Usamah ibn Murshid ibn Munqidh (1095-1188, also Osama, Usama, Ussama, or Usmah; Arabic: ﺃﺳﺎﻣﺔ ﺑﻦ ﻣﻨﻘﺬ), an Arab historian, politician, and diplomat, was one of the most important contemporary Arab chroniclers during the time of the Crusades. He came from an aristocratic family from the small, independent Shaizar emirate and was the nephew of its emir Sultan ibn Munqidh. Events The country of Portugal is established for the second time. ... Events Saladin unsuccessfully besieges the Hospitaller fortress of Krak des Chevaliers in modern Syria. ... The Arabic language (Arabic: ‎ translit: ), or simply Arabic (Arabic: ‎ translit: ), is the largest member of the Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family (classification: South Central Semitic) and is closely related to Hebrew and Aramaic. ... The Arabs (Arabic: عرب) are an ethnic group who are predominantly speakers of the Arabic language, mainly found throughout the Middle East and North Africa. ... A historian is someone who writes history, and history is a written accounting of the past. ... A politician is an individual who is a formally recognized and active member of a government, or a person who influences the way a society is governed through an understanding of political power and group dynamics. ... This page is about negotiations; for the board game, see Diplomacy (game). ... Generally a chronicle (Latin chronica) is historical account of facts and events in chronological order. ... This article is about the medieval crusades. ... Shaizar or Shayzar was a medieval town and fortress in Syria, ruled by the Banu Munqidh dynasty, which played an important part in the Christian and Muslim politics of the crusades. ... Generally speaking, an emirate (Arabic imarah, plural imarat) is a territory that is administered by an emir, although in Arabic the term can be generalized to mean any province of a country that is administered by a member of the ruling class. ...

Due to his activity as a diplomat he knew personally the most important people both on the Arab and the Christian sides. His autobiography, Kitab al-I'tibar, gives a good idea of the lifestyle of the time and of the relationship between the Christians and Muslims. Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on Jesus of Nazareth, and on his life and teachings as presented in the New Testament. ... An autobiography, from the Greek auton, self, bios, life and graphein, write, is a biography written by the subject or composed conjointly with a collaborative writer (styled as told to or with). The term dates from the late eighteenth century, but the form is much older. ... The autobiography of Usāmah ibn-Munqidh Usāmahs autobiography is taken from his Kitāb al Itibār (i. ... For other uses, including people named Islam, see Islam (disambiguation). ...

In 1138 he travelled under the order of the Mameluk Moinuddin Unur, the governor of Damascus, to Jerusalem, to discuss with King Fulk the possibility of an alliance against Zengi, the emir of Mosul. Usamah was received hospitably and he was able to establish a pact of mutual assistance between Unur and the Franks against Zengi. In accordance with the pact, the fortress of Banias was transferred to the Franks. Usamah also later accompanied Unur on a state visit to Jerusalem. Events Robert Warelwast becomes Bishop of Exeter. ... An Ottoman Mamluk, from 1810 Mamluks (or Mameluks) (the Arabic word usually translates as owned, singular: مملوك plural: مماليك) comprised slave soldiers used by the Muslim Caliphs and the Ottoman Empire, and who on more than one occasion seized power for... Muin ad-Din Unur al-Atabeki (died August 28, 1149) was the ruler of Damascus in the mid-12th century. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Jerusalem (Hebrew:  , Yerushaláyim or Yerushalaim; Arabic:  , al-Quds (the Holy); official Arabic in Israel: أورشليم القدس, Urshalim-al-Quds (combining the Hebrew Bible and common usage Arabic names) is the capital and largest city of the State of Israel with a population of 724,000 (as of May 24, 2006[1... Fulk of Anjou (1092 – November 10, 1143), king of Jerusalem from 1131, was the son of Fulk IV, count of Anjou, and his wife Bertrada (who ultimately deserted her husband and became the mistress of Philip I of France). ... Imad ad-Din Atabeg Zengi (also Zangi, Zengui, Zenki, or Zanki) (1087- September 14, 1146) was the son of Aq Sunqur al-Hajib, governor of Aleppo under Malik Shah I. His father was beheaded for treason in 1094, and Zengi was brought up by Karbuqa, the governor of Mosul. ... , Tigris River and bridge in Mosul Mosul (Arabic: , Kurdish: Mûsil, Syriac: NînÄ›wâ, Turkish: Musul) is a city in northern Iraq and the capital of Ninawa Governorate. ... For the city in northwestern Syria, see Baniyas For information on the processor formerly codenamed Banias, please see Centrino The spring at Banyas - one of the three sources of the Jordan river The remains of the city of Banias (Arabic pronunciation of Panias) are located at the foot of Mt. ...

The short period of Frankish-Damascene cooperation gave Usamah the opportunity to become more familiar with the Franks. With a remarkably even-handed approach, Usama comments on their practices. Raised in a highly regulated and sophisticated Islamic society, the Christian practise of trial by ordeal appeared particularly strange to him, as did the christians non-restrictive treatment of women. Much has been made of his apparent distaste for frankish medicine, but this stems from a highly selective and rather unscholary (preferring a second-hand account to a first-hand account) reading of the text - Usama's second-hand description of "strange" frankish medicine is something he clearly distinguishes from his own first-hand experiences with frankish treatments, which he in facts enthusiastically recommends and describes - although he certainly finds them odd. Also, it has to be remembered that Usama's autobiography is written within the adab (courtly) literary genre, which stresses using contrasting viewpoints and does not necessarily always demand that the viewpoints be factual. The bravery and careful discipline of the Christian warriors impressed him (he once remarked that this was the only virtue of the Franks). However, he politely declined the offer of a Frankish knight to take his son to Europe in order to educate him about the virtues of chivalry. As a whole, though, he is not overly hostile toward the Franks, naming several of them friends. Trial by ordeal is a judicial practice by which the guilt or innocence of the accused is determined by subjecting them to a painful task. ... The silver Anglia knight, commissioned as a trophy in 1850, intended to represent the Black Prince. ... World map showing Europe Political map (neighboring countries in Asia and Africa also shown) Europe is one of the seven traditional continents of the Earth. ... Woman under the Safeguard of Knighthood, allegorical Scene. ...

He later entered the service of Zengi, and then the Egyptian Fatimids. The Fatimids sent him as an ambassador to Nur ad-Din to negotiate an alliance against the Franks, although these negotiations failed. On his return journey he remained for two years in Ascalon, which was under siege by the Franks. Usamah helped organize Ascalon's resistance to the siege, although the city eventually fell. Imad ad-Din Atabeg Zengi (also Zangi, Zengui, Zenki, or Zanki) (1087- September 14, 1146) was the son of Aq Sunqur al-Hajib, governor of Aleppo under Malik Shah I. His father was beheaded for treason in 1094, and Zengi was brought up by Karbuqa, the governor of Mosul. ... The Fatimids or Fatimid Caliphate (Arabic الفاطميون) is the Ismaili Shiite dynasty that ruled much of North Africa from A.D. 5 January 910 to 1171. ... al-Malik al-Adil Nur ad-Din Abu al-Qasim Mahmud Ibn Imad ad-Din Zangi (1118 – May 15, 1174), also known as Nur ed-Din, Nur al-Din, etc. ... The name Ascalon can refer to a number of possible topics: a middle-eastern city, more usually called Ashkelon the lance that St George used to slay the dragon, named after the city the British WW2 aeroplane used by Winston Churchill, named after the lance - an Avro York a nation... The Siege of Ascalon took place in 1153, resulting in the capture of that Egyptian fortress by the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. ...

After earthquakes in Syria in 1156 and 1157, Usamah, who was at that time in Damascus, lost nearly his entire family. The cities of Aleppo, Tripoli, Beirut, and Homs were heavily damaged, but the worst destruction was in Hama and Shaizar. Usamah's cousin, the emir Muhammad ibn Sultan, was celebrating the circumcision of his son with his family and the nobles of Shaizar as the walls of the city collapsed on them. Only the princess of Shaizar was saved from the rubble. This earthquake marked the end of the independence of the emirate, which soon fell into the hands of the Hashshashin and in 1157 was conquered by the Franks. An earthquake is a phenomenon that results from and is powered by the sudden release of stored energy that radiates seismic waves. ... Events Prince Yuriy Dolgorukiy fortifies Moscow, regarded as the date of the founding of the city Establishment of the Carmelite Order Hogen Rebellion in Japan January 20 - According to legend, freeholder Lalli slays English crusader Bishop Henry with an axe on the ice of the lake Köyliönjärvi... Events Births September 8 - King Richard I of England (died 1199) Leopold V of Austria (died 1194) Hojo Masako, wife of Minamoto no Yoritomo (died 1225) Deaths August 21 - King Alfonso VII of Castile (born 1105) Agnes of Babenberg, daughter of Leopold III of Austria Sweyn III of Denmark Yury... Old Town Aleppo viewed from the Citadel Aleppo is also the name of two townships in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. ... Tripoli (Arabic طرابلس Trablos, academically transliterated Ṭarābulus) is the second-largest city in Lebanon. ... For other uses, see Beirut (disambiguation). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Orontes River and norias in Hama Hama (Arabic: حماه) is a city which is located on the Orontes river in central Syria, north of the city of Homs, midway between Damascus and Aleppo. ... Shaizar or Shayzar was a medieval town and fortress in Syria, ruled by the Banu Munqidh dynasty, which played an important part in the Christian and Muslim politics of the crusades. ... Seixas Family circumcision set and trunk, ca. ... The Hashshashin (also Hashishin, Hashashiyyin or Assassins) had a militant basis as a religious sect (often referred to as a cult) of Ismaili Muslims from the Nizari sub-sect. ...

See also

• Kitab al-I'tibar Usamah's autobiography

The autobiography of Usāmah ibn-Munqidh Usāmahs autobiography is taken from his Kitāb al Itibār (i. ...

External link

• Excerpts from Usamah's Autobiography
• Niall G. F. Christie: The Presentation of the Franks in Selected Muslim Sources from the Crusades of the 12th Century

Sources

• Philip K. Hitti, trans., An Arab-Syrian Gentleman and Warrior in the Period of the Crusades; Memoirs of Usamah ibn-Munqidh (Kitab al i'tibar). New York, 1929.