Sunday, November 26, 2023

Al-Bidayah wan Nihayah: The story of Raynald of Châtillon (La'natullahi Alayhi)

One of the most evil figures in the history of Islam is Raynald of Châtillon, also known as Arnat. He was a very high-ranking Crusader knight who later became the ruler of Antakya. Raynald is still a hated figure in both Muslim and Christian history; the latter hates him because he was rather incompetent in his battles. It is known that Raynald was also the organizer of a pirate crew. His pirates were not to be messed with; they plundered and destroyed any ship they passed by, as well as leaving no survivors unless there was monetary benefit from doing such.

Some incidents include the pirates attacking and destroying a Muslim ship carrying pilgrims from Jeddah, as well as burning down sixteen ships owned by Muslims for pilgrimage. They also, but rarely, operated on land, one such example was when they reached a place named Aydhab. There, they seized a large Muslim-owned caravan. The pirates frequented the Red Sea, and their targets were mainly Muslims; although they also targeted smaller Christian businesses.

But nothing is more horrible than the incident which led to their downfall and destruction. The pirates announced that they were going to invade Makkah, and once they were done, they would enter Madinah and steal the body of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. They bragged about their plan to everyone, and no one dared to stop them, they were scared of them. So they set out on their journey without interruptions. However, news of their plan spread around until it reached Salahuddin al-Ayyubi. Salahuddin was infuriated, and so he ordered his brother, the ruler of Egypt, King Adil, to send a fleet of ships to intercept the pirates. King Adil agreed, and he sent the Ayyubid military commander and chamberlain, Hussam al-Din Lu'lu, to lead the fleet. On the way there, the Ayyubid forces were joined by a group of youths from the Maghreb. These youths were sent by none other than Sultan Abu Yusuf Yaqub, the Almohad Sultan who denounced his predecessor Ibn Tumart to be a disbeliever.

The pirates were no more than a day's journey away from the coast of Jeddah. The Muslim forces caught up with them quickly. The pirates were scared, as they were not prepared for resistance. So they turned their ship around, but the Muslims followed closely, and a huge battle occurred afterwards. It resulted in the chief of the pirates being killed, and the remaining pirates were chained up. Several of the pirates also drowned, while others were burnt to death by their own torches. The prisoners were then distributed amongst several countries for their executions, one of them Egypt. The traveller Ibn Jubayr reports that he saw the executions of several of these prisoners when he arrived in Alexandria.

See how Allah has protected the body of his beloved Prophet ﷺ from the hands of these kuffar Mushrikeen. Indeed, all praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds!

After the battle, Hussam al-Din Lu'lu dismantled the pirate ships. As for Raynald, he did not hear from his pirates again. He continued his resistance against the Muslims. But eventually, Salahuddin al-Ayyubi pillaged his domains, and Raynald's power grew weaker as time passed. When Salahuddin al-Ayyubi liberated Al-Quds, Raynald was captured as one of the prisoners and brought to Salahuddin's tent, where he was beheaded for his massive crimes against Muslims and the religion of Islam. 

After his death, Raynald of Châtillon was regarded as a very incompetent knight in successive histories. Raynald was succeeded by his wife, Constance of Antioch, who was later exiled by rebellious Armenians. May Allah punish him for his evil actions against Islam!

Sources
Ibn Kathir - Al-Bidayah wan Nihayah volume 12
Ibn Jubayr - Rihlah of Ibn Jubayr page 34-35
Al-Samhudi - Wafa al-Wafa bi-Akkbar Dar al-Mustafa
Marsall W. Baldwin - A History of the Crusades, Volume I: The First Hundred Years

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