Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (23/160)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

The emperor, having already taken Cyprus, was courted by al-Kamil, who asked him to help against al-Nasir. The rulers of the coastal towns and the Muslims feared him, so the Frankish kings wrote to al-Kamil, promising to keep the emperor in check. Al-Kamil therefore dispatched an envoy to acquaint the emperor with their intention, and the latter in turn reported the matter to al-Kamil (1). He agreed to al-Kamil’s wishes, letters went back and forth, and in the end the emperor yielded, saying (2): “I am your freedman. If I return empty-handed my prestige will be shattered. Jerusalem is the cradle of our faith, yet it lies in ruins and brings in no income. Do me a kindness: grant me the citadel of the city, and I will remit its revenues to your treasury.” Al-Kamil was softened by this (3).

In the year 626 AH al-Kamil handed Jerusalem over to the Franks—what a lamentable cry for Allah’s help! (4)—and then laid siege to Damascus, distressing its inhabitants. Several engagements were fought, one of them leaving many dead on both sides; the suburbs were burned, Damascus was assaulted repeatedly, prices soared, and the hardship lasted for months. Eventually al-Nasir was content with al-Karak, Nablus, and the Ghawr, while al-Kamil ceded Damascus to al-Ashraf in exchange for Harran, Raqqa, and Ra’s ʿAyn. They next besieged al-Amjad in Baalbek, bombarded it with mangonels, and captured it, whereupon al-Amjad moved to his residence in Damascus.

Khwarazm-Shah then descended upon Akhlat with his rabble, acted outrageously, took Hayna (5) and slaughtered its people, and finally seized Akhlat itself.

(1) The phrasing is confusing because of excessive abbreviation and haste. The full wording in Tarikh al-Islam is: “They wrote to al-Kamil: ‘If battle is joined, we shall seize the emperor.’ Al-Kamil therefore sent their letters to the emperor and showed them to him. The emperor informed al-Kamil of this and granted him everything he wished…”. (2) I.e. al-Kamil. (3) Al-Kamil. (4) Tarikh al-Islam comments: “This was one of the blemishes that befell the Muslims.” (5) A town in Diyar Bakr, also known as Hani. Yaqut vocalizes it with a kasra on both the initial ha and the nun; the vocalization above follows the author’s own manuscript.

الأَنبرُوْرُ وَقَدِ اسْتولَى عَلَى قُبرس، فَكَاتَبَهُ الكَامِلُ لِيعينه عَلَى النَّاصِرِ، وَخَافَتْهُ مُلُوْكُ السّوَاحلِ وَالمُسْلِمُوْنَ، فَكَاتَبَ مُلُوْكُ الفِرَنْجِ الكَامِلَ بِأَنَّهُم يُمْسِكُوْن الأَنبرُوْر، فَبَعَثَ وَأَوْقَفَهُ عَلَى عَزْمِهِم، فَعَرفَهَا لِلكَامِلِ (١) ، وَأَجَابَهُ إِلَى هَوَاهُ، وَتردَّدتِ المرَاسلاَت، وَخضع الأَنبرُوْر، وَقَالَ (٢) : أَنَا عَتِيْقُكَ، وَإِنْ أَنَا رَجَعت خَائِباً انْكَسَرت حُرمتِي، وَهَذِهِ القُدْس أَصلُ دِيْنِنَا وَهِيَ خرَابَةٌ، وَلاَ دَخَلَ لَهَا، فَتَصَدَّقْ عَلَيَّ بِقصبَةِ البَلَدِ وَأَنَا أَحْمِلُ مَحْصُوْلَهَا إِلَى خزَانَتِكَ، فَلاَنَ (٣) لِذَلِكَ. وَفِي سَنَةِ ٦٢٦: سلّم الكَامِل القُدْسَ إِلَى الفِرَنْجِ - فَواغوثَاهُ بِاللهِ (٤) - وَأَتبعَ ذَلِكَ بِحصَارِ دِمَشْقَ، وَأَذِيَّة الرَّعِيَّة، وَجَرَتْ بَيْنهُم وَقعَاتٌ، مِنْهَا وَقْعَةٌ قُتِلَ فِيْهَا خلق مِنَ الفَرِيْقَيْنِ، وَأُحرقت الحوَاضرُ، وَزحفُوا عَلَى دِمَشْقَ مرَاراً، وَاشتدَّ الغلاَء، وَدَام البَلاَء أَشْهُراً، ثُمَّ قَنِعَ النَّاصِر بِالكَرَك وَنَابُلُس وَالغُوْر، وَسلّم الكَامِل دِمَشْق لِلأَشْرَف، وَعُوِّضَ عَنْهَا بِحَرَّانَ وَالرَّقَّة وَرَأْس عين، ثُمَّ حَاصرُوا الأَمْجَدَ بِبَعْلَبَكَّ، وَرَمَوْهَا بِالمَجَانِيْقِ، وَأُخِذَت، فَتحوَّلَ الأَمْجَدُ إِلَى دَارِهِ بِدِمَشْقَ. وَنَازل خُوَارِزْم شَاه خِلاَطَ بِأَوبَاشه، وَبَدَّعَ، وَأَخَذَ حَيْنَةَ (٥) ، وَقَتَلَ أَهْلَهَا، ثُمَّ أَخَذَ خِلاَطَ.

(١) العبارة ملبسة بسبب الاختصار المخل وسرعة الصياغة، والاصل في " تاريخ الإسلام ": فكاتبوا الكامل: إذا حصل مصاف نمسك الانبرور، فسير إلى الامبرور كتبهم، وأوقفه عليها، فعرف الانبرور ذلك للكامل، وأجابه إلى كل ما يريد..". (٢) يعني: للكامل. (٣) الكامل. (٤) قال في " تاريخ الإسلام ": وكانت هذه من الوصمات التي دخلت على المسلمين ". (٥) بلد في ديار بكر، ويقال لها: حاني أيضا. وقيدها ياقوت بكسر الحاء المهملة وكسر النون، والضبط أعلاه من خط المؤلف.