Ra's al Ghul was born in 1810, taken from his family and forcibly conscripted into the Janissaries, an elite Ottoman infantry unit loyal only to the Sultan. Ra's was raised as a warrior and a radical, eventually taking place in a rebellion against the "weak Sultan" during the Auspicious Incident in 1826. As he was only a teenagar at the time, Ra's avoided execution but was exiled from the Ottoman Empire.

Ra's would then travel the world, learning fighting abilities and serving whichever cause took his fancy. He had a rage inside and a love for fighting - in a word, he was the perfect successor to Vandal Savage. However, it would take decades for Ra's to meet Savage, and when he did finally meet Savage in 1916, the 116 year old former mercenary was close to death. His dip into the newly christened Lazarus Pit changed that, and using his newfound youth and century of military experience Ra's formed the League of Assassins. Finally he was able to steal Excalibur from Sir Justin, and wielded it himself for many years.

He would then become a powerful behind the scenes figure in the Turkish War of Independence, finally reclaiming a spot in his ancient homeland. It is here that he would meet a special woman and have his first daughter - Talia al Ghul in 1920. Ra's himself would make multiple attempts to raise a successor, including training Bane and after him Bruce Wayne.

He would eventually be killed by his grandson Damian Wayne in 1962.