Past, Present and Future of the Cradle of Civilizations (7)
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Station Eighteen
Frequent Crusades
Jerusalem had been for centuries under Muslim rulings, and some Christians thought that it is time to get back the Holy City to Christian authorities.
Rumors started to spread that Constantinople will soon fall to Muslims, and if that happen the whole Christian existence in the Middle East would be at jeopardy. So the fight against Muslims and recapture Jerusalem became Holy War.
The idea of Holy War came after many Western Christians cut out red crosses and sewed them on their tunics. They were named the Croisades from the French croix or cross and later the word developed in English to crusades.
Before the preparation of the first Crusade, and by the start of 1096, there were some attacks on Jewish communities in France and Germany.
Christians were put (by some religious leaders) under general belief that both Jews and Muslims were enemies of Jesus Christ, and enemies were to be fought and converted to Christianity.
In Levant there were continuous battles between Saljuk Turks and other Turkish dynasties for control of Anatolia and Syria. The Saljuk Empire was divided into several smaller states.
Egypt and much of Palestine were controlled by the Fatimid Shi'as, however they lost Jerusalem to the Seljuks in 1073 but they recaptured it in 1098 just before the arrival of the First Crusaders.
The Normans, who are descendents from Norse Vikings, settled in France and gave their name to Normandy. They were famed for their martial spirit and Christian Piety. They quickly took Sicily and South Italy and formed their kingdom there. Then they invaded England in 1066 and brought it under the control of rulers originating from France. Later they moved to Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
The Normans' crusade influence, made the Church appeal for a conquest to the Middle East to protect Constantinople and liberate Jerusalem and the holy lands from Muslims.
In 1096 groups of Normans and Lotharingians from Lorraine marched under the command of Robert, Hugh and Godfrey.
Raymond of St Gilles commanded a strong army from South France and a large group of Norman war lords marched from southern Italy. They arrived in Byzantium after a tough journey in 1097.
They besieged Nicea (Iznik) the city capital of the Seljuk Turk Sultanate of Rhum, which was ruled by Kilij Arslan. The siege was assisted by Byzantine troops and naval blockade. Nicaea surrendered to the Emperor Alexius who did not allow the crusaders to pillage the city, a move that had bitter impacts later.
The crusaders marched towards Antioch, but were ambushed by Sultan Arslan at Dorylaeum. However the army which was under the command of St Giles and Adhemar surprised the Turks and forced them to flee.
This unexpected ambush although was not successful but left the crusaders' armies short of food supplies, lack of water, and unsuitable equipment to resist freezing cold. To save the armies they annexed Edessa which was a powerful Christian Armenian kingdom that stretched from Cilicia all the way to the Euphrates. Edessa in the middle of the Muslim lands provided a secure flank for the crusaders.
The siege of Antioch began in October 1097. It took all winter when again the crusaders ran short of food that caused many deaths out of starvation including famous spiritual and military leaders. Many fled home.
One Armenian officer who had converted to Islam and was in charge of one of the city towers, allowed the crusaders in the city from that tower gate, but later they found themselves trapped inside with no hope to escape, as the brilliant Turkish leader Kerbogha had his army to surround the city.
The crusaders managed to engage with Kerbogha and break the siege. They spent the next few months consolidating their positions. Bohemond took Antioch and the rest of the crusaders marched towards Jerusalem under Raymond St Gilles. They reached the Holy City by early 1099.
Jerusalem at that time, was under the Fatimid Governor Iftikhar Al Dawla. He expelled all Christians from the city and desolated the countryside.
Led by priests chanting and holding their sacred relics before them, the entire army marched in slow and solemn procession barefoot around Jerusalem. Six days later the final assault began, and the crusaders forced their way into the city. They killed everyone they saw moving. They tore through Al Aqsa Mosque and slaughtered its occupants.
Jews took refuge in the city main synagogue which was burnt to the ground killing all inside. The Governor made a deal with St Gilles and was allowed to leave with his body guards. The crusaders council held a meeting in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and announced the establishment of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Godefrey was anointed as King of Jerusalem.
The Fatimid’s army marched with 50,000 troops with a mix of Arab, Turks, Iranians, Armenians and Kurds. But the crusaders surprised them at their camp outside the city and crushed them in a short battle. Their leader retreated to Egypt. After this battle most of the crusaders returned to their homes in Europe. Godfrey ruled for one year and died. His brother Baldwin of Edessa succeeded him, and was the first person to take the title King of Jerusalem.
Baldwin created during his reign a religious military group called the Knights Templar and the Knights Hospitaller.
The first Crusade established Crusade States of Edessa, Antioch, Jerusalem and Tripoli in Palestine and Syria and allies such as the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia.
The political changes in the region had important impacts on Muslim Dynasties. Muslims from Egypt to Syria to Baghdad called for the expulsion of the crusaders, when later in the same century Salah Eddin Al Ayoubi recaptured Jerusalem and forced the crusaders to flee the lands. Saladin then united all surrounding areas.
Station Nineteen.
Salah Eddin recaptured Jerusalem
Knights Templar were the elite forces of the Crusaders, heavily armed and charged to advance the soldiers in key battles to break enemy lines. However, they were also set to manage the financial infrastructure of the Christian forces in the Holy Lands. Albeit their order was sworn to individual poverty, they were given control of wealth beyond direct donations.
They acted some times as banks, when noble people interested in participating in the crusades, they used to entrust their assets under Templar management while they are away. The accumulated wealth of the Templars allowed them to generate Letters of Credit for pilgrims heading to the Holy Land; a pilgrim used to deposit his valuables with a local Templar in Europe and receive a document indicating the value of the deposit. The pilgrim then used this document upon arrival to retrieve the funds.
Muslims began to unite their powers by the 12th century. Disagreements and bitter conflicts arose among Christian factions in and concerning the Holy Land. Knights Templar were always in disagreement with the other two Christian forces; Knights Hospitaller and the Teutonic Knights.
The fall of Edessa in 1144 to Zengi of Aleppo ( A Malik Al Mansour) alerted Europe and the Roman Church. Pope Eugene III issued the “Bull Quantum Praedecessores” calling for a second crusade. Similar to what happened before the first crusade, Jews were under attack and several massacres against them were reported to happen in the Rhineland; Cologne, Mainz, Worms and Speyer. They were accused that they refused to contribute financially to the rescue of the Holy Land.
King of France Louis VII wanted the new expedition to be separate of the Pope’s call. Pope Eugene came personally to France to encourage for the expedition after he delivered the cross to the German King Conrad III.
European kings marched towards the East and Louis of France arrived first and was expected by Raymond of Poitiers to accompany him on an expansion against Aleppo, the Muslim gateway to Edessa. Louis refused and insisted to continue his pilgrimage to Jerusalem rather than focusing on the military aspect of the crusade. He was poisoned on the way and died before reaching the Holy City.
The crusades’ troops decided to attack Damascus first, and they gathered in Darayya. The Muslim Army was prepared for the attack and pushed the Crusaders away from the orchards outside Damascus. The king of Aleppo Nur Eddin helped Damascus in pulling out the Crusaders, who decided to change plans and move to the plain on the eastern side of the city and risk less food and water supplies. The local Crusader Lords refused to carry on with the siege of Damascus and the city eventually was abandoned when all troops retreated to Jerusalem.
In 1153 Baldwin II seized Ascalon and Jerusalem’s Crusades were able to make further advances into Egypt and occupied Cairo.
Salah Eddin Al Ayyubi, a nephew of one of Nur Eddin’s Generals, a military Muslim Kurd, became the first Sultan of Egypt and Syria and founded the Ayyubid dynasty.
He first played a major role in defeating the Crusaders in Egypt and their commander Hugh of Caesarea was captured while attacking Salah Eddin unit.
Salah Eddin moved towards Alexandria and he stayed there to guard the city. By end of 1169 he defeated a strong Crusaders army near Damietta.
After having a strong grip on Egypt, he launched a full campaign against the Crusaders and besieged Darum (nowadays Dair Al Balah), which was a strong hold of Knights Templar and Knights Hospitaller, who used the city as a military base to attack the Fatimid forces.
A Templar garrison moved from Gaza to assist in defending Darum, but Salah Eddin crushed them and took Gaza. He also attacked Eilat to clear it from his path.
Salah Eddin then moved to destroy Karak and Montreal (Shawbak) the desert castles of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, with Nur Eddin assisting him by attacking the Crusaders from Syria.
Meanwhile, in summer 1172 a Nubian army with an Armenian contingent besieged Aswan. But Salah Eddin forces defeated them and took Aswan then advanced to capture the Nubian town Ibrim.
Nur Eddin died in 1174 and was succeeded by his 11 year old son Salih Ismail Al Malik, who was then removed to Aleppo and the city was controlled by some veterans who claimed guardianship over him.
Salah Eddin entered Damascus and received homage salutations of the citizens. He put his brother Taj Eddin to govern the city and moved to liberate other cities; he conquered Hamah, Aleppo and failed a plot to assassinate him.
Raymond of Tripoli thought to engage Salah Eddin in a battle at Nahr Al Kabir north of Lebanon to deter him where his forces were well in place. However Salah Eddin preferred to enter Homs and capture its citadel.
After he won several battles against the Crusaders, and after he crushed his Zengids rivals, he proclaimed himself king, and the Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad welcomed his assumption of power and declared him Sultan of Egypt and Syria.
The Crusaders sent a strong army to capture the fortress of Harim (Now a city within Idlib Governorate) north of Aleppo. Salah Eddin took it an excuse to nullify the truce that was set between him and the Christian leaders. He marched to Ascalon the Bride of Syria, and sacked Ramla, Lod and dispersed his army just outside the Gates of Jerusalem.
After allowing King Baldwin to enter Ascalon with 350 elite Knights Templar officers, he was surprised by their sudden attack at Tell Jazar near Ramlah. The surprise was so immense that he decided to retreat to his Egyptian territories.
In 1178 Salah Eddin decided to fight the Crusaders again. He took Homs and his troops in Hamah won a victorious battle and brought many prisoners of war to him. He ordered the captives to be beheaded.
The Crusaders planned a surprise attack against Salah Eddin east of Golan Heights. Baldwin proud of his previous victory, advanced foolishly in pursuit of Salah Eddin forces that were based south east of Quneitra, where he had a tough defeat. Baldwin in the following year set up an outpost on the road to Damascus to fortify a passage over Jordan River, known as Jacob’s Ford or Banat Ya’coub that commanded Banias Plain. Salah Eddin offered Baldwin gold to abandon his project because it was very offensive to Muslims. When Baldwin refused he decided to destroy the fortress, (which was called Chastellet and manned by the Templars). The battle ended with decisive victory to Salah Eddin and many high-ranking Knights were captured.
In 1180 Salah Eddin accepted a truce offer from King Baldwin. He used this truce to crush his internal enemies. In 1182 he marched to Damascus, and launched a naval ground attack to capture Beirut and led his army towards the Bekaa Valley. Later he abandoned the operation to focus on some issues in Mesopotamia.
Salah Eddin marched towards Euphrates and on his way he took Edessa, Saruj, Raqqah, Karkesiya and Nusaybin. Then he conquered Al Fudain, Al Husain, Maksim, Araban,and Khabur.
While Salah Eddin was having Mousl under siege, he received a message that the Crusaders had sent ships from Gulf of Aqaba to raid towns and villages off the coast of Red Sea. He ordered his ships to move from Fustat and Alexandria to the Red Sea under the command of an Armenian mercenary called Lu’Lu’, who broke the Crusaders’ blockade and destroyed most of their ships.
The Crusaders’ frequent attacks provoked responses by Salah Eddin especially when forces of Raynald of Chatillon harassed Muslim trading and pilgrimage routes mainly on the Red Sea, which Salah Eddin needed to keep open. He built a fleet to attack Beirut and in response Rayland threatened to attack Mecca and Medina.
At the Battle of Hattin, Salah Eddin faced combined forces of the Crusaders, made his decisive victory against them and captured most of the Kingdom of Jerusalem by July 1187. This battle was a turning point in the history of the Crusades. Muslim army captured every Crusade city and all Jerusalem fell to Salah Eddin by October 1187.
Upon the capture of Jerusalem, Salah Eddin summoned all Jews and sent them to resettle in the city.
The fall of Jerusalem alerted the Third Crusade that was financed by Richard I (The Lion Heart) of England, who conquered Acre and killed more than 3000 Muslims in the city. Salah Edin retaliated and killed all Franks that he captured in Jerusalem.
Both Kings engaged in the Battle of Arsuf, in 1191 and Salah Eddin army was defeated, however all attempts made by Richard to re-take Jerusalem failed.
By the nature of the Battles and their military plans, Salah Edin and Richard the Lion Heart developed a unique relationship based on mutual respect.
Richard proposed that his sister Joan of England and Queen of Sicily should marry Salah Eddin’s brother and that Jerusalem could be their wedding gift.
Joan of England declined the offer, however the two kings came to an agreement in the Treaty of Ramlah in 1192, whereby Jerusalem would remain in Muslim hands but would be open to Christian pilgrimages.
Salah Eddin died in 1193 right after Richard departure. He was buried in a mausoleum outside the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus.
The Fourth Crusade started in 1202, when the Crusaders from West Europe invaded Constantinople the capital city of the Byzantine Empire, and established a Latin Empire in the Byzantine lands they conquered.
The East and West Churches had their final split or schism after this invasion, as the Greeks felt deep sense of betrayal. The Crusaders never approached the Holy Land.
In 1218, a mixed army led by kings of Hungary and Austria together with a Dutch contingent, marched towards Canaan Land with the intention to reacquire Jerusalem.
They allied with the Seljuk king of Rhum in Anatolia, and attacked the Ayyubids in Syria.
After seizing the Egyptian Port of Damietta, they headed towards Cairo, but most of the Crusaders were forced to retreat under vicious attacks by Sultan Al Kamil, the rest of their army surrendered, and Al Kamil agreed to eight years peace agreement with Europe.
In 1248 King Louis IX of France made a failed attempt to recapture Damietta. However the Roman Emperor Frederick II made a successful diplomatic move that allowed him to gain temporary control of Jerusalem.
He married the daughter of the nominal ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. In 1228 he sailed with his army to Syria then Cyprus and from there he sailed for Acre or Akka, the capital of the truncated Kingdom of Jerusalem claiming its throne.
Fredrick claimed that John Ibelin of Cyprus had an illegitimate regency and demanded the surrender of his mainland fief of Beirut to the imperial throne. Acre split in its support to Frederick, however the Teutonic Knights supported him. Although the Knights Hospitaller and Knights Templar refused to support the Emperor directly, they supported the Crusades when Fredrick agreed to remove his name from official orders.
Frederick was hoping to convince Al Malik the Sultan of Egypt to keep honoring his agreement signed at the time of the Fifth Crusade, while he engaged the Ayyubids in some battles. The Egyptian Sultan facing a fierce rebellion agreed to cede Jerusalem to the Franks, along with a narrow corridor to the coast. In addition Frederick had Nazareth, Sidon, Jaffa and Bethlehem. Muslims retained control over Temple Mount, Al Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock. The Transjordan castles remained in the Ayyubids hands. The treaty made for 10 years.
In 1244 the Mongols advanced and took Jerusalem on their way to ally with the Egyptians Mamluks who ended the Ayyubid Era. This returned Jerusalem to Muslim control. Europe with the exception of France at that time was busy with internal struggles.
Louis IX sailed to Cyprus with Egypt as the object of his crusade. He landed in Damietta to provide a base from which he can attack Jerusalem. Later the flooding of the Nile grounded the king and his troops for nearly six months.
The French King marched to Cairo at the same time when its King Saleh Ayyub died. A contingency of Knights Templar attacked the city of Mansurah but was defeated. Louis main force was defeated by the strong Mamluk leader Al Zahir Baibars. He was taken captive and his army was annihilated. Louis ransomed himself and fled to Acre which was still one of a few remaining Crusader possessions in the Land of Canaan.
In 1267 Louis’ brother Charles of Anju convinced the king to avenge the Crusaders States. He also convinced him to start a new Crusade by taking Tunis which would make it easier to attack Egypt.
In 1270 Louis arrived Tunis but his soldiers were poisoned from poor drinking water. He also died from a stomach flux and his brother proclaimed Louis’ son Philip III as the new king. However because the new king was very young Charles became the actual leader of the Crusade.
Instead of invading Tunis, Charles made an agreement with Caliph Al Mustansir. The Christians gained free trade with Tunis, and residence for monks and priests were guaranteed.
Prince Edward of England headed to Acre for the Ninth Crusade in 1271, to help the Prince of Antioch and Count of Tripoli Bohemud VI in their resistance against Zahir Baibars, who recaptured Antioch in 1268 to secure the Mamluk northern front and threaten the small Crusader County of Tripoli. The English king formed a military alliance with the Mongols against Muslims, who managed to defeat both armies and forced the Mongols to retreat behind the Euphrates River.
Prince Edward and King Hugh reached an agreement with Zahir Baibars, however later Baibars attempted to assassinate Edward who had to depart Acre and return home.
Michael VIII re-established the Byzantine Empire. This move alerted Pope Martin IV and led the Sicilian Vespers to march against Constantinople in 1281, but quickly forced to return home.
In 1289 Sultan Qalawoon took Tripoli but faced heavy resistance and could not secure the city except after two years.
He then besieged Acre and ended the last independent Crusader State. The Crusades’ 208 years period to the Holy Land was over, when Ruad (Arwad) Island was lost in 1303.
Station Twenty
The Ottoman Empire
When the Portuguese adventurer Vasco De Gama found his way round the Cape of Good Hope in 1497, the Portuguese fleets started to attack any ship that carried freight to Muslim Pilgrims, from India and Red Sea.
Al Ghawri, the Mamluk Sultan of Cairo with the Rulers of the Indian State Gujarat and Arab Yemen, threatened to destroy all Christian Holy Places, as they considered the Portuguese actions a direct threat to Mecca.
Al Ghawri built a fleet of 50 ships and asked for the Ottomans’ Marine expertise. Later the Ottomans accused Al Ghawri (who was weakened by the continuous wars against the Portuguese), at giving the envoys of the Persian Safavid Ismail passage through Syria on their way to Venice and harboring refugees.
By 1517 Egypt and Syria fell to the Ottoman Sultan Selim I, who ended the Mamluk Era. However he retained some of their leaders to rule Egypt under his authority. So they remained vassals of the Ottomans.
Ottomans took Constantinople as their capital and center of power. They renamed it Istanbul in 1453. In that year Mohammed II agreed with the Orthodox Patriarch Gennadious that the Orthodox Church can keep its autonomy and land by accepting the Ottoman authority. Because of the bad relations between the Latter Byzantine Empire and the states of Western Europe, Orthodox Christians accepted and one of their Grand Dukes was famous in saying “ Better the Sultan;s Tarboush (Turban) than the Cardinal,s hat”.
The Empire acquired all Byzantine lands, however lost some territories in the Balkan; Thessaloniki, Macedonia and Kosovo, but were recovered by Mehemed II (The Conqueror), who was declared as Caesar Romanus and managed to occupy parts of the Italian Peninsula.
After establishing the Ottoman Rule in Egypt, Selim I created a naval presence on the Red Sea. Suleiman the Magnificent Captured Belgrade in 1521 and conquered the southern parts of Hungary. He besieged Vienna in 1529 but tough weather forced him to retreat.
Ottomans took Baghdad from the Persians in 1535 gaining more control in Mesopotamia and naval access to the Persian Gulf. They controlled much of the Mediterranean Sea and had many victories over Christian Navies, especially in Tunis and Algeria where they managed to evacuate many Muslims and Jews from Spain to Salonica, Cyprus (which were under their rule) and Istanbul.
Suleiman the Magnificent took Jerusalem and the city enjoyed prosperous period under his rule. Its huge walls around the Old City were rebuilt and it was also reckoned as the capital city of Palestine.
To be continued
Sami Cherkaoui
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