THE COVENANT GRANTED BY SALAH AD-DIN TO THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITY OF JERUSALEM

Abstract

In this article was studied the covernant given to the Armenian community of Yerusalem by Salah ad- Din, the founder of the Ayyubid dinasty  (1171-1193), wich is based of the agrements with the Armenian population of the city in the names of Prophet Muhammad and Caliph Omar ibn al- Khattab. The article presented how this covenant was recognised and as an out-horitative document reaffirmed by the Muslim rules of different eras and the Sultans of Ottman Empire, wich not only protected the safe existence of Armenian community of Yerusalim, but also guarontered the Armenian rights to a number of sanctuaries of the city, whis for a long time were a subject of dispute between Armenian and other Christian communities. In the article, the Arabic monuscripts with the names of the Prophet Muhammad and Caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab kept in the Divan of the Armenian Patraarchate of Yerusalem were stuolied in detail ley combining a series of studies and works relatied to the thema, wich are aviable in the Armenian bibliography. In the article the arabic handwritten covenant by Salah ad-Din to the Armenian community of Yerusalem was given Key attention, in two versions, the content of which was analysied by us, and the second version of that document was translated into Armenian. That covenant reaffirmed vows given to the Armenian community ley the prophet Muhammad and Caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab, which guaranteed the safe existence of the Armenian  community in the Yerusalem. This treaty in later centuries by being accepted by Ottoman Sultans, ensuring be peaceful life of the Armenian community.