fatimid Egypt by the caliph al-Adid.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Abolished the Fatimid Caliphate
September 1171

In September 1171 Saladin ended the Shia Fatimid Caliphate, restoring Sunni allegiance to the Abbasid caliph and becoming the effective ruler of Egypt.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Proclaimed Sultan of Egypt and Syria, founding the Ayyubid dynasty
1174

After the death of Nur ad-Din in 1174, Saladin took Damascus and established himself as sultan over Egypt and Syria.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Career ✓
Destroyed the Crusader army at the Battle of Hattin
4 July 1187

On 4 July 1187 Saladin annihilated the combined forces of the Kingdom of Jerusalem near the Horns of Hattin, capturing King Guy of Lusignan.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Recaptured Jerusalem from the Crusaders
2 October 1187

Saladin accepted the surrender of Jerusalem on 2 October 1187, ending 88 years of Crusader rule and sparing most of the city's inhabitants.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Concluded the Treaty of Jaffa with Richard the Lionheart
2 September 1192

On 2 September 1192 Saladin and Richard I of England agreed a truce ending the Third Crusade, leaving Jerusalem in Muslim hands but open to Christian pilgrims.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Died in Damascus
4 March 1193

Saladin died of a fever in Damascus on 4 March 1193, having given away most of his personal wealth to the poor.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Death ✓