GRAVE OF SALAH AL-DIN IBN AYYUB RA
- Next to the musjid’s north gate lies the tomb of Salah al-Din ibn Ayyub RA the legendary sultan who defeated the Crusaders in several decisive battles and drove them from Jerusalem in 1187 CE.
- He was born in Tikrit (present-day Iraq) to a prominent Kurdish family and spent his formative years in Baʿlbek and Damascus. He is recorded to have been an undistinguished youth, with a greater taste for religious studies than military training.
- After joining the staff of his uncle however, he began rising within the army until he was appointed as the advisor to Shi`ite Fatimid caliph in Cairo by the ruler of Syria, Nur al-Din Zangi RA. He eventually rose to become the ruler of Egypt and after the death of Nur al-Din, proclaimed himself Sultan of Egypt, marking the beginning of the Ayyubid dynasty.
- In 1174, he began expanding his territory and in just twelve years, he conquered Damascus, Aleppo, and parts of Iraq. As his conquests continued, from Yemen to Africa to Palestine, he ran into conflicts with the crusader states, like the Kingdom of Jerusalem. A number of battles were fought and he eventually conquered Jerusalem in 1187 cementing his place as one of the great heroes of Islamic history
