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Sayf ad-Din Qutuz (; died 24 October 1260), also romanized as Kutuz or Kotuz and fully al-Malik al-Muẓaffar Sayf ad-Dīn Quṭuz (الملك المظفر سيف الدين قطز ), was the Mamluk Sultan of Mamluk Egypt.Al-Maqrizi, p. 507/vol. 1Holt et al., p. 215 He reigned as Sultan for less than a year, from 1259 until his assassination in 1260, but served as the de facto ruler for two decades.
Sold into slavery in Egypt, he rose to become vice-sultan for more than 20 years, becoming the power behind the throne. He was prominent in defeating the Seventh Crusade, which invaded Egypt in 1249–1250. When Egypt was threatened by the Mongols in 1259, he took control of the military and deposed the reigning sultan, 15-year-old Sultan Al-Mansur Ali. The Mongols conquered the centers of Islamic power in Syria and Baghdad, and the center of the Islamic Empire moved to Egypt, which became their next target. Qutuz led an Egyptian Mamluk army north to confront the Mongols, who had made a pact with Egypt's long-time enemy, the Crusaders.
The Battle of Ain Jalut was fought on 3 September 1260 in southeastern Galilee between the Egyptian Mamluk army and the Mongols. In what has been considered a historical turning point, the Mongols were crushingly defeated by Qutuz's forces. Qutuz was assassinated by a fellow Mamluk leader, Baibars, on the triumphant return journey to Cairo. Although Qutuz's reign was short, he is one of the most popular Mamluk sultans in the Islamic world and holds a high position in Islamic history. His name Qutuz means 'Rabid dog' (, ). He received this name because he fought like a vicious beast against other slave children.Qasim, p. 24
He became the most prominent Mu'izi Mamluk of Sultan Aybak,Qasim, p. 44 and then became his vice-sultan in 1253. Aybak was assassinated in 1257, and Qutuz remained as vice-sultan for Aybak's son al-Mansur Ali. Qutuz led the Mu'izi Mamluks who had arrested Aybak's widow Shajar al-Durr and installed al-Mansur Ali as the new sultan of Egypt. In November 1257 and April 1258, he defeated raids from the forces of al-Malik al-Mughith of Al-Karak which were supported by the Bahri dynasty. The raids caused a dispute among the Bahriyya Mamluks in Al-Karak as some of them wanted to support their followers in Egypt.
In February 1258, the Mongol army sacked Baghdad, massacred its inhabitants and killed the Abbasid caliph Al-Musta'sim. They then advanced towards present-day Syria, which was then ruled by the Ayyubid ruler an-Nasir Yusuf, who received a threatening letter from Hulagu. Vice-Sultan Qutuz and the Egyptian Emirs were alarmed by a message from an-Nasir Yusuf in which he appealed for immediate help from Egypt. The emirs assembled at the court of the 15-year-old Sultan Al-Mansur Ali, and Qutuz told them that because of the seriousness of the situation, Egypt should have a strong and capable sultan who could fight the Mongols. On 12 November 1259, Al-Mansur Ali was deposed by Qutuz. When Qutuz became the new sultan, he promised the emirs that they could install any other sultan after he defeated the Mongols.
Qutuz kept Emir Faris ad-Din Aktai al-Mostareb as the Atabeg of the Egyptian army and began to prepare for battle.Shayyal, p. 122/vol. 2
With the centers of Islamic power in Syria and Baghdad conquered, the center of the Islamic power transferred to Egypt and became Hulagu's next target. Hulagu sent messengers to Cairo with a threatening letter, urging Qutuz to surrender and submit to the Mongols. Qutuz's response was to execute the messengers. They were sliced in half, and their heads were mounted on the Bab Zuweila gate in Cairo.Al-Maqrizi, pp. 514–515/vol. 1 Then, rather than waiting for the Mongols to attack, Qutuz decided to raise an army to engage them outside of Egypt.Ibn Taghri, pp. 105–273/vol. 7 /Al-Muzafar Qutuz.Al-Maqrizi, p. 515/vol. 1 Moroccans who resided in Egypt fled westward, while Yemenis escaped to Yemen and Hejaz.
Qutuz went to Al-Salihiyya Al-Salihiyyah on a Google map and assembled his commanders to decide on when to march against the Mongols. But the emirs showed timidity. Qutuz shamed them into joining him with the statement, "Emirs of the Muslims, for some time now you have been fed by the country treasury and you hate to be invaded. I will go alone and who likes to join me should do that and who does not like to join me should go back home, but who will not join will carry the sin of not defending our women."
Qutuz ordered Baibars to lead a force to Gaza City to observe the small Mongol garrison there, which Baibars easily defeated. After spending a day in Gaza, Qutuz led his army along the coast towards Acre, a city that remains a remnant of the Kingdom of Jerusalem Crusader state. The Crusaders were traditional enemies of the Mamluks and had been approached by the Mongols about forming a Franco-Mongol alliance. However, the Crusaders recognized the Mongols as the greater threat that year. Qutuz suggested a military alliance with the Crusaders against the Mongols, but the Crusaders opted to stay neutral. However, they allowed Qutuz and his forces to travel unmolested through Crusader territory and to camp and resupply near the Crusader stronghold of Acre. Qutuz and his army stayed there for three daysRiley-Smith, p. 204. until they heard that the Mongols had crossed the Jordan River, at which point Qutuz and Baibars led their forces to meet the Mongols at Ain Jalut.Al-Maqrizi, p. 516/vol. 1
Baibars, known to be a swift commander, led the vanguard Britannica, p. 773/vol. 2 and succeeded in his maneuver and lured the Mongol army to Ain Jalut, where the Egyptian army led by Qutuz waited. The Egyptians at first failed to counter the Mongol attack and were scattered after the left flank of their army suffered severe damage, but Qutuz stood firm; he threw his helmet into the air and shouted "O Islam", and advanced towards the damaged side, followed by his unit.Shayyal, p. 123/vol. 2 The Mongols were pushed back and fled to the vicinity of Beisan, Qutuz's forces quickly followed them, but they managed to gather and returned to the battlefield making a successful counterattack. Qutuz cried loudly three times, "O Islam! O God grant your servant Qutuz a victory against the Mongols". The Mongols with their ChristianAmitai-Preiss pp. 39–45. allies were then defeated by Qutuz's army and fled to Syria where they became prey for the local population.Al-Maqrizi, p. 517/vol. 1 Qutuz kissed the ground and prayed while the soldiers collected the booty. Kitbuqa, the Commander of the Mongol army, was killed, and his head was sent to Cairo.
This was the first defeat suffered by the Mongols since they attacked the Islamic world. They fled from Damascus, then from the whole of the northern Levant. Qutuz entered Damascus with his army and sent Baibars to Homs to liquidate the remaining Mongols. While Qutuz nominated Alam ad-Din Sonjar as the sultan's deputy in Damascus, Qutuz granted Aleppo to al-Malik al-Said Ala'a ad-Din as the Emir of Mosul; also a new Abbasid Caliph was about to be installed by Qutuz. The Levant region from the border of Egypt to the river Euphrates was freed from the Mongols' control. After this victory, the Mamluks stretched their sovereignty to the Levant and were recognized by the Ayyubids and the others as legitimate rulers.Shayyal, pp. 123–124/vol. 2 When Hulagu heard about the defeat of the Mongol Army, he executed An-Nasir Yusuf near Tabriz. Hulagu kept threatening the Mamluk Sultanate, but soon he was struck hard by conflicts with the Mongols of the Golden Horde, in the western half of the Eurasian Steppe during the Berke–Hulagu war. Hulagu died in 1265 and would never avenge the defeat of the Mongols at Ain Jalut.
Some of the earliest explosive ( midfa in Arabic) were employed by the Mamluk Egyptians during the battle to frighten the Mongol horses and cavalry and cause disorder in their ranks. The Mamluks under Qutuz then went on to take back all of Iraq and Syria. The last city the Mamluks retook before his assassination was the grand city of Baghdad.
Qutuz was first buried in Al-Qusair and then reburied in a cemetery in Cairo, Egypt.Mawsoa, p. 764/vol. 24Al-Maqrizi, pp. 519–520/vol. 2 Baibars returned to Cairo, which was undergoing celebrations on the victory over the Mongols, where he became the new sultan. The people at once admired Baibars as he revoked the war taxes that Qutuz had imposed.Al-Maqrizi, p. 521/vol. 1
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