Saladin and the Unification of Muslims

👤 A Kurdish figure in the history of the Islamic world

Saladin, or Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub, is one of the most emblematic figures of the Islamic Middle Ages. Born in 1137 (or 1138) in Tikrit, in present-day Iraq, he was of Kurdish origin and belonged to the Rawâdiya tribe, a branch of the Hadhbani. This ethnic detail, often downplayed in Western accounts, is nevertheless central to understanding Saladin's career: as a Kurd in a predominantly Arab world, he embodied a form of meritocracy within the Muslim military elite.

Saladin's family settled in Mosul, then in Damascus, then under Zengid control. From a very young age, he was educated in a multilingual, multicultural environment deeply influenced by religion. While he quickly established himself as a strategist and a man of faith, his ethnic identity gave him a position that was both marginal and unifying. He did not represent a particular tribal faction, but a pan-Islamic ideal.

🌍 The fragmentation of the Muslim world in the 12th century

In the 12th century, the Muslim world was deeply divided. In the West, the Almohads dominated North Africa, while in the East, the Abbasids attempted to maintain their symbolic authority from Baghdad. Between these two poles, local dynasties, such as the Fatimids in Egypt or the Zengids in Syria, fought over territories and allegiances.

It is in this context of fragmentation that Saladin emerges as a unifying figure. After serving Nur ad-Din, the Zengid emir of Aleppo, he became vizier of the Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt in 1169. Upon Nur ad-Din's death, he gradually established himself as the sole ruler of Egypt and Syria, unifying the two regions under the banner of Sunni Islam.

🕌 A strategy based on religious unity

Saladin understood very early on that the reconquest of Jerusalem and resistance to the Crusaders could not be achieved without religious and political unity in the Muslim world. He therefore undertook a methodical campaign to rally the different factions:

• It strengthens the legitimacy of Sunnism in the face of Fatimid Shiism, which it gradually dismantles in Egypt.

• He allied himself with certain Arab and Turkish tribes, without imposing his own ethnicity.

• He creates a religious discourse around jihad, not as a war of conquest, but as a sacred defense against Christian occupation.

His message, relayed by the ulema, found an echo in a population exhausted by divisions. Saladin thus appeared not only as a military leader, but as a spiritual unifier .

⚔️ The reconquest of Jerusalem: symbol of unity

The culmination of this unification strategy remains the capture of Jerusalem in 1187 , after the decisive victory at Hattin against the Crusaders. This event marks a major turning point in the Crusades. While the Crusader capture of the city in 1099 had been accompanied by mass slaughter, Saladin showed remarkable moderation:

• It guarantees the lives of Christian civilians and authorizes ransoms for their release.

• It protects holy places, including Christian ones.

• He avoids unnecessary bloodshed, which earns him admiration even among his enemies.

The reconquest of Jerusalem thus became a symbol of religious, military and political unity . It also sealed Saladin's moral authority over the entire Muslim world.

✡️ Saladin and the Minorities: A Look at the Jews

One of the often-overlooked dimensions of Saladin's story is his tolerance of religious minorities , particularly the Jews. Unlike the Crusaders who had expelled or massacred the Jews from Jerusalem, Saladin allowed them to return and resettle in the city after his reconquest.

This decision was welcomed by many Jewish communities across the Islamic world. Figures such as Maimonides, a Jewish physician and philosopher, enjoyed a climate of relative tolerance at the Ayyubid court. Saladin was not seeking to impose a single religion, but to establish a moral order based on coexistence , as long as communities respected Muslim authority.

🛡️ Saladin on other fronts: military leadership and expansion

Outside of Jerusalem, Saladin led numerous military campaigns to consolidate his positions and secure his borders. He won several battles against the Crusaders, such as those at Montgisard and the fortress of Kerak, without always conquering them, but demonstrating his resilience and ability to defend Muslim territory.

He also invested in the construction and restoration of fortresses at strategic points, such as the Cairo Citadel, thus ensuring the defense and administration of his territories. This rigor in military management earned him the respect of both his allies and his enemies.

📖 Saladin in culture and historical memory

Saladin is not only a hero of Muslim chronicles. He also fascinates European chroniclers. Unlike other Muslim figures, he is often presented in Western narratives as a chivalrous, valiant, just, and honorable enemy .

Writers such as Dante Alighieri and Walter Scott spoke of him with respect, and to this day, his image endures in popular culture, both in the Middle East and Europe. This universality testifies to the scope of his political and moral action.

🌐 Kurdish memory and contemporary recovery

Today, Saladin is regularly claimed by Kurds as a national and historical symbol. Universities, boulevards, and statues bear his name in the Kurdish regions of Iraq and Syria. This contemporary reappropriation of his legacy reflects the Kurdish people's need to anchor their history in figures of grandeur and Islamic cohesion.

This memory sometimes clashes with more Arabized readings of his character, particularly in certain national history textbooks. But overall, Saladin remains a consensual, unifying figure in the Muslim imagination.

🏛️ Legacy and posterity of a unifying figure

Saladin died in Damascus in 1193, leaving behind a strong but fragile empire. His political legacy quickly crumbled between his successors, but his moral aura endured. In the Muslim imagination, he became the model of the just ruler, the pious leader, the Kurd who transcended his origins to unite the faithful.

The story of Saladin and the unification of Muslims remains a major example of leadership transcending ethnicity and political divisions.

Even today, Saladin is celebrated throughout the Middle East, among both Arabs and Kurds. He embodies the idea that a leader, regardless of ethnic origin, can carry a vision of civilization, unity, and justice.

📚 Sources

Ibn al-Athir, Al-Kamil fi al-Tarikh , 12th century / Amin Maalouf, The Crusades seen by the Arabs , J'ai Lu, 1983 / Carole Hillenbrand, The Crusades: Islamic Perspectives , Routledge, 2000 / Encyclopædia Iranica, entry “Saladin”, /Interview with Prof. H. Zand, University of Sulaymaniyah, April 2024