and they met outside Cairo, at the place where the troops had been encamped in the royal pavilions. The Sultan was routed, beyond all reckoning, and a number of men from both sides were killed. He sought refuge in the Citadel of the Mountain—yet there is no sanctuary, and caution will never fend off destiny. That night the entire army surrounded the citadel. He resolved to flee under cover of darkness on swift dromedaries he had prepared, intending to slip away to al-Karak; but once he emerged he was seized, placed under arrest, and taken to the residence of the afore-mentioned Sayf al-Din Yalbugha al-Khassaki. That was the last anyone saw of him, and this occurred on Wednesday, the 9th of Jumada al-Awwal of that year.

Thereafter, sovereignty and decision-making passed entirely into the hands of Emir Sayf al-Din Yalbugha al-Khassaki. Opinions converged, the word became unanimous, and the oath of allegiance was concluded for al-Malik al-Mansur Salah al-Din Muhammad ibn al-Malik al-Muzafar Hajji. The preachers mentioned his name from the pulpits, coins were struck in his honor, and the royal couriers set out bearing the proclamation of allegiance in his noble name. He was then twelve years old—some said fourteen, others sixteen.

An edict was issued restoring affairs to the condition they had enjoyed in the days of his father, al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun; canceling everything that al-Nasir Hasan had seized; and reinstating the stipends and regular salaries he had cut off. He further commanded that Ṭāz (1) and Ṭashtamur (2) al-Qasimi be brought from the prison of Alexandria (3) and presented before him so that they might serve as atābaks (4).

The news reached Damascus with Emir Sayf al-Din Buzlar, superintendent of the turbakhānah and one of the emirs of the drum corps in Egypt, on the morning of Wednesday, the sixteenth of the month. The congratulatory kettledrums were beaten at the Citadel and by the drum corps of the emirs at their gates; the entire city was decorated; the oath of allegiance was taken for him that same morning in the House of Felicity, and a splendid robe of honor was bestowed upon the deputy of the sultanate. Most of the emirs, soldiers, and common people rejoiced. To Allah belongs the command, and to Him belongs the judgment.

The Exalted said:
“Say: ‘O Allah, Lord of Sovereignty! You grant sovereignty to whom You will and You remove sovereignty from whom You will; You exalt whom You will and You abase whom You will.’” (Quran 3:26)

It was found inscribed on a stone in Himyarite script and read out to al-Maʾmun:
“Night and day have alternated, and the stars of heaven have revolved
Only to shift bliss and fortune from a king whose reign has passed to another;
Yet the dominion of the Lord of the Throne is everlasting—
Never perishing, never shared.” (5)