Image: Almeh Flirting with an Armenian Policeman, Cairo by Frederick Arthur Bridgman
The Armenians made up a significant portion of the Egyptian slave army known as Mamluks, rising to the ranks of prominent leaders in the Muslim world. The Fatimids of Egypt bought among others, many Armenian slaves, who formed the bulk of their military and often their administration. The powerful vizier Badr al-Jamali, for example, was a mamluk of Armenian origin. As were his descendants (Al-Afdal and others). Badr al-Jamali (1015-1094) was a vizier and prominent statesman for the Fatimids under the Caliphate and Imamate of Al-Mustansir. Ethnically an Armenian, he was purchased by a Syrian emir, Jamal ud-Dawla, for a relatively small price and converted to Islam. Later he joined Mamluks and was appointed as the governor of Acre during his service. He was appointed Commander of the Armies in 1074 and died in 1094, during which he was the de facto ruler of the Fatimid empire, his authority being over everything except the Caliphate. Badr’s army, composed of mainly Armenian so...