Saif ad-Din Ghazi I

Who was Saif ad-Din Ghazi I?

Saif ad-Din Ghazi I was the Emir of Mosul from 1146 to 1149

He was the eldest son of Zengi of Mosul, and the elder brother of Nur ad-Din.

In 1146 Zengi was besieging the fortress of Qal Ja'bari when he was assassinated on September 15 by one of his servants who wanted to escape punishment. His forces were scattered, but Zengi's two sons were able to regain control and to divide informally the empire: Saif ad-Din succeeded him in Mosul and the Jezirah while Nur ad-Din succeeded in Aleppo. Saif ad-Din had first to fight to secure his position in Mosul.

Two years before, the Seljuk sultan Ghiyath ad-Din Mas'ud had named his cadet son Alp-Arslan as overlord of Zwngi, but the latter had neutralized him and carried with him at the siege. At Zengi's death, Alp-Arlsan tried to exploit the ensuing disorder to gain the power in Mosul. Two of Zengi's advisors, the head of the diwan al-Din Muhammad Jemal and hajab Amir Salah al-Din Muhammad al-Yaghisiyani took the side of Saif ad-Din: taking advantage of the inexperience of the young Seljuk, giving Saif ad-Din the time necessary to take control of Mosul. When Alp Arslan appeared in Mosul, he was arrested and imprisoned in the citadel.