Baybars had particularly taken into consideration the joint movement of the Christians and the Mongolians who wanted to take revenge of the War of Ayn Calut. He had to fight with the Small Armenian kingdom in the north, the Franks, and Cyprus Kingdom on the coasts, and finally the Shiite elements such as Ismaili and Nuseyri supporters sue to the Sunnite policy that he followed.
Upon the death of Baybars (1277), his son Berke replaced him and he was also replaced by Sülemiş. However, Kipchak Kalavun (died in 1290) who annihilated these persons had fought with the Mongolians and Franks, and established a defensive alliance with Alfons, the King of Castilla and the Sicilian Jacob. Furthermore, Kalavun had also fought with Nubya people under the command of Samamum; and he died in the course of the preparations for the conquest of Akka in the year of 1290.
Kalavun and his successors had tried to establish a kind of sultanate-dynasty that dominated for five centuries until the year of 1382 and they succeeded in their efforts. However, they imitated el-Melikü's-Salih in order to provide the continuation of the dynasty, and they established a new Mameluke group composed of different Circassian groups despite the existence of the Turkish Mameluke groups. As a result of this establishment, the Circassian Mameluke groups who constituted the basis for the dynasty had been transported from the great markets founded in the ports of the Black Sea to the slave markets in Egypt with the Venetian and Genoese ships. These Circassian groups gradually increased in number and they established dominion and changed the fate of Egypt in the course of time.
Kalavun selected three thousands and seven hundreds of As and Circassian people among twelve thousands of Mamelukes and settled them in the castle of Kat'atu'l-Cebel (mountain castle) that was separated from the mountain of el-Mukaddem with a deep ditch. These Mamelukes had been called as Burciye Mameluke in reference with the towers of the castle (=el-Memâlîku'l-Burcîyye). Meanwhile, we shall add that the superiority of the Circassian groups over the other Mamelukes that gradually increased in number attracted the interest of Kalavun-sons. Actually, the rulers were able to establish new Mameluke groups and provided the equilibrium among the groups. However, the struggles between these groups and the Turkmen groups that were alimented with these new elements and the Circassians continued until the period of Berkuk. The Great Turkish ruler called as el-Melîku'n-Nasır Mehemmed (1293-1341) dealt with the matter of the increase and reproduction of Circassian Mamelukes in his third sultanate. In the land survey (Revku'n-Nasiri) that he organised in the year of 1315, he determined the Circassians that existed in fifteen provinces; he investigated their identities and decreased their numbers.
Upon this incident, the Aleppo and Damascus Turkmen groups were able to establish dominion in the most significant regions of Egypt and Syria and they re-started to attain important offices among the staff officers of Mameluke groups. As a matter of fact, the Anatolian emirs (=er-Rumi) such as Kosun, Seyhun, Altunboga, Aydogmus and Mancak, etc. played important roles in the events that took place in the period in which the Egypt-Anatolia relations had got closer and much more frequent. Thus, Turkish language attained great importance in the religious and legal fields. The Mameluke groups established by these Turkish staff officers were generally composed of the Turkmen people that were the members of various Turkish tribes and clans. The close relationship of el-Meliku'n-Nasir Muhammed with the Southern Anatolian principalities and especially with Karamanogullari principality caused the arrival of these people to Egypt.
On the other hand, the diplomatic relations of el-Melîku'n-Nâsır'ın with Dest-i Kipchak had had great effects over the Golden Horde rulers in respect of the religion of Islam. Some of the people from the regions called as Kirimi, Sarayi, Gulüstani, etc. came to Egypt and they were in the service of the Mameluke Sultanate. Melîku'n-Nâsır had extensive information about the west. As a matter of fact, Johannis de Mandeville who went to Caio in the year of 1336 had met with Melîku'n-Nâsır and had an interview with him. He was much astonished when he learned the opinions of this sultan about the west.
Pursuant to the death of the ruler (1341), the distinguished Regents (Governors) of Syria that were generally members of the Hanafi sect and connected to el-Melîku'n-Nâsır had played much important roles in the enthronement of his sons as the sovereigns of the Mameluke Sultanate. However, one of the Regents, Yulbuga el-Umeri got rid of Nasir's son, Hasan on the basis of the Aleppo and Damascus Turkmens in the year of 1360 and established dominion in the fate of the Mameluke Sultanate as the regent of the sultanate. He imitated Aybey, Kutuz and Kalavun, and established a new Mameluke group (=Yulbugaviye) from the slaves that he purchased with the majority of the Circassian people. Nevertheless, the Turkmen emirs got the support of Kalavunogullari people and they were involved in a struggle with this new Mameluke group. One of these emirs, Taybuga et-Tavil (tall), gathered all the influence under his dominion and killed Yulbuga (1367); the members of the Yulbugaviye group were exiled to Syria. Their goods and properties in Cairo were confiscated. However, Mameluke Sultan Saban called the Yulbugaviler groups back to Egypt. Then, their numbers gradually increased and their influence was reinforced. This caused their organisation around their own chief, Berkuk.
Berkuk who was a natural chief of Yulbugaviye group imitated his effendi, Yulbuga. He was able to establish a new Mameluke group from the Circassian people of the same kind with him that he had purchased. This Mameluke group was called as Zahiri Mamelukes (= Memalikü'z-Zahiriyye) and they gradually increased in number and this situation caused the increase of the majority rate of the Circassian groups in Egypt and the dominion of them over the other groups.
Therefore, Berkuk could empower the Circassian groups and provided the security of the highways and the safety of the trade caravans for their arrival in Egypt. Then, he was enthroned to the sultanate through the support of el-Karimi merchants in the year of 1382. However, he had to fight with the Turkish emirs that dominated the administration of Egypt. He was defeated in the wars that he fought with Turkish emirs such as Yulnuga en-Nasiri and Mintaş, etc. and then, he was dethroned. Then, he ascended the throne again in the year of 1392 due to the competition that occurred between these two Turkish emirs. Nevertheless, Berkuk who got dented among the Turks became a good diplomat and collaborated with Bayezid, Kadi Burhaneddin Ahmed and Toktamis Khan, who was the ruler of Golden Horde State against Tamburlaine. He defended Sultan Ahmed who was the ruler of Celayirli principality. Upon his death on the date of 20th June 1399, all these alliances were dissolved. Berkuk who was one of the significant characters of the Near-East history in the century XIV had come to power in the course of the political and economical depressions.
to be continued