The statesman, warrior, poet and literary figure, Moayyed od-Dowlah

On 27th of the Islamic month of Jamadi as-Sani in 448 AH, the statesman, warrior, poet and literary figure, Majd od-Din Osama ibn Murshid ibn Ali ibn Munqidh al-Kinani, titled Moayyed od-Dowlah, was born in Shaizar near Hama in Syria. His life coincided with the rise and fall of several Muslim dynasties, as well as the First Crusade and setting up of the illegal states by the European invaders. A nephew of the emir of Shaizar, he served at the courts of the Turkic Atabegs of the declining Seljuqid Empire who now founded dynasties of their own in Syria, such as the Burids, the Artuqids, and the Zengids, especially the famous Noor od-Din Zengi – the victor of several defeats against the Crusaders.
He then went to Egypt to serve at the Fatemid court in Cairo, and was later associated with Salah od-Din Ayyubi, the Kurdish ruler who brought the whole of Egypt and Syria under his sway. Osama often meddled in politics and was exiled from both Damascus and Cairo. He wrote many works of poetry, such as "Kitab al-Asa" (Book of the Staff), "Lubab al-Adab" (Kernels of Literature), and "al-Manazil wa'd-Diyar" (Dwellings and Abodes). For modern readers, he is well known for his "Kitab al-I'bar", which contains lengthy descriptions of the crusaders, whom he visited on many occasions, and some of whom he befriended, although he generally saw them as European barbarians.
It is assumed that Osama was a Shi'ite Muslim, because he often writes about and praises Imam Ali (AS). His family cooperated with the Fatemids and other Shi'ite dynasties, and he himself served the Fatemids in Egypt. Researchers are divided; some think that he had a "secret sympathy" with the Shi'ites, while others believe he was Sunni with Shi'ite tendencies. Still others think that his family members were Twelver Shi'ites. He died in Damascus at the age of 96, a year after the liberation of Bayt ol-Moqaddas from the crusaders after 88 years of occupation.