Ibn Shaddad

Richards (2020:1-4) reports that Ibn Shaddad was born in Mosul in 1145 CE. He moved to Baghdad where he lived for 4 years and became a mu'id (assistant professor) before returning to Mosul where he was a mudarris (professor) at a madrassa. After making Haj, he went to Damascus and Jerusalem and received an appointment as a Judge of the army (qadi al-'askar). He was a close confidant of Saladin and participated in diplomatic missions. In 1195 CE, he moved to Aleppo where he also served as a Judge (qadi). He died in Aleppo in 1234 CE at the age of 89. In addition to writing books on Islamic jurisprudence and the Hadith, he wrote a biography of Saladin titled The Rare and Excellent History of Saladin. Earthquakes are apparently written about in that book.