Jerusalem: The Biography

* At times,Jerusalem was ruled from Syria, at times from Cairo where Shajar al-Durr made herself sultana in her own right. This was a feminine achievement unique in Islam and the source of many legends. As a young concubine, she had won the eye of the sultan by wearing a dress made entirely of pearls, hence Shajar al-Durr,Tree of Pearls. Now she needed male support so she married a mamluk officer,Aibeg, who became sultan. But the couple soon fell out and she had him stabbed in his bath. After eighty days’ reign the mamluks deposed her. Before she tried to escape, she ground her famous diamonds to dust so no other woman could wear them. When she was caught,Aibeg’s concubines (perhaps furious not to inherit the jewels) beat her to death with their clogs – the mamluk equivalent of death by stiletto.