1.
First Crusade
–
The First Crusade was the first of a number of crusades that attempted to capture the Holy Land, called by Pope Urban II in 1095. An additional goal became the principal objective—the Christian reconquest of the sacred city of Jerusalem and the Holy Land. During the crusades, nobility, knights, peasants and serfs from many regions of Western Europe travelled over land and by sea, first to Constantinople and then on towards Jerusalem. The Crusaders arrived at Jerusalem, launched an assault on the city and they also established the crusader states of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the County of Tripoli, the Principality of Antioch, and the County of Edessa. The First Crusade was followed by the Second to the Ninth Crusades and it was also the first major step towards reopening international trade in the West since the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The majority view is that it had elements of both in its nature, the origin of the Crusades in general, and particularly that of the First Crusade, is widely debated among historians. The confusion is due to the numerous armies in the first crusade. The similar ideologies held the armies to similar goals, but the connections were rarely strong, the Umayyad Caliphate had conquered Syria, Egypt, and North Africa from the predominantly Christian Byzantine Empire, and Hispania from the Visigothic Kingdom. In North Africa, the Umayyad empire eventually collapsed and a number of smaller Muslim kingdoms emerged, such as the Aghlabids, who attacked Italy in the 9th century. Pisa, Genoa, and the Principality of Catalonia began to battle various Muslim kingdoms for control of the Mediterranean Basin, exemplified by the Mahdia campaign and battles at Majorca and Sardinia. Essentially, between the years 1096 and 1101 the Byzantine Greeks experienced the crusade as it arrived at Constantinople in three separate waves, in the early summer of 1096, the first large unruly group arrived on the outskirts of Constantinople. This wave was reported to be undisciplined and ill-equipped as an army and this first group is often called the Peasants’ or People’s Crusade. It was led by Peter the Hermit and Walter Sans Avoir and had no knowledge of or respect for the wishes of Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos. The second wave was not under the command of the Emperor and was made up of a number of armies with their own commanders. Together, this group and the first wave numbered an estimated 60,000, the second wave was led by Hugh I, Count of Vermandois, the brother of King Philip I of France. Also among the wave were Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse. It was this wave of crusaders which later passed through Asia Minor, captured Antioch in 1098 and finally took Jerusalem 15 July 1099. ”The third wave, composed of contingents from Lombardy, France. At the western edge of Europe and of Islamic expansion, the Reconquista in the Iberian Peninsula was well underway by the 11th century and it was intermittently ideological, as evidenced by the Codex Vigilanus compiled in 881
First Crusade
–
The Capture of Jerusalem marked the First Crusade's success
First Crusade
–
Pope Urban II at the
Council of Clermont. Illumination from the Livre des Passages d'Outre-mer, of c 1490 (
Bibliothèque Nationale)
First Crusade
–
A map of the routes of the major leaders of the crusade, in
French
First Crusade
–
An illustration showing the defeat of the
People's Crusade
2.
Byzantine-Seljuk wars
–
The Byzantine–Seljuq Wars were a series of decisive battles that shifted the balance of power in Asia Minor and Syria from the Byzantine Empire to the Seljuq Turks. During the course of the war, the Seljuq Turks and their allies attacked the Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt, capturing Jerusalem, Crusader assistance to the Byzantine Empire was mixed with treachery and looting, although substantial gains were made in the First Crusade. Within a hundred years of Manzikert, the Byzantines had successfully driven back the Turks from the coasts of Asia Minor and extended their influence right down to Palestine and even Egypt. Later, the Byzantines were unable to extract any more assistance, the wars distant origins lay in the formation of the Byzantine Empire from the collapsing Roman Empire in the 4th century. Matters were made worse with an economic and demographic problem, the population of the Roman Empire began to fall in the 4th century due to a lack of conquest leading to a lack of slaves, a vital and significant group of people in the Empire. Reforms by Emperors like Constantine I and Theodosius I prolonged the Roman Empire, in the 7th and 8th centuries, the Byzantines experienced several co-ordinated Arab invasions losing several vital provinces, such as Egypt and the Levant. Despite this, the Byzantines were far from safe, with the death of Basil II came a series of Emperors who failed to secure the Empire against external threats. The biggest threat to the Empire since the Arab invasions were the Turks, the Turks were much like the Byzantines former enemies, the Huns. Combining their excellent riding skills with Islamic zeal, the Turks who converted to Islam in the 7th, as the Byzantines were making headway against the Arabs in the 10th century, Persia was being ruled by the Ghaznevids, another Turkic people. The migration of Seljuq Turks into Persia in the 10th century led to the Ghaznevids being overthrown, there they settled and adopted Persian language and customs. The Seljuqs established a domain and captured Baghdad in 1055 from the Abassid Caliphate. The Abassid Caliphate henceforth became a figurehead in the Islamic World. The Seljuq Turks, spurred on by their previous success, now launched an attack on the Levant and against Fatimid Egypt, Encounters between the Seljuq Turks and the Byzantines did not occur until after the reign of Basil II. However, the outcome of war, the Byzantine-Georgian wars, was in some ways influenced by the incursions of the Seljuk Turks into Georgia. Ever since the early 11th century, the Seljuq Turks from central Asia had been expanding westward, defeating various Arab factions, at the same time, the Byzantine empire was making a few gains in Edessa and Syria. In 1067 the Seljuq Turks invaded Asia Minor attacking Caesarea and in 1069 Iconium, a Byzantine counterattack in 1069 drove the Seljuq Turks back from these lands. Further offensives by the Byzantine army drove the Turks back across the Euphrates, despite this, the Seljuq Turks continued their incursions into Asia Minor, capturing Manzikert. The Byzantine Emperor Romanus Diogenes led an army in an attempt to score a decisive blow against the Seljuqs, during the march, Alp Arslan, the leader of the Seljuq Turks withdrew from Manzikert
Byzantine-Seljuk wars
–
A 15th century depiction of the siege of Antioch, with soldiers anachronistically shown wearing plate as opposed to mail armour.
Byzantine-Seljuk wars
–
The division of the Empire after the death of Theodosius I, ca.395 AD superimposed on modern borders.
Byzantine-Seljuk wars
–
John II Comnenus, Byzantium's greatest military leader since Basil II. John was able to exploit the weakness of the Turks using the still fragile state and army he had inherited from his
father
Byzantine-Seljuk wars
–
Byzantine territory in red, and the Sultanate of Iconium and Four Emirates in 1180 A.D. Due to the nature of the war and terrain, boundaries were constantly violated by raiding parties on both sides.
3.
Byzantine Empire
–
It survived the fragmentation and fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD and continued to exist for an additional thousand years until it fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. During most of its existence, the empire was the most powerful economic, cultural, several signal events from the 4th to 6th centuries mark the period of transition during which the Roman Empires Greek East and Latin West divided. Constantine I reorganised the empire, made Constantinople the new capital, under Theodosius I, Christianity became the Empires official state religion and other religious practices were proscribed. Finally, under the reign of Heraclius, the Empires military, the borders of the Empire evolved significantly over its existence, as it went through several cycles of decline and recovery. During the reign of Maurice, the Empires eastern frontier was expanded, in a matter of years the Empire lost its richest provinces, Egypt and Syria, to the Arabs. This battle opened the way for the Turks to settle in Anatolia, the Empire recovered again during the Komnenian restoration, such that by the 12th century Constantinople was the largest and wealthiest European city. Despite the eventual recovery of Constantinople in 1261, the Byzantine Empire remained only one of several small states in the area for the final two centuries of its existence. Its remaining territories were annexed by the Ottomans over the 15th century. The Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 finally ended the Byzantine Empire, the term comes from Byzantium, the name of the city of Constantinople before it became Constantines capital. This older name of the city would rarely be used from this point onward except in historical or poetic contexts. The publication in 1648 of the Byzantine du Louvre, and in 1680 of Du Canges Historia Byzantina further popularised the use of Byzantine among French authors, however, it was not until the mid-19th century that the term came into general use in the Western world. The Byzantine Empire was known to its inhabitants as the Roman Empire, the Empire of the Romans, Romania, the Roman Republic, Graikia, and also as Rhōmais. The inhabitants called themselves Romaioi and Graikoi, and even as late as the 19th century Greeks typically referred to modern Greek as Romaika and Graikika. The authority of the Byzantine emperor as the legitimate Roman emperor was challenged by the coronation of Charlemagne as Imperator Augustus by Pope Leo III in the year 800. No such distinction existed in the Islamic and Slavic worlds, where the Empire was more seen as the continuation of the Roman Empire. In the Islamic world, the Roman Empire was known primarily as Rûm, the Roman army succeeded in conquering many territories covering the entire Mediterranean region and coastal regions in southwestern Europe and north Africa. These territories were home to different cultural groups, both urban populations and rural populations. The West also suffered heavily from the instability of the 3rd century AD
Byzantine Empire
–
Tremissis with the image of
Justinian the Great (r. 527–565) (see
Byzantine insignia)
Byzantine Empire
–
Byzantine
lamellar armour klivanium (Κλιβάνιον) - a predecessor of Ottoman krug
mirror armour
Byzantine Empire
–
The Baptism of Constantine painted by
Raphael 's pupils (1520–1524,
fresco, Vatican City,
Apostolic Palace);
Eusebius of Caesarea records that (as
was common among converts of early Christianity) Constantine delayed receiving
baptism until shortly before his death
Byzantine Empire
–
Restored section of the Theodosian Walls.
4.
Crusaders
–
The First Crusade arose after a call to arms in a 1095 sermon by Pope Urban II. Urban urged military support for the Byzantine Empire and its Emperor, Alexios I, the response to Urbans preaching by people of many different classes across Western Europe established the precedent for later Crusades. Volunteers became Crusaders by taking a vow and receiving plenary indulgences from the church. Some were hoping for apotheosis at Jerusalem, or forgiveness from God for all their sins, others participated to satisfy feudal obligations, gain glory and honour, or find opportunities for economic and political gain. Many modern Historians have polarised opinions of the Crusaders behaviour under Papal sanction, to some it was incongruous with the stated aims and implied moral authority of the papacy and the Crusades, to the extent that on occasions that the Pope excommunicated Crusaders. Crusaders often pillaged as they travelled, while their leaders retained control of captured territory rather than returning it to the Byzantines. During the Peoples Crusade thousands of Jews were murdered in what is now called the Rhineland massacres, Constantinople was sacked during the Fourth Crusade rendering the reunification of Christendom impossible. These tales consequently galvanised medieval romance, philosophy and literature, but the Crusades also reinforced the connection between Western Christendom, feudalism, and militarism. Crusade is not a term, instead the terms iter for journey or peregrinatio for pilgrimage were used. Not until the word crucesignatus for one who was signed with the cross was adopted at the close of the century was specific terminology developed. The Middle English equivalents were derived from old French, croiserie in the 13th–15th centuries, croisade appeared in English c1575, and continued to be the leading form till c1760. By convention historians adopt the term for the Christian holy wars from 1095, the Crusades in the Holy Land are traditionally counted as nine distinct campaigns, numbered from the First Crusade of 1095–99 to the Ninth Crusade of 1271/2. Usage of the term Crusade may differ depending on the author, pluralists use the term Crusade of any campaign explicitly sanctioned by the reigning Pope. This reflects the view of the Roman Catholic Church that every military campaign given Papal sanction is equally valid as a Crusade, regardless of its cause, justification, generalists see Crusades as any and all holy wars connected with the Latin Church and fought in defence of their faith. Popularists limit the Crusades to only those that were characterised by popular groundswells of religious fervour – that is, only the First Crusade, Medieval Muslim historiographers such as Ali ibn al-Athir refer to the Crusades as the Frankish Wars. The term used in modern Arabic, ḥamalāt ṣalībiyya حملات صليبية, campaigns of the cross, is a loan translation of the term Crusade as used in Western historiography. The Islamic prophet Muhammad founded Islam in the Arabian Peninsula, the resulting unified polity in the seventh and eighth centuries led to a rapid expansion of Arab power. This influence stretched from the northwest Indian subcontinent, across Central Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, southern Italy, tolerance, trade, and political relationships between the Arabs and the Christian states of Europe waxed and waned
Crusaders
–
Madrid Skylitzes illuminated manuscript depicting Byzantine Greeks punishing ninth-century
Cretan Saracens
Crusaders
–
Map of the
Eastern Mediterranean in 1135, showing crusader-held and neighbouring territories
Crusaders
–
Fifteenth-century illustrated French translation of
Boccaccio 's
De Casibus Virorum Illustrium, showing
Seljuk emperor
Alp Arslan ritually humiliating
Romanos IV in 1071 after Manzikert; Alp Arslan allowed Romanos to return to
Constantinople, where he was killed by the Byzantines.
Crusaders
–
Illumination from the Livre des Passages d'Outre-mer (c. 1490) of Urban II at the Council of Clermont (from the
Bibliothèque Nationale)
5.
Bohemond I of Antioch
–
Bohemond I was the Prince of Taranto from 1089 to 1111 and the Prince of Antioch from 1098 to 1111. He was a leader of the First Crusade, which was governed by a committee of nobles, the Norman monarchy he founded in Antioch arguably outlasted those of England and of Sicily. Bohemond was the son of Robert Guiscard, Count of Apulia and Calabria and he was born between 1050 and 1058—in 1054 according to historian John Julius Norwich. He was baptised Mark, possibly because he was born at his fathers castle at San Marco Argentano in Calabria and he was nicknamed Bohemond after a legendary giant. His parents were related within the degree of kinship that made their marriage invalid under canon law, with the annulment of his parents marriage, Bohemond became a bastard. Before long, Alberada married Robert Guiscards nephew, Richard of Hauteville and she arranged for a knightly education for Bohemond. Robert Guiscard was taken ill in early 1073. Fearing that he was dying, Sikelgaita held an assembly in Bari, Roberts nephew, Abelard of Hauteville, was the only baron to protest, because he regarded himself Roberts lawful heir. Bohemond fought in his fathers army during the rebellion of Jordan I of Capua, Geoffrey of Conversano and his father dispatched him at the head of an advance guard against the Byzantine Empire in early 1081 and he captured Valona. He sailed to Corfu, but did not invade the island since the local garrison outnumbered his army and he withdrew to Butrinto to await the arrival of his fathers forces. After Robert Guiscard arrived in the half of May, they laid siege to Durazzo. The Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos came to the rescue of the town but, on 18 October, Bohemond commanded the left flank, which defeated the Emperors largely Anglo-Saxon Varangian Guard. The Normans captured Durazzo on 21 February 1082 and they marched along the Via Egnatia as far as Kastoria, but Alexioss agents stirred up a rebellion in Southern Italy, forcing Robert Guiscard to return to his realm in April. He charged Bohemond with the command of his army in the Balkans, Bohemond defeated the Byzantines at Ioannina and at Arta, taking control of most of Macedonia and Thessaly, however, the six-month siege of Larissa was unsuccessful. Supply and pay problems undermined the morale of the Norman army, during his absence, most of the Norman commanders deserted to the Byzantines and a Venetian fleet recaptured Durazzo and Corfu. Bohemond accompanied his father to the Byzantine Empire again in 1084, an epidemic decimated the Normans and Bohemond, who was taken seriously ill, was forced to return to Italy in December 1084. Robert Guiscard died at Cephalonia on 17 July 1085 and she persuaded the army to acclaim Roger Borsa his fathers successor and they hurried back to Southern Italy. Two months later, the assembly of the Norman barons confirmed the succession and he made an alliance with Jordan of Capua, and captured Oria and Otranto
Bohemond I of Antioch
–
Bohemond and his Norman troops scale the walls at the
Siege of Antioch, in an engraving by
Gustave Doré.
Bohemond I of Antioch
–
Capture of Antioch by Bohemond of Tarente in June 1098.
Bohemond I of Antioch
–
Mausoleum of Bohemond in
Canosa di Puglia.
6.
Raymond IV of Toulouse
–
Raymond IV, sometimes called Raymond of Saint-Gilles or Raymond I of Tripoli, was a powerful noble in southern France and one of the leaders of the First Crusade. He was the Count of Toulouse, Duke of Narbonne and Margrave of Provence from 1094, Raymond was a son of Pons of Toulouse and Almodis de La Marche. He received Saint-Gilles with the title of count from his father and displaced his niece Philippa, Duchess of Aquitaine, his brother William IVs daughter, in 1094, William Bertrand of Provence died and his margravial title to Provence passed to Raymond. A bull of Urbans dated 22 July 1096 names Raymond comes Nimirum Tholosanorum ac Ruthenensium et marchio Provintie Raimundus. Raymond was deeply religious, and wished to die in the Holy Land and he is sometimes called the one-eyed after a rumour that he had lost an eye in a scuffle with the doorkeeper of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre during an earlier pilgrimage to Jerusalem. He ignored requests by his niece, Philippa to grant the rule of Toulouse to her in his stead, instead, he left Bertrand, his eldest son and he marched to Dyrrhachium, and then east to Constantinople along the same route used by Bohemond of Taranto. At the end of April 1097, he was the only crusade leader not to swear an oath of fealty to Byzantine emperor Alexius I, instead, Raymond swore an oath of friendship, and offered his support against Bohemond, mutual enemy of both Raymond and Alexius. He was present at the siege of Nicaea and the Battle of Dorylaeum in 1097, the crusaders heard a rumour that Antioch had been deserted by the Seljuk Turks, so Raymond sent his army ahead to occupy it, offending Bohemond of Taranto who wanted the city for himself. The city was, however, still occupied, and was taken by the crusaders only after a siege in June 1098. Raymond took the palatium Cassiani and the tower over the Bridge Gate and he was ill during the second siege of Antioch by Kerbogha which culminated in a controversial rediscovery of the Holy Lance by a monk named Peter Bartholomew. The miracle raised the morale of the crusaders, and to their surprise they were able to rout Kerbogha outside Antioch, the Lance itself became a valuable relic among Raymonds followers, despite Adhemar of Le Puys skepticism and Bohemonds disbelief and occasional mockery. Raymond also refused to relinquish his control of the city to Bohemond, reminding Bohemond that he was obligated to return Antioch to the court of Emperor Alexius, as he had sworn to do. A struggle then arose between Raymonds supporters and the supporters of Bohemond, partly over the genuineness of the Lance, many of the minor knights and foot soldiers preferred to continue their march to Jerusalem, and they convinced Raymond to lead them there in the autumn of 1098. Raymond led them out to besiege Maarrat al-Numan, although he left a detachment of his troops in Antioch. As Adhemar had died in Antioch, Raymond, along with the given to him by the Holy Lance. Bohemond however, expelled Raymonds detachment from Antioch in January 1099, Raymond then began to search for a city of his own. The siege of Arqa, a town outside Tripoli, lasted longer than Raymond had hoped, Raymond finally agreed to continue the march to Jerusalem on 13 May, and after months of siege the city was captured on 15 July. Raymond was offered the crown of the new Kingdom of Jerusalem and he said that he shuddered to think of being called King of Jerusalem
Raymond IV of Toulouse
–
Sketch of Raymond's seal
7.
Adhemar of Le Puy
–
Adhemar de Monteil was one of the principal figures of the First Crusade and was bishop of Puy-en-Velay from before 1087. He was the representative of Pope Urban II for the expedition to the Holy Land. Remembered for his prowess, he led knights and men into battle and fought beside them, particularly at Dorylaeum. He was also said to have gone on pilgrimage to Jerusalem around 1086, at the Council of Clermont in 1095, Adhemar showed great zeal for the crusade. Adhemar was named apostolic legate and appointed to lead the crusade by Pope Urban II on 27 November 1095, in part, Adhemar was selected to lead because he had already undertaken a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1086 and 1087. Departing on 15 August 1096, he accompanied Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse, whilst Raymond and the other leaders often quarrelled with each other over the leadership of the crusade, Adhemar was always recognized as the spiritual leader of the crusade. Adhemar was protected by a band of Crusaders led by Henry of Esch to preserve the relic, when Kerbogha was defeated, Adhemar organized a council in an attempt to settle the leadership disputes, but he died on 1 August 1098, probably of typhus. The disputes among the nobles went unsolved and the march to Jerusalem was delayed for months. However, the soldiers continued to think of Adhemar as a leader. Some of them claimed to have been visited by his ghost during the siege of Jerusalem and this was done and Jerusalem was taken by the Crusaders in 1099. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh
Adhemar of Le Puy
–
A mitred Adhémar de Monteil carrying the
Holy Lance in one of the battles of the
First Crusade
8.
Godfrey of Bouillon
–
Godfrey of Bouillon was a Frankish knight, and one of the leaders of the First Crusade from 1096 until its conclusion in 1099. He was the Lord of Bouillon, from which he took his byname, from 1076, after the successful siege of Jerusalem in 1099, Godfrey became the first ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. He refused the title of King, however, as he believed that the true King of Jerusalem was Christ and he is also known as the Baron of the Holy Sepulchre and the Crusader King. Godfrey of Bouillon was born around 1060 as the son of Eustace II, Count of Boulogne. His birthplace was probably Boulogne-sur-Mer, although one 13th-century chronicler cites Baisy, as second son, he had fewer opportunities than his older brother and seemed destined to become just one more minor knight in service to a rich landed nobleman. However his maternal uncle, Godfrey the Hunchback, died childless and named his nephew, Godfrey of Bouillon, as his heir and this duchy was an important one at the time, serving as a buffer between the kingdom of France and the German lands. Godfrey served Henry IV loyally, supporting him even when Pope Gregory VII was battling the German king in the Investiture Controversy. Godfrey fought alongside Henry and his forces against the forces of Rudolf of Swabia. A major test of Godfrey’s leadership skills was shown in his battles to defend his inheritance against a significant array of enemies, claims were raised by his uncles estranged wife, Mathilda of Tuscany, Albert III, Count of Namur, and Theoderic Flamens, Count of Veluwe. This coalition was joined by Theoderic, Bishop of Verdun, and two minor counts attempting to share in the spoils, Waleran, Count of Arlon and Limburg, and Arnold I, Count of Chiny. As these enemies outside the family tried to take portions of his land, Godfreys brothers, Eustace and Baldwin. Following these long struggles and proving that he was a subject to Henry IV. Still, Godfreys influence in the German kingdom would have been if it had not been for his major role in the First Crusade. In 1095 Urban II, the new Pope, called for a Crusade to liberate Jerusalem from Muslim forces, Godfrey took out loans on most of his lands, or sold them, to the bishop of Liège and the bishop of Verdun. With this money he gathered thousands of knights to fight in the Holy Land as the Crusader Army of Godfrey of Bouillon, in this he was joined by his older brother, Eustace, and his younger brother, Baldwin, who had no lands in Europe. He was not the only major nobleman to gather such an army, Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse, also known as Raymond of Saint-Gilles, created the largest army. At age 55, Raymond was also the oldest and perhaps the best known of the Crusader nobles, because of his age and fame, Raymond expected to be the leader of the entire First Crusade. Adhemar, the legate and bishop of Le Puy, travelled with him
Godfrey of Bouillon
–
Illustration of Godfrey of Bouillon (central figure) from
William of Tyre 's Histoire d'Outremer, in the care of the British Museum
Godfrey of Bouillon
–
Godfrey of Bouillon, from a fresco painted by
Giacomo Jaquerio in
Saluzzo, northern Italy, in 1420 ca.
Godfrey of Bouillon
–
The alleged "sword of Godfrey of Bouillon" displayed at the Church of the
Holy Sepulchre in
Jerusalem since 1808 (1854 photograph).
Godfrey of Bouillon
–
Godfrey depicted with
Bohemond,
Raymond IV of Toulouse, and other Crusaders
9.
Robert II of Normandy
–
Robert Curthose, sometimes called Robert II or Robert III, was the Duke of Normandy from 1087 until 1106 and an unsuccessful claimant to the throne of the Kingdom of England. Robert was the eldest son of William the Conqueror, the first Norman king of England, and Matilda of Flanders, and a participant in the First Crusade. His reign as duke is noted for the discord with his brothers in England, eventually leading to his death in captivity, Roberts birth-date is usually given as 1054, but may have been 1051. As a child he was betrothed to Margaret, the heiress of Maine, but she died before they could be wed, in his youth he was reported to be courageous and skillful in military exercises. He was, however, also prone to laziness and weakness of character that discontented nobles and he was unsatisfied with the share of power allotted to him and quarreled with his father and brothers fiercely. In 1063, his father made him the Count of Maine in view of his engagement to Margaret, the county was presumably run by his father until 1069 when the county revolted and reverted to Hugh V of Maine. In 1077, Robert instigated his first insurrection against his father as the result of a prank played by his younger brothers William Rufus and Henry, who had dumped a full chamber-pot over his head. Robert was enraged and, urged on by his companions, started a brawl with his brothers that was interrupted by the intercession of their father. Feeling that his dignity was wounded, Robert was further angered when King William failed to punish his brothers, the next day Robert and his followers attempted to seize the castle of Rouen. The siege failed, but, when King William ordered their arrest, Robert and they were forced to flee again when King William attacked their base at Rémalard. Relations were not helped when King William discovered that his wife, at a battle in January 1079, Robert unhorsed King William in combat and succeeded in wounding him, stopping his attack only when he recognized his fathers voice. Humiliated, King William cursed his son, King William then raised the siege and returned to Rouen. At Easter 1080, father and son were reunited by the efforts of Queen Matilda, Robert seems to have left court soon after the death of his mother, Queen Matilda, and spent several years travelling throughout France, Germany and Flanders. He visited Italy seeking the hand of the great heiress Matilda of Tuscany but was unsuccessful, during this period as a wandering knight Robert sired several illegitimate children. His illegitimate son, Richard, seems to have spent much of his life at the court of his uncle William Rufus. This Richard was killed in a accident in the New Forest in 1099 as was his uncle, King William Rufus. An illegitimate daughter was married to Helias of Saint-Saens. In 1087, the elder William died of wounds suffered from an accident during a siege of Mantes
Robert II of Normandy
–
Robert Curthose
Robert II of Normandy
–
The tower in Cardiff castle where Robert Curthose was confined for 26 years
Robert II of Normandy
–
Robert's tomb
10.
Robert II of Flanders
–
Robert II was Count of Flanders from 1093 to 1111. He became known as Robert of Jerusalem or Robert the Crusader after his exploits in the First Crusade and he was the eldest son of Robert I of Flanders and Gertrude of Saxony. His father, hoping to place the branch of Flanders over the county. From 1085 to 1091 he was regent of the county while his father was away on pilgrimage to the Holy Land, after becoming count in 1093, he joined the First Crusade, launched by Pope Urban II in 1095. Robert made his wife Clementia of Burgundy regent in Flanders and he formed a small army that followed the retinue of his kinsman Godfrey of Bouillon, Duke of Lower Lorraine. After reaching Constantinople, the crusaders were obliged to swear an oath of fealty to Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus and promise to return to the Byzantine Empire any land they might capture. Robert, whose father had already served Alexius during his pilgrimage in the 1080s, had no problem swearing this oath, Robert then participated in the Siege of Nicaea, after which the army was split into two groups. Robert marched with Stephen of Blois, Bohemund of Taranto, Robert Curthose, and this army was surrounded by the Seljuk sultan Kilij Arslan I at the Battle of Dorylaeum on June 30,1097. The Turks were defeated and the crusaders continued their march, at the end of 1097 the crusaders arrived at Antioch. Antioch was eventually betrayed to Bohemund by an Armenian guard, and Robert was among the first to enter the city, on June 28,1098, the crusaders marched out to meet him in battle, Robert and Hugh of Vermandois led the first of six divisions. Kerbogha was defeated and the Muslim-held citadel finally surrendered to the crusaders, Robert, along with Bohemund, Raymond, and Godfrey, occupied the citadel, but Bohemund soon claimed the city for himself. Raymond also claimed it, but Robert supported Bohemund in this dispute, the dispute delayed the crusade even further. Raymond left Antioch to attack Maarrat al-Numan, which was captured, Raymond then tried to bribe Robert and the other leaders to follow him instead of Bohemund, Robert was offered six thousand sous, but each attempted bribe was ignored. Raymond continued south to Jerusalem in January,1099, but Robert and they rejoined Raymonds army at the Siege of Arqa. Robert formed part of the wing in the ensuing Battle of Ascalon. At the end of August, Robert returned home with Robert Curthose, on the way back they captured Latakia, which was returned to the Byzantine emperor, as promised years before. Raymond remained there but both Roberts continued home by way of Constantinople, after declining Alexius request to stay there in his service, Robert brought back with him a precious relic, the arm of Saint George, a gift from Alexius. The relic was placed in the church of Anchin Abbey in Flanders, after he returned, Robert built the monastery of St. Andrew in Betferkerke, near Bruges
Robert II of Flanders
–
Robert II, Count of Flanders.
11.
Stephen, Count of Blois
–
Stephen II Henry, Count of Blois and Count of Chartres, was the son of Theobald III, count of Blois, and Garsinde du Maine. He is numbered Stephen II after Stephen I, Count of Troyes, in 1089, upon the death of his father, he became the Count of Blois and Chartres, although Theobald had given him the administration of those holdings in 1074. He was the father of Stephen of England, Stephen was the head of the army council at the Crusaders siege of Nicaea in 1097. He returned home in 1098 during the siege of Antioch, fleeing the battlefield. He was pressured by Adela into making a pilgrimage. In 1102, Stephen was killed at the Second Battle of Ramla at the age of fifty-seven, Stephen married Adela of Normandy, a daughter of William the Conqueror around 1080 in Chartres. He fathered Adelas children, William, Count of Sully Theobald II, Count of Champagne Odo, both drowned on 25 November 1120 in the White Ship disaster. Agnes, married Hugh III of Le Puiset Eleanor married Raoul I of Vermandois and had issue, davis, R. H. C. King Stephen 1135–1154, Third Edition London, Longman 1990 ISBN 0-582-04000-0
Stephen, Count of Blois
–
Seal of Stephen II
12.
Tancred, Prince of Galilee
–
Tancred was an Italo-Norman leader of the First Crusade who later became Prince of Galilee and regent of the Principality of Antioch. Tancred had a great-grandfather with the name, Tancred of Hauteville. Tancred was a son of Emma of Hauteville and Odo the Good Marquis and his maternal grandparents were Robert Guiscard and Guiscards first wife Alberada of Buonalbergo. Emma was also a sister of Bohemond of Taranto, in 1096, Tancred joined his maternal uncle Bohemund on the First Crusade, and the two made their way to Constantinople. There, he was pressured to swear an oath to Byzantine Emperor Alexius I Comnenus, although the other leaders did not intend to keep their oaths, Tancred refused to swear the oath altogether. He participated in the siege of Nicaea in 1097, but the city was taken by Alexius army after secret negotiations with the Seljuk Turks, because of this, Tancred was very distrustful of the Byzantines. In 1097 the Crusaders divided their forces at Heraclea and Tancred entered the Levant by passing south through the Cilician Gates, the last three settlements were annexed to the Principality of Antioch. During their fourteen-year occupation of Anazarbus the Crusaders built the magnificent donjon atop the center of the fortified outcrop, at Sarvandikar, which controlled the strategic Amanus Pass, Tancred imprisoned Raymond of Saint-Gilles in 1101/02. He assisted in the siege of Antioch in 1098, one year later, during the assault on Jerusalem, Tancred, along with Gaston IV of Béarn, claimed to have been the first Crusader to enter the city on July 15. However, the first crusader to enter Jerusalem was Ludolf of Tournai, when the city fell, Tancred gave his banner to a group of the citizens who had fled to the roof of the Temple of Solomon. This should have assured their safety, but they were massacred, along many others. The author of the Gesta Francorum records that, when Tancred realised this, when the Kingdom of Jerusalem was established, Tancred became Prince of Galilee. In 1100, Tancred became regent of Antioch when Bohemund was taken prisoner by the Danishmends at the Battle of Melitene. He expanded the territory of the Latin principality by capturing land from the Byzantines, although, over the decade, Alexius attempted, unsuccessfully. In 1104, he took control of the County of Edessa when Baldwin II was taken captive after the Battle of Harran. After Baldwins release in late 1108, he had to fight Tancred to regain control of the county, after Harran, Bohemond returned to Europe to recruit more Crusaders, again leaving his nephew as regent in Antioch. Tancreds victory over Radwan of Aleppo at the Battle of Artah in 1105 allowed the Latin principality to recover some its territories east of the Orontes River. In 1108, Tancred refused to honour the Treaty of Devol, in which Bohemund swore an oath of fealty to Alexius, in 1110, he brought Krak des Chevaliers under his control, which would later become an important castle in the County of Tripoli
Tancred, Prince of Galilee
–
Tancred of Galilee
Tancred, Prince of Galilee
–
Nicolas Poussin 's Tancred and Erminia (
Hermitage Museum).
13.
Hugh, Count of Vermandois
–
Hugh, called the Great, was a younger son of Henry I of France and Anne of Kiev and younger brother of Philip I. He was Count of Vermandois in right of his wife and his nickname Magnus is probably a bad translation into Latin of a French nickname, le Maisné, meaning the younger, referring to Hugh as younger brother of the King of France. In 1085 Hugh helped William the Conqueror repel a Danish invasion of England, early 1096 Hugh and Philip began discussing the First Crusade after news of the Council of Clermont reached them in Paris. Although Philip could not participate, as he had been excommunicated and his armada was possibly commanded by Arnout II, Count of Aarschot. It is fitting that I should be met on my arrival and received with the pomp and he brings with him from Rome the golden standard of St Peter. Understand, moreover, that he is commander of the Frankish army. See to it then that he is accorded a reception worthy of his rank, whilst sailing the Adriatic Sea from Bari towards Illyricum, Hughs fleet was overtaken by a heavy storm and most ships were lost. His own ship was thrown upon the shore near Epirus, when Hugh was found and brought to Dyrrhachium John Komnenos treated him to a banquet and he was allowed to rest. By order of the emperor Hugh was closely escorted by Manuel Boutoumites, eventually Hugh was given an audience by the emperor, who persuaded him to become his liegeman. The German historian Hans Eberhard Mayer argued that Alexius was fortunate that the first contingent of the army to arrive in Constantinople, led by Hugh, was very small. Moreover any conquests made to the east would be held as fiefs, anna Comnena recorded a conversation between Hugh and Godfrey of Bouillon, wherein Hugh tried to persuade Godfrey to pledge allegiance to Alexius. Godfrey however refused, saying, you left your own country as a ruler with all that wealth, and then, as if you had won some great success, have you come here to tell me to do the same. After the Crusaders had successfully made their way across Seljuk territory and, in 1098, captured Antioch, the emperor was uninterested, however, and Hugh, instead of returning to Antioch to help plan the siege of Jerusalem, went back to France. There he was scorned for not having fulfilled his vow as a Crusader to complete a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and he joined the minor Crusade of 1101, but was wounded in battle with the Turks in September, and died of his wounds in October in Tarsus. He married Adelaide of Vermandois, the daughter of Herbert IV, Count of Vermandois, riley-Smith, Jonathan, The First Crusaders, 1095-1131, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge,1997 Bury, J. B. The Cambridge Medieval History, Volume V, Contest of Empire and Papacy, Cambridge at the University Press, Cambridge,1926
Hugh, Count of Vermandois
–
Hugh I of Vermandois
Hugh, Count of Vermandois
–
Hugh was one of the knightly leaders of the First Crusade
14.
Baldwin I of Jerusalem
–
Baldwin I of Jerusalem, formerly Baldwin I of Edessa, born Baldwin of Boulogne,1058. –2 April 1118, was one of the leaders of the First Crusade and he was the brother of Godfrey of Bouillon, who was the first ruler of the crusader state of Jerusalem, although Godfrey refused the title of king which Baldwin accepted. Baldwin was a son of Eustace II, Count of Boulogne and Ida of Lorraine, and he became a cleric, it is said, and, because of his illustrious lineage, held benefices commonly called prebends in the churches of Reims, Cambrai, and Liège. Afterwards he lived in Normandy, where he married Godehilde de Toeni and he returned to Lower Lorraine in order to take control of the county of Verdun. In 1096 he joined the First Crusade with his brothers Godfrey and Eustace III of Boulogne and his wife Godehilde also accompanied him. When Godfrey passed through Hungary, King Coloman demanded a hostage to ensure their good conduct, after entering Byzantine territory, there were a few skirmishes with the Greeks, who had also suffered from the Peoples Crusade. Baldwin commanded a detachment of troops captured a bridge in the vicinity of Constantinople. The hostage, his son the future emperor John II Comnenus, was entrusted to the care of Baldwin, according to Anna Comnena, Baldwin reprimanded one of his soldiers who dared to sit on Alexius throne in Constantinople. Baldwin accompanied his brothers as far as Heraclea in Asia Minor, Tancred was surely seeking to capture some land and establish himself as a petty ruler in the east, and Baldwin may have had the same goal. During his absence his wife fell ill and died at Marash, some historians have suggested that his entire strategy changed from that point, others believe that the change happened earlier. In September 1097 he took Tarsus from Tancred, and installed his own garrison in the city, Tancred and Baldwins armies skirmished briefly at Mamistra, but the two never came to open warfare and Tancred marched on towards Antioch. After rejoining the army at Marash, Baldwin received an invitation from an Armenian named Bagrat, and moved eastwards towards the Euphrates. Another invitation came from Thoros of Edessa, where Baldwin was adopted as Thoros son, when Thoros was assassinated in March 1098, Baldwin became the first count of Edessa, although it is unknown if he played any role in the assassination. He ruled the county until 1100, marrying Arda, the daughter of Thoros of Marash, during these two years he captured Samosata and Suruç from the Muslims, and defeated a conspiracy by some of his Armenian subjects in 1098. During the Siege of Antioch he sent money and food to his fellow crusaders, kerbogha, the governor of Mosul, was marching to relieve Antioch but first stopped at Edessa, which he besieged for three weeks, to no avail. Kerbogha was later defeated at Antioch and the established a principality there. Later that year Baldwin had consolidated his power enough that he was able to march out with his brother Godfrey, at the end of 1099 he visited Jerusalem along with Bohemund I of Antioch, but he returned to Edessa in January,1100. After returning to Edessa, Baldwin aided in relieving the siege of Melitene, the Armenian ruler of the city, Gabriel, then recognized Baldwin as overlord of the city
Baldwin I of Jerusalem
–
Baldwin I
Baldwin I of Jerusalem
–
Baldwin of Boulogne entering
Edessa in February 1098. He is shown being welcomed by the Armenian clergy, who welcomed the end of tutelage to Constantinople.
Baldwin I of Jerusalem
–
Baldwin of Boulogne receiving the hommage of the Armenians in Edessa.
15.
Manuel Boutoumites
–
Manuel Boutoumites or Butumites was a leading Byzantine general and diplomat during the reign of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos, and one of the emperors most trusted aides. He was instrumental in the Byzantine recovery of Nicaea from the Seljuk Turks, in the reconquest of Cilicia, Abul Qasim was preparing to launch a fleet into the Sea of Marmara to challenge the Byzantine navy. Alexios, determined to prevent this, sent against him Boutoumites with the fleet, the two generals successfully destroyed the Seljuk fleet and forced Abul Qasim to withdraw to Nicaea, whence he concluded a truce with Byzantium. Soon after, Doukas and Boutoumites were sent against the rebellions of Karykes at Crete, after subduing Karykess revolt, they headed to Cyprus, where Kyrenia fell quickly. Rhapsomates came out to them and occupied the heights above the city, but Boutoumites enticed many of his men to desert. Boutoumites pursued and caught up with him at the church of the Holy Cross, promising to spare his life, he captured him and brought him back to Doukas. According to tradition, while in Cyprus, he founded the Kykkos Monastery there, Boutoumites was highly regarded and trusted by Alexios, Anna Komnene calls him Alexios sole confidant. The first great obstacle on the Crusaders path was Nicaea, the Seljuk capital, Boutoumites had been instructed by Alexios to secure the surrender of the city to imperial forces, and not to the Crusaders. The Turks had entered negotiations, allowing Boutoumites to enter the city, two days later, at the news of the approach of a relief force under Sultan Kilij Arslan I, they forced him to leave. Boutoumites, however, kept the deal a secret, and arranged with Tatikios for an assault by the Crusaders and Tatikioss men. Although by and large the Crusaders accepted the outcome, the event soured relations, in the aftermath of the citys fall, Boutoumites was named by Alexios as doux of Nicaea. He also persuaded some of the Crusaders to enroll in the Byzantine army and they were then employed in garrisoning Nicaea and repairing its walls. In 1099, he was sent by the Byzantine commanders at Cyprus as an envoy to Bohemond I of Antioch, but he was detained by him for a fortnight before being released. A few years later, Boutoumites was placed at the head of an army sent to secure Cilicia against Bohemund. After taking Attaleia, the Byzantines took Maraş and its surrounding region, Boutoumites left behind a large force under Monastras to garrison the province, and returned to Constantinople. From Cyprus, Boutoumites first sailed to Tripoli, next the Byzantine envoys set out to meet with the King of Jerusalem, Baldwin I, who was besieging Tyre. Baldwin, however, advised of the untruth of Boutoumitess claims and he feigned willingness to attack Tancred provided that he received the promised subsidies beforehand. Boutoumites, however, perceived the kings intentions, and refused to do so, thus the mission ended in failure, and Boutoumites left Jerusalem, returning to Constantinople via Tripoli
Manuel Boutoumites
–
Miniature of the Emperor Alexios I Komnenos (r. 1081–1118).
Manuel Boutoumites
–
The siege of Nicaea, from a Western European illuminated manuscript.
Manuel Boutoumites
–
The Byzantine Empire and the Eastern Mediterranean circa 1105.
16.
Kilij Arslan I
–
Kilij Arslan was the Seljuq Sultan of Rûm from 1092 until his death in 1107. He ruled the Sultanate during the time of the First Crusade and he also re-established the Sultanate of Rum after the death of Malik Shah I of Great Seljuq and defeated the Crusaders in three battles during the Crusade of 1101. After the death of his father, Suleyman, in 1086, he became a hostage of Sultan Malik Shah I of Great Seljuq, but was released when Malik Shah died in 1092. Kilij Arslan then marched at the head of the Turkish Oghuz Yiva tribe army and set up his capital at Nicaea, replacing Amin l Ghazni, Alexius Comnenuss Byzantine intrigues further complicated the situation. He married the daughter of the Emir of the Chaka to attempt to ally himself against the Byzantines, the Peoples Crusade army of Peter the Hermit and Walter the Penniless arrived at Nicaea in 1096. A German contingent of the crusade overran the castle Xerigordon and held it until Kilij sent a force to them out. Those that renounced Christianity were spared and sent into captivity to the east, the remainder of Peters crusade was surprised near the village of Dracon by Kilij Arslans army. They were easily defeated and around 30,000 men, women and children were killed and he then invaded the Danishmend Emirate of Malik Ghazi in eastern Anatolia. Because of this easy first victory he did not consider the main army, led by various nobles of western Europe. He resumed his war with the Danishmends, and was away from Nicaea when these new Crusaders besieged Nicaea in May 1097 and he hurried back to his capital to find it surrounded by the Crusaders, and was defeated in battle with them on May 21. The city then surrendered to the Byzantines and his wife and children were captured, when the crusaders sent the Sultana to Constantinople, to their dismay she was later returned without ransom in 1097 because of the relationship between Kilij Arslan and Alexius Comnenus. As result of the invasion, Rüm and the Danismends allied in their attempt to turn back the crusaders. The Crusaders continued to split their forces as they marched across Anatolia, the combined Danishmend and Rüm forces planned to ambush the Crusaders near Dorylaeum on June 29. However, Kilij Arslans horse archers could not penetrate the line of defense set up by the Crusader knights, Kilij Arslan retreated and inflicted losses on the Crusader Army with guerilla warfare and hit-and-run tactics. He also destroyed crops and water supplies along their route in order to damage logistical supplying of the Crusader Army, see also, Siege of Nicaea, Battle of Dorylaeum Ghazni ibn Danishmend captured Bohemond resulting in a new force of Lombards attempting to rescue him. In their march they took Ankara from Arslan upon the Danishmends, in alliance with Radwan the Atabeg of Aleppo he ambushed this force at the Battle of Mersivan. In 1101 he defeated another Crusader army at Heraclea Cybistra, which had come to assist the fledging Crusader States in Syria and this was an important victory for the Turks, as it proved that an army of Crusader knights were not invincible. After this victory he moved his capital to Konya and defeated a force led by William II of Nevers who attempted to march upon it as well as the subsequent force a week later
Kilij Arslan I
–
Crusade of 1101.
17.
Surrender (military)
–
Surrender, in military terms, is the relinquishment of control over territory, combatants, fortifications, ships or armament to another power. A surrender may be accomplished peacefully, without fighting, or it may be the result of defeat in battle, a sovereign state may surrender following defeat in a war, usually by signing a peace treaty or capitulation agreement. A battlefield surrender, either by individuals or when ordered by officers, normally, a surrender will involve the handing over of weapons, the commanding officer of a surrendering force symbolically offers his sword to the victorious commander. Flags and ensigns are hauled down or furled, and ships colors are struck or the raising of a flag to the masts signals a surrender. When the parties agree to terms, the surrender may be conditional, that is, the leaders of the surrendering group negotiate privileges or compensation for the time, expense and loss of life saved by the victor through the stopping of resistance. Alternatively, in a surrender at discretion, the victor makes no promises of treatment, an early example of a military surrender is the defeat of Carthage by the Roman Empire at the end of the Second Punic War. Over time, generally accepted laws and customs of war have developed for such a situation, most of which are laid out in the Hague Convention of 1907. Normally, a belligerent will agree to surrender only if completely incapable of continuing hostilities. Traditionally, a ceremony was accompanied by the honors of war. The Third Geneva Convention states that prisoners of war should not be mistreated or abused, US Army policy, for example, requires that surrendered persons should be secured and safeguarded while being evacuated from the battlefield. While not a military law, the Code of the US Fighting Force disallows surrender unless all reasonable means of resistance exhausted. Certain death the only alternative, the Code states, I will never surrender of my own free will, if in command, I will never surrender the members of my command while they still have the means to resist. False surrender is a type of perfidy in the context of war and it is a war crime under Protocol I of the Geneva Convention. False surrenders are usually used to draw the enemy out of cover to attack them off guard, accounts of false surrender can be found relatively frequently throughout history. One of the more infamous examples was the false surrender of British troops at Kilmichael. Capitulation, an agreement in time of war for the surrender to an armed force of a particular body of troops. Debellatio occurs when a war ends because of the destruction of a belligerent state. No quarter occurs when a victor shows no clemency or mercy, under the laws of war, it is especially forbidden
Surrender (military)
–
Muslims surrender to Spain:
Boabdil gives the Granada key to Ferdinand and Isabella
Surrender (military)
–
Crusaders surrender to
Muslims.
Balian of Ibelin surrendering the city of
Jerusalem to the
Muslim ruler
Saladin, from Les Passages faits Outremer par les Français contre les Turcs et autres Sarrasins et Maures outremarins, ca. 1490.
Surrender (military)
–
Surrender of Lord Cornwallis by
John Trumbull, depicting the British surrendering to French (left) and American (right) troops. Oil on canvas, 1820.
Surrender (military)
–
General Percival marches to surrender 80,000 British troops after the
Battle of Singapore in
World War II.
18.
Crusades
–
The First Crusade arose after a call to arms in a 1095 sermon by Pope Urban II. Urban urged military support for the Byzantine Empire and its Emperor, Alexios I, the response to Urbans preaching by people of many different classes across Western Europe established the precedent for later Crusades. Volunteers became Crusaders by taking a vow and receiving plenary indulgences from the church. Some were hoping for apotheosis at Jerusalem, or forgiveness from God for all their sins, others participated to satisfy feudal obligations, gain glory and honour, or find opportunities for economic and political gain. Many modern Historians have polarised opinions of the Crusaders behaviour under Papal sanction, to some it was incongruous with the stated aims and implied moral authority of the papacy and the Crusades, to the extent that on occasions that the Pope excommunicated Crusaders. Crusaders often pillaged as they travelled, while their leaders retained control of captured territory rather than returning it to the Byzantines. During the Peoples Crusade thousands of Jews were murdered in what is now called the Rhineland massacres, Constantinople was sacked during the Fourth Crusade rendering the reunification of Christendom impossible. These tales consequently galvanised medieval romance, philosophy and literature, but the Crusades also reinforced the connection between Western Christendom, feudalism, and militarism. Crusade is not a term, instead the terms iter for journey or peregrinatio for pilgrimage were used. Not until the word crucesignatus for one who was signed with the cross was adopted at the close of the century was specific terminology developed. The Middle English equivalents were derived from old French, croiserie in the 13th–15th centuries, croisade appeared in English c1575, and continued to be the leading form till c1760. By convention historians adopt the term for the Christian holy wars from 1095, the Crusades in the Holy Land are traditionally counted as nine distinct campaigns, numbered from the First Crusade of 1095–99 to the Ninth Crusade of 1271/2. Usage of the term Crusade may differ depending on the author, pluralists use the term Crusade of any campaign explicitly sanctioned by the reigning Pope. This reflects the view of the Roman Catholic Church that every military campaign given Papal sanction is equally valid as a Crusade, regardless of its cause, justification, generalists see Crusades as any and all holy wars connected with the Latin Church and fought in defence of their faith. Popularists limit the Crusades to only those that were characterised by popular groundswells of religious fervour – that is, only the First Crusade, Medieval Muslim historiographers such as Ali ibn al-Athir refer to the Crusades as the Frankish Wars. The term used in modern Arabic, ḥamalāt ṣalībiyya حملات صليبية, campaigns of the cross, is a loan translation of the term Crusade as used in Western historiography. The Islamic prophet Muhammad founded Islam in the Arabian Peninsula, the resulting unified polity in the seventh and eighth centuries led to a rapid expansion of Arab power. This influence stretched from the northwest Indian subcontinent, across Central Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, southern Italy, tolerance, trade, and political relationships between the Arabs and the Christian states of Europe waxed and waned
Crusades
–
Madrid Skylitzes illuminated manuscript depicting Byzantine Greeks punishing ninth-century
Cretan Saracens
Crusades
–
Map of the
Eastern Mediterranean in 1135, showing crusader-held and neighbouring territories
Crusades
–
Fifteenth-century illustrated French translation of
Boccaccio 's
De Casibus Virorum Illustrium, showing
Seljuk emperor
Alp Arslan ritually humiliating
Romanos IV in 1071 after Manzikert; Alp Arslan allowed Romanos to return to
Constantinople, where he was killed by the Byzantines.
Crusades
–
Illumination from the Livre des Passages d'Outre-mer (c. 1490) of Urban II at the Council of Clermont (from the
Bibliothèque Nationale)
19.
Levant
–
The Levant is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean. The term Levant entered English in the late 15th century from French and it derives from the Italian Levante, meaning rising, implying the rising of the sun in the east. As such, it is equivalent to the Arabic term Mashriq. Eventually the term was restricted to the Muslim countries of Syria-Palestine, in 1581, England set up the Levant Company to monopolize commerce with the Ottoman Empire. The name Levant States was used to refer to the French mandate over Syria and this is probably the reason why the term Levant has come to be used synonymously with Syria-Palestine. Some scholars misunderstood the term thinking that it derives from the name of Lebanon, today the term is typically used in conjunction with prehistoric or ancient historical references. It does not include Anatolia, the Caucasus Mountains, or any part of the Arabian Peninsula proper, the Sinai Peninsula is sometimes included. The Levant has been described as the crossroads of western Asia, the eastern Mediterranean, and northeast Africa, the populations of the Levant share not only the geographic position, but cuisine, some customs, and a very long history. They are often referred to as Levantines, the term Levant, which appeared in English in 1497, originally meant the East in general or Mediterranean lands east of Italy. It is borrowed from the French levant rising, referring to the rising of the sun in the east, the phrase is ultimately from the Latin word levare, meaning lift, raise. Similar etymologies are found in Greek Ἀνατολή, in Germanic Morgenland, in Italian, in Hungarian Kelet, in Spanish and Catalan Levante and Llevant, most notably, Orient and its Latin source oriens meaning east, is literally rising, deriving from Latin orior rise. The notion of the Levant has undergone a process of historical evolution in usage, meaning. While the term Levantine originally referred to the European residents of the eastern Mediterranean region, it came to refer to regional native. The English Levant Company was founded in 1581 to trade with the Ottoman Empire, at this time, the Far East was known as the Upper Levant. In early 19th-century travel writing, the term sometimes incorporated certain Mediterranean provinces of the Ottoman empire, in 19th-century archaeology, it referred to overlapping cultures in this region during and after prehistoric times, intending to reference the place instead of any one culture. The French mandate of Syria and Lebanon was called the Levant states, today, Levant is the term typically used by archaeologists and historians with reference to the history of the region. Scholars have adopted the term Levant to identify the region due to it being a wider, yet relevant, archaeologists seeking a neutral orientation that is neither biblical nor national have used terms such as Levantine archaeology and archaeology of the Southern Levant. Two academic journals were launched, Journal of Levantine Studies, published by the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute and The Levantine Review
Levant
–
The
Levantine Sea, the eastern portion of the
Mediterranean.
Levant
–
Countries of the Levant in the broad, historic meaning (equivalent to the
eastern Mediterranean)
Levant
–
French medal commemorating the
war in
Cilicia, which was initially part of the
French mandate.
Levant
–
Satellite view of part of the Levant including
Cyprus,
Israel,
Jordan,
Lebanon,
Palestine, and southern
Syria.
20.
Battle of Dorylaeum (1097)
–
The Battle of Dorylaeum took place during the First Crusade on July 1,1097, between the crusaders and the Seljuk Turks, near the city of Dorylaeum in Anatolia. The crusaders had left Nicaea on June 26, with a deep distrust of the Byzantines, on June 29, they learnt that the Turks were planning an ambush near Dorylaeum. Contemporary figures place this number between 25, 000-30,000, more recent estimates are between 6,000 and 8,000 men, fulcher of Chartres gives the exaggerated number of 360,000. In addition to numbers of noncombatants, Bohemonds force probably numbered about 10,000. Military figures of the time often imply perhaps several men-at-arms per knight, on the evening of June 30, after a three-day march, Bohemonds army made camp in a meadow on the north bank of the river Thymbres, near the ruined town of Dorylaeum. On July 1, Bohemonds force was surrounded outside Dorylaeum by Kilij Arslan, Godfrey and Raymond had separated from the vanguard at Leuce, and the Turkish army attacked at dawn, taking Bohemonds army entirely by surprise, shooting arrows into the camp. Bohemonds knights had quickly mounted but their sporadic counterattacks were unable to deter the Turks, while this formed a battle line and sheltered the more vulnerable men-at-arms and noncombatants, it also gave the Turks free rein to maneuver on the battlefield. The Turkish mounted archers attacked in their usual style - charging in, shooting their arrows, the archers did little damage to the heavily armoured knights, but they inflicted heavy casualties on the horses and unarmoured foot soldiers. Bohemond had sent messengers to the other Crusader army and now struggled to hold on until help arrived, just after midday, Godfrey arrived with a force of 50 knights, fighting through the Turkish lines to reinforce Bohemond. Through the day small groups of reinforcements arrived, some killed by the Turks, as the Crusader losses mounted, the Turks became more aggressive and the Crusader army found itself forced from the marshy banks of the river into the shallows. Adhemars force fell on the Turkish camp, and attacked the Turks from the rear, the crusaders did indeed become rich, at least for a short time, after capturing Kilij Arslans treasury. The Turks fled and Arslan turned to other concerns in his eastern territory and they also took the male Greek children from the region extending from Dorylaeum to Iconium, some of whom were sent as slaves to Persia. On the other hand, the crusaders were allowed to march virtually unopposed through Anatolia on their way to Antioch and it took almost three months to cross Anatolia in the heat of the summer, and in October they began the siege of Antioch. John Doukas re-established Byzantine rule in Chios, Rhodes, Smyrna, Ephesus, Sardis and this success is ascribed by Alexios daughter Anna to his policy and diplomacy, but by the Latin historians of the crusade to his treachery and falseness
Battle of Dorylaeum (1097)
–
The Battle of Dorylaeum
21.
Siege of Antioch
–
The Siege of Antioch took place during the First Crusade in 1097 and 1098. The first siege, by the crusaders against the Muslim-held city, Antioch lay in a strategic location on the crusaders route to Palestine. Supplies, reinforcements and retreat could all be controlled by the city, anticipating that it would be attacked, the Muslim governor of the city, Yaghi-Siyan, began stockpilling food and sending requests for help. The Byzantine walls surrounding the city presented an obstacle to its capture. The crusaders arrived outside the city on 21 October and began the siege, the garrison sortied unsuccessfully on 29 December. After stripping the area of food, the crusaders were forced to look farther afield for supplies, opening themselves to ambush. On the 31 December, a force of 20,000 crusaders encountered an army led by Duqaq of Damascus heading to Antioch. As the siege went on, supplies dwindled and in early 1098 one in seven of the crusaders was dying from starvation, a second relief force, this time under the command of Ridwan of Aleppo, advanced towards Antioch, arriving on 9 February. Like the army of Duqaq before, it was defeated, Antioch was captured on 3 June, although the citadel remained in the hands of the Muslim defenders. Kerbogha began the siege, against the crusaders who had occupied Antioch. The second siege ended when the crusaders exited the city to engage Kerboghas army in battle, on seeing the Muslim army routed, the defenders remaining in the citadel surrendered. There are a number of sources relating to the Siege of Antioch. There are four accounts, those of Fulcher of Chartres, Peter Tudebode, and Raymond of Aguilers. Nine letters survive relating to or from the army, five of them were written while the siege was underway and another in September. While there are many sources the number of people on crusade is unclear because they fluctuated regularly, lying on the slopes of the Orontes Valley, in 1097 Antioch covered more than 3.5 square miles and was encircled by walls studded by 400 towers. The river ran along the northern wall before entering Antioch from the northwest. Mount Silpius, crested by a citadel, was the Antiochs highest point, there were six gates through which the city could be entered, three along the northern wall, and one on each of the south, east, and west sides. The valley slopes made approaching from the south, east, or west difficult, the citys defences dated from the reign of the Emperor Justinian I in the 6th century
Siege of Antioch
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The Siege of Antioch, from a 15th-century miniature painting
Siege of Antioch
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A 13th-century depiction of
John the Oxite 's imprisonment from
William of Tyre 's Histoire d'Outremer, in the care of the
British Museum
Siege of Antioch
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A 14th-century depiction of
Robert II, Count of Flanders from a manuscript in the care of the
National Library of the Netherlands
Siege of Antioch
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A 13th-century depiction of Bohemond and Tancred from a manuscript in the care of the Bibliothèque nationale de France
22.
Siege of Jerusalem (1099)
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The Siege of Jerusalem took place from June 7 to July 15,1099, during the First Crusade. The climax of the First Crusade, the siege saw the Crusaders seize Jerusalem from the Fatimid Caliphate. After the successful siege of Antioch in June 1098, the Crusaders remained in the area for the rest of the year, the papal legate Adhemar of Le Puy had died, and Bohemond of Taranto had claimed Antioch for himself. Baldwin of Boulogne remained in Edessa, captured earlier in 1098, there was dissent among the princes over what to do next, Raymond of Toulouse, frustrated, left Antioch to capture the fortress at Maarrat al-Numan in the Siege of Maarat. By the end of the year the minor knights and infantry were threatening to march to Jerusalem without them. Eventually, on January 13,1099 Raymond began the south, down the coast of the Mediterranean, followed by Robert of Normandy and Bohemonds nephew Tancred. On their way the Crusaders besieged Arqa but failed to capture it, therefore, he expelled all of Jerusalems Christian inhabitants. Further march towards Jerusalem met no resistance, on 7 June, the crusaders reached Jerusalem, which had been recaptured from the Seljuqs by the Fatimids only the year before. Many Crusaders wept upon seeing the city they had journeyed so long to reach. As with Antioch the crusaders put the city to a siege, in which the crusaders themselves probably suffered more than the citizens of the city, due to the lack of food and water around Jerusalem. The city was well-prepared for the siege, and the Fatimid governor Iftikhar ad-Daula had expelled most of the Christians, of the estimated 5,000 knights who took part in the Princes Crusade, only about 1,500 remained, along with another 12,000 healthy foot-soldiers. Early in the siege, some low-class knights claimed to have been visited by Adhemar, the papal regate for the crusade and they claimed that this was a Battle of Jericho situation, and that he instructed them to march around the city walls barefoot. They did so for a few days, singing holy chants, after which, Peter the Hermit held religious sermons in the Valley of Jehoshaphat, in the Garden of Gethsemane, and on the Mount of Olives, sending the crusading knights lost into religious zeal. It was at time that they were ready for a siege. A direct assault on the walls on June 13 was a failure, without water or food, both men and animals were quickly dying of thirst and starvation and the crusaders knew time was not on their side. Coincidentally, soon after the first assault, two Genoese galleys sailed into the port at Jaffa, the crusaders also began to gather wood from Samaria in order to build siege engines. They were still short on food and water, and by the end of June there was news that a Fatimid army was marching north from Egypt, the prime need of the crusaders was for ladders and siege towers to scale the walls of Jerusalem. The Egyptian Fatimid garrison had cleared the area of trees
Siege of Jerusalem (1099)
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Capture of Jerusalem by the Crusaders (19th-century artist impression)
Siege of Jerusalem (1099)
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Jerusalem
Siege of Jerusalem (1099)
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Siege and Capture of Jerusalem, 1099 (13th century miniature)
23.
Battle of Ascalon
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The Battle of Ascalon took place on August 12,1099 shortly after the capture of Jerusalem, and is often considered the last action of the First Crusade. The crusader army led by Godfrey of Bouillon defeated and drove off the numerically-superior Fatimid army, Jerusalem was captured from the Fatimids on July 15,1099, after a long siege, and immediately the crusaders learned that a Fatimid army was on its way to besiege them. Godfrey of Bouillon was named Defender of the Holy Sepulchre on July 22, Fatimid ambassadors arrived to order the crusaders to leave Jerusalem, but they were ignored. When the Egyptian presence was confirmed, they marched out as well the next day, near Ramla, they met Tancred and Godfreys brother Eustace, who had left to capture Nablus earlier in the month. At the head of the army, Arnulf carried the relic of the Cross, the Fatimids were led by vizier al-Afdal Shahanshah, who commanded perhaps as many as 50,000 troops. His army consisted of Seljuk Turks, Arabs, Persians, Armenians, Kurds and he was intending to besiege the crusaders in Jerusalem, although he had brought no siege machinery with him, he did however have a fleet, also assembling in the port of Ascalon. The precise number of crusaders is unknown, but the number given by Raymond of Aguilers is 1,200 knights and 9,000 infantry, the highest estimate is 20,000 men but this is surely impossible at this stage of the crusade. On August 11 the crusaders found oxen, sheep, camels, according to captives taken by Tancred in a skirmish near Ramla, the animals were there to encourage the crusaders to disperse and pillage the land, making it easier for the Fatimids to attack. However, al-Afdal did not yet know the crusaders were in the area and was not expecting them. In any case, these animals marched with them the next morning exaggerating the appearance of their army, on the morning of the 12th, crusader scouts reported the location of the Fatimid camp and the army marched towards it. According to most accounts, the Fatimids were caught unprepared and the battle was short, the two main lines of battle fought each other with arrows until they were close enough to fight hand-to-hand with spears and other hand weapons. The Ethiopians attacked the centre of the line, and the Fatimid vanguard was able to outflank the crusaders and surround their rearguard. Despite his numerical superiority, al-Afdals army was hardly as strong or dangerous as the Seljuk armies that the crusaders had encountered previously, the battle seems to have been over before the Fatimid heavy cavalry was prepared to join it. Al-Afdal left behind his camp and its treasures, which were captured by Robert, crusader losses are unknown, but the Egyptians lost about 10–12,000 men. The crusaders spent the night in the camp, preparing for another attack. They took as much plunder as they could, including the Standard and al-Afdals personal tent and they returned to Jerusalem on August 13, and after much celebration Godfrey and Raymond both claimed Ascalon. When the garrison learned of the dispute they refused to surrender, after the battle, almost all of the remaining crusaders returned to their homes in Europe, their vows of pilgrimage having been fulfilled. There were perhaps only a few hundred left in Jerusalem by the end of the year
Battle of Ascalon
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Battle of Ascalon
24.
Crusade of 1101
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The Crusade of 1101 was a minor crusade of three separate movements, organized in 1100 and 1101 in the successful aftermath of the First Crusade. It is also called the Crusade of the Faint-Hearted due to the number of participants who joined this crusade after having turned back from the First Crusade. Calls for reinforcements from the newly established Kingdom of Jerusalem, and Pope Paschal II, successor to Pope Urban II and he especially urged those who had taken the crusade vow but had never departed, and those who had turned back while on the march. As in the first crusade, the pilgrims and soldiers did not leave as a part of one large army, in September 1100, a large group of Lombards left from Milan. These were mostly untrained peasants, led by Anselm IV, Archbishop of Milan, when they reached the territory of the Byzantine Empire, they pillaged it recklessly, and Byzantine emperor Alexios I escorted them to a camp outside Constantinople. This did not satisfy them, and they made their way inside the city where they pillaged the Blachernae palace, the Lombards were quickly ferried across the Bosporus and made their camp at Nicomedia, to wait for reinforcements. Joining them at Nicomedia was Raymond IV of Toulouse, one of the leaders of the First Crusade who was now in the service of the emperor. He was appointed leader, and a Byzantine force of Pecheneg mercenaries was sent out with them under the command of General Tzitas. This group marched out at the end of May, towards Dorylaeum, following the route taken by Raymond, after capturing Ancyra on June 23,1101, and returning it to Alexios, the crusaders turned north. They briefly besieged the heavily garrisoned city of Gangra, and then continued north to attempt to capture the Turkish-controlled city of Kastamonu, however, they came under attack from the Seljuq Turks who harassed them for weeks, and a foraging party was destroyed in July. However, the Seljuqs, under Kilij Arslan I, realizing that disunity was the cause of their inability to stop the First Crusade, had now allied with both the Danishmends and Ridwan of Aleppo, in early August the crusaders met this combined Muslim army at Mersivan. The crusaders organized into five divisions, the Burgundians, Raymond and the Byzantines, the Germans, the French, the Turks nearly destroyed the crusaders’ army near the mountains of Paphlagonia at Mersivan. The land was well-suited to the Turks—dry and inhospitable for their enemy, it was open, the battle took place over several days. On the first day, the Turks cut off the crusading armies’ advances, the next day, Duke Conrad led his Germans in a raid that failed miserably. Not only did fail to open the Turkish lines, they were unable to return to the main crusader army and had to take refuge in a nearby stronghold. This meant that they were cut off supplies, aid. The third day was quiet, with little or no serious fighting taking place, but on the fourth day. The crusaders inflicted heavy losses on the Turks, but the attack was a failure by the end of the day, Kilij Arslan was joined by Ridwan of Aleppo and other powerful Danishmend princes
Crusade of 1101
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Lombard-Tuscan man-at-arms from c. 1100, Vita Mathildis.
Crusade of 1101
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A map of western
Anatolia, showing the routes taken by Christian armies
Crusade of 1101
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Anselm IV
25.
Battle of Ramla (1105)
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The third Battle of Ramla took place on 27 August 1105 between the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Fatimids of Egypt. The town of Ramla lay on the road from Jerusalem to Ascalon, from Ascalon the Fatimid vizier, Al-Afdal Shahanshah, launched almost annual attacks into the newly founded Crusader kingdom from 1099 to 1107. Of the three battles the Crusaders fought at Ramla early in the century, the third was the most bloody. Egyptian armies of the period relied on masses of Sudanese bowmen supported by Arab, whereas the Crusaders developed a healthy respect for the harass and surround tactics of the Turkish horse archers, they tended to discount the effectiveness of the Egyptian armies. While overconfidence led to a Crusader disaster at the battle of Ramla. The Franks never, until the reign of Saladin, feared the Egyptian as they did the armies from Muslim Syria and Mesopotamia, as at Ramla in 1101, in 1105 the Crusaders had both cavalry and infantry under the leadership of Baldwin I. At the third battle, however, the Egyptians were reinforced by a Seljuk Turkish force from Damascus, including mounted archery, after they withstood the initial Frankish cavalry charge the battle raged for most of the day. He vanquished the Turks when they were becoming a threat to his rear. Despite the victory the Egyptians continued to make raids into the Kingdom of Jeruselum with some reaching the walls of Jerusalem itself before being pushed back. The next major engagement between Fatimids and Crusaders was the Battle of Yibneh in 1123, Dupuy, R. E. and T. N. Dupuy, eds. New York, Harper & Row,1977, new York, Barnes & Noble Books,1995
Battle of Ramla (1105)
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Battles of Ramla
26.
Siege of Sidon
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The Siege of Sidon was an event in the aftermath of the First Crusade. The coastal city of Sidon was captured by the forces of Baldwin I of Jerusalem and Sigurd I of Norway, with assistance from the Ordelafo Faliero, in the summer of 1110 a Norwegian fleet of 60 ships arrived in the Levant under the command of King Sigurd. Arriving in Acre he was received by Baldwin I, King of Jerusalem, together they made a journey to the river Jordan, after which Baldwin asked for help in capturing Muslim-held ports on the coast. Baldwins army besieged the city by land, while the Norwegian came by sea, a naval force was needed to prevent assistance from the Fatimid fleet at Tyre. Repelling it was only made possible with the fortunate arrival of a Venetian fleet. The city fell after 47 days, the Icelandic skald Einarr Skúlason gives the following account. By order of Baldwin and the Patriarch of Jerusalem, Ghibbelin of Arles, the Lordship of Sidon was created and given to Eustace Grenier, later a constable of the Kingdom of Jerusalem
Siege of Sidon
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King Sigurd and King Baldwin ride from Jerusalem to the river Jordan by
Gerhard Munthe.
27.
Battle of Ager Sanguinis
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Antioch and the other Crusader States were constantly at war with the Muslim states of Northern Syria and the Jazeerah, principally Aleppo and Mosul. When Ridwan of Aleppo died in 1113, there was a period of peace, in 1115, Roger defeated a Seljuk Turkish invasion force led by Bursuq bin Bursuq at the Battle of Sarmin. In 1117 Aleppo came under the rule of the Artuqid atabeg Ilghazi, in 1118 Roger captured Azaz, which left Aleppo open to attack from the Crusaders, in response, Ilghazi invaded the Principality in 1119. Roger marched out from Artah with Bernard of Valence, the Latin Patriarch of Antioch, Bernard suggested they remain there, as Artah was a well-defended fortress only a short distance away from Antioch, and Ilghazi would not be able to pass if they were stationed there. The Patriarch also advised Roger to call for help from Baldwin, now king of Jerusalem, and Pons, Roger camped in the pass of Sarmada, while Ilghazi besieged the fort of al-Atharib. A force under Robert of Vieux-Pont set out to break the siege, Ilghazi was also waiting for reinforcements from Toghtekin, the Burid emir of Damascus, but he too was tired of waiting. Using little-used paths, his army quickly surrounded Rogers camp during the night of June 27, the prince had recklessly chosen a campsite in a wooded valley with steep sides and few avenues of escape. Rogers army of 700 knights and 3,000 foot soldiers, including turcopoles and these drew up in a V-shaped line with the tip farthest from the Muslim battle array. From left to right, the divisions were commanded by Robert of St. Lo, Prince Roger, Guy de Frenelle, Geoffrey the Monk, meanwhile, Roger told off a sixth division under Renaud Mansoer to protect the Antiochene rear. As the Muslim army waited, the qadi Abu al-Fadl ibn al-Khashshab, wearing his lawyers turban but brandishing a lance, rode out in front of the troopers. That morning, June 28, the battle was begun by a duel between the Antiochene infantry, posted in front of the knights, and the Turkish bowmen. The crusader army was at first successful when the divisions of Peter. Guy de Frenelles center division had some success also, but the battle was decided on the left flank. Robert of St. Lo and the Turcopoles were driven back into Rogers division, a north wind blew dust in the faces of the Antioch knights and footmen, confusing them further. Soon, Artuqid flanking forces enveloped the crusaders, during the fighting, Roger was killed by a sword in the face at the foot of the great jewelled cross which had served as his standard. The rest of the army was killed or captured, only two knights survived, Renaud Mansoer, took refuge in the fort of Sarmada to wait for King Baldwin, but was later taken captive by Ilghazi. Among the other prisoners was likely Walter the Chancellor, who wrote an account of the battle. The massacre led to the name of the battle, ager sanguinis, the battle proved that the Muslims could defeat a Crusader army without the help of the Seljuks
Battle of Ager Sanguinis
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Battle of Ager-Sanguinis, 1337 miniature
28.
Venetian Crusade
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The Venetian Crusade of 1122–24 was an expedition to the Holy Land launched by the Republic of Venice that succeeded in capturing Tyre. It was an important victory at the start of a period when the Kingdom of Jerusalem would expand to its greatest extent under King Baldwin II, the Venetians gained valuable trading concessions in Tyre. Baldwin de Burg was a nephew of Baldwin I of Jerusalem, in 1118 his uncle died and he became King Baldwin II of Jerusalem. In the Battle of Ager Sanguinis, fought near Sarmada on 28 June 1119, the Franks suffered a defeat by the forces of Ilghazi. Later that year Baldwin regained some territory, but the Franks were seriously weakened, Baldwin asked for help from Pope Callixtus II. The pope forwarded the request to Venice, the terms of the crusade were agreed through negotiations between the envoys of Baldwin II and the doge of Venice. The church also extended its protection to the families and property of the crusaders, in 1122 the Doge of Venice, Domenico Michiel, launched the seaborne crusade. The Venetian fleet of more than 120 ships carrying over 15,000 men left the Venetian Lagoon on 8 August 1122 and this seems to have been the first crusade in which the knights brought their horses with them. They invested Corfu, then a possession of the Byzantine Empire, in 1123 Baldwin II was captured by Balak of Mardin, emir of Aleppo, and imprisoned in Kharput. Eustace Graverius became regent of Jerusalem, the Venetians abandoned the siege of Corfu when they heard this news, and reached the Palestinian coast in May 1123. The Venetian fleet arrived at Acre at the end of May and was informed about a Fatimid fleet, of around a hundred sail, sailing towards Ascalon. in order to assist the Emir Balak at his siege. Thus the Venetian fleet sailed south in order to meet it, with the intend to divert the fleet off Ascalon. The Egyptians fell into the trap assuming an easy victory they were now caught between two Venetian squadrons and outnumbered. Some 4,000 Saracens were killed including the Fatimid admiral and 9 vessels captured with the Venetians adding to their triumph the capture of 10 merchant vessels on rout back to Acre, both Fulcher of Chartres and William of Tyre recorded the event. On this the ships followed in haste and fell almost all the other enemy ships around. But the shores, they say, were so covered with the corpses that were ejected from the sea, that the air was tainted. At lengths the fight continued man against man, and most heatedly one side was trying to advance while the side tried to resist. Finally, however, the Venetians were with Gods help victorious On 15 February 1124 the Venetians, the seaport of Tyre, now in Lebanon, was part of the territory of Toghtekin, the Atabeg of Damascus
Venetian Crusade
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Outremer around 1100
Venetian Crusade
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The siege of Tyre by the Crusaders and the Venetian fleet
29.
Siege of Shaizar
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The Siege of Shaizar took place from April 28 to May 21,1138. The allied forces of the Byzantine Empire, Principality of Antioch and County of Edessa besieged Shaizar in Syria, the siege resulted in the Emir of Shaizar paying an indemnity and becoming the vassal of the Byzantine emperor. The campaign underlined the limited nature of Byzantine suzerainty over the northern Crusader states and these rights dated back to the Treaty of Devol of 1108, though Byzantium had not been in a position to enforce them. The necessary preparation for a descent on Antioch was the recovery of Byzantine control over Cilicia, control of Cilicia opened the route to the Principality of Antioch for the Byzantines. Faced with the approach of the formidable Byzantine army Raymond of Poitiers, Prince of Antioch, John demanded the unconditional surrender of Antioch and, after asking the permission of Fulk, King of Jerusalem, Raymond of Antioch agreed to surrender the city to John. Then, Raymond would rule the new conquests and Antioch would revert to imperial rule. In March, the army crossed from Cilicia to Antioch. They crossed into enemy territory and occupied Balat, on April 3 they arrived before Bizaa which held out for five days. It had been hoped that Aleppo could be surprised, however, the most powerful Muslim leader in Syria, Zengi, was besieging nearby Hama and he had enough warning of the emperors operations to quickly reinforce Aleppo. On April 20, the Christian army launched an attack on the city, the emperor then moved the army southward taking the fortresses of Athereb, Maarat al-Numan, and Kafartab by assault, with the ultimate goal of capturing the city of Shaizar. The Crusader princes were suspicious of other and of John. With the lukewarm interest his allies had in the prosecution of the siege, the emperors reproaches could only goad the two princes into perfunctory and fitful action. Latin and Muslim sources describe Johns energy and personal courage in prosecuting the siege, conspicuous in his golden helmet, John was active in encouraging his troops, supervising the siege engines and consoling the wounded. The walls of Shaizar were battered by the trebuchets of the impressive Byzantine siege train, the emirs nephew, the poet, writer and diplomat Usama ibn Munqidh, recorded the devastation wreaked by the Byzantine artillery which could smash a whole house with a single missile. The city was taken, but the citadel, protected by its cliffs, tardily, Zengi had assembled a relief army and it moved towards Shaizar. The relief army was smaller than the Christian army but John was reluctant to leave his siege engines in order to out to meet it. John, disgusted by the behaviour of his allies, reluctantly accepted the offer, on May 21, the siege was raised. Zengis troops skirmished with the retreating Christians, but did not dare actively to impede the armys march, returning to Antioch, John made a ceremonial entry into the city
Siege of Shaizar
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John II Komnenos negotiating with the Emir of Shaizar, 13th-century French manuscript
Siege of Shaizar
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John II directs the siege of Shaizar while his allies sit inactive in their camp, French manuscript 1338.
Siege of Shaizar
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Anatolia and the Levant circa 1140.
30.
Siege of Edessa
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The Siege of Edessa took place from November 28 to December 24,1144, resulting in the fall of the capital of the crusader County of Edessa to Zengi, the atabeg of Mosul and Aleppo. The County of Edessa was the first of the states to be established during. Count Baldwin II and future count Joscelin of Courtenay were taken captive after their defeat at the Battle of Harran in 1104. Joscelin was captured a second time in 1122, and although Edessa recovered somewhat after the Battle of Azaz in 1125, Joscelin was killed in battle in 1131. His successor Joscelin II was forced into an alliance with the Byzantine Empire, Joscelin had also quarreled with Raymond II of Tripoli and Raymond of Antioch, leaving Edessa with no powerful allies. In 1144, Joscelin was able to make an alliance with Kara Arslan, Joscelin marched out of Edessa with almost his entire army to support Kara Aslan against Aleppo. Zengi, already seeking to take advantage of Fulks death in 1143, hurried north to besiege Edessa, the city had been warned of his arrival and was prepared for a siege, but there was little they could do while Joscelin and the army were elsewhere. The defense of the city was led by the Latin Archbishop Hugh, the Armenian Bishop John, John and Basil ensured that none of the native Christians would desert to Zengi. When Joscelin heard of the siege he took the army to Turbessel, in Jerusalem, Queen Melisende responded to Joscelins appeal by sending an army led by Manasses of Hierges, Philip of Milly, and Elinand of Bures. Raymond of Antioch ignored the call for help, as his army was occupied against the Byzantine Empire in Cilicia. Zengi surrounded the city, realizing that there was no army defending it. He built siege engines and began to mine the walls, while his forces were joined by Kurdish, the inhabitants of Edessa resisted as much as they could, but had no experience in siege warfare, the city’s numerous towers remained unmanned. They also had no knowledge of counter-mining, and part of the wall near the Gate of the Hours collapsed on December 24, Zengis troops rushed into the city, killing all those who were unable to flee to the Citadel of Maniaces. Thousands more were suffocated or trampled to death in the panic, Zengi ordered his men to stop the massacre, although all the Latin prisoners that he had taken were executed, the native Christians were allowed to live freely. The citadel was handed over on December 26, in January 1145 Zengi captured Saruj and besieged Birejik, but the army of Jerusalem had finally arrived and joined with Joscelin. Zengi also heard of trouble in Mosul, and rushed back to take control, there, he was praised throughout Islam as defender of the faith and al-Malik al-Mansur, the victorious king. He did not pursue an attack on the territory of Edessa, or the Principality of Antioch. Zengi was assassinated by a slave in 1146 while besieging Qalat Jabar, Joscelin attempted to take back Edessa following Zengis murder, and recaptured all but the citadel in October 1146
Siege of Edessa
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Map of the Second Crusade
31.
Second Crusade
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The Second Crusade was the second major crusade launched from Europe as a Catholic holy war against Islam. The Second Crusade was started in response to the fall of the County of Edessa the previous year to the forces of Zengi, the county had been founded during the First Crusade by King Baldwin of Boulogne in 1098. While it was the first Crusader state to be founded, it was also the first to fall, the armies of the two kings marched separately across Europe. After crossing Byzantine territory into Anatolia, both armies were defeated by the Seljuk Turks. Louis and Conrad and the remnants of their armies reached Jerusalem, the crusade in the east was a failure for the crusaders and a great victory for the Muslims. It would ultimately have a key influence on the fall of Jerusalem, the only Christian success of the Second Crusade came to a combined force of 13,000 Flemish, Frisian, Norman, English, Scottish, and German crusaders in 1147. Travelling from England, by ship, to the Holy Land, after the First Crusade and the minor Crusade of 1101 there were three crusader states established in the east, the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Principality of Antioch and the County of Edessa. A fourth, the County of Tripoli, was established in 1109, Count Baldwin II and future count Joscelin of Courtenay were taken captive after their defeat at the Battle of Harran in 1104. Baldwin and Joscelin were both captured a second time in 1122, and although Edessa recovered somewhat after the Battle of Azaz in 1125, Joscelin was killed in battle in 1131. His successor Joscelin II was forced into an alliance with the Byzantine Empire, Joscelin had also quarreled with the Count of Tripoli and the Prince of Antioch, leaving Edessa with no powerful allies. Meanwhile, the Seljuq Zengi, Atabeg of Mosul, had added to his rule in 1128 Aleppo, both Zengi and King Baldwin II turned their attention towards Damascus, Baldwin was defeated outside the great city in 1129. Damascus, ruled by the Burid Dynasty, later allied with King Fulk when Zengi besieged the city in 1139 and 1140, in late 1144, Joscelin II allied with the Ortoqids and marched out of Edessa with almost his entire army to support the Ortoqid army against Aleppo. Zengi, already seeking to take advantage of Fulks death in 1143, hurried north to besiege Edessa, manasses of Hierges, Philip of Milly and others were sent from Jerusalem to assist, but arrived too late. Joscelin II continued to rule the remnants of the county from Turbessel, Zengi himself was praised throughout Islam as defender of the faith and al-Malik al-Mansur, the victorious king. He did not pursue an attack on the territory of Edessa, or the Principality of Antioch. Events in Mosul compelled him to home, and he once again set his sights on Damascus. However, he was assassinated by a slave in 1146 and was succeeded in Aleppo by his son Nur ad-Din, the news of the fall of Edessa was brought back to Europe first by pilgrims early in 1145, and then by embassies from Antioch, Jerusalem and Armenia. Bishop Hugh of Jabala reported the news to Pope Eugene III, Hugh also told the Pope of an eastern Christian king, who, it was hoped, would bring relief to the crusader states, this is the first documented mention of Prester John
Second Crusade
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Edessa, seen here on the right of this map (c. 1140), was recaptured by the Turks. This was the primary cause of the Second Crusade.
Second Crusade
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St Bernard in stained glass. From the Upper Rhine, ca. 1450.
Second Crusade
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The Siege of Lisbon by D. Afonso Henriques by Joaquim Rodrigues Braga (1840)
Second Crusade
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Map of the Second Crusade in the Levant
32.
Siege of Damascus (1148)
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The Siege of Damascus took place between 24 July and 29 July 1148, during the Second Crusade. It ended in a decisive defeat and led to the disintegration of the crusade. Both faced disastrous marches across Anatolia in the months that followed, the original focus of the crusade was Edessa, but in Jerusalem, the preferred target of King Baldwin III and the Knights Templar was Damascus. At the Council of Acre, magnates from France, Germany, the crusaders decided to attack Damascus from the west, where orchards would provide them with a constant food supply. Having arrived outside the walls of the city, they put it to siege. On 27 July, the decided to move to the plain on the eastern side of the city. Nur ad-Din Zangi arrived with Muslim reinforcements and cut off the route to their previous position. The local crusader lords refused to carry on with the siege, the entire crusader army retreated back to Jerusalem by 28 July. Conrads force included Bolesław IV the Curly and Vladislaus II of Bohemia, as well as Frederick of Swabia, the crusade had been called after the fall of the County of Edessa on 24 December 1144. The crusaders marched across Europe and arrived at Constantinople in September and October 1147, both faced disastrous marches across Anatolia in the months that followed, and most of their armies were destroyed. Louis abandoned his troops and travelled by ship to the Principality of Antioch, Raymond expected him to offer military assistance against the Seljuk Turks threatening the principality, but Louis refused and went to Jerusalem to fulfil his crusader vow. Conrad, stricken by illness, had returned to Constantinople. The original focus of the crusade was Edessa, but in Jerusalem, the target of King Baldwin III. The Council of Acre was called with the Haute Cour of Jerusalem at Acre on 24 June, Louis, Thierry of Alsace, and various other ecclesiastical and secular lords represented the French. Notably, no one from Antioch, Tripoli, or the former County of Edessa attended, both Louis and Conrad were persuaded to attack Damascus. Some of the native to Jerusalem pointed out that it would be unwise to attack Damascus, as the Burid dynasty. Conrad, Louis, and Baldwin insisted, Damascus was a city for Christianity. Like Jerusalem and Antioch, it would be a prize in the eyes of European Christians
Siege of Damascus (1148)
–
Crusaders intended for Edessa, seen here on the right of this map (c.1140), were diverted by King Baldwin III of Jerusalem to Damascus.
Siege of Damascus (1148)
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Siege of Damascus, second crusade
Siege of Damascus (1148)
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Crusader King Conrad III in a 13th-century miniature
Siege of Damascus (1148)
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Bernard of Clairvaux was also humiliated by the failure.
33.
Battle of Inab
–
The Battle of Inab, also called Battle of Ard al-Hâtim or Fons Muratus, was fought on 29 June 1149, during the Second Crusade. The Zengid army of Atabeg Nur ad-Din Zangi destroyed the army of Prince Raymond of Antioch. The Principality of Antioch was subsequently pillaged and reduced in size as its border was pushed west. After the death of Nur ad-Dins father Zengi in 1146, Raymond of Antioch invaded the province of Aleppo. After establishing his own authority in Aleppo and successfully defending Edessa in 1147, Nur ad-Din invaded Antioch in late 1148, Raymond beat him off and captured his baggage train. When he returned a few months later to attack Yaghra, Raymond, at the head of a small force, in June 1149, Nur ad-Din invaded Antioch and besieged the fortress of Inab, with aid from Unur of Damascus and a force of Turcomans. Nur ad-Din had about 6,000 troops, mostly cavalry, Raymond and his Christian neighbor, Count Joscelin II of Edessa, had been enemies since Raymond had refused to send a relief army to Edessa in 1146. Joscelin even made a treaty of alliance with Nur ad-Din against Raymond, for their part, Raymond II of Tripoli and the regent, Melisende of Jerusalem refused to aid the Prince of Antioch. Feeling confident because he had twice defeated Nur ad-Din previously, Prince Raymond struck out on his own with an army of 400 knights and 1,000 foot soldiers, Prince Raymond allied himself with Ali ibn-Wafa, leader of the Hashshashin and an enemy of Nur ad-Din. Before he had collected all his forces, Raymond and his ally mounted a relief expedition. Amazed at the weakness of Prince Raymonds army, the atabeg at first suspected that it was only an advance guard, upon the approach of the combined force, Nur ad-Din raised the siege of Inab and withdrew. Rather than staying close to the stronghold, Raymond and ibn-Wafa camped with their forces in open country, after Nur ad-Dins scouts noted that the allies camped in an exposed location and did not receive reinforcements, the atabeg swiftly surrounded the enemy camp during the night. On June 29, Nur ad-Din attacked and destroyed the army of Antioch, presented with an opportunity to escape, the Prince of Antioch refused to abandon his soldiers. Raymond was a man of stature and fought back, cutting down all who came near him. Nevertheless, both Raymond and ibn-Wafa were killed, along with Reynald of Marash, a few Franks escaped the disaster. Much of the territory of Antioch was now open to Nur ad-Din, Nur ad-Din rode out to the coast and bathed in the sea as a symbol of his conquest. The contemporary historian William of Tyre blamed the Antiochenes defeat on Raymonds rashness, one modern historian says the Crusader defeat at Inab was as disastrous at that of the Ager Sanguinis a generation earlier. Yet another remarks that it was not part of a watershed moment, after his victory, Nur ad-Din went on to capture the fortresses of Artah, Harim and ‘Imm, which defended the approach to Antioch itself
Battle of Inab
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The battle of Inab
Battle of Inab
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Recovery of Raymond's body after the battle.
34.
Siege of Bilbeis
–
The Crusader invasion of Egypt was a series of campaigns undertaken by the Kingdom of Jerusalem to strengthen its position in the Levant by taking advantage of the weakness of Fatimid Egypt. The war began as part of a crisis in the Fatimid Caliphate, which began to crumble under the pressure of Syria. While one side called for help from Nur ad-Din Zangi, the called for Crusader assistance. As the war progressed however it became a war of conquest, a number of Syrian campaigns into Egypt were stopped short of total victory by the aggressive campaigning of Amalric I of Jerusalem. Even so, the Crusaders generally speaking did not have things go their way, a combined Byzantine-Crusader siege of Damietta failed in 1169, the same year that Salah ad-Din, also known as Saladin in the West, took power in Egypt as vizier. Later crusades tried to support the Kingdom of Jerusalem by targeting the danger that was Egypt, the Second Crusade aimed to reverse the gains of Zengi, ironically with an assault on Damascus, Zengis most powerful rival. The siege failed and forced the Kingdom to turn south for better fortunes, the Fatimid Caliphate in the 12th century was riddled with internal squabbles. In the 1160s, Power lay not in the hands of the Fatimid Caliph Al-Āḍid, the situation in Egypt made it ripe for conquest, either by Crusaders or by the forces of Zengis successor, Nur ad-Din Zangi. The Crusader capture of Ascalon in 1154 meant that now the Kingdom was at war in two fronts, but Egypt now had a supply base close at hand. In 1163, Shawar, the ousted Vizier of Egypt called Zengi for support in reinstating him to his position as the de facto ruler of Egypt. Nur ad-Din agreed to support his cause - an alliance between Syria and Egypt would ensure the demise of the Crusaders, little did Nur ad-Din realize that, while his plan would succeed, it would not be he who would enjoy such unity. On May 1164 Shawar became vizier of Egypt and he was however a mere figurehead to Nur ad-Din who had installed his general Shirkuh as ruler of Egypt. Shawar became unsatisfied with this and called upon the enemy of the Sunni Muslims, Amalric I, Amalric I had his own designs on Egypt. Therefore, when Shawar invited him into Egypt, he could not turn down such an offer, at Bilbeis, Amalric together with Shawar his Shiite ally, besieged Shirkuh. Amalric immediately raced north to rescue his vassal, even so, Shirkuh evacuated Egypt too so it was a victory for Shawar who retained Egypt. Shawars rule in Egypt did not last long before Shirkuh returned in 1166 to take back Egypt, Shawar played his Crusader card again and this time Amalric believed an open battle would be able to settle the scores. Unlike Shirkuh, Amalric had naval supremacy in the Mediterranean and took a quick route to Egypt. At Cairo, the combined Fatimid-Crusader army contemplated the move while Shirkuh
Siege of Bilbeis
–
Crusader invasion of Egypt
35.
Capture of Bilbeis
–
The Crusader invasion of Egypt was a series of campaigns undertaken by the Kingdom of Jerusalem to strengthen its position in the Levant by taking advantage of the weakness of Fatimid Egypt. The war began as part of a crisis in the Fatimid Caliphate, which began to crumble under the pressure of Syria. While one side called for help from Nur ad-Din Zangi, the called for Crusader assistance. As the war progressed however it became a war of conquest, a number of Syrian campaigns into Egypt were stopped short of total victory by the aggressive campaigning of Amalric I of Jerusalem. Even so, the Crusaders generally speaking did not have things go their way, a combined Byzantine-Crusader siege of Damietta failed in 1169, the same year that Salah ad-Din, also known as Saladin in the West, took power in Egypt as vizier. Later crusades tried to support the Kingdom of Jerusalem by targeting the danger that was Egypt, the Second Crusade aimed to reverse the gains of Zengi, ironically with an assault on Damascus, Zengis most powerful rival. The siege failed and forced the Kingdom to turn south for better fortunes, the Fatimid Caliphate in the 12th century was riddled with internal squabbles. In the 1160s, Power lay not in the hands of the Fatimid Caliph Al-Āḍid, the situation in Egypt made it ripe for conquest, either by Crusaders or by the forces of Zengis successor, Nur ad-Din Zangi. The Crusader capture of Ascalon in 1154 meant that now the Kingdom was at war in two fronts, but Egypt now had a supply base close at hand. In 1163, Shawar, the ousted Vizier of Egypt called Zengi for support in reinstating him to his position as the de facto ruler of Egypt. Nur ad-Din agreed to support his cause - an alliance between Syria and Egypt would ensure the demise of the Crusaders, little did Nur ad-Din realize that, while his plan would succeed, it would not be he who would enjoy such unity. On May 1164 Shawar became vizier of Egypt and he was however a mere figurehead to Nur ad-Din who had installed his general Shirkuh as ruler of Egypt. Shawar became unsatisfied with this and called upon the enemy of the Sunni Muslims, Amalric I, Amalric I had his own designs on Egypt. Therefore, when Shawar invited him into Egypt, he could not turn down such an offer, at Bilbeis, Amalric together with Shawar his Shiite ally, besieged Shirkuh. Amalric immediately raced north to rescue his vassal, even so, Shirkuh evacuated Egypt too so it was a victory for Shawar who retained Egypt. Shawars rule in Egypt did not last long before Shirkuh returned in 1166 to take back Egypt, Shawar played his Crusader card again and this time Amalric believed an open battle would be able to settle the scores. Unlike Shirkuh, Amalric had naval supremacy in the Mediterranean and took a quick route to Egypt. At Cairo, the combined Fatimid-Crusader army contemplated the move while Shirkuh
Capture of Bilbeis
–
Crusader invasion of Egypt
36.
Siege of Damietta (1169)
–
The Crusader invasion of Egypt was a series of campaigns undertaken by the Kingdom of Jerusalem to strengthen its position in the Levant by taking advantage of the weakness of Fatimid Egypt. The war began as part of a crisis in the Fatimid Caliphate, which began to crumble under the pressure of Syria. While one side called for help from Nur ad-Din Zangi, the called for Crusader assistance. As the war progressed however it became a war of conquest, a number of Syrian campaigns into Egypt were stopped short of total victory by the aggressive campaigning of Amalric I of Jerusalem. Even so, the Crusaders generally speaking did not have things go their way, a combined Byzantine-Crusader siege of Damietta failed in 1169, the same year that Salah ad-Din, also known as Saladin in the West, took power in Egypt as vizier. Later crusades tried to support the Kingdom of Jerusalem by targeting the danger that was Egypt, the Second Crusade aimed to reverse the gains of Zengi, ironically with an assault on Damascus, Zengis most powerful rival. The siege failed and forced the Kingdom to turn south for better fortunes, the Fatimid Caliphate in the 12th century was riddled with internal squabbles. In the 1160s, Power lay not in the hands of the Fatimid Caliph Al-Āḍid, the situation in Egypt made it ripe for conquest, either by Crusaders or by the forces of Zengis successor, Nur ad-Din Zangi. The Crusader capture of Ascalon in 1154 meant that now the Kingdom was at war in two fronts, but Egypt now had a supply base close at hand. In 1163, Shawar, the ousted Vizier of Egypt called Zengi for support in reinstating him to his position as the de facto ruler of Egypt. Nur ad-Din agreed to support his cause - an alliance between Syria and Egypt would ensure the demise of the Crusaders, little did Nur ad-Din realize that, while his plan would succeed, it would not be he who would enjoy such unity. On May 1164 Shawar became vizier of Egypt and he was however a mere figurehead to Nur ad-Din who had installed his general Shirkuh as ruler of Egypt. Shawar became unsatisfied with this and called upon the enemy of the Sunni Muslims, Amalric I, Amalric I had his own designs on Egypt. Therefore, when Shawar invited him into Egypt, he could not turn down such an offer, at Bilbeis, Amalric together with Shawar his Shiite ally, besieged Shirkuh. Amalric immediately raced north to rescue his vassal, even so, Shirkuh evacuated Egypt too so it was a victory for Shawar who retained Egypt. Shawars rule in Egypt did not last long before Shirkuh returned in 1166 to take back Egypt, Shawar played his Crusader card again and this time Amalric believed an open battle would be able to settle the scores. Unlike Shirkuh, Amalric had naval supremacy in the Mediterranean and took a quick route to Egypt. At Cairo, the combined Fatimid-Crusader army contemplated the move while Shirkuh
Siege of Damietta (1169)
–
Crusader invasion of Egypt
37.
Battle of Montgisard
–
The Battle of Montgisard was fought between the Ayyubids and the Kingdom of Jerusalem on November 25,1177. The 16-year-old King Baldwin IV, seriously afflicted by leprosy, led an out-numbered Christian force against the army of Saladin, the Arab force was routed and their casualties were massive, and only a fraction managed to flee to safety. Meanwhile, Saladin planned his own invasion of the Kingdom of Jerusalem from Egypt and it is also uncertain whether the so-called knights included mounted sergeants or squires, or whether they were true knights. Just as uncertain are the numbers of their opponents, an 1181 review listed Saladins Mamluk forces at 6,976 Ghulams and 1,553 Qaraghulams. However, there would have been additional soldiers available in Syria and elsewhere, whether these would have added up to a total of 26,000 reported by William of Tyre is impossible to say. Saladin left part of his army to besiege Gaza and a force at Ascalon. Accompanying Baldwin was Raynald of Châtillon, lord of Oultrejordain, who had just been released from captivity in Aleppo in 1176, Raynald was a fierce enemy of Saladin and was King Baldwins second-in-command. Also with the army were Baldwin of Ibelin, his brother Balian, Reginald of Sidon, odo de St Amand, Master of the Knights Templar, came with 84 Templar knights. Another Templar force attempted to meet Baldwin at Ascalon, but they remained besieged at Gaza, Saladin continued his march towards Jerusalem, thinking that Baldwin would not dare to follow him with so few men. He attacked Ramla, Lydda and Arsuf, but because Baldwin was supposedly not a danger, he allowed his army to be spread out over a large area, pillaging and foraging. However, unknown to Saladin, the forces he had left to subdue the King had been insufficient, the Christians, led by the King, pursued the Muslims along the coast, finally catching their enemies at Mons Gisardi, near Ramla. The location is disputed, as Ramla was a region that included the town under the same name. Malcolm Barber equates Mons Gisardi with the mound of al-Safiya, al-Safiya means white and, indeed, the Es-Safi hill is white with the foundations of a Crusader castle recently found at the top, called Blanchegarde. Ibn Al-Athīr, one of the Arab chroniclers, mentions that Saladin intended to lay siege to a Crusader castle in the area, but Saladins baggage train had been apparently mired. There is a small north of Tell es-Safi bordering farmland that in November might have been plowed up. The Egyptian chroniclers agree that the baggage had been delayed at a river crossing, Saladin was taken totally by surprise. His army was in disarray, part had been held up by the baggage train while another part of his force had scattered into raiding parties across the countryside. The horses were tired from the long march, some men had to hurry to collect their weapons from the baggage train
Battle of Montgisard
–
The Battle of Montgisard, 1177, by
Charles Philippe Larivière
38.
Battle of Cresson
–
The Battle of Cresson was a small battle, fought on 1 May 1187 at the springs of Cresson, or Ain Gozeh, near Nazareth. It was a prelude to the defeat of the Kingdom of Jerusalem at the Battle of Hattin two months later. The political situation in Jerusalem was tense because of rivalries between two branches of the royal house. Raymond III of Tripoli, who had previously been regent for the kingdom, refused to accept Guy of Lusignan as king, following the death of the child king, Baldwin V the previous year. Meanwhile, Saladin had sent a force towards Tiberias led by Muzaffar ad-Din Gökböri. Raymond III hoped Saladin would ally with him against Guy, and allowed this force to pass through Tiberias on 30 April, a second probably larger Ayyubid force, led by Saladins son Al Afdal, was at Al Qahwani and did not participate in the battle. Gerard reached Cresson on 1 May, as the Itinerarium Peregrinorum et Gesta Regis Ricardi, a chronicle of the Third Crusade, records it, So Saladin assembled armed forces and marched violently on Palestine. He sent the emir of Edessa, Manafaradin, on ahead with 7,000 Turks to ravage the Holy Land. Now, when this Manafaradin advanced into the Tiberias region, he happened to encounter the master of the Temple, Gerard de Ridefort, in the unexpected battle which followed, he put the former to flight and killed the latter. The Muslims feigned a retreat, a tactic which should not have fooled Gerard, nevertheless, he ordered a charge, against Rogers advice. The Muslims easily repulsed a direct Christian attack, killing both the knights, and, later, the foot-soldiers. Gerard was wounded, but survived, however, almost all the others were killed, according to the Itinerarium, however, Gerard did not rashly engage the enemy, but was actually caught unaware and was the victim of an attack himself. Balian was still a day behind, and had stopped at Sebastea to celebrate a feast day. After reaching the castle of La Fève, where the Templars and Hospitallers had camped and he sent his squire Ernoul ahead to learn what had happened, and news of the disastrous battle soon arrived from the few survivors. Raymond heard about the battle as well and met the embassy at Tiberias, Raymond was finally willing to acknowledge Guy as king, but the damage to the kingdom was severe, and both Gerard and Raynald considered Raymond a traitor. However Guy, knowing that Saladins army was forming for a renewed assault on the kingdom, could not afford to let this internecine quarrel continue. Saladin gathered a larger army of 20,000 men, invaded the kingdom in June. The battle is mentioned in a number of contemporary chronicles and these accounts differ considerably, and have never been fully reconciled by historians
Battle of Cresson
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The Battle of Cresson, miniature by
Jean Colombe, ca. 1474
39.
Siege of Kerak
–
The Siege of Kerak took place in 1183, with Saladins forces attacking and being repelled from the Crusader stronghold. Kerak was the stronghold of Raynald of Châtillon, Lord of Oultrejordain,124 km south of Amman, the fortress was built in 1142 by Pagan the Butler, Lord of Montreal. While Raynald ruled, several truces existed between the Christian and Muslim states in the Holy Land, none of which he made any qualms about breaking, the last straw came in 1183 when he organized an expedition around the Red Sea. He captured the town of Aqaba, giving him a base of operations against Islams holiest city, Saladin, the leader of the Muslim forces, could not tolerate this and moved against Raynalds stronghold. The Muslims had sought to take Kerak for several years, at one point, nine catapults were bombarding the walls and inhabitants within. Inside the walls, a marriage was taking place. Humphrey IV of Toron, Raynalds stepson and heir, was to take the hand of Isabella of Jerusalem, as the wedding ceremonies continued, Saladin instructed his troops to avoid bombarding the young couples quarters, but pressure on Kerak continued. Messengers managed to escape the town and take word to the King, Baldwin immediately marched with a relief force, accompanied by his regent, Raymond III of Tripoli. Although suffering from leprosy since childhood, Baldwins determination to frustrate Saladins attempt was such that he led personally, the Christian forces arrived while Saladin was still struggling against the heavy fortifications. Knowing he risked being crushed between the army and the walls of Kerak, he lifted the siege. Saladin returned to Kerak again in 1184, with the same result, Kerak remained a Crusader stronghold and a symbol of the Wests grip in the region until falling to Muslim control in 1188. The next time the Crusaders had to contend with a major siege, the motion picture Kingdom of Heaven contains a fictional portrayal of the siege. In the film, knights under the command of Balian engaged the Ayyubids as they approached Kerak, the film also showed the siege not taking place, but King Baldwin IV and Saladin negotiating a settlement. Baldwin then punished Raynald for breaking the truce by attacking a Muslim caravan
Siege of Kerak
–
Kerak Castle
Siege of Kerak
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Demonstrations of war machines used during the Siege of Kerak in Kerak Castle Museum
40.
Battle of Hattin
–
The Battle of Hattin took place on July 4,1187, between the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and the forces of the Ayyubid sultan Salah ad-Din, known in the West as Saladin. It is also known as the Battle of the Horns of Hattin, the Muslim armies under Saladin captured or killed the vast majority of the Crusader forces, removing their capability to wage war. As a direct result of the battle, Muslims once again became the eminent military power in the Holy Land, re-conquering Jerusalem and these Christian defeats prompted the Third Crusade, which began two years after the Battle of Hattin. The battle took place near Tiberias in present-day Israel, the battlefield, near the town of Hittin, had as its chief geographic feature a double hill beside a pass through the northern mountains between Tiberias and the road from Acre to the east. The Darb al-Hawarnah road, built by the Romans, served as the main east-west passage between the Jordan fords, the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean coast, open warfare was only prevented when Humphrey of Toron swore allegiance to Guy, ending the succession dispute. The Muslim chronicler Ali ibn al-Athir claimed that Raymond was in a state of rebellion against Guy. In the background of these divisions Saladin had become vizier of Egypt in 1169, had taken Damascus in 1174 and he controlled the entire Southern and Eastern flanks of the Crusader states. Through the use of propaganda he united his subjects under Sunni Islam, however, Saladin often made strategic truces with the Franks when there was a need to deal with political problems in the Muslim World, and one such truce was made in 1185. It was rumoured amongst the Franks that Raymond III of Tripoli had made a deal with Saladin under which Saladin would make him King of Jerusalem in return for peace and this rumour was echoed by Ibn al Athir, but it is unclear whether it was true. Raymond III was certainly reluctant to engage in battle with Saladin, in 1187 Reynald of Châtillon raided a Muslim caravan when the truce with Saladin was still in place, and some accounts claim that Saladins sister was raped during the attack. Saladin swore that he would kill Reynald, and sent his son Al-Afdal ibn Salah ad-Din to raid Frankish lands surrounding Acre, Gerard de Ridefort and the Templars engaged al Afdal in The Battle of the Springs of Cresson in May, where they were heavily defeated. The Templars lost around 150 knights and 300 footsoldiers, who had made up a part of the military of Jerusalem. Phillips states that the damage to Frankish morale and the scale of the losses should not be underestimated in contributing towards the defeat at Hattin, in July Saladin laid siege to Tiberias, where Raymond IIIs wife Eschiva was trapped. In spite of this Raymond argued that Guy should not engage Saladin in battle, the Knights Hospitaller also advised Guy not to provoke Saladin. However, Gerard de Ridefort advised Guy to advance against Saladin and this was a gamble on Guys part, as he left only a few knights to defend the city of Jerusalem. In late May Saladin assembled the largest army he had ever commanded and he inspected his forces at Tell-Ashtara before crossing the River Jordan on June 30. The opposing Crusader army amassed at La Saphorie, it consisted of around 20,000 men, including 1,200 knights from Jerusalem, though the army was smaller than Saladins it was still larger than those usually mustered by the Crusaders. After reconciling, Raymond and Guy met at Acre with the bulk of the crusader army
Battle of Hattin
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The Battle of Hattin, from a 15th-century manuscript
Battle of Hattin
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Horns of Hattin, 2005, as viewed from the east
Battle of Hattin
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Modern interpretation of Saladin accepting the surrender of
Guy of Lusignan
Battle of Hattin
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Panorama of the battlefield in the 21st century
41.
Siege of Jerusalem (1187)
–
The Siege of Jerusalem was a siege on the city of Jerusalem that lasted from September 20 to October 2,1187, when Balian of Ibelin surrendered the city to Saladin. Citizens wishing to leave paid a ransom, the defeat of Jerusalem signalled the end of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Europe responded in 1189 by launching the Third Crusade led by Richard the Lionheart, Philip Augustus, the Kingdom of Jerusalem, weakened by internal disputes, was defeated at the Battle of Hattin on 4 July 1187. Most of the nobility were taken prisoner, including King Guy, thousands of Muslim slaves were freed. By mid-September, Saladin had taken Acre, Nablus, Jaffa, Toron, Sidon, Beirut, the survivors of the battle and other refugees fled to Tyre, the only city able to hold out against Saladin, due to the fortuitous arrival of Conrad of Montferrat. In Tyre, Balian of Ibelin had asked Saladin for safe passage to Jerusalem in order to retrieve his wife Maria Comnena, Queen consort of Jerusalem and their family. Heraclius, who argued that he must stay for the sake of Christianity, offered to him of the oath. As the highest ranking lord remaining in Jerusalem, according to the chronicler Ibn al-Athir, Balian found the situation in Jerusalem dire. The city was filled with refugees fleeing Saladins conquests, with more arriving daily, there were fewer than fourteen knights in the whole city, so he created sixty new knights from the ranks of the squires and burgesses. He prepared for the siege by storing food and money. The armies of Syria and Egypt assembled under Saladin, and after a brief and unsuccessful siege of Tyre, negotiations were carried out between Saladin and Balian, through the mediation of Yusuf Batit, one of the Eastern Orthodox clergy. Saladins army was facing the Tower of David and the Damascus Gate and his archers continually pelted the ramparts with arrows. Siege towers/belfries were rolled up to the walls, but were pushed back each time, for six days, skirmishes were fought with little result. Saladins forces suffered casualties after each assault, while the Crusaders lost only a few men. On September 26, Saladin moved his camp to a different part of the city, the walls were constantly pounded by the siege engines, catapults, mangonels, petraries, Greek fire, crossbows, and arrows. A portion of the wall was mined, and it collapsed on September 29, the crusaders were unable to push Saladins troops back from the breach, but at the same time the Muslims could not gain entrance to the city. Soon there were only a few dozen knights and a handful of remaining men-at-arms capable of bearing arms and defending the wall, the civilians were in great despair. At Mount Calvary, women cropped their childrens hair, after immersing them chin-deep in basins of cold water and these penances were aimed at turning away Gods wrath from the city, but …Our Lord did not deign to hear the prayers or noise that was made in the city
Siege of Jerusalem (1187)
–
Saladin and Christians of Jerusalem
Siege of Jerusalem (1187)
–
Balian of Ibelin surrendering the city of
Jerusalem to
Saladin, from Les Passages faits Outremer par les Français contre les Turcs et autres Sarrasins et Maures outremarins, c. 1490.
42.
Siege of Tyre (1187)
–
The Siege of Tyre took place from November 12,1187 to January 1,1188. An army commanded by Saladin made an assault on the city. After two months of struggle, Saladin dismissed his army and retreated to Acre. After the disastrous Battle of Hattin, much of the Holy Land had been lost to Saladin, the remnants of the crusader army flocked to Tyre, which was one of the major cities still in Christian hands. Reginald of Sidon was in charge of Tyre and was in the process of negotiating its surrender with Saladin, reginald left the city to refortify his castle at Belfort, and Conrad became the leader of the army. He immediately began to repair the defenses of the city, and he cut a trench across the mole that joined the city to the shore. The Muslim army arrived on November 12, and started the siege, the rest of the army arrived 13 days later. His bravery and skill were said to cause admiration in both the Christian and Muslim armies, and particularly in Saladin and it was said that Saladin offered him many riches if he would convert to Islam and fight in his army. Nevertheless, he refused and kept leading the Christian attacks against the Muslim army and it became clear to Saladin that only by winning at sea could he take the city. He summoned a fleet of 10 galleys commanded by a North African sailor named Abd al-Salam al-Maghribi, Muslim chroniclers claim that Al-Faris Bedrans incompetency led to the defeat. The remaining galleys were ordered to retire, given their low numbers, after this naval setback, Saladins forces made a final attempt to take the city, but they were defeated again, suffering heavy losses. After these events, Saladin summoned his emirs for a conference, the opinions were divided, but Saladin, seeing the state of his troops, decided to retire to Acre. The siege ended on January 1,1188, after the victory, Conrads prestige received a huge boost. For Saladin, it constituted a point in his career. It proved the incapacity of his army to sustain long sieges, for the crusaders, it was a very important victory because Tyre became a rallying-point for the future Christian revival during the Third Crusade. If Tyre had not held out, it is likely that the Third Crusade would have much less successful. 2 Jaroslav Folda, Crusader art in the Holy Land, from the Third Crusade to the fall of Acre 1187–1291 Stanley Lane-Poole, Saladin and the Fall of the Kingdom of Jerusalem
Siege of Tyre (1187)
–
15th century miniature depicting a charge of the Christian defenders against Saladin's army. Part of the manuscript Les Passages d’Outremer, by Sébastien Mamerot.
Siege of Tyre (1187)
–
Conrad arrives at Tyre: marginal sketch in late 12C Brevis Historia Regni Hierosolymitani, a continuation of the Annals of Genoa (Bib. Nat. Française)
43.
Third Crusade
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The Third Crusade, also known as The Kings Crusade, was an attempt by European leaders to reconquer the Holy Land from Saladin. After the failure of the Second Crusade, the Zengid dynasty controlled a unified Syria, the Egyptian and Syrian forces were ultimately unified under Saladin, who employed them to reduce the Christian states and recapture Jerusalem in 1187. Spurred by religious zeal, King Henry II of England and King Philip II of France ended their conflict with other to lead a new crusade. The death of Henry in 1189, however, meant the English contingent came under the command of his successor and his death caused tremendous grief among the German Crusaders, and most of his troops returned home. After the Crusaders had driven the Muslims from Acre, Philip in company with Fredericks successor, Leopold V, Duke of Austria, on 2 September 1192, Richard and Saladin finalized a treaty granting Muslim control over Jerusalem but allowing unarmed Christian pilgrims and merchants to visit the city. Richard departed the Holy Land on 2 October, the successes of the Third Crusade allowed the Crusaders to maintain considerable states in Cyprus and on the Syrian coast. However, the failure to recapture Jerusalem would lead to the Fourth Crusade, after the failure of the Second Crusade, Nur ad-Din Zangi had control of Damascus and a unified Syria. Eager to expand his power, Nur ad-Din set his sights on the Fatimid dynasty of Egypt, in 1163, Nur ad-Din sent his most trusted general, Shirkuh, on a military expedition to the Nile. Accompanying the general was his nephew, Saladin. With Shirkuhs troops camped outside of Cairo, Egypts sultan Shawar called on King Amalric I of Jerusalem for assistance, in response, Amalric sent an army into Egypt and attacked Shirkuhs troops at Bilbeis in 1164. Nur ad-Din sent the scalps of the Christian defenders to Egypt for Shirkuh to proudly display at Bilbeis for Amalrics soldiers to see and this action prompted both Amalric and Shirkuh to lead their armies out of Egypt. In 1167, Nur ad-Din again sent Shirkuh to conquer the Fatimids in Egypt, Shawar again opted to call upon Amalric to defend his territory. The combined Egyptian-Christian forces pursued Shirkuh until he retreated to Alexandria, Amalric then breached his alliance with Shawar by turning his forces on Egypt and besieging the city of Bilbeis. Shawar pleaded with his enemy, Nur ad-Din, to save him from Amalrics treachery. Lacking the resources to maintain a siege of Cairo against the combined forces of Nur ad-Din and Shawar. This new alliance gave Nur ad-Din rule over all of Syria. Shawar was executed for his alliances with the Christian forces, in 1169, Shirkuh died unexpectedly after only weeks of rule. Shirkuhs successor was his nephew, Salah ad-Din Yusuf, commonly known as Saladin, Nur ad-Din died in 1174, leaving the new empire to his 11-year-old son, As-Salih
Third Crusade
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The
Siege of Acre was the first major confrontation of the Third Crusade
Third Crusade
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Saladin's troops, French manuscript, 1337
Third Crusade
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"Death of Frederick of Germany" by
Gustav Dore
Third Crusade
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Philip II depicted arriving in Palestine
44.
Battle of Arsuf
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The Battle of Arsuf was a battle of the Third Crusade in which Richard I of England defeated the forces of Ayyubid leader Saladin. The battle took place just outside of Arsuf, when Saladin attacked Richards army when it was moving from Acre to Jaffa, following a series of harassing attacks by Saladins, battle was joined on the morning of 7 September 1191. Richards army successfully resisted attempts to disrupt its cohesion until the Hospitallers broke ranks and charged and he regrouped his army after its initial success, and led it to victory. The battle resulted in the area of southern Palestine, including the port of Jaffa. Saladin, whose objective was to prevent the recapture of Jerusalem. Richard organized the advance with attention to detail, a large part of the Egyptian fleet had been captured at the fall of Acre, and with no threat from this quarter he could march south along the coast with the sea always protecting his right flank. Mindful of the lessons of the disaster at Hattin, Richard knew that his armys greatest need was water, although pressed for time he proceeded at a relatively slow pace. He marched his army only in the morning before the heat of the day, making frequent rest stops, the fleet sailed down the coast in close support, a source of supplies and a refuge for the wounded. The infantry marched on the flank, covering the flanks of the horsemen. The outermost ranks of the infantry were composed of crossbowmen, on the seaward side was the baggage and also units of infantry being rested from the continuous harassment inflicted by Saladins forces. Richard wisely rotated his infantry units to keep them relatively fresh, though provoked and tormented by the skirmish tactics of Saladins archers, Richards generalship ensured that order and discipline were maintained under the most difficult of circumstances. Baha al-Din also described the difference in power between the Crusader crossbow and the bows of his own army, the Crusader armys pace was dictated by the infantry and baggage train, the Ayyubid army, being largely mounted, had the advantage of superior mobility. Efforts to burn crops and deny the countryside to the Frankish army were largely ineffective as it could be provisioned from the fleet. On 25 August the Crusader rearguard was crossing a defile when it was almost cut off, however, the Crusaders closed up so speedily that the Muslim soldiery was forced to flee. From 26 to 29 August Richards army had a respite from attack because while it hugged the coast and had round the shoulder of Mount Carmel. Saladin arrived in the vicinity of Caesarea before the Crusaders, who were on a longer road, from 30 August to 7 September Saladin was always within striking distance, and waiting for an opportunity to attack if the Crusaders exposed themselves. By early September, Saladin had realised that harassing the Frankish army with a portion of his troops was not going to stop its advance. In order to do this he needed to commit his army to a serious attack
Battle of Arsuf
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Battle of Arsuf
Battle of Arsuf
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King Richard I charging with couched lance. English floor tile c. 1250.
Battle of Arsuf
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Richard I, the Lionheart and
Saladin at the Battle of Arsuf, by
Gustave Doré.
Battle of Arsuf
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Imaginary encounter between Richard the Lionheart and Saladin, 13th-century manuscript.
45.
Battle of Iconium (1190)
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The Battle of Iconium took place on May 18,1190 during the Third Crusade, in the expedition of Frederick Barbarossa to the Holy Land. As a result, the city of the Sultanate of Rûm fell to the Imperial forces. After the disastrous Battle of Hattin and the Siege of Jerusalem, pope Gregory VIII called for a new crusade to restore the city to Christian hands and help the remaining crusader strongholds. Barbarossa responded to the call immediately and he took up the Cross at Mainz Cathedral on March 27,1188 and was the first to set out for the Holy Land in May 1189 with an army of about 100,000 men, including 20,000 knights. He was also joined by a contingent of 2,000 men from the Hungarian prince Géza, after passing through Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria and the Byzantine Empire, the forces arrived to Anatolia, held by the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm. The Turks offered to let Barbarossa and his army pass through their territory for the price of 300 pounds of gold and the lands of the Armenians. Barbarossa refused, supposedly saying Rather than making a highway with gold and silver, with the help of our Lord Jesus Christ, whose knights we are. As a result, the Turks continuously harassed the German forces, laying ambushes, the Germans, in turn, launched attacks against whatever Turkish forces they could find. On May 7, a Turkish army was destroyed by a Crusader detachment under the Duke of Swabia, more important than the battles was the logistical situation, supplies were running out, and morale was very low. Desertion was frequent among the soldiers, as was death from dehydration. Despite this, the crusaders continued their march until they reached Iconium, on May 14, the Crusaders found and defeated the main Turkish army, putting it to rout. Turkish records attribute the Crusader victory to a heavy cavalry charge which supposedly consisted of 7,000 mounted lancers. Frederick insisted on taking the city, so on May 17 the army camped in the garden and pleasure ground of the sultan, meanwhile, Qutb al-Din regrouped and rebuilt his forces after the first defeat, and retaliated on May 18. Barbarossa divided his forces into two, one commanded by his son Frederick leading the assault to the city, and the commanded by himself facing the Turkish field army. The city fell easily, Duke Frederick was able to assault and take the walls with little resistance, the pitched battle was a much harder fight, and it required the presence of the emperor to defeat the larger Turkish force. He is reported to have said to his soldiers, But why do we tarry, although the fighting was intense, the Germans managed to crush the Turks with relative ease. The Seljuks were routed yet again, leaving the city at the mercy of the crusaders, after the victory, the crusaders rested for five days in the city, and continued their march on 23 May, taking Turkish hostages to safeguard themselves. The success of the Imperial army greatly alarmed Saladin, who dismantled the walls of the Syrian ports lest they were used by the crusaders against him
Battle of Iconium (1190)
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The battle of Iconium, by Wislicensus(c.1890)
46.
Battle of Jaffa (1192)
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The Battle of Jaffa took place during the Crusades, as one of a series of campaigns between the army of Sultan Saladin and the Crusader forces led by King Richard I of England. It was the battle of the Third Crusade, after which Saladin. The battle illustrated the determined spirit of Saladin and the courage and it was the final armed encounter between the two monarchs before the ratification of the Treaty of Jaffa brought the Crusade to an end. The battle ensured that the Crusader presence in the south of Palestine was secure, on September 7,1191, after the Battle of Arsuf, the Crusader army proceeded from Arsuf to Jaffa, which the Crusaders took and fortified. Jaffa, they hoped, would be the base of operations in a drive to reconquer Jerusalem itself, as the winter of 1191–1192 approached, sporadic negotiations between Richard the Lionheart and Saladin were taken up, though without any immediate result. In November of 1191 the Crusader army advanced inland towards Jerusalem, on the 12 December Saladin was forced by pressure from his emirs to disband the greater part of his army. Learning this, Richard pushed his army forward, spending Christmas at Latrun, the army then marched to Beit Nuba, only 12 miles from Jerusalem. Muslim morale in Jerusalem was so low that the arrival of the Crusaders would probably have caused the city to fall quickly, during the winter months, Richards men occupied and refortified Ascalon, whose fortifications had earlier been razed by Saladin. The spring of 1192 saw continued negotiations and further skirmishing between the opposing forces, the Crusader army made another advance on Jerusalem, coming within sight of the city before being forced to retreat once again because of dissension amongst its leaders. During this period, Richard began to receive disturbing news of the activities of his brother John, as the spring gave way to summer, it became evident that Richard would soon have to return to his own lands to safeguard his interests. By July 5,1192, Richard began his withdrawal from the Holy Land, having realized that Jerusalem would not be defensible if it were to be captured, he began the retreat of Crusader forces from hostile territory. The defending garrison, although taken by surprise, fought well before the odds against them proved too great, Saladins soldiers successfully stormed the walls after three days of bloody clashes, only Jaffas citadel held out and the remaining Crusaders managed to send word of their plight. Richard subsequently gathered an army, including a large contingent of Italian sailors. Upon seeing Muslim banners flying from the walls, he believed the town to be a lost cause, until a defender swam out to his flagship. Still in his sailors deck shoes, Richard leaped into the sea, the King again showed his personal bravery and martial prowess, leading fifty-four knights, a few hundred infantrymen, and about 2,000 Genoese and Pisan crossbowmen into battle. The Muslim army began to panic at the offensive launched by Richards newly arrived force, they feared it was. The English king fought in person at the forefront of his attack, many of the Christian prisoners who had surrendered earlier also seized their arms and resumed combat, for their captors were in such disarray that they were unable to stop them. Saladins fleeing army spilled out of Jaffa and escaped in a disorderly manner, on the early morning of August 4, Muslim troops massed around the walled town, concealing themselves in the fields and intending to attack at dawn the next day
Battle of Jaffa (1192)
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A Victorian illustration of Richard I at the battle
Battle of Jaffa (1192)
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Richard I bidding farewell to the Holy Land. Victorian image
47.
Fifth Crusade
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The Fifth Crusade was an attempt by Western Europeans to reacquire Jerusalem and the rest of the Holy Land by first conquering the powerful Ayyubid state in Egypt. Later in 1218, a German army led by Oliver of Cologne, in order to attack Damietta in Egypt, they allied in Anatolia with the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm which attacked the Ayyubids in Syria in an attempt to free the Crusaders from fighting on two fronts. After occupying the port of Damietta, the Crusaders marched south towards Cairo in July 1221, a nighttime attack by Sultan Al-Kamil resulted in a great number of crusader losses, and eventually in the surrender of the army. Al-Kamil agreed to a peace agreement with Europe. Pope Innocent III had already planned since 1208 a crusade to recapture Jerusalem, in April 1213 he issued the papal bull Quia maior, calling all of Christendom to join a new crusade. This was followed by another bull, the Ad Liberandam in 1215. Pope Innocent wanted it to be led by the papacy, as the First Crusade should have been, to avoid the mistakes of the Fourth Crusade, which had been taken over by the Venetians. Pope Innocent planned for the crusaders to meet at Brindisi in 1216, every crusader would receive an indulgence, including those who simply helped pay the expenses of a crusader, but did not go on crusade themselves. Oliver of Cologne had preached the crusade in Germany, and Emperor Frederick II attempted to join in 1215, Frederick was the last monarch Innocent wanted to join, as he had challenged the Papacy. Innocent died in 1216 and was succeeded by Pope Honorius III, who barred Frederick from participating, Andrew had the largest royal army in the history of the crusades. The first to take up the cross in the Fifth Crusade was King Andrew II of Hungary, Andrew and his troops embarked on 23 August 1217, in Split. They were transported by the Venetian fleet, which was the largest European fleet in the era, until his return to Hungary, king Andrew remained the leader of Christian forces in the Fifth Crusade. In Jerusalem, the walls and fortifications were demolished to prevent the Christians from being able to defend the city, if they did manage to reach it, Muslims fled the city, afraid that there would be a repeat of the bloodbath of the First Crusade in 1099. King Andrews well-mounted army defeated sultan Al-Adil I at Bethsaida on the Jordan River on 10 November 1217, muslim forces retreated in their fortresses and towns. The crusaders catapults and trebuchets did not arrive in time, so they had fruitless assaults on the fortresses of the Lebanon and on Mount Tabor, afterwards, Andrew spent his time collecting alleged relics. At the beginning of 1218 Andrew, who was very sick, Andrew and his army departed to Hungary in February 1218, and Bohemund and Hugh also returned home. Later in 1218 Oliver of Cologne arrived with a new German army, with Leopold and John they discussed attacking Damietta in Egypt. To accomplish this, they allied with Keykavus I, the leader in Anatolia, in July 1218 the crusaders began their siege of Damietta, and despite resistance from the unprepared sultan Al-Adil, the tower outside the city was taken on August 25
Fifth Crusade
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Frisian crusaders confront the Tower of
Damietta, Egypt.
Fifth Crusade
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King
Andrew II of Hungary
48.
Capture of Jerusalem (1218)
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The Fifth Crusade was an attempt by Western Europeans to reacquire Jerusalem and the rest of the Holy Land by first conquering the powerful Ayyubid state in Egypt. Later in 1218, a German army led by Oliver of Cologne, in order to attack Damietta in Egypt, they allied in Anatolia with the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm which attacked the Ayyubids in Syria in an attempt to free the Crusaders from fighting on two fronts. After occupying the port of Damietta, the Crusaders marched south towards Cairo in July 1221, a nighttime attack by Sultan Al-Kamil resulted in a great number of crusader losses, and eventually in the surrender of the army. Al-Kamil agreed to a peace agreement with Europe. Pope Innocent III had already planned since 1208 a crusade to recapture Jerusalem, in April 1213 he issued the papal bull Quia maior, calling all of Christendom to join a new crusade. This was followed by another bull, the Ad Liberandam in 1215. Pope Innocent wanted it to be led by the papacy, as the First Crusade should have been, to avoid the mistakes of the Fourth Crusade, which had been taken over by the Venetians. Pope Innocent planned for the crusaders to meet at Brindisi in 1216, every crusader would receive an indulgence, including those who simply helped pay the expenses of a crusader, but did not go on crusade themselves. Oliver of Cologne had preached the crusade in Germany, and Emperor Frederick II attempted to join in 1215, Frederick was the last monarch Innocent wanted to join, as he had challenged the Papacy. Innocent died in 1216 and was succeeded by Pope Honorius III, who barred Frederick from participating, Andrew had the largest royal army in the history of the crusades. The first to take up the cross in the Fifth Crusade was King Andrew II of Hungary, Andrew and his troops embarked on 23 August 1217, in Split. They were transported by the Venetian fleet, which was the largest European fleet in the era, until his return to Hungary, king Andrew remained the leader of Christian forces in the Fifth Crusade. In Jerusalem, the walls and fortifications were demolished to prevent the Christians from being able to defend the city, if they did manage to reach it, Muslims fled the city, afraid that there would be a repeat of the bloodbath of the First Crusade in 1099. King Andrews well-mounted army defeated sultan Al-Adil I at Bethsaida on the Jordan River on 10 November 1217, muslim forces retreated in their fortresses and towns. The crusaders catapults and trebuchets did not arrive in time, so they had fruitless assaults on the fortresses of the Lebanon and on Mount Tabor, afterwards, Andrew spent his time collecting alleged relics. At the beginning of 1218 Andrew, who was very sick, Andrew and his army departed to Hungary in February 1218, and Bohemund and Hugh also returned home. Later in 1218 Oliver of Cologne arrived with a new German army, with Leopold and John they discussed attacking Damietta in Egypt. To accomplish this, they allied with Keykavus I, the leader in Anatolia, in July 1218 the crusaders began their siege of Damietta, and despite resistance from the unprepared sultan Al-Adil, the tower outside the city was taken on August 25
Capture of Jerusalem (1218)
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Frisian crusaders confront the Tower of
Damietta, Egypt.
Capture of Jerusalem (1218)
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King
Andrew II of Hungary
49.
Siege of Jerusalem (1244)
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The 1244 Siege of Jerusalem took place after the Sixth Crusade, when the Khwarezmians conquered the city on July 15,1244. The size of Frederick IIs army and his reputation within the Islamic world was sufficient to regain Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth and these were recovered by treaty from the Ayyubid Sultan Al-Kamil. However, Jerusalem did not remain for long in Christian hands, the Ayyubids invited the free-roaming Khwarazmian clans, whose empire had been destroyed by the Mongols, to reconquer the city. In the siege and subsequent fall of the city in August,1244, the Siege on Orthodox Wiki The Siege on Encyclopædia Britannica The Siege on Timeline, History of Jerusalem The Siege on The Jewish History Resource Center
Siege of Jerusalem (1244)
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Ministry of Jesus &
Apostolic Age
50.
Crusader states
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The name also refers to other territorial gains made by medieval Christendom against Muslim and pagan adversaries. The Crusader States in the Levant were the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Principality of Antioch, the County of Tripoli, the Eastern Romans, or Byzantines, partially recovered lost territory on numerous occasions but over time gradually lost all but Anatolia and parts of Thrace and the Balkans. In the West, the Roman Catholic kingdoms of northern Iberia launched a series of known as the Reconquista to reconquer the peninsula from the Arabized Berbers known as Moors. The conquered Iberian principalities are not customarily called Crusader states, except for the Kingdom of Valencia, professor Barber indicates that, in the Crusader State of the Kingdom of Jerusalem the Holy Sepulchre was added to in the 7th century and rebuilt in 1022, after a previous collapse. The situation represented an existential threat for the Eastern Orthodox Byzantine Empire. The Emperor sent a plea to the Pope in Rome to send military aid with the goal of restoring the formerly Christian territories to Christian rule, the result was a series of western European military campaigns into the eastern Mediterranean, known as the Crusades. The first four Crusader states were created in the Levant immediately after the First Crusade, The first Crusader state, the Principality of Antioch, founded in 1098, lasted until 1268. The Kingdom of Jerusalem, founded in 1099, lasted until 1291, the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia had its origins before the Crusades, but was granted the status of a kingdom by Pope Innocent III, and later became fully westernized by the Lusignan dynasty. During the Third Crusade, the Crusaders founded the Kingdom of Cyprus, Richard I of England conquered Cyprus on his way to Holy Land. The Templars promptly returned the island to Richard who resold it to the displaced King of Jerusalem Guy of Lusignan in 1192. For much of its history under the Lusignan Kings, Cyprus was a prosperous Medieval Kingdom, the Kingdoms decline began when it became embroiled in the dispute between the Italian Merchant Republics of Genoa and Venice. Indeed, the Kingdoms decline can be traced to a war with Genoa in 1373–74 which ended with the Genoese occupying the principal port City of Famagusta. Eventually with the help of Venice, the Kingdom recovered Famagusta but by then it was too late and in any event, venetian rule over Cyprus lasted for just over 80 years until 1571, when the Ottoman Empire under Sultan Selim II Sarkhosh invaded and captured the entire island. These states faced the attacks of the Byzantine Greek successor states of Nicaea and Epirus, thessalonica and the Latin Empire were reconquered by the Byzantine Greeks by 1261. Descendants of the Crusaders continued to rule in Athens and the Peloponnesus until the 15th century when the area was conquered by the Ottoman Empire. The military order of the Knights Hospitaller of Saint John established itself on Rhodes in 1310, with influx of new blood. The island of Kastellorizo was taken by the Knights of St, other neighbouring territories temporarily under the order were, the cities of Smyrna, Attaleia, the city of Salona and the islands of Ikaria and Kos, all now in Greece. The coins minted in Jerusalem during the 12th century show patriarchal crosses with various modifications, coins minted under Henry I show a cross with four dots in the four quarters, but the Jerusalem cross proper appears only on a coin minted under John II
Crusader states
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Asia Minor and the Crusader states, c. 1140
Crusader states
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The Near East in 1135, with the Crusader states marked with red crosses.
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