A History of the Crusades-Vol 3 (8 page)

1191: Richard massacres the Saracen prisoners

With Philip gone, Richard took full
command of the army and of the negotiations with Saladin. The Sultan agreed to
abide by the treaty made by his officers at Acre. While the Crusaders set about
rebuilding and strengthening the walls of Acre, Saladin began to collect the
prisoners and the money demanded from him. On 2 August Christian officers
visited his camp bearing Richard’s consent to his suggestion that the payments
should be made and the prisoners returned in three monthly instalments. The
Saracen prisoners would be liberated after the first instalment had been paid.
The visitors were shown the Holy Cross, which Saladin had kept with him, and
paid it reverence. On 11 August the first instalment of men and money was sent
down to the Christian camp; and Richard’s ambassadors returned to say that the
figures were correct, except that the prisoners of rank specially named had not
all been handed over. For that reason they would not free the Sultan’s soldiers
captured at Acre. Saladin requested them either to accept the instalment with
hostages for the missing lords, and send him his men, or to accept the
instalment and leave hostages with him to guarantee the release of his men. The
ambassadors rejected both suggestions. They demanded the instalment and only
offered to give a pledge about the Saracen prisoners. Saladin, distrusting
their word, refused to give anything unless his men were released.

Richard was now eager to leave Acre and
march on Jerusalem. The Saracen prisoners were an embarrassment to him; he was
glad of an excuse to rid himself of them. Cold-bloodedly, on 20 August, more
than a week after his ambassadors had returned to him, he declared that Saladin
had broken his bargain and ordered the massacre of the twenty-seven hundred
survivors of the garrison at Acre. His soldiers gave themselves eagerly to the
task of butchery, thanking God, so Richard’s apologists gleefully tell us, for
this opportunity to avenge their comrades who had fallen before the city. The
prisoners’ wives and children were killed at their side. Only a few notables
and a few men strong enough to be of use for slave-labour were spared. The
Saracen outposts nearest to Acre saw what was being done and rushed up to save
their countrymen, but though they fought till nightfall they could not
penetrate through to them. When the slaughter was over the English left the
spot with its mutilated and decaying corpses; and the Moslems could come and
recognize their martyred friends.

On Thursday, 22 August, Richard led the
Crusading army out of Acre. Conrad and many of the local barons were absent,
and the French, under the Duke of Burgundy, followed grudgingly in the rear.
None of the soldiers had wanted to leave the city where they had lived so
comfortably for the last month, with food in plenty and wanton women to gratify
their lusts; nor were they pleased to hear that the only female camp-followers
permitted to march with them were washerwomen. But the force of Richard’s
personality overrode them. Saladin was still at Shafr’amr, commanding the two
main roads from the coast, the road to Tiberias and Damascus and the road
through Nazareth to Jerusalem. But Richard moved south along the coast road,
where his flank would be protected by the sea and his fleet. The Sultan
therefore followed him on a parallel course and encamped at Tel-Kaimun, on the
slopes of Carmel. From there he rode out to inspect the country by the shore
south of Carmel, to choose a site for a battle.

1191: The Battle of Arsuf

The Christians journeyed past Haifa which
Saladin had dismantled shortly before the fall of Acre, and round the spur of
Carmel. Their progress was slow, to let the fleet keep up with them; and
Richard believed that the soldiers should be allowed to rest almost every other
day. For the wind was in the west, and the ships had difficulty in rounding the
point. Saracen light horsemen from time to time swooped down from Carmel on the
marching army, cutting off stragglers, who were taken to Saladin,
cross-questioned and then slain, in vengeance for the massacre at Acre. Only
the washerwomen were spared. Meanwhile Richard led his main army over the ridge
of Carmel and encamped inland from Caesarea.

On the 30th the two armies came into closer
contact, as the Christians approached Caesarea. Thenceforward there was sharp
fighting every day. But Richard led his army doggedly on. He was at his best,
usually fighting in the van, but now and then riding down the whole line to
encourage the men onward. The heat was intense, and the Westerners, heavily
armed and unused to the sun, lost many lives from sunstroke, and many fainted
and were killed where they lay. The Duke of Burgundy and the French troops were
nearly annihilated as they lagged in the rear, behind the provision-wagons, but
they extricated themselves. The whole host trudged steadily on, crying out at
intervals the prayer,
Sanctum Sepulchrum adjuva,
‘Help us, Holy
Sepulchre’.

A few days later Saladin chose his
battle-ground. It was to be just north of Arsuf, where the plain was wide
enough for the use of cavalry but well veiled by the forests which came down
within two miles of the sea. On 5 September, Richard asked for a parley, and
met the Sultan’s brother, al-Adil, under a flag of truce. But, weary though he
was of fighting, he demanded nothing less than the cession of all Palestine.
Al-Adil at once broke off the negotiation.

On Saturday morning, 7 September, it was
clear to Richard that the Moslems were going to force a battle, and he drew up
his men in preparation. The baggage train was spread out along the coast, with
Henry of Champagne and part of the infantry to guard them. The bowmen were in
the front line and behind them were the knights. The Templars were on the
right, at the southern end of the line. Next were the Bretons and the men of
Anjou, and next to them the troops of Guienne, under Guy and his brother,
Geoffrey of Lusignan. In the centre was the King himself, with his English and
Norman troops, then the Flemish and the native barons, under James of Avesnes,
and the French under Hugh of Burgundy, and on the extreme left the
Hospitallers. When all was arranged, Richard and the Duke of Burgundy rode
along the lines, giving words of encouragement.

The Saracen attack began in the middle of
the morning. Wave after wave of lightly armed negro and Bedouin foot-soldiers
rushed on the Christians, hurling arrows and darts. They flung the first line
of infantry into disorder but could make no impression on the knights in their
heavy armour. Suddenly they divided their ranks and the Turkish horsemen
charged through, flashing sabres and axes. They drove their fiercest attacks
against the Hospitallers and the Flemings and native barons next to them,
hoping to turn the Christian left flank. The knights held their ground and
after each wave the bowmen reformed their line. Despite his soldiers’ pleading
Richard would not allow any part of his army to attack till all were ready and
the Turkish charges showed signs of weariness and till the main Saracen army
was closer. Several times the Grand Master of the Hospital sent to beg him to
give the signal. His knights, he said, would have to yield unless they could
take the offensive. When Richard still ordered patience, two of the knights,
the Marshal of the Order and Baldwin Carew, took matters into their own hands
and rode out into the enemy, and all their comrades galloped after them. At the
sight of the charge the knights all down the line spurred their horses on.
There was confusion at first, for the bowmen were unprepared and were in the
way. The King himself rode into the midst of the turmoil to restore some order,
and took command of the onslaught. Saladin’s secretary, watching from a nearby
hill, gasped at the splendour of the spectacle as the Christian cavalry
thundered towards him. It was too much for the Moslem soldiers. They broke
their ranks and fled. Saladin rallied them in time to defend his camp and even
to lead another charge against the enemy. But it was in vain. By evening the
Christian army was in command of the field and was continuing its southward
march.

1191: Richard’s Victory

The battle of Arsuf was not decisive, but
it was a great moral victory for the Christians. Their losses had been
surprisingly small, though among the dead was the great knight James of
Avesnes, who lay with fifteen Saracen corpses round him. But the Saracen losses
had been almost as small. No emir of note had fallen; and by next day Saladin
had gathered together all his men and was ready to try another encounter, which
Richard refused and which he was not quite strong enough to force. The value of
the victory lay in the confidence that it gave to the Christians. It was the
first great open battle since Hattin, and it showed that Saladin could be
defeated. Coming so soon after the capture of Acre, it seemed to indicate that
the tide had turned and that Jerusalem itself could be liberated once more.
Richard’s repute was at its height. The victorious charge had, it is true, been
launched against his orders, but only a few minutes before he was ready; and
his patient restraint beforehand and his direction of the charge when it came
had shown superb generalship. It promised well for the future of the Crusade.

Saladin, on the other hand, had suffered a
personal and a public humiliation. His army had been ineffectual at Acre, and
now it had been defeated in open battle. Like his great predecessor Nur ed-Din,
Saladin as he grew older lost something of his energy and his command of men.
His health was poor; he suffered from recurrent malarial attacks. He was less
able than in his younger days to force his decisions on the quarrelsome emirs
who were his vassals. Many of them still regarded him as an upstart and a
usurper, and were quick to show insubordination if his star seemed to be
declining. He could ill afford to be out-generalled by Richard. Above all, he
must not lose Jerusalem, whose capture had been his most glorious triumph. He
took his army in good order to Ramleh, on the road to Jerusalem, to await
Richard’s next move.

1191: Richard negotiates with al-Adil

The Crusading army marched on to Jaffa and
set about rebuilding its fortifications. Hitherto Richard had had the fleet on
his flank, to keep him in supplies. He was not prepared to march inland to the
Holy City without a strong base on the coast. Moreover, after its long march
down the coast his army was tired and needed a rest. His caution and delay have
puzzled many historians; for had he moved swiftly against Jerusalem he would
have found it poorly garrisoned and its walls in bad repair. But Saladin’s army
had only been defeated, not destroyed. It was still formidable; and even had
Richard broken through to Jerusalem, it could have cut him off from the sea. It
was prudent to make certain of Jaffa before starting on the greater adventure.
Nevertheless the delay was over-long. It enabled Saladin to strengthen the
defences of the Holy City. Then, fearful lest Richard should move on Ascalon
and establish a base there that would cut off the road to Egypt, his main source
of man-power, he took part of his army from Ramleh to Ascalon and methodically
demolished the whole city, rich and prosperous though it was. Meanwhile the
Christian army enjoyed the comforts of Jaffa. Life was pleasant there. Fruit
and vegetables abounded in the gardens round the town, and the ships brought
ample provisions. They brought, too, gay ladies from Acre to divert the men.
The Saracens kept at a distance. There were only a few chivalrous skirmishes in
the plain of Lydda, on the outskirts of the camp. The army grew indolent and
soft. Many soldiers found their way back to Acre. Richard sent King Guy to urge
them to return to the camp, but they took no notice of him. It needed Richard’s
own visit to Acre to gather them together again. Richard had his own worries.
He was not happy about affairs at Acre and further north, where Conrad’s party
was powerful. There was trouble in Cyprus, where Richard of Camville had died
and Robert of Turnham had difficulty in suppressing a revolt; and he feared
what King Philip might do on his return to France. He solved his trouble in
Cyprus by selling the island to the Templars. But he was also anxious to start
negotiations with Saladin. Saladin was ready to listen to his proposals and
empowered his brother, al-Adil, to treat for him.

As soon as he reached Jaffa, Richard sent
Humphrey of Toron, who was the best Arabic scholar in his army, and for whom he
had a deep affection, to Lydda, where al-Adil was in command, to discuss
preliminaries for a truce, but nothing was decided. Al-Adil was a skilled
diplomat, and restrained his brother’s longing for a settlement. His diplomacy
was given a wonderful opportunity when in October envoys came to him from Tyre,
asking if he would receive an embassy from Conrad. Richard’s first demand was
for nothing less than Jerusalem with the whole country west of the Jordan, and
the return of the Holy Cross. Saladin sent back a reply that the Holy City was
holy to Islam too; and he would not return the Cross without some
counter-concession. A few days later, on 20 October, Richard made fresh
proposals. Like all the Crusaders, he admired al-Adil, whom they called
Saphadin, and suggested that al-Adil should receive the whole of Palestine at
present owned by Saladin, and that he should marry the King’s sister, Queen
Joanna of Sicily, who should be endowed with the coastal cities conquered by
Richard, including Ascalon. The married couple should live at Jerusalem, to
which the Christians should be given full access. The Cross should be restored.
All prisoners on each side should be released, and the Templars and the
Hospitallers should be given back their Palestinian properties. Saladin, when
his secretary visited him with the offer, treated it as a joke and gaily
agreed. But Richard may have been quite serious about it. Queen Joanna, who,
with Queen Berengaria, had joined him at Jaffa, was horrified when she heard
the suggestion. Nothing, she said, would induce her to marry a Moslem. So
Richard next asked al-Adil whether he would consider becoming a Christian.
Al-Adil politely refused the honour, but invited Richard to a sumptuous banquet
at Lydda on 8 November. It was a happy festivity and they parted with
protestations of affection and each with many gifts from the other. But at the
same moment Saladin was entertaining in his camp close by the ambassador sent
by Conrad, the charming Reynald of Sidon, whose trickery over Beaufort the
Sultan had forgiven.