Posted by The Syrian fortresses of Ullayqa and Rusafa were captured in May 1271; Khawabi, Qalay’a, Maniqa, and Qadmus were captured in May 1273.
In 1090, Hasan Sabbah acquired the castle of Alamut, situated in a remote and mountainous area in northern Persia, marking the foundation of what was to become the state of Alamut. Over the course of the next 150 years, the Ismailis acquired more than 200 fortresses in Iran and Syria, located in the inaccessible mountainous regions for refuge of Ismailis who were fleeing persecution. Their settlements were also a sanctuary for other refugees, irrespective of their creed, fleeing persecution and invasions. Despite the hostility of local rulers and threats posed by Crusaders, Saljuqs, and Mongols active in the region, the Nizari state survived until 1256 when the last remaining Persian fortress was seized. The Syrian fortresses were able resist surrender until 1273.
A learned theologian, scholar, and poet, Hasan-i Sabbah established a major library at Alamut. The Nizari Ismailis of the Alamut period continued to place a high value on intellectual activities despite having to defend against military attacks. Alamut and several of the Nizari strongholds became flourishing centres of intellectual activities with major libraries containing not only a significant collection of books and documents but also scientific tracts and equipment.
The history of Ismailis in Syria begins in about the mid-ninth century in the town of Salamiyya where the Imams were residing before establishing the Fatimid caliphate in North Africa in 909. Syria was also part of the Fatimid empire.
Following the dispute over the successor of Imam al-Mustansir bi’llah in 1094, the fall of the Fatimid state, and the conquest of Syria by the Saljuqs, the Ismailis lived in scattered communities in urban areas where they were exposed to the hostility of Saljuqs and majority Sunni populations.
The success of the Nizari da’is sent to Syria by Hasan Sabbah from Alamut in the early twelfth century was slow for several decades due to the political environment, unlike in Persia where the Ismailis lived among mostly Shi’i populations and were successful in acquiring several strongholds for their refuge. In addition, most of the Ismailis of Syria were loyal to the Musta’li Fatimid caliphs of Egypt rather than the Nizari Ismailis of Persia.
In Syria, the early da’is concentrated their efforts first in Aleppo and then in Damascus. Following constant persecution and massacres in both centres, the Ismailis acquired their first stronghold, Qadmus, in the mountain region of Jabal Bahra (present-day Jabal Ansariyya), away from urban centres, in 1132; shortly thereafter, they acquired Kahf. In 1140-41, they acquired Masyaf which served as the residence of the chief da’i of Syria, followed by Khawabi, Rusafa, and a number of smaller ones.
Imam Hasan II ala dhikrihi al-salam (‘peace be on his mention‘) (d. 1166) sent Sinan (d. 1193) “one of the most powerful and energetic da’is to be his deputy in Syria” (Mirza, Syrian Ismailism p 22).
Sinan ended the internal dissensions among the Ismailis, rebuilt some of the fortresses and acquired new ones, and introduced “an elaborate system of communication between the Ismaili strongholds, using pigeons and… coded messages” (Willey, Eagle’s Nest p 46).
“Sinan’s lasting achievement was to secure the future of the Syrian Ismailis at a time of great political upheaval and foreign invasions, which presented his community with unpredictability and dangerous challenges” (Willey, Eagle’s Nest p 49). Sinan led the Syrian Ismailis “to the peak of their power and fame until his death” (Mirza, Syrian Ismailism p 144).
After the fall of Alamut in 1256, the Syrian Ismailis could no longer count on support from Alamut. By the time the Mongols entered Damascus, the Syrian Nizaris were once again stricken by internal strife arising from leadership rivalries among the da’is. “By the time of the Mongol invasions, the Nizari Ismaili were no longer a power to be reckoned with as in the days of Hasan Sabbah and Rashid al-Din Sinan” (Daftary, A Short History of the Ismailis p 153).
The Mongols were driven out by the Mamluks who succeeded the Ayyubids in Egypt and Syria. The Mamluks eventually gained control of the Nizari strongholds although they did permit the Nizaris to remain in their fortresses as loyal subjects and under strict supervision of the Mamluks and their successors.
The Ismailis of the Alamut period in Persia and Syria “were people of exceptional intelligence and sophistication, who in these remote mountain fortresses were able to cultivate a rich intellectual and spiritual life. When forced to retreat to their distant and secure strongholds by the campaigns of the Saljuq Turks, they created a remarkable Muslim culture of their own. They excelled at military architecture, agriculture and water engineering in arid and rocky terrain. A resilient community, the Ismailis held out, against the might of the Saljuq military power, for over 100 years in the mountains of Iran and Syria until they were conquered by the Mongols in 1256….. their architectural, intellectual, agricultural and military achievements in many respects surpass those of the Crusaders” (Eagle’s Nest, front flap).
Sources:
Farhad Daftary, “The Alamut Period,” A Short History of the Ismailis, Edinburgh University Press, 1998
Nasseh Ahmed Mirza, Syrian Ismailism, Curzon Press, 1997
Peter Willey, Eagle’s Nest, I.B. Tauris in association with The Institute of Ismaili Studies, London, 2005
Nimira's Blog 