Dhayfa Khatun
Born on 1186
Died on 1242
Dhayfa Khatun, the powerful wife of the Ayyubid ruler of Aleppo al-Zahir Ghazi, was the Queen of Aleppo for six years. She was born in Aleppo in 1186 CE. Her father was King al-Adel, the brother of Salah al-Din Al-Ayyubi and her brother was King al-Kamel. She was married to king al-Zahir the son of Salah al-Din. Her son was King Abdul-Aziz. After her son’s death, she became the Queen of Aleppo as her grandson was only 7 years old. During her 6-year rule, she faced threats from Mongols, Seljuks, Crusaders and Khuarzmein. Dhayfa was a popular queen; she removed injustices and unfair taxes throughout Aleppo. She favored the poor and scientists and founded many charities to support them. Dhayfa was a prominent architectural patron. She established large endowments for the maintenance and operation of her charitable foundations.
In addition to her political and social roles, Dhayfa sponsored learning in Aleppo where she founded two schools. The first was al-Firdaous School which specialized in Islamic studies and Islamic law, specially the Shafi’i doctrine. Al-Firdaous School was located close to Bab al-Makam in Aleppo and had a teacher, an Imam and twenty scholars, according to the structure of the educational system at that time. Its campus consisted of several buildings, including the school, a residential hall for students and a mosque. The second school, the Khankah School, specialized in both Sharia and other fields. It was located in Mahalat al-Frafera. Dhayfa died in 1242 at the age 59 and was buried in the Aleppo citadel.
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