and the snarling lion, together with the troops of Ḥamāh; thus al-Afdal ibn al-Nāṣir’s (1) army swelled in number and gained strength. Some of his men even made their way into the city and cried out his battle-cry, yet none of the common folk answered them.

Meanwhile al-ʿĀdil hastened from Mardin with his forces. The emirs who had served his brother, as well as a group of his brother’s sons (2), rallied round him, and every province supplied him with its leading notables. He reached Damascus two days ahead of al-Afdal, fortified it, and secured it against every envier and covetous eye. Over Mardin he appointed his son Muḥammad al-Kāmil as deputy.

Once inside Damascus, the greater part of the emirs—Egyptians and others—defected to al-ʿĀdil. Al-Afdal’s cause weakened and he despaired of their loyalty and support. Nonetheless, he maintained the siege of the city with those who remained to him until the year came to a close. The matter was only resolved at the beginning of the following year, as will, Allah willing, be detailed in its proper place.

In the same year work was begun on a brick (4) and lime wall for Baghdad. The task was divided among the emirs, and its construction was completed after this year, so that Baghdad was thereafter safe from flood and siege. Until then the city had possessed no wall.

[al-Sultan Abū Muḥammad Yaʿqūb ibn Yūsuf] (6):
[In this same year] (7) the great sultan Abū Muḥammad Yaʿqūb ibn Yūsuf ibn ʿAbd al-Muʾmin, lord of the Maghrib and al-Andalus, died in his capital. Near it he had built (8) a fine new city which he called al-Mahdiyya. He was devout, of admirable conduct and sound intention. At first he followed the Mālikī school, then adopted the Ẓāhirī Ḥazmī approach, and later inclined to the Shāfiʿī school, appointing (9) judges from among its scholars in parts of his dominions. His reign lasted fifteen years, during which he waged many campaigns—may Allah have mercy on him. He himself led the people in the five daily prayers and was compassionate toward women and the weak, may Allah have mercy on him (10).

It was to him that Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn wrote seeking help against the Franks; but because the letter did not address him as “Commander of the Believers,” he took offense and refused the request. After his death the kingship passed to his son Muḥammad, who followed (11) his father’s path, and many lands returned to his allegiance.