Jalal al-Mulk Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Ammar () was the ruler (''

qadi A qadi (; ) is the magistrate or judge of a Sharia court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and minors, and supervision and auditing of public works. History The term '' was in use from ...

'') of

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis (from , meaning "three cities") may refer to: Places Greece *Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in the Pelasgiotis district, Thessaly, near Larissa ...

during the

First Crusade The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the Middle Ages. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Muslim conquest ...

. Ali belonged to the house of the

Banu Ammar The Banu Ammar () were a family of Shia Muslim magistrates (''qadi''s) who ruled the city of Tripoli in what is now Lebanon from c.1065 until 1109. History The Banu Ammar were descended from the Berber tribe of the Kutama, which was the mainsta ...

, which was known more for its learning than for warfare. The dynasty had been founded by his uncle, Amin al-Dawla Abu Talib al-Hasan ibn Ammar, who as ''

'' of

had declared himself independent from the

Fatimid Caliphate The Fatimid Caliphate (; ), also known as the Fatimid Empire, was a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries CE under the rule of the Fatimids, an Isma'ili Shi'a dynasty. Spanning a large area of North Africa and West Asia, i ...

c. 1065. Ali came to power in Tripoli after his uncle's death in 1072, after a brief succession struggle with his brother, whom he expelled from the city. He was able to maintain his precarious independence by playing the Fatimids off the

Seljuks The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; , ''Saljuqian'',) alternatively spelled as Saljuqids or Seljuk Turks, was an Oghuz Turkic, Sunni Muslim dynasty that gradually became Persianate and contributed to Turco-Persian culture. The founder of th ...

. In 1081, he captured

Jableh Jableh (; ', also spelt ''Jebleh'', ''Jabala'', ''Jablah, Gabala'' or ''Gibellum'') is a Mediterranean coastal city in Syria, north of Baniyas and south of Latakia, with c. 80,000 inhabitants (2004 census). As Ancient ''Gabala'', it was a By ...

from the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

. Under Ali's reign, the

came to the Levant. Following the

Siege of Antioch The siege of Antioch took place during the First Crusade in 1097 and 1098, on the crusaders' way to Jerusalem through Syria (region), Syria. Two sieges took place in succession. The first siege, by the crusaders against the city held by the Sel ...

, the Crusaders began to make their way down to

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

in early 1099. Soon, the party of

Raymond IV Raymond IV may refer to: * Raymond IV of Pallars Jussà (count, 1047–1098) *Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse Raymond of Saint-Gilles ( 1041 – 28 February 1105), also called Raymond IV of Toulouse or Raymond I of Tripoli, was the count of Toulou ...

approached Tripoli. Fearing the advancing Crusaders, he attempted to strike an alliance with them. However, due to the prosperity of Tripoli and the surrounding countryside, Raymond wished to make Tripoli his subject rather than his ally. He soon began the

Siege of Arqa A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characte ...

, while encouraging Raymond of Pilet and Raymond, Viscount of Turenne to capture

Tortosa Tortosa (, ) is the capital of the '' comarca'' of Baix Ebre, in Catalonia, Spain. Tortosa is located at above sea level, by the Ebro river, protected on its northern side by the mountains of the Cardó Massif, of which Buinaca, one of the hi ...

, a subject of Ali's, as well, which they did. The Siege of Arqa, which lasted from 14 February to 13 May 1099, was a failure, and Raymond was eventually persuaded to leave the city in the hands of Tripoli. As the Crusaders approached Ali's capital, he attempted to buy his immunity. He offered 300 Christian captives, compensating them with 15,000

bezants In the Middle Ages, the term bezant (, from Latin ) was used in Western Europe to describe several gold coins of the east, all derived ultimately from the Roman . The word itself comes from the Greek Byzantion, the ancient name of Constantinopl ...

and 15 horses. The Crusaders left Tripoli untouched on 16 May. Ali did not live to see the long

Siege of Tripoli The siege of Tripoli lasted from 1102 until 12 July 1109. It took place on the site of the present day Lebanese city of Tripoli, Lebanon, Tripoli, in the aftermath of the First Crusade. It led to the establishment of the fourth crusader state, t ...

, being succeeded by his brother

Fakhr al-Mulk ibn Ammar Fakhr al-Mulk ibn Ammar was the last ''qadi'' of Tripoli, from 1099 to 1109, before the city was taken by the Crusaders. Biography Fakhr al-Mulk was a member of Banu Ammar. He succeeded his brother Jalal al-Mulk Ali ibn Muhammad during the First ...

References

Sources

* * * {{EI2 , last = Wiet , first = G. , title = ʿAmmār , volume = 1 , page = 448 , url = http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_0625 1099 deaths 11th-century Arab people Muslims of the First Crusade History of Tripoli, Lebanon People of medieval Lebanon Arab people of the Arab–Byzantine wars