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43-678: Gökböri , or Muzaffar ad-Din Gökböri , was a leading emir and general of Sultan Saladin (Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb), and ruler of Erbil . He served both the Zengid and Ayyubid rulers of Syria and Egypt . He played a pivotal role in Saladin's conquest of Northern Syria and the Jazira ( Upper Mesopotamia ) and later held major commands in a number of battles against the Crusader states and

86-511: A circumstantial account of the battle. However, the Latin Itinerarium is generally preferred by historians given its contemporaneity with battle itself. The Old French Continuation of William of Tyre (dated from the 1230s in its present form) includes an account by Balian's squire Ernoul. Ernoul was not present at the battle but recorded the aftermath of the battle several years later. A late thirteenth-century copy of his account,

129-615: A combined force of approximately 20,000 men, Saladin crossed the Jordan River on 26 June. Four days later he besieged Tiberias. This prompted Guy, Raymond, and Reynald to march north to relieve the city. The Frankish forces were defeated at the Battle of Hattin on 4 July. By October 1187, Saladin had captured Jerusalem . The Battle of Cresson is found in contemporary chronicles; however, these accounts differ considerably and have yet to be fully reconciled by historians. The Libellus gives

172-523: A contemporary Latin chronicle, states that watchmen in Nazareth alerted Gerard and Roger of the Ayyubid raiders. The Lyon Eracles , a Middle French chronicle written by Balian's squire Ernoul , redeems Raymond – saying he had warned them about the raid. Nazareth, falling outside of Raymond's control, was not privy to Raymond's agreement with Saladin. Gerard and Roger assembled a small army consisting of

215-696: A contingency at Re’sulma.   In response to the encroaching threat from Saladin, Guy assembled the High Court in Jerusalem. A delegation of Gerard of Ridefort , master of the Knights Templar ; Roger de Moulins , master of the Knights Hospitaller ; Balian of Ibelin , Josicus , Archbishop of Tyre ; and Reginal Grenier , lord of Sidon , were selected to journey to Tiberias to make peace with Raymond. Meanwhile, al-Afdal gathered

258-478: A level of syncretism with pre-Islamic, traditional, Turkish practices called Siğir and Shölen . The long reign of Gökböri in Erbil, which became a thriving centre of Sunni learning, was largely due to his highly developed political acumen and judicious choice of alliances. He always made himself more useful as an ally of major powers than attractive as a potential target for their aggression. Though he married into

301-653: A male heir, Gökböri willed Erbil to the Abbasid Caliph al-Mustansir . In old age he campaigned against the Mongols , during their first approaches to Mesopotamia, which they were soon to overrun and devastate. Falling ill, he returned to his lands where he died on 28 June 1233. Three years later, in 1236, the Mongols sacked Erbil, but were unable to take the citadel; in 1258, during the Siege of Baghdad , Erbil fell to

344-580: A military title. In the 9th century the term was used to denote a ruler of a state i.e. Italy 's Emirate of Sicily . In certain decimally-organized Muslim armies, Amir was an officer rank. For example, in Mughal India , the Amirs commanded 1000 horsemen (divided into ten units, each under a sipah salar ), ten of them under one malik . In the imperial army of Qajar Persia: The following posts referred to "amir" under medieval Muslim states include: In

387-631: A possible attack by the King he refused to recognize. Saladin , meanwhile, had been consolidating power during the reign of Baldwin IV. His successful campaigns in Mosul , Aleppo , and Egypt resulted in his sultanate being recognized by the Abbasid caliphate. Saladin returned to Damascus following Mosul's fall, having now placed the empire of Nur ad-Din under his uneasy control. In 1185, Saladin had signed

430-610: A raiding party to pillage the land surrounding Acre, while Saladin besieged Kerak. al-Afdal dispatched Muzzafar ad-Din Gökböri , Emir of Edessa, to lead this expedition, accompanied by two ranking emirs, Qaymaz al-Najami and Dildirim al-Yarugi. Knowing that his troops were poised to enter Raymond's territory, Saladin agreed that the raiding party would only pass-through Galilee en route to Acre, leaving Raymond's lands untouched. In Frankish sources, this raiding party consisted of approximately 7000 men; however, modern historians believe 700 men

473-495: A travellers' inn and a number of establishments for the blind, orphans and widows. He was particularly noted as a fervent celebrator of Mawlid, a ceremonial recitation of praise poems celebrating Muhammad on the anniversary of his birth. Previous to Gökböri, such celebrations consisted of private observances or court processions. Those of Gökböri were held in public, preceded by hunting parties and accompanied by lavish sacrifices. This has been seen by later commentators as representing

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516-561: A truce treaty with the Franks under then-regent Raymond; however, before the treaty expiration, Reynald captured a caravan of Muslims traveling from Cairo to Damascus that winter When Saladin demanded reparation, King Guy tried to make Reynald to, but he refused the King's request claiming he was absolute sovereign of his lands and he had no truce with Saladin. In response, Saladin launched an offensive against Reynald's castle at Kerak in 1187, leaving his son al Melik al-Afdal as commander of

559-517: Is more accurate. On 30 April, the Ayyubid raiding party passed through Raymond's territory unimpeded, before making their way west towards Nazareth.  On the same day, both Gerard and Roger arrived at the Templar castle of La Fève near Nazareth. Balian stopped at his fief of Nablus, and Reginald took an alternate route. The De expugnatione Terrae Sanctae libellus (hereafter "the Libellus "),

602-560: The Arabic root a-m-r , "command". Originally simply meaning "commander", it came to be used as a title of leaders, governors, or rulers of smaller states. In modern Arabic the word is analogous to the title "Prince". The word entered English in 1593, from the French émir . It was one of the titles or names of the Islamic prophet Muhammad . From the start, emir has been

645-532: The High Court swore that in case both king and heir died, the succession would be decided by an arbitration by the Pope, The Holy Roman Emperor, the King of France and the King of England. When Baldwin IV died in 1185, followed by his nephew Baldwin V in 1186, there was a succession crisis. The party of Sybilla got control of the capital and crowned her, ignoring the oath sworn before Raymond's regency. To appease

688-653: The Zengid prince Saif ad-Din Ghazi ibn Maudud of Mosul . The lord of Mosul granted Gökböri the city of Harran as a fief. During the decade from 1164, Saladin , originally a subject of Nur ad-Din the Zengid ruler of Syria, had made himself master of Egypt. Saladin was ambitious to unite Egypt and Syria under his own rule, and was asserting a level of independence that his titular master, Nur ad-Din, could not accept. In 1174 Nur ad-Din prepared his army to march on Egypt, but he died before he could move against Saladin. Following

731-470: The military orders . The Christian army was destroyed and the master of the Knights Hospitaller , Roger de Moulins , was killed. The military exploits of Gökböri were recorded in the contemporary accounts of his Christian enemies, to whom he was known as Manafaradin. Gökböri's finest military achievement was at the Battle of Hattin in 1187, where he commanded the left of the Ayyubid army. Saladin commanded

774-605: The Ayyubid dynasty, two of his daughters married Zengids. Later in his reign he used alliance with al-Muazzam of Damascus as a counterbalance to the threats of al-Malik al-Ashraf and Badr al-Din Lu'lu' . Badr al-Din Lu'lu' was appointed as atabeg for the successive child-rulers of Mosul, Nur al-Din Arslan Shah II and his younger brother, Nasir al-Din Mahmud . Both rulers were grandsons of Gökböri, and this probably accounts for

817-573: The Ayyubid forces off guard. However, this separated the Frankish cavalry from the infantry. According to Ali ibn al-Althir , the ensuing melee was equally matched; however, the Ayyubid forces succeeded in routing the divided Frankish army. Only Gerard and a handful of knights escaped death, and the Ayyubids took an unknown number of captives. Gokbori's troops proceeded to pillage the surrounding area before returning across Raymond's territory. Balian

860-640: The Crusader states in the Levant The Battle of Cresson was a small battle between Frankish and Ayyubid forces on 1 May 1187 at the "Spring of the Cresson." While the exact location of the spring is unknown, it is located in the environs of Nazareth . The conflict was a prelude to the decisive defeat of the Kingdom of Jerusalem at the Battle of Hattin two months later. The exact location of

903-765: The Hospitaller Master Roger of Moulins, the Templar Marshal Robert Fraisnel, the Templar Jacquelin of Maillé, and plausibly the Templar Seneschal Urs of Alneto. The Libellus also praises the valor of two fallen Frankish knights: a Templar named Jakelin de Mailey and a Hospitaller named Henry. Raymond's reversal prompted Saladin to abandon his siege of Kerak. On 27 May, he joined his forces with al-Afdal and Gökböri at Ashtera in southern Syria. With

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946-499: The Kingdom of Jerusalem in the years leading up to and after the death of Baldwin IV . Baldwin, who suffered from leprosy, had appointed various executive regents during his reign ( Reynald of Chatillon in 1177; Guy of Lusignan in 1183 ) to lead the Frankish armies in his stead. When Baldwin's health degenerated again in early 1185, he appointed Count Raymond III of Tripoli as regent. Raymond accepted on condition that all members of

989-574: The Lyon Eracles, blamed Gerard for the Frankish defeat. Current scholarship has redeemed Gerard, believing that the negative account reflected contemporary mistrust of the Templars and was not indicative of Gerard's prowess at Cresson. The chronicle of ibn Al-Athir contains an account of the battle which largely agrees with the Latin sources. The main difference between the two narratives concerns

1032-467: The Mongol general Oroktu Noyan. Emir Prior to its use as a monarchical title, the term "emir" was historically used to denote a "commander", "general", or "leader" (for example, Amir al-Mu'min ). In contemporary usage, "emir" is also sometimes used as either an honorary or formal title for the head of an Islamic, or Arab (regardless of religion) organisation or movement. Qatar and Kuwait are

1075-562: The animosity between him and Lu'lu'. In 1226 Gökböri, in alliance with al-Muazzam, attacked Mosul, while his ally attacked Homs. As a result of this military pressure, al-Ashraf and Lu'lu' made their submission to al-Muazzam, though al-Muazzam died the following year. Nasir al-Din Mahmud was the last Zengid ruler of Mosul, he disappears from the records soon after Gökböri's death. He was killed by Lu'lu', by strangulation or starvation, and his killer then formally began to rule in Mosul. Being without

1118-601: The barons willing to support her but not her husband Guy, she accepted to divorce him under the condition to be free to choose her next husband. Then, in an unpopular move, Sibylla crowned Guy as king rather than divorcing him. Presented with the fait accompli of the coronation, all barons submitted but for Baldwin of Ramla and Raymond, who refused to swear fealty to Guy. Baldwin of Ramla abdicated his fief for his minor son, and went voluntary in exile, rather than swear fealty to Guy of Lusignan; Raymond retreated to his fief of Tiberias and asked Saladin to provide Muslim troops against

1161-552: The battle. In 1190, during the Siege of Acre by the forces of the Third Crusade , Gökböri's brother Zain ad-Din Yusuf died. Gökböri then petitioned Saladin for the return of his paternal inheritance of the city of Erbil. He received Erbil and Shahrozur , but surrendered Edessa, Harran and Samsat, which were granted to Taqi ad-Din. Though the siege was ongoing, Saladin allowed Gökböri to go to Erbil to establish his authority in

1204-400: The battle. Raymond's truce with Saladin was viewed as both a political and religious betrayal. As a result of this backlash, Raymond severed his diplomatic ties to Saladin and returned to Jerusalem with the remaining envoys to pledge his support for Guy. Although the battle reconciled the factions within the Frankish nobility, this political unity cost the Franks a number of influential knights:

1247-423: The centre and his nephew, Taqi ad-Din , the right. This battle saw the destruction of the army of the Kingdom of Jerusalem , leading to the fall of the greater part of the kingdom, including the holy city of Jerusalem , to Saladin. Ibn Khallikan describes how Gökböri and Saladin's nephew stood firm when the rest of the army was fleeing. They rallied the Ayyubid forces and led them in a counter-attack which decided

1290-498: The cities of Mosul and Aleppo remained under Zengid control. In 1185 Saladin was campaigning against Izz ad-Din Mas'ud , the Zengid ruler of Mosul. At this time Gökböri came under suspicion of collusion with Izz ad-DIn. Gökböri had promised the sultan a large sum of money towards the cost of the campaign, but was unable to produce it. Saladin had Gökböri arrested, but quickly released him. Saladin became gravely ill during this campaign, but

1333-551: The city. Taqi ad-Din was summoned to take over the troops previously commanded by Gökböri. Gökböri entered Erbil in January 1191. Gökböri remained the ruler of Erbil until his death. After the death of his patron Saladin, in 1193, he was effectively an independent ruler, acknowledging no superior other than the Caliph . He was a great patron of writers, poets, artists and scholars, whom he invited to Erbil. His administration of Erbil

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1376-498: The death of Nur ad-Din, Saladin invaded Syria. Gökböri commanded the right wing of the Zengid army defeated by Saladin on 13 April 1175 at the Horns of Hama . During the battle the right wing of the Zengid army broke Saladin's left flank, before being routed in turn by a charge of Saladin's guard. Following the Zengid defeat at Hama, and the continuing lack any unifying figure in the mould of Nur ad-Din, Gökböri realised that Zengid power

1419-551: The forces of the Third Crusade . He was known as Manafaradin, a corruption of his principal praise name, to the Franks of the Crusader states. Gökböri was the first Muslim ruler to publicly celebrate the birth of Islamic prophet Muhammad in an impressive ceremony during which al-Mawlid al-Nabawi (Mawlid or Mavlid, poetry celebrating the Prophet's Birthday) was recited. Gökböri, whose name means "Blue-wolf" in Old Turkic ,

1462-649: The former Kingdom of Afghanistan , Amir-i-Kabir was a title meaning "great prince" or "great commander". Muhammad Amin Bughra , Nur Ahmad Jan Bughra , and Abdullah Bughra declared themselves emirs of the First East Turkestan Republic . Battle of Cresson Period post-First Crusade Second Crusade Period post-Second Crusade Third Crusade Period post-Third Crusade Fourth Crusade Fifth Crusade Sixth Crusade and aftermath Seventh Crusade End of

1505-421: The historian Imad ad-Din al-Isfahani , described him as: "... the audacious, the hero of well thought out projects, the lion who heads straight for the target, the most reliable and firmest chief." In Saladin's campaigns against the Crusader states Gökböri was given important commands. At the Battle of Cresson (1187) he led an army of 700–7,000 which defeated a Christian army containing a large contingent from

1548-419: The knights in Nazareth and the Templar garrisons from Qaqun and al-Fulah to meet the Ayyubid threat. This force numbered about 130 knights, an unknown number of turcopoles and sergeants, and up to 400 infantry. On the morning of 1 May, the Frankish army rode east from Nazareth and happened upon the Ayyubid raiding party at the springs of Cresson. The Frankish cavalry launched an initial offensive, catching

1591-409: The only independent countries which retain the title "emir" for their monarchs. In recent years, the title has been gradually replaced by "king" by contemporary hereditary rulers who wish to emphasize their secular authority under the rule of law. A notable example is Bahrain , whose monarch changed his title from emir to king in 2002. Amir , meaning "lord" or " commander-in-chief ", is derived from

1634-580: The spring is still disputed. Primary sources place the spring near Nazareth. Israeli archaeologist Rafi (Rafael Y.) Lewis believes the springs of Cresson may be near the springs of Sepphoris , due to a 2021 discovery of Frankish arrowheads near the site. British archaeologist Denys Pringle suggests that the spring may refer to 'Ain ad-Daya: a spring that is closer to the Nazareth-Tiberias road, approximately four kilometres west of Kafr Sabt . Dynastic instability and internal divisions permeated

1677-477: Was assisted by the scholar Ibn al-Mustawfi , one of his viziers , who wrote the history of Erbil in four volumes. Gökböri was also a patron of the biographer and historian Ibn Khallikan. He was a devout Sunni Muslim and built extensively in his domains for both the spiritual and corporeal needs of his subjects, creating a religious college, the Dar al-Hadith al-Muzaffariya (founded in 1198), sufi convents ( khanqah ),

1720-421: Was nursed back to health in Gökböri's castle at Harran. In 1186 the war ended, when Izz ad-Din Mas'ud agreed to become Saladin's vassal. Following the conquest of Northern Syria and the Jazira, Saladin added Edessa ( Urfa ) and Samsat to Gökböri's lands. He was then given Saladin's sister, al-Sitt Rabia Khatun , in marriage. Gökböri became known as a reliable and skilled military leader. Saladin's secretary,

1763-516: Was on the wane in Syria and the Jazira and he made the momentous decision to defect to Saladin in 1182. Saladin had been repulsed from Beirut and was marching on Aleppo when Gökböri visited him with an invitation to cross the Euphrates into the Jazira, where he was assured he would be welcomed. His support for Saladin was instrumental in the defeat of Zengid power in the region; soon little more than

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1806-523: Was still a day behind Gerard and Roger, and had stopped at Sebastea to attend the May Day Mass. After reaching the castle of La Fève, where the Templars and Hospitallers had camped, he found the place deserted. Balian sent his squire Ernoul ahead to learn what had happened, with news of the disastrous battle discouraging the Frankish forces. Both Ayyubid and Frankish chroniclers record an overwhelmingly negative Frankish attitude towards Raymond following

1849-776: Was the son of Zain ad-Din Ali Kutchek, the Emir of Erbil (known as Arbela in contemporary Arab usage). Gökböri's ancestry was Turcoman and his family, known as the Begtegīnids, were associated with the Seljuk Turks . On the death of his father in August 1168, the fourteen-year-old Gökböri succeeded to the lordship of Erbil. However, the atabeg of Erbil, Kaimaz, deposed Gökböri in favour of his younger brother, Zain ad-Din Yusuf. Gökböri, exiled from his city, eventually took service with

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