Battles & Wars › Medieval wars › The Crusades
Saladin (Salah al-Din)
c. 1137–1193; sultan from 1174· Person· Middle East & Africa
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
Kurdish-born sultan of Egypt and Syria who destroyed the crusader army at Hattin and retook Jerusalem in 1187.
See it on the Battles & Wars map →What happened
Born in Tikrit, Saladin rose in the service of the Syrian ruler Nur al-Din and became vizier of Egypt in 1169. He ended Egypt's Shia Fatimid caliphate and from 1174 took Damascus and later Aleppo, founding the Ayyubid dynasty. Ringing the crusader states, he destroyed their field army at Hattin in 1187 and took Jerusalem by negotiated surrender. Against Richard the Lionheart's Third Crusade he lost Acre but kept Jerusalem in the 1192 truce. He died in Damascus in 1193.
Why it matters
He united the Muslim Middle East against the crusaders and broke their hold on Jerusalem. He became a model of the just ruler in both Muslim and European memory.
Legacy and how we know
Biographies by his aides Baha al-Din ibn Shaddad and Imad al-Din, Ibn al-Athir's chronicle, and Latin crusader sources. His tomb survives beside the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus.
Still debated
His chivalrous image in Europe owes much to later romance; historians weigh it against harsh acts, such as executing captured Templar and Hospitaller knights after Hattin.
Inside this (1)
Connections (3)
▸Saladin (Salah al-Din) won Battle of HattinWell documented
The connection
Saladin invaded the Kingdom of Jerusalem and besieged Tiberias to lure out its army. King Guy marched across dry hills in July heat; Saladin cut them off from water, set brush fires upwind, and surrounded them on the Horns of Hattin. The crusader field army was destroyed and King Guy captured.
When and how
Horns of Hattin, near the Sea of Galilee, July 3–4, 1187; Saladin against King Guy of Lusignan.
How we know
Saladin's secretary Imad al-Din, who was present, and other Arabic writers describe the battle; Latin accounts confirm the disaster.
Debates and open questions
Whether Saladin planned the trap in full or exploited Guy's mistake, and how large the armies were, are debated.
▸Saladin (Salah al-Din) retook in 1187 the city captured in Siege of Jerusalem (1099)Well documented
The connection
With Jerusalem's defenders lost at Hattin, Saladin besieged the city in September 1187. Its defender, Balian of Ibelin, negotiated surrender. In contrast to the 1099 massacre, Saladin let residents leave on payment of a ransom and freed many of the poor. Muslim holy sites were restored, ending 88 years of crusader rule.
When and how
Jerusalem, September 20 to October 2, 1187; Saladin against Balian of Ibelin.
How we know
Arabic and Latin chronicles both describe the surrender terms; Imad al-Din wrote a detailed account.
Debates and open questions
How many unransomed residents were enslaved, and whether Saladin's mercy was policy or principle, are debated.
▸Saladin (Salah al-Din) united Egypt and Syria to fight The CrusadesWell documented
The connection
The crusader states survived partly because Muslim Egypt and Syria were divided. Saladin, after taking power in Egypt in 1169 and Damascus in 1174, spent a decade bringing Syria and northern Iraq under his rule, encircling the crusaders. His victories triggered the Third Crusade, which he fought to a draw, keeping Jerusalem.
When and how
Egypt, Syria and the Levant, 1169–1192; the Third Crusade of 1189–1192 against Richard I of England and Philip II of France.
How we know
His biographers and Latin chronicles document his campaigns; the 1192 Treaty of Jaffa ended the Third Crusade.
Debates and open questions
Historians debate whether his years of fighting fellow Muslims served holy war against the crusaders or mainly his family's power.