The Siege of Jerusalem: Crusade and Conquest in 1099

by Conor Kostick

  Th

  e landscape was rocky, full of caves and hidden crevasses, the animals could be close but impossible to detect. On the hills of Jerusalem the early grapes were ripening and the vineyards too provided both a lure for the thirsty Christian and places for successful ambushes by local Muslim fi ghters.11

  Despite all the dangers from ambush, the internal rivalries in the crusading army meant that reckless fi ghting sometimes broke out among them at these water sources. Local Christians from Bethlehem and Tekoah were eager to show the army where they could fi nd water and led them fi ve or six miles to the uncontaminated springs and wells. But sometimes when a band of thirsty Christians had formed up and marched through the heat of the day to their longed for goal, they would come across a great throng already ahead of them.

  Under such circumstances quarrels were frequent and escalated to full blown confl ict, something that was all the more likely if the bands were from the opposite sides of the city.12

  Th

  e Christian army had set up camp at Jerusalem on 7 June 1099. On the 13 June they had tried to storm the city with their one ladder. In the following days it became evident that information about the siege had spread to the nearby cities, whether controlled by Fatimid or Seljuk governors, and bands of Muslim riders roamed the hills. What little food and drink had been coming through to the Christian camp from merchants willing to trade with them was cut off and the signs of famine among the crusaders grew stronger. It was impossible to leave the camps without a sizeable escort, but to stay passive in

  74

  T H E S I E G E O F J E R U S A L E M

  the heat was to despair of life. Only a minority of the army were concentrating on the needs of the siege, the rest were simply attempting to preserve their energy and their lives. On the 17 June, however, a messenger reached the crusaders with exciting news. Six ships, four of which were Genoese, fi nding the port of Jaff a empty, had put in there and the sailors wished an escort for the dangerous 35km march to Jerusalem, so that they could fulfi l their pilgrim’s vows. Th

  ey also requested a garrison for the citadel of the port, to guard the ships in their absence.

  Count Raymond was fi rst to react to the messenger and the French knight Geldemar Carpinel hurried out of the southern camp at dawn on the 18 June 1099 with 20 knights and 50 foot soldiers, while his colleague Raymond Pilet followed on as soon as he could make ready with 50 knights and aft er him William Sabran with his own entourage. Th

  e reason for their haste was that the

  princes of the northern camp were also interested making contact with the Genoese and Godfrey of Lotharingia had dispatched Baldwin of Bourq (not to be confused with Godfrey’s brother Baldwin, who in 1099 was consolidating his rule of Edessa) westwards. Accompanying Baldwin was Th

  omas of Marle.13

  Th

  is was a very illustrious race. Many of the most important Provençal knights were on the march. In Geldemar’s party were the Burgundian prince Gilbert of Traves and a castellan of the same region, Achard of Montmerle. Th e

  latter knight already had a great reputation for piety and military prowess.

  Achard had mortgaged his patrimony to the monastery of Cluny in return for 2,000 solidi and four mules in order to join the crusade and his donation charter included a clause covering the possibility he might stay in the Holy Land.

  In the years to come he would turn into a legendary fi gure, with epic songs composed in his honour and it is clear from them that local traditions indicated Achard had already earned a reputation for bravery before departing on the crusade. 14

  Hurrying aft er Geldemar and the Burgundians came Raymond Pilet, lord of Alès. Whenever Count Raymond of Toulouse found it necessary to detach troops from the main Provençal army, his commander of choice was Raymond Pilet. Aft er Kerbogha had been defeated and while crusade was at a standstill due to the dispersal of the princes to nearby cities, Raymond Pilet had even led an army of his own. Recruiting many knights and foot soldiers he had marched southeast from Antioch with some initial successes. Raymond Pilet’s army was, however, defeated in an attempt to storm Ma’arra, 27 July 1098. Th ereaft er

  he resumed a place among the army of Count Raymond. In the company of Raymond, vicomte of Turenne, he temporarily took Tortosa on behalf of his

  T H I R S T

  75

  lord, and earlier at the siege of Jerusalem he had given great encouragement to the Christians when, on 10 June 1099, again with Raymond of Turenne, his patrol encountered 200 Arabs whom he put to fl ight, returning to the southern camp with 30 captured horses.

  Th

  e two leaders of the northern troop were equally notable. Baldwin was a kinsman of the duke of Lotharingia who had been among the followers of his namesake, Baldwin of Boulogne on the detour to Tarsus in 1097 that had seen the Lotharingians come to blows with Tancred’s Norman army. Later Baldwin of Bourq would go north to serve with Baldwin at Edessa and in time not only inherit the lordship of that city, but also the crown of Jerusalem. With him in the ride towards Jaff a was the notorious Th

  omas of Marle. Th

  omas was out to

  prove himself as a valiant knight and was already celebrated in the Christian army for his role at the battle of Dorylaeum (1 July 1097); for being among those who risked going ahead on to the walls of Antioch on the day of its capture (3 June 1098); and for his vigorous fi ghting in the battle against Kerbogha (28 June 1098).

  Th

  ere was a dark side to Th

  omas’ valour though; he had been prominent in

  the savage attacks on the Rhineland Jewish population in 1096 and on his return from crusade he cruelly tortured his enemies, including the clergy, as he strove to build up his power in the vicinity of Laon, Reims and Amiens. While popular songs of a later era celebrated his crusading deeds, the stories circulated about Th

  omas by contemporary clerical authors were grim and it was said

  that his preferred method of torture was to hoist a man by his genitals and leave him hanging until the soft fl esh was torn away. 15

  Th

  roughout the long day’s march Geldemar pushed on hard for Jaff a. Th is

  celerity was a mistake. On a plain near Ramla Geldemar’s small troop were shocked to encounter 600 well-equipped Fatimid horsemen from Ascalon.

  How did the tiny force of 20 Christian knights respond to the presence of large numbers of enemy light cavalry before them? As was almost inevitable, they charged. Whilst this bravado might have surprised the Muslim cavalry it was exactly what they were trained to deal with. Given enough room – and here there was plenty – they could scatter while fi ring over their shoulders, before circling back, always just out of contact. Th

  is was Dorylaeum in miniature.

  Geldemar’s best hope would have been to hold his knights in check behind a defensive line of foot soldiers until the following crusader knights came to assist him. In the event, Geldemar’s attempt to rout the Muslim cavalry was a failure; the clouds of arrows that assailed the Christian knights and their horses began to take their toll. Before long, several crusader corpses lay in the dust,

  76

  T H E S I E G E O F J E R U S A L E M

  including those of Achard and Gilbert. Th

  e foot soldiers, although many were

  equipped with bows, were no match for the hundreds of mobile archers all around them; lacking the chainmail armour that was preserving the lives of the knights they were shot at mercilessly, until every one of them was dead.

  Th

  e surviving Christian knights fl ed in disorder back towards Jerusalem and straight into the company of Baldwin and Th

  omas. On seeing their fellow

  knights, regional diff erences were forgotten and the survivors of Geldemar’s troop were invigorated by Baldwin’s eagerness for battle. Straight away they returned to the site of the confl ict and, still heavily outnumbered, once more charged in among t
he Muslim riders. Th

  is time the struggle was more evenly

  matched and for a long time a running engagement took place. Th

  e outcome

  remained in doubt, especially aft er Baldwin was struck in the chest and wounded: surviving thanks only to the protection of his armour. 16

  A cloud of dust from the east announced the arrival of Raymond Pilet’s experienced troop of Provençal knights. Th

  ey had been spurred on by the news

  from a messenger, urging them to come to the assistance of Geldemar and his men, who, the messenger cried, might already all be lying dead. Th e Arab and

  Turkish riders from Ascalon did their best to cope with the new balance of forces. Th

  ey attempted to form two divisions, in order to draw the crusaders on with one, while encircling them with the other: their favoured manoeuvre for larger scale battles. But in the heat and dust, while still engaged with the earlier body of knights, this proved impossible. As the Provençal knights thundered into the engagement the line between orderly withdrawal and panicked rout was crossed. Suddenly Muslim riders were fl eeing in all directions and over the course of four miles a great many of them were slain.17

  A lamentable encounter from the Christian point of view, one that had led to the death of Achard of Montmerle, a great hero of theirs, had, nevertheless, ended in a most encouraging victory. In time they would return to the camps at Jerusalem with striking proof of their success, they had taken 103 horses and a captive. Th

  e prisoner fell to Baldwin of Bourq and had been kept alive amidst the general slaughter because of his visibly noble bearing. For one thing, the Fatimid warrior was very stocky and only the nobility were corpulent. He was elderly and bald headed: a most promising prize. Baldwin brought his captive back to the northern camp where he kept a rather elegant tent complete with couches covered in precious purple cloths. His captive took to the extravagant seating as if in his natural element, another sign of his illustrious status. Over the next few days, as Baldwin recovered from his wound and talked to his prisoner with the aid of an interpreter, it was clear the Muslim was a wise, noble and

  T H I R S T

  77

  vigorous man. Th

  ey talked a great deal about one another’s customs and life-

  styles. Th

  e Christian clergy were hopeful that this dialogue might encourage the Ascalonite noble to convert to Christianity, but when this was put to him, the elderly Muslim was scornful.

  While the overall mood in the Christian camp was celebratory following the victory of 18 June, their cheer was spoiled by the news of the death of Achard and Gilbert. Th

  e bodies of these two knights had been recovered in the aft er-

  math of the skirmish and they were placed by priests in a sepulchre outside the walls of Jerusalem that was given over for Christian burials. A large crowd assembled to watch the funeral rites and it was no doubt partly to appease their anger as well as to demoralize the jeering fi gures on the walls of the besieged city that the harmonious and civilized relationship between Baldwin and his captive came to an abrupt end. Th

  e elderly Muslim nobleman was taken to a

  spot right in front of the strongest point of Jerusalem’s defences, David’s Tower, and forced to kneel forward. Th

  ere, in full view of both the garrison of the city

  and a huge gathering of crusaders, Baldwin’s squire stepped up and hacked off the prisoner’s head. 18

  Meanwhile, with the booty having fi rst been divided, the Provençals under the leadership of Raymond Pilet had pushed on to Jaff a to represent the crusading army to the Genoese. Th

  e sun was setting on the far side of the Mediterra-

  nean as the Christian knights rode through the dismantled walls of the city.

  A merry evening lay ahead as the Genoese, led by William Embracio and his brother, hosted the successful knights with a meal of fresh bread and fi sh and all the wine they cared to drink. It was a welcome relief for the knights from the thirst and hunger of the siege camp and the joy of their victory earlier in the day gave them all the more license to indulge themselves.

  Th

  e following morning, 19 June 1099, the Genoese arose to fi nd their joy turned to utter dismay. Spread across the western horizon, allowing no possibility of escape, was the great Fatimid fl eet. Even now the enemy ships were coming on the tide and if the wind had been more favourable, they might have overwhelmed the port before the sailors had stirred. How they rued their lax behaviour of the night before and their failure to post proper lookouts from dawn, lookouts that might have seen the approaching sails in time to give the Christian ships the chance to fl ee the harbour before they were penned in.

  As it was, they had to hurry to load the knight’s horses with as much of their supplies and equipment as they could before the Fatimids landed.

  Belatedly climbing the tower to confi rm their situation was hopeless, the lookouts gazed enviously to the north, where one of their comrades was in the

  78

  T H E S I E G E O F J E R U S A L E M

  fortunate position of having sailed in search of plunder before the arrival of Raymond Pilet. Although laden with pirated goods, this crusading ship was outside of the trap and made good its escape to Byzantine-controlled Latakia, 500 kilometres away. From there they were able to send news to Bohemond at Antioch and Baldwin at Edessa, stressing the diffi

  cult state of aff airs at Jerusalem.

  But in the summer of 1099 neither of the northern Christian princes was willing to undertake the hazardous journey south to assist their co-religionists. 19

  From Raymond Pilet’s perspective, the situation was not so disastrous, far from it. Th

  ere was, admittedly, the prospect of a dangerous journey back to

  Jerusalem. With most of the horses burdened with the sailor’s goods it would be a long slow march. But the victory of the previous day had been so complete there was little danger of encountering a substantial body of Fatimid cavalry en route. Furthermore, these sailors were skilled in craft smanship. Th e Provençal

  detachment could return with priceless equipment salvaged from the ships: iron hammers and nails, carpenter’s axes, rivets, pick axes and smaller hatchets.

  Best of all they carried great lengths of good quality rope, essential for the making of mangonels, trebuchets and siege towers. Confi dent he could speak for his lord, Raymond Pilet promised William Embracio that he would be well received by Count Raymond and well paid for assisting them in making equipment for the storming of Jerusalem.

  Once they had arrived safely at Jerusalem, the spirits of the sailors lift ed.

  Th

  ey hurried on to the famous river Jordan where they gathered palms and had themselves baptized. Th

  is had been their goal since taking the pilgrim’s vow,

  and having bathed in the Jordan their intention had been to fi nd their way home by ship, in whatever way they could. But their ships were now at the bottom of the harbour in Jaff a. In any case, the Provençal clergy assured them, it was clearly God’s will that the sailors remain to assist in the taking of Jerusalem.

  To put the matter beyond doubt Count Raymond did indeed promise William Embracio wages from the treasure chest and a place at his camp in Mount Zion.

  It was a coup for the Provençal camp to have the sailors with them, but one they had earned through Raymond Pilet’s victory against the large body of Muslim riders from Ascalon. Th

  e prospect that the crusaders, and Count Raymond in

  particular, could capture the city had dramatically improved, for they could now set to work on the ambitious siege equipment necessary for an assault on the walls.

  Chapter 5

  Siege Warfare

  Two days aft er the failed attack on Jerusalem on 13 June 1099, the over-optimistic assault in which Raimbold Crotton had momentarily laid a hand on top of the wall of the city, the senior fi gures of t
he crusade – north and south –

  met to discuss their strategy. Once it was clear to the army the city was not going to be given to them by the miraculous intervention of God, more sober and calculating voices could be heard. Th

  e time for wishful thinking was

  over and any honest assessment of the position of the Christian army had to admit that it was a diffi

  cult one. Already, in the week since they had arrived at

  Jerusalem, it was clear that the situation favoured the inhabitants and garrison of the Holy City.

  Th

  e issue of water supply, as the pessimists had foretold, was a nightmare.

  Th

  ose who died of thirst or who were ambushed while seeking water in the hills around the city could not be replaced. If the siege were to become a war of attrition then the crusaders would lose, their strength and morale eroded by the diffi

  culties of obtaining enough fresh water each day to keep themselves and their beasts alive. At Antioch the Christians had suff ered a great deal, but they had been able to sustain a nine-month siege thanks to the proximity of friendly or conquered towns and the possibility of reinforcement by sea. At Jerusalem, as the fate of the Genoese ships was to make clear, no further troops or equipment could be expected from the coast, while the land route was impassable to all but a major army. Left to their own resources, it was hard to imagine the siege lasting several months; especially given the blazing heat of the Palestinian summer.

  Moreover, the lack of nearby water supplies was not the only reason for thinking that the siege would have to be brought to a swift conclusion. Rumours were already reaching both the Christian camp and the garrison of Jerusalem that the vizier of Cairo, al-Afdal, was assembling a great army to come to the relief of the Holy City. Th