Al-Ashraf Khalil

Al-Malik Al-Ashraf Salāh ad-Dīn Khalil ibn Qalawūn (Arabic: الملك الأشرف صلاح الدين خليل بن قلاوون; c. 1260s – 14 December 1293) was the eighth Turkic Bahri Mamluk sultan, succeeding his father Qalawun. He served from 12 November 1290 until his assassination in December 1293. He was well known for conquering the last of the Crusader states in Palestine after the siege of Acre in 1291. While walking with a friend, Khalil was attacked and assassinated by Baydara (his commander in chief) and his followers, who was then killed under the orders of Kitbugha.

Khalil's exact year of birth is not known, although according to the Mamluk-era historian al-Safadi, he died "in his thirties or less". He was the second son of Sultan Qalawun (r. 1279–1290) and his mother was a woman named Qutqutiya. Khalil had three brothers, as-Salih Ali, an-Nasir Muhammad and Ahmad, and two sisters. In 1284, Khalil married Ardukin, the daughter of Sayf ad-Din Nukih ibn Bayan, a Mongol emir of Qalawun. As-Salih Ali, al-Ashraf Khalil's brother, married Ardukin's sister, and both wives were chosen by Qalawun's second wife because of their Mongol ethnicity, which was considered prestigious by the Mamluks. Khalil had two daughters with Ardukin, who are unnamed in the Mamluk sources.

Qalawun had proclaimed as-Salih Ali as his heir apparent in 1280. From that point on, as-Salih Ali's name was added next to Qalawun's name in treaties. Khalil's name also began to be added to treaties in the regal style of "al-Malik al-Ashraf" starting in 1285 in the treaty between Qalawun and the king of Lesser Armenia. When as-Salih Ali died in 1288, Qalawun appointed al-Ashraf Khalil as his co-sultan. While al-Ashraf Khalil's name was read alongside Qalawun's name in the khutbah (Friday prayer sermon) and the emirs swore their allegiance to him, Qalawun did not sign the ahd (diploma of investiture) confirming al-Ashraf Khalil's appointment. The reason for Qalawun's apparent hesitance is not clear, but he may have considered al-Ashraf Khalil unsuitable for the sultanate or was wary of the enmity between al-Ashraf Khalil and the na'ib as-saltana (viceroy of Egypt), Emir Husam ad-Din Turuntay, who had been a strong advocate for as-Salih Ali's accession.

Al-Ashraf Khalil succeeded Qalawun following the latter's death on 9 November 1290. He prevented Qalawun's burial for two months, either as a precaution to ensure his smooth succession or to wait until Qalawun's mausoleum was completed. With his ascendancy, al-Ashraf Khalil absorbed his father's roughly 6,000 Mansuriyya mamluks into his own 1,200-strong, mostly Circassian, mamluk corps, the Ashrafiyya. The Mansuriyya were the most powerful mamluk regiment in the sultanate and al-Ashraf Khalil sought to co-opt them.

In the royal procession following al-Ashraf Khalil's accession to the throne, Turuntay launched an assassination attempt against al-Ashraf Khalil, but it failed. Instead, al-Ashraf Khalil had Turuntay imprisoned in the Cairo Citadel. After being heavily tortured for three days, Turuntay was put to death in November. He was briefly replaced by Emir Sanjar al-Shuja'i al-Mansuri until the latter was dispatched to Damascus and replaced by Emir Baydara. Al-Ashraf Khalil made Baydara na'ib as-saltana and atabeg al-asakir (commander in chief). The frequent exchanging of offices between the Mansuri emirs and their frequent imprisonment and release was a phenomenon that marked al-Ashraf Khalil's three-year reign. According to historian Amir Mazor, "Al-Ashraf Khalil's policy toward the Mansuriyya was totally arbitrary, haphazard and lacked long-term political vision", but he nonetheless did not target the Mansuri mamluks as a faction and did not replace Mansuri officeholders with his Ashrafi mamluks.

Qalawun had conquered the County of Tripoli in 1289 and made clear his determination to end the Crusader presence in Syria. In November 1290, he began his march toward Acre, the capital of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, but died outside of Cairo shortly after. With the siege plans having already been prepared by Qalawun and his lieutenants, al-Ashraf Khalil resumed his father's offensive on 2 March 1291. As he led the Mamluk army of Egypt, he sent orders to the Mamluk emirs of Syria, including the sultanate's Ayyubid vassals in Hama under al-Muzaffar III Mahmud, to assemble their mangonels and head toward Acre. The other Syrian Mamluk armies were from Damascus (led by Lajin), Tripoli (led by Bilban) and al-Karak (led by Baibars al-Dawadar). There are no reliable figures for the size of the Mamluk army, but it was likely a significantly larger force than that of the Crusader defenders of Acre.

In May 1291, al-Ashraf Khalil's army launched the assault against Acre. Heavy fighting ensued with the Knights Templar, which controlled the fortress. By 17 June, the Mamluks captured Acre, and a number of its inhabitants fled by sea. Remaining Crusader defenders held out in some of the towers in the city, but after further fighting they surrendered. Al-Ashraf Khalil ordered the execution of the remaining defenders and inhabitants. After abundant amounts of loot were plundered from the city by the Mamluk troops, al-Ashraf Khalil had Acre's fortifications destroyed.

The news of the conquest of Acre reached Damascus and Cairo. Al-Ashraf Khalil entered the decorated city of Damascus with Franks chained at the feet and the captured crusader standards which were carried upside-down as a sign of their defeat. After celebrating his victory in Damascus, Khalil left for Cairo which was also decorated and celebrating. Arriving at Cairo, he ordered the release of Philip Mainebeuf and the men who accompanied him to Cairo earlier.