This article is about the specific polity Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt and therefore only includes events related to its territory and not to its possessions or colonies. If you are interested in the possession, this is the link to the article about the nation which includes all possessions as well as all the different incarnations of the nation.
If you are looking for the page with the statistics about this polity you can find it here:All Statistics
Was a state that ruled Egypt, the Levant and the Hejaz (western Arabia) from the mid-13th to early 16th centuries. The Sultanate was established with the overthrow of the Ayyubid dynasty in Egypt in 1250 and was conquered by the Ottoman Empire in 1517.
Establishment
May 1250: The Bahri Mamluks revolted against the sultan and killed him in April 1250. Aybak married Shajar al-Durr and subsequently took over the government in Egypt in the name of al-Ashraf II who became sultan, but only nominally.
May 1250: A group of disgruntled Salihi officers had Turanshah assassinated at his camp in Fariskur.
June 1250: In March 1250 Louis IX of France tried to return to Damietta, but he was taken captive at the Battle of Fariskur, where his army was annihilated. Louis fell ill with dysentery, and was cured by an Arab physician. In May he was ransomed for 800,000 bezants, half of which was to be paid before the King left Egypt, with Damietta also being surrendered as a term in the agreement.
Chronology
Interactive Chronologies with maps are available in the section Changes Navigation
Were a series of military campaigny by the Mongols that created the largest contiguous Empire in history, the Mongol Empire, which controlled most of Eurasia.
1.1.Mongol-Mamluk Wars
Were a series of wars between the Mongols and the Muslim Dynasties of the Ayyubids and Mamluks.
September 1260: The Mamluks, led by Sultan Baibars, captured Damascus from the Mongols
November 1260: Within a month, most of Syria was in Bahri Mamluk hands.
1.1.1.Mamluk-Ilkhanid War
Was a war between the Ilkhanate, a successor of the Mongol Empire, and the Mamluks.
January 1262: Kyrrhos and Gaziantep (Ayntab) area conquered by Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.
November 1271: Second mongol invasion of Syria.
December 1271: When the sultan Baybars advanced from Egypt the Mongol forces retreated beyond the Euphrates.
January 1272: Kyrrhos and Gaziantep (Ayntab) area conquered by Ilkhanate.
January 1273: Kyrrhos and Gaziantep (Ayntab) area conquered by Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.
January 1281: Kyrrhos and Gaziantep (Ayntab) area conquered by Ilkhanate.
October 1281: The Mongols were beaten back to the Euphrates river at the Second Battle of Homs.
November 1281: The Mongols of the Ilkhanate moved as far south as Homs.
November 1281: The third major Mongol invasion of the Levant took place in 1281 under Ilkhan Abaqa Khan. He crossed the Euphrates and captured Aleppo.
January 1282: Kyrrhos and Gaziantep (Ayntab) area conquered by Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.
May 1285: Qalawun was the Mamluk Sultan of Egypt who raised an army in Damascus to besiege Margat in 1285. Margat was a fortress located in present-day Syria, strategically important for controlling the coastal region. The siege marked a significant event in the conflict between the Mamluks and the Crusader states.
January 1286: In 1281, following the defeat of the Mongols and the Armenians under Möngke Temur by the Mamluks at the Second Battle of Homs, a truce was forced on Armenia. Further, in 1285, following a powerful offensive push by Qalawun, the Armenians had to sign a ten-year truce under harsh terms. The Armenians were obligated to cede many fortresses to the Mamluks and were prohibited to rebuild their defensive fortifications.
January 1293: In 1292, it was invaded by Al-Ashraf Khalil, the Mamluk sultan of Egypt, who had conquered the remnants of the Kingdom of Jerusalem in Acre the year before. Hromkla was also sacked, forcing the Catholicossate to move to Sis. Het'um was forced to abandon Behesni, Marash, and Tel Hamdoun to the Turks.
January 1293: Marash, a city in modern-day Turkey, was captured by Al-Ashraf Khalil, the Mamluk Sultan of Egypt, in 1292.
November 1299: In late 1299, the Mongol Ilkhan Mahmud Ghazan, son of Arghun, invaded Syria with his army. They crossed the Euphrates river and successfully took Aleppo, continuing south towards Homs.
December 1299: In 1299, the Mongol ruler Ghazan led his forces to besiege Damascus, which surrendered on December 30. Ghazan was the fifth Ilkhanate ruler, and Damascus was a key city in the region at the time.
January 1300: Marash was recaptured by Hethum II, King of Cilician Armenia, in 1299.
January 1300: Kyrrhos and Gaziantep (Ayntab) area conquered by Ilkhanate.
January 1300: Damascus conquered by Ilkhanate.
February 1300: With the retreat of the majority of forces from both sides, for about three months, until the Mamluks returned in May 1300, Mulay's forces were in technical control over Syria.
June 1300: When the Mamluks returned from Egypt, the Mongols retreated from the occupied regions in the Levant.
January 1301: Small raiding parties raided all throughout Palestine, as far as Gaza, until the Mongol army withdrew in 1300 out of need of fodder.
December 1301: In late 1300, Ghazan's forces (Ilkhanate) had dealt with the distraction of the Chagatai invasion on their northern border, and once again turned their attention to Syria. They crossed the Euphrates river between December 14, 1300 and November 1, 1301.
December 1301: The Mamluk army in Syria withdrew without engaging in combat, which resulted in a panic in Damascus when they heard of the new threat from the Mongols. The Syrians of Hamat were able to achieve a small victory against the Mongols at a battle near Aleppo by the post of Hamat. This created order in Damascus, enough for the governor to send for a larger relief force from Egypt.
January 1304: The Ilkhanate returned to Syria in 1303, travelling unopposed down the Levant until they reached Damascus.
January 1305: Marash was finally taken by the Mamluks in 1304.
January 1313: After about a month of fighting in which they suffered heavy casualties, the Mongols ultimately left the territories they had occupied in the levant.
January 1313: Encouraged by the defection of some Syrian emirs, Ilkhan Öljaitü decided to cross the Euphrates in 1312 to attack the Mamluk Sultanate. He laid siege to the heavily fortified town of Rahbat.
Were a series of wars between the successor states of the Mongol Empire.
2.1.Toluid Civil War
Was a war of succession over the Mongol Empire fought between Kublai Khan and his younger brother, Ariq Böke, from 1260 to 1264.
2.1.1.Division of the Mongol Empire
The Mongol Empire fragmented into four successor states at the beginning of the Toluid Civil War.
January 1261: The Kyrrhos and Gaziantep (Ayntab) area was ruled by the Ilkhanate between 1260-1261.
January 1261: When the Mongol Empire fragmented into four political units in 1260, several territories where de-facto lost to nearby countries.
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the Medieval period. The best known of these military expeditions are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291.
June 1291: The Mamluks capture Sidon.
July 1291: Beirut surrenders to the Mameluk troops.
3.1.Seventh Crusade
Was a Crusade led by Louis IX of France against the Ayyubids of Egypt.
3.2.Fall of Arsuf
Arsuf was conquered by the Mamluk Sultanate.
March 1265: Mamluk sultane Baibars captures and destroys Caesarea.
March 1265: Baibars could not take Chastel Pelerin, but he destroyed Haifa.
March 1265: In late March 1265 Sultan Baibars, Muslim ruler of the Mamluks, laid siege to Arsuf. It was defended by 270 Knights Hospitallers.
April 1265: At the end of April, after 40 days of siege, the town of Arsuf surrendered to the Mamluks.
3.3.Siege of Safed (1266)
The Siege of Safed (13 June - 23 July 1266) was part of the campaign of the Mamlūk sultan Baybars I to reduce the Kingdom of Jerusalem. .
June 1266: The Siege of Safed in 1266 was led by Mamluk sultan Baybars I as part of his campaign to conquer the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Safed fell to the Mamluks, further weakening the Kingdom's defenses.
July 1266: The Siege of Safed in 1266 was led by Mamluk sultan Baybars I as part of his campaign to conquer the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Safed fell to the Mamluks, further weakening the Kingdom's defenses.
3.4.Siege of Antioch (1268)
The Siege of Antioch occurred in 1268 when the Mamelukes under Baibars finally succeeded in capturing the city of Antioch.
March 1268: Mamluk sultane Baibar captures and destroys Jaffa.
May 1268: The Mamluks conquered the major Crusader fortress of Antioch.
June 1268: The Siege of Antioch occurred in 1268 when the Mamelukes under Baibars finally succeeded in capturing the city of Antioch.
3.5.Fall of Krak des Chevaliers
The Crusader fortress of Krak des Chevaliers fell to the Mamluk sultan Baybars in 1271.
March 1271: Baibars' army arrived at the Krak des Chevaliers, a Crusader's castle now located in Syria.
3.6.Fall of Tripoli (1289)
Was the capture and destruction of the Crusader state, the County of Tripoli (in what is modern-day Lebanon), by the Muslim Mamluks.
April 1289: The Siege of Tripoli in 1289 was led by the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt, under the command of Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil. The city was defended by the Knights Hospitaller, led by Grand Master Odo de Pins. The Mamluks eventually captured the city, ending Crusader control in the region.
May 1289: The Fall of Tripoli was the capture and destruction of the Crusader state by the Mamluks.
3.7.Siege of Acre (1291)
The Siege of Acre took place in 1291 and resulted in the Crusaders losing control of Acre to the Mamluks.
April 1291: The Siege of Acre in 1291 led to the fall of the Crusader-controlled city to the Mamluks, marking the end of the Crusader presence in the Holy Land. The Mamluks were a powerful military caste in Egypt, known for their role in the overthrow of the Ayyubid dynasty.
May 1291: The Siege of Acre in 1291 led to the fall of the Crusader-controlled city to the Mamluks, marking the end of the Crusader presence in the Holy Land. The Mamluks were a powerful military caste in Egypt, known for their role in the overthrow of the Ayyubid dynasty.
May 1291: The Mamluks capture Acre.
3.8.Fall of Ruad
When the garrison on the tiny Isle of Ruad fell to the Mamluks, it marked the loss of the last Crusader outpost on the coast of the Levant.
September 1302: Fall of Ruad: the Crusaders surrendered on September 26, 1302, following a promise of safe conduct.
Military campaigns of Timur (or Tamerlane), a Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia.
4.1.Timurid invasion Anatolia
Was a Timurid campaign in Anatolia, which was occupied for several years.
December 1400: Timur's forces took Aleppo in November 1400.
January 1401: In 1400, the Timurid Empire, led by the Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur, occupied the Levant region, which includes present-day countries like Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan. This expansion marked a significant moment in the history of the Timurid Empire's conquests in the Middle East.
January 1401: After taking Aleppo, Timur continued his advance where he took Hama, along with nearby Homs and Baalbek.
January 1402: Timurid troops invaded Syria.
January 1402: In 1400-1401 the Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur, also known as Tamerlane, conquered Aleppo, Damascus and eastern Anatolia.
June 1402: In the spring of 1402, Tamerlan advanced into central Anatolia.
January 1404: Fortunately for the Ottoman dynasty, in 1403 Tamerlane returned with his army to Samarkand, because he wanted to conquer China.
January 1404: In 1403, the Timurids, led by Timur (Tamerlane), occupied the Levant, which was previously controlled by the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt. Timur was a powerful Central Asian ruler known for his military conquests and establishment of the Timurid Empire.
Were two conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt that ended with the annexion of the latter by the Ottomans.
5.1.Ottoman-Mamluk War (1485-1491)
The Ottoman-Mamluk war took place from 1485 to 1491, when the Ottoman Empire invaded the Mamluk Sultanate territories of Anatolia and Syria.
January 1491: In 1490, the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt, led by Sultan Al-Ashraf Qansuh al-Ghawri, launched an offensive campaign into Karaman and besieged the city of Kayseri, located in modern-day Turkey. The Mamluks were successful in capturing the territory during this military campaign.
February 1491: In 1491, the Karamanids, led by Hersekzade Ahmed Pasha, were besieging Kayseri. The Ottoman Empire sent a relief army, prompting the Karamanids to retreat back to Cilicia. Ahmed Pasha was a prominent military leader in the Ottoman Empire at the time.
5.2.Ottoman-Mamluk War (1516-17)
Was the second major conflict between the Egypt-based Mamluk Sultanate and the Ottoman Empire, which led to the fall of the Mamluk Sultanate and the incorporation of the Levant, Egypt, and the Hejaz as provinces of the Ottoman Empire.
August 1516: Ottoman conquest of Syria.
October 1516: Battle of Yaunis Khan.
January 1517: The Battle of Ridaniya in 1517 saw the Ottoman commander Hadım Sinan Pasha lose his life at the doorstep of Cairo. Following this, the Ottomans captured and sacked Cairo, solidifying their control over Egypt.
April 1517: The last Mamluk sulatn Tuman Bay was finally captured by the Ottomans and hanged at the gate of Cairo. As a consequence the Sharif of Mecca also submitted to the Ottomans, placing the holy cities of Mecca and Medina under Ottoman rule.
Expansion during the rule of Ismail I of the Safavid dynasty.
January 1510: Iraq conquered by Safavid dynasty.
May 1253: In April 1253, a treaty was signed whereby the Mamluks would retain control over all of Egypt and Palestine up to, but not including, Nablus, while an-Nasir Yusuf would be confirmed as the ruler of Muslim Syria.
October 1260: Most of syria conquered by Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.
January 1266: The Mamluks conquered the Red Sea areas of Suakin and the Dahlak Archipelago.
January 1266: In 1265, a Mamluk army led by Sultan Baibars of the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt raided the territory of Makuria, reaching as far south as Dongola. This military campaign marked the Mamluks' expansion into Nubian territories and their efforts to assert control over the region.
February 1266: In 1266, the Kingdom of Makuria, ruled by the Mamluks, gained control of Dongola after a Mamluk army raided the territory the previous year. The Mamluks were a military class in Egypt, while Makuria was a Christian kingdom located in present-day Sudan.
July 1266: Baibars captures Safed, Toron and Chastel Neuf and takes control of whole Galilee.
January 1267: Ramla conquered by Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.
June 1271: Baibars captures the Teutonic Knights' fortress at Montfort.
February 1273: In 1272, King David of Ethiopia marched east and attacked the port town of Aidhab, which was under the control of the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt. The conflict resulted in the territory of Aidhab falling under the control of the Mamluks in 1273.
January 1276: The Makurians attacked and destroyed Aswan.
February 1276: The Makurians leave Aswan.
January 1301: The Kingdom of Dotawo was mentioned as existing during the collapse of the Kingdom of Makuria in the thirteenth century. The Kingdom of Makuria was a Christian Nubian kingdom located in present-day Sudan. The collapse of Makuria led to the rise of Dotawo in the region.
January 1338: In 1337, the territory shown on the map was taken over by the Beylik of Dulkadir. The Beylik of Dulkadir was an Anatolian beylik established by Turkoman clans Bayat, Afshar, and Begdili after the decline of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm.
January 1341: According to the chronicles of the Byzantine Empire, the Aq Qoyunlu or Ak Koyunlu ("White Sheep Turkomans") Turkoman confederation is established in Anatolia as early as 1340.
January 1348: The city of Ayas was increasingly oppressed by the Mamluks and fell definitively into their hands in 1347.
January 1351: The Mamluks succeeded in taking over the Hejaz, and made it a regular province of their empire after 1350.
January 1354: Kyrrhos and Gaziantep (Ayntab) area under mamluk control 1353-1378.
January 1358: In 1357, the Khan of the Golden Horder Jani Beg of the Golden Horde conquered Chupanid-held Tabriz for a year, putting an end to the Ilkhanate remnant.
November 1365: The Alexandrian Crusade was led by King Peter I of Cyprus, who sought to capture the city of Alexandria in Egypt in October 1365. The expedition was part of the ongoing conflict between the Kingdom of Cyprus and the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.
December 1365: The Alexandrian Crusade was an expedition led by King Peter I of Cyprus against the city of Alexandria in Egypt, which was under the rule of the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt at the time. The goal of the crusade was to capture the city and establish control over the region.
January 1426: Occupation of the kingdom of Cyprus by the Mamluks. The king was taken captive because of his alleged assistance to the pirates.
January 1427: Occupation of the Kingdom of Cyprus by the Mamluks.
January 1430: Sacking of Edessa by the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt in 1429. Edessa was a city in modern-day Turkey.
February 1430: End of the Mamluk sack of Edessa.
January 1434: The second expedition was led by Timur, a Turco-Mongol conqueror, against the Aq Qoyonlu, a tribal federation in Anatolia. Amid, also known as Diyarbakir, was their capital city. The territory eventually fell under the control of the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt in 1433.
February 1434: In 1434, Timurid ruler Shah Rukh led a military campaign against the Aq Qoyunlu tribe, targeting their capital city of Amid. The Aq Qoyunlu were a Turkoman tribal confederation that ruled over parts of present-day Iran, Iraq, and Turkey during the 15th century.
January 1449: In the late 14th century Corycus fell again to the Turks.
January 1501: From 1500, Kuwait was under the influence of the Kingdom of Hormuz for two centuries.
January 1517: The sultans of Dahlak and the Tahirids were overthrown by the Mamluks of Egypt.
Disestablishment
January 1517: The sultans of Dahlak and the Tahirids were overthrown by the Mamluks of Egypt.
January 1517: The Battle of Ridaniya in 1517 saw the Ottoman commander Hadım Sinan Pasha lose his life at the doorstep of Cairo. Following this, the Ottomans captured and sacked Cairo, solidifying their control over Egypt.
April 1517: The last Mamluk sulatn Tuman Bay was finally captured by the Ottomans and hanged at the gate of Cairo. As a consequence the Sharif of Mecca also submitted to the Ottomans, placing the holy cities of Mecca and Medina under Ottoman rule.
Selected Sources
Atwood, C. P. (2004): Encyclopedia of Mongolia and the Mongol Empire, New York (USA), p. 236
Ducas: Historia turco-bizantina 1341-1462, XXII [6]
Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt
