Battle of Ain Jalut facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Battle of Ain Jalut |
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| Part of the Mongol invasions of the Levant | |||||||||
 Map showing movements of both forces, meeting eventually at Ain Jalut |
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Mamluk Sultanate Ayyubid emirs of Kerak and Hamah |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
 Kitbuqa † |
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| Units involved | |||||||||
| Light cavalry and horse archers, heavy cavalry, infantry | Mongol lancers and horse archers | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 15,000–20,000 | 10,000–20,000 | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Unknown | High | ||||||||
The Battle of Ain Jalut (also spelled Ayn Jalut) was a super important fight between the Mamluks of Egypt and the mighty Mongol Empire. It happened on September 3, 1260, near a spring called Ain Jalut in what is now Israel. This battle was a huge turning point because it was the first time the Mongols were truly stopped from expanding their empire.
Before this battle, the Mongols, led by Hulagu Khan, were conquering everything in their path. They had already captured and destroyed major cities like Baghdad in 1258 and later Damascus. Hulagu then sent messengers to Cairo, demanding that the Mamluk leader, Qutuz, surrender Egypt. Qutuz bravely refused. He even had the Mongol messengers killed and their heads displayed as a warning.
Soon after, the Mongol leader, Möngke Khan, died far away in China. This meant Hulagu had to return to Mongolia with most of his army to help choose the next Great Khan. He left about 10,000 soldiers in the area, led by a general named Kitbuqa. When Qutuz heard that most of the Mongol army had left, he quickly gathered his forces and marched from Cairo towards Palestine. Kitbuqa's smaller Mongol army attacked a city called Sidon, then moved south to meet Qutuz's forces. The Mamluks used clever tactics, like pretending to run away, to trick the Mongols. This led to a huge victory for the Mamluks, and Kitbuqa himself was killed. This battle was a major defeat for the Mongols and stopped their advance into the Middle East.
Contents
Why the Battle Happened
Mongol Expansion and Power
In 1251, Möngke Khan became the leader of the Mongol Empire. He wanted to continue his grandfather Genghis Khan's plan to create a huge world empire. He chose his brother, Hulagu Khan, to conquer lands in the West. It took five years to gather the army, but by 1256, Hulagu was ready. He moved his army from their base in Persia and began his conquests.
The Mongols were incredibly powerful. They offered good treatment to those who surrendered without a fight. But they completely destroyed those who resisted. This way, Hulagu and his army conquered many strong and old kingdoms. Other countries in the Mongols' path chose to join them and even sent their own soldiers to fight alongside the Mongols.
Conquering Major Cities
When the Mongols reached Baghdad, their army included soldiers from Armenia and even some from the Principality of Antioch. They defeated the Assassins in Persia. Then, they destroyed the 500-year-old Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad in 1258. After that, the Ayyubid dynasty in Damascus also fell to the Mongols. Hulagu's next plan was to move south through the Kingdom of Jerusalem to face the Mamluk Sultanate in Egypt.
Mamluks Prepare for War
In 1260, Hulagu sent messengers to Qutuz in Cairo. The message demanded that Qutuz surrender Egypt to the Mongols. But Qutuz refused. He showed his defiance by killing the messengers and displaying their heads on one of Cairo's gates.
Soon after, Hulagu left the area with most of his army. He left only about 10,000 soldiers and some allied troops under the command of a general named Kitbuqa. Historians used to think Hulagu left because the Great Khan Möngke had died, and he needed to go back to Mongolia to choose a new leader. However, new information suggests that Hulagu also left because it was hard to feed such a large army in that region. He also wanted to move his troops to cooler places for the summer.
When Qutuz heard that Hulagu had left, he quickly gathered a large army in Cairo. He then marched into Palestine. In late August, Kitbuqa's forces moved south from their base. Qutuz also made an alliance with another Mamluk leader, Baibars. Baibars decided to join Qutuz because the Mongols had become a bigger threat after capturing Damascus.
Crusaders and the Mongols
The Mongols tried to make friends with the Crusaders who were based in Acre. But the Pope told the Crusaders not to ally with the Mongols. Also, a Crusader knight caused trouble, which led to the death of one of Kitbuqa's grandsons. This made Kitbuqa very angry, and he attacked and destroyed the city of Sidon.
The Crusaders were in a tough spot. The Mongols were a threat, but the Mamluks were their old enemies. In the end, the Crusaders decided to stay neutral. They made a special agreement that allowed the Mamluk army to march north through their lands without being attacked. The Mamluks could even stop near Acre to get supplies. When news arrived that the Mongols had crossed the Jordan River, Sultan Qutuz and his army moved southeast. They headed towards the spring called Ain Jalut in the Jezreel Valley.
The Battle Unfolds
The Mongols were the first to attack. Their army included soldiers from the Kingdom of Georgia and about 500 from Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, who had joined the Mongols. The Mamluks knew the land very well. Qutuz used this to his advantage. He hid most of his army in the hills. He hoped to trick the Mongols by sending out a smaller force, led by Baibars, to draw them in.
The two armies fought for many hours. Baibars used "hit-and-run" tactics. This meant his soldiers would attack quickly and then retreat. This helped them wear down the Mongol troops and save their own strength. When the Mongols attacked very hard, Baibars and his men pretended to run away for good. This was a trick to lure the Mongols into the hills where the rest of the Mamluk army was hiding among the trees.
Kitbuqa, the Mongol leader, was already annoyed by Baibars' constant retreats. He made a big mistake. Instead of suspecting a trick, Kitbuqa decided to chase the Mamluks with all his soldiers. When the Mongols reached the hills, the hidden Mamluk forces suddenly appeared. They started firing arrows and attacking with their cavalry. The Mongols found themselves surrounded on all sides.
The Mongol army fought very fiercely to break out. Qutuz watched from a distance with his own special group of soldiers. When he saw that the Mamluk army's left side was almost broken by the desperate Mongols, he took off his helmet so his soldiers could recognize him. He shouted three times, "O Islam! O Allah grant your servant Qutuz a victory against these Mongols!" He then rushed into the battle, yelling "Oh my Islam!", urging his army to stay strong. The Mongols were pushed back and fled. Qutuz's forces followed them. The Mongols managed to regroup and counterattack, but the battle had turned in favor of the Mamluks. They had the advantage of knowing the land and were now more confident. Many Mongols were killed, including Kitbuqa himself.
What Happened Next
After the Mongols lost at Ain Jalut, Hulagu Khan ordered the killing of the last Ayyubid leader of Aleppo and Damascus, who was his prisoner. However, the Mamluks quickly captured Damascus five days after Ain Jalut. They took Aleppo within a month.
On the way back to Cairo after their victory, Qutuz was sadly killed by some of his own commanders. Baibars then became the new Sultan. Later, Mamluk leaders defeated another Mongol force at Homs. This stopped the first Mongol attempts to invade Syria. Baibars and the leaders who came after him went on to capture the last of the Crusader strongholds in the Holy Land by 1291.
Hulagu Khan couldn't immediately attack the Mamluks again to get revenge for Ain Jalut. This was because of problems within the Mongol Empire. Berke Khan, the leader of the Golden Horde (another part of the Mongol Empire), had become a Muslim. He was horrified that his cousin Hulagu had destroyed Baghdad, a major center of Islam. Berke even sent a message protesting the attack. The Mamluks found out that Berke was a Muslim and didn't like Hulagu. So, they made sure to keep their good relationship with Berke and his kingdom.
Later, Hulagu tried to attack the Mamluks in Aleppo in December 1260 with a smaller army. They killed many Muslims to get revenge for Kitbuqa's death. But after two weeks, they couldn't make any more progress and had to retreat.
After the Mongol leaders finally chose a new Great Khan, Hulagu returned to his lands by 1262. He gathered his armies to attack the Mamluks and get revenge for Ain Jalut. However, Berke Khan started attacking Hulagu's lands in the north. This forced Hulagu to move his armies away from the Middle East to fight Berke. Hulagu suffered a big defeat in 1263. This was the first time Mongols fought openly against each other, and it showed the end of their completely unified empire. Hulagu Khan died in 1265.
The Mamluks were very successful against the Mongols. They defeated them in almost all battles. Besides Ain Jalut, the Mamluks won at the second Battle of Homs, Elbistan, and Marj al-Saffar. After five battles with the Mamluks, the Mongols only won once at the Battle of Wadi al-Khaznadar. They never returned to Syria again.
Why This Battle Was Important
Historians often call the Battle of Ain Jalut a "turning point" in history. It was the first time the Mongol advance was truly stopped. It also marked the first major defeat for the Mongols and a permanent halt to their westward expansion.
Some old Arabic military writings from the 1300s say that the Mamluks used early forms of hand cannons at Ain Jalut. They say these cannons were used to scare the Mongol armies. If true, this would be one of the earliest known uses of hand cannons in battle. However, other historians disagree. They believe that gunpowder weapons like cannons only reached the Middle East later, in the late 1300s.
A recent study suggests that the Mongols' defeat might have also been partly caused by a change in the weather. A big volcano erupted a few years earlier, which could have made the area warmer and drier. This might have made it harder for the Mongols to find enough food for their large army. This could have forced them to leave the region, which helped the Mamluks win.
Modern Impact
The Battle of Ain Jalut is still remembered today. One of the three original military groups of the Palestine Liberation Army was named "Ain Jalut" after the battle. In 1970, Yasser Arafat spoke about the battle. He said that his people had defeated enemies before, just like the Mongols were defeated at Ain Jalut in the same area.
Images for kids
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Map showing movements of both forces, meeting eventually at Ain Jalut
