Better known in the Western world as Saladin (1137/1138 – 4 March 1193), was the first Sultan of Egypt and Syria and the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. A Muslim of Kurdish origin, Saladin led the Muslim opposition to the European Crusaders in the Levant. At the height of his power, his sultanate included Egypt, Syria, Mesopotamia, Hejaz, Yemen and other parts of North Africa. Saladin is credited with building or renovating a dome at Temple Mount.
The Statue of Salah al-Din Ayubi at the Damascus Citadel. He is credited with defeating the Crusaders at the decisive Battle of Hattin in 1187, leading the way to the Muslims' re-capture of Palestine from Crusaders who had conquered it 88 years earlier. Saladin led the Muslim military campaign against the Crusader states in the Levant. At the height of his power, his sultanate included Egypt, Syria, Upper Mesopotamia, the Hejaz, Yemen and other parts of North Africa.
circa 1196 CE
Modern day view of the Saladin's mausoleum. The Mausoleum of Saladin holds the resting place and grave of the medieval Muslim Ayyubid Sultan Saladin. It is adjacent to the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria. Saladin died of a fever on 4 March 1193, at Damascus, not long after King Richard's departure. In Saladin’s possession at the time of his death were one piece of gold and forty pieces of silver.
