Aibek establishes Mamluk power in Egypt

1251

The Turkic slave-soldier Aibek, first sultan of the Mamluk Bahri dynasty, consolidated his grip on Egypt by marrying the formidable Shajar al-Durr and eliminating Ayyubid loyalists. The new regime, built on the paradox of slaves ruling free men, proved more durable and effective than the dynasty it replaced. His marriage to Shajar al-Durr was purely political, and she would eventually have him murdered in his bath.