A Zangid expedition under General Shirkuh accompanied by his nephew Saladin invades Egypt. King Amalric I of Jerusalem orders his fleet to return to Acre and retreats with the Crusaders back to Palestine. January 8 – Shirkuh enters Cairo, leaving the Zangid army encamped outside the city. He goes to the palace, where the 18-year-old Fatimid caliph Al-Adid welcomes him with ceremonial gifts and promised money. January 18 – Shawar, Fatimid vizier and de facto ruler, is invited to join Shirkuh on a pilgrimage to the tomb of Al-Shafi'i. Underway he and his escort are taken prisoner; on orders from Al-Adid, Shawar is decapitated. March 23 – Shirkuh dies from over-eating after a 2-month reign. He is succeeded by Saladin, who is appointed chief vizier of the Fatimid Caliphate. He takes over as commander of Nur al-Din's forces in Egypt. Summer – Saladin invites his brother Turan-Shah to join him in Cairo. He brings his family and retinue with him but also a substantial army provided by Nur al-Din. Turan-Shah is welcomed by Al-Adid as a friend. August 21–23 – At the Battle of the Blacks, Saladin crushes a rebellion by Sudanese forces (50,000 men) of the Fatimid army, along with a number of Egyptian emirs and commoners. He never again has to face a military uprising from Cairo. Winter – Saladin supported by reinforcements from Nur al-din, defeats a Crusader-Byzantine force under Amalric I near Damietta. During the 3-month siege, the Crusaders are forced to retreat to Palestine. By topic Art and Science Eleanor of Aquitaine leaves the English court of Henry II, to establish her own court in Poitiers. It will become known as a center of courtly love. Richard I accompanies his mother and is made heir to Aquitaine. Births September 10 – Alexios II Komnenos, Byzantine emperor (d. 1183) Ahi Evren, Bektashi Sufi preacher and philosopher (d. 1261) Al-Afdal ibn Salah ad-Din, Ayyubid ruler of Damascus (d. 1225) Eustace de Vesci, English nobleman and military leader (d. 1216) Ibn al-Mustawfi, Ayyubid governor and historian (d. 1239) Fujiwara no Yoshitsune, Japanese nobleman (d. 1206) Muhammad II, Khwarezmid viceroy and ruler (d. 1220) Nasu no Yoichi, Japanese samurai (approximate date) Taira no Atsumori, Japanese samurai (d. 1184) Deaths January 13 – Bertrand de Blanchefort, French Grand Master January 18 – Shawar, Fatimid vizier and de facto ruler February 4 – John of Ajello, Italian bishop of Catania February