befriend the nation. Later on, he decided to serve under Saladin after he declared himself sultan in 1171. Another key participant in the battle of al-Babein was Saladin. Saladin entered the army at the age of 14. At age of 18, he was promoted to personal officer to Nur al-Din. At first Saladin was reluctant to go with his uncle, Shirkuh, to take over Egypt. Saladin only agreed to this because Shirkuh was family. He took thousands of troops, his bodyguards, and 200,000 gold pieces to Egypt, to take over the nation. Because Amalric was an ally and protector of the Fatimid government, fighting in the Battle of al-Babein was in his best interest. He invaded Egypt several times during his reign. These campaigns were not very successful, as they always ran into complications leading to failure each time. Nur al-Din organized the battle strategy on the Muslim side. Nur al-Din was the Muslim leader who unified Syria. The troops were led by Shirkuh. Since both sides wanted to be in charge of Egypt, whoever won the battle would accomplish that goal. This contest brought on the Battle of al-Babein in 1167. Battle King Amalric ordered only his mounted forces to chase Shirkuh and the Muslims out of Egypt at the beginning of the battle. Amalric chased Shirkuh’s troops up the valley of the Nile and across the river to Giza. The chase almost worked, but the Muslims turned to fight Amalric where the cultivated ground ended and the desert began. The steep slopes and soft sand reduced the effectiveness of the Latin army. King Amalric I’s army was weakened because he only took a handful of men with him to pursue Shirkuh. He commanded 374 armed Frankish horsemen along with the mounted archers known as Turcopoles. The Christian knights also sided with Amalric I in order to go after Shirkuh’s army. Shirkuh came up with a plan to draw the Franks, along with Amalric, away from the battlefield. Shirkuh’s plan was for the Latin cavalry charge to find no worthy target. Shirkuh hoped to lessen the severity of the fight. He wanted the Franks to think that all his best men were in the center surrounding him. Among those in the center line was Saladin, Shirkuh’s nephew. Saladin, under Shrikuh’s orders, was to retreat once the Franks moved closer. Amalric fell for Shirkuh’s plan. Amalric sent his main attack