Makrîzî

Makrîzî (Ebû Muhammed Takıyyüddîn Ahmed b. Alî b. Abdilkâdir b. Muhammed el-Makrîzî) is one of the most important historians of Memlük era Mısır. He was born in Kahire in 766/1364 and passed away in 845/1442.

Life and Education

His family migrated from the Makârize quarter of Ba'lebek city to Mısır, which is why he was known by the nisba Makrîzî. Makrîzî, who completed his education alongside the leading scholars of the period, met İbn Haldûn, who came to Mısır in 784/1382, several times and was significantly influenced by him (Cilt 1, s. 196).

Major Works

Among his most renowned works, he penned es-Sülûk li-Maʿrifeti Düveli'l-Mülûk about the sultans who ruled the Kahire Kalesi after it became the center of sultanate in Mısır; the successors of Selâhaddîn-i Eyyûbî and the history of the Memlük sultans up to his own time. The work chronologically covers the political history of the Eyyûbîler period by years, months, and days; he largely wrote this period by utilizing İbn Vâsıl's work titled Müferrici'l-Kürûb. İbn Tağrîberdî wrote a zeyl to the book under the title Havâdisü'd-Dühûr. Various editions of another fundamental work, el-Mevâʿiz ve'l-İʿtibâr, exist, and the work was most recently critically published by Eymen Fuâd Seyyid, based on the author's first draft containing additions, deletions, and notes (Cilt 1, s. 197).

Use of Sources

Makrîzî is a historian who extensively utilized sources preceding him. He made numerous transcriptions, along with İbn Hallikân, from Kâdî el-Fâzıl's work titled el-Muyâvamât, also known as el-Müteceddîdât, which recorded the activities and economic developments in Mısır's dîvans in the form of daily logs and has not survived to the present day (Cilt 1, s. 157). Furthermore, he quoted pages from İbn Cübeyr's travelogue, considered one of the finest examples of its kind, along with other travelers and authors such as İbn Battûta, Şerîşî, and 'Abderî (Cilt 1, s. 162).