1860

While in Damascus he befriended Jane Digby and Richard and Isabel Burton. In July 1860, conflict between the Druze and Maronites of Mount Lebanon spread to Damascus, and local Druze attacked the Christian quarter, killing over 3,000 persons. Abd al-Qādir and his personal guard saved large numbers of Christians, bringing them to safety in his house and in the citadel. For this action the French government increased his pension to 150 000 francs and bestowed on him the Grand Cross of the Légion d'honneur.^[14] He was also honoured by Abraham Lincoln for this gesture towards Christians with several guns that are now on display in the Algiers museum.