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Assassins
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Hasan i Sabbah established one of group’s goals to destroy Abbasid Caliphate, which was the current dynasty of Caliphs of Baghdad, by killing the highest ranking members. Many more of the Assassins’ victims were high ranking Sunni Muslims. Also the Assassins focused their deadly efforts on Seljuk Muslims. The victims were usually dispatched in a place where many would witness the murder, typically in mosques. The Assassins usually approached the victim in disguise and killed the person with their weapon of choice, a dagger. The Assassins would never commit suicide; they preferred to die at the hands of their captors. |
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Surprisingly the Assassins did not show much interest in making enemies with the Christian Crusaders, who were occupying their homelands and prosecuting Muslims at the time. Actually, it was even rumored that the Assassins tried to convert to Christianity at one time; however, they were foiled by the Knights Templar. It is said that the Assassins were responsible for the murder of Conrad of Montferrat, the King of Jerusalem, in 1192. Some speculate that they were hired for this task by Richard the Lionheart. Other assassinations of prominent Muslims included a Nizam-ul-Mulk, which is an Arabic word meaning “Governor of the Kingdom.” The Assassins were almost successful several times in the attempted assassinations of the famous Muslim leader, Saladin. Saladin became so enraged that he lay siege to the Assassins’ Syrian stronghold at Masyaf. Assassin legend maintains that Hasan i Sabbah, himself, crept into Saladin’s tent and placed a poisoned cake on his chest while he was sleeping, with a dagger in it reading, "You are in our power." Supposedly Saladin made peace and fled. |
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