It should be mentioned that a Mongolian Leader Berke Khan converted to Islam and made an alliance with Mameluke Sultanate and Ertugrul (father of Osman-Ottoman Empire) to avange the Sack of Baghdad together against Hulagu. The famous Hulagu-Berke Khan war. This stopped Hulagu permanently from returning back.
In the 13th century a new power emerged on the Mongolian steppe led by Genghis Khan, who mobilized his people for war and conquest. He carved out a vast empire and upon his death in 1227, his descendants carried on his mission to conquer the world, leaving a permanent mark on history – one characterized by slaughter, destruction, and savagery. Forays into Europe reached all the way into Poland, Hungary and the Balkans, while the advance into the Middle East brought the Muslim communities to the brink of extinction.
Now, the Mamluk Sultanate stands as the last bastion of Islam against the feared Mongol horde. The battle that will change the course of history is about to take place...
In Egypt, the Mamluks were a warrior caste of slave origin, trained from a young age as warriors that were very capable in battle, forming a military elite of Ayyubid Sultans of Egypt and Syria. Over time their power grew and by 1250 they overthrew the Ayyubids and formed the Mamluk Sultanate. 10 years on, as the hot summer of 1260 rolled on, Cairo was the glistening jewel on the banks of the river Nile. The city’s inhabitants went about their daily routines, unaware that, in the palace, four Mongol envoys had the full attention of Sultan Saif al-din Qutuz and his generals. They arrived on behalf of Hulagu Khan, carrying a letter that contained an unequivocal ultimatum:
In short, the Khan threatened with terrible destruction, vowing to shatter all mosques and kill all Muslim children if Qutuz refused to submit to Mongol rule. For a time, the Sultan and the envoys looked at each other in silence. Then, Qutuz withdrew to consult with his generals, while the Mongols confidently smirked. The hastily gathered council of war was a grim affair as the high ranking officers reminded Qutuz of the sobering Mongol advance into the Middle East…
Over the past 35 years the unrelenting advance of the Mongols brought destruction to the Islamic world.
Countless cities were levelled, their populations killed or enslaved. Finally, the Great Khan Mongke, grandson of Genghis Khan, gave his brother Hulagu command of what could have been the largest single army ever assembled by the Mongols, ordering him to conquer the remaining Islamic countries of the Middle East and North Africa. In 1258, they marched on Baghdad with 15 tumens, equal to 150,000 troops. The Abbasid caliphate, although no longer the center of political power in the Islamic world, was still its intellectual heartland. In February, the Mongols took advantage of the treachery in the Abbasid court, as well as Caliph’s own foolishness, and cunningly captured Baghdad, a city of one million inhabitants, effectively putting an end to the once-glorious Abbasid Empire.
Hundreds of thousands of people were put to the sword or sold into slavery, the city sacked and burned to its foundations, the Grand Library of Baghdad set on fire, the ancient irrigation systems destroyed, with the devastation so extensive that agriculture took centuries to fully recover. For those of you who want to learn more about the Abbasid Caliphate, one of the greatest empires in history - an old friend History Time has just released a great video that covers the Rise and fall of the Abbasid Caliphate in great detail, including the Fall of Baghdad in 1258.
The link to his video is in the description, make sure to check it out after you finish watching this video, and don’t forget to subscribe to our channel and click that bell button. A year later, as the aftershocks of the fall of Baghdad were still felt throughout the Islamic world, Hulagu moved into Syria with a detachment of 6 tumens, equal to 60,000 troops. The speed of the Mongol advance was frightening.
By January 1260, the Mongols were at the gates of Aleppo. The walls were breached after 6 days with the help of catapults and mangonels. As they stormed the city, the Mongols were joined by their vassal Armenian and Frankish forces, killing all Muslim and Jewish men in the ensuing massacre, while most women and children were sent to the slave markets.
Christian King of Cilician Armenia and the Prince of Antioch and Tripoli were handsomely rewarded for their cooperation in the sacking of the city. After hearing of the horrific fate that Aleppo suffered, the rest of Syria capitulated by late March. With the destruction of major Muslim cities, the Mamluk Sultanate was now left as the last true stronghold of Islam.
And for the Mongols, Egypt was the next target… Back in Cairo, Mamluk commanders agreed that it would be wise to capitulate to Mongol demands. Qutuz’s opinion… differed. Although he admitted that the Mamluks faced impossible odds against the vast Mongol army, he was a proud and strong-willed leader. To submit would be an act of cowardice. “Egypt needs a warrior as it’s’ king”, he exclaimed. “If no one else will come, I will go and fight the Tatars alone!” And with that the Sultan ordered the envoys seized, cut in half at the waist, then decapitated and their heads displayed on Cairo’s imposing Zuwila Gate. Queue’s message to Hulagu was irrevocable – The Mamluks will not bow to the invader.
The killing of envoys enraged the Khan and the preparations for a full scale war began at once. Qutuz had a difficult task ahead of him. He was vastly outnumbered. The Mamluk sultanate was divided into 24 districts, each charged with supplying 1000 troops, which placed the total number of Mamluk cavalry at 24,000, of which 4,000 were royal mamluks, 10,000 were emirs mamluks, and 10,000 were more regular troops of various origins. Meanwhile Hulagu had 60,000 troops across Syria. Nevertheless, Qutuz began defensive preparations.
Perhaps most importantly he could call upon his rival Babar’s, one of the best military commanders of his time, to join him, promising to give control of Aleppo to him after the war. Baibars was of Turkic origin, either a Kipchak or a Cuman. He was part of the Barli tribe that lived north of the Black Sea and, while still a boy, he was enslaved by the Mongols during their invasion of Europe and eventually sold to the Ayyubid Sultan of Egypt and Syria. In Cairo he was educated in accordance with the Mamluk Furusiyyu Code. He underwent years of extensive military training and received an excellent education. Even at a young age Baibars displayed exceptional military prowess and upon completing his training he was appointed as commander of an elite group of Sultan’s personal bodyguards.
He distinguished himself in battle during the Seventh Crusade and, alongside Qutuz himself, was one of the commanders who destroyed the Crusader army at the Battle of Al-Mansurah in 1250, where King Louis IX himself was captured. After the fall of Damascus in 1260, Baibars was invited by Sultan Qutuz to lead the elite Mamluk vanguard against the Mongols. As defensive preparations in Egypt continued, word reached Qutuz that Hulagu postponed the campaign against Egypt and withdrew most of his troops east.
The death of the Great Khan Mongke prompted Hulagu to return to Karakorum for the election of the new Great Khan. Hulagu left his trusted lieutenant Kitbuqa in charge of defending Syria until he returns to continue the campaign against Egypt. Kitbuqa, who was now governor of Aleppo, was given command of 1 tumen of 10,000 troops. Additional 2,000 troops of Cilician Armenians, Georgians, the garrison from Aleppo, as well as locally recruited nomads were added to Kitbuqa’s command, increasing his total force to around 12,000. Hulagu correctly estimated that Palestine could not sustain an army larger than 15,000 for a prolonged period of time.
Furthermore, intelligence gathered from captive and allied soldiers suggested that the Mamluks would be able to field no more than 15,000 troops in Palestine. And indeed, for the offensive Qutuz prepared 14,000 of his best mamluks, including Bedouins, Turkoman Mamalis, Mongolian deserters and members of the Hawwarah tribe of Lybia, assigning 10,000 troops to stay behind and guard Egypt against a possible Christian invasion. Baibars left Cairo first, in late July, commanding the large vanguard contingent, force-marching to secure Gaza. Both Qutuz and Babar’s saw the departure of Hulagu’s main army as an opportunity to attack the Mongol rearguard. Qutuz sent urgent letters to Latin crusaders, asking them to join him.
However, the Crusaders, fearing excommunication, as well as Mongol reprisals, opted for the middle ground, by giving the Mamluk army safe passage and allowing them to purchase supplies as they pass through Christian territory. Once news reached Kitbuqa of the approaching enemy, he marched out to meet the Islamic army. Having received reports that Qutuz will pass through Christian territory, he planned to intercept the Sultan. Meanwhile, Qutuz reached Acre and encamped outside the city to purchase provisions for his troops.
Mongol spies reported the size and position of the Mamluk army, and Kitbuqa hastened his march, hoping to surprise the Muslims. The Mongols marched along the eastern side of Lake Tiberias. Once they passed the lake they crossed the river Jordan and proceeded west towards the Spring of Goliath, where, according to legend, David slew Goliath. Mongols forced marched in two columns, wanting to intercept and surprise the Mamluks. Cilician Armenian and Frankish troops were placed in the vanguard because they knew the terrain and could guide the rest of the army. The Jezreel valley was surrounded by Mount Gilboa in the south and the hills of Galilee to the north. As the Mongol army crossed the river Jordan they were surprised by Baibars’ contingent. Sudden volleys of Mamluk arrows opened the engagement.
The Christian heavy cavalry moved to close the distance. Baibars caught the Mongols off-guard. Just like the Crusaders, leading the enemy’s vanguard, he too knew the lay of the land and he moved his troops into position to launch a surprise attack, while skillfully avoiding detection by Mongol scouts. Cilician armored cavalry made contact with the Muslim line, instantly breaking up their formation. A seemingly chaotic skirmish erupted as the Mamluks were being pushed back. Further back, Kitbuqa’s line of sight was blocked by the gentle ridge running north-south, where fighting was taking place and, not being able to see how many Mamluk troops are deployed beyond the ridge, he sent more troops to bolster the Christian charge, and ordered the rest of his troops to form the battle lines.
With Baibars’ exceptional leadership the Mamluk vanguard is able to maintain discipline during a series of maneuvers’ – rotating between intense brief hand-to-hand clashes, followed by short retreats and arrow volleys – thus managing to hold back the entire Mongol army with a significantly smaller force, while gradually giving ground to the enemy. Despite taking considerable losses the Mamluk commander kept his line stable as he rounded the mountain slopes, maintaining a fighting retreat under increasing Mongol pressure. Baibars’ troops have reportedly used early forms of hand guns to shoot at the enemy. These weapons, while very inaccurate, were very effective at scaring Mongol horses, thereby disrupting and slowing their advance, with some animals galloping off the field in panic with their riders. After hours of holding back the overwhelming Mongol advance, tiredness set in and Baibars’ contingent began taking heavy losses.
But by now it became clear that his force was only a part of the Mamluk army. From the surrounding hills, hidden in the trees, Qutuz watched and waited for the enemy to come to him. Seeing the Mongols pushing Baibars back Qutuz bolstered the moral of his troops with a rousing speech, which historians say elicited tears from the eyes of his soldiers, and he reminded them of the Mongol savagery, saying: “There is no alternative to fighting, except a horrible death for all of you, your wives, and your children!” Kitbuqa ordered an all-out charge, aiming to finish off Baibars’ vanguard before they could re-join the main Mamluk force.
Qutuz countered by ordering his right flank to charge out of the tree line into the Mongol left. Recognizing that he is surrounded on three sides, Kitbuqa ordered his troops to charge-shoot and break away, in an attempt to lure the Mamluks into giving chase. But Baibars and Qutuz recognized the feigned retreat ruse. They ordered the men to hold their ground and shoot their arrows at the enemy from where they stood. Aware that Mamluk bows and arrows are much deadlier at longer range, and seeing that the feigned retreat didn’t work, Kitbuqa quickly adapted. He ordered the bulk of his cavalry to swing across the valley and charge the Mamluk left flank, while instructing the rest of his troops to close ranks and hold against the Mamluk center and right flank.
His plan was to use the gentle slope to mount a mass-charge that will smash the Mamluk left flank and encircle their army. As Qutuz’s left flank met the Mongol charge, they were in trouble almost straight away. By overloading the flank, the Mongols pushed back the Muslim line. Seeing that his left flank is in danger of collapsing, Qutuz ordered a detachment of troops to follow him and he rushed to reinforce his troops on the left. In the center, Baibars consolidated his lines after his fighting retreat and began pushing back the Christian heavy cavalry. The fighting was bloodiest in the center as the mounted Mamluk and Crusader troops locked in bitter hand-to-hand combat. Baibars personally led his contingent from the front, urging his men to defend their country against the invader!
Meanwhile, Mamluk left flank was in dire straits. Sections of the line faltered under the weight of the Mongol attack and some troops began fleeing. As the Mamluk left flank began collapsing, the Mongols pressed forward, seeing their chance to rout and envelop the enemy. Galloping up the hill, Qutuz urged his men to stand and fight as he rushed to shore up the ranks. He took off his helmet so that his soldiers could recognize him. “O, Islam!!!” he shouted three times and charged into the enemy line with his personal retinue. This act of courage invigorated the troops, who rallied to his banner. After another hour of fighting, the Mongol push slowed as the Sultan managed to stabilize the flank. Kitbuqa now found himself in a dangerous situation.
When his attempt to overrun the Mamluk left stalled, his own position became exposed after he sent his last reserves to try and stop Baibars’ attack in the center. Seeing that Mongols have committed all of their troops, Babar’s sent urgent messages to the right flank, ordering them to push the Mongols at all cost, seeing his chance to encircle them from the right. Meanwhile, more troops reinforced the Mamluk left flank and Qutuz at last managed to turn the tide. Less suited to hand-to-hand combat the Mongols could not withstand the determined Muslim cavalry and, despite their numerical advantage they began falling back. Kitbuqa’s other flank also began collapsing inward and now the danger was real that his position would soon be completely surrounded.
One of his officers suggested to him to retreat, but Kitbuqa replied: “We must die here and that is the end of it. Long life and happiness to the Khan.” And with those words he too joined the fighting. Bolstered by the presence of their commander, the resolve of the Mongol troops hardened. But as the Mukluk’s encircled the invaders, Kitbuqa was captured by Baibars’ troops amidst the fighting. By now the Mongols were tactically outmatched on the field and seeing their leader fall into enemy hands, they realized that the battle was lost.
The rest of Kitbuqa’s troops began breaking out and retreated towards Bisan. On that day, the Muslim army achieved a great victory at Ain Jalut. By halting the westward Mongol expansion, and thus saving the three Holiest cities, Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem from destruction, Qutuz became the saviour of Islam and, arguably, he saved his Christian enemies in the West from the “Devil’s Horsemen”, a name
attributed to the Mongols. For had they managed to conquer Egypt, the way across northern Africa, all the way to the Strait of Gibraltar, would’ve been open. In theory this would’ve enabled the Mongols to form a ring around Europe and invade on multiple fronts, making it difficult for any European army to be positioned in order to hold them back.
But Qutuz, who became known as the “Lion of Ain Jalut”, did not get to enjoy this triumph. He was assassinated a few days after the battle, while the army was returning to Cairo. Having been loyal to the Aybak faction, Qutuz certainly had a few enemies and rivals. Baibars, a member of the Bahri faction, was the most powerful of his rivals, and it is possible that he was responsible for Qutuz’s death as retaliation, because the late Sultan refused to give control of Aleppo to Baibars as he had promised, fearing Baibars’ power and ambition.
Upon the army’s triumphant return to Cairo, he became the new Mamluk Sultan. Sultan Baibars was an equally capable ruler as Qutuz, continuing the strong Mamluk traditions. Irrespective of their political rivalry, Qutuz and Baibars were men who’s deeds on the battlefield at Ain Jalut preserved Islam from destruction…
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