Egyptian Ayyubid Sultanate

Name

In medieval Islamic sources, the Ayyubids were referred to as the "Kurdish regime/dynasty" (Arabic: دولة الکردية, romanized: Dawlat al-Kurdiyya), the "dynasty/regime of the Kurds" (Arabic: دولة الأکراد, romanized: Dawlat al-Akrād), or as the "Kurdish Kingdom" (Arabic: المملکة الحصينة الأکرادية, romanized: al-Mamlaka al-Ḥasina al-Akrādiyya ). For example, Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Khazraji, a writer at the end of the Ayyubid period, wrote a history entitled Tar'īkh al-Dawlat al-Akrād wal-Atrāk, which translates as "The History of the State of the Kurds and of the Turks". The "Kurds" refer to the Ayyubids while the "Turks" refer to the Mamluks who succeeded them in 1250. The dynasty is also referred to as the "Ayyubid Kurds" (Arabic: الأکراد الأيوبية al-Akrād al-Ayyūbiyya) and "Kurdish rulers of Egypt".

History

Origins

The progenitor of the Ayyubid dynasty, Najm ad-Din Ayyub ibn Shadhi, belonged to the Kurdish Rawadiya tribe, itself a branch of the large Hadhabani tribe. The Rawadiya were of originally Arab origin but became Kurdicized over time. In later periods, members of the Ayyubid dynasty sponsored genealogies showing that they were not Kurds, but rather descended from noble Arab lineages, including the Banu Umayya. While these genealogies are generally regarded as politically motivated constructions, the historian Vladimir Minorsky argued that they reflect an underlying historical reality. He suggested the Rawadiya Kurds to be descendants of the Arab general Rawwād al-Azdī, who governed Tabriz in the early 9th century, and whose lineage became Kurdicized in Azerbaijan. These groups later emerged as a principal clan within the Hadhabani confederation, with one branch eventually settling in Dvin. According to this view, the later Arab genealogies of the Ayyubids preserve a genuine, though distant, memory of Arab origins.

According to Yasser Tabbaa, an anthropologist specializing in medieval Islamic culture, the Ayyubid rulers who reigned in the late 12th-century were far removed from their Kurdish origins, and unlike their Seljuq predecessors and their Mamluk successors, they were firmly "Arabized". Arabic culture and language formed the main component of their identity instead of their Kurdish heritage.

Ayyub's ancestors settled in the town of Dvin, in northern Armenia. The Rawadiya were part of the political-military elite of the town. Circumstances became unfavorable in Dvin when Turks seized the town. Shadhi left with his two sons Ayyub and Asad ad-Din Shirkuh. His friend Mujahid ad-Din Bihruz—the military governor of northern Mesopotamia under the Seljuks—welcomed him and appointed him governor of Tikrit. After Shadhi's death, Ayyub succeeded him in governance of the city with the assistance of his brother Shirkuh. Together they managed the affairs of the city well, gaining them popularity from the local inhabitants. In the meantime, Imad ad-Din Zangi, the ruler of Mosul, was defeated by the Abbasids under Caliph al-Mustarshid and Bihruz. In his bid to escape the battlefield to Mosul via Tikrit, Zangi took shelter with Ayyub and sought his assistance in this task. Ayyub complied and provided Zangi and his companions boats to cross the Tigris River and safely reach Mosul.

As a consequence for assisting Zangi, the Abbasid authorities sought punitive measures against Ayyub. Simultaneously, in a separate incident, Shirkuh killed a close confidant of Bihruz on charges that he had sexually assaulted a woman in Tikrit. The Abbasid court issued arrest warrants for both Ayyub and Shirkuh, but before the brothers could be arrested, they departed Tikrit for Mosul in 1138. When they arrived in Mosul, Zangi provided them with all the facilities they needed and he recruited the two brothers into his service. Ayyub was made commander of Ba'albek and Shirkuh entered the service of Zangi's son, Nur ad-Din. According to historian Abdul Ali, it was under the care and patronage of Zangi that the Ayyubid family rose to prominence.

Establishment in Egypt

In 1164, Nur al-Din dispatched Shirkuh to lead an expeditionary force to prevent the Crusaders from establishing a strong presence in an increasingly anarchic Egypt. Shirkuh enlisted Ayyub's son, Saladin, as an officer under his command. They successfully drove out Dirgham, the vizier of Egypt, and reinstated his predecessor Shawar. After being reinstated, Shawar ordered Shirkuh to withdraw his forces from Egypt, but Shirkuh refused, claiming it was Nur al-Din's will that he remain. Over the course of several years, Shirkuh and Saladin defeated the combined forces of the Crusaders and Shawar's troops, first at Bilbais, then at a site near Giza, and in Alexandria, where Saladin would stay to protect while Shirkuh pursued Crusader forces in Lower Egypt.

Shawar died in 1169 and Shirkuh became vizier, but he too died later that year. After Shirkuh's death, Saladin was appointed vizier by the Fatimid caliph al-Adid because there was "no one weaker or younger" than Saladin, and "not one of the emirs obeyed him or served him", according to medieval Muslim chronicler Ibn al-Athir. Saladin soon found himself more independent than ever before in his career, much to the dismay of Nur al-Din who attempted to influence events in Egypt. He permitted Saladin's elder brother, Turan-Shah, to supervise Saladin in a bid to cause dissension within the Ayyubid family and thus undermining its position in Egypt. Nur al-Din satisfied Saladin's request that he be joined by his father Ayyub. However, Ayyub was sent primarily to ensure that Abbasid suzerainty was proclaimed in Egypt, which Saladin was reluctant to undertake due to his position as the vizier of the Fatimids. Although Nur al-Din failed to provoke the Ayyubids into rivalry, the extended Ayyubid family, particularly a number of local governors in Syria, did not entirely back Saladin.

Saladin consolidated his control in Egypt after ordering Turan-Shah to put down a revolt in Cairo staged by the Fatimid army's 50,000-strong Nubian regiments. After this success, Saladin began granting his family members high-ranking positions in the country and increased Sunni Muslim influence in Shia Muslim-dominated Cairo by ordering the construction of a college for the Maliki school of jurisprudence of Sunni Islam in the city, and another for the Shafi'i school, to which he belonged, in al-Fustat. In 1171, al-Adid died and Saladin took advantage of this power vacuum, effectively taking control of the country. Upon seizing power, he switched Egypt's allegiance to the Baghdad-based Abbasid Caliphate which adhered to Sunni Islam.

Expansion

Saladin went to Alexandria in 1171–72 and found himself facing the dilemma of having many supporters in the city, but little money. A family council was held there by the Ayyubid emirs of Egypt where it was decided that al-Muzaffar Taqi al-Din Umar, Saladin's nephew, would launch an expedition against the coastal region of Barqa (Cyrenaica) west of Egypt with a force of 500 cavalry. To justify the raid, a letter was sent to the Bedouin tribes of Barqa, rebuking them for their robberies of travelers and ordering them to pay the alms-tax (zakat). The latter was to be collected from their livestock.

In late 1172, Aswan was besieged by former Fatimid soldiers from Nubia and the governor of the city, Kanz al-Dawla—a former Fatimid loyalist—requested reinforcements from Saladin who complied. The reinforcements had come after the Nubians had already departed Aswan, but Ayyubid forces led by Turan-Shah advanced and conquered northern Nubia after capturing the town of Ibrim. Turan-Shah and his Kurdish soldiers temporarily lodged there. From Ibrim, they raided the surrounding region, halting their operations after being presented with an armistice proposal from the Makurian king. Although Turan-Shah's initial response was hawkish, he later sent an envoy to Dongola, who upon returning, described the poverty of the city and of Nubia in general to Turan-Shah. Consequently, the Ayyubids, like their Fatimid predecessors, were discouraged from further southward expansion into Nubia due to the poverty of the region, but required Nubia to guarantee the protection of Aswan and Upper Egypt. The Ayyubid garrison in Ibrim withdrew to Egypt in 1175.

Throughout the 1170s, the Ayyubids continued to push west as well. Sharaf al-Din Qaraqush, a commander under al-Muzaffar Taqi al-Din Umar, led most of these expeditions on the frontier. He captured Siwa in 1172 and conquered Cyrenaica before 1174. He subsequently conquered Tripoli with an army of Turks and Kurds, joined by Arab troops from some of the region's Bedouin tribes. The exact date of Tripoli's capture is uncertain, but happened sometime in the 1170s or early 1180s. While some Ayyubid forces fought the Crusaders in the Levant, Qaraqush's forces went on to capture most of Ifriqiya (present-day Tunisia) from the Almohads by 1185–1186. By this point, Qaraqush had also entered into alliance with the Banu Ghaniya, led by Ali ibn Ghaniya, another enemy of the Almohads. The Almohad caliph Yaqub al-Mansur reconquered Ifriqiya from 1187 to 1188, defeating both of them. The Ayyubids made no further attempts to intervene in the Maghreb after this.

Quarrels over the sultanate

Rather than establishing a centralized empire, Saladin had established hereditary ownership throughout his lands, dividing his empire among his kinsmen, with family members presiding over semi-autonomous fiefs and principalities. Although these princes (emirs) owed allegiance to the Ayyubid sultan, they maintained relative independence in their own territories. Upon Saladin's death, az-Zahir took Aleppo from al-Adil per the arrangement and al-Aziz Uthman held Cairo, while his eldest son, al-Afdal retained Damascus, which also included Palestine and much of Mount Lebanon. Al-Adil then acquired al-Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia), where he held the Zengids of Mosul at bay. In 1193, Mas'ud of Mosul joined forces with Zangi II of Sinjar and together the Zengid coalition moved to conquer al-Jazira. However, before any major results could be achieved, Mas'ud fell ill and returned to Mosul, and al-Adil then compelled Zangi to make a quick peace before the Zengids suffered territorial losses at the hands of the Ayyubids. Al-Adil's son al-Mu'azzam took possession of Karak and Transjordan.

Soon, however, Saladin's sons squabbled over the division of the empire. Saladin had appointed al-Afdal to the governorship of Damascus with the intention that his son should continue to see the city as his principal place of residence to emphasize the primacy of the jihad (struggle) against the Crusader states. Al-Afdal, however, found that his attachment to Damascus contributed to his undoing. Several of his father's subordinate emirs left the city for Cairo to lobby Uthman to oust him on claims he was inexperienced and intended to oust the Ayyubid old guard. Al-Adil further encouraged Uthman to act in order prevent al-Afdal's incompetence putting the Ayyubid empire in jeopardy. Thus, in 1194, Uthman openly demanded the sultanate. Uthman's claim to the throne was settled in a series of assaults on Damascus in 1196, forcing al-Afdal to leave for a lesser post at Salkhad. Al-Adil established himself in Damascus as a lieutenant of Uthman, but wielded great influence within the empire.

When Uthman died in a hunting accident near Cairo, al-Afdal was again made sultan (although Uthman's son al-Mansur was the nominal ruler of Egypt), al-Adil having been absent in a campaign in the northeast. Al-Adil returned and managed to occupy the Citadel of Damascus, but then faced a strong assault from the combined forces of al-Afdal and his brother az-Zahir of Aleppo. These forces disintegrated under al-Afdal's leadership and in 1200, al-Adil resumed his offensive. Upon Uthman's death, two clans of mamluks (slave soldiers) entered into conflict. They were the Asadiyya and Salahiyya, both of which Shirkuh and Saladin had purchased. The Salahiyya backed al-Adil in his struggles against al-Afdal. With their support, al-Adil conquered Cairo in 1200, and forced al-Afdal to accept internal banishment. He proclaimed himself Sultan of Egypt and Syria afterward and entrusted the governance of Damascus to al-Mu'azzam and al-Jazira to his other son al-Kamil. Also around 1200, a sharif (tribal head related to the Islamic prophet Muhammad), Qatada ibn Idris, seized power in Mecca and was recognized as the emir of the city by al-Adil.

Disintegration

In the east, the Khwarazmian Empire under Jalal al-Din Mangburni captured the town of Khilat from al-Ashraf, while the traditionally loyalist Rasulids began to encroach on Ayyubid holdings in Arabia. In 1222 the Ayyubids appointed the Rasulid leader Ali ibn Rasul as governor of Mecca. Ayyubid rule in Yemen and the Hejaz was declining and the Ayyubid governor of Yemen, Mas'ud ibn Kamil, was forced to leave for Egypt in 1223. He appointed Nur ad-Din Umar as his deputy governor while he was absent. In 1224 a local dynasty gained control of Hadramaut from the Ayyubids, whose control of it had been weakened due to their troubled situation in Yemen proper. Following Mas'ud ibn Kamil's death in 1229, Nur ad-Din Umar declared his independence and discontinued the annual tribute payment to the Ayyubids in Egypt.

Under Frederick II, a Sixth Crusade was launched, capitalizing on the ongoing strife between al-Kamil of Egypt and al-Mu'azzam of Syria. Subsequently, al-Kamil offered Jerusalem to Frederick to help prevent a Syrian invasion of Egypt, but Frederick refused. Al-Kamil's position was strengthened when al-Mu'azzam died in 1227 and was succeeded by his son an-Nasir Dawud. Al-Kamil continued negotiations with Frederick in Acre in 1228, leading to a truce signed in February 1229. The agreement gave the Crusaders control over an unfortified Jerusalem for over ten years, but also guaranteed Muslim control over Islamic holy places in the city. Although the treaty held little military significance, an-Nasir Dawud used it as a pretext to provoke the sentiments of Syria's inhabitants. A Friday sermon by a popular preacher at the Umayyad Mosque "reduced the crowd to violent sobbing and tears".

The settlement with the Crusaders was accompanied by a proposed redistribution of the Ayyubid principalities whereby Damascus and its territories would by governed by al-Ashraf, who recognized al-Kamil's sovereignty. An-Nasir Dawud resisted, incensed by the Ayyubid-Crusader truce. Al-Kamil's forces reached Damascus to enforce the proposed agreement in May 1229. The ensuing siege levied significant pressure on the inhabitants, but they rallied to an-Nasir Dawud, having been supportive of his father's stable rule and angered at the treaty with Frederick. After one month, an-Nasir Dawud sued for peace and was granted a new principality, centered around Karak, while al-Ashraf, the governor of Diyar Bakr, assumed the governorship of Damascus.

Meanwhile, the Seljuks were advancing towards al-Jazira. The descendants of Qatada ibn Idris challenged Ayyubid rule in Mecca. The Rasulids took advantage of this to end Ayyubid suzerainty in the Hejaz and bring the region under their control, which they accomplished in 1238 when Nur al-Din Umar captured Mecca.

Fall

In 1248, a Crusader fleet of 1,800 boats and ships arrived in Cyprus with the intent of launching a Seventh Crusade against the Muslims by conquering Egypt. Their commander, Louis IX, attempted to enlist the Mongols to launch a coordinated attack on Egypt, but when this failed to materialize, the Crusader force sailed to Damietta and the local population there fled as soon as they landed. When as-Salih Ayyub, who was in Syria at the time, heard of this, he rushed back to Egypt, avoiding Damietta, instead reaching Mansurah. There, he organized an army and raised a commando force which harassed the Crusaders.

As-Salih Ayyub was ill and his health deteriorated further due to the mounting pressure from the Crusader offensive. His wife Shajar al-Durr called a meeting of all the war generals and thus became commander-in-chief of the Egyptian forces. She ordered the fortification of Mansurah and then stored large quantities of provisions and concentrated her forces there. She also organized a fleet of war galleys and scattered them at various strategic points along the Nile River. Crusader attempts to capture Mansurah were thwarted and King Louis found himself in a critical position. He managed to cross the Nile to launch a surprise attack against Mansurah. Meanwhile, as-Salih Ayyub died, but Shajar al-Durr and as-Salih Ayyub's Bahri Mamluk generals, including Rukn al-Din Baybars and Aybak, countered the assault and inflicted heavy losses on the Crusaders. Simultaneously, Egyptian forces cut off the Crusader's line of supply from Damietta, preventing the arrival of reinforcements. As-Salih Ayyub's son and the newly proclaimed Ayyubid sultan al-Mu'azzam Turan-Shah reached Mansurah at this point and intensified the battle against the Crusaders. The latter ultimately surrendered at the Battle of Fariskur, and King Louis and his companions were arrested.

Al-Mu'azzam Turan-Shah alienated the Mamluks soon after their victory at Mansurah and constantly threatened them and Shajar al-Durr. Fearing for their positions of power, the Bahri Mamluks revolted against the sultan and killed him in April 1250. Aybak married Shajar al-Durr and subsequently took over the government in Egypt in the name of al-Ashraf II who became sultan, but only nominally.

Intent on restoring the supremacy of Saladin's direct descendants within the Ayyubid family, an-Nasir Yusuf was eventually able to enlist the backing of all of the Syria-based Ayyubid emirs in a common cause against Mamluk-dominated Egypt. By 1250, he took Damascus with relative ease and except for Hama and Transjordan, an-Nasir Yusuf's direct authority stood unbroken from the Khabur River in northern Mesopotamia to the Sinai Peninsula. In December 1250, he attacked Egypt after hearing of al-Mu'azzam Turan-Shah's death and the ascension of Shajar al-Durr. An-Nasir Yusuf's army was much larger and better-equipped than that of the Egyptian army, consisting of the forces of Aleppo, Homs, Hama, and those of Saladin's only surviving sons, Nusrat ad-Din and Turan-Shah ibn Salah ad-Din. Nonetheless, it suffered a major defeat at the hands of Aybak's forces. An-Nasir Yusuf subsequently returned to Syria, which was slowly slipping out of his control.

Remnants of the dynasty

Many of the Ayyubid emirs of Syria were discredited by Qutuz for collaborating with the Mongols, but since al-Ashraf Musa defected and fought alongside the Mamluks at Ain Jalut, he was allowed to continue his rule over Homs. Al-Mansur of Hama had fought alongside the Mamluks from the start of their conquest and because of this, Hama continued to be ruled by the Ayyubid descendants of al-Muzaffar Umar. After al-Ashraf Musa's death in 1262, the new Mamluk sultan, Baibars, annexed Homs. The next year, al-Mughith Umar was tricked into surrendering Karak to Baibars and was executed soon after for having previously sided with the Mongols.

The last Ayyubid ruler of Hama died in 1299 and Hama briefly passed through direct Mamluk suzerainty. However, in 1310, under the patronage of the Mamluk sultan al-Nasir Muhammad, Hama was restored to the Ayyubids under the well-known geographer and author Abu al-Fida. The latter died in 1331 and was succeeded by his son al-Afdal Muhammad, who eventually lost the favor of his Mamluk overlords. He was removed from his post in 1341 and Hama was formally placed under Mamluk rule.

In southeastern Anatolia, the Ayyubids continued to rule the principality of Hisn Kayfa and managed to remain an autonomous entity, independent of the Mongol Ilkhanate, which ruled northern Mesopotamia until the 1330s. After the breakup of the Ilkhanate, their former vassals in the area, the Artuqids, waged war against the Ayyubids of Hisn Kayfa in 1334, but were decisively defeated, with the Ayyubids gaining the Artuqids' possessions on the left bank of the Tigris River. In the 14th century, the Ayyubids rebuilt the castle of Hisn Kayfa which served as their stronghold. The Ayyubids of Hisn Kayfa were vassals of the Mamluks and later the Dulkadirids until being supplanted by the Ottoman Empire in the early 16th century.

Military

Fundamentally, Saladin's army, which grew out of Nur ad-Din's army, was mainly based on Kurdo-Turkic troops, alongside some Fatimid and Arab tribal contingents. Kurds made up one-third of Saladin's army and were mostly organized in tribal units and corps, such as al-Hakkariyya, al-Mehraniyya (branch of Hadhbāni), al-Humaydiyya and al-Zarzariyya. In 1181, Saladin's Egyptian army was composed of 111 amirs, 6,976 tawashi (cavalrymen) and 1,153 qara-ghulams (second grade cavalrymen). In addition to the dominant contribution of Egypt, each urban centre in the Levant and the Jazira maintained contingents depending on its resources, which were called by Saladin when needed. The estimated total of 16,000 regular cavalry were directly subject to Saladin's command, in addition to 4000 troops which the Zengids of Mosul and the other Zengid principalities supplied. It was with the large bulk of this army, some 12,000 cavalrymen, that Saladin defeated the Crusader forces at Hattin and achieved his later victories.

Not much is known about how the Ayyubids graded their officer corps. A number of military titles appear in inscriptions on some Ayyubid buildings, including amir, amir al-kabir, supasalar and amir supasalar. These might refer to different ranks.

The Ayyubid army largely consisted of free-born soldiers, but the sultan, princes and amirs also acquired their own personal Mamluk contingents. These included, for instance, the Asadiyya (named after Asad ad-Din Shirkuh), the Salahiyya (after Saladin), the 'Adiliyya (after Adil I), the Kamiliyya (after al-Kamil), and others. The lack of unity and the rivalries between these contingents eventually weakened the Ayyubid army. Furthermore, a few traces of ethnic hostility may have existed between Kurds, who were free-born, and Turks who generally made up the Mamluk contingents. Although the army was paid by a monthly salary called jāmakiyya, the amirs were often assigned an iqta' (fiefdom) by the sultan or other rulers. From the income of these iqta, they were required to provide a specific number of fully equipped and trained cavalrymen when the sultan called them to arms.

Government

Structure

Saladin structured the Ayyubid empire around the concept of collective sovereignty i.e. a confederation of principalities held together by the idea of family rule. Under this arrangement there existed numerous "petty sultans" while one family member, as-Sultan al-Mu'azzam, reigned supreme. After the death of Saladin, this coveted position became open to whoever was strong enough to seize it. Subsequent rivalry between the Ayyubids of Syria and Egypt reached a point where the rulers of each territory would at times collude with Crusaders against the other. Ayyubid rule differed in these two regions. In Syria, each major city was ruled as a relatively independent principality under an Ayyubid family member, while in Egypt the long tradition of centralized rule enabled the Ayyubids to maintain direct control over the province from Cairo. It was Baghdad, seat of the Caliphate, however, that exercised cultural and political hegemony over the Ayyubid territories, particularly those in Southwest Asia. For instance, the qadi ("chief justice") of Damascus was still appointed by the Abbasids during Ayyubid rule.

Political power was concentrated in the Ayyubid household which was not necessarily characterized only by blood relation; slaves and intimates could acquire great, and even supreme power within it. It was a common occurrence for the mothers of young Ayyubid rulers to act as independent powers or in a few cases, rulers in their own right. Eunuchs exercised substantial power under the Ayyubids, serving as attendants and atabegs within the household or as emirs, governors, and army commanders outside the household. One of Saladin's most important supporters was the eunuch Baha ad-Din ibn Shaddad who helped him depose the Fatimids, dispossess their properties, and construct the wall of Cairo's citadel. Following the death of al-Aziz Uthman, he became the regent of his son al-Mansur and effectively ruled over Egypt for a short time before the arrival of al-Adil. Later sultans appointed eunuchs as deputy sultans and even awarded them sovereignty over certain cities, such as Shams al-Din Sawab who was given the Jaziran cities of Amid and Diyar Bakr in 1239.

The Ayyubids had three principal means of recruiting the educated elites whom they needed to administer their cities and towns. Some of these local leaders, known as shaykhs, entered the service of an Ayyubid ruling household and thus their bids for power were supported from Ayyubid household revenues and influence. Others were paid directly out of revenues made from the diwan, a high governmental body of the state. The third method was assignment to the shaykhs of the revenues of charitable endowments, known as waqfs. The Ayyubids, like their various predecessors in the region, had relatively few state agencies by which they could penetrate their cities and towns. To link themselves with the educated elite of their cities, they relied on the political usage of patronage practices. The assignment of waqf revenue to this elite was similar to the assignment of fiefs (iqta'at) to the commanders and generals of the army. In both cases, it enabled the Ayyubids to recruit a dependent, but not administratively subordinate elite.

Seat of government

The seat of Ayyubid government from Saladin's rule from the 1170s up to al-Adil's reign in 1218 had been Damascus. The city provided a strategic advantage in the constant war with the Crusaders and allowed the sultan to keep an eye on his relatively ambitious vassals in Syria and al-Jazira. Cairo was too remote to serve as a base of operations, but had always served as the economic foundation of the empire. This rendered the city a critical constituent in the repertoire of the Ayyubid possessions. When Saladin was proclaimed sultan in Cairo in 1171, he chose the Fatimid-built Lesser Western Palace (part of a larger palace complex in Cairo isolated from the urban sprawl) as the seat of government. Saladin himself resided in the former Fatimid vizier palace, Turan-Shah took up a former Fatimid prince's living quarter, and their father occupied the Pearl Pavilion which was situated outside Cairo overlooking the city's canal. The successive Ayyubid sultans of Egypt would live in the Lesser Western Palace.

After al-Adil I seized the throne in Cairo and with it the sultanate of the Ayyubid oligarchy, the period of rivalry between Damascus and Cairo to become capital of the Ayyubid empire commenced. Under al-Adil and al-Kamil, Damascus continued as an autonomous province whose ruler reserved the right to designate his own heir, but during as-Salih Ayyub's rule, military campaigns against Syria reduced Damascus to a vassal of Cairo. In addition, Ayyub established new rules both in administration and government to centralize his regime; he conferred the most prominent positions of the state to his close confidants, instead of his Ayyubid relatives. His wife Shajar al-Durr, for example, managed the affairs of Egypt while he was in Syria. Ayyub officially delegated his authority to his dead son Khalil and made al-Durr act formally on Khalil's behalf.

Iqta' system

Saladin established the iqta' system that remained in practice until the end of Ayyubid rule. The iqta system of the Ayyubids was modeled after the Seljuk system, but was more centralized. An Ayyubid fief holder had two different kinds of fiefs: a special one (khassa), for his own personal needs, and another one called iqta', for the maintenance of his troops. Ayyubid feudalism in Egypt differed from the feudal system in the other parts of the sultanate (Syria and Al-Jazirah), as the Ayyubid feudal lords in Syria had more power and independence than their Egyptian counterparts. The iqta' was held mainly by Ayyubid dynasty members, Kurds or Mamluks. The Kurdish fief holders consisted of four tribes, the al-Hakkariyya, al-Humaydiyya, al-Mihraniyya and al-Zarzariyya. However, during the reign of al-Salih Ayyub, the al-Qaymariyya became the dominant Kurdish tribe within the Ayyubid military oligarchy.

Demographics

Religion, ethnicity and language

By the 12th century, Islam was the dominant religion in the Middle East. It is not certain, however, if it was the religion of the majority outside the Arabian Peninsula. Arabic was the language of high culture and of the urban population, although other languages dating to pre-Islamic rule were still being used to a certain extent. Most Egyptians were speaking Arabic by the time the Ayyubids took power there.

Kurdish was the mother tongue of the Ayyubids, at the time of their departure from Dvin. Sultan Saladin spoke both Arabic and Kurdish, and likely Turkish as well. There was a strong ethnic consciousness between the Ayyubids and other Kurds. According to the historian R. Stephen Humphreys, Saladin obtained the Fatimid vizierate partly on the strength of it. Kurdish ethnic consciousness was reinforced by the existence of ethnic friction. After Shirkuh's death, Saladin's close associate Diya' al-Din Isa al-Hakkari, a Kurd, visited the leaders of each faction contending for power to try to win them over to the election of Saladin, and to one Kurdish emir, Qutb al-Din Khusrau ibn al-Talal, he used the following argument: "Verily, everybody is for Saladin except you and al-Yaruqi [a Turkmen amir from the north Syrian Yürük tribe]. What is needed now, above all, is an understanding between you and Saladin, especially because of his Kurdish origin, so that the command does not go from him to the Turks." Within a few months of Saladin's election, all the Turkish amirs had returned to Syria to save the Turks, although no conflict happened.

The Ayyubid period represents the climax of Kurdish integration in Egypt and Syria, to the extent that the Ayyubid dynasty appeared as Kurdish dynasty par excellence. The Ayyubids acted as a Kurdish dynasty, functioning as a tribal catalyst. Kurds from various tribes and social status occupied high positions within the Ayyubid realm, from military to religious elites. The Ayyubids reinforced the nexus between the Sultanate and their Kurdish kinsmen, while the Kurds maintained their tribal ethos, solidarities and link to their original homeland. While the Ayyubid military was very ethnically diverse, elite units were dominated by Kurds, and Saladin's personal guard was generally reserved for Kurds. Ibn Fadlallah al-Umari wrote that many Lurs had migrated from Luristan to the Levant and Egypt and had a significant presence there, although Saladin saw them as a potential challenge to his elite Kurdish troops and eventually ordered the massacre of all Lurs, after which the Luri population in the Levant and Egypt had vanished.

Population

There is no accurate figure for the population of the various territories under Ayyubid rule. Colin McEvedy and Richard Jones suggest that in the 12th century, Syria had a population of 2.7 million, Palestine and Transjordan had 500,000 inhabitants, and Egypt had a population of under 5 million. Josiah C. Russel states that in this same period there were 2.4 million people in Syria living in 8,300 villages, leaving a population of 230,000–300,000 living in ten cities, eight of which were Muslim cities under Ayyubid control. The largest were Edessa (pop. 24,000), Damascus (pop. 15,000), Aleppo (pop. 14,000), and Jerusalem (pop. 10,000). Smaller cities included Homs, Hama, Gaza, and Hebron.

Russel estimated the Egyptian village population to be 3.3 million in 2,300 villages, a high density for rural populations in the time period. He attributes it to the high productivity of Egyptian soil which allowed for increased agricultural growth. The urban population was much lower, 233,100, consisting of 5.7% of the total Egyptian population. The largest cities were Cairo (pop. 60,000), Alexandria (pop. 30,000), Qus (pop. 25,000), Damietta (pop. 18,000), Fayyum (pop. 13,000), and Bilbeis (pop. 10,000). Numerous smaller cities dotted the Nile River. Among the latter were Damanhur, Asyut, and Tanta. Cities in Egypt were also densely populated, mainly because of greater urbanization and industrialization than elsewhere.

Economy

Having pushed the Crusaders out of most of Syria, the Ayyubids generally adopted a policy of peace with them. The war with the Crusaders did not prevent Muslims under Ayyubid governance from developing good commercial relations with European states. This led to fruitful interaction between both sides in different fields of economic activity, particularly in agriculture and trade.

Numerous measures were undertaken by the Ayyubids to increase agricultural production. Canals were dug to facilitate the irrigation of agricultural lands throughout the empire. Cultivation of sugarcane was officially encouraged to meet the great demand of it by both the local inhabitants and the Europeans. Meanwhile, as a result of the Crusades, several new plants were introduced to Europe, including sesame, carob, millet, rice, lemons, melons, apricots, and shallots.

The main factor which boosted industry and trade under the Ayyubids was the new interests Europeans developed when they came into contact with the Muslims. Commodities included incense, scents, fragrant oils, and aromatic plants from Arabia and India, as well as ginger, alum, and aloes. Likewise, Europeans developed new tastes in the matter of fashions, clothing, and home furnishing. Rugs, carpets, and tapestries manufactured in the Middle East and Central Asia were introduced to the West through Crusader-Ayyubid interaction. Christian pilgrims visiting Jerusalem returned with Arab reliquaries for the keeping of relics. In addition, eastern works of art in glass, pottery, gold, silver, etc., were highly prized in Europe.

The European demand for agricultural products and industrial commodities stimulated maritime activity and international trade to an unprecedented extent. The Ayyubids played a leading role in this as they controlled sea-trade routes which passed through the ports of Yemen and Egypt via the Red Sea. The trade policy of the Ayyubids placed them in a position of great advantage; although they cooperated with the Genoans and Venetians in the Mediterranean Sea, they prevented them from having access to the Red Sea. Thus, they kept the trade of the Indian Ocean exclusively in their hands. In the Mediterranean trade, the Ayyubids also profited through taxes and commissions levied upon Italian merchants.

Upon the development of international trade, the elementary principles of credit and banking were developed. Both Jewish and Italian merchants had regular banking agents in Syria, who transacted business on behalf of their masters. Bills of exchange were also used by them in their dealings with one another and money was deposited in various banking centers throughout Syria. The encouragement of trade and industry provided the Ayyubid sultans with the funds needed for military expenditure as well as for developmental and everyday lifestyle works. Special attention was made to the economic state of the empire under al-Adil and al-Kamil. The latter maintained a strict control over expenditure; it is said that on his death he left a treasury which was equivalent to the budget of one full year.

Education

Being well-educated themselves, the Ayyubid rulers became munificent patrons of learning and educational activity. Different madrasa-type schools were built by them throughout the empire, not only for education, but also to popularize knowledge of Sunni Islam. According to Ibn Jubayr, under Saladin, Damascus had 30 schools, 100 baths, and a large number of Sufi dervish monasteries. He also built several schools in Aleppo, Jerusalem, Cairo, Alexandria, and in various cities in the Hejaz. Similarly, many schools were built by his successors also. Their wives and daughters, commanders, and nobles established and financed numerous educational institutions as well.

Although the Ayyubids were from the Shafi'i denomination, they built schools for imparting instruction in all four of the Sunni systems of religious-juridical thought. Before the Ayyubid takeover, there were no schools for the Hanbali and Maliki denominations in Syria, but the Ayyubids founded separate schools for them. In the mid-13th century, Ibn Shaddad counted in Damascus 40 Shafi'i, 34 Hanafi, 10 Hanbali, and three Maliki schools.

When Saladin restored Sunni orthodoxy in Egypt, 10 madrasas were established in Cairo during his reign, and an additional 25 during the entire Ayyubid period of rule. Each of their locations had religious, political, and economic significance, in particular those in al-Fustat. Most of the schools were dedicated to the Shafi'i denomination, but others belonged to the Maliki and Hanafi madhabs. The madrasas built near the tomb of Imam al-Shafi'i were located adjacent to the important centers of pilgrimage and were a major focus of Sunni devotion.

About 26 schools were built in Egypt, Jerusalem and Damascus by high-ranking government officials, and unusual for the time, commoners also founded in Egypt about 18 schools, including two medical institutions. Most schools were residential whereby both teachers and students resided as a rule. The teachers appointed were jurists, theologians, and traditionalists who received their salary from endowments to the institutions they taught in. Each student was offered a lodging where he would resort, a teacher to instruct him in whatever art he requested, and regular grants to cover all his needs. Madrasas were considered prestigious institutions in society. Under the Ayyubids, it was not possible to obtain a job in the government without receiving an education from a madrasa.

Science and medicine

The facilities and patronage provided by the Ayyubids led to a resurgence in intellectual activity in different branches of knowledge and learning throughout the territories they controlled. They took special interest in the fields of medicine, pharmacology, and botany. Saladin built and maintained two hospitals in Cairo emulating the well-known Nuri Hospital in Damascus which not only treated patients, but also provided medical schooling. Many scientists and physicians flourished in this period in Egypt, Syria, and Iraq. Among them were Maimonides, Ibn Jami, Abdul Latif al-Baghdadi, al-Dakhwar, Rashidun al-Suri, and Ibn al-Baitar. Some of these scholars served the Ayyubid household directly, becoming the personal physicians of sultans.

Architecture

Military architecture was the supreme expression of the Ayyubid period, as well as an eagerness to fortify the restoration of Sunni Islam, especially in a previously Shia-dominated Egypt by constructing Sunni madrasas. The most radical change Saladin implemented in Egypt was the enclosure of Cairo and al-Fustat within one city wall. Some of the techniques of fortification were learned from the Crusaders, such as curtain walls following the natural topography. Many were also inherited from the Fatimids like machicolations and round towers, while other techniques were developed simultaneously by the Ayyubids, particularly concentric planning.

Muslim women, particularly those from the Ayyubid family, the families of local governors, and the families of the ulema ("religious scholars") took an active role in Ayyubid architecture. Damascus witnessed the most sustained patronage of religious architecture by women. They were responsible for the construction of 15 madrasas, six Sufi hospices, and 26 religious and charitable institutions. In Aleppo, the Firdaws Madrasa, known as the most impressive Ayyubid building in Syria, had regent queen Dayfa Khatun as its patron.

In September 1176, construction of the Cairo Citadel began under Saladin's orders. According to al-Maqrizi, Saladin chose the Muqattam Hills to build the citadel because the air there was fresher than anywhere else in the city, but its construction was not so much determined by the salubrious atmosphere; rather it was out of defensive necessity and example of existing fortresses and citadels in Syria. The walls and towers of the northern section of the citadel are largely the works of Saladin and al-Kamil. Al-Kamil completed the citadel; he strengthened and enlarged some of the existing towers (such as two of Saladin's towers that were enlarged by totally encasing them in semi-circular units), and also added a number of square towers which served as self-contained keeps. According to Richard Yeomans, the most impressive of al-Kamil's structures was the series of massive rectangular keeps which straddled the walls of the northern enclosure. All of al-Kamil's fortifications can be identified by their embossed, rusticated masonry, whereas Saladin's towers have smooth dressed stones. This heavier rustic style became a common feature in other Ayyubid fortifications, and can be seen in the Citadel of Damascus and that of Bosra in Syria.

In religious architecture, the Ayyubid period of Egypt marked a new focus on the construction of Sunni madrasas. This was partly motivated by a desire to counter the presence of Shia Islam from the previous two centuries of Fatimid rule. The first madrasa of this kind in Egypt was founded next to the Mausoleum of Imam al-Shafi'i by Salah ad-Din. The mausoleum itself, a large square building covered by a dome, was built in its current form by al-Kamil in 1211 (though the present dome was reconstructed at a later period). The first madrasas seem to have employed a hypostyle design similar to mosques, but later madrasas began to use iwans (vaulted halls open on one side to a courtyard). The earliest known example of the latter is the Madrasa of al-Kamil, founded in 1225.