Duumaan Baay (Tuman Baay II)
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Duumaan Baay (Arabic: طومان باي) was the last sultan of the Mamluk Sultanate that ruled Egypt and the Levant. He held power for a brief period between late 1516 and early 1517, during which Ottoman forces commanded by Sultan Selim I advanced southward. He is also known as Tuman Bay II to distinguish him from an earlier sultan of the same name.
He became sultan following the death of his predecessor, Qanşawh al-Ghawri, who fell in the Battle of Marj Daabiq near Aleppo in 1516. Following this defeat, the Mamluks lost control of the Levant, and Duumaan Baay attempted to organize a new defense of Cairo.
Origins and rise
The Mamluk system was based on slave soldiers purchased or captured and trained militarily, after which they rose through the ranks. Duumaan Baay was among the senior officers in Cairo, holding both administrative and military positions under Qanşawh al-Ghawri. His selection to the sultanate was carried out by the council of Mamluk officers in the capital, under urgent circumstances.
The Battle of Ridaniya
In January 1517, the largest battle between the two sides took place at Ridaniya (Raydaniyya), east of Cairo. Duumaan Baay prepared fortifications and cannons, but the Ottoman forces possessed superior numbers and advanced artillery. After their victory, the Ottomans entered Cairo, while Duumaan Baay retreated to wage a smaller campaign within the city and its surroundings.
End of rule
After months of fighting sustained by support from Bedouin tribes, Duumaan Baay was captured. In summer 1517 he was executed at Bab Zuwayla gate in Cairo. His death marked the end of Mamluk rule in Egypt and the Levant and the beginning of Ottoman administration, a political framework that would dominate the region for three centuries.