Saladin tithe

The Saladin tithe, or the Aid of 1188, was a tax, or more specifically a tallage, levied in England and to some extent in France in 1188, in response to the capture of Jerusalem by Saladin in 1187.

Background

In July 1187, the Kingdom of Jerusalem's army was defeated by Saladin at the Battle of Hattin, and in October Saladin captured Jerusalem itself. When news of this reached Europe at the end of the year, a new crusade was promulgated. In January 1188, Henry II of England and Philip II of France discussed the crusade at Le Mans, with Joscius, Archbishop of Tyre in attendance, and on February 11, Henry began to organize the preaching of the crusade in England at Geddington. There he also discussed the "Saladin tithe."

Collection of the tithe

It was a literal tithe of 10% on revenues and movable properties. The tithe was assessed by dioceses, rather than by shires, and local sheriffs had no role in collection of the tithe. The money was collected instead by the local priest or bishop, the dean of the local church, the local baron, and a sergeant of the king, as well as, notably, a Knight Templar and a Knight Hospitaller, whose orders were especially concerned with the defense of the Holy Land. Assessments were made by oaths in rural areas, and by a jury in urban areas. Certain items were exempt from assessment:

Saladin

Saladin (1137 or 1138 – March 1193), known as Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb (صلاح الدين يوسف بن أيوب) in Arabic and Selahedînê Eyûbî (سەلاحەدینی ئەییووبی) in Kurdish, was the first sultan of Egypt and Syria and the founder of their Ayyubid dynasty, although it was named after his father. A Muslim of Kurdish origin, Saladin led the Muslim opposition to the European Crusaders in the Levant. At the height of his power, his sultanate included Egypt, Syria, Mesopotamia, Hejaz, Yemen and other parts of North Africa.

Originally sent to Fatimid Egypt by his Zengid lord Nur ad-Din in 1163, Saladin climbed the ranks of the Fatimid government by virtue of his military successes against Crusader assaults on its territory and his personal closeness to the caliph al-Adid. When Saladin's uncle Shirkuh died in 1169, al-Adid appointed Saladin vizier, a rare nomination of a Sunni Muslim to such an important position in the Shia Muslim-led caliphate. During his term as vizier Saladin began to undermine the Fatimid establishment, and following al-Adid's death in 1171 he took over the government and realigned the country's allegiance with the Baghdad-based Abbasid Caliphate. In the following years, he led forays against the Crusaders in Palestine, ordered the successful conquest of Yemen and staved off pro-Fatimid rebellions in Upper Egypt.

Saladin (disambiguation)

Saladin may refer to:

Other people named Saladin

Saladin (barque)

Saladin was a British barque that made voyages between Britain and the coast of Peru, carrying shipments of guano. The ship is best known for its demise in an act of mutiny, murder and piracy which began with the murder of its captain and officers and ended with the ship being stranded off the coast of Nova Scotia on May 21, 1844, followed by the last major piracy trial in Canada.

Voyage

Saladin sailed from Valpasaiso on February 8, 1844, carrying a shipment of guano, 70 tons of copper, 13 bars of silver, and about $9000 of gold and silver coins. The ship's crew consisted of the Captain Alexander MacKenzie, First Mate Thomas F. Bryerly, Second Mate and carpenter, George Jones, John Hazelton, William Trevaskiss (also known as Johnston), Charles Gustavus Anderson, William Carr, John Galloway, and three seamen, James Allen, Thomas Moffat and Sam Collins. The ship was also giving passage to two passengers, a pirate Captain George Fielding and his son George.

Saladin never made it to England, where its shipment was expected, instead it was found stranded on May 21, 1844 near Country Harbour, Nova Scotia on the shores of Harbour Island beside the village of Seal Harbour. The schooner Billow, and its Captain William Cunningham boarded the ship to assist the stranded crew. The six remaining members of Saladins crew told Captain Cunningham, that their captain had died 7 to 8 weeks earlier, the officers shortly after, and the other crew members had drowned. The implausible story and the large amount of money and silver made Cunningham suspicious. He alerted the authorities and the six men arrested and taken to Halifax to be tried for piracy and murder. The money, the silver and some of the copper was recovered before the ship broke up and sank.