and they abandoned the injustices and corruption they had been committing (1), and set about performing righteous deeds and giving alms (2).

In that same year: the Persian Aqṭāy (3) came up from Upper Egypt and plundered (4) the Muslims’ property, taking some of them captive. With him was a contingent of the Bahriyya who were spreading corruption in the land; they had rebelled, tyrannized, and grown arrogant, paying no heed to the sultan al-Muʿizz Aybak the Turkman, nor to his wife Shajar al-Durr. Al-Muʿizz therefore consulted his wife about killing Aqṭāy; she sanctioned the plan, whereupon he worked against him until he killed him this very year in the Citadel of al-Manṣūra in Egypt. The Muslims were thus relieved of his evil—praise and gratitude belong to Allah.

In the same year: Shaykh ʿIzz al-Dīn Ibn ʿAbd al-Salām (5) began teaching at the Ṣāliḥ Ayyūb Madrasa between the two palaces.

That year also witnessed the arrival in Damascus of the daughter of the Byzantine emperor, who came with great splendor and magnificent receptions as the bride of its ruler al-Nāṣir son of al-ʿAzīz son of al-Ẓāhir son of al-Nāṣir, and the city experienced lavish festivities on her account (6).

Among the notable deaths that year was the mutakallim Khusru-Shāhī (7) (8), ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd b. ʿĪsā, Shaykh Shams al-Dīn al-Khusru-Shāhī. He was one of the celebrated scholastic theologians, having studied under Fakhr al-Rāzī in the principles of religion and other subjects. He later came to Syria, attached himself to al-Malik al-Nāṣir Dāwūd b. al-Muʿaẓẓam, and enjoyed high favor with him.

Abu Shāma (9) said: “He was a venerable (10) shaykh—virtuous, humble, and of pleasing appearance—may Allah have mercy on him.”

Sebṭ (11) said: “He was humble, of great [standing] (12), intelligent, and a bringer of good; it has never been reported that he harmed anyone, for indeed (13)