Baybars II
| Baibars II | |
|---|---|
| Sultan of Egypt and Syria | |
| Reign | April 1309 – 5 March 1310 |
| Predecessor | An-Nasir Muhammad |
| Successor | An-Nasir Muhammad |
| Died | 15 April 1310 |
Baibars al-Jashankir (Arabic: بيبرس الجاشنكير; died 1310) or Baibars II, royal name al-Malik al-Muzaffar Rukn ad-Din Baibars aj-Jashankir al-Mansuri (الملك المظفر ركن الدين بيبرس الجاشنكير المنصورى), also known as Abu al-Fath (أبوالفتح), was the 12th Mamluk Sultan of Mamluk Egypt in 1309–1310.
Background
He was a Circassian Mamluk of Sultan Qalawun and served at the court of Qlawun's Sons Al-Ashraf Khalil and Al-Nasir Muhammad. He became an Emir (a prince) then a Jashnakir.[1] During the second reign of Sultan Al-Nasir Mohammed from 1299 to 1309 he was the Vice-Sultan of Egypt. In 1302 he took part in suppressing a rebellion in upper Egypt and in 1303 he was a commander in the Egyptian army that defeated the Mongols led by Qutlugh-Shah at the Battle of Shaqhab.
Etymology of the name
The monarch's name was a combination of Turkic, Persian and Arabic terms. The given name Baibars was a Turco-Mongolian name, meaning "Chosen by the chief/lord". The title of al-Malike al-Muzaffar was an Arabic honorific title that meant "the victorious king", and the title Rukn ad-Din was an Arabic honorific title meaning the "pillar of faith". The second portion, "Jashangir", is Persian, meaning "Food connoisseur": the mamluk prince who tastes the Sultan's food to make sure it is not poisoned.
Rise to power and fall
With Emir Sayf al-Din Salar he dominated the young Sultan al-Nassir Muhammad who, feeling distressed, moved to Al Karak and resigned in 1309. Baibars al-Jashnakir became a Sultan after the position was imposed on him by Emir Sayf al-Din Salar and the Burji Mamluks.
The brief period of his reign (ten months and 24 days) was marked by economical and political unrest in addition to threats from crusaders and Mongols. The poverty-stricken commons kept rampaging the streets of Cairo, calling him Rakin (useless) instead of Rukn (principal) demanding the return of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad to Egypt. In 1310 Baibars al-Jashnakir stepped down and fled with his Mamluks from the angry mob. Sultan An-Nasir Muhammad returned to Egypt and Baibars al-Jashnakir was arrested and executed.
Notes
- ^ Jashnakir جاشنكير was an important function at the Sultan's court. A Jashnakir tasted the food of the Sultan to assure it was poison free.
References
- Al-Maqrizi, Al Selouk Leme'refatt Dewall al-Melouk, Dar al-kotob, 1997. In English: Bohn, Henry G., The Road to Knowledge of the Return of Kings, Chronicles of the Crusades, AMS Press, 1969.
- Ibn Taghri, al-Nujum al-Zahirah Fi Milook Misr wa al-Qahirah, al-Hay'ah al-Misreyah 1968
- Mahdi, Dr. Shafik, Mamalik Misr wa Alsham ( Mamluks of Egypt and the Levant), Aldar Alarabiya, Beirut 2008
- Sadawi. H, Al-Mamalik, Maruf Ikhwan, Alexandria.
- Eternalegypt.org
External links
- Qur'an manuscript commissioned by Baibars II: zoomable images, information, audio
- Complex of Baibars al-Jashnakir
- Coins of Baibars al-Jashnakir
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