Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, ADC, PC (24 June 1850 – 5 June 1916), was an Irish-born British Field Marshal and proconsul who won fame for his imperial campaigns and later played a central role in the early part of the First World War, although he died halfway through it.
Kitchener won fame in 1898 for winning the Battle of Omdurman and securing control of the Sudan, after which he was given the title "Lord Kitchener of Khartoum"; as Chief of Staff (1900–02) in the Second Boer War he played a key role in Lord Roberts' conquest of the Boer Republics, then succeeded Roberts as commander-in-chief – by which time Boer forces had taken to guerrilla fighting and British forces imprisoned Boer civilians in concentration camps. His term as Commander-in-Chief (1902–09) of the Army in India saw him quarrel with another eminent proconsul, the Viceroy Lord Curzon, who eventually resigned. Kitchener then returned to Egypt as British Agent and Consul-General (de facto administrator).
In 1914, at the start of the First World War, Lord Kitchener became Secretary of State for War, a Cabinet Minister. One of the few to foresee a long war, he organised the largest volunteer army that Britain, and indeed the world, had seen and a significant expansion of materials production to fight Germany on the Western Front. His commanding image, appearing on recruiting posters demanding "Your country needs you!", remains recognised and parodied in popular culture to this day. Despite having warned of the difficulty of provisioning Britain for a long war, he was blamed for the shortage of shells in the spring of 1915 – one of the events leading to the formation of a coalition government – and stripped of his control over munitions and strategy.
Kitchener was killed in 1916 when the warship taking him to negotiations in Russia was sunk by a German mine. After his death he was criticised, and often dismissed as a great poster but not a great administrator. Lloyd George for instance – who may have taken credit for some of Kitchener's achievements in the field of munitions – was critical of Kitchener in his War Memoirs. After many years' experience of commanding relatively small forces in imperial campaigns, Kitchener had made his reputation worse by his habit of secrecy, unwillingness to explain his actions to his colleagues, and reluctance to delegate.
Since 1970, the opening of new records has led historians to rehabilitate Kitchener's reputation to some extent. Neillands, for instance, note that Kitchener consistently rose in ability as he was promoted.[1] Some historians now praise his strategic vision in World War I, especially his laying the groundwork for the expansion of munitions production and his central role in the raising of the British army in 1914 and 1915, providing a force capable of meeting Britain's continental commitment.[2]

Early life</SPAN>

Kitchener was born in Ballylongford near Listowel, County Kerry, in Ireland, son of Lt. Col. Henry Horatio Kitchener (1805 – 1894) and Frances Anne Chevallier-Cole (d. 1864; daughter of The Rev. John Chevallier and his third wife, Elizabeth, née Cole).
His father had only recently bought land in Ireland under a scheme to encourage the purchase of land after the recent potato famine. The year his mother died of tuberculosis, they had moved to Switzerland in an effort to improve her condition; the young Kitchener was educated there and at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich.
Pro-French and eager to see action, he joined a French field ambulance unit in the Franco-Prussian War. His father took him back to England after he caught pneumonia after ascending in a balloon to see the French Army of the Loire in action. He was commissioned into the Royal Engineers on 4 January 1871. His service in France had violated British neutrality, and he was reprimanded by the Duke of Cambridge, the commander-in-chief. He served in Palestine, Egypt, and Cyprus as a surveyor, learned Arabic, and prepared detailed topographical maps of the areas.[3] His brother, Lt. Gen. Sir Walter Kitchener, had also entered the army, and was the Governor of Bermuda from 1908 'til 1912.
Kitchener, at 6'2", towered over most of his contemporaries

كارل دونتز (بالألمانية: Karl D&ouml;nitz) أمير بحر وسياسي ألماني (16 سبتمبر 1891 -24 ديسمبر 1980) عمل في البحرية الألمانية في الحرب العالمية الأولى وقادها في الحرب العالمية الثانية من عام 1943 إلى نهاية الحرب. عيّنه الزعيم الألماني أدولف هتلر خليفة له قبل أنتحاره بقليل، وقد شغل دونتز منصب رئيس ألمانيا النازية لعشرين يوما فقط قبل سقوطها في قبضة الحلفاء.
اعتقل وحوكم في محكمة نورنبيرغ وقضى عشر سنوات في السجن. ألف مذكراته ونشرها سنة 1958 تحت عنوان عشرة سنوات وعشرون يوما. بعد وفاته لم تقم له جنازة عسكرية و حظر فيها ارتداء الزي العسكري و لكن البعض لم يلتزم و منهم د.جون كاميرون. رزق بولدين و بنت و كلا الولدين قتلا في الحرب العالمية الثانية.

ولد كارل دونيتس في برلين, أبوه كان مهندسا اسمه إميل دونيتس و أمه هي أنا بيير. و لكارل أخ أكبر اسمه فريدريك.

Karl D&ouml;nitz (German pronunciation: [ˈd&oslash;ːnɪts] (listen); 16 September 1891 – 24 December 1980) was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy (Kaiserliche Marine, or "Imperial Navy") before World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of UB-68, the submarine was sunk by British forces and D&ouml;nitz was taken prisoner. While in a prisoner of war camp, he formulated what he later called Rudeltaktik[2] ("pack tactic", commonly called "wolfpack"). At the start of World War II, he was the senior submarine officer in the German Navy. In January 1943, D&ouml;nitz achieved the rank of Gro&szlig;admiral (Grand Admiral) and replaced Grand Admiral Erich Raeder as Commander-in-Chief of the German Navy (Oberbefehlshaber der Kriegsmarine). On 30 April 1945, after the death of Adolf Hitler and in accordance with Hitler's last will and testament, D&ouml;nitz was named Hitler's successor as Staatsoberhaupt (Head of State), with the title of Reichspr&auml;sident (President) and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. On 7 May 1945, he ordered Alfred Jodl to sign the German instruments of surrender in Rheims, France.[3] D&ouml;nitz remained as head of the Flensburg Government, as it became known, until it was dissolved by the Allied powers on 23 May.

84- كيم ايل سونج

Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly referred to as North Korea, from its establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994.[1] He held the posts of Prime Minister from 1948 to 1972 and President from 1972 to his death. He was also the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea from 1949 to 1994 (titled as chairman from 1949 to 1966 and as general secretary after 1966). He also sent his army to South Korea and caused a civil war between North Korea and South Korea. This was also referred as the Korean war, which lasted for 3 years. The Korean war started in 1950 and ended in 1953 with a ceasefire.
His tenure as leader of North Korea has often been described as autocratic, and he established an all-pervasive cult of personality. From the mid-1960s, he promoted his self-developed Juche variant of socialist national organisation,[2] which later replaced Marxism-Leninism as the ideology of the state in 1972. In the Library of Congress Country Study on North Korea in 2009, he was described as "one of the most intriguing figures of the twentieth century". He outlived Joseph Stalin by four decades, Mao Zedong by two, and remained in power during the terms of office of six South Korean presidents, 7 Soviet leaders, ten U.S. presidents, fourteen UK Prime Ministers and twenty-one Japanese prime ministers.
Following his death in 1994, he was succeeded by his oldest son Kim Jong-il and later in 2012 by his grandson Kim Jong-un. North Korea officially refers to Kim Il-sung as "The Great Leader" (Suryong in Korean 수령) and he is designated in the North Korean constitution as the country's "Eternal President". His birthday is a public holiday in North Korea.

Many of the early records of his life come from his own personal accounts and official North Korean government publications, which often conflict with external sources. Nevertheless, there is some consensus on at least the basic story of his early life, corroborated by witnesses from the period.
Kim was born to Kim Hyŏng-jik and Kang Pan-sŏk, who gave him the name Kim Sŏng-ju; he had two younger brothers, Ch’ŏl-chu and Yŏng-ju. The ancestral seat (pon’gwan) of Kim's family is Chŏnju, North Chŏlla Province, and, if the legend of the Chŏnju Kim is true, he was a descendant of King Gyeongsun of Silla.[3] What little that is known about the family contends that sometime around the time of the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598), a direct ancestor moved north. The claim may be understood in light of the fact that the early Chosŏn government’s policy of populating the north resulted in mass resettlement of southern farmers in Pyŏngan and Hamgyŏng regions in the 15th and 16th centuries. At any rate, the majority of the Chŏnju Kim today live in North Korea, and extant Chŏnju Kim genealogies provide spotty records.
The exact history of Kim's family is somewhat obscure. According to Kim himself the family was neither very poor nor comfortably well-off, but was always a step away from poverty. Kim claims he was raised in a Presbyterian family, that his maternal grandfather was a Protestant minister, that his father had gone to a missionary school and was an elder in the Presbyterian Church, and that his parents were very active in the religious community.[4][5][6] According to the official version, Kim’s family participated in anti-Japanese activities and in 1920 they fled to Manchuria. Another view seems to be that his family settled in Manchuria like many Koreans at the time to escape famine. Nonetheless, Kim’s parents apparently did play a minor role in some activist groups, though whether their cause was missionary, nationalist, or both is unclear.[7][8]
Kim's father died in 1926, when Kim was fourteen years old

يتيم الاب في سن الـ 14

David Glasgow Farragut (July 5, 1801 – August 14, 1870) was a flag officer of the United States Navy during the American Civil War. He was the first rear admiral, vice admiral, and admiral in the United States Navy.[1][2] He is remembered in popular culture for his order at the Battle of Mobile Bay, usually paraphrased: "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" by U.S. Navy tradition.[1][3]

Farragut was born in 1801 to Elizabeth Shine (b. 1765 – d. 1808), of North Carolina Scots-Irish descent, and her husband George Farragut, a native of Minorca, Spain, at Lowe's Ferry on the Holston River. It was a few miles southeast of Campbell's Station, near Knoxville, Tennessee.[4] His father operated the ferry and also served as a cavalry officer in the Tennessee militia.[2] Born Jordi Farragut, son of Antoni Farragut and Joana Mesquida, his father became a Spanish merchant captain from Minorca. He had joined the American Revolutionary cause after arriving in America in 1766, when he changed his first name to George.[4] The Farraguts moved west to Tennessee after George finished serving in the American Revolution.
David's birth name was James. After his mother's death, he agreed to living with and being adopted in 1808 by David Porter, a naval officer whose father had been friends with his father. In 1812 James adopted the name David in honor of his adoptive father, with whom he went to sea late in 1810. David Farragut grew up in a naval family, as the adoptive brother of future Civil War admiral David Dixon Porter and commodoreWilliam D. Porter.

Through the influence of his adoptive father, at the age of nine, Farragut was commissioned a midshipman in the United States Navy on December 17, 1810. A prize master by the age of 12, Farragut fought in the War of 1812, serving under Captain David Porter. Farragut participated in capture of HMS Alert on August 13 of 1812 and then helped to establish America's first naval base and colony in the Pacific, named Madisonville during the ill-fated Nuku Hiva Campaign. At the same time the Americans battled the hostile tribes on the islands with the help of their Te I'i allies.
Farragut was 12 years old when, during the War of 1812, he was given the assignment to bring a ship captured by the USS Essex, safely to port.[5] He was wounded and captured while serving on the Essex during the engagement at Valparaiso Bay, Chile against the British on March 28, 1814.

After appointment and an initial cruise as acting Lieutenant commanding USS Ferret, Farragut married Susan Caroline Marchant. After years of ill-health, Susan Farragut died on December 27, 1840. Farragut was noted for his kindly treatment of his wife during her illness.[6] After the death of his first wife, Farragut married Virginia Loyall, on December 26, 1843, with whom he had one surviving son, named Loyall Farragut, born October 12, 1844.

والده :
Jordi Farragut, also known as Jorge Farragut and George Farragut (born September 29 or September 30, 1755, – June 4, 1817), was a United States Navy officer during the American Revolutionary War

Field Marshal Garnet Joseph Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley, KP, GCB, OM, GCMG, VD, PC (4 June 1833 – 25 March 1913) was an Anglo-Irish officer in the British Army. He served in Burma, the Crimean War, the Indian Mutiny, China, Canada, and widely throughout Africa—including his Ashanti campaign (1873–1874) and the Nile Expedition against Mahdist Sudan in 1884–85. He served as Commander-in-Chief of the Forces from 1895 to 1900. His reputation for efficiency led to the late 19th-century English phrase "everything's all Sir Garnet", meaning "all is in order."

Born the eldest son of Major Garnet Joseph Wolseley of "the King's Own Scottish Borderers" (25th Foot) and Frances Anne Wolseley (née Smith), Wolseley was educated in Dublin and first worked in a surveyor’s office.[1]
He obtained a commission as an ensign in the 12th Foot on 12 March 1852[2] without purchase, in recognition of his father's service.[1] He then transferred to the 80th Foot on 13 April 1852,[3] with which he served in the Second Anglo-Burmese War.[4] He was severely wounded in the thigh on 19 March 1853[4] in the attack on Donabyu, was mentioned in despatches, and received the war medal. Promoted to lieutenant on 16 May 1853 and invalided home, Wolseley transferred to the 84th Regiment of Foot on 27 January 1854[5] and then to the 90th Light Infantry,[6] at that time stationed in Dublin, on 24 February 1854.[4] He was promoted to captain on 29 December 1854.[7]

He accompanied the regiment to the Crimea, and landed at Balaklava in December 1854. He was selected to be an assistant engineer, and attached to the Royal Engineers during the Siege of Sevastopol.[4] Wolseley served throughout the siege, where he was wounded at "the Quarries" on 7 June 1855, and again in the trenches on 30 August 1855, losing an eye.[4]
After the fall of Sevastopol, Wolseley was employed on the quartermaster-general's staff, assisting in the embarkation of the troops and supplies, and was one of the last British soldiers to leave the Crimea in July 1856.[4] For his services he was twice mentioned in dispatches, received the war medal with clasp, the 5th class of the French Légion d'honneur[8] and the 5th class of the Turkish Order of the Medjidie.[9]
Six months after joining the 90th Foot at Aldershot, he went with it in March 1857 to join the troops being despatched for the Second Opium War.[4] Wolseley was embarked in the transport Transit which was wrecked in the Strait of Banka - the troops were all saved, but with only their personal arms and minimal ammunition. They were taken to Singapore, and from there were dispatched to Calcutta on account of the Indian Mutiny.[10]

Wolseley distinguished himself at the relief of Lucknow[4] under Sir Colin Campbell in November 1857, and in the defence of the Alambagh position[4] under Outram, taking part in the actions of 22 December 1857, of 12 January 1858 and 16 January 1858, and also in the repulse of the grand attack of 21 February 1858.[1] That March, he served at the final siege and capture of Lucknow. He was then appointed deputy-assistant quartermaster-general on the staff of Sir Hope Grant's Oudh division,[1] and was engaged in all of the operations of the campaign, including the actions of Bari, Sarsi, Nawabganj, the capture of Faizabad, the passage of the Gumti and the action of Sultanpur. In the autumn and winter of 1858 he took part in the Baiswara, trans-Gogra and trans-Rapti campaigns ending with the complete suppression of the rebellion.[10] For his services he was frequently mentioned in dispatches, and having received the Mutiny medal and clasp, he was promoted to brevet major on 24 March 1858[11] and to brevet lieutenant-colonel on 26 April 1859.[12]
Wolseley continued to serve on Sir Hope Grant's staff in Oudh, and when Grant was nominated to the command of the British troops in the Anglo-French expedition to China of 1860,[4] accompanied him as the deputy-assistant quartermaster-general. He was present at the action at Sin-ho, the capture of Tang-ku, the storming of the Taku Forts,[4] the Occupation of Tientsin, the Battle of Pa-to-cheau and the entry into Beijing (during which the destruction of the ChineseImperialOld Summer Palace was begun).[4] He assisted in the re-embarkation of the troops before the winter set in. He was mentioned, yet again, in dispatches, and for his services received the medal and two clasps. On his return home he published the Narrative of the War with China in 1860.[13] He was given the substantive rank of major on 15 February 1861
==

ولد شيانج في فينج هوا بمقاطعة شيكيانغ بالقرب من شنغهاي في 31 أكتوبر1887 حاد عن تقليدية العائلة في الزراعةوالتجارة البسيطة ليلتحق بالجيش وبعد قضائه مدة وجيزة في الاكاديمية العسكرية الوطنية في باودينغ سافر إلى طوكيو ليلتحق بكلية اركان الجيش. وهناك تقابل مع سن يات سن وانضم إلى التحالف الثوري المتحد والذي صار فيما بعد الحزب الوطني (كومنتانج Kuomintang) الذي كان يهدُف إلى إطاحة الحكومة الملكية وتوحيد الصين في جمهورية.
تنقل تشانغ ما بين الصين واليابان على مدى سنوات عديدة تلقى خلالها تدريبه العسكري وشحذ فكره السياسي. وفي عام 1911 تولى -بوصفه معاوناً لسن- قيادة أحد الأفواج في الثورة التي قادت إلى إقامة جمهورية الصين عام 1912. وعلى مدى العقد التالى قسّم شيانج وقته ما بين محاربة الأعداء في الصين ومواصلة تعليمه العسكري وطلب المساعدات المالية لبلاده. وعند عودته إلى الصين عام 1924 تولى إدارة اكاديمية وامبو العسكرية التابعة للحزب الوطني حيث تهيأت له الفرصة للتأثير في الضباط الصغار وتوسيع قاعدة قوته المتنامية

Chiang Kai-shek (October 31, 1887 – April 5, 1975) was a political and military leader of 20th-century China. He is known as Jiǎng Jièsh&iacute; (蔣介石) or Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng (蔣中正) in Mandarin.
Chiang was an influential member of the Nationalist Party, the Kuomintang (KMT), and was a close ally of Sun Yat-sen. He became the Commandant of the Kuomintang's Whampoa Military Academy, and took Sun's place as leader of the KMT when Sun died in 1925. In 1926, Chiang led the Northern Expedition to unify the country, becoming China's nominal leader.[3] He served as Chairman of the National Military Council of the Nationalist government of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 to 1948. Chiang led China in the Second Sino-Japanese War, during which the Nationalist government's power severely weakened, but his prominence grew. Unlike Sun Yat-sen, Chiang Kai-shek was socially conservative, promoting traditional Chinese culture in the New Life Movement and rejecting western democracy and the nationalist democratic socialism that Sun Yat-sen and some other members of the KMT embraced in favor of a nationalist authoritarian government.
Chiang's predecessor, Sun Yat-sen, was well-liked and respected by the Communists, but after Sun's death Chiang was not able to maintain good relations with the Communists. A major split between the Nationalists and Communists occurred in 1927; and, under Chiang's leadership, the Nationalists fought a nation-wide civil war against the Communist Party of China (CPC). After Japan invaded China in 1937, Chiang agreed to a temporary truce with the CPC. Despite some early cooperative military successes against Japan, by the time that the Japanese surrendered in 1945 neither the CPC nor the KMT trusted each other or were actively cooperating. After American-sponsored attempts to negotiate a coalition government failed in 1946, the Chinese Civil War resumed. The CPC defeated the Nationalists in 1949, forcing Chiang's government to retreat to Taiwan, where Chiang imposed martial law and persecuted people critical of his rule in a period known as the "White Terror". After evacuating to Taiwan, Chiang's government continued to declare its intention to retake mainland China. Chiang ruled the island securely as the self-appointed President of the Republic of China and Director-General of the Kuomintang until his death in 1975.

Early life>

Childhood>

Chiang was born in Xikou, a town approximately 30 kilometers southwest of downtown Ningbo, in Fenghua, Ningbo, Zhejiang. However, his ancestral home, a concept important in Chinese society, was the town of Heqiao (和橋鎮) in Yixing, Wuxi, Jiangsu (approximately 38 km (24 mi) southwest of downtown Wuxi, and 10 km (6.2 mi) from the shores of Lake Tai).
Chiang's father, Jiang Zhaocong (蔣肇聰), and mother, Wang Caiyu (王采玉), were members of an upper-middle to upper-class family of salt merchants. Chiang's father died when he was only eight years of age, and he wrote of his mother as the "embodiment of Confucian virtues".


يتيم الاب في سن الـ 8

Field Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts, Bt, VC, KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, KStJ, PC (30 September 1832 – 14 November 1914) was a distinguished Indian born[1]British soldier who regarded himself as Anglo-Irish[2] and one of the most successful British commanders of the 19th century. He served in the Indian rebellion, the Expedition to Abyssinia and the Second Anglo-Afghan War before leading British Forces to success in the Second Boer War. He also became the last Commander-in-Chief of the Forces before the post was abolished in 1904.

Born at Cawnpore, India, on 30 September 1832, Lord Roberts was the second son of GeneralSir Abraham Roberts, a native of County Waterford in the south-east of Ireland At the time Sir Abraham was commanding the 1st Bengal European Regiment. Roberts was named Sleigh in honour of the garrison commander, Major-General William Sleigh. His mother was Edinburgh-born Isabella Bunbury, daughter of Major Abraham Bunbury from Kilfeacle in County Tipperary.
Roberts was educated at Eton, Sandhurst and Addiscombe Military Academy before entering the East India Company Army as a Second Lieutenant with the Bengal Artillery on 12 December 1851. He became ADC to his father in 1852, transferred to the Bengal Horse Artillery in 1854 and was promoted to lieutenant on 31 May 1857.

He fought in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 (also known as the Indian Mutiny) seeing action during the siege and capture of Delhi where he was slightly wounded, and being present at the relief of Lucknow, where, as Deputy Assistant Quartermaster-General, he was attached to the staff of Sir Colin Campbell, Commander-in-Chief, India. Roberts was awarded the Victoria Cross medal for actions on 2 January 1858 at Khudaganj. The citation reads:
He was also mentioned in despatches for his service at Lucknow in March 1858.[9] In common with other officers he transferred from the East India Company Army to the Indian Army that year

89- صلاح الدين الايوبي

ولد صلاح الدين في تكريتبالعراق عام 532 هـ/1138م في ليلة مغادرة والده نجم الدين أيوب قلعة تكريت حينما كان واليًا عليها، ويرجع نسب الأيوبيين إلى أيوب بن شاذي بن مروان من أهل مدينة دوين في أرمينيا،[5] ويرجع ابن الأثير نسب أيوب بن شاذي بن مروان إلى الأكراد الروادية وهم فخذ من الهذبانية،[5] يقول أحمد بن خلكان: «قال لي رجل فقيه عارف بما يقول، وهو من أهل دوين، إن على باب دوين قرية يُقال لها "أجدانقان" وجميع أهلها أكراد روادية، وكان شاذي قد أخذ ولديه أسد الدين شيركوه ونجم الدين أيوب وخرج بهما إلى بغداد ومن هناك نزلوا تكريت، ومات شاذي بها وعلى قبره قبة داخل البلد»،[6] بينما يرفض بعض ملوك الأيوبيين هذا النسب وقالوا: «إنما نحن عرب، نزلنا عند الأكراد وتزوجنا منهم".»[7] الأيوبيون نفسهم اختلفوا في نسبهم فالملك المعز إسماعيل صاحب اليمن أرجع نسب بني أيوب إلى بني أمية وحين بلغ ذلك الملك العادل سيف الدين أبي بكر بن أيوب قال كذب إسماعيل ما نحن من بني أمية أصلاً،[7] أما الأيوبيون ملوك دمشق فقد أثبتوا نسبهم إلى بني مرة بن عوف من بطون غطفان وقد أحضر هذا النسب على المعظم عيسى بن أحمد صاحب دمشق وأسمعه ابنه الملك الناصر صلاح الدين داود.[7]
وقد شرح الحسن بن داود الأيوبي في كتابه "الفوائد الجلية في الفرائد الناصرية"[8] ما قيل عن نسب أجداده وقطع أنهم ليسوا أكرادًا، بل نزلوا عندهم فنسبوا إليهم. وقال: "ولم أرَ أحداً ممن أدركتُه من مشايخ بيتنا يعترف بهذا النسب".
كما أن الحسن بن داود قد رجَّح في كتابه صحة شجرة النسب التي وضعها الحسن بن غريب، والتي فيها نسبة العائلة إلى أيوب بن شاذي بن مروان بن أبي علي (محمد) بن عنترة بن الحسن بن علي بن أحمد بن أبي علي بن عبد العزيز بن هُدْبة بن الحُصَين بن الحارث بن سنان بن عمرو بن مُرَّة بن عُوف بن أسامة بن بَيْهس بن الحارث بن عوف بن أبي حارثة بن مُرّة بن نَشبَة بن غَيظ بن مرة بن عوف بن لؤي بن غالب بن فِهر (وهو جد قريش).
وكان نجم الدين والد صلاح الدين قد انتقل إلى بعلبك حيث أصبح واليًا عليها مدة سبع سنوات وانتقل إلى دمشق، وقضى صلاح الدين طفولته في دمشق حيث أمضى فترة شبابه في بلاط الملك العادل نور الدين محمود بن زنكي أمير دمشق.[9] إن المصادر حول حياة صلاح الدين خلال هذه الفترة قليلة ومبعثرة، لكن من المعروف أنه عشق دمشق عشقًا شديدًا، وتلقى علومه فيها، وبرع في دراساته، حتى قال عنه بعض معاصريه أنه كان عالمًا بالهندسة الإقليديةوالرياضيات المجسطيةوعلوم الحسابوالشريعة الإسلامية،[10] وتنص بعض المصادر أن صلاح الدين كان أكثر شغفًا بالعلوم الدينية والفقه الإسلامي من العلوم العسكرية خلال أيام دراسته.[11] وبالإضافة إلى ذلك، كان صلاح الدين ملمًا بعلم الأنسابوالسير الذاتية وتاريخ العرب والشعر، حيث حفظ ديوان الحماسة لأبي تمام عن ظهر قلب، أيضًا أحب الخيول العربية المطهمة، وعرف أنقى سلالاتها دمًا.[10]

Saladin was born in Tikrit, Iraq. His personal name was "Yusuf"; "Salah ad-Din" is a laqab, a descriptive epithet, meaning "Righteousness of the Faith."[7] His family was of Kurdish background and ancestry,[2] and had originated from the village of Ajdanakan near the city of Dvin, in medieval Armenia.[8][9] In 1132, the defeated army of the Lord of Mosul, Imad ad-Din Zengi, found their retreat blocked by the Tigris opposite the Tikrit fortress where Saladin's father, Najm ad-Din Ayyub was warden. Ayyub provided ferries for the army and gave them refuge in Tikrit. Mujahed al-Din Bihruz, a former greek slave who had been appointed the military governor of northern Mesopotamia for his service to the Seljuks had reprimanded Ayyub for giving Zengi refuge and in 1137, he banished Ayyub from Tikrit after his brother Asad al-Din Shirkuh killed a friend of Bihruz in an honour killing. According to Baha ad-Din ibn Shaddad, Saladin was born the same night his family left Tikrit. In 1139, Ayyub and his family moved to Mosul where Imad ad-Din Zengi acknowledged his debt and appointed Ayyub commander of his fortress in Baalbek. After the death of Zengi in 1146, his son, Nur ad-Din, became the regent of Aleppo and the leader of the Zengids.[10]
Saladin, who now lived in Damascus, was reported to have a particular fondness of the city, but information on his early childhood is scarce. About education, Saladin wrote "children are brought up in the way in which their elders were brought up." According to one of his biographers, al-Wahrani, Saladin was able to answer questions on Euclid, the Almagest, arithmetic, and law, but this was an academic ideal and it was study of the Qur'an and the "sciences of religion" that linked him to his contemporaries.[10] Several sources claim that during his studies he was more interested in religion than joining the military.[11] Another factor which may have affected his interest in religion was that during the First Crusade, Jerusalem was taken in a surprise attack by the Christians.[11] In addition to Islam, Saladin had a knowledge of the genealogies, biographies, and histories of the Arabs, as well as the bloodlines of Arabian horses. More significantly, he knew the Hamasah of Abu Tammam by heart.[