On Monday, the eleventh of Shaʿbān, Amīr Sayf al-Dīn Arghūn al-Kāmilī—formerly governor of the province of Aleppo—arrived from the north. He entered Damascus that day with great pomp; the amirs, commanders, and holders of office rode out to welcome him along the road, some having come from as far as Aleppo, Ḥamāh, and Ḥimṣ. Marvels occurred that day the like of which had not been seen in ages, and the people rejoiced at his coming because of his firmness, valor, and sharp resolve, in contrast to the leniency and laxity of his predecessor. In keeping with custom he took up residence in Dār al-Saʿāda (the House of Felicity).
On Saturday he appeared in a procession so magnificent that, it was said, nothing comparable had been witnessed for a long time. When the cortege reached the area of Bāb al-Faraj, three women lodged a complaint with him against a senior amir named Turghāy⦗1⦘. He at once ordered that the man be pulled down from his horse; Turghāy was dismounted and made to stand with them before the court.
Throughout this year, as in the one before it, the ban on the nightly illumination (waqīd) in the Umayyad Mosque remained in force, in accordance with the decree of Sultan al-Nāṣir Ḥasan (may Allah have mercy on him). People of piety rejoiced greatly, for nothing like it had been seen in nearly three hundred years; to Allah belong all praise and favor.
On that day, and again the next, a proclamation was issued in the city on the authority of the deputy: “Whoever finds a soldier drunk shall pull him down from his horse and seize his garments; whoever brings such a soldier to Dār al-Saʿāda shall receive his bread ration.” The populace rejoiced at this. He also clamped down on tavern-keepers and grape-pressers. Grapes became inexpensive, and the quality of bread and meat improved: after a pound had reached four and a half dirhams, it now sold for two and a half—or even less. Livelihoods were set aright through awe of the deputy, and he earned an excellent reputation among the people for justice, right purpose, sound understanding, and keen discernment.
On Monday, the eighteenth of Shaʿbān, Amīr Aḥmad ibn Shād al-Sharbankhānah, who had rebelled in Ṣafad and been imprisoned in Alexandria, arrived. Under the present regime he had been released and granted the deputyship of Ḥamāh. He entered Damascus that day on his way to Ḥamāh, rode with the deputy in the state procession—placed on his right—stayed as his guest in Dār al-Saʿāda, and then set out ahead of him.
On Thursday, the twenty-first of the month, Amīr Sayf al-Dīn Baybughā—once viceroy in Egypt, later arrested in the Ḥijāz and confined in al-Karak, and now released under the current sultan and appointed governor of Aleppo—entered Damascus. The deputy of the Sultanate rode out to receive him and lodged him in Dār al-Saʿāda. His baggage train encamped on the Plain of Barzah, and a pavilion was pitched for him in the Green Maydān.
[Then came the year 753 AH]
The new year opened while the Sultan of Egypt, greater Syria, the Two Holy Sanctuaries, and their dependencies was al-Malik al-Ṣāliḥ Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn Ṣāliḥ, son of Sultan al-Malik al-Nāṣir Muḥammad, son of al-Malik al-Manṣūr Qalāwūn.