Al-Adil takes Jaffa and the Franks take Beirut (593 AH)
ملك العادل يافا وملك الفرنج بيروت
September 1197 CE · Shawwal 593 AH
Shawwal 593: al-Adil massed the Ayyubid armies at Ayn Jalut, stormed Jaffa's citadel in a day and took all in it as booty and captives. The German-led Frankish relief reached Caesarea too late — their king Henry of Champagne had fallen from a high place at Acre and died, throwing them into confusion. The Ayyubids then razed Beirut's walls; the Franks slipped in, reoccupied it and besieged Tibnin before withdrawing 1.
At a glance
- Era
- The Crusades, Ayyubids and Mamluks
- Region
- Levant & Iraq
- Review
- Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it
In time
Overview
In Shawwal 593 AH al-Malik al-Adil took Jaffa from the Franks. The Franks then took Beirut after it had been ruined. 1
Background
At Beirut there was an iqta' holder known as Usama, who sent galleys that cut the Franks' sea route. They complained to al-Adil and al-Aziz, but neither stopped him. The Franks gathered many troops for themselves, most of them from the army of the King of the Germans. 1
Jaffa
al-Adil gathered the troops at 'Ayn Jalut, and they marched to Jaffa. They took the city and ruined it, and they besieged its citadel and took it by force on the same day. Everything in it was taken as booty, and people were taken captive. 1
The Franks came from Acre to Caesarea to block them, but they held back, because their king, al-Kandhari, had fallen from a high place in Acre and died, and their affairs were in disorder. 1
Beirut
When news of the taking of Jaffa reached them, the Franks turned back. al-Adil marched to Beirut, and they demolished its wall and began to destroy its houses and citadel. Usama stopped them and undertook to guard it. 1
The Franks marched to Sidon and took Beirut from the Muslims, since it had been ruined, and they besieged Tibnin and then withdrew from it. 1
Notes
The Gregorian date is derived, and it needs an additional source.
Connections
- Had participant
- الملك العادل سيف الدين أبو بكر بن أيوب· Henry, Count of Champagne
People and things also explored
استيلاء العادل على دمشق· al-Aziz's siege of Damascus and the partition settlement (590 AH)· وفاة صلاح الدين بدمشق· غارة الفرنج على بحر عيذاب وساحل الحجاز· الملك العادل سيف الدين أبو بكر بن أيوب· Henry, Count of Champagne· غزوة ملك الألمان وغرقه· The battle of the Ford of Sorrows (Jacob's Ford, 575 AH)
Sources
- al-Kamil fi'l-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir, p. 245-246
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “Al-Adil takes Jaffa and the Franks take Beirut (593 AH)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/al-adil-takes-jaffa-593/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-17.