Al-Ashraf Khalil

Key Accomplishments

• Captured Acre on May 18, 1291, ending the Crusader presence in the Holy Land
• Completed the Mamluk reconquest of the entire Levantine coast from the Crusaders
• Demolished Crusader coastal fortifications to prevent future reoccupation

The Full Story

Al-Ashraf Khalil succeeded his father Qalawun as Mamluk sultan in November 1290, inheriting the planned campaign against Acre, the last significant Crusader stronghold on the Levantine coast. He immediately began assembling one of the largest armies the Mamluk state had ever mustered, drawing forces from across Egypt and Syria along with massive siege equipment.

The siege of Acre began on April 5, 1291, with an enormous Mamluk army facing the heavily fortified city defended by the military orders -- Templars, Hospitallers, and Teutonic Knights -- along with Italian merchant communities and remaining Crusader nobility. After weeks of bombardment and mining, the Mamluks breached the walls on May 18, 1291. The fall of Acre was accompanied by fierce fighting and significant casualties on both sides. The remaining coastal Crusader towns -- Tyre, Sidon, Beirut -- surrendered or were evacuated in the following weeks.

The capture of Acre effectively ended the Crusader presence in the Holy Land that had begun with the First Crusade in 1099. Al-Ashraf Khalil ordered the systematic demolition of Acre's fortifications to prevent any future Crusader return. His triumph completed the work begun by Salahuddin over a century earlier. However, al-Ashraf Khalil's reign was cut short when he was assassinated by Mamluk emirs in December 1293, barely two years after his greatest victory.

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Connected Figures

Sources

• [1]Irwin, Robert. The Middle East in the Middle Ages: The Early Mamluk Sultanate, 1250-1382. Southern Illinois University Press, 1986.
• [2]Northrup, Linda S. "The Bahri Mamluk Sultanate." in The Cambridge History of Egypt, Vol. 1. Cambridge University Press, 1998.
• [3]Runciman, Steven. A History of the Crusades, Vol. 3. Cambridge University Press, 1954.