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The Cream of the History of Aleppo by Kemal ad-Din (aka Ibn al-Adim)

زبدة الحلب في تأريخ حلب by مال الدين عمر بن أحمد ابن العديم

Aliases
Aliases Arabic
Ibn al-Adim
Kamāl al-Dīn Abu ʾl-Ḳāsim ʿUmar ibn Aḥmad ibn Hibat Allāh Ibn al-ʿAdīm مال الدين عمر بن أحمد ابن العديم
Kamāl al-Dīn Abu Hafs 'Umar b. Ahmad
Background and Biography
Background and Biography

Excerpts
English from Ambraseys (2009)

On 12th Shawwal [29 June 1170] there were large and frightening earthquakes, one after the next, the like of which had never been seen. They were felt in most of the regions of Syria, Jazirah, as far as Mosul, and in Iraq, but above all in Syria. Great parts of Damascus, Baalbek, Emessa, Hamah, Shaizar, Barin, Aleppo etc. were ruined. Their walls and citadels were overthrown, and the houses collapsed on their inhabitants, as a result of which a countless multitude perished. When Nureddin received this news, he made for Baalbek, in order to rebuild the parts of its wall and fortress which had been ruined; but when he arrived he was told of what had happened in the rest of the country, and learned that the walls of these cities had collapsed and that they were left defenceless. Consequently he left someone at Baalbek to rebuild and defend it, and marched to Emessa, where he did the same; thence [he went] to Hamah and Barin. He employed every security measure [which he could] to protect the whole country against the Franks. Finally Nureddin came to Aleppo, and saw such results of the earthquake as were not to be seen in any other town. In fact, this place had been scourged by the disaster. The terror of the survivors was extreme, but they were not able to take refuge in this homes, for fear of another shock. Nureddin camped outside the city, and began to rebuild it in person, not stopping until he had repaired all of the walls and the principal mosques. As for the Frankish territory, the earthquake caused comparable disasters there. They occupied themselves with rebuilding their cities, fearing lest Nureddin attacked them. Thus each side was occupied with rebuilding its cities, for fear of the other. (Kemal al-Din, iii. 572).

Nureddin knew about the earthquake which had occurred in Sham and especially the damage in Aleppo, and of the evacuation of its inhabitants, and that the shocks had carried on for several days. It was on 12th Shawwal, a Monday, at sunrise. The number of victims, men and women, reached 5000. (Ibn al-Adim, Zubdat, 2/33, Kemal al-Din).

English from Guidoboni and Comastri (2005)

Nur al-Din was informed of the earthquakes which had struck Syria, especially the one which had destroyed Aleppo, and which, because of the continuing shocks, had caused the inhabitants to abandon the town and take refuge in the country from dawn on Monday 12 Shawwal.

English from Blochet (1900)

Nûr-ad-Din feared an attack from the Franks; he then went at the head of his army to al-Karak2, invades and raises war machines against it. The Franks then assembled and marched against him, preceded by the son of Honfroy3 and the son of ad-Dakik. Nûr-ad-Dîn then marched to meet them before they had made their junction with the rest of the Frankish army. They retreated because they were afraid of him, and went to meet with the rest of the army. Nûr-ad-Din advanced into the interior of their country, ransacking and burning what was in his way, until his army reached the Muslim countries. He camped at `Ashtarâ4 always with the intention of continuing the war. It is in this place that news came to him of the earthquakes which had occurred in Syria, which had wreaked havoc in Aleppo, whose population had fled. These earthquakes had repeated themselves several times over several days. This happened on the 12th Shawwal of this year, on Monday at sunrise. More than five thousand people perished there, men and women. The mosque Djâmi` of Aleppo had already been destroyed by flames, as well as the markets which surrounded it, at an earlier time, in the year 564. Nûr-ad-Din hastened to have it rebuilt and to have the markets rebuilt. It was said that it was the Ismailis who set it on fire5. He also learned in this place of the death of Majd-ad-Din-ibn-ad-Dayah, his foster brother, which had occurred in the month of Ramadan of the year 565: Nûr-ad-Din then returned to Aleppo and saw that the city walls and its markets were ruined. He camped outside the city and gave orders to rebuild the whole walled enclosure and also to build a second enclosure, concentric around the city, which formed a double fortification. His lieutenants restored the citadels and fortresses which had been ruined, Ba'albék, Homs, Hamah, Barain1 and others. Nur-ad-Din then undertook a sortie against Tell-Bashir, and there received the news of the death of his brother Kotb-ad-Dîn, which occurred at Mosul in the month of Dou 'l-shijdah.
Footnotes

2 See Quatremère (History of the Mamlouk sultans, t. II, part. 1, pp. 236-246), a very comprehensive study of this city as well as all the forms in which Western chroniclers have transcribed this name.

3. Honfroy, son of Honfroy of Toron.

4. Place located on the road that crosses the Hauran and leads from Damascus to the territory of Tiberias.

5. I give here some details about the citadel, the fortifications and the great mosque of Aleppo, according to the Description map of Aleppo and its surroundings (ms. ar. n° 1683). Although this work is more modest than the Khitat of Makrizi or the Description of Damascus, it does not provide less on this part of Asia previous very curious information. Fol. 167 r. The citadel of Aleppo was considered one of the three wonders of world; the river of gold which flows not far from the city was another. The city wall had 128 towers, the circuit of the citadel 6625... Fol. 172 r. The first who built it was Mikhaiil, others say the king Seleucus (see above, p. 14, n. 2). When Aboù-'Obaidah captured Aleppo, the walls of the citadel had just been repaired after a violent earthquake which happened before the conquest and which knocked down the walls of the city and the citadel. In the year 405 (1015) one of the towers was burned down. These fortifications (fol. 7, r.) had passed in proverb in antiquity. When Khosrav-Anoshirvân seized this city, he rebuilt the collapsed part [of the] Persian brick walls, in the portion of the enclosure located between the gate of the Gardens (bab-al-djinan, cf. in Cairo the bab-al-faradis gate) and the Victory gate (bab-an-nanr), and the princes of Islamism the towers of the walls. When the takafoûr (see above, page 514, n. 2) the king of Rûm besieged the city of Aleppo and destroyed it in the year 351 (in the month 'Dhoû'lkaadah) of the Hegyre (963), Prince Saif-ad-Din-Daûlah fled from the city ​​and the takafour seized it. Everyone in the place was killed. Saif-ad-Daûlah returned to the city and had the walls rebuilt in the year 353 (965). His son Sa'ad-ad-Daûlah continued the unfinished work of his father. The Banou-Mardâsh made constructions in Aleppo when they seized the city, as did those who reigned after them, so Kasim-ad-Daûlah-Ak-Sonkor and his son the atâbek 'Imâd-ad-Din-Zangi. His son Nour-ad-Din Mahmoud y built a front wall... The beginning of this construction was in the year 535 (1141). When âth-Thâhir-Ghyâth-ad-Din-Ghazi arrived at the royalty of Aleppo, he ordered the construction of a wall from the gate of the Gardens (bab-al-djinan) to the gate of the Victoire. He also ordered to dig a ditch in the year 592 (1196); he also ordered to raise the front wall that Noûr-ad-Din had the surrounding wall and the bastions built and rebuilt... The Djami or great mosque of Aleppo was not less famous than its fortifications. We read crazy. 23 v.: “The djâmi` mosque was built in a garden in place of a very large church that existed at the time of the Greek Empire. This church was consecrated to the name of Hélène (Hèlanah), the mother of the great Emperor Constantine (Kostantin). The djâmï of Aleppo, according to the same authority, was identical to the djâmi of Damascus for the coatings of gold, colored marble and mosaics. I heard that Solaiman, son of Abd-Allah, had built it and that this mosque like that of Damascus was one of the wonders of the world. Fool. 24v. "The djami" was set on fire by the Takafoûr (the Byzantine ruler) when he entered Aleppo in 351. When Saif-ad-Daúlah returned to this city he rebuilt part of the mosque. In the dome there was an ablution basin in white marble of all beauty. "After several embellishments, "on the fourth night of the month, the 27 Shawwâl of the year 574, under the reign of Malik-an-Nâsir-Mah-mûd, the Ismailis set fire to it. The bazaars that were around the mosque were engulfed in flames. Nour-ad-Din took all his pains to rebuild it. » Like so many other masterpieces of Muslim art of the good era, like the splendid mosque of Damascus, the djâmi' of Aleppo was destroyed by the Tatars and their allies... Fol. 25 r.: “It was burned down in the time of the Tatars in the year 669. At that time Kara-Sonkor was naïb (governor) of Aleppo. It was rebuilt and completed in the month of Radjab 684, the kadi Shams-ad-Din-Ibn-Sakr of Aleppo presided over its reconstruction” ..... Fol. 27 r. “When the Tatars seized Aleppo, on the tenth Sunday of the month of Safar in the year 658, the king of Sis (the king of Lesser Armenia) entered the great mosque and massacred a crowd of people there, he set fire to it from the side of the kiblah (the point towards which one turns to make the prayer, in the direction of Mecca). 'Imâd-ad-Din-a1-Kazwini informed Houlagou of the vandalism that had been committed [by the] Sis people. The Tartar conqueror had a considerable number of them put to death”... Fol. 27 v. "We couldn't manage to put out the fire. Allah then sent abundant rain which extinguished the fire. » The Mosque of Damascus was less happy. — Asad-ad-Din-Shirkoùh-ibn-Shàdi, who is often mentioned in this story, built another mosque djàmi' in front of the big mosque built by Solaiman as-Solaimâni, and next to it he had his tomb where he was later buried. — We can see in Quatremère (History of the Mamlouk Sultans, t. II. Appendix to Part 1re, pp. 262-288), a description of the great mosque of Damascus, taken from Mohammad-ibn-Shâkir. The two buildings having been built by the same prince and with the same ornaments; very complete description of the djâmi` of Damascus, [is] given in this place, [and] can give an idea of that of Aleppo.

1 It is, says Yakout (Mo'djem, t.I, p.465), a city which is also called Ba'rain, between Aleppo and Hamah on the western side. According to the same authority, Ba`rin is a small town between Homs and the Sahil (t.I, p.276). It is the same town as Barain.

French from Blochet (1900)

Noûr-ad-Din craignait pour ces personnes une attaque de la part des Francs; il se rendit alors à la tête de son armée à al-Karak2, investit la place et dressa ses machines de guerre contre elle. Les Francs se réunirent alors et marchèrent contre lui, précédés par le fils de Honfroy3 et le fils d'ad-Dakik. Noûr-ad-Dîn marcha alors à leur rencontre avant qu'ils n'eussent fait leur jonction avec le reste de l'armée des Francs. Ils reculèrent par suite dé la peur qu'ils avaient de lui, et allèrent se réunir avec le reste de l'armée. Nouir-ad-Din s'avança dans l'intérieur de leur pays, en saccageant et en incendiant ce qui était sur son passage, jusqu'à ce qu'il fût parvenu aux pays musulmans. Il campa à `Ashtarâ4 toujours avec le dessein de continuer la guerre. C'est dans ce lieu que lui arrivèrent les nouvelles des tremblements de terre qui s'étaient produits en Syrie, et qui avaient porté le ravage dans Alep, dont la population s'était enfuie. Ces tremblements de terre s'étaient répétés à plusieurs reprises durant plusieurs jours. Ceci se passa le 12 Shâval de cette année, le lundi au lever du soleil. Il y périt plus de cinq mille personnes, hommes et femmes. La mosquée djâmi` d'Alep avait déjà été détruite par les flammes, ainsi que les marchés qui l'environnaient, à une époque antérieure, en l'an 564. Noùr-ad-Din s'empressa de la faire rebâtir et de faire réédifier les marchés. On a dit que ce furent les Ismaïliens qui l'incendièrent5. Il apprit aussi dans ce mède lieu la mort de Madjd-ad-Din-ibn-ad-Dayah, son frère de lait, qui était survenue au mois de Ramàdân de l'an 565: Nour-ad-Din retourna alors à' Alep et vit que les murailles de la ville et ses marchés étaient ruinés. Il campa en dehors de la ville 'et donna ordre dé reconstruire toute l'enceinte fortifiée, et de bâtir aussi une seconde enceinte concentrique autour de la ville, ce qui forma une double fortification. Ses lieutenants firent restaurer les citadelles et les forteresses qui avaient été ruinées, Ba'albék, Homs, Hamah, Barain1 et autres. Nour-ad-Din entreprit alors une sortie contre Tell-Bâshir, et il y reçut la nouvelle de là mort de son frère Kotb-ad-Dîn, survenue à Mausil au mois dé Dou 'l-shijdah.
Footnotes

2 Voir dans Quatremère (Histoire des sultans mamlouks, t. II, part. 1, pp. 236-246), une étude très complète sur cette ville ainsi que toutes les formes sous lesquelles les chroniqueurs occidentaux ont transcrit ce nom.

3. Honfroy, fils d'Honfroy de Toron.

4. Endroit situé sur la route qui traverse le Hauran et qui mène de Damas au territoire de Tibériade.

5. Je donne ici quelques détails sur la citadelle, les fortifications et la grande mosquée d'Alep, d'après la Description topographique d'Alep et de ses environs (ms. ar. n° 1683). Quoique cet ouvrage ait des prétentions plus modestes que le Khitat de Makrizi ou la Description de Damas, il n'en donne pas moins sur toute cette partie de l'Asie antérieure des renseignements fort curieux. Fol. 167 r. La citadelle d'Alep passait pour une des trois merveilles du monde; le fleuve d'or qui coule non loin de la ville en était une autre. Le mur d'enceinte de la ville avait 128 tours, le circuit de la citadelle 6625... Fol. 172 r. Le premier qui la construisit fut Mikhaiil, d'autres disent le roi Séleucus (voir ci-dessus, p. 14, n. 2). Quand Aboù-'0baidah s'empara d'Alep, les murs de la citadelle venaient d'être réparés après un violent tremblement de terre arrivé avant la conquête et qui avait jeté à terre les murs de la ville et de la citadelle. En l'an 405 (1015) l'une des tours est incendiée. Ces fortifications.(fol. 7, r.) étaient passées en proverbe dans l'antiquité. Quand Khosrav-Anoshîrvân s'empara de cette ville, il reconstruisit la partie écroulée des murs en briques persanes, dans la portion de l'enceinte située entre la porte des Jardins (bab-al-djinan, cf. au Caire la porte bab-al-faradis) et la porte de la Victoire (bab-an-nanr), et les princes de l'Islamisme refirent les tours des murailles. Quand le takafoûr (cf. ci-dessus, page 514, n. 2) le roi de Roûm assiégea, la ville d'Alep et la détruisit en l'an 351 (au mois 'Dhoû'lkaadah) de l'hégyre (963), le prince Saif-ad-Din-Daûlah se sauva de la ville et le takafour s'en empara. Tout ce qui était dans la place fut tué. Saif-ad-Daûlah rentra dans la ville et en fit rebâtir les murailles en l'an 353 (965). Son fils Sa'ad-ad-Daûlah continua l'oeuvre inachevée de son père. Les Banoû-Mardâsh firent des constructions à Alep quand ils s'emparèrent de la ville, comme firent ceux qui régnèrent après eux, ainsi Kasim-ad-Daûlah-Ak-Sonkor et son fils l'atâbek 'Imâd-ad-Din-Zangi. Son fils Noûr-ad-Din Mahmoud y bâtit un avant-mur... Le commencement de cette construction fut en l'an 535 (1141). Quand âth-Thâhir-Ghyâth-ad-Din-Ghâzi arriva à la royauté d'Alep, il ordonna de bâtir un mur depuis la porte des Jardins (bab-al-djinan) jusqu'à la porte de la Victoire. Il ordonna aussi de creuser un fossé et cela en l'an 592 (1196); il commanda de même de relever l'avant mur que Noûr-ad-Din avait fait bâtir et de rebâtir le mur d'enceinte et les bastions ... La Djami ou grande mosquée d'Alep n'était pas moins célèbre que ses fortifications. On lit au fol. 23 v.: » La mosquée djâmi` était bâtie dans un jardin à la place d'une église fort grande qui existait à l'époque de l'empire grec. Cette église était consacrée au vocable d'Hélène (Hèlanah), la mère du grand empereur Constantin (Kostantin). La djâmï d'Alep, suivant la même autorité, était identique à la djâmi de Damas pour les revêtements d'or, de marbre coloré et de mosaïques. J'ai entendu dire que Solaiman, fils d'Abd-Allah, l'avait construite et que cette mosquée comme celle de Damas était une des merveilles du monde. Fol. 24 v. « La djâmi' fut incendiée par le Takafoûr (le souverain byzantin) quand il entra à Alep en 351. Quand Saïf-ad-Daùlah rentra dans cette ville il rebâtit une partie de la mosquée. Dans la coupole il y avait un bassin à ablutions en marbre blanc de toute beauté. » Après plusieurs embellissements, « quand vint la quatrième nuit du mois, le 27 Shawwâl de l'an 574, sous le règne de Malik-an-Nâsir-Mah-moûd, les Ismaïliens l'incendièrent. Les bazars qui étaient autour de la mosquée furent la proie des flammes. Noûr-ad-Din mit tous ses soins à la rebâtir. » Comme tant d'autres chefs-d'oeuvre de l'art musulman de la bonne époque, comme la splendide mosquée de Damas, la djâmi' d'Alep fut détruite par les Tatars et leurs alliés... Fol. 25 r.: « Elle fut incendiée à l'époque des Tatars en l'an 669. A cette époque Karâ-Sonkor était naïb (gouverneur) d'Alep. Elle fut rebâtie et terminée au mois de Radjab 684, le kadi Shams-ad-Din-Ibn-Sakr d'Alep présida à sa reconstruction »..... Fol. 27 r. « Quand les Tatars se furent emparés d'Alep, le dimanche dixième jour du mois de safar de l'an 658, le roi de Sis (le roi de la petite Arménie) entra dans la grande mosquée et y massacra une foule de gens, il y mit le feu du côté de la kiblah (le point vers lequel on se tourne pour faire la prière, dans la direction de la Mecque). 'Imâd-ad-Din-a1-Kazwini informa Houlagoû du vandalisme qu'avaient commis les gens de Sis. Le conquérant tartare en fit mettre à mort un nombre considérable »... Fol. 27 v. « On ne pouvait venir à bout d'arrêter l'incendie. Allah envoya alors une pluie abondante qui éteignit le feu. » La mosquée de Damas fut moins heureuse. — Asad-ad-Din-Shirkoùh-ibn-Shàdi, dont il est souvent question dans cette histoire, fit bâtir une autre mosquée djàmi' en face de la grande mosquée bâtie par Solaiman as-Solaimâni, et à côté il fit élever son tombeau où il fut inhumé dans la suite. — On pourra voir dans Quatremère (Histoire des sultans mamlouks, t. II. Appendice à la 1re partie, pp. 262-288), une description de la grande mosquée de Damas, tirée de Mohammad-ibn-Shâkir. Les deux édifices ayant été construits par le même prince et avec les mêmes ornements; la description très complète de la djâmi` de Damas, donnée dans cet endroit, pourra donner une idée de celle d'Alep.

1 C'est, dit Yakout (Mo'djem, t.I, p.465), une ville que l'on appelle aussi Ba'rain, entre Alep et Hamah du coté de l'Occident. Suivant la même autorité, Ba`rin est une petite ville entre Homs et le Sâhil (t.I, p.276). C'est la même ville que Barain.

French from Blochet (1900) - embedded



Chronology
Date Reference Corrections Notes
Sunrise Monday 29 June 1170 CE Sunrise Monday 12 Shawwal A.H. 565 (year assumed) none
  • Calculated with CHRONOS
  • 12 Shawwal A.H. 565 fell on a Monday (calculated using CHRONOS)
Seismic Effects

Excerpt from Blochet (1900)
  • earthquakes which had occurred in Syria, which had wreaked havoc in Aleppo, whose population had fled
  • These earthquakes had repeated themselves several times over several days
  • More than five thousand people perished there [Aleppo], men and women
  • the city walls [of Aleppo] were ruined
  • citadels and fortresses which had been ruined [in] Ba'albék, Homs, Hamah, Barain, and others
Excerpt from Ambraseys (2009)
  • there were large and frightening earthquakes, one after the next, the like of which had never been seen
  • They were felt in most of the regions of Syria, Jazirah, as far as Mosul, and in Iraq, but above all in Syria
  • Great parts of Damascus, Baalbek, Emessa, Hamah, Shaizar, Barin, Aleppo etc. were ruined
  • Their walls and citadels were overthrown, and the houses collapsed on their inhabitants, as a result of which a countless multitude perished
  • Baalbek - parts of its wall and fortress which had been ruined
  • Aleppo - results of the earthquake as were not to be seen in any other town. In fact, this place had been scourged by the disaster. The terror of the survivors was extreme, but they were not able to take refuge in this homes, for fear of another shock
  • As for the Frankish territory, the earthquake caused comparable disasters there
  • earthquakes which had struck Syria, especially the one which had destroyed Aleppo
  • because of the continuing shocks, had caused the inhabitants to abandon the town and take refuge in the country
Locations mentioned
  • Syria
  • Jazirah
  • Iraq
  • Mosul
  • Aleppo
  • Damascus
  • Baalbek
  • Emessa
  • Hamah
  • Shaizar
  • Barain1
  • Frankish territory
Footnotes

1. According to Blochet (1900:41 n.1) citing Yakout (Mo'djem, t.I, p.465), Ba'rin is a small town between Homs and the Sahil (t.I, p.276) and is also known as Barain. Ba'rain, according to Yakout (Mo'djem, t.I, p.465) is between Aleppo and Hamah on the western side.

Sources
Sources

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References