"I am Not Those Men, I am Salahuddin" . . . Old Style Sarbani. . . . The Battle of Hattin took place on 4 July 1187, between the Crusader states of the Levant and the forces of the Ayyubid Sultanate of Egypt, led by Sultan Saladin. It is also known as the Battle of the Horns of Hattin, due to the shape of the nearby extinct volcano of that name. The Muslim armies under Saladin captured or killed the vast majority of the Crusader forces, removing their capability to wage war.[17] As a direct result of the battle, Muslims once again became the pre-eminent military power in the Holy Land, re-capturing Jerusalem and most of the other Crusader-held cities and castles.[17] These Christian defeats prompted the Third Crusade, which began two years after the Battle of Hattin. . . . The battle took place near Tiberias in present-day Israel. The battlefield, near the village of Hittin, had as its chief geographic feature a double hill (the "Horns of Hattin") beside a pass through the northern mountains between Tiberias and the road from Acre to the east. The Roman road, known to the Arabs as Darb al-Hawarnah, served as the main east–west passage between the Jordan fords, the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean coast. . . . Guy of Lusignan became king of Jerusalem in 1186, in right of his wife, Sibylla, after the death of her son Baldwin V. The Kingdom of Jerusalem was divided between the "court faction" of Guy, consisting of Sibylla and relative newcomers to the kingdom such as Raynald of Châtillon, Gerard of Ridefort and the Knights Templar; versus the "nobles' faction", led by Raymond III of Tripoli, who had been a regent for the child-king Baldwin V and had opposed Guy's succession. Raymond III of Tripoli had supported the claim of Sibylla's half-sister Isabella and Isabella's husband, Humphrey IV of Toron, and led the rival faction to the court party. Open warfare was prevented only by Humphrey of Toron swearing allegiance to Guy, which ended the succession dispute. The Muslim chronicler Ali ibn al-Athir claimed that Raymond was in a "state of open rebellion" against Guy.[18] . . . Now the crusaders were surrounded and, despite three desperate charges on Saladin's position, were broken up and defeated. An eyewitness account of this is given by Saladin's 17-year-old son, al-Afdal. It is quoted by Muslim chronicler Ibn al-Athir:[38] When the king of the Franks [Guy] was on the hill with that band, they made a formidable charge against the Muslims facing them, so that they drove them back to my father [Saladin]. I looked towards him and he was overcome by grief and his complexion pale. He took hold of his beard and advanced, crying out "Give the lie to the Devil!" The Muslims rallied, returned to the fight, and climbed the hill. When I saw that the Franks withdrew, pursued by the Muslims, I shouted for joy, "We have beaten them!" But the Franks rallied and charged again like the first time and drove the Muslims back to my father. He acted as he had done on the first occasion and the Muslims turned upon the Franks and drove them back to the hill. I again shouted, "We have beaten them!" but my father rounded on me and said, "Be quiet! We have not beaten them until that tent [Guy's] falls." As he was speaking to me, the tent fell. The sultan dismounted, prostrated himself in thanks to God Almighty, and wept for joy. . . . On Sunday 5 July Saladin marched the six miles (10km) to Tiberias, and Countess Eschiva surrendered the citadel of the fortress. She was allowed to leave for Tripoli with all of her family, followers, and possessions.[48] Raymond of Tripoli, having escaped the battle, died of pleurisy later in 1187.[49] . . . References "Pen and Parchment: Drawing in the Middle Ages – Exhibition Images » Saladin's Capture of the True Cross". Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 27 December 2025. Nicolle (2011). pp. 22–23, 27, 29, 52. Nicolle (2011). pp. 22, 23. . . . For Educational Purposes <3 . . . No Hate <3 . . . I Love Flowers <3 - @general_sarbani