When the Seventh Crusade struck Egypt in 1249, it wasn’t a raid—it was an attempt to break the Muslim Near East by seizing its economic and strategic center. King Louis IX of France captured Damietta, and panic was a real possibility. Then Egypt’s worst crisis hit at the worst moment: Sultan al-Ṣāliḥ Ayyūb died. That should have been the end. Medieval states often collapsed at the death of a ruler, especially during invasion. Command chains cracked. Rival factions rushed for power. Soldiers wond