A Guide to Hasan Sabbah, Alamut and the Assassins
Each page answers the question first, then shows the debated points and the sources. We try to keep what is established apart from what is only reported.
Hasan Sabbah
- Who Was Hasan Sabbah? Life, Beliefs and Historical Role
Hasan-i Sabbah seized Alamut in 1090 and founded the Nizari Isma'ili state. His origins, education, beliefs and legacy, with sources.
- How Did Hasan Sabbah Die? Death, Tomb and Family
Hasan-i Sabbah died at Alamut in 1124; no source we read says he was killed. His death date, tomb, sons' execution and successor.
- The Most Reliable Historical Sources on Hasan Sabbah
Juvayni, Rashid al-Din, Ibn al-Athir, Daftary and Lewis: primary sources and modern studies on Hasan-i Sabbah, and why they disagree.
Alamut
- Alamut Castle: Location, History and the Fall of 1256
Where is Alamut Castle, how did Hasan-i Sabbah capture it, why was it hard to conquer and what happened in 1256? Now a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The Assassins and their legends
- Who Were the Assassins? The Nizari Isma'ilis and the Hashshashin
The Assassins were the Nizari Isma'ilis, named by their enemies. Where the word came from, what they sought, and what happened to them.
- Did the Assassins Really Use Hashish? The Garden of Paradise Legend
Were the Assassins drugged, and was there a garden of paradise at Alamut? What Daftary and others say, and where Marco Polo fits in.
- Did Hasan Sabbah Order the Assassination of Nizam al-Mulk?
Nizam al-Mulk was stabbed near Nahavand on 14 October 1092. The case against Hasan-i Sabbah, the palace suspects and the three schoolfellows legend.
- Assassin's Creed and the Real Nizari Isma'ilis
How Assassin's Creed draws on the Nizari Isma'ilis and Bartol's novel Alamut, what is real, and where "Nothing is true" actually comes from.