Tree of Pearls, Queen of Egypt Read online

  “When the Exalted King was slain yesterday, the princes convened a coun-

  cil to discuss the succession. At fi rst there was much dissension between them, until I intervened to propose a happy solution. ‘We would be ill-advised,’ said

  I, ‘to bestow the succession on a member of the Ayyubid Dynasty aft er having

  suff ered such insult at their hands. Let us then choose a compromise. Th

  e Good

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  King—may God rest his soul—was the only Ayyubid that deserved our respect.

  We can trust no one else of his line. We well know that the mother of his son,

  Khalil, was the closest person to his heart. She is intelligent and capable, and she is our countrywoman, in addition. She will defend and uphold our honor.

  It is my opinion that we should invest her with crown and scepter.’ While some

  amongst them continued to advocate the Ayyubid succession, the princes fi n-

  ished by accepting my counsel and have resolved to elect you Queen over Egypt.

  Should I not by rights then bend to kiss your hand and beg your grace?”

  “God forbid such a thing! You are my beloved and to you I owe all. Without

  you I should never have attained to this rank. If I am truly invested Queen of

  Egypt, you shall be my scepter and I shall bestow upon you the post of First Minister, for who should deserve it more than you?”

  ‘Izz al-Din secretly rejoiced at this promise. He had hoped that it would be

  so, and he anticipated yet greater honors to result from this propitious beginning.

  He poured forth his gratitude lavishly, subtly alternating between expressions of modesty and of fl attery, while Tree of Pearls continued to insist on her great debt to him and to praise his zeal and valor. “I trust no one but you,” she said, “and cannot do without you in managing the aff airs of the state.”

  “Truly, you have no need of my poor assistance,” ‘Izz al-Din replied, “but I

  am nonetheless at your slightest command.”

  Th

  ey spent an hour conversing in this manner, both elated by the great prize

  they had won. Finally, Tree of Pearls turned to more concrete matters. “We must

  work to cement the loyalty of our supporters in the army,” she mused. “How,

  then, do you propose to distribute the posts and sinecures at our disposal?”

  “My darling Tree of Pearls has thought of everything,” he smiled. “She of

  course knows that our army is composed of diverse nations—Circassians, Byz-

  antines, Kurds, and Turks—and that most of these are Mamluk slaves. Th

  e Turks

  are our own men, the base and might of our army. We must therefore strengthen

  them and promote them, according to their rank and precedence, to state offi

  ce.

  Th

  ere are, for example, the Commanders of the Hundred and the Commanders

  of the Th

  ousand, and they are all, as you know, mighty warriors, the backbone of

  the army and its puissance. We should immediately confer the honor of royal sinecures on the great princes that aided us in this aff air. Th

  e administrative posts of

  the state are many, the most important being the Chief of the Royal Arsenal, who bears the Sultan’s arms at great assemblies and congregations, and the Dawadar,

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  the Sultan’s Executive Secretary, his messenger and postmaster, who recites his

  proclamations to those who attend upon him and receives his signature on state

  documents. Th

  e Royal Chamberlain stands between the princes and the soldiers;

  the Jandar, Wardrobe Keeper of the Imperial Court, also acts as the Sultan’s Assassin, while the Majordomo is charged with management of the Sultan’s household,

  and so forth. How does Tree of Pearls wish to dispense these posts?”

  “I leave these matters to you,” she replied gravely. “You shall distribute these posts among the most trustworthy of your men: those whom you know to be

  loyal to us. I have one request to make of you, however, and that is that you should take up the matter of Rukn al-Din Baybars—the young man with whom you sent

  your letter yesterday. He is a fi ne prince. I wish you to bestow upon him an offi ce

  that will keep him close to us.”

  In spite of his confi dence in the young prince, a quick stab of jealousy brought a spate of malicious words to the tip of ‘Izz al-Din’s tongue at this unexpected request—for jealousy, as we well know, both deafens and blinds its victim—but

  he quickly retrieved his calm and his native shrewdness and replied, “You speak

  truly, my Lady. Rukn al-Din is indeed one of the most brilliant of our young

  champions. I suggest you honor him with the post of Dawadar if you would keep

  him close by.”

  Tree of Pearls detected the subtle current of resentment in this reply—women

  being infi nitely more sensitive in these matters than men—but she pretended to

  take no notice, for she would not be fettered in her actions by the love of any

  man. Rank and power were her true heart’s desire and she would stop at nothing

  to acquire them. She now changed the subject. “When do the princes arrive from

  Mansura?” she lightly inquired.

  “I expect them tomorrow, to attend the ceremony by which Tree of Pearls

  shall be crowned Queen of these lands. How sweet is that name on my lips, and

  how dear to my heart! Does she too thrill to the sound of my own, I wonder?” Th

  e

  glance that he directed at her was full of playful reproach, and she understood its meaning perfectly.

  “You shall see for yourself the extent of my trust and my love. My deeds, and

  not mere words, shall be your proof. Your skillful insinuations suggest that you suspect the sincerity of my aff ections, ‘Izz al-Din.” She glanced at him reproachfully in her turn. “May God forgive you.”

  “God forbid that I should suspect you, my Lady—” but she hastened to inter-

  rupt him before he could say another word.

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  “Call me ‘my Lady’ no more. You are my love, my advocate and my confi -

  dant. You may be sure of me.”

  “I am sure of you, my love. And yet I would—”

  “Leave this subject, I beg you,” she commanded. “I believe we understand

  each other well, you and I. Let us now attend to our present aff airs. I hear a clamor rising in the palace.”

  “It is the Commanders of the Army,” ‘Izz al-Din declared. “Th

  ey have arrived

  from Mansura and seek an audience with you.”

  “Do you see fi t that I should receive them, then?” Th

  e question was meant to

  fl atter his vanity.

  “I see no reason why you should not, if they wish it. You are henceforth

  beholden to them and to the great enthusiasm they have shown on your behalf,

  my dear,” he added wryly. “You must of course draw the screen between them

  and yourself, for you are now Queen of Muslims.”

  She glanced at him sideways with an inscrutable smile. “‘Izz al-Din off ers

  further tokens of his jealousy: an auspicious sign indeed, for jealousy is proof of love. Nevertheless, I have no need of his warning. You know that I reveal my face to no man but you.” She said this while signaling to the eunuch who attended

  her to draw the screen. No sooner had he done so than the Chamberlain entered.

  “Th

  e mighty Commanders of the Army seek the honor of an audience with our

 
noble Lady.” He then recited their names: Bilbay, Al-Rashidi, Faris al-Din Iqtay, Baybars al-Din al-Bunduqari, and Sanqar the Byzantine.

  “Let them enter,” ‘Izz al-Din replied on her behalf.

  He received them graciously and they returned the greeting, then Faris Iqtay

  delivered their message. “We have come to off er our condolences to her Ladyship, Mother of Khalil, for the loss of Turan Shah, and to inform her that our choice

  has fallen upon her as successor to the throne and Queen of Muslims. May this

  decision be deemed acceptable by her.”

  ‘Izz al-Din again spoke on behalf of Tree of Pearls. “My Princes, our noble

  Lady has been informed of the brave deeds you have undertaken for the good of

  the state. She grieves for the death of the young King, and yet knows his doom

  was prepared by his own hand. May God have mercy on his soul.”

  Prince Sanqar the Byzantine now spoke. “It was he who forced our hand, for

  he excluded us from the government of these lands. But he is no longer of concern to us. Her Ladyship, consort of our departed Sovereign, the Good King, is most

  deserving of this honor.”

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  Tree of Pearls now replied to this speech from behind the screen. “I thank

  you for the great zeal and valor with which you have defended this state, and for the faith you have chosen to place in me. Know that I have no choice but to accept your decision, you, the fl ower of our sword-wielding princes. Know also that in accepting this great honor, I acknowledge my full debt to our noble Commanders

  and off er them in return my fullest confi dence and my utmost devotion.”

  “We place ourselves at the command of our Queen, and our lives are her ran-

  som,” declared the princes in unison, “and tomorrow we celebrate her coronation

  in the Citadel, God willing.”

  As they prepared to withdraw, ‘Izz al-Din added, “Our Queen, Tree of Pearls,

  has notifi ed me in private that she has prepared rich gift s for you and your men as tokens of recognition for your noble courage and daring. She has, moreover,

  informed me that she accepts the scepter for the sole reason that you have deemed her worthy of it.” Tree of Pearls had indeed portioned out a king’s ransom in

  gift s to the princes in honor of her impending coronation—an event that she

  had not only expected, but carefully planned for in the weeks preceding. She was wise to exercise her generosity thus, for she was well aware of the diffi

  culties that

  must beset the fi rst woman to accede to the throne in Muslim lands. Th

  e princes,

  meanwhile, were exceedingly pleased at this news.

  ‘Izz al-Din now escorted them out, all the while praising their devotion and

  fl attering their hopes. He presently returned to the Great Hall to discuss with Tree of Pearls the matter of the royal gift s that would be distributed on the morrow.

  Sal afa and Sahban

  by sunrise of the following day, the inhabitants of the Garden Island had

  all heard the news of Tree of Pearls’s impending coronation as Egypt’s Queen.

  Many were those who wondered at this news, while her fellow royal concubines

  received it with no small measure of envy—most particularly a Kurdish concu-

  bine by the name of Sallafa, who was oft en wont to boast of belonging to the same clan as the Good King himself. Th

  e late King had shown his favor by appoint-

  ing her Custodian of the Royal Harem, but unlike Tree of Pearls, she had given

  him no sons. Sallafa was renowned for her beauty at the court but she lacked

  the refi nement essential to a Queen. She was spiteful, moreover, and possessed a violently jealous disposition.

  Most people among the inhabitants of the Garden Island and the city of

  Cairo had only ever heard tell of this legendary beauty, having never actually set eyes on her. A certain Baghdadi cloth merchant by the name of Sahban was one

  of the privileged few who had seen her. Th

  is merchant travelled to Egypt now

  and again to trade his rich Persian silks and Indian muslins, and the Good King

  would oft en summon him to the Palace to purchase the choicest bolts of fi ne

  cloth for the women of his house. On one of these visits, Sallafa was present, commissioned by the King to choose her heart’s desire, and a frightful passion had

  seized the poor merchant’s heart as soon as he had set eyes on her. Th

  ough the

  unlucky fellow had done his best to maintain the impassive and dignifi ed air that befi ts a man of his station in such imposing circumstances, she had immediately sensed his confusion, and judiciously ignored it. From that moment on, Sahban

  availed himself of the slightest opportunity to convey his passion with valuable gift s of choicest cloth that he caused to be delivered to her through the palace eunuchs. In this way he appeared to be merely paying tribute to the Custodian of the Good King’s Palaces.

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  Al-Salih’s harem inevitably fell into neglect upon his death, and Sahban

  began to watch closely for an opportunity to seek Sallafa’s favor more directly.

  His fi rst eff orts had met with complete failure, for it was the Steward who had come forth to bargain with him, and Sallafa had not even deigned to inspect his

  merchandise in person. He had lately arrived in Cairo once again, and on the very eve of Tree of Pearls’s coronation he determined to try his luck a second time.

  Th

  e news that Tree of Pearls was to be crowned Queen on the morrow had

  lit the raging fi res of jealousy in Sallafa’s heart. She well knew that the would-be Queen owed all to the eff orts of her paramour, ‘Izz al-Din Aybak, and she was

  determined at all costs to infl ict the greatest harm possible on her rival. Her rancor was blind, and her only desire was to see the woman brutally stripped of the great prize that she had won. Such is the sole cure for chronic envy, those who

  suff er from it preferring self-destruction to the sight of another’s happiness.

  Sallafa fi nally grew weary of brooding over the matter in her close chambers.

  She veiled her face, wrapped herself in a loose silken cloak, and quit the women’s quarters by a narrow passage that led to an adjoining garden artfully planted

  with all manner of trees and aromatic herbs and fl owers. It had been Al-Salih’s favorite retreat of a bright, breezy morning, and Sallafa now took refuge there

  from her dark thoughts.

  A palace eunuch disturbed her reverie to announce the arrival of the Iraqi

  merchant with a new consignment of fi ne fabrics. Sallafa started at the sound of his name. A strange feeling of relief fi lled her, she knew not why, a feminine intuition that whispered, ‘here is assistance’ to her burning heart, for women are wont to set the pudding before the proof. She turned to the boy. “Where is he?” she demanded.

  “In the palace courtyard, my Lady. He insists on meeting with you in person,

  for he would show you a number of articles that he claims shall especially please you.”

  “I do not wish to return to the palace yet. Tell him to come to me here in

  the garden by the main gate.” She adjusted her robes, and covered her face with

  a corner of her cloak as she said this. She suddenly felt the hot blood coursing through her veins and warming her throbbing heart. She was surprised at this

  sensation, for the merchant had never before impressed her in any way. She took

  it as a portent of great things to come.

  Th

  e eunuch ushered the merchant into the garden by the gate Sallafa had

 
; indicated. “Shaykh Sahban, my Lady,” he announced, and promptly withdrew.

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  Sallafa was seated on a stone bench surrounded by myriad clusters of delicate

  fl owers in full bloom. She turned her absent gaze towards the gate and saw Sahban standing there humbly in his Persian cap and his voluminous black cloak. He still wore the same short, fi ne beard and his eyes glittered strangely. She examined

  him more closely than she had done before and she perceived a marked change

  in his habitual expression. He approached her and they exchanged the custom-

  ary greetings. She motioned to him to come closer. “Where are your goods?” she

  lazily inquired.

  “I left them in the palace courtyard with the camels, my Lady. If you permit

  me, I shall have them brought here to the garden.”

  “Never mind,” she replied. “Leave them where they are for now. You may

  take a seat,” she added, pointing to a bench next to her own. He sat down gin-

  gerly while fi ddling with his robes. “It has never before been your custom to

  request Sallafa by name when you come to the palace to exhibit your goods,” she

  remarked.

  “Have I off ended you, my Lady?” he anxiously inquired.

  “No. But I wish to understand the reason for this change.”

  Sahban rubbed his nose nervously as he considered his response. “I have

  altered my habit in conformance with the sweeping changes that have come upon

  the people of this palace.”

  Th

  is unexpected parry intrigued Sallafa, and her cheeks fl ushed with anger

  as she recalled the ill-starred events to which he referred. “You speak truly. Th e

  changes to which you allude have been great indeed. May God have mercy on

  the Good King, for he was the jewel of this state, and his passing has disturbed the balance of things.”

  “Too true, my Lady, may God rest his soul. But what is to be done? It seems

  fate must have its way.”

  “You have heard the news then?” she demanded sharply.

  “If you mean the great honor conferred on Tree of Pearls, then yes, I have

  heard.”

  “Th

  is is indeed my meaning. And what are your thoughts on this subject,