This Is the Forgotten Story of How Assassins Got Their Name

Warfare History Network

History, Middle East

A tale you may not know. 

How the Nizari Ismailis came to be known as the Assassins is still the subject of much debate. Popular mythology maintains that their ominous name derived from their use of drugs such as opium and hashish to induce a fanatical frenzy in their killers. This myth was first carried back to Europe by the Crusaders, but did not become widely known in the West until it was published in the travelogues of Marco Polo. Polo discussed the workings of the Assassins in his book and even claimed to have visited Alamut. However, it should be remembered that he wrote his travelogues in the late 13th century, well after the Assassin period had come to an end.

The Old Man of the Mountains

According to Polo, the Assassins were led by a shadowy figure called the Old Man of the Mountains. The Old Man constructed a secret area inside Alamut that he called the Garden of Paradise. The garden supposedly was filled with exotic food, drink, and scantily clad women. His young recruits were taken there and drugged into a stupor. They would awaken inside the garden and be overwhelmed by its delights. Polo continued: “At certain times he caused opium to be administered to ten or dozen of the youths; and when half dead with sleep he had them conveyed to the several apartments of the palaces in the garden. Upon awakening from the state of lethargy, their senses were struck with all the delightful objects that have been described, and each perceived himself surrounded by lovely damsels, singing, playing, and attracting his regards by the most fascinating caresses, serving him also with delicate viands and exquisite wines; until intoxicated with excess of enjoyment amidst actual rivulets of milk and wine, he believed himself assuredly in Paradise, and felt an unwillingness to relinquish its delights.”

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