t of al-Karak was going to attack the
pilgrims
and cut off their advance, making it clear that once he had dealt with them he would return to bar the way to the Egyptian army and prevent its joining up with the Syrians.
Arab-Historians-of-the-Crusades
'1 He was indulgent to those who failed and slow to wrath.
I was on duty at his side at Marj 'Uyu?
n before the Franks attacked Acre--may God make its reconquest easy!
--It was his custom to ride on for as long as possible and then to dismount and have food served, which he would eat in company with his men before retiring to sleep in his private tent.
When he awoke he would pray, and then withdraw, with me in attendance on him, to read a section of hadi?
th or Law: among other works that he read with me was an anthology of Sula?
im ar-Razi, including the four sections of the Law.
One day he dismounted as usual and food was served.
He was about to rise when he was told that it was almost the hour of prayer, so he sat down again and said: 'Let us pray, and then let us go to bed.
' He sat and talked wearily.
Everyone except his personal servants had withdrawn, when suddenly there appeared an ancient mamlu?
k whom he held in high esteem, who presented him with a plea from someone fighting in the Holy War.
'I am tired now,' said the Sultan, 'present it again a little later', but the man would not comply with this request.
He held the plea up to the Sultan's august face, opening it so that he could read it.
Saladin read the name written at the top, recognized it and said: 'A worthy man.
' 'Well then,' said the other, 'Your Majesty will inscribe your placet.
' 'But there is no inkwell here,' said the Sultan, for he was sitting at the opening of the tent, blocking the entrance, while the inkstand was at the back of the tent, which was a big one.
But his interlocutor observed: 'There is the inkstand, at the back of the tent!
' which was nothing if not an invitation to Saladin to bring that very inkwell out.
The Sultan turned, saw the inkstand and said: 'By Alla?
h, you are right!
' He leaned on his left elbow, stretched out his right hand, took the inkstand, signed the plea.
.
.
.
Then I said: 'God said to His prophet: "You are truly a magnanimous man",1 and it seems to me that Your Majesty shares this quality with him,' to which Saladin replied: 'It did not cost anything: we heard what he wanted, and we wanted to recompense him.
' If a similar thing had happened to a private individual he would have lost his temper; and who would have been capable of replying to one of his subordinates in this way?
This is the perfection of kindness and generosity, 'and God will not let such goodness go unrewarded'.
1
Sometimes, when the crowd thronged round him to present their pleas, the cushion on which he sat ended up crushed underfoot, yet he did not seem to mind at all. Once, while I was riding beside him, my mule took fright at the camels and kicked his thigh, injuring it; and he simply smiled. One rainy windy day as I was entering Jerusalem with him and the road was terribly muddy the mule splashed him and ruined all his clothes; but he smiled and refused to allow me to ride further back because of the incident.
Sometimes he was addressed in the most insulting manner by postulants and plaintiffs; his reaction to it was always cheerful and benevolent. Here is a splendid anecdote on the subject: The Frankish King's brother was making for Jaffa, while our army had withdrawn toward Natru? n, two days' forced march from Jaffa or three days' normal march. Saladin
Qur'a? n III, 128. Qur'a? n LVIII, 4. Qur'a? n IX, 121
1 1 1
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 65
sent out a detachment of troops on reconnaissance and then set out for Caesarea to confront a troop of enemy reinforcements whom he hoped to drive off. The Franks of Jaffa, among them the King of England2 and some of his men, heard of this, and the King sent most of his troops by sea to Caesarea for fear that some harm might befall the reinforcements, keeping only a few men with him for he knew that Saladin and his army were far away. When Saladin and his army reached Caesarea he found that the reinforcements had already arrived in the city and strengthened its defences. When he saw that he could not touch them he left that evening, marched all night and reached Jaffa in the morning. The English King with seventeen knights and about three hundred infantry had camped outside the city in one of their tents, and at dawn was attacked by our army. The King--God damn him! --who was excitable, valorous and shrewd in warfare, mounted his horse and planted himself in front of us, not entering the city. The Muslim army surrounded him on every side except that of the city and ranged itself in battle order. The Sultan gave his troops the command to charge, taking advantage of the propitious circumstances. Suddenly a Kurdish ami? r replied in openly disrespectful terms, up-braiding him for a fief that he considered less than munificent. The Sultan pulled his horse round on its rein in contempt, realizing that on that day absolutely nothing would be achieved. He left them and turned back, ordering that the tent that had been pitched for him should be struck. The army broke contact with the enemy, certain that today the Sultan would have several people killed and crucified; his own son al-Malik az-Zahir told me that on that day he was so afraid of his father that he did not dare to appear in his presence, although he had led a charge and pushed forward until Saladin had stopped him. The Sultan went as far as Yazu? r, a short day's march; a small tent was pitched for him where he dismounted, while the army encamped under small shelters, as was usually done on these occasions. All the ami? rs trembled with fear, certain that they would be rebuked and come under the shadow of the Sultan's wrath. 'I could not bring myself to appear before him,' said al-Malik az-Zahir, 'until he sent for me. I went in and saw that he had received a quantity of fruit from Damascus. "Send for the Ami? rs to come and eat some of this," he commanded. My fear dissolved, I sent for the ami? rs, who appeared in fear and trembling, and saw that his face was cheerful and that his affability calmed and soothed them. They left him to prepare for departure as if nothing had happened. You see what humanity he showed, so difficult to maintain in these times, and unknown in the stories of the kings of old! '
HIS UNFAILING GOODNESS
The Prophet said: 'I was sent to reveal clearly the soul's most noble qualities' and when someone seized his hand he did not withdraw it until the man let go of his own accord. The Sultan too was distinguished by the nobility of his conduct, the benevolence of his regard, his great modesty and extraordinary affability to his guests. He would not permit anyone who visited him to leave without eating with him, or to ask for something without receiving it. Everyone who appeared before him was treated with honour, even an infidel; the Prince of Antioch came to visit him, appearing unexpectedly at the mouth of his tent, after the
2
Richard Coeur de Lion.
66 Arab Historians of the Crusades
truce of shawwa? l 588/November 1192 had been signed and the Sultan was returning from Jerusalem to Damascus. He came upon him suddenly on the journey and presented a plea to him, and the Sultan made him a gift of al-'Umq, a territory that he had taken from him in the year of his conquest of Palestine in 584/1188-89. Again, when the ruler of Sidon came to Nazareth I saw him receive him with reverence and honour and divide his food with him, even offering him the chance of embracing Isla? m, describing its prayers and exhorting him to be converted. He showed equal generosity to religious leaders,1 scholars and men of virtue and reputation, and directed us that every well-known religious leader visiting the camp should be presented to him, so that he could show him his hospitality. In 584 a man who was well known as a scholar and mystic passed by the camp. He was a member of a distinguished family, his father was ruler of Tabri? z but the son had dissociated himself from his father's occupation and dedicated himself to learning and acts of piety. He had undertaken the Pilgrimage and had come on a visit to Jerusalem where, having seen the Sultan's pious acts, he had the idea of visiting him. He came to our camp and entered my tent unexpectedly. I received him, welcomed him and asked the reason for his visit. He told me about it, saying that he had desired to visit the Sultan because of the noble and praiseworthy works of his that he had seen. That evening I informed the Sultan of the man's visit and he sent for him, heard some hadi? th from him and encouraged him in the path of virtue. Then we retired and the man spent the night in my tent with me. After the morning prayer he began to take his leave of me. It seemed discourteous to let him go without saying goodbye to the Sultan, but the man refused: 'I have received what I wanted of him,' he said. 'I only wanted to see him and pay him a visit. ' Whereupon he left. Some days later the Sultan asked me about him and I told him what he had done. Saladin seemed upset that I had not told him of his departure and said: 'How could a man like that come and knock on our door and then go away without enjoying our beneficence? ' He disapproved so strongly of my conduct that I was obliged to write to Muhyi ad-Din, qadi of Damascus, charging him with the task of searching for the man and handing over to him the letter enclosed in his, which informed the man that the Sultan was very sorry that he had left without seeing him again and that the friendship between us should lead him to return. One day unexpectedly he did appear again. I led him to the Sultan, who received him with joy and detained him for several days. After that he gave him a fine robe of honour, a suitable mount and a pile of clothes to take to his family, disciples and neighbours, as well as a sum of money for the journey. So he parted from him, deeply grateful and offering up sincere prayers to God to grant the Sultan a long life.
Once a Frankish prisoner was brought before him in whom the Sultan aroused such fear that the marks of terror and agita-tion were visible in his face. The interpreter asked him: 'What are you afraid of? ' God inspired him to reply: 'At first I was afraid of seeing that face, but after seeing it and standing in his presence, I am sure that I shall see only good in it. ' The Sultan was moved, pardoned him and let him go free.
One day when I was on duty I was riding with him ahead of the Franks when a sentry brought up a woman who was in a distracted state, weeping and beating her breast. 'This
Masha'ikh, leaders of the mystical fraternities, or other old and devout men famous for their
1
virtue and holiness.
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 67
woman,' said the sentry, 'has come from the Frankish camp and asked to be brought before the Sultan, so we brought her here. ' The Sultan told the interpreter to ask her what was the matter, and she said that Muslim raiders had come into her tent the day before and had carried off her little daughter. 'All night long I have been seeking help, until this morning our leaders told me: "The Muslim King is merciful; we will let you leave the camp to go to him, and you can ask him for your daughter. " So they let me come, and you are my only hope of getting my baby back again. ' Saladin was moved to pity by her plight, and tears came into his eyes. His generous spirit prompted him to order someone to take her to the market-place in the camp to ask who had bought the child, repay him and bring her back. All this occurred in the morning; not an hour passed before the knight returned with the child on his shoulders. As soon as her mother caught sight of her she fell to the ground, rubbing her face in the dust, while everyone there wept with her. She raised her face to heaven, but we could not understand what she said. Her daughter was handed over to her and she was conducted back to her own camp.
Saladin did not like to treat his servants harshly even when they were guilty of serious dishonesty; two purses of Egyptian gold were taken from his treasury and two of copper substituted, and he punished the treasurers only with the loss of their jobs.
Prince Arna? t of al-Karak1 was brought before him, together with the King of the Palestinian Franks, both captured at the battle of Hitti? n in 583/1187, the famous battle of which we shall speak at length in its place. 1 This villain Arna? t was a powerful and violent infidel; during a period of truce between them and the Muslims a caravan from Egypt was passing by his territory and he broke the truce to attack and capture it, ill-treating and torturing the men and imprisoning them in narrow dungeons. When they invoked the truce his only reply was: 'Call on your Mahomet to save you. ' When this was reported to the Sultan he vowed that when God put the man in his power he would kill him with his own hand. On that day, when God did put him in his power, he reaffirmed his decision to kill him to fulfil his vow, and sent for him and the King. As the King was complaining of thirst he had a cup of sherbet brought for him. The King drank and offered it to Arna? t, but Saladin said to the interpreter: 'Tell the King, it was to you I gave the drink, and for my part I shall give him neither my water to drink nor my food to eat! ' meaning that if a man had eaten his food honour forbade him to do that man any harm. After that he struck off Arna? t's head with his own hand, in fulfilment of his vow. At the fall of Acre he released all the prisoners, more than 4,000 of them, from their dungeons and gave each a subsidy to enable him to reach his country and his people. So much I have heard from various people, for I was not present at this event.
Saladin was a pleasant companion, affectionate and shrewd, well versed in genealogy and the battles of the Arabs, their history and the genealogy of their horses, and the wonders and curiosities of the country; so much so that anyone who had the pleasure of his company would learn things that he could have heard from no one else. He put his companions at their ease and drew them out; he would ask one about one's health, how one looked after oneself, how one was eating and drinking and all about oneself. Conversation in his circle
Reynald of Cha^tillon.
In accounts of the events of Hitti? n we find references to the dramatic episode described here.
1 1
68 Arab Historians of the Crusades
was unusually honest, though no one was spoken of except in praise; he liked to hear only good of people and had a very restrained tongue; in fact I have never heard him speak ill of someone with enjoyment. It was the same when he wrote; he never wrote a line of insult to a Muslim. He observed all his obligations faithfully. Every time an orphan was brought before him he invoked God's mercy on his dead parents, consoled the child and provided the father's bread. 1 If there were a trustworthy old man in the orphan's family he would entrust the child to him, and if not he secured to the child an adequate portion of his father's salary and entrusted him to someone who would see to his up-bringing. The sight of an old man moved him to pity, and he would give him alms. He kept these noble qualities all his life, until God raised him to the seat of His mercy and the home of His grace.
All these are simply examples of his soul's lofty and noble qualities. I have limited myself in this way in order not to extend this book unduly and bore the reader, and have included only things seen with my own eyes or witnessed by trustworthy persons and checked by myself. This is only a part of what I myself saw when I was in his service, and is trivial compared with what others knew who had spent more time in his company and served him longer. This much however is enough to show the intelligent reader the purity of his noble character.
As is explained in the sentence that follows, he awarded the child a pension equal to a whole or
1
a part of his father's salary, in the case of civil or military officials.
CHAPTER TWO
The year of triumph for Saladin's counter-offensive was, as mentioned above, 583/1187. The decisive battle of Hitti? n, which smashed for a time the crusading forces in the Holy Land, was followed by the loss of a large number of their strongholds in Palestine and, the deeper loss to the Christian world, by the fall of Jerusalem, recaptured for Isla? m in a conquest that added lustre to Saladin's reputation for humanity and moderation. Our narrators for these events are 'Ima? d ad-Din and Ibn al-Athi? r. (Baha? ' ad-Din was an eye- witness only of events from 1188 onward. ) For Hitti? n and the fall of Jerusalem we give both accounts; their style and content make a useful contrast. Ibn al-Athi? r's clear and sober version is deliberately placed before 'Ima? d ad-Din's wearisome obscurities, but the latter contain the most direct and authoritative testimony available.
Events preceding Hitti? n
(IBN AL-ATHI? R, XI, 347-51)
DISCORD BETWEEN THE FRANKS IN SYRIA; THE COUNT OF TRIPOLI JOINS SALADIN
The ruler of Tripoli, known as Count Raymond son of Raymond of Saint-Gilles1 married the Countess of Tiberias2 and moved to Tiberias to be with her. The King of the Franks in Syria died of leprosy3 and left the kingdom to his sister's son, a minor,4 with the Count as Regent. He took over the government and administration of the kingdom, and indeed at that time the Franks had no one braver or shrewder than he. The Count aspired to become King himself through the agency of the child, but the young King died and the kingdom passed to his mother, and the Count's ambitions were frustrated. Then the Queen1 fell in love with a knight called Guy who had come from the West to Syria, married him and handed over the crown and the royal authority to him. The Patriarch, the priests and monks, the Hospitallers, Templars and Barons were summoned, and she announced her abdication in favour of her husband. She called on them to be witnesses of the deed, and they swore loyalty and obedience to him. This displeased the Count, who was stripped of his authority
Raymond III.
Eschiva, Countess of Bures.
Baldwin IV (1174-85).
Baldwin V, died in 1186 after a few months of nominal rule.
Sibylla, sister of Baldwin IV, mother of Baldwin V, in second marriage wife of Guy of Lusignan.
1 2 3 4 1
70 Arab Historians of the Crusades
and asked to account for the moneys collected during his regency. He swore that he had spent them on the young King's behalf, but his loyalty to the new King was strained so far that he reached a position of open secession and rebellion. He began a correspondence with Saladin, established a cordial relationship with him and turned to him for help in achieving his ambition to rule the Franks. Saladin and the Muslims were pleased and Saladin promised to help him and to give him every possible assistance in his plans. He guaranteed to make him King of all the Franks. He freed some of the Count's knights whom he held prisoner, which made the best possible impression on Raymond, who openly displayed his obedience to Saladin. A certain number of Franks followed his example, which led to discord and disunity and was one of the chief reasons why their towns were reconquered and Jerusalem fell to the Muslims, as we shall narrate. Saladin sent guerrilla bands from the Tiberias region who devastated the Frankish lands and returned unscathed. This weakened the Franks but gave the Muslims energy and enthusiasm for attacking them.
PRINCE ARNA? T'S TREACHERY
Prince Arna? t of al-Karak2 was one of the chief Frankish barons and one of the most arrogant; a violent and most dangerous enemy of Isla? m. Saladin knew this and on several occasions attacked him and sent raiding parties into his territories. Arna? t humbled himself to sue for peace, which Saladin conceded, and both swore to observe a truce which would allow caravans to move freely between Syria and Egypt. In 582/1186-7, however, a great caravan passed close to his territory, richly laden and accompanied by a great host of people and a large armed escort. This infamous man broke the truce and attacked them, captured the whole caravan, seized the booty, animals and weapons, and threw all his prisoners into dungeons. Saladin sent letters rebuking him and reproaching him with his treachery, and threatening him with reprisals if he did not release the prisoners and their possessions. The Count persistently refused to comply. Saladin vowed that if ever he laid hands on him he would kill him, and what followed will be recounted, God willing.
SALADIN ATTACKS AL-KARAK
In 583/1187 Saladin wrote to all the provinces to call them to arms in the Holy War. He wrote to Mosul in the Jazira, to Arbela and other eastern states, to Egypt and to the Syrian domains, calling them to arms and exhorting them to fight in the Holy War, and commending as many as possible to arm themselves for battle. At the end of muharram/ April 1187 he and his army and the Damascene guard left Damascus and marched to Ras al-Ma', where the Syrian contingents joined them. He gave his son al-Malik al-Afdal 'Ali command of them and marched with a contingent of his own troops to Busra. This was because he had heard that Arna?
t of al-Karak was going to attack the pilgrims and cut off their advance, making it clear that once he had dealt with them he would return to bar the way to the Egyptian army and prevent its joining up with the Syrians. Saladin therefore
Al-Karak in Moab, Transjordan, a fort dominating the overland route between Egypt and Syria,
2
and Syria and the Hijaz.
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 71
marched on Busra to prevent Arna? t's attack on the pilgrims and to make him stay quietly at home for fear of the Sultan. Among the pilgrims was a whole group of Saladin's relations, including the son of one of his sisters: Muhammad ibn Laji? n. When Arna? t learned that Saladin was at the boundary of his territories he stayed where he was and abandoned his plans, and so the Pilgrimage went through in safety. When it had passed and all was quiet in that region Saladin marched on al-Karak and sent his raiding parties throughout the regions of al-Karak, ash-Shaubak and elsewhere, pillaging, breaking and burning, while the Prince was besieged and powerless to defend his lands, and fear of al-Afdal's army kept the other Franks immobilized at home. So Saladin was free to besiege and pillage, burn and ravage the whole region, which he did.
AN INCURSION INTO THE REGION OF ACRE
Saladin sent orders to his son al-Afdal to send a large detachment of the army into the region of Acre to plunder it and lay it waste. He took Muzaffar ad-Din Kio? kbari? ibn Zain ad-Din, ruler of Harra? n and Edessa, with Qaima? z an-Najmi and Yildiri? m al-Yaquti, two of the leading ami? rs, and several others. They left by night at the end of safar/May 1187 and attacked Saffuriyya in the morning. A body of Templars, Hospitallers and others came out of the city to repulse them and a terrible battle followed. God gave the Muslims victory at last and the Franks turned and fled. Some were killed and the rest captured. Among the dead was the Grand Master of the Hospital,1 one of the most famous Frankish noblemen, who had done much harm to the cause of Isla? m.
The Muslims sacked the regions round about, then returned safe and sound with their booty and prisoners to Tiberias, where the Count was. He had done nothing to prevent the Christians' defeat. It was a great victory, for the Templars and Hospitallers were the backbone of the Frankish armies. The joyful news spread far and wide.
SALADIN RETURNS TO HIS ARMY AND INVADES FRANKISH TERRITORY
When Saladin received the joyful news that the Templars and Hospitallers had been defeated and many of them slaughtered or taken prisoner he returned from al-Karak to the army under al-Afdal's command, where all the other ami? rs and troops were gathered. There he reviewed his army and estimated that he had 12,000 cavalry with regular fiefs and military stipends, as well as volunteers. The Sultan disposed the army in battle order, with a central column and two wings, a vanguard and a rearguard. He assigned to each man a post and commanded him not to desert it, and so marched out and encamped at Uqhuwana near Tiberias. We have already said that the Count was on Saladin's side. Saladin received a stream of letters from him with promises of help and support; 'But the Devil makes promises to them only to deceive them'. 1 Now when the Franks saw the Muslim armies
Roger des Moulins. Qur'a? n XVII, 66.
1 1
72 Arab Historians of the Crusades
and realized that they were bent on attacking them, they sent the Patriarch, with priests and monks and a large number of knights to Raymond to reproach him with having taken Saladin's side. 'You must have become a Muslim,' they said, 'otherwise you could not have endured what the Muslims have just done to the Franks by massacring and enslaving those Templars and Hospitallers, nor could you let them pass through your lands without objecting or intervening to stop them. ' The local militias of Tiberias and Tripoli joined in the remonstrances and the Patriarch threatened, among other things, to excommunicate him and to annul his marriage. When the Count saw what a serious situation he had created he took fright and said that he repented. They accepted his apologies, forgave him for his defection and begged him to join them against the Muslims and to give them. his help in the defence of their lands. The Count agreed to make his peace and be reunited with them and returned with them to the Frankish King, and so peace was restored between them after all that had happened. But God saw to it that it did them no good. Infantry and cavalry mustered and marched from Acre to Saffuriyya, but they were reluctant and demoralized.
The Battle of Hitti? n
(IBN AL-ATHI? R, XI, 351-5)
While the reunited Franks were on their way to Saffuriyya, Saladin called a council of his ami? rs. Most of them advised him not to fight, but to weaken the enemy by repeated skirmishes and raids. Others however advised him to pillage the Frankish territories, and to give battle to any Frankish army that might appear in their path, 'Because in the East people are cursing us, saying that we no longer fight the infidels but have begun to fight Muslims instead. So we must do something to justify ourselves and silence our critics. ' But Saladin said: 'My feeling is that we should confront all the enemy's forces with all the forces of Isla? m; for events do not turn out according to man's will and we do not know how long a life is left to us, so it is foolish to dissipate this concentration of troops without striking a tremendous blow in the Holy War. ' So on Thursday, 23 rabi? ' II/2 July 1187, the fifth day after we encamped at Uqhuwana, he struck camp and moved off up the hill outside Tiberias, leaving the city behind him. When he drew near to the Franks, however, there was no one to be seen, for they had not yet left their tents. So he went back down the hill with his army. At night he positioned troops where they would prevent the enemy from giving battle and then attacked Tiberias with a small force, breached the wall and took the city by storm during the night. The inhabitants fled for refuge to the citadel, where the Countess and her children were, and defended themselves there while the lower town was sacked and burned.
When the Franks learned that Saladin had attacked Tiberias and taken it and everything in it, burning the houses and anything they could not remove, they met to take counsel. Some advised the King to meet the Muslims in battle and chase them out of Tiberias, but the Count intervened to say: 'Tiberias belongs to me and my wife. There is no question that Saladin is master there now and that only the citadel remains, where my wife is immured. For my part, if he takes the citadel, my wife and all my possessions there and then goes away I shall be happy enough. By God, I have observed the armies of Isla? m over the course of the years and I have never seen one equal to Saladin's army here in numbers or
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 73
in fighting power. If he takes Tiberias he will not be able to stay there, and when he has left it and gone away we will retake it; for if he chooses to stay there he will be unable to keep his army together, for they will not put up for long with being kept away from their homes and families. He will be forced to evacuate the city, and we will free our prisoners. ' But Prince Arna? t of al-Karak replied: 'You have tried hard to make us afraid of the Muslims. Clearly you take their side and your sympathies are with them, otherwise you would not have spoken in this way. As for the size of their army, a large load of fuel will be good for the fires of Hell. . . . ' 'I am one of you,' said the Count, 'and if you advance then I shall advance with you, and if you retreat I shall retreat. You will see what will happen. ' The generals decided to advance and give battle to the Muslims, so they left the place where they had been encamped until now and advanced on the Muslim army. When Saladin received the news he ordered his army to withdraw from its position near Tiberias; his only reason for besieging Tiberias was to make the Franks abandon their position and offer battle. The Muslims went down to the water (of the lake). The weather was blazingly hot and the Franks, who were suffering greatly from thirst, were prevented by the Muslims from reaching the water. They had drained all the local cisterns, but could not turn back for fear of the Muslims. So they passed that night tormented with thirst. The Muslims for their part had lost their first fear of the enemy and were in high spirits, and spent the night inciting one another to battle. They could smell victory in the air, and the more they saw of the unexpectedly low morale of the Franks the more aggressive and daring they became; throughout the night the cries Alla? h akbar (God is great) and 'there is no God but Alla? h' rose up to heaven. Meanwhile the Sultan was deploying the vanguard of archers and distributing the arrows.
On Saturday 24 rabi? ' II/4 July 1187 Saladin and the Muslims mounted their horses and advanced on the Franks. They too were mounted, and the two armies came to blows. The Franks were suffering badly from thirst, and had lost confidence. The battle raged furiously, both sides putting up a tenacious resistance. The Muslim archers sent up clouds of arrows like thick swarms of locusts, killing many of the Frankish horses. The Franks, surrounding themselves with their infantry, tried to fight their way toward Tiberias in the hope of reaching water, but Saladin realized their objective and forestalled them by planting himself and his army in the way. He himself rode up and down the Muslim lines encouraging and restraining his troops where necessary. The whole army obeyed his commands and respected his prohibitions. One of his young mamlu? ks led a terrifying charge on the Franks and performed prodigious feats of valour until he was overwhelmed by numbers and killed, when all the Muslims charged the enemy lines and almost broke through, slaying many Franks in the process. The Count saw that the situation was desperate and realized that he could not withstand the Muslim army, so by agreement with his companions he charged the lines before him. The commander of that section of the Muslim army was Taqi ad-Din 'Umar, Saladin's nephew. When he saw that the Franks charging his lines were desperate and that they were going to try to break through, he sent orders for a passage to be made for them through the ranks.
One of the volunteers had set fire to the dry grass that covered the ground; it took fire and the wind carried the heat and smoke down on to the enemy. They had to endure thirst, the summer's heat, the blazing fire and smoke and the fury of battle. When the Count fled the Franks lost heart and were on the verge of surrender, but seeing that the only way to
74 Arab Historians of the Crusades
save their lives was to defy death they made a series of charges that almost dislodged the Muslims from their position in spite of their numbers, had not the grace of God been with them. As each wave of attackers fell back they left their dead behind them; their numbers diminished rapidly, while the Muslims were all around them like a circle about its diameter. The surviving Franks made for a hill near Hitti? n, where they hoped to pitch their tents and defend themselves. They were vigorously attacked from all sides and prevented from pitching more than one tent, that of the King. The Muslims captured their great cross, called the 'True Cross', in which they say is a piece of the wood upon which, according to them, the Messiah was crucified. 1 This was one of the heaviest blows that could be inflicted on them and made their death and destruction certain. Large numbers of their cavalry and infantry were killed or captured. The King stayed on the hillside with five hundred of the most gallant and famous knights.
I was told that al-Malik al-Afdal, Saladin's son, said: 'I was at my father Saladin's side during that battle, the first that I saw with my own eyes. The Frankish King had retreated to the hill with his band, and from there he led a furious charge against the Muslims facing him, forcing them. back upon my father. I saw that he was alarmed and distraught, and he tugged at his beard as he went forward crying: "Away with. the Devil's lie! " The Muslims turned to counter-attack and drove the Franks back up the hill. When I saw the Franks retreating before the Muslim onslaught I cried out for joy: "We have conquered them! " But they returned to the charge with undiminished ardour and drove our army back toward my father. His response was the same as before, and the Muslims counter-attacked and drove the Franks back to the hill. Again I cried: "We have beaten them! " but my father turned to me and said: "Be quiet; we shall not have beaten them until that tent falls! " As he spoke the tent fell, and the Sultan dismounted and prostrated himself in thanks to God, weeping for joy. ' This was how the tent fell: the Franks had been suffering terribly from thirst during that charge, which they hoped would win them a way out of their distress, but the way of escape was blocked. They dismounted and sat down on the ground and the Muslims fell upon them, pulled down the King's tent and captured every one of them, including the King,1 his brother, and Prince Arna? t of Karak, Isla? m's most hated enemy. They also took the ruler of Juba? il, the son of Humphrey (of Toron), the Grand Master of the Templars, one of the Franks' greatest dignitaries,2 and a band of Templars and Hospitallers. The number of dead and captured was so large that those who saw the slain could not believe that anyone could have been taken alive, and those who saw the prisoners could not believe that any had been killed. From the time of their first assault on Palestine in 491/1098 until now the Franks had never suffered such a defeat.
When all the prisoners had been taken Saladin went to his tent and sent for the King of the Franks and Prince Arna? t of Karak. He had the King seated beside him and as he was half-dead with thirst gave him iced water to drink. The King drank, and handed the rest to the Prince, who also drank. Saladin said: 'This godless man did not have my permission to drink, and will not save his life that way. ' He turned on the Prince, casting his crimes in
According to the Qur'a? n, which preaches the Docetic doctrine, it was not the true person of Christ, but only a simulacrum, that was crucified.
Guy of Lusignan.
The Grand Master, Gerard of Ridfort.
1
1 2
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 75
his teeth and enumerating his sins. Then he rose and with his own hand cut off the man's head. 'Twice,' he said, 'I have sworn to kill that man when I had him in my power: once when he tried to attack Mecca and Medina, and again when he broke the truce to capture the caravan. ' When he was dead and had been dragged out of the tent the King began to tremble, but Saladin calmed and reassured him. As for the ruler of Tripoli, when he escaped from the battle, as we have described, he went to Tyre and from there made his way to Tripoli. He was there only a few days before he died of rage and fury at the disaster that had befallen the Franks in particular, and all Christendom in general.
When Saladin had brought about the downfall of the Franks he stayed at the site of the battle for the rest of the day, and on the Sunday returned to the siege of Tiberias. The Countess sent to request safe-conducts for herself and her children, companions and possessions, and he granted her this. She left the citadel with all her train, and Saladin kept his word to her and let her escape unmolested. At the Sultan's command the King and a few of the most distinguished prisoners were sent to Damascus, while the Templars and Hospitallers were rounded up to be killed. The Sultan realized that those who had taken them prisoner were not going to hand them over, for they hoped to obtain ransoms for them, and so he offered fifty Egyptian dinar for each prisoner in these two categories. Immediately he got two hundred prisoners, who were decapitated at his command. He had these particular men killed because they were the fiercest of all the Frankish warriors, and in this way he rid the Muslim people of them. He sent orders to his commander in Damascus to kill all those found in his territory, whoever they belonged to, and this was done.
A year later I crossed the battlefield, and saw the land all covered with their bones, which could be seen even from a distance, lying in heaps or scattered around. These were what was left after all the rest had been carried away by storms or by the wild beasts of these hills and valleys.
THE SULTAN SALADIN AND HIS ARMY ENTER FRANKISH TERRITORY ('IMA? D AD-DIN, 18-29)
In the morning the Sultan began to review the army in the field, like a cloud heavy with rain, a tempestuous sea of dust, a swelling ocean of whinnying chargers, of swords and cuirasses. He marshalled his gallant knights and his battalions who swept like a cloud over the face of the earth, making the dust fly up from earth to the Pleiades and sending the crows, to escape the dust, flying as far as Vega. The plain broke the seal of dust, lethal messages of impending disasters were fixed on the messenger-pigeons of death; the ribs of the bows longed to enclose their embryos the arrows, the curved arrow was careful to keep to its place on the right, the shot arrow was united to the bow-string; the bows were faithful to their oaths of vengeance and every battalion rose up in search of retribution. On the day of the review the Sultan came forward to set the army in order, to divide it into sections and to draw up its ranks far and near. To every ami? r he assigned a duty, to every knight a post, to every lucky champion a station, to every ambush a place, to every combatant an opponent, to every burning spark someone to extinguish it, to every company (of Franks) someone to destroy it, to every flintstone someone to strike it, to every blade someone to
76 Arab Historians of the Crusades
whet it, to each action a command, to each arrow a point, to each right hand a sword, to each sword a hilt, to every courser an arena, to every outrider a defence, to every archer a target, to every leader a follower, to everything rising a place to which to rise, to every name an object. To each ami? r he assigned a place on the left or the right from which he was not to move, whence his body was not to absent itself, nor was any one of them to depart. He brought forward the front line of gallant archers of each battalion, advising each section of what would bring it into contact with another section. He said: 'When we enter the enemy's terrain this is our army's battle order, our method of advancing and retreating, the position of our battalions, the place where our knights rise up, where our lances are to fall, the paths by which to direct our horses, the arenas for our coursers, the gardens for our roses, the site of our vicissitudes, the outlets of our desires, the scene on which we shall be transfigured. ' He reinforced men's hopes with the amounts of his largesse and realized, by fulfilling his promises and crowning his intentions, the desires of his men. When the ranks were drawn up and the arms distributed he made gifts of war-horses and scattered largesse, devoted himself to making donations and giving coveted prizes, scattered stores of gifts and emptied quivers of arrows, spent hidden reserves, using the choicest and best parts, and distributed bundles of arrows, of which the soldiers received more than a quiverful. He made chargers gallop and brought forth an ample harvest of troops. He spurred on brave coursers and called on the witnesses to bear witness, he drew up in succession his squadrons' virtues and won over to his side the sympathies of the swords; he strengthened the cutting blades, gave drink to the terrible lances, and returned to his tents happy and content, received with welcome and gratitude, generous and appreciated after having deployed and organized his men, arrayed them in squadrons and platoons, confirmed and well-established, with pious works, well-founded hopes, perfume poured out, glowing face, fragrant odour, radiant aspect, certain of victory and in firm possession of certainty; saying 'amen' to the auguries that demanded it, drawing auspicious omens from the white markings of his headstrong coursers, clearly drawing up his terms for recovering the debt owed to the Faith. He delighted in the beauty of the war-horses and in the voices wishing him well, and his spirit rejoiced at the prospect of the march; he tightened the belts of firmness and confirmed a definite decision; he ordered his men to mount for the journey and harnessed the Arab steeds to cross the desert. He left on Friday 17 rabi? ' II/27 June 1187, accompanied by victory, aided by unfailing supplies, supported by power, buttressed by good fortune, augmented by luck, with success in attendance, conversant with glory, the companion of victory, with the thanks of Isla? m and the support of God Almighty. He advanced with his ranks of embattled squadrons drawn up as we have said, each platoon flanked by others, ordered ranks, well-arranged formations, long-bodied horses on leading- reins, lethal arrows in quivers, drawn swords in hand, old wolves, cleaving blades, runners in sandals, rending lions; the tents of Khisf in wept, there where God was bringing near the eclipse and downfall of the enemy, the darkening and disappearance of unbelief. Thus he passed the night surrounded by radiant faces and eyes watchful on God's path, the hands unsheathing the mighty swords, the tongues giving thanks for God's goodness, the hearts flowering with devotion, the souls conversing in heavenly love, the feet guided by the destiny they were to fulfil. In the morning he marched forward and descended to the Jordan, determined to attack and sure of his defence; the vast sea of his army surrounded the lake of Tiberias, while the spread of his tents made that plain seem narrow. The earth
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 77
adorned itself in its new clothes, heaven opened so that the angels could descend from its gates; the ship-like tents rode at anchor in this expanse and the battalions flooded in wave upon wave. A second sky of dust spread out, in which swords and iron-tipped lances rose like stars. Uqhuwana was changed into burgeoning flowerbeds and flowering orchards by bay chargers and knights like proud lions, by crescent swords like arches of myrtle, by Yemeni blades like garden trees, by yellow banners like unfurled pennons of jasmin, by standards red as anemones and coats of mail glittering like pools, by swords polished white as streams of water, by feathered arrows blue as birds and curved as branches, by helmets gleaming like sweet-smelling many-petalled camomile flowers, by helmets like bubbles on a sea of breastplates, by neighing horses like eagles, roused to delight at the sight and sound of war.
The Franks meanwhile had ranged their standards at Saffuriyya and unfurled their banners. Their javelins were like bridges over the billows of their slim curvetting chargers, and their swords kindled in the shadowy clouds of dust. They were deployed in circles around their centres, to protect them with their bows and swords. They had mustered their hordes, drawn up their army, with spirits strengthened, cavalry and infantry, lancers and archers side by side, the pennons on their lances unfurled to the wind, the champions of error assembled, the 'True Cross' elevated, with the adorers of the false God gathered around it, the delirious madmen of human and divine nature. They had recruited the army in the lands of the Hypostatics,1 and raised the Sublime Cross on high in adoration; no one with a stick to call his own was exempt from the summons, and they set out in numbers defying account or reckoning, numerous as pebbles, 50,000 or even more, they and their scheming plots. They assembled at Sa'i? d, where they gathered from far and near. There they remained, unwilling to move or depart, and every morning the Sultan Saladin marched to within sight of them and opened fire on them from a commanding position and harassed them openly to make them confront him in an attempt to remove his sword from their necks and his floods from their throats. But they had supplies of water and would not move, but sat where they were, for if they had ventured out, death would have come out of its lair to slaughter them. And they would have met someone who would strike them down and hand them over to death. They were terrified by the situation in which they found themselves, and fled shamefully from what should have made them glow with ardour. Then the Sultan decided to bathe in the waters of Lake Tiberias and from there to dominate the region with lance and sword, to take possession of the land and make himself its master. So he brought the lance-handles to the Jordan and made the dust rise over the lake from the hooves of the chargers, with which he found it easy without any difficulty to take the lovely Arab women by surprise. He gave orders to his troops, the ami? rs and leaders of his army, to station themselves in front of the Franks and to bring them crisis in place of calm. If they came out to fight the Muslims would fall on them with just vengeance; if they moved anywhere the Muslims would spring on them like lions on hares; if they tried to reach Tiberias to defend it and seek help there they would betray the fact at once and the Muslims would immediately set out to attack them.
Sometimes, when the crowd thronged round him to present their pleas, the cushion on which he sat ended up crushed underfoot, yet he did not seem to mind at all. Once, while I was riding beside him, my mule took fright at the camels and kicked his thigh, injuring it; and he simply smiled. One rainy windy day as I was entering Jerusalem with him and the road was terribly muddy the mule splashed him and ruined all his clothes; but he smiled and refused to allow me to ride further back because of the incident.
Sometimes he was addressed in the most insulting manner by postulants and plaintiffs; his reaction to it was always cheerful and benevolent. Here is a splendid anecdote on the subject: The Frankish King's brother was making for Jaffa, while our army had withdrawn toward Natru? n, two days' forced march from Jaffa or three days' normal march. Saladin
Qur'a? n III, 128. Qur'a? n LVIII, 4. Qur'a? n IX, 121
1 1 1
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 65
sent out a detachment of troops on reconnaissance and then set out for Caesarea to confront a troop of enemy reinforcements whom he hoped to drive off. The Franks of Jaffa, among them the King of England2 and some of his men, heard of this, and the King sent most of his troops by sea to Caesarea for fear that some harm might befall the reinforcements, keeping only a few men with him for he knew that Saladin and his army were far away. When Saladin and his army reached Caesarea he found that the reinforcements had already arrived in the city and strengthened its defences. When he saw that he could not touch them he left that evening, marched all night and reached Jaffa in the morning. The English King with seventeen knights and about three hundred infantry had camped outside the city in one of their tents, and at dawn was attacked by our army. The King--God damn him! --who was excitable, valorous and shrewd in warfare, mounted his horse and planted himself in front of us, not entering the city. The Muslim army surrounded him on every side except that of the city and ranged itself in battle order. The Sultan gave his troops the command to charge, taking advantage of the propitious circumstances. Suddenly a Kurdish ami? r replied in openly disrespectful terms, up-braiding him for a fief that he considered less than munificent. The Sultan pulled his horse round on its rein in contempt, realizing that on that day absolutely nothing would be achieved. He left them and turned back, ordering that the tent that had been pitched for him should be struck. The army broke contact with the enemy, certain that today the Sultan would have several people killed and crucified; his own son al-Malik az-Zahir told me that on that day he was so afraid of his father that he did not dare to appear in his presence, although he had led a charge and pushed forward until Saladin had stopped him. The Sultan went as far as Yazu? r, a short day's march; a small tent was pitched for him where he dismounted, while the army encamped under small shelters, as was usually done on these occasions. All the ami? rs trembled with fear, certain that they would be rebuked and come under the shadow of the Sultan's wrath. 'I could not bring myself to appear before him,' said al-Malik az-Zahir, 'until he sent for me. I went in and saw that he had received a quantity of fruit from Damascus. "Send for the Ami? rs to come and eat some of this," he commanded. My fear dissolved, I sent for the ami? rs, who appeared in fear and trembling, and saw that his face was cheerful and that his affability calmed and soothed them. They left him to prepare for departure as if nothing had happened. You see what humanity he showed, so difficult to maintain in these times, and unknown in the stories of the kings of old! '
HIS UNFAILING GOODNESS
The Prophet said: 'I was sent to reveal clearly the soul's most noble qualities' and when someone seized his hand he did not withdraw it until the man let go of his own accord. The Sultan too was distinguished by the nobility of his conduct, the benevolence of his regard, his great modesty and extraordinary affability to his guests. He would not permit anyone who visited him to leave without eating with him, or to ask for something without receiving it. Everyone who appeared before him was treated with honour, even an infidel; the Prince of Antioch came to visit him, appearing unexpectedly at the mouth of his tent, after the
2
Richard Coeur de Lion.
66 Arab Historians of the Crusades
truce of shawwa? l 588/November 1192 had been signed and the Sultan was returning from Jerusalem to Damascus. He came upon him suddenly on the journey and presented a plea to him, and the Sultan made him a gift of al-'Umq, a territory that he had taken from him in the year of his conquest of Palestine in 584/1188-89. Again, when the ruler of Sidon came to Nazareth I saw him receive him with reverence and honour and divide his food with him, even offering him the chance of embracing Isla? m, describing its prayers and exhorting him to be converted. He showed equal generosity to religious leaders,1 scholars and men of virtue and reputation, and directed us that every well-known religious leader visiting the camp should be presented to him, so that he could show him his hospitality. In 584 a man who was well known as a scholar and mystic passed by the camp. He was a member of a distinguished family, his father was ruler of Tabri? z but the son had dissociated himself from his father's occupation and dedicated himself to learning and acts of piety. He had undertaken the Pilgrimage and had come on a visit to Jerusalem where, having seen the Sultan's pious acts, he had the idea of visiting him. He came to our camp and entered my tent unexpectedly. I received him, welcomed him and asked the reason for his visit. He told me about it, saying that he had desired to visit the Sultan because of the noble and praiseworthy works of his that he had seen. That evening I informed the Sultan of the man's visit and he sent for him, heard some hadi? th from him and encouraged him in the path of virtue. Then we retired and the man spent the night in my tent with me. After the morning prayer he began to take his leave of me. It seemed discourteous to let him go without saying goodbye to the Sultan, but the man refused: 'I have received what I wanted of him,' he said. 'I only wanted to see him and pay him a visit. ' Whereupon he left. Some days later the Sultan asked me about him and I told him what he had done. Saladin seemed upset that I had not told him of his departure and said: 'How could a man like that come and knock on our door and then go away without enjoying our beneficence? ' He disapproved so strongly of my conduct that I was obliged to write to Muhyi ad-Din, qadi of Damascus, charging him with the task of searching for the man and handing over to him the letter enclosed in his, which informed the man that the Sultan was very sorry that he had left without seeing him again and that the friendship between us should lead him to return. One day unexpectedly he did appear again. I led him to the Sultan, who received him with joy and detained him for several days. After that he gave him a fine robe of honour, a suitable mount and a pile of clothes to take to his family, disciples and neighbours, as well as a sum of money for the journey. So he parted from him, deeply grateful and offering up sincere prayers to God to grant the Sultan a long life.
Once a Frankish prisoner was brought before him in whom the Sultan aroused such fear that the marks of terror and agita-tion were visible in his face. The interpreter asked him: 'What are you afraid of? ' God inspired him to reply: 'At first I was afraid of seeing that face, but after seeing it and standing in his presence, I am sure that I shall see only good in it. ' The Sultan was moved, pardoned him and let him go free.
One day when I was on duty I was riding with him ahead of the Franks when a sentry brought up a woman who was in a distracted state, weeping and beating her breast. 'This
Masha'ikh, leaders of the mystical fraternities, or other old and devout men famous for their
1
virtue and holiness.
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 67
woman,' said the sentry, 'has come from the Frankish camp and asked to be brought before the Sultan, so we brought her here. ' The Sultan told the interpreter to ask her what was the matter, and she said that Muslim raiders had come into her tent the day before and had carried off her little daughter. 'All night long I have been seeking help, until this morning our leaders told me: "The Muslim King is merciful; we will let you leave the camp to go to him, and you can ask him for your daughter. " So they let me come, and you are my only hope of getting my baby back again. ' Saladin was moved to pity by her plight, and tears came into his eyes. His generous spirit prompted him to order someone to take her to the market-place in the camp to ask who had bought the child, repay him and bring her back. All this occurred in the morning; not an hour passed before the knight returned with the child on his shoulders. As soon as her mother caught sight of her she fell to the ground, rubbing her face in the dust, while everyone there wept with her. She raised her face to heaven, but we could not understand what she said. Her daughter was handed over to her and she was conducted back to her own camp.
Saladin did not like to treat his servants harshly even when they were guilty of serious dishonesty; two purses of Egyptian gold were taken from his treasury and two of copper substituted, and he punished the treasurers only with the loss of their jobs.
Prince Arna? t of al-Karak1 was brought before him, together with the King of the Palestinian Franks, both captured at the battle of Hitti? n in 583/1187, the famous battle of which we shall speak at length in its place. 1 This villain Arna? t was a powerful and violent infidel; during a period of truce between them and the Muslims a caravan from Egypt was passing by his territory and he broke the truce to attack and capture it, ill-treating and torturing the men and imprisoning them in narrow dungeons. When they invoked the truce his only reply was: 'Call on your Mahomet to save you. ' When this was reported to the Sultan he vowed that when God put the man in his power he would kill him with his own hand. On that day, when God did put him in his power, he reaffirmed his decision to kill him to fulfil his vow, and sent for him and the King. As the King was complaining of thirst he had a cup of sherbet brought for him. The King drank and offered it to Arna? t, but Saladin said to the interpreter: 'Tell the King, it was to you I gave the drink, and for my part I shall give him neither my water to drink nor my food to eat! ' meaning that if a man had eaten his food honour forbade him to do that man any harm. After that he struck off Arna? t's head with his own hand, in fulfilment of his vow. At the fall of Acre he released all the prisoners, more than 4,000 of them, from their dungeons and gave each a subsidy to enable him to reach his country and his people. So much I have heard from various people, for I was not present at this event.
Saladin was a pleasant companion, affectionate and shrewd, well versed in genealogy and the battles of the Arabs, their history and the genealogy of their horses, and the wonders and curiosities of the country; so much so that anyone who had the pleasure of his company would learn things that he could have heard from no one else. He put his companions at their ease and drew them out; he would ask one about one's health, how one looked after oneself, how one was eating and drinking and all about oneself. Conversation in his circle
Reynald of Cha^tillon.
In accounts of the events of Hitti? n we find references to the dramatic episode described here.
1 1
68 Arab Historians of the Crusades
was unusually honest, though no one was spoken of except in praise; he liked to hear only good of people and had a very restrained tongue; in fact I have never heard him speak ill of someone with enjoyment. It was the same when he wrote; he never wrote a line of insult to a Muslim. He observed all his obligations faithfully. Every time an orphan was brought before him he invoked God's mercy on his dead parents, consoled the child and provided the father's bread. 1 If there were a trustworthy old man in the orphan's family he would entrust the child to him, and if not he secured to the child an adequate portion of his father's salary and entrusted him to someone who would see to his up-bringing. The sight of an old man moved him to pity, and he would give him alms. He kept these noble qualities all his life, until God raised him to the seat of His mercy and the home of His grace.
All these are simply examples of his soul's lofty and noble qualities. I have limited myself in this way in order not to extend this book unduly and bore the reader, and have included only things seen with my own eyes or witnessed by trustworthy persons and checked by myself. This is only a part of what I myself saw when I was in his service, and is trivial compared with what others knew who had spent more time in his company and served him longer. This much however is enough to show the intelligent reader the purity of his noble character.
As is explained in the sentence that follows, he awarded the child a pension equal to a whole or
1
a part of his father's salary, in the case of civil or military officials.
CHAPTER TWO
The year of triumph for Saladin's counter-offensive was, as mentioned above, 583/1187. The decisive battle of Hitti? n, which smashed for a time the crusading forces in the Holy Land, was followed by the loss of a large number of their strongholds in Palestine and, the deeper loss to the Christian world, by the fall of Jerusalem, recaptured for Isla? m in a conquest that added lustre to Saladin's reputation for humanity and moderation. Our narrators for these events are 'Ima? d ad-Din and Ibn al-Athi? r. (Baha? ' ad-Din was an eye- witness only of events from 1188 onward. ) For Hitti? n and the fall of Jerusalem we give both accounts; their style and content make a useful contrast. Ibn al-Athi? r's clear and sober version is deliberately placed before 'Ima? d ad-Din's wearisome obscurities, but the latter contain the most direct and authoritative testimony available.
Events preceding Hitti? n
(IBN AL-ATHI? R, XI, 347-51)
DISCORD BETWEEN THE FRANKS IN SYRIA; THE COUNT OF TRIPOLI JOINS SALADIN
The ruler of Tripoli, known as Count Raymond son of Raymond of Saint-Gilles1 married the Countess of Tiberias2 and moved to Tiberias to be with her. The King of the Franks in Syria died of leprosy3 and left the kingdom to his sister's son, a minor,4 with the Count as Regent. He took over the government and administration of the kingdom, and indeed at that time the Franks had no one braver or shrewder than he. The Count aspired to become King himself through the agency of the child, but the young King died and the kingdom passed to his mother, and the Count's ambitions were frustrated. Then the Queen1 fell in love with a knight called Guy who had come from the West to Syria, married him and handed over the crown and the royal authority to him. The Patriarch, the priests and monks, the Hospitallers, Templars and Barons were summoned, and she announced her abdication in favour of her husband. She called on them to be witnesses of the deed, and they swore loyalty and obedience to him. This displeased the Count, who was stripped of his authority
Raymond III.
Eschiva, Countess of Bures.
Baldwin IV (1174-85).
Baldwin V, died in 1186 after a few months of nominal rule.
Sibylla, sister of Baldwin IV, mother of Baldwin V, in second marriage wife of Guy of Lusignan.
1 2 3 4 1
70 Arab Historians of the Crusades
and asked to account for the moneys collected during his regency. He swore that he had spent them on the young King's behalf, but his loyalty to the new King was strained so far that he reached a position of open secession and rebellion. He began a correspondence with Saladin, established a cordial relationship with him and turned to him for help in achieving his ambition to rule the Franks. Saladin and the Muslims were pleased and Saladin promised to help him and to give him every possible assistance in his plans. He guaranteed to make him King of all the Franks. He freed some of the Count's knights whom he held prisoner, which made the best possible impression on Raymond, who openly displayed his obedience to Saladin. A certain number of Franks followed his example, which led to discord and disunity and was one of the chief reasons why their towns were reconquered and Jerusalem fell to the Muslims, as we shall narrate. Saladin sent guerrilla bands from the Tiberias region who devastated the Frankish lands and returned unscathed. This weakened the Franks but gave the Muslims energy and enthusiasm for attacking them.
PRINCE ARNA? T'S TREACHERY
Prince Arna? t of al-Karak2 was one of the chief Frankish barons and one of the most arrogant; a violent and most dangerous enemy of Isla? m. Saladin knew this and on several occasions attacked him and sent raiding parties into his territories. Arna? t humbled himself to sue for peace, which Saladin conceded, and both swore to observe a truce which would allow caravans to move freely between Syria and Egypt. In 582/1186-7, however, a great caravan passed close to his territory, richly laden and accompanied by a great host of people and a large armed escort. This infamous man broke the truce and attacked them, captured the whole caravan, seized the booty, animals and weapons, and threw all his prisoners into dungeons. Saladin sent letters rebuking him and reproaching him with his treachery, and threatening him with reprisals if he did not release the prisoners and their possessions. The Count persistently refused to comply. Saladin vowed that if ever he laid hands on him he would kill him, and what followed will be recounted, God willing.
SALADIN ATTACKS AL-KARAK
In 583/1187 Saladin wrote to all the provinces to call them to arms in the Holy War. He wrote to Mosul in the Jazira, to Arbela and other eastern states, to Egypt and to the Syrian domains, calling them to arms and exhorting them to fight in the Holy War, and commending as many as possible to arm themselves for battle. At the end of muharram/ April 1187 he and his army and the Damascene guard left Damascus and marched to Ras al-Ma', where the Syrian contingents joined them. He gave his son al-Malik al-Afdal 'Ali command of them and marched with a contingent of his own troops to Busra. This was because he had heard that Arna?
t of al-Karak was going to attack the pilgrims and cut off their advance, making it clear that once he had dealt with them he would return to bar the way to the Egyptian army and prevent its joining up with the Syrians. Saladin therefore
Al-Karak in Moab, Transjordan, a fort dominating the overland route between Egypt and Syria,
2
and Syria and the Hijaz.
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 71
marched on Busra to prevent Arna? t's attack on the pilgrims and to make him stay quietly at home for fear of the Sultan. Among the pilgrims was a whole group of Saladin's relations, including the son of one of his sisters: Muhammad ibn Laji? n. When Arna? t learned that Saladin was at the boundary of his territories he stayed where he was and abandoned his plans, and so the Pilgrimage went through in safety. When it had passed and all was quiet in that region Saladin marched on al-Karak and sent his raiding parties throughout the regions of al-Karak, ash-Shaubak and elsewhere, pillaging, breaking and burning, while the Prince was besieged and powerless to defend his lands, and fear of al-Afdal's army kept the other Franks immobilized at home. So Saladin was free to besiege and pillage, burn and ravage the whole region, which he did.
AN INCURSION INTO THE REGION OF ACRE
Saladin sent orders to his son al-Afdal to send a large detachment of the army into the region of Acre to plunder it and lay it waste. He took Muzaffar ad-Din Kio? kbari? ibn Zain ad-Din, ruler of Harra? n and Edessa, with Qaima? z an-Najmi and Yildiri? m al-Yaquti, two of the leading ami? rs, and several others. They left by night at the end of safar/May 1187 and attacked Saffuriyya in the morning. A body of Templars, Hospitallers and others came out of the city to repulse them and a terrible battle followed. God gave the Muslims victory at last and the Franks turned and fled. Some were killed and the rest captured. Among the dead was the Grand Master of the Hospital,1 one of the most famous Frankish noblemen, who had done much harm to the cause of Isla? m.
The Muslims sacked the regions round about, then returned safe and sound with their booty and prisoners to Tiberias, where the Count was. He had done nothing to prevent the Christians' defeat. It was a great victory, for the Templars and Hospitallers were the backbone of the Frankish armies. The joyful news spread far and wide.
SALADIN RETURNS TO HIS ARMY AND INVADES FRANKISH TERRITORY
When Saladin received the joyful news that the Templars and Hospitallers had been defeated and many of them slaughtered or taken prisoner he returned from al-Karak to the army under al-Afdal's command, where all the other ami? rs and troops were gathered. There he reviewed his army and estimated that he had 12,000 cavalry with regular fiefs and military stipends, as well as volunteers. The Sultan disposed the army in battle order, with a central column and two wings, a vanguard and a rearguard. He assigned to each man a post and commanded him not to desert it, and so marched out and encamped at Uqhuwana near Tiberias. We have already said that the Count was on Saladin's side. Saladin received a stream of letters from him with promises of help and support; 'But the Devil makes promises to them only to deceive them'. 1 Now when the Franks saw the Muslim armies
Roger des Moulins. Qur'a? n XVII, 66.
1 1
72 Arab Historians of the Crusades
and realized that they were bent on attacking them, they sent the Patriarch, with priests and monks and a large number of knights to Raymond to reproach him with having taken Saladin's side. 'You must have become a Muslim,' they said, 'otherwise you could not have endured what the Muslims have just done to the Franks by massacring and enslaving those Templars and Hospitallers, nor could you let them pass through your lands without objecting or intervening to stop them. ' The local militias of Tiberias and Tripoli joined in the remonstrances and the Patriarch threatened, among other things, to excommunicate him and to annul his marriage. When the Count saw what a serious situation he had created he took fright and said that he repented. They accepted his apologies, forgave him for his defection and begged him to join them against the Muslims and to give them. his help in the defence of their lands. The Count agreed to make his peace and be reunited with them and returned with them to the Frankish King, and so peace was restored between them after all that had happened. But God saw to it that it did them no good. Infantry and cavalry mustered and marched from Acre to Saffuriyya, but they were reluctant and demoralized.
The Battle of Hitti? n
(IBN AL-ATHI? R, XI, 351-5)
While the reunited Franks were on their way to Saffuriyya, Saladin called a council of his ami? rs. Most of them advised him not to fight, but to weaken the enemy by repeated skirmishes and raids. Others however advised him to pillage the Frankish territories, and to give battle to any Frankish army that might appear in their path, 'Because in the East people are cursing us, saying that we no longer fight the infidels but have begun to fight Muslims instead. So we must do something to justify ourselves and silence our critics. ' But Saladin said: 'My feeling is that we should confront all the enemy's forces with all the forces of Isla? m; for events do not turn out according to man's will and we do not know how long a life is left to us, so it is foolish to dissipate this concentration of troops without striking a tremendous blow in the Holy War. ' So on Thursday, 23 rabi? ' II/2 July 1187, the fifth day after we encamped at Uqhuwana, he struck camp and moved off up the hill outside Tiberias, leaving the city behind him. When he drew near to the Franks, however, there was no one to be seen, for they had not yet left their tents. So he went back down the hill with his army. At night he positioned troops where they would prevent the enemy from giving battle and then attacked Tiberias with a small force, breached the wall and took the city by storm during the night. The inhabitants fled for refuge to the citadel, where the Countess and her children were, and defended themselves there while the lower town was sacked and burned.
When the Franks learned that Saladin had attacked Tiberias and taken it and everything in it, burning the houses and anything they could not remove, they met to take counsel. Some advised the King to meet the Muslims in battle and chase them out of Tiberias, but the Count intervened to say: 'Tiberias belongs to me and my wife. There is no question that Saladin is master there now and that only the citadel remains, where my wife is immured. For my part, if he takes the citadel, my wife and all my possessions there and then goes away I shall be happy enough. By God, I have observed the armies of Isla? m over the course of the years and I have never seen one equal to Saladin's army here in numbers or
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 73
in fighting power. If he takes Tiberias he will not be able to stay there, and when he has left it and gone away we will retake it; for if he chooses to stay there he will be unable to keep his army together, for they will not put up for long with being kept away from their homes and families. He will be forced to evacuate the city, and we will free our prisoners. ' But Prince Arna? t of al-Karak replied: 'You have tried hard to make us afraid of the Muslims. Clearly you take their side and your sympathies are with them, otherwise you would not have spoken in this way. As for the size of their army, a large load of fuel will be good for the fires of Hell. . . . ' 'I am one of you,' said the Count, 'and if you advance then I shall advance with you, and if you retreat I shall retreat. You will see what will happen. ' The generals decided to advance and give battle to the Muslims, so they left the place where they had been encamped until now and advanced on the Muslim army. When Saladin received the news he ordered his army to withdraw from its position near Tiberias; his only reason for besieging Tiberias was to make the Franks abandon their position and offer battle. The Muslims went down to the water (of the lake). The weather was blazingly hot and the Franks, who were suffering greatly from thirst, were prevented by the Muslims from reaching the water. They had drained all the local cisterns, but could not turn back for fear of the Muslims. So they passed that night tormented with thirst. The Muslims for their part had lost their first fear of the enemy and were in high spirits, and spent the night inciting one another to battle. They could smell victory in the air, and the more they saw of the unexpectedly low morale of the Franks the more aggressive and daring they became; throughout the night the cries Alla? h akbar (God is great) and 'there is no God but Alla? h' rose up to heaven. Meanwhile the Sultan was deploying the vanguard of archers and distributing the arrows.
On Saturday 24 rabi? ' II/4 July 1187 Saladin and the Muslims mounted their horses and advanced on the Franks. They too were mounted, and the two armies came to blows. The Franks were suffering badly from thirst, and had lost confidence. The battle raged furiously, both sides putting up a tenacious resistance. The Muslim archers sent up clouds of arrows like thick swarms of locusts, killing many of the Frankish horses. The Franks, surrounding themselves with their infantry, tried to fight their way toward Tiberias in the hope of reaching water, but Saladin realized their objective and forestalled them by planting himself and his army in the way. He himself rode up and down the Muslim lines encouraging and restraining his troops where necessary. The whole army obeyed his commands and respected his prohibitions. One of his young mamlu? ks led a terrifying charge on the Franks and performed prodigious feats of valour until he was overwhelmed by numbers and killed, when all the Muslims charged the enemy lines and almost broke through, slaying many Franks in the process. The Count saw that the situation was desperate and realized that he could not withstand the Muslim army, so by agreement with his companions he charged the lines before him. The commander of that section of the Muslim army was Taqi ad-Din 'Umar, Saladin's nephew. When he saw that the Franks charging his lines were desperate and that they were going to try to break through, he sent orders for a passage to be made for them through the ranks.
One of the volunteers had set fire to the dry grass that covered the ground; it took fire and the wind carried the heat and smoke down on to the enemy. They had to endure thirst, the summer's heat, the blazing fire and smoke and the fury of battle. When the Count fled the Franks lost heart and were on the verge of surrender, but seeing that the only way to
74 Arab Historians of the Crusades
save their lives was to defy death they made a series of charges that almost dislodged the Muslims from their position in spite of their numbers, had not the grace of God been with them. As each wave of attackers fell back they left their dead behind them; their numbers diminished rapidly, while the Muslims were all around them like a circle about its diameter. The surviving Franks made for a hill near Hitti? n, where they hoped to pitch their tents and defend themselves. They were vigorously attacked from all sides and prevented from pitching more than one tent, that of the King. The Muslims captured their great cross, called the 'True Cross', in which they say is a piece of the wood upon which, according to them, the Messiah was crucified. 1 This was one of the heaviest blows that could be inflicted on them and made their death and destruction certain. Large numbers of their cavalry and infantry were killed or captured. The King stayed on the hillside with five hundred of the most gallant and famous knights.
I was told that al-Malik al-Afdal, Saladin's son, said: 'I was at my father Saladin's side during that battle, the first that I saw with my own eyes. The Frankish King had retreated to the hill with his band, and from there he led a furious charge against the Muslims facing him, forcing them. back upon my father. I saw that he was alarmed and distraught, and he tugged at his beard as he went forward crying: "Away with. the Devil's lie! " The Muslims turned to counter-attack and drove the Franks back up the hill. When I saw the Franks retreating before the Muslim onslaught I cried out for joy: "We have conquered them! " But they returned to the charge with undiminished ardour and drove our army back toward my father. His response was the same as before, and the Muslims counter-attacked and drove the Franks back to the hill. Again I cried: "We have beaten them! " but my father turned to me and said: "Be quiet; we shall not have beaten them until that tent falls! " As he spoke the tent fell, and the Sultan dismounted and prostrated himself in thanks to God, weeping for joy. ' This was how the tent fell: the Franks had been suffering terribly from thirst during that charge, which they hoped would win them a way out of their distress, but the way of escape was blocked. They dismounted and sat down on the ground and the Muslims fell upon them, pulled down the King's tent and captured every one of them, including the King,1 his brother, and Prince Arna? t of Karak, Isla? m's most hated enemy. They also took the ruler of Juba? il, the son of Humphrey (of Toron), the Grand Master of the Templars, one of the Franks' greatest dignitaries,2 and a band of Templars and Hospitallers. The number of dead and captured was so large that those who saw the slain could not believe that anyone could have been taken alive, and those who saw the prisoners could not believe that any had been killed. From the time of their first assault on Palestine in 491/1098 until now the Franks had never suffered such a defeat.
When all the prisoners had been taken Saladin went to his tent and sent for the King of the Franks and Prince Arna? t of Karak. He had the King seated beside him and as he was half-dead with thirst gave him iced water to drink. The King drank, and handed the rest to the Prince, who also drank. Saladin said: 'This godless man did not have my permission to drink, and will not save his life that way. ' He turned on the Prince, casting his crimes in
According to the Qur'a? n, which preaches the Docetic doctrine, it was not the true person of Christ, but only a simulacrum, that was crucified.
Guy of Lusignan.
The Grand Master, Gerard of Ridfort.
1
1 2
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 75
his teeth and enumerating his sins. Then he rose and with his own hand cut off the man's head. 'Twice,' he said, 'I have sworn to kill that man when I had him in my power: once when he tried to attack Mecca and Medina, and again when he broke the truce to capture the caravan. ' When he was dead and had been dragged out of the tent the King began to tremble, but Saladin calmed and reassured him. As for the ruler of Tripoli, when he escaped from the battle, as we have described, he went to Tyre and from there made his way to Tripoli. He was there only a few days before he died of rage and fury at the disaster that had befallen the Franks in particular, and all Christendom in general.
When Saladin had brought about the downfall of the Franks he stayed at the site of the battle for the rest of the day, and on the Sunday returned to the siege of Tiberias. The Countess sent to request safe-conducts for herself and her children, companions and possessions, and he granted her this. She left the citadel with all her train, and Saladin kept his word to her and let her escape unmolested. At the Sultan's command the King and a few of the most distinguished prisoners were sent to Damascus, while the Templars and Hospitallers were rounded up to be killed. The Sultan realized that those who had taken them prisoner were not going to hand them over, for they hoped to obtain ransoms for them, and so he offered fifty Egyptian dinar for each prisoner in these two categories. Immediately he got two hundred prisoners, who were decapitated at his command. He had these particular men killed because they were the fiercest of all the Frankish warriors, and in this way he rid the Muslim people of them. He sent orders to his commander in Damascus to kill all those found in his territory, whoever they belonged to, and this was done.
A year later I crossed the battlefield, and saw the land all covered with their bones, which could be seen even from a distance, lying in heaps or scattered around. These were what was left after all the rest had been carried away by storms or by the wild beasts of these hills and valleys.
THE SULTAN SALADIN AND HIS ARMY ENTER FRANKISH TERRITORY ('IMA? D AD-DIN, 18-29)
In the morning the Sultan began to review the army in the field, like a cloud heavy with rain, a tempestuous sea of dust, a swelling ocean of whinnying chargers, of swords and cuirasses. He marshalled his gallant knights and his battalions who swept like a cloud over the face of the earth, making the dust fly up from earth to the Pleiades and sending the crows, to escape the dust, flying as far as Vega. The plain broke the seal of dust, lethal messages of impending disasters were fixed on the messenger-pigeons of death; the ribs of the bows longed to enclose their embryos the arrows, the curved arrow was careful to keep to its place on the right, the shot arrow was united to the bow-string; the bows were faithful to their oaths of vengeance and every battalion rose up in search of retribution. On the day of the review the Sultan came forward to set the army in order, to divide it into sections and to draw up its ranks far and near. To every ami? r he assigned a duty, to every knight a post, to every lucky champion a station, to every ambush a place, to every combatant an opponent, to every burning spark someone to extinguish it, to every company (of Franks) someone to destroy it, to every flintstone someone to strike it, to every blade someone to
76 Arab Historians of the Crusades
whet it, to each action a command, to each arrow a point, to each right hand a sword, to each sword a hilt, to every courser an arena, to every outrider a defence, to every archer a target, to every leader a follower, to everything rising a place to which to rise, to every name an object. To each ami? r he assigned a place on the left or the right from which he was not to move, whence his body was not to absent itself, nor was any one of them to depart. He brought forward the front line of gallant archers of each battalion, advising each section of what would bring it into contact with another section. He said: 'When we enter the enemy's terrain this is our army's battle order, our method of advancing and retreating, the position of our battalions, the place where our knights rise up, where our lances are to fall, the paths by which to direct our horses, the arenas for our coursers, the gardens for our roses, the site of our vicissitudes, the outlets of our desires, the scene on which we shall be transfigured. ' He reinforced men's hopes with the amounts of his largesse and realized, by fulfilling his promises and crowning his intentions, the desires of his men. When the ranks were drawn up and the arms distributed he made gifts of war-horses and scattered largesse, devoted himself to making donations and giving coveted prizes, scattered stores of gifts and emptied quivers of arrows, spent hidden reserves, using the choicest and best parts, and distributed bundles of arrows, of which the soldiers received more than a quiverful. He made chargers gallop and brought forth an ample harvest of troops. He spurred on brave coursers and called on the witnesses to bear witness, he drew up in succession his squadrons' virtues and won over to his side the sympathies of the swords; he strengthened the cutting blades, gave drink to the terrible lances, and returned to his tents happy and content, received with welcome and gratitude, generous and appreciated after having deployed and organized his men, arrayed them in squadrons and platoons, confirmed and well-established, with pious works, well-founded hopes, perfume poured out, glowing face, fragrant odour, radiant aspect, certain of victory and in firm possession of certainty; saying 'amen' to the auguries that demanded it, drawing auspicious omens from the white markings of his headstrong coursers, clearly drawing up his terms for recovering the debt owed to the Faith. He delighted in the beauty of the war-horses and in the voices wishing him well, and his spirit rejoiced at the prospect of the march; he tightened the belts of firmness and confirmed a definite decision; he ordered his men to mount for the journey and harnessed the Arab steeds to cross the desert. He left on Friday 17 rabi? ' II/27 June 1187, accompanied by victory, aided by unfailing supplies, supported by power, buttressed by good fortune, augmented by luck, with success in attendance, conversant with glory, the companion of victory, with the thanks of Isla? m and the support of God Almighty. He advanced with his ranks of embattled squadrons drawn up as we have said, each platoon flanked by others, ordered ranks, well-arranged formations, long-bodied horses on leading- reins, lethal arrows in quivers, drawn swords in hand, old wolves, cleaving blades, runners in sandals, rending lions; the tents of Khisf in wept, there where God was bringing near the eclipse and downfall of the enemy, the darkening and disappearance of unbelief. Thus he passed the night surrounded by radiant faces and eyes watchful on God's path, the hands unsheathing the mighty swords, the tongues giving thanks for God's goodness, the hearts flowering with devotion, the souls conversing in heavenly love, the feet guided by the destiny they were to fulfil. In the morning he marched forward and descended to the Jordan, determined to attack and sure of his defence; the vast sea of his army surrounded the lake of Tiberias, while the spread of his tents made that plain seem narrow. The earth
Part Two: Saladin and the Third Crusade 77
adorned itself in its new clothes, heaven opened so that the angels could descend from its gates; the ship-like tents rode at anchor in this expanse and the battalions flooded in wave upon wave. A second sky of dust spread out, in which swords and iron-tipped lances rose like stars. Uqhuwana was changed into burgeoning flowerbeds and flowering orchards by bay chargers and knights like proud lions, by crescent swords like arches of myrtle, by Yemeni blades like garden trees, by yellow banners like unfurled pennons of jasmin, by standards red as anemones and coats of mail glittering like pools, by swords polished white as streams of water, by feathered arrows blue as birds and curved as branches, by helmets gleaming like sweet-smelling many-petalled camomile flowers, by helmets like bubbles on a sea of breastplates, by neighing horses like eagles, roused to delight at the sight and sound of war.
The Franks meanwhile had ranged their standards at Saffuriyya and unfurled their banners. Their javelins were like bridges over the billows of their slim curvetting chargers, and their swords kindled in the shadowy clouds of dust. They were deployed in circles around their centres, to protect them with their bows and swords. They had mustered their hordes, drawn up their army, with spirits strengthened, cavalry and infantry, lancers and archers side by side, the pennons on their lances unfurled to the wind, the champions of error assembled, the 'True Cross' elevated, with the adorers of the false God gathered around it, the delirious madmen of human and divine nature. They had recruited the army in the lands of the Hypostatics,1 and raised the Sublime Cross on high in adoration; no one with a stick to call his own was exempt from the summons, and they set out in numbers defying account or reckoning, numerous as pebbles, 50,000 or even more, they and their scheming plots. They assembled at Sa'i? d, where they gathered from far and near. There they remained, unwilling to move or depart, and every morning the Sultan Saladin marched to within sight of them and opened fire on them from a commanding position and harassed them openly to make them confront him in an attempt to remove his sword from their necks and his floods from their throats. But they had supplies of water and would not move, but sat where they were, for if they had ventured out, death would have come out of its lair to slaughter them. And they would have met someone who would strike them down and hand them over to death. They were terrified by the situation in which they found themselves, and fled shamefully from what should have made them glow with ardour. Then the Sultan decided to bathe in the waters of Lake Tiberias and from there to dominate the region with lance and sword, to take possession of the land and make himself its master. So he brought the lance-handles to the Jordan and made the dust rise over the lake from the hooves of the chargers, with which he found it easy without any difficulty to take the lovely Arab women by surprise. He gave orders to his troops, the ami? rs and leaders of his army, to station themselves in front of the Franks and to bring them crisis in place of calm. If they came out to fight the Muslims would fall on them with just vengeance; if they moved anywhere the Muslims would spring on them like lions on hares; if they tried to reach Tiberias to defend it and seek help there they would betray the fact at once and the Muslims would immediately set out to attack them.
