decades, first as governors of the Abbassids and later as de facto independent rulers. A century later they were supplanted by the Uqaylids.
Mosul was conquered by the Seljuks in the 11th century. After a period under semi-independent atabeg such as Mawdud, in 1127 it became the centre of power of the Zengid dynasty. Saladin besieged the city unsuccessfully in 1182 but finally gained control of it in 1186. In the 13th century it was captured by the Mongols led by Hulegu, but was spared the usual destruction since its governor, Badr al-Din Lu?lu?, helped the Khan in his following campaigns in Syria. After the Mongol defeat in the Battle of Ain Jalut against the Mamluks, Badr al-Din's son sided with the latter; this led to the destruction of the city, which later regained some importance but never recovered its original splendor. Mosul was thenceforth ruled by the Mongol Ilkhanid and Jalayrid dynasties, and escaped Tamerlan's destructions.
During 1165, Benjamin of Tudela passed in Mosul; in his papers, he wrote that he found a small Jewish community estimated in 7000 people in Mosul, the community was led by rebbi Zakhi presumably connected to the king David dynasty. In 1288�1289, the Exilarch was in Mosul and signed supporting paper for Maimonides.
[edit] 16th to 19th centuries
In the early 16th century Mosul was under the Turkmen federation of the Ak Koyunlu, but in 1508 it was conquered by the Persian Safawids. Finally, in 1535, Ottoman sultan Suleyman the Magnificent added it to his empire. Thenceforth Mosul was governed by a pasha. Mosul was celebrated for its line of walls, comprising seven gates with large towers, a renowned hospital (maristan) and a covered market (qaysariyya), and was also famous for its fabrics and flourishing trades.
Although Mesopotamia had technically been integrated within the Ottoman Empire since 1533, until the reconquest of Baghdad in 1638 the city of Mosul was considered �still a mere
