From 1265 Makuria endured repeated invasions by the Mamluk sultanate, which, from 1276, usually installed a puppet king on the Makurian throne.[11] At the end of the 13th century, after yet another confrontation with the Mamluks, the most prestigious buildings of Old Dongola, among them the Throne Hall, lay in ruins and the population had dropped drastically due to deportations.[12] The Throne Hall in particular had both its south and northwest devastated.