Qutuz

Sayf ad-Din Qutuz (; died 24 October 1260), also romanized as Kutuz or Kotuz and fully al-Malik al-Muẓaffar Sayf ad-Dīn Quṭuz ( ), was the Mamluk Sultan of Egypt. He reigned as Sultan for less than a year, from 1259 until his assassination in 1260, but served as the de facto ruler for two decades.

Sold into slavery in Egypt, he rose to become vice-sultan for more than 20 years, becoming the power behind the throne. He was prominent in defeating the Seventh Crusade, which invaded Egypt in 1249–1250. When Egypt was threatened by the Mongols in 1259, he took control of the military and deposed the reigning sultan, 15-year-old Sultan Al-Mansur Ali. The Mongols conquered the centers of Islamic power in Syria and Baghdad, and the center of the Islamic Empire moved to Egypt, which became their next target. Qutuz led an Egyptian Mamluk army north to confront the Mongols, who had made a pact with Egypt's long-time enemy, the Crusaders.