Shaykhu

Shaykhu al-Umari an-Nasiri (died October 1357) was a high-ranking Mamluk emir during the reigns of sultans al-Muzaffar Hajji (1346–1347), an-Nasir Hasan (1347–1351, 1355–1361) and as-Salih Salih (1351–1355).

Biography Shaykhu began his career as a mamluk (manumitted slave soldier) during the third reign of Sultan an-Nasir Muhammad (r. 1310–1341). Shaykhu rose to become a high-ranking emir under Sultan al-Muzaffar Hajji (r. 1346–1347). During the first term of the latter's child successor, an-Nasir Hasan, Shaykhu emerged as one of the four influential Mamluk emirs who wielded power in the sultanate. November 1357, Shaykhu was murdered in a council meeting of the Royal Mamluks (the top tier in the Mamluk military hierarchy). Thereafter, his mamluk faction had their power restricted by Hasan.