Ruler
Saladin (Salah al-Din)
Founder of the Ayyubid dynasty
c. 1137 – 1193
Born 1137 or 1138 CE.
Biography
A commander of Kurdish origin who became vizier to the Fatimid caliph, then ended the Fatimid caliphate in 1171 CE and restored allegiance to the Abbasid caliph. He began the Citadel of Cairo and led wars against the Crusaders, retaking Jerusalem in 1187.
Key facts
Certainty: Established
Saladin began building the Citadel of Cairo around 1176 CE.
- Doris Behrens-Abouseif (1989) “Islamic Architecture in Cairo: An Introduction” Brill
- André Raymond (2000) “Cairo” Harvard University Press