The city of Damascus is impregnable to the unbelieving enemy, for it is the place about which the Messenger of Allah ﷺ foretold that it would be the citadel of Islam when the great battles and tribulations arise, and it is there that Jesus son of Mary—peace be upon him—will descend. (1)
The Franks had already slain a great many of the inhabitants of Damascus. Among those they killed was the eminent jurist known as Ḥujjat al-Dīn, the Maliki shaykh of the city, Abū ’l-Ḥajjāj Yūsuf ibn Dunās (2) al-Fandalāwī, on the plain of al-Nayrab; he was buried in the cemetery of Bāb al-Ṣaghīr.
Mujīr al-Dīn concluded a truce with the Franks over Damascus in exchange for Banias; they therefore withdrew from the city and took possession of Banias.
In that same year a dispute (3) arose between Sultan Masʿūd and his amirs. They abandoned him and made for Baghdad, where they fought with the common people, killing (4) a large number, young and old alike. Later (5) they assembled opposite the Palace of the Crown, kissed the ground, and apologized to the caliph for what had occurred. They then marched toward Nahrawān, scattered throughout the provinces, and plundered the populace, causing prices in Iraq to soar.
That year as well (6) the post of Chief Judge in Baghdad was bestowed upon Abū ’l-Ḥasan ʿAlī ibn Aḥmad ibn ʿAlī ibn al-Dāmghānī following the death of al-Zaynabī.
In the same year Sūrī ibn al-Ḥusayn (7), ruler of Ghūr, captured the city of Ghazna, whereupon its lord, Bahrām Shāh ibn Masʿūd ibn
(1) Musnad Ahmad (vol. 5, p. 197), Abu Dawud’s Al-Malahim, chapter “Fi al-Miql” (no. 4298), and Al-Hakim’s Al-Mustadrak (vol. 4, p. 486) report from Abū Dardāʾ that he heard the Messenger of Allah say: “On the Day of the Great Battle, the camp (al-fustaṭ) of the Muslims in a land called al-Ghūṭa, in a city called Damascus, will be the best abode for the Muslims on that day.” Al-Hakim authenticated this hadith and al-Dhahabī concurred. Al-fustaṭ (with both fāʾ and ḍammah) literally means “camp” or “assembly.” Al-Hakim also records in Al-Mustadrak (vol. 4, p. 548) from Abū Hurayrah that the Prophet said: “When the great battles begin, a contingent of mawālī will march forth from Damascus; they will be the noblest of the Arabs in steeds and best in arms, and Allah will support the religion through them.” This hadith is graded hasan. Muslim (no. 2937) from al-Nawās ibn Samʿān states: “The Messiah, son of Mary, will descend at the White Minaret east of Damascus,” part of a longer report; al-Tabarānī transmits from Aws ibn Aws al-Thaqafī the wording: “ʿĪsā ibn Maryam will descend at the White Minaret of Damascus,” which is authenticated by reference to the Muslim narration. See Majmaʿ al-Zawāʾid (vol. 8, p. 205).
(2) In al-ʿIbar (vol. 4, p. 120): Dubas; in manuscript T and al-Muʿjam al-Buldan: Findlaw; al-Nujūm (vol. 5, p. 282): Durnas; Wafayāt al-Aʿyān: Derbās. The reading in manuscript A agrees with Mirʾāt al-Zamān (vol. 8, p. 200), al-Lubāb (vol. 2, p. 442), al-Rawḍatayn (vol. 1, p. 53), Tadhkirat al-Ḥuffāẓ (vol. 2, p. 1297) and Mirʾāt al-Jinān (vol. 3, p. 280).
(3) In al-Uṣūl: [same reading]; and the phrasing in al-Muntazam (vol. 10, p. 131) is: “Reports reached the sultan’s camp that the amirs had turned against Sultan Masʿūd.”
(4) In manuscripts A and B: kathīran minhum (“many of them”).
(5) Not found in T.
(6) Present only in T.
(7) In manuscript T: Suli ibn al-Ḥusayn; the same reading appears in Ibn al-Athīr (vol. 9, p. 22) and as a note by al-Dhahabī in Tārīkh al-Islām (vol. 11, p. 755).