Sudan Archive

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It is said that he threw himself from the wall adjacent to the Hall of Columns, while on horseback, into the Rumeila square. His horse survived, and he too survived and fled to the Syrian lands. The number of Mamluks who died in this battle was about four hundred, and of followers, scouts, and others, about six hundred, among them Marzuq Bey, son of Ibrahim Bey al-Kabir. His mother grieved greatly for him and requested his body. They brought it out from among the dead and buried it in a tomb prepared for him. The news of what happened to the Egyptian princes reached Ahmad Bey al-Alfi, who was in Bush. He immediately set out for Upper Egypt, met with the princes there, and informed Ibrahim Bey al-Kabir of what had happened to his son Marzuq. They grieved greatly and all wore black and sat for mourning. The killing continued in succession against those they found from the Mamluk factions, east and west, and from the old noble families, to the point that they almost erased their traces. Ibrahim Bey and those with him sent a request to Muhammad Ali Pasha for safety and to designate a region for them to live in, but he did not reply. He sent Mustafa Bey with a large contingent of Arnaut soldiers to fight them and then focused on the recruitment of soldiers and weapons to fight the Wahhabis, as if he had dedicated himself to that. He gathered a large contingent and appointed his son, Prince Tusun, to lead this campaign. On Sunday, the sixth of Rabi' al-Awwal, in the year twenty-six, Prince Tusun descended from the Citadel with his army in a grand procession, with cannons and war implements in front of him, and encamped at Birkat al-Hajj. He remained there until his army was complete. Muhammad Ali Pasha traveled to Suez, having sent all the ships and warships in its harbor. They sailed to Yanbu' and fought the Wahhabis there, inflicting losses upon them. Then, on Thursday, the ninth of Ramadan of that year, Prince Tusun set out with his army from the encampment. They arrived on the seventh of Shawwal at the port of Muwaylih and celebrated Eid at Shu'ayb's Well on Saturday. Then they proceeded to Yanbu' and took possession of it without a fight. They marched to Safra and Hadida, where they found barricades at the foot of the mountain. They fought for them until they were taken. Then they climbed the mountains, and a contingent of them encountered the Wahhabi armies. Fighting ensued, and they persevered for a day and a night. The result was a defeat for the Egyptians, who retreated, their order disrupted and their ranks scattered. They sought ships, and several reinforcements had arrived on the coast of Buraik. They rushed to them and crowded onto them. The pack animals scattered, and the soldiers abandoned their tents, weapons, and all their belongings. It was one of the fiercest battles. Prince Tusun returned to Yanbu' after being absent from his camp for a day, during which they had presumed him dead. He remained in Yanbu' for twenty-four days until he gathered the scattered infantry. As for the cavalry, they had retreated. They continued until they reached Muwaylih, exhausted by hunger and weakened by illness. They encamped there. News of what had happened reached Muhammad Ali Pasha, but he was not shaken, nor did his resolve falter. He called upon the armies stationed in Egypt and Cairo to march out, intensifying the call. He went to the outskirts of Cairo, and the army emerged. He organized them and appointed Barte al-Khazindar as their leader. They marched to Yanbu' to reinforce it. He assembled another army and appointed Salih Bey al-Sildar as its leader, along with a group of scouts, and summoned...

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