Commander of the Kurds in the Mamluk dynasty

Among the most important surviving documents on Mamluk policy toward the Kurds are these pages preserved by the fourteenth-century historian al-Umari. They reveal a remarkable aspect of Mamluk statecraft: the creation of a dedicated office for the "Commander of the Kurds" Its purpose was both strategic and political, to unite the Kurdish tribes against their common enemy, the Mongols. The passage offers a rare glimpse into how the Mamluk state viewed the Kurds.

Translated in full into English for the first time:

Let him (Commander of the Kurds) gather together the scattered branches of these tribes, reunite what has been divided among them, and reconcile the hearts of their leading men who have become estranged. Let him remove discord from among them, so that their strength may be directed against the unbelievers rather than against one another. Let him draw out their claws from one another, so that victory may be secured.

Let him impress upon them that our benevolence toward them is sincere and without deceit, and that even the smallest span of land we grant them is, in the sight of God and in their own estimation, better than all that they possess from the farthest reaches of Ajami lands to Shahrazur. Let him make known that the shelter of our domains is preferable for them to those rugged mountains, and that our secure lands are more fitting for them than those regions that are perpetually besieged or constrained.

Let him recognize the standing of their tribes among the various peoples and communities. Were all their groups united in purpose, they would not find enough horses for their riders. Let him honor among them those of noble houses, ancient authority, and lineages whose branches have risen to the heavens; men whose flashing swords and shining coats of mail have rivaled the brilliance of the sun.

Let him know that our abundant generosity is no trifling matter, and that our noble patronage extends to them all and kindles the fire of every tribe. Among us, the fortune of the Bakhtī is not diminished; we do not forget the Ḍisnī; we loosen the girdles of the Zarzārī only to clothe them in honorable garments; nor do we keep the Sahrī awake except so that they may afterward sleep with contented hearts. We do not burden the Randuwādī, and among them there is none but a man of worth and distinction.

The same applies to the rest of their people, whom beneficence has bound to us and whom generosity has taught not to forget what has been done for their lands and for the children they left behind.

You are their commander, and by God's will the one who will unite them in obedience. He is able, whenever He wills, to bring them together. Therefore, know every one of them, every dweller beneath tent-pole and wall, whether near at hand or far away.

Gather them beneath the wing of protection, unite them through the bond of concord, and keep them prepared for the struggle toward which we have turned our attention: readying themselves for warfare, donning armor for battle, and appointing leading men among them through whom your authority may reach every tribe, and through whom your strength may be reinforced...