As-Salih Ismail al-Malik (1163–1181) was an emir of Damascus in 1174, the son of Nur ad-Din Zangi

He was only eleven years old when his father died in 1174. As-Salih came under the protection of the eunuch Gumushtugin and was taken to Aleppo

Aleppo

Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...

, while Nur ad-Din's officers competed for supremacy. In Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

, Saladin

Saladin

Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb , better known in the Western world as Saladin, was an Arabized Kurdish Muslim, who became the first Sultan of Egypt and Syria, and founded the Ayyubid dynasty. He led Muslim and Arab opposition to the Franks and other European Crusaders in the Levant...

 recognized as-Salih as his lord, although he in fact was eager to unite Egypt and Syria

Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....

 under his own personal rule. Saladin entered Damascus

Damascus

Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...

 in 1174 and declared himself to be the true regent for as-Salih, and in 1176 he defeated the Zengids

Zengid dynasty

The Zengid dynasty was a Muslim dynasty of Turkic origin, which ruled parts of Syria and northern Iraq on behalf of the Seljuk Empire.-History:...

 outside the city, married Nur ad-Din's widow Ismat ad-Din Khatun

Ismat ad-Din Khatun

ʿIṣmat ad-Dīn Khātūn , also known as Asimat, was the daughter of Mu'in ad-Din Unur, regent of Damascus, and wife of two of the greatest Muslim generals of the 12th century, Nur ad-Din Zangi and Saladin....

, and was recognized as ruler of Syria. As-Salih died in 1181.

According to crusader legend, his mother was the sister of Bertrand of Toulouse

Bertrand of Toulouse

Bertrand of Toulouse was count of Toulouse, and was the first count of Tripoli to rule in Tripoli itself....

, who had been captured by Nur ad-Din in the aftermath of the Second Crusade

Second Crusade

The Second Crusade was the second major crusade launched from Europe. The Second Crusade was started in response to the fall of the County of Edessa the previous year to the forces of Zengi. The county had been founded during the First Crusade by Baldwin of Boulogne in 1098...

; a similar legend existed concerning the mother of Zengi

Zengi

Imad ad-Din Zengi was the atabeg of Mosul, Aleppo, Hama and Edessa and founder of the Zengid dynasty, to which he gave his name.-Early life:...

, as-Salih's grandfather.