Meanwhile , the Egyptian Mamluks had been replacing their former Ayyubid masters in Egypt . The Mamluks began as a cavalry corps established from Turkic and other slaves sold to the Egyptian sultan by Genghis Khan . They took control of Egypt and Palestine in 1250 and 1253 , respectively , and filled the vacuum caused by the Mongol destruction of the pre-existing Ayyubid and Abbasid governments . Cilician Armenia also expanded and recovered lands crossed by important trade routes on the Cappadocian , Mesopotamian , and Syrian borders , including Marash and Behesni , which further made the Armenian Kingdom a potential Mamluk target . Armenia also engaged in an economic battle with the Mamluks for control of the spice trade . The Mamluk leader Baibars took the field in 1266 with the intention of wiping out the Crusader states from the Middle East . In the same year , he summoned Het ' um I to change his allegiance from the Mongols to the Mamluks , and remit to the Mamluks the territories and fortresses the Armenian king had acquired through his submission to the Mongols . After these threats , Het ' um went to the Mongol court of the Il-Khan in Persia to obtain military support , but in his absence , the Mamluks invaded Cilician Armenia . Het ' um 's sons T'oros and Levon were left to defend the country . During the Disaster of Mari , the Mamluks under Sultan Al-Mansur Ali and the commander Qalawun defeated the Armenians , killing T'oros and capturing Levon along with tens of thousands of Armenian soldiers . Het ' um ransomed Levon for a high price , giving the Mamluks control of many fortresses and a large sum of money . The 1268 Cilicia earthquake further devastated the country
1268 Cilicia earthquake
1268 Cilicia earthquake
Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia