17 Facts About Al-Adil I

Al-Adil I was the fourth Sultan of Egypt and Syria, and brother of Saladin, who founded both the Sultanate of Egypt, and the Ayyubid dynasty.

Al-Adil I was known to the Crusaders as Saphadin, a name by which he is still known in the Western world.

Al-Adil I was a capable general and strategist in his own right, and was instrumental in the transformation of the decayed Fatimid Caliphate of Cairo into the Ayyubid Sultanate of Egypt.

Al-Adil I was a son of Najm ad-Din Ayyub, he was member of Kurdish Ayyubid family and a younger brother of Saladin.

Al-Adil I first achieved distinction as an officer in Nur ad-Din Zengi's army during his uncle Shirkuh's third and final campaign in Egypt ; following Nur ad-Din's death in 1174, Al-Adil governed Egypt on behalf of his brother Saladin and mobilized that country's vast resources in support of his brother's campaigns in Syria and his war against the Crusaders.

Al-Adil I was governor of Aleppo but returned to administer Egypt during the Third Crusade ; as governor of Saladin's northern provinces, he suppressed the revolt of 'Izz Al-Din of Mosul following Saladin's death.

Al-Adil I, skilfully played his nephews off against each other, and suborned the vassals of both from their allegiance.

Al-Adil I confirmed al-Afdal's rule over Samosata, Saruj and a number of other towns.

Al-Adil I was in his late fifties by the time he consolidated his power, and by that time had been almost constantly at war for two decades.

Al-Adil I was not entirely successful in this, and there were Frankish naval raids on Rosetta in 1204 and Damietta in 1211.

Al-Adil I proved to be a skilled diplomat in this respect and managed to avoid any confrontations after 1201.

Al-Adil I undertook a major programme of refortification throughout his domains, and the massive citadel of Damascus was one of his most notable achievements in this respect.

Al-Adil I succeeded over time in bringing much of the old Zengid dominions, apart from Mosul and Sinjar, under his control, as well as the region around Lake Van.

Al-Adil I took Ahlat in 1207 and brought to an end the rule of the Ahlatshahs.

Al-Adil I was totally unprepared for this assault and despite being seventy-two years of age he hurriedly took his forces into Palestine to engage with them.

Al-Adil I fell ill and died while on campaign and was succeeded by his son Malik Al-Kamil.

Al-Adil I had 16 sons and several daughters, including Malik Al-Kamil, Malik Al-Ashraf Musa, Dayfa Khatun, Al-Awhad Ayyub, Al-Mu'azzam Isa, and Al-Muzaffar Ghazi.