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The Mamluk army under Sultan Qutuz and General Baibars defeated a Mongol force a
1260 Event

September 3

Mamluks Crush Mongols at Ain Jalut: Expansion Halted

The Mamluk army under Sultan Qutuz and General Baibars defeated a Mongol force at Ain Jalut in the Jezreel Valley of Palestine on September 3, 1260. The Mongols, led by Kitbuqa, had conquered Baghdad in 1258 and sacked Damascus in 1260, and it appeared that all of the Islamic world would fall under Mongol control. Baibars used a feigned retreat to lure the Mongol cavalry into an ambush, then counterattacked with superior numbers. The victory marked the first time the Mongol war machine had been decisively defeated in open battle and halted Mongol expansion into Egypt and North Africa. Baibars later assassinated Qutuz and became sultan himself, founding a dynasty that dominated the region for a century.

September 3, 1260

766 years ago

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