‘We also need a new commander,’ the Syrian generals said.
It was difficult. The Egyptians wanted one of their people
as vizier and commander of their army, and Nuradin’s men
couldn’t work for someone from anywhere but Syria.
‘I know,’ said someone, ‘Let’s make Yusuf the new vizier. He’s
only thirty, and knows nothing about ruling a country. We’ll tell
him what to do, and he’ll do it!’ Many agreed that Yusuf was the
right man for the job, and so he became both vizier of Egypt and
commander of the Syrian and Egyptian armies.
Not everyone was happy to see Yusuf in this important job.
A few soldiers went to Syria to tell Nuradin that the new vizier,
Yusuf, wanted to take over Egypt. Nuradin was angry. So, to
show that he was loyal to his old commander, Yusuf went with
the Caliph and the people to pray for Nuradin every Friday.
When his brother Turan Shah arrived from Syria, Yusuf
told him, ‘It’s not easy here
but, thank God, I learned
the law from Nuradin, and
how to organizearmies from
my uncle because we have
enemies everywhere – not
just the Franks!’
Yusuf was right. One day,
one of his soldiers saw that
one of the Caliph’s men was
wearing very strange shoes
on his feet when he left the
Caliph’s great house. Inside
one of these shoes was a secret
letter which Yusuf opened
and read.
The Egyptians wanted Amalric and his knights to attack
Yusuf and the Syrians, but the Franks never saw that letter. In
the end the Franks came, but Yusuf and his army were ready for
them, and sent them away again without any problems.
Yusuf was a careful ruler, and Egypt quickly grew into a
strong country under him. He decided that it was wrong to
have a rich life, and that it was more important to help people
in trouble. So he took a new name, Saladin, which means ‘the
good of religion’, to show that he wanted to be a good Muslim.
And he gave all the expensive presents that people gave him to
the Egyptians and to his soldiers. He lived in a small house, and
used his money as a vizier to build schools and hospitals. He also
made the walls of Cairo stronger, and built a great castle on the
Muqattam hills. ‘I want the Egyptian people to know that we
are on their side, and that we want their country to be strong
and safe. Then they will be happy to fight with us against the
Franks,’ he told his Syrian generals.
But Nuradin was more and more angry. He wrote:
Yusuf – I’m your commander! You’re spending all your
time ruling a country that doesn’t belong to you. You’re
getting strong and rich with Egypt’s gold, but I want you,
your new soldiers, and the money that you’ve won with me,
here, to fight the Franks in the Holy Land. Unless you come
back to Syria immediately, I’ll attack you!
Some young men in Saladin’s army said, ‘If the King of Syria
comes here, we’ll fight him and send him back to his country!’
But Ayyub, Saladin’s father, told him, ‘I’ll kill you myself if
you go against your commander!’ Saladin listened and waited