Second Battle of Homs

Coordinates: 34°43′23″N 36°42′52″E / 34.723185°N 36.714462°E / 34.723185; 36.714462

2nd Battle of Homs

Defeat of the Mongols (left) at the 1281 Battle of Homs.
Date29 October 1281
LocationHoms
Result Mamluk Victory
Belligerents
Ilkhanate
Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia
Georgia (country) Kingdom of Georgia		 Mamluk Sultanate
Commanders and leaders
Möngke Temur  (WIA)
Leo II
Georgia (country) Demetrius II		 Qalawun
Units involved
  • Mongol cavalry
  • Armenian, Georgian, and Seljuk auxiliaries
  • Frankish mercenaries
 unknown
Strength
80,000 (contemporary sources; most likely exaggerated) unknown

The Second Battle of Homs was fought in western Syria on 29 October 1281, between the armies of the Mamluk dynasty of Egypt and the Ilkhanate, a division of the Mongol Empire centered on Iran. The battle was part of Abaqa Khan's attempt at taking Syria from the Mamluks.

After the Mamluk victories over Mongols at Ain Jalut in 1260 and Albistan in 1277, the Il-khan Abaqa sent his brother Möngke Temur at the head of a large army said to have numbered 80,000: 50,000 Mongols and 30,000 auxiliaries, chiefly Armenians under Leo II and Georgians under Demetrius II.

The two armies met south of Homs, a city in western Syria. In a pitched battle, the Armenians, Georgians and Oirats under King Leo II and Mongol generals routed and scattered the Mamluk left flank, but the Mamluks personally led by Sultan Qalawun destroyed the Mongol centre. Möngke Temur was wounded and fled, followed by his disorganized army. However, Qalawun chose to not pursue the defeated enemy, and the Armenian-Georgian auxiliaries of the Mongols managed to withdraw safely.

The following year, Abaqa died and his successor, Tekuder, reversed his policy towards the Mamluks. He converted to Islam and forged an alliance with the Mamluk sultan.[1][2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Jean, Richard (1999). The Crusades, C. 1071-c. 1291, p. 453. Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-62566-1.
  2. ↑ Reuven Amitai-Preiss (1995), Mongols and Mamluks: The Mamluk-Īlkhānid War, 1260-1281, pp. 179-225. Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-46226-6.
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