SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This article examines the role of Louis IX’s defeat and captivity during the Seventh Crusade in the transition from Ayyubid to Mamluk sultanate. It focuses on the attempt of amir Fakhr al-Dīn ibn al-Shaykh (d. 647/1250), al-Malik al-Ṣāliḥ Ayyūb’s (r. in Egypt 637/1240–647/1249) vizier and commander of his army during the crusade, to seize power and argues that following the death of the sultan, Louis IX’s campaign tilted the balance among the various contenders for the Egyptian throne and decisively contributed to the assumption of power by the Mamluks. The article offers a new framework to explain this major political transition by comparing the failure of the Ayyubid traditional and hereditary military elites to repel Louis IX’s invasion with the astounding successes of the Mamluks, all within the context of the structural and administrative changes instituted by al-Ṣāliḥ Ayyūb and his prevalent patterns of interaction with the Franks. It shows that Fakhr al-Dīn’s endeavour to capture the Egyptian throne and to recreate the diplomatic conditions and political consequences of the Fifth and Sixth Crusades failed in the case of the Seventh since Louis IX did not intend to conclude any peace agreement with the Muslims. The article highlights how Louis IX’s military and diplomatic defeats allowed the Mamluk regime to quickly consolidate its power and how the Mamluks succeeded where Fakhr al-Dīn failed: they ended the Ayyubid line, defeated Louis IX, forced the latter to surrender Damietta on their own terms, and garnered the necessary legitimacy and popular support.