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Baibars, or al-Malik al-Zahir Rukn al-Din Baybars al-Bunduqdari (Arabic الملك‭ ‬الظاهر‭ ‬ركن‭ ‬الدين‭ ‬بيبرس‭ ‬البندقداري), nicknamed Abu al-Futuh ¹ (Arabic: أبو الفتوح) (1223 – July 1, 1277, Damascus), was an important Mamluk Sultan of Egypt and Syria. He was one of the commanders of the forces which inflicted a devastating defeat on the Seventh Crusade of King Louis IX of France and he led the vanguard of the Egyptian army at the pivotal Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260 ² , which marked the first substantial defeat of the Mongol army . His reign marked the start of an age of Mamluk dominance in the Eastern Mediterranean and solidified the durability of their military system. He managed to pave the way for the end of the Crusader presence in Syria and to unite Egypt and Syria into one powerful state that was able to fend off threats from both Crusaders and Mongols . As Sultan, Baibars also engaged in a skillful combination of diplomacy and military action which allowed the Mamluks to greatly expand their Empire.

Biography

Early life

Baibars was a Kipchak Turk.³ ⁴ ⁵ ⁶ ⁷⁸ It was said that he was captured by the Mongols on the Kipchak steppe and sold as a slave, ending up in Syria.

His first master, the emir (prince) of Hama, was suspicious of Baibars because of his unusual appearance (he was dark-skinned, very tall and had a cataract in one of his bluish eyes).⁹¹⁰¹¹¹² Baibars was quickly sold to a Mamluk officer and sent to Egypt, where he became a bodyguard to the Ayyubid ruler As-Salih Ayyub.

Rise to power

Baibars was a commander of the Mamluks in around 1250, when he defeated the Seventh Crusade of Louis IX of France. He was still a commander under Sultan Qutuz at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260 when he decisively defeated the Mongols. After the battle Sultan Qutuz was assassinated while on a hunting expedition. It was said that Baibars was involved in the assassination because he expected to be rewarded with the governorship of Aleppo for his military success; but Qutuz, fearing his ambition, refused to give such a post and disappointed him. ¹³ Baibars succeeded Qutuz as Sultan of Egypt.¹⁴

As Sultan of Egypt and Syria

He continued what was to become a lifelong struggle against the Crusader kingdoms in Syria, starting with the Principality of Antioch, which had become a vassal state of the Mongols, and participated in attacks against Islamic targets in Damascus and Syria.

In 1266 Baibars conquered the Christian country of Cilician Armenia, which, under King Hethum I, had submitted to the Mongol Empire. This isolated Antioch and Tripoli, led by Hetum's son-in-law, Prince Bohemond VI. In 1268, Baibars besieged Antioch, capturing the city on May 18. Baibars had promised to spare the lives of the inhabitants, but broke his promise and had the city razed, killing or enslaving the population upon surrender.¹⁵ This tactic was common in Baibars' campaigns, and was largely responsible for the swiftness of his victories.^{citation needed} Antioch's ruler, Prince Bohemund VI of Antioch, was then left with no territories except the County of Tripoli. Because Prince Bohemund was away during this attack, he was not there to witness the slaughter of his subjects, and so Baibars wrote him a detailed letter describing exactly what methods of torture and brutality he had visited upon the people of Antioch, and concluded the letter by writing, "If you had been there to see it, you would have wished to have never been born."

Baibars then turned his attention to Tripoli, but interrupted his siege there to call a truce in May 1271. The fall of Antioch had led to the brief Ninth Crusade, led by Edward I of England, who arrived in Acre in May of 1271 and attempted to ally with the Mongols against Baibars. So Baibars declared a truce with Tripoli, and also agreed to a truce with Edward (who was never able to capture any territory from Baibars anyway). According to some reports, Baibars tried to have Edward assassinated with poison, but Edward survived the attempt, and returned home in 1272.

Family

Baibars married several women and had seven daughters and three sons. Two of his sons, al-Said Barakah and Solamish, became sultans.

Death

Baibars died in Damascus on June 1, 1277. His demise has been the subject of some academic speculation. Many sources agree that he died from drinking poisoned kumis that was intended for someone else. ¹⁶¹⁷¹⁸ Some accounts speculate that Baibars himself may have prepared the poison: having been warned by astrologers that a coming lunar eclipse was portentous of the death of a king, he may have intended to poison another prince in order to ward off his own death, and mistakenly imbibed his own poison.¹⁹ Other accounts suggest that he may have died from a wound while campaigning, or from illness.²⁰

Assessment

As the first great Sultan of the Bahri Mamluk dynasty, Baibars made the meritocratic ascent up the ranks of Mamluk society. He took final control after the assassination of Sultan Sayf al Din Qutuz, but before he became Sultan he was the commander of the Mamluk forces in the most important battle of the Middle Periods, repelling a Mongol force at the legendary Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260.

Although in the Muslim World he has been considered a national hero for centuries, and in Egypt and Syria is still regarded as such, Sultan Baibars was reviled in the Christian world of the time for his destruction of holy sites and massacres or expulsion of Christian populations.

Legacy

Baibars was a popular ruler in the Muslim World who had defeated the crusaders in three crusades, and the Mongols in the Battle of Ain Jalut which many scholars deem of great macro-historical importance. In order to support his military campaigns, Baibars commissioned arsenals, warships and cargo vessels. His military campaign also extended into Libya and Nubia. He was also an efficient administrator who took interest in building various infrastructure projects, such as a mounted message relay system capable of delivery from Cairo to Damascus in four days. He also built bridges, irrigation and shipping canals, improved the harbours, and built mosques.

His memoirs were recorded in Sirat al-Zahir Baibars ("Life of al-Zahir Baibars"), a popular Arabic romance recording his battles and achievements. He has a heroic status in both Egypt and Syria.

Al-Madrassa al-Zahiriyya is the school built adjacent to his Mausoleum in Damascus. The Az-Zahiriyah library, has a wealth of manuscripts in various branches of knowledge to this day.

In fiction

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