Alamut is a mountain that resembles a kneeling camel, its neck resting on the ground. "In reality, Grandmaster Hasan -i Ṣabbāḥ together with his faithful in arms conquered Alamut Castle in 1090. It is an impregnable fortress, of which only ruins remain today. It is a defensive structure built on the granite top of a mountain. Seemingly impregnable, its natural walls are the sheer cliffs. Skilled archers make convenient target practice with those who dare to approach uninvited. A nest of eagles: a handful of men can hold armies in check. The Grandmaster is the first of a dynasty of eight supreme sect leaders who controlled the valley from 1090 to 1256, the year of the bloody conquest by Hulagu Khan’s Mongol troops. The area of Alamut, is strategic, caravans wishing to pass must pay tribute to that order of fanatical warrior monks, specializing in murder. Devoted, disciplined, exceptional with blades, physically and psychologically highly trained-they are ninjas of Persia.
