Al Mansur Muhammad, Emir of Hama

Al- Mansur Muhammad was the Ayyubid emir of Hama, son of Al Muzaffar Taqi ad-Din Umar and grandson of Nur ad-Din Shahanshah, brother of Saladin and Al-Adil. He ruled from 1191-1219.

On the death of his father Taqi ad-Din Umar at the siege of Manzikert in 1191, Al-Mansur requested that Saladin invest him with all of his father’s territories. However the tone of his request was such that it greatly angered Saladin, who threatened to dispossess himself altogether. Al-Mansur asked Saladin’s brother Al-Adil to intercede for him, but Saladin decided to detach the Jazira from Taqi ad-Din Umar’s domain and give it to his own son, Al-Afdal. He did however confirm all-Mansur in possession of Hama and the surrounding districts, together with scattered towns across Syria - Salamiyah, Maarrat al-Nu'man, Qal'at Najm and Manbij.

As newly installed ruler of Hama, Al-Mansur was expected to maintain a supporting role to the larger Ayyubid domain of Aleppo, ruled by another son of Saladin, az-Zahir Ghazi. Within a few months of his accession, Saladin died and a power struggle began between his sons Al-Afdal and al-Aziz Uthman. Together with Az-Zahir Ghazi, Al-Mansur joined the coalition of Syrian Ayyubid emirs supporting Al-Afdal.

In the succession struggles which followed, Al-Mansur agreed to send troops to support Az-Zahir in return for being allowed to besiege the fortress of Baarin, which belonged to another of Az-Zahir’s vassals. Al-Mansur took the fortress in September 1199, but later compensated its lord, Izz ad-Din ibn al-Muqaddam, by giving him Manbij and Qalat Najm in exchange. Al-Mansur later decided that his interests were best served not by continuing to support Az Zahir and Al Afdal, but by backing Al-Adil. This prompted Az-Zahir to attack Ma’arrat al-Nu’man, which he took, and then to attack Hama itself. The siege began in May 1201, and after a month Al-Mansur was able to negotiate a peace only by promising to pay Az-Zahir 30,000 dinars and swear obedience to him when and if he succeeded in conquering Damascus.

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