[Bilimsel Haber] Review: Saladin: The Sultan and His Times, 1138-1193

[Gonul Pultar]

*Hannes Mo?hring.* /Saladin: The Sultan and His Times, 1138-1193./ 
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0801889928> Translated by David 
S. Bachrach. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008. xxiii + 
113 pp. $45.00 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-8018-8991-2; $20.00 (paper), ISBN 
978-0-8018-8992-9.

*Reviewed by* Timothy May
*Published on* H-War (March, 2009)
*Commissioned by* Brian G.H. Ditcham

*Assessing Saladin*

Of all of those involved in the Crusades, possibly the most fascinating 
is Salah al-Din or Saladin. He has been credited as the paragon of 
chivalry, romanticized as the most humane of all participants in the 
wars, and also demonized as a crafty political manipulator. The author's 
agenda as well as the primary sources used usually determine the 
depiction of Saladin. Although the Christian sources recognize that 
Saladin was certainly a unique character with several remarkable 
qualities, in them, he remained the enemy and an infidel. In many of the 
Muslim sources, Saladin was simply a man with no equal in terms of 
virtue. The truth is that Saladin was none of these, yet all of these.

Surprisingly, there are few biographies of Saladin that find a balance; 
most fall into panegyrics influenced more by the image of Saladin in 
modern novels and film. Hannes Möhring's recently translated /Saladin/ 
is a welcome corrective to this. The book, capably translated by David 
S. Bachrach, is a brief but highly readable and informative work. Until 
recently, most of the Islamic sources were inaccessible to most Western 
scholars of the Crusades or available only in very outdated translations 
(a situation now remedied largely thanks to the Crusading Texts in 
Translation series produced by Ashgate). Möhring, however, is an 
exception to the tendency not to take proper account of Islamic sources. 
His biography was the first German biography of Saladin--a bit startling 
considering it first appeared in 2005. In addition to using a large 
number of Arabic sources, Möhring also incorporates several German 
sources that are often overlooked or underutilized by scholars of the 
Crusades in discussing Saladin's relations with the Holy Roman Empire.

In addition to Möhring's biography, the book includes a nice 
introduction by Paul M. Cobb. Cobb, a respected historian of the 
Crusades, provides the framework to understanding the geographical and 
cultural background for Saladin's life. He provides the context by 
discussing the development of Islamic civilization and the changes that 
occured. Cobb concludes his essay by examining Saladin's legacy, which 
ties in nicely with Möhring's concluding chapter.

The volume is divided into seven chapters. The first discusses the 
creation of the Crusader states. The topics broached in chapter 1 go 
beyond a simple narrative of the first two Crusades. Möhring elaborates 
on the expansion of caliphal power, particularly the Fatimid caliphate, 
as well as competition between the Fatimids and the Seljuk Turks. He 
ends the chapter with an interesting, and too often neglected, 
discussion of the position of Muslims living under Crusader rule.

The second chapter, titled "Crusade and Jihad," discusses the Crusades 
from the Muslim perspective in terms of ideology and intent. Möhring 
then moves into a discussion of the concept of "jihad" and its 
implementation. Möhring adroitly demonstrates that countering the 
Crusades revived the idea of jihad as a holy war. In previous centuries, 
it had become essentially an obligation that rulers simply did not 
perform out of conviction. Rather, it had become something almost akin 
to making an appearance. Surprisingly, jihad as a source of 
legitimization and a form of war resurfaced under the leadership of 
Zengi, one of the least religious participants of the Crusading era.

It is not until chapter 3 that Saladin appears as a central figure in 
his own biography. Here, he appears in the familiar story in which he 
accompanies his uncle Shirkuh to invade Egypt, as part of a curious 
power struggle between the Fatimids, Crusaders, and Nur al-Din, Zengi's 
son and successor. In this chapter, Möhring brings to light Saladin's 
training and background, often overlooked or, in the case of many of the 
sources, reduced to hagiography. Möhring concludes the chapter with the 
demise of the Fatimid caliphate and Saladin's efforts to secure and then 
expand his power there while still remaining, at least in appearance, a 
servitor of Nur al-Din.

Chapter 4 focuses on the consolidation of Saladin's power. While most 
westerners (if for no other reason than the film /Kingdom of Heaven 
/[2005]) are aware of Saladin and his wars with the Crusaders, almost 
half of his career as a ruler was spent subduing and conquering other 
Muslim rulers. Möhring indicates quite strongly that war was almost 
certain between Saladin and Nur al-Din. With the latter's death and the 
fragmentation of the empire in Syria, the door was open for Saladin's 
intervention. In addition, Möhring examines Saladin's wars and relations 
with the Crusader states. As with all of the chapters, his approach in 
this chapter is wide ranging as he examines not only what occurred but 
also plans that never materialized, such as an invasion of Egypt by 
Sicilian Normans.

The topics of chapters 5 and 6 will be most familiar as they deal with 
the fall of Jerusalem and the resulting Third Crusade. In chapter 5, 
Möhring discusses Saladin's strategy in depth and pays particular 
attention to Saladin's animosity with Reynald de Chatillon, former 
Prince of Antioch and later Lord of Karak, particularly about Reynald's 
infamous Red Sea piracy and attempt to raid Mecca. Although chapter 6 
discusses the European reaction to Hittin and the fall of Jerusalem, of 
particular interest is the section concerning Saladin's attempts to find 
allies. When thinking of the medieval period, it is easy to 
underestimate the intelligence gathering capabilities of that era's 
rulers. Saladin, however, was quite aware of what occurred in Europe and 
responded accordingly. Despite conquering Jerusalem, Saladin's success 
also created fear and envy among his Islamic peers. Rulers in North 
Africa as well as the Abbasid caliph were more than a little concerned 
about Saladin's rise.

The final chapter deals with Saladin's image and legacy. Möhring begins 
with European views of Saladin beginning in the eighteenth century, 
demonstrating how Enlightenment ideas shaped the reimagining of Saladin 
by Voltaire. Anti-Christian sentiment generally helped recast Saladin as 
a more virtuous figure compared to any of the Crusaders. During the 
Romantic era, a similar event occurred, articulated primarily through 
Sir Walter Scott's writings. Although many of Saladin's historically 
attested actions were quite magnanimous, Scott often enhanced his image 
with fictitious events. Möhring contrasts the Enlightenment and Romantic 
view with a much less flattering medieval perspective. Indeed, all of 
chapter 7 is a nice corrective to the popular view, both the good and 
the bad, of Saladin.

After dealing with the Christian/European view, Möhring discusses the 
depiction of Saladin in the Islamic sources. This discourse extends to 
the modern era. Möhring adeptly points out that until nineteenth-century 
European imperialism in the Middle East, Muslims really did not express 
much interest in the Crusades, and by extension, Saladin. Why would 
they? Like the American North in regard to the Civil War, they won and 
thus did not obsess over it. Yet, with imperialism, Saladin reemerges as 
a figure of resistance and liberation. Of course, European imperialism 
also brought new attention to Saladin in Europe, gaining the very 
favorable attention of Kaiser Wilhelm, who built a tomb for Saladin. In 
the post-World War I Middle East, Saladin's image took a new twist. As 
one would expect, he became the hero of the Kurds, but Arabs latched 
onto him as a Pan-Islamic hero, while Turkey transformed him into a 
Turk. Meanwhile, Shia' Muslims typically view him as a villain, 
demonstrating that understanding Saladin and the modern world is 
anything but easy.

No book is perfect and Möhring's /Saladin/ is not an exception. The 
biggest criticism is that there are no footnotes. This reviewer did not 
have the opportunity to compare the translation against the original. 
Although Möhring refers to his sources when he includes quotations, in 
other instances, he makes passing remarks that cry out for follow up. 
One of the most frustrating instances concerns pre-Third Crusade 
diplomacy with Frederick Barbarossa. Another criticism is that Möhring 
does not discuss Saladin's conflict with the Ismailis, also popularly 
known as the Assassins. His conflict with the Assassins is an intriguing 
part of his career and receives but a few scant sentences. A final 
criticism is that the Crusaders' victory at Arsuf is attributed to 
longbows rather than crossbows. Although the leader of the Crusaders at 
Arsuf was Richard I (the Lionheart) of England, the longbow did not 
become a standard English weapon until the fourteenth century. One may 
wonder if this was an issue of translation.

Nonetheless, these three points are very minor and should not distract 
from the overall quality of the book. Despite its brevity and lack of 
footnotes, the book is well suited for the general public and for 
classroom use. It covers Saladin's life and world very well. Professors 
will enjoy its use not only as a biography, but also as a source that 
draws out many points, particularly on the diplomatic side, that general 
textbooks on the Crusades do not cover.


<http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showpdf.php?id=23608>

Timothy May. Review of Mo?hring, Hannes, /Saladin: The Sultan and His 
Times, 1138-1193/. H-War, H-Net Reviews. March, 2009.
*URL:* http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=23608