Part 86

When Asad ad-Deen reached Cairo, he entered the city and met with al-'Adid, who gave him gifts, and the people of Egypt rejoiced at his coming, and his troops were given supplies and taken care of.604 The slaying of Shawar As for Shawar, he did not express what he was thinking. He delayed giving to Asad ad-Deen the money and soldiers' salaries he had promised him, and he resolved to betray him too. He decided to offer a feast for Asad ad-Deen and his commanders, then betray them and kill them, but his son alKamil told him not to do that, and said to him, "By Allah, if you resolve to do that, I will inform Asad ad-Deen." His father said to him, "By Allah, if I do not do that, we will all be killed." He said, "That's right, but to be killed when we are Muslims and the land is in Muslim hands is better than to be killed when the Franks have taken over. There is nothing standing between you and the return of the Franks except their hearing of the arrest of Shirkuh. Then, if al-'Adid turns to Noor ad-Deen for help, he will not send him a single horseman, and they (the Franks) will take over the land." So Shawar gave up the idea he was thinking of.605 Finally, Salah ad-Deen and some of the other emirs decided to get rid of the deceitful traitor Shawar, so they took him captive. Al-'Adid heard of that and sent word to Shirkuh asking for his head. Asad ad-Deen gave permission to kill him, so he was killed and his head was sent to al-'Adid on 17th Rabee' ath-Thani 643 AH.606 Asad ad-Deen becomes al-'Adid's vizier Asad ad-Deen entered Cairo and went to the palace of al-'Adid, who bestowed upon him the position of vizier and the title of al-Malik al-Mansoor and Ameer al-Juyoosh. He appointed officials from among those whom he trusted and allocated land to his troops. The poets praised Asad ad-Deen Shirkuh for the victories he had achieved. Death of Asad ad-Deen But Shirkuh's viziership did not last long, as he died on 22nd Jumada 11/564 AH. So his time as vizier lasted only two months and five days. May Allah have mercy on him. He was succeeded as vizier by his nephew Salah ad-Deen.607 Asad ad-Deen was one of the greatest commanders of Noor adDeen, who was saving him for the next step for which he was paving the way, which was incorporating Egypt into Syria. He (may Allah have mercy on him) was generous to his troops but also strict; he knew how to bring about order. So his troops respected and loved him, and they engaged in dangerous missions with him during important campaigns. Allah benefited Islam and the Muslims through him, and he contributed to the resistance movement against the Crusaders which was led by Noor ad-Deen then after him by Salah ad-Deen. Shirkuh was brave, brilliant, strong, patient for the sake of Allah, and harsh towards the disbelievers; he did great acts of worship for the sake of Allah; he was chaste, religiously devoted, did many good deeds, loved the people of religion and knowledge, very selfless, compassionate towards his relatives and family, but somewhat cautious in spending. He left behind a great deal of wealth and he left behind a large number of horses, mounts and camels. He also left behind five hundred Mamelukes,609 the Asadis who played a role in building the Ayubid state.610 Salah ad-Deen as Vizier in Egypt Salah ad-Deen had demonstrated his capability during the time spent with his uncle, Asad ad-Deen Shirkuh, during his campaigns against Egypt, and he became vizier at the age of thirty-one, after his uncle died. Al- 'Adid chose him because he was the youngest of the emirs, and he hoped that he would be more obedient to him, but al-Malik an-Nasir (the Victorious King) — which is the title that al-'Adid bestowed on Salah ad-Deen — dashed the hopes of the Fatimids, and the people's hearts began to incline towards him as he spent on them from the wealth that his uncle had acquired. The people inclined towards him and loved him, and he had full control over his troops.611 The missions achieved by Salah ad-Deen at the time of Noor ad-Deen were immense, and he managed to put an end to the centres of power. The conspiracy of the Caliph's confidant There were many incidents in Egypt following Salah ad-Deen's appointment to the position of vizier, when the country was going through a dangerous stage of its history. The Fatimid state still existed, supported by the Fatimid army and senior men of state. The Crusader menace still lay in wait near the eastern gates of Egypt. Salah ad-Deen had to reinforce his position in authority so that he could focus on confronting any political developments that might arise. He soon demonstrated great capability in running the affairs of the state. It seems that he was determined to keep for himself all other kinds of authority, even those that were connected to the position of caliph, and he implemented many measures that guaranteed him full control, including: a) Causing the hearts of the Egyptian population to incline towards him by means of the money that he spent on them, so they loved him.