The Life and Legend of the Sultan Saladin

by Jonathan Phillips

Overview

An engaging biography that offers a new perspective on one of the most influential figures of the Crusades

In 1187, Saladin marched triumphantly into Jerusalem, ending decades of struggle against the Christians and reclaiming the holy city for Islam. Four years later he fought off the armies of the Third Crusade, which were commanded by Europe’s leading monarchs. A fierce warrior and savvy diplomat, Saladin’s unparalleled courtesy, justice, generosity, and mercy were revered by both his fellow Muslims and his Christian rivals such as Richard the Lionheart.
 
Combining thorough research with vivid storytelling, Jonathan Phillips offers a fresh and captivating look at the triumphs, failures, and contradictions of one of the Crusades’ most unique figures. Bringing the vibrant world of the twelfth century to life, this book also explores Saladin’s complicated legacy, examining the ways Saladin has been invoked in the modern age by Arab and Muslim leaders ranging from Nasser in Egypt, Asad in Syria, and Saddam Hussein in Iraq to Osama bin Laden, as well as his huge appeal across popular culture in books, drama, and music.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780300247060
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Publication date:	08/20/2019
Pages:	520
Sales rank:	1,211,267
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.50(d)

About the Author

Jonathan Phillips is professor of the history of the Crusades at Royal Holloway, University of London. He is the author of Holy Warriors: A Modern History of the Crusades and The Second Crusade. He lives in Surrey.

Table of Contents

Maps ix

Dramatis Personae and a Note on Names xv

Preface xix

Introduction: Damascus 2009 1

Part I The Life of Saladin 9

1 The Muslim Near East and the First Crusade 11

2 Nur al-Din and the City of Damascus 21

3 Nur al-Din and the Rise of the Jihad 36

4 Shirkuh, Saladin and the Conquest of Egypt 46

5 Saladin's Succession in Egypt 57

6 Steps Towards Independence: The Break with Nur al-Din 73

7 Saladin's Takeover of Damascus: Open Ambitions 94

8 Progress Stalls 107

9 Victory at Jacob's Ford 125

10 Saladin, Cairo and the River Nile 136

11 Progress in Syria and Reynald's Red Sea Raid 145

12 Final Preparations: The Sieges of Kerak and Mosul 158

13 The Battle of Hattin 172

14 The Capture of Jerusalem 187

15 The Siege of Tyre 206

16 The Siege of Acre, Part I: 1189-90 221

17 The Siege of Acre, Part II: The Threat from the North 236

18 The Arrival of Philip Augustus and Richard the Lionheart: The Fall of Acre 249

19 Battles of Sword and Words: Arsuf and Diplomacy 261

20 1192: Family Feuding, the Battle of Jaffa and the End of the Third Crusade 278

21 Peace at Last 301

Part II Afterlife 309

22 Saladin's Reputation in the West 315

23 The View from the East: From the Medieval Age to the late Nineteenth Century 329

24 Early Arab Nationalism Expressed Through Theatre, Books and Newspapers 345

25 Struggles for Independence in Syria, Egypt and Palestine 356

26 Looking for a New Saladin, c.1950-2001 368

Conclusion 387

Writing the History of Saladin 393

Acknowledgements 397

Illustration Credits 399

Bibliography 400

Abbreviations 421

Notes 422

Index 464

Editorial Reviews

Mr. Phillips has fruitfully extended the range of Arabic source material to create a rounded portrait of Saladin’s world, often sketched in sharp, unexpected detail . . . [He] draws in the reader with vivid accounts of people, places and events, relying on apt quotation from primary sources of scenic descriptions and direct speech . . . Saladin’s was a truly astonishing career, one to which Mr. Phillips does justice.”—Wall Street Journal

Long listed for the 2019 Cundill History Prize, sponsored by McGill University

Winner of the Best First Biography Prize, sponsored by Slightly Foxed and The Biographers' Club

“Outstanding. Jonathan Phillips has written a compelling account of arguably the most inspirational of Islamic military heroes.”—Christopher de Bellaigue, author of The Islamic Enlightenment

“An authoritative and brilliantly told account of the life of one of the world's greatest—and most famous—military leaders. Jonathan Phillips leaves no stone unturned in this impressive and lively history of the genius who was Saladin.”—Peter Frankopan, author of The Silk Roads: A New History of the World and The New Silk Roads: The Present and Future of the World

“Vivid and authoritative, with glistening details on every page. Phillips explains Saladin’s ability to mesmerize not just through the achievements of his lifetime but through his inspiration of Arab leaders, including Nasser, Assad, and Saddam Hussein, ever since.”—James Barr, author of Lords of the Desert: The Battle between the United States and Great Britain for Supremacy in the Middle East

“This balanced, illuminating, and fascinating biography of Saladin could not be more timely. Today political figures often inspire little admiration, but Saladin's career at the height of the crusades reminds us that moral charisma and integrity can be recognized and honored by people on both sides of a vicious conflict.  Jonathan Phillips's account is balanced and fair; he does not present the great Kurdish sultan as a paragon but Saladin's remarkable career should challenge the widespread Western perception of Islam as an atavistically violent faith. Phillips  reminds us that Saladin took Jerusalem from the Christians in 1187 with a clemency and forbearance that was in sharp contrast with the hideous bloodshed of the Crusaders' conquest of the Holy City in 1099. His concluding account of the intense emotion that the memory of Saladin still inspires in the Middle East today reveals the sensitivity and pain that underlies so many of the region's unresolved problems.”—Karen Armstrong, author of A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

“This breathtaking biography of the Ayyubid conqueror Saladin exceeds all others both in its erudition and in its brilliant analysis of Saladin’s modern representations in the political mobilization of Islam.”—William Chester Jordan, author of The Apple of His Eye:  Converts from Islam in the Reign of Louis IX

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