This manuscript was copied for Jarbash al-Silahdar al-Maliki al-Ashrafi, a Mamluk officer in charge of troop training. It includes instruction on military training, firearms, incendiary devices, artillery, signaling and horsemanship. The Mamluks were soldiers of slave origin that existed in the Middle East from the 9th to the 19th century. They were particularly powerful in Egypt and Syria in a period known as the Mamluk Sultanate (1250??517), which famously beat back the Mongols and fought the Crusaders.