 The Ayyubid dynasty ( Arabic : الأيوبيون al @-@ Ayyūbīyūn ; Kurdish : دووگەلی ئەییووبی Dûgela Eyûbiyan ) was a Muslim dynasty of Kurdish origin , founded by Saladin and centered in Egypt . The dynasty ruled much of the Middle East during the 12th and 13th centuries CE . Saladin had been the vizier of Fatimid Egypt before he brought an end to Fatimid rule in 1171 . In 1174 , he proclaimed himself sultan following the death of the Ayyubids ' former master , Zengid ruler Nur al @-@ Din . The Ayyubids spent the next decade launching conquests throughout the region and by 1183 , the territories under their control included Egypt , Syria , northern Mesopotamia , Hejaz , Yemen , and the North African coast up to the borders of modern @-@ day Tunisia . Most of the Kingdom of Jerusalem fell to Saladin after his victory at the Battle of Hattin in 1187 . However , the Crusaders regained control of Palestine 's coastline in the 1190s . 
