201.07.19 | 21 Ramadan 1435
umm Abdillah, Radio Islam Programming
“Rise and rise again until lambs become lions.”
Per Hollywood standards this is the phrase that turned Robin Longstride into Robin Hood. King Richard the Crusader was killed (1199 AD); his brother John had assumed the perilous throne of England. Returning a son’s sword to his father; becoming a son and a husband to a family; uniting a country; defeating the invading forces of France and taking up the cause of liberty for all Christian people; as well as an inward journey of self discovery and renewal all neatly summed up in the cogently applicable phase: “Rise and rise again until lambs become lions.”
For the Ummah of Muhammad (salalaahu alay wa salam) however there are approximately 6000+ verses to remind us to never give up against the adversity and challenges we might face. We have in our past, lessons of failure – love for the world (its wealth and power) and a dislike of death – and lessons and inspirations for success. For the Ummah of Muhammad (salalaahu alay wa salam) one such verse in Surah A’le Imraan (3:7) ends thus: “And none will be reminded or heed but people of understanding.” We rise by following the sunnah; we rise by being brave; we rise by withstanding, not ignoring baatil; we rise by creating strategic alliances with those whom we not do not ultimately fear, and we rise by being utterly convinced of Islam’s Haqq.
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Let’s go to Ramadan 658 Hijri, September 1260 AD, approximately 647 years after the Prophet (salalaahu alay wa salam) had passed away. Imagine as a Mamluk Sultan of Egypt you receive this letter from Hulagu Khan, the grandson of Genghis and chosen general of Mongke Khan, the reigning Great Khan:
From the King of Kings of the East and West, the Great Khan
to Qutuz the Mamluk, who fled to escape our swords,
You should think of what happened to other countries and submit to us. You have heard how we have conquered a vast empire and have purified the earth of the disorders that tainted it. We have conquered vast areas massacring all the people. You cannot escape from the terror of our armies. Where can you flee? What road will you use to escape us? Our horses are swift; our arrows sharp; our swords like thunderbolts; our hearts as hard as the mountain; our soldiers as numerous as the sand. Fortresses will not detain us, nor arms stop us. Your prayers to God will not avail against us. We are not moved by tears nor touched by lamentations. Only those who beg our protection will be safe. Hasten your reply before the fire of war is kindled. Resist and you will suffer the most terrible catastrophes. We will shatter your mosques and reveal the weakness of your God and then we will kill your children and your old men together. At present you are the only enemy against whom we have to march.
In 1255, Mongke the reigning Khan charged Hulagu, his brother, with leading a massive Mongol army to conquer or destroy the remaining Muslim states in southwestern Asia. Hulagu’s campaign sought the subjugation of the Lurs of southern Iran and the destruction of the Hashshashin sect. The campaign’s goal appears to be a complete destruction of Islam. Hulagu himself even had a very deep hatred for everything attached to Islam. Much of this came from his Buddhist and Christian advisors who influenced his policies. In the 30+ years since the death of Genghis Khan, the Mongol Empire just expanded and expanded. They seemed invincible. In eastern Asia, nearly all of China and Korea had fallen to the steppe armies. To the west, Russia was invaded, Hungary and Poland raided and their armies defeated. In 1258 the Ayyubid Dynasty of Syria was conquered by the submission or destruction of the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad. All that remained was the submission or destruction of the Bahri Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.
Al-Malik al-Muzaffar Saif ad-Din Qutuz, سيف الدين قطز, also spelled Kutuz or Koetoez was a Mamluk, a manumitted slave of Turkic origin. The Mamluks had served as soldiers for the Ayyubid sultans of Cairo, Egypt. In 1250 those manumitted slaves became the rulers of Egypt. Qutuz, deposed the young Egyptian leader and became sultan in 1259. He was a highly skilled, highly respected and highly educated warrior. His prospects for defeating the Mongols, however, were seemingly bleak. He however became a catalyst for a series of events that would shape world history. This started by Qutuz’s response — executing Hulugu’s messengers. They were sliced in half, and their heads were mounted on the gate at Baab Zuweila in Cairo. The Mongols realised Qutuz may not be like his opulent counterparts in Baghdad, where it is estimated that between 200,000 and 1,000,000 people were butchered in only one week of the Mongol siege.
Ain Jalut in Palestine
“Ain Jalut was undoubtedly one of the decisive battles in human history. It marked the farthest advance of the Mongols across Eurasia. With the defeat at Ain Jalut, Christendom lost its hope for recovery of Jerusalem and its hold on the Syrian coastline was made untenable. The Armenians receded to their mountain strongholds in the Caucasus Mountains. Had the Mamlukes lost, Cairo would have met the same fate as Baghdad, the Cross would have supplanted the Crescent and the shamanist Mongol would have ruled over the sacred sites of Makkah and Madinah.”
Rather than waiting for the Mongols to attack, Qutuz decided to raise an army to engage them away from Egypt. Qutuz went to Al-Salihiyya and assembled his commanders to decide when to march to the Mongols. When the Amirs showed timidity Qutuz shamed them into joining him, with the statement:
“Amirs of the Muslims, for some time now you have been fed by the country treasury and you hate to be invaded. I will go alone. Who wants to join me should do that, and who does not like to join me should go back home. However, remember that those who will not join will carry the sin of not defending our women.”
“Qutuz ordered Baibars to lead a force to Gaza to observe the small Mongol garrison there, which Baibars easily defeated. After spending a day in Gaza, Qutuz led his army along the coast towards Acre, a remnant of the Kingdom of Jerusalem Crusader state. The Crusaders were traditional enemies of the Mamluks, and had been approached by the Mongols about forming a Franco-Mongol alliance. However, that year the Crusaders recognised the Mongols as the greater threat. Qutuz suggested a military alliance with the Crusaders against the Mongols, but the Crusaders opted to stay neutral between the two forces. They did, however, allow Qutuz and his forces to travel unmolested through Crusader territory, and to camp for resupply near the Crusader stronghold of Acre. Qutuz and his army stayed there for three days, until they heard that the Mongols had crossed the Jordan River, at which point Qutuz and Baibars led their forces to meet the Mongols at Ain Jalut.”
The armies of the Mamluks and the Mongols met in September 1260 at Ain Jalut on the Plain of Esdraelon. It is believed that Ain Jalut (The Spring of Jaloot) lies near the ancient city of Megiddo, Palestine. In the Bible’s Book of Judges it is said that Gideon chose his men according to how they drank water from the Well of Harod/Jaloot. When it was time to engage the enemy on the battlefield at Ain Jaloot on the Friday 25th Ramadan 658, Qutuz led the Muslims into the battle, which initially swayed towards the Tartars. Observing this, Qutuz climbed on a rock, throwing his helmet away, shouting “Wa Islamah. Wa Islamah.” “Oh my Islam, Oh my Islam” urging the army to keep firm and fight Allah’s enemies. The frustrated leaders of the army looked towards that voice to see their leader’s flushed face, hitting angrily with his sword and engaging the enemy. Qutuz’s courage stunned his leaders who promptly followed his footsteps, lifting the morality of the Muslim army. Soon, the battle shifted in favour of the Muslims, until the Tatarian army was shattered and fled from the battle. Victory belonged to Islam and the Muslims.
The Aftermath of Ain Jaloot
The Mongols returned to the area of Syria and Palestine a number of times, but never again could they threaten Egypt. Hulegu’s descendants settled in Persia, converted to Islam, and in time became patrons of Islamic culture. Their territories came to be known as the Persian ilkhanate, that is, “subordinate khanate.”
Qutuz did not enjoy his victory for long. His rivals killed him shortly afterward. Among such rivals was Baibars I, the first Sultan of a reunited kingdom of Egypt and Syria. Many considered him the ruler who was the real founder of the Mamluk regime. His new state, which was well-run and wealthy lasted two and a half centuries, until 1517.
During that period of approximately 250 years, the Mamluks ousted the Crusaders from the Holy Land, encouraged trade and industry, patronised the arts, and built hospitals, mosques, and schools. Under their rule, Egypt became the unrivaled center of the Muslim world.
The battle of Ain Jalut affected more than the Middle East. It also set the course of Western civilisation and the European Renaissance. “Had the Mongols succeeded in conquering Egypt, they might have been able, following the return of Hulegu, to carry on across North Africa to the Straits of Gibraltar and Africa.” They had already reached Poland; hence they would have held Europe and the “undiscovered” “New World” at their fingertips.
Additional Resource Material:
http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/102012085
https://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200704/history.s.hinge.ain.jalut.htm
http://lostislamichistory.com/mongols/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03bfmlh
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