940*4 R93h v*2 53-40634
Runciman
History of the Crusades
A HISTORY OF
THE CRUSADES
VOLUME I
THE FIRST CRUSADE
AND THE FOUNDATION OF THE
KINGDOM OF JERUSALEM
PLATE I
TEMPLAR KNIGHTS FIGHTING THE SARACENS
A HISTORY OF
THE CRUSADES
VOLUME II
THE KINGDOM OF JERUSALEM
and the Prankish East
1100-1187
BY
STEVEN *NIMAN
CAMBRIDGE
AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS
1952
PUBLISHED BY
THE SYNDICS OF THE CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS
London Office : Bentley House, N.W.I
American Branch : New York
Agents for Canada, India, and Pakistan: MacmUlan
Printed in Great Britain at the University Press, Cambridge
(Brooke CrutMey, University Printer]
74^,4-
93>L
v. z To
RUTH BOVILL
CONTENTS
List of Plates page ix
List of Maps x
Preface xi
BOOK I
THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE
KINGDOM
Chapter I Outremer and its Neighbours 3
_ ~JI The Crusades of 1 101 18
III The Norman Princes of Antioch 32
IV Toulouse and Tripoli 56
V King Baldwin I 71
VI Equilibrium in the North 107
BOOK n
THE ZENITH
Chapter I King Baldwin II 143
II The Second Generation 187
III The Claims of the Emperor 206
IV TheFallofEdessa 225
BOOK 10
THE SECOND CRUSADE
Chapter^ The Gathering of the Kings 247
II Christian Discord 264
III Fiasco 278
vii
Contents
BOOK IV
THE TURN OF THE TIDE
Chapter I Life in Outremer page 291
II The Rise of Nur ed-Din 3^5
IE The Return of the Emperor 345
IV The Lure of Egypt 3<&
BOOK V
THE TRIUMPH OF ISLAM
Chapter I Moslem Unity 403
II The Horns of Hattin 436
Appendix I Principal Sources for the History of the 475
Latin East, 1100-1187
II The Battle of Hattin 486
III Genealogical Trees
1. The Royal House of Jerusalem, the
Counts of Edessa and the Lords of
Sidon and Caesarea
2. The Princes of Antioch and the Kings
of Sicily
3. The Counts of Tripoli and the Princes
of Galilee
4. The Lords of Toron, Oultrejourdain,
Nablus and Ramleh
5. The Ortoqid Princes
6. The House of Zengi
BIBLIOGRAPHY
I ORIGINAL SOURCES 493
II MODERN WORKS 497
Index 50I
viii
LIST OF PLATES
I Templar knights fighting the Saracens frontispiece
(From the 1 2th century frescoes of Cressac, Charente.
Photograph by the Muse*e des Monuments frangais)
II Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives facing p. 10
(From Syria, Illustrated, Vol. Ill by Bartlett, Allom, etc.,
London, 1838)
III Tripoli 60
(From Syria, Illustrated, Vol. I by Bartlett, Purser, etc.
London, 1836)
IV The Emperor John Comnenus 208
(From a mosaic in Agia Sophia, Constantinople, repro
duced in Whittcmore: The Mosaics of Haghia Sophia
at Istanbul, Oxford, 1942)
V Damascus 282
(From Syria, Illustrated, Vol. I)
VI Seals of Baldwin III, King of Jerusalem: 308
Bohemond III, Prince of Antioch : Pons,
Count of Tripoli : William of Bures,
Prince of Galilee
(From designs by Amigo, published in Schlumberger :
Sigillographie de I* Orient Latin, Paris, 1943)
VII The Emperor Manuel Comnenus and his 360
wife, Maria of Antioch
(Codex Vaticanus Graecus, 1176)
VIII Aleppo 410
(From Maundrell: A Journey from Aleppo to Jerusalem,,
Oxford, 1731)
IX
LIST OF MAPS
I Northern Syria in the twelfth century page 109
II Southern Syria in the twelfth century 145
III The Kingdom of Jerusalem in the twelfth century 1 89
IV Jerusalem under the Latin Kings 293
V Egypt in the twelfth century 363
VI Galilee 43 8
PREFACE
In this volume I have attempted to tell the story of the Prankish
states of Outremer from the accession of King Baldwin I to the
reconquest of Jerusalem by Saladin. It is a story that has been told
before by European writers, notably with German thoroughness
by Rohricht and with French elegance and ingenuity by Ren
Grousset, and, too briefly, in English by W. B. Stevenson. I have
covered the same ground and used the same principal sources as
these writers, but have ventured to give to the evidence an inter
pretation that sometimes differs from my predecessors . The nar
rative cannot always be simple. In particular, the politics of the
Moslem world in the early twelfth century defy a straightforward
analysis; but they must be understood if we are to understand the
establishment of the Crusader states and the later causes of the
recovery of Islam.
The twelfth, century experienced none of the great racial
migrations that characterized the eleventh century and were to
recur in the thirteenth, to complicate the story of the later
Crusades and the decline and fall of Outremer. For the moment
we can concentrate our main attention on Outremer itself. But we
must always keep in view the wider background of western
European politics, of the religious wars of the Spanish and Sicilian
rulers and of the preoccupation of Byzantium and of the eastern
Caliphate. The preaching of Saint Bernard, the arrival of the
English fleet at Lisbon, the palace-intrigues at Constantinople and
Baghdad are all episodes in the drama, though its climax was
reached on a bare hill in Galilee.
The main theme in this volume is warfare; and in dwelling on
the many campaigns and raids I have followed the example of the
old chroniclers, who knew their business; for war was the back
ground to life in Outremer, and the hazards of the battlefield often
xi
Preface
decided its destiny. But I have included in this volume a chapter
on the life and organization of the Prankish East. I hope to give
an account of its artistic and economic developments in my next
volume. Both of those aspects of the Crusading movement
reached fuller importance in the thirteenth century*
In the Preface to my first volume I mentioned some of the great
historians whose writings have helped me. Here I must pay
special tribute to the work of John La Monte, whose early death
has been a cruel blow to Crusading historiography. We owe to
him, above all others, our specialized knowledge of the govern
mental system in the Prankish East. I wish also to acknowledge
my debt to Professor Ckude Cahen of Strasbourg, whose great
monograph on Northern Syria and whose various articles are of
supreme importance to our subject.
I owe gratitude to the many friends who have helped me on
my journeys to the East and in particular to the Departments of
Antiquities of Jordan and of Lebanon and to the Iraq Petroleum
Company.
My thanks are again due to the Syndics of the Cambridge
University Press for their kindness and patience.
STEVEN RUNCIMAN
LONDON 1952
BOOK I
THE ESTABLISHMENT OF
THE KINGDOM
CHAPTER I
OUTREMER AND ITS
NEIGHBOURS
* Thou land devourest up men, and hast bereaved thy
nations! EZEKIEL xxxvi, 13
When the Prankish armies entered Jerusalem, the First Crusade
attained its goal. But if the Holy City were to remain in Christian
hands and if the way thither were to be made easy for pilgrims,
a stable government must be set up there, with reliable defences
^nd sure communications with Europe. The Crusaders that
planned to settle in the East were well aware of their needs. The
brief reign of Duke Godfrey saw the beginnings of a Christian
kingdom. But Godfrey, for all his estimable qualities, was a weak,
foolish man. Qjit of jealousy he quarrelled with his colleagues;
out of genuine piety he yielded far too much power into the hands
of the Church. His death and his replacement by his brother
Baldwin saved the young kingdom. For Baldwin possessed the
wisdom, the foresight and die toughness of a statesman. But the
task that lay before him was formidable; and he had few helpers
on whom he could rely. The great warriors of the First Crusade
itad all gone northward or returned to their homes. Of the leading
Actors of the movement only the most ineffectual remained in
Palestine, Peter the Hermit, of whose obscure life there we know
nothing, and who himself went back to Europe in ijoi. 1 The
princes had taken their armies with them. Baldwin himself,
to, landless younger son, had not brought to the East any vassals of
3iis own, but had borrowed men from his brothers. He was now
1 Hagenmeyer, Pierre I Hermite, pp. 330-44. Peter died at an advanced age
in 1115 (ibid. p. 34?)-
Outremer and its Neighbours
dependent upon a handful of devout warriors who had vowed
before they left Europe to remain in die Holy Land, and of
adventurers, many of them younger sons like himself, who hoped
to find estates there and to enrich themselves.
At the time of Baldwin s accession the Franks maintained a
precarious hold over the greater part of Palestine. It was most
secure along the mountainous backbone of the province, from
Bethlehem northward to the plain of Jezreel. Many of the villages
there had always been Christian; and most of the Moslems of the
district had abandoned their homes on the appearance of the
Prankish armies, even deserting their favourite city of Nablus,
which they called the Litde Damascus. This was an easy district to
defend. On the east it was protected by the valley of the Jordan.
Between Jericho and Beisan there was no ford across the river and
only one track led up from the valley into the mountains. It was
almost equally hard of access from the west. Fardier north was the
principality of Galilee, which Tancred had conquered for Christen
dom. This included the plain of Esdraelon and the hills from
Nazareth to Lake Huleh. Its borders were more vulnerable; it
was easily entered from the Mediterranean coast by Acre and from
the east along roads to the north and to the south of the Sea of
Galilee. But, from there too, much of the Moslem population had
emigrated, and only Christians remained, apart from small Jewish
colonies in the towns, especially in Safed, long the chief home of
the Talmudic tradition. But most of the Jews, after the massacre
of their co-religionists at Jerusalem and at Tiberias and their op
position to the Christians at Haifa, preferred to follow the Moslems
into exile. 1 The central, ridge and Galilee were die core of the
kingdom ; but tentacles were stretching out into the more Moslem
districts around. The principality of Galilee had recently been
given an outlet to the sea at Haifa. In the south the Negeb was
dominated by the Prankish garrison at Hebron. But the Castle of
Saint Abraham, as it was called by the Franks, was little more than
an island in a Moslem ocean.* The Franks had no control over the
1 For the Jews, see below, p. 295. * See above, vol. I, pp. 304, 316.
The Land of Palestine
tracks that led from Arabia, round the southern end of the Dead
Sea, along the course of the old Spice Road of the Byzantines; by
which the Bedouin could infiltrate into the Negeb and link up with
the Egyptian garrisons at Gaza and Ascalon on the coast. Jerusalem
itself had access to the sea down a corridor running through
Ramleh and Lydda to Jaffa; but the road was unsafe except for
military convoys. Raiding parties from the Egyptian cities,
Moslem refugees from the uplands and Bedouins from the desert
wandered over the country and lay in wait for unwary travellers.
The Norse pilgrim, Saewulf, who went up to Jerusalem in 1102,
after Baldwin had strengthened the defences of the kingdom, was
horrified by the dangers of the journey. 1 Between Jaffa and Haifa
were the Moslem cities of Arsuf and Caesarea, whose emirs had
announced themselves the vassals of Godfrey but kept all the while
in touch by sea with Egypt. North of Haifa the whole coast was
in Moslem hands for some two hundred miles, up to the outskirts
of Lattakieh, where the Countess of Toulouse was living with her
husband s household, under the protection of the Byzantine
governor. 2
Palestine was a poor country. Its prosperity in Roman times
had not outlasted the Persian invasions; and constant wars since
the coming of the Turks had interrupted its partial recovery under
the Caliphs. The land was better wooded than in modern times.
Despite the devastations of the Persians and the slow destruction
by peasants and by goats, there were still great forests in Galilee
and along die ridge of Carmel and round Samaria, and a pine-
forest by the coast, south of Caesarea. They brought moisture to
a countryside naturally short of water. Cornfields flourished in
the plain of Esdraelon. The tropical valley of the Jordan produced
bananas and other exotic fruits. But for the recent wars, the
coastal plain, with its crops and its gardens where vegetables and
the bitter orange were grown, would have been prosperous; and
many of the mountain villages were surrounded with olive-groves
1 Pilgrimage of Saewulf (m P.T.T.S. vol. iv), pp. 8-^9.
a See above, vol. I, pp. 318-19.
Outremer and its Neighbours
and fruit orchards. But in the main the country was arid and the
soil shallow and poor, especially round Jerusalem. There was no
big industry in any of its towns. Even when the kingdom was at
its zenith, its kings never were as rich as the Counts of Tripoli or
the Princes of Antioch. 1 The main source of wealth came from
tolls; for the fertile lands across the Jordan, Moab and the Jaulan,
found their natural outlet in the ports of the Palestine coast.
Merchandise travelling from Syria to Egypt passed along Pales
tinian roads; and caravans laden with spices from southern Arabia
had, down the ages, travelled through the Negeb to the Mediter
ranean Sea. But to ensure this source it was necessary to block all
other outlets. The whole frontier from the Gulf of Akaba to
Mount Hermon, and even from the Lebanon to the Euphrates,
must be controlled by the Franks.
Palestine was, moreover, an insalubrious country. Jerusalem,
with its mountain air and its Roman sanitation, was healthy enough,
except when the khamsin blew, sultry and dust-laden from the
south. But the warmer plains, whose fertility attracted the in
vaders, were the homes of disease, with their stagnant waters, their
mosquitoes and their flies. Malaria, typhoid and dysentery
flourished there. Epidemics such as cholera and the plague spread
rapidly through the crowded insanitary villages. Lepers abounded.
The western knights and soldiers, with their unsuitable clothes,
their heavy appetites and their ignorance of personal hygiene,
easily succumbed to these diseases. The rate of mortality was even
* higher among the children that they bred there, especially amongst
their sons. The cruel prank of nature that makes baby girls tougher
than their brothers was in future generations to present a constant
political problem to the Prankish kingdom. Later, as the colonists
learned to follow native customs, their chances of a long life
improved; but the death-rate remained formidable among their
infants. It was soon obvious that if the Prankish population of
Palestine was to be kept at a sufficient strength to dominate the
1 A good brief account of Palestine is given in Munro, The Kingdom of the
Crusaders, pp. 3-9.
Need for a Seaport
country, there must be continuous and ample immigration from
Europe.
King Baldwin s first task must be to secure the defence of his
kingdom. This would involve offensive action. Arsuf and
Caesarea must be taken and their territories absorbed. Ascalon,
lost to the Christians in 1099 owing to Godfrey s jealousy of
Count Raymond, 1 must be annexed and the Egyptian frontier
pushed to the south if the access from Jerusalem to the coast were
to be made safe. Advance posts must be established in Transjordan
and to the south of the Dead Sea. He must try to link up his king
dom with the Christian states to the north, to open the road for
pilgrims and more immigrants ; he must advance as far as possible
himself along the coast and must encourage the formation of other
Christian states in Syria. He must also secure for his kingdom
a better seaport than either Jaffa or Haifa. For Jaffa was an open
roadstead, too shallow for larger ships to come close inshore.
Landings were made in small ferry-boats, and were full of danger
if any wind were blowing. If the wind were strong, the ships
themselves were in danger. The day after Saewulf landed there in
1102, he witnessed the wrecking of more than twenty ships of the
flotilla with which he had voyaged, and the drowning of over
a thousand pilgrims. 2 The roadstead at Haifa was deeper and was
protected from the south and west winds by the rampart of Mount
Carmel, but was dangerously exposed to the north wind. The only
port on the Palestinian coast that was safe in all weathers was Acre.
For commercial as well as strategical reasons the conquest of Acre
must be achieved.
For his internal government Baldwin s chief need was for men
and money. He could not hope to build up his kingdom if he
were not rich and powerful enough to control his vassals. Man
power could only be obtained by welcoming immigration and by
inducing the native Christians to co-operate with him. Money
could be obtained by encouraging commerce with the neigh
bouring countries and by taking full advantage of the pious
1 See above, vol i, p. 297. a Pilgrimage of Saewulf, pp. 6-8,
Outremer and its Neighbours
desires of the faithful in Europe to subsidize and endow establish
ments in the Holy Land. But such endowments would be made in
favour of the Church. To ensure that they would be used to the
advantage of the whole kingdom he must be master of the Church.
The Franks* greatest asset was the disunity of the Moslem world,
It was owing to the jealousies of the Moslem leaders and their
refusal to work together that the First Crusade had achieved its
object. The Shia Moslems, headed by the Fatimid Caliph of Egypt,
loathed the Sunni Turks and the Caliph of Baghdad quite as much
as they loathed the Christians. Amongst the Turks there was
perpetual rivalry between the Seldjuks and the Danishmends,
between the Ortoqids and the house of Tutush, and between the
two sons of Tutush themselves. Individual atabegs, such as
Kerbogha, added to the confusion of their personal ambitions,
while minor Arab dynasties, such as the Banu Ammar of Tripoli
and the Munqidhites of Shaizar profited by the disorder to
maintain a precarious independence. The success of the Crusade
only added to this ineffectual chaos. Despondency and mutual
recrimination made it still harder for the Moslem princes to
co-operate. 1 {
The Christians had taken advantage of the discomfiture o|
Islam. In the north Byzantium, directed by the supple genius o
the Emperor Alexius, had utilized the Crusade to recover control
of western Asia Minor; and the Byzantine fleet had recently
brought die whole coast-line of the peninsula back into the!
Emperor s power. Even the Syrian port of Lattakieh was, owing;
to the help of Raymond of Toulouse, once more an imperial
possession. 2 The Armenian principalities of the Taurus and Anti-
Taurus mountains, which had been threatened with extinction by
the Turks, could now feel hopeful of survival. And the Crusade
had given birth to two Frankish principalities, which drove *
wedge into the Moslem world.
_ I An excellent brief account of the Moslem world at this time is given in die
introduction to Gibb s The Damascus Chronicle (Ibn al-Oalanisi).
See above, p. vol. I, pp. 318-19.
The Principality of Antioch
Of these the wealthier and more secure was the principality of
Antioch, founded by the Norman Bohemond, in spite of the
opposition of his leading Crusader colleague, Raymond of
Toulouse, and of his own sworn obligations to the Emperor
Alexius. It did not cover a large area; it consisted of the lower
Orontes valley, the plain of Antioch and the Amanus range, with
the two seaports of Alexandretta and Saint Symeon. But Antioch
itself, despite its recent vicissitudes, was a very rich city. Its
factories produced silk cloths and carpets, glass and pottery and
soap. Caravans from Aleppo and Mesopotamia ignored the wars
between Moslem and Christian to pass through its gates on their
way to the sea. The population of the principality was almost
entirely Christian, Greeks and Orthodox Syrians, Syrian Jacobites
and a few Nestorians, and Armenians, all of them so jealous of each
other that it was easy for the Normans to control them. 1 The chief
external danger came less from the Moslems than from Byzantium.
The Emperor considered that he had been cheated over the pos
session of Antioch; and now, with the Cilician ports and Lat-
takieh under his control and his navy based on Cyprus, he awaited
an opportunity to reassert his rights. The Orthodox within the
principality were eager to see Byzantine rule restored; but the
Normans could play off against them the Armenians and the
Jacobites. Antioch had suffered a severe blow in the summer of
1 1 oo, when Bohemond led his expedition to the upper Euphrates,
and his army was destroyed by the Danishmend emir and he him
self taken into captivity. But apart from the loss of man-power,
the disaster had not done lasting harm to the principality. The
prompt action of King Baldwin, who was then still Count of
Edessa, had prevented the Turks from following up their victory;
and a few months later Tancred came up from Palestine to take
over the regency during his uncle s imprisonment. In Tancred
the Normans found a leader as energetic and unscrupulous as
Bohemond. z
1 For Antioch, see Cahen, La Syrie du Nord, pp. 127 ft.
a See above, vol. i, pp. 320-1 ; and. below, chapter m.
Outremer and its Neighbours
The second Prankish state, the county of Edessa, served as a
buffer to protect Antioch from the Moslems. The county, now
ruled by Baldwin s cousin and namesake, Baldwin of Le Bourg,
was larger than the principality. It sprawled on either side of the
Euphrates, from Ravendel and Aintab to a vague frontier in
the Jezireh, to the east of the city of Edessa. It lacked natural
boundaries and a homogeneous population; for though it was
mainly occupied by Christians, Syrian Jacobites and Armenians, it
included Moslem towns such as Saruj. The Franks could not hope
to set up a centralized government. Instead, they ruled by gar
risoning a few strong fortresses from which they could levy taxes
and tribute on the surrounding villages and could embark on
profitable raids across the border. The whole district had always
been border-country, subject to unending warfare, but it con
tained fertile land and many prosperous towns. From his taxes
and his raids the Count of Edessa could raise an adequate revenue.
Baldwin I was comparatively far wealthier as Count of Edessa
than as King of Jerusalem. 1
The chief need of the two states was man-power; and even here
their need was less than that of Jerusalem. In Palestine the
Christian population had been forbidden to bear arms sitice first
the Moslems had invaded the land. There were no native soldiers
on whom the new rulers could rely. But Antioch and Edessa lay
within the old frontiers of Byzantium. There were Christians there
with a long tradition of military prowess, notably the Armenians.
If the Armenians would work in with the Prankish prince, ha
would have an army ready-made. Both Bohemond and Tancred:
at Antioch and Baldwin I and Baldwin II at Edessa, tried at first to-
conciliate the Armenians. But they proved themselves to be tuir
reliable and treacherous. They could not be given places of trust
The rulers of Antioch and of Edessa needed western-born knightsj
to lead their regiments and to command their castles, and western!
born clerics to administer their government. But while AntiocJ
offered to immigrants the prospect of a fairly secure existence,
1 Cahen, op. cit. pp. no ff.
10
PLATE II
Moslem Cities on the Coast
Edessa could only attract adventurers ready to lead the life of a
brigand-chief.
Jerusalem was divided from these two northern Prankish states
by a long stretch of territory ruled by a number of jealous Moslem
potentates. The coast immediately to the north of the kingdom
was held by four rich seaports, Acre, Tyre, Sidon and Beirut, each
owing an allegiance to Egypt that waxed and waned according to
the proximity of the Egyptian fleet. 1 North of Beirut was the
emirate of the Banu Ammar, with their capital at Tripoli. The
emir of Tripoli had recently profited by the departure of the
Crusaders to the south to extend his dominion as far as Tortosa. 2
Jabala, between Tortosa and Lattakieh, was in the hands of a local
magnate, the Qadi ibn Sulaiha, who in the summer of 1 101 handed
it over to Toghtekin, the atabeg of Duqaq of Damascus, from
whom it passed to the Banu Ammar. 3 In the Nosairi mountains,
behind Tortosa and Jabala, were the small emirates of the Banu
Muhris of Marqab and Qadmus and the Banu Amrun of Kahf. 4
The upper Orontes valley was divided between the adventurer
Khalaf ibn Mula ib of Apamca, a Shiite who therefore acknow
ledged Fatimid suzerainty, the Munqidhites of Shaizar, the most
important of these petty dynasties, and Janah ad-Daulah of Horns,
a former atabeg of Ridwan of Aleppo, who had quarrelled with
his master and enjoyed virtual independence. 5 Aleppo was still in
the hands of Ridwan, who as a member of the Seldjuk ruling
family bore the title of Malik, or King. The Jezireh, to the east,
was mainly occupied by members of the Ortoqid dynasty, who
had retired there on the Fatimid reconquest of Jerusalem in 1097,
and who were considered to be the vassals of Duqaq of Damascus.
Duqaq, a Malik like his brother Ridwan, ruled in Damasciis. 6
1 Gibb, op. cit. pp. 15-18 ; Le Strange, Palestine under the Moslems, pp. 342-52.
a For the Banu Ammar, see Sobernheim s article * Ibn Ammar , in the Encyclo
paedia of Islam. 3 Ibn al-Qalanisi (The Damascus Chronicle), pp. 51-2.
4 Cahen, op. cit. p. 180.
5 See Honigman, article * Shaizar \ and Sobernheim, article * Horns , mEncyclo-
paedia of Islam; also introduction to Hitti, An Arab-Syrian Gentleman, pp. 5-6.
6 See Gibb, op. cit. pp. 22-4.
II
Outremer and its Neighbours
These political divisions were made more unstable by the
divergent elements in the population of Syria. The Turks formed
a sparse feudal aristocracy; but the smaller emirs were almost all
Arabs. In northern Syria and in Damascene territory the urban
population was largely Christian, Syrians of the Jacobite church,
with Nestorians in the eastern districts and Armenians infiltrating
o
from the north. The territory of the Banu Ammar was largely
peopled by the Monothelete sect of the Maronites. In the
Nosairi mountains there was the tribe of the Nosairi, a Shiite sect
from whom Khalaf ibn Mula ib drew his strength. On the slopes
of the southern Lebanon there were the Druzes, Shiites who
accepted the divinity of the Caliph Hakim, and who hated all their
Moslem neighbours but who hated the Christians more. The
situation was further complicated by the steady immigration into
the cultivated lands of Arabs from the desert and of Kurds from
the northern mountains, and by the presence of Turcoman com
panies, ready to hire themselves out to any warring chieftain that
would pay them. 1
Of Syria s Moslem neighbours the most powerful were the
Fatimid rulers of Egypt. The Nile valley and the Delta formed the
most thickly populated area in the medieval world. Cairo and
Alexandria were great industrial cities whose factories produced
glass, pottery and metalwork, as well as linens and brocades. The
cultivated districts grew vast quantities of corn; and there were
huge sugar-plantations in the Delta. Egypt controlled the trade of
the Sudan, with its gold and its gum-arabic, its ostrich feathers and
ivory. The Far Eastern trade was now carried by ships using the
Red Sea route and therefore reached the Mediterranean through
Egyptian ports. The Egyptian government could put enormous
armies into the field; and, though the Egyptians themselves en
joyed a poor reputation as soldiers, it could afford to hire as many
mercenaries as it pleased. Moreover, alone of the Moslem powers,
it possessed a considerable navy. The Fatimid Caliph himself as
a Shia was the natural protector of the Shia of Syria. But he was
1 See Gibb, op. cit. pp. 27-9.
12
The Rival Caliphs
traditionally tolerant; and many of the Sunni Arabs who feared
Turkish domination were ready to acknowledge his suzerainty.
The Turkish invasions had curtailed die empire of the Fatimids in
Syria; and the Prankish capture of Jerusalem and victory over the
Egyptian relieving force at Ascalon had damaged their prestige.
But Egypt could afford to lose an army. It was clear that Vizier
al-Afdal, who ruled Egypt in the name of the young Caliph
al-Amir and was himself an Armenian born at Acre, would seek
as soon as possible to avenge the defeat and recover Palestine. In
the meantime the Egyptian fleet kept in touch with the Moslem
cities of the coast. 1
The rival Caliph, the Abbasid al-Mustazhir, was a shadowy
youth, who reigned at Baghdad by the grace of the Seldjuk Sultan.
But the Sultan himself, Barkiyarok, the eldest son of the great
Malik Shah, lacked his father s power and ability. His brothers
continually revolted against him. He had been obliged to enfeoff
the youngest, Sanjar, with Khorassan, and from 1099 onwards he
was at war with another brother, Mohammed, who eventually
secured the province of Iraq. These preoccupations made him a
useless ally in the struggle against the Christians.
The head of the youngest branch of the Seldjuk dynasty, the
Anatolian Malik Kilij Arslan, self-styled Sultan, was at the moment
little better placed than his cousin. The First Crusade had deprived
him of his capital, Nicaea, and of most of his treasure, lost on the
battlefield of Dorylaeum. Much of the land that he had controlled
had passed back into Byzantine hands. He was on bad terms with
the Seldjuks of the East, whose supremacy he refused to admit.
But Turcoman immigrants into Anatolia gave him the means for
rebuilding his army and a population that would crowd out the
Christians. 2 More effective was the Danishmend emirate, firmly
established at Sivas and dominating the north-east of the peninsula.
The emir, Gumushtekin, had recently won renown by his capture
of Bohemond. He was the first Moslem leader to win a victory
1 See Wiet, UEgypte Musulman, pp. 260 ff.
a See articles, * Seldjuks and Kilij Arslan , in Encyclopaedia of Islam.
13
Outremer and its Neighbours
ovex an army of Prankish knights. He too was being continually
strengthened by Turcoman immigration. 1
Between the Turks of Anatolia and the Prankish states of
northern Syria was a group of Armenian principalities. There
was Oshin, who controlled the central Taurus mountains, and
to the east of him the princes of the house of Roupan. There
was Kogh Vasil in the Anti-Taurus, Thatoul at Marash and
Gabriel at Melitene. Thatoul and Gabriel belonged to the
Orthodox Church and were therefore inclined to co-operate with
Byzantium. They and Oshin based their juridical position on
titles conferred on them by the Emperor. But the Roupenians,
who alone of these Armenians succeeded in founding an enduring
state, were traditionally hostile both to Byzantium and the
Orthodox Church. 2
The external Christian power most concerned with Syrian
affairs was Byzantium. There the Emperor Alexius had been on
the throne for nearly twenty years. He had found the Empire at
its nadir ; but by his diplomacy and his thrift, his judicious handling
of his subjects and his rivals, both at home and abroad, he had
re-established it on solid foundations. He had used the Crusading
movement to recover western Asia Minor from the Turks; and
his reorganized fleet gave him control of the coasts. Even at its
lowest ebb, Byzantium enjoyed great traditional prestige through
out the East. It was the Roman Empire, with a thousand years of
history behind it; and its Emperor was the acknowledged head of
Christendom, however much his fellow-Christians might dislike
his policy or even his greed. Constantinople, with its innumerable,
busy inhabitants, its vast wealth and its formidable fortifications,
was the most impressive city in the world. The armed forces of the
Empire were the best equipped of their time. The imperial coinage
had long been the only sure currency. International exchange was
1 For the Danishmends, see Mukrimin Halil, article Danifmend , in Islam
AnsiklopedisL
2 For the Armenian background, see Tournebize, Histoire Politique et
Rttigieuse d Armtnie, pp. 168-70; also above, vol. i, pp. 195 ff.
14
Byzantium
calculated in terms of the hyperpyron, often called the besant, the
gold solidus whose value had been fixed by Constantine the Great.
Byzantium was to play a dominant role in Oriental politics for
almost a century to come; but in fact its successes were due more
to the brilliance of its statesmen and the prestige of its Roman name
than to its real strength. The Turkish invasions had destroyed the
social and economic organization of Anatolia, from whence of old
the Empire had derived the greater part of its soldiers and its food ;
and though territory might be recovered, it was almost impossible
to restore the former organization. The army was now almost
entirely mercenary, and therefore both expensive and unreliable.
Turkish mercenaries such as the Petchenegs might be safely
employed against the Franks or the Slavs, but they could not be
trusted against the Turks in Asia. Prankish mercenaries would not
willingly fight against fellow-Franks. Early in his reign Alexius
had been obliged to buy Venetian help by giving commercial
concessions to the Venetians* to the detriment of his own subjects;
and these were followed by concessions to the other maritime
dries, Genoa and Pisa, The trade of the Empire thus began to pass
into alien hands* A little later, in his need for ready-money,
Alexius tampered with the coinage, issuing gold pieces that lacked
their proper gold content. Confidence in the besant began to
diminish; and soon the clients of the Empire insisted on being
paid in Michaels*, the currency minted under the Emperor
Michael VII, the last that was known to be trustworthy.
The Emperor s chief concern was the welfare of his Empire.
He had welcomed the First Crusade and had been ready to co
operate with its leaders; but Bohemond s ambition and perfidy at
Antioch had shocked and angered him. His first desire was to
recapture Antioch and to control the roads that led there across
Asia Minor. When the Crusaders moved southwards into Palestine
his active co-operation ended. The traditional Byzantine policy
had been for the past century an alliance with the Fatimids of
Egypt against the Sunni Abbasids and the Turks. Except under
the mad Caliph Hakim the Fatimids had treated the eastern
15
Outremer and its Neighbours
Christians with kindly forbearance; and Alexius had no reason to
suppose that Prankish rule would be more agreeable to them. He
had therefore dissociated himself from the Prankish march on
Jerusalem. But at the same time, as patron of the Orthodox, he
could not be indifferent to the fate of Jerusalem. If the Prankish
kingdom seemed likely to endure, he would have to take steps to
see that his rights were recognized. He was ready to show the
Franks in Palestine signs of good-will; but his active help would
be restricted to co-operation in opening up the routes across Asia
Minor. For the Normans at Antioch he felt nothing but hostility
and was to prove a dangerous enemy. He seems to have enter
tained no ambition for the recovery of Edessa. Probably he
recognized the value of the Prankish county there as an outpost
against the Moslem world. 1
A new factor had recently been introduced into Oriental politics
by the intervention of the Italian merchant-cities. They had at
first been diffident of joining in the Crusade till they saw that it
promised to be successful. Then Pisa, Venice and Genoa all sent
fleets to the East, promising help in return for establishments in any
city in whose conquest they shared. The Crusaders welcomed
them; for they offered the sea-power without which it would
be impossible to reduce the Moslem coastal cities; and their
ships provided a swifter and safer route of communication
with western Europe than the long journey overland. But the
concessions that they demanded and obtained meant that the
Prankish governments in the East lost much of their potential
revenue. 2
The complexities of the international situation around him
did not give Bang Baldwin much cause for optimism. His allies
were either half-hearted or rapacious, and concerned with their
selfish interests. The disunity of his enemies was helpful; but
1 For the position of Byzantium and the policy of Alexius, see above,
vol. I passim.
2 The best summary of the part played by the Italians is in Heyd, Histoire du
Commerce du Levant, vol. I, pp. 131 ff.
16
Baldwin s Problems
were the Moslem world to find a leader who could bind it
together, there was little chance that the Prankish states in the East *
would survive, In die meantime he was placed with far too few
supporters in a land with a deadly climate, that had been down
the centuries the battlefield of nations. It was with pleasant
expectation that he learnt of new Crusading expeditions setting
out from the West*
CHAPTER II
THE CRUSADES OF 1101
But they said, We will not hearken." JEREMIAH vi, 17
The news that the Christians had recovered Jerusalem reached
western Europe during the late summer of 1099. It was received
with enthusiasm and rejoicing. Everywhere chroniclers inter
rupted their story of local happenings to record the great instance
of God s mercy. Pope Urban himself had died before he could
learn of it; but his friends and helpers throughout the Church
praised God for the success of his policy. During the winter that
followed, many of the Crusading leaders returned home with their
men. As is the wont of returning soldiers, the Crusaders no doubt
exaggerated both the hardships of their journey and the splendours
of die land to which they had penetrated; and they made much
of the miracles with which they had been encouraged by Heaven.
But they all declared that warriors and colonists were needed
in the East, to carry on God s work, and that welltE^aSSTgreat
estates lay there to be occupied by the adventurous. They urged
a new Crusade to which the preachers of the Church gave their
blessing. 1
It was not until the early autumn of noo that^the next expedi
tion could start out. The winter months were unsuitable for
travel; and then the harvest had to be gathered. But in September
1 100 a Crusade of Lombards left Italy for the East. At its head was
the greatest personage in Lombardy, jhe Archbishop of Milan,
Anselm of Buis. With him were AjKert, Count 64" BiMtett;
1 E.g. Pope Paschal s letter in Migne, Patrologia Latina, vol. dxra, cols. 42 ff.
It was thought in the East that if reinforcements did not arrive, the conquered
lands might have to be evacuated (De Translation S. Nicolai in R.H.C., Hist.
Occ., vol. v, p. 271).
18
iioo : The Lombards Assemble
Count Guibert of Parma and Hugh of Montebello. The Lombards
had played an undistinguished part in the First Crusade. Many of
them had journeyed East during its early months and had joined
up with Peter the Hermit, and, by intriguing with his German
followers against the French, had helped to wreck his expedition.
The survivors had then taken service under Bohemond. In conse
quence, of the Crusading leaders it was Bohemond who enjoyed
the highest prestige in Lombardy. The present expedition was
little better organized. It included very few trained soldiers and
was mainly composed of a rabble drawn from the slums of the
Lombard cities, men whose Eves had been disorganized by the
growing industrialism of the province. With them were large
numbers of clerics and women and children. It was a large com
pany; though Albert of Aix s estimate of two hundred thousand
souls should be divided by at least ten. Neither the Archbishop
nor the Count of Biandrate, who was regarded as the military
leader, was able to keep it in control. 1
During the autumn of iioo the Lombards made their leisurely
way across Carniola and down the valley of the Save, through
the territory of the King of Hungary, and entered the Byzantine
Empire at Belgrade. Alexius was ready to deal with them. His
troops escorted them across the Balkans. Then, as they were too
numerous to be provisioned and policed in one camp, they were
divided into three companies. One was to spend the winter in
a camp outside Philippopolis, the second outside Adrianople and
the third outside Rodosto. But even so they were too disorderly to
be kept under control. Each company began to raid the district
outside its camp, pillaging the villages, breaking into the grain-
stores and even robbing the churches. At last, in March, the
Emperor brought them all to a camp outside the walls of Con
stantinople, intending to transport them as soon as possible across
into Asia. But they had heard by now that other Crusaders had
set out to join them. They refused to cross the Bosphorus until
1 Albert of Aix, vm, i, p. 559; Anna Comnena, xi, viii, i, vol. in, p. 36,
calling them Normans under the command of two brothers called QAdvTpoc$.
19 2-2
The Crusades ofnoi
these reinforcements arrived. To oblige them to move, the
imperial authorities cut off their supplies; whereupon they at once
attacked the city walls and forced their way through into the
courtyard of the imperial palace of Blachernae. There they killed
one of the Emperor s pet lions, and tried to open die palace gates.
The Archbishop of Milan and the Count of Biandrate, who had
been well received by the Emperor, were horrified. They rushed
out into the midst of the rioting crowds and succeeded at last in
persuading them to return to the camp. They then had to face the
task of pacifying the Emperor. 1
Peace was made by Count Raymond of Toulouse. Raymond
had been spending the winter as the guest of Alexius, whose
complete confidence he now enjoyed. As the senior of all the
Crusading princes, the friend of Pope Urban and of Bishop
Adhemar, he still had a great reputation. The Lombards listened
to him; and on his advice they agreed to move across into Asia.
By the end of April they were established in a camp close to
Nicomedia, where they awaited newcomers from the West. 2
Stephen, Count of Blois, had never been allowed to forget his
flight from Antioch. He had not fulfilled his Crusading vows and
he had shown cowardice in the face of the enemy. His wife, the
Countess Adela, daughter of William the Conqueror, was deeply
ashamed of him. Even in the private intimacy of their bed
chamber she would nag at him to go and redeem his reputation.
He could not claim that he was needed at home; for his wife had
always been the real ruler of the county. So, wearily and with fore
boding, he set out again for the Holy Land in the spring of noi. 3
On the news of his expedition many other French knights
prepared to join him, under the leadership of Stephen, Count of
Burgundy, Hugh of Broyes, Baldwin of Grandpr6 and the Bishop
1 Albert of Aix, vra, 2-5, pp. 559-62; Orderic Vitalis, x, 19, vol. iv, p. 120,
who muddles the story and says that die Emperor used lions against the Crusaders.
2 Albert of Aix, vm, 7, p. 563 ; Anna Comnena, xi, viii, 2, vol. in, pp. 36-7.
It was said that Raymond had the so-called Holy Lance with ham. See
Runciman, The Holy Lance found at Antioch , in Anakcta Bollandiana,
voL Lxvm, pp. 205-6. 3 Orderic Vitalis, x, 19, vol. iv, p. 119.
20
iioi : Lombards and French at Constantinople
of Soissons, Hugh of Pierrefonds. They travelled down through
Italy and across the Adriatic, and reached Constantinople about
the beginning of May. At some point on their journey they were
overtaken by a small German contingent, under Conrad, Constable
to the Emperor Henry IV. 1
The French Crusaders were delighted to find Raymond at
Constantinople, and were well satisfied by their reception by the
Emperor. Probably on the suggestion of Alexius, they decided
that Raymond should command the whole expedition; and the
Lombards acquiesced. During the last days of May the whole
army, Frenchmen, Germans, Lombards, some Byzantines under
the General Tsitas, with whom were five hundred Turkish
mercenaries, probably Petcheneg, marched out from Nicomedia
on the road to Dorylaeum.
c^^
e Emperor s full support "Stephen of Blois therefore
reTonSaendecTtEaf the army should follow the road taken by the
First Crusade, through Dorylaeum and Konya. Raymond, in
conformity with the instructions given him by Alexius, agreed
with him. But the Lombards, who formed the vast majority of
the army, held other views. Bohemond was their hero, the one
warrior that they trusted to carry them to victory. And Bohemond
lay captive in the Danishmend Emir s castle of Niksar, far away
to the north-east of Anatolia. They insisted that their first task
must be to rescue Bohemond. Raymond and Stephen protested in
vain. Raymond s jealousy of Bohemond was too well known and,
for all his qualities, he had never shown himself to be a forceful
leader; whilst Stephen s influence was damaged by memories of
his past cowardice. The Count of Biandrate and the Archbishop
of Milan supported the Lombards, who had their way. 2 On
1 Albert of Aix, vin, 6, pp. 562-3 ; Orderic Vitalis, loc. dt.
* Albert of Aix, vm, 7, pp. 5*3-4, saying that the decision to inarch east was
the Lombards ; Anna, loc. dt. She says that the Emperor hoped that Raymond
and Tsitas would alter this decision.
21
The Crusades ofnoi
leaving Nicomedia the army turned east and took the road to
Ankara. The country was largely held by the Byzantines; and the
Crusaders were able to find food as they went. Ankara itself now
belonged to the Seldjuk Sultan, Kilij Arslan; but when they
arrived there on 23 June they found it poorly defended and took
it by assault. Very correctly they handed it over to representatives
of the Emperor.
On leaving Ankara the Crusaders took a track that led north
eastward to Gangra, in southern Paphlagonia, to join the main,
road to Amasea and to Niksar. On the way to Gangra their
troubles began. Kilij Arslan retreated before them, devastating
the country as he went, so that they could find little to eat.
Meanwhile Malik Ghazi the Danishmend had been thoroughly
alarmed. He hastened to renew his alliance with Kilij Arslan and
induced Ridwan of Aleppo to send reinforcements up from the
south. Early in July the Crusaders reached Gangra; but the
Seldjuks were there in force. The fortress proved to be im
pregnable. After ravaging the countryside and taking what food
they could find, the Crusaders were forced to move on. They
were weary and hungry; and on the Anatolian tableland the July
heat was hard to bear. In their disappointment they listened to
Count Raymond, who advised that they should march northward
to Kastamuni and from there to some Byzantine city on the Black
Sea coast. Such a course would save the army from certain destruc
tion; and no doubt Raymond thought that the Emperor would
forgive him his disobedience if he returned having recaptured for
the Empire two great fortresses, Ankara and Kastamuni, the latter
the Castra Comnenon that had been the home of the imperial
dynasty.
The journey to Kastamuni was slow and painful. Water was
short, and the Turks had destroyed the crops. The Turks them
selves moved quickly along parallel tracks, harassing the Crusaders
sometimes in the van and sometimes in the rear. They had not
gone far before the advance-guard, composed of seven hundred
Lombards, was suddenly attacked. The Lombard knights fled in
22
iioi : The Battle ofMersivan
panic, leaving the infantry to be massacred. It was with difficulty
that Stephen of Burgundy was able to rally the van and drive off
the enemy. During the next days Raymond, in command of the
rear, was engaged in continual combat with the Turks. Soon the
army was obliged to move in a compact mass, from which it was
impossible to send out foraging parties or scouts. By the time that
it reached the neighbourhood of Kastamuni it was clear to the
leaders that the only chance of safety lay in breaking through as
directly as possible to the coast. But once again the Lombards
refused to listen to reason. Perhaps they blamed Raymond s
choice of the road to Kastamuni for their present troubles ; perhaps
they thought that when they passed out of Seldjuk territory into
Danishmend territory everything would be easier. In their
obstinate folly they insisted on turning once more to the east. The
princes had to accept this decision; for their small contingents could
hardly hope to survive if they left the main army. The Crusade
moved on across the river Halys, into the land of the Danish-
mend emir. After wantonly sacking a Christian village on the way
they reached the town of Mersivan, halfway between the river and
Amasea. There the Constable Conrad was lured into an ambush
and lost several hundred of his German troops. It was clear now
that the Danishmends and their allies were massing for a serious
attack ; and Raymond drew up the Christian army ready for battle. 1
When the battle began die Turks employed their favourite
tactics. Their archers swooped down and discharged their arrows,
then swiftly retreated again, and others would appear from a
different direction. The Crusaders were never given the chance of
a hand-to-hand combat, in which their greater physical strength
1 Albert of Aix, vm, 8-14, pp. 564-7. He says that Raymond was bribed by
the Turks to lead die army to Kastamuni. This is unconvincing. Anna, loc. tit.,
mentions the sacking of die Christian village. Grousset, Histoire des Croisades,
vol. n, p. 326 n. 2, is clearly right to reject Tomaschak s identification of
Albert s Maresch with Amasea (Topographic vonKleinasien, p. 88) and to revert
to Michaud s identification as Merzifun or Mersivan. Mersivan could easily
be changed by an ignorant Frenchman into Maresiam or Marescam, a French
form of Marash, but it is difficult to see how an V could intrude into Amasya,
the Turkish name for Amasea, or Masa, the Arabic.
23
The Crusades ofnoi
and better arms would have been of advantage. Before long the
Lombards nerves gave out. With their leader die Count of
Biandrate at their head, they fled in panic, leaving their women
and their priests behind them. Soon the Petcheneg mercenaries
followed, seeing no reason to await certain death. Raymond, who
was fighting with them, found himself deserted. He managed to
retreat with his bodyguard to a small rocky hill, where he held out
till Stephen of Blois and Stephen of Burgundy could rescue him.
Throughout the afternoon the French knights and Conrad the
German fought bravely, falling back upon the camp; but by
nightfall Raymond had had enough. Under cover of the darkness
he fled with his Provencal bodyguard and his Byzantine escort
towards the coast. When they learnt that he had fled, his colleagues
gave up the fight. Before morning dawned the remnants of the
army were in full flight, leaving the camp and the non-combatants
in the hands of the Turks.
The Turks paused to butcher the men and old women in the
camp, then followed in full cry after the fugitives. Only the
knights on horseback were able to escape. The infantry was over
taken and slaughtered almost to a man. The Lombards, whose
obstinacy had caused the disaster, were annihilated except for their
leaders. The losses were estimated at four-fifths of the whole army.
A vast amount of treasure and of arms fell into Turkish hands ; and
the harems and slave-markets of the East were filled by the younger
women and children captured on that day. 1
Raymond and his escort managed to reach the little Byzantine
port of Bafra, at the mouth of the river Halys. There they found
a ship to take them to Constantinople. The other knights fought
their way back across the river and arrived at the coast at Sinope.
From there they travelled slowly by the coast road, through
Byzantine territory, to the Bosphorus. They reassembled at
Constantinople early in the autumn. 2
Albert of Aix, vm, 14-23, pp. 5^7-73, whose account is consistent with the
briefer account of Anna (xi, viii, 3, vol. nr, pp. 37-8).
* Albert of Aix, vni, 24, p. 274.
24
iioi : The Results ofMersivan
Public opinion amongst the Crusaders, seeking to find a scape
goat, laid the blame for the r d^^ter upon the Byzantin^ Count
Raymond, it was said, was obeying the Emperor s instructions
when he led the army out of its course to perish in a prearranged
Turkish ambush. But in fact Alexius was furious with Raymond
and his colleagues. He received them politely but icily and made
no secret of his displeasure. 1 Had the Crusade won for him
Kastamuni and the Paphlagonian interior, he might have forgiven
it; but he was far more anxious to secure the direct road to Syria,
to safeguard his reconquests in the south-west of Asia Minor, and
to enable him to intervene in Syrian affairs. Moreover, he had not
wished to embroil himself in war with the Danishmend emir, with
whom he had opened negotiations to buy the person of Bohemond.
The folly of the Lombards ruined his scheme. But the disaster had
more serious effects. The Christian victories during the First
Crusade had damaged both the reputation and the self-confidence
of the Turks. Now both were gloriously recovered. The Seldjuk
Sultan was able to restore his domination over central Anatolia,
and soon he was to establish his capital at Konya, right on the main
road from Constantinople to Syria; while Malik Ghazi the
Danishmend continued his conquest of the Euphrates valley, to
the borders of the County of Edessa. 2 The land-route from Europe
into Syria was blocked again both for the Crusaders and for the
Byzantines. Moreover, relations between the Crusaders and
Byzantium had worsened. The Crusaders insisted upon considering
the Emperor as the author of their woes, while the Byzantines
were shocked and angered by the stupidity, the ingratitude and the
dishonesty of the Crusaders.
It was not long before the results of the disaster were apparent.
A few days after the Lombards had set out from Nicomedia, a
French army arrived at Constantinople, led by William II, Count
of Nevers. He had left his home in February and, travelling
1 Ibid., he. dt. He says that Raymond soothed the Emperor s indignation.
2 Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 189-91. See Cahen, La Syrie du Nord,
p. 232.
25
The Crusades ofnoi
through Italy, he had crossed the Adriatic from Brindisi to Avlona.
His army gave an excellent impression as it marched through
Macedonia owing to the strictness of its discipline. The Count was
cordially received by Alexius; but he decided not to linger at
Constantinople. He had probably expected to join forces there
with the Duke of Burgundy, whose neighbour he was at home,
so hurried on as quickly as possible in the hope of overtaking him.
When he reached Nicomedia he learnt that the Crusade had gone
on to Ankara, where he arrived towards the end of July. But at
Ankara no one knew the whereabouts of the Franco-Lombard
army. William therefore turned back, to take the road to Konya.
In spite of the difficulties of the journey through country that had
not recovered from devastations at the time of the First Crusade,
his army advanced in perfect order. Konya was now held by a
strong Seldjuk garrison; and William s attempt to take the city
by assault was a failure. He realized that it would be unwise to
delay there and moved on. But meanwhile Kilij Arslan and Malik
Ghazi learnt of the appearance of this new enemy. Hot from their
triumph over the Lombards they hurried southward, probably
through Caesarea-Mazacha and Nigde, and reached Heraclea
before him. The Nivernais troops marched slowly eastward from
Konya. Food was short; the wells by the road had been blocked
by the Turks. As they approached Heraclea, weary and weakened,
they were ambushed and surrounded by the whole Turkish army,
which outnumbered them by far. After a short battle their
resistance was broken. The entire French force fell on the field,
with the exception of Count William himself and a few mounted
knights, who broke through the Turkish lines and after several
days of wandering in the Taurus mountains arrived at the
Byzantine fortress of Germanicopolis, north-west of Isaurian
Seleucia. There the Byzantine governor seems to have offered
them an, escort of twelve Petcheneg mercenaries to convey them
to the Syrian border. A few weeks later Count William and his
companions entered Antioch, half-naked and unarmed. They said
that the Petchenegs had despoiled them and abandoned them in
26
lioi : The Nivernais and Aquitanian Crusades
the desert through which they were passing; but what really
happened is unknown. 1
The Count of Nevers had hardly crossed the Bosphorus before
another larger army, composed of Frenchmen and of Germans,
arrived at Constantinople. The French contingent was led by
William IX, Duke of Aquitaine, who was the most famous
troubadour of his time and who was politically the bitter rival of
Raymond of Toulouse; for his wife, the Duchess Philippa, was the
daughter of Raymond s elder brother and should have inherited
his County. With him came Hugh of Vermandois, who had left
the First Crusade after the capture of Antioch and was anxious to
fulfil his vow to go to Jerusalem. The Aquitanian army set out
from France in March and travelled overland, through southern
Germany and Hungary. On its way it was joined by Duke Welf
of Bavaria, who after a long and illustrious career in Germany
planned to spend his declining years fighting for the Cross in
Palestine. He brought with him a well-equipped army of German
knights and infantry; and he was accompanied by Thiemo,
Archbishop of Salzburg, and by the Dowager Margravine Ida of
Austria, one of the great beauties of her day, who, now that her
youth was over, sought the pious excitement of a Crusade. Their
united armies marched together down the Danube to Belgrade
and on by the high road across the Balkans. They were an unruly
crowd; and by the time that they reached Adrianople their
behaviour was so bad that the Byzantine authorities sent Petcheneg
and Polovtsian troops to block their further progress. A regular
battle began; and it was only when Duke William and Welf
intervened in person and guaranteed the future good conduct of
their troops that they were allowed to proceed. A strong escort
accompanied them to Constantinople. There William and Welf
and the Margravine were cordially received by Alexius, who
1 Albert of Aix, vm, 25-33, pp- 57<5-8. He is the sole source for this expedi
tion. Hagenmeyer, Chronologic du Royaume de Jerusalem, pp. 438-9, 449>
459-60, dates the arrival of the Nivernais at Constantinople in mid-June, their
departure from Ankara on about 25 July and from Konya in mid-August.
27
The Crusades ofnoi
provided men to transport their men as soon as possible across the
Bosphorus. Some of the civilian pilgrims, including die historian
Ekkehard of Aura, took ship direct for Palestine, where they
arrived after a six weeks voyage.
It should have been possible for the two Dukes to have caught
up with the Count of Nevers and have strengthened their army
by the inclusion of his forces. But the Count of Nevers wished to
unite with the Count of Burgundy, and Duke William could not
be expected to combine with an army led by his old enemy,
the Count of Toulouse, while Welf of Bavaria, an old enemy
of the Emperor Henry IV, probably had little liking for Henry s
Constable, Conrad. The Count of Nevers hastened ahead to
Ankara, while the Aquitano-Bavarian army waited for five weeks
by the Bosphorus, then moved slowly along the main road to
Dorylaeum and Konya. By the time that it reached Dorylaeum
the Nivernais army had already passed through the town on its
return journey and was well on the way to Konya. The passage of
another army along the road a few days previously did not make
things easier for the Aquitanians and the Bavarians. The small
available supplies of food had already been taken; for which,
characteristically, the Crusaders blamed the Byzantines. Like the
Nivernais, they found the wells dry or blocked. Philomelium was
deserted, and they pillaged it. The Turkish garrison at Konya,
which had withstood the Nivernais, abandoned the city before
this larger army; but before they left they collected and took
with them all the foodstuffs there and stripped bare the orchards
and gardens in the suburbs. The Crusaders found little to refresh
them. It was about this moment that a hundred miles ahead Kilij
Arslan and Malik Ghazi were massacring the men of Nevers.
The Crusaders struggled on from Konya, hungry and thirsty,
through the desert towards Heraclea. Turkish horsemen now
appeared on their flank, firing arrows into their midst and cutting
off foraging parties and stragglers. Early in September they
entered Heraclea, which they found deserted as Konya had been.
Just beyond the town flowed the river, one of the few Anatolian
28
no i: The Battle ofHeracka
streams to flow abundantly throughout die summer. The Christian
warriors, half-mad from thirst, broke their ranks to rush to the
welcoming water. But the Turkish army lay concealed in the
thickets on the river banks. As the Crusaders surged on in dis
order, the Turks sprang out on them and surrounded them. There
was no time to reform ranks. Panic spread through the Christian
army. Horsemen and infantry were mixed in a dreadful stampede ;
and as they stumbled in their attempt to flee they were slaughtered
by the enemy. The Duke of Aquitaine, followed by one of his
grooms, cut his way out and rode into the mountains. After many
days of wandering through the passes he found his way to Tarsus.
Hugh of Vermandois was badly wounded in the battle; but some
of his men rescued him and he too reached Tarsus. But he was
a dying man. His death took place on 18 October and they buried
him there in the Cathedral of St Paul. He never fulfilled his vow
to go to Jerusalem. Welf of Bavaria only escaped by throwing
away all his armour. After several weeks he arrived with two or
three attendants at Antioch. The Archbishop Thiemo was taken
prisoner and martyred for his faith. The fate of the Margravine of
Austria is unknown. Later legends said that she ended her days
a captive in a far-off harem, where she gave birth to the Moslem
hero Zengi. More probably she was thrown from her litter in the
panic and trampled to death. 1
The three Crusades of the year IIQI had come each of them to
a disastrous finish; and their disasteTTaffected the whole story of
the Crusading movement. The Turks had avenged their defeat at
Dorylaeum. They were not, after all, to be ejected from Anatolia.
1 Albert of Aix, vm, 34-40, pp. 579-82 (the only full source); Ekkehard,
xxrv-xxvi, pp. 30-2. He went by sea from Constantinople, and muddles the
land expeditions, as does Fulcher of Chartres, vn, xvi, 1-3, pp. 42*8-33- There
are three Passiones S. Thiemonis, describing the Archbishop s martyrdom but
giving no details of the expedition. Ida s conjectural fate is told in Historia
Welforum Weingartensis, in M.G.H.Ss., vol. xxi, p. 462. Ekkehard merely says
that she was killed. Several western chroniclers refer in passing to this expedi
tion. Hagenmeyer (op. cit. p. 457) dates the pillage of Philomelium on about
10 August and die battle on about 5 September.
29
The Crusades ofnoi
The road across the peninsula remained unsafe for Christian armies,
Prankish or Byzantine. When the Byzantines wished later to inter
vene in Syria, they had to operate at the end of communication
lines that were long and very vulnerable; while Prankish
immigrants from the west were afraid to travel overland through
Constantinople, except in vast armies. They could only come by
sea; and few of them could afford the fare. And instead of the
thousands of useful colonists that the year should have brought to
Syria and Palestine, only a small number of quarrelsome leaders
who had lost their armies and their reputations on the way pene
trated through to the Prankish states, where there was already a
sufficiency of quarrelsome leaders.
Not all the Christians, however, had cause to regret the disasters
of the year 1101. To the Italian maritime cities the failure to secure
the land-route across Ask Minor meant an increase in influence and
wealth. For they possessed the ships that provided an alternative
means of communication with the Prankish states of the East.
Their co-operation was all the more necessary; and they insisted
on payment in commercial concessions. The Armenians in the
Taurus mountains, particularly the Roupenian princes, welcomed
circumstances that made it difficult for Byzantium to re-establish
its Empire over the districts where they lived; though the
Armenians farther to the east had less cause for rejoicing. Their
chief foe was the Danishmend emir, whose triumph soon en
couraged him to attack them. And the Normans at Antioch, who,
like the Roupenians, feared the Byzantines more than the Turks,
were given a useful respite. Bohemond still languished in capti
vity; but his regent, Tancred, took full advantage of the situation
to consolidate the principality at the Emperor s expense. Fate soon
placed a trump-card in his hand.
The Duke of Aquitaine, the Count of Bavaria and the Count of
Nevers had already arrived with their few surviving comrades at
Antioch by the autumn of noi; but the leaders of the Franco-
Lombard Crusade were still at Constantinople. Alexius found it
hard to forgive them their follies. Even Raymond, on whom he
30
1102: The Arrest of Count Raymond
had built great hopes, had disappointed him. At the end of the
year the western princes decided to continue their pilgrimage, and
Rayttiond asked leave to rejoin his wife and his army at Lattakieh.
The Emperor willingly let them go and provided ships to convey
them, to Syria. About the new year Stephen of Blois, Stephen of
Burgundy, the Constable Conrad and Albert of Biandrate dis
embarked at Saint Symeon and hastened up to Antioch, where
Tancred gave them a warm welcome. But Count Raymond s ship
was separated from the others and put into the port of Tarsus. As
he stepped ashore, a knight called Bernard the Stranger came up
and arrested him for having betrayed Christendom by his flight
from the field of Mersivan. Raymond s small bodyguard was
powerless to rescue him. He was taken away under escort and was
handed over to Tancred. 1
1 Albert of Aix, vm, 42, pp. 582-3. Bernard the Stranger was in command at
Tarsus in September noi (see below, p. 33^. It is probable that as Radulph
of Caen (cxlv, p. 708), followed by Cahen (La Syrie du Nord, p. 232, n. 10),
suggests, Raymond landed at Longiniada, the port of Tarsus, and not at Saint
Symeon with the other Crusaders as Albert implies. Matthew of Edessa,
ckxii, p. 242, says that Raymond was imprisoned at Sarouantavi*, i.e.
Sarventikar, in the Taurus. This seems improbable.
CHAPTER III
THE NORMAN PRINCES OF
ANTIOCH
These all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar. 9 ACTS xvii, 7
Bohemond s defeat and capture
alarming though it had seemed aftKe time, had not
its compensations for the Prankish princes. Antioch was in need
of a regent; and Tancred was the obvious candidate to take his
uncle s place. King Baldwin was thus enabled to rid himself of his
most dangerous vassal in Palestine; while Tancred was glad to
extricate himself from a position that was embarrassing and in
secure and to move to a sphere that offered greater scope and
independence. Tancred left Palestine in March noi, only stipu
lating that if his uncle returned from captivity within three years
and Antioch needed him no more, his fief of Galilee should be
restored to him. It was therefore to Baldwin s interest as well as
to Tancred s that Bohemond should not be released from his
prison too soon. No attempt was made to negotiate with his
captor. 1
Tancred was a correct regent. He did not assume the title of
Prince of Antioch. Though he struck coins, the legend, written in
bad Greek, merely entitled him *the servant of God ; and at times
he called himself the * Grand Emir . It is probable that public
opinion in Antioch would have restrained him had his ambitions
carried him farther. The Normans still regarded Bohemond as
their leader; and Bohemond had a loyal friend in the Patriarch
whom he had appointed just before his captivity, the Latin
1 Fulcher of Chartres, vn, i, pp. 390-3 ; Albert of Aix, vn, 44-5, pp. 537-8.
32
1 ioi : Tancred and Byzantium
Bernard of Valence, in whose favour he had ejected the Greek,
John the Oxite. Tancred s policy was the same as Bohemond s,
internally to consolidate the administration of the principality and
to Latinize the Church, and externally to enrich himself at the
expense of the Byzantines and of the neighbouring Moslem
princes. But his ambitions were more local and less world-wide
than his uncle s. 1
His first preoccupation was to guard himself against any attack
from Byzantium. The disastrous Crusades of noi greatly helped
him; for the resurgence of the Anatolian Turks meant that the
Emperor could not venture for some time to send an army right
across the peninsula to the far south-east. Tancred believed that
attack was the best defence. So, in the summer of I ioi, probably
as soon as the news of the battle at Mersivan reached him, he sent
troops into Cilicia to recapture Mamistra, Adana and Tarsus,
which the Byzantines had reoccupied three years before. The local
Byzantine forces were not strong enough to oppose him. When
William of Aquitaine and Hugh of Vermandois arrived as fugitives
at Tarsus at the end of September they found Tancred s lieutenant,
Bernard the Stranger, in command of the city. 2
Next, Tancred turned his attention to Lattakieh, the Byzantine
port that the Normans had long coveted. It was more formidable ;
for its Byzantine garrison was reinforced by Raymond s Provencal
troops and was protected by a squadron of the Byzantine navy.
Before he dared attack, Tancred negotiated to secure the aid of
Genoese ships. 3 Meanwhile he occupied the hinterland, and at
tempted to capture Jabala, to the south. Bohemond had sent a
1 Schlumberger, Les Prindpautts francjues du Levant, pp. 14-15, discusses
Tancred s coins, which, show him in imperial robes but wearing a kejieh on his
head. The legend says in Greek, * Tancred, Servant of God*, with a cross and
1C XP NIKA (as on Byzantine coins) on the reverse. According to Historia
Belli Sacri, p. 228, he was not admitted as ruler until he had taken an oath of
fidelity to Bohemond. He was vested with the regency by the papal legate,
Maurice of Porto.
a Radulph of Caen, cxliii, p. 706; Albert of Aix, vm, 40, p. 582; Orderic
Vitalis, xxra, p. 140.
3 Caffaro, Liberatio, p. 59; Ughelli, Italia Sacra, iv, pp. 847-8.
RC 33 3
The Norman Princes of Antioch
small unsuccessful expedition against Jabala in the summer of 1 100,
in the course of which his Constable had been taken prisoner.
Tancred s expedition in the summer of 1101 was equally ineffec
tive. But it induced Ibn Sulaiha, the qadi of Jabala, to hand the
city over to the atabeg of Damascus; and he himself retired to
Damascus to enjoy a quiet old age. The atabeg, Toghtekin, sent
his son Buri as Governor. But Buri was an unpopular ruler; and
the citizens of Jabala after a few months ejected him and put them
selves under the protection of the Banu Ammar of Tripoli.
Tancred then withdrew his troops from the district. 1
His capture of Raymond s person enabled Tancred to resume
his scheme against Lattakieh. He had incarcerated Raymond at
Antioch; but the Patriarch Bernard and Raymond s Crusading
colleagues were shocked by his behaviour. At their request he set
him free; but Raymond had first to swear an oath that he would
never again interfere in northern Syrian affairs. a On his release
Raymond marched southward, to attack Tortosa. In conformity
with his oath, as he passed by Lattakieh he gave orders to his troops
and to his Countess to evacuate the town and join him. The
Byzantine garrison was left without Provensal support. Then, in
the early spring of 1102 Tancred advanced on Lattakieh. But its
walls were strong and the garrison fought well, while units of the
imperial navy ensured their supplies. The siege lasted for nearly
a year; but during the first weeks of 1103 Tancred, who had by
now hired ships from the Genoese with which to interrupt com
munications between Lattakieh and Cyprus, lured the men of
the garrison by a stratagem outside the city walls and there
fell on them and made them prisoners. The city then capitulated
to him. 3
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, Damascus Chronicle, pp. 51-2.
3 Albert of Aix (vm, 42, pp. 582-3) says that Raymond swore to attempt
no conquest in Syria north of Acre, but as no objection was made to his attack
on Tprtosa, his oath was probably limited to the country from Lattakieh
northward.
3 Radulph of Caen, cxliv, cxlvi, pp. 708-9; Anna Comnena, ix, vii, 7,
vol. m, p. 36.
34
1102: The Malevolence of Bishop Manasses
Such actions did not please the Emperor Alexius. He had
already been angered by the exile of the Greek Patriarch of
Anrioch, John the Oxite, and by the news that all the higher Greek
clergy were now being dismissed and replaced by Latins. Early
in 1 102 he received a letter from King Baldwin, who had heard
the rumour that Byzantine non-co-operation had helped to wreck
the Crusades of noi, and who wrote to beg the Emperor to give
his full support to any subsequent Crusade. The letter was con
veyed by a Bishop called Manasses, who had gone to Palestine
with Ekkehard in noi and was returning from Jerusalem. It
seems to have been courteously worded and was accompanied by
gifts; and Alexius therefore thought that he could talk frankly to
the Bishop and tell him all his grievances. But herein he mis
judged his man. The Bishop was a better Latin than Christian, and
had no sympathy with the Greeks. At the Emperor s request he
went on to Italy and reported to the Pope everything that had been
said to him; but he did so in such terms that the Pope s fury was
roused against Byzantium. Had Pope Urban II still been alive, no
harm would have been done; for Urban had large views and no
wish to- quarrel with eastern Christendom. But his successor,
Paschal II, was a smaller man, short-sighted and easily influenced.
He readily fell in with the vulgar Prankish view that the Emperor
was an enemy. Alexius obtained no redress. 1
Tancred next attempted to interfere in the affairs of the kingdom
of Jerusalem. King Baldwin banished the Patriarch Daimbert in
iioi. Tancred at once welcomed him to Antioch, where he put
1 Albert of Aix, vm, 41, 47-8, pp. 582, 584-5. Albert calls Manasses Bishop
of Barzenona or Barcinona , which, is usually taken to mean Barcelona
(Chalandon, Regne d Alexis I" Comnene, p. 237; Leib, Rome, Kiev et Byzance,
pp. 273-4; Norden, Das Papsttum und Byzanz, p. 70). But the Bishop of
Barcelona at this time was Berengar II, an aged man who never left his diocese
(BaudriUart, Dictionnaire d Histoire et de Gfographie EccUsiastique, article
Barcelone ). It is more probable that the Bishop was an Italian, but it is
impossible to identify his see. His complaint was probably made at the Synod
which Paschal II is known at have held at Benevento in 1102 (Annales Bene-
ventani, ad ann. 1102, in M.G.H. Ss., vol. in, p. 183). Albert of Aax says that he
met the Pope at Benevento.
35 3 2
The Norman Princes ofAntioch
the Church of St George at his disposal. When, a few months later,
Baldwin was defeated by the Saracens at Ramleh and asked for
help from the princes in the north, Tancred refused to come unless
Daimbert were reinstated at Jerusalem. Baldwin agreed; and
Tancred s reputation was thereby enhanced. But it fell when
Daimbert was condemned by a council and exiled once more.
Tancred again offered him hospitality but did not continue to
press his cause. 1
Tancred s activities were not altogether to the liking of his
neighbour at Edessa, Baldwin of Le Bourg. Baldwin s father,
Count Hugh I of Rethel, was the son of a princess of Boulogne,
aunt to Godfrey of Lorraine and King Baldwin ; and Baldwin, who
was a younger son, came out to the East with his cousins. When
Baldwin I established himself at Edessa he had stayed behind with
Bohemond and served as intermediary between the two princes.
On Bohemond s imprisonment he had taken over the government
ofAntioch, until Baldwin of Edessa was summoned to Jerusalem.
Baldwin of Le Bourg was then enfeoffed with Edessa by his cousin,
to rule there autonomously, but under the suzerainty of Jerusalem.
It was not an easy position that he inherited. His lands had no
natural frontiers and were constantly liable to invasion. He could
only rule by garrisoning the principal towns and castles; and for
that he needed servants and comrades whom he could trust. Being
ill-provided with men of his own race he made it his business to
be on excellent terms with the native Christians. Almost his first
action as Count of Edessa was to marry a local princess, Morphia,
the young daughter of the ancient Gabriel, lord of Melitene, an
Armenian by race but an adherent of the Orthodox Church. At
the same time he wooed and won the support of the Armenians of
the separated Gregorian Church, whose great historian, Matthew
of Edessa, was full of praise for his amiable nature and the purity
of his private life, though he regretted bis ambition and avarice.
Baldwin particularly favoured the Armenians, because they could
Be used as soldiers; but he was kindly also towards his Syrian
1 See below, pp. 81-3.
36
1102: Baldwin II pledges his Beard
Jacobite subjects and even succeeded in healing a schism within
their Church. The only complaint against him was his rapacity.
He was perpetually in need of money and raised it wherever he
could. But his methods were less arbitrary and more gentle than
Baldwin Ts. His knights were particularly delighted when he
managed to extort 30,000 besants from his father-in-law by
declaring that he owed that sum to his men and had sworn to them
that if he could not pay them he would shave off his beard. The
Armenians, like the Greeks, considered a beard necessary to manly
dignity and were shocked at the shaven faces of so many Crusaders.
Gabriel thought that a beardless son-in-law would be damaging to
his prestige; and when Baldwin s men, entering into the comedy,
corroborated that their master had indeed sworn such an oath,
Gabriel hastened to hand over the necessary cash to prevent so
dreadful an humiliation, and made Baldwin swear a fresh oath that
never would he pledge his beard again. 1
Early in his reign Baldwin II had to face an attack from the
Ortoqids of Mardin. The emir Soqman led an army against Saruj,
a Moslem town which Baldwin I had captured and placed under
Fulcher of Chartres. Baldwin II hastened to help Fulcher; but in
the ensuing battle he was defeated and Fulcher slain. The town was
taken by the Moslems; but the citadel held out under Benedict,
Latin Archbishop of Edessa, while Baldwin hastened to Antioch to
hire troops to replenish his army. On his return he was more
fortunate. Soqman was driven out of the town with heavy losses.
The inhabitants that had had dealings with the Ortoqids were
massacred ; and many prisoners were made, whose ransom enriched
Baldwin s exchequer. 3
Soon afterwards Baldwin acquired a useful lieutenant in the
person of his cousin, Joscelin of Courtenay. Joscelin, whose
1 William of Tyre, x, 24, pp. 437-8, xi, II, pp. 469-72, tells the story of
Baldwin s marriage and his beard. Matthew of Edessa, ccxxv, p. 296, speaks
with respect but without afTection. for him.
a Matthew of Edessa, clxviii, pp. 232-3 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 50-1; Al-Azimi,
p. 494.
37
The Norman Princes of Antioch
mother was Baldwin s aunt, was the younger and penniless son of
the lord of Courtenay and had probably come to the East with his
close neighbour, the Count of Nevers. On his arrival Baldwin
enfeoffed him with all the land of the county that lay to the west
of the Euphrates, with his headquarters at Turbessel. He proved
to be a valiant friend; but his loyalty was later to be questioned. 1
As time went on, Baldwin seems to have grown suspicious of
Tancred s ambitions, and desired Bohemond s restoration to
Antioch. Together with the Patriarch Bernard he began negotia
tions with the Danishmend emir to secure his release. Tancred
took no part in the transaction. The emir had already been offered
the large sum of 260,000 besants from the Emperor Alexius in
return for Bohemond s person, and would have accepted, had not
the Seldjuk Sultan, Kilij Arslan, come to hear of it. Kilij Arslan,
as official overlord of the Anatolian Turks, demanded half of any
ransom that the Danishmend might receive. The resultant quarrel
between the two Turkish princes prevented the immediate
acceptance of the Emperor s offer, but it served the useful purpose
of breaking their alliance. Bohemond, in his captivity, was aware
of these negotiations. He was still a handsome and glamorous
man ; and the ladies of the emir s household took an interest in him.
Perhaps with their assistance, he was able to persuade his captor
that a private arrangement with the Franks of Syria and the
promise of their alliance was preferable to a deal with the Emperor,
in which the Seldjuks intended to interfere. The emir agreed to
release Bohemond for the sum of 100,000 besants. 2
While the negotiations were continuing, the Danishmend army
1 William of Tyre, x, 24, pp. 437.
* Albert of Aix^ix, 33-6, pp. 610-12; Orderic Vitalis, x, 23, vol. iv, p. 144,
tells of Bohemond s love affair with, a daughter of the Danishmends, while the
Miracula S. Leonardi (Aa. Ss., Nov., vol. ra, pp. 160-8, 179-82) makes his lady
friend a Christian wife of the emir. Matthew of Edessa (clxxviii, p. 252) says
that Richard of the Principate was ransomed by Alexius ; but Richard was
already in Syria before Bohemond s release (Miracula S. Leonardi, p. 157).
Radulph of Caen says that Baldwin acted from dislike of Tancred (cxlvii,
p. 709). The quarrel between the Seldjuk and Danishmend rulers is reported by
Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 59.
38
1103 : Bohemond s Release
attacked Melitene, Its ruler, Gabriel, must have appealed to his
son-in-law, Baldwin, for help ; but Baldwin did nothing, probably
because he was unwilling at this juncture to offend the emir.
Gabriel s subjects disliked him for his Orthodox faith. The
Syrians, in particular, had never forgiven him for having once put
one of their bishops to death for treason. He and his capital were
captured; but one of his castles held out. Gabriel was told by his
captors to order it to capitulate. When the garrison disobeyed him,
he was executed before its walls. 1
It was at Melitene, a few months later, in the spring of 1103,
that Bohemond was handed over to the Franks. His ransom
money had been raised by Baldwin and by the Patriarch Bernard,
with the help of the Armenian princeling, Kogh Vasil, and of
Bohemond s relatives in Italy. Tancred did not contribute to it.
Bohemond at once went to Antioch, where he was reinstated in
his authority. He publicly thanked Tancred for having admini
stered the principality during his absence, but privately there was
some friction between the uncle and the nephew, as Tancred did
not see why he should hand over to Bohemond the conquests that
he himself had made as regent. Public opinion forced him to give
way; and he was rewarded by a small fief within the principality.
He could legally have demanded the return of Galilee from
Baldwin I, but he did not think it worth his while?
The Franks celebrated Bohemond s return by a general offensive
against their neighbours. In the summer of 1 103 Bohemond, with
Joscelin of Courtenay, raided the territory of Aleppo. They cap
tured the town of Muslimiye, to the north of Aleppo itself, and
extracted a large tribute from the Moslems of the district, which
was used to repay the Franks who had lent money to Baldwin and
the Patriarch for Bohemond s ransom. 3 Next, they turned against
1 Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 185-9.
2 See above, p. 32. Fulcher (p. 460) says that Tancred was compe
tently rewarded, but Radulph says that he was only given two small towns
(loc. tit.).
3 Kemal ad-Din, p. 591; Ibn al-Athir (p. 212) adds that Bohemond extorted
money from Qinnasrin,
39
The Norman Princes ofAntioch
the Byzantines. Alexius, after writing to Bohemond to require
him to give back the Cilician cities, sent his general Butumites to
recover them. But Butumites s force was unreliable. He entered
Cilicia in the autumn of 1103 but soon decided that the task was
beyond him; and he learnt that the Franks were planning to
expand northward against Marash, which the Armenian Thatoul
held for the Emperor. He hastened there himself, and, probably,
by so doing, he saved Thatoul for the moment. But he was
recalled to Constantinople. Early next spring Bohemond and
Joscelin marched on Marash. Thatoul was powerless. The Byzan
tine army was far away. The Danishmend Turks were now on
good terms with the Franks. He surrendered his city to Joscelin,
who allowed him to retire to Constantinople; while Bohemond
took the town of Albistan, to the north of Marash. 1
The Franks now felt secure from attacks from Anatolia. They
could turn against the Moslems of the east. In March 1104
Bohemond reinvaded the lands of Ridwan of Aleppo and took the
town of Basarfut, on the road from Antioch to Aleppo; but his
attempt against Kafarlata, to the south, failed owing to the re
sistance of the local tribe of the Banu Ulaim. Joscelin meanwhile
cut the communications between Aleppo and the Euphrates. 2
But, if the Moslems of Syria were to be effectively cut off from
the Moslems of Iraq and Persia, the great fortress of Harran,
situated between Edessa and the Euphrates, in the northern
Jezireh, would have to be occupied by the Christians. If they held
Harran, the Franks could even contemplate an expedition against
Mosul and into Mesopotamia. In the spring of 1104 conditions
seemed to be favourable. During 1103 the whole eastern Moslem
world had been torn by a civil war between the Seldjuk Sultan
Barkiyarok and his brother Mohammed. Peace was made be
tween them in January 1 104 by which the Sultan retained Baghdad
1 Anna Comnena, xi, ix, 1-4, vol. m, pp. 40-1 ; Matthew of Edessa, dbcxxvi,
p. 257; Radulph of Caen, wrongly places the capture of Marash after the battle
of Harran (p. 148).
2 Kemal ad-Din, pp. 59 1-2; Zettersteen Chronicle, p. 239.
40
1104: The Importance of Han on
and the western Iranian plateau. His third brother, Sanjar, already
had obtained Khorassan and eastern Iran; and Mohammed ob
tained northern Iraq and the Jezireh and the suzerainty rights over
Diarbekir and over all Syria. It was an uneasy arrangement. Each
of the brothers hoped soon to upset it and in the meantime in
trigued for allies amongst all the Turkish and Arab princes. In the
Jezireh itself the death in 1102 of the atabeg of Mosul, Kerbogha,
whom the Franks had defeated at Antioch, had provoked a civil
war. The Ortoqid prince of Mardin, Soqman, had failed to secure
the succession for his candidate and was at war with the new atabeg,
Jekermish, appointed by the Seldjuk Mohammed. Harran itself
had belonged to a Turkish general, Qaraja, who had been a
mameluke in Malik Shah s service; but his brutal behaviour had
caused the inhabitants to rise against him and to hand over the
government to a certain Mohammed of Isfahan. Mohammed in
his turn was murdered by a former page of Qaraja s, called Jawali,
with whom he had rashly become intimate. But Jawali s authority
was very insecure ; while Harran itself began to suffer severely from
raids by the Franks of Edessa, who devastated its fields and inter
rupted its trade. It was clear that they intended soon to go farther. 1
Both Soqman at Mardin and Jekermish at Mosul were alarmed.
Their common danger induced them to forget their quarrel and to
unite in an expedition against Edessa, to attack before they were
attacked. Early in May 1104 they marched together on Edessa;
Soqman with a considerable force of Turcoman light cavalry and
Jekermish with a slightly smaller force c6mposed of Seldjuk
Turks, Kurds and Arabs. Baldwin II heard that they were massing
at Ras al-Ain, some seventy miles from his capital. He sent for
help to Joscelin and to Bohemond, and suggested that they should
turn the attack by themselves making an attempt on Harran.
1 For the, background to the Harran campaign, see Cahen, La Syrie ctu
Nord, pp. 236-7, with references. Nicholson, in his thesis on Tancred,
pp. 138-42, emphasizes that the campaign was not part of a general policy
of expansion, but the response to a threat by the Moslems. But Harran was
certainly an ultimate objective of the Franks.
41
The Norman Princes ofAntioch
Leaving a small garrison at Edessa he made his way to Harran with
a small company of knights and of Armenian infantry levies. The
Archbishop of Edessa, Benedict, accompanied him. Close to
Harran he was joined by Joscelin, with the troops of his lands,
and by the Antiochene army under Bohemond, Tancred, the
Patriarch Bernard, and Daimbert, ex-Patriarch of Jerusalem. The
whole Prankish army numbered nearly three thousand knights
and perhaps three times that number of infantry. It represented
the full fighting force of the Franks of northern Syria, apart from
the garrisons of the fortresses.
The army assembled before Harran while the Moslem princes
were still at some distance to the north-east, marching on Edessa.
Had the Franks attempted to take the fortress by assault, Harran
would have been theirs ; but they were unwilling to damage the
fortifications, which they hoped to use later themselves. They
thought that the garrison could be frightened into surrender. It
was a reasonable hope. The Moslems within the town were weak;
almost at once they entered into negotiations. But thereupon
Baldwin and Bohemond quarrelled over the question, whose
standard should first be raised over the walls. The delay caused
their downfall. Before they had settled the quarrel the Turkish
army had swung southward and was upon them.
The battle took place on the banks of the river Balikh, close to
the ancient field of Carrhae, where, centuries before, Crassus and
the Roman legions had been annihilated by the Parthians. The
Prankish strategy was for the army of Edessa, on the left, to engage
the main enemy force, while the Antiochene army lay hidden
behind a low hill about a mile to the right, ready to intervene at
the decisive moment. But the Moslems made similar plans.
A portion of their army attacked the Prankish left, then turned and
fled. The Edessenes thought that they had won an easy victory and
hurried in pursuit, losing contact with their comrades on the
right. They crossed the river and fell straight into an ambush laid
by the main Moslem army. Many of them were slaughtered on
the spot; the remainder turned and fled. When Bohemond, who
42
1104: The Disaster at Harran
had driven off the small detachment opposed to him, prepared to
join in the battle, he only found a stream of fugitives pouring from
the distance and scrambling back across the river, where fresh
bands of Turks fell upon them. He saw that all was lost and moved
quickly away, rescuing only a few of the Edessenes. As the
combatants passed beneath the walls of Harran, the garrison fell
on them and in the confusion enthusiastically killed as many of
the Moslem pursuers as of the Turks. The army of Antioch
escaped without heavy losses ; but the troops of Edessa were almost
entirely captured or slain. The Patriarch Bernard was so frightened
that as he fled he cut off his horse s tail lest some Turk should catch
him by it, though by then none of the enemy was in sight.
Amongst the first to be taken prisoner was the Archbishop
Benedict. But, owing either to the compliance of his jailer, a
renegade Christian, or to an Antiochene counter-attack, he was
soon rescued. Baldwin and Joscelin fled together on horseback
but were overtaken in the river-bed. They were brought as
prisoners to Soqman s tent. 1
Righdy fearing that the Turks would next attack Edessa,
Bohemond and Tancred hastened there to organize its defence.
Once again the misfortune of a colleague turned to Tancred s
advantage. The knights remaining in Edessa, with the Archbishop
at their head, begged him to take over the regency till Baldwin
should be released from captivity. Tancred gladly accepted the offer ;
and Bohemond, like Baldwin I four years previously, was relieved
to see him go. Tancred stayed on in Edessa with the remnants of
the Edessene army and with such troops as Bohemond could spare,
while Bohemond himself moved back to Antioch, whose neigh
bours were preparing to take advantage of the Prankish disaster. 3
1 Albert of Aix, IX, 38-42, pp. 614-16; Radulph of Caen, cxlviii, pp. 710-11 ;
Fulcher of Chartres, n, xxvii, 1-13, pp. 468-7?; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 60-1;
Ibn al-Athir, pp. 221-3, Sibt ibn al-Djauzi, p. 537; Matthew of Edessa, clxxxii,
pp. 254-5. Michael the Syrian, in, p. 195; Chron. Anon. Syr. pp. 78-80.
The accounts of the actual battle are somewhat conflicting.
2 Radulph of Caen, cxlviii, p. 712; Albert of Aix, loc. cit.; Matthew of
Edessa, clxxxii, p. 256.
43
The Norman Princes of Antioch
The battle of Harran was the complement to the Crusades of
noi. Together, they destroyed the legend of Prankish invinci
bility. The defeats of noi had meant that northern Syria was
deprived of the reinforcements from the West that were needed
if Prankish domination was to be firmly established there; and
Harran meant in the long run that the county of Edessa was
doomed and that Aleppo would never pass into Prankish hands.
The wedge that the Franks had intended to maintain between the
three Moslem centres of Anatolia, Iraq and Syria was insecurely
driven in. And not only the Moslems would benefit. The Emperor
was watching angrily in Byzantium and was not sorry to hear of
the Prankish discomfiture.
The immediate consequences were not as fatal as might have
been feared. The alliance between Soqman and Jekermish did not
long survive their victory. The former s Turcoman troops had
obtained most of the prisoners and the booty; and the latter was
jealous. His Seldjuk regiment attacked Soqman s tent and carried
off Baldwin. The Turcomans were furious; but Soqman showed
sufficient self-control to restrain them from counter-attacking. He
reconciled himself to the loss of his valuable prisoner; but, after
reducing a few small Christian frontier-forts by the simple ruse of
dressing up his soldiers in their Prankish victims clothes, he retired
to Mardin and took no further part in the war. 1 Jekermish fought
on. First, to secure himself against Soqman, he overwhelmed the
Prankish castles in the Shahbaqtan, to the east of Edessa, then
marched on the capital. Prankish delay .had saved Harran for
Islam. Now the Moslems delay saved Edessa for Christendom.
Tancred had time to repair the city s defences and was able to
resist Jekermish s first attack, thanks largely to the loyalty and
valour of the local Armenians. But he was so hard pressed that he
sent urgently to Bohemond for help. Bohemond had his own
problems ; but the threat to Edessa must be given precedence. He
marched at once to his nephew s assistance; but the poor condition
1 Ibn al-Athir, loc. dt. Soqman is reported to have said: I would rather lose
ray spoil than let the Christians vaunt us with folly.
44
1104 - Bohemond and Tancred leave Baldwin in Captivity
of die roads delayed him. Tancred, in despair, ordered a sortie of
bis garrison to take place before dawn. In the darkness his men
fell upon the sleeping and confident Turks; and their victory was
completed by Bohemond s arrival. Jekermish fled in panic,
abandoning the treasures of his camp. Harran was avenged, and
Edessa was preserved. 1
Amongst the prisoners that fell into Tancred s hands was a high
born Seldjuk princess from the Emir s household. So highly did
Jekermish value this kdy that he at once offered either to pay
15,000 besants to ransom her or else to exchange Count Baldwin
Hmselfforher. News of the offer reached Jerusalem; and King
Baldwin hastened to write to Bohemond to beg him not to lose
this opportunity for obtaining the Count s release. But Bohemond
and Tancred needed money, while Baldwin s return would have
thrown Tancred out of his present post back on his uncle s hands.
They answered that it would be undiplomatic to appear too eager
to accept the offer ; Jekermish might raise his price if they hesitated.
But meanwhile they arranged with the emir to have the money
payment; and Baldwin remained in captivity .*
Having thus enriched themselves by sacrificing their comrade,
Bohemond and Tancred turned to meet the enemies that were
pressing round them. Jekermish did not again attempt to attack
Edessa; and Tancred was able to repair the city s defences. But
Bohemond had at once to face an invasion by Ridwan of Aleppo
into the eastern districts of his principality. In June the Armenian
inhabitants of Artah handed over their town to the Moslems,
delighted to escape from Antiochene tyranny. The towns of
Maarrat, Misrin and Sarman on the frontier followed suit; and
the small Prankish garrisons of Maarat al-Numan, Albara and
Kafartab, who were thus isolated, withdrew back to Antioch.
Meanwhile Ridwan ravaged the principality as far as the Iron
Bridge. In the far north Bohemond s garrison at Albistan only
1 Albert of Aix, rx, 43, PP- 617-18; Ibn al-Athir, p. 223; Ibn al-Qalanisi,
pp. 69-70.
* Albert of Aix, EC, 46, pp. 619-20.
45
The Norman Princes of Antioch
maintained itself by imprisoning the leading local Armenians, who
were plotting with the Turks. The whole of Bohemond s state
might have been endangered had not Duqaq of Damascus died
towards the end of June 1104 whereupon Ridwan s attention was
taken up by the struggle for the succession between Duqaq s two
sons, Buri and Iltash. 1
Bohemond s failure to meet Ridwan s attack was due to his
preoccupation with Byzantine affairs. The Emperor Alexius was
now on good terms with the Prankish states farther to the south.
Raymond of Toulouse was still his close friend; and he had won
the good-will of King Baldwin by himself paying for the ransom
of many distinguished Franks who were held captive in Egypt.
His generosity had been wisely calculated. It was in striking con
trast to Bohemond and Tancred s behaviour over Baldwin of
Edessa; and it reminded the Franks that he had influence and
prestige that the Fatimids respected. When therefore he took action
against Antioch, its prince received no help from his colleagues.
Alexius had already fortified Corycos and Seleucia on the Cilician
coast, to prevent Antiochene aggression into western Cilicia. In
the summer of 1104 a Byzantine army, under the general Monas-
tras, reoccupied without difficulty the east Cilician cities, Tarsus,
Adana and Mamistra ; while a naval squadron under the Emperor s
admiral, Cantacuzenus, which had come to Cyprian waters in
pursuit of a Genoese raiding fleet, took advantage of Bohemond s
situation to sail on to Lattakieh, where his men captured the
harbour and the lower city. Bohemond hastened with the
Prankish troops that he could muster to reinforce the garrison in
the citadel and to replace its commander, whom he distrusted.
But, lacking sea-power, he did not try to expel the Byzantines
from their position. 3
By the autumn Bohemond felt desperate. In September he held
a council of his vassals at Antioch, to which he summoned Tancred.
1 Radulph of Caen, loc. cit.; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 592-3; Sibt ibn al-Djauzi,
p. 529; Ibn al-Qalardsi, pp. 62-5.
a Anna Comnena, xi, x, 9-xi, 7, vol. ni, pp. 45-9.
1104: Bohemond leaves for the West
There he told them frankly of the dangers that surrounded the
principality. The only solution was, he said, to secure reinforce
ments from Europe. He would go himself to France and use his
personal prestige to recruit the needed men. Tancred dutifully
offered to take on this task; but his uncle replied that he did not
command sufficient authority in the "West. He must remain
behind as Regent of Antioch. Arrangements were soon made
for Bohemond s departure. Late in the autumn he set sail from
Saint Symeon, taking with him all the gold and silver, jewels
and precious stuffs that were available, and copies of the Gesta
Francorum, the anonymous history of the First Crusade told from
the Norman point of view. In these copies Bohemond inserted
a passage suggesting that the Emperor had promised him the
lordship of Antioch. 1
Tancred then took over the government of Antioch, at the same
time taking an oath that he would restore Edessa to Baldwin
immediately on his release from captivity. Meanwhile, as Tancred
could not rule Edessa satisfactorily from Antioch, he appointed his
cousin and brother-in-law, Richard of Salerno, as his deputy
across the Euphrates.*
Bohemond reached his own lands in Apulia early in the new
year. He remained there till the following September, seeing to
his personal affairs, which needed his supervision after his nine
years absence, and organizing parties of Normans to join their
fellows in the East. Then he went to Rome, where he saw Pope
1 Anna Comnena, xi, xii, 1-3, vol. m, pp. 50-1, who says that he pretended
to be dead so as to embark unnoticed; Albert of Aix, ix, 47, p. 620; Fulcher of
Chartres, n, xxix, I, pp. 482-3; Radulph of Caen, dii, cliii, pp. 712-14;
Ibn al-Qalanisi, op. dt. p. 66; Matthew of Edessa, cboorii, pp. 255-6. For the
interpolation in the Gesta, see Krey, A neglected passage in the Gesta 1 , in The
Crusades and other Historical Essays, presented to D. C. Munro. Bohemond s
arrival in Italy is recorded in the Annales Barenses, p. 155.
2 Matthew of Edessa, clxxxix, p. 260; Michael the Syrian, m, p. 195;
Ibn al-Athir, pp. 262-3. Tancred in his charters henceforward calls himself
Tancredus Dux et Princeps Antiochenus (R6hricht,Ree5ta,p.ii). In charters
during his first regency he is called Princeps without a territorial designation
(ibid. p. 5). He was still titular Prince of Galilee.
47
The Norman Princes ofAntioch
Paschal. To him Bohemond emphasized that the great enemy of
the Latins in the East was the Emperor Alexius. Paschal had
already been prejudiced against Alexius by Bishop Manasses and
fell in readily with his views. When Bohemond went on into
France he was accompanied by the papal legate, Bruno, who was
instructed to preach a Holy War against Byzantium. It was a
turning-point in the history of the Crusades. The Norman policy,
which aimed to break the power of the eastern Empire, became the
official Crusading policy. The interests of Christendom as a whole
were to be sacrificed to the interests of Prankish adventurers. The
Pope was later to regret his indiscretion; but the harm was done.
The resentment of the western knights and populace against the
haughtiness of the Emperor, their jealousy of his wealth and their
suspicions of Christians who used a ritual that they could not
understand were all given official sanction by the western Church.
Henceforward, though the Pope might modify his views, they
felt justified in every hostile action against Byzantium. And the
Byzantines, on their side, found their worst suspicions realized.
The Crusade, with the Pope at its head, was not a movement for
the succour of Christendom, but a tool of unscrupulous western
vrgpp];jp1ktp. This unhappy agreement between Bohemond and
Pope Paschal did far more than all the controversy between
Cardinal Humbert and Michael Cerularius to ensure the separation
between the eastern and western Churches.
Bohemond was well received in France. He spent some time.at
the Court of King Philip, who gave him permission to recruit men
throughout the kingdom; and he enjoyed the active support of
that eager Crusader-by-proxy, Adela, Countess of Blois. Adela
not only introduced him to her brother, Henry I of England,
whom he saw in Normandy at Easter 1106, and who promised
to encourage his work, but she also arranged for him to make
an impressive marriage-alliance with King Philip s daughter,
Constance, the divorced Countess of Champagne. The wedding
took place in the late spring of 1106; and at the same time King
Philip agreed to offer the hand of his younger daughter, Cecilia,
48
: Bohemond invades the Empire
child of his adulterous union with Bertrada of Montfort, to Tan-
cred. Constance never went to the East. Her married life and
widowhood were spent in Italy. But Cecilia sailed for Antioch
about the end of the year. These royal connections added to the
prestige of the Norman princes. 1
Bohemond remained in France till late in 1106, when he
returned to Apulia. There he planned his new Crusade, which was
to begin uncompromisingly with an attack on the Byzantine
Empire. Cheered by the news that under Tancred s rule Antioch
was in no immediate peril, he did not hurry. On 9 October 1107
his army landed on the Epirote coast of the Empire at Avlona; and
four days later he appeared before the great fortress of Dyrrha-
chium, the key to the Balkan peninsula, which the Normans had
long coveted and had held for a while a quarter of a century before.
But Alexius, too, had had time to make his preparations. To save
Dyrrhachium he was ready to sacrifice his south-eastern frontier;
and he made peace with the Seldjuk Sultan, Kilij Arslan, from
whom he hired mercenaries. Finding the fortress too strong and
too vigorously defended by its garrison to be taken by assault,
Bohemond settled down to besiege it. But, as in his earlier wars
against Byzantium, lack of sea-power was his ruin. Almost at once
the Byzantine navy cut on ins communications with Italy and
blockaded the coast. Then, early next spring, the main Byzantine
army closed in round him. As the summer came on, dysentery,
malaria and famine weakened the Normans; while Alexius broke
their morale by spreading rumours and sending forged letters to
1 Orderic Vitalis, xi, vol. rv, pp. 210-13; Suger, Vita Ludovici, pp. 29-30;
Chronicon S. Maxentii, p. 423; Chronicon Vindodnense, pp. 161-2; William of
Tyre, xi, i, p. 450; Anna Comnena, xn, i, I, vol. m, p. 53- The marriage
between Constance and Bohemond took place according to Luchaire, Louis VI
k Gros, p. 22, in April or May 1106. It was probably after that date that
Cecilia set out for the East. Her marriage therefore probably took place later
in 1106. Matthew of Edessa (loc. cit.) believed that Bohemond was obliged to
marry a rich lady, whom he calls the wife of Stephen Pol (apparently muddling
Hugh of Champagne with the Crusader Hugh of Saint Pol who was a friend
of Bohemond). She imprisoned him till he consented. He would have pre
ferred to return to the East.
RC 49 4
The Norman Princes of Antioch
their leaders, devices that his daughter Anna described with loving
admiration. By September Bohemond knew that he was beaten,
and he surrendered to the Emperor. It was a tremendous triumph
for Byzantium; for Bohemond was by now the most renowned
warrior in Christendom. The sight of this formidable hero,
towering personally over the Emperor yet suppliant before him
and obedient to his dictation, bore witness which no one could
forget to the invincible majesty of the Empire.
Alexius received Bohemond at his camp, at the entrance to the
ravines of the river Devol. He was courteous but cold to him, and
wasted no time in setting before him the peace treaty that he was
to sign. Bohemond hesitated at first; but Nicephorus Bryennius,
Anna Comnena s husband, who was in attendance on his father-
in-law, persuaded him that he had no option.
The text of the treaty is preserved in full in the pages of Anna
Comnena. In it Bohemond first was made to express contrition
for the breach of his former oath to the Emperor. Then he swore
with the utmost solemnity to become the vassal and liege-man of
the Emperor and of the Emperor s heir, the Porphyrogennete
John; and he would oblige all his men to do likewise. That there
might be no mistake the Latin term for liege was employed, and
the duties of a vassal were enumerated. He was to remain Prince of
Antioch, which he would govern under the Emperor s suzerainty.
His territory would include Antioch itself and its port of Saint
Symeon, and the districts to the north-east, as far as Marash,
together with the lands that he might conquer from the Moslem
princes of Aleppo and other inland Syrian states; but the Cilician
cities and the coast round Lattakieh were to be restored to the
Emperor s direct rule, and the territory of the Roupenian princes
was not to be touched. An appendix was added to the treaty care
fully listing the towns that were to constitute Bohemond s
dominion. Within his dominion Bohemond was to exercise the
civil authority, but the Latin Patriarch was to be deposed and
replaced by a Greek. There were special provisions that if Tancred,
or any other of Bohemond s men, refused to comply with the
50
no8: The Treaty ofDevol
demands of the treaty, Bohemond was to force them into
obedience. 1
The Treaty ofDevol is of interest because it reveals the solution
that Alexius now contemplated for the Crusader question. He was
prepared to allow frontier districts and even Antioch itself to pass
into the autonomous control of a Latin prince, so long as the prince
was bound to him by ties of vassalage according to the Latin
custom, and so long as Byzantium kept indirect control through
the Church, Alexius, moreover, felt himself to be responsible for
the welfare of the eastern Christians, and even wished to safeguard
the rights of his unsatisfactory Armenian vassals, the Roupenians.
The treaty remained a paper agreement. But it broke Bohemond ;
who never dared show himself again in the East. He retired
humble and discredited to his lands in Apulia, and died there in
mi, an obscure Italian princeling, leaving two infant sons by his
French marriage to inherit his rights to Antioch. He had been a
gallant soldier, a bold and wily general and a hero to his followers ;
and his personality had outshone all his colleagues on the First
Crusade. But the vastness of his unscrupulous ambition was his
downfall. The time had not yet come for the Crusaders to destroy
the bulwark of eastern Christendom.*
As Alexius well realized, the Treaty ofDevol required the co
operation of Tancred; and Tancred, who was not sorry to see his
uncle eliminated from eastern affairs, had no intention of becoming
the Emperor s vassal. His ambition was less extensive than
Bohemond s, but it was for the creation of a strong independent
principality. His prospects were unhopeful. Bohemond had left
him with few men and quite without ready money. Nevertheless
he decided to take the offensive. A forced loan from the wealthy
merchants of Antioch replenished his funds and enabled him to
1 Anna Cotnnena, XH, iv, 1-3, viii, i-ix, 7, xni, ii, i-xii, 28, vol. in, pp. 64-5,
77-^5, 91-139. See Chalandon, op. dt. pp. 237-50.
a The date of Bohemond s death is given differently in different chronicles.
But Rey (Histoire des Princes d Antioche, p. 334) and Hagenmeyer (op. dt.)
p. 298) both discuss it and give mi (6 March, according to the Ntcrologie de
I Abbaye de Molesme, quoted by Rey.)
51 4-2
The Norman Princes ofAntioch
hire local mercenaries; and he summoned all the knights and
cavalrymen that could be spared from Edessa and Turbessel as well
as from Antiochene territory. In the spring of 1105 he marched
out to recover Artah. Ridwan of Aleppo had been preparing to
go to the assistance of the Banu Ammar in their struggle against
the Franks farther to the south; but on the news of Tancred s
advance he turned to defend Artah. The two armies met on 20 April,
at the village of Tizin near Artah, on a desolate plain strewn with
boulders. Alarmed by the size of the Turkish host, Tancred sug
gested a parley with Ridwan, who would have agreed, had not his
cavaky commander, Sabawa, persuaded him to attack without
delay. The terrain prevented the Turks from using their usual
tactics. When their first cavalry onrush was driven back by the
Franks they retired to lure the enemy on; but they were unable
to re-form their ranks for a second charge, and meanwhile their
infantry was cut down by the Prankish knights. At the failure of
their plans they panicked. Ridwan and his bodyguard rode off in
flight to Aleppo, and most of his cavalry followed. The remainder
and the foot-soldiers were butchered on the battle-field.
The victory enabled Tancred to reoccupy all the territory
lost in the previous year. The Seldjuk garrison abandoned Artah
to him, while his troops pursued the fugitives to the walls of
Aleppo and plundered many of the civilian population as they
fled in terror from the city. Ridwan sued for peace. He agreed
to give up all his territory in the Orontes valley and to pay
a regular tribute to Tancred. By the end of 1105 Tancred s
dominion stretched once more as far south as Albara and Maarat
al-Numan. 1
In February 1106 the emir of Apamea, Khalaf ibn Mula ib, who
had been not unfriendly to the Franks, was assassinated by fanatics
from Aleppo. The murderers then quarrelled with, their chief ally
within the town, Abu l Path, who had assumed its government, and
now asked for help from Ridwan. Tancred, invited by the local
1 Radulph of Caen, cliv, pp. 714-15; Albert of Aix, ix, 47, pp. 620-1;
Kemal ad-Din, p. 593; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 69-70; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 227-8.
52
no6: The Capture ofApamea
Armenians, judged it opportune to intervene. He marched south
and began to besiege the town. But Abul Path restored order;
and die emirs of Shaizar and Hama promised help. Tancred was
obliged to retire after three weeks, giving as his excuse that he
must succour the garrison at Lattakieh, which, after an eighteen
months blockade by the Byzantines, was faced with famine. He
revictualled it and returned to Antioch. A few months later one
of Khalaf s sons, Musbih ibn Mula ib, who had escaped his father s
fate, appeared at Antioch with a hundred followers and persuaded
Tancred to attack Apamea once again. With Musbih s help he
reinvested the town, digging a ditch all round to prevent ingress
or egress. None of the neighbouring emirs came to Abul Path s
assistance; and after a few weeks, on 14 September 1106, the
Moslems capitulated on the condition that their lives should be
spared. Tancred agreed to their terms and entered the town;
whereupon, to please Musbih, he put Abu l Path and three of his
companions to death. The other Apamean notables were taken to
Antioch, where they remained till Ridwan arranged for their
ransom. A Prankish governor was installed at Apamea; while
Musbih was enfeoffed with an estate near by. 1 Soon afterwards
the Franks reoccupied Kafartab. It was put into the charge of a
knight called Theophilus, who soon made himself the terror of the
Moslems of Shaizar. 3
With his eastern and southern frontiers thus secured, Tancred
could turn against the foe that he hated the most, Byzantium. In
die summer of 1107, when Bohemond s attack on the European
provinces was imminent, Alexius was obliged to remove troops
from the Syrian frontier in order to face what was a more serious
menace. Cantacuzenus was recalled with many of his men from
Lattakieh, and Monastras from Cilicia, which was put under the
control of the Armenian prince of Lampron, the Sbarabied Oshin.
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, loc. dt.\ Zettersteen Chronicle, p. 240; Kemal ad-Din,
p. 694; Ibn al-Athir, p. 233 ; Albert of Aix, x, 17-23, pp. 639-42. He says that
Abu l Path, whom he calls Botherus , committed the murder of the emir.
2 Usama, ed. Hitti, p. 157; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 73 ; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 594-5.
53
The Norman Princes ofAntioch
In the winter of 1108, or early in 1109, soon after Bohemond s
humiliation in Epirus, Tancred invaded Cilicia. The Emperor s
judgment of men had failed him. Oshin came of high lineage and
had been famed in his youth for his courage; but now he had
become luxurious and lazy. The key to Cilicia was the fortress of
Mamistra, on the river Jihan. When Tancred s forces advanced
by land over the Amanus range and by water up the river to
besiege the town, Oshin did nothing to stop them. Mamistra fell
after a short siege; and it seems that during the next months
Tancred re-established his rule over Adana and Tarsus, though
western Cilicia remained in imperial hands. Oshin himself retired
to his lands in the Taurus. 1
Lattakieh had already been reconquered. Hitherto the Normans
had been hampered by lack of sea-power. But the Byzantine navy-
was now concentrated far away in the Adriatic; and Tancred was
able to purchase the aid of a Pisan squadron. The price that Pisa
demanded was a street in Antioch, and a quarter in Lattakieh, with
a church and a godown. Petzeas, who had succeeded Cantacu-
zenus as Byzantine commander there, was powerless to offer
resistance. Lattakieh was finally incorporated into the Antiochene
principality in the spring of 1108. Next year Tancred extended his
dominion farther to the south, taking Jabala, Buluniyas and the
castle of Marqab from the dissolving dominions of the Banu
Ammar. 3
Thus, when Bohemond surrendered to the Emperor and signed
away his independence, Tancred was reaching the height of his
power and was in no way disposed to obey the imperial decree.
From the Taurus to the Jezireh and central Syria his was the chief
authority. He was ruler ofAntioch and Edessa, only their regent,
it is true; but Prince Bohemond now lived discredited in Italy and
1 Anna Comnena, xn, ii, 1-7, vol. m, pp. 56-9; William of Tyre, x, 23,
pp. 635-6. (See also Rohricht, Regesta, p. n, and Muratori, Antiquitates
Italicae, n, pp. 905-6, for Tancred s treaty with the Pisans.)
* Dal Borgo, Diplomats. Pisana, pp. 85-94. See Heyd, Histoire du Commerce
du Uvant) vol. i, pp. 145-6.
54
1109: Tancred at the Height of his Power
would never return to the East, and Count Baldwin languished in
Turkish captivity, from which Tancred would make no effort to
rescue him. The Prince of Aleppo was his virtual vassal and none
of the neighbouring emirs would venture to attack him. And he
had triumphantly defied the heir of the Caesars at Constantinople.
When the Emperor s ambassadors came to Antioch to remind him
of his uncle s engagements, he dismissed them with arrogance. He
was, as he said, Ninus the great Assyrian, a giant whom no man
could resist 1
But arrogance has its limitations. For all his brilliance, Tancred
was distrusted and disliked. It was by his own Crusading colleagues
that his power was challenged and checked.
1 Anna Comnena, xiv, ii, 3-5, vol. m, pp. 14.7-8.
55
CHAPTER IV
TOULOUSE AND TRIPOLI
The glory of Lebanon shall come unto theeJ ISAIAH LX, 13
Of all die princes that set out in 1096 for the First Crusade, Ray
mond, Count of Toulouse, had been the wealthiest and the most
distinguished, the man whom many expected to be named as
leader of the movement. Five years later he was among the least
considered of the Crusaders. His troubles were of his own making.
Though he was no greedier and no more ambitious than most of
his colleagues, his vanity made his faults too clearly visible. His
policy of loyalty to the Emperor Alexius was genuinely based on
a sense of honour and a far-sighted statesmanship, but to his fellow-
Franks it seemed a treacherous ruse, and it won him small advan
tage; for the Emperor soon discovered him to be an incompetent
friend. His followers respected his piety; but he had no authority
over them. They had forced his hand over the march to Jerusalem
during die First Crusade; and the disasters of noi showed how
little fitted he was to direct an expedition. His lowest humiliation
had come when he was taken prisoner by his young colleague
Tancred. Though Tancred s action, breaking the rules of hos
pitality and honour, outraged public opinion, Raymond only
obtained release on signing away any claims to northern Syria and
incidentally destroying the basis of his agreement with the
Emperor. 1 But he had the virtue of tenacity. He had vowed to
remain in the East. He would keep his vow and would still carve
for himself a principality.
There was one area that must be conquered by the Christians if
their establishments in the East were to survive. A band of Moslem
1 See above, p. 34.
56
The Banu Ammar of Tripoli
emirates separated the Franks of Antioch and Edessa from their
brothers in Jerusalem. Of these emirates the most considerable
was that of die Banu Ammar of Tripoli. The head of the family,
the qadi Fakhr al-Mulk Abu Ali, was a man of peace. Though his
army .was smaE he ruled a wealthy district, and by a skilful if
inconsistent attitude of appeasement towards all his neighbours he
maintained a- prdtarious independence, relying in the last resort
upon die strength of his fortress-capital, on the peninsula of al-
Mina. He had shown considerable friendliness towards the
Franks whenever they approached his dominions. He had re-
victualled the First Crusade, and he did not oppose its leaders when
they besieged his city of Arqa. He had given Baldwin of Boulogne
useful help during his perilous journey to assume the crown of
Jerusalem. But when the Crusaders receded into the distance he
had quietly taken over the cities of Tortosa and Maraclea which
they had occupied. He thus controlled the whole coast-road from
Lattakieh and Jabala to the Fatimid dependency of Beirut. 1
The alternative route from northern Syria to Palestine ran up
the valley of the Orontes, past the Munqidhite city of Shaizar,
past Hama, which owed allegiance to Ridwan, and Horns, where
Ridwan s stepfather, Janah ad-Daulah reigned. There it divided.
One branch, followed by Raymond on the First Crusade, forked
through the Buqaia to Tripoli and the coast; the other went
straight on, past the Damescene dependency of Baalbek, to the
head-waters of the Jordan.
Raymond, whose ambitions were never modest, contemplated
the establishment of a principality that would command both the
coast-road and the Orontes, with its capital at Horns, the city that
the Franks called La Chamelle. But his first objective, determined
probably by the presence of Genoese ships that might help him,
would be the cities of the coast. On his release by Tancred, in
the last days of noi, he set out from Antioch together with the
1 See above, p. n, also Sobernheim, article Ibn Ammar*, m Encyclopaedia
of Islam. Duqaq s son, Buri, had been given Jabala by the local sheikh but had
been suspended by Fakhr al-Mulk.
57
Toulouse and Tripoli
surviving princes of the Crusades of noi, Stephen of Blois,
William of Aquitaine, Welf of Bavaria and their comrades, who
were anxious to complete their pilgrimage to Jerusalem. At
Lattakieh he was reunited with his wife and with his troops, and
with them he marched on to Tortosa. The Genoese flotilla on whose
help he counted anchored off the coast as he reached the city walls.
Before this double menace, the governor madfe little resistance.
About the middle of February Raymond entered Tortosa, to
gether with his fellow-travellers, who agreed without discussion
that it should be his. They supposed that he would then accompany
them on to Jerusalem. On his refusal diey were angry and,
according to Fulcher of Chartres, spoke blasphemous words
against him. But Raymond had decided that Tortosa should be
the nucleus of his dominion. So they took their leave of him and
journeyed on to the south. 1
Raymond had made no secret of his plans ; and the Moslem
world was alarmed. Fakhr al-Mulk sent to warn the emirs of Horns
and Duqaq of Damascus. But when Raymond appeared before
the walls of Tripoli, it was seen that his army numbered little more
than three hundred men. The Moslems thought that now was the
moment to destroy him. Duqaq hastily provided two thousand
horsemen, and Janah ad-Daulah as many more; and the whole
army of the Banu Ammar was collected. In all the Moslem host
outnumbered Raymond s by twenty to one as it converged on
him on the plain outside the city.
Raymond s deeds were poorly reported by the Crusader
historians. It is from the Arab Ibn al-Athir that we learn of the
extraordinary battle that ensued. Raymond placed a hundred of
his men to oppose the Damascenes, a hundred to oppose the Banu
Ammar, fifty to oppose the men of Horns, and the remaining
fifty to be his own bodyguard. The Horns soldiers began the
attack; but when it failed they suddenly panicked; and the panic
spread among the troops of Damascus. The Tripolitans were
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xvii, 1-2, pp. 433-5; Albert of Aix, vm, 43, p. 583 ;
CafFaro, Liberatio, p. 69, says that a Genoese fleet helped.
58
1102: Raymond s Victory before Tripoli
enjoying greater success, when Raymond, finding his other foes in
flight, swung his whole army against them. The sudden shock was
too much for them; and they too turned and fled. The Prankish
cavalry then swept over the battlefield, slaughtering all the
Moslems that could not escape. The Arab historian estimated that
seven thousand of his co-religionists perished.
The victory not only re-established Raymond s reputation; it
also ensured the survival of his Lebanese dominion. The Moslems
never again dared to take the offensive against him. But his forces
were too small for him to capture Tripoli itself, with its great
fortifications on the peninsula of al-Mina. After exacting a heavy
tribute in money and horses, he returned to Tortosa, to plan his
next campaign. 1
After spending the following months in establishing himself in
the neighbourhood of Tortosa, he set out in the spring of 1103 to
conquer the Buqaia, a necessary move if he wished to isolate
Tripoli and himself expand towards the Orontes. His attempt to
surprise the fortress of Tuban, at the north-eastern entrance to the
valley, failed; but undaunted, he settled down to besiege Qalat
al-Hosn, the tremendous castle that dominated the whole plain,
which his troops had occupied for a week in 1099. These castles
belonged to Janah ad-Daulah of Horns, who could not afford to
lose them. He prepared an army for their rescue. But, as he came
out of the great mosque of Horns, after praying for victory, he
was murdered by three Assassins. His death caused disorder in his
city. Raymond at once raised the siege of Qalat al-Hosn and
marched eastward to profit by it. Public opinion attributed the
murder to agents of Ridwan, who had never forgiven Janah for
having attacked him three years before, when he was engaged
against the Franks of Antioch. But Janah s widow, who was
Ridwan s mother, terrified by Raymond s approach, sent to Aleppo
to offer Ridwan the city. Janah s counsellors did not support her,
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 211-12; Sibt ibn al-Djauzi (p. 525) placing the battle
outside Tortosa, as does CafFaro, Libemtio, loc. dt. Radulph of Caen, CXLV,
p. 707.
59
Toulouse and Tripoli
but instead summoned Duqaq of Damascus to their rescue. Duqaq
hastened up in person from the south with his atabeg Toghtekin
and took over the government, which he entrusted to Toghtekin.
Raymond was not in a position to fight against him, and withdrew
to the coast. 1
When he returned to Tortosa he learnt that a Genoese squadron
of forty vessels had put into Lattakieh. He at once hired its
help for an attack on Tripoli. The attack failed; so the allies
moved southward and captured the port of Jebail, or Gibelet, the
Byblos of the ancients. The Genoese were rewarded with one-
third of the town. 2 But Raymond was determined to conquer
Tripoli itself. During the last months of 1103 he set up a camp in
the suburbs of the city and began to construct a huge castle on a
ridge, some three miles inland. Shortly before, to please the
Byzantines, he had tried to divert Tancred from Lattakieh. In
return they provided him from Cyprus with materials and with
skilled masons. By the spring of 1104 it was completed and
Raymond was in residence. He called it Mount Pilgrim; but to
the Arabs it was known as Qalat Sanjil, the castle of Saint-GiUes. 3
Tripoli was now in a state of permanent siege, but it remained
inviolate. Raymond controlled the land approaches, but he lacked
permanent sea-power. With their great hoards of wealth the Banu
Ammar could still maintain a large merchant-fleet and bring in
provisions to the city from the Egyptian ports to the south. But
Raymond s castle menaced their freedom. In the late summer they
made a sortie and burnt the suburbs up to its walls; and Raymond
himself was injured by a burning roof which fell on him. Early
next spring Fakhr al-Mulk was induced to arrange a truce with
the Christians, by which he abandoned the suburbs to them. The
negotiations were hardly concluded, when Raymond, who had
1 Ibn al-Athir, p. 213. His dating is obscure. Kemal ad-Din, pp. 590-1.
a Albert of Aix, ix, 26, pp. 605-6; CaiFaro, Liberatio, p. 71.
3 Anna Comnena, xi, viii, 5, vol. m, p. 389; Albert of Aix, ix, 32, p. 510;
CafFaro, Liberatio, p. 70; Radulph of Caen, loc. dt.\ William of Tyre, x, 17,
p. 441 ; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 217-18 ; Abul Mehasin, p. 275.
60
PLATE HI
1105- Death of Raymond
never fully recovered from his burns six months before, fell
mortally ill. He died at Mount Pilgrim on 28 February 1105. The
gallant adventures of his later years had quite restored his fame.
He was mourned as a great Christian knight who had preferred
the hardships of the Holy War to all the pleasures of his native
land. 1
This tribute w;as deserved. For Raymond, unlike his fellow-
Crusaders now settled in the East, who were of small account in
their home-countries, had possessed a rich heritage in Europe.
Though he had sworn never to return to it, yet he had kept some
control over its government. His death created a problem of suc
cession in Toulouse as well as in the Lebanon. He had left
Toulouse under the rule of his eldest son, Bertrand. But Bertrand s
right to inherit the county was questioned, probably because he
was a bastard. Of Raymond s children by the Countess Elvira all
had died save one small boy, Alfonso-Jordan, born a few months
ago in the castle of Mount Pilgrim. It was clear that an infant
could not take over the government of a precarious military state
in the Lebanon; while his very existence was probably not yet
known at Toulouse. Bertrand continued to govern his father s
European lands; and in the East Raymond s soldiers chose as
Raymond s successor, probably in conformity with Raymond s
own last wishes, his cousin, William-Jordan, Count of Cerdagne.
William-Jordan, whose maternal grandmother had been Ray
mond s maternal aunt, had only recently arrived in the East. He
regarded himself as regent for his baby cousin and refrained from
taking any title from his eastern territory. But, so long as Alfonso-
Jordan lived, neither William-Jordan nor Bertrand could be secure
in his government. 3
1 Albert of Aix, loc. dt. ; Caflfaro, Liberatio, p. 72 ; Bartolf of Nangis, Lxvm,
p. 539. William of Tyre, xi, 2, p. 452; Ibn al-Athir, p. 230 (in the Kamil
et-Tamwik he makes him die ten days after his accident); William of Tyre
speaks of him as Bonae memoriae and *vir religiosus et timens Deum, vir per
omnia commendabilis .
* Albert of Aix, ix, 50, pp. 123-4. According to Vaissette, Histoire de
Languedoc t ed. Molinier, vol. iv, i, pp. 195-9, Bertrand was the son of Raymond
61
Toulouse and Tripoli
William-Jordan continued his predecessor s policy, pressing on
die blockade and preserving the alliance with Byzantium. At the
Emperor s request, the governor of Cyprus, Eumathius Philocales,
sent him an ambassador to receive his homage and in return to
make him valuable presents. As a result of William-Jordan s
compliance, regular supplies were sent from Cyprus to the Franks
before Tripoli, and Byzantine troops occasionally helped in the
blockade of the city. While provender flowed into the Prankish
camp, Tripoli itself was now threatened with starvation. No food
could reach it by land. There were ships from the Fatimid ports
and even from Tancred s territory that ran the blockade; but they
could not bring enough for its large population. Prices for food
stuffs rose fantastically; a pound of dates cost a gold piece. Every
one that could escape from the city emigrated. Within the walls
there was misery and disease, which Fakhr al-Mulk tried to
alleviate by distributing food, paid for by special taxes, among the
soldiers and the sick. Certain city notables fled to the Prankish
camp; and two of them revealed to the besiegers the paths by
which goods were still smuggled into the city. Fakhr al-Mulk
offered William-Jordan vast sums of money for the persons of
these traitors. When the Count refused to give them up, they were
found murdered in the Christian camp. 1
Fakhr al-Mulk did not know where to turn for help. If he
applied to the Fatimids, they would insist on the annexation of his
state. He was, for some reason, on bad terms with Toghtekin of
by his first wife, the daughter of the Marquis of Provence. This marriage was
later annulled on grounds of consanguinity. Such an annulment did not
always bastardize the children. But it is clear that though Raymond regarded
Bertrand as his heir in Toulouse when he went off to the East accompanied by
his children by Elvira (whose sexes are unknown), Bertrand s claims were
considered to be inferior to those of the indubitably legitimate Alfonso-Jordan
in Toulouse; and, later, Alfonso-Jordan s claim to Tripoli alarmed Bertrand s
grandson, Raymond II (see below, p. 280). WilHam of Malmesbury, who is not
always very accurate, calls Bertrand Raymond s son by a concubine (n, 9. 456).
Caffaro (Liberatio, p. 72), writing as a contemporary, calls him a bastard.
1 Anna Comnena, loc. dt.\ Ibn al-Athir, p. 236, who says that the town
received good supplies from the Greeks of Lattakieh.
62
no8: Fakhr al-Mulk visits the Caliph
Horns, his most natural ally, who had taken over the government
of Damascus on Duqaq s death in 1104, and who himself kept up
constant warfare with William-Jordan. Distant allies seemed the
safest; so in 1105 he sent an urgent appeal to Mardin, to Soqman
the Ortoqid. Soqman, who was not unwilling to re-enter the
arena of the Syrian coast, set out with a large army across the
desert. But when he reached Palmyra he suddenly died, and his
generals hurried back to the Jezireh to dispute about the succession. 1
Thanks to his wealth and his diplomacy Fakhr maintained himself
in Tripoli, amid increasing misery, throughout 1 106 and 1 107. His
relations with Toghtekin improved; and Toghtekin s diversions
against the Franks, as when he recaptured Rafaniya from them in
1105, were of assistance to him.* But the Franks were now firmly
established on the Lebanese coast; and no neighbouring Moslem
power seemed prepared or able to eject them. In the spring of
1108 Fakhr al-Mulk, in his despair, decided personally to beg for
help from the head of his religion, the Caliph of Baghdad, and
from its greatest potentate, the Seldjuk Sultan Mohammed.
Leaving the government of Tripoli in the hands of his cousin,
Abu l Manaqib ibn Ammar, and giving all his soldiers six months
pay in advance, Fakhr set out from Tripoli in March. He had
already informed Toghtekin of his intentions, and it seems that
he obtained permission from William-Jordan to pass through
Frankish-held territory. He took a bodyguard of five hundred
men, and numerous costly gifts for the Sultan. When he arrived
at Damascus, Toghtekin received him with every mark of respect,
and the leading Damascene emirs showered gifts on him though,
as a precaution, he lodged outside the city walls. When he con
tinued his journey, Toghtekin s own son, Taj al-Mulk Buri, joined
his escort. As he approached Baghdad he was honoured with
every flattering attention. The Sultan sent his own barge to
transport him across the Euphrates, and he lay on the cushion
usually honoured by the Sultan s body. Though he had never
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 226-7.
a Ibn al-Qaknisi, op. cit. p. 60; Ibn al-Athir, p. 230.
63
Toulouse and Tripoli
assumed a title higher than that ofqadi, he entered Baghdad with
the ceremony accorded to a sovereign prince. Both the Caliph
and the Sultan showed him brotherly affection and praised him for
his services to the Faith. But when it came to the discussion of
business, the emptiness of these compliments was revealed. The
Sultan promised him that a great Seldjuk army would come to
relieve Tripoli; but first there were a few little tasks to be com
pleted nearer Baghdad. For instance, the emir of Mosul, Jawali,
must be reduced to a more obedient state of mind. Fakhr under
stood that in fact Mohammed had no desire to intervene. After
spending four luxurious and fruitless months at the Sultan s Court,
he began his homeward journey, only to find that now he had no
home. 1
Abu l Manaqib and the notables of Tripoli were realists. They
saw that only one Moslem power was in a position to help them,
the Fatimids who still had some command of the seas. They in
vited the Egyptian vizier, al-Afdal, to send a governor to take over
the city. In response, al-Afdal appointed Sharaf ad-Daulah, who
arrived in Tripoli in die summer of 1108, laden with supplies of
corn for the populace. He had no difficulty in assuming control.
All the partisans of Fakhr al-Mulk were arrested and shipped off
to Egypt. Fakhr had reached Damascus before he heard of the
revolution. He still possessed Jabala, to the north of Tortosa,
and he made his way thither. But his rule in Jabala was of short
duration. In May 1109 Tancred of Antioch appeared in full
force before the city. Fakhr at once capitulated on the under
standing that he should hold the town as a fief from Tancred. But
Tancred broke his word. Fakhr was forced to leave, and made
his way without molestation into retirement in Damascus. He
spent the rest of his life as Toghtekin s pensioner. *
Though Fakhr al-Mulk lost Tripoli, the Egyptians could not
hold it; nor did William-Jordan win it. On Raymond s death, the
barons of Toulouse had accepted Bertrand s succession, because he
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, op. cit. pp. 83-6; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 255-7.
* Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 86-90; Ibn al-Athir, p. 274; Sibt ibn al-Djauzi, p. 536.
64
no8: Bertrand of Toulouse leaves for the East
had already governed them for nearly ten years and because they
were not aware that Raymond had left a legitimate son. But when
they learnt of the existence of the young Alfonso-Jordan, they
sent out to the East to ask him to take over his rightful inheritance.
The Countess Elvira cannot be blamed for preferring for her son
the rich lands of southern France to a precarious lordship in
the East. She arrived with him at Toulouse in the course of
noS. 1
Their coming obliged Bertrand to consider his future. It is
probable that a family compact was arranged by which Bertrand
gave up any claims that he might have to his father s lands in
Europe, and in return Alfonso-Jordan, in order to be well rid of
him from Toulouse, abandoned in his favour his inheritance in
the Lebanon. Bertrand set out for the East in the summer of 1 108.
He was determined to round off his future principality by the con
quest of Tripoli; and he probably anticipated that he might have
some difficulty with William-Jordan. To achieve his aims he
brought with him an army of four thousand cavalry and infantry
and a flotilla of forty galleys, provided by the ports of Provence.
His young son, Pons, travelled with him. His first visit was to
Genoa, from whom he hoped to obtain the naval help needed for
the reduction of Tripoli. William-Jordan had also tried to arrange
an alliance with the Genoese; but his embassy found Bertrand
already accepted as the Republic s ally. Genoa had promised to
aid Bertrand to take over bis father s conquests in the East and to
crown them with the capture of Tripoli, in which they would be
given the favoured commercial position. When Bertrand sailed on
eastward in the autumn, a Genoese squadron sailed with him.*
Next, Bertrand planned to visit Constantinople, to secure the
support of his father s friend, the Emperor. Storms obliged his
fleet to put into the Gulf of Volo, to the harbour of Almyro,
where his men made an excellent impression by abstaining from
1 See above, p. 61.
* Albert of Aix, xi, 3, p. 664, says that Bertrand visited Pisa when he means
Genoa; CafFaro, Liberatio, p. 72.
RC 65 5
Toulouse and Tripoli
the usual Western habit of pillaging the countryside. Conse
quently, when he arrived at Constantinople, Alexius was pre
judiced in his favour and received him as a son. Bertrand was given
many valuable presents and the promise of imperial favours to
come. In return he swore allegiance to the Emperor. 1
From Constantinople Bertrand and his allies sailed to Saint
Symeon, the port of Antioch, and sent an envoy to Tancred to ask
for an interview. Tancred at once came down to see him. But
their conversation did not go smoothly. Bertrand arrogantly
demanded that Tancred should hand over to him the portions of
the city of Antioch that his father once had held. Tancred replied
that he would consider this if Bertrand would assist him in the
campaign on which he was about to embark against Mamistra and
the Byzantine cities of Cilicia. To Bertrand, who had just sworn
an oath of allegiance to Alexius and who counted on Byzantine
subsidies, the proposition was unacceptable; but he offered instead
to conquer for Tancred the town of Jabala, in which Fakhr al-
Mulk had taken refuge. Tancred insisted on co-operation in the
Cilician expedition; and when Bertrand categorically refused
because of his oath to the Emperor, Tancred ordered him to leave
his principality and forbade his subjects to sell him supplies.
Bertrand was obliged to move on down the coast, and sailed into
Tortosa harbour. 2
Tortosa was held by one of William-Jordan s lieutenants; who
at once admitted Bertrand into the town and gave him all the
provisions that he required. Next day Bertrand sent a messenger
to William-Jordan s headquarters at Mount Pilgrim, requiring
the surrender of all his father s inheritance in the lands of La
Chamelle, that is to say the principality of Horns that Raymond
had hoped to found. But William-Jordan had recently won a
signal success. When the Egyptians took over Tripoli, the town of
1 Anna Comnena, xiv, ii, 6, vol. m, p. 149, says that Bertrand sicrpo?
swore allegiance to Alexius when he was already in Tripoli. But Albert of Aix,
loc. tit., mentions his visit via Hahnyrus to Constantinople.
2 Albert of Aix, xi, 5-7, pp. 665-7.
66
1109: Bertrand and William-Jordan
Arqa, tinder the leadership of one of Fakhr s favourite pages, had
pkced itself tinder the protection of Toghtekin of Damascus.
Toghtekin set out in person to inspect his new dependency; but
the winter rains delayed his progress through the Buqaia. While
waiting for the weather to improve,, he attacked certain forts that
the Christians had built near the frontier. William-Jordan, with
three hundred horsemen and two hundred native infantrymen,
crept over the shoulder of the Lebanon and fell on him un
expectedly, near the village of Akun. The Damascene army, with
Toghtekin at its head, fled in panic to Horns, pursued by the
Franks, who could not venture to attack the city, but then turned
northward to raid the territory of Shaizar. The Munqidhite
brothers, Murshid and Sultan, emirs of Shaizar, hearing that the
prankish army was small, came out in the confident expectation
that it could easily be captured. But the Franks attacked at once
so fiercely that the men of Shaizar broke and fled. William-Jordan
then returned to Arqa, which capitulated to him after a siege of
only three weeks. 1
Encouraged by these victories, William-Jordan was in no mood
to abdicate in Bertrand s favour. He replied that he held Ray
mond s lands by the right of inheritance and that moreover he had
defended them and added to them. But the size of Bertrand s
armada alarmed him. He sent to Antioch to ask Tancred to inter
vene in his favour. In return he promised to become Tancred s
vassal. His move obliged Bertrand to take corresponding action.
He sent a messenger to Jerusalem, to put his case before King
Baldwin, to whom he appealed as supreme arbiter of the Franks
in the East and whom he thereby recognized as his suzerain.*
Baldwin, whose statesmanship saw that the Franks in the East
must work together and whose ambition pictured himself as their
leader, at once answered the appeal. He was already angry with
Tancred over his treatment of Baldwin of Edessa and Joscelin of
1 Usama, ed. Him, p. 78 ; Ibn Hamdun, p. 456 ; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 226-7.
2 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xi, i, pp. 526-30; Albert of Aix, xi, 1-2, 8,
pp. 663-4, ^66.
67 5-2
Toulouse and Tripoli
Courtenay. Bertrand had moved southward to Tripoli, where his
army was conducting the double task of continuing the blockade
of the Moslem city and besieging William-Jordan s supporters
on Mount Pilgrim. William-Jordan had meanwhile left Mount
Pilgrim and had reoccupied Tortosa, where he awaited Tancred.
No sooner had Tancred joined him than they were visited by the
envoys of the King, Eustace Gamier and Pagan of Haifa, who
ordered them both to appear at the Royal Court before Tripoli, to
settle the question of Raymond s inheritance as well as the restitu
tion of Edessa and Turbessel to their rightful owners. William-
Jordan wished to refuse the summons; but Tancred realized that
defiance was impracticable.
In June 1109 all the princes of the Prankish East assembled out
side the walls of Tripoli. Bertrand was there with his army. King
Baldwin came up from the south with five hundred knights and
as many infantrymen. Tancred brought seven hundred of his best
knights; and Baldwin of Edessa and Joscelin arrived with their
bodyguards. At a solemn session in the castle of Mount Pilgrim
Tancred was formally reconciled with Baldwin of Edessa and with
Joscelin, while the Toulousain inheritance was divided. William-
Jordan was to keep Tortosa and his own conquest, Arqa; and
Bertrand was to have Jebail and Tripoli as soon as it was captured.
The former swore allegiance to Tancred, and the latter to King
Baldwin; and it was agreed that on the death of either candidate
the other should inherit his lands. 1
With peace made between its leaders, the Prankish army set
seriously about the capture of Tripoli. The Egyptian governor,
Sharaf ad-Daulah, had been desperately demanding help from the
authorities in Egypt, who equipped a huge fleet, with transports
for an army and boats laden with supplies. But intrigues and
quarrels amongst the Egyptian commanders had delayed its
departure from the ports of the Delta. Months passed by, while
the vizier half-heartedly tried to compose the quarrels ; and now at
last orders were given for it to sail. But the north wind blew
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xli, i, p. 531; Albert of Aix, xi, 9-12, pp. 666-8.
68
1109: The Surrender of Tripoli
steadily and the ships could not leave harbour. When at last they
set out reduced in number, it was too late. 1
The garrison of Tripoli, cut off from help by sea by the fleets of
Genoa and Provence, and with their land-wall battered by all the
machines that the Prankish army could muster, soon abandoned
all thought of resistance. Sharaf ad-Daulah sent to King Baldwin
offering to surrender on terms. He asked that the citizens wishing
to emigrate from the city should be allowed to go in safety with
their movable goods, and that those wishing to remain should
become Prankish subjects and should keep all their possessions,
merely paying a special yearly tax; he himself would be permitted
to depart with his troops to Damascus. Baldwin agreed; and on
12 July 1109 the Christians entered Tripoli.
Baldwin himself kept to his agreement. In the districts that he
took over there was no pillage or destruction. But the Genoese
marines, finding the city undefended, forced their own way in.
They began to sack and to burn houses and to slay every Moslem
that they met; and it was some time before the authorities could
restrain them. In the tumult the great library of the Banu Ammar,
the finest in the Moslem world, was burnt to the ground, and all
its contents perished. 3
When the city was fully occupied and order was restored,
Bertrand was installed as its ruler. He took the title of Count of
Tripoli and reaffirmed his vassaldom to the Kingdom of Jeru
salem. His obligations to the Emperor Alexius were ignored. The
Genoese were rewarded by a quarter in Tripoli, by a castle, known
as the Castle of the Constable, ten miles south of Tripoli, and the
remaining two-thirds of the town of Jebail. Jebail was given
by, them to the Admiral Hugh Embriaco, whose descendants
formed it into a hereditary fief. 3
1 Ibn al-Athir, p. 274; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 89.
* Fulcher of Chartres, II, xli, 2-4, pp. 531-3; Albert of Aix, xi, 13, p. 668;
Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 89-90; Ibn. al-Athir, loc. dt.\ Abu l Mehasin, p. 489;
Ibn Hamdun, p. 455 ; Sibt ibn al-Djauzi, p. 536.
3 Caffaro, Liberatio, pp. 72-3. See Rey, Les Seigneurs de Gibelet , in
Revue de I Orient Latin, vol. m, pp. 399-403.
69
Toulouse and Tripoli
Bertrand did not have long to wait before he secured the whole
of his father s eastern inheritance. While the Prankish army was
still at Tripoli William-Jordan was shot by an arrow. The cir
cumstances remained a mystery. It seemed that he rashly inter
vened in a scuffle that had broken out between two grooms, and
as he tried to separate the men, someone fired on him. Suspicion
inevitably fell on Bertrand ; but nothing could be proved. Bertrand
at once took over all William-Jordan s lands; which thus passed
under the allegiance of King Baldwin. Tancred had backed the
wrong horse. 1
So it was that Raymond s son fulfilled his father s ambition of
founding a state in the East. It was a lesser principality than
Raymond had envisaged. The lands of La Chamelle were never to
form part of it ; and instead of acknowledging the distant suzerainty
of the Emperor at Constantinople, it had an overlord close at hand
at Jerusalem. But it was a rich and prosperous heritage. By its
wealth and by its position, linking the Franks of northern Syria
with the Franks of Palestine, it was to play a vital part in the history
of the Crusades.
1 Fulcher of Chartres, loc. cit.; Albert of Aix, xi, 15, pp. 669-70.
70
CHAPTER V
KING BALDWIN I
His heart is as firm as a stone; yea, as hard as a piece of the
nether millstone* JOB 2x1,24
King Baldwin s intervention at Tripoli in 1109 revealed him as the
chief potentate of the Prankish East. He had won his position by
patient and arduous industry and by boldness of enterprise. When
he arrived in Jerusalem, against the allied opposition of the
Patriarch Daimbert and the Prince of Antioch, it was to inherit an
empty treasury and a scattered dominion, made up of the central
mountain-ridge of Palestine, the plain of Esdraelon and a few
outlying fortresses set in a hostile countryside, and a tiny army of
lawless, arrogant knights and untrustworthy native mercenaries.
The only organized body in the kingdom was the Church; and
within the Church there were two parties, Daimbert s and
Arnulf s. Godfrey s central administration had been conducted by
his household, which was small and ill-suited to govern a country.
The barons to whom border castles had been entrusted were left
to rule their territories as they pleased.
Baldwin saw that the most pressing danger was of a Moslem
attack before his state could be set in order. Believing that the
best defence is to take the offensive, he started out, before he had
even settled the urgent question of his relations with Daimbert or
had himself assumed the crown, on a campaign to awe the infidel.
His exploits at Edessa and his victory at the Dog River had given
him a terrible reputation, from which he sought to profit. Barely a
week after his arrival at Jerusalem he marched down to Ascalon and
made a demonstration in front of its walls. But the fortress was too
strong for his little army to attack ; so he moved eastward to Hebron
and thence down into the Negeb to Segor, in the salt land at the
King Baldwin I
southern tip of the Dead Sea, turning villages as he went, and
on through the wilderness of Edom to Mount Hor, and its ancient
monastery of St Aaron, by Petra. Though he made no permanent
settlements in the region, his progress cowed the Arabs. For the
next few years they refrained from infiltrating into his territory. 1
He returned to Jerusalem a few days before Christmas. The
Patriarch Daimbert had had time to reflect on his situation. He
bowed to the inevitable; and on Christmas Day, uoo, he crowned
Baldwin King of Jerusalem. In return, he was confirmed in the
Patriarchate. 2
In the early spring of noi Baldwin heard that a rich Arab tribe
was passing through Transjordan. At once he led a detachment
across the river and fell by night on its encampment. Only a few
of the Arabs escaped. The majority of men were slain in their tents,
and the women and children were carried off into captivity,
together with a great hoard of money and precious stuffs. Amongst
the captives was the wife of one of the sheikhs of the tribe. She
was on the point of bearing a child; and when Baldwin learnt of
her condition, he gave orders that she should be released with her
maid-servant, two female camels and a good supply of food and
drink. She gave birth successfully by the wayside, where her
husband soon found her. Deeply moved by Baldwin s courtesy
he hurried after him to thank him and to promise that some day
he would repay him for his kindness. 3
News of the raid added to Baldwin s fame. In March embassies
came to Jerusalem from the coastal cities, Arsuf, Caesarea, Acre
and Tyre, bearing valuable gifts; while Duqaq of Damascus sent
to offer the sum of fifty thousand gold besants for the ransom of
the captives that Baldwin had made at the battle of the Dog River.
Baldwin s most pressing financial problem was thereby solved. 4
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, iv, i-5, ii, pp. 370-83 (Fulcher accompanied, the
expedition) ; Albert of Aix, vn, 28-42, pp. 533-6. There was a Greek monastery
on the present Jebel Harun (Mount Hor) and a settlement of monks round the
great Nabatean tomb known now as the Deir, or Monastery.
2 See above, vol. i, p. 326. 3 William of Tyre, x, n, p. 415.
4 Albert of Aix, vn, 52, pp. 541-2.
72
no i: Capture of Arsuf and Caesarea
Their tribute did not long benefit Arsuf or Caesarea. In March
a Genoese squadron was sighted off Haifa, and on 15 April it put in
at Jaffa. Amongst the passengers was Maurice, Cardinal-Bishop
of Porto, sent out as Legate by Pope Paschal. Hitherto Baldwin
had been dependent for sea-power on the small Pisan fleet that had
accompanied the Pisan archbishop, his enemy Daimbert, to the
East. An alliance with the Genoese, chief rivals of the Pisans,
stated him better. He hurried down to Haifa to greet them and to
receive the Legate, and took their leaders with them to spend
Easter at Jerusalem. There they made an agreement to serve him
for a season. Their payment was to be one-third of all the booty
that might be captured, of goods as well as of money, and a street
in the bazaar quarter of every conquered town. As soon as the
pact was signed, the allies moved against Arsuf, Baldwin by land
and the Genoese by sea. Resistance soon broke down. The
authorities of the town offered to capitulate on condition that the
inhabitants might emigrate safely with their families and their pos
sessions to Moslem territory. Baldwin accepted their terms. They
were escorted by his troops to Ascalon. Baldwin then garrisoned
the town, after assigning their share to the Genoese. 1
From Arsuf the allies went to Caesarea, whose siege began on
2 May. The garrison, relying on its old Byzantine walls, refused
to surrender ; but on 17 May it was taken by assault. The victorious
soldiers were given permission to pillage the city as they pleased;
and the horrors of the sack shocked even their own leaders. The
cruellest massacre took place in the Great Mosque, which once
had been the synagogue of Herod Agrippa. Many of the citizens
had taken refuge there and begged for mercy. But they were
butchered, men and women alike, till the floor was a lake of blood.
In all the city only a few girls and young infants were spared, and
the chief magistrate and the commander of the garrison, whom
Baldwin himself saved in order to obtain good ransom-money.
The ferocity was deliberate. Baldwin wished to show that he
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, viii, 1-7, pp. 393-400; Albert of Aix, vn, 54,
pp. 452-3.
73
King Baldwin I
would keep his word to all that came to terms with him.
Otherwise he would be pitiless. 1
Baldwin had only time to divide the booty according to his pact
and to instal a Prankish garrison before the news came to him that
an Egyptian army had entered Palestine.
The Fatimid vizier, al-Afdal, was eager to avenge the disaster
at Ascalon, two years before, and had fitted out an expedition
under the command of the Mameluk, Sa ad ed-Daulah al-Qawasi.
It reached Ascalon in mid-May and advanced as far as Ramleh,
hoping, perhaps, to penetrate to Jerusalem while Baldwin was
still occupied at Caesarea. Baldwin hastened with his forces to
Ramleh; whereupon Sa ad fell back on Ascalon to await reinforce
ments. After fortifying Ramleh, Baldwin set up his headquarters
at Jaffa, so as to be able to watch the Egyptians movements and
at the same time keep in touch with his maritime communications.
Apart from a short visit to Jerusalem for administrative purposes
in July, he remained at Jaffa all through the summer. At the end
of August an intercepted letter told him that new detachments had
reached the Egyptians and that they were preparing to march on
Jerusalem.
On 4 September Sa ad moved his forces slowly up to the out
skirts of Ramleh. Two days later Baldwin held a council of war
and decided to attack at dawn, without waiting to be attacked.
He had only two hundred and sixty horsemen and nine hundred
infantrymen; but they were well armed and experienced; while
the huge army of the Egyptians, which he estimated at eleven
thousand horsemen and twenty-one thousand infantry, was lightly
armed and untrained. He divided his troops into five corps, one
under a knight called Bervold, the second under Geldemar
Carpenel, lord of Haifa, the third under Hugh of Saint-Omer,
who had succeeded Tancred as Prince of Galilee, and the fourth
1 Fulcher of Ckartres, ix, 1-9, pp. 400-4; Albert of Aix, vn, 55-6, pp. 453-4.
"William of Tyre, x, 16, p. 423, reports that the Genoese took as part of their
booty a green cup that they believed to be made of a solid emerald. It is still
in the treasury of the cathedral of San Lorenzo at Genoa, and was later considered
to be the Holy Grail. See Heyd, Histoire du Commerce du Levant, i, p. 137.
74
noi : First Battle ofRamleh
and fifth under himself. Inspired by the presence of the True
Cross, by a stirring sermon delivered by Arnulf of Rohes, and by
a special absolution given by the Cardinal-Legate, the Franks
inarched out to Ramleh and at sunrise fell on the Egyptians, near
Ibelin, south-west of the town.
Bervold led the attack; but his troops were mown down by the
Egyptians and he himself slain. Geldemar Carpenal hurried to his
rescue, only to perish also with all his men. The Galilean corps
followed; but they made no effect on the Egyptian masses. After
heavy losses Hugh of Saint-Omer extricated his men and fled
towards Jaffa, pursued by the Egyptian left. It seemed that all was
lost. But King Baldwin, after publicly confessing his sins before
the True Cross and then haranguing his company, mounted on
his brave Arab charger, Gazelle, galloped at the head of his knights
into the heart of the enemy. The Egyptians, confident of victory,
were taken by surprise. After a brief struggle their centre turned
and fled; and the panic spread to their right. Baldwin, forbidding
his men to stop to pillage corpses or to sack the enemy camp,
chased them to the walls of Ascalon. Then he rallied his men and
retired to divide the spoils won on the battlefield. 1
Meanwhile Hugh of Saint-Omer had arrived at Jaffa, to report
that the battle was lost. The Queen and her court were waiting
there. Hearing of the disaster and believing that the King was
dead, they sent a messenger at once to the only man that they
thought could help them now, to Tancred at Antioch. Next
morning an army came into sight. They thought that it was the
Egyptians; and great was their rejoicing when they discerned the
Prankish banners and recognized the King. A second messenger
was dispatched to Antioch, with the news that all was well; and
Tancred, who had been prepared, with some relish, to set out for
the south, was told that he could stay at home.*
For the moment the danger was averted. The Egyptians had
suffered heavy losses and were not disposed to renew the campaign
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xi, i-xiii, 5, pp. 407-20; Albert of Aix, vn, 66-70,
PP- 550-3. z Fulcher of Chartres, n, xiv, 1-8, pp. 420-4.
75
King Baldwin I
that season. But the resources of Egypt were enormous. Al-Afdal
had no difficulty in equipping a second army that should continue
the struggle next year. In the meantime Baldwin received the
visit of the princes that had survived the Anatolian Crusades of
noi. Led by William of Aquitaine, Stephen of Blois and Stephen
of Burgundy and the Constable Conrad, and accompanied by
various barons from the Low Countries and by Ekkehard of Aura
and Bishop Manasses, most of whom had come by sea to Antioch,
they reached the neighbourhood of Beirut in the early spring
of 1 1 02. To ensure their safe passage through enemy country
Baldwin sent an escort to meet them there and to convey them to
Jerusalem. After celebrating Easter at the Holy Places the leaders
prepared to return home. William of Aquitaine safely embarked
for Saint Symeon at the end of April; but the ship in which
Stephen of Blois and Stephen of Burgundy, with several others,
had taken their passage was driven ashore by a storm off Jaffa.
Before another ship could be found to accommodate them, there
was news that a fresh Moslem host was marching up from Egypt.
Owing to this fateful mishap they remained to assist in the coming
struggle. 1
In mid-May 1102 the Egyptian army, consisting of some
twenty thousand Arabs and Sudanese, under the command of the
Vizier s own son, Sharaf al-Ma ali, assembled at Ascalon and
moved up towards Ramleh. Baldwin had made his preparations.
An army of several thousand Christians waited at Jaffa; and the
Galilean garrisons were ready to send detachments when required.
But Baldwin s scouts misled him. Believing the Egyptians to be
a small body of raiders he decided to destroy them himself without
calling upon his reserves. He had with him at Jerusalem his friends
from the West, Stephen of Blois, Stephen of Burgundy, the Con
stable Conrad, Hugh, Count of Lusignan and various Belgian
knights. He proposed to them to set out with his cavalry to finish
off the job. Stephen of Blois ventured to suggest that it was a rash
undertaking; a better reconnaissance would be desirable. But
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xv, 1-6, pp. 424-8.
7 6
1102: Second Battle ofRamkh
nobody even listened to Stephen, remembering his cowardice at
Antioch. He joined his comrades without further complaint.
On 17 May Kong Baldwin set out with some five hundred
horsemen from Jerusalem. They rode gaily, with little order.
When they came out into the plain and suddenly saw before them
the vast Egyptian army, Baldwin realized his mistake. But there
could be no turning back. They were already seen, and the
Egyptian light cavalry was riding up to cut off their retreat. Their
only chance was to charge headlong into the enemy. The Egyptians,
believing at first that this must be the vanguard of a greater army,
nearly gave up before the impact; but when they saw that no other
force followed, they rallied and closed in on the Franks. Baldwin s
ranks broke. A few knights, led by Roger of Rozoy and Baldwin s
cousin, Hugh of Le Bourg, cut their way through the Egyptian
host and reached the safety of Jaffa. Many, such as Gerard of
Avesnes and Godfrey s former chamberlain, Stabelon, were killed
on the field. But King Baldwin himself and his chief comrades
made their way into the little fortress of Ramleh, where they were
surrounded by the Egyptian army.
Nightfall saved them from immediate attack. But the defences
of Ramleh were pitiable. Only one tower, built by Baldwin the
previous year, might possibly be held; and into that they crowded.
In the middle of the night an Arab came to the gate and asked to
see the King. He was admitted and revealed himself as the husband
of the lady to whom Baldwin had shown courtesy during his
raid on Transjordan. In gratitude he warned the King that the
Egyptian assault would begin at dawn and that he must escape at
once. Baldwin took his advice. However much he may have
regretted the desertion of his comrades and he was not a man
with a highly developed sense of honour he saw that on his own
preservation depended the preservation of the kingdom. With a
groom and three other companions he slipped out on horseback,
through the enemy lines, trusting his Gazelle to take bim to
safety. During the same night, Lithard of Cambrai, Viscount of
Jaffa, and Gotknan of Brussels separately made their escape.
77
King Baldwin I
Gothman, though severely wounded, managed to reach Jerusalem,
where he brought tidings of the disaster but counselled resistance;
for he believed that Baldwin was still alive.
Early next morning the Egyptians stormed over the walls of
Ramleh, and piled faggots round the tower in which the knights
had taken refuge. Rather than perish in the flames, the Prankish
chivalry charged out at the enemy, with the Constable Conrad at
their head. But there was no escape. They were all hewn down on
the spot or captured. Conrad s bravery so impressed the Egyptians
that they spared his life. He and more than a hundred of his
companions were sent in captivity to Egypt. Of the other leaders
Stephen of Burgundy, Hugh of Lusignan and Geoffrey of Ven-
dome were killed in the battle, and with them died Stephen of
Blois, who thus by his glorious death redeemed his reputation.
The Countess Adela could sleep content. 1
The Queen and the Court were once more at Jaffa. There Roger
of Rozoy and his fellow-fugitives told them of terrible defeat.
They feared that the King had fallen with all his knights, and they
made plans to flee by sea while there was still time. But on
20 May the Egyptian army came up to the city walls and the
Egyptian fleet approached over the southern horizon. Their worst
fears seemed realized when an Egyptian soldier brandished before
them a head that was recognized as the King s, but which was, in
fact, that of Gerbod of Winthinc, who greatly resembled him. At
that moment, as though by a miracle, a little ship was seen sailing
down from the north with the Bang s own standard at the mast-head.
On his escape from Ramleh, Baldwin had made for the coast,
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xviii, i-xix, 5, pp. 436-44; Ekkehard of Aura,
pp. 33-5; Albert of Aix, ix, 2-6, pp. 591-4; Bartolf of Nangis, pp. 533-5;
William of Tyre, x, 20-1, pp. 429-32, who tells of the intervention of the
Sheikh; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 213-16 (a garbled account based on two different
versions). I accept Hagenmeyer s dating (op. cit. pp. 162-6), though the
Chronicon S.Maxentii, p. 421, says 27 May, and Albert of Aix about Pentecost ,
i.e. about 25 May; of Stephen of Blois s death, according to Guibert of Nogent,
p. 245, nothing definite was known; Cartulaire de Notre Dame de Chartres, in,
p. 115, dates it 19 May.
78
1102: King Baldwin at Jaffa
in an attempt to reach the army at Jaffa. But Egyptian troops were
scouring the countryside. For two nights and two days he wan
dered through the foothills north of Ramleh, then hastened across
the plain of Sharon to Arsuf. He arrived there on the evening
of the ipth, to the astonished delight of its governor, Roger of
Haifa. That same evening the troops of Galilee, eighty picked
knights, under Hugh of Saint-Omer, who had hurried south on
the news of the Egyptian advance, joined him. at Arsuf. Next
morning Hugh marched south with his men, to try to break his way
into Jaffa, while Baldwin persuaded an English adventurer called
Goderic to take him on his ship through the Egyptian blockade.
To cheer his court, Baldwin hoisted his standard. The Egyptians
noticed it, and at once sent ships to intercept him. But a strong
north wind was blowing, against which the Egyptians could not
get under weigh, while it carried Baldwin swiftly into harbour.
At once he set about reorganizing his forces. Before the
Egyptians had entirely closed in round the city he broke his way
out to meet Hugh of Galilee s company and to take them within
the walls. Next, he sent up to Jerusalem to summon all the men
that could be spared from there and from Hebron. A local monk
was found who was ready to take the message through the enemy
lines. He left Jaffa under darkness, but it took him three days to
reach Jerusalem. When he confirmed that the King was alive,
there was great rejoicing. A troop of some ninety knights and
rather more mounted sergeants was collected and was fortified by
a piece of the True Cross. It hastened down to Jaffa. The knights,
better mounted and better armed, forced their way into the town;
but the sergeants were driven into the sea. They abandoned their
horses there and swam round into the harbour. Meanwhile,
Baldwin wrote to Tancred and to Baldwin of Edessa, to report his
heavy losses and to ask for reinforcements.
Before the northern princes could set out, unexpected help
arrived. In the last days of May a fleet of two hundred ships,
mostly English, and filled with soldiers and pilgrims from England,
France and Germany, sailed in Jaffa roads, with the help of the wind,
79
King Baldwin I
through the Egyptian blockade. They provided Baldwin with the
additional men that he needed. On 27 May he led his army out
against the enemy. The details of the battle are unknown. It seems
that the Egyptians vainly tried to lure him on and then encircle
him, and that eventually a charge of the heavy Prankish cavalry
broke their ranks and sent them fleeing in panic. After a few hours
the whole Egyptian force was in headlong flight to Ascalon, and
their camp, with all its booty, was in Christian hands. 1
Baldwin and his kingdom had been saved by a series of accidents,
in which the Christians, not unnaturally, saw the hand of God.
Not least of these accidents was the incompetent strategy of the
Egyptians. A small detachment of their troops could have cap
tured Jerusalem immediately after the battle of Ramleh without
seriously weakening the encirclement of Jaffa. But the vizier
al-Afdal was losing his grip. His son Sharaf was weak and ill-
obeyed. Rivalry between his various lieutenants paralysed his
movements. Next summer his father sent out a new expedition,
by sea and land. But while the fleet sailed up to Jaffa, the land
forces refused to advance beyond Ascalon, as its commander, the
mameluk Taj al-Ajam, was jealous of the admiral, the qadi Ibn
Qadus. Taj al-Ajam was subsequently imprisoned for his dis
loyalty; but the harm was done. The best opportunity for the
reconquest of Palestine was missed. 2
Tancred and Baldwin of Le Bourg, when they heard of the
plight of Jerusalem, made their arrangements to set out as soon as
possible for the south. With them came William of Aquitaine
who had been at Antioch when Bang Baldwin s letter arrived
They travelled all together up the Orontes valley, past Horns, and
down the upper Jordan, in such force that the local Moslem
^ttonties made no attempt to stop their passage. They reached
Judaea towards the end of September. Baldwilby now was no
longer in urgent need of their help ; but their presence enabled him
80
no i: Baldwin and Daimbert
to attack the Egyptian army at Ascalon. The skirmishes were
favourable for the Christians; but they did not venture to assault
the fortress. 1
The meeting of the Prankish potentates was of use to Baldwin
for other reasons. Tancred had intended to give his help on his own
terms ; but in fact he enabled Baldwin to solve his most difficult
internal problem. The Patriarch Daimbert had crowned Baldwin
on Christmas Day, noo; but he had done so unwillingly, and
Baldwin knew it. It was necessary for Baldwin to control the
Church, for the Church was well organized, and it was to the
Church, not to the lay authorities, that pious sympathizers from
the West gave donations and legacies. Daimbert s elevation to the
Patriarchate had been doubtfully legal, and complaints had been
laid at Rome. At last Pope Paschal sent out a legate, Maurice,
Cardinal-Bishop of Porto, to inquire into the situation. He arrived
in time for Easter, 1101; and at once Baldwin accused Daimbert
of treachery before him, showing him the letter that Daimbert
had written to Bohemond on Godfrey s death, calling on
Bohemond to oppose Baldwin s succession by force if need be.
He moreover declared that Daimbert had tried to assassinate him
on his journey southward. However false that latter charge might
be, the letter was incontrovertible. Maurice forbade Daimbert to
take part in the Easter ceremonies, which he performed alone.
Daimbert, fearful for his future, sought out Baldwin and knelt in
tears before him begging for forgiveness. But Baldwin was
adamant, till Daimbert murmured that he had three hundred
besants to spare. Baldwin always needed ready-money. He
secretly accepted the gift, then went to the legate to announce
magnanimously that he would forgive Daimbert. Maurice, a man
of peace, was delighted to effect a reconciliation. 2
1 Albert of Aix, ix, 15, p. 599; Ibn Moyessar, p. 464; Ibn al-Athir, p. 213,
who says that the northern princes insisted on retreat.
2 Albert of Aix, vn, 46-51, pp. 53 8-41, an account that is hostile to Daimbert.
"William of Tyre (x, 26-7, pp. 43 8-40), who was throughout a defender of Daim-
bert s cause in the interests of die independence of the Church, disingenuously
omits to report the investigations of Maurice. Riant, Inventaire, pp. 218-19.
RC 8l 6
King Baldwin I
After some months Baldwin again needed money, and applied
to Daimbert; who gave him two hundred marks, saying that that
was all that the Patriarchal coffers contained. But clerics belonging
to ArnulFs party told the King that in fact Daimbert was con
cealing vast hoards. It happened that a few days later the Patriarch
gave a sumptuous banquet in honour of the Legate, whose support
he was assiduously cultivating. Baldwin burst in upon them and
harangued them on their luxurious living when the forces of
Christendom were starving. Daimbert angrily answered that the
Church could use its money as it pleased and that the King had no
authority over it, while Maurice anxiously tried to appease them
both. But Baldwin could not be silenced. His early training as
a priest enabled him to quote canon law; and his eloquence was
such that Maurice was impressed. He induced Daimbert to
promise to pay for a regiment of horsemen. The sums, however,
were never paid, despite Baldwin s incessant demands. In the
autumn of noi an envoy came from Prince Roger of Apulia with
a gift of a thousand besants for the Patriarch. A third was to be
devoted to the Holy Sepulchre, a third to the Hospital and a third
to the King for his army. Daimbert rashly kept the whole for
himself. But the terms of the gift were known. When the King
made complaint, the legate could no longer support Daimbert,
who was declared deprived of the Patriarchate. He retired to
Jaffa, where he spent the winter, and in March he went on to
Antioch. His old friend Tancred received him gladly and gave
him the charge of one of the richest churches in the city, that of
St George. Baldwin meanwhile kept the Patriarchate vacant, on
the plea that Rome must be informed; and his officials raided the
Patriarchal treasury, where they found that Daimbert had con
cealed twenty thousand besants. Maurice acted as locum tenens;
but his health had been shattered by these scandals. He died in the
spring of H02. 1
When Tancred came south in the autumn to rescue Baldwin, he
announced that his terms were the restitution of Daimbert; and
1 Albert of Aix, vn, 58-64, pp. 545-9.
82
1102: The Deposition of Daimbert
Daimbert accompanied him. Baldwin was most accommodating.
But at that moment a new papal legate arrived, Robert, Cardinal
of Paris. The King therefore insisted that matters must be regu
larized by the session of a Synod, under Robert s presidency.
Tancred and Daimbert could not refuse. A council temporarily
reinstated the latter till a full investigation could be heard. Tancred
therefore joined his troops to the King s for the campaign against
Ascalon. Soon afterwards the Synod was held in the Church of
the Holy Sepulchre. The legate presided, assisted by the visiting
Bishops of Laon and Piacenza; and all the Palestinian bishops and
abbots attended, as well as the Bishop of Mamistra, from Tancred s
territory. The accusations against Daimbert were made by the
prelates of Caesarea, Bethlehem and Ramleh, inspired by Arnulf
of Rohes. They declared that on his journey to Palestine in 1099
at the head of his Pisans, he had attacked fellow-Christians in the
Ionian Islands, that he had sought to provoke a civil war between.
King Baldwin and Prince Bohemond, and that he had kept for
himself money given him for the welfare of pilgrims at the
Hospital and for the soldiers of Christ. The charges were un
deniably true. The Cardinal-Legate had no option but to declare
Daimbert unworthy of his see and to depose him. Tancred could
not object to so canonical a procedure. He had to admit defeat.
Daimbert accompanied him back to Antioch and was re-established
in the Church of St George till he could find an opportunity to go
to Rome. He had shown himself a corrupt and miserly old man;
and his departure was unregretted in Palestine. His appointment as
Legate had been the one great error committed by Pope Urban II. 1
Arnulf of Rohes, who had been Baldwin s willing adjutant in
the whole affair, was too wily to attempt to take Daimbert s place.
Instead, when the legate asked for a candidate for the Patriarchate,
the Palestinian bishops suggested an aged priest from Therouannes,
called Evremar. Evremar, who had come East with the First
Crusade, was known for his piety and his charity. Though he was
a compatriot of Arnulf s he had taken no part in his intrigues but
1 Albert of Aix, ix, 14, 16-17, pp. 598-600; William of Tyre, be. dt.
83 6 ~ 2
King Baldwin I
was universally respected. The legate was delighted to consecrate
so blameless a cleric; and Baldwin was satisfied, knowing Evremar
to be a harmless old man who would never venture to take part
in politics. Meanwhile Arnulf could continue to make his own
plans without hindrance.
Daimbert did not despair. When his protector Bohemond went
to Italy in 1105 he accompanied him and proceeded to Rome to
lay his grievance before the Pope. Pascal was cautious at first; but
after some delay he decided, probably under Bohemond s fatal
influence, to support him. Baldwin was required to send to Rome
to answer Daimbert s charges. But the Bong, probably because he
knew that Bohemond had the Pope s ear, took no notice. Pascal
therefore cancelled Daimbert s deposition, which, he said, was due
to the interference of the civil power. Fortunately, the Pope s folly
was amended by the hand of God. Daimbert, as he prepared to
set out in triumph to resume his patriarchal throne, fell seriously
ill. He died at Messina on 15 June noy. 1
The troubles of the patriarchate were not over. Baldwin grew
dissatisfied with Evremar. Probably he realized that the Church
was too important an organization to be allowed to remain in the
hands of a nonentity. He needed an efficient ally at its head. When
Evremar had heard of Daimbert s official reinstatement, he set out
himself for Rome. He arrived there to find his rival dead, with
his own complaints against the civil power. But when the news
of Daimbert s death reached Palestine, Arnulf hurried to Rome to
act for the King there. Paschal now inclined towards Evremar;
but he understood that the case was more complicated than he had
thought. He entrusted it to the Archbishop of Aries, Gibelin of
Sabran, an ecclesiastic of immense age and vast experience. In
the spring of 1108, Gibelin arrived in Palestine, whither both
Evremar and Arnulf had preceded him. He saw that Evremar was
unfitted for the position and that no one wished for his restitution.
He therefore declared the see vacant and held a synod to appoint
a successor. To his embarrassed delight, Baldwin proposed that he
1 William of Tyre, xi, i, pp. 450-1.
84
1112: Arnulf elected Patriarch
should be the candidate. He accepted; and Evremar was consoled
with the Archbishopric of Caesarea, which had fortunately fallen
vacant.
Gossip said that Arnulf had persuaded the King to choose
Gibelin because of his age. The Patriarchate would soon be vacant
again. And, indeed, Gibelin only lived for four more years : and
on his death Arnulf was, at last, elected without opposition to his
throne. 1
Arnulf was, from Baldwin s point of view, an ideal Patriarch.
In spite of trouble later on over the King s remarriage, and in
spite of the hatred of many of his subordinates, he maintained his
position. He was undoubtedly corrupt. When his niece Emma
made a satisfactory marriage with Eustace Gamier, he endowed
her with a valuable estate at Jericho which belonged to the Holy
Sepulchre. But he was active and efficient, and devoted to the
King. Thanks to him, the unworkable scheme envisaged by most
of the participants in the First Crusade, by which Jerusalem should
be a theocracy, with a monarch merely as a minister for defence,
was finally and utterly abandoned. He saw to it that the whole
Church in Palestine shared his views, even deposing the canons of
the Holy Sepulchre whom Godfrey of Lorraine had appointed,
because he did not trust their loyalty. When the kingdom was
expanded by conquest, he fought hard to see that the civil and
ecclesiastical jurisdiction coincided, against the opposition of Pope
Paschal, who, with his disastrous predilection for the Norman
princes of Antioch, defended the historical but impracticable
rights of the Antiochene see. Arnulf was not an estimable person,
but he was a valuable servant of the kingdom of Jerusalem. Its
great historian, William of Tyre, execrated his memory and
besmirched his name, unfairly, for he did much to consolidate the
work of the First Crusade.*
1 Albert of Aix, x, 589, pp. 650-9, xii, 24, p. 704; William of Tyre, loc. cit.
I, 4, pp. 456-6.
2 William of Tyr$, xi, p
server. See below, p. 104.
xi, 4, pp. 456-6.
2 William of Tyr$, xi, 15, p. 479- William disapproved of Arnulf as a rime-
King Baldwin I
To Arnulf also, and to his master King Baldwin, must be given
the credit of the good relations that were established between the
Latin hierarchy and the native Christians. During his first tenure
of the Patriarchate in 1099, Arnulf had ejected the eastern sects
from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and had despoiled them.
But Daimbert was a worse enemy. His policy was to banish all
the native Christians not only from the Church itself but from their
monasteries and establishments in Jerusalem, whether they were
Orthodox, like the Greeks and the Georgians, or heretics, like the
Armenians, the Jacobites and the Nestorians. He also offended
local propriety by introducing women to serve in the Holy Places.
Because of these enormities all the lamps in the Church of the Holy
Sepulchre went out on the eve of Easter, 1101, and the Sacred Fire
would not descend from heaven to light them again till the five
dispossessed communities prayed together that the Franks might
be forgiven. Baldwin took heed of the lesson. He insisted that the
wrongs of the natives should be righted. The keys of the Sepulchre
itself were restored to the Greeks. Thenceforward he seems to have
enjoyed the support of all the Christians of Palestine. The higher
clergy were all Franks, though there were Greek canons at the
Holy Sepulchre. The Orthodox natives accepted this ; for their own
higher clergy had left the country in the troubled years just before
the Crusade. The Latin hierarchs were never liked; but local
Orthodox monasteries carried on without hindrance, and
Orthodox pilgrims that visited Palestine during the days of the
Prankish kingdom found no cause for complaint against the lay
powers either on their own behalf or on behalf of their native
brothers. The heretic Churches seem to have been equally content.
It was very different from the position in the Prankish states of
northern Syria, where both Orthodox and heretic alike resented
the Franks as oppressors. 1
1 See below, pp. 320-3 . There is a long account of the ceremony given in one
MS. of Fulcher of Chartres, which is printed in the edition in the Recueil des
Historiens des Croisades. Hagenmeyer, in his edition of Fulcher, notes that it
only appears in one MS. (L) and rejects it all except the introductory words
86
1103: Siege of Acre
The Egyptian defeat at Jaffa in 1102, and the fiasco of the
expedition in the spring of 1103 did not entirely exhaust al-AfdaTs
efforts. But it took him longer to raise another army. Baldwin
used the respite to strengthen his hold on the Palestinian sea-coast.
Though he possessed the towns on the coast from Jaffa up to Haifa,
Moslem marauders haunted the roads between them, in particular
round the slopes of Mount Carmel. Even the road from Jaffa to
Jerusalem was unsafe, as the pilgrim Saewulf noted. 1 From the
Egyptian-held ports of Tyre and Acre pirates would slip out to
intercept Christian merchantmen. In the late autumn of 1102 the
ships that were transporting home the pilgrims whose coming had
saved Baldwin at Jaffa in May were driven ashore by storms at
various parts of the coast, some near Ascalon and some between
Tyre and Sidon. The passengers were either all slain or sold in the
slave-markets of Egypt. 2 In the spring of 1103 Baldwin, who still
had some of the English ships to assist him, undertook the siege of
Acre. The garrison was about to surrender to him when twelve
Fatimid galleys and a large transport from Tyre and Sidon sailed
into the port, laden with men and with engines for firing Greek
fire. Baldwin had to raise the siege. 3 Later in the summer Baldwin
attempted to clear Mount Carmel of its robbers. He was only
partly successful; for in a skirmish he was severely wounded in the
kidneys; and for a while they despaired of his life. While he lay
sick in Jerusalem there was news of the double expedition of Taj
al-Ajam and Ibn Qadus. But Taj al-Ajam s refusal to advance
conturbati sunt omnes propter ignem quern die sabbati non habuimus ad
Sepulcrum Domini (n, viii, 2, p. 396). See bis note 5, pp. 395-6, for a full
discussion. He prints die interpolated text, with, those found in Bartolf of
Nangis and Guibert of Nogent, in an appendix (ibid. pp. 831-7). As Fulcher
was Baldwin s chaplain he must himself have been present at the ceremony.
The Abbot Daniel (ed. de Khitrowo, pp. 75-83) gives an account of the
ceremony in 1107. It is clear from this narrative that the Greeks had charge of
the Sepulchre itself.
1 Pilgrimage of Saewulf (P.P.T.S., vol. iv), pp. 8-9.
a Albert of Aix, ix, 18, pp. 600-1.
3 Albert of Aix, ix, 15, p. 599; Ibn al-Athir, p. 213, giving the wrong year
(495 A.H., instead of 496).
8?
King Baldwin I
beyond Ascalon obliged Ibn Qadus to attempt the siege of Jaffa
alone. His efforts were half-hearted. As soon as Baldwin had
recovered sufficiently to lead an army down to the coast, the
Egyptian fleet sailed away. 1
Next May the Genoese armada of seventy galleys which had
helped Raymond of Toulouse to capture Jebail sailed into Haifa.
Baldwin met its leaders there and secured their alliance for the
reduction of Acre, promising the usual fee of one-third of the
booty and commercial privileges and a quarter in the bazaar. The
allies began the siege on 6 May. The Fatimid commander, the
mameluk Bena Zahr ad-Daulah al-Juyushi, put up a stubborn
resistance; but he received no aid from Egypt. After twenty days
he offered to capitulate, on terms similar to those granted at Arsuf.
Such citizens as wished could leave safely with their movable
belongings; the others would become subjects of the Prankish
king. Baldwin for his part accepted and kept to these terms, even
allowing a mosque to be reserved for his Moslem subjects. But
the Italian sailors could not bear to see so much wealth escape them.
They fe]l on the emigrants, slaying many and robbing them all.
Baldwin was furious. He would have attacked the Genoese to
punish them had not the Patriarch Evremar arrived and patched
up a reconciliation.*
The possession of Acre gave Baldwin what he sorely needed,
a harbour that was safe in all weathers. Though it was more than
a hundred miles from the capital, it at once became the chief port
of the kingdom, replacing Jaffa with its open roadstead. It was
moreover the chief port through which merchandize from
Damascus was shipped to the West; and its conquest by the
Franks did not interrupt this traffic, to which the Moslems still
resident in Acre gave encouragement. 3
1 Fulctierof Chartres,n,xxiv, i, pp. 460-1 ; Albert of Aix, ix, 22-3, pp. 103-4.
2 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xxv, 1-3, pp. 462-4; Albert of Aix, IX, 27-9,
pp. 606-8; CafFaro, Liberatio, pp. 71-2; Charter of Baldwin in Liber Jurium
Reipublicae Genuensis, vol. I, pp. 16-17.
3 See below, p. 318. The trade was still continuing in Ibn Jubayr s time
(1183).
: Third Battle of Ramleh
In the summer of 1105 the vizier al-Afdal made a final attempt
to reconquer Palestine. A well-equipped army of five thousand
Arab horsemen and Sudanese infantry, under his son Sena al-Mulk
Husein, assembled at Ascalon at the beginning of August.
Profiting by the lessons of their previous failures, the Egyptians
decided to ask for the co-operation of the Turkish rulers of
Damascus. In 1102 or 1103 Damascus help would have been in
valuable. But Duqaq of Damascus had died in June 1104 and his
family disputed the inheritance with his atabeg Toghtekin, while
Ridwan of Aleppo came south to seek a share of it. Toghtekin
first placed Duqaq s one-year-old son Tutush on the throne, then
replaced him by Duqaq s twelve-year-old brother, Irtash. Irtash
soon suspected his guardian s intentions, and fled to the Hauran,
whose leading emir, Aytekin of Bosra, gave him asylum. From
Bosra he appealed to King Baldwin, who invited him to Jerusalem.
Under these circumstances Toghtekin was glad to help the
Egyptians but could not venture to send a large force to join them.
He sent his general Sabawa south with thirteen hundred mounted
archers. 1 In August the Egyptian army moved up into Palestine,
where the Damascene troops joined it, after having come down
through Transjordan and across the Negeb. Baldwin was waiting
at Jaffa. When the Egyptian fleet hove into sight he took up a
position on the inevitable battlefield of Ramleh. Jaffa was kept
under the command of Lithard of Cambrai, with three hundred
men. With Baldwin was the young Damascene pretender, Irtash,
and the whole of the rest of the Prankish troops in Palestine, the
garrisons of Galilee, Haifa and Hebron as well as the central army,
five hundred horsemen and two thousand infantry. At Baldwin s
request the Patriarch Evremar came down from Jerusalem with
one hundred and fifty men that he had recruited there and with
the True Cross.
The battle took place on Sunday, 27 August. At dawn the
Patriarch rode up and down in front of the Prankish lines, in his
full robes, the Cross in his hand, giving his blessing and absolution.
1 Ibn al-Qaknisi, p. 71 ; Ibn al-Athir, p. 229.
King Baldwin I
Then the Franks attacked. A counter-attack by the Damascene
Turks nearly broke their ranks; but Baldwin, taking his standard
into his own hands, led a charge that scattered them. The Egyptians
fought more bravely than usual; but their left wing had gone off
in a vain attempt to surprise Haifa, and returned too late. By
evening the Moslems were beaten. Sabawa and his Turks fled
back to their own land, and the Egyptians retreated on Ascalon,
whence their commander, Sena al-Mulk, hurried back to Cairo.
Their losses had been heavy. The governor of Ascalon was slain,
and the ex-commanders of Acre and Arsuf captured and later
ransomed at a high price. Fulcher of Chartres could not help
regretting that Sena al-Mulk had escaped, because of the rich
ransom that he would have commanded. But the Prankish losses
also were heavy. After pillaging their camp Baldwin did not
further pursue the Egyptians. Nor did he continue his support of
the young Prince Irtash, who retired disconsolate to ar-Rahba on
the Euphrates. The Egyptian fleet sailed back to Egypt, having
achieved nothing except the loss of some ships in a storm. 1
This third battle of Ramleh ended the last large-scale attempt of
the Fatimids to reconquer Palestine. But they still were dangerous
to the Franks; and a smaller raid in the autumn of 1106 nearly
succeeded where their greater armies had failed. That October,
when Baldwin was engaged on the Galilean frontier, some
thousand Egyptian horsemen suddenly attacked a pilgrim camp
between Jaffa and Arsuf and massacred its inhabitants. They then
rode on Ramleh, which was defended only by eight knights, who
were easily overwhelmed. The governor of Jaffa, Roger of Rozoy,
went out against them but fell into an ambush and only extricated
himself by flying headlong back to Jaffa. So hotly was he pursued
that forty of his foot-soldiers were caught outside the gates and
slain. Next, the Egyptians rode up towards Jerusalem, and
attacked a small castle, Chastel Arnaud, that Baldwin had not
quite completed to guard the road. The workmen surrendered,
1 Albert of Aix, ix, 48-50, pp. 621-4; Fulcher of Chartres, n, xxxi, i-xxxiii,
3, pp. 489-503 ; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 228-9; Ibn Moyessar, p. 466.
90
uo6-8: Attacks on the Moslem Coastal Cities
but were killed, with the exception of their commander, Geoffrey,
Castellan of the Tower of David, who was taken off to be ran
somed. But by now Baldwin had heard of the raid and marched
south in force. The Egyptians retired to Ascalon. 1
The following year an Egyptian expedition nearly captured
Hebron, but was driven off by Baldwin in person; and in mo the
Egyptians penetrated to the walls of Jerusalem, only to retire at
once.* Similar raids on a lesser scale took place from time to time
during the next ten years, rendering life unsafe for Christian
settlers and pilgrims in the coastal plain and in the Negeb; but
they became little more than reprisals for Baldwin s own raids
into Moslem territory.
Baldwin therefore felt free to continue his attempt to expand
the kingdom. His chief objectives were the coastal cities, Ascalon
in the south and Tyre, Sidon and Beirut in the north. Both
Ascalon and Tyre were strong fortresses with a large permanent
garrison; their reduction would need careful preparation. In the
spring of 1 1 06 the presence in the Holy Land of a krge convoy of
English, Flemish and Danish pilgrims induced Baldwin to plan an
expedition against Sidon. The governor of Sidon, learning of this,
hastened to send the King an enormous sum of money. Baldwin,
always in need of money, accepted the gift; and for two years
Sidon was left in peace. 3
In August 1108 Baldwin marched out again against Sidon, with
the support of a squadron of sailor-adventurers from various
Italian cities. The governor at once hired the support of the Turks
of Damascus for thirty thousand besants, while a powerful
Egyptian squadron sailed up from Egypt and defeated the Italians
in a sea-battle outside the harbour. Baldwin was obliged to raise
the siege. Thereupon the Sidonians refused to admit the Turks into
the city, fearing, with some reason, that Toghtekin had designs on
it. The governor even refused to pay the promised besants. The
Turks threatened to summon back Baldwin; but when he showed
1 Albert of Aix, x, 10-14, pp. 635-8.
2 Ibid, x, 33, pp. 646-7; xi, 28, p. 676. 3 Ibid, x, 4-7, pp. 632-4
91
King Baldwin I
signs of returning they agreed to retire, with nine thousand
besants as compensation. 1
Next summer Baldwin assisted Bertrand of Toulouse to capture
Tripoli; and in return, early in mo, Bertrand sent men to help
Baldwin attack Beirut. Genoese and Pisan ships were at hand to
blockade the town; and Tripoli provided them with a convenient
base. Fatimid ships from Tyre and Sidon tried in vain to break the
blockade. The siege lasted from February till mid-May, when
the governor, despairing of further help, fled by night through the
Italian fleet to Cyprus, where he gave himself up to the Byzantine
governor. The city that he had abandoned was taken by assault on
13 May. The Italians conducted a general massacre of the inhabi
tants before Baldwin could restore order. 2
During that summer further naval reinforcements reached
Baldwin from the West. In 1107 a fleet set out from Bergen in
Norway under Sigurd, who shared the Norwegian throne with
his two brothers, and, sailing across the North Sea and round by
Gibraltar, calling on the way in England, Castile, Portugal, the
Balearic Islands and Sicily, arrived at Acre just as Baldwin was
returning from the capture of Beirut. Sigurd was the first crowned
head to visit the kingdom; and Baldwin received him with great
honour, conducting him personally to Jerusalem. Sigurd agreed
to help the Franks to besiege Sidon. The allies began the siege in
October. Sidon was vigorously defended. The Norwegian ships
were nearly dispersed by a powerful Fatimid flotilla from Tyre,
but were saved by the arrival of a Venetian squadron, under the
command of the Doge himself, Ordelafo Falieri. Meanwhile, the
governor of Sidon devised a plan for Baldwin s assassination.
A renegade Moslem in Baldwin s personal service agreed for a
large sum to undertake the murder. But the native Christians in
Sidon heard of the plot and shot an arrow with a message fixed on
1 Ibid, x, 48-51, pp. 653-5; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 87.
a Fulcher of Chartres, n, xlii, 1-3, p. 536, giving the date as 13 May in an
astronomical poem; Albert of Aix, p. 671, gives the date as 27 May; Ibn
al-Qalanisi, pp. 99-101 (13 May).
92
mo : Capture ofSidon
it into the Prankish camp to warn the King. Sidon eventually
capitulated on 4 December, on the same terms that had been
granted to Acre. The notables of the town left with all their
belongings for Damascus; but the poorer folk remained and
became subjects of the Prankish king; who promptly levied from
them a tax of twenty thousand gold besants. The Venetians were
rewarded by the gift of a church and some property at Acre.
Sidon was entrusted as a barony to Eustace Gamier, who was
already governor of Caesarea, and who soon after consolidated his
position by his politic marriage to the Patriarch Arnulf s niece
Emma. 1
The Franks now controlled the whole of the Syrian coast, with
the exception of the two fortresses of Ascalon at the southern end
and Tyre in the centre. The governor of Tyre was nervous. In
the autumn of 1 1 1 1 he sent to Toghtekin at Damascus to hire from
him for the sum of twenty thousand besants a corps of five
hundred archers, and at the same time he asked permission for
hims@lf and his notables to send their more valuable possessions
to Damascus for their preservation. Toghtekin agreed; and a rich
caravan containing the money and the goods set out from the
coast. As it had to pass through the country held by the Franks,
the Tyrian governor, Izz al-Mulk, bribed a Prankish knight called
Rainfred to guide it and to guarantee its safety. Rainfred accepted
the terms and promptly informed Baldwin; who fell upon the
unsuspecting Tyrians and robbed them of all their wealth.
Encouraged by this windfall Baldwin brought up his whole army
at the end of November to attack the walls of Tyre. But he had
no fleet to help him, apart from twelve Byzantine vessels under
the Byzantine ambassador Butumites; and the Byzantines were
not prepared to take hostile action against the Fatimids, with
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xliv, 1-7, pp. 543-8; Albert of Aix, xi, 26, 30-4,
pp. 675, 677; William of Tyre, xi, 14, pp. 476-9, who tells of the native
Christians; Sigurdar Saga in Agrip afNoregs Konungasdgum,passimy Sigurdar Saga
Jdrsalafara ok Broedra Hans, pp. 75 ff. ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 106-8 ; Ibn al-Athir,
p. 275; Dandolo in Muratori, Ss. R.I. vol. xn, p. 264; Tafel and Thomas,
I, 86, 91, 145; Riant, Les Scandinaves en Terre Sainte, chap, iv, passim.
93
King Baldwin I
whom their relations were good, unless they were given serious
compensation. They demanded that Baldwin should in return
help them to recover the cities that they had lost to the princes of
Antioch. As Baldwin hesitated to commit himself, the Byzantines
did no more than supply the Prankish army with provisions. The
siege of Tyre lasted till the following April. The Tyrians fought
well, burning down the huge wooden siege-towers that Baldwin
had constructed; but at least they were reduced to seeking aid
from Toghtekin. Before taking this step Izz al-Mulk wrote to the
Egyptian court to justify his action. Toghtekin s first attempt to
establish contact failed, as a carrier-pigeon was intercepted by an
Arab in Prankish service. His Prankish comrade wished to let the
bird go, but he took it to Baldwin. Men were sent in disguise to
meet the Damascene ambassadors, who were captured and put to
death. But nevertheless Toghtekin advanced on Tyre, surprising
a Prankish foraging party and besieging the Franks in their camp
while he raided the countryside. Baldwin was obliged to lift the
siege and to fight his way back to Acre. 1
He was equally unsuccessful at Ascalon. He had marched
against the fortress immediately after his capture of Sidon. The
governor, Shams al-Khilafa, being commercially minded, was
weary of all this fighting. He bought an armistice for a sum
which he then tried to levy from the people of Tyre, which was
under his jurisdiction. His actions were reported to Egypt; and
al-Afdal sent loyal troops there with orders to depose him. Shams
al-Khilafa, suspecting their purpose, refused to admit them, and
even dismissed those of his troops that he suspected of Fatimid
sympathies, recruiting Armenian mercenaries in their place. He
then went himself to Jerusalem to put himself and his city under
Baldwin s protection. He returned ^vith three hundred Prankish
soldiers whom he installed in the citadel. But this treason shocked
the Ascalonites. In July mi, with help from Egypt, they staged
a coup d etat, murdering Shams and massacring the Franks. Bald-
1 Albert of Aix, xn, 3-7, pp. 690-3; Ibn al-Athir, p. 257; Ibn Moyessar,
p. 467.
94
1105: Castles in Galilee
win hurried down to rescue his men but arrived too late. Ascalon
was to remain a thorn in the Franks flesh for another forty years. 1
A similar attempt to establish a protectorate over Baalbek with
the help of the governor, the eunuch al-Taj Gumushtekin, had
failed in the spring of mo. Toghtekin heard of the plot and
replaced Gumushtekin by his own son Taj al-Mulk Buri. 2
Baldwin s main preoccupation had been to secure for his
kingdom an adequate coast-line. But he was also concerned to
give it suitable land frontiers and at the same time to take full
advantage of its proximity to the great Arab trade-routes from
Iraq and Arabia to the Mediterranean and to Egypt. When Tan-
cred had left Palestine for Antioch, Baldwin entrusted the princi
pality of Galilee, which retained the grandiloquent name that
Tancred had given it, to his former neighbour in France, Hugh of
Saint-Omer; and Hugh had been encouraged in an aggressive
policy against the Moslems. His first action was to construct in
the mountains, over the road between Tyre and Banyas and
Damascus, a castle called Toron, the Tibnin of to-day. Then, in
order the better to conduct raids in the rich lands east of the Sea
of Galilee, he built another castle on the hills south-west of the
lake, called by the Arabs al-Al. These two fortresses were com
pleted by the autumn of 1105 ; but the second had a short life in
Christian hands. Toghtekin of Damascus could not allow such a
threat to his territory. At the end of the year, when Hugh was
returning to al-Al, heavily laden after a successful raid, the
Damascene army fell on him. He was mortally wounded in the
battle and his men scattered. Toghtekin was then able without
difficulty to take over the castle. Hugh s brother, Gerard of
Saint-Omer, who was seriously ill at the time, did not long survive
Hugh. Baldwin therefore gave the fief of Galilee to a French
knight, Gervase of Basoches. 3
1 Albert of Aix, xi, 36-7, pp. 680-1; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 108-10.
2 Ibn al-Qalanisi, op. cit. p. 106; Sibt ibn al-Djauzi, p. 537.
3 William of Tyre, xi, 5, pp. 459-60 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 72, 75 ; Ibn al-Athir,
pp. 229-30; Albert of Aix, x, 8, pp. 635-6.
95
King Baldwin I
Guerrilla warfare continued. In 1106 the Tyrians made a raid
against Toron, to coincide with a Damascene raid against Tiberias.
Neither raid was successful; and on Baldwin s approach, the
Damascenes sent to his camp to arrange for a short armistice. His
gracious and munificent reception of their envoys did much to
enhance his reputation among the Moslems. But the truce was
brief. 1 In the spring of 1108 Toghtekin again raided Galilee and
in a battle outside Tiberias managed to capture Gervase of Baso-
ches, together with most of his staff. He then sent to Baldwin to
say that the price for their liberation was the three cities of
Tiberias, Acre and Haifa. When Baldwin refused the offer,
Gervase was put to death, and his scalp, with its white locks
waving, was carried on a pole before the victorious Moslem army. 2
Baldwin then gave back the title of Prince of Galilee to Tancted,
but probably administered the principality from Jerusalem. In
1113, after Tancred s death, when Baldwin of Edessa banished
Joscelin of Courtenay from his county, the exile was com
pensated by the King with Galilee. 3
At the end of 1108 Baldwin and Toghtekin, both of whose main
interests lay elsewhere, made a ten years truce, dividing the
revenues of the districts of Sawad and Ajlun, that is to say,
northern Transjordan, between them. A third was to go to
Baldwin, a third to Toghtekin and a third was to remain with the
local authorities. 4 The reasons for the truce were probably com
mercial. Raids were ruining the carrying trade that went through
the country; and all parties would benefit by its resumption. The
truce was purely local. It did not keep Toghtekin from coming
to the help of the Moslem coastal cities, nor did it restrain Baldwin
from his attempt to turn Baalbek into a vassal-city. But Arab
historians remarked with gratitude that owing to it Baldwin did
1 Albert of Aix, x, 25-6, pp. 642-3 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 75.
2 Albert of Aix, x, 57, p. 658; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 86-7; Ibn al-Athir,
pp. 268-9. He calls Gervase die son of Baldwin s sister.
3 Albert of Aix, xr, 12, p. 668; William of Tyre, xi, 22, p. 492.
4 Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 92; Ibn al-Athir, p. 269.
no8: Truce with Damascus
not invade Damascene land when Toghetin s defeat by William-
Jordan at Arqa would have offered a useful opportunity. 1 The
desire for a truce may have arisen on Baldwin s side as a result of
Gervase s defeat and the consequent danger of raids from Trans-
Jordan into Galilee, and on the Moslems after two recent raids,
one conducted by a newly arrived pilgrim to Palestine, Robert of
Normandy s son, William Cliton, on a wealthy Arab princess who
was journeying with all her belongings from Arabia to Damascus,
and the other on a merchant caravan bound from Damascus to
Egypt. On the first occasion the Franks obtained four thousand
camels, and on the second all the merchandise of the caravan, whose
survivors were slaughtered kter by the Bedouin. 3 The treaty was
broken in 1113, when Baldwin invaded Damascene territory. 3
From 1 1 1 1, after his failure before Tyre, Baldwin was for a time
occupied by affairs in northern Syria. He had already made it
clear, at Tripoli in 1109, that he intended to be master of all the
Prankish East; and events at Antioch and Edessa enabled him to
reassert his claim. 4 He could also once more turn his attention to
the aggrandizement of his personal domain. He had always been
aware that Palestine was open to invasion and infiltration from the
south-east, through the Negeb, and that the command of the
country between the Dead Sea and the Gulf of Akaba was neces
sary in order to cut off Egypt from the eastern Moslem world. In
1107 Toghtekin had sent a Damascene army into Edom, at the
invitation of the local Bedouin, to establish a base from which
Judaea could be raided. The Idumaean wilderness contained
several Greek monasteries; and one of the monks, a certain Theo
dore, urged BaMwin to intervene. Baldwin marched down close
to the Turkish ^ampment in the Wadi Musa, near Petra; but he
wished to avoid"% battle. Theodore therefore offered to go as
though a fugitiv^to Toghtekin s general, to warn him that a huge
Prankish army wf| at hand. The Turks were alarmed and retreated
t ;
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 269-70.
2 Albert of Aix, x, 45, p. 653; Ibn al-Athir, p. 272.
3 See below, p. 126. 4 See above, pp. 67-8 and pp. 115-16.
RC
97
King Baldwin I
at full speed back to Damascus. Baldwin then punished the
Bedouin by smoking them out of the caverns in which they lived
and carrying off their flocks. When he returned northward, he
took with him many of the native Christians, who feared reprisals
from the Bedouin. 1
Baldwin returned to the Idumaean country in 1 1 1 5 . He decided
that it must be permanently occupied. Coming down from
Hebron round the base of the Dead Sea and across the Wadi
al-Araba, the stark valley that runs from the Dead Sea towards the
Gulf of Akaba, he arrived at one of the few fertile spots in that
bleak region, Shobak, on a wooded range between the depression
and the Arabian desert. There, almost a hundred miles from the
nearest Prankish settlement, he constructed a great castle, in which
he left a garrison, well stocked with arms, and to whom he gave
the name of The Royal Mountain, le Krak de Montreal. Next
year, at the head of his army and with a long train of mules bearing
provisions, he plunged farther into unknown Arabia. He revisited
Montreal and marched on southward, till at last his weary men
reached the shores of the Red Sea, at Akaba. There they bathed
their horses in the sea and caught the fishes for which those waters
are renowned. The local inhabitants, terrified, took to their boats
and fled. Baldwin occupied the town, called by the Franks Aila or
Elyn, and fortified it with a citadel. He then sailed across to the
little island, the Jesirat Far un, called by the Franks Le Graye, where
he built a second castle. Garrisons were left in both strongholds.
Thanks to them, the Franks now dominated the roads between
Damascus and Arabia and Egypt. They could raid the caravans at
their ease, and made it difficult for any Moslem army to reach
Egypt from the East. 2
On his return from the shores of the Red Sea, Baldwin marched
again against Tyre, but contented himself with setting up a strict
1 Albert of Aix, x, 28-9, pp. 644-5; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 81-2. For the
Greek monasteries in the district see above, p. 72, n. i.
2 Albert of Aix, xn, 21-2, pp. 702-3 ; William of Tyre, xi, 29, p 505.
For Aila, see Musil, article Aila , in Encyclopaedia of Islam.
98
in8: Baldwin invades Egypt
blockade of the city from the land. To that end he built a castle at
Scandelion, where the coast road begins to climb up the side of
the cliff to the pass known as the Ladder of Tyre. 1 Sidon already
controlled the approach to Tyre from the north and the castle of
Toron from the east. Scandelion completed its encirclement.
Encouraged by his achievements, Baldwin embarked in 1 1 1 8 on
a bolder expedition. Fatimid armies from Ascalon had twice
lately conducted successful raids into his territory. In 1113, when
he was engaged against the Turks in the north, they had advanced
as far as the walls of Jerusalem, pillaging as they came; and in
1115 they almost succeeded in surprising Jaffa. Baldwin s answer
now was to invade Egypt itself. Early in March, after careful
negotiations with the sheikhs of the desert tribes, he led a small
army of two hundred and sixteen horsemen and four hundred
foot-soldiers, well supplied with provisions, from Hebron across
the Sinai peninsula, to the Mediterranean coast at Farama, well
within the Egyptian frontier, close to the mouth of the Pelusian
branch of the Nile. He prepared to take the city by assault, but
the garrison had fled in panic. He marched on to the Nile itself;
and his men were agape to see the famous river. But there a mortal
illness struck him down. He retired back dying towards Palestine. 2
By his unwearying campaigns and his use of every opportunity
King Baldwin had raised his inheritance to be a consolidated state
comprising the whole historic province of Palestine. With only
Tyre and Ascalon still out of his grasp, he controlled the country
from Beirut in the north to Beersheba in the south, with the
Jordan as his eastern frontier and with outposts in the far south-east
to command the approaches from Arabia. His fellow-Christians
in the Prankish East acknowledged his hegemony ; and he had won
the respect of his Moslem neighbours. His work had ensured that
the kingdom of Jerusalem would not easily be destroyed.
Of the internal administration of his kingdom we have very
little evidence. Broadly speaking, it was feudal. But Baldwin
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, bdi, I, pp. 605-6; William of Tyre, xi, 30, p. 507.
a Albert of Aix, xn, 25, p. 705; Ibn al-Atiir, p. 314.
99 7 2
King Baldwin I
kept most of the country in his own hands, appointing viscounts
as his deputies. Even the greatest of the fiefs, the principality of
Galilee, was for some years without its lord. The fiefs were not yet
considered to be hereditary. When Hugh of Saint-Omer was
killed, it was thought that his brother Gerard would have suc
ceeded to his principality had his health permitted, but his right
was not absolute. Baldwin himself evolved a rough constitution
for the kingdom. He himself governed through a household that
was increasing in size; and his feudatories had their own. To
Baldwin were due the arrangements with the Italians in the sea
ports, who were not obliged to assist on military campaigns, but
had to take part in the naval defence of their localities. 1
Baldwin had made it clear that he intended to control the
Church. Once he was sure of its support he treated it generously,
freely endowing it with lands conquered from the infidel. His
generosity was to some degree mistaken; for the Church was free
of the obligation to provide soldiers. On the other hand he
expected it to provide him with money.
Frequent incidents showed that Baldwin was popular with the
native Christians. Ever since the episode at Easter, 1101, he had
been careful to have regard for their susceptibilities. At his courts
they were allowed to use their own languages and to follow their
own customs; and the Church was not allowed to interfere with
their religious practices. In the last years of his reign he encouraged
the immigration of Christians, heretic as well as Orthodox, from
the neighbouring countries under Moslem rule. He needed an
industrious peasant population to occupy the lands left empty in
Judaea by the departure of the Moslems. He favoured marriage
between the Franks and the natives, for which he himself had set an
example. Very few of the barons took local brides; but the prac
tice became common among the poorer Prankish soldiers and
settlers. Their cross-bred children were to provide the kingdom
later with most of its soldiers. 2
1 See La Monte, Feudal Monarchy, pp. 228-30; see below, p. 292.
2 See below, p. 294.
100
Baldwin and the Eastern Peoples
Baldwin showed similar affability towards the Moslems and
Jews that consented to become his subjects. A few mosques and
synagogues were permitted. In the law courts Moslems might
swear on the Koran and Jews on the Torah ; and infidel litigants
could rely on obtaining justice. 1 Intermarriage with Moslems was
allowed. In 1114 the Patriarch Arnulf was severely scolded by
Pope Paschal for having performed a marriage ceremony between
a Christian and a Moslem lady. 3
Therein Pope Paschal showed once again his misunderstanding
of the East. For if the Franks were to survive there, they must not
remain an alien minority but must become part of the local world.
Baldwin s chaplain, Fulcher of Chartres, in a lyrical chapter in his
History, remarked on the miraculous work of God in turning
Occidentals into Orientals. That eastern and western races should
blend seemed to him admirable; he saw it as a step towards the
union of nations. Throughout the existence of the Crusading
states we find the same story. Wise Prankish statesmen in the East
followed Baldwin s tradition, adopting local customs and forming
local friendships and alliances, while newcomers from the West
brought with them chauvinistic ideas that were disastrous for the
country.
T]ie King had already offended the Pope, when his conquests
along the Syrian coasts had brought into his power towns, notably
Sidon and Beirut, whose churches historically belonged to the
Patriarch of Antioch. The proper administration of the kingdom
demanded that they should be transferred to the jurisdiction of
the Patriarch of Jerusalem; and Baldwin thereupon transferred
them. The Patriarch of Antioch, Bernard, protested to the Pope
against such an uncanonical act. Paschal had in mo informed
Jerusalem that in view of changed circumstances the historic
position could be ignored. In 1112, with his habitual weakness,
he veered round and supported the claims of Antioch. Baldwin
blandly ignored the Pope s new decision. In spite of a petulant
1 See below, p. 304.
a Rohricht, Regesta, no. 83, p. 19.
101
King Baldwin I
reproof from Paschal, the bishoprics remained under the Patriar
chate of Jerusalem. 1
Baldwin himself made one serious lapse with regard to his
marriage. He had never much cared for his Armenian bride since
the day that her father, terrified of his ruthless son-in-law, had
decamped with her promised dowry. Baldwin was fond of
amorous adventures; but he was discreet and the presence of a
queen at the court prevented him from indulging in his tastes. The
Queen also had a reputation for gaiety and had even,, it was said,
bestowed her favours upon Moslem pirates when she was voyaging
down from Antioch to take over her throne. There were no
children to bind them together. After a few years, when there
was no longer the smallest political advantage to the marriage,
Baldwin dismissed her from the Court on the grounds of adultery
and obliged her to enter into the convent of St Anne in Jerusalem,
which, to salve his conscience, he richly endowed. But the Queen
had no vocation for the monastic life. She soon demanded and
received permission to retire to Constantinople, where her parents
had been living since their ejection from Marash by the Franks.
There she abandoned her monastic robe and settled down to taste
all the pleasures that the great city provided. 3 Meanwhile
Baldwin rejoiced to find himself able to lead a bachelor life once
more. But he still needed money; and in the winter of 1112 he
learnt that the most eligible widow in Europe was seeking a
husband. Adelaide of Salona, Countess-Dowager of Sicily, had
just retired from the regency of her county on the coming-
of-age of her young son, Roger II. She was immensely rich; and
a royal title attracted her. To Baldwin she was desirable not only
for her dowry but also for her influence over the Normans of
Sicily; whose alliance would help to supply him with sea-power
and would act as a counter-weight against the Normans of
Antioch. He sent to ask for her hand. The Countess accepted on
1 William of Tyre, xi, 28, pp. 502-5.
2 Guibert of Nogent, p. 259, telling of her loose life; William of Tyre,
xi, i, pp. 451-2, suggesting that she took to evil ways after her divorce.
102
1113 : Baldwins Marriage with Adelaide
her own terms. Baldwin was childless. The children of his first
wife had died in Anatolia during the First Crusade; and his
Armenian Queen had borne him none. Adelaide insisted that if
no baby was born of her marriage to Baldwin and the ages of
the bride and bridegroom gave little promise of a baby the
crown of Jerusalem was to pass to her son, Count Roger.
The contract was made ; and in the summer of 1 1 1 3 the Countess
set out from Sicily in such splendour as had not been seen on the
Mediterranean since Cleopatra sailed for the Cy dnus to meet Mark
Antony. She lay on a carpet of golden thread in her galley,
whose prow was plated with silver and with gold. Two other
triremes accompanied her, their prows equally ornate, bearing her
military escort, prominent amongst whom were the Arab soldiers
of her son s own bodyguard, their dark faces shining against the
spotless white of their robes. Seven other ships followed in her
wake, their holds laden with all her personal treasure. She landed
at Acre in August. There King Baldwin met her, with all the pomp
that his kingdom could provide. He and all his Court were clad
in costly silks; and their horses and mules were hung with purple
and gold. Rich carpets were laid in the streets, and from the
windows and balconies fluttered purple banners. The towns and
villages along the road to Jerusalem bore like finery. All the
country rejoiced, but not so much at the coming of its new,
ageing mistress as at the wealth that she brought in her train. 1
Despite its gorgeous beginning, the marriage was not a success.
Baldwin at once took over the Queen s dowry, which he used to
pay off the overdue wages of his soldiers and to spend on works
of fortification; and the money coming into circulation enriched
the commerce of the country. But the effect soon wore off; and
the disadvantages of the marriage became apparent. Pious folk
1 Albert of Aix, xn, 13-14, pp- 696-8 ; William of Tyre, xi, 21, pp. 487-9;
Fulcher of Chartres, II, li, pp. 575-7- Adelaide was the daughter of a Marquis
Manfred and niece of Boniface of Salona, and had married Roger I of Sicily
as his third wife in 1089. For her genealogy, see Chalandon, Histoire de la
Domination Normande en Italic, n, p. 391 n- 5-
103
King Baldwin I
remembered that Baldwin s previous wife had never been legally
divorced. They were shocked that the Patriarch Arnulf had
so willingly performed what was in fact a bigamous marriage
ceremony; and Arnulf s many enemies were quick to make use of
this irregularity. Their attack might have been less effective had
not all Baldwin s subjects been angered when they discovered that
he proposed to dispose of the succession to the kingdom without
consulting his council. Complaints against Arnulf poured into
Rome. A year after the royal marriage a papal legate, Berengar,
Bishop of Orange, arrived at Jerusalem. When he found that added
to the charges of simony against Arnulf there was the certainty
that he had condoned and blessed an adulterous connection, he
summoned the bishops and abbots of the Patriarchate to a synod
and declared Arnulf deposed. But Arnulf could not be disposed
of so easily. He saw to it that no successor was appointed and him
self went off in the winter of 1115 to Rome. There he used all his
persuasive charm on the Pope and the Cardinals, whose sympa
thies were strengthened by the well-chosen gifts that he made to
them. Paschal fell under his influence and repudiated his legate s
decision. Arnulf made one concession; he promised to order the
King to dismiss his Sicilian Queen. On those terms the Pope not
only declared that Arnulf s deposition was void but himself
presented him with the pallium, thus placing his position beyond
all question. In the summer of 1116 Arnulf returned triumphant
to Jerusalem. 1
The concession was willingly made; for Arnulf knew that
Baldwin, now that Adekide s dowry was spent, was half-
regretful of his marriage. Nor did Adelaide, used to the luxuries
of the palace at Palermo, find the discomforts of Solomon s
Temple at Jerusalem much to her liking. But Baldwin hesitated;
he was unwilling to lose the advantages of the Sicilian alliance.
He resisted Arnulf s demands; till in March 1117 he fell seriously
ill. Face to face with death he listened to his confessors, who told
1 Letter of Paschal II of 15 July 1116, M.P.L., vol. CLxm, cols. 408-9;
Albert of Aix, xn, 24, p. 704; William of Tyre, xr, 24, pp. 499-500.
104
in8: The Death of Princes
him that he was dying in a state of sin. He must dismiss Adelaide
and call his former wife to his side. He could not carry out all
their wishes; for the ex-Queen was not prepared to leave Con
stantinople, whose gallant pleasures she so richly enjoyed. But
when he recovered, he announced the annulment of his marriage
to Adelaide. Adekide herself, shorn of her wealth and almost
unescorted, sailed angrily back to Sicily. It was an insult that the
Sicilian Court never forgave. It was long before the kingdom of
Jerusalem was to receive any aid or sympathy from Sicily. 1
On 1 6 June 1117 there was an eclipse of the moon and another
on ii December, and five nights later the rare phenomenon of the
aurora borealis flickered through the Palestinian sky. It was a
terrible portent, foretelling the death of princes. 3 Nor did it lie.
On 21 January 1 1 1 8 Pope Paschal died at Rome. 3 On 16 April the
ex-Queen Adelaide ended her humiliated existence in Sicily. 4 Her
false friend the Patriarch Arnulf survived her for only twelve
days. 5 5 April saw the death of the Sultan Mohammed in Iran. 6
On 6 August the Caliph Mustazhir died at Baghdad. 7 On
15 August, after a long and painful illness, the greatest of the
eastern potentates, the Emperor Alexius, died at Constantinople. 8
In the early spring King Baldwin returned fever-stricken from
Egypt. His worn, overstrained body had no resistance left in it.
His soldiers carried him back, a dying man, to the little frontier-
fort of el-Arish. There, just beyond the borders of the kingdom
1 Albert of Aix, loc. dt.; William of Tyre, loc. dt.\ Fulcher of Chartres, n,
lix, 3, p. 601.
2 Fulcher of Chartres, n, Ixi, 1-3, Ixiii, 1-4, pp. 604-5, 607-8. Hagenmeyer s
notes discuss the dating. Fulcher mentions the death of Paschal, Baldwin,
Adelaide, Arnulf and Alexius.
3 Annales Romani, M.G.H. Ss. 9 vol. v, p. 477; William of Tyre, xn, 5, p. 518.
4 Necrologia Panormitana, in Forschungen zur deutschen Geschichte, vol. xvra,
pp. 472, 474; William of Tyre, xn, 5, p. 518.
5 See below, p. 144.
6 Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 156; Ibn al-Athir, p. 303, dates it 18 April.
7 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 310-11; Matthew of Edessa, ccxxvi, p. 297.
8 Zonaras, p. 759; William of Tyre, xn, 5, p. 517; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 157,
and Matthew of Edessa, ccxxviii, pp. 300-1, also record his death.
105
King Baldwin I
which owed to him its existence, he died on 2 April, in the arms
of the Bishop of Ramleh. His corpse was brought to Jerusalem,
and on Palm Sunday, 7 April, it was laid to rest in the Church of
the Holy Sepulchre, by the side of his brother Godfrey. 1
Lamentations accompanied the funeral procession, from Franks
and native Christians alike; and even the visiting Saracens were
moved. He had been a great King, harsh and unscrupulous, not
loved but deeply respected for his energy, his foresight and the
order and justice of his rule. He had inherited a tenuous, uncertain
realm, but by his martial vigour, his diplomatic subtlety and his
wise tolerance he had given it a solid place amongst the kingdoms
of the East.
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xiv, 1-5, pp. 609-13 ; Albert of Aix, xn, 26-9,
pp. 706-9; William of Tyre, xi, 31, pp. 508-9; Ibn al-Qalanisi, loc. cit.
106
CHAPTER VT
EQUILIBRIUM IN THE NORTH
They shall fight every one against his brother, and every one against
his neighbour. 9 ISAIAH xix, 2
Some years before he died, King Baldwin I had established him
self as the unquestioned leader -of the Franks in the East. It had
not been an easy achievement; and Baldwin succeeded in it by his
subde use of circumstances.
The capture of Baldwin of Le Bourg and Joscelin of Courtenay
at Harran and the departure of Bohemond to the West had left
Tancred without a rival among the Franks of northern Syria; and
dissensions amongst the Moslems had enabled him to take full
advantage of his opportunities. The Seldjuk empire was crumbling
to pieces, less from pressure from outside than from the quarrels
of its princes. The victory at Harran had brought Jekermish, the
atabeg of Mosul, to the fore amongst the Turkish magnates in
northern Syria and the Jezireh. The disastrous failure of his
attempt to pursue the offensive against the Franks had not
weakened his position among his fellow-Moslems. His former
ally and rival, Soqman the Ortoqid of Mardin, had died early in
1105, on his way to help beleaguered Tripoli; and Soqman s
brother Ilghazi and son Ibrahim disputed the inheritance. 1 Ridwan
of Aleppo had hoped that the victory of Ilghazi, who had formerly
served under him, would give him influence in the Jezireh ; but
Ilghazi forgot past loyalties; and Ridwan himself was too deeply
involved against the Franks of Antioch to assert his old over-
1 Ibn al-Fourat, quoted by Cahen, La Syrie du Nord, p. 248, n. 26; Ibn
al-Athir, pp. 226-7. Ilghazi took Mardin from Ibrahim in 1107. For the com
plicated history of the Moslem emirs, see Cahen, op. cit. pp. 246-9.
107
Equilibrium in the North
lordship. 1 The great Danishmend emir, Malik Ghazi Gumushte-
kin, died in 1106, leaving his dominions divided. Sivas and his
Anatolian lands went to Ghazi, his elder son, and Melitene and his
Syrian lands to the younger, Sangur. Sangur s youth and in
experience tempted Kilij Arslan, who had recently made peace
with Byzantium, to turn eastward and to attack Melitene, which
he captured in the autumn of 1106.* He then attempted to
have his self-assumed title of Sultan recognized throughout the
Turkish world and was ready to make friends with anyone that
would humour him in this. 3
Jekermish did not enjoy his pre-eminence for long. He was
inevitably involved in the quarrels of the Seldjuk Sultanate of the
East. When the Sultan Barkiyarok in 1104 was obliged to share
his dominion with his brother Mohammed, Mosul was allotted to
the latter s sphere. Jekermish tried to achieve independence by
declaring that his allegiance was to Barkiyarok alone; and defied
Mohammed s troops; but in January 1105, Barkiyarok died and
his inheritance passed in its entirety to Mohammed. Jekermish
was deprived of his excuse and hastened to submit to Mohammed;
who for the moment professed friendship and retired eastward
without venturing to make a triumphant entry into Mosul. 4
Probably at Mohammed s request, Jekermish then set about the
organization of a new campaign against the Franks. He formed
a coalition with Ridwan of Aleppo and Ridwan s lieutenant, the
aspahbad Sabawa, Ilghazi the Ortoqid, and his own son-in-law,
Albu ibn Arslantash of Sinjar. The allies suggested to Ridwan and
Albu that it would be more politic and profitable to please the
Sultan by an attack on Jekermish. They marched together on his
second city, Nisibin; but there his agents succeeded in embroiling
Ridwan with Ilghazi, whom Ridwan kidnapped at a banquet
before the walls of Nisibin and loaded with chains. The Ortoqid
1 Ibn al-Athir, loc. dt. * Michael die Syrian, ni, p. 192.
3 See article, * Kilij Arslan , in Encyclopaedia of Islam. Ibn al-Qaknisi, Ibn al-
Athir, and the other Arab chroniclers carefully only call him. Malik. Matthew of
Edessa calls him Sultan, as does Michael the Syrian. 4 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 224-5.
108
109
Equilibrium in the North
troops then attacked Ridwan and forced him to retire to Aleppo. 1
Jekermish was thus saved, and then himself attacked Edessa; but
after successfully defeating a sortie of Richard of the Principate s
troops, he returned home, to face fresh trouble. 2
Meanwhile Kilij Arslan, who had just taken over Melitene, in
his turn made an attempt against Edessa; but, finding it too
strongly defended, he moved on to Harran, which was sur
rendered to him by Jekermish s garrison. It was clear that the
Seldjuks of Rum sought to expand their power in the Moslem
world at the expense of their Persian cousins. 3
The Sultan Mohammed had never forgiven Jekermish for his
independent airs, and he suspected some collusion between him
and Kilij Arslan. In the winter of 1 106 he officially deprived him of
Mosul and gave it, with the lordship of the Jezireh and Diarbekr,
to a Turkish adventurer called Jawali Saqawa. Jawali led an army
against Jekermish, who advanced to meet him but was defeated
just outside the city and was himself captured. The inhabitants of
Mosul, where Jekermish had been a popular ruler, at once pro
claimed his young son Zenki as atabeg ; while friends outside the
city summoned the help of Kilij Arslan. Jawali thought it prudent
to retire, especially as Jekermish, whom he had hoped to use as
a bargaining counter, suddenly died on his hands. Mosul opened
its gates to Kilij Arslan, who promised to respect its liberties. 4
Jawali established himself in the Euphrates valley and from there
he entered into negotiations with Ridwan of Aleppo. They agreed
first to displace Kilij Arslan and then together to attack Antioch.
In June 1107 they led four thousand men against Mosul. Kilij
Arslan, operating far from his home, had an even smaller army, but
he came out to meet the allies on the banks of the river Khabar.
Despite his personal bravery, he was utterly defeated, and himself
perished when fleeing across the river. 5
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 225-6. 3 Matthew of Edessa, clxxxix, pp. 260-1.
3 Ibn al-Athir, p. 239. 4 Ibid. pp. 260-4.
5 Ibid. pp. 246-7; Matthew of Edessa, cxcvi, p. 264. He considered Kilij
Arslan s death a disaster for the whole Christian world, i.e. the Armenians.
110
noj: Release ofjoscelin
The elimination of Kilij Arslan affected the whole Oriental
world. It removed a potential danger from Byzantium at the
crucial moment when Bohemond was about to attack the Balkans ;
it enabled the Seldjuk Sultanate of Persia to endure for nearly a
century; and it was the first serious stage in the severance of the
Anatolian Turks from their brothers farther east. At the moment
it deprived Moslem Syria of the one force capable of bringing it
unity.
Jawali was now able to enter Mosul, where he soon made him
self odious by the savagery of his rule. Nor did he show more
deference to his overlord the Sultan Mohammed than Jekermish
had shown. After a year Mohammed planned to replace him, and
sent against him an army led by the Mameluk Mawdud, who for
the next few years became the chief protagonist of Islam. 1
During all this commotion Baldwin of Le Bourg had been
living as a prisoner at Mosul, while his cousin, Joscelin of Cour-
tenay, had passed at Soqman s death into the hands of Ilghazi, who
was planning to turn his nephew Ibrahim out of Mar din. Ilghazi
needed money and allies. He therefore agreed to release Joscelin
for the sum of twenty thousand dinars and the promise of military
aid. Joscelin s subjects at Turbessel willingly promised the ransom-
money; and Joscelin was released in the course of noy. 2 Thanks
to the arrangement, Ilghazi was able to capture Mardin. Joscelin
then sought to secure the release of Baldwin, who, with all
Jekermish s belongings, was in Jawali s power. The moment was
well chosen; for Jawali needed help against the coming attack of
Mawdud. He demanded sixty thousand dinars, the release of the
Moslem captives held at Edessa, and a military alliance. While the
negotiations were in progress, Jawali was driven from Mosul,
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 259-61; Bar Hebraeus, trans. Budge, i, p. 241.
2 Michael the Syrian, in, pp. 195-6, who says that the citizens of Turbessel
gave themselves as hostages rill the money should be raised, then escaped, so
that in fact none was paid. But Joscelin returned into captivity as hostage for
Baldwin, and made an excellent impression on the Sultan of Mosul who
specially asked to see him. Ibn al-Athir, p. 261, assumes that the money was
duly paid.
Ill
Equilibrium in the North
where he had found no support from the citizens, who opened
their gates to Mawdud. He established himself in the Jezireh,
taking Baldwin with him. 1
Joscelin succeeded in finding thirty thousand dinars without
great difficulty. He came himself with the money to the castle of
Qalat Jabar, on the Euphrates, where Jawali now lived, and he
offered himself as hostage if Baldwin might be released to raise the
remainder of the ransom. Jawali was moved by the gesture and
impressed by the gallantry of the Prankish prince. He accepted
Joscelin in Baldwin s place, then, a few months later, partly from
chivalry and partly from self-interest for he greatly desired this
Prankish alliance he set Joscelin free, relying on his word that the
money would be paid. His trust was justified. 2
Tancred had now been for four years the master of Edessa,where
his cousin, Richard of the Principate, governed in his name. He
had no wish to give it up to Baldwin. When Baldwin appeared at
Edessa, he agreed to raise the required thirty thousand dinars, but
he refused to hand back the town unless Baldwin swore allegiance
to him. Baldwin, as vassal to the King of Jerusalem, could not
agree, and went angrily to Turbessel, where Joscelin joined him;
and they sent to Jawali for help. Tancred marched on Turbessel,
where there was a slight skirmish, after which the combatants sat
down to an embarrassed banquet together, to discuss the question
once more. No settlement was reached ; and Baldwin, after sending
as a present to Jawali a hundred and sixty Moslem captives whom
he freed and re-equipped, moved north to find other allies.
Richard s government of Edessa was harsh and extortionate and
was particularly resented by the Armenians. Baldwin therefore
went to visit the leading Armenian prince of the neighbourhood,
Kogh Vasil of Kaisun, who had recently enhanced his prestige by
inducing the Armenian Catholicus to live under his protection.
Kogh Vasil received Baldwin at Raban and promised him aid;
1 Ibn al-Athir, p. 260; Bar Hebraeus, loc. cit.
2 Michael the Syrian, loc. dt.\ Chron. Anon. Syr. pp. 81-2; Bar Hebraeus,
trans. Budge, i, p. 243 ; Ibn al-Athir, p. 261.
112
iio8: Christian and Moslem against Christian and Moslem
while die Armenian Oshin, governor of Cilicia under the
Byzantines, glad, to take any action against Tancred, sent three
hundred Petcheneg mercenaries to Baldwin. With these con
federates Baldwin returned to Turbessel. Tancred was not prepared
to offend the whole Armenian world; and the Patriarch of Antioch,
Bernard, brought his influence to bear on Baldwin s behalf. With
a bad grace Tancred withdrew Richard of the Principate from
Edessa, where Baldwin was received with rejoicing. 1
It was only a temporary truce. Baldwin was faithful to his
friendship with Jawali. He sent him back many Moslem captives;
he allowed the mosques to be rebuilt in the town of Saruj, whose
population was mainly Moslem; and he disgraced and executed
the chief magistrate of Saruj, who was particularly unpopular as
a renegade from Islam. This alliance alarmed Ridwan of Aleppo.
Jawali threatened his possessions on the Euphrates. He countered
by raiding a convoy of merchandise, including some of Bald
win s ransom-money, sent from Turbessel to Jawali s court. In
September 1108 Jawali attacked and captured the town of Balis,
on the Euphrates, only fifty miles from Aleppo, and crucified
Ridwan s chief supporters in the town. Ridwan at once sought
help from Tancred. Early in October Baldwin and Joscelin
brought their knights, a few hundred in number, to join Jawali s
army at Menbij, between Aleppo and the Euphrates. Jawali had
with him some five hundred Turks and rather more Bedouins,
who were under the son of the emir Sadaqa of the Banu Ma2yad.
The united army numbered about two thousand men. Ridwan
had about six hundred men to oppose to them ; but Tancred came
up with a force of fifteen hundred. The battle, Christian and
Moslem against Christian and Moslem, was hard contested.
Jawali s troops were gradually pushing the Franks of Antioch
back with heavy losses, when the Bedouin noticed the horses that
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xxviii, 1-5, pp. 477-8i; Albert of Aix, x, 37,
p. 648; Matthew of Edessa, cxcix, p. 266; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 262-3 (calling
the Patriarch Bernard the equivalent to the Christians of an imam to the
Moslems ).
RC 113 8
Equilibrium in the North
Baldwin s knights kept in reserve and could not resist the tempta
tion that they offered. They deserted the field in order to steal and
ride off with them. Seeing them go, Jawali s Turks turned and
fled; and Baldwin and Joscelin were left almost alone. They, too,
were obliged to fly with the remnant of their troops, each of them
barely escaping capture. The Christian losses on the battlefield
were said to have numbered nearly two thousand. 1
Joscelin retired to Turbessel and Baldwin to Dulak, north of
Ravendel, where Tancred made a half-hearted attempt to besiege
him, but desisted on the rumour of Jawali s approach. Eventually
Baldwin and Joscelin regained Edessa. They found the city in a
panic. The citizens, fearing that Baldwin was dead and that they
might again be subjected to the hated rule of Richard of the
Principate, had held an assembly in the Church of St John, where
the Latin bishop was invited by the Armenians of the city to join
in the establishment of an interim government, till the situation
should be clearer. When Baldwin arrived two days later he sus
pected treason; he believed that the Armenians had been planning
to regain their independence. He struck swiftly and severely.
Many Armenians were arrested and some were blinded. The
Armenian bishop only saved his eyes by paying a heavy fine sub
scribed by his flock. There was a forced exodus of Armenians from
the city. What had really happened is unknown; but it is clear
that Baldwin must have been thoroughly alarmed so drastically to
reverse his Armenian policy. 2
In spite of his own victory and in spite of Jawali s decision a few
months later to reconcile himself with his overlord the Sultan,
who gave him a command far away in Persia, Tancred did not
attempt any further move to evict Baldwin from Edessa. Instead,
in the autumn of 1108, he led an expedition against Shaizar, where
after miraculously slaying a small company of the enemy whom
he caught in a cave, he allowed himself to be bought off by the gift
1 Matdiew of Edessa, cxcix, pp. 266-7; fl>n al-Athir, pp. 265-7; Kemal
ad-Din, p. 595 ; Ibn al-Fourat, quoted in Cahen, op. tit. p. 250 n. 34.
a Matthew of Edessa, ibid. pp. 267-8.
114
nog: Reconciliation of Prankish Princes
of a superb horse. 1 Next spring he became involved in the quarrel
between William-Jordan and Bertrand of Toulouse for the pos
session of the Prankish lands in the Lebanon. His acceptance of
William-Jordan as his vassal was countered by King Baldwin s
speedy intervention as overlord of all the Franks in the East. When
the King summoned Tancred with the other Prankish leaders to
accept his arbitration in the camp before Tripoli, he did not dare
to disobey. Before the assembled princes the King not only
divided the Toulousain inheritance, but he obliged Tancred and
Baldwin of Edessa and Joscelin to be reconciled and to work
together against the infidel. Tancred, in admitting the King s right
to arbitrate, acknowledged his suzerainty. In return, he was
allowed to retain William-Jordan as his vassal, and he was given
back the tide of Prince of Galilee, and the ownership of the Temple
at Jerusalem, with the promise that he could resume the govern
ment of the fief were Bohemond to return to Antioch. These
advantages were lessened when William-Jordan was murdered
and his lands passed to Bertrand, who recognized King Baldwin
alone as his overlord. Tancred was, however, encouraged to
attack Jabala, the last possession of the Banii Ammar, which he
captured in July 1109, thus bringing his frontier down to march
with Bertrand s.^
A reconciliation of the Prankish princes under King Baldwin s
leadership was needed; for early in mo the atabeg Mawdud of
Mosul, in obedience to the instructions of his master the Sultan,
organized an expedition against the Franks. With the help of
Ilghazi the Ortoqid and his Turcoman troops and of the emir of
Mayyafaraqin, Soqman el-Qutbi, who was popularly known as
the Shah of Armenia, he marched on Edessa in April. On the
news that the Moslem troops were mustering Baldwin of LeBourg
sent Joscelin to Jerusalem to beg urgent help from King Baldwin
and to voice his suspicion that Tancred was encouraging the
1 Usama, ed. Him, pp. 99-100.
2 See above, pp. 66-8, and Albert of Aix, xi, 3-13, pp. 664-8, 685-6;
Ibn al-Athir, p. 274.
H5
8-2
Equilibrium in the North
enemy. Tancred s friends, for their part, made a similar, but less
convincing, charge against Baldwin. The King was engaged in
the siege of Beirut, and would not move till he had captured it.
Then he hurried north, avoiding Antioch, partly to save time and
partly because he did not trust Tancred, and arrived before Edessa
at the end of June. As he approached the city he was joined by
Armenian forces sent by Kogh Vasil and by the lord of Birejik,
Abu lgharib, chief of the Pahlavouni. Mawdud had been besieging
Edessa for two months, but had not been able to penetrate its
fortifications. When the knights of Jerusalem came into sight,
their banners waving and their armour gleaming in the sun, he
retired to Harran, hoping to lure them to make a rash offensive. 1
Baldwin of Le Bourg emerged gladly from his fortress to meet
his cousin and overlord, and at once complained of Tancred. The
King therefore sent to Antioch to demand that Tancred should
come in force to join the Christian coalition and to answer these
accusations. Tancred himself hesitated; but his Great Council in
sisted that he should obey the summons. On his arrival he
promptly made a counter-claim against Baldwin of Le Bourg.
The province of Osrhoene, in which Edessa was situated, had
always, he said, depended upon Antioch throughout history, and
he was its rightful overlord. King Baldwin answered sternly that
as the chosen king he was leader of eastern Christendom, in whose
name he demanded that Tancred be reconciled with Baldwin of
Le Bourg. If Tancred refused and preferred to continue his
intrigues with the Turks, he would no longer be considered as
a Christian prince but would be combatted mercilessly as an
enemy. The assembled knights approved the royal words; and
Tancred was obliged to make his peace. 3
The united Prankish army then marched in pursuit of Mawdud,
who retreated farther to draw it on into hostile territory, intending
1 Albert of Aix, xi, 16-18, pp. 670-2; Matthew of Edessa, cciv, pp. 270-3 ;
Ibn al-Qalaaisi, p. 103.
* Albert of Aix, xi, 20-4, pp. 672-4; Fulcher of Chartres, n, xliii, 1-6,
pp. 532-41; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 102.
116
mo: Evacuation ofEdessene Countryside
to outflank it by a sudden swerve to the north. King Baldwin was
warned in time and stopped to besiege the castle of Shinav, to the
north-west of Harran. But there the coalition dispersed. Tancred
heard rumours that Ridwan of Aleppo was preparing to attack
Antioch. Messengers came from Palestine to tell the King of
a threatened Egyptian move against Jerusalem. The campaign in
the Jezireh was abandoned. Tancred retired to Samosata; and
Baldwin of Le Bourg, on the King s advice, took the decision that
it was useless to try and protect the country east of the Euphrates.
He had wept to see how it was ravaged by Mawdud while he was
besieged at Edessa. He planned to keep garrisons only in the two
great fortresses of Edessa and Saruj and in a few smaller castles,
but to make no attempt to guard the frontiers. The Christian
population was advised to leave the land for the safer territory on
the right bank of the great river. The advice was taken. The
Christians of the countryside, mostly Armenians, collected their
belongings and -moved slowly westward. But spies had informed
Mawdud of what was being planned. He came up quickly on
their tracks. When he reached the Euphrates he found the Prankish
leaders already across the river; but their two great ferry boats had
been overladen with soldiers and had sunk before the civilians had
crossed. He fell on them, unarmed as they were; and scarcely
a man, woman or child survived. The fierce elimination of these
Armenian peasants, politically unreliable but prosperous and
hardworking, who had been settled in Osrhoene since before the
opening of the Christian era, dealt the province a blow from which
it never fully recovered. Though Prankish Counts might rule on
in Edessa itself for a few more years, it had been proved that
the Prankish dominion beyond the Euphrates was doomed to
inevitable failure; and the failure brought ruin to the miserable
native Christians who had submitted to its government. 1
In his fury Baldwin of Le Bourg led back a contingent across
the river, to take vengeance upon Mawdud. But his men were
1 Albert of Aix, loc. cit.; William of Tyre, xi, 7, p. 464; Matthew of Edessa,
cclv, p. 273 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 103-4.
117
Equilibrium in the North
hopelessly outnumbered and would have been annihilated had not
King Baldwin hastened up, together with a rather unwilling
Tancred, to rescue him. 1
King Baldwin returned to the south; and Tancred turned to
punish Ridwan whose attack on his territory he considered as
treachery. He took by assault the castle of Naqira, just over the
frontier, then marched on Athareb, only some twenty miles from
Aleppo. Ridwan obtained no help from his fellow-Moslems. He
attempted to buy off Tancred, whose terms were too high ; and
the negotiations were dropped when Ridwan s own treasurer fled
with part of his master s treasure to Tancred s camp. At last, when
Tancred s engines had pounded the walls of Athareb to pieces, the
town surrendered in December mo. Ridwan purchased peace at
the price of the loss of Athareb and Zerdana, a little to the south,
the sum of twenty thousand dinars, and ten of his best Arab
horses.* Next, Tancred moved on against Shaizar and Hama. The
Munqidhite emir of Shaizar bought a few months respite at the
cost of four thousand dinars and another horse; but when the
truce was ended, in the spring of mi, Tancred advanced again
and built on a neighbouring hill a strong castle at Ibn Mashar, from
which he could watch every movement to and from the city.
Soon afterwards he occupied the fort of Bisikra il, on the road
from Shaizar to Lattakieh. The emir of Horns paid two thousand
dinars and was left in peace. 3
Tancred s successes were helped by two factors. First, the
Byzantines were not ready to counter-attack. The death of Kilij
Arslan in 1107 had left the situation in Anatolia fluid. His eldest
son, Malik Shah, had been captured in the battle of the Khabar
and was now in the power of the Sultan Mohammed. His widow
seized Melitene and the eastern provinces for her youngest son,
1 Albert of Aix, xi, 25, p. 675.
2 Matthew of Edessa, cciv, p. 274; Bar Hebraeus, trans. Budge, p. 243;
Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 105-6; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 596-8; Ibn al-Athir, p. 278.
3 Albert of Aix, xi, 43-6, pp. 684-6; Usama, ed. Hitti, pp. 95-6; Kemal
ad-Din, p. 599; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 114.
118
The Spread of the Assassins
Toghrul. Another son, Mas ud, was living at the Danishmend
court; while a fourth, Arab, seems to have held Konya. The
Sultan Mohammed, fearing that either Mas ud or Toghrul would
take over the whole inheritance, added to the confusion by releasing
Malik Shah, who established himself in Konya and ungratefully
assumed the tide of Sultan. 1 The breakdown of the central Seld-
juk government in Anatolia was not entirely beneficial to the
Byzantines, as it led the Seldjuks to make numerous irresponsible
raids into Byzantine territory; but it enabled the Emperor Alexius
to occupy various fortresses on the frontier. He was not, however,
willing to risk a campaign in Cilicia or Syria/ His enforced inaction
benefited not only Tancred but also the Armenian Kogh Vasil;
who, probably with imperial approval, succeeded in strengthening
his principality in the Anti-Taurus and in warding off Turkish
attacks. The Roupenian princes in the Taurus, more exposed to
Seldjuk aggression and prevented by Tancred s troops from
expansion into Cilicia, were unable to increase their power; and
Kogh Vasil was thus without a rival in the Armenian world. 3
More helpful to Tancred, and more disastrous for any Moslem
counter-Crusade, was the appearance of a new and disruptive sect
in the Islamic world. During the last decades of the eleventh
century the Persian Hasan as-Sabah founded and organized the
religious body known later as the Hashishiyun or the Assassins.
Hasan had been converted to the Ismaili doctrine, of which the
Fatimid Caliphs were the patrons, and had become an adept in the
batanya, its esoteric lore. Wherein exactly his teaching improved on
the mystical and allegorical theology of the Ismaili is obscure. His
outstanding achievement was more practical. It was to build up
an Order, united in strict obedience to himself as Grand Master,
which he used for political purposes, directed against the Abbasid
Caliphs of Baghdad, whose legitimacy he challenged, and more
1 Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 194-5; Ibn al-Qaknisi, p. 81 (a vague story).
See Cahen, op. dt. pp. 253-4.
3 Anna Comnena, xrv, i, v-vi, pp. 141-6, 166-72. See Chalandon, op. dt.
pp. 254-6.
3 For Kogh Vasil, see Matthew of Edessa, clxxxvii, pp. 258-9 ; ccx, pp. 281-2.
lip
Equilibrium in the North
especially against their Seldjuk masters, whose power enabled the
Caliphate to endure. His chief political weapon was one for which
his followers were to provide the name, assassination. Murder in
the interest of religious belief had often been practised by hetero
dox sects in Islam, but in Hasan s hands it reached a high efficiency ;
for the unquestioned devotion of his disciples and their readiness
to travel far and to risk their own lives at his orders enabled him
to strike at any adversary throughout the Moslem world. In
1 090 Hasan set up his headquarters in Khorassan, in the impregnable
citadel of Alamut, the Eagle s Nest. In 1092 the first of his assas
sinations took place, that of the great vizier Nizam al-Mulk, whose
ability had been the main prop of the Seldjuk dynasty in Iran.
Later legend enhanced the horror of the deed by declaring that
Nizam and Hasan, together with the poet Omar Khayyam, had
been pupils together of the learned Muwaffaq of Nishapur, and
each had sworn to aid the others throughout life. The Seldjuk
Sultans were well aware of the danger that the Assassins created;
but all their attempts to reduce Alamut were unavailing. Soon
after the turn of the century lodges of the Assassins were set up in
Syria. Ridwan of Aleppo, permanently on bad terms with his
Seldjuk cousins, and perhaps genuinely impressed by Assassin
doctrines, gave them his patronage. A Persian goldsmith, Abu
Tahir, who had great influence over Ridwan, was their chief. To
the Assassins, the Christians were no more odious than the Sunni
Moslems ; and Ridwan s readiness to co-operate with Tancred may
have been largely due to his sympathy with their doctrine. Their
first achievement in Syria was the murder of the emir of Horns,
Janah ad-Daulah, in 1103. Three years later they slew the emir of
Apamea, Khalaf ibn Mula ib ; but it was only the Franks of Antioch
who profited by his death. Though as yet the Assassins only
revealed their policy by isolated murders, they were an element
in Islamic politics that even the Christians would have to respect. 1
1 For the Assassins, see von Hammer, Histoire de I Ordre des Assassins; also
articles Assassins and Ismaili , in Encyclopaedia of Islam \ Browne, Literary
History of Persia, vol. n, pp. 193 ff.
120
mi : New Moslem Coalition
In 1 1 ii Mawdud of Mosul once again prepared to lead an army
against the Franks, at the demand of his master the Sultan. Early
that year a deputation from the citizens of Aleppo, angered by the
heterodoxy of their ruler and his subservience to Tancred, arrived
at the Caliph s court at Baghdad to urge a holy war to free them
from the Prankish menace. When they were put off with empty
promises they stirred up the people of Baghdad to riot before the
mosque of the palace. At the same time the Caliph received an
embassy from the Emperor at Constantinople. There was nothing
unusual in this; Constantinople and Baghdad had a common
interest in their hostility to the Seldjuk dynasty of Rum; but it
seems that Alexius instructed his envoys to discuss with the Moslem
authorities the possibility of joint action against Tancred. 1 These
negotiations enabled the rioters to denounce the Caliph as being
a worse Moslem than the Christian Emperor. Al-Mustazhir was
alarmed by all this enthusiasm, especially as the disorders had
prevented him from receiving his wife in proper state when she
returned from a visit to her father, the Sultan Mohammed, at
Ispahan. 2 He sent to his father-in-law; who at once instructed
Mawdud to form a new coalition, whose nominal leader was to
be his own young son Mas ud. Mawdud enlisted the help of
Soqman of Mayyafaraqin, of Ilghazi s son Ayaz, of the Kurdish
princes Ahmed-Il of Maragha and Abu l Haija of Arbil, and of
some Persian lords headed by Bursuq ibn Bursuq of Hamadan. In
July the allies were ready and marched swiftly across the Jezireh
to besiege Joscelin s fortress of Turbessel. On the news the emir
Sultan of Shaizar sent to beg them to hurry to his rescue; and
Ridwan thought it politic to tell them to hasten as he could not
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, op. tit. pp. 112-13, saying that the Emperor (he uses the
term usurper , mutamelik) sent to warn the Moslems of the designs of the
Franks and implies that the Embassy visited Damascus. Alexius in fact probably
only suggested action against Tancred. He could find no support amongst the
Prankish leaders in his attempt to make Tancred carry out the Treaty of Devol
(see above, p. 51). Ibn al-Athir, pp. 279-80, reports the Embassy to Baghdad,
quoting Ibn Hamdun.
* Ibn al-Athir, loc. at.
121
Equilibrium in the North
hold out long against Tancred. Mawdud was impressed by Rid-
wan s change of heart; and on the suggestion of Ahmed-Il, with
whom Joscelin had established secret relations, he raised the siege of
Turbessel and led the army off to Aleppo. But Ridwan s message
had not been sincere. On the approach of the Moslem allies, he
closed the gates against them and took the precaution of im
prisoning many of the leading citizens as hostages to prevent riots.
Mawdud was thwarted; so, after ravaging the country round
Aleppo, he moved south to Shaizar. There he was joined by
Toghtekin of Damascus, who came to seek his help for the recon-
quest of Tripoli. 1
Tancred, who had been encamped before Shaizar, retired to
Apamea and sent to King Baldwin for help. The Kingxesponded
and summoned all the chivalry of the Prankish East to join him.
With him came the Patriarch Gibelin and the chief vassals of the
kingdom, Eustace Gamier of Sidon and Walter of Hebron.
Betrand of Tripoli joined him on his way. From the north came
Baldwin of Edessa with his two great vassals, Joscelin of Turbessel
and Pagan of Saruj. Tancred brought his vassals from the peri
meter of the Antiochene principality, Guy, surnamed the Goat,
from Tarsus and Mamistra, Richard of Marash, Guy, surnamed
the Beech, of Harenc, Robert of Suadieh, Pons of Tel-Mannas,
Martin of Lattakieh, Bonaplus of Sarmeda, Roger of Hab and
Enguerrand of Apamea. Kogh Vasil and the Roupenians sent an
Armenian detachment; and even Oshin of Lampron provided a
few men, whose role was probably to spy on behalf of the
Emperor. The north was denuded of troops, to the advantage of
Toghrul Arslan of Melitene, who at once captured Albistan and
the neighbourhood from its small Prankish garrison and carried
out a raid into Cilicia.*
Before the Prankish concentration, which numbered some six-
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 114-15; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 600-1; Ibn al-Athir,
p. 282; Albert of Aix, xi, 38, p. 68 1.
* Albert of Aix, xr, 39~4O, pp. 682-3, for die list of allies; Matthew of
Edessa, ccvi, p. 275; Michael die Syrian, m, p. 205, reports the loss of Albistan.
122
mi: Mawdud 9 s Failure
teen thousand men, Mawdud cautiously retired behind the walls
of Shaizar and refused to be drawn out to fight a pitched battle.
Things were not going well in his army. Toghtekin would not
provide help unless Mawdud undertook to campaign farther
south, a move that was strategically far too risky. The Kurd
Bursuq was ill and wished to return to his home. Soqman sud
denly died; and his troops retired north with his corpse. Ahmed-
II promptly deserted, to try to snatch some of the inheritance.
Ayaz the Ortoqid remained; but his father, Ilghazi, attacked the
cortege carrying Soqman s bier, hoping, in vain, to secure his
treasure. With his forces daily diminishing, Mawdud could not
take the offensive; and he was unwilling to winter so far from his
base. In the autumn he retreated back to Mosul. 1
His failure showed that the Moslems were in no condition to
counter-attack the Franks so long as the Franks were united; and
Kong Baldwin had achieved the task of forcing union upon them.
For the moment the Prankish establishments were saved. Mawdud
carried out a profitable but inconclusive raid into Edessene terri
tory next summer; while Toghtekin patched up an alliance with
Ridwan, somewhat generously, for Ridwan had tried to persuade
his Assassin friends to murder him. 2 But for the moment the
Moslem menace was lessened. Inevitably the Christians began to
quarrel once more. First, the Franks decided to attack Kogh
Vasil, of whose growing power both Baldwin of Edessa and
Tancred were jealous. Tancred invaded his lands and captured
Raban and was preparing to besiege Kaisun before peace was made. 3
Next, Baldwin of Edessa suddenly turned against his cousin
Joscelin. When Mawdud had attacked Edessa in the summer of
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, xlv, 1-9, pp. 549-57; Albert of Aix, xi, 41-3,
pp. 683-4; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 116-19; Usama, ed. Him, pp. 97-8; Kemal
ad-Din, p. 600; Ibn al-Athir, p. 83, muddles the story, which he derives from
Ibn al-Qalanisi and Ibn Hamdun. See Cahen, op. cit. p. 363 n. 33.
2 Kemal ad-Din, pp. 601-2; Albert of Aix (xi, 43, p. 684) reports the capture
of Azaz about now, but Azaz was still in Moslem hands in 1118. (See below
p. I34-)
3 Matthew of Edessa, ccix, pp. 280-1.
123
Equilibrium in the North
1 1 12 Joscelin discovered an Armenian plot to hand the city over
to the Moslems and had saved Baldwin by warning him and
joining him in prompt action against the traitors. But during the
following winter Baldwin heard rumours that Joscelin talked of
supplanting him. The fief of Turbessel was rich, whereas the land
of Edessa had suffered terribly from raids and forced emigration.
The Armenians liked Joscelin, whereas they now hated Baldwin.
There was nothing in Joscelin s own conduct to account for
Baldwin s suspicions, which were, perhaps, based on jealousy. At
the end of the year Joscelin was summoned to Edessa; Baldwin
said that he was ill and must discuss the succession. On his arrival,
all unsuspecting, he was accused of having failed to supply Edessa
with sufficient food from his territory and was thrown into
prison. It was only when he promised to give up his fief that he
was released. He retired southward, about the new year, to
Jerusalem, where King Baldwin enfeoffed him with the princi
pality of Galilee. 1
The year 1112 saw many other changes in northern Syria. Kogh
Vasil died on 12 October. His widow hastily sent presents to
Tancred, including her own diadem for the Princess Cecilia, to
secure his help for the succession of her adopted son, Vasil Dgha;
but Tancred himself coveted the inheritance. 2 Among the Franks,
Richard of the Principate had died some time in the spring 3 and
Bertrand of Tripoli in January or February. Bertrand s young son
and successor, Pons, did not share his father s liking for the
Byzantines nor his hatred for Tancred; and his council probably
thought that Tancred s good-will was necessary if the youthful
count was to hold his position. There was a reconciliation between
1 William of Tyre, xi, 22, pp. 489-92; Matthew of Edessa, ccviii, p. 280,
hints of a plot against the Franks during Mawdud s siege; Chron. Anon. Syr.
p. 86; Ibn al-Qalanisi, op. cit. p. 133.
2 Matthew of Edessa, ccx, pp. 281-2. The exact date of Richard s death is
unknown. He was already dead by the time of Tancred s death, but alive the
previous mater.
3 Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 127, says that the news of Bertrand s death reached
Damascus on 3 February.
124
1112: Death ofTancred
the Courts of Tripoli and Antioch, which added to Tancred s
influence. 1 With Joscelin in disgrace, the Count of Tripoli his
friend, and the great prince of the Armenians dead, Tancred s
supremacy seemed sure. He was planning an expedition to con
quer Kogh VasiTs land when suddenly he fell ill. There were
inevitable whispers of poison ; but the illness was probably typhoid.
When it was certain that he would not recover he named his
nephew Roger of Salerno, son of Richard of the Principate, as his
heir, but he forced Roger to swear to hand over his power to
Bohemond s young son, should the boy come to the East. At the
same time he requested Pons to marry his girl-widow, Cecilia of
France. He died on 12 December 1112, aged only thirty-six.*
Tancred s personality does not shine clearly through the mists
of history. He was immensely active and able, a subtle diplomat
and a brilliant soldier; and he grew wiser as he grew older. But
he never acquired the glamour that surrounded his uncle,
Bohemond; nor does he seem to have been popular with his men,
apart from his sycophantic biographer, Radulph of Caen. He was
hard, self-seeking and unscrupulous, correct and yet disloyal
towards Bohemond and a faithless colleague to Baldwin of
Edessa. But for the intervention of King Baldwin, his equal in
relentlessness and his superior in width of vision, his particularism
might have gone far to wreck the Prankish East. His aim was the
firm establishment and the aggrandizement of the Antiochene
principality; and therein he was superbly successful. Without his
work Bohemond s foundation would have crumbled. The long
history of the princes of Antioch was the fruit of his energy. Of
all the princes of the First Crusade, only King Baldwin, a penniless
adventurer like himself, enjoyed a more impressive career. Yet,
when he was being taken to his burial in the porch of the Cathedral
1 Pons seems to have been attached at some time to Tancred s household and
to have received knighthood from him.
a Fulcher of Chartres, n, xlvii, I, pp. 562-3 (12 December); Albert of Aix,
xn, 8, p. 693 (about Advent); Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 131-2 (n December);
Michael the Syrian, m, p. 203 (5 December).
125
Equilibrium in the North
of St Peter the chroniclers could find few scenes of grief to report.
Only the Armenian Matthew of Edessa wrote warmly of him and
lamented his death. 1
The accession of Roger as Prince of Antioch for, notwith
standing his acknowledgement of the claims of Bohemond s son,
he took the princely title brought harmony to the Franks. He
was married to Baldwin of Edessa s sister, Cecilia;* and, though
he was a notoriously unfaithful husband, he was always on
affectionate terms with his brother-in-law. His sister Maria became
the second wife of Joscelin of Courtenay. 3 Pons of Tripoli, who,
following Tancred s wishes, at once married Tancred s widow,
Cecilia of France, remained his constant friend. 4 And all three
princes united in regarding King Baldwin as their overlord. This
rare solidarity, combined with fresh quarrels among the Moslems,
brought the Prankish dominion in northern Syria to its apogee.
In 1113 King Baldwin began a campaign against Toghtekin of
Damascus, who succeeded at last in securing the aid of Mawdud
and of Ayaz the Ortoqid. The Moslem allies lured the King into
Damascene territory, to Sennabra on the upper Jordan, where,
forgetting for once his usual caution, he was attacked and suffered
a severe defeat. 5 He had summoned Pons and Roger to his aid;
and their arrival with all their chivalry enabled him to extricate
himself. The enemy advanced as far as the neighbourhood of
1 Matthew of Edessa, loc. dt. The greatest of all the Faithful .
2 WiHiam of Tyre, xi, 9, p. 523, calls Roger Baldwin s brother-in-law, as does
Walter the Chancellor, n, 16, p. 131. Cecilia s name is given in a Charter of
1126 (Rohricht, Regesta, Additamenta, p. 9). Orderic Vitalis, x, 23, iv, p. 158,
gives Roger a Turkish wife called Melaz, the Danishmend emir s daughter who
according to him secured Bohemond s release. See above, p. 38.
3 Maria is known only for a quarrel arising later because of her dowry. See
below, pp. 161, 181. Chron. Anon. Syr. says that Joscelin married her in 1121
(p. 89), but it is clear that the marriage was arranged in Roger s lifetime. Their
daughter Stephanie was considered an old woman in 1 161 see below, p. 3 62, n. i.
4 According to Albert of Aix (xn, 19, p. 701) the marriage did not take
place till 1115. But Pons s son Raymond II seems to have been twenty-two
in 1136.
5 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 132-6.
126
: Deaths ofMawdud and Ridwan
Tiberias, but would not venture to face the whole Prankish army.
After a few weeks of hesitation, Mawdud retired with Toghtekin
to Damascus. There on the last Friday in September, as he was
entering the Great Mosque with his host, he was stabbed to death
by an Assassin. Toghtekin promptly put the murderer to death, to
dissociate himself from the crime. Public opinion held him guilty,
but gave him die excuse that Mawdud had designs on Damascus. 1
Mawdud s death freed the Franks of a formidable adversary. It
was followed two months later, on 10 December 1113, by the
death of Ridwan of Aleppo. 2 His chilly relations with his fellow-
Moslems had done much to help the establishment of the Franks
in Syria; but his elimination did not greatly benefit Islam. He
was succeeded by his son, Alp Arslan, a weak, vicious and cruel
boy of sixteen, completely in the hands of his favourite eunuch,
Lulu. The Assassins, whom Ridwan had protected, found them
selves cold-shouldered by the new administration, at the express
orders of the Sultan Mohammed. His envoy, the Persian Ibn
Badi, forced Alp Arslan to issue a warrant for the execution of
Abu Tahir and the other leaders of the sect; and the popukce of
Aleppo, who had long loathed the Assassins, set about massacring
all that they could catch. In self-defence the Order had tried un
successfully to capture the citadel while Ridwan lay dying. 3 Soon
afterwards sectarians tried to surprise the citadel at Shaizar, when
the emir s family were out watching the Christian Easter festival;
but the townsfolk joined with the emir against them. Their one
success was to take the fortress of Qolaia, near Balis, where the
road from Aleppo to Baghdad approaches the Euphrates. Else
where they went underground, or fled to the protection of the
Franks; but they were still powerful and began to turn their
attention to the Lebanon. 4 Alp Arslan s reign was short. He paid
1 Ibid. pp. 137-42. a Ibid. p. 144; Kemal ad-Din, p. 602.
3 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 145-6; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 603-4. See Cahen, op. cit.
pp. 267-8.
4 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 146-8; Usama, ed. Hitti, pp. 146, 153 (without giving
a date for the coup at Shaizar).
127
Equilibrium in the North
a friendly visit to Damascus, where Toghtekin received him with
royal honours; but in September 1114 his wanton behaviour in
duced the eunuch Lulu, terrified for his life, to have him murdered
in his bed and to place on the throne his six-year-old brother,
Sultanshah. For the next few years Lulu and his general Shams
as-Shawas, ex-emir of Rafaniya, held the citadel and controlled
the army of Aleppo; but the real power was in the hands of the
notables of the city, whose wishes Lulu did not dare to disregard.
Its lack of a strong prince and the small size of its army left Aleppo
powerless to do more than defend its own walls ; while, though the
Assassins had been banished, the new authorities were considered
by their neighbours to have dangerously Shian tendencies, due to
the influence of Persians in the city. In consequence Lulu was ready
to carry on Ridwan s policy of subservient friendship with the
Franks of Antioch. 1
On Mawdud s death the Sultan gave Mosul to his representative
at the Caliph s court, Aqsonqor il-Bursuqi, a Turkish soldier of
fortune like his predecessor. It became his duty to direct operations
against the Franks. In May 1 1 14 he led an army of fifteen thousand
men against Edessa. With him were the Sultan s son, Mas ud,
Temirek, emir of Sinjar, and a young Turk called Imad ed-Din
Zengi, son of an earlier Aqsonqor who had been governor of
Aleppo and Hama in the years before the Crusade. Ilghazi of
Mardin had been summoned to join the expedition but refused.
Its first step therefore was to march on Mardin; whereupon
Ilghazi agreed to send his son Ayaz with a detachment of Turco
man troops. For two months the Moslems sat before Edessa; but
the city was well garrisoned and well provisioned, whereas the
ravaged countryside could not feed the besieging forces. Il-
Bursuqi was obliged to lift the siege and contented himself with
ravaging the countryside, till the Armenians offered him new
scope for action.*
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 148-9; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 605-6.
* Matthew of Edessa, ccxii, pp. 282-3; ccxvi, p. 287; Chron. Anon. Syr.
p. 86; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 292-3.
128
in6: Fall of Vasil Dgha
The Armenian plot to hand over Edessa to Mawdud in 1112
had been followed by a similar plot next year, when Mawdud was
about to invade Prankish territory and Baldwin was at Turbessel,
taking over Joscelin s fief. It was discovered in time; and Baldwin
firmly transferred the whole Armenian population of his capital
to Samosata. Having taught the Armenians a lesson, he allowed
them to return early in 1114; but some had gone on into the
territory of Vasil Dgha, Kogh VasiTs heir, who was anyhow
alarmed by Prankish attempts on his inheritance. He and his
adopted mother now invited Il-Bursuqi to deliver them from the
Franks. Il-Bursuqi sent one of his generals, Sonqor the Long, to
negotiate with Vasil Dgha at Kaisun. The Franks heard of it, and
vainly attacked Sonqor and the Armenians. But before the
Moslems could take advantage of the new alliance Il-Bursuqi
quarrelled with Ayaz the Ortoqid and imprisoned him. Ayaz s
father, Ilghazi, therefore summoned his clan and his Turcomans
and marched against Il-Bursuqi, whom he severely defeated and
forced to retreat back to Mosul. Once again the Moslem counter-
Crusade ended in a fiasco. 1
The Armenians paid for it. The Franks advanced to punish Vasil
Dgha. They were unable to take his fortress capital at Raban; but
he thought it wise to seek the alliance of the Roupenian prince
Thoros. Thoros, after inviting him to come to discuss a marriage
alliance, imprisoned him and sold him to Baldwin of Edessa. Vasil
was only released on a promise to cede all his lands to Baldwin.
He then was allowed to retire to Constantinople. Having thus
annexed Raban and Kaisun in 1116, Baldwin decided to suppress
the remaining Armenian principalities in the Euphrates valley. In
inyhe first displaced Abu lgharib, lord of Birejik, who had been
established there with the help of Baldwin during the First
Crusade. He gave Birejik to his cousin, Waleran of Le Puiset,
who married Abu lgharib s daughter. Next he attacked Baldwin Ts
old friend and later enemy, Bagrat, Kogh VasiTs brother, who
1 Matthew of Edessa, ccxii, pp. 282-4; Michael the Syrian, ni, pp. 216-17;
Ibn al-Athir, pp. 292-3.
R c 129 9
Equilibrium in the North
now possessed a small lordship at Khoros, west of the Euphrates.
Finally, he overran the territory of another of Baldwin s allies,
Prince Constantine of Gargar, whom he captured and imprisoned
at Samosata, where the unfortunate victim soon perished in an
earthquake. The Roupenian prince soon found himself, to his
satisfaction, the only independent Armenian potentate that re
mained. But, apart from the Roupcnians, the Armenian people
lost confidence in the Franks. 1
Baldwin of Edessa s Armenian conquests were helped by a
diminution of danger from the East. The previous years had been
full of anxiety. A tremendous earthquake in November 1114 had
devastated Prankish territory, from Antioch and Mamistra to
Marash and Edessa, Roger of Antioch hastily toured his chief
fortresses to repair their walls; for there was a rumour that the
Sultan Mohammed was preparing a new expedition.*
Mohammed was the last of the great Seldjuk Sultans. He had
taken over a decadent state from his brother Barkiyarok, and he
had restored order in Iraq and Iran, suppressing the rebel Arabs of
the eastern desert in 1108 and keeping the Assassins in check. The
Caliph al-Mustazhir, indolently writing love-poems in his palace
at Baghdad, obeyed his authority. But his attempts to organize
a campaign to drive the Franks from Syria had failed one after the
other ; and he realized that to succeed he must establish his authority
over the Moslem princes there, whose jealousies and insubordina
tion had regularly ruined his cause. In February 1115, after
securing the loyalty of Mosul by sending his son Mas ud to take
charge of its government, he dispatched a large army westward,
under the governor of Hamadan, Bursuq ibn Bursuq, with
Juyush-beg, former governor of Mosul, and Tcmirek, emir of
Sinjar, to aid him.
1 Matthew of Edessa, ccxiii-iv, pp. 293-5. Chron. Anon. Syr. p. 86.
Waleran was probably the brother of Hugh of Le Puisset, whose mother Alice
was Baldwin II s aunt and Tancred s first cousin. See below, p. 190.
3 Fulcher of Chartres, n, Hi, 1-5, pp. 578-80; Walter the Chancellor, I,
pp. 83-4; Matthew of Edessa, ccxvii, pp. 287-9; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 149;
Kemal ad-Din, p. 607.
130
1115: Expedition of Bursuq ibn Bursuq
The Moslem princes of Syria were as alarmed as the Franks. The
Sultan s only reliable vassals there were the Munqidhites of Shaizar
and Ibn Qaraja, emir of Horns. On the rumour of the expedition
the Ortoqid Ilghazi hastened to Damascus to confirm his alliance
with Toghtekin, but on his return he was waylaid and captured
by the emir of Horns; who, however, threatened by Toghtekin,
let him go on condition that he sent his son Ayaz in his place.
Ilghazi was able to return to Mardin and collect his troops. Then
lie retired westward again to join up with Toghtekin. The eunuch
Lulu, regent in Aleppo, after promising support to both sides,
decided that the Sultan s victory would not suit him and ranged
himself with Toghtekin and Ilghazi. Meanwhile Roger of Antioch
had collected his forces and took up a position by the Iron Bridge
across the Orontes. There, on whose initiative we cannot tell, he
made a pact with Toghtekin and his allies and invited their army
to join his own before the walls of Apamea, a good vantage-point
for watching Bursuq s movements when he should cross the
Euphrates and advance towards his friends at Shaizar. The Franks
provided some two thousand knights and infantrymen and their
Moslem allies about five thousand.
Bursuq met with no opposition as he led his great army through
the Jezireh. He had hoped to make his headquarters at Aleppo,
but, hearing that Lulu had joined his enemies and that Toghtekin
was at their head, he turned southward against the latter. With the
help of the emir of Horns he made a surprise attack on Hama,
which belonged to Toghtekin and contained much of his baggage.
The town was captured and pillaged, to the fury of the local
Moslems; and he then marched on the Prankish fort of Kafartab.
Roger would have liked to make a diversion, but Toghtekin
persuaded him that it would be too risky. Instead, the allies
appealed for help to Baldwin of Jerusalem and Pons of Tripoli,
who hastened northward, the former with five hundred knights
and a thousand infantrymen, the latter with two hundred knights
and two thousand infantrymen. They entered the camp at Apamea
to the fanfare of trumpets. Bursuq, who was now based on Shaizar,
131 9-2
Equilibrium in the North
thought it prudent to retreat towards the Jezireh. His ruse was
effective. Baldwin and Pons considered the danger to be ended
and returned home; and the allied army broke up. Bursuq then
suddenly swept back again to Kafartab. After a short struggle
he took the castle and handed it over to the Munqidhites. Lulu of
Aleppo, whether from treachery or cowardice, at once wrote to
him apologizing for past sins and asking him to send a detachment
to occupy Aleppo ; and Bursuq weakened his forces by dispatching
Juyush-beg and his corps. Roger had not disbanded his army. He
could not wait for help to arrive from King Baldwin nor from Pons,
nor even from Toghtekin. After summoning Baldwin of Edessa to
his rescue and asking the Patriarch Bernard to bless the troops and
to send with them a fragment of the True Cross, he left Antioch
on 12 September and marched southward up the Orontes to
Chastel Rouge, while Bursuq marched northward along a parallel
line further inland. Neither army knew the other s position, till
a knight named Theodore Berneville came galloping to the camp,
at Chastel Rouge from a scouting expedition to say that he had seen
the Sultan s army moving through the forest towards the hill of
Tel-Danith, near to the town of Sirmin. On the morning of the
I4th the Prankish army crept over the intervening ridge and fell
upon Bursuq as his troops were carelessly marching on. The
baggage animals were in the van; and already detachments had
stopped to erect tents for the noonday halt. Some of the emirs had
taken parties to forage in the neighbouring farms; others had gone
off to occupy Biza a. When the battle began Bursuq was without
his best lieutenants.
The Franks attack was quite unexpected. They sprang out
suddenly from the trees and quickly stormed the half-prepared
camp. Soon the whole Moslem army was in disorder. Bursuq
could not rally his men. He himself barely avoided capture and
retired with a few hundred horsemen to a spur of the hill of Tel-
Danith. There he beat off the enemy for a while and sought to be
killed in the fighting rather than face the disgrace of such a defeat.
At last his bodyguard persuaded him that nothing more could be
132
111$: Prankish Victory at Tel-Danith
done; and he rode off in flight to the east. The emir of Sinjar,
Temirek, had at first been more successful and had driven back
the Prankish right. But Guy Fresnel, lord of Harenc, brought up
fresh troops ; and soon the men of Sinjar were surrounded, and only
the swiftest horsemen escaped alive. By evening the remnants of
the Moslem army were hastening in disorder towards the Jezireh. 1
The Prankish victory at Tel-Danith ended the last attempt of
the Seldjuk Sultans of Iran to recover Syria. Bursuq died a few
months later, humiliated and ashamed; and the Sultan Mohammed
was not prepared to risk a further expedition. The only danger to
the Franks from the East came now from the semi-independent
emirs, who for the moment were disunited and discouraged. The
prestige of Roger, Prince of Antioch, was at its height. His men
quickly reoccupied Kafartab, which had been given to the
Munqidhites by Bursuq. 2 The rulers of Aleppo and Damascus were
seriously alarmed. The latter, Toghtekin, hastened to make his
peace with the Sultan Mohammed, who forgave him but pro
vided him with no material aid. 3 At Aleppo the eunuch Lulu
watched helpless while the Franks consolidated their positions
around him. He sought to make a closer alliance with Toghtekin.
But he was generally discredited; and in May 1117 he was mur
dered by Turks of his garrison. His successor was a fellow-
eunuch, the Armenian renegade Yaruqtash, who at once sought
Prankish support by yielding to Roger the fortress of al-Qubba,
on the road from Aleppo to Damascus used by the pilgrims to
Mecca, and the right to levy tolls on the pilgrims. 4 The concession
did Yaruqtash no good. Lulu s murderers had acted in the name
of Ridwan s youngest son, Sultanshah, who would not recognize
1 Fulcher of Chartres, n, liv, 1-6, pp. 586-90; Albert of Aix, xn, 19, p. 701 ;
Walter the Chancellor, i, 6-7, pp. 92-6 (the fullest account) ; al-Azimi, p. 509;
Ibn Hamdun in Ibn al-Athir, pp. 295-8; Usama, e& Hitti, pp. 102-6; Michael
the Syrian, ra, p. 217; Chron. Anon. Syr. p. 86.
a Usama, ed. Hitti, p. 106.
3 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 151-2, implying that the overtures came from the
Sultan s side. Ibn Hamdun, loc. cit.
4 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 155-6.
133
Equilibrium in the North
him. Yaruqtash appealed for help to Ilghazi the Ortoqid; but when
Ilghazi s troops arrived at Aleppo they found Yaruqtash fallen and
the government directed by Sultanshah s minister, the Damascene
Ibn al-Milhi. Dghazi therefore retired, leaving his son Kizil as his
representative in Aleppo and taking over the fortress of Balis on the
Euphrates, which was granted him as the price of his help should
il-Bursuqi, who was now established at ar-Rahba and claimed
to have been allotted Aleppo by the Sultan, try to make good his
claim. Ibn al-Milhi then decided that Ilghazi was too uncertain
an ally and handed over Aleppo and Kizil to Khirkan, emir of
Horns, and prepared with Prankish help to recover Balis. But
Ilghazi s alliance with Toghtekin held good. While the latter
marched on Horns and obliged Khirkan to retire, Ilghazi relieved
Balis and entered Aleppo in the summer of 1 1 1 8 . Ibn al-Milhi had
already been displaced by a black eunuch, Qaraja, who, together
with Ibn al-Milhi and the prince Sultanshah, were imprisoned by
the Ortoqid. 1 During all these movements and intrigues Prankish
intervention had been sought by all parties in turn; and though
Roger was never master of Aleppo itself, he was able to occupy
the territory to the north of the city, occupying Azaz in 1118 and
early in 1119 Biza a, thus cutting off Aleppo from the Euphrates
and the East. 2
About the same time Roger improved his southern frontier by
capturing the castle of Marqab, on its high hill overlooking the
sea behind Buluniyas. 3
Thus, by the end of 1118, there was an equilibrium in northern
Syria. The Franks had become an accepted part of the pattern of
the country. They were still far from numerous, but they were
well-armed and were building fortresses, and were learning to
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, loc. tit. Kemal ad-Din, pp. 610-15; Ibn al-Atbir, pp. 308-9.
2 Matthew of Edessa, ccxxvii, pp. 297-8; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 614-15.
3 For the Arabic sources, see the discussion in Cahen, op. cit. p. 279 n. 16.
Pons of Tripoli seems to have helped Roger, after a slight quarrel over the
dower of Pons s wife, Tancred s widow, Cecilia, who claimed Jabala but was
eventually satisfied with Chastel Rouge and Arzghan (William of Tyre, xrv, 5,
p. 612).
134
ni8: Schism in the Jacobite Church
adapt themselves to local life. Moreover, for the moment they
were united. Roger of Antioch was by far the greatest of the
northern Christian princes; but his hegemony was not resented by
Baldwin of Edessa nor by Pons of Tripoli; for he made no attempt
to be their overlord but like them acknowledged the suzerainty of
the King of Jerusalem. The Moslem princes were numerically
stronger, but they were disunited and jealous. Only the alliance
between Toghtekin of Damascus and the Ortoqids kept them from
chaos. The balance thus was slightly tilted in favour of the Franks.
No external power was in a position to upset this balance. King
Baldwin of Jerusalem, with the Fatimid menace in his rear, could
not often intervene in the north. The Seldjuk Sultan of Iran, after
the disaster at Tel-Danith, abstained from further practical at
tempts to assert authority in Syria. The two chief powers of
Anatolia, Byzantium and the Seldjuks of Rum, for the moment
were balanced against each other.
Even the native Christians maintained a balance. The Armenian
subjects of Edessa and Antioch were disillusioned and disloyal;
but the only free Armenian state that remained, the Roupenian
principality on the Taurus, was ready to work in with the Franks.
Its prince, Leo, had brought a contingent to help Roger of Antioch
at the siege of Azaz. 1 A schism divided the Jacobite Church. In
about 1118, its head, the Patriarch Athanasius, who resided at
Antioch, quarrelled with his metropolitan at Edessa, Bar-Sabuni,
over the possession of some sacred books, and placed him under
an interdict. Bar-Sabuni, to make trouble, appealed for help to the
Latin Patriarch of Antioch, Bernard; who summoned Athanasius
to discuss the matter at a synod held in the Latin cathedral.
Athanasius came protesting. The incompetence of an interpreter
led Bernard to believe that the dispute was over a private debt
between the two prelates, and he pronounced that it was simoniacal
of Athanasius not to forgive the debtor. Athanasius was infuriated
by a decision whose validity he did not recognize and whose sense
1 Matthew of Edessa, loc. cit. For the history of the Roupenians, see
Tournebize, op. cit. pp. 168 ff,
135
Equilibrium in the North
he did not understand. He protested rudely; whereupon Bernard
ordered him to be scourged. On the advice of an Orthodox
friend, the philosopher Abd al-Massih, Athanasius appealed to
Roger, who had b.een away at the time. Roger angrily reproved
Bernard for interfering in a matter that did not concern him, and
permitted Athanasius to leave Antioch for his former home, the
monastery of Mar Barsauma. There Athanasius was in the ter
ritory of the Ortoqids, who gave him their protection. He
excommunicated Bar Sabuni and placed the Jacobite Church of
Edessa under an interdict. Many of the Edessene Jacobites, thus
deprived of the services of their Church, went over to the Latin
rite. Others obeyed the Patriarch. Peace was not restored for
many years, till after the death of Athanasius. 1
The Orthodox congregations in Antioch and Edessa disliked
Latin rule, but, unlike the Armenians and Jacobites, they were
never tempted to intrigue with the Moslems. They only sighed
for the return of Byzantium. But the loathing which Armenians
and Jacobites united in bearing to them limited their power.
Nevertheless, though the Franks in Edessa might rightly fear that
some new danger would arise in the East, to the Franks of Antioch
Byzantium remained the chief enemy. The Emperor Alexius had
never forgotten his claim to Antioch. He was prepared to
recognize a Latin kingdom at Jerusalem; and he had shown his
good-will by his generous ransom of the Prankish prisoners taken
by the Fatimids at Ramleh in 1 102 and by the presence of his ships
at the ineffectual siege of Acre in mi. King Baldwin on his side
always acted courteously and correctly towards the Emperor, but
refused to put any pressure on Tancred to carry out the terms of
the Treaty of Devoid Ever since the Crusade of 1101 Franco-
Byzantine relations had been darkened by suspicion; while Pope
PaschaTs intervention on Bohemond s behalf in 1106 had never
been forgiven by Constantinople. Alexius was too supple a states
man to allow resentment to colour his policy. During die years
1 Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 193-4, 207-10.
^ Anna Comnena, xiv, ii, 12-13, pp- 152-3.
136
1111-13: Byzantine Negotiations with the West
nn and 1 1 12 he carried on a series of negotiations with the Pope,
using the Abbot of Monte Cassino as an intermediary. With the
promise to settle the outstanding differences between the Roman
and Greek Churches he induced the Roman authorities to offer
the imperial crown of the West to him or to his son, and he sug
gested that he would visit Rome himself. Paschal, who was at that
moment in great difficulties with the Emperor Henry V, was
willing to pay a high price for Byzantine support; but Turkish
wars and his own ill-health prevented Alexius from carrying out
his project. 1 The negotiations came to nothing. The Archbishop
of Milan, Peter Chrysolan, visited Constantinople in 1113 to
discuss Church affairs; but his theological argument with Eustra-
tius, Bishop of Nicaea, did not restore better feeling between the
Churches. 2 It is probable that Alexius himself never took his
ambitious Italian scheme very seriously. Papal friendship was of
value to him mainly as a means of putting a break on Norman
ambitions and of enhancing his authority over the Latins in the
East.
In the meantime there was little that the Byzantines could do to
recover Antioch. The Emperor s treaty with Bohemond remained
a dead letter. Tancred had not only disregarded it but had in
creased his territory at Byzantine expense. Roger had continued
Tancred s policy. Alexius had hoped that the Counts of Tripoli
would be his agents in Syria, and he had provided money to be
kept at Tripoli for joint Byzantine and Tripolitan enterprises. But
on Bertrand s death his son Pons worked in co-operation with the
Antiochenes. The Byzantine Ambassador-at-large to the Latin
states, Butumites, therefore demanded the return of the money;
and it was only when he threatened to cut off the provisions that
Tripoli obtained from Cyprus that it was handed over to him. He
then judged it prudent to give back to Pons the gold and precious
1 See Chalandon, op. cit. pp. 260-3, with full references.
* Landolph, in Muratori, Ss. R.L vol. v, p. 487; Chrysolan s speeches in
M.P.L. vol. cxxvn, col. 911-19; Eustratius s speeches in Demetracopoulos,
Bibliotheca Eccksiastico, vol. I, p. 15.
137
Equilibrium in the North
stuffs that had been promised personally to Bertrand. In return
Pons took an oath of allegiance to the Emperor, probably the oath
of non-injury that his grandfather Raymond had taken. The money
recovered by Buturnites was used to buy for the Byzantine army
horses from Damascus, Edessa and Arabia. 1
It was clear that Pons could not be inveigled to act against
Antioch; while Turkish action prevented die Emperor from
making a direct intervention in Syria. Since the death of the
Danishmend Malik Ghazi Gumushtekin in 1106 and that of the
Seldjuk Kilij Arslan in 1107, there had been no great Turkish
potentate in Anatolia; and Alexius was able, as far as he was not
distracted by the Normans, slowly to restore his authority in its
western districts and along the south coast. The leading Moslem
emir was now the Cappadocian Hasan, who in mo attempted to
raid Byzantine territory, even advancing towards Philadelphia,
with Smyrna as his goal. Eustathius Philocales had recently been
given a land-command in south-west Anatolia, with orders to clear
the province of the Turks. He managed, with the small forces that
he controlled, to catch Hasan s army when it was divided up into
various raiding-parties, which he defeated one by one. Hasan
speedily retired; and the Aegean coasts were spared further raids.
But that same year Kilij Arslan s eldest son, Malik Shah, was
released from his Persian captivity. He made Konya his capital
and soon held the bulk of his due inheritance, defeating Hasan and
annexing his lands. Warned by his father s fate he avoided en
tanglement in the East, but as soon as he felt strong enough, he set
out to recover the territory lost by Kilij Arslan at die time of the
First Crusade. During the early months of 1112 he began in
cursions into the Empire, marching on Philadelphia, where he was
checked by the Byzantine general, Gabras. He sued for a truce,
but in 1113 he attacked again, sending a hurried expedition
through Bithynia to the very walls of Nicaea, while his lieutenant
Mohammed penetrated to Poemamenum, farther to the west,
where he defeated and captured a Byzantine general, and another
1 Anna Comncna, xiv, ii, 14, pp. 153-4.
138
1112-15: Seldjuk Wars against Byzantium
lieutenant, Manalugh, raided Abydos on the Hellespont, with its
rich custom-houses. Malik Shah himself attacked and captured
Pergamum. The Emperor set out to meet the invaders, but
waited to catch them on their return, heavily laden with booty.
Coming south through Dorylaeum he fell on them near Coty-
aeum. He won a complete victory and recovered all the loot and
prisoners that they had taken. In 1115 there was news that Malik
Shah was preparing to renew the attack; and Alexius spent much
of the year in patrolling the Bithynian hills. Next year, though
he was already very ill, he decided himself to take the offensive.
He marched southward towards Konya and met the Turkish army
near Philomelium. Once again he was victorious; and Malik
Shah was forced to sign a peace in which he promised to respect
the frontiers of the Empire, which now controlled all the coast
from Trebizond to Cihcian Seleucia and the interior west of
Ankara, the Salt Desert and Philomelium. Malik Shah s attempts
at reconquest had failed; and a few months later he was dethroned
and killed by his brother Mas ud, in alliance with the Danishmend.
But the Turks remained firmly entrenched in the centre of
Anatolia, and Byzantium was still unable to take effective action
in Syria. The chief beneficiaries of these wars were the Armenians
in the Taurus and the Prankish Prince of Antioch. 1
1 Anna Comnena, xiv, v-vi, xv, i-ii, iv-vi, pp. 164-72, 187-72, 187-94,
199-213. See Chalandon, op. tit. pp. 265-71.
139
BOOK II
THE ZENITH
CHAPTER I
KING BALDWIN II
There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel! i KINGS ix,>
Baldwin I had neglected bis final duty as King; he made no
arrangement for the succession to the throne. The council of the
kingdom hastily met. To some of the nobles it seemed unthink
able that the crown should pass from the house of Boulogne.
Baldwin I had succeeded his brother Godfrey; and there was still
a third brother, the eldest, Stephen, Count of Boulogne. Mes
sengers were hastily dispatched over the sea to inform the Count
of his brother s death and to beg him to take up the heritage.
Stephen had no wish to leave his pleasant county for the hazards
of the East; but they told him that it was his duty. He set out
towards Jerusalem. But when he reached Apulia he met other
messengers, with the news that it was too late. The succession had
passed elsewhere. He refused the suggestion that he should con
tinue on his way and fight for his rights. Not unwillingly, he
retraced his steps to Boulogne. 1
Indeed, few of the council had favoured his succession. He was
far away; it would mean an interregnum of many months. The
most influential member of the council was the Prince of Galilee,
Joscelin of Courtenay; and he demanded that the throne be given
to Baldwin of Le Bourg, Count of Edessa. He himself had no
cause to love Baldwin, as he carefully reminded the council;
for Baldwin had falsely accused him of treachery and had exiled
him from his lands in the north. But Baldwin was a man of proved
ability and courage; he was the late King s cousin; and he was the
1 William of Tyre, xn, 3, pp. 513-16. It is uncertain what arrangements he
made for Boulogne. His wife, Mary of Scotland, died in 1116.
143
King Baldwin II
sole survivor of the great knights of the First Crusade. Moreover,
Joscelin calculated that if Baldwin left Edessa for Jerusalem the
least that he could do to reward the cousin who had requited his
unkindness so generously was to entrust him with Edessa. The
Patriarch Arnulf supported Joscelin and together they persuaded
the council. As if to clinch their argument, on the very day of
the King s funeral, Baldwin of Le Bourg appeared unexpectedly
in Jerusalem. He had heard, maybe, of the King s illness of the
previous year and thought it therefore opportune to pay an Easter
pilgrimage to the Holy Places. He was received with gladness and
unanimously elected king by the Council. On Easter Sunday,
14 April i ii 8, the Patriarch Amulf placed the crown on his head. 1
Baldwin II differed greatly as a man from his predecessor.
Though handsome enough, with a long fair beard, he lacked the
tremendous presence of Baldwin I. He was more approachable,
genial and fond of a simple joke, but at the same time subtle and
cunning, less open, less rash, more self-controlled. He was capable
of large gestures but in general somewhat mean and ungenerous.
Despite a high-handed attitude to ecclesiastical affairs, he was
genuinely pious; his knees were callous from constant prayer.
Unlike Baldwin I s, his private life was irreproachable. With his
wife, the Armenian Morphia, he presented a spectacle, rare in the
Prankish East, of perfect conjugal bliss. 2
Joscelin was duly rewarded with the county of Edessa, to hold
it as vassal to King Baldwin, just as Baldwin himself had held it
under Baldwin I. The new King was also recognized as overlord
by Roger of Antioch, his brother-in-law, and by Pons of Tripoli.
The Prankish East was to remain united under the crown of
Jerusalem. 3 A fortnight after Baldwin s coronation the Patriarch
Arnulf died. He had been a loyal and efficient servant of the state;
1 Fulcher of Chartres, in, i, i, pp. 615-16; Albert of Aix, xn, 30, pp. 707-16;
William of Tyre, xn, 4, p. 517.
* William of Tyre, xn, 2, pp. 512-13. See above, p. 36.
3 Immediately on his accession Baldwin summoned Roger and Pons to fight
under him against the Egyptians. (See below, p. 146.)
144
Vfmtfff^
Approximate frontiers of the
Christian states about A.D. 1165 * *
English miles
Map 2. Southern Syria in the twelfth century.
145
King Baldwin II
but, in spite of his prowess as a preacher, he had been involved in
too many scandals to be respected as an ecclesiastic. It is doubtful
if Baldwin much regretted his death. In his place he secured the
election of a Picard priest, Gormond of Picquigny, of whose
previous history nothing is known. It was a happy choice; for
Gormond combined Arnulf s practical qualities with a saintly
nature and was universally revered. This appointment, following
on the recent death of Pope Paschal, restored good relations
between Jerusalem and Rome. 1
King Baldwin had barely established himself on the throne
before he heard the ominous news of an alliance between Egypt
and Damascus. The Fatimid vizier, al-Afdal, was anxious to
punish Baldwin I s insolent invasion of Egypt; while Toghtekin
of Damascus was alarmed by the growing power of the Franks.
Baldwin hastily sent him an embassy; but confident of Egyptian
help Toghtekin demanded the cession of all Prankish lands
beyond Jordan. In the course of the summer a great Egyptian
army assembled on the frontier and took up its position outside
Ashdod; and Toghtekin was invited to take command of it.
Baldwin summoned the militia of Antioch and Tripoli to rein
force the troops of Jerusalem, and marched down to meet them.
For three months the armies faced each other, neither side daring
to move; for everyone, in Fulcher of Chartres s words, liked
better to live than to die. At last the soldiers on either side dis
persed to their homes. 2
Meanwhile, Joscelin s departure for Edessa was delayed. He
was more urgently needed in Galilee than in the northern county,
where, it seems, Queen Morphia remained, and where Waleran,
Lord of Birejik, carried on the government. 3 As Prince of
Galilee it was for Joscelin to defend the land against attacks from
Damascus. La the autumn Baldwin joined him in a raid on Deraa
1 Albert of Aix, loc. cit.\ William of Tyre, xn, 6, p. 519.
* Fulcher of Chartres, m, ii, 1-3, pp. 617-19; William of Tyre, xn, 6,
pp. 518-19; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 314-15.
3 Chron. Anon. Syr. p. 86.
146
: Raids in Transjordan
in the Hauran, the granary of Damascus. Toghtekin s son Buri
went out to meet them and owing to his rashness was severely
defeated. After this check Toghtekin turned his attention again
to the north. 1
In the spring of 1119 Joscehn heard that a rich Bedouin tribe
was pasturing its flocks in Transjordan, by the Yarmuk. He set
out with two leading Galilean barons, the brothers Godfrey and
William of Bures, and about a hundred and twenty horsemen, to
plunder it. The party divided to encircle the tribesmen. But
things went wrong. The Bedouin chief was warned and Joscelin
lost his way in the hills. Godfrey and William, riding up to attack
the camp, were ambushed. Godfrey was killed, and most of his
followers taken prisoner. Joscelin returned unhappily to Tiberias
and sent to tell Bang Baldwin; who came up in force and
frightened the Bedouin into returning the prisoners and paying an
indemnity. They were then allowed to spend the summer in peace. 2
When Baldwin was pausing at Tiberias on his return from this
short campaign, messengers came to him from Antioch, begging
him to hasten with his army northward, as fast as he could travel.
Ever since Roger of Antioch s victory at Tel-Danith, the un
fortunate city of Aleppo had been powerless to prevent Prankish
aggression. It had reluctantly placed itself beneath the protection
of Ilghazi tJbeOrtoqidj but Roger s capture of Biza a in 1119 left
it surrounded on three sides. The loss of Biza a was more than
Ilghazi could endure. Hitherto neither he nor his constant ally,
Toghtekin of Damascus, had been prepared to risk their whole
strength in a combat against the Franks; for they feared and dis
liked still more the Seldjuk Sultans of the East. But the Sultan
Mohammed had died in April 1118; and his death had let loose
the ambition of every governor and princeling throughout his
empire. His youthful son and successor, Mahmud, tried patheti
cally to assert his authority, but eventually, in August 1119, he
was obliged to hand over the supreme power to his uncle Sanjar,
the King of Khorassan, and spent the rest of his short life in the
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 315-16. 2 Ibid. pp. 325-6.
147 I0 -*
King Baldwin II
pleasures of the chase. Sanjar, the last of his house to rule over the
whole eastern Seldjuk dominion, was vigorous enough; but his
interests were in the East. He never concerned himself with
Syria. Nor were his cousins of the Sultanate of Rum, distracted
with quarrels amongst themselves and with the Danishmends and
by wars with Byzantium, better able to intervene in Syrian affairs. 1
Ilghazi, the most tenacious of the local princes, at last had his
opportunity. His wish was not so much to destroy the Prankish
states as to secure Aleppo for himself, but the latter aim now
involved the former.
During the spring of 1 1 19 Ilghazi journeyed round his dominions
collecting his Turcoman troops and arranging for contingents to
come from the Kurds to the north and from the Arab tribes of the
Syrian desert. As a matter of form he applied for assistance from
the Sultan Mahmud, but received no answer. His ally, Toghtekin,
agreed to come up from Damascus; and the Munqidhites of
Shaizar promised to make a diversion to the south of Roger s
territory. 2 At the end of May, the Ortoqid army, said to be forty
thousand strong, was on the march. Roger received the news
calmly; but the Patriarch Bernard urged him to appeal for help to
King Baldwin and to Pons of Tripoli. From Tiberias Baldwin
sent to say that he would come as quickly as possible and would
bring the troops of Tripoli with him. In the meantime Roger
should wait on the defensive. Baldwin then collected the army of
Jerusalem, and fortified it with a portion of the True Cross, in the
care of Evremar, Archbishop of Caesarea. 3
While the Munqidhites made a raid on Apamea, Ilghazi sent
Turcoman detachments south-west, to effect a junction with them
and with the army coming up from Damascus. He himself with
his main army raided the territory of Edessa but made no attempt
against its fortress-capital. In mid-June he crossed the Euphrates
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 318-23. See ardcles Sandjur and Seldjuks , in Encyclo
paedia of Islam.
* Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 157-7; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 615-16.
3 Walter die Chancellor, n, i, pp. 100-1.
148
nig : The Field of Blood
at Balis and moved on to encamp himself at Qinnasrin, some
fifteen miles south of Aleppo, to await Toghtekin. Roger was less
patient. In spite of King Baldwin s message, in spite of the solemn
warning of the Patriarch Bernard and in spite of all the previous
experience of the Prankish princes, he decided to meet the enemy
at once. On 20 June he led the whole army of Antioch, seven
hundred horsemen and four thousand infantrymen, across the Iron
Bridge, and encamped himself in front of the little fort of Tel-
Aqibrin, at the eastern edge of the plain of Sarmeda, where the
broken country afforded a good natural defence. Though his
forces were far inferior to the enemy s, he hoped that he could
wait here till Baldwin arrived.
Ilghazi, at Qinnasrin, was perfectly informed of Roger s move
ments. Spies disguised as merchants had inspected the Prankish
camp and reported the numerical weakness of the Prankish army.
Though Ilghazi wished to wait for Toghtekin s arrival, his Turco
man emirs urged him to take action. On 27 June part of his army
moved to attack the Prankish castle of Athareb. Roger had time
to rush some of his men there, under Robert of Vieux-Ponts ; then,
disquieted to find the enemy so close, when darkness fell he sent
away all the treasure of the army to the castle of Artah on the
road to Antioch.
Throughout the night Roger waited anxiously for news of the
Moslems movements, while his soldiers rest was broken by a
somnambulist who ran through the camp crying that disaster was
upon them. At dawn on Saturday, 28 June, scouts brought word
to the Prince that the camp was surrounded. A dry enervating
khamsin was blowing up from, the south. In the camp itself there
was little food and water. Roger saw that he must break through
the enemy ranks or perish. The Archbishop of Apamea was with
the army, Peter, formerly of Albara, the first Prankish bishop in
the East. He summoned the soldiers together and preached to
them and confessed them aU. He confessed Roger in his tent and
gave him absolution for his many sins of the flesh. Roger then
boldly announced that he would go hunting. But first he sent out
149
King Baldwin II
another scouting-party which was ambushed. The few survivors
hurried back to say that there was no way through the encircle
ment. Roger drew up the army in four divisions and one in
reserve. Thereupon the Archbishop blessed them once more; and
they charged in perfect order into the enemy.
It was hopeless from the outset. There was no escape through
the hordes of Turcoman horsemen and archers. The locally
recruited infantrymen, Syrians and Armenians, were the first to
panic; but there was no place to which they could flee. They
crowded in amongst the cavalry, hindering the horses. The wind
suddenly turned to the north and rose, driving a cloud of dust into
the Franks faces. Early in the battle less than, a hundred horsemen
broke through and joined up with Robert of Vieux-Ponts, who
had arrived back from Athareb too late to take part. They fled on
to Antioch. A little later Reynald Mazoir and a few knights
escaped and reached the little town of Sarmeda, in the plain. No
one else in the army of Antioch survived. Roger himself fell
fighting at the foot of his great jewelled cross. Round him fell his
knights except for a few, less fortunate, who were made prisoners.
By midday it was all over. To the Franks the battle was known as
the Ager Sanguinis, the Field of Blood. 1
At Aleppo, fifteen miles away, the faithful waited eagerly for
news. About noon a rumour came that a great victory was in
store for Islam; and at the hour of the afternoon prayer the first
exultant soldiers were seen to approach. Ilghazi had only paused
on the battlefield to allot the booty to his men, then marched to
Sarmeda, where Reynald Mazoir surrendered to him. Reynald s
proud bearing impressed Ilghazi, who spared his life. His com
rades were slain. The Prankish prisoners were dragged in chains
1 Walter die Chancellor, n, 2-6, pp. 101-11 (the fullest account); William
of Tyre, xn, 9-10, pp. 523-6; Fulcher of Chartres, m, iii, 2-4, pp. 621-3
(a short account in which he attributed the disaster to God s displeasure at
Roger s adulterous habits); Matthew of Edessa, ccxxvi, pp. 276-7; Michael the
Syrian, m, p. 204; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 159-61; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 616-18;
Usama, ed. Him, pp. 148-9 ; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 324-5. Fulcher gives the Prankish
losses as seven thousand and the Turkish as twenty.
150
mg: Ilghazi wastes his Victory
across the plain behind their victors. While Ilghazi parleyed with
Reynald, they were tortured and massacred amongst the vineyards
by the Turcomans, till Ilghazi put a stop to it, not wishing the
populace of Aleppo to miss all the sport. The remainder were
taken on to Aleppo, where Ilghazi made his triumphant entry at
sundown; and there they were tortured to death in the streets. 1
While Ilghazi feasted at Aleppo in celebration of his victory,
the terrible news of the battle reached Antioch. All expected that
the Turcomans would come up at once to attack the city; and
there were no soldiers to defend it. In the crisis the Patriarch
Bernard took command. His first fear was of treason from the
native Christians, whom his own actions had done so much to
alienate. He at once sent round to disarm them and impose a
curfew on them. Then he distributed the arms that he could
collect among the Prankish clergy and merchants and set them to
watch the walls. Day and night they kept vigil, while a messenger
was sent to urge King Baldwin to hurry faster. 2
But Ilghazi did not follow up his victory. He wrote round to
the monarchs of the Moslem world to tell them of his triumph;
and the Caliph in return sent him a robe of honour and the title of
Star of Religion. 3 Meanwhile he marched on Artah. The Bishop
who was in command of one of the towers surrendered it in
return for a safe-conduct to Antioch; but a certain Joseph, pro
bably an Armenian, who was in charge of the citadel, where
Roger s treasure was housed, persuaded Ilghazi that he himself
sympathized with the Moslems, but his son was a hostage at
Antioch. Ilghazi was impressed by the story, and left Artah in
Joseph s hands, merely sending one of his emirs to reside as his
representative in the town. 4 From Artesia he returned to Aleppo,
where he settled down to so pleasant a series of festivities that his
health began to suffer. Turcoman troops were sent to raid the
suburbs of Antioch and sack the port of Saint Symeon, but
1 Kemal ad-Din, loc. at.; Walter the Chancellor, n, 7, pp. 111-13.
2 Walter the Chancellor, u, 8, pp. 114-15. 3 ibn al-Athir, p. 332.
4 Walter the Chancellor, n, 8, p. 114.
151
King Baldwin II
reported that the city itself was well garrisoned. The fruits of the
Field of Blood were thus thrown away by the Moslems. 1
Nevertheless the position was serious for the Franks. Baldwin
had reached Lattakieh, with Pons close behind him, before he
heard the news. He hurried on, not stopping even to attack an
undefended Turcoman encampment near to the road, and arrived
without incident at Antioch in the first days of August. Ilghazi
sent some of his troops to intercept the relieving army; and Pons,
following a day s march behind, had to ward off their attack but
was not much delayed. The King was received with joy by his
sister, the widowed Princess Cecilia, by the Patriarch and by all
the people; and a service giving thanks to God was held in
St Peter s Cathedral. He first cleared the suburbs of marauders,
then met the notables of the city to discuss its future government.
The lawful prince, Bohemond II, whose ultimate rights Roger
had always acknowledged, was a boy of ten, living with his
mother in Italy. There was no representative of the Norman
house left in the East; and the Norman knights had all perished on
the Field of Blood. It was decided that Baldwin, as overlord of
the Prankish East, should himself take over the government of
Antioch till Bohemond came of age, and that Bohemond should
then be married to one of the Kong s daughters. Next, Baldwin
redistributed the fiefs of the principality, left empty by the
disaster. Wherever it was possible, the widows of the fallen lords
were married off at once to suitable knights in Baldwin s army or
to newcomers from the West. We find the two Dowager Prin
cesses, Tancred s widow, now Countess of Tripoli, and Roger s
widow, installing new vassals on their dower-lands. At the same
time Baldwin probably rearranged the fiefs of the county of
Edessa; and Joscelin, who followed the King up from Palestine,
was formally established as its Count. Having assured the
administration of the land, and having headed a barefoot pro
cession to the cathedral, Baldwin led his army of about seven
1 Usama, ed. Hitti, pp. 148-9; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 332-3. According to Usama,
if Ilghazi drank wine lie felt drunk for twenty days.
152
1119: Drawn Battle at Hab
hundred horsemen and some thousand infantrymen out against
the Moslems. 1
Ilghazi had now been joined by Toghtekin ; and the two Moslem
chieftains set out on n August to capture the Prankish fortresses
east of the Orontes, beginning with Athareb, whose small gar
rison at once surrendered in return for a safe-conduct to Antioch.
The emirs next day went on to Zerdana, whose lord, Robert the
Leper, had gone to Antioch. Here again the garrison surrendered
in return for their lives; but they were massacred by the Turco
mans as soon as they emerged from the gates. Baldwin had hoped
to save Athareb; but he had hardly crossed the Iron Bridge before
he met its former garrison. He went on south, and heard of the
siege of Zerdana. Suspecting that the Moslems intended to move
southward to mop up the castles round Maarat al-Numan and
Apamea, he hurried ahead and encamped on the I3th at Tel-
Danith, the scene of Roger s victory in 1115. Early next morning
he learnt that Zerdana had fallen and judged it prudent to retire
a little towards Antioch. Meanwhile Ilghazi had come up, hoping
to surprise the Franks as they slept by the village of Hab. But
Baldwin was ready. He had already confessed himself; the
Archbishop of Caesarea had harangued the troops and held up the
True Cross to bless them; and the army was ready for action.
The battle that followed was confused. Both sides claimed
a victory; but in fact the Franks came off the best. Toghtekin
drove back Pons of Tripoli, on the Prankish right wing; but the
Tripolitans kept their ranks. Next to him Robert the Leper
charged through the regiment from Horns and eagerly planned to
recapture Zerdana, only to fall into an ambush and be taken
captive. But the Prankish centre and left held their ground, and
at the crucial moment Baldwin was able to charge the enemy with
1 Walter the Chancellor, n, 9-10, pp. 115-18; Fulcher of Chartres, in, vii,
1-3, pp. 633-5 ; Orderic Vitalis (xi, 25, vol. iv, p. 245) tells of Cecilia, Countess
of Tripoli enfeoffing knights. Roger s widow enfeoffed knights in 1126
(Rohricht, Regesta, Additamenta, p. 9). It was probably at this time that Marash
was transferred from the suzerainty of Antioch to that of Edessa.
153
King Baldwin II
troops that were still fresh. Numbers of the Turcomans turned
and fled; but the bulk of Ilghazi s army left the battlefield in good
order. Ilghazi and Toghtekin retired towards Aleppo with a large
train of prisoners, and were able to tell the Moslem world that
theirs was the victory. Once again the citizens of Aleppo were
gratified by the sight of a wholesale massacre of Christians, till
Ilghazi, after interrupting the killing to try out a new horse, grew
disquieted at the loss of so much potential ransom-money. Robert
the Leper was asked his price and replied that it was ten thousand
pieces of gold. Ilghazi hoped to raise the price by sending Robert
to Toghtekin. But Toghtekin had not yet satisfied his blood-lust.
Though Robert was an old friend of his from the days of 1115, he
himself struck off his head, to the dismay of Ilghazi, who needed
money for his soldiers pay. 1
At Antioch soldiers fleeing from Pons s army had brought news
of a defeat; but soon a messenger arrived for the Princess Cecilia
bearing the King s ring as token of his success. Baldwin himself
did not attempt to pursue the Moslem army but moved on south
to Maarat al-Numan and to Rusa, which the Munqidhites of
Shaizar had occupied. He drove them out but then made a treaty
with them, releasing them from the obligation to pay yearly dues
that Roger had demanded. The remaining forts that the Moslems
had captured, with the exception of Birejik, Athareb and Zerdana,
were also recovered. Then Baldwin returned to Antioch in
triumph, and sent the Holy Cross southward to arrive at Jerusalem
in time for the Feast of the Exaltation, on 14 September. He him
self spent the autumn in Antioch, completing the arrangements
that he had begun before the recent battle. In December he
journeyed back to Jerusalem, leaving the Patriarch Bernard to
administer Antioch in his name, and installing Joscelin in Edessa. 2
He brought south with him from Edessa his wife and their little
1 "Walter the Chancellor, n, 10-15, pp. 118-28; William of Tyre, xn, 11-12,
pp. 527-30; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 620-2; Usama, ed. Him, pp. 149-50.
2 Walter the Chancellor, n, 16, pp. 129-31; William of Tyre, xn, 12,
p. 530.
154
1119: Failure of the Ortoqid Campaign
daughters; and at the Christmas ceremony at Bethlehem Morphia
was crowned queen. 1
Ilghazi had not ventured to attack the Franks again. His army
was melting away. The Turcoman troops had come mainly for
the sake of plunder. After the battle of Tel-Danith they were left
idle and bored and their pay was in arrears. They began to go
home, and with them the Arab chieftains of the Jezireh. Ilghazi
could not prevent them; for he himself had fallen ill once more
and for a fortnight he hung between life and death. When he
recovered it was too late to reassemble his army. He returned
from Aleppo to his eastern capital at Mardin, and Toghtekin
returned to Damascus. 5
Thus the great Ortoqid campaign fizzled out. It had achieved
nothing material for the Moslems, except for a few frontier-forts
and the easing of Prankish pressure on Aleppo. But it had been
a great moral triumph for Islam. The check at Tel-Danith had not
counterbalanced the tremendous victory of the Held of Blood.
Had Ilghazi been abler and more alert, Antioch might have been
his. As it was, the slaughter of the Norman chivalry, their Prince
at their head, encouraged the emirs of the Jezireh and northern
Mesopotamia to renew the attack, now that they were free from
the tutelage of their nominal Seldjuk overlord in Persia. And soon
a greater man than Ilghazi was to arise. For the Franks the worst
result of the campaign had been the appalling loss of man-power.
The knights and, still more, the infantrymen fallen on the Field of
Blood could not easily be replaced. But the lesson had now been
thoroughly learnt that the Franks of the East must always co
operate and work as a unit. King Baldwin s prompt intervention
had saved Antioch; and the needs of the time were recognized by
the readiness of all the Franks to accept him as an active overlord.
The disaster welded together the Prankish establishments in
Syria.
1 Fulcher of Chartres, ra, vii, 4, p. 635; William of Tyre, xn, 12, p. 531.
2 Walter the Chancellor, loc. cit\ Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 161; Kemal ad-Din,
pp. 624-5.
155
King Baldwin II
On his return to Jerusalem Baldwin busied himself over the
administration of his own kingdom. The succession to the princi
pality of Galilee was given to William of Bures, in whose family
it remained. In January 1120 the King summoned the ecclesiastics
and tenants-in-chief of the kingdom to a council at Nablus to
discuss the moral welfare of his subjects, probably in an attempt
to curb the tendency of the Latin colonists in the East to adopt the
easy and indolent habits that they found there. At the same time
he was concerned with their material welfare. Under Baldwin I
an increasing number of Latins had been encouraged to settle in
Jerusalem, and a Latin bourgeois class was growing up there by
the side of the warriors and clerics of the kingdom. These Latin
bourgeois were now given complete freedom of trade to and from
the city, while, to ensure a full supply of food, the native Christians
and even Arab merchants were allowed to bring vegetables and
corn to the city free of customs-dues. 1
The most important internal event of these years was the founda
tion of the Military Orders. In the yedr 1070 some pious citizens of
Ama] had founded a hostel at Jerusalem for the use of poor
pilgrims. The Egyptian governor then in possession of the city
had allowed the Amalfitan consul to choose a suitable site; and
the establishment was dedicated to Saint John the Almsgiver, the
charitable seventh-century Patriarch of Alexandria. The hostel
was staffed mainly by Amalfitans, who took the usual monastic
vows and were under the direction of a Master, who in his turn
was under the Benedictine authorities established in Palestine. At
the time of the Crusaders capture of Jerusalem the Master was
a certain Gerard, probably an Amalfitan. With his co-religionists
he had been banished from Jerusalem by the Moslem governor
before the siege began; and his knowledge of local conditions had
been of value to the Crusaders. He persuaded the new Prankish
government to make endowments to the Hospital. Many of the
pilgrims joined his staff, which was soon released from its obedience
1 Rohricht, Regesta, p. 20; Mansi, Concilia, vol. xxi, pp. 262-6; "William of
Tyre, xn, xiii, p. 531.
I 5 6
1118-20 : Beginnings of the Military Orders
to die Benedictines and raised to be an Order of its own, under
the name of the Hospitallers, owing direct obedience to the Pope.
More lands were conferred on it and most of the great ecclesiastics
of the realm offered it a tithe from their revenues. Gerard died
in about 1 1 1 8. His successor, the Frenchman Raymond of Le Puy,
had larger ideas. He decided that it was not enough for his Order
to guide and entertain pilgrims; it must be ready to fight to keep
the pilgrim-routes open. The Order still contained brothers whose
duties were purely pacific; but its main function was now to keep
up an establishment of knights bound by the religious vows of
personal poverty, chastity and obedience, and dedicated to fight
against the heathen. About the same time, as though to mark the
greater status of the Hospital, John the Almsgiver was imper
ceptibly replaced as its patron saint by John the Evangelist. The
distinctive badge of the Knights Hospitaller was the white cross
that they wore on their tunics over their armour.
This transformation was helped by the simultaneous establish
ment of the Knights Templar. Indeed, the idea of an Order that
should be both religious and military probably sprang from the
brain of a knight from Champagne, Hugh of Payens, who in
1 1 1 8 persuaded King Baldwin I to allow him to instal himself and
a few companions in a wing of the royal palace, the former
mosque of al-Aqsa, in the Temple area. Like the Hospitallers the
Templars first followed the Benedictine rule but were almost at
once established as an independent Order, with three classes, the
knights, all of noble birth, the sergeants, drawn from the bour
geoisie, who were the grooms and stewards of the community,
and the clerics, who were chaplains and in charge of non-military
tasks. Their badge was the red cross, worn on a white tunic by
the knights and on a black by the sergeants. The first avowed duty
of the Order was to keep the road from the coast to Jerusalem free
from bandits, but soon they took part in any campaign in which
the kingdom was involved. Hugh himself spent much of his time
in western Europe, gaining recruits for his Order.
King Baldwin gave the military Orders his full support. They
157
King Baldwin II
were independent of his authority, owing allegiance only to the
Pope. Even the great estates with which he and his vassals began
to endow them involved no obligation to fight in the King s army ;
but a generation passed before they were rich enough to challenge
the royal authority. In the meantime they provided the kingdom
with what it most needed, a regular army of trained soldiers,
whose permanent presence was assured. In the lay fiefs the sudden
death of the lord and the passing of the inheritance to a woman or
a child might interrupt the organization of his troops and per
petually involve the suzerain in anxious and tiresome business.
Nor could he count on replacing the lords that he lost by new
comers from the West whenever he needed them. But the
Military Orders, with their efficient organization and with their
glamour and prestige spreading through western Christendom,
could ensure a regular supply of devoted fighting-men who would
not be distracted by thoughts of personal ambition and gain. 1
In 1 120 Baldwin returned to Antioch. Ilghazi s governor of
Athareb, Bulaq, had begun to raid Antiochene territory, while
Ilghazi himself had marched on Edessa. Both raids were checked;
but Ilghazi passed on to the neighbourhood of Antioch. The
Patriarch Bernard sent nervously to Jerusalem,, to the King; and
in June Baldwin started northward, bearing with him once more
the True Cross, to the distress of the Church of Jerusalem, which
disliked to see its precious relic exposed to the risk of war. The
Patriarch Gormond himself accompanied the army, to take charge
of the relic. When Baldwin arrived in the north he found that
Ilghazi, weakened by desertions from his Turcoman troops, had
already retired; and so alarmed were the Moslems that Toghtekin
was summoned to Aleppo. During the campaign that followed
each side marched to and fro, till at last the Moslems were
1 For the Military Orders, see William of Tyre, xn, 7, pp. 520-1 (the
Templars); xvm, 4, pp. 822-3 (the Hospitallers). For good modern accounts
see Delaville Le Roulx, Les Hospitallers en Tern Sainte; Curzon, La Regie du
Temple-, Melville, La Vie des Templiers. A full account of the Templars (called
the Prankish Phrer ) is given by Michael the Syrian, ra, pp. 201-3. See also
La Monte, Feudal Monarchy, pp. 217-25.
158
H2i: The Georgian Crusade
wearied. Toghtekin retired to Damascus ; and Ilghazi made a truce
with Baldwin. A definite frontier-line was drawn between their
zones of influence, in one place cutting a mill and in another
a castle in half so that by mutual consent the buildings were
destroyed. Zerdana, which remained a Moslem enclave, was dis
mantled. 1 Early next spring Baldwin returned home, having won
a bloodless moral victory. He was needed in the south, as Togh
tekin, believing him fully occupied in the north, had carried out
an extensive raid into Galilee. In July 1121 Baldwin, in reprisal,
crossed the Jordan and ravaged the Jaulan, occupying and de
stroying a fort that Toghtekin had built at Jerash. 3 Meanwhile
Joscelin made a profitable razzia in Ilghazi s lands in the Jezireh. 3
During the summer of 1121 a new factor made itself felt in
eastern politics. Away to the north, in the Caucasian foothills,
the Bagratid Kings of Georgia had established their hegemony
over the Christian peoples there that still remained independent of
Moslem domination; and King David II had extended his rule to
the south of the Araxes valley, where he came into conflict with the
Seldjuk prince, Toghrul, governor of Arran. After a defeat by
David s forces Toghrul invited Ilghazi to join him in a Holy War
against the impudent Christian. The campaign that followed was
disastrous for the Moslems. In August 1121 the united army of
Toghrul and Ilghazi was almost annihilated by the Georgians ; and
Ilghazi barely escaped with his life as he fled back to Mardin. King
David was able to establish himself in the old Georgian capital of
Tiflis, and by 1124 he had acquired northern Armenia and the
metropolis of Ani, the ancient home of his house. Henceforward the
whole Turkish world was desperately conscious of the danger that
Georgia, with its superb strategic position, presented to them; nor
1 Fulcher of Chartres, m, ix, 1-7, pp. 638-42; Walter the Chancellor, n, 16,
p. 13 1 ; Matthew of Edessa, ccxxx, pp. 302-3 ; Michael the Syrian, in, pp. 205-6 ;
Kemal ad-Din, p. 627; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 162; Grousset^op. cit. I, p. 574,
following Michael the Syrian, confuses Bulaq with Ilghazi s nephew Balak,
who was now campaigning far farther north (Ibn al-Qalanisi, loc. cit.].
* Fulcher of Chartres, m, x, 1-6, pp. 643-5.
3 Ibn al-Qalanisi, op. cit. p. 163 ; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 623-6.
159
King Baldwin II
was the danger lessened by David II s death in 1 125. 1 His successors
inherited his vigour. Their prowess, by keeping the Moslems
perpetually nervous of their northern flank, was of great value to
the Franks, though there seems to have been no direct contact
between the two Christian powers. The Georgians, bound by links
of religion and tradition to Byzantium, had no liking for the Franks ;
and the chilly treatment accorded to their religious establish
ments at Jerusalem was not such as would please a proud people. 2
Nevertheless, Ilghazi s fate at their hands gave Baldwin an
opportunity that he did not miss. Ilghazi s son, Suleiman, recently
appointed governor of Aleppo by his father, rashly profited by his
father s defeat to declare his independence, and, finding himself
unable to meet the attack that Baldwin at once launched against
him, he made peace with the Franks, ceding to them Zerdana and
Athareb, the fruits of Ilghazi s victory. Ilghazi hastened to punish
his disloyal son, but judged it prudent to confirm the treaty with
Baldwin; who returned to Jerusalem, well pleased with the year s
achievements. 3
Early in 1122 Pons, Count of Tripoli, suddenly refused to pay
allegiance to the King. The reason for his insubordination is
unknown. It is difficult to see what support he hoped to find that
would enable him to maintain it. Baldwin was furious and at
once summoned his vassals to come and punish the rebel. The
royal army marched up from Acre; and on its approach Pons
submitted and was forgiven. 4 His submission was timely; for
1 Georgian Chronicle (in Georgian), pp. 209-10, 215; Matthew of Edessa,
ccxxxi-ii, ccxxxix, ccxliii, pp. 303-5, 310-11, 313-14; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 164;
Ibn al-Athir, pp. 330-2; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 628-9; Walter the Chancellor, n,
1 6, p. 130 (who gives the credit of the Georgian victory to Prankish mer
cenaries) ; Michael the Syrian, m, p. 206.
2 For the Georgian establishments in Jerusalem, see Georgian Chronicle,
pp. 222-3 aftd Brosset, Additions et Eclair cissements, x, pp. 197-205. A brief
notice is given in Rey, Les Colonies Franques, pp. 93-4. It is possible that the
Georgians, by continually threatening the Ortoqids and the Seldjuks of
Persarmenia, indirecdy helped the growth of Zengi s power.
3 Kemal ad-Din, p. 629; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 349-50.
4 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xi, pp. 647-8; William of Tyre, xn, 17, pp. 536-7.
160
ii 22 : Capture of Count Joscelin
Ilghazi, urged on by his nephew Balak, formerly prince of Saruj
and now lord of Khanzit, was on the warpath once more.
Baldwin, when the news was brought to him, refused to believe it.
He had made a treaty with Ilghazi, and he believed that a gentle
man the Arab chronicler uses the word sheikh kept his word.
But Ilghazi was no gentleman; and he had the promise of
Toghtekin s help. He laid siege to Zerdana, which the Franks had
rebuilt, and had captured part of the fortifications when Baldwin
approached. There followed another campaign without a battle,
as Baldwin refused to be lured by the habitual Turkish stratagem
of a feigned flight. Once again the Moslems were the first to
weary of the marching to and fro and returned to their homes.
Baldwin contentedly sent the Cross back to Jerusalem and him
self went to Antioch. 1
Before the Cross had reached its destination, bad news came
from Edessa. On 13 September 1122, Count Joscelin and
Waleran of Birejik were riding with a small force of horsemen,
near Saruj when they suddenly came across Balak s army. They
charged the enemy; but a heavy shower of rain turned the plain
into mud. The horses slid and stumbled; and the light-armed
Turcomans had no difficulty in surrounding the Franks. Joscelin,
Waleran and sixty of their comrades were captured. Balak at once
offered them their liberty in return for the cession of Edessa. On
Joscelin 5 s refusal to listen to such terms, the prisoners were taken
by Balak to his castle of Kharpurt*
Joscelin s capture did not much affect the man-power of the
Crusading states. We find the knights of Edessa successfully
raiding Moslem territory during the following month. But it was
a blow to Prankish prestige; and it forced Baldwin to add to his
1 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xi, 3-7, pp. 648-51; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 632-3;
Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 166.
2 Fulcher of Chartres, in, xii, i, pp. 651-2; Matthew of Edessa, ccxxxiv,
pp. 306-7; Kemal ad-Din, p. 634; Anon. Chron. Syr. p. 90, says that Joscelin
was bringing home his new wife, Roger s sister. But there is no mention of
her capture and, as Roger endowed his sister, the marriage must have taken
place before Roger s death.
King Baldwin II
labours by taking over once more the administration of Edessa.
Fortunately, in November, Ilghazi died at Mayyafaraqin, and his
sons and nephews divided up the Ortoqid inheritance. His elder
son Suleiman took Mayyafaraqin and the younger, Timurtash,
Mardin. Aleppo went to a nephew, Badr ad-Daulah Suleiman;
and Balak increased his possessions in the north and took Harran
to the south. 1
The Moslems had recently reoccupied Athareb; and in April
next year Baldwin took advantage of the present confusion to
force the feeble new ruler of Aleppo to give it back once and for
all. After recapturing Birejik, the Kong then proceeded to Edessa
to make arrangements for its government. He placed Geoffrey
the Monk, lord of Marash, at the head of its administration, and
went on with a small force north-eastward, to reconnoitre the
scene of Joscelin s captivity. He encamped on 18 April not far
from Gargar on the Euphrates. As he prepared to enjoy a
morning s sport with his falcon, Balak, of whose proximity he
knew nothing, fell upon the camp. Most of the army was mas
sacred, and the King himself was taken prisoner. He was treated
with respect and sent under escort to join Joscelin in the fortress
of Kharpurt. 2
Once again Baldwin and Joscelin found themselves together in
captivity. But it was more serious than in 1104, for Baldwin now
was king, the centrepiece of the whole Prankish fabric. It was
a testimony to his administrative ability that the structure
remained standing. Geoffrey the Monk continued to govern in
Edessa. At Antioch when the news caone there the Patriarch
Bernard once more made himself the responsible authority. At
Jerusalem it was first rumoured that the King was Tolled. The
Patriarch Gormond summoned the council of the kingdom to
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 166; Ibn Hamdun, p. 516; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 632-4;
Matthew of Edessa, loc. dt. (an ignorant account of the Ortoqid succession).
2 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xvi, i, pp. 658-9; William of Tyre, xn, n, p. 537;
Orderic Vitalis, xi, 26, vol. iv, p. 247; Matthew of Edessa, ccxxv, pp. 307-8;
Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 167; Ibn al-Athir, p. 352.
162
1123: Baldwin andjoscelin attempt to escape
meet at Acre. By the time that it assembled the truth about his
captivity was known. The council elected Eustace Gamier, lord of
Caesar ea and Sidon, to act as constable and bailiff of the kingdom
till the King should be delivered. In all three territories admini
strative life went on undisturbed. 1
The emir Balak had acquired a vast prestige; but he used it, not
to deliver a death-blow against the Franks, but to establish himself
in Aleppo. It was a harder task than he expected, for he was
unpopular there. By June he was its master; and he then attacked
the Prankish possession farther south, capturing Albara in August,
only to be summoned north again by extraordinary news from
Kharpurt. 2
Joscelin had always been well-liked by the Armenians. Soon
after his arrival in die East he had, like Baldwin I and Baldwin II,
married an Armenian wife, die sister of the Roupenian Thoros,
and she, unlike the two Queens of Jerusalem, was not born
Orthodox but of the Separated Armenian Church and therefore in
greater sympathy with most of her compatriots. She was dead
now, and Joscelin had remarried; but his intimacy with the
Armenians had continued and he had never shown against them
the severity shown by his predecessor Baldwin II. The castle of
Kharpurt lay in Armenian country; and a local peasant agreed to
take a message to Joscelin s Armenian friends. Fifty of them came
in various disguises to Kharpurt and were allowed entry as being
monks and merchants of the district with a grievance that they
asked to lay before the governor. Once inside the fortress they
produced arms from beneath their garments and overpowered the
garrison. Baldwin and Joscelin suddenly found themselves the
masters of their prison. After a brief conference it was decided
that Joscelin should leave the fortress before the Ortoqid army
came up and should seek help, while Baldwin should try to hold
1 Fulcher of Chartres, in, xvi, 1-3, pp. 659-61; William of Tyre, xn, 17,
p. 538.
* Kemal ad-Din, pp. 636-7; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 167-8. For various accounts
of Balak s capture of Aleppo, see Cahen, op. cit. p. 296 n. 35.
163 I][ - 2
King Baldwin II
the fortress. Joscelin slipped out with three Armenian comrades.
When he had managed to pass between the gathering Turkish
forces, he sent one of his men back to reassure the King. He him
self went on through the dangerous enemy country, hiding by
day and tramping wearily by night. At last the fugitives reached
the Euphrates. Joscelin could not swim; but he had two wine
skins in which he had carried water. Blowing them up with his
breath he used them as floats; and his two companions, both
strong swimmers, were able to push him across through the
darkness. Next day they were found by a peasant, who recognized
the Count and welcomed him with joy; for Joscelin had given
him alms in the past. With the help of the peasant and his family
Joscelin travelled on cautiously to Turbessel, where he revealed
himself to his wife and the court. He would not stay there but
hurried to Anrioch to raise troops to rescue the King. But the
army of Antioch was small and the Patriarch Bernard was nervous.
At his suggestion Joscelin rode at full speed to Jerusalem. His
first act was to offer his chains at the altar of Calvary. Then he
summoned the council of the kingdom and told his story. With
the eager help of the Patriarch Gormond and of the Constable
Eustace, troops were collected and, with the True Cross at their
head, set out under his leadership by forced marches to Turbessel.
But when they arrived there they heard that it was too late.
When the news of the revolution at Kharpurt reached Balak
he at once brought his army up from the south at a speed that
astounded contemporaries. On his arrival he offered Baldwin
a safe-conduct to his home if he would surrender the castle.
Baldwin refused, either distrusting the emir or not wishing to
abandon his comrades. But the castle was less impregnable than
he had thought. Balak s engineers soon undermined a wall, and
the Ortoqid army broke in. Balak now showed no mercy. His
harem had been in the castle and its sanctity had been violated.
Every defender of the castle, Frank or Armenian, and every
woman who had aided them there were, probably, Armenian
slaves in the harem was hurled over the battlements to death.
164
1124: Death ofBalak
Only the King, a nephew of his and Waleran were spared. They
were moved for greater safety to the castle of Harran. 1
Joscelin could not risk the hazards of a campaign against
Harran. After utilizing his army for a successful raid in the
neighbourhood of Aleppo he dismissed it and returned to Tur-
bessel. But Balak was equally unable to profit by the situation.
His lieutenant in Aleppo could only answer the Franks by con
verting the churches of Aleppo into mosques, thereby outraging
the local Christians and in no way harming the Latins. Balak
himself came to Aleppo to organize a fresh campaign. But, early
in 1124, the governor of Menbij revolted against his authority. He
was arrested by the Ortoqid Timurtash, whom Balak asked to
crush the rebellion; but the rebel s brother Isa held the citadel and
appealed to Joscelin for help. Balak met Joscelin s army and
defeated it, slaying Geoffrey the Monk. He went on to Menbij,
eager to restore order there as he had just received an urgent
summons from the south, from Tyre. But a stray arrow from the
citadel ended his life, on 6 May. He died murmuring that his
death was a mortal blow for Islam. He was right; for of all the
Turkish leaders that the Crusaders had encountered he had shown
the greatest energy and wisdom. The power of the Ortoqids did
not long survive him. 2
In the kingdom of Jerusalem itself Baldwin s absence in captivity
1 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xxiii-xxvi, 6, pp. 676-93 ; Orderic Vitalis, xi, 26,
vol. iv, pp. 248-10. He says that the Armenian-born Queen Morphia helped to
recruit compatriots for the King s rescue. He adds that captives were sent to
Persia but later released. William of Tyre, xn, 18-20, pp. 538-41 ; Matthew of
Edessa, ccxxxvi, pp. 308-10; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 169 (unfortunately with
a lacuna in the text); Kemal ad-Din, p. 637; Michael the Syrian, m, p. 211.
Baldwin s nephew was probably a brother of Manasses of Hierges, son of his
sister Hodierna (see below, p. 233). "We are told by Michael, who calls him
Bar Noul (Arnulf ?), that he was the son of a sister. Baldwin s other sister
Mahalda, Lady of Vitry, seems to have had only one son, who married an
heiress-cousin and succeeded to Rethel. William of Tyre, xn, I, pp. 511-12.
* Fulcher of Chartres, m, xxxi, i-io, pp. 721-7; Orderic Vitalis, 33, 26,
vol. iv, p. 260; William of Tyre, xni, II, pp. 57-i ; Matthew of Edessa, ccxl,
pp. 311-12; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 641-2; Usama, ed. Hitti, pp. 63, 76, 130;
Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 168-9 (but does not mention Balak s death).
I6 5
King Baldwin II
had had no harmful effect. It had tempted the Egyptians once
more to invade the country. In May 1123 a large Egyptian army
moved out from Ascalon towards Jaffa. Eustace Gamier at once
led the army of Jerusalem to oppose it. With him went the True
Cross; while the Christian civilians of Jerusalem made barefoot
processions to the churches. These pious precautions were barely
needed; for when the Franks came up with the Egyptians at
Ibelin, on 29 May, the enemy, despite his vast numerical superi
ority, turned and fled, leaving his camp to be plundered by the
Christians. 1 It was Eustace s last achievement. On 15 May he
died. Following the custom of the kingdom, his widow, the
Patriarch Arnulf s rich niece Emma, prompdy took a new
husband, Hugh of Le Puiset, Count of Jaffa, in order that her lands
should not lack an effective tenant. The office of Constable of the
Kingdom was given by the council to William of Bures, Prince
of Galilee. 2
In 1119, just after the Field of Blood, King Baldwin had written
to the Republic of Venice to plead for its help. The Egyptians
might not be formidable on land, but their fleet still dominated
Palestinian waters. In return he offered Venice commercial
advantages. The Pope supported his appeal; and the Doge,
Domenico Michiel, decided to answer it. Nearly three years
passed before the Venetian expedition was ready. On 8 August
1 122, a fleet of well over a hundred great men-of-war set sail
from Venice, carrying a number of men and horses and siege-
material. But it did not sail direct for Palestine. Venice had
recently quarrelled with Byzantium, over an attempt of the
Emperor John Comnenus to reduce its trading privileges. So the
Venetians paused to attack the Byzantine island of Corfu. For
some six months, throughout the winter of 1122-3, the Doge laid
1 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xvi, 3 -xix, i, pp. 661-8; William of Tyre, xn, I,
Pp. 543-5-
2 Fulcher of Chartres, in, xxii, pp. 674-5; William of Tyre, loc. cit. For
Hugh of Le Puiset, see below, p. 191. He had married Emma before April 1124
(Rohricht, Regesta, p. 25).
166
1123: Venetian Squadron arrives at Acre
siege, ineffectively, to the city of Corfu. At the end of April a ship
sailing swiftly from Palestine told the Venetians of the disaster
to the King. Reluctantly the Doge lifted the siege and took his
armada eastward, merely stopping to attack whatever Byzantine
ships he met. He arrived at Acre at the end of May and heard that
the Egyptian fleet was cruising off Ascalon. He sailed down to
meet it and, to lure it to battle, sent his lighter-armed ships ahead.
The Egyptians fell into the trap. Thinking to have an easy victory
they sailed out only to find themselves caught between two
Venetian squadrons and outnumbered. Scarcely an Egyptian ship
escaped from disaster. Some were sunk, others captured; and the
Venetians added to their triumph when, sailing back to Acre, they
met and captured a merchant-fleet often richly laden vessels. 1
The presence of the Venetians was too valuable to be wasted.
There was a debate whether their fleet should be used to capture
Ascalon or Tyre, the two remaining Moslem strongholds on the
coast. The nobles of Judea favoured the attack on Ascalon, those
of Galilee that on Tyre. The Venetians finally decided upon Tyre.
Its harbour was the best along the coast and it was now the port
of the rich lands of Damascus ; it was a far more important trading-
centre than Ascalon, with its open roadstead and its poor hinter
land. But they insisted on their price. Negotiations about the
terms dragged on throughout the autumn. At Christmas 1123,
the Venetian commanders were sumptuously entertained at
Jerusalem and attended the services at Bethlehem. Early in the
new year a treaty was signed at Acre between the representatives
of the Republic on the one hand and the Patriarch Gormond, the
Constable William and the Chancellor Pagan on the other, in the
name of the captive King. The Venetians were to receive a street,
with a church, baths and a bakery, free of all customary obligations,
in every town of the kingdom. They were to be free to use their
own weights and measures in all their transactions, not only
amongst themselves. They were to be excused all tolls and
1 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xx, 1-8, pp. 669-72; William of Tyre, xn, 23,
pp. 546-7; Historia Ducum Veneticorum, M.G.H. Ss. vol. xrv, p. 73.
167
King Baldwin II
customs-duties throughout the kingdom. They were to receive
additional houses in Acre and a third of the cities of Tyre and
Ascalon, if they helped in their capture. In addition they were to
be paid an annual sum of three hundred Saracen besants, charge
able on royal revenues at Acre. They agreed in return to continue
the customary payment of a third of the fare charged for pilgrims
to the royal treasury. The Venetians further demanded that the
kingdom should not reduce the customs-dues charged on other
nationals without Venetian consent. The Patriarch Gormond
swore on the Gospel that King Baldwin would confirm the treaty
when he was released. This was in fact done two years later, though
Baldwin refused to accept the last ckuse, which would entirely
have subordinated the commerce of the kingdom to Venetian
interests. 1 "When the treaty was signed the Prankish army moved
up the coast to Tyre and the Venetian fleet sailed parallel to it. The
siege of Tyre was begun on 15 February H24. 2
Tyre still belonged to the Fatimid Caliphate. In 1 1 12 its citizens,
shocked by the little support tHat they had received from Egypt
during the siege of the city in mi, had allowed Toghtekin to
install a governor. He sent one of his ablest captains, the emir
Mas ud, to take over the city. At the same time the suzerainty of
Egypt was recognized and prayers in the mosques were made for
the Fatimid Caliph, who was periodically asked to send naval help
to the city. 3 The dyarchy worked smoothly for ten years, largely
because the vizier al-Afdal was anxious to keep on good terms
with Toghtekin, whose friendship was needed against the Franks.
But in December 1121 al-Afdal was murdered by an Assassin in
the streets of Cairo. The Caliph al-Amir, who then at last became
his own master, wished to recover control of Tyre. He sent a
fleet to Tyre in 1122, as though to strengthen its defences. The
admiral invited Mas ud to inspect the ships and, when he came,
1 Tafel-Thomas, i, pp. 84-9; Rohricht, Regesta, pp. 23-5; William of Tyre,
xn, 4-5, pp. 547-53; Fulcher of Chartres, m, xxvii, 1-3, pp. 693-5.
2 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xviii, i, pp. 695-6.
3 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 128-30, 142.
168
1124: Siege of Tyre
kidnapped him and brought him to Cairo. He was well received
there and sent with every mark of honour to Toghtekin, who
agreed not to dispute the Fatimid restoration. But when the
Franks approached the city, al-Amir, declaring that with his fleet
destroyed he could do nothing to save it, formally handed over its
defences to Toghtekin; who rushed up seven hundred Turkish
troops and provisions against the siege. 1
The city of Tyre was joined to the mainland only by the narrow
isthmus that Alexander the Great had constructed; and its fortifi
cations were in good order. But it had one weakness ; the drinking
water came through an aqueduct from the mainland, for there
was no well on the peninsula. The day after their arrival the Franks
cut this aqueduct. But winter rains had filled the city cisterns; it
was some time before the shortage of water made itself felt. The
Franks settled down in a camp in the gardens and orchards where
the isthmus joined the mainland. The Venetians beached their
vessels alongside of them, but always kept at least one galley at
sea to intercept any vessel that might attempt to sail through to
the harbour. The supreme commander of the army was the
Patriarch Gormond, who was felt to possess greater authority than
the Constable. When the Count of Tripoli came up with his army
to join the besieging forces, he showed himself willing to obey
the Patriarch in everything, a concession that he would not prob
ably have made to William of Bures. 3
The siege lasted on throughout the spring and early summer.
The Franks kept up a steady bombardment of the walls across the
isthmus from engines whose material had been brought up by the
Venetians. The defenders on their side were well equipped with
machines for hurling stones and Greek fire on their assailants.
They fought magnificently; but they were not sufficiently
numerous to attempt sorties. Fearing lest hunger and thirst and
shortage of man-power might force them to capitulate, their
1 Ibid. pp. 165-6, 170-1; Ibn al-Atkir, pp. 356-8.
2 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xxviii, i-xxx, 13, pp. 695-720 (including a long
digression on die history of Tyre); William of Tyre, xm, 7, p. 565.
169
King Baldwin II
messengers slipped out of the city to urge Toghtekin and the
Egyptians to hurry to their rescue. An Egyptian army attempted
a diversion against Jerusalem itself and reached the outskirts of the
Holy City. But its civilians, merchants, clerks and priests,
hastened to man its tremendous walls; and the Egyptian com
mander did not venture to attack them. Soon afterwards a second
Egyptain army sacked the little town of Belin, or La Mahomerie,
a few miles to the north, and massacred its inhabitants. But such
isolated raids would not save Tyre. Toghtekin was even less
enterprising. When the siege began he moved with his army to
Banyas, by the source of the Jordan, waiting for news of an
Egyptian fleet with which he could concert his attack on the
Prankish camp. But no Egyptian fleet sailed up the coast; the
Caliph could not muster one. The Franks had feared this combina
tion. The Venetian fleet lay for some weeks off the Ladder of Tyre
to intercept the Egyptians; and the Patriarch detached Pons of
Tripoli and William of Bures with a considerable army to go to
meet Toghtekin. When they approached towards Banyas,
Toghtekin decided not to risk a battle and retired to Damascus.
The only hope of the besieged city now lay in Balak the Ortoqid,
the renowned captor of the King. Balak planned to come to their
aid; but in May he was killed at Menbij.
By the end of June the situation inside Tyre was desperate.
Food and water were alike running out, and many of the garrison
had fallen. Toghtekin was warned that it must surrender. He sent
to the Prankish camp offering its capitulation on the usual terms;
that those of the inhabitants that wished to leave the city should
do so in peace with all their movable belongings and those that
wished to remain should keep their rights as citizens. The Prankish
and Venetian leaders accepted the offer, though the common
soldiers and sailors were furious to hear that there would be no
looting and threatened mutiny. On 7 July 1124 the gates were
opened and the Christian army took over the city. The King s
standard was hoisted over the main gate, and the Count of
Tripoli s and the Doge s over towers on either side. The leaders
170
1124: Ransom of King Baldwin
kept their word. There was no looting ; and a long procession of
Moslems passed safely through the Crusader camp. The last
Moslem town on the coast north of Ascalon thus passed to the
Christians. Their army returned rejoicing to Jerusalem; and the
Venetians sailed back to Venice, having extracted their pound of
flesh. 1
The good news reached King Baldwin at Shaizar. On Balak s
death his custody had passed to Ilghazi s son Timurtash, who
disliked the responsibility of it and preferred the idea of a rich
ransom. He asked the emir of Shaizar to open negotiations with
the Franks. Queen Morphia had journeyed to the north to be as
near as possible to her husband; and she and Count Joscelin
arranged terms with the emir. The price demanded was high.
The King was to pay Timurtash eighty thousand dinars and was
to cede to Aleppo, where Timurtash had succeeded to Balak s
power, die towns of Athareb, Zerdana, Azaz, Kafartab and the
Jasr; he must also help Timurtash in suppressing the Bedouin
leader Dubais ibn Sadaqa, who had settled in the Jezireh. Twenty
thousand dinars were to be paid in advance; and hostages were
to be deposited at Shaizar for the payment of die remainder. As
soon as they were handed over to the Moslems, Baldwin would
be freed. For hostages Timurtash demanded the King s youngest
child, the four-year old Princess Joveta, and the son and heir
of Joscelin, a boy of eleven, and ten scions of the nobility. The emir
Sultan of Shaizar, to show his good faith, sent various members
of his family to Aleppo. At the end of June 1124 Baldwin left
Harran, on his own charger, which had been restored to him by
Timurtash, together with many costly gifts. He went to Shaizar,
where the emir, who remembered him kindly for his remission of
the money due from Shaizar to Antioch five years before, offered
1 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xxxii, i-xxriv, 13, pp. 728-39, fixing the date of
the capture (he unfairly blames the Antiochenes for not co-operating) ; William
of Tyre, xni, 13-14, pp. 573~<5; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 170-2, giving the date;
Ibn al-Athir, pp. 358-9 (dating it 9 July); Abul Feda, pp. 15-16 (dating it
5 July); Matthew of Edessa, ccxliv, p. 314.
171
King Baldwin II
him lavish entertainment. He met there his (laughter and her
fellow-hostages. On their arrival he was allowed to proceed to
Antioch, which he reached in the last days of August. 1
Now that he was free Baldwin did not honour the terms that he
had accepted. The Patriarch Bernard pointed out to him that he
was only the overlord and regent of Antioch; he had no right to
give away its territory, which belonged to the youthful Bohe-
mond II. Baldwin was willingly convinced by the argument and
sent to tell Timurtash very apologetically that most unfortunately
he could not disobey the Patriarch. Timurtash, who was more
concerned to receive money than territory, forgave the offence for
fear of losing the remainder of the ransom. Discovering Timurtash
to be so compliant, Baldwin next dishonoured the clause by which
he had promised to aid him against the Bedouin emir Dubais.
Instead, he received an embassy from Dubais to plan common
action against Aleppo. An alliance was made; and in October the
armies of Antioch and Edessa joined Dubais s Arabs before the
walls of Aleppo. Their coalition was soon strengthened by the
arrival in their camp of the Seldjuk claimant to the throne of
Aleppo, Sultanshah, who had recently escaped from an Ortoqid
prison, together with his cousin Toghrul Arslan, brother of the
Sultan of Rum, who had recently been evicted from Melitene by
the Danishmends and was searching for allies.
Timurtash made no attempt to defend Aleppo. His brother
Suleiman of Mayyafaraqin was dying ; and he wanted to make sure
of the inheritance. He remained at Mardin, leaving the notables
of the city to hold out as best they could. For three months they
resisted, while their emissaries, ill-received by Timurtash, who
had no wish to be further bothered about them, went on to Mosul
and aroused the interest of its atabeg, Aqsonqor il-Bursuqi, who
1 Usama^ed. Hitti, pp. 133, 150; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 643-4; Matthew of
Edessa, ccxli, pp. 312-13 (mentioning that Joscelin and die Queen arranged the
ransom and adding that Waleran and the King s nephew were put to death by
Timurtash this was possibly because the King broke the terms of his ransom).
Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 212, 225. Joveta is variously called in charters,
Yvette, Ivetta or Juditta.
172
1125: Battle ofAzaz
had led the Sultan s armies against the Franks in 1114. Il-Bursuqi,
who hated the Ortoqids, sent officers to take over the citadel of
Aleppo, and himself, though ill, set out with an army and with
the Sultan s blessing. When he approached Aleppo he ordered the
emir of Horns, Khirkan, and Toghtekin of Damascus to join him;
and both sent contingents. Before this display offeree the Franco-
Bedouin alliance broke up. Dubais moved with his tribe eastward,
while Baldwin retired to the fortress of Athareb. At the end of
January il-Bursuqi entered Aleppo, but made no attempt to
pursue the Franks. Seeing this, the King returned to Antioch and
went on to Jerusalem, where he arrived in April 1125, after two
years absence. 1
He did not remain there for long; for il-Bursuqi was more
formidable than the Ortoqids. Master of Mosul and Aleppo, and
backed by the Sultan s authority, he was able to coalesce the
Moslems of northern Syria under his rule. Toghtekin and the emir
of Horns submitted to his hegemony. In March he visited Shaizar,
whose emir Sultan, always anxious to be the friend of everyone
of importance, handed over to him the Prankish hostages, the
Princess Joveta and young Joscelin and their comrades. In May,
at the head of a new Moslem alliance, he attacked and captured the
Prankish fort of Kafartab and laid siege to Zerdana. Baldwin
hastened northward and led the armies of Antioch, Tripoli and
Edessa, eleven hundred horsemen and two thousand foot-soldiers,
to save Zerdana. The Moslems moved on to Azaz; and there, at
the end of May, took place one of the most bloodthirsty battles in
the history of the Crusades. The Moslems, relying on their
superior numbers, attempted a hand-to-hand contest; but the
superior armour and physique of the Franks was too much for
them, and they were decisively beaten. From the rich booty that
he acquired, Baldwin was able to amass the eighty thousand
dinars owing for the ransom of the hostages, each Prankish knight
1 Fulcher of Chartres, in, xxxviii-xxxix, 9, 2, pp. 751-6; William of Tyre,
xm, 15, pp. 576-7; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 172-3; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 643-50
Usama, ed. Him, p. 133 ; Matthew of Edessa, ccxlv, pp. 314-15.
173
King Baldwin II
giving up a portion of his share to rescue the King s daughter.
Though the money was really due to Timurtash, il-Bursuqi
accepted it and returned the hostages. Another sum, sent to
Shaizar, redeemed prisoners and hostages that were still detained
there. On their release, they were attacked by the emir of Horns ;
but die Munqidhites hurried to their rescue and sent them on their
way.
After the battle a truce was made. The Moslems kept Kafartab,
which was given to the emir of Horns, but no other territorial
changes were made. After leaving a garrison in Aleppo, il-Bursuqi
returned to Mosul. For eighteen months the north was left in
peace. 1
Baldwin went back to Palestine, where in the autumn of 1125,
he conducted a raid on Damascene lands and a demonstration
against Ascalon. In January 1126 he decided to lead a serious
expedition against Damascus and invaded the Hauran. Toghtekin
came out to meet him. The armies clashed at Tel es-Saqhab, some
twenty miles south-west of Damascus. At first the Moslems had
the better of the fight, and Toghtekin s Turcoman regiment
penetrated to the royal camp ; but in the end Baldwin won the
victory. He pursued the enemy half-way to Damascus, but in
view of his heavy losses he judged it prudent to abandon the
campaign and retired, laden with booty, to Jerusalem.*
In March 1126 Pons of Tripoli attacked the Moslem fortress of
Rafaniya, which dominated the entry to the Buqaia from the
Orontes valley. It had long been a Christian objective since its
recapture by Toghtekin in 1105. While its governor appealed for
help to Toghtekin and to il-Bursuqi, Pons applied for King
Baldwin s aid. The two Christian princes marched quickly on the
fortress, long before the Moslems were ready to come to its
1 Fulcher of Chartres, in, xlii, i-xliv, 4, pp. 761-71 ; William of Tyre, xiii,
u, pp. 578-80; Sigebert of Gembloux, M.G.H. Ss. vol. vi, p. 380; Kemal
ad-Din, p. 651; Bustan, p. 519; Usama, loc. dt.\ Matthew of Edessa, ccxlvii,
pp. 315-18; Michael the Syrian, m, p. 221.
2 Fulcher of Chartres, m, xlvi, 1-7, 1, 1-15, pp. 77, 784-93 ; William of Tyre,
xm, 17-18, pp. 581-5; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 574-7.
174
1126: Arrival ofBohemond II
rescue; and it surrendered to them after a siege of eighteen days.
Its capture was valuable to the Franks; for it safeguarded not
only the county of Tripoli itself but communications between
Jerusalem and Antioch. 1
Meanwhile the Egyptians had rebuilt their fleet. In the autumn
of 1126 it set sail from Alexandria to ravage the Christian coast.
Hearing of this il-Bursuqi planned a simultaneous attack in the
north and laid siege to Athareb. Baldwin rightly decided that the
latter was the greater danger and hurried to Antioch. In fact the
Egyptians, after attempting a costly raid on the suburbs of Beirut,
found the coastal cities so well garrisoned that they soon returned
to the Nile. 2 In the north Baldwin, who was joined by Joscelin,
obliged the Moslems to retire from Athareb. Neither side would
risk a battle; and the truce was soon re-made. Il-Bursuqi, after
installing his son Izz ed-Din Mas ud as governor of Aleppo, went
home to Mosul. On the very day of his arrival, 26 November, he
was stabbed to death by an Assassin. 3
Il-Bursuqi s death brought chaos to the Moslems, which
worsened when his son Mas ud, with whom Toghtekin had
already quarrelled, died, probably of poison, a few months later.
Aleppo passed to and fro between Mas ud s nominee Tuman,
a Mameluk sent by the Sultan called Kuduh, the Ortoqid Badr
ad-Daulah Suleiman, and a son of Ridwan s, Ibrahim the
Seldjuk. 4
About the same time Baldwin gladly found himself relieved of
the regency of Antioch. The young Bohemond II was now aged
eighteen and came to take over his inheritance. Abandoning his
lands in Italy to his cousin, Roger II of Sicily, he sailed from
1 Fulcher of Chartres, m } li, 4, lii, I, pp. 795-7, 798-9; William of Tyre,
xin, 19, pp. 585-6; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 180; Kemal ad-Din, p. 652.
a Fulcher of Chartres, m, Ivi, 1-5, pp. 803-5 ; William of Tyre, xm, 20,
pp. 587-8.
3 Fulcher of Chartres, m, Iv, 5, pp. 80-3 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 177-8 ; Kemal
ad-Din, pp. 653-4.
4 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 181-2; Kemal ad-Din, p. 654; Michael the Syrian, m,
p. 225.
175
King Baldwin II
Otranto in September 1126 with a squadron of twenty-four ships,
carrying a number of troops and horses. He landed at Saint
Symeon early in October, and came straight up to Antioch, where
King Baldwin welcomed him with every mark of honour. He
made an excellent impression. He had his father s magnificent
appearance, being tall, fair-haired and handsome, and he showed
an air of high breeding that came from his mother Constance,
daughter of King Philip I of France. King Baldwin at once handed
over the principality, with all its possessions, into his hands, with
the utmost scrupulousness. The ambassador from Shaizar was
deeply impressed to see that the King henceforward paid cash to
the Prince for the corn consumed by the horses of the army of
Jerusalem. With him the King had his second daughter, the
Princess Alice; and, in conformity with the plan that had been
made, the young couple were married. Bohemond began his
reign brilliantly, with an attack on Kafartab, which he recovered
from the emir of Horns; and soon afterwards we hear of his
gallantry in skirmishes against the army of Shaizar. 1
King Baldwin could at last return to the south feeling that the
death of il-Bursuqi and the coming of Bohemond would leave him
free to see? to his own kingdom. He spent the year 1127 so peace
fully that we know nothing of his movements, except for a short
campaign east of the Dead Sea in August. 2 Early in 1128 his
faithful friend, the Patriarch Gorrnond, died. His successor was
another French priest, Stephen of La Ferte, abbot of Saint-Jean-en-
Vallee at Chartres, a man of noble birth, related to Kong Baldwin.
If Baldwin had hoped that the ties of cousinhood would make
for cordial co-operation, he was soon disillusioned. The new
1 Fulcher of Chartres, m, Ivii, 1-4, bd, 1-5, pp. 805-9, 819-22. (The inter
vening chapters tell of the perils of the Mediterranean Sea and the species of
serpents to be found on its shores. After a further chapter on a plague of mice
in 1127 Fulcher s narrative ends.) William of Tyre, xm, 21, pp. 588-9; Orderic
Vitalis, xi, 9, vol. rv, p. 266; Matthew of Edessa, ccl, p. 319 (saying that
Baldwin promised Bohemond the succession to Jerusalem) ; Michael the Syrian,
m, p. 224; Usama, ed. Him, p. 150.
2 Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 182.
176
1 128: The Succession to the Throne
Patriarch at once revived the question of the agreement that
Godfrey had made with the Patriarch Daimbert. He claimed
Jaffa as the autonomous possession of the Patriarchate; and he
reminded the King that as soon as Ascalon should be conquered
Jerusalem itself must be yielded up to him. Baldwin refused to
listen to these demands but did not know how to deal with them.
Relations between the royal Court and the Patriarchate worsened
throughout 1129; but an open breach was avoided by Stephen s
death after a short illness, early in 1130. His friends suspected
poison. When the King came to visit the dying Patriarch, to ask
how he was, the latter bitterly remarked : * Sire, I am faring as you
desire. Indeed, his death was desirable. As his successor Baldwin
secured the election of the Prior of the Holy Sepulchre, William
of Messines, a man of great piety and goodness, though a little
simple and ill-educated. He had no political ambitions and was
glad to do whatever the King wished. In consequence he became
universally beloved. 1
Baldwin s next important task was to arrange for the succession
to the throne. Queen Morphia had borne him no sons; but there
were four daughters, Melisende, Alice, Hodierna and Joveta.
Alice was now Princess of Antioch, Hodierna and Joveta still were
children. Melisende was to be his successor in conjunction with
a suitable husband. In 1128, after consulting his council, he sent
William of Bures, together with the lord of Beirut, Guy Brise-
barre, to France, to ask the King of France, Louis VI, to select from
the French nobility a man suitable for this high position. Louis
recommended the Count of Anjou, Fulk V. Fulk was aged about
forty, the son of Fulk IV, Rechin, and of Bertrada of Montfort,
notorious for her adultery with King Philip I of France. He was
the head of a great house that during the last two centuries had
built up one of the richest and most formidable appanages in
France; and he himself, by war, marriage and intrigue, had
considerably added to its extent. That very year he had achieved
1 William of Tyre, xra, 25-6, pp. 594-5, 598 ; William, is sometimes called
of Malines . Messines is in western Flanders.
RC 177 *2
King Baldwin II
a family triumph in marrying his young son and heir, Geoffrey, to
the Dowager-Empress Matilda, the only surviving child of Henry I
of England and heiress of England and Normandy. A widower
now himself, he had decided to abandon the family lands to his
son and to dedicate himself to the service of the Cross. He had
already been to Jerusalem on a pilgrimage in 1120 and was there
fore personally known to Baldwin. So notable a candidate, backed
by the King of France and endorsed by the Pope, Honorius II, was
readily accepted by King Baldwin; who had been anxious that his
arrangements for the succession should be to the liking of the
barons of his kingdom. It would be impossible for any of them
to dispute the claims of a warrior-prince of such eminence,
married to their King s eldest daughter.
Fulk left France in the early spring of 1129, accompanied by
William of Bures and Guy Brisebarre. They landed at Acre in
May and went on to Jerusalem. There, at the end of the month,
Fulk and Melisende were married amid great festivities and
rejoicing. The arrangement had the approval of the whole
country, with perhaps one exception. The Princess Melisende her
self was unmoved by the short, wiry, red-haired, middle-aged
man whom political advantages had forced upon her. 1
With Fulk to aid him Baldwin embarked in 1129 on the great
project of his reign, the conquest of Damascus. Toghtekin of
Damascus died on 12 February 1128. He had been for many years
the complete master of the city and the most respected Moslem
figure in western Syria. 2 Some years previously a leader of the
1 William of Tyre, xm, 24, p. 593, xrv, 2, p. 608; Halphen et Poupardin,
Chroniques des Comtes d Anjou, Gesta Ambaziendum Dominorum, p. 115 and
Gesta Consulum Andegavowm, pp. 69-70. Fulk had married Arenburga or
Guiberga, heiress of Maine in about 1109, and had continued wars with
Henry I of England over her inheritance. The marriage of his son Geoffrey
(17 June 1128) to the Empress Matilda had solved the quarrel. His daughter
Sibylla had already married Thierry of Alsace, Count of Flanders. He had
already paid a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1120 (William of Tyre, p. 608).
Pope Honorius II s letter of commendation to Baldwin is given in Roziere,
Cartuldre du Saint Sepulcre, pp. 17-18.
* Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 183-6; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 317-18.
178
1126: The Assassins at Banyas
Assassins, Bahram of Asterabad, had fled from Persia to Aleppo
and established himself as leader of the underground Ismaili move
ment in northern Syria. But, though he enjoyed the support of
Ilghazi, the people of Aleppo loathed the sect; and Bahram was
obliged to move on. Armed with a recommendation from
Ilghazi, he came to Damascus, where Toghtekin received him
graciously. He settled there, gradually gathering adherents round
him, and he won the sympathy of Toghtekin s vizier, al-Mazda-
ghani. The sect grew in power, to the disapproval of the Sunni
population of Damascus. Bahram therefore asked al-Mazdaghani
for protection; and at the vizier s request Toghtekin handed over
to the sect, in November 1126, the frontier-fortress of Banyas,
which was menaced by the Franks, hoping thus to make good use
of its energies. Bahram re-fortified the castle and gathered all his
followers round him. Soon they began to terrorize the neighbour
hood; and Toghtekin, though he still officially protected them,
began to plan their elimination, but he died before he found any
suitable opportunity. A few months afterwards Bahram was
killed in a skirmish with an Arab tribe near Baalbek, whose
sheikh he had murdered. His position was taken over by another
Persian, called Ismail. 1
Toghtekin s successor as atabeg of Damascus was his son Taj
al-Mulk Buri. Buri determined to rid himself of the Assassins.
His first step, in September 1129, was suddenly to have their pro
tector, the vizier al-Mazdaghani, murdered as he sat in council in
the Rose Pavilion at Damascus. At once riots, prepared by Buri,
broke out in Damascus; and every Assassin found there was
slaughtered. Ismail, at Banyas, was alarmed. To save his sectaries
he opened negotiations with the Franks.
This was the occasion for which King Baldwin had been
waiting. On hearing of Toghtekin s death he sent Hugh of Payens,
Grand Master of the Templars, to Europe, to recruit soldiers there,
stating that Damascus was his objective. When Ismail s emissaries
arrived, Prankish troops set out to take over Banyas from the
1 Ibn al-Qalaiusi, pp. 179-80, 187-91; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 382-4.
179 12-2
King Baldwin II
Assassins and to settle Ismail and his sect within Prankish territory.
There Ismail fell ill of dysentery, dying a few months later; and his
followers dispersed. 1 Baldwin himself came to Banyas early in
November, with the whole army of Jerusalem, swelled by newly
arrived men from the West. He marched on without serious
opposition and encamped at the Wooden Bridge, some six miles
south-west of Damascus. Buri drew up his army opposite to them,
with the city at its rear. For some days neither army moved.
Baldwin meanwhile sent detachments, mainly composed of the
new-comers, under William of Bures, to collect food and material
before he should venture to close in round the city. But William
was unable to control his men, who were more interested in
securing booty for themselves than in systematically gathering
supplies. Buri learnt of this. Early one morning in late November
his Turcoman cavalry fell on William twenty miles south of the
Prankish camp. The Franks fought well but were overwhelmed.
Only William himself and forty-five comrades survived to tell the
news to the Bang. 2
Baldwin decided to march at once against the enemy while they
were celebrating their victory, and gave the order to advance.
But at that moment rain began to fall in torrents. The plain became
a sea of mud, with deep rivers cutting across the roads. In such
conditions an attack was impossible. Bitterly disappointed, the
King abandoned all idea of continuing the siege. The Prankish
army retreated slowly in perfect order back to Banyas and into
Palestine, where it dispersed. 3
Events in the north made the disappointment particularly cruel.
Baldwin had hoped that Bohemond II and Joscelin would profit
by the chaos in Aleppo to take possession at last of the great
Moslem city. But, though each in turn successfully raided its
territory during the autumn of 1127, they would not co-operate.
Each was jealous of the other. Joscelin had obtained by a truce
1 Ibn al-Qaknisi, pp. 191-5; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 384-6.
2 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 195-8.
3 William of Tyre, xni, 26, pp. 595-7; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 198-200.
180
between Bohemond II andjoscelin
with il-Bursuqi districts that had been held for a while by Antioch.
Worse still, Joscelin s second wife, Roger of Antioch s sister Maria,
had been promised as her dowry the town of Azaz. Bohemond
considered that Roger had only been a regent in his name and had
no right to give away Antiochene territory. He denounced the
agreement. Joscelin thereupon led his troops, aided by Turkish
mercenaries, to raid Antiochene villages near his borders. An
interdict hurled by the Patriarch Bernard against the whole
county of Edessa did not deter him. News of the quarrel was
brought to King Baldwin, who was furious. He hurried north,
early in 1128, and forced the two princes to make peace with each
other. Fortunately, Joscelin, who was the more truculent, fell
suddenly ill and saw his illness as a punishment from heaven. He
agreed to restore to Bohemond the booty that he had taken, and
apparently abandoned his claim to Azaz. But it was too late. As
at Damascus the following year, a golden opportunity was missed
and would never recur. For Islam had found a new and greater
champion. 1
During the last months of 1126 the Abbasid Caliph al-Mustar-
shid, who succeeded the amiable poet al-Mustazbir in 1118,
thought to utilize the family quarrels of the Seldjuk Sultans to
free himself of their control. The Sultan, Mahmud, in whose
dominions Baghdad lay, was obliged to interrupt his hunting to
send an army there; and he placed it under his captain, Imad
ad-Din Zengi. Zengi, whose father Aqsonqor, had been governor
of Aleppo before the period of the Crusades, had already made
a name in wars against the Franks. After a brief campaign he
routed the Caliph s forces at Wasit and reduced the Caliph to
obedience. His tactful behaviour after the victory pleased al-
Mustarshid; and when on il-Bursuqi s death it was necessary to
appoint a new atabeg for Mosul, Mahmud, who had first thought
of naming the Bedouin leader Dubais, agreed with the Caliph that
Zengi was a better candidate. The Sultan s youthful son Alp
* William of Tyre, xm, 22, p. 590; Michael the Syrian, in, p. 224; Kemal
ad-Din, p. 665.
181
King Baldwin II
Arslan was installed as governor of Mosul with Zengi as his
atabeg. Zengi spent the winter of 1127 at Mosul organizing his
government there. In the spring of 1 128 he marched on to Aleppo,
claiming it as part of il-Bursuqi s dominions. The citizens of
Aleppo, tired of the anarchy through which they had passed,
received him gladly. He made his solemn entry there on 28 June. 1
Zengi saw himself as the champion of Islam against the Franks.
But he was -unwilling to strike until he was ready. He made a
truce with Joscelin, to last for two years, while he consolidated his
power in Syria. The emirs of Shaizar and Horns hastened to
acknowledge his suzerainty. He had no fears of the former. The
latter was induced to assist him on a campaign against the
Damascene possession of Hama, with the promise of its reversion.
But as soon as Hama was conquered, Zengi seized it for himself
and imprisoned Khirkan of Horns, though he was unable to secure
Horns itself. Buri of Damascus, who had promised to join him in
a Holy War against the Christians, was too fully occupied by his
war against Jerusalem to make any active protest. By the end of
1130 Zengi was unquestioned master of Syria as far south as Horns. 2
That same year the Franks suffered a great disaster. It was the
ambition of Bohemond II to restore to his principality all the lands
that it had ever contained. In Cilicia Antiochene power had
declined. Tarsus and Adana were still in Prankish hands; they
formed, it seems, the dower of Roger s widow Cecilia, King
Baldwin s sister; and a Prankish garrison remained at Mamistra.
But farther inland Anazarbus had fallen into the possession of the
Armenian prince, Thoros the Roupenian, who had established his
capital at Sis, close by. Thoros died in 1 129 and his son Constantine
a few months later, in the course of a palace intrigue. The next
prince was the brother of Thoros, Leo I. 3 Bohemond thought that
the moment had come to recover Anazarbus. In February 1130
1 For Zengi s history till 1128, see Cah.cn, op. tit pp. 306-7, and nn. 12 and 13
(with references).
2 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 200-2; Kemal ad-Din, p. 658; Matthew of Edessa,
cclii, p. 320. 3 Vahram, Armenian Rhymed Chronicle, p. 500.
182
1130: Death ofBohemond II
he marched with a small force up the river Jihan towards his
objective. Leo was alarmed and appealed for help to the Danish-
mend emir, Ghazi, whose lands now reached the Taurus moun
tains. Bohemond knew no thing of this alliance. As he progressed
carelessly up the river, meeting only light resistance from the
Armenians, the Danishmend Turks fell on him and massacred the
whole of his army. It was said that had they recognized the Prince
himself, they would have savfcd him for the ransom that he would
bring. As it was, his head was brought to the Danishmend emir,
who had it embalmed and sent it as a gift to the Caliph. 1
It was due to Byzantine intervention that the Turks did not
follow up their victory; and Anazarbus remained in Armenian
hands. 2 But Bohemond s death was a disaster for Antioch.
Bohemond had succeeded to Antioch by hereditary right.
Sentiment demanded that his rights should pass to his heir. But
his marriage with Alice had produced only one child, a daughter
two years old, called Constance. Without waiting for her father
the King to appoint a regent, according to his right as overlord,
Alice at once assumed the regency. But she was ambitious. It was
soon rumoured in Antioch that she wished to rule not as a regent
but as a reigning sovereign. Constance was to be immured in a
convent or, as soon as might be, married off to some ignoble
husband. The unnatural mother lost popularity in the principality,
where already many men felt that in such times a warrior was
needed as regent. When she heard that the King was already on
his way from Jerusalem, Alice saw power slipping from her
grasp, and took a desperate step. A messenger leading a splendid
horse splendidly caparisoned was sent to Aleppo, to the atabeg
Zengi, to whom she announced that she was ready to pay homage
if he would guarantee her possession of Antioch.
1 "William of Tyre, xm, 27, pp. 598-9; Orderic Vitalis, xi, 10, vol. rv,
pp. 267-8; Romuald, M.G.H. Ss. vol. xiv, p. 420; Michael the Syrian, m,
p. 227; Chron. Anon. Syr. pp. 98-9; Ibn Hamdun, p. 524; Ibn al-Athir,
p. 468.
2 Michael the Syrian (m, p. 230) says that John Comnenus at once started an
offensive against the Turks. See below, p. 210.
183
King Baldwin II
On the news of BohemoncTs death King Baldwin hastened
northward with his son-in-law Fulk, to take over the custody of
its heiress and to nominate the regent. As he approached the city,
his troops captured Alice s envoy to Zengi. The King at once had
him hanged. When he appeared before Antioch he found that his
daughter had shut the gates in his face. He summoned Joscelin to
his aid and encamped before the city. Within, Alice had won
temporary support by a lavish distribution of money from the
princely treasury to the soldiers and people. It is possible that with
her Armenian blood she was popular amongst tb e native Christians.
But the Prankish nobility would not support a woman against
their sovereign. After a few days a Norman knight, William of
Aversa, and a monk, Peter the Latin, opened the Gate of the Duke
to Joscelin and the Gate of Saint Paul to Fulk. Next day the King
entered. Alice barricaded herself in a tower, and only emerged
when the notables of the city guaranteed her life. There was a
painful interview between Baldwin and his daughter, who knelt
in terrified shame before him. The King wished to avoid a scandal;
and doubtless his father s heart was touched. He forgave her; but
he removed her from the regency and banished her to Lattakieh
and Jabala, the lands that had been settled on her by Bohemond II
as her dower. He himself assumed the regency and made all the
lords of Antioch take an oath to him and to his granddaughter
jointly. Then, after charging Joscelin with the guardianship of
Antioch and its child-princess, he returned to Jerusalem in the
summer of 1130. 1
It was his last journey. A long life of endless activity only
interrupted by two miserable periods of captivity had worn him
out. In 1131 his health began to fail. When August came he was
clearly dying. At his wish he was moved from the Palace at
Jerusalem to the Patriarch s residence, attached to the buildings of
the Holy Sepulchre, that he might die as near as possible to
Calvary. As the end approached he summoned the nobles of the
1 William of Tyre, xm, 27, pp. 599-601; Michael the Syrian, in, p. 230;
Kemal ad-Din, pp. 660-1.
184
: Deaths of Baldwin II and Joscelin I
realm to his room, and with them his daughter Melisende and her
husband Fulk and their little one-year-old son, called Baldwin
after him. He gave Fulk and Melisende his blessing and bade all
present to accept them as their sovereigns. Then he himself
assumed the robe of a monk and was admitted a canon of the Holy
Sepulchre. The ceremony was barely done before he died, on
Friday, 21 August 1131. He was buried in the Church of the Holy
Sepulchre, amid mourning worthy of a great king. 1
His cousin and old comrade, Joscelin of Edessa, did not long
survive him. About the time of Baldwin s death he went to
besiege a small castle north-east of Aleppo ; and while he was
inspecting his lines a mine that his men had laid collapsed beneath
him. He was horribly wounded, and there was no hope of his
recovery. As he lay dying, news came that the Danishmend emir,
Ghazi, had marched against the town of Kaisun, the great fortress
where Joscelin had recently installed the Jacobite Patriarch of
Antioch. Kaisun was hard pressed by the Turks; and Joscelin
ordered his son to go to its rescue. But the younger Joscelin
replied that the army of Edessa was too small to be of use. There
upon the aged Count hoisted himself from his bed and was
carried in a litter at the head of his army to fight the Turks. The
news of his coming startled Ghazi, who had thought him already
dead. Disquieted, he raised the siege of Kaisun. A messenger rode
hurriedly to tell Joscelin; who had his litter laid on the ground that
he might thank God. The effort and the emotion were too much
for him; and he died there by the roadside.*
With Baldwin and with Joscelin dead, the old generation of
pioneer Crusaders was ended. In the years to come we find a new
pattern of conflict between the Crusaders of the second generation,
men and women like Joscelin II, like the Princess Alice, or like the
1 William of Tyre, xin, 28, pp. 601-2; Orderic VitaKs, xn, 23, vol. rv,
p. 500; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 207-8, dating it Thursday, 25 Ramadan, but giving
the wrong year (A.H. 526).
2 William of Tyre, xiv, 3, pp. 609-11; Michael the Syrian, ni, 232; Chron.
Anon. Syr. pp. 99-100.
185
King Baldwin II
house of Tripoli, ready to fit themselves into the eastern way of
life and seeking only to hold what they possessed, and the new
comers from the West, aggressive, unadapted and uncompre
hending, like Fulk, like Raymond of Poitiers, or like the fatal
ReynaldofChatillon. 1
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 389-90, realizes the changed circumstances, with the
disappearance of the pioneer Crusaders on the one hand and the beginning of
Moslem unity under Zengi on the other.
186
CHAPTER II
THE SECOND GENERATION
They have begotten strange children. HO SEA v, 7
On 14 September 1131, three weeks after King Baldwin II had
been laid to rest in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the
same church witnessed the coronation of Kong Fulk and Queen
Melisende. The succession of the new sovereign was celebrated
with joyful festivities. 1
But while the barons of the Kingdom of Jerusalem accepted
King Fulk without demur, the Prankish princes of the north were
less ready to admit him as overlord. Baldwin I and Baldwin II
had acted as suzerains of all the Prankish states because they had had
the power and personality to do so. But the juridical position was
by no means clear. In the case of Edessa Joscelin I had, like
Baldwin II before him, paid homage to his predecessor when his
predecessor became King of Jerusalem and personally bequeathed
him the fief. Did the arrangement make Joscelin s heirs the
vassals of Baldwin II s ? At Tripoli Count Bertrand had submitted
to Baldwin I s suzerainty in order to protect himself against
Tancred s aggression; but his son Pons had already tried to re
pudiate Baldwin H s rights and had only recognized them because
he was not strong enough to defy the Bang s forces. At Antioch
Bohemond I had considered himself a sovereign prince; and
Tancred, though he had only been regent, not prince, refused to
regard himself as the King s vassal except for his principality of
Galilee. Though Roger and Bohemond II had recognized
Baldwin II as overlord, it could be argued that they had been
wrong to do so. The position was complicated by the rights that
1 William of Tyre, xrv, 2, pp. 608-9.
187
The Second Generation
the Byzantine Emperor legitimately claimed over Antiocli and
Edessa, through, the treaty made between the Princes and the
Emperor at Constantinople during the First Crusade, and over
Tripoli because of the homage paid by Count Bertrand to the
Emperor.
Fulk s accession raised die whole question. The opposition to
his overlordship was led by Alice, his sister-in-law. She had sub
mitted to her father, King Baldwin, with a very bad grace. She
now reasserted her claim to be her daughter s regent. It was not
ill-founded, if it could be maintained that the King of Jerusalem
was not overlord of Atitioch; for it was usual, both in Byzantium
and in the West, for the mother of a child-prince to be given the
regency. Joscelin I s death, barely a month after Baldwin s, gave
her an opportunity; for Joscelin had been guardian of the young
Princess Constance, and the barons at Antioch would not install
Joscelin II in his father s place. Disappointed, the new Count of
Edessa listened to Alice s blandishments. He, too, was doubtless
unwilling to accept Fulk as his suzerain. Pons of Tripoli also
offered her support. His wife, Cecilia, had received from her
first husband, Tancred, the dower-lands of Chastel Rouge and
Arzghan: and through her he was thus one of the great barons of
the Antiochene principality. He realized that the emancipation of
Antioch from Jerusalem would enable Tripoli to follow suit. Alice
had already won over the most formidable barons in the south of
the principality, the brothers, William and Garenton of Zerdana,
Lords of Sahyun, the great castle built by the Byzantines in the
hills behind Lattakieh; and she had her partisans in Antioch itself.
But the majority of the Antiochene lords feared a woman s rule.
When they heard rumours of Alice s plot, they sent a messenger
to Jerusalem to summon King Fulk.
Fulk set out at once with an army from Jerusalem. It was a
challenge that he could not ignore. When he reached the confines
of Tripoli, Pons refused him passage. The Countess Cecilia was
Fulk s half-sister; but Fulk s appeal to the duties of kinship was
made in vain. The army of Jerusalem had to proceed by sea, from
188
Map 3. The Kingdom of Jerusalem in the twelfth century.
189
The Second Generation
Beirut to Saint Symeon. As soon as he landed in Antiochene ter
ritory the King marched southward and defeated the rebel allies
at Chastel Rouge. But he was not strong enough to punish his
enemies. Pons apologized to him and was reconciled. Alice
remained unharmed at Lattakieh, in her dower-lands. The brothers
William and Garenton of Sahyun were forgiven, as was Joscelin
of Edessa; who had not been present in the battle. It is doubtful
whether Fulk obtained an oath of allegiance from either Pons or
Joscelin; nor did he succeed in breaking up Alice s party. William
of Sahyun was killed a few months later, in the course of a small
Moslem raid against Zerdana; and Joscelin promptly married his
widow Beatrice, who probably brought him Zerdana as her
dower. But for the meantime peace was restored. Fulk himself
retained the regency of Antioch but entrusted its administration
to the Constable of the principality, Reynald Mazoir, lord of
Marqab. He himself returned to Jerusalem, to take part in a
terrible drama at the Court. 1
There was amongst his nobles a handsome youth, Hugh of Le
Puiset, lord of Jaffa. His father, Hugh I of Le Puiset in the Orlean-
nais, a first cousin of Baldwin II, had been the leader of the
baronial opposition to King Louis VI of France; who in 1118
destroyed the castle of Le Puiset and deprived him of his fief.
Hugh s brothers Gildoin, abbot of Saint Maria Josaphat, and
Waleran of Birejik had already gone to the East and, as
Baldwin had recently become King of Jerusalem, Hugh decided
to follow them with his wife Mabilla. 2 They set out with their
1 William of Tyre, xiv, 4-5, pp. 611-14; Michael the Syrian, in, p. 233;
Kemal ad-Din, p. 664, who says that William of Zerdana was killed in the
civil war. But Ibn al-Qalanisi (p. 215) says that William was killed early in
1133. Alice s revolt is probably to be dated early in 1132.
2 Hugh I of Le Puiset s mother, Alice of Montlhe ry, was sister of Baldwin IPs
mother Melisende. Cuissard, Les Seigneurs du Puiset, p. 89. Abbot Gildoin of
St Maria Josaphat and Waleran of Birejik were apparently his brothers.
Mabilla was the daughter of Hugh, Count of Rouey, and Robert Guiscard s
daughter Sibylla. See below, Appendix III, for genealogical trees, I, i and 2.
William of Tyre (see reference below, p. 193 n. i) wrongly assumes that
Hugh II was born in Apulia, in which case he married at the age of six.
IpO
1132: Hugh ofLe Puiset and Queen Melisende
young son Hugh. As they passed through Apulia the boy fell ill;
so they left him there at the Court of Bohemond II, who was
Mabilla s first cousin. On their arrival in Palestine they were given
by Baldwin the lordship of Jaffa. Hugh I died soon afterwards,
whereupon Mabilla and the fief passed to a Walloon knight,
Albert of Namur. Both Mabilla and Albert soon followed him
into the grave; and Hugh II, now aged about sixteen, sailed from
Apulia to claim his heritage. Baldwin received him well and
handed his parents fief over to him; and he was brought to live at
the royal Court, where his chief companion was his cousin, the
young Princess Melisende. About 1121 he married Emma, niece
of the Patriarch Arnulf and widow of Eustace Garnier, a lady of
mature age but of vast possessions. She delighted in her tall,
handsome husband; but her twin sons, Eustace II, heir of Sidon,
and Walter, heir of Caesarea, hated their stepfather who was
little older than themselves. 1 Meanwhile Melisende was married
to Fulk, for whom she never cared, despite his great love for her.
After her accession she continued her intimacy with Hugh. There
was gossip at the Court; and Fulk grew jealous. Hugh had many
enemies, headed by his stepsons. They fanned the King s sus
picions, till at last Hugh in self-defence gathered round him a
party of his own, of which the leading member was Roman of
Le Puy, lord of the lands of Oultrejourdain. Soon all the nobility
of the kingdom was divided between the King and the Count,
who was known to have the sympathy of the Queen. Tension
grew throughout the summer months of 1132. Then one day in
the late summer, when the palace was full of the magnates of the
1 The names of die sons of Eustace Gamier are uncertain. Walter appears as
Lord of Caesarea and Sidon in a diploma of 21 September, 1131 (Rohricht,
Regesta, p. 35); Eustace II was Lord of Sidon in 1126 (Rohricht, Regesta
Additamenta, p. 8), and Eustace and Walter appear as the sons of Eustace I in
a diploma of the same year (Rohricht, Regesta, p. 28). But the Lignages calls
the two sons Gerard and Walter, and Gerard is also called Guy in Assizes. See
La Monte, The Lords of Sidon , in Byzantion, vol. xvn, pp/iSS-^o, who makes
Gerard the son of Eustace II, and places the latter s death before 1131 when
Walter became regent for Gerard.
191
The Second Generation
realm, Walter Gamier stood up and roundly accused his stepfather
of plotting against the life of the King, and challenged him to
justify himself in single combat. Hugh denied the charge and
accepted the challenge. The date for the duel was fixed by the
High Court; and Hugh retired to Jaffa and Walter to Caesarea,
each to prepare himself.
When the day arrived, Walter was ready at the lists, but Hugh
stayed away. Perhaps the Queen, alarmed that tilings had gone
too far, begged him to absent himself, or perhaps it was the
Countess Emma, appalled at the prospect of losing either husband
or son; or perhaps Hugh himself, knowing his guilt, was afraid
of God s vengeance. Whatever its cause might be, his cowardice
was read as the proof of his treason. His friends could support him
no longer. The Bong s council declared him guilty by default.
Hugh then panicked and fled to Ascalon to ask for protection from
the Egyptian garrison. An Egyptian detachment brought him
back to Jaffa and from there began to ravage the plain of Sharon.
Hugh s treason was now overt. His chief vassal, Balian, lord of
Ibelin and Constable of Jaffa, turned against him; and when a
royal army came hastily down from Jerusalem, Jaffa itself sur
rendered without a blow. Even the Egyptians abandoned Hugh
as a profitless ally. He was obliged to make his submission to the
King.
His punishment was not severe. The Queen was his friend, and
the Patriarch, William of Messines, counselled mercy. The King
himself was anxious to smooth things over; for already the
dangers of civil war had been made clear. On 1 1 December, when
the royal army had been summoned to march against Jaffa, the
atabeg of Damascus had surprised the fortress of Banyas and
recovered it for Islam. It was decided that Hugh should go for three
years into exile; then he might return with impunity to his lands.
While awaiting a boat for Italy, Hugh came up to Jerusalem
early in the new year to say good-bye to his friends. As he was
playing dice one evening at the door of a shop in the Street of the
Furriers, a Breton knight crept up behind him and stabbed him
192
1132: Attempted Murder of Hugh
through his head and through his body. Hugh was carried off
bleeding to death. Suspicion at once fell upon the King ; but Fulk
acted promptly and prudently. The knight was handed over for
trial by the High Court. He confessed that he had acted on his
own initiative, hoping thus to win the favour of the King, and was
sentenced to death by having his limbs cut off one by one. The
execution took place in public. After the victim s arms and legs
had been struck off but while his head remained to him he was
made to repeat his confession. The King s reputation was saved.
But the Queen was not satisfied. So angry was she with Hugh s
enemies that for many months they feared assassination; and their
leader, Raourt of Nablus, dared not walk in the streets without an
escort. Even King Fulk was said to be afraid for his life. But his
one desire was to win his wife s favour. He gave way to her in
everything; and she, thwarted in love, soon found consolation in
the exercise of power. 1
Hugh survived his attempted murder, but not for long. He
retired to the Court of his cousin, King Roger II of Sicily, who
enfeoffed him with the lordship of Gargano, where he died soon
afterwards.*
It was no doubt with relief that Fulk turned his attention once
more to the north. The situation there was more ominous for the
Franks than in Baldwin II s days. There was no effective prince
ruling in Antioch. Joscelin II of Edessa lacked his father s energy
and political sense. He was an unattractive figure. He was short
and thick-set, dark-haired and dark-skinned; his face was pock
marked, with a huge nose and prominent eyes. He was capable of
generous gestures, but was lazy, luxurious and lascivious, and quite
unfitted to command the chief outpost of Prankish Christendom. 3
The dearth of leadership among the Franks was the more serious
1 The story is given at length by William of Tyre, xiv, 15-17, pp. 627-33.
Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 215, tells briefly of dissensions amongst the Franks not
usual with them*. v
a "William of Tyre, xiv, 17, p. 633.
3 William of Tyre, XXV, 3, p. 610. Joscelin II was born in 1113 (Chron. Anon.
Syr. p. 3 5).
RC 193 *3
The Second Generation
because the Moslems now had in Zengi a man capable of as
sembling the forces of Islam. As yet Zengi was biding his time.
He was too heavily entangled in events in Iraq to take advantage
of the situation among the Franks. The Sultan Mahmud ibn
Mohammed died in 1131, leaving his possessions in Iraq and
southern Persia to his son Dawud. But the dominant member of
the Seldjuk family, Sanjar, decided that the inheritance should
pass to Mahmud s brother Tughril, lord of Kazwin. The other
two brothers of Mahmud, Mas ud of Pars and Seldjuk-Shah of
Azerbaijan, then put in claims. Dawud soon retired, supported
neither by Mustarshid nor by his subjects. For a while Tughril,
armed by Senjar s influence, was accepted at Baghdad; and
Mas ud was forced by Sanjar to retire. But Sanjar soon lost
interest; whereupon Seldjuk-Shah came to Baghdad and won the
Caliph s support. Mas ud appealed to Zengi to help him. Zengi
marched on Baghdad, only to be severely defeated by the Caliph
and Seldjuk-Shah near Tekrit. Had not the Kurdish governor of
Tekrit, Najm ed-Din Ayub, conveyed him across the river Tigris,
he would have been captured or slain. Zengi s defeat encouraged
the Caliph, who now dreamed to resurrect the past power of his
house. Even Sanjar was alarmed; and Zengi as his representative
once again attacked Baghdad in June 1132, this time in alliance
with the volatile Bedouin chieftain, Dubais. In the battle that
followed Zengi was at first victorious; but the Caliph intervened
in person, routed Dubais and turned triumphantly on Zengi, who
was forced to retire to Mosul. Mustarshid arrived there next
spring at the head of a great army. It seemed that the Abbasids
were to recover their old glory ; for the Seldjuk Sultan of Iraq was
now little more than a client of the Caliph. But Zengi escaped
from, Mosul and began relentlessly to harass the Caliph s camp and
to cut off his supplies. After three months Mustarshid retired. 1
The Abbasid revival was cut short. During the next year the
Seldjukprince Mas ud gradually displaced the other claimants to the
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 398-9 (and Atabegs of Mosul, pp. 78-85); see articles
Mas ud ibn Mohammed , Tughril I , and Sandjar* in Encyclopaedia of Islam.
194
1133- Fulk rescues Pons of Tripoli
Sultanate of Iraq. Mustarshid vainly tried to check him. At a
battle at Daimarg in June 1135 the Caliph s army was routed
by Mas ud and he himself captured. He was sent into exile to
Azerbaijan and there was murdered by Assassins, probably with
Mas ud s connivance. His son and successor in the Caliphate,
Rashid, appealed to the Seldjuk claimant Dawud and to Zengi,
but in vain. Mas ud secured Rashid s deposition by the cadis at
Baghdad. His successor, Moqtafi, managed by lavish promises to
seduce Zengi away from Rashid and Dawud. Fortified by fresh
titles of honour from Moqtafi and from Mas ud, Zengi was able,
from 1135 onwards, to turn his attention to the West. 1
While Zengi was engaged in Iraq, his interests in Syria were
cared for by a soldier from Damascus, Sawar, whom he made
governor of Aleppo. He could not afford to send him many
troops; but at his instigation various bodies of freebooting
Turcomans entered Sawar s services, and with them Sawar pre
pared in the spring of 1133 to attack Antioch. King Fulk was
summoned by the frightened Antiochenes to their rescue. As he
journeyed north with his army he was met at Sidon by the
Countess of Tripoli, who told him that her husband had been
ambushed by a band of Turcomans in the Nosairi mountains and
had fled to the castle of Montferrand, on the edge of the Orontes
valley. At her request Fulk marched straight to Montferrand; and
on his approach the Turcomans retired. The episode restored
cordial relations between Fulk and Pons. Soon afterwards Pons s
son and heir Raymond was married to the Queen s sister, Hodierna
of Jerusalem; while his daughter Agnes married the son of Fulk s
constable at Antioch, Reynold Mazoir of Marqab.*
Having rescued the Count of Tripoli, Fulk moved on to Antioch.
There he learnt that Sawar had already successfully raided the
Edessene city of Turbessel and had assembled an army to use
1 Abu l Feda, pp. 21-3; Ibn al-Athir, Atabegs of Mosul pp. 88-91; Ibn
al-Tiqtaqa, Al Fakhiri, pp. 297-8.
z William of Tyre, xrv, 6, pp. 614-15; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 221-2; Ibn
al-Athir, pp. 399-400.
195
13-2
The Second Generation
against Antioch. After a cautious delay of several days Fulk
advanced towards the Moslem camp at Qinnasrin and made a
surprise attack on it by night. He forced Sawar to retire and to
abandon his tents; but the victory was far from complete. In
subsequent skirmishes the Moslems annihilated several detach
ments of Franks. But Fulk made a triumphant entry into Antioch
before he returned to Palestine in the summer of 1133. As soon
as he was gone, Sawar s raids on Christian territory recommenced. 1
Apart from such frontier raids the year 1134 passed peaceably
enough. Next year the Moslem world was weakened by revolu
tions. In Egypt the Fatimid Caliph al-Hafiz had attempted to curb
the power of the vizierate by appointing his own son Hasan as
vizier. But the young man showed himself to be almost insanely
ferocious. After forty emirs had been beheaded on a trumpery
charge, there was a revolt. The Caliph only saved himself by
poisoning his son and handing over the corpse to the rebels. He
then appointed as vizier an Armenian, Vahram, who wa,s more
interested in enriching his friends and fellow-Christians than in
aggressive action against the Franks. 2 Damascus was equally
rendered impotent. Toghtekin s son Buri died in 1132 and was
succeeded as atabeg by his son Ismail. Ismail s rule began bril
liantly with the recapture of Banyas from the Franks and
Baalbek and Hama from his rivals ; but soon he began to combine
a tyrannous cruelty with oppressive taxation. His behaviour pro
voked an attempt to murder him, which he punished with whole
sale executions, even walling up alive his own brother, Sawinj, on
the faintest of suspicions. Next, he planned the elimination of his
father s trusted counsellor, Yusuf ibn Firuz. His mother, the
dowager Princess Zumurrud, had borne the death of her son
Sawinj with equanimity; but Yusuf was her lover. She plotted to
save him. Ismail became aware that he was unsafe even in his own
palace. In alarm he wrote to his father s old enemy Zengi, offering
1 William of Tyre, xrv, 7, pp. 615-16; Ibn al-Qaknisi, pp. 222-3; Kemal
ad-Din, p. 665.
a Ibn al-Athir, pp. 405-8.
196
- Zengi before Damascus
to become his vassal if Zengi would maintain him in power. If he
would not help him, then Ismail would hand over Damascus to
the Franks. It was inconvenient for Zengi to leave Mosul with
the Abbasid Caliph Mustarshid still unbeaten. But he could not
ignore the appeal. He received it too late. He crossed the
Euphrates on 7 February; but six days previously Zumurrud had
achieved the assassination of Ismail and the succession of her
younger son, Shihab ed-Din Mahmud. The new atabeg, with the
support of his people, gave a polite refusal to the envoys that
Zengi sent to him asking for his submission. When Zengi ad
vanced on Damascus, receiving the surrender of Hama as he came,
he found the city in a state of defence. His attempt to storm the
walls failed. Soon supplies ran short at his camp ; and some of his
troops deserted him. At that moment an embassy reached him
from the Caliph Mustarshid, courteously requesting him to respect
Damascene independence. Zengi gratefully accepted an excuse
that enabled him to retire without dishonour. Peace was made
between Zengi and Mahmud; and Zengi paid a state visit to
Damascus. But Mahmud did not trust Zengi sufficiently to pay
a return visit; he sent his brother in his stead. 1
The episode, coinciding with the weakness of Egypt, offered
a rare opportunity for recovering Banyas and taking aggressive
action. But Fulk let the chance go by. Zengi, having extricated
himself from Damascus, employed his forces in an attack on
Antiochene territory. While his lieutenant Sawar threatened
Turbessel, Aintab and Azaz, preventing a junction between the
armies of Antioch and Edessa, Zengi swept up past the fortresses
of the eastern frontier, Kafartab, Maarrat, Zerdana and Athareb,
capturing them one by one. Fortunately for the Franks, he was then
obliged to- return to Mosul; but the frontier defences were lost.*
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 211-36, a very foil account, but ascribing praiseworthy
motives to the dowager s murder of her son. He says that Ismail s chief
minister was a Christian Kurd, Bertrand the Infidel; Bustan, p. 329; Kemal
ad-Din, pp. 667-70; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 403-5-
2 Kemal ad-Din, p. 670.
197
The Second Generation
These disasters brought Fulk again to the north. He was still
nominal regent of Antioch, but authority there was represented
by the venerable Patriarch Bernard. Bernard died in the early
summer. He had been an able statesman, energetic, firm and
courageous, but strict towards the Prankish nobility and intolerant
towards the native Christians. On his death the populace ac
claimed as his successor the Latin Bishop of Mamistra, Radulph of
Domfront, who assumed the Patriarchal throne without waiting
for a canonical election. Radulph was a very different man,
handsome, despite a slight squint, a lover of pomp, open-handed
and affable, not well educated but an eloquent persuasive speaker,
and, behind a gracious facade, wordly, ambitious and sly. He had
no wish to be dominated by the King and the King s men; so he
opened negotiations with the dowager Princess Alice, who was
still living on her lands at Lattakieh. Alice saw her opportunity
and appealed to her sister Queen Melisende. Fulk arrived at
Antioch in August for a short visit. He did not feel strong enough
to protest against Radulph s irregular election, and he could now
refuse his wife nothing. Alice was allowed to return to Antioch.
Fulk remained regent, but the power was shared in an uneasy
alliance between the dowager and the Patriarch. 1
Radulph soon quarrelled with his clergy; and Alice was left
mistress of the city. But her position was precarious. Her main
support came from the native Christian population. As her
intrigues with Zengi had shown, she had little regard for Prankish
sentiment. She thought now of a better scheme. At the end of
1135 she sent an envoy to Constantinople to offer the hand of her
daughter the Princess Constance to the Emperor s younger son
Manuel. Her action may have been, as the horrified Crusaders
declared, due to the caprice of her ambition; but in fact it offered
the best solution for the preservation of northern Syria. The
Greek element was strong in Antioch. The Moslem menace was
growing under Zengi; and the Empire was the only power strong
1 William of Tyre, xrv, 9, 20, pp. 619-20, 636. Folk was in Antioch in
August 1135 (Rohricht, Regesta, p. 39).
198
1136: Raymond of Poitiers summoned to Antioch
enough, to check it. A vassal-state ruled under imperial suzerainty
first by the half-Armenian Alice and then jointly by a Byzantine
prince and a Prankish princess, might well have served to weld
Greek and Frank together for the defence of Christendom. But
the Prankish nobles were aghast; and the Patriarch Radulph saw
himself displaced in favour of a hated Greek. It seems that during
his visit to Antioch King Fulk had been consulted by the barons
about a suitable husband for Constance. Now a messenger went
secretly to him to say that one must urgently be found. After
reviewing all the French princes of his acquaintance, Fulk decided
upon the younger son of Duke William IX of Aquitaine, Raymond
of Poitiers, at present in England at the Court of King Henry I,
whose daughter had recently married Fulk s son Geoffrey. A
knight of the Hospital, Gerard Jebarre, was sent to England to fetch
him out. The greatest secrecy was observed. Alice must know
nothing ; nor would it be safe even to inform the Queen. Another
danger lay in the hostility of King Roger of Sicily, who had never
forgiven the Kingdom of Jerusalem for the insult done to his
mother Adelaide and whose Mediterranean ambitions would
never let him offer free passage to a claimant for the hand of the
greatest heiress in the East. Gerard reached the English court, and
Raymond accepted the proposal. But King Roger learnt of the
secret; for the Normans of England and of Sicily were always in
close touch with each other. He determined to arrest Raymond,
who could not find a ship for Syria except from a south Italian
port. Raymond was obliged to divide up his company and to
disguise himself sometimes as a pilgrim, sometimes as a merchant s
servant. He managed to slip through the blockade, and in April
1136 he arrived at Antioch.
His arrival could not be kept hidden from Alice. He therefore
at once went to see the Patriarch. Radulph offered him help on
terms. Raymond must pay him homage and defer to him in
everything. On Raymond s agreement Radulph demanded an
audience with Alice to tell her that the glamorous stranger had
arrived as a candidate for her hand. The story was convincing, for
199
The Second Generation
Raymond was aged thirty-seven, Alice was tinder thirty, and
Constance barely nine. Then, while Alice waited in her palace to
receive her future betrothed, Constance was kidnapped and taken
to the cathedral, where the Patriarch hastily wedded her to
Raymond. Alice was defeated. Against the lawful husband of the
heiress a dowager had no rights. She retired once more to
Lattakieh, to remain there disconsolate for the remainder of her
short existence. 1
Raymond was in the prime of life. He was handsome and of
immense physical strength, not well educated, fond of gambling
and impetuous and at the same time indolent, but with a high
reputation for gallantry and for purity of conduct. 2 His popularity
soon awed the Patriarch, whose troubles with his own clergy
continued, and who found himself treated with deference but in
fact shorn of power. The nobles solidly supported Raymond; for
indeed the situation was too serious for them to do otherwise.
The principality was losing ground. Not only were the eastern
defences gone. In the south, in the Nosairi mountains, a Turco
man adventurer captured the castle of Bisikra il from its owner,
Reynald Mazoir, in 1131, and early in 1136 he was with difficulty
prevented from taking Balatonos. Bisikra il was recovered soon
afterwards. Farther to the south, where the Franks had acquired
the castle of Qadmus in 1129, in 113 1 it passed back to the Moslem
emir of Kahf, Saif ed-Din ibn Atnran, who next year sold it to
the Assassin leader Abul Path. In 1135 the Assassins bought Kahf
itself from Saif ed-Din s sons; and in the winter of 1136 they
captured Khariba from the Franks. 3 Cilicia had already been lost.
In 113 1, soon after Bohemondll s death, the Roupenian Prince Leo,
protected in his rear by an alliance with the Danishmend emir,
descended into the plain and seized the three cities of Mamistra,
1 William of Tyre, xrv, 20, pp. 635-6; Cinnamus, pp. 16-17; Robert of
Torigny (i, p. 184) believed that Raymond, married Bohemond it s widow.
2 William of Tyre, xrv, 21, pp. 637-8; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, p. 522,
describes how he could bend an iron bar. Cinnamus (p. 125) compares him
to Hercules.
3 Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 241; Usama, ed. Hitti, p. 157; Kemal ad-Din, p. 680.
200
1136: War with the Armenians
Tarsus and. Adana. His brother and predecessor Thoros had
already a few years before ejected the small Byzantine garrisons
from Sis and Anazarbus, farther inland. In 1135 Leo captured
Sarventikar, on the slopes of the Amanus, from Baldwin, Lord of
Marash. But the Armenian hold over Cilicia was weak. Bandits
found refuge there, and pirates hung about its coasts. 1
The county of Edessa was no better off. Timurtash the Ortoqid
had recently annexed some of its territory in the east. To the north
the Armenian Prince of Gar gar, Michael, unable to maintain him
self against the Turks, ceded his lands to Count Joscelin, who rashly
handed them over to Michael s personal enemy Basil, brother of
the Armenian Catholicus. A civil war between the two Armenians
broke out. Joscelin was obliged to garrison Gargar himself, but
could not prevent the countryside from being ravaged by
Armenians and Turks in turn. Sawar raided the district of
Turbessel in 1135, and in April 1136, about the time of Raymond
of Poitiers s arrival in the East, his general, Afshin, not only broke
his way through Antiochene territory to Lattakieh in the south,
burning and pillaging the villages as he passed, but afterwards
turned northward past Marash to Kaisun. The chief vassal of the
Count of Edessa, Baldwin, lord of Marash and Kaisun, was
powerless to defend his lands.*
Raymond decided that his first action must be to recover
Cilicia. His rear must be protected before he could venture to
oppose Zengi. With King Fulk s approval he marched with
Baldwin of Marash against the Roupenians. But the alliance was
incomplete. Joscelin of Edessa, though he was Fulk s vassal and
Baldwin s suzerain, was also Leo s nephew; and his sympathies
were with his uncle. The King of Jerusalem s authority was no
longer sufficient to reunite the Prankish princes. With Joscelin s
help, Leo drove back the Antiochene army. Triumphant, he
1 Gregory the Priest, p. 152; Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 230-3; Armenian
Rhymed Chronicle, p. 499; Sembat the Constable, p. 615.
2 Michael the Syrian, ra, p. 244; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 239-40; Kemal ad-Din,
p. 672.
201
The Second Generation
agreed to have a personal interview with Baldwin, who trea
cherously made him prisoner and sent him off to captivity in
Antioch. In Leo s absence his three sons quarrelled. The eldest,
Constantine, was eventually captured and blinded by his brothers.
But meanwhile the Franks derived no profit. The Danishmend
emir, Mohammed II ibn Ghazi, invaded Cilicia, destroyed the
harvests, then moved on into Baldwin s lands, which he ravaged
as far as Kaisun. Shaken by these disasters, Leo bought his
freedom by offering to give up the Cilician cities to Raymond;
but on his return home he forgot his promise. A desultory war
broke out again, till, early in 1137, Joscelin patched up a truce
between the combatants, who were terrified by news from the
north, news that showed Princess Alice not to have been so
foolish after all. 1
King Fulk had not been able to give any practical aid to his
friend Raymond. He had to face dangers nearer home. The
government of the young atabeg Mahmud of Damascus had been
dominated by the peaceful influence of his mother s lover, Yusuf;
but one spring evening, in 1136, as the atabeg was walking on the
maidan with Yusuf and a mameluk commander, Bazawash, the
latter suddenly stabbed Yusuf to death and fled to his regiment at
Baalbek. From there he threatened to march on Damascus and
depose the atabeg, unless he was made chief minister. Mahmud
yielded to his wishes. At once the Damascenes took up an aggres
sive attitude against the Franks. Early next year they invaded
the County of Tripoli. The local Christians, who felt no loyalty
towards the Franks, guided them secretly through the passes of the
Lebanon into the coastal plain. Count Pons was taken by surprise.
He came out with his small army to meet them and was disastrously
defeated. Pons himself, who fled into the mountains, was betrayed
to the Moslems by a Christian peasant, and was instantly put to
death. The Bishop of Tripoli, Gerard, who was captured in the
battle, was fortunately not recognized and was soon exchanged as
1 Gregory the Priest, loc. cit. (and note by Dulaurier) ; Sembat the Constable,
p. 616; Matthew of Edessa, ccliii, pp. 320-1.
202
1137- Accession of Raymond II of Tripoli
a man of no importance. Bazawash captured one or two frontier
castles, but did not venture to attack Tripoli itself. He soon retired
to Damascus laden with, booty. 1
Pons had ruled over Tripoli for twenty-five years. He seems to
have been a competent administrator but a feckless politician,
always anxious to throw off the suzerainty of the King ofjerusalem
but too weak to achieve independence. His son and successor,
Raymond II, was of a more passionate temperament. He was now
aged twenty-two, and had recently married Queen Melisende s
sister, Hodierna ofjerusalem, to whom he was jealously devoted.
His first act was to avenge his father s death, not on the mamelukes
of Damascus, who were too powerful for him, but on the disloyal
Christians of the Lebanon. Marching on the villages suspected of
helping the enemy, he massacred all their men-folk and took the
women and children to be sold as slaves in Tripoli. His ruthlessness
cowed the Lebanese, but it made them no fonder of the Franks. 2
Bazawash s activity was not to the liking of Zengi. He was
unwilling to attack the Franks with an independent and aggressive
Moslem state on his flank. At the end of June he marched on
Horns, which was held for the atabeg of Damascus by an elderly
mameluke, Unur. For about a fortnight Zengi lay before the city,
when news came that a Prankish army from Tripoli was ap
proaching. Whatever Count Raymond s intention may have been,
his move caused Zengi to raise the siege of Horns and turn on the
Franks. As Raymond retired before him, he advanced to besiege
the great castle of Montferrand, on the eastern slopes of the
Nosairi hills, guarding the entrance to the Buqaia. Meanwhile
Raymond sent to Jerusalem to ask for help from King Fulk.
Fulk had just received an urgent appeal from Antioch; but
a Moslem threat to Tripoli could not be ignored. He hurried up
with all the men that he could collect to join Raymond, and
together they made a forced march round the Nosairi foothills to
1 William of Tyre, xrv, 23, p. 640; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 240-1; Ibn al-Athir,
pp. 419-20.
2 William of Tyre, loc. dt.
203
The Second Generation
Montferrand. It was a difficult journey; and their army soon was
in a pitiable state. Zengi had moved away on their approach, but,
hearing of their condition, he returned and closed in round them
as they came out of the hills near to the castle. The weary Franks
were taken by surprise. They fought bravely, but the battle was
soon over. Most of the Christians lay dead on the field. Others,
including the Count of Tripoli, were taken prisoner, while Fulk
with a small bodyguard escaped into the fortress. 1
Before Zengi could move up to invest Montferrand, the King
sent messengers to the Patriarch of Jerusalem, to the Count of
Edessa and to the Prince of Antioch, begging for immediate help.
All three, ignoring other risks, answered his appeal; for the capture
of the King and all his chivalry might well mean the end of the
kingdom. The Patriarch William gathered together the rest of the
militia left in Palestine, and led it, with the Holy Cross at its head,
up to Tripoli. Josceliti of Edessa, forgetting his local worries, came
down from the north, and on his way was joined by Raymond
of Antioch, who could ill afford at that moment to leave his
capital. Fortunately for Palestine, bared as it was of every
fighting man, its neighbours were not in the mood to be aggres
sive. Egypt was paralysed by a palace revolution, which had
replaced the Armenian vizier Vahram by a violent anti-Christian,
Ridwan ibn al-Walakshi, who was fijly occupied in slaying his
predecessor s friends and in quarrelling with the Caliph. The
garrison of Ascalon carried out a raid on Lydda, but no more.*
The mameluke Bazawash of Damascus was more dangerous; and
as soon as the Patriarch had left the country, he permitted himself
to ravage it as far south as the open city of Nablus, whose in
habitants he put to the sword. But he was too fearful of the
consequences to Damascus should Zengi enjoy too complete
a victory to wish to press the Franks very far. 3
1 "William of Tyre, xrv, 25, pp. 643-5; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 242-3 (tactfully
omitting to mention the Franco-Damascene alliance) ; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 672-3 ;
Ibn al-Athir, pp. 420.
* William of Tyre, xiv, 26, pp. 645-7. 3 Ibid, xrv, 27, p. 647.
204
1137- The Surrender of Montferrand
At the end of July the relieving force assembled in the Buqaia.
Meanwhile in Montferrand the King was growing desperate. He
was cut off from news of the outside world. His supplies were
running out; and day and night Zengi s ten great mangonels
pounded at the walls of the castle. At last he sent a herald to
Zengi to ask for his terms. To his incredulous joy, Zengi demanded
only the cession of Montferrand. The King might go free with all
his men. Moreover, the leading knights captured in the battle,
including the Count of Tripoli, should be set at liberty. No
ransom would be charged. Fulk accepted at once. Zengi kept to
his engagement. Fulk and his bodyguard were brought before
Zengi, who treated them with every mark of honour and pre
sented the King with a sumptuous robe. Their comrades were
restored to them; and they were sent peaceably on their way. In
the Buqaia they met the relieving army, much nearer than they
had thought. Some of them were vexed to find that had they held
out longer they might have been rescued; but the wiser were glad
to have escaped so lightly. 1
Indeed, Zengi s forbearance has never ceased to astonish his
torians. But Zengi knew what he was doing. Montferrand was
no mean prize. Its possession would prevent the Franks from
penetrating into the upper Orontes valley. It was also admirably
situated to control Hama and the Damascene city of Horns. To
obtain it without further fighting was well worth while; for he
had no wish to risk a battle with the Prankish relieving force so
near to the frontiers of Damascus, whose rulers would at once take
advantage of any check that he might suffer. Moreover, like his
Prankish enemies, he was disquieted by news from the north.
1 William of Tyre, xiv, 28-9, pp. 545-51 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, loc. dt.\ Kemal
ad-Din, loc. cit.\ Ibn al-Atbir, pp. 421-3-
205
CHAPTER HI
THE CLAIMS OF THE EMPEROR
Let not him that is deceived trust in vanity: for vanity shall be
his recompence? JOB xv, 31
The news that had patched up a peace between the Franks and the
Armenians, that had made Prince Raymond loth to leave Antioch,
and that now induced Zengi to show mercy to his enemies was of
a great army marching into Cilicia, led in person by the Emperor
John Comnenus. Ever since the Emperor Alexius had failed to
come to Antioch during the First Crusade the politicians of the
Prankish East had blandly ignored Byzantium. Even though
Bohemond s attempt to invade the Empire from the west had
utterly failed, Alexius had been quite unable to secure that the
terms of his treaty with Bohemond were implemented. As the
Franks in Antioch well knew, he was distracted by cares nearer
home. 1
Theses cares endured for nearly thirty years. There were inter
mittent wars on all the frontiers of the Empire. There were
Polovtsian invasions across the lower Danube, as in 1 114 and 1121.
There was continual tension with the Hungarians on the middle
Danube, which flared into open war in 1128; the Hungarians
invaded the Balkan peninsula as far as Sofia, but were driven back
and defeated in their own territory by the Emperor. The Italian
merchant cities periodically raided the Empire in order to extract
commercial privileges. Pisa obtained a favourable treaty in mi ;
and Venice, after four years of war, following on the Emperor
John s refusal to renew his father s concessions, recovered all its
rights in 1126. The Normans of southern Italy, cowed since
1 See above, pp. 108-9, 137.
206
The Later Days of Alexius I
Bohemond s defeat at Dyrrhachium, became a menace once more
in 1127, when Roger II of Sicily annexed Apulia. Roger II, who
assumed the title of King in 1130, possessed to the full his family s
hatred of Byzantium, though he loved to copy its methods and to
patronize its arts. But his ambitions were so vast that it was
usually possible to find allies against him. Not only did he seek
to dominate Italy, but he claimed Antioch as the only surviving
representative in the male line of the House of Hauteville, and
Jerusalem itself in virtue of the treaty made by his mother Adelaide
with Baldwin I. 1
In Asia Minor there was no peace. During and after the First
Crusade Alexius had consolidated his hold over the western third
of the peninsula and over the northern and southern coasts; and
had he had only to deal with the Turkish princes he could have
kept his possessions intact. But groups of Turcomans were still
seeping into the interior, where they and their flocks multiplied;
and inevitably they overflowed into the coastal valleys, to seek
a gentler climate and richer pastures. Their coming inevitably
destroyed the settled agricultural life of the Christians. Indeed,
the weaker the princes became, the more unruly and dangerous to
the Empire were their nomad subjects/
At the time of the Emperor Alexius s death in 1118, Turkish
Anatolia was divided between the Seldjuk Sultan Mas ud, who
reigned from Konya over the southern centre of the peninsula,
from the Sangarius to the Taurus, and the Danishmend emir
Ghazi II, whose lands stretched from the Halys to the Euphrates.
Between them they had absorbed and eliminated the smaller
emirates, except for Melitene in the east, where Mas ud s youngest
brother Toghrul reigned under the regency of his mother and her
1 For Roger H, see Chalandon, Domination Normande en Italic, n, pp. 1-51.
The Polovtsian invasion of 1121 was graphically described by the Jacobite
Basil of Edessa for the benefit of Michael the Syrian (nr, p. 207).
2 A good summary of the course and effect of the Turcoman invasions is
given in Ramsay, War of Moslem and Christian for the Possession of Asia
Minor , in Studies in the History and Art of the Eastern Provinces of the Roman
Empire, pp. 295-8.
207
The Claims of the Emperor
second husband, the Ortoqid Balak. In spite of the Byzantium
victory at Philomelion in 1115 and the subsequent attempted
delineation of the frontier, the Turks had during the following
years recaptured Phrygian Laodicea. and penetrated into the
Meander valley, and had cut off the road to Attalia. At the same
time the Danishmends were pressing westward into Paphlagonia.
The Emperor Alexius was planning a campaign to restore the
Anatolian frontiers when his last illness supervened. 1
The accession of the Emperor John brought new vigour to
Byzantium. John, whom his subjects called Kaloioannes, John the
Good, was one of those rare characters of whom no contemporary
writer, with one exception, had anything derogatory to say. The
exception was his own sister. Anna Comnena was the eldest of
Alexius s children. As a child she had been betrothed to the young
co-Emperor Constantine Ducas, to whom Alexius had promised
the eventual succession. His early death, which followed closely
on her brother s birth, was a cruel blow to her ambitions ; and she
sought ever afterwards to redress the injustice of Providence by
persuading her father, with her mother s approval, to leave his
throne to her husband, the Caesar Nicephorus Bryeruiius. Even
when the Emperor lay dying, devotedly nursed by his wife and
daughter, the two ladies punctuated their ministrations with
demands for John s disinheritance. But Alexius had decided that
his son must succeed him. When John was admitted to bid him
farewell, the dying man quietly passed him his ring with the
imperial seal, and John hurried from the death-bed, to secure the
gates of the palace. His promptness was rewarded. The army and
the senate acclaimed him at once as reigning Emperor; and the
Patriarch hastily endorsed their acclamation at a coronation
ceremony in Saint Sophia. Anna and the Empress-Mother were
outwitted. But John feared lest their partisans should make an
attempt on his life. He even refused to attend his father s funeral,
having good reason to believe that his murder was planned for
1 Anna Comnena, xv, i, 6-vi, 10, pp. 187-213 ; Chalandon, Rigne d Alexius I
Comnlne, pp. 268-71.
208
PLATE IV
THE EMPEROR JOHN COMNENUS
in8: The Accession of John Comnenus
the occasion. A few days later Anna organized a plot to eliminate
him, while he was staying at the quiet suburban palace of Philo-
patium. But the plot had one grave weakness. It was to place on
the throne Nicephorus Bryennius ; and he had no desire for the
throne. It was possible he that warned the Emperor. John
punished the conspirators very lightly. The Empress-Mother
Irene probably was not privy to the plot, but retired nevertheless
to a convent. Anna s leading supporters had their possessions con
fiscated, but many of them later received them back. Anna her
self was deprived of her possessions for awhile, and henceforward
lived in complete seclusion. Nicephorus went unpunished. Both
he and his wife consoled themselves for the loss of a crown by
adopting the less exigent calling of historian. 1
John was now secure. He was in his thirtieth year, a small, thin
man, dark-haired, dark-eyed and remarkably dark of complexion.
His tastes were austere; he did not share in the delight taken by
most of his family in literature and theological discussion. He was
above all a soldier, happier on campaigns than in the palace. But
he was an able and just administrator, and, despite his severity
towards himself, generous to his friends and to the poor and ready
to appear himself in ceremonial splendour should it be required.
He was affectionate and forbearing to his family and faithful to his
wife, the Hungarian Princess Piriska, rechristened Irene; but she,
though she shared in his austerities and his charities, had little
influence over him. His only intimate friend was his Grand
Domestic, a Turk called Axuch, who had been taken prisoner as
a boy at the capture of Nicaea in 1097 an< i had been brought up in
the palace. John s conception of his imperial role was high. His
father had left him a strong fleet, an army that was made up from
a medley of races but was well organized and well equipped and
a treasury that was full enough to permit an active policy. He
wished not only to conserve the Empire s frontiers but to restore
1 Anna Comnena, XV, xi, 1-23, pp. 229-42; Zonaras, m, p. 759 (a less
subjective account); see Chalandon, op. tit. pp. 273-6, and Les Comnlnes,
pp. 1-8.
R c 2O9 J 4
The Claims of the Emperor
it to its ancient boundaries, and to realize the imperial claims in
northern Syria. 1
John began his first campaign against the Turks in the spring
of 1119. He marched down through Phrygia and recaptured
Laodicea. Urgent business then recalled him to Constantinople;
but he returned a month later to take Sozopolis and reopen the
road to Attalia. While he himself attacked the Seldjuks in the
west, he had arranged for an attack on the Danishmends in the
east. Constantine Gabras, Duke of Trebizond, took advantage
of a quarrel between the emir Ghazi and his son-in-law, Ibn Mangu,
a Turkish princeling established at Taranaghi in Armenia, to take
up arms in support of the latter. But Ghazi, with Toghrul of
Melitene as his ally, defeated and captured Gabras; who had to
pay thirty thousand dinars to ransom himself. A timely dispute
between Ghazi and Toghrul prevented the Turks from following
up their victory.*
For the next few years John was unable to intervene in Anatolia.
These years saw an alarming growth in the power of the Danish-
mends. In 1124, when Toghrul of Melitene s stepfather, Balak the
Ortoqid, was killed fighting in the Jezireh, the emir Ghazi invaded
Melitene and annexed it, to the delight of the native Christians
there, who found his rule mild and just. Next, he turned westward
and took Ankara, Gangra and Kastamuni from the Byzantines and
extended his power down to the Black Sea coast. Constantine
Gabras, thus cut off by land from Constantinople, took advantage
of his isolation to declare himself independent ruler of Trebizond.
In 1129, on the death of the Roupenian Prince Thoros, Ghazi
turned his attention to the south; and next year, in alliance with
the Armenians, he slew Prince Bohemond II of Antioch on the
banks of the Jihan. Whatever views John might hold about
Antioch, he had no wish for it to pass into the possession of a
powerful Moslem prince. His prompt invasion of Paphlagonia
kept Ghazi from following up his victory. Fortunately during
these years the Anatolian Seldjuks were incapacitated by family
1 Chakndon, op. cit. pp. 8-n, 19. 2 Ibid. pp. 35-48.
210
1137 John prepares to invade Syria
disputes. In 1125 the Sultan Mas ud was displaced by his brother,
Arab. Mas ud fled to Constantinople, where the Emperor
received him with every honour. He then went on to his father-
in-law, the Danishmend Ghazi, whose help enabled him, after
a struggle of four years, to recover his throne. Arab in his turn
sought refuge at Constantinople, where he died. 1
Yearly from 1130 to 1135 John campaigned against the Danish-
mends. Twice his work was interrupted by the intrigues of his
brother, the Sebastocrator Isaac, who fled from the Court in 1130
and spent the next nine years plotting with various Moslem and
Armenian princes; and in 1134 the sudden death of the Empress
recalled him from the wars. By September 1134, when the death
of the emir Ghazi eased the situation, he had reconquered all the
lost territory except for the town of Gangra, which he recaptured
next spring. Ghazi s son and successor, Mohammed, harassed
by family squabbles, could not afford to be aggressive; and
Mas ud, deprived of Danishmend help, came to terms with the
Emperor. 2
With the Anatolian Turks cowed, John was ready to intervene
in Syria. But first he had to protect his rear. In 1 135 a Byzantine
embassy arrived in Germany at the Court of the western Emperor
Lothair. On John s behalf it offered Lothair large financial sub
sidies if he would attack Roger of Sicily. The negotiations lasted
some months. Eventually Lothair agreed to attack Roger in the
spring of 1137.3 The Hungarians had been defeated in 1128 and
the Serbians reduced to submission by a campaign in 1129. The
defences on the lower Danube were secure. 4 The Pisans had been
detached from their Norman alliance by the treaty of 1126; and
the Empire was now on good terms with both Venice and Genoa. 5
In the spring of 1137 the imperial army, with the Emperor and
1 Chalandon, pp. 77-91 ; Nicetas Choniates, p. 45 ; Michael the Syrian, m,
pp. 223-4, 227, 237.
a Cinnamus, pp. 14-15; Nicetas Choniates, pp. 27-9; Michael the Syrian,
m, pp. 237-49-
3 Peter Diaconus, in M.G.K Ss. vol. vn, p. 833.
4 Chalandon, op. cit. pp. 59-63, 70-1. 5 Ibid. pp. 158-61.
211 14-2
The Claims of the Emperor
his sons at its head, assembled at Attalia and advanced eastward
into Cilicia. The imperial fleet guarded its flank. The Armenians
and the Franks were equally taken by surprise at the news of its
approach. Leo the Roupenian, master now of the east Cilician
plain, moved up in an attempt to check its progress by taking the
Byzantine frontier fortress of Seleucia, but was forced to retire.
The Emperor swept on, past Mersin, Tarsus, Adana and Mamistra,
which all yielded to him at once. The Armenian prince relied on
the great fortifications of Anazarbus to hold him up. Its garrison
resisted for thirty-seven days; but the siege-engines of the
Byzantines battered down its walls, and the city was forced to
surrender. Leo retreated into the high Taurus, where the Emperor
did not trouble now to follow him. After mopping up several
Armenian castles in the neighbourhood, he led his forces south
ward past Issus and Alexandretta, and over the Syrian Gates into
the plain of Antioch. On 29 August he appeared before the walls
of the city and encamped on the north bank of the Orontes. 1
Antioch was without its prince. Raymond of Poitiers had gone
to rescue King Fulk from Montferrand; andjoscelin of Edessa was
with him. They reached the Buqaia to find the Bong released. Fulk
had intended himself to go to Antioch to meet the Byzantines,
but after his recent experiences he preferred now to return to
Jerusalem. Raymond hastened back to Antioch to find that the
Emperor s siege had begun, but the investiture of the city was not
yet complete. He was able to slip in with his bodyguard through
the Iron Gate close under the citadel.
For several days the Byzantine machines pounded at the
fortifications. Raymond could hope for no help from outside;
and he was uncertain of the temper of the population within the
walls. There were many even of his barons who began to see the
1 Cinnamus, pp. 16-18; Nicetas Choniates, pp. 29-35; William of Tyre,
xrv, 24, pp. 341-2; Matthew of Edessa, ccliv, p. 323; Sembat the Constable,
pp. 616-17; Gregory the Priest, pp. 152-3; Michael the Syrian, ni, p. 45;
Ibn al-Athir, p. 424; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 240-1 (the editor, p. 24011. 2, wishes
to alter the reading Kiyalyani, i.e. Kaloioannes, for Imanyal, Emmanuel. But
it is of John that the chronicler is speaking).
212
1137 Raymond pays Homage to the Emperor
wisdom of Alice s thwarted policy. It was not long before
Raymond sent a message to the Emperor offering to recognize
him as suzerain if he might keep the principality as Imperial Vicar.
John in answer demanded unconditional surrender. Raymond
then said that he must consult King Fulk; and letters were sent
post-haste to Jerusalem. But Fulk s reply was unhelpful. * We all
know , said the King, and our elders have long taught us that
Antioch was part of the Empire of Constantinople till it was taken
from the Emperor by the Turks, who held it for fourteen years,
and that the Emperor s claims about the treaties made by our
ancestors are correct. Ought we then to deny the truth and oppose
what is right ? When the King whom he regarded as his overlord
offered such advice, Raymond could not resist longer. His envoys
found the Emperor ready to make concessions. Raymond was to
come to his camp and swear a full oath of allegiance to him,
becoming his man and giving him free access into the city and
citadel. Moreover, if the Byzantines with Prankish help conquered
Aleppo and the neighbouring towns, Raymond would hand back
Antioch to the Empire and receive instead a principality consisting
of Aleppo, Shaizar, Hama and Horns. Raymond acquiesced. He
came and knelt before the Emperor and paid him homage. John
did not insist then on entering Antioch; but the imperial standard
was hoisted over the citadel. 1
The negotiations showed the uneasiness of the Prankish attitude
towards the Emperor. Fulk s reply may have been dictated by
the immediate needs of the moment. He knew too well that
Zengi was the great enemy of the Prankish kingdom and he would
not offend the only Christian power capable of checking the
Moslems; and it may be that Queen Melisende s influence was
exerted in favour of a policy that would justify her sister Alice and
would humiliate the man that had tricked her. But his verdict was
probably the considered view of his lawyers. Despite all the
propaganda of Bohemond I, the more scrupulous Crusaders held
1 William of Tyre, xiv, 30, pp. 651-3 ; Orderic Vitalis, xra, 34, pp- 99-IOI J
Cinnamus, pp. 18-19; Nicetas Choniates, pp. 3 6-7-
213
The Claims of the Emperor
that the treaty made between Alexius and. their fathers at Constan
tinople still was valid. Antioch should have been returned to the
Empire; and Bohemond and Tancred, by violating the oaths that
they had sworn, had forfeited any claims that they might have
made. This was a more extreme imperialist view than the Emperor
himself held. The imperial government was always realistic. It
saw that it would be impracticable and unwise to try to eject the
Franks from Antioch without offering compensation. Moreover,
it liked to line the frontier with vassal-states whose general policy
would be controlled by the Emperor but who meanwhile would
bear the brunt of enemy attacks. The Emperor therefore based his
claims not on the treaty made at Constantinople but on the treaty
made with Bohemond at Devol. He demanded the unconditional
surrender of Antioch as from a rebellious vassal; but he was pre
pared to let Antioch continue as a vassal-state. His immediate
need was that it should co-operate in his campaigns against the
Moslems. 1
It was now too late in the year for a campaign; so John, having
asserted his authority, returned to Cilicia to finish off its conquest.
The Roupenian princes fled before him into the high Taurus.
Three of Leo s sons, Mleh, Stephen and the blind Constantine,
took refuge with their cousin, Joscelin of Edessa. The family castle
of Vahka held out for some weeks under its valiant commander
Constantine, whose personal combat with an officer of the
Macedonian regiment, Eustratius, impressed the whole imperial
army. Soon after its fall Leo and his elder sons, Roupen and
Thoros, were captured. They were sent to prison in Constanti
nople, where Roupen was soon put to death; but Leo and Thoros
gained the favour of the Emperor and were allowed to live under
surveillance at the Court. Leo died there four years later. Thoros
eventually escaped and returned to Cilicia. When the conquest of
the province was completed, John went into winter quarters in
the Cilician plain, where Baldwin of Marash came to pay him
homage and to ask for protection against the Turks. At the same
1 See Chalandon, op. dt. pp. 122-7, 130-3, and below, p. 215.
214
1138: The Christians lay siege to Shaizar
time an imperial embassy was sent to Zengi, in order to give him
the impression that the Byzantines were unwilling to start upon
an aggressive adventure.
Next February, by orders from the Emperor, the authorities in
Antioch suddenly arrested all the merchants and travellers from
Aleppo and the neighbouring Moslem towns, lest they might
report to their homes of the military preparations that they had
seen. Towards the end of March the imperial army moved up to
Antioch and was joined there by the troops of the Prince of
Antioch and the Count of Edessa, together with a contingent of
Templars. On I April the allies crossed into enemy territory and
occupied Balat. On the 3rd they appeared before Biza a, which
held out under its commander s wife for five days. Another week
was spent in rounding up the Moslem soldiers in the district, most
of whom took refuge in the grottoes of el-Baba, from whence
they were smoked out by the Byzantines. Zengi was with his
army before Hama from which he was trying to expel the
Damascene garrison when scouts told him of the Christian in
vasions. He hastily sent troops under Sawar to reinforce the
garrison of Aleppo. John had hoped to surprise Aleppo ; but when
he arrived before the walls on 20 April and launched an attack he
found it strongly defended. He decided not to undertake the
ardours of a siege, but turned southward. On the 22nd he occupied
Athareb, on the 25th Maarat al-Numan and on the 2yth Kafartab.
On 28 April his army was at the gates of Shaizar.
Shaizar belonged to the Munqidhite emir, Abul Asakir Sultan,
who had managed to preserve his independence from Zengi.
Perhaps John hoped that Zengi would not therefore concern him
self with the city s fate. But its possession would give the Christians
control of the middle Orontes and would hinder Zengi s farther
advance into Syria. The Byzantines began the siege with great
vigour. Part of the lower town was soon occupied; and the
Emperor brought up his great mangonels to bombard the upper
town on its precipitous hill over the Orontes. Latin and Moslem
sources alike tell of the Emperor s personal courage and energy
215
The Claims of the Emperor
and of the efficiency of his bombardment. He seemed to be every
where at once, in his golden helmet, inspecting the machines,
encouraging the assailants and consoling the wounded. The emir s
nephew Usama saw the terrible damage done by the Greek
catapults. Whole houses were destroyed by a single ball, while the
iron staff on which the emir s flag was fixed came crashing down
piercing and killing a man in the street below. But while the
Emperor and his engineers were indefatigable, the Franks held
back. Raymond feared that if Shaizar were captured he might be
obliged to live there in the front line of Christendom and to
abandon the comforts of Antioch; while Joscelin, who privately
hated Raymond, had no wish to see him installed in Shaizar and
perhaps later in Aleppo. His whispering encouraged Raymond s
natural indolence and his mistrust of the Byzantines. Instead of
joining in the combat, the two Latin princes spent their days in
their tents playing at dice. The Emperor s reproaches could only
goad them into perfunctory and short-lived activity. Meanwhile
Zengi gave up the siege of Hama and moved towards Shaizar.
His envoys hurried to Baghdad, where at first the Sultan would
not offer help, till a popular riot, crying for a Holy War, forced
him to send an expedition. The Ortoqid prince Dawud promised
an army of fifty thousand Turcomans from the Jezireh. Letters
were also sent to the Danishmend emir, requesting him to make
a diversion in Anatolia. Zengi was also well aware of the dis
sensions between the Byzantines and the Franks. His agents in the
Christian army fanned the Latin princes resentment against the
Emperor.
Despite all John s vigour the great cliffs of Shaizar, the courage
of its defenders and the apathy of the Franks defeated him. Some
of his allies suggested that he should go out to meet Zengi, whose
army was smaller than the Christian. But he could not afford to
leave his siege-machinery unguarded nor could he now trust the
Franks. The risk was too great. He managed to take the whole of
the lower city; then, on about 20 May, the emir of Shaizar sent
to him offering to pay him a large indemnity and to present him
216
1138: Johns Entry into Antioch
with his best horses and silken robes and his two most precious
treasures, a table studded with jewels and a cross set with rubies
that had been taken from the Emperor Romanus Diogenes at
Manzikert, sixty-seven years before. He agreed further to
recognize the Emperor as his overlord and to pay him a yearly
tribute. John, disgusted by his Latin alhes, accepted the terms, and
on 21 May he raised the siege. As the great imperial army moved
back towards Antioch, Zengi came up towards Shaizar ; but, apart
from a few light skirmishes, he did not venture to interfere with
the retreat. 1
When the army reached Antioch, John insisted on making a
ceremonial entry into the city. He rode on horseback, with the
Prince of Antioch and the Count of Edessa walking as his grooms
on either side. The Patriarch and all the clergy met him at the gate
and led him through streets hung with bunting to the Cathedral
for a solemn mass, and on to the palace where he took up his
residence. There he summoned Raymond and, hinting that the
Prince had recently failed in his duties as vassal, he demanded that
his army should be allowed to enter the city and that the citadel
should be handed over to him. The future campaigns against the
Moslems must, he said, be planned at Antioch, and he needed the
citadel to store his treasure and his war-material. The Franks were
horrified. While Raymond asked for time to consider the request,
Joscelin slipped out of the palace. Once outside he told his soldiers
to spread a rumour round the Latin population of the city that the
Emperor was demanding their immediate expulsion, and to
incite them to attack the Greek population. Once the rioting was
started, he rushed back to the palace and cried to John that he had
come at the risk of his life to warn him of the danger that he ran.
There was certainly tumult in the streets, and unwary Greeks were
1 William of Tyre, xv, 1-2, pp. 655-8; Cinnamus, pp. 19-20; Nicetas
Choniates, pp. 37-41; Michael the Syrian, loc. dt.\ Usama, ed. Hitti, pp. 26,
124, 143-4; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 248-52 ; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 674-8 ; Ibn al-Athir,
pp. 426-8. The congratulatory poem addressed by Prodomus to the Emperor
suggests that Shaizar was saved by the weather. (M.P.G. vol. cxxxm, cols.
I344-9-)
217
The Claims of the Emperor
being massacred. In the East there is no telling where a riot may
end. John wished neither that the Greeks in the city should suffer
nor that he himself should be cut off in the palace with only his
bodyguard, and his main army on the far banks of the Orontes.
Moreover he had learnt that, thanks to Zengi s diplomacy, the
Anatolian Seldjuks had invaded Cilicia and raided Adana. He saw
through Joscelin s trickery; but before he could risk an open
breach with the Latins he must be absolutely sure of his com
munications. He sent for Raymond and Joscelin and said that for
the moment he would ask for no more than a renewal of their oath
of vassaldom and that he must return now to Constantinople. He
left the pakce to rejoin the army; and at once the princes stilled
the riot. But they were still nervous and very anxious to recapture
the Emperor s goodwill. Raymond even offered to admit
imperial functionaries into the city, guessing rightly that John
would not accept so insincere an offer. Shortly afterwards John
said good-bye to Raymond and Joscelin with an outward show of
friendship and complete mutual mistrust. He then led his army
back into Cilicia. 1
It is remarkable that during all John s negotiations over Antioch
nothing was said about the Church. By the treaty of Devol the
Patriarchate was to be given back to the Greek line; and it is clear
that the Latin church authorities feared that the Emperor might
insist on that clause; for, in March 1138 almost certainly in answer
to an appeal from Antioch, Pope Innocent II issued an order for
bidding any member of his Church to remain with the Byzantine
army should it take any action against the Latin authorities in
Antioch. John must have been unwilling to stir up any religious
trouble till he was politically and strategically on surer ground.
Had he succeeded in providing Raymond with a principality -in
lieu of Antioch, then he would have reintroduced a Greek
Patriarch into the city. But in the meantime he publicly con
doned the presence of a Latin when on his solemn entry Radulph
1 William of Tyre, xv, 3-5, pp. 658-65; al-Azimi (p. 352) is the only other
chronicler to mention the plot.
218
- John in Anatolia
of Domfront came to greet him and conducted him to mass at
the cathedral. 1
John journeyed, slowly back to Constantinople, after sending
part of his army to punish the Seldjuk Mas ud for his raid into
Cilicia. Mas ud asked for peace and paid an indemnity. During
1139 and into 1140 the Emperor was occupied with the Danish-
mend emir, who was a far more dangerous enemy than the
Seldjuk. In 1139 Mohammed not only invaded upper Cilicia and
took the castle of Vahka, but he also led an expedition westward
as far as the Sangarius river. His alliance with Constantine Gabras,
the rebel Duke of Trebizond, guarded his northern flank. During
the summer of 1139 John drove the Danishmends out of Bithynia
and Paphlagonia, and in the autumn he marched eastwards along
the Black Sea coast. Constantine Gabras made his submission;
and the imperial army turned inland to besiege the Danishmend
fortress of Niksar. It was a difficult undertaking. The fortress was
naturally strong and well defended; and in that wild mountainous
country it was difficult to keep communications open. John was
depressed by the heavy losses suffered by his troops and by the
desertion to the enemy of his nephew John, his brother Isaac s son,
who became a Moslem and married Mas ud s daughter. The
Ottoman Sultans claimed to be descended from him. In the
autumn of 1140 John abandoned the campaign and brought his
army back to Constantinople, intending to recommence next
year. But next year the emir Mohammed died, and the Danish-
mend power was temporarily put out of action by civil war
between his heirs. John could revert to his larger schemes and
turn his attention again to Syria.*
There the benefits of his campaign against the Moslems in 1137
had been quickly lost. Zengi had recovered Kafartab from the
1 William of Tyre, xv, 3, p. 659. But Ibn al-Qalanisi (p. 245) says that John
demanded a Greek Patriarch for Antioch. Possibly he confused John s demands
with those later made by Manuel. Innocent s letter, dated 25 March 113 8, is
given in Cartulaire du Saint Sepulcre, ed. Rozire, p. 86.
2 Nicetas Choniates, pp. 44-9; Michael the Syrian, m, p. 248.
219
The Claims of the Emperor
Franks in May 1137 and Maarat al-Numan, Bizaa and Athareb in
the autumn. During the next four years, when Zengi was fully
occupied in his attempt to conquer Damascus, the indolent Franks
of the north failed to take advantage of his difficulties. Every year
Raymond and Sawar of Aleppo exchanged raids into each other s
territories; but no major engagement took place. 1 The county of
Edessa enjoyed a comparative peace, owing to the internecine
quarrels of the Moslem princes round the frontiers, intensified by
the death of the Danishmend Mohammed. To the Emperor John,
carefully watching events from Constantinople, it seemed clear
that the Franks of northern Syria were valueless as soldiers of
Christendom.
Raymond s apparent nonchalance was partly due to shortage of
man-power and partly to his quarrel with the Patriarch Radulph.
He had never intended to keep to his oath to obey the Patriarch
in all things ; and Radulph s arrogance enraged him. He found
allies in the cathedral chapter, led by the Archdeacon Lambert and
a canon, Arnulf of Calabria. Encouraged by Raymond they left
for Rome towards the end of 1137 to complain of Radulph s
uncanonical election. As they passed through King Roger II s
dominions, Arnulf, who was born his subject, incited him against
Radulph by pointing out that Radulph had secured the throne of
Antioch, which Roger coveted, for Raymond. Radulph was
obliged to follow them to Rome to justify himself. When he in
his turn arrived in southern Italy, Roger arrested him; but such
was his charm of manner and so persuasive his tongue that he soon
won over the King to his side. He proceeded to Rome, where
once again his charm triumphed. He voluntarily laid down his
pallium on the altar of St Peter s and received it back from the
Pope. When he journeyed back through southern Italy to resume
his patriarchal throne, King Roger treated him as an honoured
guest. But when he arrived at Antioch his clergy, backed by
Raymond, refused to pay him the customary compliment of
meeting him at the city gates. Radulph, playing the part of a meek,
1 Kemal ad-Din, pp. 681-5.
220
1139 : The Patriarch Radulph deposed
injured man, retired discreetly to a monastery near St Symeon;
where he remained till Joscelin of Edessa, always eager to embar
rass Raymond, invited him to pay a ceremonious visit to his
capital, where the Archbishop received him as spiritual overlord.
Raymond soon decided that it was safer to have him back in
Antioch. When he returned he was greeted with all the honours
that he could desire.
But thanks to Raymond s agitations, the inquiry into his
position was reopened at Rome. In the spring of 1139 Peter,
Archbishop of Lyon, was sent out to hear the case on the spot.
Peter, who was very old, went first to visit the Holy Places ; and
on his journey north he died at Acre. His death discountenanced
Radulph s enemies; and even Arnulf of Calabria offered his sub
mission. But Radulph in his arrogance refused to accept it;
whereupon Arnulf, enraged, returned to Rome and persuaded the
Pope to send out another legate, Alberic, Bishop of Ostia. The
new legate arrived in November 1139 and at once summoned
a synod which was attended by all the Latin prelates of the East,
including the Patriarch of Jerusalem. It was clear that the sympathy
of the synod was with the Prince and the dissident clergy. Radulph
therefore refused to attend its sessions in the Cathedral of St Peter,
while his only supporter, Serlon, Archbishop of Apamea, when
he attempted to defend the Patriarch, was ejected from the
assembly. After disobeying three summonses to appear to answer
the charges against him, Radulph was declared deposed. In his
pkce the synod elected Aimery of Limoges, the head of the
chapter, a gross, energetic and almost illiterate man who had
owed his first advancement to Radulph but had wisely made
friends with Raymond. On his deposition the ex-Patriarch was
thrown into prison by Raymond. Later he escaped and made his
way to Rome, where once again he won the favour of the Pope
and the Cardinals. But before he could use their help to restore
himself he died, it was thought from poison, some time in 1142.
The episode ensured for Raymond the loyal co-operation of the
Church of Antioch; but the high-handed treatment of the
221
The Claims of the Emperor
Patriarch left behind an ugly impression, even amongst the
ecclesiastics who had most disliked him. 1
In the spring of 1142 John was ready to return to Syria. As in
1136 he protected his rear by an alliance with the German
monarch against Roger of Sicily. His ambassadors visited the
Court of Conrad III, Lothair s successor, to make the necessary
arrangements and to seal the friendship with a marriage. They
returned in 1142, bringing with them Conrad s sister-in-law,
Bertha of Sulzbach, who under the name of Irene was to be the
wife of John s youngest son, Manuel. The good-will of the Italian
maritime cities was also assured. 3 In the spring of 1142 John and
his sons led his army across Anatolia to Attalia, driving back the
Seldjuks and their Turcoman subjects who once again were trying
to break through into Phrygia, and strengthening the frontier
defences. While he waited at Attalia the Emperor suffered a heavy
loss. His eldest son, Alexius, his appointed heir, fell ill and died
there. His second and third sons, Andronicus and Isaac, were
detailed to convey the body by sea to Constantinople; and during
the voyage Andronicus also died. 3 Despite his grief, John pushed
on to the east, giving out that he was bound for upper Cilicia, to
reconquer the fortresses that the Danishmends had taken; for he
did not wish to rouse the suspicions of the Franks. 4 The army
passed by forced marches through Cilicia and across the upper
Amanus range, the Giaour Dagh, and in mid-September it
appeared unexpectedly at Turbessel, the second capital of Joscelin
of Edessa. Joscelin, taken by surprise, hurried over to pay homage
to the Emperor and to offer him as hostage his daughter Isabella.
1 William of Tyre, xrv, 10, pp. 619-20, xv, 11-16, pp. 674-85. He is our
only source.
z Chalandon, op. cit. pp. 161-2, 171-2.
3 Cinnamus, p. 24; Nicetas Choniates, pp. 23-4. Cinnamus (p. 23) says that
John had intended that Alexius should inherit the Empire but that Manuel, his
youngest son, shouldhave a principality consisting of Antioch, Attalia and Cyprus.
4 William of Tyre, xv, 19, p. 688, indicates that Raymond had invited
John s intervention out of fear of Zengi, but Nicetas Choniates (p. 52) talks of
him disguising his plans and his actual arrival in Syria was a surprise (William
of Tyre, ibid. p. 689).
222
n$2: John returns to Cilicia
John then turned towards Antioch, and on 25 September he
arrived at Baghras, the great Templar castle that commanded the
road from Cilicia to Antioch. Thence he sent to Raymond to
demand that the whole city be handed over to him, and he
repeated his offer to provide the Prince with, a principality out of
his future conquests.
Raymond was frightened. It was certain that the Emperor was
now determined to follow up his demands with force; and it seems
that the native Christians were ready to help the Byzantines. The
Franks tried to gain time. Entirely changing the juridical position
on which he had based himself in 1131, Raymond answered that
he must consult his vassals. A council was held at Antioch at which
the vassals, probably prompted by the new Patriarch, declared
that Raymond only ruled Antioch as the husband of its heiress and
therefore had no right to dispose of her territory, and that even the
Prince and Princess together could not alienate nor exchange the
principality without the consent of their vassals; who would
dethrone them should they attempt to do so. The Bishop of Jabala,
who brought the council s answer to John, backed up the rejection
of the imperial demand by citing the authority of the Pope; but
he offered John a solemn entry into Antioch. This answer, com
pletely counter to all Raymond s previous undertakings, left John
with no alternative but war. But the season was too far advanced
for immediate action. After pillaging the property of the Franks in
the neighbourhood of the city, he retired into Cilicia, to recover
the castles taken by the Danishmends, and to spend the winter. 1
From Cilicia John sent an embassy to Jerusalem to King Fulk, to
announce his desire of paying a visit to the Holy Places, and of
discussing with the King joint action against the infidel. Fulk was
embarrassed. He had no wish for the great imperial army to
descend into Palestine;, the price of the Emperor s aid would
inevitably be the recognition of his suzerainty. The Bishop of
Bethlehem, Anselm, accompanied by Roard, castellan of Jeru-
1 William of Tyre, xv, 19-20, pp. 688-91; Nicetas Ckoniates, pp. 52-3;
Gregory the Priest, p. 156; Mattkew of Edessa, cclv, p. 325.
223
The Claims of the Emperor
salem, and by Geoffrey, abbot of the Temple, who was a good
Greek scholar, was sent to John to explain that Palestine was a poor
country which could not supply provender for the maintenance
of so large an army as the Emperor s, but if he would care to come
with a smaller escort the Kong would be delighted to welcome
him. John decided not to press his request further for the moment. 1
In March 1143, when the Emperor s preparations for the reduc
tion of Antioch were made, he took a brief holiday to go hunting
the wild boar in the Taurus mountains. In the course of a hunt he
was accidentally wounded by an arrow. He paid little attention to
the wound; but it became septic and soon he was dying of blood-
poisoning. John faced his end with composure. To the kst he was
at work arranging for the succession and the smooth continuance
of the government. His two elder sons were dead. The third,
Isaac, who was at Constantinople, was a youth of uncertain
temper. John decided that the youngest and most brilliant,
Manuel, should be his heir, and he persuaded his great friend, the
Grand Domestic Axuch, to support Manuel s claim. With his
own feeble hands he placed the crown on Manuel s head and
summoned in his generals to acclaim the new Emperor. After
making his last confession to a holy monk from Pamphylia he
died on 8 April. 2
John s death saved Prankish Antioch. While Axuch hurried to
Constantinople ahead of the news, to secure the palace and the
government from any attempt by John s son Isaac to claim the
throne, Manuel led the army back across Anatolia. Till he was sure
of his capital there could be no further adventures in the East. The
imperial project was kid aside, but not for long. 3
1 William of Tyre, xv, 21, pp. 691-3. John had prepared offerings for the
Holy Sepulchre (Cinnamus, p. 25).
a William of Tyre, xv, 22-3, pp. 693-5; Cinnamus, pp. 26-9; Nicetas
Choniates, pp. 56-64; Matthew of Edessa, p. 325; Gregory the Priest, p. 156;
Michael the Syrian, nr, p. 254; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 264; Bustan, p. 537.
3 Cinnamus, pp. 29-32, telling of an insolent Antiochene embassy to Manuel
who replied that he would return to assert his rights. Nicetas Choniates,
pp. 65-9; William of Tyre, xv, 23, p. 696.
224
CHAPTER IV
THE FALL OF EDESSA
An inheritance may be gotten hastily at the beginning; but the end thereof
shall not be blessed. PROVERBS xx, 21
It was with relief that the Franks of the East learnt of the Emperor s
death; and in their contentment they did not notice how much
more greatly relieved was their arch-enemy, the atabeg Zengi. 1
From 1141 for two years Zengi had been embarrassed by a desire
of the Sultan Mas ud to reassert his authority over him. It was only
by a timely show of submission, accompanied by a gift of money
and the dispatch of his son as a hostage that Zengi averted an
invasion into the territory of Mosul by the Sultan s army. 2
A Byzantine conquest of Syria at that moment would have put an
end to his western schemes. They were further endangered by an
alliance, formed by common fear of him, between the King of
Jerusalem and the atabeg of Damascus.
After the breakdown of the Franco-Byzantine alliance in 1138,
Zengi returned to the task of conquering Damascus. His siege of
Horns had twice been interrupted, first by the Prankish advance
to Montferrand, and secondly by the Byzantine siege of Shaizar.
He now returned in full force to Horns, and sent to Damascus to
demand in marriage the hand of the atabeg s mother, the Princess
Zumurrud, with Horns as her dowry. The Damascenes were in no
position to refuse. In June 1138 the dowager was married to
Zengi; and his troops entered Horns. As a gesture of good-will
he enfeoffed the governor of Horns, the aged mameluke Unur,
1 The Moslem attitude towards the Byzantines is exemplified by Ibn
al-Qalanisi (p. 252) who when he talks of the Emperor s retreat in 1138 says
all hearts were set at rest after their distress and fear .
2 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 241-2.
RC 225 *5
The Fall ofEdessa
with the newly conquered fortress of Montferrand and some
neighbouring castles. 1
Fortunately for the Burid dynasty of Damascus, Unur did not
take up his residence at Montferrand but came to Damascus.
There, on the night on 22 June 1139, the young atabeg, Shihab
ed-Din Mahmud, was murdered in his bed by three of his favourite
pages. If Zengi, whose complicity was suspected, had hoped
thereby to take over the government, he was disappointed. Unur
at once assumed control. The murderers were crucified; and the
atabeg s half-brother, Jemal ed-Din Mohammed, governor of
Baalbek, was summoned to take over Mahmud s throne. In
return Mohammed gave his mother and Baalbek to Unur. But
Unur stayed on at Damascus, in charge of the government. This
did not suit Zengi, who was urged on by his wife Zumurrud, and
by a brother of Mohammed s, Bahram Shah, a personal enemy of
Unur. In the kte summer of 1139 he laid siege to Baalbek, with
a large army and fourteen siege-engines. The town capitulated on
10 October; on the 2ist the garrison of the citadel, formed out of
the ruins of the great temple of Baal, also surrendered, after Zengi
had sworn on the Koran to spare the lives of its members. But
Zengi broke his oath. They were all brutally massacred and their
women sold into captivity. The massacre was intended to terrify
the Damascenes, but it only hardened their resistance and led them
to regard Zengi as a foe outside the pale of the Faith. 2
During the last days of the year Zengi encamped close to
Damascus. He offered the atabeg Mohammed Baalbek or Horns,
in exchange for Damascus; and the young prince would have
accepted had Unur permitted him. On his refusal Zengi moved
in to besiege the city. At this crisis, on 29 March 1 140, Mohammed
died. But Damascus was loyal to the Burids; and Unur without
difficulty elevated Mohammed s youthful son Mujir ed-Din Abaq,
to the throne. At the same time he decided that he would be
justified, religiously as well as politically, to call in the help of the
1 Ibn al-Qaknisi, p. 252; Kemal ad-Din, pp. 678-9.
z Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 253-6; Ibn al-Athir, p. 431.
226
- Prankish Alliance with Damascus
Christians against his perfidious enemy. An embassy led by the
Munqidhite prince Usarna left Damascus for Jerusalem. 1
King Fulk had been attempting to take advantage of the
embarrassments of the Damascenes to strengthen his hold of
Transjordan. During the summer of 1139 he had received a visit
from Thierry of Alsace, Count of Flanders, whose wife Sibylla was
his daughter by his first marriage; and with Thierry s help he
invaded Gilead and with some difficulty captured a small fortress
near Ajlun, massacring its defenders.* The effort had brought him
little profit; and when Unur offered him twenty thousand besants
a month and the return of the fortress of Banyas if he would drive
Zengi from Damascus, he was easily persuaded to change his
policy. The idea of such an alliance was not new. Already early
in 1138 Usama had journeyed to Jerusalem on Unur s behalf to
discuss its feasibility. But though the Prankish Court had given
him an honourable reception, his suggestions were rejected. Now
the menace afforded by Zengi s growing power was better under
stood. When Fulk summoned his council to consider the offer
there was a general feeling that it should be accepted. 3
After hostages had been received from Damascus, the Prankish
army set out in April for Galilee. Fulk moved cautiously and
halted near Tiberias while his scouts went ahead. Zengi came
down the opposite coast of the Sea of Galilee to watch his move
ments, but, finding him stationary, returned to the siege of
Damascus. Thereupon Fulk advanced northward. Zengi would
not risk being caught between the Franks and the Damascenes. He
drew away from Damascus; and when Fulk met Unur s forces
a little to the east of Lake Huleh, early in June, they learnt that
Zengi had retired to Baalbek. Some of Zengi s troops returned
later in the month to raid right up to the walls of Damascus, but
he and his main army retreated on unscathed to Aleppo. 4 The
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 256-9. * William of Tyre, xv, 6, pp. 665-8.
3 Ibid, xv, 7, pp. 668-9; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 259-60.
4 William of Tyre, XV, 8, pp. 669-70; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 260; Kemal ad-Din,
p. 682.
227 15-2
The Fall ofEdessa
alliance had saved Damascene independence without a battle.
Unur remained true to his bargain. For some months past his
troops had been conducting a desultory siege of Banyas. Zengi s
lieutenant, Ibrahim ibn Turgut took advantage of a lull in the
siege to raid the coast near Tyre. There he was surprised by an
army led by Raymond of Antioch, who had come south to help
Fulk in the Damascene campaign. Ibrahim was defeated and killed.
When Unur himself appeared before Banyas, and was joined by
Fulk and Raymond, who were further encouraged by the visiting
papal legate, Alberic of Beauvais, the defenders soon decided to
capitulate. Unur arranged that they should be compensated with
lands near Damascus. He then handed the city over to the Franks,
who installed its former governor, Rainier of Brus, while Adam,
Archdeacon of Acre, was appointed its bishop. 1
The alliance between Fulk and Unur was sealed by a visit that
Unur paid soon afterwards, accompanied by Usama, to the King s
Court at Acre. They were given a cordial and flattering reception,
and went on to Haifa and Jerusalem, returning through Nablus
and Tiberias. The tour was conducted in an atmosphere of the
greatest good-will, though Usama by no means approved of
everything that he saw. 2 Fulk further showed his honest desire
for friendship with the Damascenes, when they complained to
him of the raids against their flocks committed by Rainier of Brus
from Banyas. Rainier was sternly ordered to end his forays and
to pay compensation to his victims. 3
By about the year 1 140 King Fulk had reason to be satisfied with
his government. The position in northern Syria had deteriorated
since his predecessor s days; nor did he enjoy such prestige or
authority there. It is doubtful whether Joscelin of Edessa even
recognized him as overlord. But in his own domain he was secure.
He had learnt the lesson that for the Franks to survive there, they
must be less intransigent towards the Moslems, but must be ready
to make friends with the less dangerous of them ; and he had
1 William of Tyre, xv, 9-11, pp. 770-6; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 260-1.
2 Usama, ed. Him, pp. 166-7, 168-9, 226. 3 lUd. pp. 93-4.
228
1140: Castles on the Southern Frontier
carried his nobles with him in this policy. At the same time he had
worked hard for the country s defences. On the southern frontier
three great castles had heen built to guard against raids from the
Egyptians at Ascalon. At Ibelin, some ten miles south-west of
Lydda, at a well-watered spot that commanded the junction of the
roads from Ascalon to Jaffa and to Ramleh, he used the ruins of the
old Roman town of Jamnia to erect a splendid fortress that was
entrusted to Balian, surnamed the Old , brother of the Viscount of
Chartres. Balian had owned the land under the lords of Jaffa, and
had won Fulk s favour by supporting the King against Hugh of
Le Puiset. As chatelain of Ibelin he was raised to the rank of a tenant-
in-chief; and he married Helvis, heiress of Ramleh. His descendants
were to form the best-known noble family in the Prankish East. 1
South of Ibelin the direct road from Ascalon to Jerusalem was
guarded by the castle of Blanchegarde, on the hill called by the
Arabs Tel as-Safiya, the shining mound. Its custodian, Arnulf,
became one of the richest and most powerful barons of the realm. 2
The third castle was built at Bethgibelin at the village that the
Crusaders wrongly identified with Beersheba. It commanded the
road from Ascalon to Hebron; and its maintenance was entrusted
to the Hospitallers. 3 These fortifications were not complete enough
to prevent all raids from Ascalon. In 1141 the Egyptians broke
through and defeated a small Crusader force on the plain of
Sharon. 4 But they could hold up any serious attack from the
south on Jerusalem, and were centres for local administration.
At the same time Fulk took steps to bring the country east and
south of the Dead Sea under stricter control. The seigneurie of
Montreal, with its castle in an oasis in the Idumaean hills, had
given to the Franks a loose command of the caravan-routes leading
1 William of Tyre, xv, 24, pp. 696-7. For Balian s origin, seeDucange, Families
d* Outre Mer, ed. Rey, pp. 360-1.
2 William of Tyre, XV, 25, pp. 697-9.
3 Ibid, xiv, 22, pp. 638-9. Martin, Les premiers princes croises et les
Chretiens Jacobites de Jerusalem , n, Revue de I Orient Latin, 8 me serie, 13,
pp. 34-5, gives Syrian evidence suggesting that the casde was being built in 1 13 5.
4 Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 263.
22Q
The Fall ofEdessa
from Egypt to Arabia and to Syria; but Moslem caravans still
passed unscathed along the roads, and raiders from the desert were
still able to break through into Judaea. At the time of Fulk s
accession the lord of Montreal and Oultrejourdain had been
Roman of Le Puy, whom Baldwin I had enfeoffed about the year
1115. But Roman had supported Hugh of Le Puiset against the
King, who therefore, in about 1132, dispossessed and disinherited
his son, and gave the fief to Pagan the Butler, one of the high
officials of his Court. Pagan was a vigorous administrator who
tried to establish a tighter control over the large area that he
governed. He seems to have succeeded in policing the country to
the south of the Dead Sea; but in 1139, when Fulk was engaged in
Gilead, a band of Moslems managed to cross the Jordan close to its
junction with the Dead Sea and to raid Judaea, where they lured
to its destruction by the tactics of a feigned retreat a company of
Templar knights sent against them. It was probably to control
the north as well as the south end of the Dead Sea that Pagan
moved his headquarters from Montreal in Idumaea to Moab. There,
in 1142, on a hill called by the chroniclers Petra Deserti, the Stone
of the Desert, he built with the King s approval a great fortress
known as Kerak of Moab. It was superbly situated for dominating
the only practicable roads from Egypt and western Arabia into
Syria, and it was not too far from the fords of the lower Jordan.
Baldwin I had already established a look-out post down on the
shore of the Gulf of Akaba, at Elyn or Aila. Pagan installed a
stronger garrison there and at the Fort of the Valley of Moses, by
the ancient Petra. These castles, with Montreal and Kerak, gave
the lord of Oultrejourdain the mastery of the lands of Idumaea and
Moab, and their rich cornfields and the saltpans by the Dead Sea,
though there was no serious Prankish colonization there and the
Bedouin tribes continued their old nomad life in the barren
districts, merely paying occasional tribute to the Franks. 1
1 William of Tyre, xv, 21, pp. 692-3. For the products of the district, see
Abel, Geographic de la Palestine, i, p. 505. For the effect on Moslem trade, see
Wiet, op. at. pp. 320-1. See Rey, Les Seigneurs de Montreal et de La Terre
230
1143 Queen Melisendes Foundations
The internal security of the realm improved during Fulk s reign .
At the time of his accession the road between Jaffa and Jerusalem
was still unsafe because of the handits who not only molested
pilgrims but also interrupted the food-supply to the capital. In
1133, while the King was absent in the north, the Patriarch William
organized a campaign against the bandits and constructed a castle
called Chastel Ernaut, near Beit Nuba, where the road from
Lydda climbs into the hills. Its erection made it easier for the
authorities to police the road; and after the fortification of the
Egyptian frontier travellers seldom met with trouble on their
journey from the coast. 1
Of the government of the kingdom during Fulk s later years
we hear little. Once Hugh of Le Puiset s revolt had been crushed
and the Queen s desire for vengeance had been allayed, the barons
supported the Crown with perfect loyalty. With the Church of
Jerusalem Fulk s relations were consistently good. The Patriarch
William of Messines, who had crowned him and who was to
survive him, remained a faithful and deferential friend. As she
grew older, Queen Melisende took to pious works, though her
chief foundation was intended for the greater glory of her family.
She was devoted to her sisters. Alice became Princess of Antioch;
Hodierna was now Countess of Tripoli; but for the youngest,
Joveta, who had spent a year of her childhood as a hostage with
the Moslems, there was no suitable husband to be found. She had
entered religion and became a nun at the Convent of St Anne in
Jerusalem. The Queen in 1143 bought from the Holy Sepulchre,
in exchange for estates near Hebron, the village of Bethany ; and
there she built a convent in honour of Saint Lazarus and his
sisters Martha and Mary, endowing it with Jericho and all its
orchards and surrounding farms, and fortifying it with a tower.
d Oultre Jourdain , in Revue de I Orient Latin, vol. iv, pp. ipff. The castle at
the Valley of Moses is on the precipitous hill now known as Wueira on the
outskirts of Petra, where extensive Crusader ruins look across to Wadi Musa.
There are also ruins of a small medieval fort on the hill of al-Habis in the centre
of Petra.
1 William of Tyre, xrv, 8, p. 617.
231
The Fall ofEdessa
Lest her motive should be too clearly apparent she appointed as
its first abbess an excellent but elderly and moribund nun, who
tactfully died a few months later. The convent then dutifully
elected the twenty-four-year-old Joveta as Abbess. Joveta in her
dual role as princess of the blood royal and abbess of Palestine s
richest convent occupied a distinguished and venerable position
for the rest of her long life. 1
This was the most lavish of Melisende s charitable endowments;
but she persuaded her husband to make several grants of land to
the Holy Sepulchre, and she continued to found religious houses
on a generous scale throughout her widowhood. 2 She was also
responsible for improving relations with the Jacobite and Armenian
Churches. Before the Crusaders capture of Jerusalem the
Jacobites had fled in a body to Egypt. When they returned they
found that the estates of their church in Palestine had been given
to a Prankish knight, Gauffier. In 1103 Gaufiier was captured by
the Egyptians, and the Jacobites recovered their lands. But in
1137 Gauffier, whom everyone thought dead, returned from his
captivity and claimed his property. Owing to the direct inter
vention of the Queen, the Jacobites were allowed to remain in
possession, after paying Gauffier three hundred besants as a com
pensation. In 1140 we find the Armenian Catholicus attending
a synod of the Latin Church there. Melisande also gave endow
ments to the Orthodox Abbey of St Sabas. 3
Fulk s commercial policy was a continuation of his predecessors .
He honoured his obligations to the Italian cities, who now con
trolled the export trade of the country. But he refused to give any
one the monopoly; and in 1136 he made a treaty with the mer
chants of Marseille, promising to give four hundred besants a year,
1 William of Tyre, xv, 26, pp. 699-700. Joveta was responsible for the
education of her grand-niece the future Queen Sibylla (see below, p. 407). She
died some time before 1178, when the Abbess Eva of Bethany refers to her as
her predecessor (Cartulaire de St Marie dejosephat, ed. Kobler, p. 122).
2 E.g. Rohricht, Regesta, pp. 43, 44, 45.
3 Nau, *Le Croise Lorrain Godefroy de Ascha , in Journal Asiatique, ix, 14,
pp. 421-31; Rohricht, Regesta, pp. 106-7. See below, pp. 321-3.
232
1143 Death of King Fulk
drawn from the revenues of Jaffa, for the maintenance of their
establishment there. 1
In the autumn of 1143 the Court was at Acre, enjoying the lull
that Zengi s retreat from Damascus had afforded. On 7 November
the Queen desired to go for a picnic. As the royal party rode out
into the country a hare was flushed, and the King galloped off in
pursuit of it. Suddenly his horse stumbled and Fulk was thrown
off; and his heavy saddle struck him on the head. They carried him
back unconscious and with ghastly head-wounds to Acre. There,
three days later, he died. He had been a good king for the realm
of Jerusalem, but not a great king nor a leader of the Franks in the
East. 2
Queen Melisende s vocal grief, much as it moved all the Court,
did not distract her from taking over the kingdom. Of the
children that she had born to Fulk two sons survived, Baldwin,
who was aged thirteen, and Amalric, aged seven. Fulk had pos
sessed the throne as her husband; and her rights as heiress were
fully recognized. But the idea of a sole Queen-regnant was
unthought of by the barons. She therefore appointed her son
Baldwin as her colleague and herself assumed the government.
Her action was regarded as perfectly constitutional and was
endorsed by the council of the realm when she and Baldwin were
crowned together by the Patriarch William on Christmas Day. 3
Melisende was a capable woman who in happier times might have
reigned with success. She took as her adviser her first cousin, the
Constable Manasses of Hierges, son of a Walloon lord who had
married Baldwin II s sister, Hodierna of Rethel. Manasses had
come out as a young man to his uncle s court, where his abilities
1 Rohricnt, Regesta, p. 40. See La Monte, Feudal Monarchy, p. 272. Sixteen
years later Baldwin III gave them a quarter in Jerusalem. Rohricht, Regesta,
p. 70.
* William of Tyre, xv, pp. 700-2; Matthew of Edessa, cclvi, p. 325; Ibn
al-Qalanisi, p. 265. St Bernard wrote a letter of condolence to Queen Melisende
(no. 354, M.P.L. vol. CLXXXH, cols. 556-?)-
3 William of Tyre, xvi, 3, p. 707. For Melisende s constitutional position,
see La Monte, Feudal Monarchy, pp. 14-18.
233
The Fall ofEdessa
and his royal connections secured Rim steady advancement. When
Balian the Old of Ibelin died, soon after King Fulk s death,
Manasses married his widow Helvis, heiress of Ramleh, who in
her own right and her sons controlled the whole Philistian plain.
The barons were in time to resent Manasses s power, for the
Queen and he inclined towards autocracy; but for the moment
there was no opposition to the Queen. 1
Her accession brought one serious disadvantage. Under Fulk
the King of Jerusalem s position as overlord of the Crusading
states had been growing theoretical rather than practical; and it
was unlikely that the princes of the north would pay greater
attention to the suzerainty of a woman and a child. When
quarrels broke out between the Prince of Antioch and the Count
of Edessa, a strong king of Jerusalem, such as Baldwin II, would
have marched north and forcibly composed the differences.
Neither a queen nor a boy-king could do so ; and no one else had
the overriding authority.
Since the Emperor John s death and Zengi s check before
Damascus, Raymond of Antioch s self-confidence had revived.
He sent at once to the new Emperor, Manuel, to demand the
return of Cilicia to his principality, and when Manuel refused he
invaded the province. Manuel himself was obliged during the
first months of his reign to remain at Constantinople; but he sent
a land and sea expedition under the Contostephanus brothers and
the converted Turk Bursuk and the admiral Demetrius Branas,
which not only drove Raymond out of Cilicia but followed his
troops to the walls of Antioch.* A few months previously
Raymond had added Aleppan territory as far as Biza a while
Joscelin of Edessa advanced to the Euphrates to meet him. But
Joscelin suddenly made a truce with Sawar, governor of Aleppo,
which ruined Raymond s schemes. Relations between Raymond
1 William of Tyre, ibid, for a eulogy of the Queen. For Manasses, see below,
p. 334. His marriage is recorded by William, xvn, 18, p. 780, and Helvis s
name often appears in charters, e.g. Rohricht, Regesta, pp. 22, 76.
* Cinnamus, pp 33-4.
234
1144- Siege ofEdessa
and Joscelin were worsening. It seems that since about 1140
Joscelin had been obliged to accept Raymond as his overlord;
but there was never any cordiality between them. Joscelin had
irritated Raymond by his intervention in favour of the Patriarch
Radulph; and this truce brought them almost to an open rupture. 1
Zengi was watching these quarrels. The death of the Emperor
had freed him of his most dangerous potential enemy. The
Damascenes would take no action against him without FranJdsh
help ; and the Kingdom of Jerusalem was unlikely now to embark
on adventures. The opportunity must not be missed. In the
autumn of 1144 Zengi attacked Kara Arslan, the Ortoqid prince
of Diarbekir, who had recently made an alliance with Joscelin.
In support of the alliance Joscelin marched out ofEdessa with the
bulk of his army down to the Euphrates, apparently to cut off
Zengi s communications with Aleppo. Zengi was informed by
Moslem observers at Harran of Joscelin 5 s movements. He sent at
once a detachment under Yaghi-Siyani of Hama to surprise the
city. But Yaghi-Siyani lost his way in the darkness of the rainy
November night, and reached Edessa no sooner than Zengi with
the main army, on 28 November. By now the Edessenes had
been warned and the defences had been manned.
The siege of Edessa lasted for four weeks. Joscelin had taken
with him all his leading soldiers. The defence was therefore
entrusted to the Latin archbishop, Hugh II. The Armenian bishop
John and the Jacobite bishop Basil loyally supported him. Any
hope that Zengi may have had of seducing the native Christians
from their Prankish allegiance was disappointed. Basil the Jacobite
suggested asking for a truce, but public opinion was against him.
But the defenders, well though they fought, were few in numbers.
Joscelin himself retired to Turbessel. The historian William of
Tyre cruelly criticizes him for sloth and cowardice in refusing to
go to his capital s rescue. But his army was not strong enough to
1 Azini, p. 537; Ibn al-Qalardsi, p. 266. Joscelin dates a diploma of 1141
Raimundo Antiochiae principe regnante (Rohricht, Regesta, p. 51), and
William of Tyre (xvi, 4, p. 710) makes him allude to Raymond as his lor din 1144.
235
The Fall ofEdessa
risk a battle with Zengi s. He had confidence that the great
fortifications ofEdessa could hold out for some time. At Turbessel
he could interrupt any reinforcements that Zengi might summon
from Aleppo; and he counted on help from his Prankish neigh
bours. He had sent at once to Antioch and to Jerusalem. At
Jerusalem Queen Melisende held a Council and was authorized
to gather an army, which she dispatched under Manasses the
Constable, Philip of Nablus and Elinand of Bures, prince of
Galilee. But at Antioch Raymond would do nothing. All
Joscelin s appeals to him as his overlord were in vain. Without his
help Joscelin dared not attack Zengi. He waited at Turbessel for
the arrival of the Queen s army.
It came too late. Zengi s army was swelled by Kurds and
Turcomans from the upper Tigris ; and he had good siege-engines.
The clerics and merchants who formed the bulk of the garrison
were inexpert in warfare. Their counter-attacks and counter-
minings were unsuccessful. Archbishop Hugh was thought to be
holding back the treasure that he had amassed, badly though it was
needed for the defence. On Christmas Eve a wall collapsed near
the Gate of the Hours; and the Moslems poured in through the
breach. The inhabitants fled in panic to the citadel, to find the
gates closed against them by order of the Archbishop, who himself
stayed outside in a vain attempt to restore order. Thousands were
trampled to death in the confosion; and Zengi s troops, hard on
their heels, slew thousands more, including the bishop. At last
Zengi himself rode up and ordered the massacre to cease. The
native Christians were spared; but all the Franks were rounded up
and done to death, and their women sold into slavery. Two days
later a Jacobite priest, Barsauma, who had taken over command
of the citadel, surrendered to Zengi. 1
o
Zengi treated the conquered city kindly once the Franks were
, XVIj 4 ~ 5 > PP- 7 8 - I2: Ma hew of Edessa, cclvii,
pp. 326-8; Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 259-63; Chron. Anon. Syr, pp. 281-6
(the fuUest account, with details not found elsewhere). Nerses Shnorhal Blew
on the fall ofEdessa, pp. 2 ff ; Bar-Hebraeus, trans. Budge, pp. 268-70; Kemal
236
1145 - Zengi s Policy in Edessa
removed. He appointed as governor Kutchuk Ali of Arbil; but
the native Christians, Armenians, Jacobites and even Greeks, were
allowed a certain measure of autonomy. Though the Latin
churches were destroyed, theirs were untouched, and they were
encouraged to bring their co-religionists in to re-people the city.
In particular the Syrkn bishop Basil enjoyed the favour of the
conquerors, because of his proud reply, when they questioned if
he was trustworthy, that his loyalty to the Pranks showed how
capable he was of loyalty. The Armenians, amongst whom the
dynasty of Courtenay had always been popular, took less willingly
to the new regime. 1
From Edessa Zengi moved on to Saruj, the second great
Prankish fortress east of the Euphrates, which fell to him in
January. He then advance to Birejik, the town that commanded
the chief ford across the river. But the Prankish garrison put up
a stiff resistance. Joscelin was near at hand; and the Queen s army
was approaching. At that moment Zengi had rumours of trouble
in Mosul. He raised the siege of Birejik and hurried eastward. He
was still in name merely the atabeg of Mosul for the young
Seldjuk prince Alp Arslan, son of Mas ud. He returned to Mosul
to find that Alp Arslan, in an attempt to assert his authority, had
murdered the atabeg s lieutenant Shaqar. It was an ill-chosen
moment, for Zengi, as the conqueror of a Christian capital, was
at the height of his prestige in the Moslem world. Alp Arslan was
dethroned and his advisers were put to death; while the Caliph
sent Zengi an embassy kden with gifts, to confer on him the honour
of King and conqueror.*
The news of the fall of Edessa reverberated throughout the
ad-Din, pp. 685-6; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 266-8 ; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 443-6. Many
European chronicles make some mention of the fall of Edessa. St Bernard s
letter no. 256, M.P.L. vol. CLXXXH, col. 463, refers to it. Ibn al-Athir tells us
of a Moslem at King Roger of Sicily s court who had a telepathic vision of the
capture.
1 Michael the Syrian, loc. cit.; Chron. Anon. Syr. loc. cit.
* Chron. Anon. Syr. pp. 286-8; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 268-9; Ibn al-Athir,
pp. 445-8 ; Ibn al-Fourat, quoted by Cahen, La Syrie du Nord, p. 371 n. II.
237
The Fall ofEdessa
world. To the Moslems it brought new hope. A Christian state that
had intruded into their midst had been destroyed, and the Franks
restricted to the lands by the Mediterranean. The roads from Mosul
to Aleppo now were cleared of the enemy, and there was no
longer a Christian wedge driven between the Turks of Iran and
the Turks of Anatolia. Zengi had well earned his royal title. To
the Franks it brought despondency and alarm; and to the Chris
tians of western Europe it came as a terrible shock. For the first
time they realized that things were not well in the East. A move
ment was set on foot to preach a new Crusade.
Indeed, a Crusade was needed; for the Prankish princes of the
East, despite their peril, still could not bring themselves to co
operate. Joscelin attempted to rebuild his principality in the lands
that he held west of the Euphrates, with Turbessel as his capital. 1
But, though it was clear that Zengi would soon attack him, he
could not forgive Raymond for having refused him help. He
openly broke with him and rejected his suzerainty. Raymond
was equally averse to a reconciliation. But he was alive to the
danger of isolation. In 1145, after defeating a Turcoman raid, he
decided to travel to Constantinople, to ask for help from the
Emperor. When he arrived, Manuel would not receive him. It
was only after he had knelt in humble contrition at the tomb of the
Emperor John that he was allowed an audience. Manuel then
treated him graciously, loading him with gifts and promising him
a money subsidy. But he would not promise him immediate
military aid, for the Byzantines had a Turkish war on their hands.
There was talk of an expedition in the future; and the visit,
humiliating though it was to Raymond s pride and unpopular
amongst his barons, had one useful result. It was not unremarked by
Zengi; who therefore decided to postpone a further attack on the
northern Franks and to turn his attention once more to Damascus. 2
In May 1146 Zengi moved to Aleppo to prepare for his Syrian
1 Joscelin still owned the territory from Samosata, through Marash (held by
his vassal Baldwin) south to Birejik, Aintab, Ravendal and Turbessel.
* Cinnamus, p. 35; Michael the Syrian, m, p. 267.
238
ii 46: Murder ofZengi
expedition. As he passed through. Edessa he learnt of an attempt
by the Armenians there to shake off his rule and restore Joscelin.
Kutchuk Ali easily crushed it; and Zengi ordered the ringleaders
to be executed and a part of the Armenian population to be
banished. Its place was taken by three hundred Jewish families,
introduced by Zengi because the Jews were notoriously ready to
support the Moslems against the Christians. 1 In the summer Zengi
led his army southward to Qalat Jabar, on the direct route from
the Euphrates to Damascus, where a petty Arab prince refused to
recognize him as overlord. While he was besieging the town, on
the night of 14 September 1146, he quarrelled with a eunuch of
Prankish origin whom he caught drinking wine from his own
glass. The eunuch, furious at the rebuke, waited till he slept, then
murdered him. 2
Zengi s sudden disappearance was welcome news to all his
enemies, who hoped that the dynastic disputes that usually fol
lowed the death of Moslem princes would disrupt his realm.
While his corpse lay unburied and deserted, the eldest of his sons,
Saif ed-Din Ghazi, accompanied by the vizier Jamal ed-Din of
Isfahan, hurried to Mosul to take over the government there, and
the second, Nur ed-Din, seizing the ring of office from the corpse s
finger, went to be proclaimed at Aleppo by the Kurd Shirkuh,
whose brother Ayub had saved Zengi s life when the Caliph
defeated him in 1132. The division of the realm was the signal for
its foes to invade. In the south Unur s troops from Damascus
reoccupied Baalbek and reduced the governor of Horns and
Yaghi-Siyani, governor of Hama, to vassalage. In the east the
Seldjuk Alp Arslan made another bid for power, but in vain,
while the Ortoqids of Diarbekir recovered towns that they had
lost. 3 In the centre Raymond of Antioch led a raid up to the very
1 Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 267-8 ; Chron. Anon. Syr. p. 289 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi,
p. 270; Ibn al-Furat, loc. cit.
2 William of Tyre, xvi, 7, p. 714; Michael the Syrian, ni, p. 268; Chron.
Anon. Syr. p. 291 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 270-1 ; Kemal ad-Din, p. 688.
3 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 272-4; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 455-6; see Cahen, Le
Diyarbekr m Journal Asiatique, 1935, p. 352.
239
The Fall ofEdessa
walls of Aleppo, while Joscelin planned to reoccupy Edessa. His
agents made contact with the Armenians in the city and won over
the Jacobites. Joscelin then set out himself with a small army,
which was joined by Baldwin of Marash and Kaisun. Raymond
once more refused his help, this time with good reason, for the
expedition was ill-planned. Joscelin had hoped to surprise Edessa;
but the Moslems were warned. When he arrived before its walls,
on 27 October, he was able, thanks to native help, to break his way
into the city itself, but the garrison of the citadel was ready for
him. His troops were too few to enable him to storm its fortifica
tions. He lingered in the city uncertain what to do. Meanwhile
messengers had reached Nur ed-Din at Aleppo. His army was
now counter-attacking Raymond in Antiochene territory; but he
at once summoned it back and demanded help from the neigh
bouring Moslem governors. On 2 November he appeared before
Edessa. Joscelin was caught between him and the citadel. He saw
that his only chance lay in an immediate evacuation. During the
night he managed to slip out with his men and with large numbers
of the native Christians, and made his way towards the Euphrates.
Nur ed-Din followed on his heels. Next day a battle was fought.
The Franks held their ground well till Joscelin rashly ordered
a counter-attack. It was driven back; and the Prankish army broke
up in panic. Baldwin of Marash was killed on the field. Joscelin,
wounded in the neck, escaped with his bodyguard and took refuge
in Samosata, where he was joined by the Jacobite bishop Basil. The
Armenian bishop John was captured and taken to Aleppo. The
native Christians, deserted by the Franks, were massacred to a man,
and their wives and children enslaved. At Edessa itself the whole
Christian population was driven into exile. The great city, which
claimed to be the oldest Christian commonwealth in the world,
was left empty and desolate, and has never recovered to this day. 1
1 William of Tyre, xvi, 14-16, pp. 728-32; Matthew of Edessa, cclviii,
pp. 328-9 (giving the wrong date 1147-8); Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 270-2
Basil the Doctor, Elegy on Baldwin, p. 205 ; Anon. Chron. Syr. pp. 292-7 Ibn al-
Qalamsi, pp. 274-5 ; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 455-8 (and^%5,p.i 5 6);B W 5to,p. 541.
240
1147 The Franks break with Unur
The episode showed Zengi s enemies that they had gained little
by his death. Moreover his sons, though they had small affection
for each other, were wise enough not to quarrel. Saif ed-Din
Ghazi, whose hands were fully occupied with the Ortoqids, took
the initiative in arranging an interview with his brother, at which
the division of the inheritance was peaceably confirmed. Saif
ed-Din took the lands in Iraq and Nur ed-Din those in Syria.
About the same time Nur ed-Din s position was strengthened by
an unexpected act of folly committed by the Franks in Jerusalem.
Early in 1147 one of Unur s lieutenants, Altuntash, governor of
Bosra and Salkhad in the Hauran, an Armenian converted to
Islam, declared his independence of Damascus and came to
Jerusalem for support. He offered to hand Bosra and Salkhad to
the Franks if they would set him up in a lordship in the Hauran.
Queen Melisende very correctly summoned her Council to discuss
the suggestion, ft was an important decision to make, for to
support Altuntash would mean the rupture of the alliance with
Damascus. But it was a tempting offer. The population in the
Hauran was largely Christian, Melkite, of the Orthodox rite.
With this Christian help it should be easy to colonize the Hauran;
and its control would put Damascus at the mercy of the Franks.
The barons hesitated. They ordered the army to be assembled at
Tiberias; but they sent an embassy to Unur to say that they pro
posed to reinstate Altuntash. Unur was angry, but for fear of
Nur ed-Din he wished to avoid a rapture. He answered reminding
the Queen that, according to her feudal law, a ruler could not
support the rebellious vassal of a friendly power against his
master; but he offered to repay her for any expenses that her pro
posed expedition had involved. The Queen then sent a knight
called Bernard Vacher to Damascus to say that unfortunately she
was committed to the support of Altuntash whom her army would
convey back to Bosra, but she undertook in no way to cause
damage to Damascene territory. Bernard soon returned, con
vinced by Unur that the proposal was unwise and wrong. He
brought the young king Baldwin round to his views ; and, when
241 l6
The Fall ofEdessa
the matter was discussed again before the Council it was decided
to abandon the expedition. But by now the soldiers enthusiasm
had been aroused. Demagogues in the army, furious at the can
cellation of a profitable raid against the infidel, denounced Bernard
as a traitor and insisted on war. The King and the barons were
frightened and gave way.
In May 1147 the Prankish army, with the Bang at its head,
crossed the Jordan and marched into the Jaulan. But it was not
the triumphal progress that the soldiers had anticipated. Unur had
had full warning. His light Turcoman troops combined with the
Arabs of the district to harrass them as they toiled up the Yarmuk
valley towards Deraa. Unur himself had already sent an embassy
to Aleppo to ask for help from Nur ed-Din. It was an appeal that
Nur ed-Din was delighted to receive. An alliance was made.
Nur ed-Din received Unur s daughter s hand in marriage and
promised to come at once to his rescue; he was to be given back
Hama but was to respect Damascene independence. At the end of
May the Franks reached Deraa, just over halfway between the
frontier and Bosra. Meanwhile, Unur had hurried to Salkhad,
which lay farther to the east. Altuntash s garrison there asked for
a truce; and Unur moved on westward to join with Nur ed-Din,
who had come down at full speed from Aleppo. Together they
marched on Bosra, which was surrendered to them by Altuntash s
wife. News of the surrender reached the Franks on the evening
when, weary and short of water, they arrived within sight of
Bosra. They were in no state to attack the Moslems. There was
nothing to be done but retreat. The return journey was more
arduous than the advance. Food ran short; many of the wells had
been destroyed. The enemy hung on their rear and killed the
stragglers. The boy King showed great heroism, refusing a sug
gestion that he should leave the main army and hurry on to safety
with a picked bodyguard. Thanks to his example, discipline
remained high. The barons at last decided to make their peace with
Unur, and dispatched an Arabic-speaking messenger, probably
Bernard Vacher, to beg for a truce; but the messenger was killed
242
1147 The Emergence ofNur ed-Din
on his way. However, when the army reached ar-Rahub, on the
edge of the Jebel Ajlun, a messenger came from Unur, to offer to
revictual the Franks. With Nur ed-Din at hand, he had no wish
for the Prankish army to be completely wiped out. The King
haughtily rejected the offer; but it was remarked that a mysterious
stranger on a white horse with a scarlet banner appeared to lead
the army safely to Gadara. After a last skirmish there it crossed
the Jordan back into Palestine. The expedition had been costly and
pointless. It showed the Franks to be good fighters but foolish in
their politics and their strategy. 1
One man alone had profited from it, Nur ed-Din. Unur had
indeed recovered the Hauran. When Altuntash came to Damascus
hoping to be pardoned, he was blinded and imprisoned, and his
friends were disgraced. But Unur was desperately conscious of
Nur ed-Din s strength. He was alarmed for the future and longed
to restore his Prankish alliance. Nur ed-Din, however, abode by
his treaty with Unur. He returned northward to continue the
task of stripping the principality of Antioch of all its lands east of
the Orontes. By the end of 1147 Artah, Kafarlata, Basarfut and
Balat were in his hands.*
Nur ed-Din thus emerged as the principal enemy of the
Christians. He was now aged twenty-nine; but he was wise for
his years. Even his opponents admired his sense of justice, his
charity and his sincere piety. He was perhaps a less brilliant
soldier than his father Zengi, but he was less cruel and less
perfidious and a far better judge of men. His ministers and generals
were able and loyal. His material sources were less than his
father s; for Zengi had been able to call on the riches of Upper
Iraq, which now had passed to Saif ed-Din. But Saif ed-Din had
therefore inherited Zengi s difficulties with the Ortoqids and with
the Caliph and the Seldjuk sultanate, leaving Nur ed-Din free to
give his full attention to the West. Moreover, the sons of Zengi
1 William of Tyre, xvi, 8-13, pp. 715-28; Ibn al-Qalardsi, pp. 276-9;
Abu Shama, pp. 50-3.
z Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blocliet, pp. 515-16; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 461-2.
243
16-2
The Fall ofEdessa
remained true to their family pact. Saif ed-Din would send help
if need be to Nur ed-Din, without any desire to annex his share of
the family lands. A third brother, Nasr ed-Din, was established as
Nur ed-Din s vassal at Harran, while the youngest of the family,
Qutb ed-Din, was growing up at his eldest brother s court at
Mosul. Secure from danger from his fellow-Moslems by his
family connections and his alliance with Unur, Nur ed-Din was
well fitted to lead the counter-attack of Islam. If the Christians in
the East were to survive, it was against him that they must con
centrate their efforts. 1
1 Ibn al-Athir, p. 456, and Atabegs, pp. 152-8.
244
BOOK III
THE SECOND CRUSADE
CHAPTER I
THE GATHERING OF THE KINGS
* Arise therefore, and be doing, and t1te Lord be with
thee. i CHRONICLES xxn, 16
As soon as it was known in Jerusalem that Edessa had fallen,
Queen Melisende sent to Antioch to consult with the government
there about the dispatch of an embassy to Rome, to break the news
to the Pope and to ask for a new Crusade. It was decided that the
ambassador should be Hugh, Bishop of Jabala, whose opposition
to the demands of the Emperor John had given him renown
amongst the Latin Christians. Despite the urgency of his message
the bishop did not arrive until the autumn of 1145 at the Papal
Curia. Pope Eugenius III was at Viterbo, as Rome was in the
hands of a commune resentful of papal rule. With him was the
German chronicler, Otto of Freisingen, who recorded the Pope s
reception of the dreadful news, though he himself was more
interested by information brought by the bishop of a Christian
potentate who lived to the east of Persia and was conducting a
successful war against the infidel. His name was John, and he was
a Nestorian. Already he had conquered the Persian capital of
Ecbatana, but he had gone northward to a region of ice and snow,
where he had lost so many men that he had returned to his home.
This was the first entry of the legendary Prester John into the
pages of history. 1
Pope Eugenius did not share the chronicler s hope that Prester
John would rescue Christendom. He was seriously disquieted.
About the same time a delegation reached him of Armenian
bishops from Cilicia, eager for support against Byzantium. 2 The
1 Otto of Freisingen, Chronica, pp. 363-7. See Gleber, PapstEugen III, p. 36.
a See Tournebize, Histoire Politique Religieuse de I Armenie, pp. 235-9.
247
The Gathering of the Kings
Pope could not neglect his Oriental duties. While Bishop Hugh
went on to inform the courts of France and Germany, Eugenius
decided to preach the Crusade. 1 But the Papacy was not in the
position to direct the movement as Pope Urban had tried to do.
Since his accession in February, Eugenius had not been able to
enter Rome. He could not yet afford to travel beyond the Alps.
Fortunately he was on good terms with the two chief potentates
of western Europe. Conrad of Hohenstaufen, King of Germany,
had owed his throne to ecclesiastical support, and had been
crowned by the papal legate. With Louis VII, the pious King of
France, papal relations were even more cordial. After some early
misdemeanours, due to the influence of his wife, Eleanor of
Aquitaine, he had repented and allowed himself to be guided in
all things by ecclesiastical advisers, notably by the great Abbot of
Clairvaux, Saint Bernard. It was to King Louis that the Pope
decided to apply for help for the East. He needed Conrad s help
in Italy, for the subjection of the Romans and the curbing of the
ambitions of Roger II of Sicily. He did not wish Conrad to assume
other obligations. But Louis was king of the land from which
most of the Prankish princes and lords in the East had come ; he was
the obvious leader for the expedition that was to relieve them.
On i December 1145, Eugenius addressed a bull to King Louis
and all the princes and the faithful of the kingdom of France,
urging them to go to the rescue of eastern Christendom and
promising them security for their wordly possessions and remis
sion for their sins. 2
The news of the fall of Edessa horrified the West. The interest
and enthusiasm aroused by the First Crusade had quietened down.
The capture of Jerusalem had fired men s imagination; and
immediately afterwards large reinforcements had willingly set out
1 Ckronicon Mauriniacense, R.H.F. vol. xn, p. 88; Otto of Freisingen, Gesta
Friderid, pp. 54-7.
2 JafB-Wattenbach, Regesta, no. 8796, vol. n, p. 26. Caspar Die Kreuz-
zugsbullen Eugens IIT, in Neues Archiv, vol. XLV, pp. 285-306, proves that the
Bull must definitely be dated I December 1145, which destroys the French
theory that Louis VII instigated the Crusade.
248
Sporadic Crusades
in answer to appeals from the East, as the Crusades of noi had
shown. But the Crusades of noi had ended in disaster; and, in
spite of that, the Prankish states in the East had held and con
solidated their position. Reinforcements still came, but in
driblets. There was a steady stream, of pilgrims, many of whom
would stay long enough to fight in a summer campaign. Among
these were potentates like Sigurd of Norway; or there might be
a great company of humbler folk, such as the Englishmen,
Flemings and Danes who came in 1106. The Italian maritime
cities would from time to time send a fleet to help in the capture
of some seaport; but their motive was frankly commercial in
terest, which also brought in a growing number of individual
Italian merchants. But since Baldwin Ts reign there had been few
of these armed pilgrim companies. Of recent years the only one
of note had been that led by King Fulk s son-in-law, Thierry,
Count of Flanders. Immigrants had continued to arrive, younger
sons, like Balian of Chartres, founder of the house of Ibelin, or
barons like Hugh of Le Puiset or Manasses of Hierges, who hoped
to take advantage of kinship with the royal house. A more
constant and valuable element was provided by the knights that
came out to join the great Military Orders, the Hospitallers and
the Templars. The Orders were gradually assuming the role of
the standing army of the kingdom; and the many grants of lands
made to them by the Crown and its vassals showed how highly
they were appreciated. But ever since the dispersal of the armies
of the First Crusade there had not been in the East a Prankish force
strong enough to undertake a grand offensive against the infidel 1
It needed the shock of the disaster at Edessa to rouse the West
again. For meanwhile in the perspective of western Europe the
Crusader states of Syria had seemed merely to form the left-flank
of the Mediterranean-wide campaign against Islam. The right
flank was in Spain, where there were still tasks for a Christian
knight to perform. The progress of the Cross in Spain had been
held up during the second and third decades of the century, owing
1 See above, pp. 91-2, 227.
249
The Gathering of the Kings
to the quarrels between Queen Urraca of Castile and her husband
King Alfonso I of Aragon. But the Queen s son and heir by her
first, Burgundian, marriage, Alfonso VII brought about a renais
sance in Castile. In 1132, six years after his accession, he began
a series of campaigns against the Moslems, which brought him by
1147 to the gates of Cordova, where he was recognized as
suzerain. Already in 1134 he had taken the title of Emperor, to
show that he was overlord of the peninsula and vassal to no man.
Meanwhile Alfonso I, freed by Urraca s death of Castilian compli
cations, spent his last years taking the offensive, with varying
success, in Murcia; and along the coast Raymond-Berenger III,
Count of Barcelona, pushed his power southward. Alfonso I died
in 1134. His brother, the ex-monk Ramiro, reigned disastrously
for three years; but in 1137 Ramiro s two-year old daughter,
Queen Petronilla, was married to Raymond-Berenger IV of
Barcelona, and Catalonia and Aragon were united to form a power
whose naval strength enabled it to complete the reconquest of
north-eastern Spain. 1 Thus by 1145 things were going well in the
Spanish theatre; but a storm was brewing. The Almoravids, who
had dominated Moslem Spain for the last half-century, had fallen
into a hopeless decay. Their pkce in Africa had already been taken
by the Almohads, a sect of ascetic reformers, almost Gnostic in its
theology and its insistence on a class of adepts, founded by the
Berber prophet Ibn Tumart, and carried on even more aggres
sively by his successor Abd al-Mumin. Abd al-Mumin defeated
and slew the Almoravid monarch, Tashfin ibn Ali, near Tlemcen
in 1145. In 1146 he completed the conquest of Morocco and was
ready to move into Spain. 2 With such preoccupations the
Christian knights in Spain were insensible to an appeal from the
East. On the other hand, now that the Spanish kingdoms were
securely founded, they no longer offered the same scope as in the
previous century to the knights and princes of France.
1 See Bellasteros, Historia de Espana, rr, pp. 247-62.
2 For the Almohads, see Codera, Decadenzia y Desuparicion de los Almoravides
en Espana, and Bel, article Almohads , in Encyclopaedia of Islam.
250
Roger II of Sicily
The centre of the battlefield against Iskm was occupied by King
Roger II of Sicily. Roger had united all the Norman dominions
in Italy and assumed the royal title in 1130. He was well aware of
the strategic importance of his kingdom, which was ideally placed
to control the Mediterranean. But, to make that control complete,
it was necessary for him to have a footing on the African coast
opposite to Sicily. The quarrels and rivalries of the Moslem
dynasties in northern Africa, intensified by the declining power of
the Almoravids in Morocco and the ineffectual suzerainty of the
Fatimids in Tunisia, together with the dependence of the African
cities upon the import of grain from Sicily, gave Roger his chance.
But his first campaigns, from 1123 to 1128, brought him no profit
beyond the acquisition of the island of Malta. In 1134 by judi
ciously timed assistance he induced El-Hasan, lord of Mahdia, to
accept him as overlord; and next year he occupied the island of
Jerba in the Gulf of Gabes. Successful raids on Moslem shipping
whetted his appetite, and he began to attack the coastal towns.
In June 1143 his troops entered Tripoli, but were forced to retire.
Exactly three years later he recaptured the city, just as an internal
revolution was installing an Almoravid prince as its governor.
This tune he could not be dislodged; and Tripoli became the
nucleus for a Norman colony in Africa. 1
Bang Roger was thus admirably fitted to take part in the new
Crusade. But he was suspect. His behaviour to the Papacy had
never been dutiful and seldom deferential. His presumption in
crowning himself king had been resented by the other potentates
of Europe; and Saint Bernard had commented to Lothair of
Germany that * whoever makes himself King of Sicily attacks the
Emperor . 2 Saint Bernard s disapproval meant the disapproval of
French public opinion. Roger was still more unpopular among
the princes in the East; for he had made it clear that he had never
forgiven the kingdom of Jerusalem for its treatment of his mother
Adelaide and his own failure to secure the succession promised in
1 Chalandon, Domination Normande en Italic, pp. 158-65.
2 Saint Bernard, letter no. 139, in M.P.L. vol. cixxxn, col. 294.
251
The Gathering of the Kings
her marriage-contract, while he claimed Antioch as sole heir in
the male line of his cousin Bohemond. His presence on the
Crusade was not desired; but it was hoped that he would carry on
the war against Islam in his own particular sector. 1
The Pope s choice of King Louis of France to organize the new
Crusade was easy to understand; and the King responded eagerly
to the call. When the papal Bull arrived, following close on the
news brought by the Bishop of Jabala, Louis had just issued
a summons to his tenants-in-chief to meet him at Christmas at
Bourges. When they were assembled he told them that he had
decided to take the Cross and he begged them to do likewise. He
was sadly disappointed in their answer. The lay nobility showed
no enthusiasm. The chief elder statesman of the realm, Suger,
Abbot of Saint-Denis, voiced his disapproval of the Kong s
projected absence. Only the Bishop of Langres spoke up in
support of his sovereign. 2
Chilled by his vassals indifference, Louis decided to postpone
his appeal for three months, and summoned another assembly to
meet him at Easter at Vezelay. In the meantime he wrote to the
Pope to tell him of his own desire to lead a Crusade; and he sent
for the one man in France whose authority was greater than his
own, Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux. Saint Bernard was now at
the height of his reputation. It is difficult now to look back across
the centuries and appreciate the tremendous impact of his per
sonality on all who knew him. The fire of his eloquence has been
quenched in the written words that survive. As a theologian and a
controversialist he now appears rigid and a little crude and unkind.
But from the day in 1115 when, at the age of twenty-five, he was
appointed Abbot of Clairvaux, till his death nearly forty years
later he was the dominant influence in the religious and political
life of western Europe. It was he who gave the Cistercian Order
its impetus; it was he who, almost single-handed, had rescued the
Papacy from the slough of the schism of Anacletus. The fervour
1 Odo of Deuil, pp. 22-3.
a Vita Sugerii Abbatis, pp. 393 ff; Odo of Deuil, p. 121.
252
1146: The Assembly at Vizilaj
and sincerity of his preaching combined with his courage, his
vigour and the blamelessness of his life to bring victory to any
cause that he supported, save only against the embittered Cathar
heretics of Languedoc. He had long been interested in the fate of
eastern Christendom and had himself in 1128 helped in drawing up
the rule for the Order of the Temple. When the Pope and the King
begged for his help in preaching the Crusade, he eagerly complied. 1
The assembly met at Vezelay on 31 March 1146. The news that
Saint Bernard was going to preach brought visitors from all over
France. As at Clermont, half a century before, the crowd was too
great to be fitted into the Cathedral. Saint Bernard spoke from
a platform erected in a field outside the little town. His words
have not been handed down. We only know that he read out the
papal Bull asking for a holy expedition and promising absolution
to all that took part in it, and that he then made use of his incom
parable rhetoric to show the urgency of the papal demand. Very
soon his audience was under his spell. Men began to cry for
Crosses Crosses, give us Crosses ! It was not long before all
the stuff that had been prepared to sew into Crosses was exhausted;
and Saint Bernard flung off his own outer garments to be cut up.
At sunset he and his helpers were still stitching as more and more
of the faithful pledged themselves to go on the Crusade. 2
King Louis was the first to take the Cross; and his vassals forgot
their earlier coolness in their eagerness to follow him. Amongst
them were his brother Robert, Count of Dreux, Alfonso-Jordan,
Count of Toulouse, who had himself been born in the East,
William, Count of Nevers, whose father had led one of the
unfortunate expeditions of 1101, Henry, heir to the County of
Champagne, Thierry of Flanders, who had already fought in the
East and whose wife was Queen Melisende s stepdaughter, the
1 Odo of Denil, p. 21. According to Otto of Freisingen the barons wished to
consult St Bernard before they committed themselves (Gesta Friderici, p. 58).
For St Bernard and the Templars, see Vacandard, Vie de Saint Bernard, I,
pp. 227-49.
3 Odo of Deuil, p. 22; Chronicon Mauriniacense, loc. dt.\ Suger, VitaLudo-
vici VII, ed. Molinier, pp. 158-60.
253
The Gathering of the Kings
King s uncle, Amadeus of Savoy, Archimbald, Count of Bourbon,
the Bishops of Langres, Arras and Lisieux and many nobles of the
second rank. An even greater response came from humbler
people. 1 Saint Bernard was able to write a few days later to the
Pope, saying: You ordered; I obeyed; and the authority of him
who gave the order has made my obedience fruitful. I opened
my mouth; I spoke; and at once the Crusaders have multiplied
to infinity. Villages and towns are now deserted. You will scarcely
find one man for every seven women. Everywhere you see
widows whose husbands are still alive. >a
Encouraged by his success Saint Bernard undertook a tour of
Burgundy, Lorraine and Flanders, preaching the Crusade as he
went. When he was in Flanders he received a message from the
Archbishop of Cologne, begging him to come at once to the
Rhineland. As in the days of the First Crusade, the enthusiasm
aroused by the news of the movement had been turned against
the Jews. In France the Abbot of Cluny, Peter the Venerable,
eloquently complained that they were not paying a financial
contribution towards the rescue of Christendom. In Germany the
resentment took a fiercer form. A fanatical Cistercian monk
called Rudolf was inspiring Jewish massacres throughout the
Rhineland, in Cologne, Mainz, Worms, Spier and Strassburg.
The Archbishops of Cologne and Mainz did what they could to
save the victims, and the latter summoned Bernard to deal with
the Cistercian. Bernard hastened from Flanders and ordered
1 The Bishop of Langres was Godfrey de la Roche Faille*e, a monk of
Clairvaux and. a relative of St Bernard. Of Alvisus, Bishop of Arras, formerly
Abbot of Anchin, little is known. Later legends made him Suger s brother,
without any foundation. Arnulf of S6ez, Bishop of Lisieux, was a classical
scholar of distinctively secular tastes. The bishops of Langres and Lisieux
considered themselves to have been given the position of Papal Legates,
though in fact the Legates were the German Theodwin, Cardinal of Porto, and
the Florentine Cardinal Guido. John of Salisbury (Historia Pontificate, pp. 54-5)
considered that the quarrels between the two bishops and their joint resentment
of the Cardinals contributed largely to the failure of the Crusade. He thought
Godfrey of Langres more reasonable than Arnulf of Lisieux.
2 St Bernard, letter no. 247, in op. cit. col. 447.
254
1146: Saint Bernard in Germany
Rudolf back into his monastery. When calm was re-established,
Bernard stayed on in Germany; for it seemed to him that the
Germans too should join in the Crusade. 1
The Germans hitherto had played an undistinguished part in the
Crusading movement. Their Christian zeal had, rather, been
directed towards the forcible evangelization of the heathen Slavs
on their eastern frontiers. Since the beginning of the century-
missionary work and German colonization had been going
on in the Slav districts in Pomerania and Brandenburg; and the
German lords regarded this expansion of Christendom as a more
important task than a war against Islam, whose menace was to
them remote and theoretical. They were therefore disinclined
to respond to Saint Bernard s preaching. Nor was their King,
Conrad of Hohenstaufen, greatly though he admired the Saint,
much more eager to listen to him. He had Mediterranean interests ;
but they were restricted to Italy, where he had promised the
Pope help against the recalcitrant Romans and against Roger
of Sicily, in return for his much desired imperial coronation.
And his position was still insecure in Germany itself. Despite
his victory at Weinsburg in 1140 he still was faced with the
enmity of the supporters of the house of Welf; while the antics
of his Babenberger half-brothers and sisters raised trouble for
him along all his eastern flank. "When Saint Bernard, after writing
round to secure the co-operation of the German bishops, met the
King at Frankfort-on-the-Main in the autumn of 1146, Conrad
prevaricated; and Bernard would have gone back to Clairvaux,
had the bishops not begged him to continue his preaching.
He therefore turned southward to preach the Crusade at
Freiburg, at Basle, at Schaffhausen and Constance. The tour
was immediately successful, even though the sermons had to be
translated by a German interpreter. The humbler people flocked
1 St Bernard, letters nos. 363, 365, in op. at. cols. 564-8, 570-1; Otto of
Freisingen, Gesta Friderid, pp. 58-9; Joseph ben Joseph ben Meir, Chronicle,
trans. Biellablotzky, pp. 116-29. The rumours of their murder of a Christian
child at Norwich helped to rouse feeling against the Jews. See Vacandard,
op. cit. pp. 274-81.
255
The Gathering of the Kings
to take the Cross. The crops in Germany had failed that year,
and there was famine in the land. Starvation breeds a mystic
exaltation; and it is probable that many in Bernard s audiences
thought, like the pilgrims of the First Crusade, that the journey
eastward would bring them to the riches of the New Jerusalem. 1
King Conrad agreed to meet Saint Bernard again at Christmas
1146, when he would be holding a Diet at Spier. Saint Bernard s
sermon on Christmas Day, once more asking him to take the
Cross, failed to move the King. But two days later Bernard
preached again before the Court. Speaking as though he were
Christ Himself he rounded on the King, reminding him of the
benefits that Heaven had showered on him. Man, he cried,
* what ought I to have done for you that I have not done ? Conrad
was deeply moved and promised to follow the Saint s bidding. 2
Saint Bernard left Germany well pleased with his work. He
travelled through eastern France, supervising the arrangements
for the Crusade and writing to the Cistercian houses all over
Europe to bid them encourage the movement. He was back in
Germany in March to assist at a council at Frankfort, when it was
decided to send a Crusade against the heathen Slavs east of
Oldenburg. His presence was intended to show that while he
advocated an Oriental Crusade, he did not desire the Germans to
neglect their nearer duties. This German Crusade, though the Pope
allowed the participants to wear the Cross, was in its outcome
a fiasco that did much to retard the conversion of the Slavs. From
1 Bernhardi, Konradlll, pp. 563-78, a full summary of the Crusades against
the Slavs. Bernard s letter no. 457 (op. cit. coU. 651-2) orders the Christians of
Germany to crusade in the East and no. 458, coll. 652-4, gives the same order
to the King ^and people of Bohemia. Chroniclers such as William of Tyre,
Odo of Deuil, and most modern historians refer to Conrad as Emperor; but
in fact he never received an imperial coronation.
2 Otto of Freisingen, Gesta Friderici, pp. 60-3; Vita Bernardi, coll. 381-3. It
is possible that Conrad was influenced by hearing that his rival Welf VI of
Bavaria had decided to take the Cross. (See Cosack, Konrad III Entschluss zum
Kreuzzug , in Mittheilungen des Institute fur ostereickische Geschiditsforschung,
vol. xxxv; but Welf s decision was made so shortly before Conrad s that the
latter can hardly have heard of it. See Gleber, op. cit. pp. 53-4.)
256
1147- Pope Eugenius in France
Frankfort Bernard hurried to his abbey at Clairvaux, to receive
a visit from the Pope. 1
Pope Eugenius had spent Christmas 1145 in Rome; but diffi
culties with the Romans forced him soon to withdraw again to
Viterbo, while Rome itself passed tinder the influence of the anti
clerical agitator, Arnold of Brescia. Eugenius realized that without
the help of King Conrad he could not hope to re-establish himself
in the Holy City. In the meantime he decided to cross the Alps
into France, to see King Louis and to superintend the Crusade.
He left Viterbo in January 1147 and reached Lyon on 22 March.
As he journeyed he received news of Saint Bernard s activities. He
was not altogether pleased. His practical sense had made him
envisage a purely French Crusade, under the lay leadership of the
King of France, without the divided command that had so nearly
wrecked the First Crusade. Saint Bernard had turned the move
ment into an international enterprise; and the splendour of his
conception might well be outweighed in practice by the rivalry
of the kings. Besides, the Pope could not spare King Conrad, on
whose aid he was counting in Italy. He gave the news of German
participation a very chilly reception. But he could not counter
mand it.*
Proceeding into France, the Pope met King Louis at Dijon in
the first days of April and arrived at Clairvaux on 6 April. Conrad
sent him an embassy there to ask for an interview at Strassburg
on the i8th; but Eugenius had promised to spend Easter, on
20 April, at Saint-Denis and would not alter his plans. Conrad
prepared to depart for the East without the personal blessing of
the Pontiff. Eugenius meanwhile had many interviews with the
abbot Suger, who was to govern France while Louis was away.
He held a council at Paris to deal with the heresy of Gilbert de la
Poree, and he saw Louis again, at Saint-Denis, on n June. Then,
while Louis completed his last preparations, he moved slowly
southward to return to Italy. 3
1 See Bernard, op. dt. 9 loc. dt.; Vacandard, op. dt. n, pp. 297-8.
2 See Gleber, op. dt. pp. 22-7, 48-61. 3 Odo of Deuil, pp. 24-5.
RC 257 i7
The Gathering of the Kings
While the Kings of France and Germany were preparing for the
Crusade, planning a long overland journey, a humbler expedition
composed of Englishmen, together with some Flemings and
Frisians, was inspired by the preaching of Saint Bernard s agents
to set out by sea for Palestine. The ships left England in the late
spring of 1147; and early in June bad weather forced them to take
refuge at the mouth of the river Douro, on the Portuguese coast.
There they were met by emissaries from Alfonso-Henry, Count of
Portugal. He had recently established his country s independence
and was negotiating with the Papacy for the title of King, giving
as its justification his successful campaigns against the Moslems.
Taking advantage of the difficulties of the Almoravids, he had
won a great victory at Ourique in 1139, and in March of 1147 he
had reached the banks of the Tagus and had captured Santarem.
He now wished to attack the local Moslem capital, Lisbon, and
needed naval help for it. The Crusaders arrival was timely. His
chief envoy, the Bishop of Oporto, pointed out to them that there
was no need to make the long voyage to Palestine if they wished
to fight for the Cross. There were infidels close at hand, and not
only spiritual merit but rich estates could be won here and now.
The Flemings and Frisians agreed at once; but the English
contingent hesitated. They had vowed to go to Jerusalem; and it
needed all the influence of their leader, Henry Glanville, Constable
of Suffolk, whom the Bishop had won over, to persuade them to
remain. Once the terms were arranged, the flotilla sailed down to
the Tagus, to join the Portuguese army; and the siege of Lisbon
was begun. The Moslems defended their city valiantly. It was
only in October, after four months of fighting, that the garrison
surrendered, on the guarantee that their lives and property would
be preserved. The Crusaders promptly broke the terms and
indulged in a glorious massacre of the infidel, in which the
English, congratulating themselves on their virtue, only played
a minor part. After the campaign was over, some of the Crusaders
continued their journey to the East, but many more remained as
settlers under tie Portuguese crown. The episode, though it
258
H47 : King Conrad leaves Germany
heralded the long alliance between England and Portugal and
though it laid the foundations for the spread of Christianity
beyond the oceans, did little to help Christians in the East, -where
sea-power would have been invaluable to the cause. 1
While the northerners delayed in Portugal, the Kings of France
and Germany set out by land to the East. King Roger of Sicily
had sent to each of them to offer to transport them and their
armies by sea. To Conrad, who had long been Roger s enemy,
the offer was obviously inacceptable, and Louis also declined it.
The Pope did not wish for Roger s co-operation; and it is doubtful
whether in fact the Sicilian marine was large enough to carry all
the soldiers bound for the Crusade. Louis had no desire to entrust
himself, separated from half his army, to a man whose record
for duplicity was notorious and who was bitterly hostile to the
French Queen s uncle. It was safer and cheaper to travel by land.*
King Conrad intended to leave Germany at Easter, 1147. In
December he had received a Byzantine embassy at Spier, which he
told of his immediate departure to the East. In fact it was not till
the end of May that he started his journey. He left Ratisbon
towards the last days of the month and passed into Hungary. His
army was of formidable proportions. Awed chroniclers spoke of
a million soldiers; and it is probable that the whole company,
armed men and pilgrims, numbered nearly twenty thousand.
With Conrad came two vassal-kings, Vladislav of Bohemia and
Boleslav IV of Poland. The German nobility was headed by
Conrad s nephew and heir, Frederick, Duke of Swabia. There was
a contingent from Lorraine, led by Stephen, Bishop of Metz, and
Henry, Bishop of Toul. It was a turbulent army. The German
magnates were jealous of each other; and there was constant
1 The chief original source for the Portuguese Crusade is Osborn, De
expugnatione Lyxbonensi, printed in Stubbs, Memorials of the Reign of Richard I,
vol. I, pp. cxKv-ckxxii. See also Erdmann, Die Kreuzzugegedanke in
Portugal , in Historische Zeitschift, vol. 141, pp- 23-53 .
a King Louis had announced the Crusade to Roger (Odo of Deuil, p. 22),
but when Roger suggested active participation he rejected his help to the retro
spective grief of Odo (ibid. p. 24).
259
The Gathering of the Kings
friction between the Germans, the Slavs and the French-speaking
Lorrainers. Conrad was not the man to keep it under control. He
was now well over fifty years of age, of indifferent health and a
weak, uncertain temperament. He had begun to delegate much
of his authority into the vigorous but inexperienced hands of his
nephew Frederick. 1
During June the German army moved through Hungary. The
young King Geza was well disposed; and there was no unpleasant
incident. A Byzantine embassy, led by Demetrius Macrembolites
and the Italian Alexander of Gravina, met Conrad in Hungary and
asked him on the Emperor s behalf whether he came as a friend
or foe and to beg him to take an oath to do nothing against the
welfare and interests of the Emperor. This oath of non-injury was
well chosen; for in certain parts of the West it was the usual oath
for a vassal to take to his overlord; it was the oath that Raymond
of Toulouse had taken to Alexius during the First Crusade; yet it
was so framed that Conrad could hardly refuse to take it without
labelling himself as the Emperor s enemy. He took it; and the
Byzantine ambassadors then promised him every assistance while
he should be in imperial territory.*
About 20 July Conrad crossed into the Empire at Branitchevo.
Byzantine ships helped to convey his men across the Danube. At
Nish the governor of the Bulgarian province, Michael Branas, met
him and provided the army with food that had been stored up
against its arrival. At Sofia, which it reached a few days kter,
the governor of Thessalonica, the Emperor s cousin, Michael
Palaeologus, gave Conrad an official welcome from the Emperor.
So far all had gone well. Conrad wrote to friends in Germany
that he was satisfied with everything. But after leaving Sofia his
men began to pillage the countryside and to refuse to pay the
villagers for what they took, even slaughtering those who pro
tested. When complaints were made to Conrad, he confessed that
he could not discipline the rabble. At Philippopolis there were
1 Odo of Freisingea, Chronica, p. 354 and Gesta Frideriri, pp. 63-5.
2 Cinnamus, pp. 67-9.
260
1147- The Germans in the Balkans
worse disorders. More food was stolen, and a riot occurred when
a local juggler, who had hoped to gain some money from the
soldiers by showing off his tricks, was accused by the Germans of
sorcery. The suburbs were burnt down; but the city walls were
too strong for the Germans to attack. The Archbishop, Michael
Italicus, protested so vigorously to Conrad that he was shamed
into punishing the ringleaders. Manuel then sent troops to
accompany the Crusaders and to keep them to the road. This only
produced worse disorders, as the Byzantines and Germans fre
quently came to blows. The climax came near Adrianople, when
some Byzantine bandits robbed and killed a German magnate who
had lingered behind sick; whereupon Frederick of Swabia burnt
down the monastery near which the crime had been committed
and slew its inhabitants. Drunken stragglers, who were abundant
amongst the Germans, were slain in retaliation whenever they fell
into Byzantine hands. When the Byzantine commander Prosuch
had restored peace and the army resumed its march, an embassy
came from Manuel, who was now seriously alarmed, to urge
Conrad to take the road to Sestos on the Hellespont and cross from
there into Asia. It would be regarded as an unfriendly act were
the Germans to march on to Constantinople. Conrad would not
agree. Manuel then seems to have decided to oppose the Crusaders
by force, but at the last moment countermanded his orders to
Prosuch. The Germans were soon visited by divine punishment.
As they lay encamped at Cheravas on the Thracian plain a sudden
inundation swept through their tents,drowning many of the soldiers
and destroying much property. Only Frederick s detachment,
encamped on higher ground, were unliarmed. There was, however,
no further serious incident till the army reached Constantinople,
on about 10 September. 1
King Louis and the French army followed about a month
behind. The King himself set out from Saint-Denis on 8 June and
1 Cinnamus, pp. 69-74; Nicetas Choniates, pp. 82-7; Odo of Deuil, p. 38.
The juggler is mentioned by him earlier, p. 36. Odo of Freisingen, Gesta
Friderici, pp. 65-7.
261
The Gathering of the Kings
summoned his vassals to meet him at Metz a few days later. His
expedition was probably a little smaller than Conrad s. All the
nobles who had taken the Cross with him at Vezelay came to
fulfil their vows; and with the King was his wife, Eleanor of
Aquitaine, the greatest heiress in France and niece to the Prince of
Antioch. The Countesses of Flanders and Toulouse and many
other great ladies travelled with their husbands. The Grand
Master of the Temple, Everard of Barre, joined the army with
a regiment of recruits for his Order. 1 The King himself was aged
twenty-six. He was famed for piety rather than for a strong
personality. His wife and his brother both wielded influence over
him. As a commander he was untried and indecisive. 3 On the
whole his troops were better disciplined and less wanton than the
Germans, though there were disorders at Worms at the crossing
of the Rhine. 3
When all the French contingents had joined the Bang the army
set out through Bavaria. At Ratisbon, where it arrived on 29 June,
ambassadors from the Emperor Manuel were waiting. These were
Demetrius Macrembolites, who had already interviewed Conrad
in Hungary, and a certain Maurus. They asked for guarantees that
Louis would behave as a friend while in imperial territory and that
he would promise to restore to the Empire any of its former
possessions that he should conquer. Apparently they did not
require him to swear the oath of non-injury, whose significance
he might have realized too well. Louis declared formally that he
was coming as a friend, but he gave no promise about his future
conquests, finding the request dangerously vague. 4 From
1 A list of Crusaders is given in Suger, Vita Ludovid VII, ed. Molinier,
pp. 158-60. The legend that Queen Eleanor came at the head of a company of
Amazons is based on a remark of Nicetas (p. 80) that the German army
contained a number of fully armed women.
2 The portrait of him given in Suger s Life and in his own letters is not of
a decisive man.
3 Odo of Deuil, p. 27.
4 Cinnamus, p. 82. He calls the Germans AAenccvoC and the French
rspuccvof ; Odo of Deuil, pp. 28-30. He says that Louis made representatives
swear on his behalf.
262
1147> The French arrive at Constantinople
Ratisbon the French journeyed peaceably for fifteen days through
Hungary and reached the Byzantine frontier at the end of August. 1
They crossed the Danube at Branitchevo and followed the main
road through the Balkans. They found some difficulty in pro
curing sufficient food; for the Germans had consumed all that was
available, and the excesses committed by the Germans made the
local inhabitants suspicious and unwilling to help. Moreover, the
local merchants were far too ready to give short measure after
insisting on pre-payment. But the Byzantine officials were
friendly, and the French commanders kept their men in order.
There was no serious trouble till the army drew near to Constanti
nople, though the French began to feel resentment against both
the Byzantines and the Germans. At Adrianople the Byzantine
authorities tried, as with Conrad, to persuade Louis to by-pass the
capital and cross the Hellespont into Asia, but with equal unsuc-
cess. Meanwhile, some of the French, impatient with the leisurely
progress of their army, hurried ahead to join with the Germans.
But the Germans were unfriendly, refusing to spare them rations.
The contingents from Lorraine, already on bad terms with their
German comrades, joined with these Frenchmen and inflamed
French public opinion against the Germans. 3 Thus, before ever
the French King arrived at Constantinople, relations between the
two Crusading armies were suspicious and embittered, and
Germans and French alike were ill-disposed towards Byzantium.
It did not augur well for the success of the Crusade.
1 Odo of Deuil, pp. 30-4. z Ibid. pp. 35~44-
263
CHAPTER II
CHRISTIAN DISCORD
Debates, envyings, wraths, strifes, backbiting*, whisperings, swellings,
tumults. n CORINTHIANS xn, 20
When the news of the coming of the Crusade first reached
Constantinople, the Emperor Manuel was engrossed in Anatolian
affairs. Despite his father s and his grandfather s campaigns, the
situation in the Asiatic provinces of the Empire was still worrying.
Only the coastal districts were free from Turkish invasions.
Farther inland almost yearly a Turkish raiding force would sweep
over the territory, avoiding the great fortresses and eluding the
imperial armies. The inhabitants of the frontier-lands had
abandoned their villages and fled to the cities or to the coast. It
was Manuel s policy to establish a definite frontier-line, guarded
by a closely knit line of forts. His diplomacy and his campaigns
were aimed at securing such a line.
The Danishmend emir Mohammed ibn Ghazi died in December
1141. He had been the chief Moslem power in Asia Minor; but
his death was followed by civil wars between his sons and his
brothers. Before the end of 1142 the emirate was split into three.
His son Dhu l Nun held Caesarea-Mazacha, his brothers Yakub
Arslan ibn Ghazi and Ain ed-Daulat ibn Ghazi Sivas and Melitene
respectively. The Seldjuk Sultan of Konya, Mas ud, saw in the
division his chance of establishing a hegemony over the Anatolian
Turks, He invaded Danishmend territory and established his
control over districts as far east as the Euphrates. Frightened by
his aggression the brothers Yakub Arslan and Ain ed-Daulat
sought the alliance of Byzantium, and by a treaty, probably con
cluded in 1143, they became to some degree his vassals. Manuel
then turned his attention towards Mas ud, whose raiders had
264
1146: Manuel s Campaign against Konya
penetrated to Malagina, on the road from Nicaea to Dorylaeum.
He drove them back, but returned soon to Constantinople owing
to his own ill-health and the fatal illness of his beloved sister Maria,
whose loyalty to him had been proved when her husband, the
Norman-born Caesar John Roger, had plotted for the throne at
the time of his accession. In 1145 Mas ud invaded the Empire
again and captured the little fortress of Pracana in Isauria, thereby
threatening Byzantine communications with Syria, and soon after
wards raided the valley of the Meander, almost as far as the sea.
Manuel decided that the time had come to strike boldly at Mas ud
and to march on Konya. He had recently been married, and it was
said that he wished to show to his German wife the splendours
of Byzantine chivalry. In the summer of 1146 he sent die Sultan
a formal declaration of war and set out in gallant style along the
road past Dorylaeum down to PhilomeHum. There Turkish
detachments attempted to check him but were repulsed. Mas ud
retired towards his capital but, though he strengthened its garrison,
he kept himself to the open country and sent urgently for rein
forcements from the East. The Byzantine army encamped for
several months before Konya, which was defended by the Sultana.
Manuel s attitude towards his enemies was courteous. When it was
rumoured that the Sultan was killed, he sent to inform the Sultana
that the story was untrue; and he attempted, vainly, to make his
soldiers respect the Moslem tombs outside the city. Suddenly he
gave the order to retire. It was said later that he had heard rumours
of the coming Crusade; but he could hardly have been notified yet
of the decision made at Vezelay that spring. He was definitely
suspicious of Sicilian intentions, and he may already have realized
that something was afoot. H6 learnt, too, that Mas ud had
received a considerable addition to his army, and he was afraid of
being caught with long and risky lines of communication. He
retreated slowly in perfect order back to his own territory. 1
1 See Chalandon, Les ComnZnes, pp. 248-58. Michael the Syrian (m, p. 275),
says that Manuel made peace with the Turks for fear of the Crusaders and that
he managed to hold them up for two years.
265
Christian Discord
Before there could be another campaign against Konya,
Manuel was faced, with the actual prospect of the Crusade. He
was disquieted, with reason; for the Byzantines experience of
Crusaders was not reassuring. When, therefore, Mas ud sent to him
in the spring of 1147 to suggest a truce and to offer to give back
Pracana and his other recent conquests, Manuel agreed. For this
treaty he has been called a traitor to Christendom. But Conrad s
hostility, demonstrated before news of the treaty could have
reached the Germans, shows that his precautions were wise. He
had no obligations towards a fellow-Christian who openly thought
of attacking Constantinople. Nor could Manuel be pleased by an
expedition which would undoubtedly encourage the Prince of
Antioch to forget his recent homage and subservience. If he were
engaged in a serious war against the Turks it might help the
Crusaders in their passage across Anatolia, but it would permit
them to do infinite harm to the Empire that was the bulwark of
Christendom. He preferred to have no entanglement that might
weaken him at so delicate a time, especially as a war with Sicily
was imminent. 1
With Conrad, Manuel s relations had hitherto been good.
A common fear of Roger of Sicily had brought them together;
and Manuel had recently married Conrad s sister-in-law. 2 But the
behaviour of the German army in the Balkans and Conrad s
refusal to takeHie route across the Hellespont alarmed him. When
Conrad arrived before Constantinople he was allotted as his
residence the suburban palace of Philopatium, near the land-walls ;
and his army encamped around him. But within a few days the
Germans so pillaged the palace that it was no longer habitable;
and Conrad moved across the head of the Golden Horn to the
palace of Picridium, opposite to the Phanar quarter. Meanwhile
his soldiers committed violence against the local population, and
1 Chalandon, op. cit. pp. 266-7. The war with Sicily broke out in fact in the
summer of 1147 (op. cit. p. 318 n. i). Odo of Deuil refers to it (p. 53).
2 See above, p. 222. The marriage took place in January 1146 (Chalandon,
op. alp. 262 n. 3).
266
1147: The Germans cross into Asia
Byzantine soldiers were sent out to repress them. A series of
skirmishes ensued. When Manuel asked for redress Conrad at first
said that the outrages were unimportant ; then he angrily threatened
to come back next year and take over the capital. It seems that the
Empress, Conrad s sister-in-law, was able to pacify the two
monarchs. Manuel, who had been urging the Germans to cross
quickly over the Bosphorus, as he feared the consequences of the
junction with the French, suddenly found the Germans amenable,
as the Germans were already beginning to quarrel with the first
French arrivals. An outward concord was restored; and Conrad
and his army passed over to Chalcedon, enriched by costly
presents. Conrad himself received some handsome horses. But
he refused the suggestion that he should leave some of his men to
take service with the Emperor and should in return be allotted
some of the Byzantine troops in Cilicia, an arrangement that
Manuel would have found convenient for his war against Roger
of Sicily. 1
When he arrived in Chalcedon, Conrad asked Manuel to pro
vide him. with guides to take him across Anatolia; and Manuel
entrusted the task to the head of the Varangian Guard, Stephen.
At the same time he advised the Germans to avoid the road
straight across the peninsula but to go by the coast-road round to
Attalia, thus keeping within imperial-controlled land. He also
suggested that it would be wise to send home all the non-com
batant pilgrims whose presence would only embarrass the army.
Conrad took no notice of this advice, but set out to Nicaea. When
his army arrived there, he thought again and decided to divide the
expedition. Otto of Freisingen was to take a party, including most
of the non-combatants, by a road through Laodicea-on-the-Lycus
1 Cinnamus, pp. 74-80; Nicetas Choniates, p. 87; letter of Conrad to Wibald
in Jaffe, Bittiotheca, i, p. 166 (saying that he was well received by the Emperor) ;
Annales Herbipoknses, pp. 4-5; Romuald of Salerno, p. 424; Odo of Deuil,
pp. 39-10. He says that according to the Greeks computation 900,566 German
soldiers and pilgrims crossed the Bosphorus. Possibly 9566 is the correct
figure. He also says that Conrad did not have a personal interview with
Manuel.
267
Christian Discord
to Attalia, while he himself and the main fighting force would
follow the route of the First Crusade through the interior. 1
Conrad s army left Nicaea on 15 October, with Stephen the
Varangian as chief guide. For the next eight days, whilst they were
in the Emperor s territory, they were well fed, though they later
complained that his agents mixed chalk with the flour that was
provided and also gave them coins of a debased value. But they
made no provisions for their march into Turkish territory. In
particular they lacked water. On 25 October, as they reached the
little river Bathys, near to Dorylaeum, close to the site of the great
Crusader victory half a century before, the whole Seldjuk army
fell upon them. The German infantry were weary and thirsty.
Many of the knights had just dismounted, to rest their exhausted
horses. The sudden, swift and repeated attacks of the light
Turkish horsemen caught them unawares. It was a massacre
rather than a batde. Conrad vainly tried to rally his men; but by
evening he was in full flight with the few survivors on the road
back to Nicaea. He had lost nine-tenths of his soldiers and all the
contents of his camp. The booty was sold by the victors in the
bazaars throughout the Moslem East, as far as Persia. 3
Meanwhile King Louis and the French army had passed through
Constantinople. They arrived there on 4 October, to find their
advance-guard and the army of Lorraine disgusted on the one
hand by the savagery of the Germans and on the other by the news
of Manuel s -truce with the Turks. Despite the pleading of Louis s
envoy, Everard of Barre, Grand Master of the Temple, the Byzan
tine authorities made difficulties about the junction of the Lor-
rainers with the French. 3 The Bishop of Langres, with the
un-Christian intolerance of a monk of Clairvaux, suggested to the
King that he should change his policy and make an alliance with
1 Cinnamus, pp. 80-1.
2 Cinnamus, pp. 81-2; Nicetas Choniates, p. 89; letter of Conrad to Wibald,
Epistolae WibaUi, p. i$2\Annales Palidenses, p. foiAnnales Herbipolenses, loc. dt. ;
Odo of Deuil, pp. 53, 56-8; William of Tyre, xvi, 21-2, pp. 740-4; Michael
the Syrian, m, p. 276.
3 Odo of Deuil, pp. 40-1.
268
1147 : The French cross into Asia
Roger of Sicily against the perfidious Greeks. But Louis was too
scrupulous to listen, to the disappointment of his barons. He was
satisfied by his reception at the Byzantine Court and preferred the
suave advice of the humanist Bishop of Lisieux. He was lodged at
Philopatium, which had been cleaned after the German occupa
tion, and he was welcomed to banquets at the imperial palace at
Blachernae and conducted by the Emperor round the sights of the
great city. Many of his nobility were equally charmed by the
attentions paid to them. 1 But Manuel saw to it that the French
army passed soon over the Bosphorus ; and when it was established
at Chalcedon he used the pretext of a riot caused by a Flemish
pilgrim who thought he had been cheated to cut off supplies from
the French. Though Louis promptly had the culprit hanged,
Manuel would not revictual the camp until Louis at last swore to
restore to the Empire its lost possessions that he might help to
recover, and agreed that his barons should pay homage in
advance for any that they might occupy. The French nobility
demurred; but Louis considered the demand reasonable, con
sidering his urgent need for Byzantine assistance, particularly as
rumours came through of the German disaster.*
At the beginning of November the French army reached
Nicaea. There they learnt definitely of Conrad s defeat. Frederick
of Swabia rode into the French camp to tell the story, and asked
Louis to come at once to see Conrad. Louis hastened to the
German headquarters; and the two Kings consulted together.
They decided both to take the coast route southward, keeping
within Byzantine territory. For the moment there was amity
between the two armies. When the Germans could find no food
in the area where they were encamped, as the French had taken
all that was available, and they therefore began to raid the
neighbouring villages, Byzantine police-troops at once attacked
them. They were rescued by a French detachment under the
1 Cinnamus, pp. 82-3; Louis VH, letter to Suger, R.H.F. vol. xv, p. 488
Odo of Deuil, pp. 45-6, 47-8.
2 Odo of Deuil, pp. 48-51.
269
Christian Discord
Count of Soissons, who hurried up at Conrad s request. Conrad
was meantime able to restore some sort of order among his troops.
Most of the pilgrims who survived left him to struggle back to
Constantinople. Their further history is unknown. 1
The armies moved on together. On n November they en
camped at Esseron, near the modern Balikesri. There they made
a further change of plan. It is probable that reports had come to
them of the journey made by Otto of Freisingen along the direct
route to Philadelphia and Laodicea. We know little of that journey
save that his expedition arrived at last at Attalia weary and reduced
in numbers, leaving by the wayside the many dead whom their
own privations or Turkish raiders had slain. The Kings decided
to keep closer to the coast, through more fertile country, and to
remain in touch with the Byzantine fleet. They marched on
down through Adramyttium, Pergamum and Smyrna and came
to Ephesus. Louis s army was in the van, and the Germans
struggled on about a day behind, taunted by their allies for their
slowness. The Byzantine historian Cinnamus records the cry of
Pousse AUemand which was hurled at them by the contemptuous
French.*
When they arrived at Ephesus Conrad s health was so bad that
he remained there. Hearing this the Emperor Manuel sent him
costly presents and persuaded him to return to Constantinople
where he received him kindly and took him to lodge in the palace.
Manuel was passionately interested in medicine and insisted on
being his guest s own doctor. Conrad recovered, and was deeply
touched by the attentions shown him by the Emperor and the
Empress. It was during this visit that a marriage was arranged
between his brother, Henry, Duke of Austria, and the Emperor s
niece, Theodora, daughter of his brother Andronicus. The German
1 Odo of Deuil, pp. 58-60; William of Tyre, xvi, 23, pp. 744-5.
2 Odo of Demi, pp. 61-3. Cinnamus (p. 84) discusses the difference between
the two armies. The French were better on horseback and with the lance, the
Germans on foot and with swords. He transliterates Pousse Allemand as
270
1147-8: The French in Asia Minor
King and his household remained in Constantinople till the
beginning of March 1148, when a Byzantine squadron conveyed
them to Palestine. 1
During the four days that he spent at Ephesus King Louis
received a letter from Manuel informing him that the Turks were
on the war-path and advising him to avoid any conflict with them
but to keep as far as possible within the range of shelter afforded by
the Byzantine fortresses. Manuel clearly feared that the French
would suffer at the hands of the Turks and he would be blamed;
at the same time he had no wish, with the Sicilian war on his hands,
that anything should occur to break his peace with the Sultan.
Louis returned no answer, nor did he reply when Manuel wrote
to warn him that the Byzantine authorities could not prevent their
people from taking vengeance for the damage caused to them by
the Crusaders. The discipline of the French army was breaking
down, and complaints were reaching the capital of its lawlessness. 2
The French army wound its way up the valley of the Meander.
At Decervium, where Christmas was spent, the Turks made their
appearance and began to harass the Crusaders till they reached the
bridge across the river, at Pisidian Antioch. There was a pitched
battle there; but the Frenchmen forced their way over the bridge,
and the Turks retired behind the walls of Antioch. Under what
circumstances the Turks were able to take refuge within this
Byzantine fortress is unknown. The French not unnaturally saw it
as treason to Christendom; but whether the local garrison had
yielded to superior force or had made some private arrangement
with the infidel, it is unlikely that the Emperor himself had
sanctioned the plan. 3
The battle before the bridge at Antioch took place about
i January 1 148. Three days later the Crusaders arrived at Laodicea,
1 Cinnamus, pp. 85-6; letter of Conrad to Wibald, Wilaldi Epistolae, p. 153 ;
Annales Herbipokrtses, p. 6; Odo of Deuil, pp. 63-4; William of Tyre, xvi, 23,
pp. 745-6.
2 Cinnamus, loc. dt.\ Odo of Deuil, pp. 63-5.
3 Odo of Deuil, pp. 65-6; William of Tyre, xvi, 24, pp. 746-7.
271
Christian Discord
to find it deserted; for their reputation had driven the inhabitants
to the hills, with all their provisions. It was difficult for the army
to collect any food for the arduous stage that ky ahead. 1 The road
to Attalia wound over high desolate mountains. It was a hard
journey at the best of times. For a hungry army, struggling
through the January storms, with the Turks relentlessly hanging
on its flanks and picking off the stragglers and the sick, it was
a nightmare. All along the road the soldiers saw the corpses of the
German pilgrims who had perished on their march a few months
before. There was no longer any attempt at discipline, except with
the company of the Knights Templar. The Queen and her ladies
shivered in their litters, vowing never again to face such an ordeal.
One afternoon, as the army began to descend toward the sea, the
advance-guard, under Geoffrey of Rancon, disobeyed the King s
orders to camp on the summit of the pass and moved down the
hill, losing touch with the main army, which the Turks at once
attacked. The Crusaders held their ground; but it was only the
falling of darkness that saved the Kong s life, and the losses among
the Frenchmen were heavy. 3
Thenceforward the way was easier. The Turks did not venture
down into the plain. At the beginning of February the Crusade
arrived at Attalia. The Byzantine governor there was an Italian
called Landolph. On the Emperor s orders he did what he could
to succour the Westerners. But Attalia was not a large town
with great resources of food. It was set in a poor countryside
ravaged recently by the Turks. Winter stocks were low by now;
and the German pilgrims had taken what there had been to spare.
It was no wonder that few provisions were available and that
prices had soared high. But to the angry disappointed Frenchmen
1 Odo of Deuil, loc. tit.
* Ibid. pp. 67-7, 71-2; "William of Tyre, xvi, 25, pp. 747-9. For the baseless
story that Queen Eleanor was responsible for the disaster, see Walker, Eleanor
of Aquitaine and the Disaster at Cadmus Mountain 1 , in American Historical
Review, vol. LV, pp. 857-61. Odo of Deuil was responsible for much good work
in victualling the array. He is too modest himself to mention ,it. (Dialogus
Apologeticus ctu Molne Geoffroi, p. 106.)
272
1148: The French at Attalia
all this was just another proof of Byzantine treachery. King Louis
now decided that the journey must be pursued by sea, and
negotiated with Landolph for ships. It was not easy at that time
of year to assemble a flotilla at a port on the wild Caramanian
coast. While the transports were being collected, the Turks came
down and made a sudden attack on the Crusader camp. Once
again the French blamed the Byzantines; who indeed probably
made no effort to defend the unwanted guests to whose presence
they owed these Turkish raids. When the ships arrived they were
too few to take all the company. Louis therefore filled them with
his own household and as many cavalrymen as could be taken, and
sailed off to Saint Symeon, where he arrived on 19 March. To
salve his conscience for his desertion of his army, the King gave
Landolph the sum of five hundred marks, asking him to care for
the sick and wounded and to send on the remainder, if possible,
by sea. The Counts of Flanders and Bourbon were left in charge.
The day after the King s departure the Turks swept down into the
plain and attacked the camp. Without sufficient cavalry it was
impossible to drive them off effectively ; so the Crusaders obtained
permission to take refuge within the walls. There they were well
treated and their sick given treatment; and Landolph hastily tried
to collect more ships. Again he could not find sufficient for all the
expedition. So Thierry of Flanders and Archimbald of Bourbon
followed their King s example and themselves embarked with
their friends and the remaining horsemen, telling the foot-soldiers
and the pilgrims to make their way by land as best they could. 1
Deserted by their leaders the unhappy remnant refused to stay in
the camp prepared for them by Landolph, who wished to move
them out of the town. They thought that they would be too badly
exposed there to attacks from Turkish archers. Instead, they set
out at once along the eastern road. Ignorant, undisciplined and
distrustful of their guides, continually harassed by the Turks, with
whom they were convinced the Byzantines were in league, the
1 Odo of Deuil, pp. 73-6. He tries awkwardly to gloss over the King s
desertion of the army. William of Tyre, xvi, 26, pp. 749-5 1 -
273
18
Christian Discord
miserable Frenchmen, with what remained of Conrad s German
infantry dragging on behind, made their painful way to Cilicia.
Less than half of them arrived in the late spring at Antioch. 1
In one of his many letters home to the abbot Suger, letters whose
unvaried theme is a request for more money, King Louis ascribed
the disasters in Anatolia to the treachery of the Emperor and also
our own fault . The charge against Manuel is repeated more
constantly and more passionately by the official French chronicler
of the Crusade, Odo of Deuil, and it has been echoed by western
historians, with few exceptions, to this day. 2 The misfortunes of the
Crusades did so much to embitter relations between western and
eastern Christendom that the accusation must be examined more
closely. Odo complains that the Byzantines provided insufficient
food-supplies for which they charged exorbitant prices, in
adequate transport and inefficient guides and, worst of all, that
they allied themselves with the Turks against their fellow-
Christians. The first charges are absurd. No medieval state, even
one so well organized as the Byzantine, possessed sufficient stocks
of food to be able to supply two exceptionally large armies which
had arrived uninvited at short notice; and when food is scarce, its
prices inevitably rise. That many local merchants and some
government officials tried to cheat the invaders is certain. Such
behaviour has never been a rare phenomenon in commerce,
particularly in the Middle Ages and in the East. It was unreason
able to expect Landolph to supply a sufficient number of ships for
a whole army at the little port of Attalia in mid-winter; nor could
the guides, whose advice was seldom taken, be blamed if they did
not know of the latest destruction of bridges or wells by the Turks,
or if they fled before the threats and hostility of the men that they
were conducting. The question of the Turkish alliance is more
serious, but it must be regarded from Manuel s viewpoint. Manuel
neither invited nor wished for the Crusade. He had good reasons
1 Odo of Deuil, pp. 76-80.
* Louis VII, letter to Suger, R.H.F. vol. xv, pp. 495-6; Odo of Deuil is
throughout hysterically anti-Greek.
274
1147-8 - Byzantine Policy during the Crusade
for deploring it. Byzantine diplomacy had learnt well by now
how to play off the various Moslem princes against each other and
thus to isolate each of them in turn. A well advertised expedition
like the Crusade would inevitably again bring together a united
front against Christendom. Moreover, for Byzantine strategy
against Islam it was essential to control Antioch. Byzantium had
at last won this control, when Prince Raymond made his abject
submission at Constantinople. The coming of a Crusade with his
niece and her husband at its head would inevitably tempt him to
throw offhis vassalage. The behaviour of the Crusaders when they
were guests in his territory was not such as to increase the Emperor s
liking for them. They pillaged; they attacked his police; they
ignored his requests about the routes that they should take; and
many of their prominent men talked openly of attacking Con
stantinople. Seen in such a light his treatment of them seems
generous and forbearing; and some of the Crusaders so recognized
it. But the westerners could not comprehend nor forgive his
treaty with the Turks. The broad needs of Byzantine policy were
beyond their grasp; and they chose to ignore, though they
certainly were aware of the fact, that while they demanded help
from the Emperor against the infidel his own lands were being
subjected to a venomous attack from another Christian power.
In the autumn of 1147 King Roger of Sicily captured the island of
Corfu and from there sent an army to raid the Greek peninsula.
Thebes was sacked, and thousands of its workers kidnapped to help
the nascent silk-industry of Palermo; and Corinth itself, the chief
fortress of the peninsula, was taken and bared of all its treasures.
Laden with spoil the Sicilian Normans fell back to Corfu, which
they planned to hold as a permanent threat to the Empire and
a stranglehold on the Adriatic Sea. It was the imminence of the
Norman attack that had decided Manuel to retire from Konya in
1146 and to accept the Sultan s overtures for peace next year. If
Manuel was to rank as a traitor to Christendom, King Roger
certainly took precedence over him.
The Byzantine army was large but not ubiquitous. The best
275
Christian Discord
troops were needed for the war against Roger. Then there were
rumours of unrest in the Russian Steppes, which was to result in
the summer of 1148 in a Polovtsian invasion of the Balkans. With
the Crusade at hand, Manuel could not denude his Cilician frontier
of men ; and the passage of the Crusaders through the Empire meant
that a large increase must be made in the military police. With
these preoccupations, the Emperor could not provide full frontier
forces to cover his long Anatolian borderlands. He preferred
a truce that would enable his Anatolian subjects to live their lives
free from the menace of Turkish raids. The Crusaders endangered
this truce. Conrad s march on Dorylaeum was a direct provoca
tion to the Turks; and Louis, though he kept within Byzantine
territory, publicly announced himself as the enemy of all Moslems
and refused the Emperor s request to remain within the radius
guarded by Byzantine garrisons. It is quite possible that Manuel,
faced by this problem, made an arrangement with the Turks by
which he condoned their incursions into his territory so long as
they only attacked the Crusaders, and that they kept to the bar
gain, thus giving the clear impression that they were in league with
the local inhabitants; to whom indeed it was indifferent whether
their flocks and foodstocks were stolen by Crusaders or by Turks,
and who under these circumstances would naturally prefer the
latter. 1 But it is impossible to believe with Odo of Deuil that they
definitely attacked the Crusaders at the Turks side. He makes this
accusation against the inhabitants of Attalia immediately after
saying that they were later punished by the Emperor for having
shown kindness to the Crusaders. z
The main responsibility for the disasters that befell the Crusaders
in Anatolia must be placed on their own follies. The Emperor
could indeed have done more to help them, but only at a grave
1 For ManueTs preoccupations at this time, see Chalandon. Michael the
Syrian repeats many of the Prankish accusations against the Greeks (m, p. 276).
But Moslem sources, e.g. Abu Shama, p. 54, say that Manuel made common
cause with the Franks.
2 Odo of Deuil, p. 79.
276
1147-8: The Role of the Emperor
risk to his Empire. But the real issue lay deeper. Was it to the
better interest of Christendom that there should be occasional
gallant expeditions to the East, led by a mixture of unwise idealists
and crude adventurers, to succour an intrusive state there whose
existence depended on Moslem disunity? Or that Byzantium,
who had been for so long the guardian of the eastern frontier,
should continue to play her part unembarrassed from the West?
The story of the Second Crusade showed even more clearly than
that of the First that the two policies were incompatible. When
Constantinople itself had fallen and the Turks were thundering at
the gates of Vienna, it would be possible to see which policy was
right.
277
CHAPTER III
FIASCO
* Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought. 9 ISAIAH vra, 10
When news arrived on 19 March. 1 148 that King Louis had landed
at Saint Symeon, Prince Raymond and all his household rode
down from Antioch to welcome him and escort him up to the
city. The next days were spent in feasting and merriment. The
gallant nobles of Antioch did their best to please the Queen of
France and the great ladies in her train; and in the cheerful
weather of the Syrian spring amid the luxuries of the Antiochene
Court the visitors forgot the hardships through which they had
passed. As soon as they had recovered Raymond began to discuss
with the French leaders plans for a campaign against the infidel.
Raymond hoped for great results from the coming of the Crusade.
His position was precarious. Nur ed-Din was established now
along the Christian frontier from Edessa to Hama and had spent
the autumn of 1147 picking off one by one the Prankish fortresses
east of the Orontes. Count Joscelin was fully occupied in holding
his own at Turbessel. If the Moslems were to attack Antioch in
force the only power that could help Raymond was Byzantium;
and the Byzantine troops might well arrive too late and would
anyhow insist on a tighter subservience. The French army, though
the accidents of the journey had reduced its infantry strength,
provided such formidable cavalry reinforcements that the Franks
of Antioch would be able to take the offensive. Raymond urged
upon the King that they should strike together at the heart of Nur
ed-Din s power, the city of Aleppo; and he induced many of the
French knights to join him in a preliminary reconnaissance up to
its walls, to the consternation of its inhabitants. 1
1 William of Tyre, xvi, 27, pp. 751-3 ; William of Nangis, i, p. 44.
278
1148: Louis and Eleanor at Antioch
But when it came to the point, King Louis hesitated. He said
that his Crusader vow obliged him first to go to Jerusalem before
he started on any campaign; but the excuse was made to veil his
indecision. All the princes of the Prankish East were demanding
his help. Count Joscelin hoped to use him for the recovery of
Edessa; for had not its fall set the whole Crusade in motion?
Raymond of Tripoli, claiming a cousin s right for his mother
had been a French princess sought his help for the recovery
of Montferrand. Then in April there arrived at Antioch the
Patriarch of Jerusalem himself, sent by the High Court of the
Kingdom to beg him to hasten south and to tell him that King
Conrad was already in the Holy Land. 1 In the end a purely
personal motive made up the King s mind for him. Queen
Eleanor was far more intelligent than her husband. She saw at
once the wisdom of Raymond s scheme; but her passionate and
outspoken support of her uncle only roused Louis s jealousy.
Tongues began to wag. The Queen and the Prince were seen too
often together. It was whispered that Raymond s affection was
more than avuncular. Louis, alarmed for his honour, announced
his immediate departure; whereat the Queen declared that she at
least would remain in Antioch, and would seek a divorce from her
husband. In reply Louis dragged his wife by force from her uncle s
palace and set out with all his troops for Jerusalem.*
King Conrad had landed at Acre with his chief princes in the
middle of April and had been given a cordial and honourable
reception at Jerusalem by Queen Melisende and her son. 3 Similar
honours were paid to King Louis on his entry into the Holy Land
a month later. Never had Jerusalem seen so brilliant an assembly
of knights and ladies. 4 But there were many notable absentees.
1 The Patriarch was Fulcher of Angouleme, former Archbishop of Tyre,
appointed by Melisende on the death of "William of Messines in 1147.
* William of Tyre, loc. cit. He calls Eleanor a fatuous woman but does
not suggest that she was unfaithful. The King s suspicions are reported by John
of Salisbury (Historia Pontificate, p. 53).
3 Ibid, xvi, 28, pp. 753-4; Otto of Freisingen, Gesta Friderid, pp. 88-9.
4 William of Tyre, xvi, 29, pp. 754-6-
279
Fiasco
Raymond of Antioch, furious at Louis s behaviour, washed his
hands of the whole Crusade. He could not in any case afford to
leave his hard-pressed principality for some adventure in the south.
Nor could Count Joscelin leave Turbessel. The Count of Tripoli s
absence was due to a sinister family tragedy. Amongst the
Crusaders to take the vow with King Louis at Vezelay had been
Alfonso-Jordan, Count of Toulouse. With his wife and his children
he had travelled by sea from Constantinople and landed at Acre
a few days after Conrad. His arrival with a strong contingent had
heartened the Franks in the East to whom he was a romantic
figure. For he was the son of the old Crusader Raymond of
Toulouse and he had been born in the East, at Mount Pilgrim,
while his father was besieging Tripoli. But his coming was an
embarrassment to the reigning Count of Tripoli, the grandson of
old Count Raymond s bastard son Bertrand. If Alfonso-Jordan
put in a claim to Tripoli, it would be hard to deny it; and it seems
that he liked to mention his rights. On his way up to Jerusalem
from Acre he paused at Caesarea, and there quite suddenly he died
in agony. It may have been some acute illness such as appendicitis
that caused his death; but everyone at once suspected poison, and
the dead man s son Bertrand openly accused his cousin Raymond
of Tripoli of instigating the murder. Others believed that the
culprit was Queen Melisende, acting at the behest of her beloved
sister, the Countess Hodierna, Raymond s wife. Nothing was
proven; but Raymond in his indignation at the charge abstained
from any dealing with the Crusade. 1
When all the Crusaders had arrived in Palestine Queen Meli
sende and King Baldwin invited them to attend a great assembly
to be held at Acre on 24 June 1 148. It was an impressive gathering.
The hosts were Kong Baldwin and the Patriarch Fulcher, with the
Archbishops of Caesarea and Nazareth, the Grand Masters of the
Temple and the Hospital, and the leading prelates and barons
of the kingdom. With Conrad were his half-brothers, Henry
1 William of Tyre, xvi, 28, p. 754; William of Nangis, i, p. 43, suggests
that Melisende was implicated indie murder.
280
1148: The Decision to attack Damascus
Jasimirgott of Austria, and Otto of Freisingen, his nephew,
Frederick of Swabia, Welf of Bavaria and many lesser princes.
Lorraine was represented by the Bishops of Metz and Toul.
With King Louis were his brother Robert of Dreux, his future
son-in-law Henry of Champagne, Thierry, Count of Flanders, as
well as the young Bertrand, Alfonso-Jordan s bastard. We do not
know what was the course of the debate nor who made the final
proposal. After some opposition the assembly decided to con
centrate all its strength on an attack against Damascus. 1
It was a decision of utter folly. Damascus would indeed be a rich
prize, and its possession by the Franks would entirely cut off the
Moslems of Egypt and Africa from their co-religionists in
northern Syria and the East. But of all the Moslem states the
Burid kingdom of Damascus alone was eager to remain in friend
ship with the Franks; for, like the farther-sighted among the
Franks, it recognized its chief foe to be Nur ed-Din. Prankish
interests lay in retaining Damascene friendship till Nur ed-Din
should be crushed, and to keep open the breach between Damascus
and Aleppo. To attack the former was, as the events of the
previous year had shown, the surest way to throw its rulers into
Nur ed-Din s hands. But the barons of Jerusalem coveted the
fertile lands that owed allegiance to Damascus, and they smarted
under the recollection of their recent humiliation, for which their
high-spirited young King must have longed for revenge. To the
visiting Crusaders Aleppo meant nothing, but Damascus was a
city hallowed in Holy Writ, whose rescue from the infidel would
resound to the glory of God. It is idle to try to apportion blame
for the decision; but a greater responsibility must lie with the local
barons, who knew the situation, than with the new-comers to
whom all Moslems were the same. 2
The Christian army, the greatest that the Franks had ever put
into the field, set out from Galilee through Banyas in the middle
1 William of Tyre, xvn, i, pp. 758-9; he gives a list of the ecclesiastical and
secular magnates present; Otto of Freisingen, Gesta Friderici, p. 89; Gesta
Ludovid pp. 403^4. 2 William t>f Tyre, loc. cit.
28l
Fiasco
of July. On Saturday, 24 July, it encamped on the edge of the
gardens and orchards that surrounded Damascus. The emir Unur
had not at first taken the news of the Crusade very seriously. He
had heard of its heavy losses in Anatolia, and in any case he had
not expected it to make Damascus its objective. When he dis
covered the truth he hastily ordered his provincial governors to
send him all the men that they could spare; and a messenger
hurried off to Aleppo, to ask for help from Nur ed-Din. The
Franks first halted at Manakil al-Asakir some four miles to the
south of the city, whose white walls and towers gleamed through
the thick foliage of the orchards ; but they moved quickly up to
the better watered village of al-Mizza. The Damascene army
attempted to hold them there but was forced to retire behind the
walls. On their victory the Crusader leaders sent the army of
Jerusalem into the orchards to clear them of guerrilla fighters. By
afternoon the orchards to the south of the city were in the posses
sion of the Franks, who were building palisades out of the trees
that they cut down. Next, thanks chiefly to Conrad s personal
bravery, they forced their way to Rabwa, on the river Barada,
right under the walls of the city. The citizens of Damascus thought
now that all was lost and began to barricade the streets ready for
the last desperate struggle. But next day the tide turned. The
reinforcements summoned by Unur began to pour in through the
north gates of the city and with their help he launched a counter
attack which drove the Christians back from the walls. He
repeated the attacks during the next two days, while guerrilla
fighters penetrated once more into the gardens and orchards. So
dangerous were their actions to the camp that Conrad, Louis and
Baldwin met together and decided to evacuate the orchards south
of the city and to move eastward, to encamp in a spot where the
enemy could find no such cover. On 27 July the whole army
moved to the plain outside the east wall. It was a disastrous
decision, for the new site lacked water and faced the strongest
section of the wall; and Damascene sally parties could now move
more freely about the orchards. Indeed, many of the Prankish
282
PLATE V
1148: Quarrels in the Christian Camp
soldiers believed that the Palestinian barons who advised the Kings
must have been bribed by Unur to suggest it. For with the move
the last chance of their taking Damascus vanished. Unur, whose
troops were increasing in number and who knew that Nur ed-Din
was on his way southward, renewed his attacks on the Prankish
camp. It was the Crusading army, not the beleaguered city, that
was now on the defensive. 1
While discouragement and murmurs of treachery passed
through the Christian army, its leaders openly quarrelled over the
future of Damascus when they should capture it. The barons of
the kingdom of Jerusalem expected Damascus to be incorporated
as a fief of the Kingdom, and had agreed that its lord should be
Guy Brisebarre, the lord of Beirut, whose candidature was, it
seems, confirmed by Queen Melisende and the Constable
Manasses. But Thierry of Flanders coveted Damascus, which he
wished to hold as a semi-independent fief, of the same type as
Tripoli. He won the support of Conrad and Louis, and of King
Baldwin, whose half-sister was his wife. The anger of the local
baronage when they learnt that the Kings favoured Thierry in
clined them to skcken their efforts. Those amongst them that had
always opposed the attack on Damascus won more converts.
Perhaps they were in secret touch with Unur. There were
whispers of vast sums, paid, it is true, in money that was found
to be counterfeit, passing between Damascus and the Court of
Jerusalem and EHnand, Prince of Galilee. Perhaps Unur told them
that if they retreated at once he would abandon his alliance with
Nur ed-Din. This argument, whether or no Unur made specific use
of it, undoubtedly swayed the nobles of the Kingdom. Nur ed-Din
was already at Horns, negotiating the terms of his aid to Unur.
His troops must, he demanded, be allowed entry into Damascus;
and Unur was playing for time. The Prankish army was in a difficult
position before Damascus. It could expect no reinforcements,
1 Wffliam of Tyre, xvn, 2-5, pp. 760-7; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 282-6; Abu
Shama, pp. 55-9; Usama, ed. Hitti, p. 124.
283
Fiasco
whereas in a few days Nur ed-Din s men could be in the field. If they
arrived, not only might the whole Crusading force be annihilated,
but Damascus would surely pass into Nur ed-Din s power. 1
The Palestinian barons were all now, too late, convinced of the
folly of continuing the war against Damascus ; and they pressed
their views on King Conrad and King Louis. The westerners were
shocked. They could not follow the subtle political arguments,
but they knew that without the help of the local Franks there was
little to be done. The Kings complained publicly of the disloyalty
that they had found amongst them and of their lack of fervour for
the cause. But they ordered the retreat. 2
At dawn on Wednesday, 28 July, the fifth day after their arrival
before Damascus, the Crusaders packed up their camp and began
to move back towards Galilee. Though Unur s money may have
bought their retreat, he did not let them depart in peace. All day
long, and during the next few days, Turcomen light horsemen
hung on their flanks, pouring arrows into their masses. The road
was littered with corpses, of men and of horses, whose stench
polluted the plain for many months to come. Early in August the
great expedition returned to Palestine and the local troops went
home. All that it had accomplished was to lose many of its men
and much of its material and to suffer a terrible humiliation. That
so splendid an army should have abandoned its objective after
only four days of fighting was a bitter blow to Christian prestige.
The legend of invincible knights from the West, built up during
1 William of Tyre, xvn, 6, pp. 767-8. Rey, Les Seigneurs de Barut , in
Revue de I Orient Latin, vol. rv, pp. 14-15, identifies the baronial candidate as
Guy of Beirut, from Assisses, n, p. 458. Michael the Syrian (m, p. 276) reports
the rumour of the money paid to King Baldwin and Elinand, which they
accepted for fear of Conrad s ambitions. Bar Hebraeus (trans. Budge, p. 274),
says that he does not find the story in any Arab writer. Ibn al-Qalanisi (p. 268)
says that the Franks were alarmed by the approach of Moslem armies. Ibn
al-Athir (pp. 469-70) says that Unur definitely warned the local Franks of it
and sowed dissension between them and the King of Germany.
2 William of Tyre, xvn, 7, pp. 768-70. The French translation inserts an
attack on the Pulani. Conrad casts the blame on the local baronage. See letter
in Wibaldt Epistolae, pp. 225-6.
284
1148: King Conrad leaves Palestine
the great adventure of the First Crusade, was utterly shattered.
The spirits of the Moslem world revived. 1
King Conrad did not linger in Palestine after the return from
Damascus. Together with his household he embarked from Acre
on 8 September on a ship bound for Thessalonica. When he
landed there he received a pressing invitation from Manuel to
spend Christmas at the imperial Court. There was now perfect
concord between the two monarchs. Though his young nephew
Frederick might continue to bear rancour against the Byzantines,
blaming them for the German losses in Anatolia, Conrad only
thought of the value of Manuel s alliance against Roger of Sicily
and he was captivated by Manuel s personal charm and his
delightful hospitality. During his visit the marriage of his brother,
Henry of Austria, to Manuel s niece Theodora was celebrated with
the greatest pomp. Shocked Byzantines wept to see the lovely
young princess sacrificed to so barbarous a fate immolated to
the beast of the West , as a court poet wrote sympathetically to her
mother but the wedding marked the complete reconciliation of
the German and Byzantine Courts. When Conrad left Constanti
nople in February 1149 to return to Germany an alliance had been
made between them against Roger of Sicily, whose lands on the
Italian peninsula it was proposed to divide.*
While Conrad enjoyed die comforts of Constantinople, King
Louis lingered on in Palestine. The abbot Suger wrote to him
again and again to beg him to come back to France; but he could
not make up his mind. Doubtless he wished to spend an Easter at
Jerusalem. His return would, he knew, be followed by a divorce
and all its political consequences. He sought to postpone the evil
day. In the meantime, while Conrad renewed his friendship with
1 William of Tyre, loc. dt.\ Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 286-7.
2 William of Tyre, xvn, 8, pp. 770-1 ; Cinnamus, pp. 87-8 ; Annales Pali-
denses, p. 83; Otto of Saint Blaise, p. 305; Otto of Freisingen, Gesta Friderid,
p. 96. A poem by Prodromus in honour of Theodora s marriage is given in
R.H.C. Grec. n, p. 772; but he refers to her being sacrificed to the beast of the
West* in a poem to her mother, ibid. p. 768.
285
Fiasco
Byzantium, Louis s resentment against the Emperor increased the
more he thought of it. He changed his policy, and sought the
alliance of Roger of Sicily. His quarrel with Raymond of Antioch
had removed the chief obstacle to this alliance, which would
enable him to gratify his hatred of Byzantium. At last in the early
summer of 1149 Louis left Palestine in a Sicilian ship, which soon
joined the Sicilian squadron cruising in eastern Mediterranean
waters. The Sicilian war against Byzantium was still in progress;
and as the fleet rounded the Peloponnese it was attacked by ships
of the Byzantine navy. King Louis hastily gave orders for the
French flag to be flown on his vessel and was therefore allowed
to sail on. But a ship containing many of his followers and his
possessions was captured and taken as a war-prize to Constanti
nople. Many months passed before the Emperor would agree to
send back the men and the goods to France. 1
Louis landed at Calabria at the end of July and was received
by King Roger at Potenza. The Sicilian at once suggested the
launching of a new Crusade whose first object should be to take
vengeance on Byzantium. Louis and his advisers readily agreed
and went on to France telling everyone as they went of the perfidy
of the Byzantines and the need to punish them. Pope Eugenius,
whom King Louis met at Tivoli, was lukewarm; but there were
many of his Curia who welcomed the scheme. Cardinal Theod-
win set about finding preachers to promote it. Peter the Venerable
lent his support. When Louis arrived in France he persuaded Suger
to agree; and, most important of all, Saint Bernard, puzzled by the
ways of Providence that had permitted his great Crusade to come
to so lamentable an end, greedily accepted Byzantium as the source
of all its disasters, and flung his whole energy into the task of
abetting divine vengeance on the guilty Empire. But, if the move
ment were to succeed, it must have the help of Conrad of Germany ;
and Conrad would not co-operate. He saw too clearly the hand
1 Cinnamus, p. 87; letter of Suger (Sugeri Opera, ed. de la March, pp. 258-60) ;
William of Nangis, i, p. 46. The ship containing Queen Eleanor was detained
for a while by the Byzantines (John of Salisbury, Historia Pontificate, p. 61).
286
- Bernard of Toulouse
of his enemy Roger and saw no reason to break his alliance with
Manuel in order to add to Roger s power. Vain appeals were made
to him by Cardinal Theodwin and by Peter the Venerable; and
Saint Bernard himself besought him and thundered at him in vain.
The last time that Conrad had taken the Saint s advice had been
over the Second Crusade. He was not to fall into the trap again.
With Conrad s refusal to help, the scheme had to be dropped.
The great betrayal of Christendom, urged by Saint Bernard, was
postponed for another half-century. 1
Only one of the princes of the Second Crusade remained on in
the East; and his sojourn was involuntary. The young Bernard
of Toulouse, Count Alfonso s bastard son, could not endure to
see the rich inheritance of Tripoli remain in the hands of a cousin
whom he suspected as his father s murderer. He stayed on in
Palestine till King Louis left, then marched his men of Languedoc
northward, as though he intended to embark from some north
Syrian port. After passing across the plain where the Buqaia opens
out towards the sea, he suddenly turned inward and seized the
castle of Araima. There he defied the troops that Count Raymond
sent from Tripoli to dislodge him. It was a well-placed eyrie, for
it dominated the roads from Tripoli to Tortosa and from Tripoli
inland up the Buqaia. Count Raymond found no sympathy
amongst his fellow-Christian princes, so he sent to Damascus for
help from Unur. Unur responded gladly and invited Nur ed-Din
to join him. He could thus show his willingness to co-operate
with Nur ed-Din against the Christians without damaging his
attempt to restore good relations with the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Indeed, he would gratify Queen Melisende by helping her brother-
in-law. The two Moslem princes descended on Araima, which was
unable to hold out long against so great a host. The Moslem victors
razed the castle to the ground, after sacking it completely. They th en
1 For a summary of these negotiations, see Bernhardi, op. cit. p. 810, and
Vacandard, op. cit. II, pp. 425-8. The letters of St Bernard and Theodwin
advocating an anti-Greek Crusade are lost but their sense is to be found in
a letter of Wibald (no. 252, p. 377).
287
Fiasco
left it for Count Raymond to reoccupy and retired with a long
string of captives. Bertrand and his sister fell to Nur ed-Din s
share. He took them to Aleppo where they were to spend twelve
years in captivity. 1
It was a fitting end to the Second Crusade that its last Crusader
should be held captive by the Moslem alhes of the fellow-Christian
prince whom he had tried to despoil. No medieval enterprise
started with more splendid hopes. Planned by the Pope, preached
and.inspired by the golden eloquence of Saint Bernard, and led by
the two chief potentates of western Europe, it had promised so
much for the glory and salvation of Christendom. But when it
reached its ignominious end in the weary retreat from Damascus,
all that it had achieved had been to embitter the relations between
the western Christians and the Byzantines almost to breaking-
point, to sow suspicions between the newly-come Crusaders and
the Franks resident in the East, to separate the western Prankish
princes from each other, to draw the Moslems closer together, and
to do deadly damage to the reputation of the Franks for military
prowess. The Frenchmen might seek to throw the blame for the
fiasco on others, on the perfidious Emperor Manuel or on the
lukewarm Palestinian barons, and Saint Bernard might thunder
against the wicked men who interfered with God s purpose; but
in fact the Crusade was brought to nothing by its leaders, with
their truculence, their ignorance and their ineffectual folly.
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 287-8; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 470-1, and Atabegs, p. 162;
Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, p. 517. According to Prankish legend Bertrand s
sister married Nur ed-Din and was the mother of his heir as-Salih (Robert of
Torigny, n, p. 53).
288
BOOK IV
THE TURN OF THE TIDE
CHAPTER I
LIFE IN OUTREMER
* Ye ... have done after the manners of the heathen that are.
round about you. EZEKIEL xi, 12
The failure of the Second Crusade marked a turning-point in the
story of Outremer. The fall of Edessa completed the first stage
in the renascence of Iskm; and the gains of Iskm were confirmed
by the pitiful collapse of the great expedition that was to have
restored Prankish supremacy.
Amongst the chief reasons for this failure had been the difference
in habits and outlook between the Franks resident in the East and
their cousins from the West. It was a shock for the Crusaders to
discover in Palestine a society whose members had in the course
of a generation altered their way of life. They spoke a French
dialect; they were faithful adherents of the Latin Church, and
their government followed the customs that we call feudal. But
these superficial likenesses only made the divergences more
puzzling to the newcomers.
Had the colonists been more numerous they might have been
able to keep up their occidental ways. But they were a tiny
minority in a land whose climate and mode of life was strange to
them. Actual numbers can only be conjectural; but it seems that
at no time were there as many as a thousand barons and knights
permanently resident in the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Their non-
combatant relatives, women and old men, cannot have numbered
much more than another thousand. Many children were born,
but few survived. That is to say, apart from the clergy, who
numbered a few hundreds, and the knights of the Military
Orders, there can only have been fiom two to three thousand
291 *9-2
Life in Outremer
adult members of the Prankish, upper classes. 1 The combined
population of the knightly classes in the Principality of Antioch
and the counties of Tripoli and Edessa was probably about
the same.* These classes remained on the whole racially pure. In
Edessa and Antioch there was some intermarriage with the local
Greek and Armenian aristocracy; both Baldwin I and Baldwin II
had, when Counts of Edessa, married Armenian wives of the
Orthodox persuasion, and we are told that some of their nobles
followed their example. Joscelin I s wife and the wife of Waleran
of Birejik were Armenians of the separated Church. But farther
south there was no local Christian aristocracy; the only eastern
element was the Armenian blood in the royal family and the house
of Courtenay and, later, the descendants, royal and Ibelin, of the
Byzantine Queen, Maria Comnena. 3
The ckss of the sergeants was more numerous. The sergeants
were in origin the folly armed infantry of Prankish stock, who
settled on the lords fiefs. As they had no pride of bkth to main
tain, they married with the native Christians; and by 1150 they
were beginning to form a class of poulains already merging with
the native Christians. By 1180 the number of sergeants was
estimated at little more than 5000; but we cannot tell what
proportion remained of pure Prankish blood. The sodeers or
mercenary soldiers probably also claimed some Prankish descent.
The Turcopoles , raised locally and armed and trained after
1 The great army that was defeated at Hattin probably had 1200 knights, of
which 300 were Templars, and probably nearly as many Hospitallers. The lay
barons and knights cannot have been more than 700, yet every available knight
was present. Only two remained at Jerusalem. This army included a few
knights from Tripoli or Antioch. A certain number of knights had recently
left the kingdom with Baldwin of Ibelin. See below, pp. 454, 464. John of
Ibelin estimates that in Baldwin IV s time the kingdom could raise 577 knights
apart from the Orders and 5025 sergeants (Ibelin, pp. 422-7).
2 Figures for Antioch and Tripoli can only be conjectured. Edessa probably
never contained more than 100 noble and knightly Prankish families. The
County of Tripoli contained perhaps 200 and Antioch considerably more. In
mi Turbessel is said by Albert of Aix (33, 40-1, pp. 182-3) to have provided
100 knights and Edessa 200, but many of these must have been Armenians.
3 See below, genealogical trees.
292
The Turcopoks
the model of the Byzantine light cavalry, whose name they
took, consisted partly of native Christians and converts and
partly of half-castes. There was perhaps a difference between the
tefilwfM
I ? - -c - /:*" _rJT. ZKt ^^ *1^". ^" ^L W&F I ^ *- - >> 5-
rl ?^ Ce S lum - !7 ^^ k^4<-^ % ^
I \ ^iv-^^ r !S\ T ^ *****
^ \^ f /S/fa$\\\W* Tale of Gehenna f " ]jr<s **n f ,
Map 4. Jerusalem under die Latin Kings,
half-castes who spoke their fathers tongue and those that spoke
their mothers . The Turcopoles were probably drawn from the
latter. 1
1 See La Monte, Feudal Monarchy, pp. 160-2; Munro, The Kingdom of the
Crusaders, pp. 106-7, 120-1.
293
Life in Outremer
Except in the larger towns, the settlers were almost all of French
origin; and the language spoken in the kingdom of Jerusalem and
the principality of Antioch was the langue d ceil, familiar to the
northern French and the Normans. In the County of Tripoli, with
its Toulousain background, the langue d ocwzs probably employed
at first. The German pilgrim, John of Wurzburg, who visited
Jerusalem in about 1175, was vexed to find that the Germans
played no part in Prankish society, although, as he claimed,
Godfrey and Baldwin I had been of German origin. He was
delighted when at last he found a religious establishment staffed
exclusively by Germans. 1
The towns contained considerable Italian colonies. The Venetians
and the Genoese each possessed streets in Jerusalem itself. There
were Genoese establishments, guaranteed by treaty, in Jaffa, Acre,
Caesarea, Arsuf, Tyre, Beirut, Tripoli, Jebail, Lattakieh, Saint
Symeon and Antioch, and Venetian establishments in the larger
of these towns. The Pisans had colonies in Tyre, Acre, Tripoli,
Botrun, Lattakieh and Antioch, the Amalfitans in Acre and
Lattakieh. These were all self-governing communes, whose
citizens spoke Italian and did not mingle socially with their
neighbours. Akin to them were the establishments owned by
Marseille in Acre, Jaffa, Tyre and Jebail, and by Barcelona in
Tyre. Except in Acre, these merchant colonies numbered none of
them more than a few hundred persons. 2
The vast majority of the population was composed of native
Christians. In the kingdom of Jerusalem these were of mixed
origin, most Arabic-speaking, and carelessly known as Christian
Arabs, almost all members of the Orthodox Church. In the
County of Tripoli some of the inhabitants were members of the
Monothelete sect called the Maronites. Farther north the in-
1 John of Wurzburg (P.T.T.S. vol. v), passim.
2 Cahen, Notes sur 1 histoire des Croisades: III, Orient Latin et commerce
du Levant , in Bulletin de la Faculte des Lettres de Strasbourg, 29me anne e, no. 7,
points out that the trade activities of the Italians during the twelfth century
were mainly concentrated on Egypt and Constantinople. The Syrian coastal
ports were far less important to them.
294
Native Christians, Moslems and jews
digenous inhabitants were mostly Monophysites of the Jacobite
Church, but there were very large colonies of Armenians, almost
all of the Separated Armenian Church, and, in Antioch, Lattakieh
and Cilicia, considerable groups of Greek-speaking Orthodox.
In addition there were in the Holy Land religious colonies of every
Christian denomination. The monasteries were mainly Orthodox
and Greek-speaking; but there were also Orthodox Georgian
establishments, and, especially in Jerusalem itself, colonies of
Monophysites, both Egyptian and Ethiopian Copts and Syrian
Jacobites, and a few Latin groups who had settled there before the
Crusades. 1 Many Moslem communities had emigrated when the
Christian kingdom was set up. But there were still Moslem
villages round Nablus; 2 and the population of many districts that
were conquered later by the Franks remained Moslem. In
northern Galilee, along the road from Banyas to Acre, the
peasants were almost exclusively Moslem. Farther north, in the
Buqaia, the Nosairi mountains and the Orontes valley there were
heretical Moslem sects acknowledging Prankish rule. 3 Along the
southern frontier and in Oultrejourdain there were nomad
Bedouin tribes. Massacres and the fear of massacre had greatly
reduced the number of Jews in Palestine and Christian Syria.
Benjamin of Tudela was distressed to see how small their colonies
were when he visited the country in about nyo. 4 In Damascus
alone they were more numerous than in all the Christian states. 5
But at some time during the twelfth century they purchased the
monopoly of dye-making from the Crown; and glass manu-
1 There is little direct evidence about the native Christians in Palestine
during the twelfth century. See below, pp. 3*9-23, and Key, Les Colonies
Franques, pp. 75-94. See Gerulli, Etiopi in Pakstina, pp. 8 f, for Copts and
Ahyssinians .
* The Moslems round Nablus caused alarm to the Franks after Hattin
(Abu Shama, p. 302); Ibn Jubayr, ed. Wright, pp. 304-?, for the Moslems in
and round Acre.
3 See Cahen, La Syrie du Nord, pp. 170 ff. Burchard of Mt Sibn refers to the
various Moslem sects in northern Syria (P.T.T.S. vol. xn, p. 18).
4 Benjamin of Tudela, ed. Adler, Hebrew text, pp. 26-47-
5 Ibid. pp. 47-8.
295
Life in Outremer
facture was largely in their hands. 1 A small Samaritan community
lived on at Nablus. 2
These various communities formed the basis of the Prankish
states; and their new masters did little to disturb them. Where
natives could prove their title to lands they were allowed to keep
them; but in Palestine and Tripoli, with the exception of estates
owned by the native churches, the landowners had almost all been
Moslems who had emigrated as a result of the Prankish conquest,
leaving large territories in which the new rulers could install their
compatriot vassals. It seems that there were no free villages left,
such as had existed in earlier Byzantine times. Each village com
munity was tied to the knd and paid a portion of its produce to
the lord. But there was no uniformity about this proportion.
Over the greater part of the country where the villagers followed
a simple mixed agriculture the lord probably expected enough
produce to feed his household and his poulains and Turcopoles who
lived grouped round the castle; for the native peasant was not
fitted to be a soldier himself. In the rich plains agriculture was run
on a more commercial basis. Orchards, vineyards and above all
sugar-cane plantations were exploited by the lord, and the peasant
probably worked for little more than his keep. Except in the
lord s household there was no skve labour, though Moslem
prisoners might temporarily be used on the King s or the great
lords estates. The villagers dealings with their lord were con
ducted through their headman, called sometimes by the Arabic
name ofrais, sometimes by a latinized form regulus. On his side
the lord employed a compatriot as his factor or drogmannus
(dragoman), an Arabic-speaking secretary who could keep the
records. 3
1 Benjamin of Tudela, ed. Adler, Hebrew text, p. 35 (dye-monopoly at
Jerusalem). Jews made glass at Antioch and Tyre. Ibid. pp. 26-47.
2 Ibid. pp. 33-4, 1000 families according to Benjamin, who found others at
Caesarea and Ascalon (pp. 32, 44).
3 See Cahen, Notes sur Fhistoire des Croisades. II, Le R6gime rural Syrien
au temps de la domination franque , in Bulletin de la Faculte des lettres de
Strasbourg, 2pme annee, no. 7, an invaluable study of this very obscure question.
296
The Fiefs of the Kingdom
Though there was little change in the lives of the peasants, the
kingdom of Jerusalem was superficially reorganized according to
the pattern of fiefs that we call feudal . The royal domain con
sisted of the three cities of Jerusalem, Acre and Nablus and, later,
the frontier town of Daron, and the territory around them. It
had occupied a larger proportion of the kingdom, tut the first
kings and especially Queen Melisende were lavish in the gifts of
land that they -made to friends and to the Church and the religious
Orders. Further portions might be temporarily alienated as
dowers for widowed queens. The four chief fiefs of the kingdom
were the County of Jaffa, usually reserved for a cadet of the royal
house; the principality of Galilee, which owed its grandiose title
to Tancred s ambition; the Seigneurie of Sidon; and the Seigneurie
of Oultrejourdain. The holders of these fiefs seem to have had
their own high officers in imitation of the King s. So also did the
Lord of Caesarea, whose fief was almost as important, though it
ranked with the twelve secondary fiefs. After Baldwin II s reign
tenure was based on hereditary right, females succeeding in default
of the direct male line. A tenant could only be evicted by a
decision of the High Court after some gross misdemeanour. But
he owed the King, or his superior lord, a fixed number of soldiers
whenever it was required of him; and it seems that there was no
time-limit to their service. The Count of Jaffa, the Lord of Sidon
and the Prince of Galilee owed a hundred fully armed knights,
and the Lord of Oultrejourdain sixty. 1
The size of the fiefs was variable. The secular fiefs had been set
up by conquest and formed solid blocks of land. But the estates
of the Church and the Military Orders, which had grown chiefly
through charitable gifts and bequests or, in the case of the Orders,
from strategical convenience, were scattered throughout the
Prankish territories. The unit in which estates were measured was
the village, or cased, or, very rarely, a half or a third of a village;
but villages also varied in size. Round Safed, in northern Galilee,
they seem to have averaged only forty male inhabitants, but we
1 La Monte, Feudal Monarchy, pp. 138-65; Rey, op. dt. pp. 1-56, 109-64.
297
Life in Outremer
hear of larger villages round Nazareth, and smaller villages round
Tyre, where, however, the general population was thicker. 1
Many of the lay-lords also owned money-fiefs. That is to say,
they were granted a fixed money revenue from certain towns and
villages and in return had to provide soldiers in proportionate
numbers. These grants were heritable and almost impossible for
the King to annul. 2 As with the landed fiefs he could only hope
that the possessor would die without heirs, or at least with only
a daughter, for whom he had the right to choose a husband or
to insist on the choice of a husband out of the three candidates that
he proposed. 3
The royal cities were obliged to produce soldiers, according to
their wealth. Jerusalem was scheduled for sixty-one, Nablus for
seventy-five and Acre for eighty. But they were provided not by
the bourgeoisie but by the nobility resident in the city, or owners
of house-property there. The leading ecclesiastics also owed
soldiers in respect of their landed estates or house-property. The
bourgeoisie paid its contribution to the government in money
taxes. Regular taxes were levied on ports and exports, on sales
and purchases, on anchorage, on pilgrims, on the use of weights
and measures. There was also the terraticum, a tax on bourgeois
property, of which little is known. In addition there might be a
special levy to pay for some campaign. In 1166 non-combatants
had to pay ten per cent on the value of their movables; and in
1183 there was a capital levy of one per cent on property and
debts from the whole population, combined with two per cent
on income from the ecclesiastical foundations and the baronage.
Beside the produce that their villages had to provide, every
peasant owed a personal capitation-tax to his lord; and Moslem
1 Cahen, op. dt. pp, 291-8.
3 La Monte, op. dt. pp. 144-51.
3 The assize allowing the heiress to choose one of three husbands suggested
hy the King is dated by Grandclaude, Liste d Assises de Jerusalem , in Melanges
Paul Fournier, p. 340, after 1177. But Baldwin HI offered Constance of Antioch
the choice of three suitors in 1150. He could not, however, force her to accept
any of them (see below, p. 331).
298
The Constitution
subjects were liable to a tithe or dime which, went to the Church.
The Latin hierarchs continually tried to extend the dime to apply
to Christians belonging to the heretic churches. They did not
succeed, though they forced King Amalric to refuse an offer made
by the Armenian prince Thoros II to send colonists to the depopu
lated districts of Palestine by their insistence that they should pay
the dime. 1 But even with the dime the Moslems found the general
level of taxation lower under the Franks than under neighbouring
Moslem lords. Nor were Moslems excluded from minor govern
mental posts. They, as well as Christians, could be employed as
customs-officers and tax-collectors. 2
It is impossible to give a precise account of the constitution of
the Prankish states because at no moment was there a fixed consti
tution. Customs developed or were modified by particular pro
nouncements. When later lawyers produced such compilations as
the Livre au Roi or the Assises de Jerusalem, they were attempting
to find out where definite decisions had altered accepted custom
rather than to lay down an established governmental code. There
were local variants. The Prince of Antioch and the Counts of
Edessa and Tripoli normally had little trouble from their vassals.
The King of Jerusalem was in a weaker position. He was the
Lord s Anointed, the accepted head of the Franks in the East, with
no rival after Baldwin I had demolished the pretensions of the
Patriarchate. But, while the lords of Antioch and Tripoli could
hand on their power by the accepted rules of hereditary succession,
the kingship was elective. Public feeling might support a heredi
tary claim. In 1174 Baldwin IV was accepted without question
to succeed his father, though he was only thirteen years old and
a leper. But the confirmation by election was needed. Sometimes
the electors made their terms, as when Amalric I was obliged to
divorce his wife Agnes before they would allow him the crown.
When the natural heir was a woman there were further complica
tions. Her husband might be elected as King; but it seems that he
1 Caken, op. cit. pp. 299-302. The offer of Thoros is reported by Ernoul,
pp. 27-30. 2 Ibn Jubayr, ei Wrigkt, p. 305-
299
Life in Outremer
was regarded as deriving his rights through her. In the case of
Queen Melisende and her son Baldwin III no one quite knew what
was the juridical position; and the whole constitutional problem
was disastrously illustrated after Baldwin V s death in H86. 1
The King was at the apex of the social pyramid, but it was a low
apex. As the Lord s Annointed he commanded some prestige. It
was high treason to do him an injury. He presided at the High
Court, and he was commander-in-chief of the forces of the realm.
He was responsible for the central administration and he appointed
its officials. As his vassals suzerain he could prevent them from
alienating their lands, and he could choose husbands for their
heiresses. Having no superior lord to consider, he could make
grants as he pleased from his own domain, though, like his nobles
when they alienated lands, he usually associated his wife and
children in the grant, lest there should be some later complaint over
the widow s dower or the son s inheritance. But there the royal
power ended. The royal revenues were restricted and were
reduced by over generous gifts. The King was always short of
money. He was at die head of the kingdom but he was under the
kw of the kingdom; and the law was represented by the High
Court. The High Court consisted of the tenants-in-chief of the
realm, the lords who owed allegiance direct to the Crown.
Leading ecclesiastics attended in virtue of their knded holdings,
and foreign communities who possessed land in the kingdom,
such as the Venetians or Genoese, sent representatives. Dis
tinguished visitors might be invited to be present, though they
did not form part of the Court and had no vote in it. 2
The High Court was fundamentally a court of law. As such it
had two main functions. First, it had to elucidate what was the
kw on particular points. This meant that it passed legislation; for
each assise was in theory merely a statement of the law, but in fact
was also the definition of a new kw. Secondly, it tried those of
1 La Monte, op. dt. pp. 87-137, passim. See above, p. 233, and below,
pp. 334, 443.
a Ibid. pp. 87-104.
300
The High Court
its members who were guilty of crime and. heard cases that they
might bring against each other. Trial by peers was an essential
feature of Prankish custom; and the King ranked with his tenant-
in-chief as primus inter pares, their president but not their master.
The theory behind it was that the kingdom had not been conquered
by a king but by a company of peers who then elected their king.
This theory justified the Court in electing subsequent kings and,
in the case of a minority or the King s captivity, a regent or bailli.
The High Court was also consulted on major matters of policy;
this was an inevitable development, for without the co-operation
of his vassals the King would seldom have been able to carry out
his policy. In 1166 the High Court was enlarged to include
tfm ^re-vassals, as part of Amalric I s scheme to find support for the
Crown against the chief vassals. In 1162 he had obliged the Court
to pass an assise allowing ^mere-vassals to appeal against their lords
to the High Court, and if the lord refused to answer the summons
his tenants could put themselves under the Crown. Though this
law provided the King with a useful weapon against the nobility,
in the long run it merely added to the power of the High Court
and could be used against the King. The Court seems to have
heard cases carefully and conscientiously, though the result of
trial by battle was accepted as proof. It had no fixed seat but could
be summoned by the King wherever was convenient. During the
First Kingdom this was usually at Jerusalem or at Acre. The nobles,
in their desire to attend, began to neglect their fiefs and to
establish residences in either city. 1 But their power as a collective
body was weakened by their perpetual quarrels and family feuds,
which were intensified and complicated as time went on and
almost all the noble houses were connected by intermarriage.
In accordance with the principle of trial by peers, non-noble
Prankish settlers had their own cours des bourgeois. These Bourgeois
Courts were to be found in every large city. Their president was
always the Viscount of the city. There were twelve jurors to each
1 Ibid. pp. 106-113. Usama gives instances of trial by single combat and by
water (ed. Him, pp. 167-9).
301
Life in Outremer
Court, chosen by the lord from his free-born Latin subjects. They
acted as judges, though a litigant could engage one of them as
counsel. In this case the counsel-juror took no part in the verdict.
Jurors were also required to witness any deed or charter made in
court. Unlike the practice in the High Court, careful records were
kept of all proceedings. The Bourgeois Courts met regularly on
Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, except on feast-days. A case
between a noble and a bourgeois was held before the Bourgeois
Court. The Bourgeois Court admitted the ordeal by battle and the
ordeal by water. 1
The native communities had at first their own courts for petty
cases, under the presidency of the local headman, appointed by the
Viscount, where their customary law applied. But during King
Almaric Ts reign a Cour de la Fonde was instituted in each of the
thirty-three chief market towns. This dealt with commercial
questions and took over all cases, even criminal, that involved the
native population. It was under a bailli appointed by the local lord
and six jurors, two Franks and four natives. Native litigants took
the oath each on his own holy book. Moslems could use the Koran ;
and Moslem visitors admired the fairness of the proceedings. The
Cour de la Fonde also registered sales and gifts of all property other
than real and was an office for the collection of purchase taxes.
There was a right of appeal to the Bourgeois Court whose general
procedure it copied. Amalric also set up a Cour de la Chaine in all
maritime cities, to cover cases to do with shipping and to be a
registry of customs and anchorage dues. Its jurors were drawn
from merchants and sailors. In addition, the Italian and Provencal
commercial communities had their own consular courts for their
internal affairs. The chief feudatories had their own courts baron
to deal with disputes between their knightly vassals. There were
twenty-two of them, as well as four for the King s domain. Each
of these many courts had its clearly defined sphere; but where a
case involved litigants of different rank, it was heard in the Court
appropriate to the inferior. 2
1 La Monte, op. dt. pp. 105-8. 2 Ibid. pp. 108-9.
302
The Administration
Owing to the medieval concept of kw which demanded specific
laws only when the need arose to define a particular point, the
legislative activity of the government seems arbitrary and fitful.
Of the laws given in the thirteenth-century Assises de Jerusalem it
is probable that six date from Duke Godfrey s time and another
nineteen, of which eleven can be roughly dated, from the period
up to 1 1 87.*
The administration was in the hands of the chief officers of the
household, who were chosen from the tenants-in-chief of the
kingdom. First in precedence came the Seneschal. He was master
of ceremonies, and as such he carried the sceptre before the King
at the coronation; and he was head of the civil service. In parti
cular he was in charge of the treasury, the Secrete, the office into
which moneys due to the Crown were paid and from which
salaries were taken, and which kept a register of all financial
dealings in which the government was involved. The Secrete was
a loosely organized bureau, which the Franks took over from the
Arabs who in their turn had taken it from the Byzantines. Next after
the Seneschal came the Constable, who was greater in actual power.
He was head of the Army, under the King, and was responsible
for all its organization and administration. At the coronation he
carried the King s banner and held the Kong s horse, which became
his perquisite. He was responsible for military supplies and military
justice. Mercenaries, whether hired by the King or by a lord, were
under his special jurisdiction and he saw to it that they were paid
properly. If the King or his bailli were absent from a campaign,
he had complete control of the expedition. He was assisted by the
Marshal, who was his lieutenant in everything. The Chamberlain
was in charge of the King s personal household and finances. On
ceremonial occasions he acted as chief Lord-in-Waiting. His was
1 Grandclaude, op. dt. pp. 322 ff., gives a list of the assizes that can be assigned
to the period 1099-1187. He assigns six to Godfrey s rule and eleven to the
Kings from Baldwin I to Baldwin IV (though one ordering the sale of fiefs
without heirs to pay for the King s ransom is believed by him to postdate Guy s
capture at Hattin. It might, however, refer to Baldwin If s captivity). There
are also eight to which no precise date can be given.
303
Life in Outremer
a profitable office, as vassals paying homage were expected to make
a gift to him. Certain lands were assigned to the office; but in 1179
the Chamberlain John of Bellesme sold them without apparently
causing offence to the King. The functions of the Butler are
unknown. His duties were probably purely ceremonial. The
Chancellor, as in the West, was always an ecclesiastic, though he
was not, as often in the West, the royal chaplain. As head of the
chancery, it was his business to draw up and register all charters
and to fix the royal seal on them. The chancery remained a records
office. As there was no royal justice nor common law, it was never
required to issue writs nor set up its own court. Its records seem to
have been well kept, though few have survived. The language of
the chancery in the twelfth century was Latin. The dating was by
the anno Domini and the Roman Indiction, with sometimes the
regnal year or the year from the capture of Jerusalem added. The
year began at Christmas. The Kings numbered themselves from
Baldwin I, regardless of their names. Their title did not at first
follow a fixed formula but was eventually standardized as per Dei
gratiam in sancta civitate Jerusalem Latinorum Rex . 1
The chief local official was the Viscount, who represented the
King in the royal cities and the lord in the baronial cities. He
collected local taxes and transmitted them to the treasury after
taking out what he needed for the expenses of local government.
He was responsible for the local law-courts and for keeping order
generally in his city. He was chosen from a noble family, but his
post was not hereditary. His second in command was known by
the Arabic title of mathesep, or sometimes the Master-Sergeant,
who had originally been the official responsible for marketing
regulations. 11
The King of Jerusalem claimed suzerainty over all the Prankish
states in the East and considered that he was entitled to demand
their rulers to send troops to join him on his expeditions. In fact
the suzerainty existed only when the King was strong enough to
1 La Monte, op. clt. pp. 114-37, the best summary of the functions of the
Officers of State. a Hid. pp. 135-6, 167-8,
304
The Vassal States
enforce it, and even in theory neither Antioch nor Tripoli was
considered to be part of the kingdom. The earlier kings achieved
a personal suzerainty over Tripoli. Count Bertrand paid homage
to Baldwin I for his lands in 1109. Count Pons endeavoured to
renounce his allegiance to Baldwin II in 1122 but was forced to
submit by his own High Court. In 113 1 he refused to allow King
Fulk to pass through his lands but was punished by the King and
forced again into submission. From 1164 to 1171 King Amalric
was regent of Tripoli for the child Count Raymond III, but this
was probably as the boy s nearest male relative rather than as his
overlord. Raymond III, when he grew up, never admitted the
suzerainty, though he was the King s vassal in respect of his wife s
principality of Galilee. During the campaign of 1187 in which he
took part as Prince of Galilee his County of Tripoli deckred itself
neutral. With the County of Edessa the Kings had a personal bond.
Baldwin I, when he appointed Baldwin II to succeed him there,
took from him an oath of vassaldom, and Baldwin II followed his
example with Joscelin of Courtenay. But Joscelin in his later days
acknowledged the Prince of Antioch also as his overlord. Antioch
was in a different position, Bohemond I admitted no one as his
suzerain; nor did die regents Tancred and Roger, both of them
appointed by the High Court of the Principality. Baldwin II
acted as regent for the young prince Bohemond II from 1119 to
1 126, but, it seems, not by legal right but by invitation of the High
Court. He was invited again in 1131, with the additional reason
that he was grandfather to the young Princess Constance, whose
interests appeared to the Court to be endangered by her mother
Alice. After his death, when Alice once again tried to seize power,
the High Court invited King Fulk to take over the regency in his
place. But here again the King was the young Princess s nearest
male relative, as the husband of her aunt. Had there been in the
East a male member of the house of Hauteville he would have
been selected. Similarly when the King chose a husband for the
Princess he was acting at the request of the High Court and not
as suzerain. Baldwin II had asked the King of France to select
RC 305 ao
Life in Outremer
a husband for his heiress Melisende, without any suggestion that
he accepted French suzerainty. When the time came for Constance
to take a second husband she made her own choice as a sovereign
princess. If she asked permission from King Baldwin III it was
because her chosen husband Reynold was his vassal. In 1160 the
Antiochenes invited Baldwin II to take over the regency ; but here
again the King was their young Prince s nearest male relative. The
legal position was never clearly defined. Probably the Prince of
Antioch regarded the King of Jerusalem as his senior but not as
his superior. 1
Antioch was also distinct from Tripoli and Edessa in its govern
mental system. Of the Edessene we know little. Such charters as
the Count may have issued are lost. Presumably he had a court
of his vassals like any great feudal lord; but the position of the
county on the very outpost of Christendom prevented any
constitutional development. He lived more like one of the
Turkish emirs who surrounded him. The Prankish colonists were
few, and there were few great fiefs. The Count depended largely
on Armenian officials trained in Byzantine methods. Almost
perpetual warfare compelled him to act more autocratically than
would have been allowed in a more tranquil land. The constitu
tion of the County of Tripoli seems to have resembled that of
Jerusalem. The Count had his High Court by whose rulings he was
bound. But his title was hereditary not elective, and his personal
domains were far larger than those of any of his vassals. Except on
one or two grave matters of policy, as when Pons defied the King
of Jerusalem, the Count had little trouble from his barons, who,
with the exception of the Genoese lords of Jebail, were descended
from his ancestors Toulousain vassals. The chief officials of the
Court had the same titles and functions as those of Jerusalem. The
towns were similarly administered by viscounts.*
1 La Monte, pp. 187-202. See also Cahen, La Syne du Nord, pp. 436-7.
Bohemond n was, however, Amalric Ts vassal because of a money-fief that he
held at Acre.
a La Monte, op. cit., loc. cit.; Richard, La Comtede Tripoli, pp. 30-43.
306
The Principality of Antioch
In the principality of Antioch the institutions superficially
resembled those of the kingdom of Jerusalem. There was a High
Court and a Bourgeois Court and the same high officials. Antioch
had its own Assises, but their general tenour conformed with that
of the Assises of Jerusalem. Under the surface there were, how
ever, many differences. The princely title was hereditary, and the
High Court only intervened to appoint a regent if need be. The
Prince from the outset kept in his own hands the chief towns of the
principality and much of its lands and was chary of making grants
of territory except in frontier districts. The money-fief suited him
better. It seems that jurors appointed by the Prince sat in the High
Court and his personal representatives controlled the Bourgeois
Courts. For the administration of the towns and the princely
domain, the Prince took over the Byzantine system with its
competent bureaucracy and its careful means for raising taxes.
Antioch, Lattakieh and Jabak had each its Duke, who was in
complete charge of the municipality. He was appointed by the
Prince and could be dismissed at his pleasure; but during his period
of office he seems to have sat in the High Court. The Dukes of
Lattakieh and Jabala were often drawn from the native popula
tion. The Duke of Antioch was of noble Prankish birth but was
aided by a viscount who might be a native. Like their cousins in
Sicily, the Princes of Antioch strengthened themselves against
the nobility by making use of native-born officials who were
entirely dependent upon the princely favour. They had found in
Antioch an educated local society, Greek, Syrian and Armenian
in origin, surviving from Byzantine times. A further control of
the High Court was secured by appointing jurors, as in the
Bourgeois Courts, to sit in it to decide on purely legal questions.
The Princes inherited the Byzantine system of assessing and col
lecting taxes; their Secrete had its own bureaucracy and was not
dependent for revenue on local courts as in Jerusalem. They
directed policy with little regard to the High Court. They made
their own treaties with foreign powers. The whole organization
of the principality was closer knit and more effective than that of
307 2 - 2
Life in Outremer
the other Prankish states. Had it not been for constant wars, for
minor or captive princes and the substitution of a French for a
Norman dynasty, Antioch might have developed a government
as efficient as that of Sicily. 1
The peculiar position of Antioch was further enhanced by its
special relationship with the Byzantine Emperor. According to
Byzantine theory the Emperor was the head of the Christian
commonwealth. Though he never made any attempt to establish
suzerainty over the monarchs of the West, he considered eastern
Christendom to be his own sphere. Orthodox Christians under
the Caliphate had been under his protection, and his obligations
to them were recognized by the Moslems. He had no intention
of abdicating his duties because of the Prankish conquest. But
there was a difference between Antioch and Edessa on the one
hand and Jerusalem and Tripoli on the other. The latter two
countries had not been part of the Empire since the seventh
century, but the former had been imperial provinces within the
lifetime of Alexius I. Alexius, when he induced the leaders of the
First Crusade to pay him homage, distinguished between former
imperial lands, like Antioch, which were to be restored to him,
and further conquests, over which he only ckimed an undefined
suzerainty. The Crusaders failed to keep their oaths; and Alexius
was unable to enforce them. Byzantine policy was always realist.
After his victory over Bohemond Alexius modified his demands.
By the Treaty of Devol he allowed the Norman dynasty to rule
at Antioch but strictly as a vassal; and he demanded certain safe
guards, such as the installation of a Greek as Patriarch. This treaty
formed the basis of Byzantine claims; but the Franks ignored it.
Prankish public opinion seems to have been that Bohemond had
indeed behaved badly towards the Emperor, but the Emperor had
ruined his case by failing to appear in person. When, however, an
Emperor did appear in person, his rights were recognized. That is
to say, to judge from King Fulk s advice in 1137, his claim to
Calien, op. cit. pp. 435 ff., a full account of the Antiochene constitution
and its development.
308
PLATE VI
SEALS OF BALDWIN m, KING OF JERUSALEM; BOHEMOND III,
PRINCE OF ANTIOCH; PONS, COUNT OF TRIPOLI;
WILLIAM OF BURES, PRINCE OF GALILEE
Imperial Suzerainty
suzerainty was accepted as being juridically sound when he was
in a position to enforce it. If he did not choose to do so, it could
be disregarded. There were a few other occasions when the
Emperor was treated as overlord, as when the Princess Constance
applied to Manuel to choose her a husband. But as his choice was
displeasing to her she ignored it. Imperial suzerainty was thus
fitful and lightly borne, but the Princes of Antioch and their
lawyers were uneasy about it; and it remained a potential limita
tion to the Prince s sovereign independence.
The Count of Edessa admitted imperial overlordship in 1137;
bat Edessa was further from the imperial frontier, and the question
was less urgent. Prankish opinion approved of the Countess of
Edessa selling the remaining Edessene lands to the Emperor in
1150; but that was because they were obviously untenable against
.the Moslems. Raymond of Toulouse had been willing to admit
the Emperor as suzerain; and his son Bertrand did homage to
Alexius for his future county in 1109. Raymond II repeated this
homage to the Emperor John in 1137. Raymond III, though he
attacked Byzantium in 1151, received help from the Byzantines in
1163, which may have been a gesture by Manuel to show his over-
lordship. But it may be that this homage was limited to Tortosa
and its neighbourhood which traditionally belonged to the
territory of Antioch as part of the theme of Lattakieh.
With the kingdom of Jerusalem Byzantine juridical relations
were still less precise. Baldwin III paid homage to the Emperor
Manuel at Antioch in 1158; and Amalric visited Constantinople
as a vassal, though as a highly honoured vassal, in 1171. Both
Baldwin and Amalric regarded Byzantine friendship as being
essential to their policy and were therefore ready to make con
cessions. But it seems that their lawyers never regarded this
vassaldom as more than a temporary expedient. 1
1 Calien, op. dt. pp. 437-8, for the relations of Antioch. with Byzantium.
Richard, op. dt. pp. 26-30, for those of Tripoli with Byzantium. For the whole
question of Byzantine pretensions over the Crusader states, see La Monte,
*To what extent was the Byzantine Empire the Suzerain of the Crusading
States? in Byzantion, vol. vn. See also below, p. 391.
309
Life in Outremer
If the King of Jerusalem had any overlord it was the Pope. The
First Crusade anticipated a theocratic state in Palestine; and, had
Adhemar of Le Puy lived on, some such organization might have
been evolved. It was probably this idea that kept Godfrey from
accepting a royal crown. Adhemar s successor Daimbert en
visaged a state controlled by the Patriarch of Jerusalem. Baldwin I
countered by assuming the crown and by making use of Daim-
bert s enemies within the Church. It was clear that the Papacy
would not approve of an over-powerful Patriarchate in Jerusalem,
which might from its special position and its increasing wealth
have set itself up, as Daimbert hoped, to be an Oriental equal of
Rome. It was thus easy for the King to play off Pope against
Patriarch. He was traditionally obliged to pay homage to the
Patriarch at his cpronation, but he sought confirmation of his title
from the Papacy. The vassaldom was little more than nominal and
no stricter than that claimed by the Popes over the Spanish king
doms; but it was useful to the kingdom, for the Popes felt them
selves responsible for keeping up supplies of men and money for
the Holy Land and for giving diplomatic help whenever it was
needed. The Papacy could also be used to put a check on the
Patriarchate and to exercise some control on the Military Orders.
But on the other hand the Pope might support the Military Orders
against the King ; and he often intervened when the King attempted
to put some curb on the Italian merchant-cities. 1
The Church in the kingdom was under the Patriarch of
Jerusalem. After the initial trouble caused by Daimbert s ambition,
he was in effect a servant of the Crown. He was elected by the
Chapter of the Holy Sepulchre, who nominated two candidates of
which the King selected one. Under the Patriarch were the four
archbishops of Tyre, Caesarea, Nazareth and Rabboth-Moab, and
nine bishops, nine mitred abbots and five priors ; but certain other
abbeys depended directly on the Papacy, as did the Military-
Orders. The Palestinian Church was immensely wealthy in lands
and in money-fiefs. The leading ecclesiastics usually owed
1 La Monte, Feudal Monarchy, pp. 203-16.
310
Ecclesiastical Organization
sergeant-service rather than knights-service. The Patriarch and the
Chapter of the Holy Sepulchre each owed five hundred sergeants,
the Bishop of Bethlehem two hundred, the Archbishop of Tyre
a hundred and fifty, as did the abbots of Saint Mary Josaphat and
Mount Sion. The Convent of Bethany, founded by Queen
Melisende for her sister, possessed the whole town of Jericho. In
addition the Patriarchate and many of the more celebrated abbeys
had been given vast estates all over western Europe, from which
the revenues were sent to Palestine. The Church had its own
courts, to deal with cases concerning heresy and religious dis
cipline, marriage, including divorce and adultery, and testaments.
They followed the usual rules and procedure of the Canon Law
Courts in the West. 1
The territories of Antioch, Tripoli and Edessa, were ecclesias
tically under the Patriarch of Antioch. The delineation of the
Patriarch s spheres had given rise to difficulties; for traditionally
Tyre was included in the Patriarchate of Antioch, though it
formed by conquest part of the kingdom of Jerusalem. Paschal II
ruled that Tyre, with its dependent bishoprics of Acre, Sidon and
Beirut, should be transferred to Jerusalem. This was done, as it
corresponded to political realities. But the attempts of the
Patriarchs of Jerusalem to obtain jurisdiction over the three
Tripolitan bishoprics of Tripoli, Tortosa and Jabala failed, in spite
of fitful support from the Papacy. Raymond of Toulouse seems to
have hoped for an autonomous Church in his future county; but
his successors admitted the ecclesiastical suzerainty of Antioch. It
weighed lightly on them; for they appointed their bishops with
out interference.
Like his brother of Jerusalem the Patriarch of Antioch was
elected by the Chapter but in fact appointed by the secular ruler,
who could also secure his deposition. We know that certain
Princes paid homage to the Patriarch at their coronation; but it
was probably only under exceptional circumstances. Under the
Patriarch were the Archbishops of Albara, Tarsus and Mamistra,
1 La Monte, op. cit. pp. 215-16; Rey, op. cit. pp. 268-9.
Life in Outremer
as well as Edessa. The archbishopric of Turbessel was set up later,
with the official title of Hierapolis (Menbij): The number of
bishoprics varied according to political circumstances. There were
nine Latin abbeys and two priories. The chief monastic establish
ments were those of Saint Paul and Saint George, where the
Benedictines seem to have displaced Greek monks, and Saint
Symeon, where the two rites existed side by side. The Antiochene
Church was not quite so wealthy as that of Jerusalem; indeed,
many Palestinian establishments owned estates in the principality. 1
Long before the end of the twelfth century the secular Church
in the Prankish states was completely overshadowed by the
Military Orders. Since their establishment they had grown
steadily in numbers and in wealth, and by 1187 they were the
chief landowners in Outreoner. Gifts and purchase continually
increased their estates. Many Palestinian nobles joined their ranks ;
and recruits came in steadily from the West. They answered an
emotional need of the time, when there were many men anxious
to take up the religious life but wishful still to be active and to do
battle for the Faith. And they answered a political need. There
was a perpetual shortage of soldiers in Outremer. The feudal
organization depended too much on the accidents of family life
in the noble houses to provide a replacement for the men that died
in battle or of sickness. Visiting Crusaders would fight well for a
season or two, but then they returned home. The Military Orders
produced a constant supply of devoted professional soldiers who
cost the King nothing and who were rich enough besides to build
and maintain castles on a scale that few secular lords could under
take. Without their assistance the Crusader-states would have
perished far sooner. Of their actual numbers we have only
incidental evidence. The Hospitallers sent five hundred knights
with a proportionate number of other ranks on the Egyptian
campaign of 1158; and the Templar knights taking part in the
campaign of 1187 numbered about three hundred. In each case
these probably represented knights from the kingdom of Jerusalem
1 Cahen, op. dt. pp. 501-10.
312
The Military Orders
alone; and a certain number would have been kept back for gar
rison duties. Of the two Orders the Hospitallers were probably
the larger and the richer; but they were still busily concerned with
charitable activities. Their hostel in Jerusalem could house a
thousand pilgrims; and they maintained a hospital for the needy
sick there that survived the Saracen reconquest. They distributed
alms daily amongst the poor with a generosity that astounded
visitors. Both they and the Templars policed the pilgrim-routes,
taking particular care of the sacred bathing-places in the Jordan.
The Templars also distributed alms, but less lavishly than the
Hospitallers. Their attention was given more exclusively to
military affairs. They were famed for their courage in attack and
regarded themselves as being dedicated to offensive warfare. They
devoted themselves also to banking and soon made themselves the
financial agents for visiting Crusaders ; and they were later to win
unpopularity by the suspicion of strange esoteric rites; but as yet
they were universally esteemed for their bravery and chivalry. 1
The advantages brought by the Military Orders were balanced
by grave disadvantages. The King had no control over them, for
their only suzerain was the Pope. Lands that were given to them
were held in mortmain; no services were due from them. They
refused to let their tenants pay the dime due to the Church. The
knights fought with the King s armies merely as voluntary allies.
Occasionally the Kong or a lord might put a castle under their
temporary control, and they were sometimes asked to act as
trustees for a minor. In such cases they were liable for the proper
services. The Grand Masters or their deputies sat in the High
Court of the kingdom; and their representatives on the High
Courts of the Prince of Antioch and the Count of Tripoli. But the
advice that they gave there was apt to be irresponsible. If they
disliked the official policy they might refuse to co-operate, as
when the Templars boycotted the expedition to Egypt in 1158.
The perpetual rivalry between the two Orders was a constant
danger. It was seldom that they could be induced to campaign
1 For references about the Orders, see above, p. 158 n. I.
313
Life in Outremer
together. Each Order followed its own line in diplomacy, regard
less of the official policy of the kingdom. We find both Orders
making their treaties with Moslem rulers ; and the story of the
negotiations with the Assassins in 1172 shows the Templars
readiness to upset an obviously desirable arrangement in the
interest of their financial advantages and their frank disdain of the
authority of the royal courts. The Hospitallers were throughout
more temperate and unselfish; but even with them the Order took
precedence over the kingdom.
A similar balance of advantage and disadvantage was shown
in the relations between the Prankish states and the Italian and
Provencal merchant-cities. 1 The Prankish colonists were soldiers,
not sailors. Tripoli and Antioch each later developed a small fleet,
and the Orders built flotillas, but the kingdom itself, with its few
good harbours and general shortage of timber, never had an
adequate naval establishment. For any expedition that involved
sea-power such as the conquest of the coastal towns or the
campaigns against Egypt, it was necessary to invoke the help
of some maritime power. The two great sea-powers of the East
were Byzantium and Egypt. But Egypt was always a potential
and often a real enemy, and Byzantium was always suspect. The
Sicilian fleet could have been useful; but Sicilian policy was
untrustworthy. The Italians and southern French were better
allies; and their help was further needed to keep open the sea-
routes to the West and to transport pilgrims, soldiers and colonists
to Outremer. But the merchant-cities had to be paid. They
demanded trading facilities and rights, their own quarters in the
larger towns, and the complete or partial freedom from customs-
dues ; and their colonies had to be given extra-territorial privileges.
These concessions were not on the whole resented by the Prankish
authorities. Any loss in revenue was balanced by the trade that
they stimulated; and the royal courts had no wish to have to
administer Genoese or Venetian law, especially as cases involving
a citizen of the kingdom, or of serious crime, such as murder, were
1 See below, chapters n and m, passim.
314
The Italian Merchant Cities
reserved to them. Occasionally there were disputes. The Venetians
were at perpetual enmity with the Archbishop of Tyre; and the
Genoese had a long quarrel with King Amalric I. In both cases the
Papacy supported the Italians, who probably had legal right on
their side. But the merchant-cities were out not for the welfare of
Christendom but for their own commercial gain. Usually the two
interests coincided; but if they clashed the immediate commercial
interest prevailed. The Italians and Provenals were therefore
unsteady friends for the King. Moreover, the jealousy between
the two great Orders was pale beside that between the various
merchant-cities. Venice would far sooner help the Moslems than
help Genoa or Pisa or Marseille; and her rivals held similar views.
Thus, while the help given by them all was essential in maintaining
the existence of Outremer, intrigues and riots between their
colonists and their bland readiness to betray the common cause for
momentary profit cancelled out much of its value. 1
To pilgrims in particular they seemed shamefully greedy and
un-Christian. The conquest greatly stimulated the pilgrim-traffic;
the huge hostel of the Hospitallers was usually full. Despite the
original purpose of the Crusade the route across Anatolia was still
unsafe. Only a well-armed company could brave its dangers. The
average pilgrim preferred to travel by sea. He had to obtain a
berth in an Italian ship ; and the fares were very high. A number
of pilgrims might band together to charter a whole ship, but even
so a captain and crew were costly to hire. It was cheaper for
a pilgrim from northern France or England to travel in one of the
small convoys that sailed yearly from the Channel ports to the
East. But that was a long, perilous journey. Atlantic storms had
to be faced; there were Moslem corsairs lying in wait in the
Straits of Gibraltar and along the African coast. From Oporto or
Lisbon to Sicily there were no ports at which water or provisions
could be safely obtained, and it was difficult to carry sufficient
supplies for the men and horses on board. It was far simpler to go
overland to Provence or Italy and there embark in vessels well
1 Heyd, op. cit. pp. 129-63, a full summary.
315
Life in Outremer
used to the voyage. For a single pilgrim a berth was found more
easily and cheaply in ports in the King of Sicily s domain ; but large
parties were dependent on the fleets of the great merchant-cities. 1
When he landed at Acre or Tyre or St Symeon, the traveller
found himself at once in a strange atmosphere. Beneath the feudal
superstructure Outremer was an eastern land. The luxury of its
life impressed and shocked Occidentals. In western Europe life
was still simple and austere. Clothes were made of wool and
seldom laundered. Washing facilities were few, except in some
old towns where the tradition of Roman baths lingered on. Even
in the greatest castle furniture was rough and utilitarian and carpets
were almost unknown. Food was coarse and lacked variety,
especially during the long winter months. There was little comfort
and little privacy anywhere. The Prankish East made a startling
contrast. There were not, perhaps, many houses as large and
splendid as the palace built early next century by the Ibelins at
Beirut, with its mosaic floors, its marble walls and its painted
ceilings, and great windows looking, some westward over the sea,
and others eastward over gardens and orchards to the mountains.
The Royal Palace at Jerusalem, lodged in part of the el-Aqsa
Mosque, was certainly humbler, though the palace at Acre was
a sumptuous edifice. But every noble and rich bourgeois filled
his town-house with similar splendour. There were carpets and
damask hangings, elegantly carved and inlaid tables and coffers,
spotless bed-linen and table-linen, dinner-services in gold and
silver, cutlery, fine faience and even a few dishes of porcelain from
the Farther East. In Antioch water was brought by aqueducts and
pipes to all the great houses from the springs at Daphne. Many
houses along the Lebanese coast had their private supplies. In
Palestine, where water was less abundant, the cities had well-
organized storage tanks; and in Jerusalem the sewerage system
installed by the Romans was still in perfect order. The great
1 See Cahen, Notes sur 1 Histoire des Croisades et de TOrient Latin/ IH,
*L Orient Latin et commerce du Levant , in Bulletin de la Faculte de Lettres de
Strasbourg, 1951, p. 333.
316
Clothes
frontier-fortresses were almost as comfortably appointed as the
town-houses, grim and fierce though life might be outside the
walls. They had baths, elegant chambers for the ladies of the
household and sumptuous reception halls. Castles belonging to
the Military Orders were slightly more austere; but in the great
family seats, such as Kerak in Moab or Tiberias, the chatelain
lived more splendidly than any king in western Europe. 1
The clothes of the settlers soon became as Oriental and luxurious
as their furnishings. When a knight was not in armour he wore a
silk burnous and usually a turban. On campaigns he wore a linen
surcoat over his armour, to protect the metal from the heat of the
sun, and a kefieh in the Arab style over his helmet. The ladies
adopted the traditional eastern fashion of a long under-robe and
a short tunic or coat, heavily embroidered with gold thread and
maybe with jewels. In winter they wore furs, as did their husbands.
Out of doors they were veiled like the Moslem women, but less
from modesty than to protect their complexions, which were
generously covered with paint; and they affected a mincing gait.
But, for all their airs of delicacy and langour, they were as
courageous as their husbands and brothers. Many a noblewoman
was called upon to lead the defence of her castle in the absence of
her lord. The wives of merchants copied the ladies of the aristo
cracy and often outshone them in the richness of their apparel.
The successful courtesans a class unknown hitherto in western
society were equally gorgeous. Of Paschia de Riveri, the
shopkeeper s wife from Nablus whose charms ensnared the
Patriarch Heraclius, the chronicler says that you would have
thought her a countess or a baroness from her silks and jewels. 2
Strange though this luxury seemed to the western pilgrim, it
1 Rey, op. tit. pp. 3-10. Calien, La Syrie du Nord, pp. 129-32, giving an
account of Antioch and its amenities.
* Tancred s coins show him in a turban (see above, p. 33). In 1192 Henry
of Champagne, thanking Saladin for the gift of a turban, announces that such
things are liked by his compatriots and he will often wear it (see Rey, op. ciL
pp. 11-12). Ibn Jubayr (ed. Wright, p. 309) describes the clothes at a Christian
wedding at Acre in 1184. For Paschia, see below, p. 425,
317
Life in Outremer
was natural to a visitor from the Moslem East or from Byzantium.
The Prankish colonists had inevitably to try to fit into their new
environment, and they could not escape contact with their sub
jects and their neighbours. There was the climate to consider.
Winters in Palestine and Syria can be almost as bleak and cold as
in western Europe, but they are short. The long, sweltering sum
mers soon taught the colonists that they must wear different
clothes, eat different foods and keep different hours. The vigorous
habits of the north were out of place. Instead, they must learn
native ways. They must employ native servants. Native nurses
looked after their children, and native grooms their horses. There
were strange diseases about, for which their own doctors were
useless ; they soon had to rely on native medicine. 1 Inevitably they
learnt to understand the natives and to work in with them. In the
Kingdom of Jerusalem and the County of Tripoli the absence of
a native aristocracy to challenge their rule, once the Moslems had
fled, made this easy. Farther north, the Greek and Armenian
aristocracy were jealous of them and politics interfered with their
mutual understanding; though the Armenians in the end met
them half-way and adopted many Prankish habits.*
Between the Franks and their Moslem neighbours there could
never be lasting peace, but there was increasing contact. The
revenues of the Prankish states came largely from tolls levied on
the trade between the Moslem interior and the coast. Moslem
merchants must be allowed to come down freely to the seaports
and must be treated fairly. Out of their commercial connections
friendship grew. The Order of the Temple, with its great banking
activities, was ready to extend its operations to oblige infidel
1 The Tripolitan doctor who was supposed to have poisoned Baldwin HI
was a native (see below, p. 361). Native doctors proved themselves wiser than
the Prankish over Amalric I s death-bed (see below, p. 399). Amalric employed
a certain Suleiman ibn Daoud and his elder son as Court doctors, while
Suleiman s second son was Court riding master. See Cahen, Indigenes et
CroiseV, Syria, 1934. Usama was unimpressed by Prankish medicine (see
below, p. 320).
2 See Cahen, La Syrie du Nord, pp. 561-8.
318
Friendship with the Moslems
clients and kept officials who could specialize in Moslem affairs.
At the same time the wiser statesmen amongst the Franks saw that
their kingdom could only last if the Moslem world were kept dis
united; and for this purpose diplomatic missions passed to and fro.
Prankish and Moslem lords were often received with honour at
courts of the rival faith. Captives or hostages often spent years in
the enemies castles or palaces. Though few Moslems troubled to
learn French, many Franks, nobles as well as merchants, spoke
Arabic. A few, like Reynald of Sidon, even took an interest in
the Arabic literature. In times of war each side appreciated
gestures of gallantry and chivalry. In times of peace lords from either
side of the frontier would join together in hunting expeditions. 1
Nor was there complete religious intolerance. The two great
Faiths shared a common background. The Moslem chroniclers
were as interested as the Christian when relics believed to be of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were discovered at Hebron. 2 Even
in times of hostility Prankish pilgrims could penetrate to the shrine
of our Lady of Sardenay in the hills behind Damascus; 3 and the
protection given by the Bedouins to the great monastery of
St Catherine in the Sinai desert was usually extended to its
visitors. 4 Reynald of Chatillon s brutal treatment of Moslem
pilgrims shocked his fellow-believers almost as much as it in
furiated Saladin. William of Tyre was ready to pay tribute to
Nur ed-Din s piety, though he disagreed with his creed. Moslem
writers often showed admiration of Prankish chivalry. 5
1 For Reynald of Sidon, see below, p. 469. The Moslems insisted on financial
guarantees by Knights Templars when negotiating with Christian rulers, e.g.
Abu Shama, p. 32. Raymond IK of Tripoli spoke Arabic, William of Tyre
almost certainly read Arabic, or employed secretaries who knew Oriental
languages. See below, p. 476. n
* Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 161, refers to the discovery. See also Kohler, Un
nouveau recit de Tinvention des Patriarches Abraham, Isaac et Jacob a Hebron ,
in Revue de V Orient Latin, vol. iv, pp. 477 ff.
3 For Our Lady of Sardenay, see Rey, op. dt. pp. 291-6.
4 For Saint Catherine and its pilgrims, see Rey, op. dt. pp. 287-91.
5 E.g. William of Tyre (xx, 31, p. 1000) calls Nur eel-Din princeps Justus,
vafer et providus, et secundum gentis suae traditiones religiosus .
319
Life in Outremer
The atmosphere of the time is best illustrated in the memoirs of
the Munqidhite prince Usama of Shaizar. The Munqidhites were
a petty dynasty in constant fear of absorption by more powerful
co-religionists. They were therefore ready to come to terms with
the Franks; and Usama himself spent many years at the courts of
Damascus and Cairo when both were in close diplomatic con
nection with Jerusalem. As an envoy, a tourist and a sportsman
Usama often visited Prankish lands, and, though when writing he
consigns them all piously to perdition, he had many Prankish
friends whose conversation he enjoyed. He was shocked by the
crudity of their medicine, though he learnt from them a sure cure
for scrofula, and he was astounded by the latitude allowed to their
women; and he was embarrassed when a Prankish acquaintance
offered to send his son to be educated in western Europe. He
thought them a little barbarous, and would laugh about them with
his native Christian friends. But they were people with whom he
could reach an understanding. The one bar to friendship was
provided by newcomers from the West. Once when he was
staying with the Templars at Jerusalem and was praying with their
permission in the corner of the old Mosque of al-Aqsa, a knight
roughly insulted him; whereupon another Templar hurried up to
explain that the rude man had only just arrived from Europe and
did not as yet know any better. 1
It was indeed the immigrants, come to fight for the Cross and
determined to brook no delay, whose crudity continually ruined
the policy of Outremer. They were particularly strong in the
Church. Not one of the Latin Patriarchs of Jerusalem in the
twelfth century was born in Palestine, and of the great ecclesiastics
only William, Archbishop of Tyre, to whom the Patriarchate was
refused. The influence of the Church was seldom in favour of an
understanding with the infidel; and it was even more disastrous
in its relations with the native Christians. The native Christians
had great influence at the Moslem courts. Many of the best-known
1 Usama, ed. Hitti, passim, esp. pp. 161-70.
320
The Orthodox Church
Arabic writers and philosophers and almost all the physicians were
Christian. They could have formed a bridge between the eastern
and western worlds.
The Orthodox communities in Palestine had accepted the Latin
hierarchy because at the time of the conquest its own upper clergy
were all in exile. The Patriarch Daimbert had attempted to deprive
their clergy of their positions at the Holy Sepulchre, but strange
events at the ceremony of the Holy Fire in noi and the influence
of the King had restored Greek canons to the church and had
allowed the celebration of the Orthodox rite there. The Crown
throughout was friendly to the Orthodox. Morphia, Baldwin H s
queen and Melisende s mother was an Orthodox princess as were
the queens of Melisende s two sons. The Abbot of St Sabas,
the leading Orthodox hierarch left in Palestine, was treated with
honour by Baldwin I; and Melisende gave lands to the abbey,
which probably owed service to the Crown. The Emperor
Manuel was able to maintain a protective interest in the Orthodox,
illustrated by the repairs for which he was responsible in the two
great Churches of the Holy Sepulchre and the Nativity. The
monastery of St Euthymius in the Judaean wilderness was rebuilt
and redecorated about the same time, perhaps with his help. But
there was no increase in cordiality between the Latin and Greek
clergy. The Russian pilgrim, Daniel, in 1104 was hospitably
received in Latin establishments; but the Greek pilgrim, Phocas,
in 1184, though he visited Latin establishments, had no liking for
Latins, except for a Spanish hermit who had at one time lived in
Anatolia; and he relates with glee a miracle that discomfited the
Latin ecclesiastic whom he calls the intruder Bishop of Lydda.
It is probable that the attempt of the Latin hierarchy to make the
Orthodox pay the dime, together with resentment that their rite
was seldom permitted in the great churches of their Faith, lessened
the liking of the Orthodox for Prankish rule, and made them
ready, once Manuel s protection had ended, to accept and even to
welcome Saladin s reconquest. In Antioch the presence of a
powerful Greek community and political developments had
RC 321 2I
Life in Outremer
caused an open hostility between Greeks and Latins which
seriously weakened the principality. 1
In the kingdom itself the heretic sects were of little importance
outside of Jerusalem, where almost all of them kept establish
ments at the Holy Sepulchre. Daimbert had tried to eject them
too, without success. The Crown protected their rights. Indeed,
Queen Melisende gave her personal support to the Jacobite
Syrians when they had a lawsuit against a Prankish knight. 2 In the
County of Tripoli the chief heretic Church was that of the
Maronites, the surviving adherents of Monothelete doctrine.
With them the western Church acted with rare tact and for
bearance; and about 1180 they agreed to admit the supremacy of
the Roman See, provided that they might keep their Syriac liturgy
and customs; nor did they renounce their heretical doctrine of
Christ s single will. The negotiations, of which too little is known,
were ably managed by the Patriarch Aimery of Antioch. The
admission of this first Uniate Church showed that the Papacy was
ready to permit divergent usages and even doubtful theology,
provided that its ultimate authority was recognized. 3
1 See the Pilgrimages of Daniel the Higumene a&Ajohn Phocas, passim. See also
Rey, op. cit. pp. 75-93, and Cahen, loc. tit. The Russian pilgrim Euphrosyne
of Polotsk, when dying in Palestine, applied to the Abbot of Saint Sabas as the
chief Orthodox ecclesiastic to find her a suitable burying place. See de Khitrovo,
Pilgrimage en Palestine de 1 Abbesse Euphrosyne , in Revue de V Orient Latin,
vol. m, pp. 32-5. Later Orthodox writers such as the seventeenth-century
Dositheus, disliking to admit that the Orthodox had accepted the Latin
Patriarchs from 1099 to 1187, have evolved a list of six or seven Patriarchs
between Symeon s death in 1099 and 1187 (Dositheus, n, p. 1243; Le Quien,
Oriens Christianus, m, pp. 498-503). There is a John, Patriarch of Jerusalem,
who subscribed to the condemnation of Soterichus in 1157, and a John of
Jerusalem, presumably the same, wrote a treatise against the Latins about this
time (Krumbacher, Gesck. der Byz. Literatur, p. 91). It is possible that Manuel
had the recapture of the Jerusalem Patriarchate in mind and kept a Patriarch
in storage against that day. But it is clear that the Orthodox in Palestine
submitted to the Latin Patriarch. The presence of Greek canons at the Holy
Sepulchre is attested in the Cartulaire du Saint Sepulchre, ed. Roziere, p. 177.
2 See above, p. 232.
3 See Dib, article Maronites , in Vacard et Mangenot, Dictionnaire de
Theologie Catholique, vol. X, I.
322
The Luxury ofOutremer
In the principality of Antioch the separated Armenian Church
was powerful and was encouraged by the Princes, who found it
a useful counter against the Orthodox ; and in Edessa the Armenians,
though they were distrusted by Baldwin I and Baldwin II, en
joyed the friendship of the house of Courtenay. Many Armenian
bishops came to recognize papal supremacy, and some attended
Synods of the Latin Church, forgiving in the Latin doctrines what
they thought unpardonable in the Greek. The Jacobite Syrians
were at first frankly hostile to the Crusaders and preferred Moslem
rule. But, after the fall of Edessa, they became reconciled to the
Prince of Antioch, nominally because of a miracle at the tomb of
St Barsauma, but actually from a common fear and hatred of
Byzantium. The Jacobite Patriarch Michael, one of the great
historians of the time, was a friend of the Patriarch Aimery and
paid a cordial visit to Jerusalem. None of the other heretic
churches was of .importance in the Prankish states. 1
The Franks Moslem subjects accepted their masters calmly and
admitted the justice of their administration; but they would
obviously be unreliable if things went badly for the Christians.
The Jews, with good reason, preferred the rule of the Arabs, who
always treated them honestly and kindly, if with a certain
contempt.*
To the contemporary western pilgrim Outremer was shocking
because of its luxury and licence. To the modern historian it is
rather the intolerance and dishonourable barbarity of the Crusaders
that is to be regretted. Yet both aspects can be explained by the
atmosphere that reigned there. Life amongst the Prankish colonists
was uneasy and precarious. They were in a land where intrigue and
murder flourished and enemies lay in wait across the near-by
frontiers. No one knew when he might not receive a knife-thrust
from a devotee of the Assassins or poison from one of his servants.
Mysterious diseases of which they knew little were rife. Even
1 See below, p. 371, also the preface to Nau s edition of Micliael the Syrian.
z Ibn Jubayr, ed. Wright, pp. 304-5. Benjamin of Tudela s statistics show the
greater prosperity of the Jews under the Moslems.
323 2I -2
Life in Outremer
with the help of local doctors, no Frank lived for long in the East.
Women were more fortunate than men. They avoided the risks
of battle and, owing to better medical knowledge, childbirth was
less dangerous there than in the West. But infant mortality was
high, especially among the boys. Fief after fief fell into the hands
of an heiress, whose inheritance might lure gallant adventurers
from the West; but too often great estates lacked a lord at the hour
of crisis, and every marriage was a matter of dispute and of
plotting. Marriages were often sterile. Many of the toughest
warriors failed to father a child. Intermarriage between the few
noble families increased personal rivalries. Fiefs were joined and
divided with little regard to geographical convenience. There
were perpetual quarrels between the next-of-kin.
The social structure that the Franks brought from the West
demanded a steady hereditary succession and a maintenance of
man-power. The physical decline of the human element was full
of danger. Fear made them brutal and treacherous, and uncer
tainty encouraged their love of frivolous gaiety. As their tenure
weakened,! their feats and tournaments grew more lavish. Visitors
and natives alike were horrified by the extravagance and, the
immorality that they saw all around them, and the worst offender
was the Patriarch Heraclius. 1 But a wise visitor would understand
that beneath the splendid surface all was not well. The King, for all
his silk and gold, often lacked the money to pay his soldiers. The
proud Templar, counting his money bags, might at any moment
be summoned to battles more cruel than any that the West had
known. Revellers like the wedding guests at Kerak in 1183 might
rise from the table to hear the mangonels of the infidel pounding
against the castle walls. The gay, gallant trappings of life in
Outremer hung thinly over anxiety, uncertainty and fear; and an
onlooker might well wonder whether even under the best of rulers
the adventure could endure for long.
1 Estoire f Erodes, n, p. 88; Ernoul, pp. 83-7; Itinerarium Regis Ricardi,
pp. 5-6; Caesarius of Heisterbach, Dialogus Miraculorum, i, p. 188, attributing
the fall of Jerusalem to the corruption of the Franks of Outremer.
324
CHAPTER H
THE RISE OF NUR ED-DIN
6 He went forth conquering, and to conquer. 9 REVELATION vi, 2
Raymond of Antioch had been right to urge the leaders of the
Second Crusade to march against Aleppo. His failure to persuade
them cost him his life. The chief enemy of Christendom was Nur
ed-Din ; and in 1 147 a great army could have crushed him. He was
master of Aleppo and Edessa; but Unur of Damascus and the
petty independent emirs of the Orontes valley would not have
come to his rescue; nor could he have counted on help from his
brother Saif ed-Din at Mosul, who had troubles of his own in
Iraq. But the folly of the Crusaders drove Unur into alliance with
him for as long as the danger lasted; and the chance given him of
intervention in the affairs of Tripoli allowed him to strengthen his
hold on central Syria.
Raymond was further justified in refusing to join the Crusade.
Neither he nor Joscelin of Edessa could afford to leave their lands
exposed to Nur ed-Din. Even while the Crusaders were before
Damascus troops from Aleppo raided Christian territory. Under
a flag of truce Count JosceHn went himself to Nur ed-Din s camp
to beg for clemency. All that he obtained was a temporary
respite. 1 Meanwhile, the Sultan of Konya, Mas ud, at peace with
Byzantium, took advantage of the discomfiture of the Franks to
attack Marash. Raymond prepared to meet him; so Mas ud sent
to ask Nur ed-Din to make a diversion. His request was granted;
but Raymond with the alliance of a Kurdish chief of the Assassins,
Ali ibn Wafa, who hated Nur ed-Din far more than the Christians,
surprised Nur ed-Din in November 1148 as he swept through the
1 Ibn al-Furat, quoted by Cahen, La Syrie du Nord, p. 382.
325
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
villages in the plain of the Aswad at Famiya, on the road from
Antioch to Marash. Nur ed-Din s two chief lieutenants, the Kurd
Shirkuh and the Aleppan notable Ibn ed-Daya, had quarrelled.
The former refused to take part in the battle; and the whole
Moslem army was forced into a hasty and ignominious retreat.
Next spring Nur ed-Din invaded the country again and defeated
Raymond at Baghras, close to the former battlefield. He then
turned south to besiege the fortress of Inab, one of the few
strongholds left to the Christians east of the Orontes. Raymond
with a small army and a few Assassin allies under All ibn Wafa
hurried to its rescue; and Nur ed-Din, misinformed of the strength
of his force, retreated. In fact the Moslem army of six thousand
horse outnumbered the Prankish of four thousand horse and one
thousand infantrymen. Against Ali s advice Raymond then
decided to reinforce the garrison of Inab. But Nur ed-Din was
now aware of Raymond s weakness. On 28 June 1149 the
Christian army encamped in a hollow by the Fountain of Murad,
in the plain between Inab and the marsh of Ghab. During the
night Nur ed-Din s troops crept up and surrounded them. Next
morning Raymond realized that his only chance was to charge his
way out. But the terrain was against him. A wind rose and blew
dust in the eyes of his knights as they pressed their horses up the
slope. In a few hours his army was annihilated. Amongst the dead
were Reynald of Marash and the Assassin leader Ali. Raymond
himself perished by the hand of Shirkuh, who thus regained his
master s favour lost at Famiya. The Prince s skull, set in a silver
case, was sent by Nur ed-Din as a gift to his spiritual master, the
Caliph of Baghdad. 1
Joscelin of Edessa, enjoying an uneasy truce with the Moslems,
had refused to work in with his old rival, Raymond. His turn
1 William of Tyre, xvn, 9, pp. 771-3; letter of Seneschal of Temple to the
Grand Master Everard in R.H.F. vol. xv, p. 541; Cinnamus, pp. 122-3;
Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 288-9; Chron. Anon Syr. (Syriac edition), p. 296;
Matthew of Edessa, cclix, p. 329; Gregory the Priest, p. 142; Ibn al-Qalanisi,
pp. 288-92; Abn Shama, pp. 10-12; Ibn al-Furat, loc. dt. identifying the site as
Ard al-Hatim.
326
1150: The Capture of Count Joscelin
came next. Nur ed-Din passed on through, Antiochene territory
completing his hold on the middle Orontes by the capture of
Arzghan and Tel-Kashfahan, then overpowering the garrisons of
Artah and Harenc farther north and turning west to appear before
the walls of Antioch itself and raid as far as Saint Symeon, 1
Joscelin made no attempt to rescue his fellow-Franks but marched
on Marash in the hope of taking over the inheritance of Reynald,
who was his son-in-law. He entered the city but retired when the
Sultan Mas ud approached. The garrison that he left behind sur
rendered to the Seldjuks on the promise that Christian lives should
be spared; but as they and the clergy were taking the road to
Antioch they were massacred one and all. Mas ud pursued
Joscelin to the neighbourhood of Turbessel. But Christian rein
forcements were approaching; while Nur ed-Din had no wish to
see Joscelin, who was still his client, lose his lands to the Seldjuks.
Mas ud found it politic to retire. Next, the Ortoqids of the
Jezireh, limited on the south by Nur ed-Din and his brothers,
sought to expand along the Euphrates at the expense of the
Armenians of Gargar, who had been tributaries to Reynald.
Joscelin dissipated bis energies in vainly sending help to Basil of
Gargar. The Ortoqid Kara Arslan took over the whole district of
Gargar and Kharpurt, to the delight of the Jacobite Christians to
whom his rule was infinitely preferable to that of Reynald with
his strong pro-Armenian and anti-Jacobite sentiments. 2 In the
winter of 1149 Nur ed-Din broke with Joscelin. His first attacks
were unsuccessful; but in April 1150, as Joscelin was riding to
Antioch to consult with the government there, he was separated
from his escort and fell into the hands of some Turcoman free
booters. They were ready to release him for a heavy ransom; but
Nur ed-Din heard of his capture and sent a squadron of cavalry to
1 William of Tyre, xvn, 10, pp. 774-5; letter of Everard, loc. dt.\ Chron.
Anon. Syr. (Syriac edition), p. 299; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 293; Ihn al-Athir,
Atabegs, p. 180.
2 Matthew of Edessa, pp. 330-1; Gregory the Priest, p. 162; Michael the
Syrian, m, pp. 209-11, 294-6, and Armenian version, p. 346.
327
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
take him from his captors. He was blinded and imprisoned at
Aleppo. There he died, nine years later, in H59- 1
Thus, by the summer of 1150, both the Principality of Antioch
and the remains of the County of Edessa had lost their lords. But
Nur ed-Din did not venture to go farther. When news reached
Antioch of the death of Prince Raymond, the Patriarch Aimery
put the city into a state of defence and sent urgently south to
ask King Baldwin to come to its rescue. He then obtained
a short truce from Nur ed-Din by promising to surrender
Antioch if Baldwin did not arrive. The arrangement suited Nur
ed-Din, who was shy of attempting the siege of the city and
who meanwhile was able to capture Apamea, the last Antiochene
fortress in the Orontes valley. King Baldwin hastened north
with a small company, mostly composed of Knights Templar.
His appearance induced Nur ed-Din to accept a more lasting
truce, and it served to help to keep Mas ud from attacking
Turbessel. But though Antioch was saved, the Principality was
now reduced to the plain of Antioch itself and the coast from
Alexandretta to Lattakieh.*
It then remained to settle the government of the two lordless
domains. On Joscelin s capture, Nur ed-Din had attacked
Turbessel; but the Countess Beatrice put up so spirited a defence
1 William of Tyre, xvn, n, pp. 776-7; Matthew of Edessa, cclix, pp. 331-2;
Michael the Syrian, in, p. 295; Chron. Anon. Syr., p. 300; Ibn al-Furat,
quoted by Cahen, op. dt. p. 386: Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, pp. 523-4;
Bustan, p. 544; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 300; Ibn al-Athir, p. 481 ; Sibt ibn el-Djauzi,
p. 12,2. The circumstances vary in each account. William says that he was going
to Antioch to answer an appeal from the Patriarch; Matthew of Edessa and
Ibn al-Furat to seek help there; the Anonymous Chronicle to secure the
regency. William attributes his separation from his company to the demands of
nature, Sibt to an amour with a Turcoman girl ; Ibn al-Furat to a fall when his
horse collided with a tree, which, according to Michael, only existed in his
imagination (the Syriac chroniclers saw Joscelin s capture as divine vengeance
for ids persecution of the Jacobites); the Syriac chroniclers say that he was
identified by a Jew. The Anonymous Chronicle alone says that he was blinded.
Michael adds that he was not allowed a Latin confessor but was confessed on
his death-bed by the Jacobite Bishop of Edessa.
2 William of Tyre, xvn, 15, pp. 783-4; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 293-4, 300-1.
328
1150: Turbessel ceded to Byzantium
that he withdrew. It was clear, nevertheless, that Turbessel could
not be held. It was overcrowded with Prankish and Armenian
refugees from the outlying districts. The Jacobite Christians were
openly disloyal; and the whole area was cut off from Antioch by
Nur ed-Din s conquests. The Countess was preparing to abandon
her lands when a message came through from the Emperor
Manuel. He was aware of the situation, and he offered to purchase
from her all that was left of her county. Beatrice dutifully referred
the offer to King Baldwin, who was at Antioch. The lords of his
kingdom who were with him and the lords of Antioch discussed
the offer. They were loth to hand over territory to a hated Greek;
but they decided that it would at least be the Emperor s fault now
if the places were lost to Christendom. The Byzantine governor
of Cilicia, Thomas, brought bags of gold how many, we are not
told to the Countess at Antioch; and in return she handed over
to his soldiers the six fortresses of Turbessel, Ravendel, Samosata,
Aintab, Duluk and Birejik. The King s army accompanied the
Byzantine garrisons on their journey, and escorted back the many
Prankish and Armenian refugees who distrusted Byzantine rule and
preferred the greater safety of Antioch. The Countess reserved
one fortress from the sale, Ranculat or Rum Kalaat, on the
Euphrates near Samosata, which she gave to the Armenian
Catholicus. It remained his residence, under Turkish suzerainty,
for a century and a half. As the royal army and the refugees
travelled back, Nur ed-Din tried to surprise them at Aintab; but
the King s excellent organization preserved them. His chief
barons, Humphrey of Toron and Robert of Sourdeval, vainly
begged him to allow them to take possession of Aintab in his
name; but he abode by the bargain with the Emperor. 1
1 William of Tyre, xvn, 16-17, pp. 784-9. The Byzantine historians make
no mention of tie transaction. For the dating and Moslem evidence, see Cahen,
op. at. p. 388 n. 24. Michael the Syrian, in, p. 297, and Armenian version,
p. 343. Vartan, p. 435, and Vahram, Rhymed Chronicle, p. 618, tell of the cession
of Rum Kalaat to the Catholicus. Michael s Syriac version says that the
Countess asked the Catholicus to aid an Armenian lord in Rum Kalaat, hut the
Catholicus installed himself there by trickery.
329
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
Why the Emperor made the bargain is uncertain. The Franks
believed that in his pride he thought that he could hold them. It
is unlikely that he was so badly misinformed. Rather, he was
looking ahead. He hoped before long to come in force to Syria.
If he lost them now he could recover them then; and his claim
would be beyond dispute. In fact, he lost them in less than a year,
to an alliance between Nur ed-Din and the Seldjuk Mas ud. The
alliance had been made on the morrow of Joscelin s capture, and
had been sealed by the marriage of Nur ed-Din to Mas ud s
daughter. Turbessel was to be her dowry. But Mas ud had not
joined his son-in-law in his attack on Beatrice; he contented him
self with capturing Kaisun and Behesni, in the north of the
county, giving them to his son Kilij Arslan. But in the spring of
1151 he and Nur ed-Din both attacked the Byzantine garrisons;
and the Ortoqids hurried to take their share. Aintab and Duluk
fell to Mas ud, Samosata and Birejik to the Ortoqid Timurtash of
Mardin, and Ravendel to Nur ed-Din. At Turbessel itself the
Byzantines resisted for a while but were starved out and sur
rendered to Nur ed-Din s lieutenant, Hasan of Menbij, in July
H5I. 1 All traces of the County of Edessa were gone. The Countess
Beatrice retired to Jerusalem with her children, Joscelin and Agnes ;
who in time to come were to play disastrous parts in the downfall
of the kingdom?
Edessa was gone, but Antioch remained. Raymond s death left
the Princess Constance a widow with four young children. The
throne was hers by right; but it was felt that in such times a man
must govern. Her elder son, Bohemond III, was five years old at
his father s death. Till he came of age there must be a male regent.
The Patriarch Aimery had taken charge at the moment of crisis;
but lay opinion disliked the idea of a clerical regency. It was clear
1 William of Tyre, loc. dt.\ Bar Hebraeus, trans. Budge, p. 277; Michael,
Armenian version, p. 297; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 309; Ibn al-Athir, Atdbegs, p. 132
(with the wrong date).
2 Joscelin II s other daughter Isabella (see above, p. 222) was probably dead,
though William of Tyre (p. 777) mentions her as alive when her father died.
330
ii So: Princess Constance s Suitors
that the young Princess ought to remarry. In the meantime the
proper regent should be her cousin, King Baldwin, acting as her
nearest male relative rather than as an overlord. Baldwin had
hastened to Antioch on the news of Raymond s death. He dealt
with the situation with a wisdom rare in a boy of nineteen, and
his authority was universally accepted. He returned in the early
summer of 1150, to give his authority to the sale of Countess
Beatrice s lands. But he had too many anxieties in the south to
wish to remain responsible for Antioch. He urged Constance, who
was only twenty-two, to choose another husband and himself
suggested three alternative candidates, first, Yves of Nesle, Count
of Soissons, a wealthy French noble who had come to Palestine in
the wake of the Second Crusade and was ready to make his home
there; secondly, Walter of Falconberg, of the family of Saint-
Omer, which had held the lordship of Galilee in the past; and
thirdly Ralph of Merle, a gallant baron of the County of Tripoli.
But Constance would have none of them; and Baldwin had to
return to Jerusalem leaving her in possession of her government. 1
Irritated by her young cousin s importunities, Constance at
once changed her policy and sent an embassy to Constantinople
to ask the Emperor Manuel as her overlord to choose her a
husband. 2 Manuel was eager to comply with her wishes. Byzan
tine influence had been declining along the south-eastern frontier
of the Empire. About the year 1 143 the Armenian Prince, Thoros
the Roupenian, had escaped from Constantinople and taken refuge
at the Court of his cousin, Joscelin II of Edessa. There he gathered
a company of compatriots, with which he recaptured the family
stronghold of Vahka, in the eastern Taurus mountains. Two of his
brothers, Stephen and Mleh joined him, and he made friends with
a neighbouring Prankish lord, Simon of Raban, whose daughter
he married. In 1151, while the Byzantines were distracted by the
1 William of Tyre, xvn, 18, pp. 789-91- He suggests that the Patriarch
Aimery encouraged Constance to refuse the candidates, for fear of his power
being reduced.
* Cinnamus, p. 178.
331
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
Moslem attack on Turbessel, he swept down into the Cilician
plain and defeated and slew the Byzantine governor, Thomas, at
the gates of Mamistxa. Manuel at once sent his cousin Andronicus
with an army to recover the territory lost to Thoros; and now
there came the timely chance to place his own candidate on the
throne of Antioch.
Neither project succeeded. Andronicus Conrnenus was the
most brilliant and fascinating member of his talented family, but
he was rash and careless. As he moved up to besiege Thoros at
Mamistra, the Armenians made a sudden sortie and caught him
unawares. His army was routed and he fled back in disgrace to
Constantinople. In choosing a husband for Constance, Manuel
showed greater ingenuity than sense. He sent his brother-in-law,
the Caesar John Roger, the widower of his favourite sister Maria.
John Roger was a Norman by birth, and though he had once
plotted to secure the imperial throne, he was now a proved and
trusted friend of the Emperor; who knew that he could count on
his loyalty but believed that his Latin birth would make him
acceptable to the Prankish nobility. He forgot about Constance
herself. John Roger was frankly middle-aged and had lost all his
youthful charm. The young Princess, whose first husband had
been famed for his beauty, would not consider so unromantic
a mate. She bade the Caesar return to the Emperor. It would
have been better if Manuel had sent Andronicus to Antioch and
John Roger to fight in Cilicia. 1
King Baldwin would have welcomed almost any husband for
his cousin; for he had recently acquired a new responsibility. The
married life of Count Raymond II of Tripoli and his wife Hodierna
of Jerusalem was not entirely happy. Hodierna, like her sisters
Melisende and Alice, was headstrong and gay. Doubts were
whispered about the legitimacy of her daughter Melisende.
Raymond, passionately jealous of her, attempted to keep her in
1 Cinnamus, pp. 121-4, 178; Matthew of Edessa, ccbdii, pp. 334-6; Gregory
the Priest, p. 166; Sembat the Constable, p. 619; Vahram, Rhymed Chronicle,
pp. 504-6; Michael the Syrian, m, p. 281.
332
1152: The Murder of Raymond II
a state of Oriental seclusion. Early in 1152 their relations were so
bad that Queen Melisende felt it her duty to intervene. Together
with her son the King, she travelled to Tripoli to patch up a recon
ciliation. Baldwin used the opportunity to summon Constance to
Tripoli, where her two aunts scolded her for her obstinate widow
hood. But, perhaps because neither of them had made an out
standing success of married life, their lectures were unavailing.
Constance returned to Antioch promising nothing. With Ray
mond and Hodierna the Queen was more effective. They agreed
to compose their quarrel; but it was thought best that Hodierna
should enjoy a long holiday at Jerusalem. Baldwin decided to
stay on at Tripoli for a while as there were rumours that Nur
ed-Din was going to attack the County. The Queen and the
Countess set out on the road southward, escorted for a mile or
so by the Count. As he rode back through the south gate of his
capital a band of Assassins leapt out on him and stabbed him to
death. Ralph of Merle and another knight who were with him
tried to protect him, only to perish themselves. It was all over so
quickly that his guard were unable to catch the murderers. The
King was playing at dice in the castle when cries came up from the
city below. The garrison rushed to arms and poured into the
streets, slaying every Moslem that they saw. But the Assassins
escaped; nor was the motive of their act ever known. 1
Messengers were sent to bring back the Queen and the Countess,
and Hodierna assumed the regency in the name of her twelve-
year old son, Raymond III. But, as at Antioch, a man was needed
as guardian of the government; and Baldwin, as the nearest male
relative was obliged to take on the guardianship. Nur ed-Din at
once made an incursion as far as Tortosa, which his troops held for a
while. They were soon driven out; and Baldwin, with Hodierna s
consent, handed over Tortosa to the Knights of the Temple?
Baldwin was glad to be able to return to Jerusalem. Queen
Melisende, conscious of her hereditary right, was unwilling to
1 William of Tyre, xvn, 18-19, pp. 789-92.
* Ibid., loc. dt.\ Ibn al-Qalamsi, p. 312.
333
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
hand power over to her son. But lie was now over twenty-two
years of age and public opinion demanded his coronation as an adult
ruler. The Queen therefore arranged with the Patriarch Fulcher
that she should be crowned again by his side, in order that her
joint authority should be explicitly admitted. The coronation was
to take place on Easter Sunday, 30 March; but Baldwin postponed
it. Then, on the Tuesday, when his mother suspected nothing, he
entered the Church of the Holy Sepulchre with an escort of
knights and forced the angry Patriarch to crown him alone. It
was the signal for an open breach. The Queen had many friends.
Manasses of Hierges, her protege, was still Constable; his family
connections included the great Ibelin clan, which controlled the
Philistian plain; and many of the nobles of southern Palestine were
of his party. It was noticeable that when Baldwin went to
Antioch in 1149, few of the nobility would accompany an expedi
tion in which the Queen was not interested. Baldwin s friends
came from the north. They were led by Humphrey of Tor on and
William of Falconberg, whose estates were in Galilee. The King
did not venture to have recourse to force. He summoned a great
council of the realm, before which he pleaded his claims. Thanks
to the influence of the clergy, he was obliged to accept a com
promise. He could have Galilee and the north as his realm; but
Melisende would retain Jerusalem itself and Nablus, that is to say,
Judaea and Samaria; and the coast, where the Bong s young brother
Amalric held the County of Jaffa, was under her sovereignty. It
was an impossible solution; and before many months were
passed, the King demanded from his mother the cession of
Jerusalem. Without Jerusalem, he said, he could not undertake the
defence of the kingdom. With Nur ed-Din s power growing
daily, the argument was forceful; and even her best supporters
began to desert the Queen s cause. But she held firm and fortified
Jerusalem and Nablus against her son. Unfortunately, the Con
stable Manasses was surprised and captured by the King s troops
at his castle of Mirabel, on the edge of the coastal plain. His life
was spared on his promise to leave the East and never to return.
334
1152: Melisende yields to her Son
Nablus thereupon surrendered to the King. Melisende, deserted
by the lay nobility but supported still by the Patriarch, tried to
hold out in Jerusalem. But the citizens also turned against her and
obliged her to give up the struggle. After a few days she yielded
the city to her son. He took no strong action against her; for legal
opinion seems to have held that right, if not expediency, was on
her side. She was allowed to retain Nablus and the neighbourhood
as her dower; and, though she retired from lay politics, she
retained the patronage over the Church. Baldwin, supreme now
in the lay government, replaced Manasses as Constable with his
friend Humphrey of Toron. 1
These dynastic troubles in the ruling Prankish families had been
very much to Nur ed-Din s liking. He did not trouble to make
any serious attacks against the Christians during these years ; for he
had a more urgent task to complete, the conquest of Damascus.
After the failure of the Second Crusade Unur of Damascus kept
up a desultory war against the Christians for a few months; but
fear of Nur ed-Din made him glad to accept peace overtures from
Jerusalem. In May 1149 a two-years truce was arranged. Unur
died soon afterwards, in August; and the Burid emir, Toghtekin s
grandson Mujir ed-Din, in whose name Unur had ruled, took
over the government.* His weakness gave Nur ed-Din his
1 William of Tyre, xvn, 13-14, pp. 779-83. Nablus was held by Philip of
MiUy, who had supported the Queen. On 31 July, 1161, a few weeks before
the Queen s death, he was given the seigneurie of Oultrejourdain in exchange
for Nablus (Rohricht, Regesta, p. 96). Queen Melisende was not consulted,
probably because she was too ill, though her sister, Hodierna, Dowager
Countess of Tripoli, approved the transaction. Presumably Philip held his
lands from Melisende, not from Baldwin, and it was only on her death-bed
that Baldwin was able to make a change, which would have deprived her of her
friend and chief vassal. Philip s wife Isabella or Elizabeth was the niece of
Pagan of Oultrejourdain, and eventual heiress to his successor Maurice. On her
death he joined the Templars. Her sister Maria s husband Walter Brisebarre IE
of Beirut seems later to have been lord of Oultrejourdain, for which he
exchanged his own fief of Beirut, but on the death of his wife and her infant
daughter he presumably lost the fief, which passed to Philip s daughter
Stephanie. See Rey, Les Seigneurs de Montreal and Les Seigneurs de Barut, passim.
2 Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 295. Unur died of dysentery, jusantirya .
335
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
opportunity. He did not act at once; for his own brother Saif
ed-Din died in November, and a rearrangement of the family
lands ensued. The youngest brother, Qutb ed-Din, inherited
Mosul and the territory in Iraq, but he seems to have recognized
Nur ed-Din as his superior. 1 In March next year Nur ed-Din
advanced on Damascus; but heavy rains slowed his progress and
gave Mujir ed-Din time to ask for help from Jerusalem. Nur
ed-Din therefore retired on receiving a promise that his name
should be mentioned on the coinage and in the public prayers at
Damascus after those of the Caliph and the Sultan of Persia. His
rights to a vague overlordship were thus admitted. 2
In May 1151 Nur ed-Din again appeared before Damascus, and
again the Franks came to the rescue. After camping for a month
close to the city Nur ed-Din retreated to the neighbourhood of
Baalbek, which was governed by his lieutenant, Shirkuh s brother
Ayub. Meanwhile the Franks under King Baldwin moved up to
Damascus. Many of them were allowed to visit the bazaars
within the walls, while Mujir ed-Din paid a cordial visit to the
King in the Christian camp. But the allies were not strong enough
to go in pursuit of Nur ed-Din. Instead, they marched on Bosra,
whose emir, Sarkhak, had accepted help from Nur ed-Din in
a revolt against Damascus. The expedition was unsuccessful; but
soon afterwards Sarkhak, with the usual volatility of the minor
Moslem princes, made friends with the Franks; and Mujir ed-Din
was obliged to call in Nur ed-Din s help to reduce him to
obedience. When Nur ed-Din went north again, Mujir ed-Din
followed him on a visit to Aleppo, where a treaty of friendship was
signed. 3 But the Damascenes still refused to renounce their
alliance with the Franks. In December 1151 a band of Turcomans
tried to raid Banyas, probably at Ayub s orders. The garrison
countered by a raid on the territory of Baalbek, which Ayub
drove off. Mujir ed-Din carefully disclaimed any connection with
1 Ibn al-Athir, Atdbegs, pp. 171-5 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 295-6. See Calien,
op. tit. p. 393 n. 12, for MS. sources.
21 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 97-300. 3 jjjj. pp. 302-11.
336
ii So: Intrigue in Egypt
the warfare. 1 He was more embarrassed when suddenly, in the
autumn of 1152, the Ortoqid prince Timurtash of Mardin ap
peared with a Turcoman army that he had taken by forced
marches round the edge of the desert and asked for help for a
surprise attack on Jerusalem. He had probably heard of the
quarrels between Baldwin and Melisende and thought that a bold
stroke might succeed. Mujir ed-Din compromised by allowing
him to purchase supplies but sought to dissuade him from going
farther. Timurtash then dashed across the Jordan, and, while the
Prankish nobility was attending a council at Nablus, doubtless to
arrange for Melisende s dower, pitched his camp on the Mount of
Olives. But the garrison of Jerusalem made a sudden sortie on the
Turcomans, who, finding that their surprise had failed, retreated
to the Jordan. There, on the river bank, the army of the Kingdom
fell on them and won a complete victory.*
During the next months the attention of Christians and
Moslems alike was turned to Egypt. The Fatimid Caliphate
seemed near to complete disruption. Since the murder of the
vizier al-Afdal there had been no competent ruler in Egypt. The
Caliph al-Amir had reigned on till October 1129 when he, too,
was murdered; but the government had been conducted by a
series of worthless viziers. Al-Amir s successor, his cousin al-Haz,
showed more character and tried to free himself from the shackles
of the vizierate by appointing bis own son Hasan to the post. But
Hasan was disloyal and was put to death at his father s orders in
1135. The next vizier, the Armenian-born Vahram, filled the
administration with his compatriots, only to provoke a reaction
in 1137, when for days the streets of Cairo ran with Christian
blood. Nor was al-Hafiz luckier with bis kter viziers, though he
clung precariously to his throne till his death in 1149. The reign of
his son, al-Zafir, began with open civil war between his two
leading generals. Amir ibn Sallah won and became vizier, only
to be murdered himself three years afterwards. 3 This unending
1 Ibid. p. 311-12. * William of Tyre, xvn, 20, pp. 792-4-
3 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 475, 486-7. See Wiet, VEgypte Arabe, pp. 190-5.
337
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
story of intrigue and blood raised the hopes of Egypt s enemies.
In 1150 King Baldwin began to repair the fortifications of Gaza.
Ascalon was still a Fatimid fortress, and its garrison still made
frequent raids into Christian territory. Gaza was to be the base
for operations against Ascalon. The vizier Ibn Sallah was alarmed.
Amongst the refugees at the Fatimid court was the Munqidhite
prince Usama, who had previously been in Zengi s service. He was
sent to Nur ed-Din, who was now encamped before Damascus,
to ask him to make a diversion into Galilee; the Egyptian fleet
would meanwhile raid the Prankish seaports. The mission was un
successful; Nur ed-Din had other preoccupations. Usama on his
way back stopped at Ascalon for two years to conduct operations
against the local Franks; then he returned to Egypt in time to
witness the intrigues that followed the murder of Ibn Sallah by
the son of his stepson Abbas, with the connivance of the Caliph. 1
This drama, following soon on his own triumph over his
mother, decided King Baldwin to attack Ascalon. He made
careful preparations; and on 25 January 1153 the whole army of
the Kingdom, with all the siege engines that the King could amass,
appeared before its walls. With the King were the Grand Masters
of the Hospital and the Temple, with the pick of their men, the
great lay lords of the realm, the Patriarch, the Archbishops of
Tyre, Caesarea and Nazareth, and the Bishops of Bethlehem and
Acre. The relic of the True Cross accompanied the Patriarch.
Ascalon was a tremendous fortress, spreading from the sea in a
great semicircle, with its fortifications in excellent repair; and the
Egyptian government had always kept it well stocked with
armaments and provisions. For some months the Frankish army,
though it could completely blockade the city, could make no
impression on its walls. The pilgrim-ships that arrived about
Easter-time added reinforcements to its ranks. But they were
countered by the arrival of an Egyptian fleet in June. The Fatimids
1 Usama, ed. Him, pp. 40-3 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 314. The Egyptian raid on
die Frankish coast in 1151 is reported by Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 307-8, who also
reports an Egyptian raid from Ascalon in April 1152 (p. 3 12).
338
1153: The Capture ofAscalon
did not venture to attempt to relieve Ascalon by land, but they
sent a squadron of seventy ships laden with men and arms and
supplies of all sorts. Gerard of Sidon, who commanded the twenty
galleys that were all that the Christians could muster, dared not
attack them, and the Egyptian ships sailed triumphantly into the
harbour. The defenders were heartened; but the ships sailed away
again after they had been unloaded; and the siege dragged on.
Most formidable of the Prankish siege-machines was a great
wooden tower that overtopped the walls, from which stones and
flaming faggots could be shot right into the city streets. One
night, in late July, some of the garrison crept out and set fire to it.
But a wind arose, and the flaming mass was blown against the
wall. The intense heat caused the masonry to disintegrate, and by
morning a breach was made. The Templars, who manned that
sector, determined that they alone should have the credit of the
victory. While some of their men stood by to prevent any other
Christian approaching, forty of their knights penetrated into the
city. The garrison at first thought that all was lost, but then,
seeing how few the Tempkrs were, rounded on them and slew
them. The breach was hastily repaired, and the Templar corpses
were hung out over the city walls.
While a truce was held to enable each side to bury its dead, the
King held a Council in his tent, before the relic of the Holy Cross.
The lay nobles, discouraged by the reverse, wished to abandon the
siege; but the Patriarch and the Grand Master of the Hospitallers,
Raymond of Le Puy, persuaded the King to continue with it; and
their eloquence moved the barons. The attack was renewed more
vigorously than before.
On 19 August, after a fierce bombardment of the city, the gar
rison decided to surrender, on condition that the citizens should be
allowed to depart in safety with their movable belongings.
Baldwin accepted the terms and abode by them loyally. As a
great stream of Moslems poured out of the city, by road and sea,
to retire to Egypt, the Franks entered in state and took over the
citadel, with its vast store of treasure and of arms. The lordship of
339
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
Ascalon was given to the King s brother, Amalric, Count of Jaffa.
The great mosque became the Cathedral of St Paul, and the
Patriarch consecrated as bishop one of his canons, Absalom.
Later, the Bishop of Bethlehem, Gerard, secured a ruling from
Rome that the see depended on his own. 1
The capture of Ascalon was the last great triumph of the Kings
of Jerusalem, and it raised their prestige to a formidable height.
To have won at last the city known as the Bride of Syria was
a resounding achievement; but in fact it brought no great sub
stantial gain. Though the fortress had been the base for petty raids
into Prankish lands, Egypt no longer seriously threatened the
Christians; but now, with Ascalon in their hands, the Franks were
lured on to dangerous adventures by the Nile. It was perhaps for
that reason that Nur ed-Din, with his far-sighted policy, had not
attempted to interfere in the campaign, except for a projected
expedition against Banyas which he planned with Mujir of
Damascus, but which came to nothing owing to mutual quarrels.
He could not regret that Egypt was weakened, nor that Prankish
attention should be diverted to the south. Mujir of Damascus was
more easily impressed. He hastened to assure Baldwin of his
devoted friendship, and he agreed to pay him a yearly tribute.
While Prankish lords journeyed and raided as they pleased over
Damascene territory, Prankish ambassadors came to the city to
collect the money for their King?
To Mujir and his counsellors, mindful of their own safety,
a Prankish protectorate was preferable to their fate should Nur
ed-Din become their master. But to the ordinary citizen of
Damascus the insolence of ^the Christians was unbearable. The
Burid dynasty was proving itself traitor to the Faith. Ayub, Emir
of Baalbek, took advantage of this sentiment. His agents pene
trated the city, spreading resentment against Mujir. There
1 William of Tyre, xvn, 1-5, 27-30, pp. 794-802, 804-13; Ibn al-Qalanisi,
pp. 314-17; Abu Shama, pp. 77-8; Ibn al-Athir, p. 490.
2 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 315-16 (he is reticent about Prankish influence in
Damascus); Ibn al-Atlur, p. 496, and Atabegs, p. 189.
340
1154 : Nur ed-Din takes Damascus
happened at this time to be a food-shortage in Damascus; so Nur
ed-Din held up the convoys that were bringing corn from the
north, and Ayub s agents spread the rumour that this was Mujk s
fault for refusing to co-operate with his fellow-Moslems. Next,
Nur ed-Din persuaded Mujir that many of the Damascene
notables were plotting against him; and Mujir in panic took action
against them. When Mujir had thus lost the favour of both the
rich and the poor, Ayub s brother Shirkuh arrived as Nur ed-Din s
ambassador before Damascus, but he came truculently, with an
armed force unusual for a friendly mission. Mujir would not
admit him to the city nor would he go out to meet him. Nur
ed-Din took this as an insult to his ambassador and advanced with
a large army to Damascus. Mujk s desperate appeal to the Franks
was sent out too late. Nur ed-Din encamped before the walls on
1 8 April 1154. Exactly a week later, after a brief skirmish outside
the eastern wall, a Jewess admitted some of his soldiers into the
Jewish quarter, and at once the populace opened the eastern gate
to the bulk of his army. Mujir fled to the citadel, but capitulated
after only a few hours. He was offered his life and the emirate of
Horns. A few weeks later he was suspected of plotting with old
friends in Damascus and was ejected from Horns. He refused the
offer of the town of Balis on the Euphrates, and retired to
Baghdad.
Meanwhile the citizens of Damascus received Nur ed-Din with
every sign of joy. He forbade his troops to pillage, and he at once
filled the markets with foodstuffs and removed the tax on fruit and
vegetables. When Nur ed-Din returned to Aleppo, he left Ayub
in charge of Damascus. Baalbek was given to a local noble,
Dhahak, who later revolted against Nur ed-Din and had to be
suppressed. 1
Nur ed-Din s capture of Damascus heavily outbalanced
Baldwin s capture of Ascalon. His territory now stretched down
the whole eastern frontier of the Prankish states, from Edessa to
1 Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 318-21 ; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 496-7, ^ Atabegs, pp. 190-2 ;
Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, pp. 527-8.
341
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
Oultrejourdain. Only a few petty emirates in Moslem Syria
retained their independence, such as Shaizar. Though Prankish
possessions were larger in area and richer in resources, Nur ed-
Din s had the advantage of union under one master who was far
less trammelled by arrogant vassals than the rulers of the Franks.
His star was in the ascendant. But he was too cautious to follow
up his triumph too quickly. He seems to have reaffirmed the
afiiance between Damascus and Jerusalem and to have renewed
the truce for another two years in 1156, when he made a payment
of 8000 ducats in continuance of the tribute paid by Mujir ed-Din.
His forbearance was chiefly due to his rivalry with the Anatolian
Seldjuks, from whom he wished to take their share of the former
County of Edessa. 1
The Sultan Mas ud died in 1155; and his sons, Kilij Arslan n
and Shahinshah, at once quarrelled over the inheritance. The
former won the support of the Danishmend princes, Dhu l Nun
of Caesarea and Dhu l Qarnain of Melitene; the latter that of the
eldest Danishmend, Yaghi Siyan of Sivas. Yaghi Siyan asked Nur
ed-Din for help; and Nur ed-Din readily responded by attacking
and annexing the Seldjuk share of the Edessan towns, Aintab,
Dukuk and probably also Samosata. Kilij Arslan defeated his
brother; but, though he tried to build up an alliance with the
Armenians and Franks against Nur ed-Din, he was obliged to
accept the loss of his Euphratesian province.*
Secure in the north, Nur ed-Din turned south again. In
February 1157 Baldwin broke his truce with Nur ed-Din. Relying
on the truce, large numbers of Turcomans had brought their
flocks of sheep and their horses to graze on the rich pastures near
the frontier at Banyas. Kong Baldwin, heavily in debt owing to
a taste for luxury, could not resist the temptation to attack the
unsuspecting shepherds and make off with their animals. This
shameless breach of his engagements brought him the most
valuable booty that Palestine had seen for many decades, but it
1 Ibn al-Qaknisi, pp. 322, 327.
2 Ibid. pp. 324-5 ; Nicetas Choniates, pp. 152-4; Gregory the Priest, p. 176.
342
1156: Earthquakes in Syria
roused Nur ed-Din to vengeance. While he paused at Baalbek, to
reduce its rebellious emir, his general Shirkuh defeated some Latin
raiders from the Buqaia; and his brother Nasr ed-Din routed a
company of the Hospitallers near Banyas. In May Nur ed-Din
himself set out from Damascus to besiege Banyas. Shirkuh
defeated a small relieving force, and joined his master before the
walls. The lower town was soon taken, but the citadel, two miles
away up a steep mountain, held out under the Constable, Hum
phrey of Toron. Humphrey was on the point of surrendering
when news came of the King s approach. Nur ed-Din set fire to the
lower town and retired, letting Baldwin enter Banyas and repair
its walls. As the Franks returned south down the Jordan, Nur
ed-Din fell on them just north of the Sea of Galilee and won a
great victory. The King barely escaped to Safed; and the Moslems
were able to return to the siege of Banyas. But after a few days,
on news from the north of a projected attack by Kilij Arslan,
Nur ed-Din abandoned the attempt and hurried back to Aleppo. 1
There were other reasons for wishing to avoid an open
war at that moment. In the early autumn of 1156 a series of
earthquakes was felt throughout Syria. Damascus was not
severely damaged, but news of destruction came in from Aleppo
and Hama, while a bastion collapsed at Apamea. In November
and December there were further shocks, in which the town of
Shaizar suffered. Cyprus and the coastal cities north of Tripoli
were affected by shocks during the following spring. In August
1157 the Orontes valley underwent even more serious shocks.
Many lives were lost at Horns and Aleppo. At Hama the damage
was so appalling that the earthquake was called by the chroniclers
the Hama earthquake. At Shaizar the family of the Munqidhites
were gathered together to celebrate the circumcision of a youthful
prince when the great walls of the citadel crashed down on them.
Only the Princess of Shaizar, rescued from the ruins, and Usama,
away on his diplomatic missions, survived of all the dynasty. Both
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 11-15, pp. 834-45; Ibn. al-Qalanisi, pp.
330-7.
343
The Rise ofNur ed-Din
Moslems and Franks were too busy repairing shattered fortresses
to think of serious aggressive expeditions for some time to come. 1
In October 1157, two months after his return from Banyas,
Nur ed-Din suddenly fell desperately ill at Sarmin. Thinking that
he was dying he insisted upon being carried in a litter to Aleppo.
There he made his will. His brother, Nasr ed-Din was to succeed
to his states, with Shirkuh ruling Damascus under his suzerainty.
But when Nasr ed-Din entered Aleppo to be ready to take over
the heritage, he met with opposition from the governor, Ibn
ed-Daya. There were disturbances in the streets that were only
quelled when the notables of Aleppo were summoned to their
prince s bedside and saw that he still lived. Indeed, the crisis was
now past, and he began slowly to recover. But he seemed to have
lost something of his initiative and energy. He was no longer
the invincible warrior. Other forces were appearing in Syria
to dominate the scene. 2
1 Robert of Torigny, i, p. 309; Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 315-16, Armenian
version, p. 356; Chron. Anon. Syr. (Syriac edition), p. 302; Ibn al-Qalanisi,
pp. 338-41 ; Ibn al-Athir, p. 503 ; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, p. 529. According
to Ibn al-Qalanisi Nur ed-Din feared that the Franks would attack his defence
less fortresses and kept his army assembled to prevent any such move. Usama s
elegy on the destruction of his family, with which he had quarrelled, is given
in Abu Shama, Cairo edition, vol. I, p. 112.
2 William of Tyre, xvm, 17, pp. 847-8 ; Ibn al-Qalanisi, p. 341 ; Kemal ad-Din,
ed. Blochet, pp. 531-1 ; Abu Shama, p. no (in R.H.C. Hist. Or.).
344
CHAPTER HI
THE RETURN OF THE EMPEROR
For the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a multitude
greater than the former, and shall certainly come after certain years with
a great army and with much riches? DANIEL xi, 13
In 1 1 5 3 , while Nur ed-Din s attention was fixed upon Damascus and
while King Baldwin and his army lay before Ascalon, the Princess
of Antioch decided her own destiny. Amongst the knights that
followed King Louis of France to the Second Crusade was the
younger son of Geoffrey, Count of Gien and lord of Chatillon-
sur-Loing. Reynald of Chatillon had no prospects in his own
country; so he had stayed behind in Palestine when the Crusaders
returned home. There he took service under the young King Bald
win, whom he accompanied to Antioch in 1151. The widowed
Princess soon took notice of him. He seems to have remained in
her principality, no doubt in possession of some small fief; and it
may have been his presence that induced her to refuse the husbands
suggested for her by the King and the Emperor. In the spring of
1 1 5 3 she decided to marry him. Before she announced her intention
she asked permission of the King ; for he was official guardian of her
state and the overlord of her bridegroom. Reynald hastened to
Ascalon, where the King s camp had just been established, and
delivered Constance s message. Baldwin, knowing Reynald to be
abrave soldier, and, above all, thankful to berelieved of the responsi
bility for Antioch, made no difficulty. As soon as Reynald arrived
back in Antioch the marriage took place and Reynald was installed
as Prince. It was not a popular match. Not only the great families
of Antioch but also the humbler subjects of the Princess thought
that she was degraded by giving herself to this upstart. 1
1 William of Tyre, xvn, 26, p. 802, saying that she was secretly married
before obtaining the King s permission. Cirmamus, p. 178, calling him
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The Return of the Emperor
It would have been courteous and correct of Constance to have
asked permission also from the Emperor Manuel. The news of the
marriage was ill-received at Constantinople. But Manuel was at
the moment involved in a campaign against the Seldjuks. He
could not give practical expression to his wrath. Conscious of his
rights, he therefore sent to Antioch offering to recognize the new
Prince if the Franks of Antioch would fight for him against the
Armenian Thoros. He promised a money-subsidy if the work were
properly done. Reynald willingly complied. Imperial approval
would strengthen him personally; moreover, the Armenians had
advanced into the district of Alexandretta, which the Franks
claimed as part of the Antiochene principality. After a short
battle near Alexandretta he drove the Armenians back into Cilicia;
and he presented the reconquered country to the Order of the
Temple. The Order took over Alexandretta, and to protect its
approaches reconstructed the Castles of Gastun and Baghras,
which commanded the Syrian Gates. Reynald had already decided
to work in with the Templars and thus started a friendship that
was to be fatal for Jerusalem. 1
Having secured the land that he wanted, Reynald demanded his
subsidies from the Emperor, who refused them, pointing out that
the main task had yet to be done. Reynald changed his policy.
Encouraged by the Templars he made peace with Thoros and his
brothers; and while the Armenians attacked the few remaining
Byzantine fortresses in Cilicia, he decided to lead an expedition
against the rich island of Cyprus. But he lacked money for the
enterprise. The Patriarch Airnery of Antioch was very rich; and
he had been outspoken in his disapproval of Constance s marriage.
Reynald determined to punish him to his own profit. Aimery had
*a certain Reynald PevdAScp Tivf; Michael the Syrian, Armenian version,
p. 310. Schlumberger (Renaud de Chatillon, p. 3) establishes his origin. The
marriage took place before May, when Reynald confirmed Venetian privileges
in Antioch (Rohricht, Regesta, p. 72).
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 10, pp. 834-5; Michael the Syrian, m, p. 314 and
Armenian version, p. 349, giving a version more favourable to Thoros; Bar
Hebraeus, trans. Budge, p. 283.
346
1156: Reynold s Raid on Cyprus
earned the respect of the Antiochenes by his courage and energy
in the dark days after Prince Raymond s death; but his illiteracy
and the looseness of his morals damaged his reputation and made
him vulnerable. Reynald demanded money from him and on his
refusal lost his temper and cast him into prison. There the prelate
was cruelly beaten on the head. His wounds were then smeared
with honey, and he was left for a whole summer day chained in
blazing sunshine on the roof of the citadel to be a prey for all the
insects of the neighbourhood. The treatment achieved its object.
The miserable Patriarch hastened to pay rather than face another
day of such torment. Meanwhile the story reached Jerusalem.
King Baldwin was horrified and sent at once his chancellor, Ralph,
and the Bishop of Acre to insist on the Patriarch s immediate
release. Reynald, having secured the money, let him go; and
Aimery accompanied his rescuers back to Jerusalem, where he was
received with the highest honours by the King and Queen
Melisende and his brother-Patriarch. He refused meanwhile to
return to Antioch. 1
The Patriarch s experience shocked responsible Prankish circles;
but Reynald was unabashed. He could now attack Cyprus; and
in the spring of 1156 he and Thoros made a sudden landing on the
island. Cyprus had been spared the wars and invasions that had
troubled the Asian continent during the last century. It was con
tented and prosperous under its Byzantine governors. Half a
century before, Cypriot food-parcels had done much to help the
Franks of the First Crusade when they lay starving at Antioch;
and, apart from occasional administrative disputes, relations
between the Franks and the island government had been friendly.
As soon as he heard of Reynald s plan, King Baldwin sent a hasty
message to warn the island. But it was too late; reinforcements
could not be rushed there in time. The governor was the Emperor s
nephew, John Comnenus; and with him in the island was the
distinguished soldier Michael Branas. When news came of the
Prankish landing, Branas hurried with the island militia down to
1 William of Tyre, xvra, i, pp. 816-17; Cinnamus, p. 181.
347
The Return of the Emperor
the coast and won a small initial victory. But the invaders were
too numerous. They soon overpowered his troops and captured
him himself; and when John Comnenus came to his aid, he too
was taken prisoner. The victorious Franks and Armenians then
marched up and down the island robbing and pillaging every
building that they saw, churches and convents as well as shops and
private houses. The crops were burnt; the herds were rounded up,
together with all the population, and driven down to the coast.
The women were raped; children and folk too old to move had
their throats cut. The murder and rapine was on a scale that the
Huns or the Mongols might have envied. The nightmare lasted
about three weeks. Then, on the rumour of an imperial fleet in the
ofEng, Reynald gave the order for re-embarkation. The ships were
loaded up with booty. The herds and flocks for which there was
no room were sold back at a high price to their owners. Every
Cypriot was forced to ransom himself; and there was no money
left in the island for the purpose. So the governor and Branas,
together with the leading churchmen, the leading proprietors and
the leading merchants, with all their families, were carried off to
Antioch to remain in prison till the money should be forthcoming ;
except for some who were mutilated and sent in derision to
Constantinople. 1 The island of Cyprus never fully recovered from
the devastation caused by the Frenchmen and their Armenian
allies. The earthquakes of 1157, which were severe in Cyprus,
completed the misery; and in 1158 the Egyptians, whose fleet had
not ventured into Cypriot waters for many decades, made some
raids on the defenceless island, possibly without the formal per
mission of the Caliph s government; for amongst the prisoners
captured was the governor s brother, who was received honour
ably at Cairo and sent back at once to Constantinople. 2
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 10, pp. 834-5; Cinnamus, pp. 78-9; Michael die
Syrian, m, p. 315, and Armenian version, p. 350; Bar Hebraeus, trans. Budge,
p. 284; Gregory die Priest p. 187, who says that Reynald cut off the noses of
the Greek priests that he captured.
3 Ibn Moyessar, p. 473.
348
The Franks attack Shaizar
In 1157 Thierry, Count of Flanders, returned to Palestine with
a company of knights; and in the autumn Baldwin III determined
to profit by his arrival and by Nur ed-Din s illness to re-establish
the Prankish positions on the middle Orontes. Reynald was
persuaded to join the royal army in an attack upon Shaizar. After
the disastrous earthquake in August the citadel had fallen to a band
of Assassin adventurers. The Christian army arrived there at the
end of the year. The lower town fell at once to them; and the
ruined citadel seemed likely to surrender, when a quarrel broke
out amongst the besiegers. Baldwin promised the town and its
territory to Thierry as the nucleus of a principality to be held under
the Crown; but Reynald, ckiming that the Munqidhites had been
tributaries to Antioch, demanded that Thierry should pay him
homage for it. To the Count the idea of paying homage to a man
of such undistinguished origin was unthinkable. Baldwin could
only solve the difficulty by abandoning the disputed territory. The
army moved away northwards to occupy the ruins of Apamea,
then laid siege to Harenc. This was undeniably Antiochene
property; but Baldwin and Thierry were prepared to help Reynald
recapture it in view of its strategic importance. After a heavy
bombardment by mangonels it capitulated in February 1158, and
was given a little later to one of Thierry s knights, Reynald of
Saint-Valery, who held it under the Prince of Antioch. 1
The Prince of Antioch s conduct had not been satisfactory; and
the King decided to reorientate his policy. He knew of Reynald s
bad relations with the Emperor, who was unlikely to forgive the
raid on Cyprus, and he knew that the Byzantine army was stiH the
most formidable in Christendom. In the summer of 1157 he had
sent an embassy to Constantinople to ask for a bride from the
imperial family. It was led by Achard, Archbishop of Nazareth,
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 17-19, pp. 84.7-53; Robert of Torigny, I, p. 316;
Michael the Syrian, Armenian version, pp. 351-3; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 342,
344; Reynald of Saint Valery was still a baron of Jerusalem in 1160 (Rohricht,
Regesta, p. 94) but returned to the West soon afterwards. Robert of Torigny
alone tells us that he was given Harenc.
349
The Return of the Emperor
who died on the journey, and Humphrey II of Toron. The
Emperor Manuel received them well. After some negotiation he
offered his niece Theodora, with a dowry of 100,000 golden
hyperperi, and another 10,000 for wedding expenses, and gifts
worth 30,000 more. In return she was to be given Acre and its
territory as her dower, to keep should her husband die childless.
When his embassy came back and Baldwin had confirmed the
terms, the young princess set out from Constantinople. She arrived
at Acre in September 1158 and travelled in state to Jerusalem. There
she was married to the King by the Patriarch Aimery of Antioch,
as the Patriarch-elect of Jerusalem had not yet been confirmed by
the Pope. She was aged thirteen, but well-grown and very lovely.
Baldwin was delighted with her and was a faithful husband,
abandoning the easy morals of his bachelor days. 1
During the negotiations it seems that Manuel promised to join
in an alliance against Nur ed-Din, and that Baldwin agreed that
Reynald should be humbled. Meanwhile the King campaigned on
the Damascene frontier. In March 1158 he and the Count of
Flanders made a surprise march on Damascus itself and on i April
laid siege to the castle of Dareiya in the suburbs. But Nur ed-Din,
now convalescent, was already on his way south to put an end
to the intrigues that had flourished there during his illness. He
arrived in Damascus on 7 April to the great delight of its in
habitants; and Baldwin thought it prudent to retire. Nur ed-Din
then made a counter-offensive. While his lieutenant Shirkuh
raided the territory of Sidon, he himself attacked the castle of
Habis Jaldak, which the Franks had built as an outpost south-east
of the Sea of Galilee, by the banks of the river Yarmuk. The
garrison was so hard pressed that it soon agreed to capitulate if
help did not arrive within ten days. Baldwin therefore set out
with Count Thierry to its relief, but instead of going straight to it
he took the road north of the lake leading to Damascus. The ruse
worked. Nur ed-Din feared for his communications and raised the
x William of Tyre, xvm, 16, 22, pp. 846, 857-8; Gregory die Priest,
pp. i 6-9; Matthew of Edessa, ccbodii, pp. 352-3.
350
1158: Manuel enters Cilida
siege. The two armies met at the village of Butaiha, on the east of
the upper Jordan valley. At the first glimpse of the Moslems, the
Franks attacked, believing them to be only a scouting party; when
the whiimy of a mule that the King had given to a sheikh whom
they knew to be with Nur ed-Din it had recognized the smell of
its old friends amongst the Prankish horses showed them that the
whole Moslem force had arrived. But the impetus of their attack
had been so great that the Moslems wavered. Nur ed-Din, whose
health was still frail, was persuaded to leave the battlefield; and on
his departure his whole army turned and retired in some disorder.
The Prankish victory was sufficient to induce Nur ed-Din to ask
for a truce. For the next few years there was no serious warfare on
the Syro-Palestinian frontier. Both Baldwin and Nur ed-Din
could turn their attention to the north. 1
In the autumn of 1 1 5 8 the Emperor set out from Constantinople
at the head of a great army. He marched to Cilicia; and while the
main force followed slowly along the difficult coast-road eastward,
he hurried ahead with a force of only five hundred horsemen. So
secret were his preparations and so quick his movements that no
one in Cilicia knew of his coming. The Armenian Prince Thoros
was at Tarsus, suspecting nothing, when suddenly, one day in late
October, a Latin pilgrim whom he had entertained came rushing
back to his Court to tell him that he had seen Imperial troops only
a day s march away. Thoros collected his family, his intimate
friends and his treasure and fled at once to the mountains. Next
day Manuel entered the Cilician plain. While his brother-in-law,
Theodore Vatatses, occupied Tarsus, he moved on swiftly; and
within a fortnight all the Cilician cities as far as Anazarbus were in
his power. But Thoros himself still eluded him. While Byzantine
detachments scoured the valleys he fled from hill-top to hill
top and at last found refuge on a crag called Dadjig, near the
sources of the Cydnus, whose ruins had been uninhabited for
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 21, pp. 855-6; Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 346-8: Abu
Shama, pp. 97-100 ( who says that Baldwin asked for a truce, probably relying
on an equivocal sentence in Ibn al-Qalanisi).
351
The Return of the Emperor
generations. Only his two most trusted servants knew where he
lay hidden. 1
The Emperor s arrival terrified Reynald. He knew that he
could not resist against this huge Imperial army; and this know
ledge saved him. For by making an immediate submission he
could obtain far better terms than if he were defeated in battle.
Gerard, Bishop of Lattakieh, the most perspicacious of his coun
sellors, pointed out to him that the Emperor s motive was prestige
rather than conquest. So Reynald sent hastily to Manuel offering
to surrender the citadel of Antioch to an Imperial garrison. When
his envoy was told that that was not enough, he himself put on
a penitent s dress and hurried to the Emperor s camp, outside the
walls of Mamistra. Envoys from all the neighbouring princes were
arriving to greet the Emperor, from Nur ed-Din, from the
Danishmends, from the King of Georgia, and even from the
Caliph. Manuel kept Reynald waiting a little. It seems that about
this moment he received a message from the exiled Patriarch
Aimery suggesting that Reynald should be brought before him in
chains and be deposed. But it suited the Emperor better to have
him a humble client. At a solemn session, with the Emperor
seated enthroned in his great tent, his courtiers and the foreign
ambassadors grouped around him and the crack regiments of the
army lining the approaches, Reynald made his submission. He
and his suite had walked barefoot and bareheaded through the
town and out to the camp. There he prostrated himself in the dust
before the imperial platform, while all his men raised their hands
in supplication. Many minutes passed before Manuel deigned to
notice him. Then pardon was accorded to him on three conditions.
Whenever it was asked of him he must hand his citadel over to an
Imperial garrison; he must provide a contingent for the Imperial
army; and he must admit a Greek Patriarch of Antioch instead of
the Latin. Reynald swore to obey these terms. Then he was dis
missed and sent back to Antioch.
1 Cinnamus, pp. 179-81; Matthew of Edessa, loc. dt.; Gregory the Priest,
p. 187.
352
The Emperor in Antioch
The news of Manuel s approach had brought King Baldwin,
with his brother Amalric and the Patriarch Aimery, hastening
from the south. They arrived at Antioch soon after Reynald s
return. Baldwin was a little disappointed to hear of Reynald s
pardon and he wrote at once to Manuel to beg for an audience.
Manuel hesitated, apparently because he believed that Baldwin
desired the principality for himself. This may have been part of
Aimery s suggestion. But when Baldwin insisted, Manuel
yielded. Baldwin rode out from Antioch escorted by citizens
praying him to reconcile them with the Emperor. The interview
was an immense success. Manuel was charmed by the young
King, whom he kept as his guest for ten days. While they dis
cussed plans for an alliance, Baldwin succeeded in securing a
pardon for Thoros, who went through the same procedure as
Reynald had done, and who was allowed to keep his territory in
the mountains. It was probably due to Baldwin that Manuel did
not insist on the immediate installation of the Greek Patriarch.
Aimery was re-established on his patriarchal throne and was
formally reconciled with Reynald. When Baldwin returned to
Antioch, laden with gifts, he left his brother behind with the
Emperor.
On Easter Sunday, 12 April 1159, Manuel came to Antioch and
made his solemn entry into the city. The Latin authorities tried to
keep him away by saying that there was a plot to assassinate him
there; but he was not intimidated. He merely insisted that the
citizens should give him hostages and that the Latin princes who
were to take part in the procession should be unarmed. He him
self wore mail beneath his robes. There was no untoward incident.
While the imperial banners floated over the citadel, the cortege
passed over the fortified bridge into the city. First came the
superb Varangians of the Imperial Guard. Then the Emperor
himself, on horseback, in a purple mantle, and on his head a
diadem dripping with pearls. Reynald, on foot, held his bridle,
and other Prankish lords walked beside the horse. Behind him
rode Baldwin, uncrowned and unarmed. Then there followed the
RC 353 23
The Return of the Emperor
high functionaries of the Empire. Just inside the gates waited the
Patriarch Aimery, in full pontificals, with all his clergy, to lead the
procession through streets strewn with carpets and with flowers,
first to the Cathedral of St Peter, then on to the palace.
For eight days Manuel remained in Antioch; and festivity
followed festivity. He himself, though proud and majestic on
solemn occasions, radiated a personal charm and friendliness that
captivated the crowds ; and the lavishness of his gifts, to the nobles
and the populace alike, enhanced the general rejoicing. As a
gesture to the Occident he organized a tournament and made his
comrades join him in the jousts. He was a fine horseman and
acquitted himself with honour; hut his commanders, to whom
horsemanship was a means, and not an end, were less impressive in
comparison with the knights of the West. The intimacy between
the Emperor and his nephew-by-marriage, the King, grew closer.
When Baldwin broke his arm out hunting, Manuel insisted on
treating it himself, just as he had acted as medical adviser to
Conrad of Germany. 1
This splendid week marked the triumph of the Emperor s
prestige. But Gerard of Lattakieh was right. It was prestige, not
conquest, that he wanted. When all the feasts were ended, he
rejoined his army outside the walls and moved eastward to the
Moslem frontier. He was met almost at once by ambassadors from
Nur ed-Din, with full powers to negotiate a truce. To the fury of
the Latins, who had expected him to march on Aleppo, he received
the embassy, and discussions began. When Nur ed-Din offered to
release all the Christian captives, to the number of six thousand,
that were in his prisons and to send an expedition against the
Seldjuk Turks, Manuel agreed to call off the campaign.
He had probably never intended to carry on with it ; and though
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 23-5, pp. 859-64; Cinnamus, pp. 181-90; Nicetas
Choniates, pp. 141-5; Prodromus, in R.H.C. Gre.cs, n, pp. 752, 766; Matthew
of Edessa, cclxxiv, pp. 354-5; Gregory the Priest, pp. 188-9; Vahram, Rhymed
Chrmick, p. 505: Ibn al-Qalanisi, pp. 349, 353. See also La Monte, To what
extent was the Byzantine Empire the suzerain of the Latin States ?* in Byzantion,
vol. vn.
354
1159 Manuel s Truce with Nur ed-Din
the Crusaders and their modern apologists might cry treason, it is
hard to see what else he could have done. To the Crusaders Syria
was all-important, but to Manuel it was only one frontier-zone
out of many and not the most vital to his Empire. He could not
afford to remain for many months at the end of a long and
vulnerable line of communications, nor, magnificent though his
army was, could he risk heavy losses to it with impunity. More
over he had no wish to cause the break-up of Nur ed-Din s power.
He knew from bitter experience that the Franks only welcomed
him when they were frightened. It would be folly to remove
their chief source of fear. And Nur ed-Din s alliance was a valuable
asset in the wars against a far more dangerous enemy to the
Empire, the Turks of Anatolia. But, as the sequel showed, he
would give help to prevent Nur ed-Din s conquest of Egypt; for
that would fatally upset the equilibrium. Perhaps, had he been less
precipitate, he might have obtained better terms. But he had
received worrying news of a plot at Constantinople and troubles
on his European frontier. He could not anyhow afford to stay
much longer in Syria. 1
Nevertheless his truce with Nur ed-Din was a psychological
mistake. For a moment the Franks had been prepared to accept
him as leader; but he had shown himself, as wiser men would have
foreseen, more interested in his Empire s fate than in theirs. Nor
were they much consoled by the release of the Christian captives.
They included some important local warriors, such as the Grand
Master of the Temple, Bertrand of Blancfort; but they were for
the most part Germans captured during the Second Crusade, and
amongst them was the claimant to Tripoli, Bertrand of Toulouse,
whose reappearance might have been embarrassing had his health
not been broken by captivity/
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 25, p. 864 (in no way blaming the Emperor);
Otto of Freisingen, Gesta Friderid, p. 229; Cinnamus, pp. 188-90; Gregory the
Priest, pp. 190-1; Matthew of Edessa, cclxxv, pp. 355-8; Ibn al-Qalanisi,
pp. 3535.
2 William of Tyre, loc. c\t.\ Cinnamus, p. 188, specially mentioning *TV
viecc (the son of Saint Gilles) and *T6v T^-irAou {jiataropa .
355 **- 2
The Return of the Emperor
When the trace was concluded, the Emperor and his army
retreated westward, slowly at first, then faster as more alarming
news arrived from his capital. Some of Nur ed-Din s followers
tried to harass it, against their master s wishes; and when, to save
time, it cut through Seldjuk territory, there were skirmishes with
the Sultan s troops. But it arrived intact at Constantinople in the
late summer. After some three months, Manuel crossed again into
Asia to campaign against the Seldjuks, to try out against them
a new and more mobile form of tactics. Meanwhile his envoys
were building up the coalition against the Seldjuk Sultan, Kilij
Arslan II. Nur ed-Din, deeply relieved by Manuel s departure,
advanced into Seldjuk territory from the middle Euphrates. The
Danishmend prince Yakub Arslan attacked from the north-east,
so successfully that the Sultan was obliged to cede to him. the lands
round Albistan in the Anti-Taurus. Meanwhile the Byzantine
general, John Contostephanus, collected the levies that Reynald
and Thoros were bound by treaty to provide, and, with a con
tingent of Petchenegs, settled by Manuel in Cilicia, moved up
through the Taurus passes; and Manuel and the main Imperial
army, reinforced by troops provided by the Prince of Serbia and
Prankish pilgrims recruited when their ships called in at Rhodes,
swept up the valley of the Meander. The Sultan had to divide his
forces. When Contostephanus won a complete victory over the
Turks sent to oppose him, Kilij Arslan gave up the struggle. He
wrote to the Emperor offering in return for peace to give back all
the Greek cities occupied in recent years by the Moslems, to see
that the frontiers were respected and that raiding ceased, and to
provide a regiment to fight in the Imperial army whenever it
might be required. Manuel agreed to the terms; but he kept in
reserve the Sultan s rebellious brother Shahinshah, who had come
to him for protection. So, to confirm the treaty, Kilij Arslan sent
his Christian chancellor, Christopher, to Constantinople to suggest
an official visit to the imperial Court. Hostilities ended in the
summer of 1161; and next spring Kilij Arslan was received at
Constantinople. The ceremonies were splendid. The Sultan was
356
1160: Reynold taken Prisoner
treated with great honour and showered with gifts, but was
treated as a vassal-prince. The news of the visit impressed all the
princes of the East. 1
It is in this general light that we must judge Manuel s eastern
policy . He had won a very valuable victory of prestige and he had,
temporarily at least, humbled the Seldjuks, who had been the main
threat to his Empire. This success brought certain advantages to
the Franks. Nur ed-Din had not been defeated, but he had been
scared. He would not attempt a direct attack on Christian
territory. At the same time the peace with the Seldjuks reopened
the land route for pilgrims from the West. There was an increase
in their numbers ; and that more did not arrive was due to western
politics, to the wars between the Hohenstaufen and the Papalists in
Germany and Italy and between the Capetians and the Planta-
genets in France. But, though Byzantium was to remain for the
next twenty years the greatest influence in northern Syria, its
genuine friends among the Franks were very few.
Events in 1160 showed both the nature and the value of the
Imperial suzerainty over Antioch, King Baldwin had returned to
the south and was engaged on a few minor raids in Damascene
territory, taking advantage of Nur ed-Din s preoccupations in the
north, when he heard that Reynald had been taken prisoner by
Nur ed-Din. In November 1160 the seasonal movement of herds
from the mountains of the Anti-Taurus into the Euphratesian plain
tempted the Prince to make a raid up the river valley. As he
returned, slowed down by the droves of cattle and camels and horses
that he had rounded up, he was ambushed by the governor of
Aleppo, Nur ed-Din s foster-brother Majd ed-Din. He fought
bravely; but his men were outnumbered and he himself was
unhorsed and captured. He was sent with his comrades, bound, on
camel-back, to Aleppo, where he was to remain in gaol for sixteen
years. Neither the Emperor nor the King of Jerusalem nor even the
1 Cinnamus, pp. 191-201, 204-8; Nicetas Chroniates, pp. 152-64; Gregory
the Priest, pp. 193-4, 199; Matthew of Edessa, cclxxxii, p. 364*- Michael the
Syrian, m, p. 320; Citron. Anon. Syr. p. 302; Ibn al-Athir, p. 544.
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The Return of the Emperor
people of Antioch showed any haste to ransom him. In his
prison he found young Joscelin of Courtenay, titular Count
of Edessa, who had been captured on a raid a few months
previously. 1
Reynald s elimination raised a constitutional problem in Antioch,
where he had reigned as the husband of the Princess Constance.
She now claimed that the power reverted to her; but public
opinion supported the rights of her son by her first marriage,
Bohemond, surnamed the Stammerer, who was however only
aged fifteen. It was a situation similar to that of Queen Melisende
and Baldwin III in Jerusalem a few years previously. There was no
immediate danger, because Nur ed-Din s fear of Manuel kept him
from attacking Antioch itself But some effective government
must be provided. Strictly speaking, it was for the Emperor as
the accepted suzerain of Antioch to settle the question. But
Manuel was far away, and the Antiochenes had not accepted him
without reservations. The Norman princes of Antioch had con
sidered themselves as sovereign princes ; but the frequent minorities
amongst their successors had obliged the Kings of Jerusalem to
intervene, more as kinsmen than as suzerains. There had, however,
grown up in Antioch a sentiment that regarded the King as
suzerain; and there is little doubt that Manuel had only been
accepted so easily because Baldwin was present to give his approval
to the arrangement. It was to Baldwin, not to Manuel, that the
people of Antioch looked now for a solution. On their in
vitation he came to Antioch, declared Bohemond III to be the
rightful prince, and entrusted the government to the Patriarch
Aimery till the Prince should be of age. The decision displeased
Constance, and its method displeased Manuel. The Princess
promptly appealed to the Imperial Court. 2 "
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 28, pp. 868-9; Matthew of Edessa, cclxxxi,
pp. 363-4.; Chron. Anon. Syr. p. 302; Gregory the Priest, p. 308 ; Kernal ad-Din,
ed. Blochet, p. 533; Cahen (op. dt. p. 405 n. i) gives additional sources and
discusses the topography.
2 William of Tyre, xvm, 30, p. 874; Michael the Syrian, ni, p. 324, who says
that Constance was removed from the rule of Antioch by Thoros.
358
1161: Melisende of Tripoli
About the end of the year 1159 the Empress Irene, born Bertha
of Sulzbach, had died leaving only a daughter behind her. In 1160
an embassy led by John Contostephanus, accompanied by the
chief interpreter of the Court, the Italian Theophylact, arrived at
Jerusalem to ask the King to nominate one of the eligible princesses
of Outremer as bride for the widowed Emperor. There were two
candidates, Maria, daughter of Constance of Antioch, and
Melisende, daughter of Raymond II of Tripoli, both of them
Baldwin s cousins and both famed for their beauty. Distrusting
a close family alliance between the Emperor and Antioch,
Baldwin suggested Melisende. The ambassadors went on to
Tripoli to report on the Princess, whom the whole Prankish East
saluted as the future Empress. Raymond of Tripoli proudly
determined to give his sister a worthy dowry and spent vast sums
on her trousseau. Presents poured in from her mother Hodierna
and her aunt Queen Melisende. Knights from all parts hurried to
Tripoli in the hope of being asked to the wedding. But no con
firmation came from Constantinople. The ambassadors sent to
Manuel glowing and intimate accounts of Melisende s person, but
they also recorded a rumour about her birth, based on her mother s
known quarrel with her father. There seems to have been in fact
no doubt about her legitimacy; but the gossip may have made the
Emperor hesitate. Then he heard of Baldwin s intervention at
Antioch and received Constance s appeal. In the early summer of
1161 Raymond, having grown impatient, sent one of his knights,
Otto of Risberg, to Constantinople to ask what was afoot. About
August Otto returned with the news that the Emperor repudiated
the engagement. 1
The shock and humiliation were too much for Melisende. She
fell into a decline and soon faded away, as the Princesse Lointaine
1 William of Tyre, xvni, 30, pp. 874-6; Cinnamus, pp. 208-10, who says
that Melisende s health was unsatisfactory, in addition to the rumours about
her legitimacy. Melisende is mentioned as futurae Imperatricis Constantino-
politanae* in the charter of 31 July 1161, when Oultrejourdain was given to
Philip of Milly. She and her brother were then with the King at Nazareth
(Rohricht, Regesta, p. 96).
359
The Return of the Emperor
of medieval French romance. Her brother Raymond was furious.
He demanded angrily to be recouped for the sums that he had
spent on her trousseau; and when that was refused, he fitted out
the twelve galleys that he had ordered to convey her to Constanti
nople as men-of-war and led them to raid the coasts of Cyprus. 1
King Baldwin, who was staying with his cousins waiting for news,
was seriously disquieted, especially when the Byzantine ambas
sadors received orders to go to Antioch. He hurried after them,
to find in Antioch a splendid embassy from the Emperor, headed
by Alexius Bryennius Comnenus, son of Anna Comnena, and the
Prefect of Constantinople, John Camaterus. They had already
negotiated a marriage contract between their master and the
Princess Maria of Antioch; and their presence had sufficed to
establish Constance as ruler of the principality. Baldwin had to
accept the situation. Maria, who was lovelier even than her
cousin Melisende, set sail from Saint Symeon in September, proud
to be an Empress and happy in her ignorance of her ultimate
destiny. She was married to the Emperor in December in the
Church of Saint Sophia at Constantinople by the three Patriarchs,
Luke of Constantinople, Sophronius of Alexandria and the titular
Patriarch of Antioch, Athanasius II. 2
Baldwin had seen the value of a Byzantine alliance ; but Manuel s
success had been greater than he wished in the Christian north and
less effective against Nur ed-Din, though it kept the Moslems
quiet for the next two years. After this diplomatic check over the
Emperor s marriage, the King returned towards his kingdom.
There his government had gone smoothly ever since his mother s
fall from power. She had emerged in 1 1 57 to preside over a coun
cil of regency when Baldwin was away at the wars; and she kept
ecclesiastical patronage in her hands. When the Patriarch Fulcher
died in November 1157 she secured the appointment as his
successor of a simple cleric whom she knew, Amalric of Nesle,
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 31, 33, pp. 876, 878-9.
* Ibid, xvm, 31, pp. 875-6; Cinnamus, p. 210-11; Nicetas Choniates,
p. 151, a great eulogy of the beauty of the new Empress.
360
PLATE VII
THE EMPEROR MANUEL COMNENUS AND HIS
WIFE, MARIA OF ANTIOCH
1162: Death of Baldwin III
well-educated but unworldly and unpractical. Hernes, Archbishop
of Caesarea, and Ralph, Bishop of Bethlehem, opposed his eleva
tion; and Amalric was obliged to send Frederick, Bishop of Acre, to
Rome to secure papal support. Frederick s tact and, it was hinted,
his bribes obtained confirmation from the papal Curia. 1 In her
church-patronage, Melisende was seconded by her stepdaughter,
Sibylla of Flanders, who refused to return to Europe with her
husband Thierry in 1158 but stayed on as a nun in the abbey that
Melisende had founded at Bethany. When Melisende died in
September 1 161, while the King was at Antioch, Sibylla succeeded
to her influence in the royal family and in the Church till her own
death four years later/
While he was passing through Tripoli, King Baldwin fell ill.
The Count of Tripoli sent his own doctor, the Syrian Barac, to
tend him; but the Kong grew worse. He moved on to Beirut, and
there, on 10 February 1162, he died. He had been a tall, strongly-
built man, whose florid complexion and thick fair beard suggested
good health and virility; and all the world believed that Barac s
drugs had poisoned him. He was in his thkty-third year. Had he
lived longer, he might have been a great king; for he had energy
and a far-sighted vision and a personal charm that was irresistible.
He was well-lettered, learned both in history and in law. His
subjects mourned him bitterly; and even the Moslem peasants
came down from the hills to pay respect to his body as the
funeral cortege moved slowly to Jerusalem. Some of Nur ed-Din s
friends suggested to the Atabeg that now was the time to attack
the Christians. But he, just returned from a long-postponed
pilgrimage to Mecca, refused to disturb a people bewailing the loss
of so great a prince. 3
1 William of Tyre, xvm, 20, p. 854. Examples of Melisende s religious
charities in 1159 and 1160 are given in Rohricht, Regesta, pp. 88, 94.
3 William of Tyre, loc. cit. mentions Sibylla s participation. Ernoul, p. 21,
for Sibylla s refusal to leave tne Holy Land.
3 William of Tyre, xvi, 2, pp. 705-6, gives a character sketch of Baldwin El.
361
CHAPTER IV
THE LURE OF EGYPT
No; lut we will go into the land of Egypt. JEREMIAH xxn, 14
Baldwin III left no children. His Greek Queen, Theodora, was
still only sixteen when she was widowed. The heir to the kingdom
was his brother Amalric, Count of Jaffa and Ascalon. Eight days
after Baldwin s death he was crowned king by the Patriarch
Amalric. There had, however, been some question about his
succession. The barons were unwilling to abandon their right of
election, even though there was no other possible candidate. They
had one legitimate- grievance. Some four years before, Amalric
had married Agnes of Courtenay, daughter of Joscelin II of
Edessa. She was his third cousin, and therefore within the degrees
prohibited by the Church; and the Patriarch had re&sed to con
firm the marriage. There were other reasons for disliking Agnes.
She was considerably older than Amalric. Her first husband,
Reynald of Marash, had been killed in 1149, when Amalric was
aged thirteen; and her reputation for chastity was not good. The
Patriarch and the barons demanded that the marriage be annulled.
Amalric consented at once, but he insisted that the legitimacy
and rights of inheritance of his two children, Baldwin and Sibylla,
should be recognized. 1
1 William of Tyre xn, i, 4, pp. 883-4, 888-90. Robert of Torigny i
P " 3 . MV Ama ] riC S arria g e "57- For Agnes s first husband, see above
p. 326 William of Tyre s continuators disliked her intensely for good reasons
(see below, p. 407). They may have exaggerated her faults, but it is unlikely
that the distant consanguinity alone would have made the barons insist on the
divorce. According tc .William the relationship was pointed out by the Abbess
Stephanie, daughter of Joscelin I, and Maria of Salerno : but it must have been
well-known that Baldwin I and Joscelin I were first cousins, and the Patriarch
362
1162: King Amalric
Amalric was now twenty-five. He was as tall and handsome as
his brother, with the same high colouring and thick blond beard,
though critics considered him too plump in the chest. He was less
learned, though well informed on legal matters. While his brother
loved to talk, he stammered a little and was taciturn, but was
*- " ..... . . .
Map 5. Egypt in the twelfth century.
given to frequent paroxysms of loud laughter, which somewhat
impaired his dignity. He was never as popular as his brother,
lacking his charm and open manner; and his private life was
unpraiseworthy. 1 His quality as a statesman was shown within
had already refused to bless the wedding. Agnes was probably born in 1133
her mother Beatrice s first husband died in 1132, and she married Joscelin of
Edessa very soon afterwards.
1 William of Tyre, XEX, 2-3, pp. 884-8.
363
The Lure of Egypt
a few months of his accession, when Gerard, lord of Sidon and
Beaufort, dispossessed one of his vassals without due cause, and
the vassal appealed to the Crown. Amalric insisted upon the case
being heard before the High Court of the realm. He then passed
an assise, based on other such precedents, which empowered
vassals to appeal against their lord to the High Court. If the lord
failed to appear before the Court, the case was held to have gone
by default and the vassal was reinstated. This law, by bringing the
vassals of tenants-in-chief into direct relation with the King, to
whom they had to pay liege homage, gave immense power to a
strong king who dominated the High Court. But the High Court
itself was composed of that very class against which the law was
directed. If the king were weak, it could be used against him by
applying it to the tenants of the royal domain. 1 This assise was
followed by others regulating the King s relations with his vassals.
When he had firmly established his royal authority at home,
Amalric could attend to foreign affairs. In the north he was ready
to sacrifice Antioch to the Byzantines. About the end of 1162
there were disturbances in Cilicia following the murder of
Thoros s brother Stephen, who was on his way to attend a
banquet given by the Imperial governor Andronicus. Thoros, who
had his own reasons for desiring Stephen s elimination, accused
Andronicus of complicity and swept down on Mamistra,
Anazarbus and Vahka, surprising and murdering the Greek
garrisons. Amalric hastened to offer support to the Emperor; who
replaced Andronicus with an able general of Hungarian birth,
Constantine Coloman. Coloman came with strengthened forces
to Cilicia; and Thoros retired with apologies back to the moun
tains. 2 Bohemond of Antioch was now eighteen and of an age to
govern. In her desire to keep her power Constance appealed to
1 For this important assize, see above, p. 301. La Monte, Feudal Monarchy,
pp. 22-3, 99, 153; also Grandclaude, Liste d Assises de Jerusalem. in. Melanges
Paul Fournier, pp. 329 He dates this assize 1166 and lists the other assizes that
can be attributed to Amalric.
2 Cinnamus, p. 227; Gregory the Priest, p. 200; Sembat the Constable,
p. 621 ; Michael the Syrian, in, p. 3 19, Armenian version, pp. 349, 3 56.
364
1154 Intrigues in Cairo
Coloman for military aid. The rumour of her appeal provoked
a riot in Antioch. Constance was exiled and Bohemond III in
stalled in her place. She died soon afterwards. 1 The Emperor made
no objection to the change of regime, probably because Amalric
gave guarantees that his suzerainty would be respected. But as
a safeguard he invited Constance s second son Baldwin and, later,
her children by Reynald, to Constantinople. Baldwin joined the
imperial army and died in battle.* While King Amalric openly
supported the Byzantines, he wrote at the same time to King
Louis VII of France to ask if there was any hope of his sending
help to the Latins of Syria. 3
Byzantine good-will was necessary to Amalric to carry out his
chief political ambition, which was the control of Egypt. The
existence of the Latin states depended, as he well understood, on
disunion amongst their Moslem neighbours. Moslem Syria was
now united; but so long as Egypt was at enmity with Nur ed-Din,
the situation was not desperate. The Fatimid Caliphate was, how
ever, in such decadence that its end seemed imminent. It was
essential that it should not fall into Nur ed-Din s hands. Since the
loss of Ascalon there had been increasing chaos at the Caliph s
Court. The vizier Abbas survived the disaster for a year. His son
Nasr was the favourite of the young Caliph al-Zafir; and their
intimacy gave rise to scandalous gossip. This infuriated Abbas, not
for moral reasons but because he rightly suspected that al-Zar
intended to play off the son against the father. Usama, who was
still at the Court, learnt that Nasr had indeed agreed to murder
1 Michael the Syrian, m, p. 324, confirmed by Chron. Anon. Syr. They seem
to coalesce the events of 1160 and 1162-3. Ughelli, Italia Sacra, vn, p. 203,
quotes a charter of 1167 where Bohemond III calls himself Prince of Antioch,
Lord of Laodicea and Gibel . As Lattakieh andjabala were his mother s dower,
she had presumably died.
2 For Baldwin, see below, p. 413. Constance s daughter by Reynald, Agnes,
was married later to the Hungarian pretender Alexius or Bela III, who became
King of Hungary in 1173 (Nicetas Choniates, p. 221).
3 Letters of Amalric in Bouquet, R.H.F. vol. xvi, pp. 36-7, 39-40. The
second letter speaks of the Byzantine threat to Antioch. Bohemond IE wrote
about the same time to King Louis (ibid. pp. 27-8).
365
The Lurej}f Egypt
Abbas. He hastened to reconcile them and soon persuaded Nasr
that it would be better to murder the Caliph instead. Nasr
invited his benefactor to a midnight orgy at his house and there
stabbed him. Abbas affected to believe that the murderers were
the Caliph s own brothers. He put them to death and, while
seizing the Caliph s treasure for himself, placed on the throne
al-Zafir s young son, al-Fa iz, a boy of five, who had witnessed his
uncles deaths and thereafter suffered from chronic convulsions.
The princesses of the family suspected the truth and summoned
the governor of upper Egypt, Ibn Ruzzik, an Armenian by birth,
to rescue them. He marched on Cairo and won round the officers
of the garrison. Abbas and Nasr packed up their treasure and on
29 May 1154 fled from the capital, taking with them Usama, who
had begun to intrigue with Ibn Ruzzik. As they emerged from
the deserts of Sinai, Prankish troops from Montreal fell on them.
Usama escaped safely and eventually reached Damascus. But
Abbas was slain, and Nasr and all the treasure was captured. Nasr
was handed over to the Templars and at once announced his wish
to become a Christian. But the Court of Cairo offered the Order
60,000 dinars for his person; so his instruction was interrupted and
he was sent in chains to Cairo. There the late Caliph s four widows
personally mutilated him. He was then hanged, and his body
swung for two years at the Zawila Gate. 1
Ibn Ruzzik governed till 1161. In n 60 the boy-Caliph died, to
be succeeded by his nine-year old cousin, al-Adid, who next year
was forced to marry Ibn Ruzzik s daughter. But the Caliph s aunt,
al-Zafir s sister, distrusted the vizier s ambition. She induced her
friends to stab him in the hall of the palace. Before he died, in
September 1161, he was able to summon the princess to his
presence and killed her himself. His son, al-Adil, succeeded as
vizier and ruled for fifteen months. Then he in his turn was dis-
1 Usama, ecL Hitti, pp. 43-54 (whose account does not quite conceal kis
volatile disloyalties); Ibn al-Athir, pp. 492-3; William of Tyre, xvm, 9,
pp. 832-4. For the history of Egypt at this period, see Wiet, L Egypte Musul-
nume, pp. 191 fF.
366
1163: Nur ed-Din defeated at Krak
placed and killed by the governor of upper Egypt, Shawar, who
survived for eight months, till August 1163 when he was ejected
by his Arab chamberlain, Dhirgham. Dhirgham, to consolidate
his power, put to death everyone whose ambition he feared;
which left, the Egyptian army almost entirely void of senior
officers. 1
In 1 1 60 Baldwin III had threatened to invade Egypt and had
been bought off by the promise of a yearly tribute of 160,000
dinars. It had never been paid; and in September of 1163 Amalric
made this the excuse for a sudden descent on Egypt. He crossed
the isthmus of Suez without difficulty and laid siege to Pelusium.
But the Nile was in flood; and by breaking one or two dykes
Dhirgham forced him to retire. 2 His intervention had been
remarked by Nur ed-Din, who profited by his absence to attack
the weakest of the Crusading states, Tripoli. He invaded the
Buqaia in order to lay siege to the Castle of Krak, which dominated
the narrow plain. Fortunately for the Franks, Hugh, Count of
Lusignan, and Geoffrey Martel, brother of the Count of Angou-
leme, were passing through Tripoli with their following on their
return from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. They joined Count
Raymond; and an urgent appeal to Antioch brought not only
Bohemond III but also the Imperial general Constantine Coloman
down from the north. The united Christian army marched
swifdy through the hills, and surprised the Moslems at their camp
below Krak. After a short battle, in which Coloman and his troops
particularly distinguished themselves, Nur ed-Din fled in disorder
to Horns. There he regrouped his army and received reinforce
ments. The Christians therefore abandoned the pursuit. 3
1 Ibn al-Athir, p. 529; Abu Shama, p. 107.
2 William of Tyre, xre, 5, pp. 890-1; letter of Amalric, R.H.F. vol. xvi,
pp. 59-60. He assures King Louis that Egypt could be conquered with a little
additional aid; Michael the Syrian, ra, p. 317.
3 William of Tyre, xix, 8, pp. 894-5; *bn al-Athir, p. 531, and Atabegs,
pp. 207-9; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, p. 534- Michael the Syrian, m, p. 324.
Ibn al-Athir mentions the Byzantines as being the most formidable element in
the Christian army.
367
The Lure of Egypt
Soon afterwards the ex-vizier, Shawar, who had escaped from
Egypt, appeared at Nur ed-Din s Court and offered, if Nur
ed-Din would send an army to re-establish him in Cairo, to pay
the expenses of the campaign, to cede districts on the frontier, to
recognize Nur ed-Din s suzerainty and to provide a yearly tribute
of a third of his country s revenues. Nur ed-Din hesitated. He
feared to risk an army along roads dominated by the Franks of
Oultrejourdain. It was only in April 1164, after seeking advice by
opening the Koran at random, that he ordered his most trusted
lieutenant, Shirkuh, to set out with a large detachment and go
with Shawar across the desert, while he himself made a diversion
by attacking Banyas. With Shirkuh went his nephew Saladin, son
of Najm ed-Din Ayub, a young man of twenty-seven, who was
not over anxious to join the expedition. Dhirgham in terror sent
off to ask help from Amalric; but so quickly did Shirkuh move
that he was across the Isthmus of Suez before the Franks were
ready to intervene. Dhirgham s brother, with the few troops that
he could muster, was defeated near to Pelusium. By the end of
May 1 1 64 Shawar was reinstalled in Cairo and Dhirgham was dead. 1
Restored to power, Shawar repudiated his bargain and told
Shirkuh to go back to Syria. Shirkuh refused, and seized Bilbeis.
Shawar then appealed to King Amalric, and bade him make haste,
offering him a thousand dinars for each of the twenty-seven stages
of the journey from Jerusalem to the Nile and promising a further
present to the Knights of the Hospital that accompanied him and
the expenses for the fodder of their horses. After putting his
kingdom into a good state of defence, Amalric marched swifdy
early in August to Faqus on the Nile. There Shawar joined him
and they moved to besiege Shirkuh in Bilbeis. The fortress held
out for three months and was likely to fall when Amalric, who had
news from Syria, decided to raise the siege on condition that
Shirkuh evacuated Egypt. Shirkuh agreed and the two armies,
Prankish and Syrian, marched on parallel routes out across the
1 William of Tyre, xix, 5, 7, pp. 891-2, 893; Abu Shama, p. 107; Ibn
al-Adiir, p. 533, and Atabegs, pp. 215-6; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 46-8.
368
1164: Disaster at Artah
Sinai peninsula, leaving Shawar in control of his realm. Shirkuh
was the last of his company to leave. When he bade farewell to
the Franks, one of them, newly come to the East, asked him, was
he not afraid of treachery? He answered proudly that his whole
army would avenge him, and the Frank replied gallantly that he
now understood why Shirkuh s reputation stood so high with the
Crusaders. 1
The news that had brought Amalric hurrying home came from
Antioch. When he knew that Amalric had left for Egypt, Nur
ed-Din struck at the northern principality and laid siege to the key-
fortress of Harenc. With him was his brother s army from Mosul
and troops of the Ortoqid princes of Diarbekir and Mardin and
Diert and Kir. While the lord of Harenc, Reynald of Saint-Valery,
put up a brave defence, Prince Bohemond called upon Raymond
of Tripoli, Thoros of Armenia and Constantine Coloman to come
to his rescue. They set out together in mid-August. At the news
of their coming, Nur ed-Din raised the siege. He was, we are told,
particularly alarmed by the presence of the Byzantine contingent.
As he retired, Bohemond, who had some six hundred knights
with him, decided to follow in pursuit, against the advice of
Reynald of Saint-Valery; for the Moslem army was considerably
larger. The armies made contact on 10 August, near Artah.
Ignoring a warning from Thoros, Bohemond attacked at once
and when the Moslems feigned flight rushed headlong after them,
only to fall into an ambush and to find himself and his knights
surrounded by the army of Mosul. Thoros and his brother Mleh,
who had been more cautious, escaped from the batdefield. The rest
of the Christian army was captured or slain. Amongst the prisoners
were Bohemond, Raymond of Tripoli, Constantine Coloman
and Hugh of Lusignan. They were taken, bound together, to
Aleppo.*
1 William of Tyre, xix, 7, pp. 893-4; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 534~6 ^d Atabegs,
pp. 217-9; Abu Shama, p. 125.
2 William of Tyre, xix, 9, pp. 895-7, dating it erroneously 1165; Robert of
Torigny, I, p. 355; letters of Almalric I and of Gaufred Fulcker to Louis YE,
369
24.
The Lure of Egypt
Nur ed-Din s advisers urged him to inarch on the defenceless
city of Antioch. But he refused. If he moved towards Antioch,
he said, the Greeks would hastily send a garrison into the citadel;
and though he might take the city, the citadel could hold out until
the Emperor arrived. It was better, he thought, to have a petty
Prankish state there than to let it become part of a great Empire.
So anxious was he not to offend Byzantium that he freed Con-
stantine Coloman almost at once, in return for a hundred and
fifty silken robes. Once again Antioch was saved for Christendom
by the prestige of the Emperor.
Amalric, as he hurried northwards, was joined by Thierry of
Flanders, who had come on his fourth pilgrimage to Palestine.
With this reinforcement he paused at Tripoli to establish his right
to be regent of the County during the Count s captivity, then
moved on to Antioch. There he entered into negotiations with
Nur ed-Din, who agreed to release Bohemond and Thoros for
a large ransom, but only because they were the vassals of the
Emperor; he would not allow Raymond of Tripoli to go, nor his
older prisoner, Reynald of ChatiUon. 1 Amalric himself was dis
quieted when an Imperial envoy came to ask him what he was
doing at Antioch. He replied by sending to Constantinople the
Archbishop of Caesarea and his Butler, Odo of Saint- Amand, to
ask the Emperor for the hand of an Imperial princess and to
suggest an alliance for the conquest of Egypt.* Manuel kept the
embassy waiting two years for an answer. Meanwhile Amalric
had to return south; for Nur ed-Din, instead of attacking Antioch,
had suddenly appeared in October before Banyas, whose lord,
Humphrey II of Toron, was with Amalric s army. He had spread
in R.H.F. vol. xvi, pp. 60-2; Cinnamus, p. 216 (a very brief reference to
Coloman s capture); Michael die Syrian, m, p. 324; Chron. Anon. Syr. p. 304;
Boston, p. 559; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, p. 510; Abu Shama, p. 133;
Ibn al-Athir, Atabegs, pp. 220-3.
1 William of Tyre, XDC, 10, n, pp. 898, 900-1 ; Buston, p. 561 ; Michael the
Syrian, m, p. 326, Armenian version, p. 360, saying that Thoros, who was
released first, insisted on Bohemond s release.
a Cinnamus, pp. 237-8; William of Tyre, xx, I, p. 942.
370
11 6$: A Greek Patriarch at Antioch
rumours that his objective was Tiberias; and the local Prankish
militia was concentrated there. The garrison at Banyas put up a
brave resistance at first. It was hoped that Thierry of Flanders,
who had just arrived in Palestine, would come to the rescue, when
suddenly, owing perhaps to treason, the fortress capitulated.
Nur ed-Din occupied the surrounding country and threatened to
march on into Galilee, whose barons bought him off by promising
a tribute. 1
Bohemond of Antioch, as soon as he was released, went to
Constantinople to visit his sister and to beg his brother-in-law for
money with which to pay part of his ransom that he still owed to
Nur ed-Din. Manuel gave the required aid. In return Bohemond
journeyed back to Antioch with a Greek Patriarch, Athanasius II.
The Latin Patriarch Aimery went protesting into exile to the
Castle of Qosair. a For the next five years the Greeks dominated
the Antiochene Church. It does not seem that Latin bishops were
ejected; but vacant sees were filled by Greeks. The dependent
Latin Church of Tripoli was unaffected. The coming of the Greeks
threw the Jacobite Church into the arms of the Latins. They had
been on friendly terms since 1152 when a miracle at the tomb of
the Syrian Saint Barsauma had cured a lame Prankish child; and
in 1156 the Jacobites, to the delight of their Patriarch, Michael the
historian, had been allowed to build a new cathedral, at whose
dedication the Princess Constance and the Armenian Prince
Thoros assisted. Now the Patriarch Michael went to visit Aimery
at Qosair to assure him of his sympathy. Michael s dislike of the
Greeks went so far that he refused in 1169 a friendly invitation
from the Emperor to come to Constantinople for one of the
religious debates in which Manuel delighted. 3
Nur ed-Din spent 1165 and 1166 in making surprise attacks on
1 William of Tyre, XDC, 10, pp. 898-900; Ibn al-Athir, p. 540-2, and Atalegs,
p. 234; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, p. 541.
* William of Tyre, xrx, n, p. 901; Michael the Syrian, m, p. 326.
Athanasius E had been appointed Patriarch of Antioch in 1157 when the
Patriarch-designate, Panteugenes Soterichus, was accused of heresy.
3 Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 301-4, 33^, 334-6-
371 24 2
The Lure of Egypt
fortresses on the eastern slopes of the Lebanon, while Shirkuh
raided Oultrejourdain, destroying a castle that the Templars had
built in a grotto south of Amman. 1 At the end of 1166 Shirkuh
at last obtained permission from his master to invade Egypt once
more. He persuaded the Caliph at Baghdad to represent the pro
ject as a holy war against the heretic Caliphate of the Shia Fatimids ;
and this argument probably affected Nur ed-Din, who had grown
deeply religious since his illness. He provided reinforcements
from Aleppo for Shirkuh and his army. Shirkuh set out from
Damascus in January 1 167. Once again he took Saladin with him.
He had made no secret of his intentions; and Shawar had time
again to call on Amalric s help. The King was at Nablus and sum
moned his barons to meet him there. After he had pointed out
the danger to Palestine should the Sunni Syrians conquer Egypt,
the High Court agreed on a full expedition to save Shawar. The
whole fighting force of the kingdom was to take part or else to
stay on the frontiers to guard against attacks in the King s absence.
Anyone who could not come was to pay a tenth of his year s
income. Before the army was ready news came that Shirkuh was
passing through the Sinai desert. Amalric sent the troops that
were at hand to intercept him, but it was too late. 2
A terrible sand-storm almost overwhelmed Shirkuh s army; but
he reached the isthmus about the first days of February. There he
heard that the Prankish army had set out on 30 January. He there
fore marched south-westward, through the desert, to reach the
Nile at Atfih, forty miles above Cairo. There he crossed and came
1 William of Tyre, xix, n, pp. 901-2; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. p. 501,
dating the capture of Munietra after die Egyptian campaign of 1167; Ibn al-
Athir, pp. 545-6, and Atc&egs, pp. 235-6. Nur ed-Din took Munietra, on the
road from Jebail to Baalbek, while Shirkuh took Shaqif Titun, or the Cave of
Tyron, identified by Rey (Colonies Franques, p. 513) as Qalat an-Ninha, about
15 miles east of Sidon. The location of the Templar fortress near Amman is
unknown. Beha ed-Din calls it Akaf. It may be the grotto of Kaf, south-east
of Amman, which contains Romain remans but no sign of medieval masonry.
a William of Tyre, xix, 13, 16, pp. 902-4, 907-8; Behn ed-Din, P.T.T.S.,
p. 48, saying that Nur ed-Din obliged Saladin to accompany Shirkuh; Ibn al-
Athir, p. 547, and Atolegs, p. 236.
372
: Prankish Ambassadors at Cairo
down the west bank and set up his camp at Giza, opposite the
capital. Meanwhile the Prankish army approached Cairo from the
north-east. Shawar met it some way from the city and guided it
to an encampment on the east bank of the Nile, a mile from the
city walls. After he had refused a suggestion from Shirkuh to
unite against the Christians, he made a pact with Amalric. The
Franks were to be paid 400,000 besants, half at once, half a little
later, on condition that Amalric solemnly swore not to leave
Egypt until Shirkuh had been driven out. The King sent Hugh,
Lord of Caesarea, and a Templar called Geoffrey, who probably
spoke Arabic, into Cairo to obtain the Caliph s formal confirma
tion of the treaty. Their reception at the palace was superb. They
were led past colonnades and fountains and gardens where the
Court menageries and aviaries were kept, through hall after hall,
heavy with hangings of silk and golden thread, studded with
jewels, till at last a great golden curtain was raised, to show the
boy-Caliph seated veiled on his golden throne. The oaths to keep
the treaty were sworn ; and Hugh then, as his Bang s deputy, wished
to seal the pact in the western fashion by shaking the Caliph s
bare hand. The Egyptian courtiers were horrified; but at last
their sovereign, smiling contemptuously, was persuaded to remove
his glove. The ambassadors then retired, deeply impressed, as was
% intended, by the accumulated wealth of the Fatimid Empire. 1
For a month the armies glared at each other, neither able to
cross the river in face of the other s opposition. Then Amalric
managed to effect a crossing on to an island at the head of the
Delta, a little to the north, and from there on to the left bank;
where be surprised one of Shirkuh s corps. Shirkuh, whose army
was outnumbered by the Franco-Egyptian, retired southward up
the Nile. Amalric and Shawar followed, but as a precaution they
left a strong garrison in Cairo under Shawar s son Kamil and Hugh
1 William of Tyre, xrx, 17-19, pp. 908-13; Ernoul, p. 19, comments that
only the Emperor s court at Constantinople was richer than diat of Cairo;
Abu Shama, p. 130. William continues his narrative with an account of the
difference between the Sunni and the Shia sects.
373
The Lure of Egypt
of Ibelin. The entry of Hugh s regiment into Cairo and the free
access to the palace allowed to the officers horrified the stricter
Moslem circles in the city.
Not far from Minya in middle Egypt Shirkuh prepared to cross
the Nile again with the idea of falling back to invade the Syrian
frontier. He encamped at Ashmunein, amongst the ruins of the
ancient Hermoupohs. There the Franco-Egyptian army caught up
with him. It was larger than his, even without the garrison left at
Cairo ; but Shirkuh s army was chiefly composed of light Turkish
horse, whereas the Egyptians were infantrymen, and the Franks
had only a few hundred knights with them. Against the advice of
his emirs he decided to give battle. Amalric on his side hesitated.
But Saint Bernard then made one of his unfortunate interventions
into Crusading history. He appeared in a vision to the King and
taunted him as being unworthy of the fragment of the True
Cross that he wore round his neck. Only when the King vowed
to be a better Christian would he bless the relic. Thus encouraged,
Amalric next morning, 18 March 1167, led an attack on the
Syrians. Shirkuh adopted the usual Turkish tactics. His centre,
under Saladin, yielded, and when the King and his knights
galloped on in pursuit, he flung his right wing against the Franco-
Egyptian left, which crumbled. Amalric found himself sur
rounded. That he escaped alive was due, it was thought, to his
blessed relic; but many of his best knights were slain, and others,
including Hugh of Caesarea, taken prisoner. Amalric and Shawar
and the remnants of their army retreated precipitately to Cairo, to
join the forces of the garrison. 1
Shirkuh was victorious ; but there was still an allied army in the
field. Instead of attempting an attack on Cairo he recrossed the
river and moved swiftly north-west through the Fayyum.
Within a few days he appeared before Alexandria; and the great
1 William of Tyre, xrx, 22-5, pp. 917-28 (including a description of Egypt
and the Nile); Ibn al-Athir, pp. 547-9, dating the batde of Ashmunein
18 March, and Atabegs, p. 23, daring the batde 18 April. Vita St Bernardi,
M.P.L. vol. CLXXXV, cols. 366-7, dating the battle, 19 March.
374
1167: Saladin besieged in Alexandria
city, where Shawar was hated, opened its gates to him. Mean
while Amalric and Shawar reformed their army outside Cairo.
Despite its losses it still was larger than Shirkuh s. They therefore
followed him to Alexandria and blockaded the city. A few rein
forcements arrived from Palestine; and Prankish ships sailed in
to complete the blockade. After about a month Shirkuh was
threatened with starvation. Leaving Saladin with about a thousand
men to hold the city, he slipped out one night in May with the
greater part of his army, past Amalric s camp, and made for upper
Egypt. Amalric was furious and wished to go in pursuit; but
Shawar advised that Shirkuh should be allowed if he wished to
pillage the upper Egyptian towns. It was more important to
recover Alexandria. By the end of June Saladin s position within
the city was so desperate, that he had to beg his uncle to return.
Shirkuh realized that nothing more could be done. He approached
Alexandria and sent one of his Prankish prisoners, Arnulf of
Turbessel, after Hugh of Caesarea had refused the task, to
Amalric s camp to suggest peace on the basis that both he and the
Franks should evacuate Egypt, and that Shawar should promise
not to penalize those of his subjects who at Alexandria and else
where had supported the invaders. Amalric, who was nervous
about affairs in Palestine and Tripoli, accepted his terms. On
4 August, the Prankish army, with the King at its head, entered
Alexandria. Saladin and his army were escorted out with full
military honours, though the local population would have gladly
torn him to pieces, blaming him for their recent misery. But their
troubles were not over. No sooner did Shawar s officials enter the
city than anyone suspected of collaboration with the Syrians was
arrested. Saladin complained to Amalric, who ordered Shawar to
let the prisoners go. He himself provided boats to convey
Shirkuh s wounded by sea to Acre; where unfortunately those
that had recovered were sent to work in the sugar-plantations till
the King came in person to release them. During the negotiations
Saladin made many friends amongst the Franks; and it was
believed afterwards that he had been knighted by the Constable
375
The Lure of Egypt
Humphrey of Toron. Shirkuh and Saladin left Egypt about
10 August and. reached Damascus in September. Amalric and his
army went to Cairo, to relieve Hugh of Ibelin from his garrison
duty; but Shawar was made to sign a pact promising to pay a
yearly tribute of 100,000 pieces of gold and to keep a Prankish
high commissioner and a small Prankish garrison in Cairo, in
control of the gates of the city. The King then returned to
Palestine, reaching Ascalon on 20 August. 1
Some of the Prankish lords thought that a better bargain could
have been made. But Amalric was unwilling to risk his forces
further in Egypt without safeguarding Prankish Syria against Nur
ed-Din s attacks. While he was still in Egpyt Nur ed-Din had led
a raid into the territory of Tripoli but without capturing any
important fortresses. It was necessary to reorganize the defence
of the country. The chief problem was always man-power. The
resident families were reduced by death or by capture. Visiting
Crusaders like Thierry of Flanders could only be used for specific
campaigns. Amakic therefore mainly depended on the Military
Orders, to whom in 1167 and the succeeding years a large number
of fortresses with the surrounding lands were handed over. The
gifts were particularly important in Tripoli, whose Count was
still a captive and where there were few great noble families.
Tortosa and almost the whole of the north of the county passed to
the control of the Templars, while the Hospitallers, who probably
already held Krak, known after them as des Chevaliers , were
given charge of the Buqaia. In the kingdom the Templars,
already installed at Gaza in the south, were given Safed in the north,
while the Hospitallers acquired Belvoir, which commanded the
fords of the Jordan to the south of the Sea of Galilee. In Antioch
Bohemond in followed Amalric s example. The Templars 5
holdings round Baghras, on the Syrian Gates, were increased, and
1 William of Tyre, xrx, 26-32, pp. 928-39; Abu Shama, pp. 130-4; Ibn
al-Athir, pp. 547-51, aa&Atabegs, pp. 23 6-46 ; Bella ed-Din, P. T. T.S., pp. 49-51 ;
Imad ed-Din. The story of Saladin s knighthood is given in the Itinerarium
Regis Ricardi, p. 9.
376
1166-7: The Adventures of Andronicus Comnenus
the Hospitallers were allotted a huge wad of territory at the south
of the principality, most of which was actually in Moslem hands.
Had the Orders been less irresponsible and jealous, their power
might well have preserved the kingdom s defences. 1
While the Orders were to lead the defence of the realm,
Amalric also sought a closer alliance with Byzantium. In August
1 167, when he had just come back from Egypt, news reached him
that his ambassadors to Constantinople, the Archbishop of Caesarea
and the Butler Odo, had landed at Tyre with the Emperor s lovely
young grand-niece, Maria Comnena. He hastened to meet her;
and their marriage was celebrated pompously in the Cathedral of
Tyre by the Patriarch Amalric on 29 August. The Queen was
given Nablus and its territory as her dower. With her were two
high officials of her uncle s Court, his cousins George Palaeologus
and Manuel Comnenus, who were empowered to discuss with
Amalric the question of an alliance. 2
Good relations between the Prankish princes and the Emperor
had recently been endangered by the irresponsibility of another of
Manuel s cousins, Andronicus Comnenus. This prince, the most
brilliant and handsome of his family, had already been in disgrace
for seducing one of his relatives, the Emperor s niece Eudocia, of
whom gossip said that the Emperor himself was too fond. He
had moreover proved himself an unwise governor of Cilicia in
1152. But in 1166 he was appointed again to this post. His pre
decessor, Alexius Axuch, who had been sent out when Coloman
was captured, had failed to carry out the Emperor s orders to
reconcile the Armenians; and it was hoped that Andronicus s
personal charm, together with extensive subsidies, would be more
successful with Thoros. But Andronicus, though already aged
forty-six, was more interested in adventure than administration.
He soon had occasion to visit Antioch. There he was struck by the
beauty of the young Princess Philippa, Bohemond s sister.
1 See Dekville Leroulx, op. cit. pp. 74-6- Rohricht, Regesta, pp. 109 f,
gives frequent examples of grants to the Orders.
a William of Tyre, xx, i, pp. 942-3; Ernoul, pp. 17-18; Cinnamus, p. 238.
377
The Lure of Egypt
Forgetful of his governmental duties he stayed on in Antioch
wooing Philippa in a series of romantic serenades till she was
dazzled and could refuse him nothing. Bohemond was furious
and complained to his brother-in-law Manuel; who angrily
recalled Andronicus and reinstalled Constantine Coloman in his
place. Coloman was also ordered to proceed to Antioch and to
try to capture Philippa s affection. But the Princess thought him
plain and short and middle-aged in comparison with her splendid
lover. Andronicus, however, whose motive had largely been to
annoy the Empress whom he detested, found it prudent to
abandon Antioch and his mistress. Taking with him a large share
of the imperial revenues from Cilicia and Cyprus, he rode south
ward and offered his services to King Amalric. The deserted
princess was married off hastily to an elderly widower, the
Constable Humphrey II of Toron.
Amalric, charmed by Andronicus and impressed by his personal
bravery, gave him the fief of Beirut which was then vacant. Soon
afterwards Andronicus went to Acre, the dower of his cousin, the
widowed Queen Theodora. She was now twenty-one and at the
height of her beauty. It was a case of love on both sides. They were
too closely related ever to marry; but the Queen shamelessly came
to Beirut and lived there as his mistress. When Manuel heard of
this new liaison, probably from the ambassadors that had escorted
Queen Maria to Palestine, his rage was unbounded. His next
ambassadors to Palestine secretly demanded the extradition of the
culprit. Their instructions fell into Theodora s hands. As Amalric
was known to be seeking Manuel s good-will, Andronicus
thought it wise to depart. He gave out that he was returning
home; and Theodora came once again from Acre to bid him
good-bye. As soon as they were together they abandoned all their
possessions and fled unattended over the frontier to Damascus.
Nur ed-Din received them kindly; and they spent the next years
wandering round the Moslem East, even visiting Baghdad, till at
last a Moslem emir gave them a castle near the Paphlagonian
border of the Empire, where Andronicus, excommunicated by the
378
n68: Alliance with Byzantium
Church, settled down happily to the life of a brigand. Amalric
was not sorry to see them, go ; for it enabled him to take back his
sister-in-law s rich dower of Acre. 1
Amalric had apparently sent back to Manuel with George
Palaeologus a proposition for the conquest of -Egypt. Manuel s
next embassy, led by two Italians, Alexander of Conversano,
Count of Gravina, and Michael of Otranto, brought back his
conditions, which were, it seems, a share in the spoils of Egypt
and a completely free hand in Antioch, and perhaps the cession of
other Prankish territory. The terms were high; and Amalric
therefore sent the Archdeacon of Tyre, William, the future
historian, to Constantinople, to resume discussions. When William
arrived there he learnt that the Emperor was campaigning in
Serbia. He followed him and met him at Monastic. Manuel
received him with his usual lavish generosity and brought him
back to his capital; where a treaty was made, by which the
Emperor and the King would divide their conquests in Egypt.
William returned to Palestine late in the autumn of u68. 2
Unfortunately, the barons of the kingdom would not wait for
his return. News from Egypt emphasized the insecurity of
Shawar s rule there. He was known to resent the Prankish gar
rison at Cairo, and he was late in paying his tribute. There were
rumours, too, that his son Kamil was negotiating with Shirkuh
and had asked for the hand of Saladin s sister. The arrival in
Palestine in the late summer of Count William IV of Nevers with
a fine company of knights encouraged those that wanted im
mediate action. The King summoned a council to Jerusalem.
There the Grand Master of the Hospital, Gilbert of Assailly, urged
vehemently that there should be no more delay; and the majority
of the lay baronage agreed with him. The Count of Nevers and
his men, who had come to fight for the Cross, added their support.
The Templars flatly opposed any expedition and announced that
1 William of Tyre, xx, 2, pp. 943-4*, Cinnamus, pp. 250-1; Nicetas
Choniates, pp. 180-6. For Andronicus s subsequent history, see below, pp.4-27-9-
* William of Tyre, xx, 4, pp. 945-7-
379
The Lure of Egypt
they would not take part. Their opposition may have been due to
jealousy of the Hospital, which had already decided to take
Pelusium as its portion, as a counter to the Templar fortress of
Gaza. But the Temple was also financially connected with the
Moslems and with the Italian merchants, whose trade was now
greater with Egypt than with Christian Syria. King Amalric
agreed that some action would soon be needed, in view of
Shawar s weakness and unreliability; but he wished to wait till the
Emperor s help was available. He was overruled. Against the
vigorous determination of the Hospitallers and his own vassals,
who saw no reason why the Greeks should share in the spoils, he
gave way. An expedition was planned for October. 1
William of Tyre came back with his treaty from Constantinople
to find the King already gone. Amalric had given out that he was
to attack Horns, so as to deter Nur ed-Din from action ; and indeed
Nur ed-Din, who had troubles of his own in north-east Syria, was
anxious to avoid a war with the Franks. Shawar also did not
realize what was on foot till the Prankish army marched out from
Ascalon on 20 October, to arrive ten days later before Bilbeis. He
was horrified. He never expected Amalric so wantonly to break
his treaty with him. His first ambassador, an emir named Bedran,
met the King at Daron, on the frontier, but was bought over by
him. The next ambassador, Shams al-Khilafa, found the King in
the desert a few days out from Bilbeis. He reproached Amalric
bitterly for his perfidy ; to which the King replied that he was
justified by the negotiations that Shawar s son Kamil was con
ducting with Shirkuh; and anyhow, he said, the Crusaders newly
come from the West had determined to attack Egypt and he was
there to restrain them. He might, he added, retire if he were paid
another two millions of dinars. But Shawar now suspected the
King s good faith. To Amalric s surprise he decided on resistance.
1 William of Tyre, xx, 5, pp. 948-9 (he mentions the arrival of the Count
of Nevers in the previous chapter); Michael the Syrian (m, pp. 332-3) and the
Arab historians (Ihn al-Athir, pp. 553-4, and Atabegs, pp. 246-6, and Abu
Shama, pp. 112-13) were aware that the King was overridden by his Council.
380
n68: Amalric advances on Cairo
His son Taiy, who commanded the garrison at Bilbeis, refused to
open his gates to the Franks. But his forces were small. After
three days of desperate fighting, of which Amalric had not thought
the Egyptians capable, the Prankish army entered the fortress
on 4 November. There followed an appalling massacre of the
inhabitants. The protagonists were probably the men from Nevers,
ardent and lawless like most newcomers from the West. Their
Count had died of fever in Palestine before the expedition started;
and there was no one that could control them. Amalric tried to
restore order; and when at last he succeeded he himself bought
back from the soldiers the survivors that they had taken captive.
But the harm was done. Many of the Egyptians who disliked
Shawar had been ready to welcome the Franks as deliverers; and
the Coptic communities, particularly numerous in the Delta
cities, had hitherto worked with their fellow-Christians. But
Copts as well as Moslems had perished in the slaughter. The whole
Egyptian people was united in hatred of the Franks. A few days
later a small Prankish fleet, manned mainly by westerners, which
was to sail up the Tanitic mouth of the Nile, arrived in Lake
Manzaleh and fell suddenly on the town of Tanis. The same scenes
of horror followed; and it was the Copts above all that suffered.
Amalric delayed a few days at Bilbeis, no doubt to re-establish
control over his army. He missed the chance of taking Cairo by
surprise, and only appeared before the walls of Fostat, the old
suburb at the south of the great city, on 13 November. Shawar,
doubting his ability to hold Fostat, set fire to it, and sent his
ambassador Shams once again to the King to say that sooner than
let Cairo itself fall into Prankish hands he would burn it too to the
ground with all its wealth. Amalric, whose fleet was held up in
the Delta by barriers placed across the river-bed, saw that the
expedition had gone wrong. On the advice of his Seneschal, Miles
of Plancy, he let Shawar know that he could be bought off.
Shawar played for time; he began to haggle over the sum that he
could afford. He paid 100,000 dinars down to ransom his son Taiy
and talked of further payments. Meanwhile the Prankish army
381
The Lure of Egypt
moved a few miles northwards and encamped at Mataria, by the
sycamore beneath whose shade the Virgin had halted on the
Flight into Egypt. They waited eight days there, when suddenly
the news came that Shirkuh was marching into Egypt on the
invitation of the Fatimid Caliph. 1
Shawar had not wished to take so desperate a step ; but his son
Kamil overruled him and forced his titular sovereign al-Adid to
write to Aleppo, offering Nur ed-Din a third of the land of Egypt
and fiefs for his generals. The young Caliph must have seen the
danger of calling on a protector in whose eyes he was a heretic
and a pretender. But he was powerless. When the invitation
reached him, Nur ed-Din sent to Horns where Shirkuh was
residing; but his messenger found Shirkuh already at the gates of
Aleppo. This time Nur ed-Din did not hesitate. He gave Shirkuh
eight thousand horsemen and a war-chest of 200,000 dinars to use
with the army of Damascus for the conquest of Egypt, and he
ordered Saladin to accompany him. Shawar, uncertain still where
his interests lay, warned Amalric, who moved with his army
towards the Isthmus, hoping to fall on Shirkuh as he emerged
from the desert. But Shirkuh slipped past him to the south. There
was no alternative now for the Franks but evacuation. Ordering
his fleet to return to Acre and summoning the garrison left
in Bilbeis to join him, Amalric began his retreat on 2 January
1169.*
Six days later Shirkuh entered Cairo. Leaving his army en
camped at the Gate of el-Luq, he went to the Palace, where the
Caliph gave him ceremonial gifts and promised money and food
for his troops. Shawar greeted him cordially. For the next days
he visited him daily to discuss financial arrangements and a
partition of the vizierate. Shirkuh received these overtures
1 "William of Tyre, xx, 6-9, pp, 949~5<5; Abu Shama, pp. 114-15, 136-40,
quoting Imad ed-Din.; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S., p. 52; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 554-6,
and. Atabegs, pp. 247-50.
a Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.5., pp. 52-3 ; Ibn al-Athir, p. 563, and^4ta%5, p. 250;
Abu Shama, p. 117. According to Beha ed-Din, repeated more fully by
Ibn al-Athir, Saladin was again very unwilling to join the expedition.
382
n6g: Shirkuh wins Egypt for Nur ed-Din
graciously; but his nephew Saladin, who was his chief adviser,
insisted on further action. The Caliph was persuaded to come in
disguise to Shirkuh s headquarters. Then, on 1 8 January, Shawar
was invited to join Shirkuh on a little pilgrimage to the tomb of
the holy as-Shafii. As he set out, Saladin and his emirs fell on him.
His escort was disarmed and he himself taken prisoner. In less
than an hour an order from the Caliph for his decapitation had
been produced and his head was lying at the Caliph s feet. Then,
to avoid any attempt against himself, Shirkuh announced that
anyone who wished could pillage the late vizier s house. As the
mob rushed there, he and the Caliph moved to the palace and
quietly took over the government. Shawar s rule had been too
unpopular and Shirkuh s regard for legitimacy too scrupulous for
any of the provincial governors to oppose the new regime.
Within a few weeks Shirkuh was master of all Egypt. His emirs
took over the fiefs that had belonged to Shawar and his family;
and he himself had the title of vizier and king. 1
Shirkuh did not long survive his elevation. He died from over
eating on 23 March 1169. His fame in history has been outshone
by those of his master Nur ed-Din and of his nephew Saladin. Yet
it was he who saw, more clearly than any other Moslem, that the
conquest of Egypt, with its strategic position and its boundless
resources, was the necessary preliminary to the recovery of
Palestine; and, in spite of the hesitations and scruples of Nur
ed-Din, he had worked ceaselessly to this end. His nephew reaped
the harvest of his persistence. His appearance was insignificant.
He was short and stout, red-faced and blind in one eye; and his
features revealed his low birth. But he was a soldier of genius;
and few generals have been so devotedly loved by their men.*
1 Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 53-5 (quoting Imad ed-Din); Ibn al-Athir,
pp. 558-60 and Atabegs, pp. 251-3; Abu Shama, pp. 118-19, 142-5; William
of Tyre, xx, 10, pp. 956-8.
* Beha ed-Din, P.T.r.S. p. 55; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 560-1; "William of Tyre
(XEC, 5, p. 892) describes him in much the same terms as the Arabic writers.
Beha ed-Din (pp. 50-1) describes his anxious determination to annex Egypt
to his master s realm.
383
The Lure of Egypt
The fateful importance of Shirkuh s triumph was well realized
by the Franks. While some of them blamed it on the greed of
Miles of Plancy, who had made his King accept money rather
than fight, others sought a scapegoat in the Master of the Hospital,
who was forced to retire from his post and go home to the West.
Amalric himself appealed to the West for a new Crusade. An
impressive embassy, led by the Patriarch Amalric and the Arch
bishop of Caesarea, was dispatched early in 1169 with letters to the
Emperor Frederick, to Louis VII of France, to Henry II of England,
to Margaret, Queen Regent of Sicily, and to the Counts of
Flanders, Blois and Troyes. But after two days at sea the ambas
sadors ships ran into so severe a storm that they were driven back
to Acre; and none of the passengers would consent to risk again
the perils of the deep. A second embassy was sent out, led by
Frederick, Archbishop of Tyre, accompanied by his suffragan,
John, Bishop of Banyas, and Guibert, Preceptor of the Order of
the Hospital. They reached Rome in July 1169; and Pope
Alexander HI gave them letters of recommendation to all his
clerics. But none of their letters was of avail. King Louis kept
them for many months at Paris, where the Bishop of Banyas died,
while he explained to them his preoccupations with the Planta-
genets. They went on to England where King Henry talked of his
troubles with the Capetians. The quarrels between the Pope and
the Emperor made a visit to Germany pointless. After two years
of ineffectual begging they returned disconsolate to Palestine. 1
An embassy to Constantinople was more successful. Manuel
was well aware that the balance of power in the East had been
dangerously upset. He offered Amalric the co-operation of the
great Imperial fleet for his next campaign/ The King accepted
gladly. Egypt might yet be recovered. Nur ed-Din seemed to be
1 William of Tyre, xx, 12, pp. 960-1 ; letters of Amalric in R.H.F. vol. xvi,
pp. 187-8; Ibn al-Athir, Atabegs, pp. 258-9. The Master of the Hospital was
drowned in 1183 crossing from Dieppe to England. See Delaville Leroulx,
Les Hospitatiers , pp. 76 ft.
2 William of Tyre, xx, 13, pp. 961-2.
384
1169: Allied Campaign against Egypt
fully occupied in the north. The death of Kara Arslan, the Ortoqid
emir of Diarbekir in 1168, and the quarrels over the inheritance
had embroiled him with his brother Qutb ed-Din of Mosul; and
the revolt of Ghazi ibn Hassan, governor of Menbij, had followed
soon afterwards and took several months to liquidate. Now Qutb
ed-Din was dying, and the question of the succession to Mosul
would soon arise. 1 In Egypt Shirkuh s titles and power had passed
to his nephew Saladin. But Saladin was untried as a ruler. Others
of Shirkuh s emirs had hoped for the succession; but the Caliph
had chosen Saladin, trusting that his inexperience would force him
to rely on Fatimid officials. Meanwhile al-Adid s chief eunuch,
a Nubian called al-Mutamen, or the Confidential Adviser, wrote
secretly to Jerusalem to promise help should the Franks invade
Egypt. Unfortunately, one of Saladin s agents, puzzled by the
shape of a pair of sandals worn by a court messenger, took them
and unstitched them, and found the letter within. Saladin waited
to take vengeance. But news of his insecurity encouraged the
Christians. 2
Amalric had urged haste on the Emperor; and on 10 July 1169,
the Imperial armada set out from the Hellespont, under the com
mand of the Grand Duke Andronicus Contostephanus. The main
fleet sailed to Cyprus, capturing two Egyptian ships on the way;
and a smaller squadron made straight for Acre, bringing money-
subsidies for Amalric s soldiers. Amalric was asked to send to
Cyprus as soon as he wished the fleet to sail on. But Amalric was
not ready. The campaign of 1168 had disorganized his forces. The
Hospitallers losses had been very heavy. The Templars still
refused to take part; and the barons, discouraged by their previous
experience, were no longer as enthusiastic as before. It was only
in late September that he summoned the fleet to Acre, where its
1 Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. p. 52; Abu Shama, pp. 188-9; Ibn al-Athir,
Atabegs, p. 264; Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 339-4-2; Qutb ed-Din died the
following year (1170),
2 Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 55-6; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 566-8; Abu Shama,
p. 146. The diploma of Saladin s appointment by the Caliph exists in Berlin,
98 folios long.
RC 385 2 5
The Lure of Egypt
splendid appearance thrilled the inhabitants; and it was only in
mid-October that the whole expedition was ready to leave for
Egypt. The delay was doubly unfortunate. Manuel, who was
given to optimism, had counted on a short campaign and had
provisioned his ships for three months only. The three months
were nearly over. Cyprus, not yet recovered from Reynald s
ravaging, had not been able to help in the revictualment; nor were
provisions obtainable at Acre. 1 At the same time Saladin received
ample warning of the expedition. To secure himself in Cairo, on
20 August 1169, he arrested and beheaded the eunuch al-Mutamen,
then dismissed all the palace servants known to be faithful to the
Caliph, replacing them by his own creatures. The dismissed
officers, encouraged by the Caliph, incited the Nubian Palace
Guard to revolt and attack Saladin s troops. Saladin s brother,
Fakhr ed-Din, counter-attacked but could do nothing, till Saladin
set fire to the Guards barracks at Fostat. Knowing their wives and
families to be there the Nubians fled to rescue them. Fakhr ed-Din
then fell on them and slaughtered them almost to a man. The
Caliph, who had been watching the battle, hastened to assure
Saladin of his loyalty. His desertion of the Nubians completed
their rout. The Armenian Guard, which had not taken part in the
fighting, was burnt to death in the barracks. The opposition to
Saladin in Cairo was silenced. a
The Christian army set out at last on 16 October. Andronicus
Contostephanus, chafing at Amalric s delays, offered to convey
the bulk of the soldiers by sea; but the Franks insisted on the land-
route. On 25 October the army entered Egypt at Farama, near
Pelusium. Saladin expected an attack on Bilbeis and concentrated
his forces there; but the Franks, ferried over the eastern branches
of the Nile by the Byzantine ships, who had kept pace with them
along the coast, marched swiftly to Damietta, the rich fortress that
commanded the main branch of the Nile, up which the fleet could
sail towards Cairo. Saladin was taken by surprise. He dared not
1 Nicetas Choniates, pp. 208-9; William of Tyre, loc. dt.
2 Abu Shama, pp. 147-8 ; Ibn al-Athir, p. 568.
386
n6(): Siege ofDamietta
leave Cairo himself, for fear that the Fatimid supporters might be
encouraged to revolt. But he sent reinforcements to Damietta,
and wrote himself to Syria to beg for help from Nur ed-Din. The
garrison at Damietta had thrown a great chain across the river.
The Greek ships, already delayed by contrary winds, could not
sail up past the city and intercept the troops and the provisions
that came downstream from Cairo. A sudden assault might have
captured the fortress; but though Contostephanus, anxious about
his dwindling supplies, urged immediate action, Amalric was
awed by the huge fortifications. He wished to construct more
siege-towers. His first tower, by some error of judgement, had
been placed against the strongest part of the walls. The Greeks, to
the horror of local Christians and Moslems, used their engines to
bombard a quarter sanctified by a chapel dedicated to the Virgin,-
who had halted there in her flight. Every day fresh troops arrived
in the city. Every day the Greek sailors and their compatriots on
shore had their rations reduced; and their Prankish allies, who
were amply supplied, would give them no help. Every day
Contostephanus pleaded with Amalric to risk a full-scale attack on
the walls, and Amalric answered that the risk was too great; and
his generals, always suspicious of the Greeks, whispered that
Contostephanus s zeal was caused by a desire to have Damietta as
part of the Imperial spoils. By the beginning of December it was
clear that the expedition had failed. Without food the Greeks
could go on no longer. A fire-boat launched by the defenders into
the middle of the fleet had caused heavy losses, though Amalric s
prompt intervention had restricted the damage. The fortress was
now well manned and well supplied; and a Moslem army was
said to be approaching from Syria. When the rains came early
and turned the Christian camp into a morass, it was time to raise
the siege. Whether Amalric or Contostephanus was the first to
begin negotiations with the Saracens is uncertain; nor are the
terms that were arranged known to us. A money-indemnity was
probably given to the Christians; and Amalric certainly hoped
that a show of friendship towards Saladin might detach him from
387 25-2
The Lure of Egypt
Nur cd-Din with whom his relations were suspected of lacking
cordiality.
On 13 December the Christians burnt all their siege-machines to
prevent them falling into Moslem hands, and moved from
Damictta. The army reached Ascalon on the 24th* The fleet was
less fortunate. As it sailed northward a great storm arose. The
starving sailors could not control their ships, and many of them
foundered. For days Greek corpses were washed ashore on the
coast of Palestine. Contostephanus himself escaped and sailed to
Cilicia and thence travelled overland to report to the Emperor.
Ther emnants of the armada reached the Bosphorus early in the
new year. 1
The disastrous outcome of the expedition inevitably gave rise
to recriminations. The Franks blamed the Greeks for their
shortage of supplies; the Greeks, more reasonably, blamed the
Franks for their endless delays. But both Amalric and the
Emperor realized that the alliance must not be broken. For
Saladin was now unquestioned master of Egypt.
Saladin was too wise to fall into the diplomatic trap prepared
for him by Amalric. Nur cd-Din had trusted Shirkuh, but he was
suspicious of the ambitions of the new ruler of Egypt. Saladin,
however, behaved with perfect correctitude. In April 1 1 70 his
father, Najm ed-Din Ayub, was sent to him by Nur ed-Din with
a company of Syrian troops, partly as a gesture of friendship,
partly perhaps as a hint; for Ayub was devoted to his master.
As a large number of Damascene merchants travelled with the
convoy, eager to open up trade with Cairo, Nur ed-Din himself
1 William of Tyre, xx 14-17, pp. 962-71; Cinnamus, pp. 278-80, He says
that after the campaign Saladin sent to offer Manuel a yearly tribute bur Manuel
refused it; Nicetas Chomatcs, pp. 209-19, implies on the other hand that
Manuel made a peace with Egypt; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp, 56-9; Abu
Shama, pp. 151-3; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 668-70, and Atabcgs. Michael the Syrian
(ni, p. 335, and Armenian version, pp. 369-70) suggests that the Greeks were
bribed by Saladin to give up the campaign. His evidence is so consistently anti-
Greek as to be of little value, "William or Tyre says that Contostephanus was the
first to ask for an armistice, Nicetas that it was die King.
388
: Earthquake at Antioch
led a demonstration against Kerak, in order to allow the great
caravan to pass safely through the territory of Oultrejourdain. 1 It
was Nur ed-Din s only move against the Franks. During their
Egyptian expedition he had left them in peace, and in January
1170 they had even been able to recover the castle of Akkar,
on the south of the Buqaia, which had been lost probably in
1165. Amalric, as regent of Tripoli, assigned it together with
the town of Artja to the Hospitallers, who now controlled the
whole valley. 3
On 29 June 1170 Syria was visited by a terrible earthquake, as
destructive as those of 1 1 5 7 ; and for the next few months Christians
and Moslems alike were busy repairing ruined fortresses. Aleppo,
Shaizar, Hama and Horns were all severely damaged, as were
Krak des Chevaliers, Tripoli and Jebail. At Antioch the damage
was enormous; but the Franks saw divine justice in it. For the
Greek Patriarch and his clergy were celebrating Mass in the
Cathedral of St Peter, when the edifice collapsed on them. As
Athanasius lay dying tinder the ruins, Prince Bohemond and
his court hurried to Qosair, to his rival Aimery, to beg him to
return to his see. The brief episode of Greek ecclesiastical rule
was ended. 3
The Emperor could not intervene, angry though he was at the
news; for things were going badly in Cilicia. The Armenian
prince Thoros died in 1168, leaving a child, Roupen II, to succeed
him, under the regency of a Prankish lord called Thomas, whose
mother had been Thoros s sister. But Thoros s brother Mleh
disputed the succession. He had at one time taken vows as a
Templar, then, after quarrelling with Thoros and attempting to
assassinate him, he had fled to Nur ed-Din and become a Moslem.
Early in 1 170 Nur ed-Din lent him troops with which he was able
1 Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 59-60; Abu Shama, pp. 153-4; Ibn al-Athir,
Aiabegs, pp. 260-1.
a Abu Shama, p. 149. The gift of Akkar and Arqa to the Hospital was
made after the earthquake in June (Rohricht, Regesta, p. 125).
3 Michael the Syrian, m, p. 339; Ibn al-Athir, Atabegs, p. 262; "William of
Tyre, xx, 18, pp. 971-3-
389
The Lure of Egypt
not only to dethrone his nephew hut also to invade the Cilician
plain and take Mamistra, Adana and Tarsus from their Greek
garrisons. He then attacked the Templars at Baghras. Bohemond
appealed to Amalric, who marched up into Cilicia and temporarily,
it seems, restored Imperial rule. This friendly action may have
reconciled Manuel to his loss of ecclesiastical control in Antioch.
But Mleh was irrepressible. A year or so later he managed to
capture Constantine Coloman and again overrun Cilicia. 1
Nur ed-Din was meanwhile occupied farther east. His brother,
Quth ed-Din of Mosul died in the summer of 1 170. His two sons,
Saif ed-Din and Imad ed-Din disputed the inheritance; and some
months passed before Nur ed-Din could settle the matter to his
liking. 5 The respite was useful for the Franks. But the problem of
Egypt remained unsolved. Amalric remained faithful to his
policy of a close alliance with the Emperor and constant appeals to
the West. In the spring of 1171 he decided to pay a personal visit
to Constantinople.
His departure was delayed by a sudden offensive made by
Saladin against his southern frontier. Early in December 1170 a
great Egyptian army appeared before Daron, the southernmost
Prankish fortress on the Mediterranean coast. Its defences were
weak; and though Saladin had no siege-engines with him, its fall
seemed imminent. Amalric, taking with him the Patriarch and the
relic of the True Cross, hastened with a small but well-trained force
to Ascalon, arriving there on 18 December and moving on to the
Templars fortress at Gaza, where he left Miles of Plancy in charge,
as the Templar knights joined him in the march on Daron. He
managed to break through the Egyptian army and enter Daron;
whereupon Saladin raised the siege and marched on Gaza. The
1 William of Tyre, xx, 26, pp. 991-2; Nicetas Choniates, p. 183; Michael
the Syrian, m, pp. 331, 337; Sembat die Constable, pp. 622-5; Vabram,
Rhymed Chronicle, pp. 508-9; the dating is impossible to disentangle. William
of Tyre places it after Amalric s visit to Constantinople, Michael before the
earthquake of 1170. Tarsus was still Greek when Henry the Lion returned from
his Crusade in 1172 (Arnold of Lubeck, pp. 22-3).
3 See references above, p. 385 n. i, and below, p. 393.
390
1171: Amalric at Constantinople
lower town was taken, despite a futile resistance ordered by Miles ;
and its inhabitants were massacred. But the citadel was so formid
able that Saladin did not venture to attack it. As suddenly as he
had come he disappeared back to the Egyptian frontier. He then
sent a squadron up the Gulf of Akaba, which captured the
Prankish outpost of Aila, at the head of the Gulf, during the last
days of the year. 1
Amalric left Acre for Constantinople on 10 March, with a large
staff, including the Bishop of Acre and the Marshal of the Court,
Gerard of Pougi. The Master of the Temple, Philip of Milly,
resigned his post in order to go ahead as ambassador. After calling
in at Tripoli the King sailed on to the north. At Gallipoh he was
met by his father-in-law, who, as the wind was contrary, took him
overland to Heraclea. There he embarked again in order to enter
the capital through the palace gate at the harbour of Bucoleon, an
honour reserved for crowned heads alone.
Amalric s reception delighted him and his staff. Manuel liked
westerners in general, and he found Amalric sympathetic. He
showed his usual lavish generosity. His family, particularly the
King s father-in-law, all joined in offering hospitality. There were
endless religious ceremonies and festivities. There was a dancing
display in the Hippodrome and a trip in a barge up and down the
Bosphorus. 3 In the midst of it all the Emperor and the King dis
cussed the future. A treaty was made and signed, but its terms are
unrecorded. It seems that the Kong recognized in some vague way
the Emperor s suzerainty over the native Christians; that Manuel
promised naval and financial help whenever another expedition
against Egypt should be planned; and that common action should
be taken against Mleh of Armenia. There were probably clauses
about the Greek Church in Antioch, and even perhaps in the
kingdom, where Manuel had already in 1169 taken charge of the
1 William of Tyre, xx, 19-20, pp. 973-7; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 577-8.
* William of Tyre, xx, 22-4, pp. 980-7; Cinnamus, p. 280 (a very brief
account, in which he says that Amalric promised * SouAstocv to the Emperor).
Michael the Syrian, m, p. 343.
391
The Lure of Egypt
redecoration of the Church of the Nativity at Bethlehem. An
inscription on the mosaic attests that the artist Ephraim made them
on the orders of the Emperor. He was also responsible for the
repairs at the Holy Sepulchre. 1
Whatever were the details of the treaty, the Franks were well
satisfied by their visit and full of admiration for their host. They
sailed homeward from Constantinople on 15 June, hopeful for the
future.
The appeal to the West was less successful. Frederick of Tyre
was still wandering ineffectually through the courts of France and
England. About the end of 1170 Amalric wrote to him to invite
Stephen of Champagne, Count of Sancerre, to Palestine, to marry
the Princess Sibylla.* The suggestion was prompted by a tragedy
that had befallen the royal family. Amalric s son Baldwin was
now nine years old and had been sent with comrades of his own
age to be instructed by William, Archdeacon of Tyre. He was
a handsome, intelligent boy; but one day, when his pupils were
testing their endurance by driving their nails into each other s
1 de Vogue, Les Eglises de la Terre Sainte, pp. 99-103, gives the inscription
on the mosaics of Bethlehem. The Greek traveller Phocas refers to them and
tells of the repairs at the Holy Sepulchre (pp. 19, 31). La Monte, To what
extent was the Byzantine Empire the suzerain of the Crusading States ? discusses
the question of Imperial suzerainty, and decides that it was never admitted.
But Manuel, like his predecessors before the Crusades, probably considered
himself responsible for the welfare of the Orthodox in Palestine and his right
to interfere on their behalf was admitted. See above, p. 321 n. I, for the
Patriarch of Jerusalem whom Manuel kept in reserve at Constantinople. It was
probably due to Manuel s help that repairs were made about this time to
Orthodox establishments in Palestine, such as the Lavra of Calamon (see
Vailhe*, *Les Laures de Saint Gerasime et de Calamon , in Echos Orient,
vol. n, p. 117), and the monastery of St Euthymius. (See Johns, The Attempt
to colonise Palestine and Syria , in Royal Central Asiatic Society Journal,
vol. xxi, pp. 292-3.)
a "William of Tyre, xx, 25, p. 988. Stephen was the grandson of the
crusading Count of Blois and youngest son of Tibald, Count of Blois, Chartres
and Troyes. He was born about 1130, and made a runaway marriage, in 1151,
with Matilda of Douzy. (See Anselme, Hist. Gfafalogique de la France, n,
p. 847). But as his wife is sometimes called Alix, sometimes Maria, it is
probable that he was married more than once and was a widower in 1170.
392
ii yi : End of the Fatimid Dynasty
arms, William noticed that the prince alone never flinched. He
watched carefully and soon realized that the boy was insensitive to
pain because he was a leper. 1 It was the judgment of God for the
incestuous marriage of his parents, Amalric and Agnes; and it
boded ill for the kingdom. Even if Baldwin grew up he could
never carry on the dynasty. The young Greek Queen might yet
bear a son; but meanwhile, for safety s sake, Amalric would be
wise to marry his eldest child, Sibylla, to some rich experienced
western prince who could act if need be as regent or even as king.
Stephen accepted the invitation and landed with a party of knights
in Palestine in the summer of 1171, a few days before Amalric
arrived back from Constantinople. But he did not like the look
of Palestine. He brusquely broke off the marriage negotiations
and, after paying his vows at the Holy Places, left with his com
pany for the north, intending to visit Constantinople. As he
passed through Cilicia he was waylaid by Mleh of Armenia, who
robbed him of all that he had with him. 2
Next year an even more important visitor came to Jerusalem,
Henry the Lion, Duke of Saxony and Bavaria, grand-son of the
Emperor Lothair and son-in-law of Henry II of England. But he,
too, refused to fight for the Cross. He had come merely as a
pilgrim and left as soon as possible for Germany. 3
The indifference of the West was bitterly disappointing; but
perhaps an expedition against Egypt was not needed at once. For
Saladin s relations with Nur ed-Din seemed close to breaking-
point. By January 1171 Nur ed-Din had installed a garrison of his
own at Mosul, where his nephew Saif ed-Din ruled, and had
annexed Nisibin and the Khabur valley for himself and Sinjar
for his favourite nephew Imad ed-Din. Then, piously anxious for
the triumph of orthodox Islam, he wrote to Saladin demanding
1 William of Tyre, xxi, i, pp. 1004-5.
2 Hid. xx, 25, p. 988.
3 His crusade is described at length by Joranson, Trie Crusade of Henry
the Lion , in Medieval Essays presented to W. Thompson. The chief source is
Arnold of Lubeck.
393
The Lure of Egypt
that prayers in the Egyptian mosques should no longer mention
the Fatimid Caliph but the Caliph of Baghdad. Saladin did not
wish to comply. After two centuries of Fatimid rule Shia in
fluences were strong in Egypt. Moreover, though he might own
Nur ed-Din as his master, his authority in Egypt came from the
Fatimid Caliph. He prevaricated, till in August Nur ed-Din
threatened to come himself to Egypt if he were not obeyed. After
taking police precautions Saladin prepared for the change; but no
one dared make the first move till on the first Friday of the
Moslem year 567 a visiting divine from Mosul boldly stepped into
the pulpit of the Great Mosque and prayed for the Caliph al-
Mustadi. His lead was followed throughout Cairo. In the palace
the Fatimid Caliph al-Adid lay dying. Saladin forbade his servants
to tell him the news. If he recovers, he will learn soon enough ,
he said. If he is to die, let him die in peace. But when the poor
youth a few hours before his death asked to see Saladin his request
was refused for fear of a plot. Saladin repented of his refusal when
it was too late, and spoke of him with affection. With al-Adid the
Fatimid dynasty perished. The remaining princes and princesses
were rounded up, to spend the rest of their lives in luxury cut off
from any contact with the world. 1
A few days later Saladin set out to attack the castle of Montreal,
south of the Dead Sea. He pressed the siege hard; and Amalric,
owing to misinformation, left Jerusalem too late to come to its
rescue. But, just as the garrison was preparing to capitulate, sud
denly Nur ed-Din appeared on the road to Kerak; whereat
Saladin raised the siege. He told Nur ed-Din that his brothers
wars in upper Egypt obliged him to return to Cairo. To Nur
ed-Din his action seemed mere treachery that must be punished
by force. Hearing of his anger Saladin was alarmed and sum
moned a council of his family and his chief generals. The younger
members of the family counselled defiance. But Saladin s father,
old Najm ed-Din Ayub, rose to say that he for one was loyal to
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 575-80, and Atabegs, pp. 202-3; Kemal ad-Din, ed.
Blodiet, p. 551; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 61-2.
394
1172 : Raymond of Tripoli released
his master and berated Hs son for his ambition, and scolded him
again in private for letting his ambition be so obvious. Saladin
took his advice and sent abject apologies to Nur ed-Din; who
accepted them for the moment. 1
In the summer of 1171 Nur ed-Din planned but gave up an
expedition into Galilee. In the late autumn, angered by an act of
piracy committed by Franks from Lattakieh on two Egyptian
merchant ships, he devastated Antiochene and Tripolitan ter
ritory, destroying the castles of Safita and Araima, and had to be
bought off with a heavy indemnity. 2 But in 1172 he kept the
peace, partly because of his distrust of Saladin and pardy because
he wished to gain Seldjuk help for an attack on Antioch. But the
Seldjuk Sultan, after a stern warning from Constantinople,
rejected his advances and instead began a two years war against
the Danishmends. The Byzantine alliance, though it was to achieve
little else, at least saved Antioch from a coalition between Aleppo
and Konya. 3 About the same time Nur ed-Din at last consented
to release Raymond of Tripoli for the sum of 80,000 dinars. The
King and the Hospitallers together raised the bulk of the money;
and Raymond was allowed to return home. He never paid some
30,000 dinars that remained owing to Nur ed-Din. 4
War began again in 1173. Amalric felt secure enough to march
north into Cilicia to punish Mleh for his outrage against Stephen
of Champagne and to carry out his promise to the Emperor. The
1 William of Tyre, xx, 27, pp. 992-4 ; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 581-3, and Atabegs,
pp. 286-8 ; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, p. 552 ; Maqrizi, ed. Blochet, p. 506.
Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 62-3, a tactfully vague account, mixing the
expeditions of 1171 and 1173. He also makes Saladin say that he alone refused
to consider opposition to Nur ed-Din (p. 65).
2 Ibn al-Athir, Atabegs, p. 279; Kemal ad-Din, p. 584; Beha ed-Din,
P.T.T.S. p. 62, says that Nur ed-Din captured Arga, a mistake for Aryma.
3 Cinnamus, pp. 291-2; Imad ed-Din, pp. 159-60. Henry the Lion was
hospitably received by Kilij Arslan when he passed through Anatolia on his
return from Palestine.
4 Abu Shama, p. 168 ; William of Tyre, xx, 28, p. 995. The circumstances of
Raymond s release are obscure. See Baldwin, Raymond III of Tripoli* , p. II and
n. 23. The date was between September 1173 and April 1176.
395
The Lure of Egypt
campaign achieved nothing except to check Mich s further ex
pansion. 1 Nur ed-Din used the opportunity to invade Oultro
jourdain, and summoned Saladin to come to his support. Saladin,
faithful to his father s advice, came up with an army from Egypt
and laid siege to Kcrak. Meanwhile Nur ed-Din moved down
from Damascus. On his approach Saladin raised the siege and
returned to Egypt, saying, with truth, that his father was danger
ously ill. But it was clear that he had no wish to destroy the
Prankish buffer-state that lay between him and his imperious
master. Nur ed-Din in his turn encamped before Kerak. The fief
of Oultrejourdain, of which it was the capital, belonged to an
heiress, Stephanie of Milly. Her first husband, Humphrey, heir
of Toron, had died a few years before. Her second husband,
Amalric s seneschal Miles of Plancy, was away with the King. It
was her first father-in-law, the old Constable, Humphrey II of
Toron, who came to her rescue. On the mobilization of the forces
left in the kingdom, Nur ed-Din retired. His fury against Saladin
was unbounded. When he heard of the death, in August, of
Najm ed-Din Ayub, his most loyal servant in Cairo, he vowed to
invade Egypt himself in the coming spring. 3
Tliis disunity in the Moslem world was consoling to the Franks;
and in the autumn of 1173 they received overtures from another
unexpected quarter. Little had been heard of the Assassins during
the last decades, apart from their arbitrary murder of Raymond II
of Tripoli in 1152. They had been quietly consolidating their
territory in the Nosairi mountains. In general they showed no
animosity towards the Franks. Their hated enemy was Nur ed-Din
whose power restricted them on the east. But he had been unable
to suppress them; and a dagger found on his pillow one night
warned him not to go too far. Shia rather than Sunni in their
sympathies, they had been shocked by the end of the Fatimid
1 William of Tyre, xx, 26, pp. 991^; see references above, p, 393 n. i,
William probably confused Amalric*s two expeditions,
* Ibn al-Athir pp. 587-93, &n& Atdl^$, p. 293 ; Kenul ad-Din, ed. Blochct,
P* 553 J Maqrifci, ea. Blochct, pp. 509-11. Najm ccUDim Ayub died as the
result of a fall when playing polo.
396
1173- Murder of the Assassin Ambassadors
Caliphate. In 1169 the Assassin headquarters at Alamut in Persia
sent a new governor for the Nosairi province, Rashid ed-Din
Sinan of Basra. This formidable sheikh, who was to be known to
the Franks as the Old Man of the Mountains, began a more active
policy. He now sent to Amalric suggesting a close alliance against
Nur ed-Din and hinting that he and all his flock were considering
conversion to Christianity. In return he apparently asked that
a tribute which the Templars at Tortosa had succeeded in imposing
on various Assassin villages should be cancelled. Whether or not
Amalric believed that the Assassins would ever become Christians,
he was glad to encourage their friendship. The sheikh Sinan s
envoys returned towards the mountains with the promise of a
Prankish embassy to follow soon after. As they journeyed past
Tripoli a Templar knight, Walter of Mesnil, acting with the con
nivance of his Grand Master, ambushed them and slew them all.
King Amalric was horrified. His policy was ruined and his
honour stained, just because the Order was too greedy to sacrifice
a small portion of its revenues. He ordered the Grand Master,
Odo of Saint-Amand, to hand over the culprit. Odo refused,
merely offering to send Walter to be judged by the Pope, whose
sole authority he recognized. But Amalric was too angry to trouble
about the Order s constitution. He hurried with some troops to
Sidon, where the Grand Master and the Chapter were staying,
forced his way into their presence and kidnapped Walter, whom
he cast into prison at Tyre. The Assassins were assured that justice
had been done; and they accepted the King s apologies. Mean
while Amalric planned to demand from Rome that the Order
be dissolved. 1
The year 1174 opened well for the Christians. The Assassins
were friendly. The Byzantine alliance held good. The young King
of Sicily, William II, promised naval help for the spring. The
discord between Nur ed-Din and Saladin was reaching a crisis;
and Saladin himself was none too secure in Egypt, where the Shia
nobility was again intriguing against him and was in contact with
1 William of Tyre, xx, 29-30, pp. 995~9-
397
The Lure of Egypt
the Franks. In 1173 lie had sent his eldest brother, Turan Shah, to
conquer the Sudan, so that it might serve as an asylum for the
family, should the worst occur. Turan occupied the country as far
as Ibrim, near Wady Haifa, where he slew the Coptic bishop and
his flock, both his congregation and his seven hundred pigs. But
he reported that the land was unsuitable as a refuge. Saladin then
sent him to southern Arabia, which he preferred. He conquered
it in his brother s name and ruled there as viceroy till H76. 1
But there was no need to flee from the wrath of Nur ed-Din.
In the spring of 1174 the atabeg came to Damascus to plan his
Egyptian campaign. As he rode out one morning with his friends
through the orchards he talked to them of the uncertainty of
human life. Nine days later, on 15 May, he died of a quinsy.
He had been a great ruler and a good man, who had loved above
all things justice. After his illness nineteen years before, something
of his energy had left him ; and more and more of his time was
spent on pious exercises. But his piety, narrow though it was,
won him the respect of his subjects and of his enemies. He was
austere and smiled seldom. He lived simply and forced his family
to do likewise, preferring to spend his vast revenues on works of
charity. He was a careful and watchful administrator ; and his wise
government consolidated the realm that his sword had won. In
particular he sought to curb the restlessness of his Turkish and
Kurdish emirs by settling them on fiefs for which they paid the rent
in soldiers, but his own law courts kept them strictly under control.
This mitigated feudalism did much to restore the prosperity of Syria
after nearly a century of the rule of nomads. In appearance he was
tall and dark-skinned, almost beardless, with regular features and a
gende, sad expression. Polo-playing was his only recreation. 2
Nur ed-Din s heir was his son, Malik as-Salih Ismail, a boy of
eleven, who had been with him at Damascus. There the emir Ibn
al-Muqaddam, backed by the boy s mother, seized the regency,
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 599, 602-3, and Aic&egs, p. 293 ; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S.,
pp. 65-6.
2 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 604-5; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S., p. 65.
398
1174 Death of King Amalric
while Gumushtekin, governor of Aleppo, which had been Nur
ed-Din s chief capital, proclaimed himself there as regent The
boy s cousin, Saif ed-Din of Mosul, intervened to annex Nisibin
and all thejezireh as far as Edessa. Saladin, as the governor of Nur
ed-Din s richest province, wrote to Damascus to claim that the
regency was his. But he was powerless at the moment to follow
up his claim. 1 The collapse of Moslem unity offered the Franks a
chance that Amalric was swift to take. In June he marched on
Banyas. Al-Muqaddam came out from Damascus to meet him and,
probably as Amalric intended, at once proposed to buy him off with
the promise of a large sum of money, the release of all the Prankish
prisoners at Damascus and an alliance in the future against Saladin.*
Amalric, who was beginning to suffer from an attack of dysentery,
accepted the proposals. After apact was signed he rode back through
Tiberias and Nablus to Jerusalem, refusing the comfort of a litter.
He arrived there seriously ill. Greek and Syrian doctors were sum
moned to his bedside, and he told them to bleed him and give him
a purge. They refused, for they thought him too weak to stand the
strain. So he had recourse to his own Prankish doctor, who had no
such scruples. The treatment seemed to do him good, but only for
a day or two. On n July 1174, he died, at the age of thirty-eight. 3
If history is only a matter of challenge and response, then the
growth of Moslem unity under Zengi, Nur ed-Din and Saladin
was the inevitable reaction to the First Crusade. But fate too often
capriciously loads the dice. At the beginning of 1174 Saladin s
star seemed to be setting. The death of Nur ed-Din and the death of
Amalric, neither of them expected, saved him and opened the gate
way for his victories to come. For the Franks of the East the death
of Amalric, at such a moment, and the accidents that had befallen his
family foreboded the end of their kingdom. Amalric was the last
king of Christian Jerusalem worthy of his throne. He had made
1 Ibn al-Atbir, pp. 606-9; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, pp. 558-60.
71 William of Tyre, xx, 31, p. 1000; Abu Skama, p. 162; Ibn al-Athir, p. 611.
3 William of Tyre, ibid, pp. looo-i. The Syrian, doctor was probably
Suleiman ibn Daoud. See above, p. 318 n. i.
399
The Lure of Egypt
mistakes. He had been swayed by the enthusiasm of his nobles in
1168 and by their hesitations in 1169. He had been too ready to ac
cept gifts of money, which his government needed for the moment,
rather than carry out a policy far-sightedly. But his energy and his
enterprise had been boundless. He had shown that neither his
vassals nor the Orders could defy him unscathed. Had he lived
longer he might have challenged the inevitability of the triumph
of Islam.
BOOK V
THE TRIUMPH OF ISLAM
26
CHAPTER I
MOSLEM UNITY
The wise shall inherit glory : but shame shall lie the promotion
of fools/ PROVERBS m, 35
To Saladin* watching anxiously in Cairo, King Amalric s death
came as a sign of God s favour. Shia intrigues against him had
come to a head in April when a plot to kill him was betrayed to
him. He struck at once and crucified the ring-leaders; but he
could not be sure that there were not others ready to conspire,
should a Christian army come to their aid. And in the meantime
Nur ed-Din s heritage might pass firmly into other hands. 1 Now,
with Amakic dead, there was no danger of an invasion by land.
A Sicilian fleet was, it is true, in the offing; for King William II
had heard neither of the collapse of the Shia conspiracy nor of
the death of Amalric. On 25 July 1174 the Sicilians, with two
hundred and eighty-four ships to convey their men, their beasts
and their provisions, under Tancred, Count of Lecce, appeared
suddenly before Alexandria. But they found themselves deprived
of the support on which they had counted; and they had already
refused to countenance any help from the Emperor, for William
had quarrelled with Manuel, who had offered him the hand of his
daughter Maria and then had withdrawn the offer; and anyhow
he wished to show that he could do better than the Byzantines in
1169. On their failure to surprise the city and on Saladin s
approach with an army, they took to their ships again and sailed
away on I August. Saladin was free now to march into Syria.*
1 Ibn al-Athir, p. 600.
* Abu Sbanaa (quoting Imad ed-Din), pp. 164-5; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S.
pp. 66-7, dating the arrival of the Sicilians 7 September; William of Tyre, xxi, 3,
p. 1007.
403
26-2
Moslem Unity
Ibn al-Muqaddam, governor at Damascus, was frightened and
appealed to the Franks for help . His fear increased when the young
as-Salih fled with his mother to Aleppo to the more vigorous
guardianship of Gumushtekin. Ibn al-Muqaddam next appealed
to Saif ed-Din of Mosul to come to his rescue; but Saif ed-Din
preferred to consolidate his gains in the Jezireh. The people of
Damascus then insisted on their governor summoning Saladin.
Saladin set out at once, with seven hundred picked horsemen. He
rode swiftly through Oultrejourdain where the Franks made no
attempt to stop him, and arrived at Damascus on 26 November.
He was received there with joy. He spent the night at his father s
old house. Next morning Ibn al-Muqaddam opened the citadel
gates to him. He installed his brother Toghtekin as governor in
as-Salih*s name and, after delighting the Damascenes by generous
gifts to them from as-Salih s treasury, marched on northward
against Gumushtekin. 1
King Amalric s death had left the Franks powerless to intervene.
The only remaining prince of the royal house was the thirteen-
year old leper, Baldwin. His sister Sibylla, a year older, was still
unmarried. His step-mother, Queen Maria Comnena, had only
given birth to daughters, of whom one had died and the other,
Isabella, was aged two. The barons accepted Baldwin as their king
without demure. Four days after his father s death he was
crowned by the Patriarch. No regent was appointed. The Senes
chal, Miles of Plancy, the late King s closest friend and lord in his
wife s right of the great fief of Oultrejourdain, carried on the
government. But Miles was unpopular, particularly amongst the
locally-born aristocracy, with whose support Count Raymond of
Tripoli claimed the regency. Next to the Bang s sisters Raymond
was his closest relative on the royal side of the family. His mother,
Hodierna of Jerusalem, had been Amalric s aunt. Though
Bohemond of Antioch was descended from Hodierna s elder
sister, Alice, he was a generation further away from the Crown.
1 Bdba ect-Dia, P.T.T.S. pp. 67-70; Ibn al-Atbir, pp. 614-16; Maqrisi,
ecL Blodiet, p. 517.
404
1174 Raymond of Tripoli Regent
Moreover, he lived far off; whereas Raymond had recently mar
ried the second great heiress in the Kingdom, Eschiva of Bures,
Princess of Galilee, widow of Walter of Saint-Omer. Raymond s
supporters, led by the old Constable, Humphrey II of Toron, by
the Ibelin family and by Reynald of Sidon, insisted on his rights
being heard before the High Court. Miles prevaricated for as long
as he could, but had to yield. Late in the autumn Raymond was
installed as Regent. A few weeks later Miles, who had taken his
fall from power with an ill grace, was assassinated one dark night
in the streets of Acre. 1
Raymond was now aged thirty-four, a tall, thin man, dark-
haired and dark-skinned, his face dominated by a great nose, in
character cold and self-controlled and a little ungenerous. There
was nothing in him of the enthusiastic chivalry of the early
Crusaders. During his long years in captivity he had read deeply,
he had learnt Arabic and he had studied the ways of the Moslems.
He saw the problems of the Prankish states from a local standpoint.
He was interested in their survival, not in their role as the spear
head of aggressive Christendom. He was able and ably supported
by his friends, but he was only regent and he had enemies, 2
His regency began a cleavage within the kingdom. There had
been factions before, especially in the days of Queen Melisende.
But they had been short-lived. The Crown had kept control. Now
two definite parties arose, the one composed of the native barons
and the Hospitallers, following the leadership of Count Raymond,
seeking an understanding with their foreign neighbours and un
willing to embark on risky adventures; the other composed of
newcomers from the West and the Templars. This party was
aggressive and militandy Christian; and it found its leaders in
1175, when at last Reynald of Chatillon was released from his
Moslem prison, together with Joscelin of Edessa, a Count without
a county, whom fate had turned into an adventurer. 3 Personal
1 William of Tyre, xxx, 3~4 pp. 1007-9.
* William of Tyre, xxi, 5, pp. 1010-12.
3 For the release of Reynold and Joscelin, see below, p. 408.
405
Moslem Unity
animosities were even stronger than differences in policy. Most
of the nobles now were cousins of each other; and family quarrels
are always the most bitter. The two wives of King Amalric hated
each other. Agnes of Courtenay, Count Joscelin s sister, had
married twice since her divorce. Her next husband, Hugh of
Ibelin, had died a few years after the marriage; his successor,
Reynald of Sidon, was glad to discover that he, like Amalric, was
too closely related to his wife and secured an annulment. 1 While
Agnes sided with her brother and the Templars, he joined the other
party. Queen Maria Comnena was soon remarried, to Hugh of
Ibelin s brother Balian, to whom she brought her dower-fief of
Nablus. This marriage was happy; and the Dowager-Queen
played a great role in her husband s party. 2 Reynald of Chatillon,
a few months after his release, married the heiress of Oultre-
jourdain, Stephanie, the widow of Miles of Pkncy, who considered
Count Raymond to be her husband s murderer. 3 Raymond s long
quarrel with the Templars began on a personal question. A
Flemish knight, Gerard of Ridfort, came to Tripoli in 1173 and
took service under the Count, who promised him the hand of the
first suitable heiress in his county. But when the lord of Botrun
died a few months later, leaving his lands to his daughter Lucia,
Raymond ignored Gerard s claim and gave her to a rich Pisan
called Plivano, who ungallandy put the girl on to a weighing-
machine and offered the Count her weight in gold. Gerard,
angry and disappointed, joined the Order of the Temple and soon
became its most influential member and its seneschal. He never
forgave Raymond. 4
1 Hugh of Ibelin, who had been Amalric s commissioner in Cairo in 1167,
died about 1169. He had been engaged to Agnes hefore she married Amalric
(William of Tyre, xrx, 4, p. 890). William also tells of Reynald of Sidon s
divorce. Reynold s father showed that he and Agnes were related. It was
doubtless through her mother, Beatrice widow of William of Sahyun, whose
maiden name is not recorded.
* William of Tyre, xxi, 18, p. 1035; Ernoul, p. 44. 3 Ernoul, pp. 30-1.
^ 4 Ernoul, p. 114; Estoire d Erodes, pp. 51-2. Plivano paid 10,000 besants for
his bride. If they were of full gold content her weight would have been about
10 stone.
406
n?4 : Saladin attacks Aleppo
The young King, precociously aware of the intrigues around
him, tried to hold the balance between the parties. Raymond
remained his regent for three years; but ties of kinship drew him
closer to the Courtenays. He made his uncle Joscelin seneschal in
1176; and his mother, the Lady Agnes, returned to the Court.
Her influence was disastrous. She was vicious and greedy, in
satiable for men and for money. She had not been allowed to
bring up her children. Baldwin had been given to the care of
William of Tyre and Sibylla to that of her great-aunt, the
Princess- Abbess Joveta of Bethany. But now she began to inter
fere in their lives. Baldwin listened to her, against his better
judgment; and Sibylla fell under her domination. 1
Raymond s first duty as regent was to curb the growth of
Saladin s power. The Franks had been unable to prevent the union
of Damascus with Cairo ; but at least Aleppo was still separate. As
soon as reinforcements came from Egypt Saladin had marched to
Aleppo from Damascus. On 9 December 1174 he entered Horns
and left troops to invest the castle, which held out against him. He
passed on through Hama to Aleppo. When Gumushtekin closed
the gates in his face, he began a regular siege of the city, on
30 December. The citizens were half inclined to surrender to him;
but the young as-Salih came down himself into their midst and
pleaded with them to preserve him from the man who had
filched his heritage. Touched by his plight the defenders never
flagged. Meanwhile Gumushtekin sent for help from the
Assassins and from the Franks. A few days later some Assassins
were found in the heart of Saladin s camp, at his very tent. They
were slain after a desperate defence. On I February Count
Raymond and a Prankish army appeared before Horns, and with
the help of the castle garrison began to attack the city walls. This
1 Joscelin is attested as Seneschal from 1177 onwards (Rohricht, Regesta,
p. 147). He is always called Count Joscelin . In charters Agnes is called
Countess, having been Countess of Jaffa and Ascalon during her marriage to
Amalric. She was never Queen and is never so called. William of Tyre, xxi, 2,
p. 1006, for Sibylla s upbringing, and above, p. 392, for Baldwin s.
407
Moslem Unity
had the desired effect. Saladin raised the siege of Aleppo and came
hurrying south. Raymond did not stay to meet him. For the next
month Saladin was held up by the siege of the castle of Horns.
By April he was master of all Syria as far north as Hama; but
Aleppo was still independent. In gratitude to the Franks Gumush-
tekin released Reynald of Chatillon andjoscelin of Courtenay and
all the other Christian prisoners languishing in the dungeons of
Aleppo. 1
Saladin s successes roused Nur ed-Din s nephew, Saif ed-Din of
Mosul, who sent his brother, Izz ed-Din, with a large army into
Syria to join Gumushtekin. Saladin, hoping perhaps to cause
trouble between Aleppo and Mosul, offered to cede to Gumush
tekin Hama and Horns. The offer was rejected. But the allied
army was caught in a ravine amongst the hills north of Hama and
cut to pieces by Saladin s veterans. Saladin did not feel strong
enough to follow up his victory. A truce was arranged, which
allowed Saladin to occupy a few towns north of Hama but other
wise left things as they were. 3
Saladin now threw off his alleged vassaldom to as-Salih. He
had, he said, done his best to serve him loyally, but as-Salih had
preferred other counsellors and rejected his help. He therefore
took the title of King of Egypt and Syria and struck coins in his
own name alone. The Caliph at Baghdad graciously approved
and sent royal robes that reached him at Hama in May. 3
The truce with the house of Zengi was short-lived. In March
1176 Saif ed-Din of Mosul himself crossed the Euphrates with a
large army and joined with Gumushtekin s troops outside Aleppo.
Saladin, whose army had been reinforced again from Egypt, went
1 William of Tyre, xxi, 6, pp. 1012-13, 1023; Abu Shama, pp. 167-8;
Ibn al-Athir, pp. 618-20; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, pp. 562-4.
2 Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 70-1; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 621-2, calls the site of
die battle die Horns of Hama; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, p. 564.
3 The first of the coins bearing Saladin s royal tide are dated A.M. 570
(1174-5). He never assumed the tide of Sultan, but Arab writers, even his
contemporaries, usually give it to him, (e.g. Ibn Jubayr and Beha ed-Din).
See "Wiet, op. cit pp. 335-6.
408
1176: Saladin defeats Saif ed-Din of Mosul
up to meet him. An eclipse of the sun on n April alarmed his
men as they crossed the Orontes near Hama; and they were caught
by surprise ten days kter by Saif ed-Din, as they were watering
their horses. But Saif ed-Din hesitated to attack at once. Next
morning, when Saif ed-Din brought all his forces up to attack
Saladin s camp on the Mound of the Sultan, some twenty miles
south of Aleppo, it was too late. Their first onrush almost suc
ceeded; but Saladin counter-charged at the head of his reserves
and broke the enemy s lines. By evening he was master of the
field. The treasure that Saif ed-Din had left in his camp on fleeing
was all given by Saladin to reward his own men. The prisoners
that were taken were well treated and soon sent back to their
homes. His generosity and clemency made an excellent impression. 1
Aleppo still refused to open its gates to Saladin; so he attacked
and captured the fortresses between the city and the Euphrates,
Biza a and Menbij, then laid siege to Azaz, the great fortress that
commanded the road to the north. There, once again, he nearly
perished at the hands of one of the Assassins, who entered the tent
where he was resting. Only the cap of mail that he wore under his
turban saved him. Azaz capitulated on 21 June. On 24 June he
appeared again before Aleppo. But now he agreed to come to
terms. As-Salih and the Ortoqid princes of Hisn Kaifa and
Mardin who had supported him agreed to cede to Saladin all the
land that he had conquered; and they and Saladin swore solemnly
to keep the peace. When the treaty had been signed on 29 July,
as-Salih s little sister came out to visit Sakdin s camp. He asked
her kindly what gift she would like; and she answered: The
Castle of Azaz/ Saladin thereupon gave it back to her brother. 2
Though Aleppo was still unconquered, as-Salih and his cousins
were cowed. Saladin could turn to deal with the Assassins and the
1 Beta ed-Din, P.T.T.5. pp. 71-4; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 625-6. Beta ed-Din
makes the batde take place at Tel es-Sultan and at the Horns of Hama.
2 Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 74-5; Kemal ad-Din, ei Blochet, pp. 146-7;
Ibn al~Athir, loc. clt. According to Kemal ad-Din public opinion in Aleppo
was against a treaty and strongly supported as-Salih.
409
Moslem Unity
Franks. He entered the Nosairi mountains to lay siege to Masyaf,
the chief Assassin stronghold. Sheikh Sinan was away; and as he
hurried home, Saladin s soldiers could have captured him had not
some mysterious power restrained them. There was magic about.
Saladin himself was troubled by terrible dreams. One night he
woke suddenly to find on his bed some hot cakes of a type that
only the Assassins baked, and with them a poisoned dagger and
a piece of paper on which a threatening verse was written.
Saladin believed that the Old Man of the Mountains had himself
been in the tent. His nerves gave way. He sent a messenger to
Sinan asking to be forgiven for his sins and promising, in return
for a safe-conduct, henceforward to leave the Assassins undis
turbed. The Old Man pardoned him, and the treaty between them
was kept. 1
With the Franks no such treaty could be made. There had been
a truce in 1175, when Saladin, in order to be able to deal with Saif
ed-Din, had released the Christian prisoners in his possession. 3
But next year the Franks broke the truce. While Saladin was
besieging Aleppo, Raymond of Tripoli invaded the Beqa a from
the Buqaia, while the royal army under Humphrey of Toron and
the fifteen-year old King came up from the south. Raymond
seems to have suffered a slight defeat at the hands of Ibn al-
Muqaddam, now governor of Baalbek; but the Christians made
a junction and severely defeated Saladin s brother Turan Shah and
the militia of Damascus. They retired again as soon as Saladin
approached from the north. He did not follow after them. He
was anxious to return to Egypt. Leaving Turan Shah in command
of a strong army in Syria, he once more slipped through Oultre-
jourdain and arrived at Cairo at the end of September. 3
1 Abu-Eras, ed. Guyard, Journal Asiatique, 7th series, vol. ix, 1877, Arabic
text, pp. 455-9; Ibn al-Athir (loc. cit.) reports a threatening letter sent by Sinan
to Saladin s maternal nude, Shihab ed-Din.
3 William of Tyre, xxi, 8, pp. 1017-19. He reproaches Humphrey of Toron,
who was responsible for the truce, for missing an opportunity for striking at
Saladin when he was embarrassed.
3 William of Tyre, xxi, n, pp. 1021-3; && al-Athir, p. 627.
410
PLATE VIII
AH
W
1176: Sibylla s first Marriage
For a year there was a respite from fighting, for which both
sides were thankful. While Saladin reorganized Egypt and rebuilt
and refortified Cairo, the government at Jerusalem faced its main
internal problem. In 1177 Bang Baldwin came of age, at sixteen,
and Raymond gave up the regency. But the King s leprosy was
growing worse ; he surely could not live for many years. To provide
for the succession the Princess Sibylla must be married, in 1175,
probably at the suggestion of Louis VII of France, Baldwin had
invited William Long-Sword, eldest son of the Marquis of
Montferrat, to come to Palestine and accept Sibylla s hand. It was
a good choice. William was well-connected. His father was the
richest prince in northern Italy. He was cousin both of the
Emperor Frederick Barbarossa and of King Louis. He himself,
though no longer young, was gallant and handsome enough to
please the gay Princess. He knded at Sidon in October 1176. On
his marriage to Sibylla a few days later he was given the county of
Ascalon and Jaffa and generally accepted as heir to the throne.
But the hopes based on his vigour and his high connections were
vain. Early in 1177 he fell ill of malaria. His illness dragged on
for some months; and in June he died. His widow gave birth to
a son in the kte summer, an heir to the kingdom but one that made
a regency inevitable. The King s envoys scoured Europe once more
to find a second husband for the Princess. 1
His envoys also scoured Europe to find allies against Saladin;
for the lull in the war would certainly not last long. But the
princes of the West were fully occupied in their own affairs; and
even Constantinople could not provide the same help as before.
The year 1176 was a turning-point in the history of Byzantium.
The Seldjuk Sultan, Kilij Arslan II, had grown restive against the
Emperor. While Nur ed-Din lived he had been kept under
control; for Nur ed-Din had intervened in Anatolia in 1173, to
1 William of Tyre, xxr, 13, pp. 1025-6; William s mother was half-sister to
King Conrad and to Frederick Barbarossa s father. His father and King Louis s
mother, Adelaide of Maurienne, were the children by two different marriages
of Gisela of Burgundy.
411
Moslem Unity
prevent die Seldjuks from swallowing the lands of the Danish-
mends. Nur ed-Din s general Abdalmassih, his brother Qutb
ed-Din s former minister at Mosul, restored Caesarea-Mazacha to
the Danishmend Dhu 1-Nun and himself remained with a garrison
in Sivas. Kilij Arslan s brother Shahinshah was at the same time
confirmed in the possession of Ankara, where the Emperor had
installed him some years before. But Nur ed-Din s death removed
this restraint on Kilij Arslan. By the end of 1 174 Abdalmassih was
back in Mosul, Dhu 1-Nun and Shahinshah were in exile at
Constantinople, and Kilij Arslan was in possession of their lands.
He then turned against Byzantium. In the summer of 1176
Manuel determined to deal once and for all with the Turks. Some
slight successes the previous summer had encouraged him to write
to the Pope to announce that the time was propitious for a new
Crusade. Now he would make the road across Anatolia safe for
ever. While an army under his cousin Andronicus Vatatses was
sent through Paphlagonia to restore Dhul Nun to his territory,
Manuel himself led the great Imperial army, swelled by all the
reinforcements that he could muster, against the Sultan s capital
at Konya, Kilij Arslan, hearing of the expedition, sent to ask for
peace. But Manuel no longer had faith in his word.
Early in September the Paphlagonian expedition came to
disaster before the walls of Niksar. The head of Vatatses was sent
as a trophy to the Sultan. A few days later Manuel s army moved
out of the Meander valley, past the fortress that he had built at
Sublaeum the year before, and round the top of the Lake of
Egridir into the hills that led up toward the great range of the
Sultan Dagh. Heavy wagons containing siege-machinery and
provender slowed its progress; and the Turks had devastated the
land through which it must travel. The road led through a pass
called Tzibritze by the Greeks, with the ruined fort of Myrio-
cephalum standing at the far end. There the Turkish army was
gathered visible on the bare hill-side. Manuel s more experienced
generals warned him not to take his lumbering army through the
difficult passage in face of the enemy; but the younger princes
412
nj6: Battle of Myriocephalum
trusted in their prowess and were eager for glory. They persuaded
him to march on. The Sultan had gathered troops from all his
allies and vassals. His army was as large as Manuel s, less well-
armed but more mobile. On 17 September 1176 the vanguard
forced its way through the pass. The Turks yielded before them,
to swing round into the hills and charge down the slopes into the
pass as the main Imperial army pressed along the narrow road.
The Emperor s brother-in-law, Baldwin of Antioch, at the head
of a cavalry regiment, counter-charged up the hill into the enemy;
but he and all his men were killed. The soldiers in the valley saw his
defeat. They were so tightly packed together that they could
scarcely move their hands. Brave leadership might still have saved
the day. But Manuel s courage deserted him. He was the first to
panic and fled back out of the pass. The whole army now tried to
follow him. But in the chaos the transport wagons blocked the
road. Few of the soldiers could escape. The Turks, waving the
head of Vatatses before them, massacred as they pleased till dark
ness fell. Then the Sultan sent a herald to the Emperor as he tried
to rally his troops in the plain, and offered him peace on condition
that he retired at once and dismantled his two new fortresses of
Sublaeum and Dorylaeum. Manuel gratefully accepted the terms.
His unconquered vanguard came back safely through the pass, and
joined up with the pathetic remnant that Manuel now led home
wards, harassed by Turks who could not understand Kilij Arslan s
forbearance. It is probable that the Sultan did not comprehend
the completeness of his victory. His main interest was now in the
East. He was not at the moment interested in expanding west
ward. All that he wanted there was security. 1
Manuel, however, was well aware of the significance of the
disaster, which he himself compared to that of Manzikert, just
1 Nicetas Chonktes, pp. 236-48; Michael the Syrian, m, pp. 369-72-
See Chalandon, Les Comnenes, pp. 506-13, and Calien, La Syrie du Nord,
p. 417 n. 3, and for die battle itself, Ramsay, Report on Exploration in
Phrygia , in History and Art of the Eastern Provinces of the Roman Empire,
pp. 235-8.
413
Moslem Unity
over a century before. 1 The great war-machine that his grandfather
and father had built up had suddenly been destroyed. It would
take many years to rebuild it; and indeed it was never rebuilt.
There were troops enough left to defend the frontiers and even to
win a few petty victories in the next three years. But nevermore
would the Emperor be able to march into Syria and dictate his
will at Antioch. Nor was there anything left of his great prestige
which had in the past deterred Nur ed-Din at the height of his
power from pressing too far against Christendom. For the Franks
the disaster at Myriocephalum was almost as fateful as for
Byzantium. Despite all the mutual mistrust and misunderstanding,
they knew that the existence of the mighty Empire was an ulti
mate safeguard against the triumph of Islam. At the moment,
when the ruler of northern Syria was the weak boy as-Salih, they
did not notice the importance of the battle. But when William
of Tyre visited Constantinople three years kter and learnt fully
what had happened, he realized the dangers ahead. 2
Though Manuel s army had perished, his fleet was still strong,
and he was ready to use it against Saladin. Once again, in 1177,
he promised to send it in support of a Prankish attack against
Egypt. During that summer there had been rumours of a new
Crusade from the West; both Louis VII and Henry II of England
were said to have taken the Cross. 3 But only one western poten
tate appeared in Palestine. In September, while King Baldwin was
recovering from a bad attack of malaria, Philip, Count of Flanders,
landed with a considerable following at Acre. He was the son of
Count Thierry and of Sibylla of Anjou; and the Franks, remem-
1 Nicetas Choniates, p. 249. Manuel on. the other hand tried to minimize
the disaster in his letter about it to Henry II of England (quoted in Roger of
Hoveckn, Chronicle, n, p. 101). The hatde was noticed by many western
chroniclers, e.g. Vita Alexandri, in Liber Pontifaalis, n, p. 435, and Annales
S. Rufixrti Salisburgensis, p. 777.
% William of Tyre, xxi, 12, p. 1025,
5 Henry n and Louis VII agreedin the Treaty of Ivry, 21 September 1177, to
go on a joint Crusade (Benedict of Peterborough, i, pp. 191-4). The scheme was
dropped soon afterwards.
414
: Philip of Flanders in Palestine
Bering his father s four Crusades and his mother s pious love of
the Holy Land, hoped great things of him. The news of his coming
brought four high-born ambassadors from the Emperor, offering
money for an Egyptian expedition; and on their heels a Byzantine
fleet of seventy well-fitted men-of-war arrived off Acre. Kong
Baldwin, too ill to fight himself, hastened to offer him the regency
if he would lead an expedition into Egypt. But Philip hesitated
and prevaricated. He had come, he said first, merely for the
pilgrimage, next that he could not assume such responsibilities
alone; and when the King suggested that Reynald of Chatillon
should be joint leader, he criticized Reynald s character. It was
pointed out to him that the Byzantine fleet was there ready to
co-operate. He merely asked why he should oblige the Greeks.
At last he revealed that his only object in coming to Palestine had
been to marry off his two cousins, the Princesses Sibylla and
Isabella, to the two young sons of his favourite vassal, Robert of
Bethune. This was more than the barons of Jerusalem could bear.
We thought you had come to fight for the Cross and you merely
talk of marriages , cried Baldwin of Ibelin when the Count made
his demand before the Court. Thwarted and furious, Philip pre
pared to depart again. The wrangling had shocked the Emperor s
ambassadors. It was clear that there was going to be no expedition
to Egypt. They waited about a month, then disgustedly sailed
away with the fleet, to give warning to their master of the in
curable frivolity of the Franks. 1
The Count of Flanders left Jerusalem for Tripoli at the end of
October. Perhaps his conscience now troubled him, for he agreed
to accompany Count Raymond on an expedition against Hama;
1 William of Tyre, xxi, 14-18, pp. 1027-35. He suggests that Raymond of
Tripoli and Bohemond of Antioch were both, of them opposed to an Egyptian
expedition and discouraged Philip. But the Ibelins were disgusted by Philip,
and as they habitually worked in with Raymond, it is possible that William
exaggerated. He was responsible for the Byzantine alliance and therefore upset
by its abandonment, and Philip s willingness kter to help both Raymond and
Bohemond may have led him to suspect them. See also Ernoul, p. 33, who
tells of Baldwin of Ibelin s taunt.
415
Moslem Unity
and King Baldwin provided troops from the kingdom to reinforce
him. While a small contingent raided the territory of Horns, only
to fall into an ambush and lose all the booty that it had collected,
the two Counts laid siege to Hama, whose governor was seriously
ill. But when troops came up from Damascus, they retired, having
achieved nothing. From Tripoli Count Philip moved on to
Antioch, and there agreed to help Prince Bohemond attack the
town of Harenc. Harenc had belonged to as-Salih s former
minister Gumushtekin; but he had quarrelled with his master, who
had put him to death. His vassals at Harenc had therefore revolted
against as-Salih, but on the Franks approach their mutiny ended.
Bohemond and Philip half-heartedly kid siege to the town. Their
mining operations were unsuccessful; and as-Salih was able to send
a detachment through their lines to reinforce the garrison. When
as-Salih sent envoys to point out to them that Saladin, the real
enemy both of Aleppo and Antioch, was back in Syria, they
agreed to raise the siege. Philip of Flanders returned to Jerusalem
for Easter, then took a ship from Lattakieh for Constantinople. 1
Saladin had crossed the frontier from Egypt on 18 November.
His intelligence service was always excellent. He knew that the
Franco-Byzantine alliance had collapsed and that the Count of
Flanders was away in the north. He decided on a sudden counter
attack up the coast into Palestine. The Templars summoned all the
available knights of the Order to defend Gaza; but the Egyptian
army marched straight on to Ascalon. The old Constable Hum
phrey of Toron was seriously ill, and the King had only recently risen
from a sickbed. With the troops that he could muster, five hundred
knights in all, and with the Bishop of Bethlehem bearing the True
Cross, Baldwin hurried to Ascalon and entered the fortress just
before the enemy came up. He had summoned every man of
arms in the kingdom to join him there; but the first levies were
intercepted by Saladin and taken prisoner. Leaving a small force
1 Wiflkm of Tyre, xxi, 19, 25, pp. 1036, 1047-9; Ernoul, p. 34; Michael
die Syrian, in, pp. 75-6; Abu Shama, pp. 189-92; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S.
pp. 76-7; Ibn al-Adhir, pp. 630-3 ; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, pp. 148-53.
416
1 177- Saladin s Defeat at Montgisard
to contain the King in Ascalon, Saladin marched on towards
Jerusalem. For once, Saladin was over-confident. There was no
enemy left between him and the Christian capital; so he loosened
the discipline of his troops and allowed them to wander round
the countryside pillaging. "With the courage of despair, Baldwin
managed to send a message to the Templars telling them to
abandon Gaza and join him. When they came near he broke out
of Ascalon and rode with all his men up the coast to Ibelin and
then swung inland. On 25 November the Egyptian army was
crossing a ravine near the castle of Montgisard, a few miles south
east of Ramleh, when suddenly the Prankish knights fell on it
coming from the north. It was a complete surprise. Some of
Saladin s troops were absent foraging; and he had no time to
regroup the remainder. Many of diem fled before the first
shock. Saladin himself was only saved by his personal Mameluke
Guard. The regiments that held their ground were almost
annihilated. Among the Christians the King was in the forefront.
The bravery of the Ibelin brothers, Baldwin and Balian, and
of Raymond s stepsons, Hugh and William of Galilee, helped on
the victory; and Saint George himself was seen fighting by their
side.
Within a few hours the Egyptian army was in full flight home
wards, abandoning all the booty and the prisoners that it had taken.
The soldiers even threw away their weapons in order to flee the
quicker. Saladin managed to restore some measure of order; but
the crossing of the Sinai desert was painful, with Bedouins
harassing the almost defenceless fugitives. From the Egyptian
frontier Saladin sent messengers on dromedaries to Cairo to assure
any would-be rebels that he was still alive; and his return to Cairo
was announced by pigeon-post all over Egypt. But his prestige
had suffered terribly. 1
It had been a great victory and it had saved the kingdom for the
1 William of Tyre, xxi, 20-24, pp. 1037-47; Ernoul, pp. 41-5; Michael the
Syrian, m, p. 375; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 75~<5; Abu Shama, pp. 184-7;
Ibn al-Athir, pp. 627-35.
RC 417 2 ?
Moslem Unity
moment. But it had not in the long run changed the situation.
The resources of Egypt are limitless ; whereas the Franks were still
short of men. Had it been possible for King Baldwin to pursue
the enemy into Egypt or to make a swift attack upon Damascus,
he might have crushed Saladin s power, but without help from
outside he could not risk his own small army on an offensive.
Instead, he decided to erect strong fortifications along the
Damascene frontier, where the loss of Banyas had upset the
defensive system of the kingdom. While Humphrey of Toron
fortified the hill of Hunin, on the road from Banyas to Toron, the
Bang set about building a castle on the upper Jordan between Lake
Huleh and the Sea of Galilee, to command the ford by which
Jacob had wrestled with the angel, a ford known also as the Ford
of Sorrows. The land on either side was inhabited by Moslem
peasants and herdsmen, some owing allegiance to Damascus, some
to the Christians. They passed to and fro freely across the
frontier, which was marked only by a great oak tree; and the
Franks had undertaken never to fortify the crossing. Baldwin had
wished to abide by the treaty and build a castle elsewhere; but the
Templars overruled him. The local Moslems complained of the
breach of faith to Saladin, who offered Baldwin first 60,000, then
100,000 gold pieces to give up the work. On the King s refusal,
he vowed to take action himself. 1
After his disaster at Montgisard he had remained for several
months in Egypt, till he was sure that everything was well under
control. In the kte spring of 1178 he returned to Syria and spent
the rest of the year at Damascus. The only warfare of the year
consisted of a few raids and counter-raids. 2 Farther north there
was peace between Antioch and Aleppo, and an alliance between
Antioch and Armenia, whose renegade Prince Mleh had been
1 "William of Tyre, xxi, 26, pp. 1050-1; Ernoul, pp. 51-2; Abu Shama,
pp. 194-7; Ibn al-Athir, p. 634. Saladin was occupied at the time by a local
revolt at Baalbek. Jacob s Ford is now crossed by a bridge known as the
Bridge of die Daughters of Jacob.
z Ibn al-Athir, p. 633.
418
- Death of Humphrey of Tor on
overthrown soon after Nur ed-Din s death, by his nephew
Roupen III. Roupen was a friend of the Franks, whom he had
assisted at the ineffectual siege of Harenc. 1 Bohemond III also
sought the friendship of the Emperor, and in 1177 married as his
second wife a relative of Manuel s, called Theodora.*
In the spring of 1179, when the seasonal movement of flocks
began, King Baldwin set out to round up the sheep that would be
passing towards Banyas from the plains of Damascus. Saladin sent
his nephew Faruk-Shah to see what was happening. He was to
inform his uncle by pigeon-post of the direction taken by the
Franks. On 10 April Faruk-Shah suddenly came upon the enemy
in a narrow valley in the forest of Banyas. The King was taken by
surprise. He was only able to extricate his army owing to the
heroism of the old Constable, Humphrey of Toron, who held up
the Moslems with his bodyguard till the royal army had escaped.
Humphrey was mortally wounded; he died at his new castle at
Hunin on 22 April. Even the Moslems paid tribute to his character.
His death was a terrible blow to the kingdom; for he had been its
one universally respected elder statesman.
Saladin followed up the victory by laying siege to the castle at
Jacob s Ford. But the defence was so vigorous that he retired after
a few days to encamp before Banyas. From there he sent raiders
into Galilee and through the Lebanon to destroy the harvests
between Sidon and Beirut. King Baldwin gathered together the
forces of the kingdom and summoned Raymond of Tripoli to join
him. They marched up through Tiberias and Safed to Toron.
1 Sembat the Constable, p. 624; Vahram, Rhymed Chronicle, p. 509. For
Roupen s marriage, see below, p. 422.
2 William of Tyre, xxn, 5, p. 1069. The date of this marriage arid even the
bride s name are disputed. The Llgnages (v, p. 446) call her Irene and give
her a daughter called Constance, otherwise unknown. It is unknown whether
she was a Comnena or related to the Emperor through her mother. Rey,
Histoire des Princes d Antioch , R.O.L. 1896, n, pp. 379-82, believes her to
have been Bohemond s first wife. It is more probable that his first wife was
Orgillosa of Harenc, who appears on charters 1170-5 (Rohricht, Regesta,
pp. 125, 139). William definitely says that Bohemond left Theodora to live
with Sibylla.
419 27-2
Moslem Unity
There they learnt that Faruk-Shah and a party of raiders were
coming back from the coast laden with booty. They moved north
to intercept them in the valley of Marj Ayun, the Valley of Springs,
between the Litani river and the upper Jordan. But Saladin. had
noticed from an observation post on a hill north of Banyas that
the flocks on the opposite side of the Jordan were scattering in
panic. He realized that the Prankish army was passing by and set
out in pursuit. On 10 June 1179, while the royal army routed
Faruk-Shah at Marj Ayun, Count Raymond and the Templars
moved on a little ahead towards the Jordan. By the entrance of
the valley they came on Saladin s army. The Templars joined battle
at once; but Saladin s counter-attack drove them back in confusion
on Baldwin s troops. These, too, were forced back; and before
long the whole Christian army was in flight. The King and Count
Raymond were able with part of their men to cross the Litani and
shelter at the great castle of Beaufort, high above the western
bank. All the men left beyond the river were massacred or later
rounded up. Some of the fugitives did not stop at Beaufort but
made straight for the coast. On the way they met Reynald of
Sidon with his local troops. They told him that he was too late;
so he turned back, though had he advanced to the Litani he might
have saved many other fugitives.
Amongst Saladin s prisoners were Odo of Saint-Amand, Grand
Master of the Temple, whose rashness had been the prime cause
of die rout, Baldwin of Ibelin and Hugh of Galilee. Hugh was
soon ransomed by his mother, the Countess of Tripoli, for 55,000
Tyrian dinars. For Baldwin of Ibelin Saladin demanded 150,000
dinars, a King s ransom, so highly did he rate Baldwin s im
portance. After a few months Baldwin was released on the
return of a thousand Moslem prisoners and on his promise to
find tie money. It was proposed to exchange Odo for an
important Moslem prisoner; but the Grand Master was too
proud to admit that anyone could be of equal value to him. He
remained in a dungeon at Damascus till his death the following
year.
420
n8o: Two Years Truce
Saladin did not follow up his victory by an invasion of Palestine,
perhaps because he had heard of the arrival there of a great com
pany of knights from France, led by Henry II of Champagne,
Peter of Courtenay and Philip, Bishop of Beauvais. Instead, he
attacked Baldwin s castle at Jacob s Ford. After a siege of five
days, from 24 to 29 August, he succeeded in mining the walls and
forcing an entrance. The defenders were put to death and the
castle rased to the ground. The French visitors would not go out
to try to save the castle but soon returned home. Once more the
Crusaders from the West had been utterly ineffectual. 1
After the Egyptian fleet had carried out a successful raid in
October on the shipping in the very port of Acre, and after a great
Moslem foray into Galilee early in the new year, King Baldwin
sent to ask Saladin for a truce. Saladin agreed. There had been
a terrible drought throughout the winter and early spring ; and the
whole of Syria was faced with famine. No one desired raids that
might damage the meagre harvests. And Saladin had probably
decided that the conquest of Aleppo should precede the conquest
of Jerusalem. A two-years truce was fixed by a treaty signed by
representatives of Baldwin and of Saladin in May 1180. Tripoli
was excluded from the truce; but after the Egyptian navy had
raided the port of Tortosa and Saladin had been checked in a raid
on the Buqaia, he made a similar treaty with Raymond. 2 In the
autumn he marched northwards to the Euphrates, where the
Ortoqid prince, Nur ed-Din of Hisn Kaifa, who had become his
ally, had quarrelled with Kilij Arslan the Seldjuk. Nur ed-Din
had married the Sultan s daughter, but neglected her in favour
of a dancing-girl. On 2 October 1180 Saladin held a congress
near Samosata; the Ortoqid princes were there and envoys from
1 William of Tyre, xxi, 27-30, pp. 1052-9; Ernoul, pp. 53-4 ; Abu Shama,
pp. 194-202; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 635-6; Maqrizi, eel. Blochet, pp. 53O-I- There
is some doubt whether Odo of St Armand was in fact killed, as a Bull of Pope
Alexander III suggests that he lived on as a prisoner. See d Albon, La Mort
d Odon de St Amand in Revue de I 3 Orient Latin, vol. xn, pp. 279-82.
2 William of Tyre, xxn, 1-3, pp. 1053-6; Abu Shama, p. 211 ; Ibn al-Athir,
p. 642.
421
Moslem Unity
Kilij Arslan, from Saif ed-din of Mosul and. from Roupen of
Armenia. They solemnly swore to keep peace with one another
for two years to come. 1
King Baldwin spent the respite in an attempt to build up a
Christian front against Islam. William of Tyre, Archbishop since
1175, went to Rome to a Lateran council in 1179 and on his way
back visited Constantinople during the last days of the year. The
Emperor Manuel was as courteous and friendly as ever; but
William could see that he was a dying man. He had never
recovered from the shock of the battle of Myriocephalum. But
he still showed great interest in Syria. William stayed there for
seven months. He was present at the great ceremonies when
Manuel s daughter Maria, a spinster of twenty-eight, married
Rainier of Montferrat, Sibylla s brother-in-law, and Manuel s son,
Alexius, aged ten, married the Princess Agnes of France, aged nine.
He returned with Imperial envoys as far as Antioch. 2 The Armenian
Prince Roupen was eager to strengthen his alliance with the
Franks. Early in 1181 he came on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and
there he married the Lady Isabella of Toron, the daughter of
Stephanie of Oultrejourdain. 3 Even the Syrian Jacobites pro
claimed their loyalty to the united Christian cause when their
Patriarch, the historian Michael, visited Jerusalem and had a long
interview with the King. 4
There were hopes, too, of an ally from the Farther East. Since
1150 a letter purporting to be written by that great potentate
Prester John to the Emperor Manuel had been circulating through
western Europe. Though it was almost certainly the forgery of a
German bishop, its account of the Priest-King s wealth and piety
was too good not to be believed. In 1177 the Pope sent his doctor
Philip with a message asking for information and for aid. It
1 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 639-40.
a William of Tyre, xxn, 4, pp. 1066-8.
3 Sembat the Constable, p. 627. Ernoul, p. 31, refers to the marriage, calling
Roupen the son of Thoros. He also (pp. 25-30) tells of a visit of Thoros to
Jerusalem, unrecorded elsewhere and probably mythical.
4 Michael the Syrian, m, p. 379.
422
n8o: Sibylla and Baldwin oflbelin
seems that Philip ended his journey in Abyssinia; but it had no
concrete result. 1
But still no powerful knight came from the West, not even to
accept the offer of the hand of Princess Sibylla and the succession
to the throne. Frederick of Tyre, when he was in Rome, had sent
to Hugh III of Burgundy, of the royal Capetian line, to beg him
to accept the candidature. Hugh agreed at first, but preferred to
remain in France. Meanwhile, Sibylla herself had fallen in love
with Baldwin oflbelin. The family oflbelin, though its origins
had been modest, was now in the forefront of the Palestinian
nobility. On the death of Balian the Old, the founder of the
family, Ibelin itself was given to the Hospitallers ; but Ramleh
passed to his eldest son Hugh, and on Hugh s death to his brother
Baldwin, who had married but repudiated, on the convenient
excuse of kinship, the heiress of Beisan. The youngest brother,
Balian, was now the husband of Queen Maria Comnena, and lord
of her dower-town of Nablus. Baldwin and Balian were the most
influential of all the local nobles; and despite his undistinguished
pedigree Baldwin s marriage to Sibylla would have been popular
throughout the land. Before any betrothal was arranged, Baldwin
was captured at Marj Ayun. Sibylla wrote to him to his jail to
assure him of her love. But when he was released she told him
coldly that she could not contemplate marriage while he still owed
a vast ransom. Her argument was reasonable, if discouraging; so
Baldwin, not knowing how to raise the money, journeyed to
Constantinople and begged it from the Emperor. Manuel, with
his love of generous gestures, paid it all. Baldwin came back
triumphant to Palestine in the early spring of 1180, only to find
Sibylla betrothed to another man. 2
The Lady Agnes never liked the relatives of her various
1 Rohricht, Regesta, pp. 67, 145. For the Prester John Legend, see Marinescu,
*Le Pretre Jean in Bulletin de la Section Historique de I* Academic Roumaine,
vol. x.
2 The story of Baldwin of Ibelin s love affair is given only by Ernoul,
pp. 48, 56-9. Ernoul was in the service of Baldwin s brother Balian and was
therefore well informed about the family.
423
Moslem Unity
husbands and disapproved of die Ibelins. Some years before a
knight fromPoitou, Amalric, second son of the Count of Lusignan,
had arrived in Palestine. He was a good soldier; and on Hum
phrey of Toron s death he was appointed Constable. About the
same time he married Baldwin of Ibelin s daughter Eschiva. He
was also Agnes s lover. He had in France a young brother called
Guy. With Agnes s backing he began to tell Sibylla of the extra
ordinary good looks and charm of this youth till at last she begged
him to bring him out to Palestine. While Baldwin was at Con
stantinople Amalric hurried home to fetch Guy, and to prepare
him for the part that he was to play. Sibylla found him as hand
some as she had been told and announced that she intended to
marry him. The King, her brother, protested in vain; for Guy, as
anyone could see, was a weak and foolish boy. The Palestinian
barons were furious to realize that they might have as their future
king this youngest son of a petty French noble whose only dis
tinction was his descent from the water-fairy Melusine. But Agnes
and Sibylla pestered the sick weary King till he gave his consent.
At Easter 1 1 80 Guy was married to Sibylla and was enfeoffed with
the counties of Jaffa and Ascalon. 1
For political as well as for personal reasons the Ibelins were
disgusted, and the breach between them and the Courtenays, sup
ported by Reynald of ChatilLon, grew greater. In October 1180
the King tried to bring them together by betrothing his half-sister
Isabella to Humphrey TV of Toron. Isabella was Balian of Ibelin s
stepdaughter and Humphrey Reynald of Chatillon s stepson.
Humphrey was, moreover, as grandson and heir of the great
Constable and heir-apparent through his mother of the fief of
Oultrejourdain, the most eligible of the local nobility, whom the
marriage might be expected to gratify. Owing to the youth of
the Princess, who was only eight, the actual ceremony was post-
1 William of Tyre, xxn, i, pp. 1064-5; Ernoul, pp. 59-60; Benedict of
Peterborough, i, p. 343, who reports that SibyEa had already taken Guy as her
lover. "When the King discovered this, he wished to put Guy to death, but at
the request of the Templars he spared him and allowed the marriage.
424
n8o: The Patriarch Heradius
poned for three years. 1 But the betrothal did no good. A few
days later the Courtenays showed their power in the appointment
of a new Patriarch. The Patriarch Amalric died on 6 October. On
16 October the Chapter of Jerusalem, under pressure from the
Lady Agnes, elected as his successor Heraclius, Archbishop of
Caesarea. He was a barely literate priest from the Auvergne whose
good looks Agnes had found irresistible; and her favour had pro
cured his steady advancement. His present mistress was the wife
of a draper at Nablus, Paschia de Riveri, who was soon to be
known throughout the realm as Madame la Patriarchesse. William
of Tyre came bustling from his diocese to try to prevent the
election, but in vain. The electors named him as their second
choice; but the Kong, at his mother s bidding, confirmed the
appointment of Heraclius. 2
Power was now firmly in the hands of the Courtenays and the
Lusignans and their allies, Reynald of Chatillon and the new
Patriarch. In April 1181 they struck at William of Tyre, who, as
the King s old tutor, was dangerous to them. On a trivial excuse
Heraclius excommunicated him. After fruitless attempts to heal
the breach, William left in 1182 or 1183 for Rome, to plead his
cause at the papal Court. He stayed on there; and there he died,
poisoned, men said, by an emissary sent by the Patriarch. 3
Raymond of Tripoli was the next to be attacked. When early in
1 WiUiam of Tyre, xxn, 5, pp. 1068-9; Ernoul, pp. 81-2. According to
William, Humphrey ceded his lands in Galilee to the King in return for the
engagement. Baldwin gave Toron to his mother. Ibn Jubayr, ed. Wright,
p. 304, says that it belongs to the sow, the mother of the pig who is lord of
Acre and Hunin to his uncle Joscelin.
a William of Tyre, xxn, 4, p. 1068, a brief notice carefully omitting any
question of his own candidature. Ernoul, pp. 82-4, specifically saying that
Agnes insisted on Heraclius s election, because *pour sa Haute" Fama*; she had
already made him Archbishop of Caesajrea. He adds that William warned the
canons against electing him. Estoire d Bracks, n, pp. 57-9, saying that William
prophesied that the Cross, recovered by a Heraclius, would be lost by
a Heraclius.
3 Ernoul, pp. 84-6: Estoire f Bracks, n, pp. 57-9, saying that William was
poisoned by a doctor that Heraclius sent to Rome, and that Heraclius subse
quently visited Rome himself. The dates of William s departure and death are
425
Moslem Unity
1182 he prepared to cross from his county into his wife s territory
of Galilee, the King s officers forbade him to enter the kingdom;
for Agnes and her brother Joscelin had persuaded Baldwin that he
was plotting against the Crown. Only after furious protests from
the barons of the kingdom would Baldwin relent. He reluctantly
consented to see Raymond, who convinced him of his innocence. 1
The intrigues round the dying leper King would have been
less dangerous had not the foreign situation been critical. On
24 September 1180, the Franks lost their most powerful ally, when
the Emperor Manuel died at Constantinople. He had genuinely
liked them and had genuinely worked for their benefit, except
when it had clashed with the interests of his Empire. He had been
a brilliant and impressive man, but not a great Emperor; for his
ambition to dominate Christendom had led him into adventures
that the Empire could no longer afford. His troops had been sent
into Italy and into Hungary when they were needed on the
Anatolian frontier or in the Balkans. He had treated his treasure-
chest as though it were inexhaustible. The disaster at Myrio-
cephalum was a deadly blow to his over-strained army ; and in a long
series of commercial concessions made to the Italian cities in return
for immediate diplomatic advantages he had sapped the economic
life of his subjects; and in consequence the Imperial treasury would
never be full again. The splendour of his Court had dazzled the
world into the belief that the Empire was greater than in fact it
had become; and, had he lived longer, his fleet and his gold might
yet have been of value to the Franks. His personality had held the
Empire together; but with his death its decline became evident.
He had fought against death, determinedly clinging to prophecies
unknown. His history breaks off at 1183. Heraclius visited Rome in 1184 (see
below, p. 444). On the other hand William is mentioned in a charter of
Pope Urban IE, dated 17 October, n 86, as an assessor in a law suit between the
Hospital and the Bishop of Buluniyas. (Rohricht, Regesta, Additamenta, p. 44.)
Rohricht therefore assumes that he had returned to die Holy Land (Geschickte
der Kreuzzugen, p. 491 n. 5). It is more likely that the papal chancery made
a mistake over the name. Josias was Archbishop of Tyre by 21 October 1186
(Rohricht, Regesta, p. 173). * William of Tyre, xxn, 9, pp. 1077-9.
426
n8o-2: The Reign of Alexius II
that offered him fourteen more years of life, and he made no
effort to arrange for the regency that his son would need. 1
The new Emperor, Alexius II, was aged eleven. According to
the old-established precedent the Empress-Mother took over the
regency. But the Empress Mark was a Latin from Antioch, the
first Latin to be ruler of the Empire, and as a Latin she was disliked
by the people of Constantinople. Manuel s love for the Latins had
long been resented. The long sequence of ecclesiastical wrangles
at Antioch had added to the bitterness of the Byzantines. The
tumultuous passage of the Crusaders through imperial territory
had never been forgotten, and there were memories of the mas
sacres of Cyprus, and massacres by Venetians, Pisans and Genoese.
Most hated of all were the Italian merchants who strutted through
Constantinople, complacent in their control of the Empire s trade,
obtained, often, by attacks on peaceful citizens in the provinces.
The Empress took as her adviser and, it was thought, as her lover,
a nephew of her husband, the Protosebastus Alexius Comnenus,
the uncle of Queen Maria of Jerusalem. He was unpopular and
unwise. Together they leaned on the Latin element and especially
on the Italian merchants. The opposition to the Empress was led
by her stepdaughter, the Porphyrogennete Maria and her husband
Rainier of Montferrat. Their plot to murder the favourite failed;
but when they took refage in the Church of St Sophia he further
offended the populace by attempting to profane the sanctuary.
The Empress was forced to pardon the conspirators; but in her
insecurity she begged her brother-in-law, Bek III of Hungary,
to come to her rescue. Her husband s cousin, Andronicus
Comnenus, forgiven after his career of seduction in the East, was
now living in retirement in Pontus. His compatriots remembered
his gallantry and glamour; and when his friends put him forward
as a national leader there was a ready response. In August 1182 he
marched across Anatolia. The few troops that did not rally to him
were easily defeated. Soon the Empress was left in Constantinople
1 See CKalandon, op. cit pp. 605-8. William of Tyre, xxn, 5, p. 1069,
reports liis death-
427
Moslem Unity
with only the Latins to support her. As Andronicus approached
the Bosphorus the people of Constantinople suddenly fell on all the
Latins in the city. Latin arrogance had provoked the massacre;
but its horrible course shocked many of the most patriotic of the
Byzantines. Only a few Italian merchants survived. They took to
their ships and sailed westward, raiding the coasts that they passed.
The road to Constantinople was open to Andronicus.
His first action was to eliminate his rivals. The Protosebastus was
imprisoned and cruelly blinded. The Porphyrogennete Maria and
her husband suffered mysterious deaths. Then the Empress was
condemned to be strangled and her young son was forced himself
to sign the warrant. Andronicus became joint-Emperor; then,
two months later, in November 1182, the boy Alexius II himself
was murdered, and Andronicus, at the age of sixty-two, married
his widow, the twelve-year-old Agnes of France.
Apart from these murders Andronicus began his reign well. He
purged the civil service of its corrupt and supernumerary members ;
he insisted on the strict administration of justice ; he forced the rich
to pay their taxes and he protected the poor against exploitation.
Never for centuries had the provinces been so well governed. But
Andronicus was frightened, with good cause. Many of his kin
were jealous of him and the aristocracy resented his policy; and
foreign affairs were menacing. He realized the dreadful impression
made in the West by the massacre of 1 1 82 and hastened not only to
make a treaty with Venice in which he promised a yearly in
demnity as compensation for Venetian losses, but he also sought
to placate the Pope by building a church for the Latin rite in the
capital; and he encouraged western merchants to return. But the
main enemies of Byzantium were the Hohenstaufen Emperor and
the King of Sicily; and in 1184 an ominous marriage took pkce
between the Emperor Frederick s son Henry and William H s
sister and heiress, Constance. Knowing that the Sicilians were
certain to attack him soon, Andronicus wished to be sure of his
eastern frontier. He saw that Saladin was in the ascendant there;
so, entirely reversing Manuel s policy, he made a treaty with
428
1185: The Fall ofAndronicus Comnenus
Saladin, giving him a free hand against the Franks in return for his
alliance against the Seldjuks. It seems that details of the divisions
of future conquests and spheres of influence were planned. But
the treaty came to nothing ; for Andronicus, fearful for his position
at Constantinople, began to take repressive measures that in
creased in ferocity till no one in the capital felt safe. Not only did
he strike at the aristocracy, but even merchants and humble work
men were arrested by his police on the flimsiest suspicion of con
spiracy, and were blinded or sent to the scaffold. When in August
1 1 8 5 a Sicilian army landed in Epirus and marched on Thessalonica,
Andronicus panicked. His wholesale arrests and executions drove
the populace into revolt; which broke out when an elderly and
inoffensive cousin of the Emperor s, Isaac Angelus, succeeded in
escaping from his jailers to the altar of St Sophia and appealed
from there for help. Even his own bodyguard deserted Androni
cus. He tried in vain to flee across to Asia, but he was captured
and paraded round the city on a mangy camel, then tortured and
torn to death by the furious mob. Isaac Angelus was proclaimed
Emperor. He restored some sort of order and made a humiliating
peace with the King of Sicily. But he was utterly ineffectual as
a ruler. The ancient Empire had become a third-rate power with
little influence in world-politics. 1
The decline of Byzantium upset the balance of power in the
East. The Princes of Armenia and Antioch were delighted, and
celebrated their relief by quarrelling with each other. On the
news of Manuel s death Bohemond HI repudiated his Greek wife
in order to marry a loose lady of Antioch called Sibylla. The
Patriarch Aimery had not liked the Greek marriage, but he was
shocked by the adultery. He excommunicated Bohemond, put
the city under an interdict, and retired once more to Qosair. The
nobles of Antioch hated Sibylla, with reason; for she was a spy
who received an income from Saladin in return for information
1 For the reign. ofAndronicus, see Nicetas Choniates, pp. 356-463. William
of Tyre, xxn, 10-13, pp. 1079-86, gives a fairly well-informed account of
Andronicus s accession.
429
Moslem Unity
about the strength, and movements of the Prankish armies.
They supported Aimery. A civil war was breaking out, when
King Baldwin sent an ecclesiastical deputation, headed by the
Patriarch Heraclius, to arbitrate. In return for financial compensa
tion Aimery agreed to raise the interdict but not the excom
munication, but Sibylla was recognized as Princess. Many of the
nobles were dissatisfied with the settlement and fled to Roupen s
court. Relations between the two Princes were further compli
cated at the end of 1182, when the Byzantine governor of Cilicia,
Isaac Comnenus, in revolt against Andronicus, sought help from
Bohemond against Roupen and admitted his troops into Tarsus.
Bohemond promptly changed his mind and sold Tarsus and the
governor to Roupen, then repented of it. The Templars ransomed
Isaac on the understanding that the Cypriots, who sympathized
with him, should pay them back. Isaac thereupon retired to
Cyprus, where he set himself up as an independent Emperor and
forgot about the debt. Roupen next alarmed his neighbours by
swallowing up the little Armenian principality of the Hethou-
mians, which had lasted on at Lampron in the north-west of
Cilicia tinder the patronage of Constantinople. His extension of
power alarmed Bohemond, who in 1185 invited him to a banquet
of reconciliation at Antioch and arrested him on his arrival. But
Roupen s brother Leo finished off the conquest of the Hethou-
mians and attacked Antioch. Roupen was released on ceding
Mamistra and Adana to Bohemond; but on his return to Cilicia
he soon recovered them and made himself master of the whole
province. Bohemond made various ineffectual raids but achieved
nothing more. 1
These deplorable squabbles between the petty Christian rulers
were very convenient for Saladin. Neither Byzantium nor even
1 William of Tyre, xxn, 6-7, pp. 1071-4; William of Tyre Contdnuatus,
p. 208; Ernoul, p. 9; Nicetas Choniates, pp. 376-7; Neophytus, De Calamitati-
vus Cypri, p. clxxxvii; Michael the Syrian, in, pp. 3 89-94; Sembat the Constable,
p. 628 ; Vahram, Rhymed Chronicle, pp. 508-10. For Sibylla s spying, see Ibn
al-Athir, pp. 729-30; Abu Sharna, p. 374.
430
n8i : Reynold ofChdtillon breaks the Truce
the Franks of northern Syria would impede his progress nor send
help to the kingdom of Jerusalem. The only Christian state in the
East that commanded respect amongst the Moslems was the distant
kingdom of Georgia, at present engaged in growing at the expense
of the Seldjuk princes of Iran, whose difficulties were very con
venient to the Sultan. 1 Under these circumstances it was essential
for the kingdom to keep the truce of 1180. But Reynald of
Chatillon, lord now of Oultrejourdain, could not understand a
policy that ran counter to his wishes. By the terms of the truce
Christian and Moslem merchants could pass freely through each
other s territory. It irked Reynald to see the rich Moslem caravans
passing unscathed so close to him. In the summer of 1181 he
yielded to temptation and led his local troops out eastward into
Arabia, to Taima, near the road from Damascus to Mecca. Close
to the oasis be fell upon a caravan that was travelling peacefully to
Mecca and made off with all its goods. He seems even to have
contemplated moving down to attack Medina; but Saladin, who
was in Egypt, sent a hasty expedition under his nephew Faruk-
Shah from Damascus into Oultrejourdain, which brought Reynald
hurrying home. Saladin complained to King Baldwin of the breach
of the treaty and demanded compensation. Baldwin admitted the
justice of the claim; but in spite of his urgent representations,
Reynald refused to make any amends. His friends at the Court
supported him, till Baldwin weakly let the matter drop. But Saladin
followed it up. A few months kter a convoy of fifteen hundred
pilgrims was forced by the weather to land in Egypt near Damietta,
ignorant that the truce had been violated. Saladin threw them all
into chains and sent to Baldwin offering to release them as soon as
the merchandise pillaged by Reynald was returned. Once again
Reynald refused to give anything back. War was now inevitable. 2
1 For Georgian history under King George HI (1156-84), see Georgian
Chronicle, pp. 231-7. He was succeeded by his daughter, the great Queen
Thamar. See Allen, History of the Georgian People, pp. 102-4.
2 William of Tyre, xxn, 14, p. 1087, omitting to tell why Saladin arrested
the pilgrims; Ernoul, pp. 54-6"; Abu Shama, pp. 214-18; Ibn al-Athir,
pp. 647-50-
431
Moslem Unity
Reynald and his friends persuaded the King to concentrate the
royal army in Oultrejourdain, to catch Saladin as he came up from
Egypt. The Ibelins and Raymond vainly pointed out that this
would expose Palestine to him should he get by. Saladin left
Egypt on ii May 1182. As he bade a ceremonious farewell to his
ministers, a voice from the crowd shouted out a line of poetry
whose meaning was that he would never see Cairo again. The
prophecy came true. He took his army across the Sinai desert to
Akaba, and moved northward without difficulty, well to the east
of the Prankish army, destroying the crops as he went. When he
arrived at Damascus he found that Faruk-Shah had already raided
Galilee and sacked the villages on the slopes of Mount Tabor,
taking twenty thousand head of cattle and one thousand prisoners.
On his return Faruk-Shah attacked the fortress of Habis Jaldak,
carved out of the rock above the river Yarmuk beyond the Jordan.
A tunnel that he cut through the rock put it at his mercy; and the
garrison, Christian Syrians with no great wish to die for the
Franks, promptly surrendered. Saladin spent three weeks in
Damascus, then with Faruk-Shah and a large army left on 11 July
and crossed into Palestine round the south of the Sea of Galilee.
The King, aware now of the folly of his previous strategy, had
come back from Oultrejourdain and marched up the west bank
of the river, bringing the Patriarch and the True Cross to bless his
arms. The two armies met beneath the Hospitallers castle of
Belvoir. In the fierce battle that followed the Franks held their
ground against Saladin s attacks, but their counter-attacks did not
break the Moslem lines. At the end of the day each side retired,
claiming the victory. 1
It had been a check for Saladin as the invader, but only tem
porary. In August he once again crossed the frontier in a Hghtning
march through the mountains to Beirut. At the same moment
1 William of Tyre, xxn, 14-16, pp. 1087-95; Abu Shama, pp. 218-22;
Dm atAthir, pp. 651-3. The verse sung at Saladin when, he left Cairo ran,
* Enjoy the perfume of the ox-eyes of NejcL After tonight there will be no
more ox-eyes.
432
n8i: Death ofas-Salih
his fleet, summoned from Egypt by the pigeon-post that operated
between Damascus and Cairo, appeared off the coast. But Beirut
was well-fortified; and its bishop, Odo, organized a brave,
vigorous defence. Baldwin, on the news, rushed his army up from
Galilee, only pausing to collect the ships that lay in the harbours
of Acre and Tyre. Failing to take the city by assault before the
Franks arrived, Saladin withdrew. 1 It was time for him to deal
with business that was more urgent.
Saif ed-Din of Mosul died on 29 June 1180, leaving only young
children. The emirs of Mosul invited his brother, Izz ed-Din, to
succeed him. Eighteen months later, on 4 December 1181, as-
Salih of Aleppo died suddenly of a colic, universally attributed to
poison. He was only eighteen, a bright, intelligent boy who might
have been a great ruler. On his death-bed he begged his emirs to
offer the succession to his cousin of Mosul, so as to unite the
family lands against Saladin. Izz ed-Din arrived at Aleppo at the
end of the year and was given an enthusiastic welcome. Mes
sengers came from the emir of Hama to offer him allegiance. But
the two years truce with Saladin had not run out; and Izz ed-Din
refused their offer, more from indolence than from honour. He
had enough to worry him: for in February 1182 his brother Imad
ed-Din of Sinjar claimed a share in the inheritance and intrigued
with the commander of the army of Aleppo, Kukburi. In May
Izz ed-Din returned to Mosul, and Imad ed-Din gave him Sinjar
in return for Aleppo. Kukburi was rewarded with the emirate of
Harran. From there he plotted with his Ortoqid neighbours, the
princes of Hisn Kaifa and Birejik, against the princes of Aleppo
and Mosul and the Ortoqid Qutb ed-Din of Mardin; and the con
spirators called Saladin to their aid. The truce among the Moslem
princes ended in September. The day that it was over Saladin
crossed the frontier and after a feint attack on Aleppo he moved
over the Euphrates at Birejik. The towns of the Jezireh fell before
him, Edessa, Saruj, and Nisibin. He pressed on to Mosul and began
1 "William of Tyre, xxn, 17-18, pp. 1096-1101; Abu Shama, p. 223; Ibn
al-Athir, pp. 653.
RC 433 28
Moslem Unity
the siege of the city on 10 November. Once again he was thwarted
by fortifications too strong to storm. His spiritual master, the
Caliph an-Nasir, shocked at this war between fellow-Moslems,
tried to negotiate a peace. The Seldjuk ruler of Persarmenia and
the Prince of Mardin prepared to send a relieving force. So
Saladin retired to Sinjar, which he took by storm after a fort
night s siege. For once he was unable to restrain his soldiers from
pillaging the city; but he released the governor and sent him
honourably attended to Mosul. Izz ed-Din and his allies marched
out to meet him near Mardin, but sent ahead to suggest a truce.
When Saladin answered truculently that he would meet them on
the battlefield, they dispersed and fled to their homes. He did not
pursue them, but went north to conquer Diarbekir, the richest
and greatest fortress of the Jezireh, with the finest library in Islam.
He gave the city to the Prince of Hisn Kaifa. After reorganizing
the Jezireh, setting each city to be held as a fief under an emir that
he trusted, he appeared again, on 21 May, before Aleppo. 1
When Saladiti moved against them, both Imad ed-Din and Izz
ed-Din had sought help from the Franks. An embassy from Mosul
promised them a yearly subsidy of 10,000 dinars, with the retro
cession of Banyas and Habis Jaldak, and the release of any
Christian prisoner that might be found in Saladin s possession, if
they would make a diversion against Damascus. It was a hopeful
moment; for a few days after Saladin invaded the Jezireh, his
nephew Faruk-Shah, governor of Damascus, suddenly died. King
Baldwin, accompanied by the Patriarch and the True Cross,
thereupon led a raid through the Hauran, which sacked Ezra and
reached Bosra, while Raymond of Tripoli recaptured Habis
Jaldak. Early in December 1182 Raymond led a cavalry raid that
again penetrated to Bosra; and a few days later the royal army set
out against Damascus and encamped at Dareiya in the suburbs.
It has a famous mosque, which Baldwin spared after receiving
a delegation from the Christians of Damascus warning that
1 Beha ed-Din, P. T. T.S. pp. 79-86 ; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blocnet, pp. 1 59-60 ;
Ibn al-Atik, pp. 656-7.
434
1183: Saladin takes possession oj Aleppo
reprisals would be taken against their churches should it be harmed.
The King did not try to attack the city itself, and soon retired kden
with booty, to spend Christmas at Tyre. He planned a further cam
paign for the spring, but early in the new year he fell desperately
ill of a fever at Nazareth. For some weeks he lay between life
and death; and his disease immobilized his army. 1 Farther north,
Bohemond III was powerless to take any action against Saladin.
He sent to his camp before Aleppo and concluded a four years
truce with him. It enabled him to repair the defences of his capital. 2
At Aleppo Imad ed-Din made little effort to oppose Saladin.
He was unpopular there; and when Saladin offered to give him his
old home at Sinjar together with Nisibin, Saruj and Rakka, to
hold as a fief, he gladly complied. On 12 June 1183 Saladin took
possession of Aleppo. Five days later Imad ed-Din departed for
Sinjar, honourably escorted, but mocked by the crowds of the
city that he abandoned so lightly. On 18 June Saladin made his
formal entry and rode up to the castle. 3
On 24 August the Sultan returned to Damascus, which was to
be his capital. 4 His Empire now stretched from Cyrenaica to the
Tigris. For more than two centuries past there had not been so
powerful a Moslem prince. He had the wealth of Egypt behind
him. The great cities of Damascus and Aleppo were under his direct
government. Around them and north-eastward as far as the walls
of Mosul were military fiefs on whose rulers he could rely. The
Caliph at Baghdad supported him. Izz ed-Din at Mosul was cowed
by him. The Seldjuk Sultan in Anatolia sought his friendship, and
the Seldjuk princes of the East were powerless to oppose him. The
Christian Empire of Byzantium was no longer a danger to him.
It only remained now to suppress the alien intruders whose posses
sion of Palestine and the Syrian littoral was a lasting shame to Islam.
1 William of Tyre, xxn, 20-22, 25, pp. 1102-16; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 155-9-
a Ibn al-Adiir, p. 662.
3 Bella ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 86-8; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 662; Abu Shama,
pp. 225-8; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blocnet, p. 167; William of Tyre, xxn, 24,
pp. 1113-14, who well understood the significance of Saladin s conquest of
Aleppo. 4 Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. p. 89.
435 28 2
CHAPTER II
THE HORNS OF HATTIN
Our end is near, our days are fulfilled; for our end
is come. LAMENTATIONS rv, 18
When King Baldwin rose from his sick-bed at Nazareth it was
clear that he would no more be able to govern the country. His
leprosy had been aggravated by his fever. He had lost the use of
his arms and legs; and they were beginning to decay. His sight
had almost gone. His mother, his sister Sibylla and the Patriarch
Heraclius kept guard over him and persuaded him to hand the
regency to Sibylla s husband, Guy of Lusignan. Guy was to be in
complete control of the kingdom, except only the city of Jeru
salem, which, with a revenue of 10,000 besants, the King reserved
for himself. The barons of the realm reluctantly accepted the
King s decision. 1
Reynald of Chatillon was absent from these deliberations.
When he heard of Saladin s departure to the north in the autumn
of 1182, he set in motion a project that he had long had in mind,
to launch a squadron on the Red Sea to raid the rich sea-caravans
to Mecca and even to attack the Holy City of Islam itself. Towards
the end of the year he marched down to Aila at the head of the
Gulf of Akaba, bringing galleys that he built with timber from
the forests of Moab and tried out on the waters of the Dead Sea.
Aila, which had been held by the Moslems since 1170, fell to him;
but the fortress on the island close by, the lie de Graye of the
Prankish historians, held out; and Reynald remained with two of
his ships to blockade it. The rest of his fleet set gaily out, with local
pirates to pilot them. They sailed down the African coast of the Red
1 William of Tyre, xxn, 25, pp. 1116-17.
436
ii 82: Reynold s Red Sea Expedition
Sea, raiding the little coastal towns that they passed, and eventually
attacked and sacked Aidib, the great Nubian port opposite to
Mecca. There they captured richly laden merchantships from
Aden and from India; and a landing-party pillaged a huge defence
less caravan that had come over the desert from the Nile valley.
From Aidib the corsairs crossed over to the Arabian coast. They
burnt the shipping at al-Hawra and Yambo, the ports of Medina,
and penetrated to ar-Raghib, one of the ports of Mecca itself.
Close by they sank a pilgrim-ship bound for Jedda. The whole
Moslem world was horrified. Even the Princes of Aleppo and
Mosul, who had called upon Prankish help, were ashamed to have
allies that planned such an outrage on the Faith. Saladin s brother
Malik al-Adil, governor of Egypt, took action. He sent the
Egyptian admiral, Husam ed-Din Lulu, with a fleet manned by
Maghrabi sailors from North Africa, in pursuit of the Franks.
Lulu first relieved the castle of Graye and recaptured Aila, from
which Reynald himself had already retired; then he caught up
with the corsair fleet off al-Hawra, destroying it and capturing
almost all the men on board. A few of them were sent to Mecca,
to be ceremoniously executed at the Place of Sacrifice at Mina
during the next Pilgrimage. The rest were taken to Cairo, and
there they were beheaded. Saladin vowed solemnly that Reynald
should never be forgiven for his attempted outrage. 1
On 17 September 1183 Saladin left Damascus with a great
army to invade Palestine. On the 2pth he crossed the Jordan, just
south of the Sea of Galilee and entered Beisan, whose inhabitants
had all fled to the safety of the walls of Tiberias. On the news of
his coming Guy of Lusignan summoned the full force of the
kingdom, strengthened by two rich visiting Crusaders, God
frey ffl, Duke of Brabant, and the Aquitanian Ralph of Mauleon,
and their men. With Guy were Raymond of Tripoli, the Grand
1 Abu Shama, pp. 231-5; Urn alr-Athir, p. 658: Maqrisi, ed. Blochet, Rjevue
de rOrient Latin, vol. 30, pp. 500-1. Ernoul (pp. 69^70), die only Prankish
chronicler to mention die raid, speaks of it as a scientific expedition, Ibn Jubayr
(ed. Wright, p. 49) saw the Prankish prisoners at Cairo.
437
The Horns ofHattin
Master of the Hospital, Reynald of Chatillon, the Ibelin brothers,
Reynald of Sidon and Walter of Caesarea. Young Humphrey IV
of Toron came to join them with his stepfather s forces from
Oultrejourdain; but he was ambushed by the Moslems on the
slopes of Mount Gilboa, and most of his men were slain. Saladin
Map 6. Galilee.
then sent detachments to capture and destroy the little forts of the
neighbourhood, while others sacked the Greek convent on Mount
Tabor but failed to break through the strong walls of the Latin
establishment on the summit of the hill. He himself encamped
with his main army by the fountain of Tubaniya, on the site of
the ancient city of Jezreel.
438
1183: Guy quarrels with the King
The Franks had assembled at Sephoria and marched on into the
plain of Jezreel on I December. The advance-guard, tinder the
Constable Amalric, was at once attacked by the Moslems, but the
timely arrival of the Ibelins with their troops rescued it. The
Christians encamped at the Pools of Goliath opposite to Saladin,
who then extended his wings so as almost to encircle them. For
five days the armies remained stationary. It was difficult for sup
plies to come through to the Christians. After a day or two the
Italian mercenaries complained of hunger; and only the timely
discovery of fish in the Pools of Goliath saved the army from
starvation. Most of the soldiers, including the knights from
France and the irrepressible Reynald, wished to attack the
Moslems. Guy hesitated and dithered; but Raymond and the
Ibelins firmly insisted that to provoke a fight against such superior
numbers would be fatal. The army must remain on the defensive.
They were right. Saladin many times tried to lure them out.
When he failed he lifted his camp on 8 October and moved back
behind the Jordan. 1
Guy s behaviour had shocked both the soldiery who believed
him to be a coward and the barons who knew him to be weak.
On his return to Jerusalem he quarrelled with the King. Baldwin
felt that the air of Tyre would be kinder to him than the windy
heights of Jerusalem. He asked his brother-in-law to make an
exchange of the two cities. Guy received the request rudely;
whereupon Baldwin with an access of angry energy summoned
his chief vassals and on their advice deposed Guy from the
regency. Instead, on 23 March 1183, he proclaimed as his heir his
nephew Baldwin, Sibylla s son by her first marriage, a child of
six years, and tried to persuade his sister to have her marriage
annulled. Meanwhile, though he could not move without help,
and could no longer sign his name, he resumed the government
himself. Guy s response was to retire to his county of Ascalon and
Jaffa and there throw off his allegiance to the Crown. Baldwin
1 William of Tyre, xxn, 26-7, pp. 1118-24; Ernoul, pp. 96-102; Beha
ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 90-1; Abu Shama^ pp. 243-6.
439
The Horns ofHattin
seized Jaffa, which he put under the direct authority of the Crown,
but Guy defied him in Ascalon. In vain the Patriarch Heraclius
and the Grand Masters of the Temple and the Hospital interceded
for the rebel. The King lost his temper with them and banished
them from the Court. He had summoned them to order them to
preach the Crusade in western Europe, but some months passed
before they would now consent to go. 1
The council of barons on whose advice the King deposed Guy
was composed of Bohemond of Antioch, Raymond of Tripoli,
the Lord of Caesarea, and the two Ibelins. The Lord of Oultre-
jourdain was not present. The time had come for the marriage to
take place between the Princess Isabella, now aged eleven, and
Humphrey of Toron, aged about seventeen. Reynald determined
that the ceremony should be celebrated with all the pomp at his
disposal at his castle of Kerak, to which the bridegroom was heir.
During the month of November guests began to arrive at the
castle. Many of them, such as the bride s mother, Queen Maria
Comnena, were Reynald s personal enemies; but they came in a
last attempt to heal the breach between the warring factions. With
the guests arrived entertainers, dancers, jugglers and musicians
from all over the Christian East. Suddenly the festivities were
interrupted by the terrible news that Saladin was approaching
with his army.
The destruction of Kerak and its godless lord ranked high among
Saladin s ambitions. So long as Reynald held his great castle he
could intercept all the traffic that tried to pass between Syria and
Egypt; and experience had shown that no treaty could restrain
him. On 20 November Saladin was joined by reinforcements
from Egypt and encamped before the walls. The farmers and
shepherds of the countryside, Christian Syrians, drove their flocks
for safety within the town, and many took refuge in the court
yards of the castle. Saladin at once attacked the lower town and
forced an entrance. Reynald was only able to escape back into the
1 William of Tyre, xxn, 29, pp. 1127-8. William says that Baldwin V was
crowned on dais occasion.
440
1183: The Marriage at Kerak
castle owing to the heroism of one of his knights, who single-
handed defended the bridge over the fosse between the town and
the citadel till it could be destroyed behind him. With a fine show
of bravura the wedding-ceremonies were continued in the castle.
"While rocks were hurled at its walls, the singing and dancing went
on within. The Lady Stephanie, mother of the bridegroom, her
self prepared dishes from the bridal feast which she sent out to
Saladin. He in return asked in which tower the young pair were
housed and gave orders that it should not be bombarded by his
siege-engines. But otherwise he did not relax his efforts. His nine
great mangonels were in continuous action, and his workmen
almost filled up the fosse.
Messengers had hurried tq Jerusalem to beg the King for help.
He summoned the royal army which he put under the command of
Count Raymond; but he insisted on coming himself in his litter
with his men. T^hey hastened down past Jericho and up the road
by Mount Nebo. On his approach Saladin, whose engines had
made little effect on the strong walls of the fortress, lifted the siege
and on 4 December moved back towards Damascus. The King
was carried in triumph into Kerak; and the wedding-guests were
free to go home. 1 Their experience had not ended their discord,
from which the young bride suffered the most. Her mother-in-
law, no doubt at Reynald s request, forbade her to see her mother;
and her mother, deep in party intrigues that were dear to her
Greek blood, regarded her as half a traitor. Only her husband was
kind to her. Humphrey of Toron was a youth of extraordinary
beauty and great learning, more fitted in his tastes to be a girl than
1 William of Tyre, xxn, 28, 30, pp. 1124-7, 1129-30; Ernoul, pp. 102-6;
he alone tells of the marriage feast at which, as Balian s squire, he may have
been present. He believed that Sakdin as a boy had been a hostage at Kerak,
where the Lady Stephanie had dandled him on her knee. No other source
mentions Saladin s early captivity. As Saladin was born in 1137 and Stephanie
probably not before 1145 she married her first husband about 1162/3 and girls
married young in Palestine the story is improbable. Abu Shama, p. 248;
Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 91-2; Maqrisi, ed. Blochet, Revue de I Orient Latin,
vol. xn, pp. 13-14-
441
The Horns ofHattin
a man. But he was gentle and considerate to his child-wife; and
she loved him. 1
Next autumn Saladin once again marched against Kerak, with
an army to which his Ortoqid vassals sent contingents. Once
again the huge fortifications were too much for him. He could
not lure the defenders out to fight on the slopes below the town;
and once again, when an army from Jerusalem approached, he
retired into his own territory, only leaving a detachment to raid
Galilee and to pillage the country as far south as Nablus. Saladin
himself returned to Damascus. There was still much to be done
in the reorganization of his Empire. The time had not quite come
for the elimination of the Christians. 2
In Jerusalem the leper-King kept the reins of the government
in his decaying hands. Guy still held Ascalon, refusing to admit
royal officers into the town. But his friends the Patriarch and the
Grand Masters were away in Europe, trying vainly to impress
the Emperor Frederick and King Louis and King Henry with the
perils awaiting the Christian East. The western potentates received
them with honour and discussed plans for a great Crusade. But
they each made excuses why they could not themselves participate.
All that came of the mission was that a few individual knights took
the Cross. 3
In the autumn of 1184 Guy once again infuriated his brother-
in-law. Ever since the Christian capture of Ascalon the Bedouin
of the district had been allowed, on the payment of a small tribute
to the King, to move as they pleased to pasture their flocks. Guy,
1 See below, p. 448. The later history of the marriage belongs to the story
of the Third. Crusade. The author of the Itinerarium Regis Ricardi (p. 120)
describes Humphrey as Vir feminae quam viro proprior, gestu rnollis, sermone
fructus . Beha ed-Din (P.T.T.S. p. 288) reports of his beauty and says that he
spoke Arabic well. Estoire d Bracks, n, p. 152, tells of Isabella being forbidden
to see her mother.
* Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 95-8; Abu Shama, pp. 249-56; letter of
Baldwin IV to Heraclius, in Radulph of Diceto, n, pp. 27-8.
3 For the mission, see Benedict of Peterborough, i, p. 3 3 8 ; Radulph of Diceto,
n, pp. 32-3. Henry II consulted his council which told him not to go crusading.
442
1185: King Baldwin IV s Will
annoyed because the tribute went to the Kong and not to himself,
fell on them one day and massacred them and annexed their
flocks. 1
Baldwin was now bedridden and was never to rise again. He
saw how fatal had been the influence of his mother and her friends,
and sent for his cousin Raymond of Tripoli to take over the
administration. Meanwhile he prepared for his death. Before an
assembly of the barons, early in 1185, he announced his will. His
little nephew was to succeed to the throne. At the express wish
of the assembly Guy was not to have the regency, which was to go
to Raymond of Tripoli, who was to hold Beirut as payment for
his services. But Raymond refused the personal guardianship of
the little King, lest the boy, who seemed delicate, should die
young and he be accused of hastening his death. In view of the
boy s health the barons further swore that, should he die before he
reached the age often, Count Raymond should keep the regency
till the four great rulers of the West, the Pope, the Western
Emperor and the Kings of France and England, should arbitrate
between the claims of the Princesses Sibylla and Isabella. Mean
while, in a last attempt to bring the factions together, the personal
guardianship of the boy was given to his great-uncle, Joscelin of
Courtenay, who now began to profess a cordial friendship
towards Raymond. 2
1 Estoire d Eracles, n, p. 3.
a Estoire d Eracles, n, p. 7; Ernoul, pp. 115-19 (the fullest account). He
places it after Saladin s second siege of Kerak (September 1184) and says that
Baldwin IV died soon afterwards. But "William of Tyre (see above, p. 440
n. i) tells of Baldwin V s coronation, giving the date of 20 November 1183.
As William probably died before the end of 1184, but wrote his last pages in
Rome, he may have known of Baldwin s decision to crown his nephew, ever
since Guy s disgrace in 1183, but have been mistaken in thinking that an actual
coronation had taken place. The legal rights of Sibylla and Isabella raised
a problem. An assize passed by Amalric I in 1171 allowed sisters to share fiefs,
according to the usual feudal custom in western Europe. Grandclaude, op. dL
p. 340, believes that it concerned the succession to the throne. Queen Maria
had probably just given birth to her elder daughter. On the other hand the
children of a first marriage male and female were specifically given precedence
over those of a second marriage. (See La Monte, Feudal Monarchy, p. 36.) But
443
The Horns ofHattin
All the assembled barons swore to carry out the Kong s wishes.
Among them was the Patriarch Heraclius, just back from the
West, with the Grand Master of the Hospital, Roger of Les
Moulins. The Grand Master of the Temple, Arnold of Toroga,
had died during the journey. As his successor the Order had
elected, after a stormy debate, Raymond s old enemy Gerard of
Ridfort. Gerard also gave his assent to the King s will. The child
was taken to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and there, held in
Balian of Ibelin s arms, he was crowned by the Patriarch. 1
A few weeks later, in March 1185, King Baldwin IV was
released by death from the agonies of his long disease. He
was only twenty-four. Of all the Kings of Jerusalem he was
the most unhappy. His ability was undoubted and his courage
was superb. But from his sickbed he was powerless to control
the intrigues around him and too often had yielded to the
nagging influence of his evil mother and his foolish sister. At
least he was spared the final humiliations that were to come to
the kingdom. 2
When the King s pathetic corpse had been buried in the Church
of the Holy Sepulchre, Raymond as regent summoned the barons
once more to ask them what policy he should follow. The winter
rains had failed and there was a threat of famine. The only
Crusader to come eastward was the old Marquis William of
Montferrat, grandfather of the child-Bang ; and he, after satisfying
himself that all was well with his grandchild, settled down quietly
in a fief in Galilee. His son Conrad, the King s uncle, set out to
follow him but stopped on the way at Constantinople, where his
brother Rainier had perished a few years before. There he offered
his help to Rainier s avenger, the Emperor Isaac Angelus, whose
did the issue of the annulled marriage to Agnes take precedence over that of
the imperial marriage to Maria? It is clear from the events of 1186 that public
opinion supported Sibylla s claims (see below, p. 447). But the case was obscure
enough to need mediation.
1 Estoire d Bracks, n, pp. 7-9; Ernoul, pp. 114, 118.
* Ernoul, pp. 118-19; Estoire f Bracks, H, p. 9. Imad ed-Din (Abu Shama,
p. 258) pays a tribute to Baldwin IV s memory.
444
1185: Saladin s Illness
sister he married. He forgot about his nephew and Palestine. It
was clear to all the barons assembled in Jerusalem that till a large
new Crusade could come the starving country could not face
a war. They approved of Raymond s suggestion that a four-years
truce should be sought from Saladin.
Saladin on his side was willing. There had been a quarrel
amongst his relatives in Egypt that needed a settlement; and he
had heard that Izz ed-Din of Mosul was restive once more. The
treaty was signed. Commerce was renewed between the Prankish
states and their neighbours; and a flow of corn from the east
saved the Christians from starvation. 1
In April 1185 Saladin marched northward, crossing the
Euphrates at Birejik on the isth. There he was joined by Kukburi
of Harran and by envoys from Izz ed-Din s vassals, the lords of
Jezireh and Irbil. Izz ed-Din sent embassies to the Seldjuk rulers
of Konya and of Persarmenia. The latter sent some troops to his
aid; the former sent a threatening message to Saladin, but took no
action. In June Saladin was before Mosul, refusing all Izz ed-Din s
offers of peace, even when the Prince s aged mother came herself
to plead with him. But Mosul was still too formidable a fortress.
His troops began to sicken in the summer heat. When in August
the Seldjuk Sultan of Persarmenia, Soqman II, suddenly died,
Saladin moved northward to capture the Sultan s vassal cities of
Diarbekir and Mayyafaraqin and to rest his men in the cooler air
of the uplands. There he fell ill himself and rode, almost dying, to
his friend Kukburi s castle at Harran. His brother, al-Adil, now
governor of Aleppo, hastened to come with the best doctors of
the East; but they could do nothing. Believing his end to be near
and knowing that all his kinsmen were plotting for the inheritance,
he made his emirs swear allegiance to his sons. Then, unexpectedly
he began to mend. By January 1186 he was out of danger. At the
end of February he received an embassy from Izz ed-Din and
agreed to make peace. In a treaty signed by the ambassadors on
1 Ernoul, pp. 121-8; Estoire d Eracles, n, pp. 12-13; Beta ed-Din, P.T.T.S.
pp. 104-5.
445
The Horns ofHattin
3 March Izz ed-Din became Saladin s vassal and was confirmed in
his own possessions; but the lands across the Tigris south of
Mosul, including Arbil and Shahrzur were put under emirs
appointed by Saladin and owing him direct allegiance. Their
presence guaranteed Izz ed-Din s loyalty. 1 Saladin himself was
then at Horns, where Nasr ed-Din, Shirkuh s son and his own
son-in-law, was emir. Nasr ed-Din had plotted for the throne of
Syria during Saladin s illness. No one therefore was surprised
when he was found dead in his bed on 5 March, after celebrating
the Feast of Victims. The victim s child, Shirkuh II, a boy of
twelve, was given the succession to Horns. Saladin confiscated
much of his money, but the boy aptly quoted a passage from
the Koran threatening torment to those that despoiled orphans
and had it restored to him. In April Saladin was back in
Damascus. His empire now stretched securely to the borders
of Persia. 2
The truce between the Christians and the Moslems was bringing
back some prosperity to Palestine. Trade between the interior and
the ports of Acre and Tyre was eagerly renewed, to the advantage
of merchants of both religions. If peace could be maintained till
some great Crusade could arrive from the West, then there might
still be a future for the Kingdom. But fate was once more unkind
to the Christians. About the end of August 1186 King Baldwin V
died at Acre, not yet nine years old. 3
The Regent Raymond and the Seneschal Joscelin were present
at the death-bed. Professing himself anxious to work in with
Raymond, Joscelin persuaded him to go to Tiberias and to invite
the barons of the realm to meet him there, in security from the
plots of the Patrkrch, in order that the terms of Baldwin IV s will
should be carried out. He himself would convey the little corpse
1 Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 98-103 ; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet, pp. 123-6;
Abu Shama, p. 288; Bustan, p. 581.
* Abu l Feda, p. 55. See Lane Poole, Saladin, pp. 194-5 (Shirkuh II quoted
the verse, Koran iv, 9); Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 103-4.
3 Ernoul, p. 129; Estoire d Bracks, n, p. 25.
446
11 86: Sibylla proclaimed Queen
to Jerusalem for burial. Raymond fell into the trap and went off
in good faith. As soon as he was gone Joscelin sent troops that he
could trust to occupy Tyre and Beirut and remained himself in
Acre, where he proclaimed Sibylla as Queen. He dispatched the
royal body to Jerusalem in charge of the Templars. His mes
sengers summoned Sibylla and Guy from Ascalon to attend the
funeral; and Reynald of Chatillon hurried to join them from
Kerak.
Raymond discovered that he had been tricked. He rode down
to Nablus, to Balian of Ibelin s castle, and, as lawful Regent of the
realm, summoned the High Court of the barons. All his supporters
hurried to join him. With Balian and his wife, Queen Mark, were
her daughter Isabella with Humphrey of Toron, Baldwin of
Ramleh, Walter of Caesarea, Reynald of Sidon, and all the
tenants-in-chief of the Crown, with the exception of Reynald of
Chatillon. There they received an invitation from Sibylla to
attend her coronation. They replied by sending two Cistercian
monks as envoys to Jerusalem, to remind the conspirators of the
oath sworn to King Baldwin IV and to forbid any action to be
taken till the Court had held its deliberations.
But Sibylla held Jerusalem and the seaports. The troops of the
Seneschal Joscelin and the Constable Amalric, Guy s brother, were
on her side, and Reynald had brought his men from Oultre-
jourdain. The Patriarch Heraclius, her mother s old lover, issured
her of the support of the Church organization. The Grand Master
of the Temple, Gerard of Ridfort, would do anything to spite his
old enemy Raymond. Alone in Jerusalem the Grand Master of
the Hospital was true to the oath that had been sworn. Amongst
the people of Jerusalem there was much sympathy for Sibylla,
She represented hereditary right; and though the throne was still
nominally elective the claims of the heir could not be easily
ignored. At the time of her mother s divorce Sibylla s legitimacy
had been confirmed. Her brother had been King, and her son.
Her one disadvantage was that her husband was disliked and
despised.
447
The Horns ofHattin
The Patriarch and the Templars closed the gates of Jerusalem and
posted guards, to prevent any attack from the barons at Nablus.
They then made arrangements for the coronation. The royal
insignia was kept in a coffer with three locks whose keys were in
the care of the Patriarch and the two Grand Masters, each holding
one. Roger of the Hospital refused to surrender his key for a pur
pose that he considered contrary to his oath; but at last, with
a gesture of disgust, he threw it from his window. Neither he nor
any of his knights would take part in the ceremony; which was
held as soon as everything could be made ready. In view of Guy s
unpopularity the Patriarch crowned Sibylla alone. But a second
crown was placed by her side; and Heraclius after crowning her
bade her use it to crown whatever man she thought worthy to
govern the realm. She summoned Guy to approach her and kneel
before her and placed the crown on his head. The assembled com
pany then did homage to their new King and Queen. As he
passed out of the church Gerard of Ridfort cried out aloud that
this crown paid back the marriage of Botrun.
Against the fact of the coronation the High Court at Nablus
could do little. Baldwin of Ibelin rose in the assembly to say that
he for one would not stay in a country to be ruled by such a king
and he advised all the barons to do likewise. But Raymond
answered that all was not yet lost. They had with them, he said,
the Princess Isabella and her husband Humphrey of Toron. Let
them be crowned and brought to Jerusalem. Their rivals could not
stand up against the united armies of all the barons, save only
Reynald of Chatillon, and the sympathy of the Hospital. Raymond
added that so long as he was Regent he could guarantee that
Saladin would keep the truce. The barons agreed with him and
swore to support him, even though it might mean civil war. But
they counted without one of the principal actors. Humphrey was
terrified at the fate in store for him; he had no wish to be king.
He slipped away at once from Nablus and rode to Jerusalem.
There he asked to see Sibylla. She spurned him at first, but as he
stood sheepishly before her, scratching his head, she relented and
448
ii 86: King Guy s First Assembly
let him pour out his story. She listened graciously and herself took
him to see Guy, to whom he paid homage. 1
Humphrey s defection defeated the barons. Raymond released
them from their oath, and one by one they went to Jerusalem and
offered their submission to Guy. Even Balian of Ibelin, the most
respected of them all, saw that nothing else could now be done.
But his brother Baldwin repeated his decision to abandon the
realm rather than accept Guy; and Raymond of Tripoli retired to
his wife s lands in Galilee, vowing that he, too, would never pay
homage to the new King. He would have loyally accepted
Isabella as Queen; but Humphrey s cowardice convinced him that
he himself was now the only worthy candidate for the throne.*
Soon afterwards King Guy held his first assembly of barons at
Acre. Raymond did not appear; and Guy announced that Beirut,
which Raymond had held as regent, was taken from him, and he
sent to tell him to render accounts for public money that he had
spent during his regency. Baldwin of Ibelin, who was present,
was summoned to pay homage by Reynald of Chatillon standing
at the King s side. He merely gave the King a formal salute,
telling him that he left his lands of Ramleh for his son Thomas who
would pay homage when he was old enough; he himself would
never do so. He left the kingdom a few days later and took service
1 Ernoul, pp. 129-36, the fullest and most graphic account; Estoire d Bracks,
n, pp. 25-31 ; Radulph of Diceto, n, p. 47; Arnold of Lubeck, pp. 116-17. The
first two sources (the more reliable) date the coronation September, Radulph
August and Arnold 20 July. Guy s first charter is dated October, Rohricht,
Regesta, p. 873.
* It is clear that Raymond considered himself as a candidate for the throne.
Ibnjubayr reports rumours of his ambition as early as 1183 (Ibnjubayr, p. 304).
Abu Shama (pp. 257-8) quotes Imad ed-Din s report that he was ready to turn
Moslem to achieve it, and Ibn al-Athir (p. 674) says that he counted on
Saladin s help. The kte Historia Regni Hierosolymitani (pp. 51-2) says that he
claimed the crown because his mother (here called Dolcis) was born after her
father s coronation, whereas Melisende was born before. As only the youngest
of Baldwin E s daughters, the Abbess Joveta, was born in the purple, he cannot
have used this argument. Perhaps he put forward a similar argument to justify
the barons at Nablus in choosing Isabella rather than. Sibylla, and the chronicler
muddled the story.
RC 449 29
The Horns ofHattin
tinder Bohemond of Antioch, who welcomed him gladly and
gave him a fief larger than that which he had left. Other lesser
lords joined him Acre; for Bohemond made no secret of his
sympathy with Raymond and his party. 1
With the kingdom so torn into embittered factions it was as
well that the trace with the Saracens held firm. Guy would have
maintained it; but he reckoned without his friend Reynald of
Chatillon. Protected by the truce the great caravans that travelled
between Damascus and Egypt had been passing again without
hindrance through Prankish lands. At the end of 1 1 86 an enormous
caravan was journeying up from Cairo, with a small convoy of
Egyptian troops to protect it from Bedouin raiders. As it moved
into Moab Reynald suddenly fell on it, skying the soldiers and
taking the merchants and their families with all their possessions
to his castle of Kerak. The booty was larger than he had ever
taken before. News soon reached Sakdin of the outrage.
Respectful of the treaty, he sent to Reynald to demand the release
of the prisoners and compensation for their losses. Reynald refused
to receive the envoys ; who went on to Jerusalem to complain to
King Guy. Guy listened sympathetically and ordered Reynald
to make reparations. But Reynald, knowing that it was to his
support that Guy owed and kept his throne, paid no attention
to his order; and Guy could not or would not force his
obedience/
So shameless a breach of the truce made war inevitable, a war
which the divided country was ill-fitted to face. Bohemond of
Antioch hastened to renew his truce with Saladin. 3 Raymond of
Tripoli made a truce for his county and extended it to cover his
wife s principality of Galilee, even though its suzerain the King
might be at war with the Moslems. At the same time he secured
1 Bmoul, pp. 137-9; Estoire f Erodes, n, p. 33 ; Les Gestes des Chiprois (p. 659)
says that Guy would have struck Baldwin had it not been for his high birth.
* Estoire d Eracks, H, p. 34. He says that Saladin s sister was captured in the
caravan. Actually she was travelling back from Mecca in a subsequent caravan
(sec below, p. 454); Abu Shama, pp. 259-11.
3 Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. p. 109.
450
n8j: Raymond s Treason
Saladin s sympathy and promise of support in his aim of making
himself king. Wise though Raymond s policy may have been it
was undoubtedly treasonable. Encouraged by Gerard of the
Temple, Guy summoned his loyal vassals and marched north to
Nazareth, to reduce Galilee to submission before the Moslem
attack should begin. Civil war was only averted by the inter
vention of Balian of Ibelin, who when he arrived at the camp
roughly asked the King what he was doing. When Guy replied
that he was going to besiege Tiberias, Balian pointed out the
folly of the plan; for Raymond, with the Saracen help on which
he could call, would have stronger forces than the King. Balian
asked that instead he should be sent to talk to Raymond. But his
appeal for unity had no effect on the Count, who would only
submit to Guy if Beirut was returned to him. It was a price that
Guy thought too dear. 1 But as news came of Saladin s prepara
tions for the coming war, Balian pleaded once again with the King
for reconciliation with Raymond. You have lost your best
knight in Baldwin of Ramleh/ he said, mentioning his brother
with pride. If you lose the help and counsel of Count Raymond
too, you are finished/ Guy, usually ready to agree with anyone
that spoke firmly to him, allowed Balian to go on a new em
bassy to Tiberias, together with Josias, Archbishop of Tyre, and
the Grand Masters of the Hospital and Temple. It was essential
that the latter, Raymond s bitterest enemy, should be involved in
any peaceful settlement that was made. 2
The delegates, escorted by ten Hospitallers, set out from
Jerusalem on 29 April 1187. They spent that night at Balian s
castle of Nablus. There Balian had business to transact; so he told
the Grand Masters and the Archbishop to ride ahead; he would
pass the day there and overtake them on the morrow at the Castle
of La Feve, in the Plain of Esdraelon. Late in the evening of the
1 Ernoul, pp. 141-2 ; Estoire d Bracks, n, pp. 3 1-5. Ernoul says that Raymond
actually received reinforcements from Sakdin.
z Ernoul, pp. 142-3. Reynald of Sidon was to have joined the delegation,
but set out independently.
451 2 9-2
The Horns ofHattin
30th Balian left Nablus with a few attendants intending to ride oix
through the night. But he suddenly remembered that it was the
eve of Saint Philip and Saint James. So he turned aside from the
road at Sebastea, the Samaria of the ancients, and knocked at the
door of the Bishop s palace. The Bishop was awakened and admit
ted him; and they sat talking through the night till the dawn came
and mass could be celebrated. He then said good-bye to his host
and rode on his way.
On 30 April, while Balian was discussing business with his
stewards, and the Grand Masters were riding over the hills to
La Feve, Count Raymond at Tiberias received an envoy from the
Moslems at Banyas. Saladin s young son al-Afdal, commandant
of the camp there, was told by his father to send a reconnaissance
into Palestine and very correctly asked permission for his men to
traverse the Count s territory in Galilee. Raymond, bound by his
private treaty with Saladin, could not refuse the embarrassing
request. He only stipulated that the Moslems should cross the
frontier after daybreak on the morrow and return before dark and
that they should do no harm to any town or village in the land.
He then sent messengers round aE his fief to tell the people to keep
themselves and their flocks within their walls for the whole day
and to have no fear. At that moment he heard of the coming of
the delegation from Jerusalem. Another message was sent out to
give it the same warning. Early in the morning on I May
Raymond watched from his castle the Emir Kukburi and seven
thousand mamelukes ride gaily by.
About the middle of that morning Balian and his company
arrived at La Feve. From afar they had seen tents of the Templars
dressed below the walls ; but when they drew near they found that
they were empty; and in the castle itself there was silence. Balian s
groom Ernoul entered the building and wandered from room to
room. There was no one there, except two soldiers lying in one of
the upper galleries, sick to death and unable to speak. Balian was
perplexed and worried. He waited for an hour or two, uncertain
what to do, then set out again along the road to Nazareth.
452
ii #7- The Springs ofCresson
Suddenly a Templar knight galloped up dishevelled and bleeding,
shouting out of a great disaster.
At the same hour Raymond at Tiberias watched the mamelukes
ride home. They kept to the pact. It was well before nightfall, and
they had not harmed a building in the province. But on the lances
of the vanguard were fixed the heads of Templar knights.
Raymond s message had reached the Grand Masters at La Feve
on the evening of the soth. Though Roger of the Hospital pro
tested, Gerard of the Temple at once summoned the Templars
from the neighbourhood to join him there. The Marshal of the
Temple, James of Mailly, was at the village of Kakun, five miles
away, with ninety knights. He came and spent the night before
the castle. Next morning the cavalcade rode to Nazareth, where
forty secular knights joined them. The Archbishop of Tyre
remained there; but Gerard paused only to shout to the townsfolk
that there would be a battle soon and they must come to collect
the booty. As the knights passed over the hill behind Nazareth
they found the Moslems watering their horses at the Springs of
Cresson in the valley below. At the sight of such numbers both
Roger and James of Mailly advised retreat. Gerard was furious.
He turned scornfully from his fellow Grand Master and taunted
his Marshal. You love your blond head too well to want to lose
it , he said. James proudly replied; I shall die in battle like a
brave man. It is you that will flee as a traitor/ Fired by Gerard s
insults the company charged down into the mamelukes. It was
a massacre rather than a battle. James s blond head was one of the
last to fall; and the Grand Master of the Hospital fell by his side.
Very soon every Templar knight was slain except three, of whom
Gerard was one. They galloped back wounded to Nazareth. It
was one of them that rode on to find Balian. The secular knights
were taken alive. Some of the greedy citizens of Nazareth had
gone out to the battlefield to find the booty that Gerard had
promised. They were rounded up and taken off as prisoners.
After sending to his wife to urge her to collect all her knights,
Balian joined Gerard at Nazareth and tried to persuade him to
453
The Horns ofHattin
come to Tiberias. Gerard pleaded that his wounds were too bad,
so Balian went on with the Archbishop. They found Raymond
aghast at the tragedy, for which he felt that his policy had been to
blame. He gladly accepted Balian s mediation and, annulling his
treaty with Saladin, he rode south to Jerusalem and made his sub
mission to the King. Guy, for all his faults, was not vindictive. He
gave Raymond a cordial welcome and even apologized for the
manner of his coronation. At last the kingdom seemed to be
united again, 1
It was as well. For Saladin was known to be gathering a great
army across the frontier in the Hauran. In May, while the host
was assembling from all over his empire, he had made a journey
down the road towards Mecca to escort a pilgrim-caravan in which
his sister and her son were returning from the Holy City, to be
sure that Reynald would not try another of his bandit raids.
Meanwhile troops poured in from Aleppo and Mosul and Mardin
till his army was the largest that he had ever commanded. Across
the Jordan King Guy summoned all his tenants-in-chief and their
tenants to bring their men to meet him at Acre. The Orders of the
Hospital and the Temple, eager to avenge the massacre at Cresson,
brought all their available knights, leaving only small garrisons to
defend the castles under their care. The Templars gave further aid
in handing to the King their share of the money sent recently to
the Orders by King Henry II in expiation of the murder of
Thomas Becket. They had been told to bank it against the
Crusade that Henry had sworn to undertake, but the present need
was too urgent The soldiers that it served to equip carried with
them a banner with Henry s arms. Moved by an appeal from
1 The story is reported very fully by Ernoul, who was with Balian as his
squire (pp. 143-54). Estoire d Bracks, n, pp. 37-44; Imad ed-Din, in Abu
Shama, p. 262 ; Ihn al-Athir (p. 678) says that al-Afdal sent Kukburi in command,
of the expedition and gives tie number of horsemen as 7000. The De Expugna-
tione (pp. 210-11) gives the same number but its short account denies that
Raymond insisted on no damage being done to property and tries to whitewash
the Templars. La Feve is the Arab village of el-Fuleh (both names mean
The Bean) half-way between Jenin and Nazareth.
454
n8j: Saladin crosses the Jordan
Raymond and Balian, Bohemond of Antioch promised a con
tingent under Baldwin of Ibelin, and sent his son Raymond to join
the Count of Tripoli who was his godfather. By the end of June
1200 fully armed knights, a larger number of light native cavalry,
half-caste Turcopoles and nearly ten thousand infantrymen were
gathered at the camp before Acre. The Patriarch Heraclius was
asked to come with the True Cross. But he said that he was
unwell, and entrusted the relic to the Prior of the Holy Sepulchre
to give to the Bishop of Acre. He preferred, his enemies said,
to remain with his beloved Paschia.
On Friday, 26 June, Saladin reviewed his troops at Ashtera, in
the Hauran. He himself commanded the centre, his nephew Taki
ed-Din the right wing and Kukburi the left. The army marched
out in battle formation to Khisfin and on to the southern tip of the
Sea of Galilee. There he waited for five days, while his scouts
collected information about the Christian forces. On I July he
crossed the Jordan at Sennabra, and on the second he encamped
with half his army at Kafr Sebt, in the hills five miles west of the
Lake, while his other troops attacked Tiberias. The town fell into
their hands after an hour of fighting. Raymond and his stepsons
were with the King s army; but the Countess Eschiva, after
sending a messenger to tell her husband what was happening, held
out with her small garrison in the castle.
When news came that Saladin had crossed the Jordan, King Guy
held counsel with his barons at Acre. Count Raymond spoke first.
He pointed out that in tremendous summer heat the army that
attacked was at a disadvantage. Their own strategy should be purely
defensive. With the Christian army undefeated Saladin would
not be able to maintain his great forces for long in the parched
country. After a while he would have to retire. In the meantime
the reinforcements from Antioch would arrive. Most of the knights
inclined to follow this advice; but both Reynald of Chatillon and
the Grand Master Gerard accused Raymond of being a coward and
sold to the Saracens. King Guy was always convinced by the last
speaker and gave orders for the army to move out towards Tiberias.
455
The Horns ofHattin
On the afternoon of 2 July the Christians encamped at Sephoria.
It was an excellent site for a camp, with ample water and good
pasturage for the horses. Were they to remain there, as they had
remained by the Pools of Goliath four years before, Saladin
would never risk attacking them. Their army was nearly as large
as his own, and they had the advantage of the terrain. But that
evening the messenger from the Countess of Tripoli arrived. Once
again Guy held a council in his tent. The chivalry of the knights
was moved to think of the gallant kdy holding out desperately by
the lake. Her sons with tears in their eyes begged that their
mother should be rescued. Others followed to support their plea.
Then Raymond rose. He repeated the speech that he had made
at Acre but with more desperate emphasis. He showed the folly
of leaving the present strong position and making a hazardous
march in the July heat over the barren hillside. Tiberias was his
city, he said, and its defender his wife. But he would rather that
Tiberias and all within it were lost than that the kingdom was lost.
His words carried conviction. The council broke up at midnight,
resolved to remain at Sephoria.
When the barons had retired to their quarters the Grand Master
of the Temple crept back to the royal tent. Sire, he said, are
you going to trust a traitor? It was shameful to let a city be lost
that was only six leagues away. The Templars, he declared, would
sooner abandon their Order than abandon their chance of
vengeance on the infidel. Guy, who had been sincerely persuaded
by Raymond an hour before, vacillated and let Gerard over-
persuade him. He sent his heralds through the camp to announce
that the army would march at dawn for Tiberias.
The best road from Sephoria to Tiberias went slightly north of
east across the Galilean hills and came down to the lake a mile
north of the town. The alternative road ran to the bridge at
Sennabra, where a branch followed the shore of the lake north
ward. Saladin s camp at Kafr Sebt ky across the Senriabra road,
by which he had come from over the river. It is possible that
traitors from the Christian camp went to tell him that Guy was
456
1187: The Franks encamp at Lubieh
moving out from Sephoria along the northern road. He therefore
led his army for some five miles across the hills to Hattin, where
the road began to descend towards the lake. It was a village with
broad pastures and abundant water. He was joined there by most
of his troops from Tiberias, where only those needed to blockade
the castle remained.
The morning of Friday, 3 July, was hot and airless, as the
Christian army left the green gardens of Sephoria to march over
the treeless hills. Raymond of Tripoli as lord of the fief had the
right by feudal custom to command the van. The King com
manded the centre, and Reynald with the Orders and Balian of
Ibelin brought up the rear. There was no water along the road.
Soon men and horses alike were suffering bitterly from thirst.
Their agony slowed up the pace of the march. Moslem skirmishers
continuously attacked both the vanguard and the rearguard,
pouring arrows into their midst and riding away before any
counter-attack could be made. By the afternoon the Franks had
reached the plateau immediately above Hattin. Ahead of them
a rocky hill with two summits rose about a hundred feet, and
beyond it the ground fell steeply to the village and on to the lake.
It was called the Horns of Hattin. The Templars sent to the King
to say that they could go no farther that day. Some of the barons
begged him to order the army to press on and fight its way
through to the lake. But Guy, moved by the weariness of his men,
decided to halt for the night. On the news Raymond rode in from
the front crying : c Ah, Lord God, the war is over; we are dead men;
the kingdom is finished/ On his advice Guy set up his camp just
beyond Lubieh, toward the slope of the Horns, where there was
a well, and the whole army grouped itself around him. But the
site was ill-chosen, for the well was dry.
Saladin, waiting with all his men in the verdant valley below,
could hardly restrain his joy. His opportunity had come at last.
The Christians passed the night in misery, listening to the
prayers and songs that came from the Moslem tents below. A few
soldiers broke out of the camp in a vain search for water, only to
457
The Horns ofHattin
be killed by the enemy. To make their sufferings worse, the
Moslems set fire to the dry scrub that covered the hill, and hot
smoke poured in over the camp. Under cover of the darkness
Saladin moved up his men. When the dawn broke on Saturday,
4 July , the royal army was encircled. Not a cat, says the chronicler,
could have slipped through the net.
The Moslem attack began soon after daybreak. The Christian
infantry had only one thought, water. In a surging mass they tried
to break through down the slope towards the lake gleaming far
below. They were driven up a hillock, hemmed in by the flames
and by the enemy. Many of them were slaughtered at once, many
others were taken prisoner; and the sight of them as they lay
wounded and swollen-mouthed was so painful that five of
Raymond s knights went to the Moslem leaders to beg that they
might all be slain, to end their misery. The horsemen on the hill
fought with superb and desperate courage. Charge after charge of
the Moslem cavalry was driven back with losses; but their own
numbers were dwindling. Enfeebled by thirst, their strength
began to fail them. Before it was too late, at the King s request,
Raymond led his knights in an attempt to burst through the
Moslem lines. With all his men he bore down on the regiments
commanded by Taki ed-Din. But Taki opened his ranks to let
them through, and then closed up again behind them. They could
not make their way back again to their comrades so, miserably,
they rode from the battlefield, away to Tripoli. A little later
Balian of Ibelin and Reynald of Sidon broke their way out. They
were the last to escape.
There was no hope left now for the Christians; but they still
fought on, retiring up the hill to the Horns. The King s red tent
was moved to the summit, and his knights gathered round him.
Saladin s young son al-Afdal was at his father s side witnessing
his first battle. Many years afterwards he paid tribute to the
courage of the Franks. When the Prankish King had withdrawn
to the hill-top, he said, his knights made a gallant charge and
drove the Moslems back upon my father. I watched his dismay.
458
1187: In Saladin s Tent
He changed, colour and pulled at his beard, then rushed forward
crying: "Give the devil the lie." So our men fell on the enemy
who retreated up the hill. "When I saw the Franks flying I cried out
with glee: " We have routed them." But they charged again and
drove our men back again to where my father stood. Again he
urged our men forward and again they drove the enemy up the
hill. Again I cried out: "We have routed them." But my Ether
turned to me and said: "Be quiet. We have not beaten them so
long as that tent stands there." At that moment the tent was
overturned. Then my father dismounted and bowed to the ground,
giving thanks to God, with tears of joy.
The Bishop of Acre had been killed. The Holy Cross which he
had borne into the battle was in the hands of an infidel. Few of
the knights horses survived. When the victors reached the hill
top, the knights themselves, the King amongst them, were lying
on the ground, too weary to fight any more, with hardly the
strength to hand their swords over in surrender. Their leaders
were taken off to the tent that was erected on the battlefield for
the Sultan. 1
There Saladin received King Guy and his brother the Constable
Amalric, Reynald of Chatillon and his stepson Humphrey of
Toron, the Grand Master of the Temple, the aged Marquis of
Montferrat, the lords of Jebail and Botrun, and many of the lesser
barons of the realm. He greeted them graciously. He seated the
King next to him and, seeing his thirst, handed him a goblet of
rose-water, iced with the snows of Hermon. Guy drank from it
and handed it on to Reynald who was at his side. By the laws of
Arab hospitality to give food or drink to a captive meant that his
life was safe; so Saladin said quickly to the interpreter: Tell the
King that he gave that man drink, not I. He then turned on
Reynald whose impious brigandage he could not forgive and
reminded him of his crimes, of his treachery, his blasphemy and
his greed. When Reynald answered truculently, Saladin himself
1 For the complicated and contradictory evidence about the Hattin campaign,
see below, Appendix IE.
459
The Horns ofHattin
took a sword and struck off his head. Guy trembled, thinking
that his turn would come next. But Saladin reassured him.
A king does not kill a king , he said, but that man s perfidy and
insolence went too far. 5 He then gave orders that none of the lay
barons was to be harmed but that all were to be treated with
courtesy and respect during their captivity. But he would not
spare the knights of the Military Orders, save only the Grand
Master of the Temple. A band of fanatical Moslem sufis had
joined his troops. To them he gave the task of slaying his Templar
and Hospitaller prisoners. They performed it with relish. When
this was done he moved his army away from Hattin; and the
bodies on the battlefield were left to the jackals and the hyenas.
The prisoners were sent to Damascus, where the barons were
lodged in comfort and the poorer folk were sold in the slave-
market. So many were there that the price of a single prisoner fell
to three dinars, and you could buy a whole healthy family, a man,
his wife, his three sons and his two daughters, for eighty dinars the
lot. One Moslem even thought it a good bargain to exchange a
prisoner for a pair of sandals. 1
The Christians of the East had suffered disasters before. Their
Kings and Princes had been captured before; but their captors
then had been petty lordlings, out for some petty advantage. On
the Horns ofHattin the greatest army that the kingdom had ever
assembled was annihilated. The Holy Cross was lost. And the
victor was lord of the whole Moslem world.
With his enemies destroyed, it only remained for Saladin to
occupy the fortresses of the Holy Land. On 5 July, knowing that
no help could come to her, the Countess of Tripoli surrendered
Tiberias to him. He treated her with the honour that she deserved
and allowed her to go with all her household to Tripoli. 3 Then he
moved the bulk of his army down to Acre. The Seneschal Joscelin
1 Beta ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 114-15 ; Kemal ad-Din (ed. Blochet, pp. 180-1)
gives a slightly different version but with the same sense; Ernoul (pp. 172-4)
tells roughly die same story.
2 Ernoul, p. 171 ; Estoire d Erades, n, p. 69 ; Abu Shama, pp. 266-7.
460
1187: Palestine surrenders to Saladin
of Courtenay, who commanded the city, thought only of his own
safety. He sent a citizen called Peter Brice to meet Saladin when
he arrived before the walls on the 8th, offering its surrender if the
lives and possessions of the inhabitants were guaranteed. To many
in the city this tame capitulation seemed shameful. There was a
short riot in which several houses were burnt; but order was
restored before Saladin took formal possession of Acre on the loth.
He had hoped to persuade most of the Christian merchants to stay
there. But they feared for the future and emigrated with all their
movable possessions. The immense stores of merchandize, silks
and metals, jewels and arms, that were abandoned were distri
buted by the conquerors, particularly by Saladin s young son
al-Afdal, to whom the city was given, amongst their soldiers and
comrades. The great sugar-factory was pillaged by Taki ed-Din,
to Saladin s annoyance. 1 While Saladin remained at Acre, detach
ments of his army received the submission of the towns and castles
of Galilee and Samaria. At Nablus Balian s garrison held out for
a few days and obtained honourable terms when it surrendered;
and the castle of Toron resisted for a fortnight before its garrison
capitulated. There was little other resistance. 2 Meanwhile Saladin s
brother al-Adil came up from Egypt and laid siege to Jaffa. The
town would not yield to him; so he took it by storm, and sent
all the inhabitants, men, women and children, into captivity.
Most of them found their way to the slave-markets and harems of
Aleppo. 3
When Galilee was conquered Saladin moved up the Phoenician
coast. Most of the survivors from Hattin had fled with Balian to
Tyre. It was well garrisoned and the great walls that guarded it
from the land were too formidable. When his first attack failed he
1 Ernoul, loc. dt*\ Estolre Erodes, n, pp. 70-1; Abu Shama, pp. 295-7;
Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. p. 116; Ibn al-Atbir, pp. 688-90.
2 Estoire d Erodes, n, p. 68 ; De Expugnotione, pp. 31-4; Beha ed-Din, loc. at.
(only mentioning Toron); Abu Shama, pp. 300-6; Ibn al-Athir, loc. at.
3 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 690-1. He himself bought a skve in the Aleppo market,
a young girl who had lost a husband and six babies (p. 691); De Expugnatione,
p. 229.
461
The Horns ofHattin
passed on. Sidon surrendered without a blow, on 29 July. Its lord,
Reynald, fled to his impregnable inland castle of Beaufort. Beirut
attempted to defend itself but capitulated on 6 August. Jebail
surrendered a few days later, on the orders of its lord, Hugh
Ebriaco, whom Saladin released on that condition. By the end of
August there only remained to the Christians south of Tripoli
itself Tyre, Ascalon, Gaza, a few isolated castles and the Holy City
of Jerusalem. 1
In September Saladin appeared before Ascalon, bringing -with
him his two chief captives, Kong Guy and the Grand Master
Gerard. Guy had been told that his liberty could be bought by
the surrender of Ascalon; and on his arrival before the walls he
harangued the citizens telling them to give up the struggle.
Gerard joined his plea to Guy s; but they answered them both
with insults. Ascalon was bravely defended. The siege cost
Saladin the life of two of his emirs. But on 4 September the
garrison was forced to capitulate. The citizens were allowed to
leave with all their portable belongings. They were escorted by
Saladin s soldiers to Egypt and housed in comfort at Alexandria,
till they could be repatriated to Christian lands. 2 At Gaza, whose
Templar garrison was obliged by the laws of the Order to obey
the Grand Master, Gerard s command that it should surrender was
carried out at once. In return for the fortress he obtained his
liberty. 3 But King Guy was kept for some months longer in
prison, first at Nablus and later at Lattakieh. Queen Sibylla was
allowed to come from Jerusalem to join him. As Saladin doubtless
expected, their release next spring added to the embarrassment of
the Christians. 4
1 Bella ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 116-17; Abu Shama, pp. 306-10; Ibn al-Athir,
pp. 692-3 ; De Expugnatione, p. 236.
* Emoul, p. 184; Estoire d Erades, n, pp. 78-9; De Expugnatione, pp. 236-8;
Bella ed-Din, P.T.T.S. p. 117; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 696-7.
3 Abu Shama, pp. 312-13 ; Bella ed-Din, loc. dt.\ Ibn al-Athir, p. 697.
4 According to Ernoul (pp. 175, 185) Sibylla was at Jerusalem up to the
eve of the siege and was allowed then to go to Nablus (p. 185). Ibn al-Athir,
p. 703 ; Estoire d Erodes, n, p. 79, and the Itinerarium Regis Ricardi, pp. 21-3, say
462
11 87: The Defence of Jerusalem
The day that Saladin s troops entered Ascalon there was an
eclipse of the sun; and in the darkness Saladin received a delega
tion from the citizens of Jerusalem, which he had summoned to
discuss terms for the Holy City s surrender. But there was no
discussion. The delegates refused to hand over the city where their
God had died for them. They returned proudly to Jerusalem; and
Saladin swore to take it by the sword. In Jerusalem an unexpected
helper had arrived. Balian of Ibelin, who was with the Prankish
refugees at Tyre, sent to ask Saladin for a safe-conduct to Jerusalem.
His wife, Queen Maria, had retired there with her children from
Nablus, and he wished to bring them down to Tyre. Saladin
granted his request on condition that he only spent one night in
the city and did not bear arms. When he came there, Balian found
the Patriarch Heraclius and the officials of the Orders trying to
prepare the city s defence; but there was no leader whom the
people trusted. They all clamoured that Balian should stay and
lead them and would not let him go. Deeply embarrassed, Balian
wrote to Saladin to explain the violation of his oath. Saladin was
always courteous to an enemy that he respected. He not only for
gave Balian but himself sent an escort to convey Queen Maria, with
her children, her household and all her possessions, down to Tyre. 1
With her went Balian s young nephew Thomas of Ibelin, and the
young son of Hugh of Jebail. Saladin wept to see these children,
heirs to vanished grandeur, pass through his camp into exile.
In Jerusalem Balian did what he could. The population was
swollen by refugees from all the neighbouring districts, few of
that Sibylla was in Jerusalem throughout the siege and then went to Nablus only
for a short interview. Beha ed-Din (P.T.T.S. p. 143) says that Guy was taken
to Tortosa by Saladin and released there while Saladin was besieging Krak des
Chevaliers. That was in July 1188, a few days before Saladin took Tortosa.
Possibly Tortosa (Antartus) is*a mistake of Beha ed-Din s for Tripoli, but the
release is dated definitely July 1188. Ernoul, however (p. 185), says that Guy
was released in March 1188, but (p. 252) dates it when Saladin was besieging
Tripoli (July 1188). The Itinerarium says that Guy was released at Tortosa,
where Sibylla eventually joined him (p. 25).
1 Ernoul, pp. 174-5, 185-^7; Estoire d Bracks, n, pp. 81-4; De Expugnatione,
p. 238.
463
The Horns ofHattin
them of use as fighters. For every man there were fifty women
and children. There were only two knights in the city; so Balian
knighted every boy over sixteen that was born of a noble family
and thirty men of the bourgeoisie. He dispatched parties to
collect all the food that could be found before the Moslem armies
closed round. He took over the royal treasury and the money that
Henry II had sent to the Hospital. He even stripped the silver from
the roof of the Holy Sepulchre. Arms were given to every man
that could bear them.
On 20" September Saladin encamped before the city and began
to attack the north and north-west walls. But the sun was in his
soldiers eyes and the defences there were strong. After five days
he moved his camp. For a short moment the defenders believed
that he had lifted the siege; but on the morning of 26 September
his army was established on the Mount of Olives and his sappers,
flanked by his horsemen, were mining the wall near the Gate of
the Column, not far from the spot where Godfrey of Lorraine
had broken into the city eighty-eight years before. By the 2pth
there was a great breach in the wall. The defenders manned it as
best they could and fought furiously; but they were too few to
hold it for long against the hordes of the enemy. The Prankish
soldiers wished to make one tremendous sortie and if need be die.
But the Patriarch Heraclius had no mind to be a martyr. If they
did so, he said, they would leave their women and children to
inevitable slavery and he could not give his blessing to so impious
an action. Balian supported him ; he saw the folly of wasting more
lives. On 20 October he went himself to the enemy camp to ask
Saladin for terms.
Saladin had the city at his mercy. He could storm it when he
wished; and within the city he had many potential friends. The
pride of the Latin Church had always been resented by the
Orthodox Christians who formed the majority of the humbler
folk in the city. There had been no definite schism. The royal
family and the lay nobility, except in Antioch, had shown
friendliness and respect to the Orthodox clergy. But the upper
464
The Surrender of Jerusalem
hierarchy had been exclusively Latin. In the great shrines of their
faith the native Christians had been made to attend ceremonies
whose language and ritual were alien to them. They looked back
longingly to the days when under just Moslem rulers they had
been able to worship as they pleased. Saladin s confidential
adviser for his dealings with the Christian princes was an Ortho
dox scholar from Jerusalem, called Joseph Batit. He now made
contact with the Orthodox communities in the city; and they
promised to open the gates to Saladin.
Their intervention was not needed. When Balian came before
his tent Saladin declared that he had sworn to take Jerusalem by
the sword and only unconditional surrender would absolve him
from that oath. He reminded Balian of the massacres committed
by the Christians in 1099. Was he to act differently? The battle
raged as they spoke; and Saladin showed that his standard had
now been raised on the city wall. But at the next moment his men
were driven back; and Balian warned Saladin that unless he gave
honourable terms the defenders in desperation before they died
would destroy everything in the city, including the buildings in the
Temple area sacred to the Moslems, and they would slaughter the
Moslem prisoners that they held. Saladin, so long as his power
was recognized, was ready to be generous, and he wished
Jerusalem to suffer as little as possible. He consented to make
terms and offered that every Christian should be able to redeem
himself at the rate of ten dinars a man, five a woman and one a
child. Balian then pointed out that there were twenty thousand
poor folk in the city who could never afford such a sum. Could
a lump-sum be given by the Christian authorities that would free
them all ? Saladin was willing to accept 1 00,000 dinars for the whole
twenty thousand. But Balian knew that so much money could not
be raised. It was arranged that for 30,000 dinars seven thousand
should be freed. On Balian 5 s orders the garrison laid down its
arms; and on Friday, 2 October, Saladin entered Jerusalem. It was
the 2yth day of Rajab, the anniversary of the day when the Prophet
in his sleep had visited Jerusalem and been wafted thence to Heaven.
RC 465 30
The Horns ofHattin
The victors were correct and humane. Where the Franks,
eighty-eight years before, had waded through the blood of their
victims, not a building now was looted, not a person injured. By
Saladin s orders guards patrolled the streets and the gates, pre
venting any outrage on the Christians. Meanwhile each Christian
strove to find the money for his ransom and Balian emptied the
treasury to raise the promised 30,000 dinars. It was with difficulty
that the Hospital and the Temple could be made to disgorge their
riches; and the Patriarch and his Chapter looked after themselves
alone. It shocked the Moslems to see Heraclius paying his ten
dinars for his ransom and leaving the city bowed by the weight of
the gold that he was carrying, followed by carts laden with
carpets and plate. Thanks to the remains of Henry iTs donation,
the seven thousand poor were freed; but many thousands could
have been spared slavery if only the Orders and the Church had
been more generous. Soon two streams of Christians poured out
through the gates, the one of those whose ransoms had been paid
by themselves or by Balian s efforts, the other of those who could
afford no ransom and were going into captivity. So pathetic was
the sight that al-Adil turned to his brother and asked for a
thousand of them as a reward for his services. They were granted
to him and he at once set them free. The Patriarch Heraclius,
delighted to find so cheap a way of doing good, then asked that
he might have some slaves to liberate. He was granted seven
hundred; and five hundred were given to Balian. Then Saladin
himself announced that he would liberate every aged man and
woman. When the Prankish ladies who bad ransomed themselves
came in tears to ask him. where they should go, for their husbands
or fathers were slain or captive, he answered by promising to
release every captive husband, and to the widows and orphans he
gave gifts from his own treasury, to each according to her estate.
His mercy and kindness were in strange contrast to the deeds of
the Christian conquerors of the First Crusade.
Some of his emirs and soldiers were less kindly. There were
tales of Christians being smuggled out in disguise by Moslems
466
1187: The Refugees
who then blackmailed them of all that they possessed. Other
Moslem lords professed to recognize escaped slaves and charged
high ransoms privately to let their victims go. But wherever
Saladin found such practices, his punishment was sharp. 1
The long line of refugees moved slowly down to the coast,
unmolested by the Moslems. They travelled in three convoys, the
first led by the Templars, the second by the Hospitallers, and the
third by Bahan and the Patriarch. At Tyre, already overcrowded
with other refugees, only fighting men could be admitted. Near
Botrun a local baron, Raymond of Niphin, robbed them of many
of their goods. They moved on to Tripoli. There, too, earlier
refugees filled the city, and the authorities, short of food, would
admit no more and closed the gates against them. It was not till
they reached Antioch that they found any resting-place, and even
there they were not allowed willingly into the city. The refugees
from Ascalon were more fortunate. When Italian merchant
captains refused to take them on to Christian ports without heavy
fees, the Egyptian government refused to allow die ships to sail
till they -accepted them free.*
The Orthodox Christians and the Jacobites remained in
Jerusalem. Each had officially to pay a capitation-tax in addition
to his ransom, though many of the poorer classes were excused
the payment. The rich amongst them bought up much of the
property left vacant by the Franks departure. The rest was bought
by Moslems and by Jews whom Saladin encouraged to settle in
the city. When the news of Saladin s victory reached Constanti
nople the Emperor Isaac Angelus sent an embassy to Saladin to
* Ernoul, pp. 174-5, 211-30, the fullest and most authentic account. Ernoul
was w IkL in Jerusalem; Estoire trades, n, 8i-*>; De ^F|
pp. 241-51, an account supplied by an eye-witness who was wounded during
?he siege and who disapproved of me surrender; Abu Shama pp. 3*0-40,
Beha ed-Din P T.T.S. pp. II&-20; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 699-703- The story of
Joseph Babit is told in The History of the Patriarchs of Alexandria, p. 207, a hosde
Coptic source. The author adds that the Orthodox Christians regretted the
capitulation, as they would have liked to massacre the Franks.
2 Ernoul, pp. 320-4; Estoire d Eracks, n, pp. 100-3.
467
The Horns ofHaitin
congratulate him and to ask that the Christian Holy Places should
revert to the Orthodox Church. After a little delay his request was
granted. Many of Saladin s friends had urged him to destroy the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre. But he pointed out that it was the
site, not the building, that the Christians venerated; they would
still wish to make pilgrimages there. Nor did he want to dis
courage that. In fact the Church was only closed for three days.
Then Prankish pilgrims were admitted on payment of a fee. 1
The Christian refugees had not left the city before the Cross
over the Dome of the Rock was taken down and all signs of
Christian worship removed, and the mosque of al-Aqsa cleaned
of all traces of the occupation of the Templars. Both buildings
were sprinkled with rose-water and dedicated once more to the
service of Islam. On Friday, 9 October, Saladin was present with
a vast congregation to give thanks to his God in the Mosque. 2
With the recovery of Jerusalem Saladin s chief duty to his faith
had been performed. But there were still some Prankish fortresses
to be reduced. The Lady Stephanie of Oultrejourdain had been
among the ransomed captives at Jerusalem, and she had asked
Saladin for the release of her son Humphrey of Toron. He agreed
on condition that her two great castles were surrendered to him.
Humphrey was sent from his prison to join her; but neither at
Kerak nor at Montreal would the garrison obey her order to give
themselves up. As she had failed in her bargain she sent her son
back into captivity. Her honourable action pleased Saladin, who
gave Humphrey his liberty a few months later. Meanwhile al-
Adil and the Egyptian army laid siege to Kerak. The siege lasted
1 For the native Christians fate, see Bar-Hebraeus, trans. Budge, pp. 326-7;
Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 198-201, reports the exchange of embassies between
Saladin and the Emperor. Maqrizi, ed. Blochet, p. 33, reports the temporary
closing of the Holy Sepulchre. For the Jews, see Schwab, Al Harizi , in
Archives de I Orient Latin, I, p. 236.
* Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. p. 120; Ibn al-Athir, pp. 704-5; Estoire d Erades,
n, p. 104; Ernoul, pp. 234-5; De Expugnatione, pp. 250-1; Ibn Khalikan, n,
pp. 634-41, reports the uplifting sermon preached by the chief cadi of Aleppo
at the first service in the Mosque of Aqsa.
468
: Reynold of Sidoris Diplomacy
for more than a year. For many months the defenders were near
to starvation. Their women and children were turned out to fend
for themselves; some indeed were sold by their men-folk to the
Bedouin in return for food. Only when the last horse in the
fortress had been eaten did the castle surrender, at the end of 1188.
Montreal, less closely pressed, held out for some months longer. 1
Farther north the Templar castle of Safed surrendered on
6 December 1188, after a month s heavy bombardment, and the
Hospitallers at Belvoir, high over the Jordan valley, followed suit
a month later. The Chateau Neuf at Hunin had been occupied
some time before. Beaufort, where Reynald of Sidon had taken
refuge, was saved by his diplomacy. He was a learned man, with
a passionate interest in Arabic literature. He came to Saladin s
tent professing himself willing to surrender his castle and retire to
Damascus, if he were allowed three months to settle his affairs.
He even hinted that he might embrace Islam. So charming was
his conversation that Saladin was convinced of his good faith, only
to find out too late that the truce that he had granted had been
used to strengthen the castle defences. In the meantime Saladin
had moved into the territory of Tripoli and Antioch. 2
Raymond of Tripoli died about the end of 1187. Soon after his
escape from Hattin he had fallen ill of pleurisy, though men
thought that his sickness was due to melancholy and shame.
Many of his contemporaries considered him a traitor whose
selfishness helped to ruin the kingdom; but William of Tyre and
Balian of Ibelin both were his friends and defenders. His real
tragedy was the tragedy of all the Prankish colonists of the second
and third generation, who by temperament and from policy were
ready to become part of the Oriental world but were forced by
the fanaticism of their newly-come western cousins to take sides;
1 Ernoul, p. 1 87 ; Estoire Bracks, n, p. 122 ; Abu Shama, p. 3 82 ; Bena ed-Din,
P.T.T.S. pp. 139, 143- 1t ,
2 Belia ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 122-3, 138-41. 142-3- He met Reynald and
found him charming; Abu Shama, pp. 395-400; Kemal ad-Din, ed. Blochet,
p. 191.
469
The Horns ofHattin
and in the end they could not but take sides with fellow-Christians.
He had no children; so he bequeathed his county to his godson
Raymond, son of his nearest male relative, Prince Bohemond of
Antioch; but he stipulated that should a member of the house of
Toulouse come to the East the county must be his. Bohemond
accepted the inheritance for his son, then substituted the boy s
younger brother, Bohemond, for fear, that Antioch and Tripoli
together might be more than one man could defend. 1
Indeed, there was soon little left of the inheritance. On I July
1188 Saladin swept through the Buqaia, with reinforcements
newly come from Sinjar. He passed by the Hospitaller fortress at
Krak, which he thought too strong to attack. He moved towards
Tripoli; but the arrival there of the King of Sicily s fleet deterred
him. He turned north. At Tortosa he stormed the town, but the
Templars castle held out against him. He pressed on, under the
walls of Marqab, where the Hospitallers tried to dispute his
passage. Jabak surrendered on Friday, 15 July, Lattakieh on
Friday the 22nd. Lattakieh had been a lovely city, with its
churches and palaces dating from Byzantine times. The Moslem
chronicler, Abu Shama, who was with the army, wept to see it
pillaged and ruined. From Lattakieh Saladin turned inland to
Sahyun. The vast castle of the Hospitallers was thought to be
impregnable; but after a few days of fierce fighting it was taken
by assault on Friday, 29 July. On Friday, 12 August, the garrison
of Bakas-Shoqr, well protected though their castle was by
stupendous ravines, surrendered when no help was forthcoming
from Antioch. On Friday the ipth the town of Sarminya fell.
A few days later, on the 23rd, Burzey, the southernmost of the
Orontes castles, capitukted. Its commander was married to the
sister of Saladin s secret agent, the Princess of Antioch. He and
his wife were allowed their liberty. On 16 September the Tempkr
1 Raymond s death is reported, without an exact date, by Estoire d Eracles,
p. 72, where the arrangements for the succession are given, by Imad ed-Din
(in Abu Shama, p. 284) and by Beha ed-Din, P. T. T.S. p. 1 14. The Arab authors
say that he died of pleurisy. For his conduct at Hatrin, see below, Appendix II.
Benedict of Peterborough says that he was found dead in his bed (n, p. 21).
470
n8?: The Defence of Tyre
fott of Darbsaq in the Amamis mountains surrendered, and on the
26th the castle of Baghras, which commanded the road from
Antioch into Cilicia. 1 But Saladin s army now was weary, and
the troops from Sinjar wished to go home. When Prince Bohemond
begged for a truce which recognized all the Moslem conquests,
Saladin granted it to him. He could, he thought, finish off the task
whenever he chose. For all that was left to Bohemond and his
sons were their two capitals of Antioch and Tripoli and the port
of Saint Symeon, while the Hospitallers kept Marqab and Krak
and the Templars Tortosa. 2
But farther south there was one other city that Saladin had not
taken; and therein he made his great mistake. The refugee barons
of Palestine were crowded now in Tyre, the strongest city of the
coast, joined to the mainland only by a narrow sandy pensinsula,
across which a great wall was built. Had Saladin pressed an
attack on Tyre as soon as Acre was his, even this wall could not
have arrested him. But he delayed just too long. Reynald of
Sidon, who then commanded the city, was negotiating the sur
render; and Saladin had even sent two of his banners to be dis
played on the citadel, when on 14 July 1187, ten days after the
battle of Hattin, a ship sailed into the harbour. On board was
Conrad, son of the old Marquis of Montferrat and brother of
Queen Sibylla s first husband. He had been living at Constanti
nople but had been involved in a murder there; so he sailed
secretly away with a company of Prankish knights to pay a
pilgrimage to the Holy Places. He knew nothing of the disasters
in Palestine and made for Acre. When his ship arrived off the port
the captain was surprised not to hear the bell that was rung when
ever a sail was sighted. He felt that something was wrong so did
not cast anchor. Soon a sloop with a Moslem port-official aboard
1 Ernoul, pp. 252-3; Estoire d Bracks, n, p. 122; Abu Shama, pp. 356-76;
Bella ed~Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 125-38; Kemal ad-Din, ei Blochet, pp. 187-90;
Ibn al-Athir, pp. 726-9; Abu Shama, pp. 361-2, quotes Imad ed-Din s descrip
tion of Lattakieh and its sack.
2 Ibn al-Athir, pp. 732-3; Beha ed-Din, P.T.T.S. p. 37- The truce was to
last seven months.
471
The Horns ofHattin
came alongside; and Conrad, pretending to be a merchant, asked
what was happening, and was told that Saladin had taken the city
four days before. His horror at the news aroused the Moslem s
suspicion; but before he could raise an alarm Conrad had sailed
away up the coast to Tyre. There he was welcomed as a deliverer
and put in charge of the defence of the city. Saladin s peace-terms
were rejected, and his banners cast into the moat. Conrad was
vigorous, ruthless and brave. He saw that the city could be held
till help came from the West, and he was confident that on the
news of the fall of Jerusalem help would surely come. When
Saladin appeared a few days later before Tyre, the vigour of the
defence was too much for him. He brought down the Marquis of
Montferrat from Damascus and paraded him before the walls
threatening his death were the city not given up to him; but
Conrad s filial piety was not strong enough to deflect him from
his duty as a Christian warrior. He was unmoved; and Saladin,
with his usual kindliness, spared the old man s life. He raised the
siege to march against Ascalon. When next he appeared before
Tyre, in November 1187, its fortifications had been strengthened,
some naval and military reinforcements had arrived, and the
narrow terrain prevented him from using his men and mangonels
to advantage. Ten Moslem ships were brought up from Acre; but
on 29 December five of them were captured by the Christians;
and a simultaneous attack on the walls was driven back. At a
council of war Saladin listened to those of his emirs who pointed
out that his troops needed a rest. The winter was wet and cold,
and there was illness in the camp. On New Year s Day 1188,
Saladin disbanded half his army and retired to conquer the inland
castles. Conrad s energy and confidence had saved the city and
with it the continuance of the Christian kingdom. 1
Saladin was kter to regret very bitterly his failure to capture
Tyre. But his achievements had already been tremendous.
1 Emoul, pp, 179-83, 240-4; Estoire d Eracles, n, pp. 74-8, 104-10; Itiner-
arium Regis Ricardi, pp. 18-19; Bella ed-Din, P.T.T.S. pp. 120-2; Ibn al-Athir,
pp. 694-6, 707-12.
472
1187: Saladins Honour
Whether his triumphs were due to the inevitable response of
Islam to the challenge of the intruder Franks, or to the far-sighted
policy of his great predecessors, or to the quarrels and the follies
of the Franks themselves, or to his own personality, he had given
proof of the force and the spirit of the East. At the Horns of
Hattin and the gates of Jerusalem he had avenged the humiliation
of the First Crusade, and he had shown how a man of honour
celebrates his victory.
473
APPENDIX I
PRINCIPAL SOURCES FOR
THE HISTORY OF THE
LATIN EAST, 1100-1187
1. GREEK
The Greek historians only deal with the Latins in the East when they
come into direct contact with Byzantium. Tijl 1118 ANNA COMNENA S
Alexiad is still the most important Greek source, though die sequence
of events in her account of Prankish affairs is rather confused. 1 For die
reigns of John and Manuel Comnenus the two essential sources are the
histories of JOHN CINNAMUS and NICETAS ACOMINATUS, or CHONIATES.
The former was the secretary of Manuel Comnenus and wrote his
work just after Manuel s death. His account of John s reign is a little
perfunctory; but he deals carefully and authoritatively with Manuel s.
Apart from mild patriotic prejudices he is a sober historian on whom
reliance can be placed. 3 NICETAS wrote early in the thirteenth century,
and covers the period from John s reign till after the Latin capture of
Constantinople. His history is quite independent of that of Cinnamus.
From the latter half of Manuel s reign onward he is describing events
of which he had personal knowledge; and, in spite of an over-rhetorical
style and a tendency to moralize, he is accurate and reliable. 3 No other
Greek source is of major importance, 4 except for an interesting but
rather vague account of a pilgrimage to Palestine in 1178 by a certain
JOHN PHOCAS.S
1 See above, vol. I, pp. 327-8.
* Published in the Bonn Corpus.
3 Published in the Bonn Corpus.
4 Zonaras is still useful for the first years of the century. See above, vol. I,
p. 328. The verse chronicle of Manasses provides a litde unimportant material
(published in the Bonn Corpus). The relevant poems of Prodromus are pub
lished in the Recueil des Historiens des Crusades.
5 Translated in the Palestine Pilgrims Text Society, vol. V.
475
Appendix I
2. LATIN
For the early history of the Crusading states our main sources are
historians of die First Crusade, notably FULCHER OF CHARTRES* and
ALBERT OF Aix 2 and, to a lesser degree, RADULPH OF CAEN,S EKKEHARD
OF AuRA 4 and CAFFARO.^ I have discussed these in die first volume of this
history. It should be added that for the period noo to 1119, when it
comes to an end, Albert s history can be regarded as a thoroughly
reliable source. Where he obtained his information is unknown, but
whenever it can be checked from Syrian sources it is confirmed by
them.
Antiochene history for the period 1115 to 1122 is covered by a short
work called De Bella Antiochene, by WALTER THE CHANCELLOR, who
was probably the Chancellor to Prince Roger. It is an unpretentious
work, full of useful information about the history and institutions of
Antioch at the time. 6
From 1127, when Fulcher ends his work, till the last decade before
Saladin s conquest of Jerusalem our only important Latin source is
WILLIAM OF TYRE S Historia rerum inpartibus fransmarinis gestarum, which
covers the period 1095 to 1184.? William was born in the East shordy
before 1130. He probably learnt Arabic and Greek as a child, then
went to France to finish his education. Soon after his return to
Palestine, in about 1 160, he became Archbishop of Tyre and Chancellor
of the Kingdom from 1170 to 1174. He was also tutor of the future
Baldwin IV. In 1175 he became Archbishop of Tyre. In 1183, after
his failure to secure the Patriarchate, he retired to Rome, where he
died before 1187. He began writing his history in 1169 and had
finished the first thirteen books by 1173. He took the whole work
with him to Rome and was still working on it at the time of his death.
For his account of the First Crusade William relied mainly on Albert
and to a lesser extent on Raymond of Aguilers, Baudri s version of the
Gesta, and Fulcher. From noo to 1127 Fulcher is his main source,
1 See above, vol. I, p. 329. 2 See above, vol. I, p. 331.
3 See above, vol. i, p. 331. 4 See above, vol. i, p. 330.
5 See above, vol. I, p. 332. 6 Ed. in the Recueil.
7 Ed. in the Recueil. See above, vol. i, pp. 321-2, For William s chronology,
see Stevenson, Crusaders in the East, pp. 361-71, a full and authoritative
discussion.
Appendix I
though he also used Walter the Chancellor. His only additions to them
are personal anecdotes about the Kings and information about the
Eastern Churches and about Tyre. For the period 1127 till his return
to the East, he depended on the archives of the Kingdom and on a lost
skeleton chronicle of the Kings, In consequence his information about
northern Syria is sometimes unreliable. From the n6o*s onward he
had an intimate and shrewd personal knowledge of the events and
actors that he described. His dates are confused and at times demon-
strably wrong. It is probable that they were added to his manuscript
by an early transcriber. William is one of the greatest of medieval
historians. He had his prejudices, such as his dislike of lay-control of
the Church, but he is temperate in his words about his personal
enemies, such as the Patriarch Heraclius and Agnes of Courtenay, who
both deserved his censure. He makes mistakes where his information
was inadequate. But he had a broad vision; he understood the signi
ficance of the great events of his time and the sequence of cause and
effect in history. His style is straightforward and not without humour.
, His work leaves the impression that he was himself a wise, honourable
and likeable man. His other chief work, a History of the East, based
on the Arabic history of Said ibn Bitriq, is unfortunately lost though it
was used by historians of the following century, such as Jacques of Vitry.
A Latin Continuation of William of Tyre s history was written in the
West in 1194, with later additions. 1 It is a sober, objective work,
probably based on a lost work which also is the base of the first book
of die Itinerarium Ricardi, which covers the years from 1184 till the
Third Crusade. 3 The continuations in Old French present a greater
problem. Towards die middle of the thirteenth century William s
History was translated by a subject of the French King. He paraphrased
some passages and included comments of doubtful value. To it he
added a continuation which extended well into the thirteenth century.
From its opening words this work is usually known as the Estoire
d Erades. About the same time a certain Bernard the Treasurer brought
out in the East a continuation of the year 1129 attributed to Ernoul,
who was a squire of Balian of Ibelin. These two translations are closely
related and are found in a large number of manuscripts, which, how
ever, contain variations that can be divided into three groups for the
1 Ed. by M. Salloch.
* The Itinerarium is published in die Rolls Series, edited by Stubbs.
477
Appendix I
period 1184 to 1198. It is impossible to say which is the original
manuscript, as each group contains episodes not found in either of the
others. The most likely solution is that they all depend for this period
on a lost work by Ernoul himself. Ernoul certainly supplied the first
hand account of the events of i May 1187, found in Bernard s Ernoul-
and the whole group shows an interest in the Ibelins and gives many
eyewitness descriptions that would fit in with authorship by one of the
Ibelin household. These continuations are on the whole reliable sources
though not objective. Ernoul seems to have been a careful recorder in
so far as his party bias in favour of the Ibelins allowed. The chrono
logical order of the earlier passages is haphazard. They seem to consist
of disjointed observations and memories. 1
Saladin s conquest of Palestine is also described in a short Libellus de
expugnatione Terrae Sanctaeper Saladinum, sometimes attributed to Ralph
of Coggeshall and almost certainly written by an Englishman, a few
years after die event that it describes. The author shows admiration for
the Military Orders, particularly for the Temple, of whose misdeeds he
is tactfully silent, but at the same time he is friendly to Raymond of
Tripoli. He includes an eyewitness account of the siege of Jerusalem
itself supplied by a soldier who was wounded there. *
There are some later histories of the Kingdom which give further
information, notably the HISTORIA RJEGNI HDEROSOLYMITANI, a con
tinuation of Caffaro, the ANNALES DE LA TERRE SAINTE and a brief
HISTORIA REGUM HIEROSOLYMITANORUM.S The history of the Second
Crusade is treated fully in the De Ludovid VII profectione in Omnium
of Odo of Deuil, a vivid and highly prejudiced account by a participant
of Louis s journey as far as Attalia, and more briefly in the jGesta
Friderici of Otto of Freisingen, himself also a participant; and the Life
of Louis VII by SuGER. 4 AMBROSE S poem, L Estoire de la Guerre Sainte,
1 The Estoire d Erades is edited in the Recueil. Ernoul is edited by Mas
Latrie. For a discussion of the whole problem, see Mas Latrie s introduction
to Ernoul and Cahen, La Syrie du Nord, pp. 21-4.
* Ed. by J. Stevenson in the Rolls Series.
3 The Historia Regni Bier, is published in M.G.H.Ss., the Annales de la Tern
Sainte, edited by Rohricht, in the Archives de Y Orient Latin and the Historia
Regum in Kohler, Melanges.
4 Odo, or Eudes, of Detail s book has recendy been edited by Waquet, and
Otto of Freisingen s Gesta by Hofmeister in M.G.H.Ss., new series. There is no
good edition of Suger s work.
478
Appendix I
as well as the Itinerarium Regis Ricardi, though dealing with the Third
Crusade, gives retrospective information. 1
Many western chroniclers contain passages of relevance to the Latin
East, such as the Englishman William of Malmesbury, Benedict of
Peterborough and the historians concerned with the Third Crusade;
the Frenchman Sigebert of Gembloux and his continuators and Robert
of Torigny ; the Italians Romuald and Sicard of Cremona; and others. 2
The most important is the Norman Orderic Vitalis, whose chronicle,
which ends in 1138, is full of information about Outremer, in particular
about northern Syria. It is probable that Orderic had friends or relatives
amongst the Normans of Antioch. Many of his stories are obvious
legends, but much of his matter is convincing and is not found elsewhere. 3
Of the relevant contemporary letters the most important group is
contained in die papal correspondence. The correspondence of Louis VII
and Conrad III throws light on the Second Crusade. 4 A few letters
written by distinguished Latins in the East have survived. 5 The
archives of three ecclasiastical establishments in the East have survived,
those of the Holy Sepulchre and of the Abbeys of Saint Mary Josaphat
and of Saint Lazarus. The archives of the Order of the Hospital are
almost complete, but those of the Temple are only known by rare and
indirect references. There are also a certain number of lay records
dealing with the transfer of land in the Prankish States. 6 The papal
archives give some additional information; and information on com
mercial affairs can be extracted from those of Pisa, Venice and Genoa. 7
The assises of Jerusalem, which were written later, contain specific
assises dating from the twelfth century. 8
1 Ambroise is edited by G. Paris. There is an English translation with useful
notes by Hubert and La Monte.
* For editions of these chroniclers, see Bibliography, below, pp. 493-5-
3 The best edition of Orderic is still that of Le Prevost.
4 Published in R.H.F. and JafTe, Bibliotheca, Wibaldi Epistolae respectively.
5 Most are published in R.H.F. Others are found in various chronicles.
6 See Bibliography, below, p. 494, for the Cartulaires. Most of them are
summarized in Rohricht s Regesta.
1 The Papal letters are to be found in M.P.L. The Italian, archives have not
been completely published. For a summary of existing publications, see Cahen,
op. cit. pp, 3-4.
8 The Assises are published in the Recueil For a discussion, see La Monte,
Feudal Monarchy, and Grandclaude, op. cit.
479
Appendix I
Two travellers to Palestine during the twelfth century, SAEWULF,
who was probably an Englishman who visited the country in noi, and
the German JOHN OF WURZBURG, who came in about 1175, both left
records of interest. 1
3. ARABIC
As the twelfth century advances the contemporary Arabic sources grow
in number. For the first part of the century we are dependent on
IBN AL-QALANISI* for Damascene affairs, on AL-AziMi 3 for northern
Syria and on the somewhat muddled work of IBN AL-AzRAQ 4 for the
Jezireh, apart from citations from lost chronicles given by later writers.
"We have, however, the invaluable memoirs of USAMA IBN MUNQIDH.S
Usama was a prince of Shaizar, born in 1095. He was exiled forty-three
years later, as the result of a family intrigue, and spent the rest of his
ninety-three years of life mainly in Damascus, with sojourns in Egypt
and at Diarbekir. Though an utter intriguer to whom personal loyalty
meant nothing, he was a man of great charm and intelligence, a soldier,
a sportsman and a man of letters. His reminiscences, called Instruction
t>y Examples, have no chronological order and are the unverified recol
lections of an old man, but they give an extraordinarily vivid picture of
life amongst the Arab and Prankish aristocrats of his time. Almost as
vivid are the Travels of the Spaniard IBN JUBAYR, who passed through
the Kingdom of Jerusalem in ii8i. 6
Saladin s career inspired a whole crop of writers, of whom the most
important are IMAD ED-DiN 7 of Isfahan, BEHA ED-DIN IBN SHADDAD,
1 Ed. and translated into English in P.T.T.S. vols. rv and v.
a See above, vol. I, pp. 332-3. 3 See above, vol. I, p. 334.
4 Not fully published. Relevant extracts are analysed by Cahen, in. Journal
Asiatique, 1935.
5 For Usama I use the translation by Hitti (An Arab-Syrian Gentleman) which
is based on a more careful study of the original text than that of Derenbourg, pub
lished in 1 89 5 . The English translation by Potter is based on Derenbourg s version.
6 The full text of Ibn Jubayr, edited by Wright, was published nearly
100 years ago at Ley den. A translation into French by Gaudefroy-Demonbynes
is in process of publication, and a translation into English by R. Broadhurst is
to be published shortly. Extracts are given in the RecueiL
7 For Imad ed-Din s works, see Cahen, La Syrie du Nord, pp. 50-2. Abu
Shama (see below), p. 482, gives long extracts from his works.
8 The Arabic text is edited by Schultens, and in the Recueil. I refer in the
footnotes above to the English translation published in the P.T.S.S., which is
made from a correlation of the two editions.
480
Appendix I
and the anonymous author of the Bustan, the General Garden of all the
Histories of the Ages. 1 Imad ed-Din had been a Seldjuk functionary in
Iraq who passed into Nur ed-Din s service and was Saladin s secretary
from 1173 onwards. He wrote a number of works, including a History
of the Seldjuks and an account of Saladin s wars. The latter was repro
duced almost in its entirety by Abu Shama and is the most authoritative
source for Saladin s biography. His language is peculiarly ornate,
complex and difficult. Beha ed-Din was also a member of Saladin s
entourage, which he joined in 1188. His life of Saladin, written in
a simple, concise style, depends mainly on hearsay and some reminis
cences of Saladin himself till that date. Thenceforward he is as
authoritative as Imad ed-Din. The Bustan was written at Aleppo in
1196/7. It is a rather bare and summary history of Islam, dealing mainly
with Aleppo and Egypt, but contains information only found other
wise in the later and fuller history of Ibn abi Tayyi. Both may depend
on a lost Shia source. The other contemporary chroniclers AL-FADIL,
AS-SHAIBANI and IBN AD-DAHHAN, are known only from quotations. *
The greatest historical writer of the thirteenth century is IBN
AL-ATHTR of Mosul, who was born in 1160 and died in 1233. His
Kamil at-Tawarikh, or Historical Compendium, is a history of the Moslem
world, for which he made careful and critical selections from earlier
and contemporary writers. For the First Crusade and the beginning
of the twelfth century his entries are rather brief. For the end of the
century he is mainly dependent on the writers of Saladin s entourage,
though he adds a few personal reminiscences. For the middle of the
century, which is covered by no important Moslem historian, he seems
to have used original material. His chronology is deficient; he does
not name his sources and often transforms their accounts, particularly
to suit his pro-Zengid prejudices. But like William of Tyre, he is a real
historian who tried to understand the broad significance of the events
that he described. His second work, the History of the Atabegs of Mosul,
is an inferior piece of writing, a somewhat uncritical panegryric, which,
however, contains some information not found elsewhere. 3
The Mines of Gold of IBN ABI TAYYI of Aleppo, the only great Shia
chronicler, born in 1180, is known to us only from the copious if
1 Ed. by Cahen in the Bulletin de I lnstitut Oriental a Damas.
* See Cahen, La Syne du Nord, pp. 52-4.
3 For editions, see above, vol. I, p. 334 n. 2.
RC 481 3i
Appendix I
rather self-conscious use made of it by Sunni chroniclers. It was
clearly a work of great importance, covering all Moslem history, with
special reference to Aleppo; and from the surviving quotations it must
have made a more detailed use of the same source as the Bustan. 1
KEMAL AD-DiN of Aleppo who lived from 1191 to 1262, the author of
a probably unfinished biographical encyclopaedia, wrote before 1243
a Chronicle of Aleppo, a long, clearly and simply written work, largely
dependent on Al-Azimi, Ibn al-Qalanisi and the contemporaries of
Saladin, as well as oral traditions and information. Kemal is not very
careful in correlating his sources and he is prejudiced against the Shia. 3
SIBT IBN AL-DJAUZI, born at Baghdad in 1186, wrote one of the longest
of Moslem chronicles, the Mirror of the Times; but as regards the twelfth
century he merely reproduced information given by earlier writers.3
ABU SHAMA, born at Damascus in 1203, completed in 1251 a history of
the reigns of Nur ed-Din and Saladin, called the Book of the Two Gardens*
It consists largely of transcripts from Ibn al-Qalanisi, Beha ed-Din,
Ibn al-Athir s Atabegs, Ibn abi Tayyi, al-Fadil and, above all, Imad ed-
Din, to whose style, however, lie gave a very welcome pruning.
Of later historians, ABU L FED A, Prince of Hama in the early four
teen th century, wrote a history which is nothing more than a useful
summary of earlier historians but which enjoyed enormous popularity
and is often quoted. 5 IBN KHALDUN, who wrote at the end of the
fourteenth century, summarized Ibn al-Atbir for Syrian affairs, but
used for Egyptian history the lost chronicle of IBN AT-TuwAiR, written
in Saladin s time. 6 MAQRISI, writing in the early fifteenth century,
contains information about Egypt not found elsewhere. 7
The biographical dictionary of IBN KHALLIKAN, compiled in the
thirteenth century, contains a few unique pieces of historical
raformation. 8
1 See Cahen, op. cit. pp. 55-7.
2 See above, vol. i, p. 334 n. 3. His chapters covering the later twelfth
century are translated by Blochet and published in the Revue de I Orient Latin.
3 A few extracts are published in the RecueiL A facsimile edition of another
rather different MS. is published by Jewett (Chicago, 1907).
4 An edition was published at Bulaq in 1871 and 1875. My references are
to extracts published in the RecueiL
5 Ed. in the RecueiL 6 Ed. at Bulaq in 7 vols. in 1868.
7 Extracts are translated by Blochet in Revue de I Orient Latin.
8 Translated into French by de Slane.
482
Appendix I
There axe no sources dealing directly with the Anatolian Turks.
Indeed, the thirteenth century IBN BIBI informs us that he could not
start his history of the Seldjuks before the year 1192, the death of
Kilij Arslan II, owing to the lack of material. 1 Nor are there any
relevant sources in Pers 
