Saladin's battles in
Egypt
Shirkuh engaged in a power struggle over Egypt with
Shawar and
Amalric I of the
Kingdom of Jerusalem, in which Shawar requested Amalric's assistance. In 1169, Shawar was reportedly assassinated by Saladin, and Shirkuh died later that year.
[20] Nur ad-Din chose a successor for Shirkuh, but al-Adid appointed Saladin to replace Shawar as vizier.
[21]
The reasoning behind the
Shia caliph al-Adid's selection of Saladin, a Sunni, varies.
Ibn al-Athir claims that the caliph chose him after being told by his advisers that "there is no one weaker or younger" than Saladin, and "not one of the emirs obeyed him or served him." However, according to this version, after some bargaining, he was eventually accepted by the majority of
emirs. Al-Adid's advisers were also suspected of attempting to split the Syria-based Zengid ranks. Al-Wahrani wrote that Saladin was selected because of the reputation of his family in their "generosity and military prowess."
Imad ad-Din wrote that after the brief mourning period of Shirkuh, during which "opinions differed", the Zengid
emirs decided upon Saladin and forced the caliph to "invest him as vizier." Although positions were complicated by rival Muslim leaders, the bulk of the Syrian rulers supported Saladin due to his role in the Egyptian expedition, in which he gained a record of military qualifications.
[22]
Inaugurated as Emir on March 26, Saladin repented "wine-drinking and turned from frivolity to assume the dress of religion." Having gained more power and independence than ever before in his career, he still faced the issue of ultimate loyalty between al-Adid and Nur ad-Din. The latter was rumored to be clandestinely hostile towards Saladin's appointment and was quoted as saying, "how dare he [Saladin] do anything without my orders?" He wrote several letters to Saladin, who dismissed them without abandoning his allegiance to Nur ad-Din.
[23]
Later in the year, a group of Egyptian soldiers and
emirs attempted to assassinate Saladin, but having already known of their intentions, thanks to his intelligence chief Ali bin Safyan, he had the chief conspirator, Naji, Mu'tamin al-Khilafa—the civilian controller of the Fatimid Palace—arrested, and killed. The day after, 50,000 black African soldiers from the
regiments of the Fatimid army opposed to Saladin's rule along with a number of Egyptian
emirs and commoners staged a revolt. By August 23, Saladin had decisively quelled the uprising, and never again had to face a military challenge from
Cairo.
[24]
Towards the end of 1169, Saladin, with reinforcements from Nur ad-Din defeated a massive Crusader-
Byzantine force near
Damietta. Afterward, in the spring of 1170, Nur ad-Din sent Saladin's father to Egypt in compliance with Saladin's request, as well as encouragement from the
Baghdad-based
Abbasid caliph,
al-Mustanjid, who aimed to pressure Saladin in deposing his rival caliph, al-Adid.
[25] Saladin himself had been strengthening his hold on Egypt and widening his support base there. He began granting his family members high-ranking positions in the region and increased Sunni influence in Cairo; he ordered the construction of a college for the
Maliki branch of Sunni Islam in the city, as well as one for the
Shafi'i denomination to which he belonged in
al-Fustat.
[26]
After establishing himself in Egypt, Saladin launched a campaign against the Crusaders, besieging
Darum in 1170.
[27] Amalric withdrew his
Templar garrison from
Gaza to assist him in defending Darum, but Saladin evaded their force and fell on Gaza instead. He destroyed the town built outside the city's castle and killed most of its inhabitants after they were refused entry into the castle.
[28] It is unclear exactly when, but during that same year, he attacked and captured the Crusader castle of
Eilat, built on an island off the head of the
Gulf of Aqaba. It did not pose a threat to the passage of the Muslim navy, but could harass smaller parties of Muslim ships and Saladin decided to clear it from his path.
[27]
