Shajar al-Durr, known as Tree of Pearls, was one of the most famous Arab queens and the only woman in the medieval Arab world to rule in her own name. Her narra

It is Christmas Day in the year 710 AD in Toledo, capital of Visigoth Spain. King Wittiza has been dethroned, and the impulsive and tyrannical Roderic has been

"First published in 1904 in Arabic, Cairo, Dar-al-Hilal."--Vii.

It is 809 AD in Baghdad, the capital of the 'Abbasid Empire. The famed Caliph Harun al-Rashid has died. His successor, al-Amin, son of his Hashemite Arab wife,

It was quite unsuitable for a man from outside the family to be admitted to the company of a young woman, but Harun found a way to arrange things; he decided to