BOOK I.

IF ever any Undertaking were capable of possessing the Historian with a just fear of defeating the mighty Expectation of his Reader, most assuredly it may be apprehended in attempting the Design of relating the ensuing History of the Crusade.

And indeed amidst all the most extraordinary Revolutions which may be found either in the Establishment of New, or the Ruine of the Ancient Monarchies, one shall difficultly meet with any thing more memorable; and whether we consider the Vastness and Importance of this Famous Enterprize of the Crusado's, or the Quality of the Persons who have fortunately executed, or unsuccessfully attempted this great Design; whether we compute the num­ber or variety of those extraordinary Events which were accompanied with such diversity of Fortune; or, in short, if we take a Survey of those Heroick Actions which were then performed, one shall find them such, as not scarcely to be out-done even by the Romantick Atchievements of the Fabulous Ages.

One shall there see the Holy Wars, which the Christians have undertaken either to reconquer or preserve a Country wherein all the glorious Mysteries of the Redemption of Mankind were accomplished; and which the Worshippers of the Eternal Son of God Jesus Christ did believe that they could not, with­out infamy and betraying the Interest of their Religion, permit to remain un­der the Tyrannick Dominion of Barbarous Infidels.

On the one Part, three of the greatest Kings of France: as many Emperours, the Kings of England, Denmark, Hungary, Navar and Cyprus; the Dukes of Lorrain, Normandy, Austria and Suabia, and most of the Princes of Europe ap­peared at the head of their Troops, being followed by whatever was brave or gallant throughout all the Western Monarchies: on the other side the Sultans of Aegypt, of Babylon and Damascus, with all the celebrated Princes of the Turks and Sarasens, who have rendred their names so famous by the greatness of their Actions, are the Hero's who must tread the stage of this History, persons so considerable, that singly they might furnish a very fair Volume. All that is surprizing in unexpected successes, all that is so admirably represented in Fiction, or wonderful in the most Heroick Enterprises, will be found in the following Account, and to render it yet more valuable will be accompanied with that solid foundation of Truth, which will distinguish it from those inge­nious Fictions which have been invented with so much pain, to produce some pleasure to the Readers.

That I may therefore endeavour that this History may in some sort appear new, and with all its natural Ornaments, at least that it may not want that lit­tle beauty which even the most indifferent Relations seem to challenge; it is to be considered that though these matters have been often heretofore related, either in some parts by particular Authors, or in the general Histories of such Natures as have had more or less concern in this affair of the Crusade, yet the World hath not hitherto seen them wrought together into one Regular com­posure, [Page 3]with all the dependencies, consequencies and connexions, nor with that continued Chain of Causes and Effects, and such Circumstances as might ren­der the work so accomplished and delicate as it ought to be; and in which the charming secret which doth so insensibly allure and please, consists; and which is indeed the soul and spirit of History, and ought to be the End of every just Historian.

Moreover, as the Subject is so Noble and agreeable, so neither is it less ad­vantagious then delightful; For here one shall find the great Concerns of the Church, of two mighty Empires, and the Principal Estates of Europe and Asia: there shall one discover the causes which occasioned that glorious design so of­ten to fall, and yet afterwards to rise again: there may we see that Zeal of our Ancestors which seems to reproach our slow imitation; Especially at a time when the Forces of one single Monarch, could he but remain assured of his Neighbours, are sufficient to ruine the Tyranny of those Infidels, whose power consists chiefly in those fatal divisions among Christians, which hither­to have prevented their employing their Arms to their destruction. However the hope that my endeavours will not be unprofitable, and that God Almighty whose help I implore will assist me with his Grace, and bestow that happy suc­cess, which is not to be expected from me, have given me encouragement to pur­sue this difficult task which I have undertaken.

year 637 It was about 400 years that the Arabian Sarasens under their Caliphs the suc­cessors of Mahomet having made themselves Masters of all the upper Asia and Ae­gypt, did also possess the Holy Land, after which time the Turks siezing upon it did by their revolt establish a new Empire over Asia, these People are o­riginally descended from that part of the Asiatique Sarmatia which lies between Mount Caucasus and the River Tanais, the Lake of Meotis and the Caspian Sea. And whether it were, that they were dissatisfied with their present Habitations, or that they were forced from them by some new Intruders, most certain it is, that having divided themselves to search for new Regions, one part of them marching Westward, advanced by degrees as far as the banks of the Danubius; and the other far more numerous, moving towards the East, passed the River Volga, and settled in the Northern Climates bordering upon the Caspian Sea, formerly the habitation of the Scythians and Massagetes, and which at this day retains the name of Turquestan by them imposed upon it, lying all along the River Jaxartes; and not long after passing that River they extended their Consines as far as Maurenthor betwixt that River and the Oxus, or as the Greeks called it the River Araxis; year 585 and from thence during the Empire of Mauri­tius, by the way of the Caspian Sea they transported themselves into Persia where they made great depredations and ravaged whole Provinces. year 625 Afterwards we find that they served Heraclius in the War which he made against Cos­roes. But when about the year 640 Omar one of the Successors of Mahomet had reduced all Persia under the Empire of the Sarasens, the Turks to whom he al­lotted certain Countries, entred into his pay and served him in his Wars against the Greek Emperors for almost 400 years; till such times as the Sarasens being mightily broken by their Intestine Divisions, and the Turks on the other hand wonderfully augmented both in number and Strength, they embodied them­selves under a Prince of their own, chusing one of the Descendants of Salgue or Sadock, a Person to whom the People paid a singular Veneration; And in conclu­sion having vanquished the Sarasens in three general Battles, they rendred them­selves Masters of all Persia about the year 1042 and afterwards of Mesopotamia, Palestine, and Syria, changing their Religion also about the same time with their Fortune, and being converted from Paganism to the Superstition of Mahomet that great Impostor.

This Victorious Prince whom the Arabians call Abutalip, the Greeks Sangroli­pax, and William of Tyre, Belphet or Belphetoc, after he had spent above thirty years in the Establishment of this mighty new Monarchy in the Upper Asia; entred also the Lesser Asia with a most numerous Army, where in a set Bat­tle he defeated and took Prisoner Diogenes, the Roman Emperor. year 1069 After which Vi­ctory the Turks under the Conduct of Cuthume and his Son Solyman, near Rela­tions to the Sultan, seized upon the Realm of Pontus since called Turcomania, the [Page 4]Provinces of Lycaonia, year 1081 Cappadocia, and Bithynia, and about the Year 1081. during the Divisions of the Greeks, and the sluggish Emperors Michel Ducas, and Nicephorus Botoniatus who was deposed by Alexis Comnenius, Solyman pla­ced the Seat of his Empire at Nice the Capital City of that Country.

It was then under the Tyranny of these Turkish Princes, that all Asia, Syria, and Palestine, and the City of Jerusalem lay groaning and in Servitude, when it pleased God to inflame the hearts of the Christian Princes with a Noble Zeal to undertake the Conquest and Deliverance of the Holy Land, which they ac­complished in that wonderful manner, which I am now about to relate.

year 1093 Among the great number of Pilgrims which continually resorted from all the Western Parts of Europe to visit the Holy Places of Palestine, a French-man of Amiens in Picardie, a Solitary by Profession, whose name was Peter the Her­mite, about the Year 1093. took a Voyage to Jerusalem to satisfie his Devoti­on towards the Sacred Monuments of the Redemption of mankind. Being arrived there, he understood from his Host the miserable condition to which the Christians were reduced; and having taken a view himself of the piteous estate of that desolate City, he resolved to confer with the Patriarch Simeon, not only to receive a more perfect Information of the truth of those Particulars, but also to deliberate with him, concerning some means of delivering the People of God from their cruel Servitude. The Patriarch who quickly perceived the virtuous inclinations and brisk temper of the Hermite, opened to him his ve­ry Soul, he recounted to him in most passionate Language the innumerable and horrible Sacriledges, which were by the Infidels daily committed within the most Holy Places, and the insupportable miseries which not only the poor Christians, but the Patriarchs themselves who were treated like Slaves, had been forced to indure under their tyrannous and barbarous Lords, by the space of five hundred years. After which with many bitter Sighs he gave him to understand, that considering the lamentable estate of the Eastern Empire, the Evils which they suffered were not only insupportable, but without all expe­ctation of Redress, unless they might hope for Assistance from the West. Peter, who was most sensibly touched with the Discourse of the Patriarch, year 1093 and the mi­series of which he was an Eye-witness himself, being immediately filled with an extraordinary Zeal for the Publick Good, made no difficulty to assure the Patriarch that he doubted not in the least, but if the Pope and the Christian Princes of the West were truly informed of the deplorable condition of the Christians in the Holy Land, that they would unite in a generous Resolution to break off the Manacles of their Slavery, and deliver the Holy Places from the tyrannick Yoke of the Enemies of Jesus Christ. And therefore he advised the Patriarch to write effectually to them and implore the Succour of their Arms, upon which the only Hopes of the Deliverance of the Christians of Pa­lestine could depend; and for his own particular he very couragiously offered to carry those Lords throughout the West, and to do all the Good Offices he was capable of towards the exciting of the Christian Princes to undertake an Enter­prize so glorious, so necessary for the Honor, and the Common Interest and good of all Christendom.

Simeon surprized with the Resolution and Courage of the Hermite, which he observed to be accompanied also with so much Wisdom, was struck with a strong Impulse, that God Almighty was resolved to deliver his People in such a manner as should redound most to his own Glory, since the Instrument which he made use of for the accomplishment of such a marvellous Work, carried such a dis­proportion to the Greatness of so high and so hardy an Enterprise; for in Truth Peter carried nothing promising in his Person, which might make it be believed that he was like to be a proper Negotiator of an Affair of that Importance; for he was small of Stature, and not well proportioned neither, his Aspect was by no means agreeable, and he was far from sweetning by Art those ruder Linea­ments of his Visage, insomuch that by the little care he took, in which others bestow so much pains, to make himself appear tolerable, he rather resembled some savage Creature, his hair disordered, his Beard long and long neglected; and considering the Austerity of his Life, his ill shape and the meanness of his Ha­bit, those who were not accustomed to make very curious and penetrating dis­coveries, [Page 5]could not but make a very disadvantagious Judgement of him; But coming more narrowly to consider him, it was easie to discover, that as he had been very studious in all sorts of Learning, so he had made very great Im­provements in his Mind, and that together with a solid Judgement he had a great Mind, an admirable Resolution to attempt, and a marvellous Vivacity in the ready Execution of what he had resolved; that he was Master of a Natu­ral Eloquence, capable of perswading what he pleased without Artifice; and, in short, there appeared in his Eyes a fire so quick and sparkling, and some­thing so Noble in his Air and Mine, as was sufficient to convince one that there dwelt a great Soul in that little Body.

year 1093 The Patriarch therefore who had observed all these Excellent Qualities, hear­ing him discourse with so much Resolution, could not doubt but that God had chosen him for the Execution of this great design, and therefore closely embracing him, with a thousand thanks he accepted of his Proposition, exhor­ting him with Courage and Fidelity to acquit himself of a Charge which he had with so much Zeal and Frankness undertaken; and presently delivered to his hands the Dispatches which he desired should be delivered to the Pope and the Christian Princes of the West. The Natural Generosity of a Person of Cou­rage who had voluntarily engaged himself in an Enterprise so great and diffi­cult, was sufficient of it self to remove all the fear which might be apprehended in the Execution; but however he was strongly perswaded, that since Provi­dence seemed so extraordinarily engaged, nothing was able to surmount the Divine Power, and that therefore he might be confident of a happy and success­ful Conclusion of this Affair. Peter now resolved to put in Execution what he had promised the Patriarch Simeon, the Evening before his departure shut himself up in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, there to pass the night in Prayer, with all his Soul to implore the Succor of Almighty God upon such an important occasion; and after his Devotions falling asleep, whether it were that his imagination violently prepossessed with his intended Enterprise, acted upon his Soul more vigorously during his sleep than while he was awake, or that God was pleased to make use of a Dream to reveal his pleasure to him as formerly he had to the Holy Prophets, in his sleep there seemed to appear to him Jesus Christ in such a Condition as he was when he arose from the Sepulchre, who coming towards him and softly jogging him, said, Arise Peter and imme­diately go about the Charge Imposed on thee, I will be ever with thee; It is high time that the Sanctity of these places Consecrated by my Presence should cease to be pro­faned, and that I should deliver my People from the Cruel Servitude under which they have for so many Ages groaned. The Hermite presently thereupon awaking, felt, or at least believed he felt upon his Soul the Effects of an Impression, far different from what Common Dreams are wont to leave upon the Mind, and therefore doubted not but Jesus Christ had thus appeared to him to give him an immediate Commission from his own Mouth. This Belief which did so firmly Establish it self in his Soul, would permit him no longer to doubt the Truth of it was such a new Confirmation of the Truth of the Heavenly Vision, year 1093 that adding new Fire to his Flame, it produced in his Heart the Courage of a Hero, insomuch that he believed there was nothing able to resist his Enter­prise. So that without delaying a moment, having received the Benediction of the Patriarch, he went to imbarque upon the first Merchants Ship which he should meet, which in a few days he did, and happily arrived at the Port of Bari, from whence he proceeded to the Court of the Pope.

The Pope then being was Ʋrban the Second, a Frenchman by Nation, of the Diocess of Rheims, who after he had with great applause and for the advan­tage of the Church managed his Legation into Germany, was created Cardinal of Ostia; and Six Years after he was chosen Pope at Terracina whither the Sa­cred Colledge was retired, whilst Guibert the Anti-Pope assisted by the Arms of the Schismatique Emperor Henry the Fourth possessed the City of Rome; but Ger­many and Italy declaring against the Emperor, and the Anti-Pope being forced to retire to Verona where Henry had shut himself up, Ʋrban who was unwilling to imploy Force, which he could have done, to re-enter Rome, returned thither peaceably and was received by the City, although the Schismatiques kept still [Page 6]the Castle of St. Angelo. Here it was that the Hermite addressed himself to the Pope, and having delivered to him the Letters of the Patriarch of Jerusalem, he gave him a full account of his Commission. He had all the Success he could hope or desire to find from this Pope, in whose Soul he found all the Inclination he could wish to favour so fair an Enterprise. For this Pope Ʋrban, who had not only a great Mind, but a large Fond of Piety and Religion, but had also been the great Confident of Gregory the Seventh, year 1074 and that Pope about twenty years before had laid a Design for the Uniting of all the Christian Kingdoms in a Holy War against the Infidels, who having ravaged all Asia were advanced within sight of the Walls of Constantinople, which they also threatned to at­tack. He was resolved himself in Person to march at the Head of the Christi­ans, of whom above fifty thousand had listed themselves, and were ready to march under his Conduct; but the jealousie which he had of the ill Designs of the Emperor who refused to joyn with him in this Sacred Expedition, obliged him to break those Measures, and to apply himself to the defence of the Church which was in Extream Hazzard of being oppressed by the Avarice and Violence of that Prince. But Ʋrban who had as much Courage and better Fortune than Gregory, the Obstacle of the Schism being now removed, resolved strongly to undertake an Enterprise so illustrious, so advantagious to the Glory of God, so necessary to the good of all Christendom, and which would render his name venerable, and his Pontificate Memorable to all Posterity.

He therefore gave the Hermite a favourable Reception, and granted him long Audiences, the better to inform himself of the Exact Posture of the Eastern Affairs, and the Forces of the Turks and Sarasens which he was to oppose. And as he quickly discovered the great Qualities of this little man whose Appea­rance made yet smaller promises, perceiving also his Address, good Sense, and the Conduct he had to manage this great Affair, together with the Courage and Resolution with which he Espoused the Design, he was not long before he determined, to make use of him alone for the carrying on what ever was ne­cessary for the Design till it was fit for him publickly to appear in it. And therefore sending for the Hermit, he opened his very heart to him, in such terms as made it evident that he had as violent a Passion for the deliverance of Jerusalem from the Infidels, as the Patriarch himself who had imployed him in that Negotiation. He promised him that he would imploy all the Interest he had in Heaven and Earth, his Forces, his Revenue, his Reputation, and all his Pontifical Authority to form a Holy League of all the Western Princes, to op­pose the Infidels who so cruelly tyrannized over the Christians in the East. But withal he informed him, that before he proceeded any further, it was convenient that he who had begun this great Affair, should endeavour to dis­pose the Minds of the People in all the Countries both on this and the other side of the Alpes, by publishing to them those things which he had with so much Zeal and Passion related to him.

There are few Examples to be produced comparable to this, which makes it appear how one single Person was able to move the whole Earth by his Con­stancy, Conduct and Resolution in pursuing a Holy Enterprise which he had formed with so much Generosity, Zeal and Courage: and whether it were the Extream Passion which the Hermit had to see the Design succeed and prosper, that rendred his Arguments perswasive beyond the Power of his own Genius though Naturally Eloquent; or whether the Splendor of so grat a Design daz­led his Fears, and transported his Mind with a Passion for such a Novelty as carried all the Charms of Honorable and Excellent; or rather that God who had chosen this Instrument to manifest his Power and his Glory acted by him more Efficaciously upon the Hearts of men which are in his Hands to dispose of as he pleaseth, most certain it is, that never any single and so inconsiderable a Cause produced such suddain surprizing, and wonderful Effects: for in less than one Year in which the Hermit by the Popes Command applyed himself to this Affair, he travelled over the greatest part of Europe, treated in parti­cular with most of the Princes, year 1094 and preached publickly in all places where he came, insomuch that he inflamed all mens Hearts with such a desire to have a share in the Glory of redeeming the Holy Land, that both Princes and People [Page 7]embraced the Design with an Equal Ardor, testifying a mighty impatience for the happy moment which should consummate this Holy League, wherein they were to be ingaged in this Religious War.

Ibid. The Pope receiving Information from this wondrous man, whom he had sent to be his Harbenger, that all things were thus happily disposed according to his most ardent wishes, believed that now was the time for him to act his part and declare himself the Head of the Enterprize; and to make use of that general Ardor to unite so many several Nations in the same Mind by Vertue of the Bond of his Pontifical Authority. And for this purpose he chose those Methods which he judged most proper and proportionate to the Importance of an Affair of this Nature and the Sovereign Majesty of the Pontificate, in cal­ling two famous Councils particularly to deliberate upon this Affair; how­ever he made use of other publick Allegations, which were sufficient to give a colourable reason for those great assemblies; particularly the deplorable Schisms which had for so long time rent the Church, and introduced so many horrible abuses which stood need of Redress, and the power of the evil Party being much abated, principally in Lombardy where the Schismaticks had committed the greatest disorders, seemed to expect it.

Ʋrban took this occasion to summon the Council of Placentia, that so the Church might triumph over her Enemies in the same place where they had ex­ercised their most insolent Tyrannies. During which time he was extream­ly sollicited by Lyes from Alexis Comnenius the Greek Emperor, to procure for him powerful Succours, to assist him against the Turks and Sarasens, who made continual Inroads even as far as the City of Constantinople. The Pope believed that an Ambassage from this Prince Appearing to this great Assembly would extreamly advance his Design, by giving him a fair occasion to excite the Christi­ans to take up Arms, and by this means insensibly to engage them in this Holy War, which was the most probable way to empeach the Progress of the Infi­dels, who by pushing on their Conquests seemed even to menace the Western Empire; he therefore advertized that Emperor, that it would conduce much to the advantage of his Interest, to send his Ambassadors to Placentia where the Council was to be held in the beginning of March in the Year 1095. and where the Pope to take the advantage of so fair an opportunity was present with one of the first in order to preside over the Council in Person.

There never was a more numerous Assembly in the Church than appeared at this Council, the Church beginning now to enjoy that Liberty which the Emperors had endeavoured by Arms to deprive her of, the Confluence from all places was incredible of such as desired to partake of the Glory, or to have the pleasure to contribute in any sort to this triumph of the Church. For it is certain that from all the Provinces of Italy, France and Germany, there came to this Assembly above four Thousand Ecclesiasticks, and more than thirty Thousand Laicks, all of them possessed with an Extream Passion to know what would be the Event of this Council. Insomuch that the Pope to satisfie the General and Ardent Expectation of so great an Assembly, during the Seven [...] Sessions of that Council would have the first and third of them kept in the open Field, therein imitating the Example of Jesus Christ who taught the Multitudes that followed him, in the vast and capacious plains and deserts.

It was in one of these Sessions that the Ambassadors of Alexis received their Audience: There it was that they declared to the Assembly in the most moving manner imaginable, the extream Danger which the piteous Remains of the Eastern Empire were in, to fall under the prevailing Arms of the mortal Ene­mies of the Christian Name, unless the People of the West would undertake, by a potent and present Succour, to rescue their distressed Brethren from that inevitable Ruine. Ʋrban who was determined to advance his own Design by this Embassage, seconded these Desires of the Ambassadors with a Discourse so perswasive, that addressing himself to that innumerable Multitude of all sorts of People, who encircled the Council, before the end of the Sessions, the great­est part of those who were able to hear him, obliged themselves by a solemn Oath, to serve Christendom in this pressing Necessity. And the Heat passing from one to another, and spreading it self from Rank to Rank, one might in [Page 8]an instant hear from all parts of that vast Assembly, an agreeable Confusion, composed of the Exclamations of an infinite number of Persons, who unani­mously by their Voice and Gestures, protested that they were resolved to have their share in the Glory of an Enterprise, where Death it self would be as Va­luable and Advantagious as Victory, by bestowing even upon the Vanquished a Crown of Martyrdom. Such a Power hath Religion upon the Minds of Men, especially when it is accompanied, as it was upon this Occasion, with the exterior Ornaments of that August and Sacred Majesty, which through the Sences surprizes the Soul, and without which all other Impressions are feeble and languishing.

year 1095 The Pope ravished with Joy to see the Design which he had thus far so wise­ly conducted, thrive so luckily, exhorted the Assembly to remember their solemn Oath, when the time should come wherein they were to accomplish it; and reserving what he had further to declare upon this Subject, he closed this with four other Sessions. He thundred out an Anathema against the remainder of the Schismaticks; There was condemned the Heresie of Berengarius, and that of the new Nicholaitans, who favoured the Incontinence of the Ecclesi­asticks: There the Abuses which had slipt into the Church during the Schisme, were reformed, and particularly that abominable Simony, which in that time had been frequent in the Church: And to take away all Pretences, which for the future might shelter that execrable Commerce of Merchandizing sa­cred Things, it was expresly prohibited to take Money for Baptism, or Burials of the Dead, under which false Colours Avarice had found such plausible Rea­sons to shelter and disguise herself. For those reverend Fathers were per­swaded that it was altogether contrary to the Liberty of the Children of God, and even to common Humanity, to charge a Rate upon Christians, either en­tring into that Religion, or going out of the World.

year 1095 The Council being thus terminated with all the Success which the Pope could have expected, he employed the Spring and part of the Summer, in re­gulating the Affairs and Interests of the Church in Lombardy, according to the Decrees of the Council. Afterwards in the end of July he Imbarqued, and coasting the River of Genoa, and the Shoar of Provence, he went to keep the Feast of the Assumption of our Lady at Pavia in Velay, where he convoked the Council of Clermont in Avergne, to meet in the Octaves of St. Martin: Thither came from the Provinces of France, Spain, and Italy fourteen Archbishops, two hundred twenty five Bishops, above eighty Abbots, with an infinite num­ber of Doctors and other Ecclesiasticks, who assisted at that Assembly, over which the Pope presided in Person, accompanied with a great many Cardinals who attended him in his Voyages. There was confirmed the Decrees of the Councils of Placentia, year 1095 Melphi, Beneventum, and Troyes, which were held under this same Pope, for Reformation of the Disorders which had been introduced by the Schisme: There new Canons were made to restore Liberty to the Church formerly oppressed, and to restore to the Ecclesiasticks the Possession of their Benefices, Churches, Tithes, and Offerings, which had been kept from them by the Laicks, from the time of Charles Martel, by the Grants of the Kings, and by the Consent, or at least, Connivance of the Bishops.

After which, Ʋrban judging that all Matters were fairly disposed towards the Success of his great Design of promoting the Holy War, he thought it con­venient to propose it to the Council; which he also did in the great Square of the City, year 1095 in a most elaborate Discourse, which he had prepared for this ex­traordinary Occasion, where, with all the power of his Eloquence, he delive­red himself in these Terms.

And here, as he was about to pursue his Discourse, he was Interrupted by the Exclamations and Crys of an infinite number of People, who with Tears in their Eyes, beating their Breasts with their Hands, and with their Eyes lift up to Heaven, cried out from all parts of the Assembly unanimously, as it were by a common Consent, It is the Will of God, It is the Will of God. The Pope, who resolved to make Advantage of this generous Heat, rising from his Throne, and after a long time having obtained the Silence, which by his Gesture he Commanded: He protested, That there could not be a more manifest Testimony of the Pleasure of Heaven, than this Exclamation, which proceeding from so many Mouths, could not be supposed to speak the same Language, without being animated by the Spirit of God: That for his part he received it as an Oracle, which promised all happy Success to this Holy War. He also added, That he thought it sit that a Word of so happy a Presage should be the Motto which should be wrought in the Co­lours and Standards of the Army, and that it should be the Word the Souldiors and Captains should make use of in their Combats, to animate each other to perform vali­antly, and to give thereby a Promise of assured Victory. And in short, that those who would follow Christ Jesus in taking up the Cross in this Holy Expedition, and In­rol themselves in this devout Militia, should wear a Red Cross upon their right Shoul­der, as a Mark of Distinction, to shew that they had the Honor to serve under him who had overcome all Enemies by the Cross.

After this, in the other Sessions, several new Decrees were made in Favour of the Crusades, and upon the whole matter of the Peace and Truce, against those horrible Disorders which in this time had wasted the Church, which indeed were so great, that it is with great Injustice that some Persons do so violently prefer the past Ages before the present. For so little regard had Men then to Laws, and so Powerless was Justice, that every particular Person took the Li­berty to do what he pleased, by force of Armes, and to usurp that incommuni­cable Right of Soveraigns; insomuch that most of the Realms of Europe were miserably Ruined by the particular Animosities of private Persons, every one to revenge the Injuries which he believed he had received, having an immediate recourse to right himself by Arms, and to those extremities of Violence, that they spared not with Fire and Sword to manifest their Resentments against the Houses, Lands, and Persons of their Enemies. Now to apply some kind of Remedy to these horrible Mischiefs, which it was impossible totally to repress in an instant; the Bishops and Barons of France did first, and after their Ex­ample, those of other Realms made a Decree, by which, Churches, the Cler­gy, Monasteries, and the Religious Orders, Women, Merchants, Labourers, and Mills, were absolutely protected from these Violences; and this was called the Peace. And for other matters, it was absolutely prohibited to commit a­ny of these Disorders from Wednesday Eve, till Monday Morning; and this was out of the particular Respect which was thought due to those Days which Christ Jesus had Consecrated by the last Mysteries of his Life, and this was called the Truce; and the Violators of either of these Decrees were publickly pronounced Excommunicate, and condemned either to Banishment or Death, in proporti­on to the Quality of the Violences they were guilty of. This Decree was af­terward Confirmed by four Councils, which made some further Addition in fa­vour of the Peace and Truce, as may be seen under those Titles in the Decretals; so that if one did but religiously observe the Truce as to the Days enjoyned, this brutish War amongst private Persons, was so far Tolerated, that it passed for Just and Legitimate, provided any Person sent his Enemy a Challenge in a regular way: and this continued in France for above two hundred Years, till such time as, after Lewis the Saint had to little Purpose attempted to remedy it, Philip the Fourth put a Period to this Mischief by the Edict of Tholouse, in the Year 1303.

Now as these Disorders were at this time thus Tolerated, in regard it was [Page 11]probable they would prove a mighty Hindrance to this Holy Voyage, because Mens Estates during their Absence, would be exposed to the Injuries of their Enemies, therefore the Council in the first place, Confirmed the Decree of the Peace and Truce, with respect to all sorts of Persons, and that by little and lit­tle these Abuses of the Wars between private Persons might be taken away, which by reason of their long Continuance could not possibly be effected at once, this Council prolonged the time of the Truce, adding to those four days of the Week formerly decreed, all the time of the Advent, till the Octaves of Epi­phany, and between Septuagesima Sunday till the Octaves of Easter, and from the Rogation Week till the Octaves of Whit-Sunday. But for the Crusades, they were under Protection during the whole time of their Service, so that their Persons and Estates were priviledged till their return from the Holy Land.

The Pope also granted his Indulgences, and the Remission of all those Penal­ties which had been incurred by the Breach of the Canons. And in Conclusi­on, he declared Aymar of Monteil Bishop of Pavia, his Apostolick Legat, du­ring this Expedition: This Aymar was a Prelate of extraordinary Prudence, and a most heroick Courage, and one who had rendered his Zeal most Conspi­cuous, by being the first in full Council, who had from the Pope beg'd Permis­sion to take the Cross, and devote himself to the Service of Christendome in this Voyage. Ʋrban having exhorted all the Bishops personally to publish, and in their Sermons to preach up the Crusade, throughout their respective Diocesses, ter­minated the Council the 29th day of November, year 1095 having in twelve days happily accomplished the greatest Affair that was ever undertaken by any of the Popes, his Predecessors; and which in a very little time was followed by a Success which changed the Face of Affairs throughout the World, whilest such prodi­gious numbers of People every where took up the Cross.

A Writer of that time, who was at the Council, and afterwards in the Ho­ly Land, assures us, that having strictly observed the time, and examined the matter, he was informed from many Persons of different Places, that the very same day wherein the Pope published the Crusade, the News was known in the remotest places both of the East and West; which made such a strange Impres­sion upon Mens Spirits, who either were, or believed they were supernatural­ly pressed to engage themselves in this heroick Enterprise, that when the Bishops came to preach up the Cross, and to excite the People to take it up, they found them so predisposed, that an infinite number of Persons of all Ranks, Qualities and Conditions throughout Europe, but especially France, immediately entred into it; and such was the Fervour with which the Design was embraced, that no sort of Considerations of worldly Honour, Interest, or Pleasure, no Delicacy of Education, nor Bonds of Friendship were able to retard Men, but they generously broke all those little Chains, to enter into the more glorious Bonds of the Solemn Vow of the Crusade. Here might you see Friends encou­raging one another, and entring into this new Amity, making mutual Promises never to abandon each other; there Enemies Embracing and Religiously Swear­ing most inviolably to maintain the Truce; nay even the weeping Ladys, who saw themselves ready to be Divorced from their Beloved Husbands and dearest Children, yet did not cease to encourage them to pursue this glorious Enterprize, and many of them had the Courage to take a share with them, and resolved to follow them notwithstanding all the fearful Dangers, and insinite Hazards and Hardships which were to be expected from so long and painful a Voyage.

Most certain it is, that as there is nothing so Perfect or Holy, which is not subject to be abused either by the Weakness or Mischievousness of Human Na­ture, so in the beginning of this Holy War, there happened so many strange Disorders, as might well have rendered the Event of this Enterprise most dis­astrous, if God Almighty himself had not appeared Ingaged in it, to that de­gree, as even against all Appearance, by a kind of Miracle, to bring it to that glorious Issue, which was not reasonably to be expected from any inferior Power. For an innumerable company of Peasants, with their Wives and Children, which they carried in their Carts, abandoning their laborious Tillage, would also have a part in this Voyage, which was commonly called Gods Voyage; so that all the Mobile of the Realm, who upon this occasion entertained a Hope [Page 12]of bettering their Fortunes, mingling with those who had undertaken the Cross, served to no other purpose but to put all into Disorder and Confusion; Nor was it possible to give Bounds to this tumultuary Rabble, who to authorise their Actions, had so fair a Colour and Pretext of Piety. So that the smallest Number were those whom the Consideration of the Glory of the Christian Name, or the Service of God obliged to follow this Design; but too many En­gaged themselves in it, some out of Vanity and Affectation, others out of a lightness of Spirit; these for the Pleasure they proposed in the Voyage, those to accompany their Friends and Acquaintance, and many to free themselves from the Importunity of their Creditors, or to enjoy the benefit of the Truce. Great Numbers also of Monks and other Religious Persons, weary of their Profession and Solitude, abandoned their Cloisters and their Cells, and out of the Love of Liberty, took up the Cross in a different manner than that which they had obliged themselves to by their Vow, and made use of the false Pre­tence of Zeal to Religion, to violate one Vow by entring into another, which they had no Power to do; so that the Abbots to prevent a greater Mischief, were obliged to permit the Monks to follow the Army of the Crusade, since they were not able to hinder them who had gotten such a specious Pretence, as was the Satisfaction of their ardent Desire which they seemed to have, to take their Part in the Deliverance of the Holy Sepulchre.

Nor were the Women wanting in their little Cheats; for they, to make it be believed that they were by extraordinary Ways called by God to this Voyage, invented those glittering Illusions which some believe have been re­nounced in our time upon other Occasions; for having found a way by the Juice of Herbs, to form certain little Crosses upon their Bodies, resembling those which the Crusades wore upon their Habits, with an impudent Malice they shewed them to every body, as if they had been the miraculous Impressions of the Divine Power. There were others, who with no less Hypocrisie, whe­ther by an Excess of ill govern'd Devotion, or by an indiscreet Fervour to gain a foolish Glory by a vain Ostentation of their Zeal, burnt Crosses upon their Bodies with red hot Irons, which they shewed with more affectation and seeming Pleasure, than those who wore them upon their Habits, Embroidered in Gold and Silver, could shew theirs. So that Illusion, Hypocrisy, Vain Glo­ry, and Indiscretion, the Pests of Virtue and true Piety, corrupted and pro­faned those Actions, which otherwise might have been esteemed the most Re­ligious and Heroick.

But that which prevented these Disorders from being so Mischievous as o­therways they might have been, was the great number of great Captains, Gentlemen, Lords and Bishops of France, who followed the Princes who were of the Crusade, and were joynt Commanders in this famous Enterprise, yet without pretending to have any Superiority of Power one over the other, which made it apparent that God only was their Conductor and General.

The Princes then, whose Names shall be eternally Reverenced by Posterity, and who have acquired immortal Glory in all History, were Hugh the great Earl of Vermandois, and Brother to Philip the first of France, Robert Duke of Normandy, Robert Earl of Flanders, Raymond Earl of Tholouse and St. Giles, Godfrey of Bullen Duke of Lorrain, with his Brothers Baldwin and Eustace, Ste­phen Earl of Chartres and Blois, Hugh Earl of St. Paul, with a very great num­ber of other Lords of the first Quality, who shall hereafter more commodiously be made known, when Occasion shall present their noble Actions, and when I come to describe, as I am about to do, the Voyage which they made by three several Ways, according as before they had agreed in the Winter, in order to their Rendevouzing at Constantinople, as they did the following Year. I am however to inform the Reader, that the Respect which I have for him, not permitting me to present him with any thing but what has the Warranty of Historical Reputation, or Authentick Acts, I shall not mention any Names but what I find Recorded in the Historians of those times; and if any Persons of Quality who pretend that some of their Ancestors had a share in this Holy War, will do me the Favour to send me Authentick Memoires thereof, I will not fail in a new Edition of this Work to do Justice to the Merits of those Illustri­ous [Page 13]deceased, and with Satisfaction to render what is due to their Memories, and their Descendants.

year 1096 The first then of these Princes who advanced with his Troops towards Con­stantinople, was the famous Godfrey of Bullen, who altho he had not the absolute Command of the whole Army of the Crusades, yet without Contradiction, he had the greatest share both in the Trouble and Glory of this first Crusade. He took the same way which Charlemain in his Conquest had trod before him through Germany all along by the Danubius, to the Confines of Thracia. This Prince was the Son of Eustace the second Earl of Bullen, and Ida the Sister of Godfrey of Bossu Earl of Ardenna, Bullen and Verdun, and Duke of the lower Lorrain or Brabant, to distinguish it from the higher Lorrain, year 1070 which was other­wise called Mosellane, and which at that time was under the Jurisdiction of Theodorick the Valiant, the Son of Gerard of Alsatia and Duke of high Lor­rain: And from him in a lineal Descent, to this present time, are derived all the Princes of that fair Dutchy, which not long after his time lost its ancient Name of the Mosellane, retaining only that of Lorrain, as it doth to this day. But whether Godfrey Duke Bossu having no Children, adopted his Nephew who was of his own Name, and made him his Heir, giving him the Earldom of Bul­len, which belonged formerly to the House of Ardenna; or that it came by Ida upon her Marriage with the Earl of Bullen, it is most certain the Surname of Bullen, which was given to this young Prince, hath by him, and his Heroick Actions been rendered one of the most Celebrated in the World. It is this Glorious Name which in the last Age was so happily Reunited with that of the Tour of Avergne, which by a Marriage hath received that of Bullen to re­store it to its ancient Lustre, as we have seen it by the Virtues, the Dignities, the great Employments, and fair Actions of the Princes of that Noble House. As for Prince Godfrey, it was impossible for Nature to bestow a more happy Inclination to all sorts of Virtues, than which she had given him, nor was any thing wanting in his Education which might Contribute to the improvement of that Stock; such was the exact Care of his Father, who was a most Wise and Virtuous Prince, and more especially of his Mother, a Lady of a most extraor­dinary Merit, and an Excellent Spirit, year 1096 which she had Cultivated also by a Di­ligence very uncommon to her Sex, which she had employed in the Study of all curious Learning; and in truth, she was a Princess of most admirable Virtue, and of a Piety so resplendent, that after her death she obtained the glorious Ti­tle of a Saint.

It is said also that by the Assistance of Divine Illumination, she did predict the future Greatness of her three Sons, Eustace, Godfrey, and Baldwin. For one Day as the Earl her Husband demanded of her what she had hid in her Lap, she being playing with the Children, she very seriously answered, that she had there three great Princes, one Duke, one King, and one Earl, which was afterwards Verisied in the admirable Fortunes of these three Princes. For Godfrey was Duke of Lorrain, and King of Jerusalem; Baldwin was King of the same Realm, and Prince of Edessa; and Eustace, whom some will have to be the eldest Brother, was Earl of Bullen after the Death of his Father. It is also added that she had a strange Dream before the Birth of Prince Godfrey, for the Sun seemed to descend from his Heavenly Orb and to fall into her Lap, and that she saw her little Son Enthroned in the midst of that Glorious Luminary; but it is the Humor of some Writers to render the Nativities of great Men more Illustrious, at least as they think, by Prodigies and Revelations, which after, wards the Noble Actions of these Hero's make easily to pass for real Truths especially with Persons who love to divert themselves with matters very Ex­traordinary and Surprizing.

But this is most certain, which the Countess herself with a great deal of Pleasure was used to relate, after the glorious Success which her Sons had in the Holy War, that long before there was the least Discourse of the Crusade, Prince Godfrey was used to say, that he would one day take a Voyage to Je­rusalem, but not as the poor Pilgrims did, only to satisfy his Devotion, but as a Captain and a Conqueror, at the head of a Puissant Army to Chase the wicked Insidels from that Holy Place. Which must needs proceed singly from the im­petuosity [Page 14]of his Courage, and which considering the Condition of his Fortune, very unfit to execute so great a Design, may very well pass for a Prophetick Mo­tion, and looks like a Presage of that Glory and good Fortune which God had allotted for him, and in order to which he seemed beforehand to prepare him by a thousand Beautiful Actions wherein he acquired a most Illustrious Reputa­tion throughout all Europe.

After the Death of the Duke his Unckle, the Emperor Henry the Fourth who pretended that the Dutchy of the Lower Lorrain for want of Heirs Male of the House of Ardenna was devolved to him, conferred it upon his Son Conrade, leaving nothing to Godfrey besides the Marquisate of Antwerp. And on the other side Albert Earl of Namur his Kinsman, and Thiery the Bishop of Ver­dun, attempted to take from him Bullen and Verdun: So that this Prince who was not yet Seventeen years of Age, was compelled to have recourse to an early Valour for the Recovery of one part and the Defence of the other part, of his Inheritance. And therefore putting himself into the Castle of Bullen, which Albert assisted by the Forces of the Bishop of Verdun had besieged, he so vigo­rously repulsed his Enemies in all their attacks, that he forced them to a disho­nourable Retreat after they had lost the better part of their Army; and in the same quarrel he undertook a single Combat against the said Earl, in the pre­sence of the Emperor and his whole Court; during the Combat he had the Misfortune in making a notable Blow at the Head of his Enemy, to break his Sword short within half a foot of the Hilt; but notwithstanding this Disaster, it was impossible to perswade him to determine the difference upon such terms of accommodation as upon this occasion were tendred to him, but pursuing his point he fought with redoubled Ardor, till at length having tumbled down his Enemy with a mighty Blow which he gave him with the Pommel of his Sword upon his head; being now a Conquerer he accepted that Agreement which before he had generously refused, whilest being disarmed he ran the utmost hazzard of being Vanquished. And afterwards surmounting those just resentments which he might well have entertained against the Emperour who had so Inju­riously deprived him of his Dutchy, he nevertheless followed him in those Wars which he made in Germany and Italy, whereupon all occasions he ren­dred him very signal Services: and it is reported that he himself took the Im­perial Eagle in the Famous Battle against the Saxons who had declared for Em­peror Rodolph of Suabia, when Victory beginning to declare herself for that Prince, he ravished it from him, together with his Life, by giving him a mor­tal Wound with the very Cornet which he had newly taken: And afterwards when the Emperor took the City of Rome from Pope Gregory the Seventh, he was the first man that possessed himself of the breach and thereby Entred the Town. They further add, that after this falling into a most violent distemper which reduced him to the utmost Extremity of Danger, he made a Vow to un­dertake an Expedition to the Holy Land, as not long after did many Princes and Bishops according to the Devotion so much in Vogue at that time, and that God Almighty was pleased to manifest that this Vow was acceptable to him by restoring him to his Health beyond all Expectation, and without the application of any of the usual Remedies. Be it how it will, neither this Vow nor this Mira­cle, nor this entring the breach at Rome are such matters as have any cer­tain foundation in the Historians who were his Contemporaries; but this is most certain, that, whether it were that he was sensibly touched with the extraordinary Merit of this Prince, and the considerable Services which he had received from him, or that he therein gratified the displeasure he had taken against Conrade who now began to relinquish his Interests, the Emperor put Godfrey into the Possession of the Dutchy of the Lower Lorrain the Inheritance of his Mother, which he had detained from him Thirteen Years: And that he might yet link him more closely than by the meer Obligation of Duty, he was resolved to have him his Brother in Law, and gave him his Sister Adelaida in Marriage. After which Godfrey seeing himself in a Condition capable of recovering the Earldom of Verdun which Theoderic the Bishop and Earl Albert at present detained from him, that Affair was quickly determined; for the Bishop and Earl besieging Stenay where Godfrey had built a very strong Castle, just upon the Frontiers [Page 15]of Verdun, that from thence he might more easily assail his Enemies, this For­tunate Prince, though then very much indisposed in Health, yet combated them with so much Conduct and Valour, that he relieved the Place; and in a little time after being reinforced with the Troops which Eustace and Baldwin his Brothers brought to his assistance, he obliged them to raise their Siege, and in Conclusion they were forced by the Determination of the Bishop of Leige who was made Arbiter of the Difference, to restore the Earldom of Verdun unto Godfrey.

In this flourishing Posture were the Affairs of Duke Godfroy when the Crusade for the Deliverance of the Holy Land was proclaimed; and he was in the Number of the formost to take the Cross, which he did with that Ardency, that to give Example to other Princes to sacrifice all to the Glory of Jesus Christ, and to satisfie that importunate Desire which he had so long since cherished for this Glorious Conquest, he generously despoiled himself of almost his whole Inheritance, thereby to enable himself to raise the more and the better Troops; And for this purpose he either morgaged or sold the Earldom of Bullen and Ardenna to Albert Bishop of Liege, whose Successors are possessed of it to this very day, Richerius Bishop of Verdun, also laid hold of this opportunity to purchase the Town and Castle of Stenay with its Dependancies, and the rest of the Earldom of Prince Baldwin upon whom his Brother Godfrey had lately bestowed it. Insomuch that by a pretty odd adventure the secular Princes impoverished themselves to serve Christ Jesus, and the Ecclesiasticks inriched themselves with the Spoils of these Temporal Princes, whose Examples ought rather to have incited them to the like Devotion; but they chose rather to make use of that Money, which like them they should have employed to so pi­ous a Work as the Deliverance of the Holy Sepulchre, to advance their present Fortunes, which they saw these Princes so generously abandon for the Love of God. But if History ought to praise the Generosity of such as sold their Inheritances upon this Glorious Occalion, yet it has no Authority to condemn the Intentions of those who purchased them; Since their Design was for the better Accommodation of those Churches of which they were the Pastors and the Fathers.

Godfrey by these ways having put himself into a Capacity to raise Sol­diers and furnish an Equipage, was in a short time accompanied with a great Number of such as had taken upon them the Cross, besides many Princes and Gentlemen his Friends who served as Volunteers. But the fair Reputation which he had acquired throughout all Europe, and those admirable Qualities for which he was so justly valued, brought him in far greater Numbers than his Pay; for Military Men came slocking to him from all parts, especially the Eastern parts of France, the Low Countries, the two Lorains and the Pro­vinces of Germany, every one passionately coveting to serve in this Expedition under his auspicious Conduct. One shall rarely meet in History any who ever exceeded this brave Prince either in those obliging Charms which attract mens Hearts, or were more able to manage that absolute Empire over those Spirits which had so voluntarily submitted to them: nor did he stand in need of any other Authority to govern them than what he was obliged to for his Ver­tue and those admirable Graces, whith which Nature had even to Prosusion a­dorned him. He was in the Vigor and the very Flower of his Age, having lived a­bout thirty sive years, his Complexion was Sanguine his Temper Robust, and yet such as shewed the fresh Sweetness and Beauty of Youth in his mature and many Age: his Shape was admirable, his Body straight, and his Stature though something advanced above the common, yet carried a Proportion in all parts so regular, as made him only appear so tall as to approach to the pitch of Heroick; his Port was extream Majestick, his Behaviour grave and serious; his Colour delicate and lively, his Cheeks wore the Livery of Vermilion, and his Eyes siery and sparkling, but withal sweet and attracting, the turn of his face was most perfectly exact, his Hair light and fair, his Speech sweet, and the Sound of his Voice admirably pleasing; and with all these Ornaments of Nature, he had a Demeanor so charming and modest, that one who accompanied him in this Expedition to the Holy Land assures us, that his Conversation seemed to have [Page 16]more of the meekness of a Recluse than the fierceness of a Soldier; notwith­standing which upon the approach of an Enemy, when he was going to the Combat, he seemed in an instant metamorphosed into another quite different Person; he looked like a generous Lyon, so much Resolution, Heat, and Fierceness appeared in his Eyes, his Voice, his Gestures and his Gate; and by how much greater the Danger was, so much was his Courage redoubled, that it had not the least acquaintance with Fear; and that Soul which Nature had planted in so fair a Body was animated with that prodigious force, that there are few examples that can come in competition with him; for neither Casque, nor Curiass, nor Shield where he bestowed his mighty Blows were any proof against his Invincible Arm, or could defend those who wore them from a cer­tain Death: and besides all this, he was a perfect Master at all sorts of Weapons, and intimately acquainted with every secret of the military Art, insomuch that even Envy it self must be constrained to give place to the Judgement of the whole Earth, it being impossible to dispute these advantages with him, which yet were more marvellous in him who possessed them, in that they were ac­companied with all the Vertues of a mighty Mind; for it is most unexcep­tionably true, that no Person ever better adjusted the Exercises of a military Imploy, with those of an honest man and an admirable Christian; He was kind, affable, respectful affectionate, tender, and a most excellent Friend; he would caress the meanest Souldiers, and comfort them in their Hardships with the care and kindness of a Father; he was firm and immoveable in his Resolves, and one who ever kept his Word Inviolable, a great Lover of Justice, never failing to render to every Person according to his Merits; he was obliging, liberal and magnificent in every thing except what related to his own Person, which he neglected in such a manner as was well enough becoming the Person of a Souldier, though a Prince, and which rather shewed a generous disdain of Pride and Luxury, than any Inclinations to what was mean or sor­did. He was most curiously diligent in matters of the greatest moment, and especially how he might best please Almighty God, to whom by a kind of Mi­racle in a man of the Sword, he had the greatest and most constant care to u­nite himself by the Exercises of Devotion, even amidst the greatest croud of his most Important Affairs, and particularly by an Assiduity in his daily making most fervent Prayers to the Divine Omnipotence. And his Piety was so far from diminishing his Native Vigor, that it added new Forces to it, and inlight­ned his understanding in such an extraordinary Measure, as inabled him to act even beyond admiration both as a Captain and a Souldier.

Being such as I have endeavoured to represent him from the Discription of the Historians his Contemporaries, or such as lived nearest to those times, it will now be no matter of astonishment, that the greatest Number of those who de­voted themselves to this Holy War, came to offer their Service to this gallant man, or if at that instant he used a certain politick Dexterity whereupon the Success of the Enterprize seemed in so great a measure to depend. For Peter the Hermit particularly having addressed himself to him, this Prince imme­diately perceiving he should be clogged by having this multitude of unpro­fitable People upon his hands who blindly followed the Hermit, he concluded that to prevent the disorders which they might occasion in his Army, where they were more likely to destroy him by Famine than help him by the Sword, he contrived to send those People before under the Conduct of their own Di­rector, who without scruple presently accepted of the Command; and indeed he thought he should have a Sovereign Power over those Person who were u­sed to render him such Extraordinary Honours, even to down-right Supersti­tion, so prepossessed were they with the opinion of his Sanctity, and as it were charmed with his very looks and enchanted with his words. And certainly, all his actions and the manner of his living, were wonderful proper to draw the applause and admiration of the Populace, who suffer themselves easily to be affected with outward appearances, especially such as are odd and surprizing; for his under Garment was of simple Woolen without any dye or colour, with a great Hood the point whereof reached down to his very heels, and over all a Hermits Mantle about his Neck which came to his knees: he went [Page 17]barefooted; his abstinence was extraordinary, he never eat either Bread or Flesh, but contented himself with Lentils, Fish, and a very little Wine, with which he sustained himself in the greatest Fatigues: he never kept any Money, but disposed of those vast Summs which were bestowed upon him, by distribu­ting them among the poorer sort of the Crusades, or employed them to maintain the Souldiers, or such Persons as by his preaching were reclaimed from their vicious courses, and to marry such young women as by reason of their Poverty had taken up the Infamous Trade of sinning: He composed all differences with a mar­vellous Authority, and made Peace where-ever he came; and, in short, he did so many good things and gained so high a Reputation, that several witnesses of admirable Credit, who saw him preach the Crusade in France do aver, that the people followed him as if he had been a man sent from Heaven, and treated him with more Honour and Reverence than any of their Prelates, and that never a­ny man passed more generally for a Saint or for a Prophet: that whatever he either said or did, was received as an immediate Command from Heaven, and that the Common People who canonized him for a Living Saint, went so far, as to get the very hairs of his Mule, which they laid up as Reliques; thus it is, that after these feeble Spirits have according to their way made a Saint of a man upon whom they dote, there is no sort of Illusion, Caprice, disorder or abuse which they will not mistake for a Divine Inspiration, nor any thing tho never so fantastical or extravagant which they will not be ready to precipitate themselves into.

In reality I cannot think that Peter did in the least contribute to this Superstiti­on of the blind and injudicious Populace, but on the other hand I cannot believe, that he was at all afflicted to see himself followed by such Multitudes of People which he thought were intirely at his Devotion, and of whom he perswaded himself he should alwaies be able to retain the Command. And that being a Gentleman who before his retirement had born Arms, the desire of Glory and some little remainders of the Spirit of a Souldier which still dwelt about his heart, might give him no sort of Repugnance to see himself at the head of a great Army; and the Nature of the War which was to be undertaken, might easily induce him to believe, that he might lawfully undertake such a military Command without affronting his Orders of Priesthood, or embracing the World which he had renounced. But it was not long before he found by wo­ful Experience, that he who transgresseth the Bounds of his Profession, does not prosper long; for he must needs want the Blessing of God, whose pleasure is that all persons should keep their Order and Station in the World, and not dare to undertake the Charge or Function which belongs not to them. All this time Duke Godfrey whose principal aim was to disincumber himself of this con­fused Rabble who from all parts were rolled together, and which he was in no sort of Condition to accommodate with subsistence, was not in the least averse to follow the inclinations of Peter; and therefore he declared him Captain General of this first Army of the Crusades, which was ordered to advance first towards Constantinople. The Hermit who would needs imitate the Duke, that he might avoid Confusion divided his Troops into two Bodies; the first, which was composed of about the third part of his foot, he put under the Command of a French Gentleman, one of his friends, whose name was Gautier, a very brave man and a good Captain, but who had no other Fortune besides his Sword, and who for that reason was usually called Captain Have-little, or Monyless. This Gentleman who had no more than eight Horsemen to guard such a numerous Infantry, began his March the eighteenth day of March, and after having with a great deal of trouble passed through Germany all along the Danu­bius he entered into Hungary; that Country was then governed by King Car­loman, the youngest Son of King Bela, whose Grandfather was Uncle to St. Stephen the Son of Geiza, the first Christian King of Hungary. This Prince very frankly permitted them the Liberty of passage, they paying for what they had; but this could not prevent the Hungarians from very ill treating this stragling People: for being arrived upon the Frontier of Bulgaria, where they were refused the accommodations of Provisions, the Troops were permit­ted to live at discretion, to plunder the Country and take what they could find for their subsistence; this so incensed the Inhabitants of those Countries, that [Page 18]they presently took Arms, and assembling to the number of one hundred forty thousand men, they fell upon the Crusades so briskly, that they had much to do, in great Confusion, to save themselves among the Woods, after having left a great part of their Companions to the mercy of the Enemies; and Gautier with the remainder were in no small danger of perishing, being for eight days constrained to indure the utmost Extremities in passing through those vast and desolate Forrests, till in conclusion, arriving at a great Town in Mysia, the Prince of Bulgaria compassionating their Miseries, did not only supply them with plenty of Provisions, but furnished them with able Guides, who carried them the best way towards Constantinople, where the Emperor disposed them in an Encampment to attend the rest of the Army, which was conducted by Peter himself.

But the Voyage of the poor Hermite was yet more Unfortunate than that of his Precursor: He had about forty thousand Foot indifferently well armed, and a good number of Horse, of whom the Principal were Renard of Breis, Gautier de Breteuil, Foucher of Orleans, and Godsrey Burel of Estampes, besides an insi­nite Number of unnecessary People, Women, Old Men and Children, who fol­lowed the Army, some on Foot, and some in Carriages. But in truth he now quickly found how great a difference there was between Preaching up the Cross to an unarmed Audience who run to hear the Novelty, and the Conducting according to the regular Discipline of War, and Commanding those who now had Swords in their Hands. For as he Marched through Hungary, King Car­loman having granted him free Passage, provided his People committed no Disorders, he undertook to signalize himself with an Action which neither comported with his being a Hermite, nor a Christian, and which both the Laws of Honour and of Prudence might justly have prohibited him to do: For under pretence of Revenging the Injury which some Souldiers of the first Ar­my had received at Malleville, a good Town upon the Frontier of Hungary and Bulgaria, he attaqued the Place by Force, and contrary to his Faith given to Carloman, he took it by Storm, putting to the Sword above four thousand Hungarians; after which Action he retained no manner of Authority, nor was in any sort master of those People: For whether they thought themselves by the Example of their General, Authorised to take the Liberty of measuring out their own Revenge, or whether it were the desire of Booty, the Pleasure of which they now began to tast in the Saccage of this miserable Town; or whether seeing the Hermite in a Condition so different from that wherein they had Reverenced him as a Saint, they retained nothing of the former Idea of him, and they neither considered him as Peter, nor as the General of the Army, altho he affected both the one and the other. However it were, it is certain, that there was no manner of Excess, no sort of Crimes, Persidiousness, Cruelty, Robberies, Murder, Fire, or any kind of Violence, which these brutish Dreggs of the People of France, Lorrain, and Germany, did not commit; they neither knew Discipline, or any fear of God or Man; but notwithstanding all that the Hermite could with his utmost Power do, to oppose them, they aban­doned themselves to the Commission of the most horrible Ravages, all along their March through Hungary and the Confines of Bulgaria. But as one of the Writers of that time observes, who doth not dissemble the Truth, as doth Willi­am of Tyre, who writ a long time after; When once a Body, otherwise of an ill Composure, comes to have a weak and languishing Head, it becomes every day worse and worse, and cannot in Conclusion, possibly avoid a necessary Ru­in. And so it happened here, for the Bulgarians and Hungarians, justly exaspe­rated against these persidious Wretches, took all Occasions to fall upon them; and finding them in a disorderly March, they slew above ten thousand of them upon the place, took all their Baggage and their Provisions, their Wives, Chil­dren, and the old Men who could not slye, together with two thousand Wag­gons, amongst which were those which carried the Treasure of Peter the Her­mite. Nor was it without great Difficulty that he rallied the rest of his Troops, who saved themselves in the Woods and Mountains, and that in Conclusion, in extreme want of all things, the first day of August he joyned Gautier the Mo­nyless, who waited for his coming, little expecting to sind him reduced to such a [Page 19]piteous Condition as he himself was in, being obliged to live upon the Charity and Alms of the Emperor.

Now these ill Examples being extremely Contagious, it happened that in a little time after two other Armies of these counterfeit Crusades, who abused so Religious an Enterprise, following the same Methods, and rather surpassing the Disorders of the first, did also by the most just Judgment of God, perish in a most deplorable manner. For a German Priest of the Palatinate, one Godescale, who had conferred with Peter in his Travails, was resolved to imitate him; and therefore he did with such vehemency preach up the Crusade, that he assembled about fifteen thousand Soldiers, Germans and Lorrainers, at the Head of whom he put himself, and very peaceably, and with out any Disorder, paying exactly for whatever they took, he marched as far as Hungary: But finding there an exces­sive Plenty of all things, the Year having been the most Fruitful that had been known, they fell to Debauchery; so that being almost continually drunk, there was no sort of Insolence, injastice, or Cruelty, which with a horrible Brutali­ty they did not commit against those who had so courteously Entertained them. Whereupon all Hungary by the Command of the King was immediately in Arms, in order to exterminate these perfidious Villains, so that besieging them in their Camp, they were, in short, compelled to surrender their Arms and themselves to Discretion to the Officers of the King, they giving them an assurance of their Lives; but the Hungarians furiously Incensed against them, thinking it ve­ry lawful to revenge Persidiousness by Treachery, no sooner saw them disarmed but they fell upon them and put them all to the Sword, except a very few who escaped the Massacre to carry the woful News into their own Country to the o­ther Crusades, who yet by their Misfortune grew never the Wiser or more Considerate.

For in the beginning of the Summer of this same Year, a prodigious Multi­tude of People, gathered from divers parts of France, England, the low Coun­tries, Lorrain, and that part of Germany which lyes upon the Rhine, drawing a­long with them an infinite of Women and People of the lewdest Condition in the World, assembled themselves near Collen, where they passed the Rhine in or­der to joyn with Count Emico, who attended them with a great number of Crusades of the higher Germany, of the same dissolute Complexion with them­selves. These People to Signalize their false Zeal by covering a most barba­rous Action with the specious pretence of Piety, most inhumanly Massacred all the Jews whom they found at Collen and Mayence, where they forced the Arch-Bishops Palace, where Rothard the Archbishop had secured a hundred of these poor Creatures, as in a Sanctuary. But it proved no Protection against the Fury of those Barbarians, who Butchered them in a most savage manner, cutting their Throats like Sheep, sparing neither the Women for their Sex, nor the Children for their innocent Age, nor indeed was there any Sanctuary to be found against this horrible Barbarism which was inspired by Avarice, and promoted by an insatiable Covetousness of the Riches of the Jews. Insomuch that the remain­ders of them being reduced to the utmost Dispair, chose rather to repeat the doleful Example of Saguntum & Capua, and with their own Hand to commit the bloody Execution; so that barricadoing themselves within their Houses, the pityless Mothers like Furies cut the Throats of their sucking Babes, the Hus­bands their Wives and Daughters, and the Fathers their Sons, and the Servants chose rather to dispatch each other, than to fall into the Hands of those incom­passionate Monsters, who profaned the Character, and rendered the Name of Christian, of which they were unworthy, most Infamous and Detestable.

But it was not long before God Almighty, by the remarkable Vengeance which he executed upon these wicked People, manifested the Abhorrence which he had of their Crimes, and that he had no Intention to make use of their Ser­vice, in reconquering the Inheritance of his Son, by the profane Hands of those who had declared themselves his Enemies, by such Impieties, as even the Infidels themselves would have blushed to commit. For this huge Army of Bedlams, which consisted of above two hundred thousand Men, of whom there were not above three thousand Horse, laying Siege to Mesbourg, a strong place upon the Danubius in Hungary, where they were denyed Passage, and when [Page 20]they were just upon the point of gaining it, was in an instant struck with such a Pannick Fear, that they fled with so much Precipitation, Blindness, and Dis­order, and all perished there except a very few of the Horse, who being well mounted saved themselves by Flight: For the greatest part of them were Smo­thered whilest they indeavoured to pass the Morass with which the Town is In­vironed, others were slain by the Garrison, who upon this occasion sallying out, followed them with Death closely at the Heels; many were cut off by the Pea­sants who ran from all parts to take Vengeance of these Robbers, and a multi­tude of them were drowned, whilest indeavouring to pass the Danube they tumbled headlong one upon another, so that the Shoar of that great River was for some time covered with their dead Bodies; insomuch that this prodigious multitude of distracted People, who pretended with impunity to commit the most execrable Crimes in the World, causing a Shee-Goat to be worshipped, which was carried at the Head of the Army as their conducting Divinity, va­nished in a moment, by a terrible Blow of the Divine Justice, which would not indure to be affronted by their pretended Piety, and making Religion only a Cover for those abominable Wickednesses wherewith they daily dishonored God.

year 1096 But to proceed, the Army of Peter the Hermite did not meet with a Fortune much more advantageous: It was now become very numerous by the Con­junction of an infinite number of Lombards, Genoese, Piemontanes, and other People of Italy, who having taken upon them the Cross with the earliest, even presently after the Council of Clermont, came in several Troops by themselves without any Leaders, and being joyned with those Forces of Gautier near Con­stantinople, they were commanded there to attend the Arrival of the Hermite by the Emperors Order, who now began to entertain some suspicious Jealousies of this great Army of Franks, who were to be followed by others as numerous as they. So soon as Peter was arrived, the Emperor who had an extream desire to see him, sent for him to the Palace, where the Hermite, who by the Voyage he had made into the Levant, was well skilled in the Language, and as Elo­quent an Orator as a great Captain, made him a Discourse in publick upon the Subject of this Expedition and the Holy War, of the Forces, and Qualities of the Princes which were expected; with which the Emperor appeared so well satis­fied, that he made the Hermite very fair Presents, and bestowed upon him a round Sum of Money to buy Provisions for his Troops. After which he sent him back to the Camp, Exhorting him by no means to precipitate this great Affair, and especially not to attempt the passing of the Straits till the Arrival of the Princes; nor to expose his harrassed Troops against those of the Turks, which were far stronger than his, and against which his tired and feeble Men would be able to make no tolerable Resistance. The truth is, the greatest part of our Historians represent this Prince as the most perfidious and disloyal of Mankind; one who under the fine appearance of a feigned Friendship, covered that horrible Treason which he had contrived against the Latins, which was by a thousand unworthy Artifices to bring them to Destruction, as well as by the Arms of the Turkish Infidels; on the other side, the Greek Writers, when they mention this Emperor and this War, speak nothing like it; and the Prin­cess Anna his Daughter, who hath written the History of her Father, in a Stile Florid and Beautiful, after the Genius of her Sex, in her Alexiada, paints him directly contrary, and hath dressed him up like a Hero, a Wise and Politick Prince, who upon this Occurrence performed the most admirable things in the World. But to deal sincerely and without Prejudice, the best way in my O­pinion is to avoid both these Extreams, to the end thereby, if possible, to find out Truth in the middle Way.

But this is most certain, that this Alexis Comnenius was no other than an U­surper of the Empire of his Master and his Benefactor, who had given him the Command of General of all his Forces: He was a Prince who was dexterously Cunning, and a witty Dissembler, Covetous and Cruel, and one who easily made the Laws of Honour, Conscience, and Justice, comply with humane Poli­cy, and whatever seemed to be his present Interest: And therefore it is most probable, in my Judgment, that he having so earnestly requested of the Pope, [Page 21]to procure him the Assistance of the Latins against the Turks, who were now become Masters of the lesser Asia, and threatned the Imperial City, that it was his real Design to receive the Crusades, and to joyn his Forces with them, to Defeat those incroaching and dangerous Neighbours, and to recover those Provinces which his Predecessors had lost; and that for this Reason he advised Peter, by no means to pass into Asia with those raw and undisciplined Men. But in making my Observations out of some of our own Authors, I find there were two things which made him change this Opinion, and take Measures quite different from his former Resolution. The first was that great, and in­deed, prodigious Number of the Crusades, and those valiant Men who were expected under the Conduct of the Princes of France, of whose Courage and Ambition he was not too well assured. For in truth, the Pope believing it would be joyful and welcome News to him, had given him an account by Let­ters some time after the Council of Clermont, that in a small time he should have on Foot an Army of three hundred thousand Crusades, under the Command of those brave Princes, whose Names and Qualities he therein recounted to him, and that by the Noise which this Design made throughout all the West, he be­lieved the Number would be augmented every day. But that which gave him the greatest Disturbance of all, was, that some time after he received Intelli­gence, that the famous Bohemond, Prince of Tarentum, the Son of Robert Guis­chard, who even in Greece had made War with him so much to his Glory and Advantage, was to make one of the Party; then immediately the Devil of State-Jealousy entred into, and possessed his Soul, that this brave Norman Prince might possibly have preingaged all those other Princes, and formed such a pow­erful League amongst them, under the Colour of a War against the Infidels, to turn all those Arms against himself, and following the Traces of his Fathers Design, indeavour to deprive him of the Constantinopolitan Empire.

The second, was the insupportable Insolence of this Army of Peasants and Vagabonds, which Peter the Hermite and Gautier, after a miserable Fashion seemed to Command, who indeed were under no manner of Obedience; the Emperor Alexis had given them Liberty to Encamp without the Suburbs of Constantinople, and to Traffique with his People for all kind of Necessaries at the Price Currant; but these Brutes, who laughed at the Orders of their Supe­riors, took what Liberty they thought fit, and committed the very same Dis­orders which had been so fatal to them before in Hungary, for in five days space they made such a Desolation in the Suburbs of that City, and the places adja­cent, that even the Turks and Saracens themselves could not have done more; they Plundered all the beautiful Houses of Pleasure, and the magnificent Pala­ces which were without the City, and afterwards burnt them; they Sacrilegi­ously Robbed the Churches, stripping them even of the very Coverings of the Lead, which they sold to the Greeks: These fearful and excessive Brutalities, did so fortify the Jealousies of Alexis, and so exasperated him against the Latins, that without considering that these were only the Scum and Sink of the com­mon People, as he very well understood himself; he resolved to do all that pos­sibly he could, utterly to destroy them, and yet so far to dissemble with the Princes, as to draw to himself all the Advantages he could from their Con­quests. And therefore, whereas formerly he had Counselled the Hermite to expect the coming up of the rest of the Forces, and not to expose himself with those pitiful Troops, he was now for having him immediately to pass for­wards to the Straits through Bithynia: This they did, all the way commiting the same Disorder, till they came to Nicomedia, Plundering, Ravaging, and De­solating the Lands, Houses, and the Churches of the Christians, against whom these Libertines seemed to make that War, which they had vowed to make a­gainst the Infidels, neither the Fear of God, nor the Authority of their Her­mite General being in the least available to stop the Torrent of their Fury.

But God Almighty to vindicate the Honor of his Justice, in a little time took Vengeance on them, and punished their innumerable Crimes, making to perish by the Hands of the Turks, those who had so unworthily pro­faned the Cross, which they had undertaken against them: For as Peace and Unity cannot long be preserved among wicked Men who are always restless, so [Page 22]here it happened: For the Spirit of Division falling upon this unruly Army; the Italians and Germans separated themselves from the French, whose Humor they were not able to support, and who in reality treated them with more Ar­rogance and Contempt, and as our own Historians affirm, in terms far worse than I relate it, therefore abandoning Peter the Hermite, they chose for their Captain one Renaud; as appeared by his future Conduct, one of the loosest and most Wicked of the whole Crew. He being imployed in the mountainous Coun­try near Nice, took there first a small Village, and presently after seized on a­nother large Town, which he found forsaken of all its Inhabitants, but replen­ished with abundance of all sorts of Provisions: And whilest he there amused himself and his whole Army with Feasting and Jollity, the young Soliman Sul­tan of Nice, who upon the Alarm of the coming of the Western Christians, had raised a formidable Army, composed of the most valiant Turks of all Asia, came to Invest him; the better part of his Army being before defeated upon Michael­mas day, whilest going out under his ill Conduct, to surprize the Sultan by an Ambuscade, they themselves fell into an Ambuscade of the Turks, by whom they were surprized. After this the Siege was of no long continuance, for the Leud and Cowardly Renaud, unable to indure the Extremity of Thirst, to which Soliman had reduced the Place by cutting off their Water, pretending to go out upon a Parly, went and rendered himself with his Followers to the Enemies, and turned Turk; after which the others were forced to Surrender themselves upon Discretion: And that which is the most deplorable, and remarkable piece of Divine Vengeance, is, that those Persons who had by their enormous Crimes, rendred themselves unworthy of the Grace of God, generally imitating their wicked Captain, renounced their Faith to save their Lives; There were divers nevertheless upon whom God had so much Compassion, who abhorring that detestable Apostacy, chose to obliterate the shame of their former wicked Lives, by a glorious Death, to which they generously offered themselves for the sake of Christ Jesus; some of which lost their Lives by divers kinds of Torments, and others by a lingring Martyrdom, changing their Freedom into a most cru­el Slavery.

The lot of the French, from whom the other Nations had separated them­selves, was not much more Fortunate; they were Incamped near Helenopolis and Cybotus, which our Writers call Civitot, which are two Villages situate in the Gulph of Nicomedia, and nearest to the City of Nice, from whence they sent out great Parties to destroy the Forrage about that City. But the Disor­ders among them were still as great, or greater than before, so that Peter him­self unable longer to indure their Insolence, abandoned them, leaving the whole Command to Gautier, and retiring to Constantinople under pretence of pro­curing Provision for the Army. Soliman who was a great Captain, and kept good Intelligence, and who knew how to use his Victory, resolved now to at­tempt a second, by attacking these People who had neither Discipline, Order, nor Head, whom therefore he purposed to surprize in their Camp. But by a strange Adventure it happened that these who had just now received the sad News of the Defeat of their Companions, forced their Captains, contrary to their Inclinations, to draw out and March towards Nice, with a Resolution to fall unexpectedly upon Soliman, and surprize him whilest he was injoying the Pleasures of his last Victory; they therefore decamped with twenty five thousand Men, divided into six Batallions under so many Standards, and with about five hundred Curiassiers on Horseback: There lay between the French Camp and the City of Nice several high Mountains covered with Woods, from whence there is a Descent into a fair Plain, where this great Town is si­tuated. As the French passed these Mountains and Forrests in Disorder, accord­ing to their Custome, making a mighty Noise, Soliman who was advanced so far on his way from Nice, with a design to attack them, little imagining they were coming to meet him, being thereof informed by his Scouts, who without being discovered by the French, gave him this Advertisement; he immediately retreated into the Plain, where he drew up his Army in Battalia. The French who were strangely disappointed to find those so near them, and in so good Or­der, whom they thought to have surprized, nevertheless stood not to consider [Page 23]whether they should fight or not, but gave a furious Charge with two of their Batallions and their little body of Cavalry, upon the main Body of the Turks; but they who were far more in number than the French, extending their Wings to the right and left, encompassed them, and cutting off the Reserves which were to follow, they poured in a shower of Arrows from all parts upon them, and charged them with so much Fury, that not being able to rally, they were in conclusion cut all in pieces.

The brave Gautier Hievelittle who combated that day like a man, who since he could not hope to conquer, was resolved to fall nobly, being shot through with seven Arrows dyed; Renaud of Breis and Foucher of Orleans also pe­rished with all the Cavalry, selling their lives to the Infidels at an excessive rate: Gautier of Breteuil and Godfrey Burel Colonel of Foot, who was the Per­son that contrary to the Opinion of the wiser Captains drew the Army into this misfortune, saved themselves among the Rocks and Bushes, retiring to those who were not yet drawn out from the Woods, but they seeing all lost dreamt of nothing but how to save themselves. But the Turks who followed them close at the Heels, pursued them with so much heat that they entred their Camp with the Fugitives, where they made a most horrible slaughter among the Women, Children, Sick People, Old Men, Priests and Monks which were lest there with a very slender Guard of Soldiers, and were generally either asleep, or, which was worse, making debauches: those who were able to save themselves from such a wosul Massacre, retired some of them into the Mountains where they mi­scrably perished; others to Civitot, where the Town being presently after taken by the Turks they were all made slaves. Insomuch that of this innume­rable Multitude of Crusades of so many different Nations which Peter had led as far as the Bosphorus, there did not remain above three thousand men, who saved themselves in a little Ruinous Village upon the Propontis, which they defended for several days by meer desperation, and from whence they were at length drawn off and brought to Constantinople by the Emperors Fleet, disarmed and almost naked, the Emperour being scarce able to dissemble his malicious joy for this defeat of the Christians. This was the Event of the Expedition of the Hermit, who after he had done such notable things when he acted in his own Sphere as a Hermit, a Priest, and a Preacher of the Cross to excite-men to this Holy War, came off so poorly, when he acted contrary to his Profession, and ex­changed his Pilgrims Staff for a Sword, appearing at the head of an Army with a Helmet upon his gray head, and under that the Monks Cowl, which did so ill accord with the Equipage and the Quality of a General. This may inform us in a Lesson which cannot be too often repeated, That as the natural frame of the Universe is conserved by the Different actions of the Elements, which whilst they act in their proper places produces the most admirable Concord, but ruin and confound all when once they depart from those regular Movements; so nei­ther can the civil World subsist longer than whilest the different functions of men retain a conformity suitable to their Condition, and that generally all is spoiled when these are confounded.

But the unfortunate beginning of this Holy War, was but only a kind dis­charge of those corrupted Humors, which otherwise might have indangered the sounder Body of the whole Christian Army; and which enabled it to act af­ter a far different manner, than it could possibly have done with the Conjun­ction of those irregular People. For in the same time whilest these matters passed in this manner in Asia in the Months of August, September and October, Godfrey of Bullen began his, March the fifteenth day of August with a puissant Army of ten thousand Horse, and seventy thousand foot, well ap­pointed, and for the most part chosen out of the Noble Families of France, year 1196 rain and Germany, who seemed transported with joy to sight under the Con­duct of such a noble General. He had also in his Company his Brother Baldwin, and among other Princes and Lords of the first Quality Baldwin de Bourg his Cousin Earl of Retel, the Counts Hugh de St. Paul, with his Son En­gelram, Renald de Toul with Peter his Brother, Baldwin de Mons Cousin to the Earl of Flanders, Garnier de Grezi Kinsman to Duke Godfrey, Conon de Moun­taigu, Dudon de Conty, Henry and Godfrey de Hasche; all which were sollowed [Page 24]by the Choicest Gentlemen and the brave Spirits of their Estates. When this Army was arrived in Austria in the Month of September, it was obliged to halt upon the Frontier of Hungary, to treat with King Carloman concerning their passage: For in Truth he had sufficient reason to be distrustful of this Army of the Crusades, after the horrible injuries which he had received from those of Peter, Godescalc and Emico. The Treaty was however quickly con­cluded by the open and plain dealing between the King and the Duke, who had an Interview upon a certain Bridge. The King demanded as Hostages Prince Baldwin and the Princess his Lady; and coasting all along with the Army of Godfrey, ordered the Magazines to furnish them with Provisions at a reaso­nable price, till such time as the greatest part of the Troops were passed over the Savus, where he returned the Hostages with a thousand Protestations of Amity to the Duke, whose Conduct and Fidelity he had in extraordinary ad­miration. With the same order Godfrey caused his Army to pass over the vast Countries of Bulgaria and the Territories of the Greek Emperour, according as he had promised his Embassadors who were sent to him by Alexis, whilest he was upon his March, until at length he arrived at Philipopolis in Thracia, where he received Intelligence of the detention of Hugh the Great.

This young Prince who was Brother to Philip the first King of France, had not, to speak Truth, either so much Experience, or so much Ability as the other Princes of the Crusade who were possessed of very fair Estates; but however he was a per­son admirably well composed, full of Honour Vertue and Goodness, extream Brave, and of an Humour sweet and indearing: the advantage which he had by his Illustrious Birth, above the rest gave him a title to a greater Respect, and he was therefore treated with so much Honour and Duty by all, that though diverse others had in reality a greater Command and Interest in the Army, yet nevertheless his Name was more Celebrated among strangers and especially the Greeks. The Princes which accompanied him in this Voyage were Robert Duke of Normandy Son to William the Conquerer, with the Noble Troops of English, Normans and Brittains; Stephen Earl of Chartres and Blois, whose power was so great that it was commonly said, that he was owner of more Places and Castles then there were days in the year; Prince Eustace of Bullen Brother to Duke Godfrey; and Robert Earl of Flanders, who following the ex­ample of the Duke of Lorrain sold his Estate to furnish the Charges of this War. These Princes who together composed a most puissant and numerous Army, having stated their measures and conferred a long time at Paris with Hugh the great in the presence of the King his Brother, put themselves upon their Way in the Month of September, and having traversed France and Italy and received the Benediction of the Pope whom they found at Leuca, and al­so having visited Rome and the Holy Places to implore the Divine Assistance, the Winter being too far advanced for them commodiously to pass into Epi­rus, they were obliged to distribute their Army about Bari, Brindes and Otran­to, there to attend the coming of the Spring and the conveniency of imbarquing their Forces. But Hugh suffering himself to be transported by the heat of his Conrage, and the Impatience natural to Young Persons, and above all others, those of the French Nation, was not able to support this delay, but exposed himself too rashly to the Faith of the Greeks, imbarking at Bari to pass to Du­ras, as he did very slenderly accompanied, and in a condition in no sort suita­ble to his Quality and the Majestick Name of France which he was to sustain during this War. But the Governour of that place, whether it were that he had secret Orders to secure such of the Crusade as he could surprize, or that he believed he should do his Master the Emperor a considerable Service by putting into his hands so great a Prince, who might serve for a Hostage to secure him against the Latins; immediately upon his arrival seized him, and sent him under a strong Guard through By-ways to Constantinople where the Emperor detained him Prisoner.

Godfrey who presently after this adventure arrived at Philipopolis where he received an account of it, sent immediately to the Emperour to demand the Liberty of this Prince and those who accompanied him, and in the mean time ad­vanced with his Army as far as Adrianople. But perceiving by the Answer which [Page 25]he received from Alexis what he was to Expect, he acted like an open Enemy, and for eight days wasting the Country all along as he went he marched directly to Constantinople, where he raised such a consternation, that Alexis sent to him to his Camp to desire a Peace, making him all the Promises of receiving a just satisfaction. In short, Godfrey still advancing encamped two days before Christ­mass within view of this great City, when with joy he received Hugh the Great to whom the Emperor had now given his Liberty, and who came to pay his thanks to his Deliverer and Benefactor, accompanied with Drogon de Neele, Cle­rembaud de Vendeuïle and William Viscount of Melun commonly called the Car­penter, either because he was so notable an Artist in framing of Engines of War, or that according to the mode of Expression in those times, he used so ter­ribly to hack and hew his Enemies, that neither Cask, Shield nor Curiass, was able to resist the Force of his blows. But this Peace by reason of the perfidiousness of Alexis lasted not long, for perceiving that after he had given orders privately to prohibit the furnishing them with provisions, the Army began to live at Discre­tion, he had recourse to Artifice, and desired Godfrey to take up his Quarters in the fair Houses, Palaces, Hamblets and Villages which lay all along the Bos­phorus to the Euxine Sea, pretending the Rigor of the season was too extream to permit them to continue in their Camp, but the truth is with a design to lock up this great Army in the little space which is between the Strait and the River which discharges it self into the Port, that there he might more easily destroy them. He had also a design to surprize the Duke, inviting him to come to the Palace to confer with him about the War; but finding that the Duke would not be decoyed, and that he did with good reason distrust him, he endeavoured again to famish the Army, prohibiting the furnishing them with any kind of provisions; he also attacked them both by Sea and Land, for he commanded out his Cavalry against those who were sent to forrage, and caused many Vessels manned with Archers to fall down the River, who incessantly discharged upon such of the Soldiers as appeared. But his Enterprize prospered accordingly, for Godfrey with ease defeating the Greek Cavalry, made himself Master of the Bridge of Blakerness, in despite of all that the Emperors People endeavoured to do to oppose him, and having without danger repassed the Main of his Army, who set sire at their parting to the Houses and Palaces where they had lain, he went and incamped in the plain of Blakerness. In the night he was attacked by all the Emperors Forces, but he repulsed them immediately, and drive them into the Town though with little loss, by reason that they made more hast to retire than they had done to assail him. After which having for five or six days wasted all about Constantinople in revenge of the detestable infidelity of the Emperor, Alexis was compelled to desire a new accommodation: He volun­tarily offered his Son John Porphirogenitus for a Hostage to oblige the Duke to come to his Palace, there to confer about the Articles of the Treaty.

Godfrey who desired nothing but the means to execute his principal Design, and to pass with safety into Asia, accepted the condition; and having sent his Cousin Baldwin, du Bourg and Conon Earl of Mountaigu to receive the Prince, he made the Army retreat to their former Port upon the Bosphorus, where leaving Baldwin to command them, he with Hugh and the other Princes went up the River to Constantinople. The Emperor received them there with much magnificence, and according to the custom observed by the Greek Em­perors, as a sign of amity and intire confidence, when they are minded to do a singular honor to any Prince, he would needs adopt him for his Son. After which the Emperor proposed the Conditions of the Treaty, which were reduced to these two Articles; First Alexis promised upon his Oath to aid these Prin­ces with all his Power both by Sea and by Land, that he would joyn his For­ces with theirs and lead them in his own Person, that he would with his Fleet continually supply the Army with Provisions, and do no sort of Injury to those who served in this War. The second was, that these Princes should recipro­cally ingage to do nothing contrary to his Interests; that they should restore to him such places of Importance as they should recover in Asta, do homage for others, and take an Oath of fealty to him as his Subjects for such Lands which they should hold of the Emperor. This last which was a very nice [Page 26]point was a long time contested by the Princes, who thought it would be very dishonourable to them to declare themselves Vassals of the Greek Emperor, but after mature consideration, that without stocking the Authority of their own Sovereigns they might become Feudaries to another lefter Prince, and swear fealty to him for such lands as they held of him; and that it was im­possible their enterprize should succeed well if they should have the Emperor always opposite to them, they resolved to give him that which he desired, and to give him their Oaths and do that Homage, but with this Limitation, That they should be no longer obliged then whilest he punctually performed his Part of the Agreement. After which the Emperor, who was magnificent even to Profusion, striving to purchase a Reputation of being liberal to stran­gers though at the rates of Avarice and Cruelty, impoverishing his Subjects by unsupportable Exactions, loaded these Princes with Honours, and made them excessive rich Presents. And for the subsistence of the Dukes Army, he ordered every week so much mony as he desired to be paid him, which nevertheless he was afterards obliged to return by the way of Spain: For this Prince who was most sordidly covetous, being Master of all the Commodities of his Empire, there was not a Merchant but who was a kind of Custom-house Officer to him, and oblig­ed to give him an exact account of whatever was either imported or exported throughout his Dominions. Miserable is the condition of those Subjects who live under such Princes who will allow them no manner of Property in their Goods, or rather, most unfortunate are those Princes who in reality have none but Slaves and Beggars for their Subjects.

In the mean time the Emperor who was informed that the other Princes were upon their March with puissant Armies, desired Duke Godfrey about the beginning of Lent to pass with his Army towards Bithynia and to encamp near Calcedon, alledging that he could no longer sind subsistence for his Troops in the place where they lay; but this was in reality only a politick stratagem, to avoid the assembling so near him so many Guests who were very much su­spected by him; and above all others he was possessed with an extream appre­hension of Bohemond Prince of Tarentum, who presently after Easter arrived with the choicest Italians and Normans, who had made themselves Masters of the extream part of Italy, by an adventure which because it redounds to the glory of our Nation, I shall think it no trouble in a few words to give an ac­count of it.

year 1002 About some seventy four years before this time fourty Norman Gentlemen returning from a Voyage to Jerusalem where they had visited the Holy Pla­ces, arrived by Sea at Salernum, in the very time when the City was extream­ly pressed by the Saracens who besieged it by Land. These Pilgrims who were brave men, tall of stature, and of a good Mind, had a great desire to signalize their Zeal upon so fair an occasion; having therefore easily obtained of Gaimar Prince of Salernum Horses and Arms, and the liberty which they de­sired to make a Sally up on the Enemies, they issued out to so good purpose, and fought with so much Conduct and bravery in the view of the whole Town which ran to the Walls to behold them, that having filled the whole Camp of the Saracens with confusion, blood and slaughter, and burnt their Engines of War, they obliged them to raise their Siege by one of the most memorable actions that is extant upon historical Record, Gaimar did what possibly he could to stay these brave men with him, and offered them most magnificent recompences for the Service they had done; but they generously refusing assured him they expected nothing but the Reward of God Almighty for whose Glory they had combated against his Enemies of his Holy Name; and that having performed their Vows, they were under undispensible obligations of returning into their own Country. However this Prince willing by some way or other, to draw to himself some of so valiant and generous a Nation, requested them to take along with them his Ambassadours, which being a­greed, the Ambassadors carried with them some of the most delicious Fruits of Champain, Italy, Pavia and Calabria, and particularly Citrons, Lemons and Oranges, which the Ancients called Golden Apples, none of which grew in Normandy. They managed their affairs there with so much dexterity that [Page 27]many Gentlemen allured with the Pleasure of those beautiful Fruits, but much more with the Fruits of Glory, which they hoped to gain by making War a­gainst the Saracens, followed the Ambassadors. These Gentlemen did there such memorable Actions whilest they served the Italian Princes, and the Em­peror St. Henry, against the Infidels, and against the Greeks, whose Yoak they could no longer bear, as rendred their Names most Celebrated throughout all Italy; but being of an Humor not to forget themselves whilest they served others so advantageously, they took occasion to be their own Paymasters, by making themselves Masters of certain Places in Pavia, where they afterwards became very Powerful by the Accession of divers of their Countrymen who flocked thither to them, upon the Incouragement of their good Fortune and Renown.

The most considerable of these was a Person of Quality, one Tancred Lord of Hauteville, who of twelve Sons which he had, not at all inferior to their Father in Courage, sent eleven of them into Italy. They were so fortunate, that in a little time a fair Occasion presented itself to them, to establish their Domi­nion in Italy: For Baldwin Lieutenant to the Greek Governor, being ill treated by him, craving Aid of these Normans, broak out into Terms of Defiance with him. These Eleven Brothers, the most renowned of their Nation, and to whom all the rest yeilded Obedience, carried themselves with such Conduct and ad­mirable good Fortune, that after having intirely defeated the Greeks in three Battles, they chaced them out of almost all their Dependancies in Italy, di­viding the Conquests among themselves. But still they acknowledged for their Captain and Chief, the eldest Brother William, Surnamed for his Valour Iron-Arme, who was the first Earl of Pavia; his two next Brothers Drogon and Hum­phry succeeded him, and after them the Third, which was the famous Robert Guischard. This Prince who certainly was one of the greatest Men of his Age, not contented with Pavia, by the force of his Arms, extended his Dominion into Calabria, and Conquered the greatest part of that Country, which is now called the Kingdom of Naples, and took upon himself the Title of Duke of Pavia and Calabria, for which he did Homage to Pope Nicholas the Second, re­storing to him such Lands as had been usurped from the Church. He had after­wards great Differences with Gregory the Seventh, who Excommunicated him; but in the end being Reconciled, he received Absolution, and became his great Protector; and at the earnest intreaty of that Pope, it was, that he with his Son Bohemond passed the Sea to make War with Alexis Commenius, the Usur­per of the Imperial Throne, out of which his Predecessor Nicephorus Botaniatos had expelled the Emperor Michel Parapinacius, who was come to Rome to Im­plore the Succor of the Pope and the Normans. There can be nothing more Glorious than that which upon this Occasion was performed by this admirable Prince; for he over-ran all Greece, and with no more than fifteen thousand Men, defeated Alexis in a set Battle, who Encountred him upon the Frontier of Thrace with an Army of one hundred and seventy thousand Combatants. Then leaving Bohemond in Thrace, who successfully pusht on the War, often beating Alexis, as the Princess Ann his Sister Confesses, he hasted to the Succor of the Pope, who was closely Besieged by the Imperialists and Romans in the Castle of St. Angelo; he constrained Henry the Emperor to depart from Italy; Retook Rome from the Schismaticks; conducted the Pope to Salernum; returned to the East; in his Passage defeated the Fleet of Alexis; and having Rejoyned with Bohemond, not long after he died full of Glory, leaving his Estate to his Son Roger, who after an unkind and unlucky War, at last came to an Agreement with his Brother Prince Bohemond, giving him for his Share the Principality of Tarentum.

year 1097 This Prince who was nothing Inferior to his Father in Skill or Courage, was with his Uncle Roger Earl of Sicily at the Siege of Amalphi, when the French Princes passed through Italy for the Levant; So soon as he understood the Subject of their Voyage, he declared publickly that he would be one with them; either out of his great Zeal for the Glory of God, or that he believed this might afford a fair Opportunity for him to Recommence the War with Alexis, and by Possessing some part of the Empire, establish himself in the East; for he sent some of his People immediately to Duke Godfrey to obstruct [Page 28]the Peace between him and Alexis: Be it as it will, for it is no part of my Province to enter into Mens Intentions, after the spiteful manner of most Peo­ple, and above all others, Historians, who to make themselves thought Able and Understanding, too frequently fall into this piece of Malice: It is most un­doubted that Bohemond shewed such a mighty Ardor for this Holy Expedition, that having in the Field torn a silken Cloak which he wore, into Crosses, he took the first himself, and afterwards presented the rest to the principal Of­ficers of his Army, which were received with such an universal Applause, that all the Souldiers protested they would follow him, insomuch that passing quite through the quarter of Bohemond, Earl Roger was in a manner wholy deserted and forced to retire.

Bohemond overjoyed at this Adventure, applied himself with incredible Di­ligence to make Preparation for this Enterprize, and in a short time passed the Sea after Hugh the Great, but with another manner of Equipage than that Prince had done; for he had in his Army ten thousand Horse, and above so many Foot, together with the greatest part of the Gentry of Sicily, Calabria, and Pavia, and the Princes and Norman Lords, the principal whereof were the brave Tan­cred his Nephew, his Sisters Son; the Earls Richard and Ranulph his Cousins, the Sons of William Iron-Arme his Uncle, Richard the Son of Earle Ranulph, Herman de Canni, Humphrey the Son of Raould, and Robert de Sourdevall. The Army passed through Epirus and Macedon, where the Greek Imperialists who had their Winter Quarters there, drawing together attended their Motions, intending, if possible, to surprize them; and at a certain Pass upon a River, when one half of the Army was marched over they fell in upon the Rere; But Tancred immediately Repassing, followed by two thousand Horse, charged them so home, that having cut the forwardest of them in pieces, the rest consulted their Safety with their Heels: He took also many Prisoners, whom he sent to Bohemond, who reproaching them for this unworthy Action, they assured him that what they had done, was by particular Order from the Emperor, notwith­standing, that that perfidious Prince had wrote Letters full of Complements and Civility to Bohemond, by that Artifice, it seems, thinking to amuse him and make him less Careful or Suspicious. However this Blow so astonished Alexis, that to avoid a greater he sent an Excuse to Bohemond, and commanded his Of­ficers to furnish his Army with Provisions; he also requested Duke Godfrey with the principal Lords of his Army, to meet this Prince and mediate a Re­conciliation; and the Duke knew so well how to soften that great Spirit, that notwithstanding all the reason he had for his Distrusts, he brought him along with him to pay his Duty to the Emperor, and to take the same Oath with the rest of the Princes, which he did with the same Intention, lest it should pro­crastinate that great Design for which they had taken Arms. The Emperor received him with all the Marks of Esteem and Kindness, and believing he knew his blind side, which he thought was Ambition, he promised him that Conditi­onally that he would take the Oath which was required of him, he would establish this Prince in the greatest part of those Provinces which lye between Constantinople and Antioch, which he thought was an irresistable Argument to work upon his Temper. But Tancred, whether it were that he had secret Or­ders from Bohemond, or that he could not dispose himself to Digest an Oath which he did not approve, drew his Troops to this side of the Strait, without seeing the Emperor at all, who was forced to dissemble this Affront which was put upon him. The Earl of Flanders, who came up a few Days after, went to wait upon the Emperor with a slender Retinue, and without Difficulty took the same Oath, as the others had done. After which these Forces also passed the Bosphorus to encamp near Calcedon with the rest. But the Arival of Count Raymond brought such new Difficulties, as were not without great Trouble to be Surmounted.

This Lord had taken the Cross the first of all others, at that same time when the Greek Ambassadors came to Pope Ʋrban after his departure from Clermont; and his Example was so prevalent that he was followed by above one hundred thousand Men out of Avergne, Gascoine, Languedoc, and Provence, who put themselves under his Conduct.

He was a Prince of a majestick Aspect, and being somewhat advanced in Years, his gray Hairs rendered him still more Venerable, but he was only so old as to have his Experience increased and his Judgment more strong, with­out any diminution to the strength of his Body, which was every way Ro­bust and capable of induring all the Fatigues of War: He had acquired a very noble Reputation, especially in Spain, in the Wars against the Moors for Al­phonsus the great, King of Castile, who gave him his Daughter Elvira in Mar­riage, as a Recompence of his Valor, the glorious Marks whereof he carried in his Face, having lost one of his Eyes by the shot of an Arrow; which was so far from being a Blemish, that together with his goodly Presence, it inhanced his Esteem and Reputation among the Soldiers, who had him in mighty Vene­ration. He possessed moreover all the good Qualities which were requisite to render him a great Prince and an honest Man; above all things a lover of Ho­nor, Justice, and Integrity; an inviolable Master of his Word, Vigilant, Wise, and of a great Foresight; Magnificent, Prudent in his Counsels, firm and un­alterable in his Resolutions: But after all this it must be acknowledged, that notwithstanding his Age and all his Prudence, he retained too much of the Ge­nius and the Temper of his Country; for he was a mighty Opiniatre, and not able to bear Injuries, or to suffer his own Sentiments or his Will to be Opposed. The Countess his Lady, who had the Heart of a Heroine, generously followed her Husband in this Voyage, as did also his Son Bertrand, whom he was resolved to educate in this fair School of Virtue, both by his Instructions and his Ex­ample. Many great Persons accompanied him, of whom the principal were Aimar Bishop of Pavia the Popes Legate, William Bishop of Orange, Currard Earl of Rousillon, William Earl of Montpellier, Gaston de Bearn, William de For­rest, Raiband of Orange, Raimond the first Viscount of Turenne, and several Spanish Lords, together with Bernard Archbishop of Toledo, and all the brave Lords and Gentlemen of Avergn, Gascony, Languedoc, and Provence.

This brave Earl having passed the Alpes, and taken his way by Lombardy and Friul, Marched quite through Dalmatia, being forced continually to stand upon his Guard to defend himself from the ancient Sclavonians, a Barbaroas People who then Inhabited that Country, and who never failed upon any Ad­vantage to assail him, and lay Ambuscades for him all the Way till he came to Duras; from thence he entred into Epirus, and traversed all Macedon and Thracia, till he came to a Town upon the Hellespont, within four days March of Constantinople, having been forced to sight his Passage all the way against the Greeks and Bulgarians, which the perfidious Alexis, contrary to all his fair Pro­testations of Friendship, had caused to arm against him. However for the present he dissembled the Injury, and tho not without a great deal of Repug­nance, leaving his Army Encamped near that City, he advanced with a small Train to Constantinople, there to treat with the Emperor, according to the earnest Desires of the Princes who had already passed the Strait, who now de­sired nothing more than to come to a Conjunction of their Forces, in order to their entring upon Action. The Emperor after a magnificent Reception, pres­sed him also to the point of Homage, as the other Princes had agreed: The Earl smartly replied, That he would never do it, and that he was not come so far as the Levant to find a Master, nor did he intend to become a Vassal to any other besides Christ Jesus: But that nevertheless, if his Imperial Majesty would joyn his Forces with theirs, and put himself at the Head of the Army, he would without trouble acknowledg him for his General, and in that Quality oney him as well as any of the rest. Alexis netled at this Denial, however stilled his ill Humor, and amuling the Earl with a pretence of treating with him fur­ther concerning the Common Interests, the Imperial Troops who were Quartered in Thracia, receiving secret Orders to that purpose, sell unexpect­edly in the Night upon his Camp, who believing themselves in great Security in the Country of their Friends, kept no manner of strict Guard; this Sur­prise brought a strange Confusion upon the Camp, and many Soldiers were killed before they could be awakned; but after a little time these cowardly As­sailants were repulsed with a very great Slaughter: The Disorder however was never the less, for the Souldiers who before had suffered so much in their march, [Page 30]began to mutiny, and believing that they were betrayed by their Officers who had brought them thither to be butchered, nothing would satisfie them but to return into their own Country. But the Earl who could by no means endure to think of retreating, appeased them by changing their dispair into a desire of Revenge, he therefore sent openly to reproach the Emperor with this infa­mous treachery, and to sollicit the rest of the Princes to joyn with him, and at once to deliver themselves from this persidious Greek by razing his Imperial Throne. But the Princes, at the earnest prayer of Alexis who absolutely disa­vowed the action, and offered to make any kind of satisfaction to the Earl, made such powerful Remonstrances to Raimond, that in conclusion they not only appeased him but also obliged him for fear of losing more time to the prejudice of their great design, to take the Oath which was desired, which ac­cordingly he did, but in these terms, That he promised to enterprize nothing con­trary to the honor or the life of Alexis, provided that Prince should inviolably observe all that he had promised. But when the Homage came under debate he constant­ly protested that he would die before he would do it, and that the Emperor and the Princes ought to be abundantly satisfied with the Oath which he had taken. From whence they might have learned that the same Resolution in the rest might have proved no less advantagious to them, then their politick Condescension, for assuredly what colour soever may be put upon this Action, it can never re­dound much to their Honour in the History of their lives. But so it common­ly happens, that it is the Destiny of humane Prudence to be most grosly mista­ken when for its security it makes choice of Profitable rather than Honest.

This dangerous quarrel being in this manner appeased, the Princes after having resolved at a great Council of War immediately to besiege the City of Nice, repaired to Calcedon whither also the Army of Raimond marched up to joyn with the rest. Raimond himself and Prince Bohemond of whom the jealous Emperor was extreamly suspicious, staying still at Constantinople to solicite Alexis to send the Provisions for the Army, and according to his promise to go and take upon him the Command of the Army, which they the more pressed that thereby they might be the better assured of him; but he still excused himself from the apprehensions which he had of the Bulgarians who might draw dangerous advantages from his absence. Whereupon Bohemond and the Earl presently after him having given order for the Provisions, passed the strait and followed the rest of the Princes towards Nice; and in the mean time Robert Duke of Normandy, Stephen Earl of Blois, and Prince Eustace who were yet expected with impatience, after having passed the Winte and Lent in Pavia and Calabria, Embarquing after Easter the fifteenth of April, towards the latter end of May, came up with the Christian Army and encamped near that City.

year 1097 This Robert Duke of Normandy was the Son of that famous William who effaced the first infamous Surname of the Bastard by that of the Conqueror, which he acquired by his Merits in the Conquests of the Kingdom of England. This Prince was low of Stature but of a lofty Mind and a large heart, valiant and fearless upon occasion of honourable engagements, of great sincerity and in­tegrity, magnificent in his Expences, and liberal even to prodigality; but withal he was extream voluptuous, and naturally averse to trouble and bu­siness, a Lover of disorderly pleasures, and especially of eating and drinking very plentifully which made him something Corpulent and unwieldy; and by these irregularities he lost the Realm of England in which his younger Brother established himself, whilest he instead of making Preparation for War, diverted himself, with making provision only for his pleasures: and this also lost him the love of the Normans, whom he oppressed with excessive Impositions and exactions, to furnish himself wherewithal to support his Luxury. However he recovered that Dutchy, and resolving in some measure to imitate the Piety of his Grandfather Robert the eighth Duke of Normandy, who by an uncom­mon Devotion for so great a Prince went on Pilgrimage barefooted to Jeru­salem, he was one of the first in taking upon him the Cross, thereby to atone God Almighty for the viciousness of his former life: he therefore generously engaged his Dutchy to his two Brothers for fifteen thousand Marks in silver [Page 31]to enable him to undertake this Voyage wherein he suffered much in a toilsome march, and performed more when once he came to enter into the War.

All matters having thus passed at Constantinople between the Emperor and the Princes, there remained only Earl Stephen and Prince Eustace, who with the Earl of Tholose were still to perform what the rest of the Princes had al­ready done, they therefore repaired to Constantinople to pay their Homage to the Emperor who received them with all manner of honour, sparing, no char­ges in treating them most Royally, and in making them Presents, which in beauty, richness and magnificence surpassed all that he had bestowed upon the other Princes. After which this perfidious man under pretence of furnishing them with an able Conductor and some Troops of his own, promising that so soon as his affairs would permit, he would follow them in Person with all his Forces, gave them one Tatin a wicked fellow of his Court, whose nose having been cut off carried in his Face the ugly Witness of his horrid Crimes. It was to this infamous wretch that he trusted the great secret of his intended trea­chery against the Princes of the Crusade. He it was who was to give him an exact account of all occurrences, and upon occasion to put his orders in Execu­tion for their Ruin; whilest the poor Princes who thought they had reason to be extremely well satisfied with his proceedings passed the Bosphorus, and by great marches rejoyned the Gross of the Army which had now begun the Siege of Nice.

THE HISTORY OF THE CRUSADE, OR, The Expeditions of the Christian Princes for the Conquest of the Holy Land.
BOOK II.

AFter the Arrival of these Princes at Constantinople, Duke God­frey and Tancred being advanced as far as Nicomedia, and ha­ving levelled the ways over the Mountains from that Town to the City of Nice, they invested that place the sixteenth day of May. They staid some time for the coming of the other Princes, and of Peter the Hermit, who was gone into Asia to recollect some of those unfortunate Reliques of his Forces which had saved themselves in the Woods. And then it was re­solved without staying for the Troops of Raymond Earl of Tholose, and those of the Duke of Normandy and the Earl of Blois, which were not yet come up, that they should begin to form the Siege of Nice.

Nice the Capital City of Bythinia, and which is famous to this day for the first and seventh Oecumenical Councils, which were held there against the Heresies of the Arians and the Iconoclasts, was at this time a fair and spaious City, liyng about fifteen or sixteen Leagues from Nicomedia, in the middle of a most fertile and pleasant Valley, on all sides encom­passed with high Mountains, except on the Western Quarter, where the great Lake of Ascanius, which by small Vessels furnisheth it plentifully with all the Commodities of the Country, serves instead of a natural Fortification, ren­dring it wholly inaccessible on that side. It was encompassed with double Walls of an extraordinary thickness, and flanked with very fair and lofty Towers, strongly built and placed at convenient distance to defend each other, and that part of the Curtain which was between them. It was also streng­thened without the Counterscarp with a great retrenchment, admirably Palisa­doed, and which was extream difficult of access, by reason of the great num­ber of Springs and Rivulets, which falling from the Mountains and being stop­ped by the Fortifications, drowned all the adjacent fields to what degrees the defendants pleased. Old Soliman who after the Turks had entred the lesser A­sia pushed his Conquests by a continual succession of Victories as far as the Propon­tis, had taken extraordinary pains in the fortifying of this City, where he established the Seat of his Empire, that he might be so much the nearer Con­stantinople, and upon occasion one day pass over more commodiously into Eu­rope. The young Soliman who about ten years after succeeded him, usually kept a very strong Garrison there, but upon the noise which the Enterprize of the Christians of the West were about to make, he reinforced it with the choicest of his Troops; for he did not doubt but in order to their opening a passage to Jerusalem, this place would be the first that would be attacked. He himself was gone into Persia, year 1097 to request the assistance of all the Princes of his Nation; and returning just in the nick of time to succour the City, he posted himself in the Mountains at the same time when the Christian Army, not su­specting that such a terrible Enemy was so near, began the Siege.

However the Christians applyed themselves to a formal Siege, distributing their several Quarters in his open view, their Army being far more numerous then his, and consisting in above four hundred thousand Combatants. Bohemond, after he had taken care for Provisions for the Army in a very plentiful manner, returning to the Camp, posted himself on the Northwest quarter of the City, with his Nephew Tancred who extended his quarter on the right hand even to the Lake. Godfrey of Bullen with Baldwin took the Right Hand over against the Principal Gate of the City, taking up all that space between the North and the East upon that side where the City was most strongly fortified. After them upon the South East quarter encamped Hugh the Great in the same [Page 35]place, where after their arrival the Duke of Normandy and Count Stephen were to make their attack so soon as they should come up. All the South side was reserved for Count Raymond who was upon his way in Bythinia and not far distant from the Camp. That part towards the West South-West which lay upon the Lake, could not be blocked up so close but that the Enemies had that way the conveni­ence of furnishing themselves with Provisions.

The Town being in this manner begirt quite round, the besiegers began briskly with a General Assault, which upon the fourteenth day of May was gi­ven at the same time upon all the several Quarters, with all kind of military Engines. The Combat was maintained all that day till the darkness of the Night obliged them to discontinue it, and was again renewed in the Morning with extraordinary fury, though without Effect. For the besieged were not only gallant men, but every minute in expectation of being relieved by Soliman, to whom they had dispatched an Express both to inform him of their Condition, and to advertise him that he might easily do it by forcing the Christian Camp on that part which lay to the Southward, which was but as yet very slenderly guarded; but it so fell out, that the Letters of the Sultan were intercepted that very day as they were going to the Town to assure the besieged that he would not fail the next morning according to their advice to attack that part of the Camp. Notice thereupon was immediately given to Prince Raymond who was not far off, who marched with such diligence, that by good Fortune the next morning very early he arrived in the Camp.

He was no sooner begun to make his Lodgement, but the Turks descended from the Mountain and divided themselves into two great Bodies to attack the Christian Camp in two quarters. One party of them marched to the right, towards the South, believing according to the advice which they had received from the besieged, that the passage there was free, whilest the other advanced to the Quarter of Duke Godfrey which lay next the Earl, to prevent his sending any succours from that part, and thereby to be the better able to put his de­signed relief into the City. year 1097 But the gallant Raymond whom the Turks little ex­pected to have found there, received them in so good a posture, and charged their Troops, who looked for nothing less than such opposition, with so much fury, that he presently put them into disorder, and having routed them and cut the best part of them in pieces, the rest were forced to betake themselves to a hasty slight, pursuing them to the very foot of the Mountains, whilst Godfrey in his quarter dealt in the same manner with those who made the false attack upon his Post. Nevertheless the besieged failed not at all in their Courage, but made a very obstinate defence, under the Protection of their Walls, whose strength was so great as bid defiance to all the Engines which were made use of against them; nor were they out of hopes but that still they should receive the Relief which they had sent to desire of Soliman, by the way of the Lake which still was open.

Whilst matters stood in this posture, the Duke of Normandy and the Earl of Blois, arrived with their Army in the beginning of June, and took up their Posts in the Quarter assigned them at the beginning of the Siege. This was the first time that the Christian Princes had seen all their Forces together, and ta­king a review of the Army, they found it to be the most gallant and numerous, that ever had been seen in any Age. For without computing the Priests, Monks, Women, Children and Servants of which the number was infinite, those who were present at this general muster assure us, that there were no fewer than six hundred thousand Combatants, of which there were at the least a Hundred thousand Horse bravely armed; moreover the Venetians, Genoese, and those of Pisa who were Masters of the Sea, assisted them with a mighty Fleet, and supplied this vast Army continually with store of Arms, Engines of War and all manner of Provisions. But that which was most admirable, was, that these Noble Princes, to avoid the displeasure of Almighty God, which for their horrible disorders had ruined the former Crusades under the Hermit Pe­ter, Godescale and Count Emico, did by their Authority and Example, and by the powerful Exhortations which the Bishops continually made to the Soldiers, so admirably regulate them, and maintained so good and severe a Discipline, [Page 39]that all sorts of Vices and Debauches, were banished from the Camp.

During this, Soliman who was resolved to try the last of his skill for the Relief of the Town, upon a sudden made a descent from the Mountains, and made a second attack upon the Quarter of Raymond, with a Body of sixty thousand men sustained by the Gross of his whole Army: but the Count, and the rest of the Princes who were advertised of this Design of the Enemies, getting betwixt this advanced body and the rest of the Sultans Army, put them into such a consternation that they immediately fled leaving four thousand of their companions dead upon the spot, whose heads the victorious Christians cutting off, with their Engines threw them over the Walls, thereby to strike the greater Terror into the Hearts of the besieged. But notwithstanding all that, year 1097 they continued the defence like brave men, and they were thereto encou­raged both by reason that the Lake being free and open they received every day some little relief or other; as also because there were among the Turks of this Garrison many resolute men, who had determined never to abandon the defence of the place but with their lives, and among others one whose bravery, though mixed with too much of the brutal, was such, that he was from one of the Towers which he defended, looked upon by the whole Christian Army with astonishment, and his Actions seemed the Prodigies of Valour and Courage.

This valiant man who by reason of his huge Bulk, extraordinary Strength, and the Fierceness of his barbarous and menacing Air, seemed much to resemble a Giant, defended one of the strong Towers which were assaulted by Count Raymond; he had been often repulsed, but yet repeated the surious Attack, when this monstrous Turk coming to the Platform, made a terrible havock a­mong the Assailants, tumbling down with a mighty impetuosity such as had mounted the scaling Ladders, wounding them with such vast Arrows as no Shield nor Curiass was able to resist. And not herewith contented, he insul­ted most intollerably over the Christians who sell under his Arms, with all the bitter and bloody ralleries imaginable; for being attacked on all hands he could not forbear calling them feeble and effeminate Cowards, who were sitter for the Distaff than the Lance; and finding that his Bow and Arrows were not sufficient to drive off the Assailants, who pressed hard to the foot of the Wall, he threw away his Buckler and his Arms, and exposing himself naked to an infinite num­ber of Arrows which were shot at him, he with both his hands fell to throwing down stones of a prodigious bigness upon those who were attempting to under­mine the Wall; and which is almost incredible, if we were not assured from those who were Eye witnesses of the Spectacle, though he had above twenty Ar­rows sticking in him that his Breast looked as if it were bristled with them, yet he did not cease to throw down stones upon the Assailants, nor to bestow his reproachful language upon them, till Duke Godfrey who was come thither from his own quarter, not able to indure this insolence of a Barbarian, with a well placed Arrow shot him through the very heart, and tumbled him dead into the Ditch. Thus the bravest man of the Turks seemed to stay to receive an honoura­ble Death from the hand of the gallantest of the Christians. Hitherto the besie­ged being not out of hope defended the place with resolution enough [...]; but when they saw that the Christians by the help of certain little Vessels of War which the Emperor had sent from Civitot, were now become absolute Masters of the Lake, and that Count Raimond had by undermining overthrown the great Tow­er which he had been so long attacking, and that the Wife of Soliman as she was endeavouring to make her escape was taken prisoner with her two Sons, year 1097 they begun to enter into a Treaty with the Emperors People, who from the very beginning of the Siege had secretly solicited them by his Lieutenant to sur­render the place to him with great promises of advantage; and though the Prin­ces discovered this cunning Treaty and the persidiousness of Alexis, yet they did not in the least oppose the Rendition of the place unto him; so after a Siege of seven weeks the Town was surrendred upon Articles to the Emperor; and he to gain the good opinion of the Infidels if they should one day attempt to reconquer it, causing the Wife and two sons of Soliman, and the whole Turkish Garrison to be transported to Constantinople, gave them all the kind Treatment imaginable, endeavouring thereby to draw them to his Service. During which [Page 37]time, that he might the better conceal his cowardly Treachery under the fair­est shews, he made most magnificent Presents to all the principal Commanders, and bestowed good Largesses upon the poor Soldiers, that he might after a fashion make them some Satisfaction for the loss of the Spoils of the Vanquished, which he had promised them before the taking of the City. But this persidi­ous Prince was resolved to perform nothing of what he had promised to the Franks, and having drawn all the Advantages he possibly could from them, at the last to work their Ruine and Destruction; which without doubt he had ef­fected, if his former Treacheries had not been too frequent and apparent to doubt of his Intentions, and the Distrust which the Princes and whole Army had of this wicked Man, was the reason that they were always upon their Guard against him; and the Soldiers who were not given much to Dissimulati­on in the case, charged him openly every Day with whole Vollies of Curses and thousands of Execrations.

After the Reduction of Nice, the Princes that they might not lose that commodious Season of the Year, marched immediately towards Syria, and the third day after, for the conveniency of Forrage and Subsistence; they separated into two Bodies, Bohemond with the Duke of Normandy and the Earl of Blois, taking the left hand, and Godfrey with the other Princes, the right, but yet without distancing the Armies above two Miles asunder. And certainly it ap­peared quickly that this last Precaution was not without great Prudence as well as Necessity; for three days after this Separation, as Bohemond was got into a large Vally, called the Gorgonian Plain, where he incamped in the Night, upon the Brink of the Rivulet which runs through it, he was advertised by his Scouts, that he was like to have the whole Army of the Sultan upon his Hands; for Soliman after his Repulse at Nice, being reinforced with new Troops, coasted along the Coverture of the Mountains, on the left hand of the Christians with three hundred and sixty thousand Turks and Persians, all Horse, with an insi­nite number also of Arabians, who were also Cavalry; and having by his E­spials understood that Bohemond, who had the least part of the Christian Army, was ingaged in that Valley, he doubted not but so to surround him, as to cut them all in pieces, without their being able to defend themselves; and therefore in the Night he secretly passed the Valley, intending to surprize the Christians ear­ly the next Morning upon their decamping; year 1097 he therefore seized by break of Day upon all the Passes of the Hills, extending his Troops to the right and left, and placing them at the several Avenues leading out of the Valley.

And no sooner was Bohemond advertised hereof by his Scouts, but he also dis­covered the huge Clouds of Dust which rose from the Mountains, and heard the horrible Cries of this vast Multitude of Barbarians, who made the Valley re­sound with their dreadful Shouts, thereby to terrify and surprise the Christi­ans; and within two Moments after he perceived Soliman himself advancing at the head of his best Troops, followed with one hundred and fifty thousand Horse, who whilest the other made a halt upon the Hills, came powring down into the Valley, to Charge the Christians, whom he expected to find half Van­quished by their own Fear and Disorder. But Bohemond, whose Soul was not to be shaken, and who by a long Experience in War, had a mighty presence of Mind in the most dangerous Occasions; did, without the least mark of Astonish­ment, perform whatsoever was necessary, either to avoid or to defer the Mis­fortune which in this Extremity seemed Inevitable. He immediately dispatched some Cavaliers to advertise Duke Godfrey of the Danger which threatned him, and gave Command to the Infantry instantly to remove the Camp into a place between the Rivulet, and a great Morrass all covered with Reeds, and to make a Palisade of the Stakes which served them in setting up their Tents, and to fortify that with a second Circumference of the Waggons and Carriages: Af­ter which, having placed himself at the Head of the Cavalry with the Duke of Normandy and the Earl of Blois, they incouraged the Soldiers by their Looks, Gesture and Voice, exhorting them couragiously to Encounter those Enemies, whom they might more justly despise than fear, having twice before seen them turn their Backs; and assuring them that they should immediately receive Assist­ance from their Companions, and that they could not possibly however but upon [Page 38]this Occasion obtain immortal Glory, either by Death or Conquest. And thereupon with an invincible Fierceness they led them to the Charge; but the Turks at the same Instant, by the Command of Soliman made a Halt, till such time as the Christians who came to the Charge with their Lances in the Rest, were within Bow-shot, and then the Turks poured upon them a whole shower of Arrows, and immediately wheeled off, yet all the time that they seemed to slye they ceased not to shoot their Arrows against those that pursued them, and ever as the Christians retreated to the gross Body, facing about and charging them as before; this new sort of Combat did extreamly incommode the Christians, who could not come to Blows with the Enemy, and yet lost abundance of their Horse which were wounded with the Arrows: In the mean time the other part of the Turks Army having forced the Camp, made there most terrible Havock, plundring and killing without Mercy the Women, Children, and Ecclesiasticks, and other defenceless People.

The Soldiers oppressed by the multitude of their Enemies, were at their last, and all was in a manner lost when Bohemond, year 1097 to whom this News was brought, came slying to their Assistance with a party of the Cavalry: But in the mean time Soliman who saw his Design thrive so well, charged so furiously upon the Christians, that after a long Resistance they began to give ground; but the brave Duke of Normandy snatching a white Cornet embroidered with Gold, from the hands of him that carried it, and who was carried away with the Crowd of those that fled, he cried aloud, It is the Will of God, and at the same time he threw himself into the thickest of the Enemies, followed by a small number of brave Men who accompanied him; this brave Action raised so much Shame and Courage among the rest, that as if they had all on the suddain been inspired with new Vigor, they spurred up at full speed after him into the thick­est Squadrons of the Saracens, overturning all on every side that opposed their Passage: This Heat was much more increased by the return of Bohemond, who having Repulsed the Arabs who came with no other Design but that of Plun­dring, were not able to sustain the first Shock of his Cavalry, who threw him­self like a Lion into the throng of his Enemies to rejoyn the Duke of Norman­dy, who after he had renewed the Combat seemed to sustain his People more by his Courage and Example than by the strength of their Arms; for what with Weariness, the heat of the Sun, and intolerable Thirst, their Force was so a­bated, that they had much to do to sustain the Combate.

It is true, that even the Women upon this Occasion signalized their Courage, in the midst of a thousand Darts and Arrows carrying them Water from the Rivulet to refresh them, but alas this small Succor was too little to ballance the greatness of their Distress, for being oppressed by the infinite number of their Enemies, who enlarged their Squadrons to the right and left, with a design to encompass them, having lost a great many brave Men, and among the rest Prince William the Brother of Tancred, they were obliged to give way and retire, all the way of the Retreat facing their Enemies, till they came to the Camp, where they hoped by the favour of the Retrenchments to secure themselves from the danger of being inclosed by their Enemies. But now the Arabs had also re­newed their Attack, perceiving that the Christians were repulsed, and they pursued their Point so home, that the Army was reduced to the utmost Extre­mity, and in all appearance, could not possibly long resist the Force of so many Enemies, when the first Squadrons of Duke Godfrey's Army, who hasted to their Succor began to appear. For so soon as he understood the Danger in which the Army of Bohemond was, he with the Earl of Vermandois ran with all speed, being followed by all the Cavalry, consisting in sixty thousand Men, to their Assistance; whilest the Earl of Tholose, and the Bishop of Pavia, according as it was agreed, brought up the Infantry to the Combat.

These Succours appearing upon the Mountains, being at the same time dis­covered both by the Christians and the Infidels, made in an instant a strange al­teration in the face of the Battle, year 1097 for the Christians reassumed their Courage, when they saw Godfrey with fifty Horse joyn the three Princes, to communi­cate to them the Design which he had formed with the Earl of Tholose. And Soliman who was afraid so much to his Disadvantage to engage with the whole [Page 39] Christian Army in the Plain, retreated towards the Hills from whence he came in the Morning, not imagining that the Christians would there dare to attack him. But he quickly found he had deluded himself; for no sooner were the Earls of Vermandois and Tholose come up, but the whole Army was put in or­der of Battle, just about Noon, without giving so much as time for those who had been engaged already, to take their repast, except whilest they were draw­ing up into their Order. The Norman Princes, that is, Duke Robert, Bohe­mond, Tancred, and Richard Prince of Salernum his Cosin, had the left Battalion upon that side towards the Entrance into the Valley, Duke Godfrey with his two Brothers, and the Earls of Vermandois and Flanders were upon the right, Count Raymond led the main Body betwixt those two, inclining a little to the left, that way where the access to the Mountain was less Difficult, the Horse were disposed upon the Wings and in the Intervals of the Battle, and the two Points, to the intent they might the better sustain the Infantry upon all occasions.

The Princes in drawing up the Squadrons, animated the Soldiers by the sight of the Cross which they carried in the Colours, and upon their Coats, thereby to remind them of their Vow which they had made, to vanquish or to dye for the Glory of him, who for their Salvation died upon the Cross; they remon­strated to some of them, That the Enemies they were to Combat, were those whom they had two several times before Vanquished at Nice; that they were for the most part cowardly Arabians, accustomed rather to steal than fight, and who were not used to set upon their Enemies but like Thieves to robb them by Surprize, as they did now upon the Army after it was divided: But now that they saw them conjoyned, they shewed plainly by the little assurance of their Countenances, and their suddain Retreat, that the very sight of their Vanquishers had taken away their Courage and their Judg­ment, and that they ought to be looked upon as half beaten before the Engagement: They told others, That in fighting valiantly as the Soldiers of Christ Jesus, and under his Conduct, they went to a most assured Happiness, either in Heaven by the glorious Crown of Martyrdom, if they died in this Battle, or if they survived it, they might expect on Earth the Riches and the Spoils of all Asia, as the product of their Victo­ry. And that they might be understood by all, and speak all in one Word, they cried with a loud Voice, and with all their Force, as they passed from Rank to Rank, lifting up one Hand to Heaven, and with the other drawing their Swords, It is the Will of God, It is the Will of God. Whereupon the whole Army repeated the same Words, with such a terrible Harmony, that the Hills, the Vallies, the Rocks, and Mountains shook with the dreadful Eccho, which repeated a million of times, It is the Will of God, It is the Will of God. After which Prayers being made, and the Bishops having given them their Bene­diction, the whole Army moved gently in a most beautiful Order towards the Enemy, who all this time stood firm without the least Motion, in his Post, that he might thereby secure the Advantage he had taken.

After the Christians covered with their Bucklers, had sustained the first dis­charge of the Saracens, who darkned the very Skye with the infinite multi­tude of their Arrows, Count Raymond without giving them leisure to make a second Charge, ran at full speed, with Lance in Rest, upon their Squadrons, with the whole Body of his Cavalry, and they being unable to sustain so rude a Shock as was given them by the European Lancers, to which they had nei­ther Shields nor Brest-plates to oppose, were overthrown and tumbled down Horse and Man.

The Infantry which followed them close, then entring, as at a Breach, with their Swords in their Hands, without ever regarding the Enemies Arrows, made an extraordinary Carnage, both amongst the Men and Horses; whilest in the mean time Godfrey and Bohemond, who had extended their Squadrons to hinder the Enemies Wings from encompassing them, charged them in the Flank, and fought with good Success; but that which compleated the Ruine of the Infidels, was, that the Bishop of Pavia, who according as was agreed among the Princes, having marched his Body behind the Mountain upon the left hand, immediately fell upon their Rere, which he assailed most vigorously, and with mighty Shoots, thereby the more to terrify and astonish them. For immedi­ately the Arabs, who were not acquainted with sighting hand to hand, and who [Page 40]feared to be surrounded between the two Armies, began to betake themselves to their Heels, and in conclusion, the Fear and the Disorder which dispersed itself over the whole Army, put them in a moment to a general Rout; the great­est part of them saving themselves by the swiftness of their Horses, which it was in vain to hope to overtake by the heavy Cavalry of the Christians: How­ever they pursued them till Night, killing many who in their Flight incumbred one another, so as they could not make that hast which their Fear and Danger required from them. Their Camp immediately fell into the hands of the Christians, wherein the Soldiers according as the Generals had promised them, inriched themselves with a prodigious quantity of Booty and Plunder which they found there. The Christians in these two Combats lost not above four thousand Men, among which, only three Persons of Quality who were slain in the first Attaque, William the Brother of Tancred, Geoffrey of Aigremont, and the most valiant William of Paris. The Infidels left there upon the place, besides a prodigious number of the Arabs and their other ordinary Soldiers, a­bove three thousand of the principal persons of Quality among the Turks, be­ing those who of all the Infidels fought the most valiantly in that Battle.

The Victorious Army after having refreshed themselves two days in this Valley, year 1097 now famous for this glorious Victory, put themselves upon their March, advancing towards Syria, all the way following the Track of the flying Sul­tan; and this Prince having after the Battle met with ten thousand fresh Ara­bians, which came to Reinforce him, and upon the Road having called the scattered Fugitives, he applied himself to lay all the Country wast through which the Christian Army was to march; this reduced them to extream Want, especially in their Passage over the Mountains and the Deserts; so that the defect of Provisions, and the Thirst, occasioned by the excessive Heats, redu­ced them to those Extremities, that five hundred Persons died in one day, and almost all the Horses perished. But at last, having gotten out of those Straits, they arrived about Antioch in Pisidia, which surrendered to them without Re­sistance, as did most of the other Cities in their Passage through Lycaonia, Cap­padocia, and Armenia. For the generality of the Inhabitants being Christians, and the Turks not daring to appear in the Field, being baffled in all the Ren­counters upon the Way, and therefore unable to protect them, those places sent to the Princes to render themselves to their Protection; they received the Princes with all sort of Submission, and by a thousand Testimonies of Rejoycing, made it appear with what infinite Pleasure they saw themselves delivered from the insupportable Yoak of Slavery, which had been imposed upon them by the Infidels. And therefore seizing upon Iconium, Cesaria in Cappadocia, sometimes a famous City, though now almost wholy Ruinous, Heraclia upon the Fron­tier of Cilicia, the Princes placed Governors in them, retaining them under their own Jurisdiction. For they thought themselves wholy disengaged from the Oath which they had made to the perfidious Alexis, who had not observed in any sort the Agreement which he had sworn to them. Thus it must happen to such cowardly Princes, who not believing themselves obliged to submit to the Laws which they themselves have made, and to which they have given their most solemn Faith, they gain nothing, in conclusion, by their Dissimula­tion, but the Disappointment of their Expectations, and the unprofitable Shame, by breaking their Word, of being esteemed dishonest and unworthy Men.

Whilest the Army refreshed themselves in Pisidia, after such Toyls and Hard­ships, Prince Godfrey had like to have been lost by a strange Accident, which however redounded in conclusion much to the Honour of this Prince, ad­vancing his Reputation, Courage, and Nobleness, which appeared even to Admiration upon this dangerous Occasion. For one day entring alone upon Horseback into a Wood, where he hoped to have the Pleasure of en­tertaining himself some Moments in Solitude, he heard the Voice of a Man who cried out for Help with all his Power, and advancing to the place from whence the Noise came, he presently understood the Cause; for he per­ceived it was a poor Soldier, who coming to cut Wood, was running quite al­most out of Breath, round about a great Tree, to save himself from the mer­ciless [Page 41]Jaws of a monstrous and furious Bear, year 1097 which was just ready to seize up­on him. Godfrey did not long deliberate what he was to do, but transported with his Courage and his Charity, to see the Danger of one of his Soldiers, he spur'd on his Horse with his Sword in his hand, towards the cruel Beast, who abandoning her first Prey, with her Eyes inflamed and her gaping Jaws, and the terrible Claws of her two fore Paws, advanced towards him, and raising herself upon her hinder Feet to throw herself upon the Horse, but being af­frighted with the glittering Sword, to avoid the Blow she fell sidelong, yet so that Horse and Man came over her, she catched hold of the Dukes Coat to draw him towards her, but Godfrey nimbly recovering his Fall, and seizing upon her left Paw, which she had thrust out to lay hold upon him, he plunged his Sword up to the very Hilt, in the Belly of this monstrous Enemy, when at the same time one of his Gentlemen named Husequin, who was following the Hounds, came running in at the horrible Cries of the Bear and the Soldier, and put an end to the Life of the Beast, already overthrown by the terrible Blow which she had received; but the Duke having in drawing his Sword af­ter his Fall, from between his Leggs, given himself a cruel Wound in his Thigh, which during the heat of the Combat he never perceived, he had lost so much Blood, that after the heat of his Spirits which kept him up, began to remit, he immediately sunk down in a Swoon. This Accident, tho in conse­quence not Dangerous, yet spread a mighty Consternation throughout the Ar­my, as if all had been lost: For altho he had not the absolute Command of a General, there being so many Princes, and the Sons of two Kings, so that all things were done by Consent and an equality of Power, yet nevertheless he had so much Authority, and so much Deference was given to his Judgment, that one shall not need to make any Scruple in saying he was the Chief, especially since the Battle of the Gorgonian Valley, where by his Valour he not only fa­ved the Army of Bohemond, but gained the Christians a most glorious Victory, by snatching it out of the hands of the Infidels when they were just upon the point of consummating it.

But not long after, it so happened, that Ambition, Jealousie, and the desire of Revenge, three Passions far more dangerous than the most furious Beasts, produced Effects more deplorable to the Christian Army, than what had like to have befallen them by this monstrous Bear, who failed in his Attempt against the Duke, who was the Soul and Spirit of the Army. For while they lay in Pisidia refreshing themselves, waiting the Recovery of the Duke, his Brother Baldwin and Tancred, two young Princes, whom the love of Glory had already rendred Rivals, entred into Cilicia by two different Ways, with two little Armies, to make themselves Masters of such Places as they could Conquer, which by the Consent of the other Princes they were to hold, and establish there their little Principalities. Tancred who took the more easy way, all along the Sea Coast, came first before Tarsus, the Capital City of that Province, and having beaten the Turkish Garrison who came out to sight him, the Inhabitants who were for the most part Christians, submitted to him, and planted his Ensigns upon one of the principal Towers of the City. Bald­win who followed by the long and difficult way of the Mountains, came in just as these matters had passed, and was taken by Tancred for some Turkish Officer who was come to relieve the Garrison, as also by a mutual Mistake, Baldwin discovering Tancred's Forces with Sword in Hand, marching up towards him, concluded him to be the Governor of the Garrison of Tarsus, who was come out to oppose his Passage; but discovering their Error, they Embraced each other as if they had been very well satisfied; but within a few Moments Bald­win being unable to indure that his Rival should have the Glory to have pre­vented him in the easy Conquest of so fair a City, and finding himself stronger in Number, he would needs have recourse to Arms to oblige Tancred to yield to him half the Conquest. Tancred who was every whit as Brave and as Va­liant as Baldwin, and without doubt far more Moderate, dissembling this Affront for the present, generously resigned it intirely to him, and being un­willing to be reduced to the miserable Necessity of drawing his Sword against Christians and Confederates, he thought of seeking new Conquests, and among [Page 42]other places he went to attacque Mamistra, year 1097 one of the most considerable and strongest Towns in the whole Province. But the Virtue of this great Man who had so gloriously overcome himself, found it self very feeble some time after, when he came to incounter the most formidable Enemies, and Men of Courage, who reproached him sufficiently for performing so meanly, when it was in his Power to have acted bravely.

Prince Baldwin happened by an odd Adventure to be reinforced by a Fleet of Dutch and Flemish Pyrats Commanded by a Bullener, one Vinomare, who had been a Domestick formerly to his Father Count Eustace. This Captain by pure Accident was come to an Anchor before Tarsus at the same time when Baldwin had taken the Town, and being Ravished to meet there the Son of his old Master, and so fair an Occasion to change his Employ, by taking up Arms a­mong so many famous Christian Princes, in so glorious a Cause, he immedi­ately joyned Prince Baldwin, who placed one part of his Men in Garrison at Tarsus, and desired him to stay with the remainder in the Road there, till he should send him further Orders. After which, this Prince having assured his new Conquest, marched to make others, and came one Evening to Encamp be­fore Mamistra, where Tancred, who had just taken the Place, was busie in giving the necessary Orders for the Fortification of it, to render it stronger than before. There is nothing more easy than to revive the remembrance and sense of an Injury in a Heart already grieved to have received it, and ashamed not to have revenged it, especially being excited thereunto by the appea­rance of new Affronts and Outrages. Richard Earl of Salernum his Cousin, thinking that this Action of Bohemond was a second Injury which he came to offer, blew up the Flames of Dissention between them, accosting Tancred in these Terms. Ha! what now Tancred (said he) where is thy Honor? Thou has formerly been taken for Valor it self, wilt thou now disabuse the World, and reverse that fair Opinion, by making it evident that thou art the greatest Coward of Man­kind? What! Canst thou suffer Baldwin, after having constrained thee in the most fierce and insolent manner in the World, to quit thy Pretensions to Tarsus, to come and Reproach thee with the Injury he hath done thee, and which thou hast tamely born; and it may be to command thee to relinquish Manistra too, whilest he assures himself thereof, by that which thou art pleased to call Moderation, but he believes to be pure Cowardice? Go, go then, if thou hast not quite lost thy Heart, but go as thou ought­est, at the head of so many brave Men, who are resolved to perish, rather than not be revenged of the insufferable Affront which is done not only to Tancred, but to all the generous Normans, who have not conquered Calabria, Pavia, and Sicily, Van­quished the Grecian Emperor, and followed the Invincible Bohemond through all Asia, there to become Slaves to one Bullener.

This did not fail to raise the Courage of Tancred, and to rouse up that Anger, which he had not been able without extreme Violence to smother at Tarsus, and Shame having removed all the Obstacles which Virtue opposed, his Chol­ler breaking out like a River swollen with a mighty Inundation, was now be­come furious; and amidst the Noise which this turbulent Passion raised in his Soul, he was no longer in a condition to give Attention either to Conscience, Reason, or the Interest of Jesus Christ, for whose only Sake he had taken Arms; but that he hastily snatched them up to employ them against his Bre­thren; so that taking five hundred chosen Horse, and two hundred Archers, he put himself at the head of them, and advanced to attack Prince Baldwin: and he seeing them coming in this manner, put himself immediately into a posture to receive them. The Combat was rough and bloody, in regard that both the one and the other fought rather by the Dictates of Fury than the Rules of Art, and that the Combatants were all in the rank of the most valiant Men of the World. It happened however in conclusion, that Tancred quitted the Field, and retired before Baldwin, who outnumbred him in Cavalry. Baldwin pursued his Advantage briskly till they came to the passage of a little Bridge, where Richard Prince of Salernum, and Robert de Anse, were taken Prisoners. Gilbert of Clermont who was engaged too eagerly in the Pursuit, had the same Fortune to be taken by Tancred; and many gallant Men lost their Lives on [Page 43]both sides in this unfortunate Day. But it happened that the two Captains, year 1097 without a possibility of communicating their Thoughts to each other, having in the Night considered in their cooler Thoughts, that their unhappy Dissenti­on, which already had done too much Mischief, might occasion the Division of the whole Army, and in the end impeach the Progress of their Victo­rious Arms, and the accomplishment of their Vow; they therefore repented them of their rash Folly, by an extraordinary Effect of Gods immediate Pow­er, in whose Hands are the Hearts of Princes, to turn them as he pleaseth. So that the next morning sending reciprocally, and in the same Instant, their Ambassadors to each other, they both desired that Peace, which was therefore in a moment concluded, the Prisoners being on both sides restored to Liberty, and the Princes imbracing each other with a thousand Protestations of a future Amity. So it is, when Peace is made between Princes with Sincerity, and by the Mediation of God Almighty, it is easily accorded, and of long continuance, but when it is only the Work of Politick Men, who cannot give it, it is not concluded without long Debates and Contests, which look like a little kind of War, and when it is concluded, it continues no longer than while they take Breath, and can make better Preparations to break it.

After this happy Peace, Tancred having joyned to his Troops the remainder of the Forces of the Pyrates, easily conquered the rest of Cilicia even to A­lexandretta, whilest Baldwin having made a great Progress in Armenia, whither he was gone to joyn the gross of the Army, was called to the Principality of Edessa, where he established himself by that Adventure, which I am now about to relate.

Edessa an ancient and famous City of Mesopotamia, known in the sacred Histo­ry by the Name of Rages, which it afterwards changed into that of Rohais, and which at this day is called Orfa, was in times past under the Power of the ancient Greeks, who governed it under the Emperor of Constantinople, and af­ter that the Turks had taken from him this Province, yet it was still maintain­ed as a little Principality, paying a certain Tribute to these Infidels, who ne­vertheless ceased not to Tyrannize over this poor City, now hopeless of all Succours. The Inhabitants, who were all Christians, having heard of the fa­mous Actions of Prince Baldwin, who pushed on his Conquests as far as Eu­phrates, defeating the Turks in all Encounters, obliged their Prince to send to him, to desire his Assistance, and to offer him the honorable Terms of being his adopted Son, and declared Successor. Baldwin did not refuse so fair an Occasion, which his good Fortune seemed to offer him, by possessing him of so considerable an Estate in Asia. He adventured therefore to pass the Euphra­tes, being followed by not above one hundred Horse, which were all he could spare from the keeping such important Places which he had Conquered; ne­vertheless with this little Troop he bassled the Turks, who either openly op­posed his Passage, or laid Ambuscades in his Way to surprize him; and entring Edessa, he was received with such extraordinary Acclamations and Honors, that the good old Man who had adopted him, conceived such a Jealousy of him, that repenting of what he had done, he resolved in short, to get quit of him, and send him back at any rate. But Baldwin, after he had in two or three Rencounters with the Turks who possessed all the Country about Edessa, given a Tast of his Courage and Conduct; the whole Populace, who were ripe for such a Revolution, and wanted only an Occasion to revenge themselves of a thousand Evils which they had suffered under the Government of this Covetous old Man, ran immediately to their Arms, and besieged the Castle; and notwithstanding all the Prayers and Opposition which Baldwin made a­gainst their Intentions, they cut this miserable Man in pieces, whilest he en­deavoured to escape by throwing himself from a Window opposite to that Quarter which was assaulted. After which, notwithstanding all the Repug­nance which Baldwin either had, or feigned to have, thereby to shew that he had no share in so horrid an Action, he was constrained the next Morning to permit himself to be solemnly proclaimed Prince of Edessa, and to be put in Possession of the Treasure of the deceased Prince, which according to the Destiny of Covetous Men, he had scraped together for another, who knew [Page 44]how to employ it better than himself. For with one part of it he bought the strong Town of Samosata upon the Euphrates, he who held it, thinking it better Husbandry prudently to sell it at a good Rate, than to expose himself to the danger of losing it for nothing: and with another part he levied good Troops, with which he took all the places which were capable of incommoding Edessa: and in short, in a small time he established a most pow­erful Estate, extending it on both sides both towards the South from Eu­phrates as far as Selencia upon the Tygris and towards the North as far as the strong places upon Mount Taurus. He had also the dexterity and good For­tune to unite to his Principality a great part of Armenia by an alliance with one of his Princes whose Neice he married, after the death of the generous Gundechilda his Lady, who having followed him, died at Maresia during the March of the Army of the Confederate Princes.

Whilst Prince Baldwin made such a marvellous Progress on this side of the Euphrates, the Christian Army having reduced all the lesser Armenia, took the Road through Comagena towards Syria, and drew within fifteen miles of Antioch, after having taken the City of Artesia, the Inhabitants whereof having cut the throats of the Turkish Garrison, had opened their Gates to the Earl of Flanders, who was advanced with a thousand choice horse to receive it. He there made a defence for divers days with a great deal of Courage and glory against twenty thousand Turks, who came from Antioch to retake it, and who after a terrible Assault which they maintained for one whole day, were constrained to retire upon the Approach of the Christian Army, to defend the pass of a Bridge upon the Orontes about two or three Leagues from Anti­och. year 1097 After the repose of a few dayes, during which Tancred and the rest of the Lords except Count Baldwin, came to rejoyn the Army, it was resolved notwithstanding the Season was now far advanced to besiege this great City, in regard the Reputation of the Christian Arms, and the happy Success of their great design seemed absolutely to depend upon the taking of Antioch which covered the Country of Palestine. This resolution was no sooner taken, but it was put in immediate Execution: for the next morning Robert Duke of Normandy, who led the Vanguard of the Army, fell smartly upon the Bridge, which the Turks who never behaved themselves better than upon this occasion as vigo­rously maintained; but the Bishop of Pavia coming up to reinforce them, did so animate the Normans and the English, that some of them having forced the Barricadoes, and the two Towers which commanded the Bridge, whilst o­thers passing over the Shallows, and some throwing themselves into the River swam over, they put the Turks to slight and opened the passage for the whole Army. That Night they encamped near the River, and the next day which was Wednesday the twenty first of October, putting themselves in order of Battle, and adorning themselves in their fairest Arms, with Trumpets found­ing and Colours flying, the whole Army marched as it were in a terrible Tri­umph and encamped within a mile of Antioch.

Antioch so renowned in the Greek and Latin Histories, and which at present consists only of some part of the beautiful Ruines where sometime that noble City stood, was at that time one of the fairest and largest Cities in the World, giving place to none for the strength which both Art and Nature had bestowed upon it. It was situated in a most fertile and delicious Plain between the Moun­tains Amanus and Orontes, upon the River of that name, whose Stream flowed along by the Walls on the Western side, being within four or five leagues of its mouth: The Town was in length from the East to the West above a league, without comprehending the Suburbs which were very large. There were two Mountains between the South and East separated by a narrow Valley through which a little River slid along into the Orontes, all the way of its pas­sage watring the inward part of the City; for these two mountains and two o­ther lesser Hills were all within the Circumference of the Walls, which were of an extraordinary height and thickness, and defended by above four hundred fair Towers, a mighty deep Ditch, and a Counter-Scarp well fortified with Palisado's, and invironed with a Morass and Pools of water in those parts where by reason of their lying upon the plain the Avenues to the City lay more easie [Page 45]of access. And besides all this there was a powerful Army of Turks within the place for its defence, as also two Castles upon the Mountain, in one of which was the Palace of Sultan Accien, who reigned in Antioch fourteen years after the Turks had taken it from the Sarasens; and as he had a long time to foresee that the Army of the Christians must come upon him in their passage into Pa­lestine, he had used all imaginable diligence to furnish himself which all things necessary to sustain a long Siege; hoping in that time to receive great succours from the Turkish Princes, and especially the Sultan of Persia who had promised not to fail him, and whom Soliman was gone to solicit in the common Cause. year 1097 And that which rendred this attempt most extream difficult, was, not only the Greatness but the Situation of the City, which would not admit of being wholly invironed, but that there was free Egress and Regress for Succours to come to the besieged.

The Christian Army consisted not now in above three hundred thousand men, the Sieges, the Battles, the Diseases and Disertions, and other losses which they had sustained in their Passage over the Mountains and Deserts, to­gether with the Garrisons which they were obliged to put in the conquered Places, had reduced them to one half; but nevertheless the Princes according to the resolution which they had taken, did not cease to form the Siege in this following manner: All the South side was left open, by reason that it was im­possible to attack the City on that side, in regard of the Rock and Mountains which rendred the Passage inaccessible: So that they were contented to en­viron it on the side of the Plain, beginning at the foot of the Mountain on the East, and so drawing by the North towards the West be­tween the Town and the River, which in that part for about a mile came so near the Western part, that it served for a Ditch upon that Quarter. Prince Bohemond and Tancred took their Post over against the Eastern Gate called St. Paul's Gate through which they go to the famous and delightful Suburb of Daph­ne, sometimes so celebrated for the Temple and Oracle of Apollo, and after­wards much more for the Tomb of that illustrious Martyr Babylas, who silen­ced the Devil for ever giving any more doubtful Answers to the foolish In­quirers. Hugh the Great, the Duke of Normandy, the Earl of Blois and the Earl of Flanders, were posted at the Right, drawing more towards the North to the Port commonly called the Dogs Gate. The Earl of Tholose, with the Bishop of Pavia, were encamped before that Gate, and possessed all the space between that and the third Gate, which afterwards was called the Dukes Gate, by rea­son that Duke Godfrey with his Lorrainers and Germans was posted there, his Quarters being extended to that place where the Orontes beginning to turn from the North to the West, slides down by the Walls of Antioch; so that the greatest part of the Army was encamped between the Town and the River, which was there passed by a large stone Bridge just over against the fourth Gate of the Town, which was therefore called the Bridge Gate. This Gate was also open to the besieged as well as that of St. Georges upon the West, by reason that the River was between these two Gates and the Besiegers, who by an Er­ror not easily to be excused, did not at first raise good Forts against these two Gates, as afterwards something with the latest they were constrained to do.

But this Failure was nothing in comparison of another far greater, and which cost the whole Army very dear. For the besieged making no manner of Sallies to hinder their Approaches, and seeming to be buried in a profound Quiet, not so much as bringing one Engine to the Walls for their Defence, they in appearance look­ed as if they had lost all their Courage and their Hope, so that it was the Com­mon Imagination that the Christians could not fail presently to make themselves Masters of the Town: So that hereupon they took the Liberty to ramble up and down the Country, year 1097 and to straggle all over the Villages round about to make merry, and without any necessity to wast that mighty plenty of provisions with which that fertile Soil abounded; and, in short, they neither kept Order nor Discipline in the Camp, partly by reason of the false opinion which possessed them, that this contemptible Enemy would surrender the Town without a Blow, but principally by the misfortune that both Duke Godfrey and Prince Raymond were fallen sick, which had like to have intirely ruined their Affairs.

year 1097 The Enemies quickly advertised by their Spies of this disorder, failed not to make advantage of it; they began at last after so long a silence to make a migh­ty noise with their Engines, and afterwards instantly to assail the Camp upon all Quarters, so that the besiegers seemed now to be besieged. Their Cavalry fallying at the Bridge-Gate, over-ran that Quarter which was beyond the River, cutting in pieces all those whom they found dispersed and without Arms, as if it had been in a time of perfect Peace: Nor was it possible for their Companions to succour them, in regard that they must either by swimming or fording come to their Assistance, neither of which could quickly be perform­ed. Others of them made Sallies either openly and in good Order, assaulting the Quarters which were negligently guarded, or by surprize creeping along the River side and the Marish among the Reeds, they fell upon such as were idly walking or diverting themselves in the Gardens and Orchards, as if they had not been in an Enemies Country. In this manner the unfortunate Alberon Archdeacon of Mets, a young Prince of the Blood Imperial miserably perished; for as he was walking with a Lady of great Quality in one of these Gardens he was surprized by the Infidels, who cut off his head, and carried the Lady Prisoner into the City, where after the barbarous Villains had committed all the Outrages imaginable against her Honor, they cut off her head also and threw them into Godfrey's Camp. After which the Besiegers ashamed to be so affronted by the mistake of the Courage of their Enemies, began now to act after new Measures, and recalling their Ancient Vertue, to think of taking the City in good Earnest.

They therefore began to attack it by main Force with all sorts of Engines, and gave a general Assault with all the Vigor imaginable; but as the strongest Engines were too feeble against those Massy Walls, and that the unshaken Tow­ers were defended by an Army which might in the open field have given Battle to the Crusades; it was resolved to attempt it by a long Siege, and the Regular way of Art; for this purpose they laid a Bridge of Boats over the Orontes, to re­pulse those who had the Liberty to pass by the Bridge Gate; they built Forts to block up the besieged, and to empeach their frequent Sallies; and, in short, nothing was omitted that might straiten them of Provision, and at last oblige them by Famine to surrender the Town. But the Consumption of Provisions which so great an Army occasioned, the continual Excursions of the Turkish Gar­risons who were about Antioch, who wasted all the Country, the frequent loss of Convoys, and the Rigor of the following Winter almost famisht the Besiegers, so that at Christmas the Army had neither Forrage nor Provisions; It is true that Bohemond and the Earl of Flanders who were almost continually on horseback, did what was possible to get subsistence, oftentimes beating the Enemy who at­tempted to hinder them. But as there was a general Desolation in the Coun­try, and that there came nothing by Sea in that tempestuous and rough Season; so though for the most part they returned loaden with glory for having beaten the Turks, yet they brought but a light stock of Provision for so great a multi­tude, which was not easily satisfied.

This great evil so terrible of it self and which encreased daily, was also accompanied with so many others as must in conclusion have reduced the Army to despair; the continual Rains had so dammaged the Tents that the Soul­diers lay almost quite exposed; most of the Horses died, so that there were not many above a thousand left in the whole Army. At the same time arrived the deplorable account of the Misfortune of Swenon the Son of the King of Denmark, who coming to the Siege with fifteen hundred fresh Cavaliers all brave and choice men, was by Solyman surprized in a Valley and cut in pieces. Many daily deserted, following the example of the Traitor Talin the Emperors Lieutenant, who pre­tending to go to solicit his Master for succour, abandoned the Army; many also of the principal Officers of the Army withdrew, and among the rest the stout William the Carpenter Vicount of Melun. And which is most surprizing, even Peter the Hermit, he who was the forwardest of all others to take up the Cross, was also one of the first who deserted it, and this great Faster, who by his voluntary austerity by which he had gained so high a Reputation of San­ctimony making Profession to eat neither bread nor flesh, was not able to resist [Page 47]the Severity of this constrained Abstinence, which not only the Soldiers, year 1097 but the chief commanders also supported so joyfully, rather than violate the Vow which they had made unto Almighty God. An example which gives us to understand, that there is rarely a solid Foundation for this outside Sancti­mony, especially when it comes to make so great a Noise; and that common­ly God Almighty permits it to be followed with remarkable humiliation, either to discover the falseness and illusion of it, if feigned, or to cure it of the Va­nity of being proud of it, the best of all that is good, if it be true; and certain­ly the confusion which Peter drew upon himself by so cowardly an Action was sufficient to cure him of that distemper. For Tancred who foresaw the dan­gerous consequence of this pernicious flight, persued these two Deserters, and brought them back to the Tent of his Uncle Bohemond, who there in the pre­sence of all the Princes severely reproached them with their base Cowardize; but at the Importunate intreaties of Hugh the Great, whose Kinsman the Car­penter had the honor to be, they were pardoned, though with this condition, that they should publickly make Oath that they would accomplish their Vow, and not abandon this Enterprize, till they had delivered the Holy Sepulchre.

In short, every day produced new misfortunes, and now the Pestilence which is the usual Attendant of Famine began to make a terrible Destruction in the Army: Whereupon the Bishops had recourse to extraordinary Prayers, and admirable Regulations were made, and severe Orders given out against the Vices and Disorders which had slipt into the Camp, and which with good rea­son it was apprehended were the Causes of God's displeasure against them; nor was it long before the Supernatural Efficacy of this procedure became most vi­sible, for from that time the Plague began to decrease, and Duke Godfrey whose distemper seemed to be communicated to the whole Army beginning al­so to recover his Health, he by his presence inspired new life, Health, Vigor and Courage into the Souldiers. A great Succour of twenty eight thousand Horse who attempted to force the quarter of Bohemond, were defeated by this brave Prince and the Earl of Tholose; and, which is the Miracle, they had only Seven hundred Horse divided into six squadrons, with which they engaged and vanquished this great number of Enemies upon the Nineteenth day of Fe­bruary between the River and the Lake, where they had put themselves in Bat­tle that they might not be surrounded. After which they returned to the Camp loaden with the spoils of their Enemies, and that which they most wanted, a great number of Horses. And as a Trophee of their Victory, they threw over the Walls a hundred of the Heads of the principal Turks, thereby also to punish the Insolence of the Besieged, who insulted over the Christians a little before, by shewing them upon the Walls, one of the Standards which they had taken in a Sally wherein was painted the Image of the Blessed Virgin.

About the same time the Ambassadors of the Sultan of Aegypt arrived in the Camp to treat of an Alliance with the Princes, to whom he promised to joyn his Forces against their Common Enemies; and not long after two Fleets from Genoa and Pisa arrived very Fortunately at the Port of St. Simeon, with all sorts of Provisions which were very welcome after a five-month-Siege; but this Arrival was the occasion of a great Mischief as well as of a great advantage. For so soon as the Arrival of these two Fleets was known in the Camp, the Souldiers ran thither in Shoals, every one with Precipitation, resolving to purvey for themselves such things as they wanted. There was reason to fear that the Enemy would lay hold of this Opportunity and Disorder, and there­fore Bohemond and the Earl of Tholose who were to conduct the Egyptian Ambassadors to the Port in order to their imbarquing, hasted with their Troops to convoy in their return, this great multitude of Souldiers, who were gone without any order, and without their Arms. And that which they appre­hended fell out accordingly; for they fell into an Ambuscade of four thousand of the Enemies who had secretly sallied out of the Town by the Bridge-Gate. And meeting with these disorderly Souldiers in the Plain loaden with Provi­sions and without other Arms than their Swords, they fell in among them, and notwithstanding all the Valour of Count Raimond and the Prince of Tarren­tum, they could not stop the Rout but that the Souldiers fled towards the [Page 48]Mountains leaving all their Provisions and a thousand of their Companions dead upon the place.

year 1098 Godfrey who was immediately advertized of this Disaster by some who fled with the first, took a Party resolving immediately to charge the Turks whom he doubted not with the Joy of their Victory and the Greediness of the Booty to find in sufficient Disorder; drawing out therefore four Batalions sustained with all the Cavalry, at the head of whom were Hugh the Great, the Duke of Normandy, and the Earls of Flanders and Bullen, he passed the Bridge of Boats, and marched directly towards the Enemies with all the Marks of Hope and Courage: in the way he joyned the two Princes whom he had given o­ver for lost, and who after they had unprofitably used their utmost Efforts to rally their Fugitives, had disingaged themselves very fortunately from the Turks. In the mean time Accien who had an account of this Victory, and who from one of the Towers of his Castle observed this great Movement of the Cru­sades, began to be in pain for the return of his Men, he therefore commanded the greatest part of his Army to sally out to their Relief. He conducted them himself to the Gate, and giving order to have it shut after them, he thus ad­dressed himself to the Souldiers; That after the advantages which their Compa­nions had had against their Enemies, it would be a shame to them to think of Precauti­ons, or to assure themselves of a Retreat; that this was the time that they must think of nothing but Victory or Death, and that they should never see this Gate opened to them, but after an intire Conquest of their Enemies.

On the other side Godfrey who marched but slowly at the Head of his Troops, having understood by the hasty return of his Scouts, that the Conquerors who had joyned the Succours from the Town, drew near loaden with their Booty, drawing his Sword and turning to his Men, after he had cast a fierce and me­nacing look towards the Enemy, he cryed, Follow me, It is the Will of God. Giving them to understand by this action, that upon this occasion they should trust to their Swords only without using either Lances or Arrows. Whereupon all the Souldiers in an instant drawing their Swords, and making a kind of Pent­house of their Bucklers against the Arrows of the Infidels, who running hither and thither incessantly discharged upon them, they marched gravely, neither with Precipitation nor Heaviness, till they came up to the Enemies at Swords point, thereby rendring their Bows and Arrows useless. The Barbarians terrified with this confident March, which put them out of their way of sighting, and took away the Service of their Bows, they presently recoiled upon their Re­serves who were come to relieve them, and being incumbred with the Spoils they had taken, were in no condition to resist the Swords of the Christians, a­gainst whom they did not much delight to combat but at a distance, so that the Fight was not very long; for after the first Squadrons of the Enemy were repulsed, the Christians fell into the middle of them with their Infantry, and on all hands made a most horrible Slaughter of these miserable Wretches, with the mighty Blows of the Sword; so that they were totally routed, some flying to the Mountains, others towards the City, not dreaming that the Gate was shut against them. Here it was that Despair and the fatal Necessity of van­quishing or dying which Accien had denounced against them, made them renew the Combat in the view of the whole Town, which ran to the Walls and stood there as in an Amphitheatre to be Spectators and Witnesses either of their shame in being vanquished, or of their Glory in being Victors.

For Godfrey after he was pretty well assured of the Victory, had disingaged himself from the Combat, with a Design to prevent the Runaways getting into the Town by cutting off their Retreat, and therefore being got to a rising Ground near the Bridge he flew like Lightning among his Enemies, who fled at full Speed, thinking he had been at their Heels, who was at their Head to stop their Cariere. Never was there seen any thing comparable to the Ef­fects of that extraordinary and prodigious Force which Nature had bestowed upon this Prince; there was not one Blow of his terrible Sword which did not carry a dreadful Death along with it; here he made a Head with the Cask that was on it roll off from the Shoulders; there a whole Arm with the Cimiter which it yet grasped; some he cleft down to the very Shoulders; others he cut [Page 49]asunder in the Middle; filling all with Horror, Blood and Terror, year 1098 which way soever he turned himself, and at the same time the other Princes who pursued the Fugitives with their Swords at their Backs, finding them stopped by the Squadron of Godfrey, made a most dreadful Slaughter among them, or whilest they indeavoured to save their Lives, made them lose them in a man­ner as dreadful; for they constrained them blindly to precipitate themselves in­to the Orontes, where the Soldiers dispatched them with their Pikes, which the poor Wretches could no way escape but by Swimming. The Places adjacent resounded with the lamentable Cries and the Tumult of the Barbarians, dying either in the Field or in the River, which began to be discoloured with the Blood of the Slain, and the Noise was Ecchoed by those who from the Walls saw the woeful Slaughter of their Companions, so that in conclusion Accien was obliged to open the Gate, to help those who could to make their Escape by the Bridge into the Town.

It was upon this Occasion that Godfrey performed an Action of which the whole Earth talks, as of a Prodigy of Strength and Valour, and which I should not have adventured to have given a place to in this History, if it were not at­tested both by all the Writers of that Age, and by the Testimony of so many Eye-Witnesses of its Truth. One of the principal Captains of the Enemies, of a Stature much exceeding the common, transported with Fury to observe that Godfrey kill'd all that came within the reach of his terrible Sword at the entry of the Bridge, where he had posted himself to obstruct the Passage, and that the Turks to avoid his dreadful Blows, threw one another headlong into the River, he ran up to him foaming with Rage, with his Sword advanced in the Air, and with all his force discharged so terrible a Blow upon the Duke, that he split his Shield in two pieces, which he had opposed to it, to ward it off his Head, when Godfrey raising himself upon his Stirrups, gave him such a furious Reverse, that his Sword falling upon his right Shoulder passed quite through his Brest to his left side, and made that half of his Body tumble to the Ground, whilest the other remaining in the Saddle, was carried by the Horse, who was continually pricked by the Spurs which stuck in his Sides by the convulsive Motions of the dying remainder of the Body, quite through the Town, making there such a fearful Spectacle as struck Consternation, Horror, and Despair, into the Hearts of the most resolute and daring who beheld it. The Night now coming on, and the Defendants pouring whole Showers of Arrows from their Engines upon the Walls, hindred the further Pursuit of the Victory. The Christians lost something above a thousand Men in this memorable Day, but it is impossible to recount the Loss which the Infidels sustained, for besides those which were slain upon the Field of Battle, there were above five thousand who lost their Lives upon the Bridge and thereabout, and the Number of those who were either drowned or slain in the River, was so great that they almost made a Damm with their dead Bodies; among the rest, one of the Sons of Accien, and twelve of their Amirals or Emirs, which are their chief Nobility, perished in that fatal Day; and two days after there were found fifteen hundred Persons of Quality, whom according to their Custom they interred privately in the Night, near the Bridge, with their Cimi­ters, their Arms, Habits, and some Gold and Silver, and other their most precious Ornaments.

After this great Victory, the Besieged who were now more closely blocked up than ever, by the Forts which were raised near the two Gates which had been free, had totally lost their Courage, if at the same time they had not re­ceived the News, that the Sultan of Persia, the most potent Monarch of the East, was sending a prodigious Army to their Relief, which did something revive their fainting Hopes: And in truth, this Sultan being continually solli­cited by Soliman, and by Sensadole the Son of Accien, had sent Corbagath to re­lieve Antioch, the Person in whom among all his Captains he reposed the great­est Confidence, with a formidable Army of two hundred thousand Horse, and an innumerable Multitude of Foot of all the Nations subject to his Empire; consisting in all of six hundred and fifty thousand Men. This General after he had in vain in his Passage attacqued Edessa, which was valiantly defended [Page 50]by Prince Baldwin, year 1098 passed over the Euphrates, and advanced towards Antioch with the Sultans of Damascus and Jerusalem, who had joyned their Troops with his Army, with an intention to attaque the Christians in their Camp. This News which gave great Courage to the Besieged, caused much Disorder in the Christian Army, so that many, and some of principal Note, despairing of their Safety daily deserted, and among the rest, the Earl of Blois was so terrified, that feigning himself Sick, he caused himself to be removed in the beginning of June to Alexandretta, whither he was followed by four thousand of his Soldiers; this Action made it be feared that others following so pernicious an Example, the whole Army would be in danger of Disbanding. But as it hap­pened presently after, by a pleasant Frolique of Fortune, this which was dreaded as a mighty Mischief, proved in the end a great Advantage, and this News which made the Christians despair of taking Antioch, was the Occasion that one Night, presently after, it was taken in the manner which I am now going to relate.

There was a Person in Antioch, a Citizen of Quality, one Pyrrhus, a Man of great Spirit, he was born of Christian Parents, and had been one himself; but for the saving his Estate he pretended to turn Mahometan, as did divers others in the fourteen years after the City came under the Dominion of the Turks. This Pyrrhus had gained so much Esteem and Credit among the Infidels, that notwithstanding the Distrust which they had of the Antiochians, whom therefore they kept very low, not permitting them to exercise any Place of Trust, or to bear Arms, yet Accien charmed with his good Qualities, and the Belief of his Fidelity, had honoured him with the Dignity of an Emir, intrusted him with the Guard of three Towers, made him his Secretary of State, and gave him a Place in his Council. This Man had a Son a sprightly young Gentle­man, who at the beginning of the Siege was in a Sally taken Prisoner by Bo­hemond; that Prince who was no less Dextrous and Wise than Vailant, ha­ving examined his Prisoner, whose Countenance promised so fairly, found in his Soul a great Inclination to return to the Religion of his Ancestors, and that he was ready to undertake any thing to deliver his Country from the cru­el Tyranny of the Turks: He therefore laid hold upon this propitious Oppor­tunity to gain the Father, who passionately loved this Son, and offered a migh­ty Ransom for his Redemption; for this purpose, when he had well assured himself of the young Gentleman, who secretly abjured the Mahometan Super­stition, and received Baptisme, he freely sent him back to Pyrrhus, who was so transported with his Return, and the account he gave of the good Treatment which he had received from Bohemond, and the Wonders which were related to him of that Prince, that there was nothing which he did not resolve to do, to give him assurance of his Acknowledgments, and to procure the honor of his Friendship. After this Bohemond failed not to maintain a secret Correspon­dence with him by the Assistance of his Son, who frequently went out of the Town into the Camp, under pretence of being a Spie, as divers others did, and he laboured so successfully under the Favour of this Friendship which was made between them, that in conclusion Pyrrhus desired nothing more ardent­ly than to reimbrace the Christian Religion, and to deliver his Country.

But that which perfected this Affair, was a great Conference which the Prince had with Pyrrhus during the little Truce which was made after the Defeat at the Bridge-Gate; for after he had given him a thousand Testimonies of the ten­ness which he had for him, and the reason which he had to make his Fortune and a true Happiness, he said such moving things to him upon this Subject, and so well managed his Spirit, by his Arguments, his Intreaties, and his Pro­mises, that he quickly perceived he had so intirely gained him, that he was now become absolutely at his Devotion.

In short, after the Truce was broken by the persidiousness of the Turks, who in that time basely murdered one of the principal Crusades, Pyrrhus sent to ac­quaint Bohemond, That having now fully considered of all things, he had taken his last Resolution, which was, to be ready to serve him to the utmost; that for his own particular, it was not any sort of Fear that he had to suffer in the common Ruine of the City, that moved him to Act as he did, since he was well assured that the Christi­ans [Page 51] would never be able to take it by Force; year 1098 but that it was the ardent Desire which he had to return to the Christian Religion, to deliver Antioch his Country from the Servitude and Oppression of the Turks, and to give him some undeniable Effects of that Friendship which he might expect from him, which obliged him to follow his Advice, and wholy to throw himself upon his Word, in an Affair of that Impor­tance, wherein he must hazard not only his Fortune and his Life, but that of his whole Family. But that it was but just, that in regard he had only entrusted him with the Secret, that he should give him Assurance before any thing should be At­tempted, that he should only depend upon him; And that therefore he was absolutely resolved that this should be one Condition, without which he would proceed no fur­ther, That whereas the other Princes had all the same Authority in the Army, they would yield the Principality of Antioch to Bohemond, to whom only he would de­liver it, and from whom only he would expect the Accomplishment of his Promises. That upon these Terms he would put the three Towers, whereof he had the Command, into his Possession, and by Consequence the Town; That he would send his Son as a Hostage, to engage for the Truth of his Word; and that he desired him singly to consider that he had not a moments time to lose, by reason of the Succours which were now at hand, and that it was absolutely necessary for him to Act according to these Offers, or else to resolve wholy to abandon the Design.

Now whether this Norman Prince, who was mighty Politick, had laid the Train in this manner, by which he was resolved to accomplish his Ends, and therefore made Pyrrhus speak at this rate; or whether Pyrrhus himself found it effectually his clear Interest, to raise his own Fortunes by the greatness of his Friend, and therefore proposed this as the only probable Expedient; most certain it is that Bohemond accepted the Condition with all his Heart, and that he was extreamly satisfied to see, that there was no possibility of taking Antioch, but by his single Interest. He nevertheless dissembled his Joy, that so his Design might succeed the better; and failed not the same day, at a Coun­cil of War, with a melancholy Air, to complain in these Terms of the pre­sent Condition of Affairs, he said, That those Evils which the Army indu [...]ed were Insupportable, which they daily Suffered, and which daily increased by that long Siege, which had now lasted seven Months without making any tolerable Advance, and which was yet worse, that they were in danger shamefully to abandon the Siege, since there was no appearance that they should take Antioch, neither by Force, which their Condition would not suffer them to attempt, nor by Starving them, since the so long talked of Succours could not now be at any great Distance. There remains therefore, added he very Insinuatingly, nothing more to be done, but to try if there be any one amongst us who before the Succours arrive, will endeavour to make himself Master of the Town, either by Surprize, or by Intelligence, and gaining some in the place by Money or Promises, or any other way, which his Mind can suggest to him as most probable. And in short, that we may animate one another to this Enterprize, I am of Opinion, that for the publick Good, which every one of us ought to prefer before his private Interest, we ought all to promise, that if the Design succeeds, he shall have the Principality of Antioch for his Reward, who shall perform this Exploit, and dis­engage the Army from this Siege which hath so long troubled it.

There is certainly nothing so clear-sighted as Jealousy, nothing that so soon discovers a Rival, be it in Love, or be it in Honor. And whatsoever Artifice there was in this Discourse of Bohemond, these Princes, who besides the In­terest of Religion, for which they made this War, had also those of their Glo­ry and their Advancement, easily penetrated into the Heart of the Tarentine, and making no question by the manner of his Discourse, but that he acted for himself, they all answered with some kind of Precipitation, That they were all Brothers, and all Equals, and that they would never permit that there should be any Preference among those who had equally served with the others. That there was no manner of Justice to divide the Conquest, but to those who had shared in the Pains and Danger, and that tho Antioch was to have but one Master, yet it must be Lot that must chuse him, and it was to Fortune only and her Power, that the Principality of Antioch was to be owing.

year 1098 Bohemond seeming not to take the least Notice that this Blow was levelled at him, only smiled at the Discourse, without making any Reply, well conside­ring, that whether they would or not, Necessity without his Help would man­nage this Affair, in which he could not now move but to his Disadvantage; and so it happened, for at the same time News was brought them, by those who were sent to make Discovery, that the Enemy approached with a most formidable Power. Whereupon they went again to the Council, where some were of Opinion that they should march out and meet the Enemy, with the whole Ar­my, others were for leaving only so many as might guard the Trenches in the Camp, and to lead the rest to Battle: But Bohemond made it appear on the con­trary, that neither the one nor the other of these Propositions were practica­ble. For in doing the first they raised the Siege, and then the Town would in­fallibly be Relieved; that in following the second, they must needs run the Hazzard of being beaten, since their whole Army, lessened by above half, was scarce able to oppose the Forces of the City alone. Now these things being so clear, and that there was no Expedient so proper to draw the Army out of so pressing and manifest a Danger, all the Princes except Count Raymond, found it more agreeable to Reason, that Bohemond if he could gain it, should be Mast­er of Antioch, than that they should all be affronted by losing it after so tedi­ous a Siege. They therefore consented, that provided he took the City, let the Way be what it would, every one should relinquish their Interest to him, with condition that the Greek Emperor failed in his part of the Agreement made with him. The Prince of Tarentum had now all that he could wish, for Alexis had already broke his Word a thousand times, so that instantly he sent to Pyrrhus, to acquaint him that he was ready to put the Matter in Execution according to those Measures which he should himself prescribe, and to desire him to let him know as soon as it was possible. Pyrrhus presently sent him an Answer, by his Son, who was to be the Hostage, with the Order which was to be observed, which after it had been Communicated to the Princes, was exe­cuted in this manner.

He gave out Orders through every Quarter of the Camp, that the Soldi­ers should be ready to march the Morning following, being the third day of June, and accordingly at high Noon he marched at the Head of the commanded Party with Trumpets sounding, that so the Besieged taking Notice of them, might suppose they were going upon some Design abroad, and be the more se­cure of any thing intended against them at home; but towards the Evening, having taken a long Circuit behind the Mountains towards the South, he turn­ed Head, and taking his March Westward to the left Hand, he stopped in a Valley a little distance from the Western Gate, where stood one of the Tow­ers which was to be put into his Hands: From thence he sent sixty of the most resolute Soldiers with a Ladder of Ropes, of the length which Pyrrhus had directed. But as a certain Lombard, who had the Signal which was to shew that Bohemond and Pyrrhus were met, was about to give it, there follow­ed an Accident which had like to have lost all.

The Turks who were ever jealous of the Christians, had received Advice that there was some Treachery hatching in the Town, and that in particular there was some Reason to suspect Pyrrhus: Accien who was resolved to clear the Matter, sent for him, as was customary, to the Council, where this matter was under Debate, and asked his Advice, to see whether he would change his Coun­tenance, and so betray his Guilt of such a Design. But this cunning Man per­ceiving the Intention of the Turk, without the least Hesitation or mark of Astonishment replied briskly, That nothing ought to be neglected upon such an Occasion, and that he had thought of a most easy and certain Expedient to hinder so great a Mischief. For, said he, with the greatest Assurance imagi­nable, there needs no more but to change the Captains who command at the Gates and in the Towers, to break all the Measures of those who may have entertained any Intelligence with the Enemies. This Expedient which appear­ed so proper, made them banish the Suspition which they had entertained of him, and which they had no positive Evidence to support; but considering [Page 53]that such a Change could not be made on the suddain, year 1098 as Pyrrhus had well fore­seen, the Execution of it was deferred till the next Morning, and then it was resolved by this means to cure the Distrusts which they had of the Christians, and thereby to quiet the Fears of the People; however Orders were given to those who went the Round that Night, to acquit themselves of their Charge with all the Care and Circumspection that was possible.

Now as the Lombard began to speak to Pyrrhus, the Captain who walked the Round in that Quarter came by, with one carrying a Lanthorn before him; and without doubt all had been discovered, if Pyrrhus who saw him coming, had not instantly acquainted the Soldiers with it, and ordered them to fall flat upon their Bellies. After which the Round, who found all in good Order, being passed by, Pyrrhus who had so luckily escaped two such eminent Dangers, ha­ving perceived the Sign of Bohemond, threw down a Cord by which he drew up the Ladder, which he fastened to one of the Battlements of the Tower: The sixty Soldiers being now gotten up, Bohemond who was advertised by the Lombard that all was their own, ran with the rest, who mounted with so much heat, and in such a Throng, that the Ladder being overcharged pulled down the Battlement to which it was tied, which with its Fall crushed some of the Soldiers; but this did not hinder, but that the Ladder being well fastened a­gain others mounted it with an equal Ardor; and whilest some of them made themselves Masters of the Towers, killing all the Turks which they met, o­thers broke open a Sally-Port by which Bohemond entred, followed by the rest of his Troops, who seizing upon the Gates, by break of day the whole Ar­my was without Resistance got into the City, where Bohemond, as it were, to take Possession, had caused his Standard to be planted.

It is impossible to express the horrible Consequences of this Surprize, which being favoured by a great Wind, the sleeping Turks had scarcely heard the Noise which the Victorious Army made in their Entry. All went down indiffe­rently which came in their way in that terrible Tumult, the very Brother of Pyrrhus was slain among the rest, being unknown, and which was most deplo­rable, by the Hand of his Brother Pyrrhus, as the Archbishop of Tyre writes, either because he had discovered the Design, or because he opposed it; but this is contrary to the positive Evidence of all those who were present, who affirm that Pyrrhus was most sensibly touched with this Misfortune, which was who­ly to be attributed to Chance; however Bohemond did what he could to Com­fort him, and gave order for the Preservation of his Family, and of all the Christians, who to distinguish themselves, came before the Conquerors singing the Prayers of the Church. The greatest part of the Turks were killed either in the Houses, or in the Streets, indeavouring either to defend themselves by sighting, or save their Lives by flying: Few there were who saved themselves, all the Gates being either shut or possessed by the Crusades; and at the last those who indeavoured to escape over the Walls, or who to fly into the Castle, were without Mercy put to the Sword. The unfortunate Accien, whether it were that his Fear had destroyed his Judgment, or that he thought thereby to hasten the Relief, or that he feared there was the same Treachery in the Castle, fled out by the Gate of the Plain in a Disguise, and having hid himself in a little Hut, he was discovered by some Christians of Syria and by them slain, and his Head presented to Bohemond.

After this the Soldiers fell to Plunder, and by that piece of Witchcraft of good Fortune, which makes Men in Prosperity too commonly to forget God, they plunged themselves headlong into all manner of Debauches, as it were to make a Recompence to those great Evils they had suffered by a long Siege by committing greator: But God that he might punish this brutish Ingratitude, permitted them to fall into greater and more insupportable than any they had yet indured; for within three or four days after the Town was taken, Corbagath arriving with his Army, and having put what Men he thought good into the Castle, to attaque the Retrenchments of the Christians, and having possessed all the Avenues, and made himself Master of all the Forts which the Crusades had raised, he Incamped in the Plain between the Orontes and the Mountains, and besieged the City much more closely than it was before. So that there re­maining [Page 54]but little Provision in the Town after so long a Siege, year 1098 and the time be­ing too little after it was taken to lay in more, and impossible to get any into the Town, the whole Christian Army being there shut up, the Famine in a lit­tle time was so great, that the ordinary sort of Provision being spent, the Christians were reduced to the most deplorable Extremities that are upon Re­cord in any History, either Sacred or Profain. Insomuch that many did every Night desert, and ran away to the Enemies, or climbing over the Rocks indea­voured to get to the Ships which lay in the Port St. Simeon, as did among o­thers of the first Quality, Alberic and his Brother William de Grandmenil, who had Married the Sister of Bohemond, the Vicount de Melun, that famous William the Carpenter, who thought that Famine was a sufficient Dispensation for the Oath which he had taken to desert no more. The Earl of Blois feigning himself Sick, was gone two days before the Town was taken, and joyning himself with them, they all together went to the Camp of Alexis, who was coming, or at least pretended so, to joyn the Crusades; and there they made all appear so desperate to cover their own ignomimous Cowardice, that that treacherous Prince, who was before resolved to do nothing, was overjoyed to meet with so fair a Pretence to alter his Course and march back again to Constantinople. In short, Matters went so very far, that the Soldiers half mad with Despair, abandoned all sort of Care of their own Defence, so that Prince Bohemond, who Commanded in the Town, was forced to set Fire to their Houses, to force them out, and put them upon Action.

Things being reduced to this deplorable Extremity, it is strange what Power Religion hath upon the Spirits of Men, and how in a Moment it will raise them after once it becomes Master by the power of a strong Perswasion; for two Priests, one called Stephen, the other Peter Bartholomew, both of Marseilles, pre­sented themselves before the Princes to acquit themselves of a Commission, which they assured them they had received from Heaven. The first said, That at his Prayers he had seen Jesus Christ, who after he had complained of the Ingratitude and horrible Crimes of the Crusades, being in the end inclined by the Intreaties of his Mother, he was come to him, and commanded him to let them know, that if they would for the future amend and turn from their vici­ous Ways, he would send them Succour within five Days. The second af­firmed, That St. Andrew had shewed him within the Church of St. Peter, the Place where they might find the Iron of the Spear that pierced the Side of our Lord, and that he had assured him that this Holy Iron should be a certain Pledge of the approaching Deliverance of the Crusades, provided they repen­ted of their Sins; and both the one and the other offered themselves to the Flames to confirm the Truth of what they had declared. The Bishop of Pa­via, who was a Person of a clear Insight, did not believe these kind of Visions, which he knew were generally the Effects of Forgery or Illusion, but neverthe­less, that he might not seem to neglect any thing that might be true, and which however, might be of some Service to them, he obliged the Priests to Swear upon the Holy Evangelists, that what they said was true, being unwilling to have Recourse to those other Proofs, which had nothing in them of the Spirit of the Church, and not thinking it agreeable to Religion, by such Methods to tempt Providence. After which going to the Place which the Priest directed, they there found the top of a Spear, so that the whole Army was so perswaded of the Truth of these Visions, and that Relique, that no body durst presume to make any Doubt of it.

However, the Belief did not last always, for some eight or nine Months af­ter, as they were at the Siege of a certain Town, where they had recourse to this Relique, which was most curiously preserved by Count Raymond, a Priest who was the Domestick Chaplain of the Duke of Normandy, and a knowing Man, maintained publickly that it was a Counterfeit, that the true Spear had been long ago carried to Constantinople, and that the Provencals had put this in the Place where it was found, only on purpose to please their Earl. Upon which the whole Army was divided, the Priest of Marseilles constantly main­taining that he was ready to prove the Truth of his Revelation, by passing the Trial of the Fire, which in Conclusion the Bishops permitted him to do. After [Page 55]a Fast of three Days, therefore, a great Fire was made, year 1098 upon which they be­stowed a Solemn Benediction, after which the Provencal taking the Iron of the Spear in his Hand, passed, excepting his Shirt, quite Naked through it, but for all the hast that he could make over that huge Pile, in the sight of the Army, who were scarce able to indure the Heat at a Distance, the poor Priest, who was a silly Man, and credulous of his Revelation, did not find the Success an­swer his Expectation. It is true he came out from the midst of the Flames, but so Roasted without, and Scorched within, by the Vapor of the Fire which he sucked in with his Breath, that within twelve days he died in most exquisite Torments. So that there was no longer that Reverence given to this Iron as was before, although Count Raymond would by no means be perswaded to a­bate of his Devotion towards this Relique, which for all this he would not be­lieve to be False; not thinking this Accident of the Priest, which went some­thing too high, was a sufficient Argument to prove the Falsity of the Vision, For God, he said, was not obliged to confirm by Miracles, what he was pleased to reveal to Men. But however, the Belief which was so firm while they were at Antioch, that this was the real Spear which was Consecrated by the Blood of Christ Jesus, found a most admirable Effect upon the Spirits of the whole Army, who not doubting now in the least of the Protection of God, and a most assured Victory, most eagerly demanded to be led to the Combat.

The Princes, who thought it very convenient to make use of this Heat, sent Peter the Hermite with an Interpreter to Corbagath, to offer him the Combat either Man to Man, between him and one of the Princes, or himself, and a cer­tain number of chosen Soldiers of one side and the other, or in short, a gene­ral Battle, that so they might quickly determine the Quarrel between them: And in the mean time every one applied himself to the Work of Repentance, and with fervent Prayers to implore the Heavenly Aid from God, who had promised it upon those Conditions. The Answer which Corbagath returned, was in these haughty Terms, That it was not for the Vanquished to prescribe Laws to the Victor, That it could not be long before he should have them with Halters about their Necks, and that it would be in his Power to determine their Destiny, and by what kind of Death they were to Dye. Peter having made his Report to the Princes, they only acquainted the Soldiers that they must Fight, and that therefore they should be ready to march against the Ene­my the next day, which was the twenty eighth of June, being the Eve of the Apostle St. Peter and St. Paul. This Order was received with a marvellous Chearfulness, every one prepared his Arms, and fell to his Devotions, the Bishops and Priests Administred the Sacraments of Penance and the Holy Eu­charist all that Night, to the Principal Officers and the greatest part of the Soldiers. Upon break of Day the Army, which by the nine Months Siege of Antioch, was reduced to less than one half, issued out by the Bridge-Gate, di­vided into six great Batallions, which followed one another, every one sustained by a very small Squadron of Cavalry, for that the greatest part of the Horses were dead and eaten by their Masters during the extream Famine, and who this day were therefore constrained to serve on Foot. Hugh the Great ac­companied with the Earl of Flanders, commanded the first Body, the great Standard of the Christian Army being carried before him. One shall not find in all the fabulous Histories of the feigned Heroes, any thing comparable to the Actions of this brave Prince upon this Occasion; he was so Meagre and Weak by reason of the extream Famine which he had indured in the Siege, that he was scarce able to support himself, insomuch that he was requested by the o­ther Princes to stay with those who were left to guard the Retrenchments which were made against the Castle. If it shall please God, said he, I will ne­ver lose so fair an Occasion of dying Gloriously for the sake of Jesus Christ. I will this day Fight at the Head of the Army; and I shall esteem myself extraordinary Happy to be of the number of those, who, by a Death precious in the Sight of God, and full of Glory in the Sight of Men, shall gain the glorious Crown of Martyrdom. In short, he was the first that marched out of the Town, and who gave the first happy Presage of the Victory, by cutting in pieces two thousand Turks, who were advanced out of the Fort to hinder the Sally. Duke Godfrey led the [Page 56]second Brigade composed of Lorrainers and Germans; year 1098 The Duke of Normands followed after him with his Body. After him the Bishop of Pavia with his Troops which were increased by a part of Count Raymond's, who being sick, remained in the Town with those who kept the Guard against the Castle. Tan­cred led the fifth Batallion, and the sixth was conducted by Bohemond.

There was little need of saying any thing to inspire the Soldiers with Cou­rage, who were already prepossessed with so advantagious Imaginations of cer­tain Victory. A little pleasant Dew which fell upon them as they marched out, increased their Belief, and consirmed them in an Opinion that God had sent it for their Refreshment, and to give them an Increase of Strength. And in effect, whether there was any thing extraordinary in it at this time, or that their Ima­gination impregnated with the favourable Visions which had been published a­mong them, acted more powerfully upon their Bodies, they felt themselves strengthened in such a strange manner, that they began to sing, and with a mighty loud Voice to cry, It is the Will of God, it is the Will of God, and made no manner of Scruple but that they were going to a most assured Victory. So soon as all the Battalions were drawn out, they marched Westward, to that Quar­ter where the Mountains abutted upon the River, to the end, that having them upon their Backs they might not be surrounded by the mighty number of their Enemies; after which making a half turn to the left, towards the North, where the Mountains make a kind of Semicircle, they divided every Batalion into two, thereby forming twelve, which were ranged in two Lines extending a great length, thereby to possess all the space between the Mountains and the Orontes. Hugh the Great, the Earl of Flanders, and the Duke of Normandy had the left hand towards the Mountain which covered them; Godfrey of Bul­len was on the Right, extending himself to the very River, having Eustace his Brother to sustain him, together with the Earls of St. Paul and Toul, Baldwin de Bourg, Renaud de Beauvais, Valon de Chaumont, Erard du Puiset, and Tancred with his Brigade. The Bishop of Pavia was in the middle, having the main Body of the Battle, with the Troops of the Earl of Tholose, which in his Absence were Commanded by the Earls of Die and Rousillon, William de Montpellier, Gaston de Foix Prince of Bearne, Amaneu d' Albret, Raymond Viscount of Tu­rene, Raimbaud Earl of Orange, and Peter Viscount de Castellane. Raymond de Agiles, Canon of Pavia, writes in his History, that he carried the Holy Spear before his Bishop, who altho he was Armed for his own Safety, yet fought no other way than by his Exhortations, by his Voice and Gesture animating the Army, in shewing them the Sacred Steel. He also adds, that by an extraor­dinary Wonder, which ought to be attributed to the Faith which these Soldi­ers had in Christ Jesus, whom they honoured in this Spear, which they be­lieved was Consecrated by his Blood, not one Man of those who fought in that Body, received any Wound in this terrible Day. Bohemond Commanded the Body of Reserves, Composed of his Batallion, which was the strongest of them all, there being divers other Troops added to his, to the intent that he might send Succor to any of the rest which might be too hard pressed by the Enemy. One part of the Clergy which came out of the City in Procession at the Head of the Army, was placed in his Quarter, to implore the Aid of Heaven during the Combat, the other which were barefooted upon the Walls, displayed the Cross and the Ensigns towards the Army, continually giving them their Bene­diction, and with grievous Groans accompanied with the lamentable Cries of the Women and Children who followed them, begging the Almighty Protecti­on of God against the wicked Enemies of his most Holy Name.

In the mean time Corbagath, who had so mightily mistaken the Christian Ar­my, was ingaged in a Game at Chess, when he was informed by a Signal from the Castle that they were issued out of the Town, and finding, contrary to his Opinion, that they made Head that way, with an intention to sight him, he immediately gave out all necessary Orders for the receiving of them. For he instantly sent Soliman the Sultan of Damascus, with him of Alepo, and a brave Turk, whose Name was Karieth, with two great Bodies of Cavalry and Infan­try, to go round about the Mountain upon the right Hand, to fall upon the Rere of the Christians by the way of the Sea-Coast. But the Princes perceiving [Page 57]it sent a great Detachment composed of several Troops drawn from the two Wings, under the Command of Renaud Earl of Toul, year 1098 to stop those who might attack them on that Quarter during the Combat; to be short, he ranged his Ar­my partly upon the Hills which he possessed with his Right Wing commanded by the Emir of Jerusalem, and partly upon the Plain which in that place inlar­geth it self, giving a very good Scope to extend his Batallion which was com­manded by his Lieutenant; the Left Wing where he had placed his best Troops to oppose those of Godfrey, was conducted by Bulgadis the Son of Accien, and Balduc Sultan of Samosatia; for he thought that these two Turkish Princes, one of which had lost his Father, and the other his Estate, would be animated more than any of the rest to avenge their particular Losses by sighting more vigorously in the Common Cause. As for himself, whether it were that his Courage failed him at that time, or that he was surprized and astonished with the Prediction of his Mother an old Sorceress of above an hundred years of Age, who to dissuade him from this War, had informed him some time before, that it was written in the Stars that the Christians should be victorious; he retired with a very puissant Body to an Eminence which was upon the left of the Christian Army, under Pretext that from thence he might best be able to dis­cover whither to send his Orders and necessary Succours upon all occasions: But in his ill Humour wherein he was to see the Christians in so different a Con­dition from what he believed, and who by their possessing in the manner of their drawing up the whole Plain, appeared to be far more numerous than in Reality they were, he caused the head of a Deserter a Renegade to be out off, for that he had assured him that almost all the Crusades were dead with Fa­mine, and that those who remained not being able to carry their Arms, would never come out of the Town but to sly away.

The Christian Army in the mean time marching leisurely, more animated by seeing the Spear which was carried up on high before Aymar and by the Priests who went singing of Psalms, than by the Trumpets, advanced still forwards; when the Infidels, according to their Custom making a hideous Noise with their Instruments and Barbarous Shouts, extended themselves to the Right and Left to surround the Christians, making at the same time such a Discharge of their Ar­rows as for some Moments obscured the very Skie; but this did very little Da­mage the Crusades, by reason that a great Westerly Wind which they had upon their Backs, drove the Arrows back again upon those who discharged them, and gave at the same time more Force to those of the Christians, which falling among the thickest Ranks, made a marvellous Havock upon that crouded Mul­titude, where scarce any one Arrow fell in vain. After this first Charge, Hugh the Great, Robert of Flanders, the Duke of Normandy, Baldwin Earl of Henault, and Anselm de Ribemond, without giving the Enemies the Liberty of a second Discharge, or so much as to draw their Cimiters, sell in furiously with their Lances couched upon their right Wing, where the French, the Normans, the English and the Flemings animated by the Example of their Chieftains, with mighty Blows of Lance and Sword made a most horrible Execution among the Barbarians. Godfrey who was to charge the bravest of the Infidels which he did in a moment after, combated with no less advantage; for throwing himself like Lightning into the thickest of the Enemies Squadrons which composed their left Wing, he bore down all that opposed him with the prodigious Force of his Terrible Sword, which the Saracens trembled at as if he had been Armed with a Thunderbolt. The Gascons, the Bearnois, the Spaniards and the Provencals of Earl Raymond, throwing away their Cross-Bows, and their Arrows, with which they had before done mighty Execution, pierced into the main Body of the Battle, being supported and followed by their Cavalry, till they were come to the place where Hugh and the two Roberts, after having routed the Wing which opposed them, were arrived, turning to the Right to fall upon the Rere of the Enemy. In short, the Right Wing fell to down-right running a­way, the Left began to stagger, and the main Battle was in Disorder, when word was brought to Hugh the Great and to Godfrey, that Earl Renaud and Prince Bohemond were extremely pressed, and in danger of being defeated if they had not present Aid.

year 1098 And in Truth Soliman who had marched behind the Mountain with great Di­ligence was entred the Plain upon the West, and had attacked Count Renaud, who was advanced to oppose him, but with Forces very unequal in their Num­ber. However he did most bravely sustain the furious Shock of so many Ene­mies, till such time as joyning Artifice with Force, they took from him by a new Stratagem, the Means either to attack them or defend himself. For Soliman who had observed that there was abundance of Hay upon the Plain, had caused his People to set it on Fire, which presently raised such a horrible thick Cloud intermingled with Flame and Smoak, that being carried by a strong West Wind upon the Faces of the Christians, it covered their Enemies, who all the while poured down Showers of Mortal Arrows among them through the Cloud of Smoak; this put them into great Disorder, the Horse being neither able to advance through the Fire and Smoak, nor to indure the incessant galling of the Turkish Arrows whilest they stood; so that they carried their Riders among the Re­serves, and the Foot who could not retreat so fast, remained exposed to the Fury of the Enemies. There were not however above three hundred Soldi­ers slain, but all the rest were either taken or dispersed, for Soliman did not follow the Pursuit, but according to his first Intention advanced to fall upon the Rere of Bohemond, whom the stout Turk Karieth with the Sultans of Damascus and A­lepo who had now also entred the Plain, had already charged upon the Flank. This Valiant Prince upon this occasion did all that could possibly be expected from the Courage or Conduct of the Greatest Man in the World; but after all it was impossible he should long be able to resist so many Enemies as did surround him, if the Succours which he had desired did not arrive more seasonably. Hugh the Great was the first that came in to his Assistance, and presently observing that the terrible Turk Karieth did the greatest Execution and encouraged others by his Example, he made one blow, which ought to render the Memo­ry of this great Prince a Son of France, Immortal; and in Truth our own Historians in my opinion have not done him all the Justice which is his due, and which History never refused to the meanest Souldier who behaved himself in like manner upon such an occasion. For marking out this Barbarian in the mid­dle of the Turks, whom he was encouraging, and pushing forwards against the Christians, crying to them with a loud Voice to fall on, he ran upon him with his Lance couched, and hitting him between the Curiass and the Cask, it passed cross his Wind-pipe, and cutting off one Passage of that furious Voice which made such a Horrid Noise, opened two others by which his Blood and his Life flowed out to­gether. Eudas de Baugeny who carried the Princes Colours, fell at the same time by the Stroak of a Poisoned Arrow; but William de Beleme the Princes Es­quire, animated by the Example of his Master, threw himself into the Throng of the Turks, who endeavoured to take it, and killing all that opposed him, he recovered it all covered with their Blood, and shewed it to the Crusades in that Condition, being of the same Colour with those Crosses which they wore.

Godfrey who loved this Prince Hugh with a mighty Tenderness, and who was reciprocally beloved by him; and Tancred whom the Danger wherein he saw his Uncle rendred furious, being in this time come in with their Troops, the Combat was renewed with more Fury than before; but it lasted not long, by reason that the Enemies utterly unable to sustain the Force of so many Valiant Princes who were rejoyned against them, and who being come up to the Throng rendred their Bows useless, and their Artificial Fires vain, they now fled like the Smoak towards the Mountains, leaving in the Plain new Mountains raised by the Heaps of their slain Companions. The Princes immediately fa­cing about, without offering to pursue them, returned to their own Party, who were still hotly disputing with those to whom this Diversion had given new Courage; but that Courage was quickly cooled by the Knowledge which the Return of the Princes gave them of the defeat of their Companions; and they who before were not able to resist them, could less do it now that they returned Victo­rious, and reinforced by the Troops of Earl Renaud and Bohemond to perfect and finish the Victory. It is said that there were seen a mighty number of Ca­valiers in White Arms, who seemed to descend from the Mountains to assist the [Page 59] Crusades. Whether it were so in Reality, year 1098 or that the strong Perswasion which some might have of Aid from Heaven heightned their Imagination to represent to them this Prodigy; it is certain that the Noise ran through the Army, that the Heavenly Legions were descended to combat in Favour of the Christians, un­der the Conduct of the Soldier Saints and Martyrs Maurice George and Demetrius. The Bishop of Pavia however knew so well to make good use of this Credulity of the Army, that therewith he animated the Soldiers to make the last Effort against the Insidels, who now on every side beginning to stagger immediately up­on this vigorous Charge turned their Backs, and thought of nothing but how to save themselves by Flight.

There was between the Place of Battle and the Enemies Camp a little Valley divided by a small Rivulet which made the Passage very diffi­cult; now the Turks who made more hast than the Christians, having passed it some time before them, had the Leasure to rally upon the Mountain, where with their broken Troops they formed a little kind of a new Army, hoping thereby to discourage some and surprize others which they thought would fol­low them in Disorder. But Hugh the Great with his French-Men who stuck closely to him, having first passed the Valley charged them so Home, that Tancred and the rest of the Princes which followed him being now come up, before they could recover the Disorder of that brisk Charge, cut them all in pieces except a few, who repenting that they had staid so long, found no small trouble to regain the Advantage which their first slight had given them.

After this Corbagath who hitherto had not quitted the rising Ground from whence he had with sufficient Cowardize beheld the Combat, without taking the least share in it, seeing that all was lost, fled at full Speed towards the Eu­phrates, every Hour taking fresh Horses, and never looking behind him till he was got to the further side of that mighty River. As for the rest, the Christi­ans were so extreamly weary with fighting and with killing, that the Fugitives had a great advantage to escape, for there were none that pursued them except Tancred, who gave them chace for about two Leagues, till the coming on of the Night obliged him to return.

The Enemies lost in this Battle one hundred thousand Horse, and so great a Number of Foot that it was not possible to compute them, and which was most remarkable, this mighty Victory did not cost the Christians above four thousand Men; and to comfort them for this inconsiderable loss, they took the Camp of the Infidels which was full of inestimable Riches; which did so reestablish the Ar­my, that not only the Princes and Lords, but even the meanest Soldiers who had been reduced to the extremity of Misery and Poverty, found themselves in much a better Condition, and beyond Comparison far more Rich than they were before they undertook this Voyage; and that which compleated the Joy was, that the Emir to whom Corbagath had intrusted the Guard of the Castle, instantly surrendred it, and with three hundred of his Men turned Christians, the rest having Liberty to retire whither they pleased. Thus was Antioch ta­ken and preserved by the most Memorable Exploits of War which ever were performed, and which I thought my self obliged to recount with all its Cicum­stances, to the End, that considering the Faults which the Crusades committed, and the fearful Extremities to which they were reduced both during the Siege and afterwards, the Reader may be satisfied that God who punishes the Offen­ces of Men by his Justice, and pardons them in his Mercy, was the only support of this Enterprize, which in all Humane Probability must otherwise have been most unfortunate; so much doth it concern mighty Princes who make great Wars, to make it the Principal Maxime of their Policy, to gain Almighty God to be of their Party, and that by returning to him with a true Conversion of their Hearts, he may give Prosperity and Success to their Arms, without which they must expect always to have him for their most Dreadful Adver­sary.

After this great Victory, of which the Princes gave an ample Relation to Pope Ʋrban, in a large Letter, as also of all which they had done till that time, they took Care of resetling Christian Religion in Antioch; and then assembling to delibe­rate concerning the Principal Enterprise, which was that of Jerusalem, it was [Page 60]resolved to defer it to the first of November by reason of the great and excessive Heats, year 1098 as also to give the Army some Repose; and in the mean time, to re­monstrate to the Emperor his unworthy Carriage, it was thought fit to send Hugh the Great, and Baldwin de Mons, Earl of Henault, to press him to the Conditions which he had sworn to fulfil; to come in Person instantly and joyn his Forces with those of the Princes, if he expected that they on their Part should keep the Oath which they had taken. Bohemond himself, to whom all the rest except Count Raymond, had already quitted all manner of Pretensions to Antioch, did not in the least oppose this Resolution, by reason that he was well assured that all this Ceremony would produce nothing to his disadvantage. And in Truth there never was any Ambassage that proved more unfortunate. The Earl of Henault perished in the Way, and it was never precisely known what hap­pened to him nor what was become of him, though there was a currant Report, that he was either taken Prisoner or murdered by the Greek Soldiers of the Gar­rison of Nice. Hugh the Great after he had treated with the Emperor, deser­ted the Crusades, and whether he had taken some particular Disgust against some of the Princes, or that the Divisions which he foresaw Ambition would produce among them made him despair of any good Success of the Voyage, or that some particular reason of Importance obliged him to return to France; it is certain that he returned from Constantinople in so abrupt a manner, that it hath given occasion to some of the Writers of that Time to speak not very favourably of his departure. And for the Emperor Alexis, as he knew very well that the Princes who had not at all flattered him in their Ambassage, were in no sort satisfied of his Honesty or good Conduct, he was far enough from going to Antioch; for he was too cunning and politick not to govern himself by that Maxime, That one ought alway to distrust those whom they have abused; especially when they have discovered the Abuse which hath been put upon them.

Now after all this, the Joy of having thus gloriously triumphed over the whole Force of the Sultan of Persia, was mightily damped by the loss of that great and good Prelate Aymar de Monteil Bishop of Pavia; who shortly after falling sick with his great Fatigues, died the first of August, to the infinite Trouble and Sorrow of all sort of People to whom he was for his incomparable Qualities deservedly dear; and indeed never were there seen greater Marks of Esteem, Tenderness and Grief, than those which the Princes, Soldiers and People gave upon this mournful Occasion. Nor was it long before it appeared by the Di­visions which happened among the Princes to the hazzarding the loss of all, that he was the very Soul of this great Body, who by his Wisdom and Presence kept the different and jarring Humours in an equal Poise and Temperament. For no sooner were the Princes who had separated during the Summer, reassem­bled in November at Antioch according to Agreement to march together to the Conquest of Jerusalem, but that Bohemond protested openly, that he would not move one step except the Earl of Tholose put the Bridge-Gate Fortress into his Hands, and one of the Palaces of Accien which he also kept. The Earl, doubt­less little to the Purpose, alledged the Promise made to the Emperor, and ad­ded that for his part he was also resolved not to stir till Bohemond surrendred to him the Castle which he had in Antioch. There was a great deal of Trouble at the last to gain so far upon them, as to condescend that lest it might retard the Voyage, they should remit their Differences to the Determination of the Princes after the taking of Jerusalem. But this forced Accord indured not long; for these two Princes, who were advanced with the first with their Troops, besieged and took by Assault the great and strong City of Marra, some two or three days March distant from Antioch towards Apamia. It is impossible to describe the Heat which transported the Soldiers upon this occasion, who car­ried the Town without expecting the Command of the Generals; for not be­ing able to support the Insolence, the Sacriledges and brutish Impiety of the Barbarians, who to despite them did a thousand Indignities to the Cross which they had planted upon their Walls, the Soldiers ran of their own accord to the Assault with so much Heat, Courage, and indeed Fury, that undermining the Walls and Towers, plying the Engines, and clapping up scaling Ladders on all Parts at the same time, they vanquished the Infidels notwithstanding their [Page 61]obstinate Resistance, and made themselves Masters of the Town. year 1098 The first man that mounted the Walls with his Sword in his hand was Geoffry dela Tour, a Gentleman of Limousin. Who had acquired the Reputation throughout the whole Army of being a most undaunted and Valiant man as was in the World, as he had made evident in a thousand fair Occasions, and principally in one, which this History cannot omit without doing injustice to the Merit of so brave a man, and without robbing it self of one of its fairest Ornaments.

One day going out upon a Party as he frequently did, he heard the dreadful roaring of a Lyon, which seemed rather to be a crying out by reason of some Mishap that he was fallen into, than in following his Prey to devour it; the Bold Geoffry who by the Movement of his natural Generosity, always went without a Moments Deliberation the Way that Danger led him, not withstanding the Opposition of his Companions who would have staid him, broak away towards the next Wood, and ran directly to the Place where he heard the Roaring; there he saw a horrible Serpent of prodigious Magnitude, who having wound himself about the Legs of a Lyon had put him out of the Condi­tion of defending himself, and that he darted redoubled Blows with his Tongue to kill him with his Poyson. He was touched with the Danger of the Lyon, and without thinking that in delivering him, he must give him the Liberty to fall upon himself, he struck the Serpent such a Blow with his Sword, that he killed him without hurting the Lyon, and after that cut the Wreaths of the Serpent with which he was entangled; so soon as the poor Animal saw him­self at Liberty, he came to acknowledge the Kindness, and in the most expressive manner, and with the greatest Submission to render Thanks to his Deliverer; for he couched himself down and licked his Feet, and after that binding himself to him as to his generous Defender to whom he owed his Life, he never would for­sake him, but constantly followed him, like as a Faithful Dog will do his Master, without offending any Person except his Enemies upon whom he gave him a Sign to fall. For the Lyon went ever with him to the Combat and the Chase, and never failed to provide his Master of Venison. But that which is most admira­ble is, that the Master of the Vessel upon which Geoffry returned into France af­ter the Crusade, refusing to take his Equipage aboard, and amongst them the Lyon who followed his Master, the poor Beast unable to support the Sepa­ration from his Benefactor, taking the Sea, so long as his Strength lasted swam after the Ship, till at last he was drowned. A marvellous Instruction of Na­ture, and Reproach to Mankind, whilest it shews them that Lyons have done more than once that for their Masters, by the Instinct of natural Gratitude, than men can be perswaded to by all the Force of Reason; and that Ingratitude which is so common among men, defacing the fairest Character of Humanity, should not be found in the most Savage Creatures, whom the Charms of good Offices have devested of their natural Fierceness towards their Bene­factors.

But to return to our History, The taking of Marra revived the sleeping Quarrel between the Earl of Tholose and the Prince of Tarentum. For the Earl pretended to dispose of this Place as he had done before of Albaria and Rugia, upon which he had seized during the Summer: but Bohemond who thought there was no manner of Reason that Raimond should do that here, which he would not suffer to be done at Antioch, opposed him stoutly; and in the Dispute they so heated one the others Spirits, that the Tarentine thinking he had Reason to do the same on his part, returned, and immediately drove out all the Earls Forces out of the Forts which they held at Antioch. The Princes themselves could in no fort disapprove of this Procedure, which they found to be but reasonable, e­specially after having discoursed Raimond at Rugia between Marra and Antioch, they found it impossible to perswade him to hear Reason, which obliged them to leave him and return to Antioch. Thus the great Design of the Conquest of the Holy Land, which all the Forces of the Infidels had not been able to hinder, seemed in a manner to be ruined by this Difference between two Persons, otherwise reputed extraordinary Virtuous, and as wise as any of that Age. So that we may see that Wisdom and Reason instantly lose all their Authority, when once Passion by the Heart seizing upon the Mind makes herself Mistress there.

year 1098 But God who was the Chief in this Enterprize, repaired that by the Zeal of the feeble and the little ones, which was in Danger of being ruined by the Great and the Wise men of the World. For the Soldiers of Count Raymond, who on one side suffered extremely for want of Provisions after they had been one Month at Marra, and on the other hand had a passionate Desire to atchieve the Conquest of Jerusalem, thought that the Ambition of the Earl was the only Ob­stacle, who after the Example of Bohemond, endeavoured to establish his own Fortune in these Conquests, as the other had done in Cilicia during the Summer. And therefore making an Insurrection while the Conference was at Rugia, they threw down all the Walls of Marra, thereby to take away from the Earl the Temptation which he might have to keep it and stay there; and more over after his Return they protested, that if he would not immediately march in the Head of them towards Jerusalem, they would chuse another Captain who they were assured would lead them; that they were resolved to accomplish their Vow, and that they did not believe they should find themselves alone, or abandoned by the other Princes. Raimond extremely surprised at this Resolution, and fearing in Truth that he should be wholly deserted by his own, as he was already by the others, his first Zeal which had been so weakened by his Jea­lousie against the Prince of Tarentum, began afresh to flame in his Soul, by seeing that of his Soldiers, like a Torch that is just ready to be extinguished at the Approach and Touch of another. In Conclusion he presently altered his Resolution, and setting fire to Marra to shew that he had quitted all Preten­sions to it, upon the Thirteenth of January he marched out barefoot in the Posture of a Penitent, by that Humiliation to repair the Scandal which he had given to his Soldiers, who had justly accused him of Ambition. He was fol­lowed with an incredible Chearfulness of his whole Army, who made no Scru­ple seeing him in this Estate, but that he had taken up the same Fervor which he had so well witnessed in being the first Person who took upon him the Cross, and who upon all Occasions was wont to animate others by his Example and Perswasion to embrace it with the same Zeal. And God also was pleased to bless this generous Action, for Robert Duke of Nomandy, and Prince Tancred be­ing advertized of this News, immediately parted from Antioch, whilest the o­ther Princes prepared to follow, and joyned him at Capharda where he had posted himself after he had quitted Marra, taking the right hand Way toward the Sea.

year 1099 The taking of Antioch, and the great Victory which they had obtained over the Turks, the Persians and Arabians, had so filled all Syria, Phenicia and Palestine with the Terror of the Christian Arms, that most of the Emirs who held any Places in those Provinces under the Sultans of Persia or Babylon and Egypt, sent their Ambassadours with rich Presents to the Princes, to desire their Friend­ship and Protection, promising to pay them Tribute, and furnish them with Provisions in their Passage. Now in Regard the Principal Design was to go immediately to Jerusalem, and to leave the Conquest of the rest till that was taken, the Princes thought fit to accept their Offers; only the Emir of Tripe­lis was refused; for Earl Raymond perswaded them to besiege Arcas by Reason of the Advice which he received from some Christians who were detained Priso­ners at Tripolis, that it would either easily be taken, or that the Emir to obtain Peace would compound with them for a mighty Sum of money, and likewise restore them to their Liberty. Arcas, which others call Archis, was a very strong Town situate upon a Hill some two Leagues from Tripolis, and one from the Sea, in the middle of a most beautiful and fertile Plain which extends it self along the Lebanon and Antilebanon to the Sea shore. The Earl who thought to carry it presently, assaulted it the eleventh day of February, but the Emir having placed in it a very strong Garrison he was repulsed and con­strained to besiege it, which he did to no purpose for three months, losing be­fore it a great Number of Valiant Men, and amongst the rest Anselm de Ribemont descended from the Ancient Earls of Valenciennes, and Chastelain of that City, one of the most renowned among the Crusades; and the Accident by which it happened being altogether extraordinary, it well deserves a particular place in this History.

year 1099 This brave Lord being one Night about to go to Bed having fought stoutly all that day, he saw his excellent Friend the young Engelram the Son of the Earl of St. Paul, who a little before was slain at the Siege of Marra, enter in­to his Tent. Now Anselm who had an undaunted Soul, and to whom the Sight of his Friend gave an extraordinary Joy, And how now my dear En­gelram, said he, without being at all disordered, are you still alive, whom I saw dead at Marra? Those, replyed Engelram, who finish their Lives in the Service of Jesus Christ, never die. But how comes it, Said Anselm, that I see you now incomparably more beautiful than you were before? Look, replyed Engelram, shew­ing him a most admirable Structure in Heaven, look there, and see the Brightness and the Beauty of that Palace; it is from thence that I have what you so much Admire in me. And further, added he, seeing him transported with the Admiration of that Beautiful Palace, I am to acquaint you, that there is one far more Glorious preparing for you. Adieu till to Morrow. And thereupon he pre­sently disappeared. Early the next Morning Anselm, having made his Ser­vants send for the Priests, he received the Sacraments, and very pleasantly said to his Friends, that they should not be surprized at what he was to tell them, but that though now they saw him in perfect Health, yet assuredly he should die that day, and thereupon he related to them what he had seen the Night pre­ceding before he went to sleep. And the Event verified his Prediction; for the Enemy making a furious Sally, Anselm who never failed upon such an Occasion, ran thither with his Sword in his Hand, when a Stone which was discharged from an Engine, hitting him upon the Head, sent him instantly to that Beautiful Palace which Engelram told him was preparing for him in the Heavens. Now in Regard that he who recounts this extraordinary Acci­dent, affirms upon his Salvation that he faithfully writ what he saw himself, and that besides, one cannot reasonably accuse so brave a Man as this famous Earl of Bouchain and Ribemont, as guilty of so much Weakness, as to make him pass for a Visionary Extravagant, I cannot believe there is the least Place for calling in Question the Truth of this Relation. And from hence our Brave Men may draw an Excellent Instruction, and learn that in making a Christian War, whether it be against Infidels, or Hereticks, or whether it be in Obe­dience to their own Prince who is only responsible to God for the Justice of his Arms, which the Subjects have no Authority to examine, there is such an Insi­nite Glory in Heaven to be acquired by their Courage on Earth, that they ought to expose their Lives with all imaginable Frankness, to all sorts of Dan­gers and Death it self.

After this all the Advantage that was gotten during this Siege before the Arrival of the other Princes, was, that Raymond Viscount of Turenne, having with him the Viscount de Castellane, the Lord Albret, and ten or twelve other prin­cipal Gascons and Bearnois with about one hundred Horse and two hundred Foot took Torlosa, in old Time called Antaradus, a fair and great Town upon the Coast over against the Isle of Aradus, six or seven Leagues from Arcas towards Antioch. He thought to have taken it by Surprize; but that Design did not thrive, by reason he had so small a Number of Men, wherefore in the Night, at the side of a Wood which was in View of the City he caused such a­bundance of Fires to be made, that the Inhabitants taking his Party to have been the Van of the Army, and that all the rest was now come up to assault them the next day, they fled away that Night, so that the Viscount entred it the next Morning without Resistance, and there found so rich a Booty as rejoy­ced the whole Army.

This Valiant Viscount was the Chief of that Illustrious House of Turenne, which in Conclusion about two hundred years since happily fell into that de la Tour d' Avergne, which by taking up the Name hath restored it not only to its first Splendor, but hath also advanced it by an other Viscount Turenne to the highest pitch of Honor to which it could aspire. This is he who after having done so many fair Actions in commanding the French Armies in Italy, in Germa­ny and Flanders, as beyond Contradiction have given him the Reputation of a most accomplished Captain, came to add to the Heap of his Glories the Exe­cution of his Kings Commands in this last Campagne, and who may well be ce­lebrated [Page 64]as the chief Engineer of the Military Art, year 1099 and Master of all those great Qualities which are requisite in the Character of the most compleat General of an Army, all which are so conspicuous in him, as justly render him one of the most admired, able, brave, and eminent Generals, even in the Opinion of the Confederates his Enemies.

And certainly, it will be difficult to find any thing more admirable than the War of this Campagne, of more than ten Months Continuance, wherein he by his sole Presence, and the terror of his Name, not only stopped the Course of the greatest Army of his Enemies, and hindred them from entring into the Provinces, whilest in the mean time the King finished his Conquests; but also in Conclusion, won two Battles, one on this, the other on the further side of the Rhine, constraining them in Disorder to retire as far as the River of Mein; and after that terrible Inundation of sixty thousand Germans had thrown them­selves over the Bridge of Strasbourg into Alsatia, he there gave them the Di­version of weakening themselves by Famine and Sickness; after which, in the very Heart of Winter he marched against them over the Mountains and the mighty Snows, and there either cut in pieces, and dispersed, or made Prisoners their forwardest Troops in three Combats; and in Conclusion, obliged the rest, which he had reduced to one half of what passed the Bridge, to repass it with so much Precipitation and Shame, that to save themselves in their own Coun­try, they would not give him the Opportunity to Attacque them. Thus it was that he sustained the Glory of that illustrious Name, and rendred that of Turenne far more glorious than it was in the first Crusade, after that Viscount Raymond alone took so great a City.

In the mean time the Duke Godfrey, Earl Eustace, and Robert Earl of Flan­ders, who Marched in the month of March, with their Armies in very good Condition, Besieged Giblet, otherwise called Gabala, a Town upon the Sea be­tween Tortosa and Laodicea; but being requested by the Earl of Tholose to come to his Assistance upon the Rumor which he had cunningly raised, that a great Army of Saracens were advancing to Assail him; they accepted the Terms which the Governor offered them to obtain a Peace, and came instant­ly before Arcas, where they found no other Enemies to Combat with, but those who were within the Town, who made a very brave Defence. But the two Ambassages which the Princes received shortly after, determined the Siege which had been maintained so long. For during the Siege of Antioch, they had sent their Ambassadors to Babylon, with those of the Sultan of Egypt, to conclude with him that Alliance which he had desired, and which was con­descended unto upon Condition that he should joyn his Arms with those of the Christians; That Jerusalem with all its Dependancies, should be put into the Hands of the Christians; That he should have such other Places as should be regained from the Turks who had usurped them from him; and that the rest should be divided among them: But the great Overthrow of Corbagath, which that Prince understood some time after, made him change his Resolution; for now he imagined that he might make his Advantage of this Victory of the Christians, and that it would give him the Opportunity, if he knew how to manage it, to recover that by himself, which he could expect to have but a part of if he joyned with the Christians. He knew very well that their Army was extreamly weakned by the long Sieges, Diseases, and Combats, which they had indured; and that the Emperor Alexis was so far from sending them any Reinforcements, that he urged him incessantly to take Arms against them, as appeared plainly after the Battle of Ascalon, when the Letters which this per­fidious Prince had written to him upon this Subject, were found in the Sul­tans Cabinet: And in short, He was strongly possessed with the Belief that the Turks were so drained both of Men and Mony, that they were almost in­tirely ruined, and could not possibly after such horrible Losses, be in any Con­dition to Oppose him with considerable Force. And therefore whilest they were under the Astonishment of their Overthrow, and that the Princes spent their time about Antioch, either in Diversions, or in taking little Places, or that which was far worse, in vain Contests, he sent a considerable Army into Pa­lestine, where he took the greatest part of the Cities, and Jerusalem it self, [Page 65]which for a Sum of Mony was surrendred unto him by the Governor, year 1099 who saw himself out of all hope of Relief.

After this, when he knew that the Princes were in Phenicia, he sent back their Ambassadors, which he had detained above a Year, and joyned with them his own, who were to acquaint the Princes, That having made himself Master of Jerusalem, which of right belonged to him, he did not think himself bound in Justice to put it into their Hands; but nevertheless, if the Christians thought good to visit the Sepulchre, they might do so, provided they did not come in grea­ter Numbers than two or three Hundred; and that they came as simple Pilgrims, without any Arms, and returned immediately so soon as they should have finish­ed their Devotions. The Princes filled with Indignation at this Insolence of a Barbarian, thought fit to treat him with Disdain, and therefore only smiling at his extravagant Proposition, they instantly dispatched his Ambassadors to him, with Order to let him Understand, That they were not to be treated like Fools or Slaves, but like his, and the Conquerors of the whole East, and that if he did not immediately Surrender Jerusalem upon this Demand, they knew very well how to take it from him, in despight of all the Power of his Empire, of which they made so very little Account, that after they had taken it, he might expect the severest Punishment due to his dishonorable Perfidy, and from which he would find, the proud Walls of Babylon, where he thought himself so secure, should not be able to protect him.

Not long after this, the Princes gave Audience to the Ambassadors of Alexis, who were sent from him to Complain, that contrary to the Promise of the Princes, Bohemond kept Antioch, of which he pretended to be Prince, and also to desire them to stay for him till July, when he would come and joyn them with a puissant Army, and all kinds of Provisions, that so they might together, more commodiously besiege Jerusalem. Earl Raymond, who preserved still some lit­tle Remains of his Aversion to Bohemond, and who feared that they would raise the Siege of Arcas, which he had given a Suspicion, that like Bohemond, he de­signed also to keep for himself, was of opinion that it was fit to satisfie the Empe­rour, and to wait his coming before they undertook the Siege of Jerusalem. But all the others, who saw through the Artifice of the Emperour, who had no other thoughts but to impose upon them, answered his Ambassadours, That Alexis having upon all Occasions acted directly contrary to his Promises, they thought themselves absolutely discharged from the Obligations of theirs; that Bohemond possessed Antioch with the greatest Justice, all the other Princes having yielded it to him; as for the rest, that which had already passed, answered for what was to be expected from him, and that they would no longer regard his Word, which he had with so little Honour so often Violated; and that they were re­solved immediately to advance without him towards Jerusalem, in order to the Accomplishment of their Religious Vow.

In short, a few days after, having gained a great Victory over the Emir of Tripoly, who had the Confidence to sally out and give the Christians Battle, they granted him Peace at his Earnest Solicitation, notwithstanding that the Earl of Tholose with a strange Obstinacy, did all that lay in his power to oppose it; but with little Effect, more than the Displeasure which he had to see himself for­saken of all his People, who, as did all the rest, demanded with an incredible Ardor, without delaying about these other Places, to be lead immediately to Jerusalem. The Conditions which these Victorious Princes made with so much Honor and Advantage with the Tripoline, were these, That leaving to the Emir Tripolis, Arcas, and Biblis, which were under his Government, he should pay down a large Sum of Mony, and furnish the Army with Horses, Apparel, and Provisions; That he should set at Liberty three hundred Prisoners who had been taken during the Siege of Antioch; and that if they took Jerusalem he should become their Tributary, and turn Christian. This Treaty was concluded the thirteenth day of May; and after the Repose of three or four days about Tri­polis, the Army put themselves upon their March, leaving Mount Libanus upon the Left, and with good Guides following the Sea-Coast-Way, that so they might be the more easily Accommodated by the Fleet, which consisted of Vene­tians, Genoese, Pisans, and the Pyrate Vinimarc, who coasted all along with them.

year 1099 After having in three days March happily passed the dangerous Straits, where but a very few People might have stopped their Passage, they descended into the Plain of Beritus, at present called Baruth; and from thence passing over the Regions of Sidon, Sarepta, and Tyre, between Mount Saron and the Sea, they encamped in the beautiful and fertile Plain of Ptolemais, sometime before called Accon, and since named St. John d' Acre. The Emir who Commanded in so fair a Town, where there was a most delicate Port, and which would have been most Commodious for the Princes, fearing to be Attacqued, immediately sent to treat with them. He furnished them with all sorts of Refreshments, and that he might quit himself of such Guests the Sooner, his Fear constrained him to promise them with an Oath, That if they took Jerusalem, and kept it twenty days against the Sultan of Egypt, he would acknowledge them for his Masters, and put them into Possession of the Town; but the contrary was soon after evident by a very surprizing Accident, which shewed that this Perfidious Person had quite other Thoughts about his Heart, and that it was his Fear of the Christian Army, which drew this Perjury from his Lips.

For as the Army quitting Ptolemaïs, pursued their Way by Caiphas and the Passage of the Strait, which lies between the Sea and Mount Carmel, and was a­bout to Encamp near the Lake of Cesarea, a Pigeon which was escaped from the Talons of a Bird of Prey, who astonished at the Noise of the Army, had quitted her, fell down half dead at the feet of the Soldiers; being taken up, there was found fastned to her a little Roll of Paper, in which the Emir of Ptole­mais had written to him of Cesarea, that he should do all the Mischief that he could to this Army of Doggs, who were about to pass his Territories, for that he might more easily Incommode their Passage than he could, and also that he should not fail by the same way to give the same Advertisement to the other Cities. This Accident occasioned a wonderful Joy in the whole Army; for from hence they concluded, that God took a particular Care of their Interests, since he was pleased, in so uncommon a manner, to discover to them the Secrets of their Malicious Enemies. For this very reason the Princes staid in that place, that they might with greaten Devotion celebrate the Holy Feast of Whit-Sun­day, which was the nine and twentieth day of May. After which leaving the Sea upon their right Hand, as also the Cities of Joppa and Antipatris, they took the Right-hand-way which leads through the pleasant Vallies which lie at the Foot of Mount Ephraim, to Lidda, or Diospolis, a famous City of Judea, and at that time particularly Famous for the magnificent Church which the Emperor Justinian had caused to be built in Honor of St. George, in the place where that generous Soldier finished his Martyrdome; but the Saracens despair­ing to maintain the Town, had before ruined this noble Structure, burning the prodigious Beams which sustained the Roof, for fear the Christians should make use of them for Engines of War.

At the same time the Princes seized upon Ramatha, by some called Arimathea, Rama, and Ramula, a City which the Birth, the Dwelling, and the Sepulchre of the Prophet Samuel, have rendred remarkable in the Holy Writings. The Sa­racens had also abandoned that place in so great hast, that they left behind them so much Provision as sufficed for three days to refresh the whole Army. And because Rama was near unto Lidda, it was thought fit to give the Fee-simple of those two Towns, together with the Tithes of the Booty, to a learned and virtuous Priest, one Robert of the Diocess of Rouen, who was setled the Bishop of that place, to the intent that he should not only take Care of the Christians of Lidda, but also of such Pilgrims who resolved to pass the remain­der of their Lives in the Holy Land, and with which Rama was to be peopled. This being done, the Army marched very early the next Morning Eastward, and the same Evening arrived at Emmaus, some sixty Furlongs, which is about two Leagues and a half from Jerusalem: This City which had in the time of the Machabees been a considerable Place, was in our Saviour's time only a little Bur­rough, having been ruined by Varus the Governor of Syria; but it was rebuilt by the Romans after the end of the Jewish War, and in memory of their Victo­ries they called it Nicopolis, as it was at that time called when the Christians seized it. At that instant there arrived Deputies from Bethlehem who addres­sed [Page 67]themselves to Duke Godfrey, to request him to send them present Succours, year 1099 least the Saracens, as they had just ground to apprehend, who from all Parts ran to put themselves into Jerusalem, should in their Passage fire that City. Im­mediately Tancred, who was particularly united in his Interests, was dispatched thither, and who, after he had given all the necessary Orders for the Security of that Place, and had planted his Ensign upon the Church, rejoyned the other Princes the day following, which was Tuesday the sixth of June, a day after three years from the first Enterprise of the Voyage so long expected, and so ardently desired; a day wherein after infinite Pains and Travels, they came with in­credible Joy to see the Conclusion of their Vows.

For so soon as the Army was g [...] to the top of the Heights which are on the further side of Emaus, from whence there was a fair Prospect of the lofty Tow­ers of the Holy City, the Princes, the Officers, the Soldiers, and the whole Troop of Pilgrims which followed the Army, broak out all together, as it were by Consent, into Cries of Joy, Blessing and Praises to Almighty God, which being reverberated and multiplied by the Ecchoes of the Rocks and Mountains with which the City is Invironed, repeated in a few Moments a million of times, It is the Will of God, It is the Will of God. And immediately they found their Hearts so lively touched and pierced with the extraordinary Sentiments of Piety, Tenderness, and Love of God, upon the sight of those Holy Places, Consecrated by the venerable Mysteries of the Redemption of Mankind, that they threw themselves upon the Ground, shedding abundance of devout Tears, and kissing with unconceivable Pleasure that Soil which had been honored with the Footsteps of the Incarnate Word of God. Thus do present Objects with­out any other Assistance, make the most violent Impressions upon the Minds of Men, and such as far surpass the most profound Meditations, the most pow­erful Reasonings, and the most elaborate Discourses of the most eloquent Ora­tors or Preachers, and the single View of them is more capable of softning the hardest Hearts, than the finest Discourses at a distance, which cannot possibly represent things with that Life and Efficacy, which by the Eyes passes in a mo­ment to the Soul. Thus the Presence of those glorious Monuments of the Victories of the Son of God, after these first motions of Piety, inspired in the Hearts of the Crusades, such an extraordinary Ardor to Conquer, that they cried out to be instantly lead to the Siege of Jerusalem, not as Jewish, the E­nemy and Murdress of the Saviour of the World, to destroy it, but as Christi­an and Captive, to deliver it from the Tyranny of the Barbarians, who hindred the whole World from the Liberty of rendring those Honors due to the Se­pulcher of Jesus Christ. The Princes therefore judging that they ought to make use of this admirable Disposition of their Soldiers, instantly fell upon forming the Siege of this illustrious City; of which, before I proceed further, it will be necessary to represent the Situation, the Strength, and the Conditi­on wherein they found it at that time.

THE HISTORY OF THE CRUSADE, OR, The Expeditions of the Christian Princes for the Conquest of the Holy Land.
BOOK III.

year 1099 JErusalem, which after that Herod the Great had beautified it with the most magnificent Structures, and had repaired the Temple, had been one of the Wonders of the World, and one of the fairest Cities of all the East, was nothing but a horrible Heap of Cinders and Ruines after its fatal Destruction; till such time as the Emperor Adrian, who was the last that ruined it, caused it to be rebuilt in a manner far different from what it was before. For in times-past, there was comprised within the Circuit of its Walls four Mountains, upon which it was successively Built: The first called Salem, o­therwise Acra, which was founded by Melchisedeck: The second opposite to that, towards the South, and which was far higher, was the Holy and Famous Mount Sion, which David after he had taken the Fortress of the Jebusites, joyn­ed to the former by a Wall which invironed it on all parts, to distinguish it from the other, which in comparison of this new City, was called the Lower City: The third was the Mountain of Moriah, between these towards the East, where the Temple of Solomon stood: And the fourth upon the North, was the Hill Betheza, where the same King built a new Town, which was af­terwards much inlarged by Hezekiah, and took in all the Valley between the East and the North, to the lower Town.

This Glorious City of God was afterwards destroyed by the Chaldeans; and with the Temple restored to its first Estate, in divers Ages by Zorobabel, Ne­hemiah, the Machabees, and by Herod the Great, and was at the last overthrown to the very Ground, and laid in Heaps of Rubbish by the Emperor Titus Ves­pasian, [Page 70]three only of the fairest Towers called the Hippico, year 1099 Phasele, and Ma­riamne, which Herod had Builded, escaping the general Desolation; for Titus was willing to preserve them, as also part of the North Wall of the higher Town, to which they were joyned, that they might remain as Monuments of the Greatness of his Victory, when Posterity should by the Strength of those make a Judgment how Impregnable that City was which he had taken, though defended by such mighty Walls and lofty Towers. But the Jews Revolting in the time of the Emperor Adrian, that Prince after he had made the most hor­rible Slaughter among the Rebels, caused those three Towers and the Wall also to be demolished and razed to the very Foundation; thus without design­ing it, intirely accomplishing the dreadful Prediction of the Son of God, That the day should come when there should not be one Stone left upon another in that miserable City. After this, that Emperor to immortalize his own Name in abolish­ing that of Jerusalem, caused a new City to be there Built, which according to his own Name was called Aelia, giving it also a quite differing Form from the Ancient City, whose Memory, as well as Name, he thought thereby for ever to extinguish. For he left out of it the whole Mountain of Sion, which had been the best and most Beautiful, as well as strongest part of Jerusalem, almost all that which had been called the New City, and a great part of the Lower Town. He made Mount Moriah be levelled, and inclosed that and the little Remainder of the New and Low Town, as also Mount Calvarie, which was no­thing but a little Corner of Mount Gihon, which was out of the Ancient City towards the West. So that this Aelia, as it was not by one half so large as Je­rusalem, so it had quite a differing Figure: For the Ancient Jerusalem in its Di­mensions approached to a Square, though not altogether Regular, being some­thing longer than it was broad, for it was Extended from North to South a good League, the Breadth from East to West being something less. On the contrary this new City, which was of a Figure altogether Irregular, yet ap­proaching to Square, extended it self in Length from East to West some twelve hundred Paces, and in Breadth from South to North about a third part so much. Moreover the Ancient City was wholly inaccessible on the South part, by rea­son of the broaken Rocks of the Mount Sion, which Invironed it, it was also the same upon the East, having the deep Valley of Jehoshaphat between the Mount of Olives and Mount Moriah. But this New City which had Mount Si­on close by the South Side of it, was easily Commanded from thence, and the Valleys having been in a manner filled up by the Romans, it was very accessible, particularly upon the North.

It continued a long time in this Estate under the Power of the Gentiles, till such time as the Great Constantine peopled it with Christians, having there builded the Magnisicent Church of the Resurrection, which Incloses the Holy Sepulchre, where the Pagans had with the most impious Profaneness erected the Temple of the Idol Venus. After this quitting the profane Name of Aelia, if recovered that venerable Name of Jerusalem, a Name Consecrated by the Sa­cred Records, and by so many Holy Mysteries, which for ever after to this present time it hath retained. It was taken from the Romans by the Persians under the Reign of King Cosroës, and by his Successor Restored to the Empe­ror Heraclius; and not long after, about the middle of the seventh Age, falling into the Hands of the Saracens, the Caliph Omar, one of the earliest Successors of Mahomet, built there a round Temple of eight Angles or Faces for a Mosch, in the same place where sometimes stood the Temple of Solomon; and tho it did not in the least Resemble that, except in the Greatness of the Porch, which was raised very high, and with fair Galleries, in the Middle whereof stands this Round, yet doth it to this Day retain that Name. About four hundred Years after this, the greatest part of Syria and Palestine falling under the Dominion of the Turks, they also took Jerusalem from the Sultan of Egypt, and thirty eight Years after it was retaken from them by him, making use of the Occasion which was offered him by the memorable Victory of the Christians over the Turks, in the Battle of Antioch.

This Saracen Prince, who notwithstanding his Ambassy, doubted not but the Christians, who looked upon Jerusalem as the end of their Enterprise, would [Page 71]certainly besiege it, year 1099 forgot nothing which was necessary to put it into a Con­dition to make a good Defence; for with great diligence he caused the Walls and Towers to be repaired, although they were very strong before, having also a double Wall; he provided the Place with all manner of Stores both of Ammunition and Provision, he caused all the Christians that were able to bear Arms to quit the City, and put into it a Garrison of fourty thousand of his Best Soldiers, besides that there were twenty Thousand Inhabitants who were Armed, and to whom for their Encouragement he promised a perpetual Exemption from all manner of Taxes and Tributes. He caused also the Cisterns and Wells for six miles round the City to be filled up, and made a most horrible Wast throughout the Country, that so the Christian Army at the same Time that they were to Combat with so strong an Enemy within the Walls, might have Famine a more terrible Enemy to Combat with in the Field, and a­bove all he hoped to destroy them for Want of Water in those dry and barren Countries where the Heat is great and Thirst most insupportable.

This was the Estate and Posture in which Jerusalem then stood immediately before it was besieged by the Christians, whose Army was not in Truth so Nume­rous as that which defended the Place: For of that immense Multitude of the Crusades who passed into Asia and were at the Siege of Nice, there came not a­bove sixty thousand of both Sexes, among which there were not more than twenty Thousand Foot and fifteen hundred Horse who were in a Condition to fight; the greatest part of the rest being dead, either with Diseases or in the several Encounters; some were returned, some wore put into Garrisons in the conquered places, and some followed the Princes Baldwin and Bohemond to defend their new Principalities of Edessa and Antioch. Nevertheless both Princes and Soldiers were determined either there to perish or to carry the Pince, and to accomplish their Vow either by a Devout Death, or Glorious Victory. After they had therefore repulsed the Enemies who sallied out, they began chearfully to form the Siege in this manner; Godfrey of Bullen, Earl Eustace his Brother, and Tan­cred took their Post upon the West near to the Fortress which they called the Tower of David; The Earl of Tholose was upon his Right directly opposite to the Gate of this Tower, and after a little while he enlarged his Quarters South­ward to the Extremity of Mount Sion, over against the Church of the Holy Virgin. The Remainder of the City on the South and towards the East was left free, in Regard the Hollow Vallius and the Craggy Rocks made the Ap­proaches Extreme Difficult. The North side was surrounded by the Duke of Normandy, the Earls of Flanders and St. Paul, who lay before the Gate, which was then called St. Stephens, but now Damascus Gate, to the Angular Tower near the Valley of Jehosaphat.

Moreover, that they might avoid a tedious Siege like that of Antioch, it was resolved to attack the Place by main Force, therein also following the Advice of a Solitary who lived with a great Opinion of his Sanctity in a Cave in the Mount of Olives; for he had promised the Christians that they should have the Victory that day, telling them he had it in Command from God to acquaint them with that Message, although it was told him on the other hand, that they were not at all provided with necessary Materials for an Attack. But as it appeared afterwards, in all kind of Affairs, but especially in those of War, it is a most dangerous Folly to quit the Rules of Art and Prudence, blindly to follow the uncertain Ways of pretended Revelations, which one ought rarely to trust, in Regard they are so often false; and when they are true one is not bound to believe them but upon Invincible Proofs; and without those one is ob­liged always rather to follow good Sense and Reason, which God hath given to Men next to his Divine Word, to be their Rule and Guide. However, upon the fifth day of the Siege early in the Morning a General Assault was given upon the Word of this Recluse, which was looked upon as an Oracle. Never was there seen greater Ardor in the Soldiers, whose Courage was redoubled by the certainty of their Belief in the Promise of this Holy Man that they should that very day take Jorusalem. Some part were drawn up in close Rank, and they advanced holdly after the manner of the Ancient Romans, covering them­selveslike Tortoises with their Bucklers, whilst others were extended in [Page 72]long siles and followed them at a just distance, year 1099 to have convenient Room to make use of their Bows, their Slings and Cross-Bows, to drive the Enemy from the Walls with great Stones, Darts and Arrows which they showered continually upon them; whilest in the mean time the first endeavoured, in Despite of pie­ces of Rock and Beams which they threw down from the Walls to crush them, to come at the Wall, and with Pick-Axes, Mattocks, Levers, and such sort of I­ron Instruments wanting Rams they tried to make a Breach or Passage through the Wall; and they acted with so much Force and Courage that they over­threw the Out-Wall, and made a Passage to the very Foot of the Inward-Wall; but that being too strong to receive any Damage by such pittiful Tools, there was no Hope but to force the Place by a Scalade; and so little Care had been ta­ken to make Provision, relying upon the Promise of the Hermit who told them, if they had no more than one Ladder of Osiers they should nevertheless take the City, that when they came to make Use of them, there was no more than one sound Ladder, that was long enough to reach the Walls; notwithstanding which these Braves transported with mad Courage, being prepossessed with the Belief that they should carry the Town, planted that Ladder, and mounted with so much Resolution, that pushing one another upwards, many of them got up to the Top and threw themselves over the Wall, where they desperately fought hand to hand against the Saracens, who were amazed at this more than Heroick Boldness; and there is no doubt but if they had had more Ladders, Je­rusalem had been that day taken; for the Enemies who did not in the least expect such an irregular and brisk Attempt, had not brought any of their Engines to the Walls. But seeing there could but by one Ladder mount a very few men, who must needs be exposed to a Multitude of Enemies without Hope of Suc­cour, a Retreat was sounded after having lost in that rash Attempt a great ma­ny brave men, who yet sold their Lives at so dear a Rate that twice their Num­ber of the Saracens paid theirs in lieu of them.

Duke Godfrey who was ashamed of the Fault he had committed by preferring the idle Visions of a simple Hermit before the just Rules of Military Art, re­monstrated to the Princes, that if they resolved to carry the Town by Force it was necessary to attack it with good Engines of War, since they were to sight with men who having once, would not a second time be surprised in their Defence against a Scalade. This Advice was approved by all, but the diffi­culty was, to know where they should be furnished with Materials to frame them, there being never a Forrest in all the Country. For as for the famous Enchanted Woods of Ismena Clormea, Renaud and Armida, and a hundred o­ther such like Inventions of Tasso, they are nothing but the agreeable Visions of a Poetical Fancy, which takes a great deal of Delight in pleasing others, with making new Creations, which never were except in his own or the Imaginations of his Readers, but which must as the Amusements of Fables and Chimera's, be rejected by Historians who are to entertain their Readers with nothing but so­lid Truth. But this is most certain, that while they were in this Trouble a Christian of the Country informed the Princes, that about three or four Leagues off in the Way that leads to Arabia, there was a Valley quite out of any Road, where in a great Cavern there was a good Quantity of large Beams of Cedar and Cypress, and that there was thereabout some Trees of which they might make very good Use, although they were of no considerable Height. The Duke of Normandy, and the Earl of Flanders went thither with some Troops being Conducted by this Guide, where they really found such Wood which they caused to be carried to the Camp. They also carried thither all the Planks, Joists and Beams of the Houses near the City, which they could sind; and for a whole Month they wrought all sorts of Engines which are made use of in Sieges, as also some of a new Invention, according as they were de­signed by Duke Godfrey and Gaston de Foix Prince of Bearne, who took care of the Management of these Works; but that which mightily advanced them was, that nine great Ships being arrived at Joppa with Provisions from Pisa and Ge­noa, for the Army, and despairing to defend themselves in that little Fleet against that of the Saracens which was coming to attack them, they broke up the Ships, and setting Fire to what they could not carry to the Camp, the Sea­men [Page 73]applied themselves most industriously to the building of these Engines.

year 1099 All this time the Army was ready to perish with the excessive Thirst which it indured; for the Brook Cedron which divides the Valley of Jehosaphat hath very little Water except in the Winter, and the Fountain of Siloe, which is at the Foot of Mount Sion toward the South afforded but a very little Water; so that there was scarce any to be had but what was to be found two Leagues off, and that with great Hazard of falling into the Hands of the Saracens, who lay continually in Ambuscades to surprize such whose Thirst constrained them to straggle abroad to seek for Water; and besides, what was to be had was so lit­tle, and there were so many People, besides the Beasts that were to drink, that it became presently pudled and stinking. In this Extremity there could be no other Resolution, but so soon as ever the Engines which were preparing were si­nished to give a General Assault, with a sirm Determination either to carry the Place or perish in the Attempt. And therefore before the Execution of so dangerous an Enterprize, and whilest the Preparations were making, it was thought fit that publick Prayers should be made by the whole Army, to implore the Mercy of Almighty God and to crave his Blessing and Assistance. For this Purpose af­ter a Fast of three days upon Fryday the eighth of July there was a solemn Procession, where the Bishops and Clergy barefooted, followed by the Princes and Soldiers in their Arms surrounded the City, setting out at the Church of Si­on, and passing by the Oratory of St. Stephen through the Valley of Jehosaphat, and so by the Mountain of Olives, to the Place from whence Christ Jesus a­scended into Heaven. Here it was that Peter the Hermit, and Arnold the Chap­lain to the Duke of Normandy, made such Powerful Exhortations to reunite the Hearts of the Army, that all the Chiefs, and the Soldiers, and particular­ly Tancred and Count Raymond, who had had the greatest Differences, embraced each other in Token of a mutual Reconciliation, and Exhorted one another to revenge those Injuries and Outrages, which were offered to Jesus Christ by the Sa­racens, who at the same time made a Mock-Procession about the Walls within the City as the Christians did without, vomiting out a thousand Blasphemies against Christ, and offering a thousand Insolencies and Indignities to a Cross which they opposed to that which was carried in this Devout Procession before the Christians.

The next Morning Godfrey who had resolved to make his Attack upon that Quarter which is between the East and the North, because it was the weakest and the most convenient for his Engines to play, removed his Camp thither in the Night, and employed the three following Days as did the other Princes to dispose of their Engines. They had besides Rams, Slings to throw great Stones, and other such Sort of Engines which were at that time in Use to batter Walls near at hand, three great Castles of Wood of a new Structure. Every one of them had three Stories, whereof the lowest was for the Ingeniers and Workmen, who by great Force rolled the Machin upon its Wheels; the two o­thers had their Platforms which jetted out from the Work, so that the Comba­tants who were placed in them might from thence fight as upon sirm Ground, either with their Enemies at a Distance, or near at Hand according as they were able to advance the Machin; the middle Story was as high as the Top of the Second Wall, which was something higher than the Out-Wall of the City. And the third Story which was raised with a narrow Top, was so framed that from thence one might see the Enemies so as to have a sair Mark at them with Darts, Stones or Arrows even to the very Heart of the City. These Wooden rolling Castles had four sides which were covered with Hur­dles to prevent the Damage which they might receive by the great Stones thrown from the Walls, and the Hurdles were also covered with Raw Hides of Oxen, Camels and Horses, to resist the Violence of Fire. But that which was the Chief Design of these Machines was, that upon the side of the third Sto­ry towards the Town, and which was just above the Platform of the middle Sto­ry Level with the Height of the Walls, besides the two other Covertures there was a third which was framed with Joists and Planks, and so fastned to the Engine above at the third Platform, that being suddainly let down by two Pullies, it was to fall upon the Wall like a Draw-Bridge, thereby to enter into the Town.

It was resolved that there should be three Attacks, and one of these Rolling [Page 74]Castles at every one of them; year 1099 Duke Godfrey and Earl Eustace had the first, a little below St. Stephens Gate drawing towards the East; Duke Robert, Prince Tancred, and the Earl of Flanders with the second, made the second a lit­tle lower at the left Hand near the Angular Tower which was afterwards called Tancred's Tower. Earl Raymond made his at the opposite Angle at the South-West, with the third which could not advance till he had caused certain deep Trenches to be filled up which lay between him and the Wall. Upon Wednes­day the thirteenth of July the Attack was begun, which was continued all the next day with incredible Fury; all the great Engines which were placed by the Castles played incessantly upon the Enemies, with Huge Stones, whilest at the same time the Slings, the Archers and Cross-Bows discharged continually upon them, the Castles advancing still forward all the Time. The Captains stood all this while in the highest Story of the Rolling Castles, accompanied with the most con­siderable and bravest men of the Army, to animate their Soldiers by their Ex­ample, and by the Danger which they ran, being above all others exposed as the Mark of the Enemies Arrows. Duke Godfrey with his Brother stood up­on the highest Platform of his Castle, from whence whilest it approached by little and little to the Wall, he continually discharged his lusty Arrows in­to the Town, and against those who defended the Walls, scarce one of them falling in Vain; for as he was without Contradiction one of the strongest men of his Time, so he was the most dextrous and the best Marksman of his Age; which hath given Rise to the Story, which will have it, That seeing three Birds flying to the Top of one of the Towers of Jerusalem, he shot them all three upon one single Arrow. And for this Reason it is, that it is the received Opinion that those vast Arrows which are kept in the Armory of the House of Lorrain, one of the most Illustrious of the World, were his, since it cannot be doubted but he was descended from that Noble Stem. Godfrey had placed in the second Stage of his Castle the two Brothers Lethold and Engelbert most Vallant Gentlemen of Tournay, and Guicher the stoutest man in the whole Army, who incountring with a Lyon had cut him in two at one single Blow of his Sword; these seconded the Efforts of their Noble Master, and being accompanied with a many other Gallant Men, they did wonderful Execution with the Sling and Arrows, and in playing their Stone Bows, which without ceasing poured continual Showers from their Platform upon the Town. The other Princes also acted with the like Vigor, some levelling the Ground, that so the Castles might more easily advance, whilest others presented the Scalade in many several places together, thereby to make the greater Diversion to the Defendants, whilest at the same time the Walls were battered continually with mighty Rams. There was one of a Prodigious Magnitude, with which after they had overthrown the Out-Wall to make Way for Duke Godfrey's Castle, they also played so vigorously against the Inward Wall that therewith they made a very great Breach.

Those within the Town in the mean time sorgot nothing which might con­tribute to the rendring the Attempts of the Beliegers fruitless, whom they ex­ceeded both in Number of Men and Engines. All their Walls were covered with them, and they opposed four of an extraordinary Size against the three Rolling Castles, from which they discharged Stones of a Prodigious Bigness, which hitting the Engines fell upon the Platforms with a Terrible Noise, crushing, overthrowing and tearing all in pieces, breaking the Braces and Posts, and crushing all those who did not quickly get Shelter from that furious Tem­pest. The very Air was obscured with that mighty Hail, and the Stones which were discharged from one side and the other encountring one another, seemed to Combat as well as the Men, and with a Terrible Noise fell down together a­mong the Assailants, against whom the Besieged shoured down without ceasing their Arrows, Darts and Stones, to hinder their Approaches; they also threw abundance of Pots of Fire, and shot Fire Darts against the Machines to burn them, and at the same time made a furious Sally at the Breach which was made by the great Ram, to which they set Fire, which was not without great Diffi­culty extinguished. In short, never was there seen so long an Assault, nor a Combat maintained with that Equal Obstinacy on both Parts, for it was only the Night and the extream Weariness that obliged [Page 75]them on both sides to give over as it were to take a little Breath.

year 1099 The Night it self however did not pass in over much Tranquility on either part; The Besieged were in continual Fear to be surprized under the favour of the Darkness; and the Besiegers, lest they should sally out to set Fire to the Machines which were already much indamaged, and especially that of the Earl of Tholose, which was rendred in a manner wholly unserviceable. But however they wrought so hard upon it in the Night, that the next morning the Combat was renewed on one side and the other with more Fury than before. The Christians irritated by so long a Resistance made their utmost Efforts, resolute either to lose all or to gain all; and the Sarasins animated by the Success of the two preceding days, and by the hope of present Succour, which the Sultan of Ba­bylon had promised them, fought with new Courage, and with so much Assu­rance of Victory, that they could not forbear insulting over their Enemies, and assailing their Assailants. Above all they aimed at Duke Godfrey, against whose Machin, whilest it advanced over the great Breach in the Out-Wall, they threw a vast Quantity of Fire-Works and huge Stones, one of which crushed with its fall one of his Esquires just by his side. There were also two famous Magicians whom they brought to the Walls, who promised to stop the Dukes Castle by their Enchantments; but while the poor Wretches were busie muttering their foolish Charms, a great Stone thrown from one of the Dukes Slings spoiled their Conjurations, & crushing them both together sent them down to those Infernal Spirits which they were in Vain calling up to their Assistance.

The Assault had now lasted till one of the Clock in the Afternoon without any manner of Appearance of Advantage than it was the day before, when the Soldiers discouraged to see themselves so often repulsed, began a little to relax of their former Ardor, and indeed to recoil in Despair of ever being able to force so many brave Men who defended themselves with so much Vigor and Ad­vantage, which the Sarasins perceiving sent forth great Cries of Joy, inter­mingled with Horrible Blasphemies and Insulting Language against the Christi­ans, reproaching them with the Cowardize and Impotence of their Crucisied God; when Duke Godfrey, whether he really was assured that he saw it, or whether his Imagination heated by the Ardor of the Combat and filled with the Images of War represented it to him, cried out amain, That Heaven was come to their Succour, and that he saw upon his left hand upon the Top of Mount Oliver a Ce­lestial Cavalier, who shaking a shining Buckler towards the City gave the Sig­nal to enter it: And that which is most surprizing is that the Earl of Tholose who fought at a great distance from him against another part of the City, declared the same thing at the same time to his Soldiers; so that one must either conclude that these two Princes had before agreed this matter between them, to re-in­courage their Men when they saw them a little abate of their Courage and Vi­gor; or else that by chance some Cavalier of the Army at that time getting upon that Hill, was by the Princes who saw him at the same time taken for a Warriour-Saint who was descended from Heaven to their Succour. Let it be as it will, it is certain that this Vision, or at least the Belief that it was very true, had the most admirable Effect that ever was seen; for no sooner was the Report blown about, but the Soldiers perswading themselves that it was St. George, who as the whole Army believed he had done at the Battle of Antioch, was come again to sight for them, instantly reassumed such a new Courage that they became quite other men; for they returned to the Combat like so many furious Lions, and e­ven all, without distinction of Age, Sex or Condition, rushed in to the Assault, the Sick and Maimed not Excepted, ran before the Rolling Machins; so that having in less than an Hour levelled the Way which hindred their advancing, they pushed them Home to the innermost Wall, where for some time they fought at push of Pike and Javelin.

But Godfrey who was resolute to throw himself into the Town, bethought himself of an Invention which facilitated his Passage and cleared the Walls in a Moment; for the Enemies to break the Force of the Blows of the Stones and Rams which battered the Walls, had put abundance of Sacks filled with Chaff, Hay and Wool, Rugs, and Alatresses, pieces of Cables and Ropes, and a hun­dred other things of that Nature which they thought would by yielding and gi­ing [Page 76]way, year 1099 defend the Walls from those Blows of the battering Engines; the Duke perceiving that the Wind blew at North, and was upon his Back, made a great quantity of fire Darts be shot against that soft and combustible Matter, which catching hold of them, very easily set them in a moment all into a Blaze; the Flame which rose very high, with a mighty thick Smoak, being driven by the Violence of the Wind, upon the Faces of those who defended the Walls, and the two adjoyning Towers, on the Right and Left, they were forced at last to Retire and leave the Place Empty. The Duke thereupon immediately letting down his Draw-Bridge, which was of an exact Height to rest upon the Wall, descended instantly to the second Stage, where putting himself at the Head of all those brave Men which accompanied him, he threw himself, with his Sword in his Hand, into the Town, having at his Side Eustace his Brother, Baldwin Earl of Bourg his Cousin, and the two Valiant Brothers of Tournay, Le­thold and Engelbert, who were followed by the brave Guicher, and that choice Troop of Lords and Gentlemen, who never Abandoned the Duke. In a little while after, the Duke of Normandy, the Earl of Flanders, and Tancred, having used the same Artifice to drive the Enemies from the Walls, threw their Bridge over the Wall also, and entred at the Angular Tower, being sollowed by Gaston de Foix, the Earls Hugh de St. Paul, Gerrad de Rousillon, Raimband de Orange, Louïs de Mouson, Conon de Montaign, Lambert his Son, and all the rest, who desired to have a share in the Glory of these great Men.

In the same Instant, the Soldiers seeing that the Princes threw themselves into the Town, followed by the principal Persons of the Army, they were so Animated, that they ran to the Assault of their own Accord, every one in the way that his Courage Inspired him with, these presented the Ladders, and pushed one another forward to gain the Battlements which the Enemies had Abandoned, those mounted the second Stage of the Castles, to pass over the Bridges, and the greatest part desperately threw themselves in at the Breach which had been made the day before; so that all the North Side of the Town was immediately filled with the Crusades, who ran to break open the Damas­cus Gate, by which the rest of the Troops instantly Entred. So that the Victo­ry being now Assured, they used the Right they had to it, with the utmost Rigor, against those Enemies which they thought they were bound utterly to Exterminate, to Revenge the Outrages which they had Committed against Christ Jesus, and the Barbarous Cruelties which they had so often Exercised a­gainst the Christians: All being promiscuously put to the Sword, except such as acknowledged themselves to be of that Religion; all that were found in the Streets or Market-places were cut in pieces, and nothing was to be seen but the flying off of Heads, Leggs and Arms cut off, and the Carcases of Dis­membred Bodies; the Streets ran with little Rivulets of Blood, and it was impossible to step without treading upon Bodies of Men dead or dying; and few there were that escaped this first Fury, for the poor Christians who remain­ed at Jerusalem, mingling with the Soldiers, shewed them the Houses of the Sarasins, who killed the very Children in the Arms of their Mothers, if it were possible to extinguish that accursed Race, as God had sometimes Commanded the wicked Amalekites to be Destroyed utterly. The greatest part however of them, saved themselves in the Palace and in the Temple, believing they should there find a Sanctuary, till this first Fury of the Vanquishers began to Relent: But the Vengeance of God which pursued them, made them Assemble thither, to deliver them all together, more easily into the Hands of those whom he had chosen to Execute the Sentence of his Justice against them; For Tancred and Gaston de Foix, followed with great Numbers, Forcing those Pla­ces, made such a horrible Slaughter of those Miserables, that those who Assist­ed at that lamentable Spectacle, assure us, that the Temple and the Porch, were so filled with Blood, that it flowed in great Streams, and that they were forced to wade out of it quite over their Shoes.

All this while Earl Raymond combated still upon his Quarter, with those who defended that part of the Town which lies between the South and West, hard by the Tower of David, where the Emir or Governor fought in Person. The Earl receiving Intelligence by three Gentlemen who were sent from Duke [Page 77] Godfrey, that the Town was taken; Ha! what? cried he to his People, year 1099 The French are already in Jerusalem, and we are yet disputing our Entry with these Sa­rasins. These Words so Animated the Gascons and the Provencals, that some planting the Ladders, and others throwing the Bridge of their Castle over the Wall, they threw themselves in Flocks into the Town, where the Enemies, who at the same time understood by the horrible and consused Cries behind them, that the Christians had carried the Town, immediately sled and retired into the Fortress; the Governor then seeing the Town was taken upon all Sides, offered the Earl instantly to surrender the Place, provided he would save his Life, and give him Liberty to Retire to Ascalon: This, the Earl, who was glad to have so strong a Fort in his Power, easily accorded to; so the Emir opening the Gates, all the Earls Army entred the Town, and began on their side to do the same Execution which the Troops of the other Princes had done; all went down without Quarter, in the Streets, in the Houses, and in the Porch of the Temple, where they sinished the Slaughter of those who had escaped the Massacre which their Companions had made. The Number of the Slain in this only Quarter, amounted to ten thousand, those which were Slain upon the Walls, in the Streets, and Houses, could not be Computed; it suffices to say, that all were Slain, except a very few Slaves who were spared to cleanse the City, which was doing for three days after, the dead Carcasses being piled up in prodigious Heaps in the neighbouring Valleys, and so Burnt. There were about three hundred Sarasins, who had saved themselves from the Slaughter, in the Temple upon the Roof, who having obtained their Lives of Tancred, and his Banner, which they erected in token that he had taken them into his Pro­tection; but the next Morning they were all slain by some of the other Troops, whereat when Tancred was mightily displeased, looking upon it as a base Acti­on, the other Princes appeased him, by remonstrating to him, that it might be of dangerous Consequence to spare those People, who might do them a great many Mischiefs in the War which they must expect to make with the Sultan of Babylon. In short, never was there seen a more Complete and Terrible Ven­geance than this which was taken upon these Infidels, upon this Occasion; all their Houses were Plundred, and the whole Army found wherewith to Inrich themselves beyond Imagination; and such Quantity of Provisions, besides what was laid up in the Magazins, as might have served them, if the Siege had lasted, without being raised, as long as did that of Antioch.

But the richest Booty was that which Tancred got in the Temple of Salomon, from whence he took an inestimable Treasure in Silver, Gold, and precious Stones, all which he most generously gave to Duke Godfrey, as to the Person, to whose only Courage and Conduct it was due; and God by this way was pleased to make him a Recompence for his Piety, which was no less Heroick than his Courage in this Rencounter. For whilest all the rest fell upon the quarry of the Spoil, he, so soon as he had taken Care for the Safety of the Town, went Bare-soot, and without his Arms, by the West Gate, Accompa­nied with only three of his own Domesticks, and so Re-entring by the East Gate, he repaired to the Holy Sepulchre, there to pay to Christ Jesus his most Humble and Ardent Thanks for the Mercy shewn him, in giving him the Hap­piness, after so many Dangers, to Accomplish his Wishes and his Vow, in the Deliverance of the Holy City. There is certainly, nothing that acts so pow­erfully upon the Minds of People, as the Example of their Prince, be it Evil, or be it Good; this Devout Action of Duke Godfrey, did so sensibly touch the whole Army, that passing all of the sudden, from one Extremity to another, the Princes, the Captains, the Soldiers, the People, and generally all the Crusades, together with the Christians of Jerusalem, went in Procession to prostrate them­selves at the Holy Sepulchre; and that which was most Admirable, they there paid their Vows with so many Tears and Sighs, and so many Marks of a De­votion infinitely Tender, that one could difficultly have believed that these were People who had come to take a City by Assault, and to make such a dreadful Slaughter among their Enemies, seeing them now so busie at their Devo­tions, and in such deep Meditation of the Mysteries of Religion, which seemed to have made so absolute a Change and Alteration in their Hearts, by the Power [Page 78]of that Grace of God, year 1099 which in an instant turns the greatest Sinners into the greatest Saints. Thus was Jerusalem recovered from the Infidels by the Army of the Crusades, in the fourth Year of their Expedition, the fifteenth day of July, upon a Friday, and which is most Remarkable, at the very precise Hour where­in the Saviour of the World rendred his Blessed Soul into the Hands of Almigh­ty God his Father; as if the Divine Providence had determined so to manage the Movements of this great Affair, that the Christians should recover his In­heritance, exposing their Lives for his Glory, at the same time wherein he had assured them of Immortality and Glory in Heaven, by dying upon the Cross to purchase it for them.

Eight days after this happy Conquest, during which time News was brought of the Death of the Patriarch Simeon, who was Deceased in the Isle of Cyprus, the Princes and Lords who followed them, Assembled to Reestablish the anci­ent Kingdom of Jerusalem, by giving it a King, as David and Solomon, and the other Princes their Successors had been, till the Babylonish Captivity. Count Raymond of Tholose was then proposed, but whether he thought himself in the Age to which he was advanced, too weak to sustain so weighty a Charge, or feared that this Civility which was offered him would not succeed, in regard his own People, who had already twice forsaken him, acted secretly against his Pretensions, he excused himself by reason of his Age, and would by no means suffer it to proceed to an Election. The same Honor was also offered to Robert Duke of Normandy; but this Prince having a great Desire to return as soon as he could, had no other design but to get his Chaplain to be chosen Patriarch; and it is with great probability of Appearance, that it was he who made the Speech which one of the Writers of that time hath transmitted to us, which proposed that double Election after this manner.

year 1099 The Prince could not sinish the rest, for so soon as he had pronounced the Name of Godfrey, all the whole Assembly Interrupted him, crying out with the same Mind and Voice, Godfrey, Godfrey, long Live Godfrey the most puissant and pious King of Jerusalem. And notwithstanding all the Resistance which the Modesty of that excellent Prince brought to oppose it, he was obliged instant­ly to consent to the Election, which by so suddain and universal Consent, mani­fested it self to have the Divine Will and Approbation.

The very same day he was Conducted to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and there Proclaimed King, amidst the Acclamations of the whole Army, and all the Christians of the Country, who came flocking in to Inhabit the City of Jerusalem. He was there presented with a Crown of Gold, which he absolute­ly refused, protesting that he would never wear a Crown of Gold in a City where the King of Kings, had for the Sake of Mankind worn a Crown of Thorns. And tho he would not take upon himself the Title of King, yet it was constantly given him, as all the Historians of that time, and Posterity have e­ver since done, to this very Day; and certainly never any King better deserved to wear that glorious Title, which he adorned with so many Royal Actions; the first was of Piety, for he Founded two Chapters of Canons in the Churches of the Temple, and the Holy Sepulchre, as also a Monastery in the Valley of Jehosaphat. The second was of his Power and Authority, in Obliging Count Raymond to put into his Hands, the strong Fortress of the Tower of David, which he pretended to keep in his Possession, at least, till his Return into France though he was generally Condemned by the whole Army for it, and even by his own Gascons and Provencalls. The third was an Action of incomparable Va­lour and Conduct, manifested in that memorable Victory which he obtained o­ver the Sultan of Egypt; for the Sultan coming too late to Succour his People, Advanced with a formidable Army to Besiege Jerusalem, but King Godfrey eased him of that Trouble; For so soon as he received that News, he sent to recal Tancred, and Earl Eustace, who were Marched to take the Fortress of Napolis, otherwise called Sichem and Sichar, formerly the place where Samaria had stood: And as these two Princes, who were Advanced as far as Rama, where they took some of the Enemies Scouts, had Advertised him, that the Sultan was Incamped at Ascalon, a City upon the Sea-Coast, two good days Journeys from Jerusa­lem, towards Egypt, he resolved to go to meet him, and notwithstanding the prodigious Inequality of their Forces, to give him Battle.

For this Purpose, having first Implored the Help of Heaven by publick Prayers, at which he assisted with marvellous Devotion, he parted from Jeru­salem upon Tuesday the eleventh day of August, with the Earl of Flanders, and that Arnold de Rohes, who, by an Intrigue, which is no part of my History to relate, was now chosen Patriarch of Jerusalem, with the Consent of the Pope. This new Patriarch, who, for very many Reasons was not so very agreeable to the generality of the People, thought to acquire Reputation, by shewing his extraordinary Zeal upon this Occasion: He therefore left Peter the Hermite to take Care that Prayers might be made to God Almighty for the happy Success of the Arms of the King, whom he would follow, carrying with him, to Encourage the Soldiers, a part of the Wood of the true Cross, which an honest Christian had hid during the Siege, lest the Sarasins should profane it. The same day the King joyned Tancred and Count Eustace, waiting the coming up of the Duke of Normandy and Earl Raymond, who met him at Ibelin, which was Anciently the City of Gath, one of the five Cities of the Lords of the Phi­listins, some few Miles from Lidda and Ramula. The next day they advanced together to the Brook Soreck, which was not above two or three Leagues from the Enemies Camp. There they found a prodigious Number of Horses, Ox­en, Camels, Asses, Sheep, and Goats, which were guarded by some Arabians, who were easily Routed, some of them being taken Prisoners, by whom they gained Intelligence of the Posture of the Enemies; so that they easily Seized up­on these Flocks and Herds of Cattle, but there being reason to fear that this was but a Snare, which the Sultan had laid for the Christian Army, to fall upon them whilest they were busie in dividing the Prey, the King expresly Prohi­bited all Persons to meddle with the Booty, and not to think of taking any [Page 80]thing from the Enemy, till they had gained the Battle which they were going to give them.

year 1099 In short, the next Morning, being Friday, and the Eve of the Assumption of our Lady, the Army at break of day passed without any Trouble the Torrent, which at that dry Season of the Summer had but very little Water in it; and the Sultan, who could never perswade himself that the Christians would dare to be so hardy as to Advance to him, had given no Order to hinder their Passage, or to Dispute it with them. Never was there seen a greater Ardor than ap­peared in the Countenances of the Soldiers upon this Occasion; so much Joy, and so much Assurance of Victory appeared amongst them, tho they were but a handful of Men in comparison of the infinite Multitude of their Enemies; for those who speak with the least, assure us that there were a hundred thou­sand Horse, and above three hundred thousand Foot in their Army; for the Sultan, who had set his Resolution, either to Preserve or Recover Jerusalem, had Amassed all the Soldiers, that possibly he could, out of Egypt, Lybia, Affrica, Ethiopia, Arabia, and the Towns which were yet Possessed by the Turks, who joyned with him against the Christians, as their common Enemies: And the Historians who speak the most of the Christians, will not allow them to be a­bove twenty thousand, among which, about five thousand Horse, they being not in a Condition to Re-mount the Cavalry since the Taking of Jerusalem. But that which gave this Confidence to the Christians, besides the Contempt which they had of these Numbers of Sarasins, which they made no account of, was the Zeal which they had for the Glory of Christ Jesus, and the eager De­sire which boyled in their Hearts, to Revenge the horrible Blasphemy of the Sultan: For they had learned from the Prisoners, that this impious Miscreant had haughtily threatned to Extirpate all the Christians and their Religion out of the East, that he would rase the very Foundations of the Holy Sepulchre, and utterly Ruine all the Monuments of Christian Religion, and thereby spoil the Longing of those of the West, to make any more such Voyages to Jerusalem.

They passed then over the Torrent, with Trumpets Sounding, and great Shouts of Joy, as if it had been in Triumph, and that they intended with their small Army to Affront the mighty Number of their Despised Enemies: But it happened by a very surprizing Accident, that the Mistake of their Enemies sup­plied the Defect of their Number, by making them appear to be far more than in Reality they were, which mistake produced all the Effect that could have been hoped or wished, had they been really so many as they appeared to be; for that mighty number of Cattle which had been taken the day before, and which the King had forbidden the Soldiers to meddle with, followed the Ar­my as they passed the Rivulet, and without being in the least Conducted by any, Ranged themselves in the order of Troops upon their March, as if it had been the Rere-guard of an Army, extending themselves to the left Hand, to the ve­ry Foot of the Mountains which border upon the East, covering all that large Campain, which from the Brook extends it self even to Ascalon, which lies on the right Hand upon the Sea Coast; and as these Animals filled all the Plain, even to the Mountains, and that the Horses Excited by the Noise of the Trumpets, fell to Neighing, according to their couragious Nature, in such a manner that they might be heard afar off, so these great Herds of other Cat­tle in Marching, raised such mighty Clouds of Dust between them and the Sarasins, that not being able to distinguish clearly, they took them for part of the Christian Army, and particularly, for Squadrons of Cavalry, and conse­quently their Fear also multiplying them in their amazed Imaginations, they conjectured that their Number was not at all inferior to theirs; whereupon they were Seised with a general Consternation, and not being able to disabuse their troubled imaginations, they stood as if they had been stupid, thinking they were to deal with a million of Christians, who since the taking of Jeru­salem, were Arrived from the West.

In the mean time the Armies being thus near, there was a necessity of Fight­ing; that of the Christians was divided into three Bodies, Count Raymond Commanded the Right Point, which was extended to the Sea, that so they might not be Surrounded on that side; The King took the Left, that so he [Page 81]might be opposite to the Right of the Enemy where their Principal Squadrons were ranged: The Duke of Normandy, the Earl of Flanders, Tancred, year 1099 and Gaston de Foix were in the middle with the main Body of the Battle: These three Bodies were ranged upon two Lines, in the first of which were drawn up the Infantry with very large Intervals between the Batalions, and in the second the Cavalry, following here in the new Order which the King had given and which was most exactly well performed, thereby to put the Enemies in Disorder; The Enemies were also drawn up in two long Lines, wherein the Batalions and Squadrons, had a great depth and looked like two great Armies seperated one from the other a great distance, that they might not confound and indamage one another by reason of their Multitude. The Lieutenant General, who was an Armenian Renegade, and the same that had taken Jerusalem from the Turks the Year before, commanded the Right Wing, where were the Turkish Auxiliary Troops and the greatest Part of the Cavalry, which enlarged themselves towards the Mountain to charge the Christians in the Flank. The Affricans and the Arabians were in the Left, and the Sultan himself with the Aegyptians, invi­roned with all his Braves of Babylon and Grand Cairo, was in the main Battle; the Ethiopians had the Van in Regard of their manner of Fight, which was to expect the Enemy with one Knee upon the Ground, and after having in this Posture discharged their Arrows, they made use of certain Iron Flails with which they discharged weighty Blows upon the Casks and Bucklers of their E­nemies to break them in pieces; The Sultan had caused it to be proclaimed a­mong the Ranks as they stood in Batalia, that there were no more Christians than that pittiful Company which faced them, and that the great Number with which their Imagination was so disturbed was nothing but a pure Illusion; that he would not have them permit one single man of these Robbers to escape, whom the Despair of being able to escape his hands, and no other reason had brought to the Battle. But the fear which had already seized upon the Judement of these Barbarians, would not suffer them to understand any thing that was said, nor give them leave to disbelieve their misinformed Senses, which told them they saw what indeed was not, an infinite Number of Enemies whom they were to encounter.

The Crusades all this time advanced still deliberately, encouraged by the King, who spoke much better to them by the Language of that Joy which they saw in his Countenance, the Fire that mounted into his Eyes, and the Assurance of his Mine, Fierce and yet seeming to despise and contemn his Ene­mies, and by the Terrible Glittering of his Sword, than by any words he could have spoken, which would difficultly have been understood among the Noise of the Trumpets and the chearful shouts which the Soldiers gave when they saw him in that Condition. So soon as they were come within distance, the In­fantry according to the Order which had been given, all together discharged their Arrows, and at the same time the Horse ran at full Speed in the Inter­vals between the Batalions, with their Lances couched against the Sarasins, and performed the Charge so swiftly that they did not give them Liberty to draw their Bows; above all, the Brave Duke of Normandy, who was ac­customed in every Battle to distinguish himself by some great and Illustrious Action, having observed the great Standard by its shining Embroidery of Sil­ver, and the Golden Apple which glistered under the point of it, he ran upon him who carried it, and tumbled him dead at the Feet of the Sultans; all the rest in their places charged so Home, and the Foot also without further troubling their Darts or Arrows, with their Swords flew in like Lightning at the Brea­ch which the Horse had made in the Batalions, so that the Sarasins already sha­ken with the Fear which their false Imagination had imprinted in their Hearts, made a very miserable Resistance, and so absolutely lost their Courage and their Sense, that throwing away their Arms, some of them stood immove­able as if they had been stupid, and suffered themselves to be Slain without ma­king any manner of Defence, whilest others of them scrambled up the Trees which were there, the Soldiers fetching them down with a certain Cruel Pleasure with their Arrows as if they had been little Birds; some of them threw themselves down upon the Earth, either thinking to escape Death by counterfeiting it a­mong [Page 82]the Heaps of those that were dead, year 1099 or as if they submitted to receive it according to the Pleasure of the Victors, some of them crept upon their Bellies, others continued in the kneeling Posture without stirring, as did the Ethiopians upon whom Godfrey and his Troops fell, cutting off Heads and Arms with migh­ty Blows of the Cimiter, in that very Posture wherein he found them with one knee on the Ground, they never offering to make one Discharge against him. Those on the Left Wing, where the Gascons and Provencals under Earl Raymond fought, made also a most bloody Execution, and charged the Enemy so impetu­ously, that to avoid their Death they hastened it, throwing themselves and crouding one another Headlong into the Sea, where they were swallowed up in a Moment, sparing the Victorious Christians the Trouble of killing them with the Mortal Steel. In a word, all the rest betook themselves to flight, and in flying broke and entangled those of the Second Line who had not yet struck a Blow; but yet that did not prevent their having a share in the Misfortune of the first, for the Conquerors eagerly pursued the Fugitives, killing them con­tinually to the very Gates of Ascalon.

There the Croud was so great, every one striving to be foremost to save himself, and they precipitated one another over the Draw-Bridge in such Num­bers, that two thousand of them were drowned and smothered in the Moat. The Sultan himself unable to stop the flight of his Men, had like there to have perished; and not thinking himself safe in the Town he quitted it, and with the hast of a flying Coward threw himself aboard the Ships which he had in the Port loaden with all sorts of Engines for the Siege of Jerusalem. It is true that some of the Crusades made too much hast to fall to the Plunder, insomuch that they were in Danger of being surprized by the Lieutenant General who had rallied some Troops to make his Advantage of such an Opportunity; but the King whose Vigilant Eye was every where, perceiving it run immediately to their Succour, and not only disingaged his own men, but cut in pieces those mi­serable Remnants of his Enemies, and thereby rendred the Victory absolute and compleat, although it was not yet much above twelve of the Clock. After which he gave the Pillage to the Victorious Army, which got there the Richest Booty that they had hitherto met withal during the whole War: for the Great Lords of Babylon, and all the considerable Persons of Egypt and the Neighbouring Regions, were come in their most magnificent Equipage to attend the Sultan, who had also brought with him an inestimable Treasure, and vast Quantities of all manner of Provisions for the Entertainment of so great an Army: and be­sides, they who were to share in this prodigious Booty were but an inconside­rable Number in Comparison of those who had been Parties in the other Bat­tles. In this Battle there were slain thirty thousand upon the place, and twice as many in the Pursuit in, the whole above one hundred thousand Men, without counting those who were stifled at the Gate of Ascalon, or those others who threw themselves into the Sea, which though they were a great Number yet it was impossible to compute them. On the part of the Christians there was not any one man of Note, nor so much as one Horseman slain, and but a very inconside­rable Number of the Infantry, and of those, most were of that unruly sort of Soldiers who disbanded themselves from their Colours to run to the Plunder. Thus the King having assured his new Kingdom by this great and Memorable Victory, led the Army back again loaden with Spoils and Glory to Jerusalem, where it entred in a kind of Triumph which was finished by the solemn retur­ning of Thanks to Jesus Christ at his Holy Sepulchre; There Robert Duke of Normandy hung up the great Standard of the Sultan, as his Sword also, which in his Flight he had let fall, and which to add to his Offering, he bought of a Soldier who had found it.

See here the true Account of the Battle of Ascalon, which was rather a flight on the one side, and a Slaughter on the other, than a Combat; which Tasso never­theless hath rendred famous by a hundred Beautiful and Magnificent Falsities, which his Art gives him the License to add throughout his Poem, of which he makes this the Conclusion, as indeed it was also of this first Crusade.

For the Princes and great Lords with those who had followed them, belie­ving that they had fully accomplished their Vow, took their Leave of the King [Page 83]to return into their respective Countries and Habitations; year 1099 but in Regard it is the History of the Crusades, and not only that of the Realm of Jerusalem which I undertake to write, I shall not treat of that but so concisely as may be, and as it hath a necessary Connexion to that of the Crusades, in making it known by the Consequent Events, the Occasions and the Causes which gave Birth and Rise to the others, and as it shews the Condition in which the Christian Princes found the East when they were published, and when they undertook their Voyages to assist them.

year 1100 After that the Crusades to the Number of about twenty thousand had quit­ted the Holy Land, Godfrey, who had not remaining with him more than three hun­dred Horse and about two thousand Foot, together with Tancred who never abandoned him, received a reinforcement from Italy, which was brought him by Dambert Arch-Bishop of Pisa, Legat to Pope Paschal the second, who suc­ceeded Pope Ʋrban. It was with these few Troops that the King to inlarge the Frontiers of his new Kingdom conquered the places which were yet untaken round about Jerusalem; After which he made himself Master of Tiberias, and o­ther Towns upon the Lake of Genazareth, and the greatest part of Galilee the Government whereof he bestowed upon Tancred. He compelled also the Emirs of Ptolemais, Cesarea, Antipatris, and Ascalon to become his Tributaries; and the Arabian Princes beyond Jordan, in most humble manner to beg Peace of him. After which he caused the Port and the City of Joppa, which afterwards was called Jaffa, to be fortified, where he received the Succours of the Venetians, who being joyned with Tancred, some time after took Caiphas at the Foot of Mount Carmel. And now after so many Toils being fallen sick he caused him­self to be removed to Jerusalem, whereupon the eight day of July in the fortieth Year of his Age, and the first of his Reign he rendred his glorious Soul into the Hands of his Almighty Redeemer by a most Religious Death. He was a Prince in whom all the Vertues, Christian, Civil, and Military were assembled in the highest Point of Humane Perfection without the Mixture of any Default, so that it will for ever remain difficult to find another like him, or of whom one may without the Magnifying Vice of Flattery say the same things, even among the Catalogue of the greatest Saints.

Baldwin his Brother succeeded him; and leaving to his Consin Baldwin Earl of Bourg, the Principality of Edessa, with a few Troops marched to Jerusalem, from whence Tancred, after having rendred Caiphas into his Hands, was retired, in Order to his taking upon him the Principality of Antioch, during the Impri­sonment of his Uncle Bohemond, who had, by an Ambuscade which they laid for him, been taken by the Turks.

year 1101 This new King who though he was nothing comparable either in Sanctity or Prudence to his Brother, had notwithstanding many excellent Qualities and En­dowments, and above all others he was most extraordinary Valiant and a great Soldier. In the beginning of the Spring making a League with the Naval Forces of Genoa, at Jaffa, he with their Assistance took Antipatris and Cesarea, and in Conclusion, in a set Battle Vanquished the Army of the Sarasins of Egypt, but the Year following, year 1102 happening too wilfully and with Precipitation to engage in the Plain of Rama, without staying for his Infantry, though his Army con­sisted in twenty thousand Foot, and ten thousand Horse, he lost the Bactle, and many French Princes and Lords, who at that time were come to visit the Holy Places. For so soon as it was known in France, that Jerusalem was taken, there were an Infinite Number of People of all Ages and Qualities, who for De­votion undertook that Voyage; the Principal Persons were Hugh the Great, and the Earl of Blois, who being retired into France, the one before, the other after the taking of Antioch, thought to repair that Fault by this second Voyage; also the Earls William de Poitiers, Geoffry de Vendosme, Stephen de Burgogne, and Hugh Brother to Earl Raymond of Tholose, who having stayed some time at Con­stantinople to treat with the Emperor Alexis, joyned themselves with those Prin­ces.

The other Nations, and particularly the Lombards and the Cermans would also have a part in this Expedition; and the Number of these new Pilgrims was so excessive great, that counting also the French, there arrived when they [Page 84]passed into Asia, year 1102 two hundred and sixty Thousand men; but as it was nothing else but a confused Multitude of disorderly Voluntiers of all sorts of Conditions which followed them without Order, Discipline, Obedience, and almost with­out Arms, and that the Princes and Bishops went rather in Pilgrimage than to a Holy War after the Conquest of Jerusalem, I do not reckon this among the Crusades. And indeed, there never was one more irregular, or less for­tunate; for the greatest part of these ill conducted Pilgrims perished by the Miseries of the Way, or by the Arms of the Turks under Soliman with whom the Persidious Alexis had before-hand complotted their Destruction; there perished a hundred thousand men, besides an infinite Number of Women who were led into miserable Captivity. The Earl of Poitiers having lost all, was reduced to the deplorable Necessity to make his Voyage on Foot; Hugh the Great could not finish his, but died by the way at Tarsus in Cilicia. The Earl of Tholose making Use of the small Remainder of the Pilgrims to regain Tortosa from the Saracens, who had seized it, abandoned his Benefactors, and fortified himself in his Conquest, following the Design which he had always cherished to acquire some little Principality in the East. The rest after having visited the Holy Places conducted by their ill Destiny, compleated their Misfortunes by joyning with the King in this unhappy Battle; only the Earl of Poitiers escaped, having taken Shipping at Jaffa in order to his return into France; the rest who stay­ed were either slain upon the Place, as were the Earls of Blois and Burgogne, or taken Prisoners, as were the Earl of Bourges, and many other brave though unfor­tunate Persons. The King nevertheless escaped to Rama; and in a few days having drawn together the Troops of Antipatris, Tiberias, Jerusalem and Jaffa, into which Place he had put himself, he made a Sally to so good purpose upon his Enemies, who prepared to besiege him, that in the End he constrained them to take their Flight leaving to him all the Marks of an absolute Victory, the Field of Battle, the Bodies of the Slain, all their Engines and their Baggage. After which he took Ptoelmais, by the Help of the Genoese who besieged it by Sea with seventy Ships; he a second time defeated the Saracens of Egypt in the Plain of Rama, he took the City of Tripolis, year 1105 which under the Denomination of an Earldom, and the Condition of Homage he conferred upon Bertrand the Son of the Earl of Tholose, year 1109 who was dead about four years before; he made himself Master of Sidon, Beritus, and all the Sea-Coast Towns excepting Tyre, which he kept blocked up by the Fortress of Scandalion which he caused to be built upon the Coast some five Miles from that City, in the same place where Alexander the Great had formerly formed his Camp when he besieged that City: In the End after having also built upon the further side of Jordan, the Castle of Mont-Real, to bridle the Incursions of the Arabians, and having carried his Victorious Arms even into Egypt, year 1118 he died of the Flux, and was interred near his Brother Godfrey at the Foot of Mount Calvary, in a Chappel adjoyning to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

He left the Christians in Possession of four large Soveraignties which they had conquered in the East; the first was the Earldom of Edessa which extended it self from the further side of Euphrates to the River Tygris; the second was the Prin­cipality of Antioch, in which was comprized all the Country which is between Tarsus of Cilicia, towards the West, and the City of Maraclea on the East, up­on the Coast of the Phenician Sea as far as Tortosa. It was afterwards governed by Roger the Cousin of Tancred, after the Death of that brave Prince, who had governed it till after the Deliverance of his Uncle; and then returning into France, he married Constance the Daughter of King Philip the first, and after having made War in Epirus and in Dalmatia with the Greek Emperor, he died in Italy, leaving behind him a Son of his own Name. The third was the Earldom of Tripolis, which extends it self along the Sea-Coast of Phenicia beyond Ma­raclea as far as the River Adonis which runs between Biblis and Baruth. The fourth was the Kingdom of Jerusalem, which beginning at the same River, stretches it self almost to the Castle of Daron upon the Frontier of Idumea near unto Egypt.

In this flourishing Estate stood the Affairs of the Christians in the East at the death of Baldwin the second. His Brother Eustace, Earl of Bullen, who ought to have succeeded him, was at that time in France; and in Regard there was a Necessity [Page 85]that they should have a King who should be actually within the Kingdom, year 1118 to maintain things in that Condition wherein they stood, against so many Potent Enemies which they had upon all hands, therefore the Earl of Edessa, his Cou­sin, Baldwin de Bourg, who was at that time at Jerusalem, was called to the Suc­cession of the Kingdom, which he took upon him, leaving the Earldom of E­dessa to Josselin Earl of Courtenay who was his Kinsman.

Now in Regard that it was in the Beginning of his Reign that the Order of the Knights Templers were first founded in his Palace, and that it is requisite something should be said of these Knights, as also of the other Order which was called Hospitallers, I think it will not be amiss in a few Words to inform the Reader of the Original, the Intention, the manner of Living, and the Employ of these Military Orders, which were established in Palestine under the first Kings of Jerusalem.

It is certain, that before the Christian Princes had conquered the Holy Land there were Hospitallers at Jerusalem, whereof some received and Entertained the Pilgrims which came from all Parts of Christendom to visit the Holy Places; and others of them had the Charge of the Poor Sick and Diseased People, and particularly of the Lepers of which there were great Numbers in those times; Those who were called the Hospitallers of St. Lazarus are far more Ancient than the first of these, as appears by the great Number of Hospitals and Insir­maries, of the Name of St. Lazarus, which were wholly intended and principally in the East for such as were afflicted with the Leprosie. St. Gregory Nazianzen assures us, that St. Basil built one at Cesarea dedicated to the same Saint, the sup­posed Protector of the Lepers, and that he gave Rules to these Charitable Hospitallers, who devoted themselves to the Service of those diseased People. As for the others who made Profession to serve the Pilgrims of the Holy Land, they were not in being till a long time after, that the Merchants of Amalphi in Italy who trafficked into Syria, obtained Permission of one of the Caliphs to build a Monastery near the Holy Sepulchre, to which they added a Hospital and an Oratory dedicated to St. John the Eleemosynary, there to receive the poor Pilgrims as well as the sick and diseased. For after they were embodied into a Com­munity, as formerly they took Care only of the Infirm and Leprous; so now there were others who were particularly appointed to attend the Pilgrims, and both the one and the other were indifferently called Hospitallers; they lived a long time in this peaceable Exercise of Charity, under one Superior who was called the Master of the Hospital; until that after tho Conquest of Palestine by the Princes of the Crusade, they took up Arms not only for the Desence of the poor Pilgrims, but also to serve the Kings of Jerusalem, for whom they performed many notable Services in their Wars. And for this Reason the Hos­pitallers divided their Community into three different Ranks, of which the first was that of Knights who went to the Wars; the second of Friers or Bro­thers Servitors, who had the Charge of the Sick and the Pilgrims; and the third was that of Ecclesiasticks and Chaplains who administred the Sacraments; and this Company which was thus advanced into a Military Order was also confirmed by Pope Paschal the second.

It was in Imitation of these Armed Hospitallers, that many others also much about the same time, taking up the Profession of Arms at Jerusalem, began to establish other new Military Orders. The first were those who had the Guard of the Holy Sepulchre for many Ages, and that King Baldwin the First, of Ca­nons which they were before, changed them into Knights of the Holy Sepul­chre. They retired after the loss of the Holy Land into Italy where they setled at Perouse, and continued there, till such time as Pope Innocent the eighth sent them to the Knights of the Rhodes; the Fathers Cordeliers succeeded them in keeping the Holy Sepulchre, and to this day retain the Power of giving the Honor of Knight-hood to such noble Persons as resort thither to visit the Holy Places.

Some time after, about the Year 1118. nine French Gentlemen, of whom the Principal were Hugh de Payn, and Geffry de Saint Omer, going to present them­selves before Guarimond the Patriarch of Jerusalem, he perswaded them so Ef­fectually, that between his Hands they took upon them a Vow of Chastity and [Page 86]Obedience, year 1118 and to employ their Lives in defending the Passes, and keeping the Ways clear and free for the Pilgrims who came to the Holy Land. King Bald­win gave them Lodgings in his Palace near the Temple, and from thence they came to be called Templers, or Knights of the Temple: They continued nine Years in this manner, their Number not at all Increasing, and without all di­stinction of Habits, until the Year 1128, when Pope Honorius the Second be­stowed upon them at the Council of Troyes a Rule with a white Habit, to which Eugenius the Third added a red Cross. And after that time, as they acquired a mighty Reputation by their Virtue, Courage, and admirable Things which they did against the Infidels, so their Order grew mightily, and became so Pu­issant, by the great Estates which were every where Conferred upon them, that they became equal in their Fortune to the greatest Princes; But in Conclusion, these great Revenues, which at first were the Recompences, and the Testimonies of their Merit, became the Occasion of their Misfortune; for from thence sprung those Disorders with which they are but too justly Reproached, though possibly the Hatred into which they fell, by reason of their Pride and Arro­gance, may have represented those Disorders greater than they were in Reality; yet it is certain that they gave an Occasion to the Fathers of the Council of Vienna under Clement the Fifth, utterly to Extinguish their Order, the greatest part of their fair Revenues being given to the Knights of St. John of Jerusa­lem, year 1119 who about this time Conquered the Isle of Rhodes.

Immediately after the Establishment of this Order of the Templers, that of the Knights of the Teutonick Order began, being Founded by the Charity of a Rich German Lord, who having had his Part in the taking of Jerusalem, had resolved there to pass the remainder of his Days with his Family, in the Exer­cises of Piety. He, observing that many Pilgrims and poor Soldiers of his Na­tion, suffered extreamly in a Country where no body understood them, built a Hospital at Jerusalem to receive them, and some time after an Oratory in Ho­nor of the Blessed Virgin; many Germans drawn by the Example of his so great Charity, joyned with him, and quitting their Estates to the Use of this Hos­pital, devoted themselves to the Service of the Poor of their Nation; and there being among them many Gentlemen, who had undertaken this Voyage, principally with a Design to make War against the Infidels, they added to this Vow, that of Fighting unto Death against the Enemies of Jesus Christ, herein following the Conduct, Manner of Living, and the Rule of the Templers; until that about seventy Years after Pope Celestin the third, Erected it into a milita­ry Order, under the Rule of St. Augustin, for those of the German Nation on­ly, giving them a white Habit with a black Cross, to distinguish them from the Templers. Nevertheless, they could after that do no manner of great Services to Christendom in Syria, by reason that the Affairs of the Christians were then become altogether Desperate; about thirty eight years after, the Emperor Frederick the Second, Returning from his unfortunate Voyage to the Holy Land, brought them all into Germany, under their fourth Great Master Herman Psaltza, to whom he proposed the Conquest of Prussia from the bar­barous People and Pagans, who at that time Inhabited there. This Valiant Man entred the Country with his Knights and two thousand others, who took upon them the Habit after the Example of Conrade Marquess of Thuringia, who accompanied him with twenty thousand Soldiers. In three Years time they made themselves Masters of all the Country, Reducing the People to Christi­anity, and Built Marienburg to be the chief Seat of their Order, giving it the Name of the Holy Virgin, their Protectress. After which their Successors Possessed themselves of the greatest part of the Northern Countries, which are on both sides of the Vistula, Extending themselves and their Catholick Religi­on into Lithuania, continually Augmenting their Power and Dominion, till after a long War which they had undertaken against the King of Poland, that King Jagelon Defeated them in that famous Battle, wherein they lost the great­est part of their Knights, who were accompanied with the Slaughter of fifty thousand of their Soldiers, who remained dead upon the Place. So that all Prussia being almost Revolted, the Great Master to preserve his remaining In­terest, was obliged to do Homage for it to Casimire King of Poland. After­wards [Page 87] Frederick Duke of Saxony, coming to be Great Master, year 1118 refused to do that Homage; and after that the Knights had for a long time, under that Prince, used their utmost Efforts to maintain their Soveraign Authority; at length, Albert Marquis of Brandenburgh, who was chosen Great Master, abandoning the Interests of the Order, to Establish his own particular Designs, submitted him­self to King Sigismond his Uncle, who of Great Master of the Order, made him Duke of one part of Prussia, under the Soveraignty of Poland. After which, this new Duke Renouncing the Catholique Religion, and Violating his Vow of Knighthood, Married the Princess of Denmark, and in Conclusion, left to his Posterity the Ducal Prussia: So that after this time, this Order, sometimes so Celebrated and powerful, having Flourished more than three hundred Years, was in a manner quite Extinguished: It is nevertheless still kept up in Germany, where the Knights, which are the prime Nobility, possess great Estates under the Authority of the Great Master of the Teutonick Order.

But whilest these Military Orders began thus much about the same time to Establish themselves by little and little in Jerusalem, that of the Hospitallers, both Ancient and Modern, which one may say, were the Model of the others, made a great Progress in Palestine, and became of great Consideration by the great Services which it Performed both in Peace and War, and upon this Ac­count, both the number of Pilgrims, as also of Soldiers and Gentlemen, who entred into that Order, increasing daily, St. Gerard, the Provincial of the Isle of Martigues, who was Master of the Hospitallers, when Jerusalem was taken from the Sarasens, built about the Year 1112. a third Hospital, giving it the Name of St. John Baptist, and there placed his new Knights, who a little time after began to form the Design of following a Conduct and Manner of Living more Austere, and more Perfect than that of the old Fraternity. And indeed, when after the Death of Gerard, Fryer Bryan Roger was chosen by plurality of Voices, to be the Great Master of the Hospitallers; these new Knights of the third Erection of St. John Baptist, persisting in their first Resolution of Living in greater Perfection, would needs Imitate the Knights-Templers, and add to their other Vows that of Chastity, they separated from the Ancient Hospital­lers, and chose for their Master Fryer Raymond of Pavia, a Gentleman of Dau­phiny, who drew up for them new Constitutions, full of solid Christian Piety, which may be seen in the Book of the Statutes of that Order, with the Appro­bation of Pope Calixtus the Second, in the Year 1123. as also the Priviledges which have been granted to them by forty eight Soveraign Popes. After which time, to distinguish themselves from the other, they called themselves the Knights of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem, and wore a white Cross of eight Angles upon a black Habit. This is that famous Order, which contrary to what usually happens to other Establishments, hath daily Increased for above this five hundred Years, Advancing to the supreme Elevation of Splendor and Glory, wherein it appears at this very Day: That Order, I say, which in all times hath had the Honor to have its Commanders and Knights of all that is Brave and Generous among the Nobility of all Europe, and above all those Princes who have been most Remarkable, and more distinguished by the Great­ness of their Merit, than by their Illustrious Names or Birth; that Order, in short, which under the Celebrated Names of Rhodes and Maltha, hath filled the Earth, the Sea, and all the Corners of our World, with the glorious Tro­phics of an infinite number of Victories, which they have Obtained against the Turks.

As for the ancient Hospitallers, who were thus separated from these New ones, with whom they formerly made up one Order, under one great Master, they still retained their ancient Name of St. Lazarus; they added to the Ha­bits of their Knights, a green Cross, to distinguish them from the others, and maintained themselves within the Limits of their first Institution, which allow­ing of Marriage, consisted of three principal Vows; of Charity to withdraw themselves from the World to the Service of the Infirm and Leprous; of Cha­stity, either in a single or conjugal State; and of Obedience to their great Master; and above all, to be continually ready to Fight against the Infidels and the Enemies of the Church. They also performed after this, very signal Ser­vices [Page 88]in Palestine, year 1119 which obliged the Kings Fulk, Amaurus, Baldwin the Third and Fourth, and the Queens Melisantha and Theodora, to take them into their particular Protection, and to honor them with many Marks of their Royal Bounty; the precious Testimonies whereof, they do to this day preserve in their Treasury. It was for this Cause, that the young King Lewis, at his Re­turn from the Holy Land, brought with him some of them into France, there to Exercise their charitable Functions, and to this purpose gave them the Su­pervising of all the Operations of the Infirmaries within his Realm, as also the Castle of Boni near Orleans, to be the principal House and chief Residence of their Order, on this side the Sea, as appears by his Letters Patents, of the Year 1154. Signed by the Chancellor Huges, in the Presence of the Constable Matthew de Montmorency: which was Confirmed to them by Philip Augustus, in the Year 1208; who also granted them great Priviledges and Immunities, which have since been Augmented, and solemnly Confirmed by twelve of our Kings of France. In process of time the Order extended it self by Degrees through all Europe, but principally in France, England, Scotland, Germany, Hun­gary, Savoy, Sicily, Pavia, Calabria, Campania in Italy, where the Emperor Fre­derick the Second, gave them great Possessions in the Year 1225, which was al­so confirmed to them afterwards by the Bulla's of many Popes. It was in that flourishing Estate wherein this Order was in Europe under this Emperor, and under the King St. Lewis, that the Pope Honorius the Third Approved it, and Confirmed it anew, giving it the Rule of St. Augustin, with many great Privi­ledges, which were also afterwards Augmented by the Bulla's of Pope Gregory the Ninth, Alexander the Fourth, Clement the Fourth, Nicholas the Third, Gre­gory the Tenth, and John the Twenty second, and many other Soveraign Popes, who granted to them the same Favours which were Enjoyed by the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, by which they were impowred to hold Estates given ei­ther by particular Persons, or Bodies Politick and Corporate, and all the Hos­pitals and Infirmaries, with their Goods and Possessions, which at any time be­longed to this Order.

In the time that the Affairs of the Christians were almost become Desperate in the East, after the Return of St. Lewis from his Voyage to the Holy Land, the great Master of St. Lazarus, with the greatest part of the Knights, came to settle themselves in France, where this devout King, who took this Order into his Royal Protection, and gave them of his Bounty a thousand Marks, be­sides other Favours which he conferred on them, became in a manner a new Founder; and in effect, it is most certain, as appears by most authentick Acts, that after this time, the principal Seat of the Order of St. Lazarus, as well on this, as the other side of the Sea, hath always been kept at their Castle of Bo­ni, where the general Chapter of the Order ought to be kept once every three Years; and that the Kings of France have always been the Conservators and Patrons of the Order, and have nominated and appointed the great Master; That these great Masters have Exercised their Jurisdictions upon all the Knights of the Order, in all the States of Christendom, as the Generals of the Cisterti­ans Premonstratenses, and other Orders, which at present are in France, Exer­cise theirs over all the Religious of other Realms. It is true, that this Order began to Relax and Decay extremely by the iniquity of the Times, during the Wars between the English and French, either by the Malice or Negligence of the Knights, who either themselves did, or permitted others to encroach upon the Estates of the Order, appropriating them to their own private Families. For this Cause it was, that Pope Innocent the Eight, at the Request of the Knights of Malta, suppressed this Order, to Re-unite it with all its Estates, to that of St. John of Jerusalem, which was obtained by Emery D' Amboise, Great Master of the Rhodes, by another Bulla from Pope Julius the Second. But in regard that the Parliament of France Declared these Bulla's to be Injurious, and con­trary to the Rights of the Kings of France, the Patrons of the Order, the Popes Pius Fourth, and Pius Fifth, caused them to be Revoked, upon Remonstrance thereof made to them by Charles the Fifth, and Philip the Second; who thought themselves too nearly Interessed in the Commanderies or Places of Trust which were within their Dominions; so that the Order was again Established, with [Page 89]many new Priviledges, by Pope Pius the Fourth, year 1119 who Created Jannot de Cha­stillon, his Nephew Great Master of the Order; after his Death Gregory the Thirteenth Transferred the Great Mastership to Emanuel Philibert, the Duke of Savoy, and to his Successors, granting him also the Union of this Order, with all their Estate, to that of the Knights of St. Maurice, the Erecting of which the Duke had obtained about a Month before.

It ought nevertheless, to be taken for Indubitable, that these new Creations to the Dignity of Great Master of St. Lazarus, were not made but with Re­spect to certain Countries; and it is no less certain that it was extremely in the Prejudice of the Kings of France, who could by no means lose that Right, which they had so lawfully acquired, and for more than five hundred Years injoyed, to have the sole Nomination of the Great Master, who ought to be E­lected at Boni, the principal Conventical General House of the whole Order, and who ought to have Jurisdiction over all the Knights of what Nation soever they be. Insomuch, that all those who are called Great Masters in other Coun­tries, are no more, to speak properly, but Deputies and Substitutes, to him who is Established and Acknowledged in France, as the King of Spain alledges in his Right, Affirming that the Duke of Savoy is only his Vicegerent in Italy, which also a very learned Civilian hath remarked, according to the Bulla of Gregory the Thirteenth. However, after all these Bulla's, reckoning from that of Innocent the Eight, our Kings whose Rights are Sacred and Inviolable, have not failed always to name, as they did formerly, without Interruption, the Great Masters of all the Order of St. Lazarus both on this and the other side of the Sea. And those of the Fraternity following, that is, Aignan, Claude de Marveil, John de Conty, John de Leui, Michael de Seurre, Francis Salviati, Aymar de Chartres, Hugh Castelan de Castelmore, and Charles de Gayan, who were pro­vided and nominated by the Kings Lewis Twelfth, Francis First, Henry Second, Francis Second, Charles Ninth, Henry Third, and Henry the Great, never failed to take this Quality upon them, altho the deplorable Condition to which the Order was Reduced in France, the small Number of Knights, and the Loss and Alienation of their Estates, took from them the Opportunity of maintaining the Dignity of their Place and Order. It was for this Reason, that Henry the Forth, after he had Gloriously Setled the three Estates of his Realm, and that after the cruel Disorders of the Civil Wars, he had put the Kingdom into a flourishing Condition, was resolved also to restore to its primitive Splendor this Military Order of the Hospitallers, from which he perswaded himself he should be able to draw very considerable Services. He therefore Chose for Great Master one of the Fraternity, whose Name was Philibert de Newstang, a Gen­tleman whose Birth and Merit were equally Illustrious. He went upon the King's Account to Rome, there to treat about this Affair with Pope Paul the Fifth, and did so well Negotiate what he had in Commission, that the Quality of Restorer, Protector, and Patron of the Order was reserved to the King; and the Dignity of Chief and General of the whole Order of St. Lazarus, was Absolutely, and without Restrinction, to be in him whom the King should name to be Great Master. Moreover the Pope having Created a New Order of Knights, under the Title of our Lady of Mount Carmel, at the Instance of the King he United them to that of St. Lazarus; after which time the Knights have with this double Title born for their Armes a Cross, or which is doubled, con­sisting of eight Points Pometty, between four Flowers-de-Lys, with the Image of our Lady in the middle.

But as the Death of Henry the Great made the greatest of all his Noble De­signs to Vanish, the Order of St. Lazarus, which began to Recover after ha­ving received these new Marks of Honor, did for the main stand at a Stay, con­tinuing in the Condition wherein he lest it, till now of late it begins to Flourish in such a manner which would make one believe, that we shall one day see it produce those Fruits, which it was accustomed to do in the times of its early Force and Vigor: For the King, who undertakes nothing which he doth not most happily Accomplish, having taken up the same generous Design of his Au­gust Grandfather, whose Sir Name the Acclamation of all Europe hath bestow­ed upon him, will not fail to take all the most Just and Essicacious Ways, to re­store [Page 90]this ancient Order to that Condition which may render it Serviceable to those necessary Ends for the Good of the Church and State, year 1119 which he hath pro­posed to himself. But it is time methinks, after this Digression, which I hope will neither be Disagreeable nor Unprofitable to the Reader, that I should now again follow the Thred of my History.

year 1123 The new King Baldwin de Bourg, who had abundance of Courage and of Vir­tue, obtained many great Victories against the Turks, who after having Defeat­ed and Slain in Battle the Prince of Antioch, began to menace that great City. But as he went to Succour the Earl of Edessa against Balac, the most Potent of the Turkish Princes, who had taken Earl Josselin with his Cousin Galeran, in an Ambuscade, he himself happened to be Surprized in the Night by that Emir, who sent him Loaden with Irons to the same Castle where the two Earls his Kinsmen were detained Captives. His Imprisonment however had not those dis­mal Consequences as were expected, for Eustace Garnier Lord of Sidon or Saiet­ta and Cesarea, who was made Regent of the Realm, Defeated the Army of the Egyptian Sarasens, who Besieged Jaffa. After which, their Navy, which consisted in eighty Sail of Ships, was intirely Ruined by the Venetians, who met with them in their Return to Egypt. year 1124 William de Bures, Lord of Tiberias, Succeeded in the Regency to Eustace, who died some few days after his Victo­ry, and he knew so well how to make good Use of it, that taking this Occasi­on to Besiege the City of Tyre by Land with his Army, and by Sea with the Ve­netian Fleet, he became Master of the Place before the Sultan of Egypt was in a Condition to Relieve it by a new Fleet. The Earl Josselin also Escaping out of Prison, had gotten into Antioch, and Fought so successfully with his lit­tle Army, year 1125: during the Siege against the same Balac who had taken him Prisoner, that the Barbarian lost both the Battle and his Life; whereby the King also re­covered his Liberty, paying his Ransom to the Princess the Widdow of Balac.

The Deliverance of the King was succeeded by other happy Successes. He o­verthrew in Battle Borsequin, another potent Turkish Prince, who had entred in Arms into the Principality of Antioch; He Defeated the Egyptians and As­calonites, who were ready to make an Irruption into his Kingdom, and had ve­ry great Advantages over Dodequin the Sultan of Damascus, whom he went to Attaque in the very Heart of his Dominions; He took the strong Place of Ra­phana near to Arcas, for the Earl of Tripolis, and by his Actions made it appear to the whole World, that he was, as a most Virtuous Prince, so also, a very great Captain. year 1126 He put the whole Principality of Antioch into the Hands of the Young Bohemond, whom he also made his Son-in-Law, giving him in Mar­riage the Princess Alice, his second Daughter; for he had before given his Eldest Daughter, the Princess Melisentha, to Fowk Earl of Anjou, to whom he gave the two Cities of Tyre and Ptolemais, he being also in right of his Lady to Succeed him in the Realm of Jerusalem. But his good Fortune was not con­stant to him till his Death; for having Besieged Damascus with a Puissant Ar­my, where were joyned with him the Earls of Edessa and Tripolis, the Prince of Antioch and Fowk Earl of Anjou, he was obliged for want of Provisions, and by the Incommodiousness of the Season, to raise his Siege; and not long after, his Son-in-Law, the young Bohemon, being Surprized by the Turks, was Slain in Cilicia. After which, having given the necessary Orders for Securing the Principality of Antioch to the Princess Constantia, the Daughter of Bohemond, whom her own Mother would most unnaturally have Excluded from that Right, he died most Religiously at Jerusalem, year 1131 in the third Year of his Reign, and was Interred at the Foot of Mount Calvary, near the two Kings his Predecessors and his Cousins.

Earl Fowk who Succeeded him, did also Inherit his Virtues, and above all, his Integrity and high Generosity. For after having Defended the Principality of Antioch against the Designs of his Sister-in-Law the Princess Dowager of young Bohemond, and against a mighty Army of the Turks, whom he cut in pieces near Antioch; he gave the Principality thereof to Raymond the Son of the Earl of Poitiers, giving him in Marriage the young Princess Constantia, the Daughter of Bohemond, the lawful Heiress of those Territories. He also maintained him in it against all the Forces of John the Constantinopolitan Emperor, who made [Page 91]two fruitless Expeditions with huge Armies, for the re-gaining of Antioch, year 1131 which he pretended appertained to him of Right, by the Treaty which his Father A­lexis had Concluded with the Princes of the first Crusade, when they passed by Constantinople into Asia. He gloriously preserved both his own Kingdom, and the States of Christian Princes his Neighbours, against all the Forces of Sanguin Sultan of Alepo, the most potent among all the Infidel Princes, against whom he entred into Confederacy with the Sultan of Damascus. He took from the Turks the City of Paneas or Cesarea Philippi, otherwise in Ancient times called Dan, near the two Heads from whence arises the River Jordan; he re-built and for­tified Beersheba at the other Extremity of his Kingdom, as it was in the times of the Ancient Kings, and as it is frequently said in the Holy Scripture, he ex­tended his Dominion from Dan to Beersheba. But some time after he happened to have an unfortunate Fall from his Horse, year 1142 as he was Hunting the Hare in the Plain of Ptolemais, of which he died in the eleventh Year of his Reign, leaving for his Successor his eldest Son Baldwin, of the Age of three Years, under the Regency of his Mother Queen Melesintha; and it was in the time of this young King that the second Crusade was Published, upon the Occasion which I am now going to relate.

It was about eleven Years after that Josselin de Courtenay Earl of Edessa dying, had left for his Successor a Son of his own Name, but one who did neither re­semble his Father in Virtue nor in Courage, as too plainly appeared by the Disho­norable beginning of the Son, and the glorious ending of the Father: That valiant Prince who was retired half dead, and almost crushed in Pieces by the Ruins of a Fortress which he had Attacqued near Alepo, lay Languishing in his Bed, ex­pecting every Moment his approaching Death, when News was brought him, that the Sultan of Iconium, thinking to take the Advantage of his Malady, had laid Siege to one of his Towns called Croisson. At this News he gave order to the young Josselin, who was now arrived at the Age fit to Command, to go in­stantly with what Troops he could draw together about Edessa, to oppose the Enemy; But the Cowardly Youth, far from laying hold upon such an Oppor­tunity to gain Glory and Reputation by a Victory which should shew that he Merited that Crown, which by Birthright and the expected Death of his Fa­ther, was shortly to devolve upon him, coldly answered his Father, That he did not think it consisted with his Prudence to offer to Encounter an Enemy so much Superior to him in Strength and Numbers; whereupon the Generous old Prince, seeing to what an unworthy Successor he was about to leave so fair a Principality, was resolved once more to shew him, even as he was dying, by his Example what his Honor obliged him to do in Defence thereof: and there­fore having instantly Assembled his Troops, he caused himself to be carried at the Head of them in a Horse-Litter, being only able to act with his Noble Mind, which still retained all its Vigor and Force, in despite of the extream Weakness and Languishment to which his bruised Body was reduced; as he Marched in this Condition, still Advancing towards the Enemy, Word was brought him, that the Sultan having been Informed, that he, who he thought Dead, was coming against him with a Resolution to give him Battle, had raised his Siege, and was Retreated into his own Territories. Whereupon the brave Earl, ravished with Joy at the same time that he felt himself most cruelly Op­pressed with his Pains and the Approaches of Death, causing his Litter to be set down in the middle of the Army, he lifted up his Hands and Eyes all Bathed in Tears of Joy, to Heaven, and with great Devotion, he returned his hearty Thanks unto Almighty God, for all the Benefits which he had received from him, but above all, for the Favor which he had now done him, to let him die like a Prince of the Crusade, in making War against the Infidels, and that he permitted him to Vanquish with the bare Report of his Approach, and the Ter­ror of his Name, these Enemies of Christ Jesus, and of his Holy Faith. And thus did this Christian Hero, Transported more with the Excess of his Joy, than of his Pains, render unto God his generous Soul, going to the Eternal Tri­umphs of a Glorious Immortality in Heaven, whilest his Army Victorious by him only, without Fighting, Re-conducted his Body in the Litter, as in a Trium­phant Chariot, to Edessa, there to receive the Honors due to one of the bravest Actions that ever were Performed.

year 1142 Thus it was that this Illustrious Lord finished his Glorious Life, and thus it was, that with the Disgrace of refusing to hold the Place of so generous a Fa­ther, the young Josselin his Son began his Reign, which he dishonored by a Vi­cious and Dissolute Life, spent in all manner of Debauches, and above all, by the Loss of Edessa, which was the cause of the Decay, and in Conclusion, of the Ruine of the Affairs of the Western Christians in the East. But is no new thing to observe, that what the Wisdom, Courage, and Vigilance of many great Men have not been able, without great Difficulty, to Establish, should be Ruined in a moment by the Brutality, Pusillanimity, and Cowardice of one Dissolute and Voluptuous Man.

This new Earl Josselin quitted the City of Edessa, which his Father and the two Baldwins his Predecessors, who constantly kept their Court there, had ta­ken great Care to Fortifie, and Retired to Turbessel, a delightful House, Situate upon the Banks of Euphrates, where like a true Epicure, he drowned himself in those Vices and continual Debauches, which the mistaken World calls Pleasures, without ever regarding the weighty and troublesom Affairs of State. But to Ease him of those Toils which attend a Crown, Sanguin the most Potent and A­ble of all the Turkish Princes, Sultan of Alepo and Nineveh, now called Mosula or Mussula, laid hold of this Occasion of the Stupidity of this careless Prince, and knowing that there was neither a good Garrison, nor any kind of Provisi­ons fit to sustain a Siege in Edessa, he presently sate down before it, and by a fu­rious Assault Carried the Place, before the Unfortunate Josselin, who was of himself destitute of any Power to prevent it, could procure any Assistance from his Neighbours; for he had too much Disobliged Raymond Prince of Antioch, with whom he lived in continual Broils, to afford him any, and Queen Me­lesintha was at too great a Distance, to Assemble so suddenly such an Army as was necessary to relieve the Place: So that the Conqueror had Opportunity e­nough to make a great Progress with his Arms, had not his ill Destiny, rather than the Christian Arms, prevented him; for as he was Besieging Cologembar, a Town upon the Euphrates, he was Slain by one of his Eunuchs, who having thus revenged himself of some Affront done him by his Master, saved himself by Flight. His two Sons divided his Dominions between them, Cotebin the Eldest had for his Share Nineveh and Assyria, and Noradin the Younger Brother was Sultan of Alepo.

This young Prince, who soon after made himself one of the most Potent Prin­ces of all Asia, had nothing about him that was either Turk or Barbarian, ex­cept the Name; and without retaining any thing of the Vices of his Nation, he made himself most Conspicuous in his Conduct by all the Virtues and accom­plishing Qualities of a great Captain: He was equally Wise, Provident, Mode­rate, Bold, and Enterprising, Couragious, Valiant, and Fortunate, and what was most rare among Infidels, he was a Man of Honor, Probity, and wondrous De­vout in his own Religion, which was Mahometan; above all, he was the most Vigilant of Mankind, the Stoutest, and most prompt to lay hold upon all Op­portunities which presented themselves with the prospect of any noble Action, as appeared particularly in the Rencounter I am going to relate. Having un­derstood at Nineveh, that Earl Josselin, being underhand Sollicited by the In­habitants, had Seized upon Edessa with a considerable number of Troops; he ran thither immediately with such Forces as he could on the suddain get toge­ther, to Invest it; this he performed so readily, that the Earl despairing to re­sist the Enemies within, who yet held the Fortresses, and those without, who went about to cut off all Provisions from coming to him, resolved, before all the Passages were obstructed, to save himself with his Soldiers, by quitting the City, which being accordingly put in Execution, the greatest part of the In­habitants, who were afraid to fall into the Hands of Noradin, would also Ac­company him in this dishonorable Flight. But that Prince falling upon the in­fortunate Inhabitants, at the same time, that those within the Fortresses Sallying out, had broken in among them at the Gate which they had set open, they were all cut in pieces, and then immediately pursuing the flying Army of the Earl, which were Retreated some two Leagues to gain a Pass upon the Euphrates, he Charged them so briskly that in the End he put them to a total Rout, so that [Page 93]the miserable Earl did not without great Difficulty Escape to Samosatia, year 1143 where he Arrived almost alone. Thus Noradin having no more Enemies able to keep the Field, and having so easily Re-gained Edessa, quickly made himself Master of the greatest Part of that Principality, from whence he Menaced the other three, and all that part of Christendom which was in the East, with utter Ruin and Desolation.

In the mean time, immediately after the first taking of Edessa by Sanguin, there being great reason to fear, that that powerful Turk who had the Courage and Ambition of a Conqueror, would also indeavour the Conquest of Antioch, a Dispatch was immediately sent to request the Succours of all the Princes of the West. But the principal Application was made to Lewis seventh King of France, to whom the Christian Princes of the East, who were all of that Nati­on, had Recourse as to their natural Lord, and whom the cross Accident which happened a little after, put into the most favourable Disposition in the World to undertake such an Enterprise. This Prince was in the very Bloom of his Youth, being about twenty four Years of Age, he was of a most exact Shape, and of a marvellous, and in his Sex an uncommon Beauty, of a sweet Temper, Civil and Obliging, extream Pious, Tender, and Sensible of the least Sufferings of his meanest Subjects, whom he most passionately Loved, and was no less Beloved by them; but above all, he had a most mighty Mind, and was as extream Jea­lous of his Authority that it was possible for any one to be: And as that Passion carried him sometimes, as it doth more moderate Natures, to strange Extremi­ties, his Sweetness, which happened to be mistaken by Theobald Earl of Cham­pagne and Blois, who openly espoused all the Interests directly opposite to his, was changed into such a violent Choller, and furious desire of Revenge, so that having desolated all the Earls Territories and Possessions, he took Vitri by As­sault, where he put all into Blood and Flames, and miserably burnt above fif­teen hundred Persons in the great Church, who had fled thither as to a secure Sanctuary. This terrible Action which gave a Horror to all the World, was most Dreadful to himself, when he came once a little to recover out of the Transport of his Passion; and his Soul was pierced with a Grief so lively and so cutting, that it almost drove him into Desperation; so that for some time, he abandoned the Management of all publick Affairs, and even those necessary Services due to his Person, and it was not without mighty Difficulty, that he was recovered out of that Abyss of Melancholly, into which he was so deeply Plunged. This was the reason, that so soon as ever he understood the Extre­mities unto which the Affairs of the Christians in the East were reduced, he re­solved to make that his Penance, and to take that dangerous Voyage for the Expiation of so great a Crime as he had been Guilty of. So soon as he had discovered his Design to some of his principal Officers, they advised him, by no means to undertake an Affair of that Importance, until he should first have Con­sulted the Celebrated Abbot of Claravall, who was at that time the Oracle, not only of France, but of all Christendom. It was that famous St. Bernard, who after the memorable Things which he had done during more than ten Years, towards the Extinguishing the Schism which the Anti-Pope Peter of Lions had raised, and the Heresies of Arnold of Brescia, and Peter Abaillard, began to take a little Breath in his Retreat at his Monastery. He was then about the Age of fifty four Years, of a Stature something above the Middle, having a Face of a very agreeable Composure, a delicate Complexion, his Cheeks fresh, and his Hair fair, inclining a little towards too deep a Yellow, his Eyes sparkling with a kind of sweet Fire, Lively and Ardent, his Air extream Devout and Modest, but ever like a Person of Quality with a becoming Assurance, his Con­stitution naturally too Feeble, but much weakened by the Austerities and La­bours which he had been always most assiduous in, especially his continual Stu­dies and Inquiry after Knowledg; but this Weakness of his Body was sup­ported by the Force of a Spirit, Lively and Penetrating, Subtile and Dextrous, Bold, yet easy and very persuading, and withal, with a Courage to which the greatest Difficulties and Oppositions were so far from being by him thought In­superable, that they rather seemed to add Fewel to his Flame, and to provide those necessary Materials for its Subsistence, which gave it Occasion to burn and shine more Warm and Bright.

year 1144 The King who knew the extraordinary Merit and Sanctity of this great man, following the Counsel which was given him, convoked against the Feast of the Nativity in the Year 1144, a great Assembly of the Princes, and Principal Lords and Prelats of his Realm, at Bourges, where he also was resolved that this Devout Abbot should be present. There it was that this Prince did first publickly discover the Secret of his Heart, and the Design which he had to go in Person to the Relief of the Christians who were very much pressed by the In­fidels in the East. After which Godfrey Bishop of Langres made such a moving Discourse concerning the taking of Edessa, the Miseries of their Christian Bre­thren, and the Extreme Danger which the Holy Land lately so gloriously con­quered by the French, was like to run of falling again under the Power of the Turks and Sarasins, that he drew Tears from the Eyes of the whole Assem­bly, which was upon the very point of declaring their Resolution to follow the King. But St. Bernard, who was by some believed to be the great Promoter of this Voyage, was the only Person who with much Constancy opposed it, and stopped the Torrent of their Devotion which he judged had too much Precipi­tation, and to which he thought it convenient to give just and sitting Measures. Now as he was obliged instantly to give the Assembly whose Eyes were fixed upon him, his Advice in this Affair, he remonstrated to them, that in a Matter of this Nature, they ought by no means to pass further without consulting the Pope, to whom it appertained to declare the Pleasure of God in this Holy War, as Ʋrban the Second had done in the first Crusade, which had so happily succeed­ed. Now St. Bernard had acquired a Reputation so full of Authority that his words were received as if they had been Oracles, and therefore his Opinion ha­ving the General Approbation, the King sent his Ambassadors to the Holy Fa­ther, resolving to call another General Assembly so soon as he should receive an Answer from the Pope.

The Pope then in being was Eugenius the third a Pisan by Nation, who from having been the Scholar, and a Monk under St. Bernard, became Abbot of the Mona­stery of St. Anastasius of the three Fountains at Rome, and from thence was advan­ced the Year following being 1145 to the Pontifical Dignity. year 1145 He most readily embraced the Motion; and was Extreme Glad that so fair an Opportunity presen­ted it self for promoting the Relief of that part of Christendom which was in the East; He therefore received the King's Ambassadors with all manner of Honor, and with all the Marks of an Excessive Joy and Satisfaction; and in a short time dispatched them back again with most pressing Letters, by which he exhorted the King, year 1147 the Princes, and the Nobility of France, and not only so, but in­joyned them so far as his Spiritual Authority would permit, and by Vertue of the Merits of that Obedience, to undertake that Holy Voyage, with the Spirit of Repentance, for the Remission of their Sins, and those Punishments due unto them; and further he gave to all those who undertook the Cross plenary Indul­gences, and the same Priviledges which Pope Ʋrban the Second at the Council of Clermont had bestowed upon all those who had followed the Princes of the Crusade for the Conquest of the Holy Land. He would also himself in Person have come into France to have taken a Part in the accomplishing of a Work so advantagious for the Good of Christendom; but not being able at that time to ab­sent himself very far from Viterbum, where he then was to endeavour the Re­ducement of the Romans to their Obedience who had revolted, he sent an A­postolick Breve to St. Bernard, by which he appointed him to preach the Cru­sade in France, and Germany; and to exhort the People and Princes to take up the Cross, principally by the Motive of Penitence for the Remission of their Sins, which they should obtain by delivering their Brethren from the Tyranny of the Insidels, or in laying down their Lives in so pious an Enterprise. So that it is from hence easie to discover what was the only Argument which engaged St. Bernard in this Affair; for before that, though he was most earnestly sollici­ted even by Soveraign Authority, yet would he never either discourse or give his Opinion upon a Voyage of that Importance as Geoffry his Secretary, after­wards the Fourth Abbot of Claraval, has assured us in the History which he hath left us of the Life of that great Saint.

The King now highly satisfied to see his Design succeed so well, being so so­lemnly [Page 95]supported by the Pontifical Authority, year 1147 failed not at Easter in the Year following, to convoke a General Assembly at Verelay a little Village in Bur­gundy between Auxerre and Nevers. There met so great a Number of Princes, Prelates, Lords and Gentlemen, and People of all Sorts of Quality, that they were constrained to hold the Assembly out of the Town upon the Brow of a Hill which abutted upon a great Plain, which was filled with an Infinite Num­ber of People, who ran together from all Parts of France, upon the Report of the Enterprise of a Holy War, wherein every one was desirous to have a share; there was about the Middle of the Hill a Tribunal Erected, upon which after the Letter of the Pope had been read, St. Bernard made a Speech to the People, with marvellous Force of Spirit, Eloquence and Zeal, represen­ting to them in most Tender and moving Terms the Miserable Condition of the Christians in the East, particularly since the second taking of Edessa by Noradin. For the sad News was already come to France by the late Envoys from Antioch and Jerusalem, who were come to implore the Succours of the French. He for­got nothing that might most effectually move their Hearts; he pressed them with the Considerations of the Glory of their Ancestors, whose Conquests they were in Honor bound to defend and preserve; he urged their own Eternal Ad­vantage, which they might assure to themselves by this kind of Martyrdom, which they Voluntarily underwent by the Spirit of Penitence, for the Abolition of all the Disorders and all the Crimes of their former Lives; and above all he insisted upon the Honor of Jesus Christ, whom he made appear as marching himself at the Head of the Crusades to Jerusalem, to be there as it were once a­gain Crucified, if it were necessary for the Salvation of those that followed him.

So soon as he had finished his Discourse, the King who had heard him with all the Marks of a most tender and sensible Devotion, rising from his Throne, threw himself at his Feet, humbly demanding of him the Cross which the Pope had sent to this pious Abbot to bestow upon him: he received it from his Hands with an extreme Respect, and having himself fastened it to his Right Shoulder, he did not believe he prostituted the Royal Dignity in any sort, by mounting in that Condition up to the Tribunal with St. Bernard, and from thence to exhort the People, as he did with incredible Zeal, to follow the Example of their King. This Action far stronger and more perswasive than all the Eloquence of the Saint, was immediately followed with a General Acclamation of all those who stood round about, who with one Voice as it were by Consent cried out, The Cross, The Cross. And at the same time Queen Eleonor, the Daughter of St. William Duke of Guienne and Earl of Poitiers presented herself to receive the Cross, and was followed by all the Great Men of the Realm, the Principal whereof were Robert Earl of Dreux, Brother to the King; Alphonsus Earl of St. Giles, Tierry Earl of Flanders, Guy Earl of Nevers; Renald his Brother Earl of Tonnerre; Yues Earl of Soissons, William Earl of Ponthieu; Henry the Son of Theobald Earl of Blois; William Earl of Varrennes; Archibald de Bourbon; En­guerrand de Couci; Geoffry Rancon de Taillebourg; Hugh de Lusignan; William de Courtenay; Renauld de Montargis; Ithier de Thoci; Guicher de Montgeay; E­verard de Breteil; Dreux de Mouchi; Manasses de Bulli; Ancel de Trenel; Guerin his Brother; William Bouteiller; William Agilons de Trie; and among the Prelats, Si­mon Bishop of Noyon; Godfrey Bishop of Langress; Alwin Bishop of Arras; Arnoeld Bishop of Lizieux; Herbert Abbot of St. Peter of Sens; and Theobald Abbot of St. Colomb, of the same City. In short, there was not one of the whole Assembly who did not protest that they would have the Cross, and St. Ber­nard after having thrown down from this Tribunal a great Quantity which he had caused to be made up in great Bundles, was obliged to satisfie their Impor­tunity, to cut his Robe into small pieces, and upon the Spot to make it into new Crosses, which he dispersed among them; being forced at last to give the rest the Liberty to cross themselves since it was impossible to make so many Crosses as would suffice so vast a Number.

This was what was done in the Assembly of Verelay; as for the rest the King adjourned the Deliberation of what was further to be done to another far grea­ter, which was to be held the third Sunday after Easter at Chatres, where al­most [Page 96]all the Arch Bishops and Bishops of France were present as if it had been a General Councel. year 1146 The Resolution of the King, who was present at the Sy­nod, with all the other Princes of the Crusade, was there generally approved; and which one cannot without some difficulty believe, if St. Bernard himself had not writ it, that which made the greatest Impression upon Mens Spirits, was that the happy Success of the Voyage, and of the War depended upon him; and that it was there resolved by a Common Consent, not only that he should go along with them, but also that he should have the General Command of the Army, which could not fail of being always Victorious, under a Cheistain, who was believed to be the Disposer of God Almighties Power, by the Gift of Miracles which all the World attributed to him. So easily do the Spirits of men pre­possessed with the Opinion of the Sanctity of a Person, suffer themselves to be seduced, to take an irregular Conduct, abandoning good Sense and that Reason which God hath bestowed upon them to regulate and govern the Deliberation of those Affairs which they are about to undertake. But St. Bernard who was a man of a different Complexion from Peter the Hermit, and who knew admira­bly how to make Wisdom and Reason consort with Grace and Devotion, op­posed himself stoutly against this Resolution, which he believed was wholy disso­nant to Prudence and Reason. He writ to the Pope concerning it, and made it so evident to him who understood War, which he did not in the least, that it must needs be a Prodigy of ill Presage, to see a man devoted to a severe Profession of Religion to take upon himself the Command of the Army; that they were at last satisfied that he should do his Duty according to his Profession, in prea­ching up the Crusade; as for any thing more, the Weakness of his Natural Constitution and his Age gave him a Dispensation from the Toils and Hazards of a Voyage to the Holy Land.

Being therefore resolved to preserve himself always within the Bounds of his Condition and to apply himself only to that which was his pro­per Ministry; he set himself to preach the Crusade with so much Zeal, Power, and Success, that there was never seen a greater Concourse of People, then ran from all Parts to have the good Fortune to receive the Cross from his Hands, Geossry who writes his Life, that it pleased God to confirm and approve of his preaching by a Prodigious Number of Miracles which he did in healing all kind of Diseases by his Prayers and the Imposition of his Hands. But as some of the Historians who gives us this Account produce no manner of particular Proofs, but content themselves with saying so only in general Terms, and on the other Hand it is well known that in those times, they were not so strict and exact in their Examination of those kind of Things, as they are in our days, but were rather inclined to make even Credulity it self a Matter of great Merit, I think every Person is at Liberty to believe at his own Discretion, without detracting in the least from the Eminent Sanctity of St. Bernard. And that which makes this ap­pear more reasonable is that this great man himself, in that Apology which he made after the ill Fortune of this Voyage, does not in justifying himself, in the least inssist upon the Miracles which God wrought by his preaching, but by the Obedience which he owed to the Pope, who had commanded him to preach. Be it as it will; it is most certain as he himself says, the Obedience which he ren­dred to the Pope in preaching the Crusade, became so successful that it produ­ced an infinite of Crusades; insomuch that the Towns and Villages, were almost dispeopled of their Inhabitants, except the Children and the Women, who re­mained as Widows during the Lives of their Husbands; thus it was that he spoke, not knowing that so many of them were to be so in Reality. As for the rest, in that time that he preached with so much Success in France, he advanced the Crusade no less by his Pen in Italy and Germany, whither he writ most Eloquent Letters, wherein he Exhorted the People to take up the Cross, with all the most power­ful Motives which were Capable of touching their Christian Compassion; and in one of them he advertized the Germans to take Care that they did not suffer them­selves to be seduced by a certain Vagabond Monk one Radulph who had taken up­on him without any Commission to preach the Crusade, at Cologne, Mayence, Worms, Spire, Strasbourg and thereabouts, exciting the People to Massacre the Jews under Pretext of slgnalizing their Zeal against the Enemies of Jesus Christ. [Page 97]He writ the same in pretty Boisterous Terms to the Arch-Bishop of Mayence, year 1146 perswading him to treat this Ignorant Monk as an Usurper upon the Sacred Office of Preaching, and as a detestable Heretick, who Authorized the fearful Sin of Murder; And understanding, that this furious Disorder increased daily by the Seditious Sermons of this Impudent Impostor, he went himself into Germa­ny to acquit himself of the Commission he had received from the Pope, to preach the Crusade there, and arrived at Spires, where the Emperor had called a General Diet against the Feast of the Nativity.

The Emperor at that time was Conrade the third of that Name Duke of Sua­bia, and Franconia, who after the Death of the Emperor Lotharius, of the House of Saxony, had ascended the Imperial Throne about eight Years be­fore, and till then had reigned with abundance of good Fortune and Glory. The Devout Abbot treated with him both in Private and Publick concerning the in­tended Enterprize of the Holy War. He there did his accustomed Wonders; and though he preached in a Language which the People did not understand, yet such was the manner of his Delivery, that it wrought more upon them, then did his Interpreters who endeavoured to make them understand what it was that he said; it was enough that the People saw him, to be as it were inchanted by his very Looks, and in Consequence to be perswaded; for they ran to him from all Parts with such Heat and thronging, that one time the Emperor was forced to take him in his Arms to defend him from the Crowd which was ready to stifle him. In short, he acted and spoke so effectually in the Dict, that the Emperor and his Brother Henry Duke of Suabia, his Nephew Frederick who afterwards succeeded him in the Empire, and the greatest part of the Princes resolved to take upon them the Cross, which they also did about two Months af­ter at another Diet which was called for that purpose. Their Example was followed by the famous Otho Bishop of Friburgh, half Brother by the Mother to the Emperor; and after him by the Bishops of Ratisbonne and Passau, and an In­numerable Multitude of Lords, Gentlemen and Soldiers, who ran from all Parts of Germany to this Assembly to take part in this Holy War. Labuslaus, Duke of Bohemia, Odoacer Marquis of Stiria, and Bernard Earl of Carinthia, did the same not long after, and assembled a great Number of their Subjects, disposing themselves to attend the March of the Emperor in the beginning of the Spring.

During which time St. Bernard after having Constrained the Impostor Radulph to retire to his Monastery, and preached the Crusade in the Low Countries, re­turned back to the King, who had assembled at Estampes the Estates of his Realm, in February upon Septuagesima Sunday, there to conclude, what was necessary to be done before he undertook the Voyage. This Assembly sat but three days, in the first of which he gave them an Account of the Progress he had made in Germany, and the Generous Resolution of the Emperor, and Princes of the Empire, who had undertaken to joyn with the French in this Enterprize for the Holy Land. This was received with so much Joy, and so great Applause, that nothing further could be done that day: the next day the way by which they should march in­to Syria came under Debate, where the Ambassadors of Roger King of Sicily, who were too well acquainted with the Malice and Persidiousness of the Greeks, and the irreconcilable Hatred which they had against the Franks, did all that possibly they could to perswade them to take the Sea Passage, as did the Venetians, the Genoese and the Pisans, offering them their Ports and shipping for the Commo­dious transporting of the Army. But on the one side, in Regard it was im­possible to transport so many Troops but at several times, which would too much protract the Business, and on the other, that they could not believe that all the East was able to oppose such a flourishing Army as was then on Foot; the Resolution was taken, to sollow the same way which Godfrey of Bullen had done, and to march by Land to Constantinople; but withal to follow the Emperor at some distance, that so they might with more Ease have the Convenience of Pro­visions for the two Armies. Upon the third day by Express Order from the King, the Debate was handled concerning the Person who was most proper to be intrusted by the Government of the Realm, during the Kings Absence in so long and dangerous a Voyage. And therein, the Opinion which all men had [Page 98]of the extraordinary Abilities of Sugerius Abbot of St. Dennis, year 1146 and which was so well known by his Management of the greatest Affairs of France in the time of Lewis the Gross, was so general, that without any Diversity of Opinions, they unanimously sollicited the King, already of himself inclined to it, to con­ferr that Trust and Honor upon him.

This Great Man who without all doubt was one of the most able Ministers which ever served any of our Kings, was about the Age of fifty five Years, of a Shape and Stature something surpassing the middle, of a Meagre Countenance, and a Constitution Weak and Tender, of a Birth no ways Eminent, but a man of a mighty Soul, and of a Mind raised as high as ever any man possessed, a Spirit lively, Subtile, Penetrating, and of a Prodigious Understanding, which he had also Cultivated and polished with all manner of admirable Learning, and which was accompanied with a most happy Memory and a most solid Judg­ment: Upon the matter he was Politick, Dextrous, Insinuating, Perswasive, Civil, Obliging, Liberal and Courteous to all Persons; but on the other Hand he was a most admirable Justiciary, Magnanimous, Fearless, Firm and Inexo­rable, and continually opposite to those, who went about to shock the Royal Authority, or to abuse their own by oppressing the Weak and Poor. And that which Infinitely heightned the Lustre of all these Excellent Qualities, was that after he had by the Advice of St. Bernard reformed both his Monastery and himself, for during the Reign of Lewis the Gross who was none of the best bred men of the World, he learnt so well to accommodate all the Imploys of his Mi­nistry with those Duties which became him as a Religious and an Abbot, that he lived at the Court as if he had been in his Monastery, and when he lived in his Monastrey he forgot nothing which was owing to the Court or to the Publick. The King therefore following the Counsel of the Estates of France, declared him Regent of the Kingdom during his Absence, giving him for an Assistant, to command the Military Affairs, Raoul Earl of Vermandois, who though he was a Prince of the Blood, being Cousin to Lewis the Gross, yet submitted to the Au­thority of the Regent without the least Jealousie or murmuring; so much was that of the King reverenced even in those times, though the Royal Power was not then in any measure arrived to that high Elevation and Supreme Greatness, to which, for the Advantage and Glory of this August Monarchy we see it rai­sed at this day. And that which was yet more extraordinary in this Choice was, that this Wise Minister whose foresight was more piercing, and reached further than others, did not only, not advise the King to undertake this Voy­age, but from the Beginning did all that possibly he could to oppose that Reso­lution; foreseeing without doubt the Pernicious Consequences, which according to all Appearances in his Opinion it was like to have: So that it was out of pure Respect and Necessity, that he was at last obliged to cease opposing it, know­ing that he should gain nothing but to be blamed for endeavouring to no pur­pose to hinder the Execution of a Design which coming from the King his Master, had been approved by the General Vote of four Assemblies of all the Great Men of the Realm. Notwithstanding all this, Lewis without taking it a­miss, that he was almost the only Person in his Kingdom that did not seem to approve of this Enterprise, did not fail in this occasion, to do him the greatest Honor that a King can possibly do to a Subject; conferring upon him the Regen­cy, that is, all the Royal Power and Authority during his Absence. Which makes it evident to Kings and Princes, that though their Sovereign Power dis­penses with them from any Obligation, always to follow those Counsels which ac­cording to the Rules of Prudence they require from their Subjects, and which ought to be given them with all Faithful Sincerity; yet it is great Wisdom in them to leave their Counsellors at intire Liberty to give their Advice; lest otherwise they give it rather according to the Inclinations of their Prince, than the Senti­ments of their own Reason, Judgment and Conscience, which ought to be the Rules of all Faithful and Wise Councellors; whereas the other, though they may have been Grateful to their Masters, and sometimes advantagious to their Private Interests, yet have too frequently proved Fatal to those who have recei­ved and followed them.

As for the Abbot, he having at last submitted out of Respect and Duty to the Pleasure [Page 99]of his Master in Reference to his Voyage to the Holy Land, year 1147 he made a most obstinate Resistance to that of the Honor of so great a Charge; nor would he ever have accepted it, had not the King, as it were to compel him in a manner wholly sweet and obliging, had the Goodness, to have Recourse to the good Offices, and even the Commands of Pope Eugenius, to prevail with him to ac­cept it; for it was in this Year, some time after the Convention of the Estates at Estampes, that the Pope came into France, both to secure himself from the Per­secution of the Revolted Arnaldists, as also there to determine the Differences which were very hot, concerning certain new and Dangerous Propositions which were maintained by Gibert de Porea, Bishop of Poitiers. Eugenius was most honou­rably received by the King, and was by the Pope reciprocally received with the Pontifical Benediction in the Church of St. Dennis, where the Marks of his Pil­grimage to the Holy Land, were bestowed upon him; Lewis there desired the Pope to do him the Honor, during his Absence to take the Realm into his Pro­tection; and the Pope to answer that Mark of Piety and Affection towards the Holy See, solemnly Excommunicated all those who during the Kings Voyage should attempt any thing against the Royal Authority. After which, when the King had made all his Preparations, and had amassed great Sums of Mony for the Subsistence of his Army, even to the coining of several Sacred Vessel belonging to diverse Churches, and borrowing considerable Summs of many Monasteries with Promise of Repayment after the War, he went according to the Custom of his Ancestors to St. Dennis to take the Oriflame or Standard of that Saint. From thence he departed a little before Whitsunday towards the mid­dle of June, taking his way for Mets, where was to be the general Rendezvous of all his Troops; whilest in the mean time the Emperor, as before was agreed, marched with his towards Constantinople, where they were to rejoyn their Forces.

The Emperor accordingly having assembled almost all the Forces of the Em­pire, parted from Noremberg about the End of May, upon Ascention Day with a most flourishing Army, consisting in seventy Thousand Men, at Arms all Curi­assiers, without computing the light Horsemen, and with an Infantry the most numerous, and in the best Condition that ever any Emperor had seen before. After having passed the Danube at Batisbonne, crossed through Austria, Hun­garia, Bulgaria, and Thracia, without any of those mischievous Rencounters which happened to the first Crusades, upon the seventh of September, they en­tred into a fair, large and delicious Valley, in the middle whereof ran the River Melas, in his Passage into the Gulph of that Name or the Black Sea, and some­times borrowing the Name of Cardia an Ancient City of the Thracian Chersone­sus. The Beauty of so agreeable a place, obliged the Emperor to stay there to refresh his Army, and to Celebrate the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin which was the next day. But there happened a sad Accident, which seemed to por­tend the unlucky Success of this fatal War.

For the Army encamping while it was yet Early day, and it happening to be a Serene and Glorious Evening, and the Medows on each side of the River exten­ding themselves a great length to the very Foot of the Mountains, there was nothing during the whole Voyage to be seen so fair and magnificent as this En­campment. For the Camp represented some fair and lofty City, being compo­sed of an Infinite Number of very rich Tents, which were disposed in diverse Streets the whole length of the Plain as far as one could well discern, till they came to a little rising Hill, where stood the Pavilions of Duke Frederick, and ap­peared like the Cittadel of this Enchanted City. They passed the Evening with great Jollity, solacing themselves after the Fatigues of so long a March which they had endured a little before they were to go to their Repose; after that the Bishops had begun the Solemnity of the following Festival by the Publick Prayers for the Eve of Ascention, the Heavens began to be darkned with a few small Clouds which produced some light Drops rather of Dew than Rain; but within a Moment after there arose one of those furious Whirlwinds which they call Hurri­canes, which made such a disorder as is not imaginable; for immediately the Impetuosity of these contrary Winds which rushed one against the other with a most dreadful roaring, was so great, that having broken all the Cordages which held up the Tents, all this City without Foundation, was partly tumbled [Page 100]down to the Ground, year 1147 and partly hoisted up into the Air, where the Winds which wrapt themselves up in the Pavilions, made them sly about, and after­wards tore them in a thousand pieces; this Storm was succeeded by such fearful Deluge of Rain, as made a thousand litle Torrents come rolling down from the Neighbouring Mountains into the Plain, which by their Rapidity carried be­fore them Men, Beasts, Moveables, and what ever they incountred in their Passage; and at the same time the South-Wind the most violent of the rest, drove up the Water of the River, and swelled it with the Huge Waves of the Sea to that prodigious height, that it overflowed all the Banks in that furious manner, that all the Plain was drowned to the very Foot of the Mountains.

It is impossible to express the Tumult, the Consternation, and the Despera­tion of the Army upon this Terrible Accident; all that the great Lords and Ca­valiers could do, was to run half naked to their Horses, to get to the Moun­tains over this new Sea, which had now taken Possession of those Beautiful Medows, with which they were before so much delighted: As for the poor Foot some of them got hold of the Tails of the Horses, whilest others quaking with Wet and Cold as well as Fear, followed the Track of the Horsemen; a great many got upon the Waggons as upon a Rampart, and others stood im­moveable in the Places where they were up to the middle in Water, waiting for the End of this Dreadful Tempest; some by mistake falling into the River by reason the Banks could not be discerned miserably perished in the Waters, and almost all lost the greatest part of their Baggage. The loss of men however was not extraordinary in regard that the Tempest was too violent to last long. The Inundation ceased in a few hours, and the Waters falling immediately after, the dispersed Souldiers rendevouzed upon the Mountain before the Em­peror, who learnt in this Rencontre, how easie it is in a Moment for God to a­base the Pride of men, and when he pleaseth to humble the most formidable Powers of the Earth which are weak and miserable in Comparison of him. This Prince, who entertained himself with these Pious and Christian Medita­tions, received this Blow of the Hand of Almighty God, with great Humili­ty and Submission to the Orders of his Providence, and evidenced an extraor­dinary Greatness of Soul, and Constancy of Mind under this Affliction, thereby to encourage his Army, at the Head of which he continued to march very chear­fully; leading them to lodge in the Suburbs of Constantinople, there in some measure to recover this Loss.

In this time a fair Fleet composed of above a hundred Sail of Germans, Eng­lish, Flemings and French, which several private Persons had rigged out to make their Voyage more easily and quickly by Sea, was diverted by an Adventure which was worth more than one Crusade, and in which they happily found in Europe all that Glory which they went to search after in Asia; This Fleet set Sail from England the twelfth of April, having on board three or four Thousand men commanded by their particular Captains. After they had for a long time met with foul Weather and Cross Winds, at last they came to an Anchor before Lisbon thinking there to refresh themselves; when they were surprised by find­ing that great City besieged by an Army of Christians, to whom God sent this unexpected Succour, to take Lisbon from the Sarasins, and to make it the Ca­pital City of that Realm, which a Prince descended from the House of France had newly founded. This Prince was Henry the Grand-Son of Robert of France, Duke of Burgundy, and Second Son of King Robert. He being young and a passionate Lover of Glory went to seek for it in Spain, at the Wars against the Moors, towards the latter end of the Reign of Ferdinand the first King of Castile, and made his first Campagne under that famous Captain Dom Roderigo de Bivar, so well known in the World under the Glorious Name of Cid. After the Death of Ferdinand, he linked himself to Dom Alphonso King of Leon, and rendred him such Important Services in both his Fortunes, that that Prince after the Death of his two Brothers Dom Sancho, and Dom Garchia, succeding to all the Estates of his Father Ferdinand, he gave him in Marriage his Daughter Theresa, whom he had by his first Wife Chimena de Gusman. He himself also marrying the Prin­cess Constantia the Daughter of the Duke of Burgundy and Aunt to Prince Henry, to whom he also gave the City of Porto, and sometime after, all the Estate [Page 101]which he held in Portugal, year 1147 which in his Favor he Erected into the Dignity and Title of an Earldom. It is said also that he sent him with the Princes of the first Crusade to the Conquest of the Holy Land, whereupon all Occasions he Signa­lized his Courage and his Conduct. But in regard we find no Traces of this Voyage in the Authors, his Contemporaries, who have written very exactly of that War, I think I ought not to Incur any Displeasure, if I give little Credit to some of the Historians of Portugal, who upon very weak Conjectures have been pleased to Rank among the Heroes of that famous Crusade, the Illustrious Head of the House of Portugal, though he had such a sufficient Stock of true Glory, as not to stand in need of searching for that which may with so much Justice be disputed.

That which he hath which is most certain is, that this admirable Earl after ha­ving Defeated the Moors in seventeen pitched Battles, and Conquered from them the greatest part of Portugal, which he added to that which his Father-in-Law had given him in absolute Soveraignty, he dying left this new Earldom to his Son Alphonso, who gloriously changed it into a Kingdom. For he was Solemnly proclaimed King in the Field of Battle, at the memorable Day of Ourique, where he defeated the Army of five Moorish Kings who had Assembled against him all their Forces, which consisted in more than four hundred thousand Men. The five Kings lay upon the Place Buried in the Heaps of the dead Bo­dies of their Soldiers, who were piled one upon another; in Memory whereof the new King, who believed that during the Battle he had seen Jesus Christ up­on the Cross, who promised him the Victory, changed the Cross Azure in the Field Argent, which his Father had taken for his Coat Armor, into five Es­coucheons Azure, every one charged with five Besants Argent in Saltire, to which afterwards was added a Border Gules charged with seven Castles Or. This is that valiant King Descended from a Prince of the most August House of France, from whom in a direct Line Male Issued the other sixteen Kings, who Reigned till the time of Cardinal Henry for six Hundred Years in Portugal, whose Dominions Extended afterwards into three other Parts of the World, Affrica, Asia, and America, where the Heroick Piety and Courage of the Por­tugese, by finding a new Passage to the Indies, have Established the Empire of Jesus Christ, as well as that of their own Nation; and as one of their Rivers having for some time hid it self under the Earth, afterwards appears again and runs much greater than before; so doth the Illustrious Blood of our Kings, which hath so long run in the Royal Channel of Portugal, at length, after having for more than sixty Years ceased to appear in its natural Place, the Throne of Portugal, which it ought to fill, begin in our days to Recover it self with the Applause of all the World, in the Person of King John the Fourth, the Head of the Royal House of Braganza, who besides that he Possesses all the Title of the Infanta Catharina, is also Descended in the direct Masculin Line, as also from that of John the First, from whom are Issued the last Kings unto Sebastian.

But it was this great Alphonso, the Son of Earl Henry, and first King of Portugal, who after he had taken Santaren, and all the places about Lisbon, Be­sieged that great City, which was Defended by above two hundred thousand Men. After he had unprofitably spent a whole Month in the Siege, having but a few Troops in comparison of such a Number of Defendants, he began to de­spair of his Enterprise, when he discovered this great Fleet at Sea, which he imagined to be that of the Affrican Kings; but he presently after perceived by the Cross which they bore in their Flags, that it was a Christian Fleet. He sent immediately to be satisfied what they were, and upon what Design, and being informed that it was a Party of Crusades, who were going against the In­fidels, he went Aboard the Admiral, and proposed to the Captains the Conquest of one of the fairest Cities in the World, from those Enemies which they were going to Search for in Syria. He Remonstrated to them, That God had presen­ted to them a fair Occasion for the present Accomplishment of their Vow, in Combating for the Glory of Christ Jesus, against his Enemies, and that with­out exposing themselves by the Hazard of the Sea, to the Danger of never Com­bating them at all: That they would acquire more Honor by taking Lisbon with the Assistance of those few Portugeses who Besieged it, than they could [Page 102]possibly hope for, year 1147 by joyning in Syria with two such Puissant Armies as were those of the Emperor and King of France, to which they would be Esteemed as nothing; and besides, that the Recompence which they might expect would be incomparably greater, giving them the Word of a King, that they should share the Conquest with him. There was no necessity for him to say more to persuade People who sought nothing but Occasion to Fight against the Sarasins; they with Joy accepted the Offer of the King, and presently gave Order for the Disimbarking of their Troops, and went to take their Post upon the West Quarter, the King with his Army being already Incamped on the East Side of the City, in the place where now stands the Monastery of St. Vincent.

If the Attacque was Hot, Furious, and often repeated by the Portuguese and the Crusades, the Resistance was no ways less on the part of the Moors, who far surpassed the Christians in Number. This made the Siege last four Months, till the twenty fifth day of October, when the City was in the End taken by Assault, all the romainder of the Sarasins being put to the Sword, thereby to Extinguish that accursed Race of Men. Thus this new Kingdom of Portugal, which was Founded by a French Prince, was owing for the glorious Conquest of its Capital City, principally to the Valour of the French Men, they being the greatest Number of this Naval Army; for tho there were English and other Nations among them, yet anciently the Title which the Portuguese gave indiffe­rently to all Strangers, was that of French Men. The King also Imployed them in the taking of Almada, Sintria, Palmela, and a great many other Places: After which, it being now too late to pursue their Voyage into Palestine, the greatest part of these generous Crusades, highly Satisfied with the punctual Fi­delity of the King, who offered them one half of Lisbon, nobly refused it, and contenting themselves with the rich Presents which the King was pleased to make them, Returned loaden with those and Glory into their respective Coun­tries; some of the most remarkable of the Captains being willing to remain in the Service of a King so Valiant and Liberal, setled in Portugal, and there Found­ed those illustrious Houses, which to this very time hold the first rank of No­bility in that Kingdom. See now what happy Success befel the smallest of the three Armies of this second Crusade, whilest the other two, incomparably the greater in Number, but incomparably the less Successful, disposed themselves to put in Execution their Enterprise by Land.

For in the same time that the Naval Army made Sail upon the Ocean, the young King Lewis began to March with his by Land. The Earl of Morienne, and the Marquis de Monferat, his two Uncles by the Mother, joyned him at Mets with many brave Italian Troops; he received also a Reinforcement of Troops which were raised in Lorrain by the Bishops of Metz and Toul, by Renand Earl of Monson, Brother to the Bishop of Metz, and by Hugh Earl of Vaudemont. So that this Army Royal was as strong in Cavalry, and much better Mounted and Armed, and not much inferior in Infantry to the Imperial Army, which taking the same Way, it Marched to joyn in Thracia. But it was Difficult for one single Province to contain such a prodigious Multitude of Valiant Soldiers, which might easily have Triumphed over the whole East, if they had been sufficiently Precautioned as they ought against the most dangerous Enemy which they had to Encounter, which was the Greek Emperor, whom they took to be their Friend.

This Emperor was Manuel, the Son of Calo Johannes, and Grandchild of A­lexis Comnenius, who hath rendred his Name so Infamously Odious by his Persi­diousness towards the Princes of the first Crusade, and who notwithstanding, never Arrived near the height of that horrible Baseness and Wickedness of this his Grandson, of whom I speak. He was a Prince in whom both his Good and his Evil Qualities were so Interwoven, that in the beginning of his Reign, made it doubtful whether he did not deserve the Empire, of which his Father had Disinherited his Elder Brother, to bestow it upon him. For, besides that the Lustre of some Virtues which he had, seemed very well to Conceal his Vices, He was in Person very well made, tall, but stooping a little, his Face was very Pleasing, his Colour Lively, his Eyes Sweet and Winning, accompanied with a certain Smile very natural to him, and Charming to those who had the Ho­nor to Approach him, he had Spirit, a natural Eloquence, and a great deal of [Page 103]Knowledge; he was besides Politick and Prudent above his Age, year 1147 which was yet but in the Flower of his Youth, and nevertheless Brave, Fearless, Hardy, Daring, and ready in the Execution of what he undertook, never considering when he saw an Enemy, whether he should give Battle or not, and one who not only Loved War, but supported the greatest Toils and Hardships of it, with as much Pleasure as the meanest Soldier of Fortune. But all these good Qualities were corrupted by his Wickedness which far surpassed them. For in the time of Peace, never was there any Prince more Dissolute than he in all manner of Debauches, without taking the least Care in the World to preserve his Reputation by concealing his Vices; for he Lived in most, scandalous In­cest with the Princess Theodora his Niece, with as little Precaution as if she had been his Wife. Besides he was cruelly Covetous, rapaciously taking what he pleased, and fottishly Prodigal, lavishing all, even the Mony with which he was to pay his Soldiers and maintain his Navies, giving away his Treasures without Discretion and without Measure, to his Niece, to the Eunuchs, and to Strangers, who flattered him in his Brutal Passions. He was after all this, infinitely Jea­lous, and outrageously Cruel where he suspected, Superstitious even to Folly, especially in Judicial Astrology, believing in every thing the false Oracles of his Figure-Flingers, who Abused him to his very Death, promising him a little be­fore it fourteen Years of a most delicious and pleasant Life; but that which is infinitely more Dangerous, he was Rash and Presumptuous in the matter of Re­ligion; insomuch that he commanded by an Edict that a place of Scripture should be Explained in his Sense, which clearly gave it for the Heresy of Ari­us; at another time he put out a Decree, which openly favoured the false Law of the Impostor Mahomet. But in short, that of his devilish Qualities which was most eminent in him, was his Persidiousness, which made him commit the blackest and most horrid Crimes upon the Occasion of this second Crusade, which have rendred his Memory eternally Execrable to the whole Earth.

He received at the first the Ambassadors of Conrade indifferently well, they coming from his Brother-in-Law; for these two Emperors had married two Sisters, the Daughters of old Berengarius Earl of Luxemburgh and Sultzbach; He also sent some Troops to meet the Emperor, not so much out of Respect or Honor, but to observe his Motion during the remainder of his March to Con­stantinople, where at his Arrival he was but very coldly Received; either be­cause Manuel could not without some Displeasure see a Prince who took upon him that Quality, which the Greeks pretend appertained only to their Emperor; or that he feared that the Germans, who had had great Differences upon the March with the Greeks, should indeavour to Revenge themselves; or rather that he was resolved to Execute what he had plotted against them, as soon as he could possibly. In short, he did so violently press their Departure, that without giving them the Liberty almost of taking Breath, the Army was con­strained to pass the Strait, upon the Vessels which he had ready to waft them over into Asia, where this perfidious Emperor had long before disposed all things for the ruine of this Army. For so soon as he understood that great Prepa­rations were making in the West for this second Crusade, he secretly gave Ad­vise to Mamut the Nephew of Soliman the Sultan of Iconium, who Reigned in Lycaonia, Cappadocia, and Galatia, and pressed him vigorously to take up Arms against this Army of the Crusades, which he was like to have upon his Hands. Whereupon the Sultan, immediately sent to all the Princes of his Nation, to come for their common Interest, with all the Forces they could raise, to Suc­cour him against the Christians; which they did before one could well think it possible, sending him a most formidable Army, composed of an infinite num­ber of Turks of the two Armenia's, Cappadocia, Isauria, Cilicia, Persia and Media.

But this was not all, for this perfidious Emperor, laid of his own Soldiers continual Ambuscades within his Territories, on both sides of the Army in their March, commanding them to Kill, as they did without Mercy, all those who straggled never so little from the Body of the Army, which for that rea­son not being able to march at any Compass, suffered extremely for want of Provisions. Not contented with this, having promised the Emperor to fur­nish [Page 104]his Troops with Provisions for their Money, year 1147 he gave order underhand, by a cursed piece of Wickedness, to mingle Quick-lime among their Flower, which was to make Bread for the Soldiers; which brought a strange Mortality among the poor Germans, whose extream Hunger would not permit them to perceive the cruel Cheat; for they greedily devoured these poysoned Morsels, to satis­fie the Importunity of their starved Appetites; and so miserably perished. He caused the Gates of all the Towns in their Passage to be shut against them, not permitting any of them to enter, to buy Provision; but if they would have any, the Greeks upon the Walls would tell them, they would furnish them for their Money, provided they first received it by Baskets which they let down to them from the Walls; and then the treacherous Villains, as if they had been inspired by their perfidious Emperor, returned only Derision, instead of Com­modities, in exchange for their Silver. If at any time they were, as many were, constrained to sell some part of their Equipage, to get Subsistence, they gave them, who understood nothing of their Coins, false Money instead of current; which, when they went to buy for their necessity, would not pass in Payment. In short, there was no sort of Mischief, which this faithless Prince, who had no sparks of Honour or common Honesty left, did not invent and execute, for the destruction of this Army.

But the most detestable of all his Treasons, and that which compleated their entire Ruin was, that he gave them Traytors for their Guides and Conductors, who were resolved to deliver them into the hands of the Turks. There are two Ways by which one may go to Antioch; the one upon the Left, the shorter, but more difficult and dangerous, by reason of the Deserts, and the Mountains, which must be passed, in going through those more In-land Countries, which lie remote from the Sea: the other Way lay upon the Right Hand, and was fur­ther about, following all along by the Sea-Coast; but withal, this was the most secure, and most plentiful for the Subsistence of the Army. When they were arrived at Nicomedia, it was taken into Deliberation, what Course, of these two, they should take: Otho, Bishop of Friburg, and some others of the wiser sort, were of Opinion, that they should take the way by the Sea, as the most safe; especially, since they could not resolve to rely upon the Faith of the Greeks, in their Passage in an unknown Country: but the Emperor, who desired no­thing but to sight with the Turks, believing that all Asia, if it were together, was not able to resist him, would follow his Guides, who promised, in a few days, to bring him into Lycaonia, a most fertile Country, and abounding with all things; and even to Iconium, where, they assured him, the Sultan would never have the Confidence to stay for his Coming.

There is nothing that, in probability, can be more conducing to the Ruin of the bravest Army, than the Presumption of their General; who, believing him­self invincible, does not take those Precautions, and those Measures, without which, the Greatness of his Forces serve to no other purpose, but more easily to occasion their Ruin. Conrad, puft up with the Glory of such a flourishing Army, as none of his Predecessors had ever commanded, lost his Judgment, to that degree, that he could not see, what every common Man of Sense must needs know, that it is impossible, without extream Imprudence, and running the most dangerous Risque in the World, to trust to the good or ill Faith of two or three unknown Persons; and thereby make them absolute Masters, both of his own Fortune, and that of his whole Army. Upon the matter, he was so blin­ded, that these Traytors having assured him, as he lay encamped near Nice, that there was no necessity of taking along with him more than eight days Provision, for that in that time they would not fail to bring him to Iconium: So that he suffered himself to be conducted, with all his great Army, in its magnificent Pomp, like a Victim crowned with Flowry Garlands, to have its Throat cut upon the Altar. For the eight days being past, they perceived that the Tray­tors, instead of taking the Right Hand, to conduct the Army into Lycaonia, had taken the Left, to engage them insensibly in the Deserts, and the Straits of Mount Taurus, towards Cappadocia; where they found themselves without Pro­visions, or the hopes of procuring any, in a Country so frightfully barren, that it had no other Inhabitants but Bears, Tigers, Lyons, Wolves, and other wild [Page 105]Beasts, who dwelt among the Rocks and Mountains. The Emperor, year 1147 astonish­ed to find himself in this terrible danger, commanded the Guides to be brought before him, where he reproached them severely: to which the perfidious Vil­lains answered coldly, that they were not too blame, for they thought that the Army would have taken longer Marches; but they assured him, with horrible Oaths, that, provided they would make a little more haste, they should, within three days, arrive in a most plentiful Country.

It is some pain to believe there should be so injudicious a Conduct in a Prince, to whom his Age, and Acquaintance with the World, ought to have given more Experience: for, instead of securing these Cheats, whose Credit ought to have been, after this, very much suspected, he left them at liberty to escape, as they did the Night following, and ran over the Mountains, to the Camp of the Turks, who daily expected them, to take their Measures accordingly. And thereupon they did not fail, immediately to appear on all sides, upon the Rocks, and the Tops of the Mountains, to invest this Army, which was now reduced to live upon the Flesh of their Horses, and know not what Resolution to take; whether to retreat, or to advance. Never was there seen so piteous an Overthrow of so gal­lant an Army. The Turks, who knew the Country, and who were lightly armed, flew about with ease, and without danger, on every side assailing these poor Troops, half defeated with Famine, and heavily armed, and who could not be assisted by those few Horse that were left, who were able to do little Service among the craggy and impassable Mountains. So the Infidels, who never came nearer than within the distance of their Bows, without fear of Lance, Sword, or these cutting Arms, which were of no use to those who carried them, dis­charged, with a Certainty of hitting, and at their pleasure, a most dreadful Cloud of Arrows upon that great Multitude, and then retired, without searing a Pursuit from the half-dismounted Cavalry: Within a Moment they would re­turn again, to make another Discharge upon these poor People, at whom they shot, from the higher Ground, to the lower, as at a Butt; they, in the mean time, being neither able to defend themselves, nor revenge their death. So that, without the Expence of one Man to the Turk, the poor Conrade, who himself was wounded, though but slightly, with two Arrows, was compelled to aban­don all his Baggage, the Dead and Dying, the Sick, and the greatest part of his Infantry to the Mercy of the Turks, who killed a great number, and carried the rest into miserable Slavery; the Emperor himself, with great difficulty, esca­ping, not with above the tenth part of his Army, retired to the French Camp, which was now advanced as far as Nice.

For while the Emperor Conrade marched before, and was making this unfor­tunate Voyage, the King, after having taken a Review of his Army at Metz, passed the Rhine at Wormes, the 29th of June, where he was most magnificently entertained; and the Danube, at Ratisbonne; from whence he marched to New­burgh, and so through Austria and Hungary, without any molestation: But be­ing once entred upon the Territories of the Greek Emperor, he found, oftner than once, the perfidiousness of that unworthy Prince; who had given under­hand Orders to all his Officers, to do him all the mischief which possibly they could do in his Passage. He did the same also himself, to the Ambassadors which the King had sent, accompanied with a considerable number of the French No­bility; who received a thousand Affronts and Displeasures, at the same time that this dis-loyal Man made them a thousand Protestations of Amity and Friend­ship. The King, however, who was resolute to pursue his first Design, and who, with case, defeated the Troops which endeavoured to oppose his Passage, dissembling these Injuries, though some there were, who counselled him to Re­venge, he being much stronger than the Emperor. In Conclusion, the begin­ning of October, he arrived at Constantinople; where Manuel, who knew his own Guilt, and was in mighty fear of such a formidable Power, as he was in no possibility of resisting, received him with all the Respects and Honours ima­ginable.

All the Great Persons of the Empire, the Patriarch, with the whole Clergy, and all the several Companies of the City, went out to meet him; and the Em­peror himself, cloathed in his Imperial Robes, received him at the Gate of the [Page 106]great Palace. year 1147 The meeting of these two Princes was, certainly, a very great and extraordinary Appearance: they were both about the same Years, being near twenty eight; both of them of a Majestick Composure, admirably well shaped, and of noble Presence, and both of them most magnificently habited, though after a different manner: and as they both knew, admirably well, how to dissemble; the one, by Nature and Malice; the other, by Art and Pru­dence; there was not the least Punctilio of Respect, Tenderness and Affection, which they did not, upon this occasion, reciprocally bestow, one upon the other; They embraced, they kissed, and entertained each other, by their Inter­preters, for a long time, in the Emperor's Chamber, environed with the prin­cipal Lords of the one and the other Nation: And the Emperor, after he had given the King a thousand Praises upon the Subject of his glorious Enterprize, and had wished him all manner of prosperous Success, offering to serve him with all that ever he had, his Forces and Estate, he made him be conducted by all the great Lords of the Empire, to the Palace, which was most magnificent­ly prepared for him. The next Day, he accompanied him to the Church of St. Sophia, and the other most celebrated Churches, which the King had a mind to visit: after which, he treated him at an Entertainment, where the magnifi­cent Preparations, the sumptuous, rich and admirable Variety, accompanied with all the usual Attendants of Rejoycing, surpassed all that ever had been done by his Predecessors, in their most splendid Receptions of other Princes and Kings. He himself also ordered, that so he might satisfie the King's De­votion, that the Festival of St. Dennis the Areopagite, the Apostle of France, whom the Greek Church acknowledged, as well as the Latin, should be celebrated with a most extraordinary Pomp; causing the Divine Offices to be performed with all the most Ceremonious Solemnity, and most admirable Musick; which, to the French, who are naturally Lovers of Novelties, was most pleasing and de­lightful. In short, he did all that possibly he could, to please the King; say­ing to him such smooth and obliging things, and framing his Countenance, his Eyes, his Gestures, and all his Actions, into so perfect a Harmony and Com­posure of extream Joy and Satisfaction, that the greatest part of the Lords, who judged the depth of his heart by these deluding Appearances, which lay uppermost upon his Actions, were persuaded, that he acted most sincerely, and loved the King with all his heart.

But the Bishop of Langress, who was a Man of wonderful Prudence, and who observed every thing with a curious eye, easily perceived that all this was Artifice; and that under all these affected Testimonies of a feigned Amity, there lay hid some dangerous Treason, which ought, by some generous Reso­lution, to be prevented, by putting the Greeks, the mortal Enemies of the French, out of the capacity of doing them any mischief. Upon the Debate, therefore, of the Council, which was holden to deliberate concerning the March of the Army, which the Emperor pressed with a great deal of Heat and Ear­nestness; when it came to the Bishop's share to speak, he gave advice, which, if it had been followed as warmly, as it was slighted imprudently, had in a few days, put a period to the War, to the immortal Glory of the French, as well as to the universal Good of Christendom. For he said that, In his Opinion, it was neither convenient for the King to stay there any long time, to attend the coming up of the Troops which were expected from Italy; nor yet, according to the sense of others, to be so hasty to pass the Strait, to joyn with the Ger­mans: but that in his Judgment, the King ought to lay hold on that fair Oc­casion which God Almighty seemed to present him, and to strike the last, and the great Blow to that Holy War, by making himself Master of Constantinople. This, Sir, added he, is the only, absolute, and necessary way for Your Majesty, hap­pily to finish this War, to assure the Conquests in the East, and to make new ones, by repulsing, to the remotest Confines of Persia, those Infidels who now dispute with us the Possession of Palestine, and of Syria. For, most certainly, so long as we leave Constan­tinople behind us, in the hands of the perfidious Manuel, we are assured there of a most potent and treacherous Enemy; who will not fail to cut off from us all Re-inforcements of men, and all Supplies of Provision; without which, it is impossible for Armies to sub­sist: and who will do more towards our Destruction, by his secret Correspondencies and [Page 107]Intelligence with our Enemies, than all the Barbarians are able, by their united Forces. year 1147 The implacable, the ineconciliable Hatred which this perfidious Nation have entertained against us, is too frequently, and too loudly proclaimed, to permit us to repose the least Confidence in them; Nor does it now sleep under these slight Appearances of Amity, but out of pure fear of the Power of our Arms; and so soon as they shall see themselves de­livered from those uneasie Fetters, we shall find the same Effects, which others before us have felt and found from so many horrible Treasons of these Greeks, who have nei­ther any sense of Honour or Honesty, or any manner of regard to the Dictates of com­mon Faith, or good Conscience. Their Intentions are most evident; and Manuel makes it very clearly appear, that he intends, not only to tread in the steps of his per­fidious Father and Grandfather, but to out-do them; since he hath had the Confidence to demand of the French Nobility, that they should do him Homage, even in the Pre­sence of Your Majesty. Let us therefore, once for all, remove this dangerous Obstacle of our Conquests: Let us, by one generous Blow, assure our selves, both of the Freedom of Passage, and of all the Cities of this Empire, both in Europe and Asia, which will, doubtless, follow the Fortune of this Capital City: And let us not, by a foolish Scru­pulosity, spare an Enemy, who will never cease to employ all the blackest Contrivances of a mischievous Mind, to ruin and destroy us. It ever was, and ever will be lawful, to prevent our own, by his Ruin, who hath contrived ours: And were there nothing else, the repeated Attempts of his Troops, and the Baseness of his People towards us, in our Passage hither, which, doubtless, was by his secret Orders, so contrary to the Faith they had given us, and for which that dis-loyal Man will not make the least Re­paration, are sufficient to legitimate the Vengeance which we ought to take upon him and his perfidious People. In short, Since this holy War which we have undertaken is just, it is also just to make use of those Ways and Means which are absolutely necessary to make it successful; and that, nothing can assure us, but the Taking of Constantinople. And to me it appears, the Voice of God, who himself seems to call us to it; and, by opening the Gates of this City to us, to give us an easie Conquest over it: for we have nothing more to do, but to cut off their Water, by breaking the Conduits, and slopping those proud Aqueducts which supply them therewith: Or if we be obliged to make use of Force, their Fortifications are all ruinous, the Towers half demolished to our hands, the Ditches almost filled and grown up, the Walls weak and defenceless, and, for the most part, ready to fall before our Faces; as if God, without the help of Engines, had him­self undertaken to make Breaches, large enough in all reason for us to enter; which we may do without Resistance, since we have, not only one of the bravest Armies that ever yet were seen, but that also these pitiful Greeks, with whom we have to do, are most miserable Cowards, without Conduct, without Experience in War, and abandoned of God, for their Schism, Heresie, and horrible Perfidiousness and Impieties. For which Reasons, Sir, I argue, that before we advance any further in the Pursuit of the great End which Your Majesty hath proposed, we ought to take this Way, and this Means, which will conduct us to it, and which does not only appear of absolute necessity, but highly just, and equally easie.

This Discourse of the Bishop was diversly received in the Council: Some of the Wisest approved it, but it was contradicted by the Majority, rather out of a vain Scrupulosity, than any manner of Reason which they had to oppose it. They confessed indeed, that it was a very easie matter to take Constantinople; and at the same time, they could not deny but there was all the Justice and Pru­dence in the World to do it: but, on the other hand they alledged, that ha­ving undertaken this War out of pure Devotion, by their Arms to deliver the Holy Land from the Oppression of the Infidels, they could not accomplish their Vow, and, by Consequence, have no hope of the Remission of their Sins, if they should chance to dye in sighting against Christians, and taking their Cities from them. All this while never considering what the Bishop had so well remon­strated, That he who will most certainly attain the End which he proposes, must make use of such Means as, provided they be lawful, are most necessary and conducing to it; and that, who endeavouring the one, does the other, must of necessity, lay a Claim to the same proportion of Merits. But thus it is; When once a groundless Scruple, under the specious name of Religion, hath fixed it self in the Minds of Men, it becomes so absolutely Master, and is defended with so much Obstinacy, that good Sense and Reason, and that [Page 108]natural Right which God hath given to Man, year 1147 for his Conduct in the Manage­ment of either publick or private Affairs, cannot come so much as to obtain a fair Hearing.

But however, when it was too late, they afterwards found their mighty Er­ror, in not following this Judicious Counsel. The crafty Greeks, that so they might hasten away the King into Asia, by giving a Jealousie to the French, whom they knew to be extream amorous of Glory, spread a malicious Re­port, that the Germans had already taken Iconium, and given Chace to the Infi­dels, who fled before them. At this the whole Army presently took fire to that degree, that, what with their Murmurings, and what with their impor­tunate Cries, they constrained the King to pass over into Asia upon the Vessels of the Emperor, which lay ready for that purpose; and no sooner did he see the greatest part of them on the other side, but he threw off the Mask: For, upon pretext of some particular Disorders, committed by a private Soldier, who had taken some Merchandize without paying for it, he took occasion to stop and pillage all the French that were behind at Constantinople: And though the King had commanded instant Justice to be done upon the Criminal, yet he thereupon absolutely prohibited his Subjects from carrying any manner of Pro­vision to the Army. And so fierce and furious was he now grown on the sud­dain, knowing that their Dependance was so great upon him, that it was not without great difficulty that he was appeased: And at the last, notwithstan­ding all the generous Remonstrances of the Bishop of Langress, not until there was a new Treaty concluded, by which the King engaged, that he would take neither Town nor Castle from him, and that the French Princes should do him the same Homage which the Princes of the first Crusade had done to his Grand­father Alexis: Manuel, for his part, promising to furnish the King with three or four Greek Noblemen, who had Skill to conduct his Army by good Ways; and that he would furnish Magazines of Provisions for them, during their March.

The French Lords, who were ready to dye with the desire they had to make haste, to have their share in the good Fortune, and the Glory, which they be­lieved the German Army were now reaping, made no sort of difficulty to make that Oath to the Emperor; saying, That they did the same every day, in France, to the Lords of Fieffs, without any prejudice to the Sovereignty of the King. But the Count de Dreux, the King's Brother, believing that he should dishonour the Blood of France, if he should acknowledge for his Lord, any one, except the King his Brother, took occasion to give them the slip; taking along with him some of the most Generous, as also the Princess, his Cousin, whom Manuel desired for a Wife for one of his Nephews: And while they were hotly disputing about these two Articles, which the Bishop of Lan­gress ever most vigorously opposed, he had Leisure enough to get as far as Ni­comedia. At the same time, the King of Sicily, who made War with Manuel, with Success enough, did whatever he was able, by his Ambassadors, to oblige the King to joyn with him, in a League against that Emperor, and to attack him, both by Sea and Land, in Europe, and in Asia. But the Scruple which the King had still in his Mind, which made him fearful of violating his Vow, if he should make never so little a Sally from this Holy War, made him refuse all these fair Offers, contrary to the Advice of the wise Bishop of Langress; who clearly fore-saw, and to no purpose fore-told, the Misfortunes which would befall him and the Army, by the Perfidiousness of the Grecian Emperor. Thus the Treaty being concluded, and the Emperor, after an Interview with the King, upon the Banks of the Propontis, having sent over all the French that yet re­mained at Constantinople, the whole Army marched, in the beginning of No­vember, towards Nicomedia; a City which, at that time was, in a manner, wholly ruinous.

And now the Baseness and Treachery of the perfidious Manuel began plainly to appear; for the Guides and Officers which he promised to send, to conduct the Army through a good Country, and to give Orders for Provisions, were not to be found; and in the Road wherein they now were, there was very little Subsistence for the Army: so that it was resolved to change it; and quitting [Page 109]the lest Hand where the Provinces were very barren and desolate, year 1147 to take the Right Hand way towards the South, and to incamp upon the Lake of Ascanius near unto Nice. There it was, that in the Heat of those Desires which possessed the Army to advance, and joyn as soon as possible with the Germans, who were supposed to be so victorious, they were extremely surprized with hea­ring of their Defeat. At first the news came but by some whispering Rumors, but it was in a little time confirmed by Frederick Duke of Suabia the Emperors Nephew, whom that unfortunate Prince, who with great difficulty had reco­vered Nice, with the pittiful Remainder of his ruined Army, who in their Extremity were very ill treated also by the Greeks, had sent to the King to ad­vertise him of his overthrow, and to request of him that he might see him, to the End that from his disaster he might give him Notice of some things of great Importance in this unhappy Conjuncture. The King who certainly was a Prince the most Civil and Obliging in the World, and had a Soul of the best Temper of any man of his time, resolved instantly to prevent the Emperor in his Design of seeing him, and to endeavour to sweeten his ill Fortune by all manner of Honors and good Offices which he was capable to do him; he there­fore immediately mounted to Horse, accompanied with all the great Lords and Officers of his Army, and went to find the Emperor in the Place where he was encamped, expecting the Return of his Nephew Frede­rick.

Never was there any thing seen more Tender and Moving than this Enterview; for no sooner did these two great Princes see each other, but they ran into mu­tual Embraces, wherein they held one the other for a long time, without be­ing able to speak any other Language, but those Tears which the Joy, the Grief and Compassion, which moved so diversly in their Hearts, drew at last in­to their Eyes. The King was the first who broke the Silence, and endeavour­ing to force a Joy into his Lips, in Despite of the Sorrow which surrounded his Heart, he said all that it was possible in the most Christian and obliging man­ner to comfort the Afflicted Emperor for his Loss; he offered him all that he had, his Forces and his Fortune, and protested, that he always would esteem it as great an Honor to be his Faithful Companion in this War, as he should have done were he still at the Head of an Army, as numerous and flourishing as that which he commanded before this Disaster. The Emperor also on his part, said all that was most capable to touch the Heart of a Christian Prince; he ac­knowledged with great Humility, the Heavy hand of God to be justly laid upon him for the Sins of his Army, and for his own too great Presumption, in relying so much upon the Strength of his own Arms, to the Prejudice of that Confidence which he ought to have reposed in God alone, in whose Almighty Hands is the Disposal of the Fortunes of Kings. Nevertheless, he said, since God had been pleased still to give him the same Ardent Desire to accomplish his Vow, and that he had in his Extremity found out for him such a Generous Pro­tector, he hoped that his Divine Majesty would be pleased yet to make use of him to combat the Infidels among the Arms of France, which he hoped would be happier than his, and that he was resolved never to part from them. After which the two Princes having held a great Councel with the Principal Lords of the one and the other Nation, it was resolved that the two Armies should march together, following the Road which the King had already taken, in drawing toward the lesser Asia, between the Sea and Phrygia.

But this Resolution of the Emperor did not continue long; for the German Lords some or other of them every day demanding of him leave to depart, un­der Pretext that they had lost their Equipage, when they were arrived at the City of Ephesus after having suffered much by the mischievous Greeks, this poor Prince found himself so slenderly accompanied that he was ashamed of himself; and believing that it was putting an Affront upon his own Character, and the Empire which he governed, to have it said that an Emperor of Germany without an Army should seem to serve under a King of France, he therefore Excused himself in the best manner that he could to the King, and sending away the little Remain­der of his Infantry by Land, himself with a few Noblemen who yet attended him, took the Opportunity of the Return of the Greek Ambassadors who had [Page 110]followed the King to Ephesus, year 1147 and went by Sea to Constantinople, where his miserable Fortune which intituled him to pity, procured a better Reception for him from his Brother in Law the Emperor, than he found in his more prospe­rous Condition to whom the Attendance of a flourishing Army which he had before, gave so much Occasion of Fear and Jealousie: So Great is the Maligni­ty of Humane Nature, that it is a Pleasure to see men become unfortunate.

As for the Ambassadors which Manuel had sent to the King to Ephesus, they only seved more to manifest the base Perfidy and Malice of this Emperor, their Business was only to present the King with Letters from their Master, by which he advertized the King, that he was like to have upon his Hands such an innumerable Company of Turks that it was impossible for him to resist them; and therefore he advised him to secure himself from so furious a Tempest by re­tiring into some Places within his Empire where he might be in safety. The King who easily discovered the Malice of that wicked Prince, whose Design was to stop his further Progress, and by obliging him to divide his Troops to weaken himself in such sort, as that he might become an easie Prey to the Infidels, gene­rously answered the Ambassadors, That as he did not in the least Degree stand in Fear of the Turks, so he stood in no Necessity of the Favour which the Empe­ror their Master pretended to do him, and that he was fully resolved to pursue his Enterprise. Whereupon the Ambassadors, according to the Orders which they had received, seeing they had unprofitably spent the other foolish Tempta­tion of Fear, presented the King with other Letters, by which that Emperor discovered more plainly his Malicious Will; for therein he complained migh­tily of the Disorders which he said the Kings Army committed in his Territo­ries, and with a kind of Menace gave him to understand, that it was impossi­ble for him hereafter to prevent his Subjects from taking Vengeance upon them upon all Occasions that should offer. To this the King who amidst all the Goodness of his Natural Disposition, ever retained a certain Air and Character of Greatness, and a Noble Fierceness, worthy of the Greatest of all Kings, made no other Answer than by a Gesture of Disdain, by a short turn Leaving the Am­bassadors to carry that Account, for he would send no other, to their Master: leaving Ephesus therefore which at that time was almost nothing but a misera­ble Heap of Ruins, he went to pass the Feasts at Christmass in the open Fields in that fair and delicious Valley where now the rest of that City is situate. Af­ter Christmass he quitted the Sea-Coast, and advanced more within Land to­wards the East, drawing right toward Laodicea a City of Lydia between Tralla and Apamia, upon the River Lycus, where it goes to lose it self in that of Me­ander, upon the Banks whereof all the Army went to encamp in the begin­ning of the following Year.

The River of Meander so celebrated by the Songs of the Poets, for the singing of her Swans, of which they have there created great Numbers, which never mortal man could yet find, is one of the fairest Rivers of the lesser Asia, and which in its Course waters more Countries than all the others; for it hath so many several Windings and Turnings, that it is said between the Head of its Spring, and its Fall into the Sea it makes six hundred Semicircles. It rises out of a Fountain sometimes called Aulocrene, at the Foot of the Mount Selenus in the greater Phrygia, and after having moistened that fair Province, it turns from the East to the West running between the Mountains and the Hills, through those rich and spacious Vallies and delightful Medows, which on the right Hand divide Lydia and Ionia from Caria, whose Boundary it is on the left Hand, till it falls into the Egean Sea, between the Cities of Miletus and Priena. When the Army was arrived to the Banks of this famous River, it was resolved to stay there to refresh themselves for a few days in that place, which is one of the richest and most delightful Countries of all Asia. But they were no sooner in­camped, but they perceived that the Turks had posted themselves most advan­tageously upon the Mountains which lye on both sides of the River. For the Infidels had learnt by their Greek Spies, who gave them constant Intelligence, that the French marching from Ephesus, took the way for Laodicea, which lies on the further side of Meander; and there they imagined they might com­bat them with great advantage, and defeat them without difficulty in their [Page 111]passage over the River. year 1148 For this purpose therefore they divided their Army into two Parts; possessing themselves of all the Heights on both sides of the Ri­ver, that when the French Army should attempt to pass it, the one should fall in upon their Rere, at the same time that the others being posted on the fur­ther Bank, should oppose the Van in their Endeavours to pass over, and in Case either of them found themselves pressed, they should retire to the Mountains which were at no great distance from them.

The King presently apprehended their Design, and finding no Possibility of passing it in that place where he was encamped, by reason the River was too deep and large, resolved to pass up higher towards Laodicea; and to secure his March, he placed the Baggage and all that was feeble in the middle, ranging his best Troops in the Rere, and on his left towards the Mountains; for he fea­red not to be attacked either in the Front, or on that side where the River se­parated him from the Enemies who marched over against him to impeach his Passage. In this Condition he marched some time, but could make no manner of Progress, because he was continually obliged to make Halts, to repulse the Enemies who perpetually followed the Army, coming to make a Discharge with their Arrows without coming nearer, and then wheeling off at full Speed; immediately returning in the same manner without ever coming to handy Blows. So that the second day, seeing that he could neither sight, nor march at quiet, he stopt short about Noon, and resolved to attempt the Pass in the View of both the Armies who observed his Motions.

In Truth it was a brave and Generous Resolution, but extreme difficult in the Execution; for the Meander though it be not very Rapid by Reason of its many Windings, yet it is very broad and deep. It was in the Month of January when Rivers usually are at the biggest, and it had now rained for four days in such abundance, that its Waters were considerably increased; there was one Army at his Back, and another appeared drawn up in Batallia upon the further Bank, and in the Plain whither it was descended to defend the Pass; and if the Entry into the River was easie the getting out was difficult, the fur­ther Bank being not only possessed by the Enemies, but very steep and high; and that which made the Difficulty greater was, that there was not one fordable place to be found, all the Country People though several Examined agreeing in the Protestation that they never knew any passing there. And besides all this, so soon as any of the Soldiers entred the River to search for a Ford, the Turks on the o­ther side also entred the River, and showred down their Arrows upon them. Never­theless the Desire which the Army had to pass and fight the Infidels was so great, that after having tried both above and below to find out a Ford in the River, without regarding the Arrows of the Enemies, they at the last found one, tur­ning a little upon the left hand, which those of the Country had never known.

The King after he had given Orders to the Cavalry of the Avant-Guard to pass the Ford, he put himself at the Head of the Rere, which faced the Turks who had charged them there, and running upon them at a full Cariere before they had the Liberty according to their Custom to retire, he cut a great part of them in pieces, and repulsed the rest with Sword and Lance at their very Reins, even to the Mountains. At the same time Thierri Earl of Flanders, Henry the Son of Thibald Earl of Champagne, and William Earl de Mascon, having thrown themselves with the first Squadrons into the River, were followed by all the rest, and in Despight of the Arrows which like Hail were showred most furiously upon them from the opposite Bank, which did but little Execution upon those armed Troops, they gained the other Shoar, and sustained the Shock of their Enemies, till the rest of the Troops got over and drew up in Batalia. Immediately thereupon they made a most furious Charge upon the Turks, who now no longer able to use their Bows were presently overthrown; for these Barbarians having no defensive Arms, and not accustomed to fight Foot to Foot against the Franks, were constrain­ed to give way to that Terrible Shock, and therefore betook themselves to Flight, leaving a great Number of their Men extended upon the Earth, and a great many of Prisoners; the rest were pursued to the Mountains where [Page 112]they saved themselves, year 1148 but the Camp which they had pitched in the Plain, fell to the Share of the Soldiers; thus the whole Army having now no more Enemy neither in Front or Rear which durst appear, passed the River with Ease, some behind the Horse, others upon the Wagons and Planks of Timber.

There ran a Report in the Army, that a Cavalier in white Arms, who was never seen before nor after, passing before the rest as it were to shew them the Way they were to take, gave the first Charge upon the Squadrons of the Ene­my. But as it was the Humour of those times to feign such Visions, to render extraordinary Actions as this was, more miraculous, one may without scruple dispense with disbelieving this Apparition. Eudes a Monk of St. Dennis who was the Successor of Sugerius, and who was by that great Abbot recommended to the King as an able Man to serve him, both as his Chaplain and his Secretary, during that Voyage satisfies himself with saying, that there were several who affirmed they saw that white Cavalier, but that for his own particular he was re­solved neither to be deceived nor to deceive others, and that he saw no such thing. He adds, like a man of Sense, that without having Recourse to this Marvel which was not easie to prove, there was another Passage not less remar­kable or surprising, and which ought to be wholly attributed to the Divine Pro­tection, and that is, that in this Attempt there was not one Person of Quality lost except Milon or Miles the Lord of Nogent who was drowned. A strange and marvellous Adventure! which we have seen repeated within a few days, by that admirable Reflux, and if I may venture to express it so, Circulation of the same Events which produces the same thing in succeeding Ages which have hap­pened in those past so long ago. For in the War with Holland, where the King of France by the prodigious Success of his Arms made himself Master in less than one Champagne of above thirty strong places; he commanded a Party of his Cavalry to pass the Rhine not far from its Mouth, under the Conduct of the Ge­nerous Count de Guiche, where those Braves, in the View of their Enemies who were drawn up on the other side to oppose them, passed that great River, part­ly by a Ford till that time unknown, and partly by swimming, without any other considerable Loss than that of the Count de Nogent, who there perished in signal­lizing by a glorious Death, his Zeal and Courage in one of the fairest Occasions that were ever seen. But it is in short, that one ought to expect, that what e­ver was great or Heroick in their Ancestors, is in our time to be performed by their Descendants, under a King, who hitherto hath carried the Glory of this August Monarchy to a higher Degree, than any of his Illustrious Predecessors have done since Charlemain.

BOOK I.

year 1148 AFTER so fair a Victory, the Greeks who could by no means indure the Glory and the Advantages of the French, began more openly to declare themselves against them than before; for now they plainly joyned with the Turks, to whom they afforded not only a Retreat to Antioch in Pisidia, but gave them also the Opportunity with Ease to Assemble and Re-unite their scattered Troops. Whilest in the mean time the King was in great Straits for Subsistence, and finding himself in no Condi­tion to Attaque them in so strong a Place, drew towards Laodicea, a large Ci­ty, but not so well Fortified as to be in a Condition to Resist him, and there he hoped to meet with some Refreshment for his Army. He arrived there three or four days after the Battle, but to his great Disappointment he found, by the Baseness of him that Commanded there for the Emperor, that there was no manner of Provision for the Army. It was this wicked Villain, who pretend­ing to Convoy a party of the poor Germans who had saved themselves after their Defeat, lead them into an Ambuscade of Turks, who put them all to the Sword, and with whom, as it was before Agreed, he divided their Spoil. This Infa­mous Traitor, fearing, it seems, that the French would be Revenged of him for his Treachery, or else that, imagining he should not be able to Betray them in the same manner, he was resolved to do them a greater Mischief, after having caused all the Inhabitants to Retire with their Goods and Provisions to the Woods and Mountains, went himself to seek a Refuge among the Turks; so that the King was obliged to stay there, till those Fugitives could be found and [Page 115]perswaded to return; year 1148 after which loading their Waggons and Sumpters with Provisions, which the King, who was for rendring Good for Evil, would have them paid for, the Army decamped and took the way of Pamphilia, that so they might by Marching near the Sea have a more commodious Passage, and meet with better Plenty of Forrage and Subsistence. And tho they knew that both the Greeks and the Turks Coasted along with them, tho at a great Distance, yet they were esteemed such contemptible Enemies, and the French were so Confi­dent after the Victory they had gained, that there was too little care taken to stand upon their Guard: But this Presumption, as it usually happens, did not fail to be very Pernicious to this Army, which was unfortunately beaten by the Turks, by the Fault of one Man, who neglected to observe the Orders which were wisely Established by Military Discipline.

the Army following the Custom of those Times, was divided only into two Bodies, one of which composed the Vanguard, and the other the Rereguard. To avoid Jealousies, these two Bodies were every day Commanded by two of the Principal Lords, who under the King took their several Turns, the King some­times Marching with one, sometimes with the other: Every Night they Assemb­led in Councel, at which all the Lords Assisted, where Orders were issued out concerning the Way of the next days March, and the Place where the Army was to Encamp. Now there happened to be in the Way which they must of necessity pass, a mighty high Mountain, extream difficult of Access by reason of the dangerous Narrowness and broken Craggs and Rocks where the Army must file off. The King therefore following the Resolution which had been taken at the Councel, gave Order, that they should Encamp on the Top of the Moun­tain, and that they should pass the Night there, and the next Morning descend into the Plain in order of Battle. He who led the Vanguard that Day, was Ge­offry Rancon of Poitiers Lord of Taillebourg, who carried the Royal Standard ac­cording to the Custom, next the Orislame at the Head of this Vanguard; The Count de Morienne, the King's Uncle, with the Queen and all the Ladies of Qua­lity were there also by very good Fortune, going before, that so they might come in better time to the Place where they were to Incamp. The King, who usually chose the Place where there was most Danger, had put himself into the Rere, that so he might make Head against the Enemies, if they should at­tempt to Follow or Molest him as they had done at the Battle of Meander. Ge­offry Arrived at the Mountain in very good time, and seeing the Sun yet of a great height, and his Guides telling him that if he did but make a little the more Hast, he might Incamp far more Commodiously, in one of the fairest Plains of all Asia, where he should meet with all sorts of Refreshments for the Army; forgetting therefore the Orders of the King, with extream Rashness he de­scended from the Mountain, and Marched a great way to that agreeable Place which had been shewed him, supposing that the Arrierguard not finding him upon the Mountain, would certainly follow him. But he took very false Mea­sures, and in deceiving himself in this manner, occasioned the Loss of the other part of the Army, which was more miserably deceived by him. For the very same Reason which made him March forward from the Mountain to gain the Valley, made the others also, seeing the Sun so high, to make no hast to get to the Mountain, where they doubted not but to find him Encamped according to the King's Orders. By this means the Turks, who Coasted all along constant­ly with the Army, perceiving that the two Bodies were so separated, that it was impossible for the one to Assist the other, ran immediately to Seise upon the Top of the Mountain, where they presently cut in pieces all those of the scattering Infantry, whom they found there for the most part Unarmed, being not able to follow the Gross of the Army, and having seised the Pass, they cut off the Rereguard in such manner that it was impossible for them to joyn with the Van, without passing through the whole Army of their Enemies.

It was a strange Surprise to these Troops, who after they were Advanced a good way up the Mountain into the strait Passages, believing there to find their Companions, instead of them to meet with their Enemies, who at an In­stant discharged upon them a fearful Cloud of Arrows, and who shooting from on high upon a company who were Intangled and Disordered one among ano­ther, [Page 116]tumbled them down with mighty Blows of the Mace and Cimiter, year 1148 before they almost thought of betaking themselves to their Arms. The first being Overthrown tumbled upon those in the Middle, where were the Chariots Loaden with Arms, and the Beasts of Burthen with the Baggage, so that the most valiant Men of the Army which followed them, were not able to get over that Stop, to Charge the Enemy, who made a horrible Butchery among those who could neither Retreat nor Advance: The Men, the Mules, the Horses, be­ing crowded, in Shoals came tumbling down upon those who indeavoured to gain a Passage to come to the Enemies, who Fought with all manner of Advan­tage, since in this fearful Confusion there was none in a Condition to Oppose them. In the End, the Lords followed by their best Soldiers, and the King himself at their Head, made so good Way, that whilest the others Fled in Dis­order, indeavouring to escape round the Mountain, they got up to the place where the Turks had Posted themselves in Battalia, to support those of their Troops who had made the first Charge. There it was that there was a kind of regular Combat; the French Animating one another by the Presence of the King, and by the little Account that was to be made of such as they had Van­quished at the Meander, and principally by the fatal Necessity to which they were reduced, either to Conquer or to Dye. The Turks on the other hand were Incouraged by the great Advantage which they had already gained, by the Disorder in which they saw their Enemies, by the small Number of those that Charged them, and especially by the Remembrance of the Fortune of the Ger­man Army, which they had so luckily Defeated in the Straits of such sort of Mountains. The Fight was maintained with extreme Fury, for the French, to whom still those who could Advance joyned themselves, slew in like Lions a­mong the thickest of their Enemies, where they made a most horrible Slaugh­ter. But the Turks, who had there their whole Army, sending in continual Troops of fresh Men to Inforce their Men, and the French, who were but a small Handful, surrounded with a vast Multitude, could do no more than it was pos­sible for Men to do, so that it was impossible, but being drained of all their Blood and Strength, and not having time to take any Breath, but that they must sink under that Misfortune; most of those gallant Men being there either Slain or taken Prisoners; the Count de Va [...]ennes, and his Brother Everard de Bre­tuïl, Count Renaud de Tonnerre, Gauthier de Montjay, Ithier de Magni, Manasses de Bulli, and five and thirty other great Lords who Accompanied the King, lost their Lives there, in this glorious Occasion of defending his.

This brave Prince still Fought with an invincible Courage, Invironed with so many Enemies, and the Bodies of so many of his generous Friends who lay dead at his Feet, till such time as some one of his Cavaliers, laying hold of his Horses Bridle, made way with their Swords quite through the Body of the Turks, and so gained the Top of the Mountain, where they Inclosed him with a Wall of their own Bodies, to defend him, till the Obscurity of the Night, which now drew on apace, favoured him with a Retreat. But the greatest part of them being Slain by a great Troop of Turks who Pursued them, without knowing that it was the King, he found himself almost alone, and therefore quitting his Horse, he scrambled up a Rock by the help of some Bows of a Tree which grew there, thinking that might be a convenient Place to enable him to defend himself from the Pursuers. But the Turks Compassing him round, some shot at him to bring him down, others indeavoured to Climb up after him, to Kill or take him Prisoner. In all appearance it was impossible that he could Escape, but nevertheless by a particular Protection of God, and by a Prodigy of Cou­rage and Valour, he did escape this Danger. His Curiass guarded him suffici­ently against the Arrows, and with his Sword cutting off the Hands, and splitting the Sculls of those who indeavoured to get up to him upon the Rock, he Defended himself with such an incredible Force, and without Weariness, that the Turks who took him for some ordinary Cavalier, surprised by his a­stonishing Valour, and fearing besides that here they should get nothing but Blows, and loose also their Share in the Plunder, they left him to run to the Booty, before it was quite Night, with the rest of their Companions.

In the mean time some Soldiers and Servants of the Army, who under the [Page 117]Favour of the Darkness were indeavouring to Escape, year 1148 among the Rocks passed by the Place where the King was, and knowing him by his Voice, for he called to them, perceiving them to be of his own People; and thereupon mounting upon a led-Horse, after having wandred a good part of the Night in unknown and dangerous Places, at the last they discovered the Fires of the Vanguard, and a little after met with the Troops of Horse which were coming to meet them. For the King during the Combat, had commanded his Chaplain Eudes, the Monk of St. Dennis, to save himself as well as he could, and make hast to the Camp of the Vanguard, to order them to March instantly to his Relief; but the Way being long and difficult, and that they had not Notice till very late, this Suc­cour came too late, and served to no other purpose but to Conduct the King to the Camp, after having found him in this pittiful Estate. It is impossible to express the Consternation which the Army was in, seeing the King so slen­derly Accompanied, after the Loss of so many Lords of the first Quality, and almost all the Rereguard, except a few Soldiers who saved themselves in the Woods and Mountains, and at last found the Way to the Camp, whither they came straggling one after another all the Night. There was scarcely any Per­son in the Camp but what had some Share in this deplorable Loss: One lamen­ted his Father, another his Son, this his Brother, that his Kinsman or his Friend; some ran to Embrace those of their Acquaintance, who were got off half Naked, and without their Arms; whilest others who conceived a like Hope for theirs, in vain expected those who were never to Return. However all of them Comforted themselves in this extream Grief, by the Joy which they had at the Kings Escape, after he had run such a fearful Danger of being Lost, and had defended himself from it in that Heroick manner which hath been rela­ted; and in short, all of them in the midst of this Grief and Joy, tumultuously and loudly demanded the Death of Geoffry, who had most apparently been the only Cause of this horrible Loss, by disobeying those Orders which had been prescribed him by the King, and so furiously were they Incensed against him, that nothing would satisfy them but to have him Hanged immediately: And certainly it is impossible to deny but that he well deserved to have suffered Death, but such was the Bounty and natural Goodness of the King, and the Count de Morienne, having also in a great Measure been Guilty of that Mis­carriage, for whom the King had a great Value, he scaped with his Life.

The next Day when they were to Decamp, the Army was reduced to very great Extremities. For they discovered the Enemies upon the Tops of the Mountains, ready to follow the remainder of the Army, and to take all Ad­vantages to Surprise them again upon their March. The Provisions began to fail; they had twelve days March to the Place whither they designed to go, they wanted good Guides, and must of necessity pass through Countries possessed by the Turks and the Greeks who were equally their Enemies. All these Dangers and Difficulties, how great soever, did not yet abate the Courage of the French, who are usually Reproached with loosing a great part of their Fire and their natural Confidence, when they are under adverse Fortune; however it did not happen so upon this Occasion, which only made them more Wise, and not less Valiant or Resolved. The King to model this new Army, divided it also into two Bodies, one of which was the Rereguard; He gave the Command of this to the Great Master of the Temple, Everard de Barres, a most valiant Gentle­man, who some days before was come to joyn the Army with a good Troop of the Knights of that Order. The Conduct of the other he intrusted with an old Captain, one Gilbert, to whom all the others, though in Quality much Superior to him, yet, made no Difficulty to submit themselves, since the King himself protested that he would obey his Orders. But he most humbly intreated the King, to put himself between these two Bodies with a good Body of Horse and Foot, that so he might be able from thence to send Assistance to either of them, if they should happen to be much Pressed by the Enemy. The Baggage marched in the Middle, and a great part of the Horse were Ranged upon the Wings to the Right and Left, to cover the Flanks of the Army. In this manner it was that they Advanced, and in this Order marched daily towards Pamphilia, with so much Conduct, that the Enemies who Coasted along with them, and Attacked [Page 118]them four several times, year 1148 were continually Repulsed; and particularly one time the King seeing them Ingaged between two little Rivers, Charged them so smartly, that he took a sufficient Revenge upon them for the Defeat of his Rere­guard, cutting in pieces the greatest part of those Barbarians, and putting the rest to a shameful Flight.

The most troublesom Enemy which he had to Combat was Want, for all the Country was either Desert, or ruined by the Enemies, who laid all wast where­ever the Army was to pass; so that they were reduced to that Extremity to Eat their Horses, which they were also constrained to kill for want of Forrage for so great a Number. But that which supported them still, was the Example of the King, who indured all these Inconveniences as if he had been one of the meanest Soldiers: Some he commended, others he incouraged, and liberally bestowed what he had among them to Comfort the poor Creatures; his Care was every where, and he took his Share in all the Troubles of the War, having his Curiass on almost Night and Day, and performing all the Functions of a Great Captain and a Soldier with all the Vigor imaginable; And to all this he added a Piety towards God so constant and regular, that in all the time of this laborious Voyage he never failed to attend the Divine Offices of publick Pray­ers. In Conclusion, the Enemies after their last Defeat not daring to appear or to molest the Army, they performed this long March with the greater Ease, and about the twentieth of January Arrived near the City of Attalia, Situate upon a Bay on the Coast of Pamphylia, near the Mouth of the River Cestrius. The Governor of that City, which was under the Dominion of the Greek Em­peror, fearing that he was not able to Resist so great an Army, if he declared himself their Enemy, offered the King Provisions and Ships to Transport his Army into Syria, which was the Thing he most ardently Desired, thinking him­self in no Condition to accomplish so long a March by Land; for the King, who had no Engines for a Siege, and was willing to satisfy his Army by shortning the Voyage, was very ready to accept of his Offer: But there was no manner of Mischief which this Perfidious and true Greek, who held Intelligence with the Turks, did not do, to Incommode and Ruine, as far as he was able, this whole Army, during five Weeks which they lay there in Expectation of a Wind. And then he would find such a small number of Ships, and those at such excessive Rates, that the King was at last constrained to Imbarque himself, without his Infantry. He then treated with the Greeks, who obliged themselves for a large sum of Mony, which was paid in Hand, to receive the Sick into the Town, till they should be able to indure the Sea, and to Convoy the rest who chose to go by Land, through the midst of the Turks, than to trust to these Trea­cherous Greeks, who notwithstanding failed not to Sell and Betray them.

For so soon as the King was gone, the Infidels, who received Advertisement from these Traitors, came pouring down from all Parts, upon these who were to venture by Land; and for those who were received into the Town, the Greeks either Starved them, or inhumanly Delivered them into the Hands of the Turks, insomuch, that of all those brave Men, there was but a very few who Escaped by Land with the Earl of Flanders and Archambald de Bourbon, who ge­nerously offered themselves to be their Conductors. And now it was, that it appeared too late, to be a vain Scruple, which was to so ill Purpose opposed against the wise Council of the Bishop of Langres, who advised the Seising up­on Constantinople; and which occasioned the Loss of such a fair Army, as, if it had begun with that Enterprise so just, so easy, and so necessary, might glori­ously have Triumphed over the whole East, and absolutely assured the Christi­ans of the Possession of the Holy Land. But it is the common Weakness of the greatest part of Mankind, not to know what they ought to do, till for want of doing it, all is so far lost, that when they would, they want the Power pro­portionate to the Will. But as for this persidious City, it was afterwards e­qually Punished both by God and the Greek Emperor, though for very different Reasons. For God to revenge the Inhumane Treachery with which they had treated the French, sent such a Pestilence amongst the Inhabitants a short time after, as swept away the greatest part of them; and the Emperor out of Mad­ness that they had assisted the French with Provisions and Shipping, laid such a [Page 119]Mul [...]t upon them, as drained them of all their ill gotten Gold and Silver, year 1148 and reduced the Remainder to extream Poverty. An Instance, from whence we may learn, that Injustice, Oppression and Cruelty, in the Conclusion, prove more mischievous to the Actors than to the Sufferers.

In the mean time the King, who had taken the Sea, with all the great Lords, and the remainder of the Cavalry, which might yet compose a considerable Ar­my, came happily to an Anchor at the Port of St. Simeon, upon the Mouth of the Orontes, about four or five Leagues from Antioch; into which place he made his Entry, upon the 19th Day of March, and was received with all man­ner of Magnificence by Prince Raymond, who was Uncle, by the Mother, to Queen Eleoner. Now this Prince passionately desiring that the King should immediately enter upon a War in Syria, to conquer for him Aleppo, and the other places belonging to the Principality of Antioch, which were yet possessed by the Turks, there was no sort of Artifice which he did not put in practice, to oblige him to undertake it. He had Recourse to all manner of Submissions and Prayers; he made use of the Solicitations of the Queen, his Niece; he made magnificent Presents to all the French Lords; and in short, he omitted no kind of Reasons, but pressed them with his utmost force, both privately, and in Council, to persu [...]de the King, that it must be, not only for his own In­terest and Glory, but for that of all that part of Christendom in the East. But at length he perceived that he laboured but in vain. The King, whether it were that he feared to engage himself in so long and so da [...]gerous a War, for the particular Interest of Prince Raymond; or whether it were that some cer­tain Intrigues which the Queen had in Antioch, which, no doubt, did not please him, obliged him to leave that City; he always answered Raymond, that he was fully resolved, in the first place, to go and pay his Vows at the holy Se­pulchre. So that, as it commonly happens, that one violent Passion easily pas­seth to another Extream; this Prince being insinitely exasperated by that Re­fusal, and it may be, not a little animated by another Passion in his Niece, to which he joyned his, he entertained such a mortal Hatred against the King, that there was nothing which he did not resolve to do, to revenge himself. For this reason, the King, who knew he was to apprehend all things from a Spirit so furiously transported, that he valued not what he did, secretly conveyed him­self by Night out of the City, in a manner not very well becoming the Majesty of so great a Monarch; and taking the Queen along with him, not much to her Satisfaction, he went and joyned his Troops, which were encamped under the Walls, and marched directly towards Jerusalem, where the Emperor Conrade was already arrived, from Constantinople, where he had passed the Winter.

For that Prince, who was resolved to accomplish his Vow; and who, by rea­son of the small Remainder of his Troops which were left after his Misfortune, gave no Jealousie to Manuel, easily obtained from him Shipping, to transport himself and his Troops, in the Spring, by Sea; as he did, to Ptolemais, or Acon: from whence he passed by Land to Jerusalem. Alphonsus, Earl of Tholose, and Son to the brave Raymond, who had so great a Part in the first Crusade, coming at the same time, to the same Port, took another Way, all along by the Sea-Coast; but he was stopped in his Journey, by a deplorable Death, as he pas­sed by Cesarea; being unfortunately poysoned one Evening, at his Supper, without ever being known, either for what Reason, or by what Person, that execrable Fact was committed.

It was no sooner known at Jerusalem, that the King, who, it was feared, would have stayed at Antioch, according to the earnest Desires and Sollicita­tions of Raymond, was parted from thence, and that he took the Way of Tri­polis, but that King Baldwin, who feared lest the Earl of Tripolis should also press him strongly to stay there, sent immediately to him, Fulcherius the Patriarch, to propound to him such Reasons as, he believed, would oblige him to make what haste he could to Jerusalem, where the Emperor had now been for some time; that so there they might take some good and solid Resolution, for the common and publick Advantage of Affairs: To this the King, who desired nothing more, easily accorded; and therefore kept on his way, without stay­ing any where, till he arrived at the Holy City. There he was received with [Page 120]most extraordinary Honours; year 1148 all the Princes, the Prelates and Clergy, in Pro­cession, followed by a Multitude of the People, met him with great Acclamations; singing, as they did to the Son of God, Blessed be he that cometh in the Name of the Lord, whilst he made his Entry into the City, as it were, in Triumph: Af­ter which, all the Princes and Prelates accompanied him, to visit the Holy Pla­ces; which he did with a great Piety and Devotion. This being done, it was resolved, that there should be a General Assembly held at Ptolemais; whither all the Bishops, and the Lords of Palestine and Syria, might easily come by Sea: where, by common Consent, the last Resolution was to be taken, upon what was to be undertaken, for the Security of the Christians in the East.

There never was a more illustrious Assembly seen in Palestine, than this; which was honoured with the Presence of so many great Princes. There was the Emperor Conrade, accompanied with the Cardinal Theodin, Bishop of Porto, and the Great Men of the Empire, who stayed with him; among whom, the principal were Otho of Fribourg, his Brother by the Mother; Frederick, Duke of Suabia, his Nephew; the Bishops of Metz and Toul, as Princes of the Holy Empire: as also, the Bishop of Basle, Henry his Brother, Duke of Austria; Berthold, afterwards Duke of Bavaria; William, Marquis of Montferat; Guy, Earl of Blandras; and Herman, Marquis of Verona. The King came attended with Guy, Cardinal of Florence, the Pope's Legat in his Army; and the Bi­shops of Langres and Lizieux: The Count de Dreux, his Brother; Thierry, Earl of Flanders; Henry, Earl of Troyes; the Son of Thibald, Earl of Cham­pagne; Ives de Nele, and many other Lords of the first Quality, who came with him from Attalia. The young King Baldwin, with his Mother Queen Me­lesintha, also assisted at it; together with the Patriarch of Jerusalem, the Arch-Bishops of Cesarea and Nazareth, the Bishops of Ptolemais, Sidon, Beritus, Pa­neas and Bethlehem; the Earls of Napolis, Tiberias, Sidon, Cesaria, Beritus: as also, the Constable Manasses, and the great Masters of the Temple of the Ho­spitallers.

It was a long time under Debate, what was most advantageous to be under­taken for the common Interest; and in conclusion, they determined to besiege Damascus: Which being, as it were, in the Centre and Midst of the four Prin­cipalities which the Christians held in the East, might be equally dangerous to them all. Upon this, all the Troops were appointed to rendezvous, the five and twentieth Day of May, at Tiberias; where a general Review being made of the Army, they advanced to Paneas, near the Head of Jordan; the Patriarch carrying the true Cross, or, at least, that which was believed to be so, before them. The Measures which were taken for the Siege, were according to the Opinion of the Lords of that Country, who were best acquainted with the Strength and Weakness of the place. After which, crossing the celebrated Mount Lebanon, they descended into the fair Champain of Damascus, and en­camped at Daria, a little Village, about two Leagues from Damascus; from the most elevated place whereof, the Towers of that stately City were easily to be discerned.

Damascus, one of the most ancient, and sometimes one of the fairest and greatest Cities of Asia, is situate in a large Plain, at the Foot of Mount Le­banon; which is watered with two Rivers, and a great number of little Springs and Fountains; which, notwithstanding its natural Inclination to Sterility, it being a hungry, sandy Soil, render it very fruitful and delightful. These two Rivers take their Rise upon the East, at no very great distance, from the Foot of the Mountain Amana, which is a part of Mount Lebanon: the lesser is called Abana, and slows all along by the Walls of the City, upon the West; the greater, which is Pharpar, and which some have confounded with the Orontes; and, for the beauty of its Streams, is called Chryorrhoas, or Golden Stream; af­ter having passed through the City, and wandred through the Fields and the Valleys of the neighbouring Country, loseth it self under the Earth; either because, being divided into a multitude of Canals, which are drawn, to render the Earth more fruitful, that it is so diminished, that at last it ends in them; or that by some unknown, Subterranean Passages, it dischargeth it self into the Phenician Sea.

It was the great Conveniency of making these Canals, year 1148 which made all that part of the City towards the North, and a great part of the West, be inclo­sed with a prodigious number of Gardens and Orchards, where were plan­ted an infinite of Trees, producing all manner of Fruits, the most delicious of all the East. These Gardens were divided, one from the other, by little narrow Passages, which cutting one another, and turning and winding several ways, without any regular Art or Figure, formed a kind of undesigned Laby­rinth, where it was easie for those who were unacquainted with them, to lose themselves in those delightful places. Every Garden had its House, and its little Tower, according to the Mode of the Orientals, for the Convenience, and the Lodging of its Master: So that the City being very populous, the num­ber of Gardens which covered those sides, was very great, and extended them­selves almost two Leagues; so that, viewing it upon that side, it represented to the Sight a large Forest, which seemed to extend it self to the very Walls. But on the contrary, the other side, which lay to the East and South, had not so much as a Tree, a Hedge, or a Bush; but shewed a bald Champaign, from whence it was easie to discern the whole City; which was defended with high Walls, which were fortified with great Towers, whereof four, which listed up their proud Heads above the rest, were of an extraordinary heighth and strength: and above all, it was defended by a Fortress, which was esteemed the fairest, and most regular of all Asia.

This City had been taken from the Sarasins, by the Turks, whose Sultan, Do­dequin, made a most cruel War against the Christians, between the time of the first and the second Crusade. After his death, his Successors, seeing themselves attacked by Sanguin, the redoubted Sultan of Alepo and Ninevch, who endea­voured the Conquest of all Syria, joyned themselves with the Christian Princes, to make War against this common Enemy. They assisted them, according to the Treaty in the Taking of Paneas, which they had taken from the Christians before, and Sanguin from them again. But there being little Faith to be ex­pected from Infidels, they soon brake the Peace, and declared themselves, as before, the mortal Enemies of the Christians. For this reason it was, that the Resolution was sixed to attack them, and above all things, to carry this City, which was in a Condition to give the Check-mate to the four Christian Princi­palities of the East. Hereupon it was also resolved in the Council, to attack the Town on the Garden-sides, that so the Army might have the Convenience of the River, the Fruits and Forrage, which were there to be had in abundance. The next Morning therefore, the Army, being divided into three Bodies, mar­ched in good Order towards Damascus; drawing from the West, towards the North, to the Garden-Quarter of the City. The young King of Jerusalem, Baldwin the Third, commanded in Person the first Body, composed of his own Troops, and those of the Princes of Syria, who had the same Interest with him in the Siege. The French made the second, having at their Head King Lewis to support the first, which they followed at a little distance, to be always ready to afford them Succour. The Emperor, with his Germans, had the Rere, to oppose the Enemy's Cavalry, if they should attempt to fall upon them as they made their Approaches. Baldwin, who thirsted mightily after Glory, and was transported with Joy, to meet with so fair an Opportunity to display his Cou­rage, in the View of the French and Germans, did instantly press to make the first Attack; which was easily granted him, in regard he alledged, that his People were better acquainted than the rest, with the nature of the place, and the Turnings of the Gardens. He was a Prince, who was now advanced to the Flower of his Youth, being between eight and nine and twenty Years of Age: he was of Stature something less than the Middle, but of a Proportion so just and regular in all the parts of his Body, that his want of Heighth did not lessen that Port and Majesty of a King which he wore, and which made him be known for one, by such as had the honour to see him; the Shape of his Face, and the Turn of all his Lincaments were very handsom; his Eyes indifferent large and full, extream sweet and sparkling, with a Fire that wanted nothing in it of Attractive; his Hair was inclining to Fair, of a lively Colour, well as­suring the Beholders of the strength of his Robust Constitution; his Cheeks [Page 122]plump, year 1148 and tinctured with Vermilion; and in short, having in his Composure, all that was delicate and lovely in Queen Melesintha, his Mother, and the Viva­city of Baldwin the Second, his Grandfather, whom he much resembled: And, to make the Harmony compleat, he had a Soul proportionable to his Body; for his Mind was quick, easie, ready and penetrating, which had been cultiva­ted by the Study of all manner of gentile and ingenuous Learning, and which was of wonderful Advantage to him; he had a most happy Memory, and a marvellous Facility in expressing himself eloquently upon the suddain, concer­ning any kind of Subject of Discourse; he was naturally of one of the best Tempers in the World, of a heart truly Royal; being liberal, magnisicent, affable, obliging, complaisant, of a good Humour, and one who understood innocent and divertive Rallery, and how to use it without losing his Friend, rather than his Wit; for he was rather naturally sober, vigilant and provi­dent, brave and undaunted in War, exposing himself freely to Dangers, and suffering equally with the meanest Soldier: And, to conclude, all his greatest Accomplishment was, that he was, above all, a most devout and religious Prince; having, among all these Perfections that could be wished in a great King, as few Failings as most common Men, being a little inclined by his Heat, to love Play, and the Conversation of the Ladies; but if he erred in any thing in this last Particular, he corrected it afterward, by a lawful Marriage.

Baldwin being such as I have endeavoured to describe him, full of Courage, and Martial Fire; ambitious of Glory, in valiantly fighting in view of an Em­peror, and a King of France, who were followed by the bravest Men of the West, marched briskly to attack these Gardens, which, like a Labyrinth, seemed to render the Town inaccessible on that Quarter: but he found that the Enterprise was not so easie as he had painted it in his conquering Imagina­tion; and that the Honour which he pretended to gain, was like to prove a very dear Purchace. For the Turks, who well knew that their Safety de­pended upon the Preservation of this Post, had placed the greatest part of their Garrison there to defend it: Some of them were retrenched and barricadoed in the Narrow Ways, where not above two could pass a-breast; where they repulsed those who assisted them, with Push of Pike: Others, having broken small Holes in the Walls which parted the Gardens, pierced with their Jave­lins, from both sides, such Soldiers as were in the Passages, who could not come to be revenged of those Enemies, who wounded them without appearing: A great number of others were mounted upon the Turrets, and the Tops of the Houses; from whence they poured an insinite number of mortal Arrows from above, upon the Christians who were below, whilst others threw down huge Stones upon those who were wedged in those narrow Passages, and could no ways secure themselves from that fearful Hail. So that the Soldiers being neither able to advance, nor retreat, by reason of the multitude of those who pressed forward in following them, and that they were stopped by the Re­trenchments, perished miserably, without being able to come at the Enemy, who attacked them under their Covertures, without partaking at all in the danger of the Combat.

The young King, fretting with Anger and Madness, to see his first Attempt succeed so ill, resolved to repair the Loss, or to perish; and therefore com­manded to change the Order of the Attack, and to turn the Fight from Filing two and two a breast in those narrow Ways, to the attempting to make Breaches into these Inclosures, through the Walls. Now these Walls being but low, and made of Earth, the ardent desire of the Soldiers to be revenged, re-doubled their Strength: so that they fell to pulling down the Walls with their Pon­yards, and other Instruments which were brought for that Service; and in a little time they had made a great many Breaches, by which they furiously en­tred into these Gardens. The Turks who had, for their own Security, and to keep out the Christians, shut themselves close up in these Gardens, being close­ly pursued, had so cut off their own Retreat, that in a little time there was made a mighty Slaughter among them: Whereupon, the others, who were yet in the other Gardens that were not taken, having taken the Fright, as well as those who guarded the Barricades, abandoned them, and saved themselves within the Town.

The Ways being thus cleared, year 1148 all the Van-Guard passed without any Oppo­sition, and advanced almost to the City, where they were necessitated to a new Combat, far more furious than the first: For all the Cavalry of the Enemies, supported by the best part of their Infantry, suspecting that the Christians, after they had carried the Gardens, would run in disorder to the River, had placed themselves in Battalia upon the Banks of it, to prohibit their Approaches. The young King, who was resolved to have all the Honour of this Day, making use of the Heat of his Soldiers, who, all covered with Sweat and Dust, and burnt with Heat and Thirst, longed for the Water of the River; having instantly rallied them, he charged fiercely into the thickest Squadrons of the Enemies: But they being all fresh, whereas his People were faint, and quite tired out, do what he could, after he had made two furious Charges, he was repulsed, and his Troops put into some Disorder. There was a necessity that he must stop a little, to rally his Men, and to attend the coming up of the Main Body, which followed slowly; and was also obliged to make a little Halt, after it had joy­ned him, for Convenience of drawing up into Order. It was upon this Occa­sion, that the Emperor Conrade performed an Action, which, though certainly something too rash, and a little irregular, yet ought to have given him suffi­cient Consolation for all his former ill Fortune in this second Crusade: For ha­ving demanded why these two Bodies which marched before his, halted so long, since he understood that the Van-Guard was engaged with the Enemy, who had gained some Advantage upon them, he suffered himself to be so transported with the desire of the Combat, that running at full Speed, followed by all his Germans, quite through the Body of the Battel, without any Order, he flew, with his Sword in his hand, into the midst of the Enemies; who, unable to resist the Shock of such a furious and unexpected Charge, instantly gave Ground. It is said also, that he gave such another dreadful Blow as that of the great God­frey of Bullen, which finished the Victory, already inclining upon his first Charge; for a puissant Turk, armed with a Curiass, having attacked him, he discharged with all his force such a furious Blow upon the place where the Shoulder joyns to the Neck, that the Sword passing through the Neck, to the right Shoulder, took that and part of the Breast clear off; the Head, and that Arm and Shoulder falling to the Ground, whilst the other remained a Spectacle of Horrour, for some time, upon the Horse. The Turks, amazed at this frightful Blow, im­mediately fled, and saved themselves in the Town, leaving all the Fields and the Rivers free to the Christians, who immediately encamped upon the Banks, and in the Gardens, with mighty convenience, both for the Men and Horses. This Victory brought such a Despair among the Turks, and the Inhabitants of Damascus, that knowing well that they were in danger of losing the place upon the first Assault which should be given, there being on that side no other De­fence beside the Gardens, which were now lost, they began to think of nothing but how to save themselves by retreating. For this purpose they barricadoed all the Streets which opened that way, to the end, that while their Enemies were busie in breaking the Barricadoes, and removing the great Beams which they had laid cross the Streets, they might have the more time to save them­selves and their Families by the opposite Gates, and so retreat with more Secu­rity to such neighbouring Towns as were in the Hands of their Friends. Thus had Damascus most assuredly fallen into the Power of the Christians, if Cove­tousness, Hatred and Envy; three furious Passions, which at this time wrought more deplorable Effects than the Arms of the Infidels, had not suddainly preci­pitated their Affairs, by a most infamous Treason, from a certain Hope, and a flourishing Condition, into the very Gulph of Misfortune and Confusion, from whence they were never able to recover again.

Those of Damascus seeing themselves thus just upon the Eve of their Ruin, after they had barricadoed the Streets, they advised themselves again of ano­ther Means to save themselves, which did not fail of the wished Effect. After that the French had conquered the Holy Land, many Persons of both Sexes, not only of the Common People, but also of the Nobility, were married in Pale­stine and Syria, with the Ladies of that Country; and many of the great Lords who were in Baldwin's Army, were such as were born of those Marriages, and [Page 124]consequently Syrians by Birth, year 1148 and by Original, either by Father or Mother. And as these kind of Mungrels usually degenerate from the fair Qualities of the more noble Nations, and participate of the Imperfections of the other, so many of these half French, half Syrian Lords retained the Vices of the Coun­try, and particularly, Greediness of Riches, and Avarice, which to this day is the domineering Vice and Passion of the Orientals. The Turks, and principal Men of the City, who being of the same Country, very well knew their Feeble, secretly sent some of the most dexterous and cunning of their Citizens, to these Motley Lords and Barons, whom they knew to be of the most covetous Dis­positions, and consequently most capable of being brought into Treason: To these they gave all imaginable Assurances that they could desire, that they should have certain Payment made of most considerable Sums of Money, provided they could induce the Besiegers only to change their Attack, and remove the Siege to the other side of the City. Now he to whom they principally trusted the Management of this Affair, found amongst those to whom he addressed himself, Inclinations favourable as he could desire, to entertain his Propositions. Prince Raymond, who mortally hated King Lewis the Seventh, after the Affair of An­tioch, had, as it is said, beforehand corrupted some of his People, and obliged them underhand, to do all that possibly they could against him, that so he might not acquire any Glory from this War. There were others who could not, with Patience, think of permitting the Earl of Flanders, as they understood it was concluded between the Emperor and the two Kings, to enjoy the Principality of Damascus; and they had rather that it should continue in the Possession of the Turks, than fall to the share of a Man, whom they looked upon as a Stran­ger, in regard he was not born in Syria. Thus the Envy of some, and the Ha­tred which Raymond had inspired into others, being joyned with the Avarice which reigned equally in both the one and the other, produced the most infa­mous and most cowardly Treason, that it was possible for Lords of great Qua­lity, not to say Christians, to be capable of: For, counterfeiting a marvellous Zeal for the publick Good, they remonstrated to the Council, That hitherto they had taken very false Measures; That they had too long permitted themselves to be deceived with vain Appearances of a commodious Encampment upon the Banks of the River, among the Gardens and Orchards; not considering that this was the main Ob­stacle, which had hitherto hindred the Taking of the City; for that the River, one part whereof served for the Ditch upon that Quarter, rendred the Access more difficult, and the Attack most dangerous; That the Gardens hindred the disposing of the Machins to such convenient Distances as were requisite for the Battery; and that the Siege being spun out to a greater length than had been promised to the Soldiers, there was great dan­ger that being disgusted, and the great Heats beginning now to become insupportable, they would quit the Siege. That for this Reason they were in the Opinion, that they ought to remove the Camp to the other side of the City, between the South and East, in re­gard that there being no Gardens, nor Rivers, nor Ditches full of Water, which could hinder them from descending to the very Foot of the Walls, which were low, weak, and without Terrasses on that side; and where the Besieged, having not expected to be at­tacked, had made no Retrenohments, there was all the Appearance imaginable that they should carry the Town at the first Assault, without so much as making use of any En­gines against it.

There is a great deal of Room for Wonder and Astonishment, to consider the Conduct of these three great Frinces upon this Occasion; who at other times wanted neither Spirit, nor Judgment, nor Experience in Martial Affairs, in which it commonly happens, That no Man fails twice; the first Fault that is committed being for the most part irreparable. But whether it was the Eagerness of their Desire to become Masters of the Town in a little time, which blinded them; or that they believed that it was impossible to act more prudently, or more safely than by the Counsels of those who who had the greatest Interest in the Taking of the Place; and who being Natives of the Country, must needs be much better acquainted than any others, with the Strength or Weakness of the City, they fell immediately into the Trap that was so artfully prepared for them: For, without enquiring into what might be the Consequences of so [Page 125]precipitate a Resolution, and without so much, year 1148 which Common Sense would have advised them, as sending according the Rules of War, any of their own People to enquire into the Nature and Strength of the Place, the Convenience or in­conveniencees of making their Attack there, or so much as whether there was any Truth in what had been represented to them, they gave out present Orders to remove the Camp to the other side of the Town, to the very place, whither these Traytors, to whose Conduct they abandoned themselves, had before resolved to lead the Army, to the Intent to starve them if they lay any time there, or constrain them to raise the Siege. And in Truth, they quickly perceived that they were intollerably abused and deceived; and that the Walls were extraordi­nary strong and well slanked with very good Towers, that there was no possibility of assaulting the Town on that side; that the Army which had made Provision but for a few days, pretending to carry the Place so quickly by Force, was in no Condition to subsist in an Encampment, where they wanted the Con­venience of the River, the Gardens and Orchards stored with Fruits and For­rage; that Provisions could not be brought to them in Regard all the Places round about were possessed by the Enimies; that to return to the Camp which they had quitted so lightly, was now a thing impossibly, for that the Enemies as soon as ever they had left it, had seized upon it, and had so well fortified all the Avenues, by new Barricadoes and huge Trees which they had piled one upon another, and by great Ditches and good Retrenchments, which they had made, at just distances one from another, that now it was as easie to take the Town as to regain that advantageous Post. For this Reason the French and Germans seeing themselves so ignominiously betrayed by those very People, for whose assistance they had undertaken so tedious a Voyage, and ran through so many hor­rible Dangers, instantly raised the Siege and returned to Jerusalem, openly re­proaching the Syrians with their detestable Treachery.

After this their Spirits being too much exasperated to hope that there should ever be a firm Union or accord among People, who entertain nothing but Jealousies and Distrusts against each other, the Siege of Ascalon which was proposed in a General Assembly, was in little Probability of succeeding; for though it was strongly urged, that something of Importance ought to be un­dertaken, and that so brave an Army ought not to go away with the Infamy of having to no purpose consumed the Season of the Year for Action, or return without performing any thing memorable; yet the Great Lords, both French and German stiffly and resolutely opposed it, protesting openly, that they would ne­ver trust such a sort of People, who had neither Conscience nor Honour; but con­trary to the Faith which they owed to God and Man, would for a little Money basely sell their Christian Brethren, whom with earnest Sollicitations they had to their great Cost and Danger brought so far to their Assistance, and betray them into the Hands of the Infidels against whom they pretended to sight. The Emperor Conrade therefore taking his Leave of the Young King Baldwin, who was altogether Innocent and who abominated the Treason of the Confederates, re-imbarked upon the Ships of his Brother-in-Law Manuel, and sailed into A­chaia, and from thence by the Adriatick, he landed upon the Territories of the Venetians, and so returned into Germany, where about three Years after he di­ed, leaving the Empire to Frederick Duke of Suabia his Nephew, who had ge­nerously taken a part with him in the ill Fortune and the Fatigues of this second Crusade.

year 1149 As for the Kings having staid at Jerusalem till after Easter, as well to satisfie his Devotion, as to wait for some Opportunity of rendring any considerable Service to God, when he perceived that his Longer Stay was like to be altogether unprofitable, in Regard that the Count de Dreux his Brother, and the greatest part of the Princes and Lords were already gone he resolved also immediately to return into his own Kingdom. He was also obliged by the pressing Sollicita­tions of his Faithful Abbot Sugerius, who writ to him to return, in the most pressing and yet most Tender and moving manner in the World, representing to him the Danger to which he exposed his Person and his Realm; where his Brother, who had not been too dutiful during the Voyage, had not made such hast to return before him; but to execute his ill Designs in his Absense. ta­king [Page 126]shiping therefore at the Port of Ptolemais; year 1149 he arrived upon the nine and twentieth day of July in Calabria, where he was magnificently received by the Officers of Roger King of Sicily, who were ordered to entertain him; for there is little Credit to be given to the Continuer of Sigeberts History, who reports that the King was taken at Sea by the Fleet of the Emperor Manuel which besie­ged Corfu, and afterwards delivered by the Admiral of the King of Sicily. For how is it possible this should be true, since the King in his Letters yet Extant, who writes so exactly, even to the least particulars of his Return to the Abbot Sugerius, makes not any kind of mention of this Accident? he stayed three Weeks in Calabria, attending the coming of the Queen, and divers of the Nobility, who did not happen to meet with such pleasant Weather at Sea as he had in his Voyage; but at last being arrived after three days longer Stay, and a great Conference with King Roger, who came to pay his Respects to him, he parted for Rome, where having likewise for three days treated with the Pope Eugenius, he at length arrived in his own Kingdom, bringing nothing with him after so long a Voyage, as to what concerns this present Life, besides the Re­gret to have lost one of the fairest Armies that ever was raised in France, without doing any thing worthy of Consideration.

There was nothing to be heard in all Places now, but the Pitious Complaints of such as lamented their deplorable Loss, nor was there a Family in all France and Germany almost, but had an Interest and Share in the Suffering; above all they were cruelly Exasperated against poor St. Bernard, whom they publickly reproached, calling him false Prophet, and charging him with abusing so ma­ny Princes, and so much People, whom, he had never been so Zealous, they said, to draw out of Europe but with a Design to make them perish most mi­serably in the Deserts of the lesser Asia, by Famine, Pestilence, and the Swords of the Infidels. And in Truth as this admirable Abbot, who was only the Prea­cher not the Author of this Crusade, had according to the Order which he re­ceived from the Pope not only published it, but also, as he himself avows, by particular Command and Direction, had undertaken, more then could be per­formed by man, to promise to those who took up the Cross, that they should meet with prosperous Success; this was to him a sufficient Subject of Mortifi­cation, in Regard it seemed to have some reasonable Foundation to establish this ill Opinion of him in the Belief of the World, and the Judgement of most men. But being a man, he was so touched to the quick with these cutting Reproaches that he was not able to dissemble the Affliction which they gave him; and though he was a Saint, and an able man, yet not able to bear this Cross himself, he made use of all the Strength of his Reason and his parts to Apologize for himself, addressing that Discourse sometime after to Pope Eugenius, which may be seen at the Beginning of his Second Book of the Considerations. There it is that appearing perfectly loosned from himself, and solely fastened unto God by an Ardent Love and mighty Zeal for his Glory, he saith, That it must of Ne­cessity happen, that men who generally make their Judgement of things in Proportion to their Events, must upon this sad Occasion fall into Discontents and Murmurings, but that it was a Satisfaction to him, to have them repine rather against him then against God; That he looked upon it as a very great Happiness, that God was pleased to con­descend so far as to make use of him as a Buckler, by exposing him to the furious Arrows of wicked men, and that he willingly received the Wounds of those envenomed Darts, of Curses, which in Reallity were shot against the Divine Providence; and that he was not at all displeased to have his own Reputation covered with Dishonour, so long as it might in any measure redound to the security of God's Glory; that he wished with all his Soul that he might glorifie God with David, in saying as he did. For thy Sake have I suffer­ed Reproach, Shame hath covered my Face. And in short that it was his Glory to be made like the Son of God, who saith to his Father by the same Prophet. The Re­proach of them that reproached thee is fallen upon me.

See here the Temper of the Heart of this great Saint under the Persecution of Mens Tongues and for his Parts and Wit they appeared most admirable in his Defence, of which I will recite one Instance, the Application whereof is easie; and which he did in some measure make use of for his own Justification. Moses, saith he, to perswade the sullen People of Israel to depart out of Egypt, where they were mightily [Page 127]in Love with the Onions and the Flesh-pots though attended with insupportable Slavery, year 1149 promised to conduct them into a Land slowing with Milk and Honey the Glory of all Lands, where they should be extreamly happy: Nevertheless that People miserably perished in the Wilderness, and never saw that pleasant Land, which was reserved for their Posterity, This was a mighty Promise, and yet ought not Moses to be accused either of Temerity or Malice, in Regard he acted by the Command of God, who was pleased by Miracles, to consirm what he had promised by Moses; how came it to pass then that the Event was so different from the Promise to those People, who came out of Egypt to die in the Wilder­ness? All the World knows that the Reason was from the People themselves, who com­mitted a thousand Offences against God, during their murmuring Passage through the Desert: and it must not be said, that the Punishments which befel them were con­trary to his Promises, for those being only Conditional and the perfect Effects of his Goodness, could not in the least prejudice the Almighty Prerogative of his Justice. It is no more but making Application of this Example to St. Bernard, and there is his Justification. He preached the Crusade by the Command of God, since he did it by the Express Command of his Superiors, which was all that he con­tributed to it. He promised them happy Success, and he promised it on Gods behalf. If, saith he, it be demanded what Miracles I did to prove my Au­thority and Mission, it is a Question which my Modesty will not permit me to answer, and my Bashfulness in being unwilling to be my own Herald, ought to procure my Pardon. It is your part, adds he, speaking to the Pope, It is your part, Holy Father, to an­swer for me, according to what you saw, and according to what you heard. And the natural Conclusion which he draws from the whole Discourse is, that the un­happy Success of this Enterprise was wholly to be imputed to the Crimes of the Crusades, and that it was no way repugnant to the Promises of God, which being Conditional could no more deprive him of the right of his Justice then the promise of a King to one of his Subjects to bestow upon him one of the Chief Offices of his Crown, can indemnifie him from the Rigor of the Laws, if he shall before he obtains it be found guilty of High Treason against his Soveraign.

And certainly Otho Frisingensis, who in this unfortunate Voyage accompanied the Emperor his Brother, avows upon his Reputation, that there were migh­ty Disorders committed by the Crusades, and such as well deserved this terrible Punishment. And others affirm that the Christian Army was blackned with so many Vices, and especially most brutal Lust, that it is no wonder if they drew upon themselves the heavy Vengeance of Almighty God. So that if it be considered that the Crimes of these Christians were so great, and that the Punishment in­slicted upon them was just, it must be great Injustice to St. Bernard, that the World should accuse him either of Malice or Treachery in preaching up the Crusade. But this hath ever been the Destiny of Great Men, to suffer as well as do great things, that so their Vertue which is above the Praises and Recom­pences of men, may expect them only from God himself.

year 1150 During this time, the Affairs of the Christians in the East, after the Depar­ture of the French and Germans whom they had so basely betrayed, were redu­ced into a most pitious Estate. For Noradin laying hold of that fair Occasion, having entred into the Principality of Antioch with a powerful Army, over­threw Prince Raymond, and slew him in the Field; after which he took the strong Fortress of Harene and in Consequence made himself Master of the greatest Part of that Principality He also took Josselin Earl of Edessa, in an Ambush, year 1152 and sent him loaden with Irons to Alepo, where shortly after he miserably died, siezing upon all his Dominions, chasing out by force, the Greeks to whom King Baldwin and the Countess had resigned it. He also conquered Damascus, year 1154 whilest King Baldwin with all the Forces of his Realm besieged Ascalon, which after seven Months Siege was surrendred to him. It is true that this young and Valiant King, always opposed himself conrageously against the Conquerer, and more than once most gloriously vanquished him: But at length the Wise Con­duct and the good Fortune of this Turkish Prince overcame all the Attempts that were made to stop the Course of his Victorious Arms. He pushed on his great Designs afterwards with more Ease by the Taking of Paneas, after the deplora­ble Death of this unfortunate King, who was poysoned by his Physician, and died in the two and thirtieth Year of his Life, year 1163 and the one and twentieth of his [Page 128]Reign. year 1163 He was a Prince who by his admirable Qualities had gained so great an Esteem, and the Hearts, not only of his Subjects, but of Noradin himself: In­somuch that the generous Sultan openly protested, that he would never draw any Advantage from the Grief and Consternation into which his unexpected Death had put the Kingdom; saying with as much magnanimity of Soul as Mo­desty, That he thought it decent to have a Share himself in the Grief and Re­spect which was due to that Prince, who ought by all Men to be Lamented, as having not left another like himself in the whole Earth.

Baldwin dying without Issue, his Brother Amauri Succeeded him, a young Prince of about twenty seven Years of Age, who with a great many admirable Qualities, had also a great number of no less Vices, and above all, his Avarice was the most Predominant, and which, after he had with Success enough, made War against Egypt in the Beginning, in the Conclusion occasioned the Loss of Jerusalem, and the intire Ruine of the Christians in the East. Egypt had for a long time been under the Dominion of the Sarasins, of the Sect of Ali, and the So­veraign Monarch was called the Caliph, who led an easy and voluptuous Life in his magnificent Palace of Grand Cairo, leaving the Administration of his Af­fairs to one, who under his Authority Commanded all his Subjects, and was called the Sultan of Egypt. He who had been Sultan, was one Sanar, and he being thrown out by his Rival Dorgan, went to implore the Assistance of No­radin, then the most Powerful among the Turks; who besides that he Possessed all Syria and Mesopotamia, had also extended his Conquests even into Cilicia as far as Iconium, having vanquished that Sultan in Battle. Now this Conquering Prince, who believed that Fortune, pleased with his Ambition, presented him a fair Offer, to Seise also upon Egypt, failed not to send a great Army under his General Syracon, a little Man, but a great Captain, whose Merit, and the Justice of his Master, notwithstanding the lowness of his Birth, had from a Slave, advanced to the greatest Charge in his Kingdom. Dorgan, who perceived the Tempest coming, that he might get Shelter, had Recourse to the young King, who dazled with the Promise of a great Tribute, Marched into Egypt with all the Troops he could raise, but something with the latest for Dorgan, who after he had had the better of his Enemies, was unfortunately slain by a Traitor, leaving his Place to his Rival Sanar, who instantly went to take Possession of it at Grand Cairo. In the mean time the dextrous Syracon, who was resolved to make his Advantage of this Alteration, Seised upon Pelusium, now called Belbeis, fully Resolving, if it were possible, to make himself Master of all Egypt. But Sanar inlarging the Promises which Dorgan had made to King Amauri, was so Iucky as to gain him to his Party, and joyning their Forces against Syracon, who had not had time sufficiently to Fortify Pelusium, year 1164 they constrained him to Deliver up the Town upon honorable Terms, and Liberty to Retire to Damas­cus. year 1165 Nevertheless, the next Year he returned with a more powerful Army, and the King also re-entred Egypt, and for a Sum of Mony undertook the War against Syracon. The Success was much to his Advantage at that time also, for Syracon was Defeated in a great Battle, and despairing to Defend Alexandria, which he had taken, year 1167 against the Arms of two Kings, he was constrained a se­cond time to come to an Accommodation, and to quit the Realm of Egypt.

This did not however hinder but that at length he made himself Master of it, by the Avarice and Infidelity of that same King, whose Arms had twice, with so much Glory chased him out of it. For Amauri, blinded with the ar­dent Desire which he had to possess the Treasures of Egypt, after he had treated upon this Design with the Emperor Manuel, whose Niece he had married, con­trary to his solemn Faith given, broke the Peace which he had made with the Sultan, year 1168 and upon the sudden taking Pelusium by Storm, and giving the Plunder of it to his Soldiers, he went and presented his Victorious Army before Grand Cairo, which doubtless, in the Consternation and Confusion wherein the Sur­prise had put the Egyptians, must have fallen into his Hands, if the same Avarice, which made him undertake this unjust War, had not also, together with his Ho­nor, made him lose all the Profit of it. For fearing if he took the Town by Force, the Soldiers would have all the Booty as they had at Pelusium, he thought it his wisest Course to treat of a Composition with the Sultan; and he knowing [Page 129]the Covetous Disposition of the King, year 1168 amused him so long with the pretence of gathering up for him two millions of Gold which he had promised him, that the Army of Noradin, which he expected, had time to Arrive to his Succour, conducted by the same Syracon, who before had been his Enemy. Amauri, Sur­prized at this unexpected News, marched imediately to give him Battle, before he should joyn with the Egyptians. But he found that this Captain, as Politick as himself, had wheeled off, and taken another Way than he expected, and was joyned with the Egyptians, who now assembled from all Quarters against him. And therefore finding that he had nothing to say to two such potent Enemies, he was forced to return without the Money into his own Kingdom, having lost his Labour, his Honour, and the yearly Tribute which the Egyptians paid him.

But it was quite otherwise with Syracon, who by his Retreat, finding him­self in a Condition to Execute his first Design, made Sanar be Assassinated as he came to do him the Honour of a Visit; after which, forcing the Caliph to Establish him in that Place, he easily possessed himself of all Egypt, where Noradin, whose Creature he was, willingly permitted him to Reign. But it was not long that he rejoyced in his Crimes, for he died the very same Year, leaving for his Suc­cessor his Nephew, the mighty Saladin, who besides his Age, which was pret­ty well advanced, and the great Experience, which under his Uncle, he had gained in War, possessed all the great Qualities, and all the Accomplishments of Body and Mind, which could be wished in a Captain, to render him, as they did, the greatest, and the most glorious Conqueror of his Age. But Ambiti­on, which especially among Infidels, does think nothing Criminal, that may advance their Designs, and judges all things Lawful which seem necessary to obtain Dominion, being his predominant Vice. This Prince, who was not able to indure so much as the apparition or Shadow of Soveraignty, that was a­bove him, Massacred the Caliph, and all that he could find of his Relations, mak­ing this his Pretext, That he had discovered a Plot of the Caliph and his Friends, who had the same Intention towards him. After which, he gratified the Sol­diery with such prodigious Largesses out of the Treasures of that Prince, that they became his perfect Idolaters, and resolved to expose all they had for his Service and Glory: And having thus established himself in the independent So­veraignty of Egypt, which he looked upon as the first Stage of his Greatness, and the Carrier of his Ambition, he began now to entertain the lofty and aspi­ring Thoughts of Conquering all the East.

And now it was that the Christians found themselves wedged in between two most potent and redoubtable Enemies, Noradin upon the East, North, and West, and Saladin upon the South. The Apprehension therefore of the extreme Dang­ers with which they were Surrounded, made them begin to think of doing all that possibly they could for their own Security: For this Purpose they sent Frederick Archbishop of Tyre, to implore the Succours of the Princes of the West, and to attack Saladin by Sea and Land with all their Forces, year 1169 before he was well Established in his new Dominions. But all in vain, for Amauri, though Assisted by a mighty Navy from the Greek Emperor, laying Siege something too late to the City Damiata, which lyes upon the second Branch of the River Nilus over against Pelusium, was constrained by the excessive Floods, and the want of Provisions, to raise his Siege; and the Navy was miserably lost, part­ly burnt by the Fires which the Enemies threw among them, and partly drown­ed by a fearful Tempest which wracked the greatest part of them in their Re­turn. And the Archbishop Frederick, after having unprofitably Toiled more than two Years in the West, where the Affairs were too much embroiled by ci­vil Dissentions, returned without any other Effects of his Ambassage, than fair Words, and fruitless Promises.

In this time, Saladin who was resolved to make use of this Advantage, year 1170 which the Disorder of the Christian Army offered him, entred into Palestine with forty thousand Horse, and took Gaza, which was the Key of the Country on that Side towards Egypt and the Sea. And not long after having levied a great Army both of Horse and Foot, he Marched on the right Hand by Idumea, that so he might secure another Passage, and fell upon the Country on the other side of Jordan, where he made a most horrible Devastation. On the other side, [Page 130]the Army of Noradin, year 1170 did the same about Antioch, and in Phoenicia, where the terrible Earth-quake, which was felt throughout the whole East, had made such fearful Disorders, overturning the Towers, and throwing down the Walls of the greatest part of the Cities, as if it were to facilitate the Conquests of Sala­din, who was the Scourge of God, the Attila of those Times, who was destined to Punish the Crimes of the Christians of Syria and Palestine. In short, to per­fect the Misfortune, the King, who opposed himself with an invincible Con­rage against all the Attempts of so many potent Enemies, died in the eight and thirtieth Year of his Age, just in the very Instant, when he was about to make considerable Advantages of the Death of Noradin, who was carried off by a Fever a little before. And this deplorable Accident which happened in so critical an unlucky Minute, occasioned so many Domestick Troubles in the Kingdom of Jerusalem, as were the concluding Causes of its Ruine.

This Prince left for his Successor his only Child Baldwin the Fourth, who be­sides the Impotence of his Age, being not above three years old, was also tainted with a scurvy Distemper, which in Conclusion, became a Leprosy. Raymond Earl of Tripolis, his nearest Kinsman, being Cousin-german to the late King, by the Mother, had the Regency during his Minority; and in that time Saladin, who never missed any Occasion to advance his Power, Siezed upon Damascus by a Correspondency which he had with the Widow of Noradin, whom he mar­ried, and in short time after he took most of the considerable Places in Syria, dispoiling the young Prince the Son of Noradin, after he had Defeated his Uncle the Sultan of Nineveh, who came to Assist him, of all his Dominions. At the same time he entred into a League with the Earl of Tripolis, who ingaged not to Assist his Enemies, provided that for the remainder of their Ransom, he set at Liberty certain Prisoners of Quality, which he kept in the Castle of Emessa, who had been taken by Noradin some eight Years before. Thus this Infidel Prince rendred himself more Potent than ever, by the Advantage of this Treaty, which gave him intire Liberty to Conquer the whole State of Noradin, both on this and the other side of Euphrates and Mesopotamia, year 1177 as also, all that the Sul­tan of Nineveh Possessed in Syria. It is true, that King Baldwin after he came out of his Minority, did what was possible for him to do in the Intervals of his Distemper, to oppose the Progress of the Conqueror, and that he obtained many considerable Advantages against him. But at length, his Distemper in­creasing, he was obliged to chuse some of the Nobility to Govern under him, and this Choice occasioned those Emulations and Divisions in the Realm, which at the last completed its Ruin: For as when once a Soveraign Prince becomes un­able, by Diseases, to mannage his own Affairs; he usually grows very Jealous and Suspicious, and full of Fears to be Betraied by those to whom he is obliged to trust with so great a Charge; Baldwin seeing himself reduced to this piteous Condition, and fearing least, Bohemond the young Prince of Antioch, and Ray­mond Earl of Tripolis, should attempt something against him, under pretext of his Distemper, which rendred him unable to Govern in his own Person; he therefore, without that just Deliberation, which an Affair of that Importance required, gave Sybilla his Sister, who was the Widow of William Longsword the Marquis of Montferrat, in Marriage to Guy de Lusignan, a young French Lord, the third Son of Hugh the Brown Earl of March, and Lord of Lusignan, who had made the Voyage by Sea with King Lewis the Young; and creating him Earl of Jaffa and Ascalon, year 1180 he declared him Governor of the Realm, to the mighty Discontent of the most of the great Lords, who thought themselves more worthy of that Honor. But it was not long before he had Occasion to Repent of his Choice, for he found by Experience, that he had but little Ca­pacity for the Charge, and less Courage, as he made appear a little after, in a fair Opportunity which he had to Defeat his Enemies, if he durst have sought with them. For this Reason therefore, passing from one Extreme to a­nother, he Disrobed himself of all his Authority, and made the little Baldwin the Fifth his Nephew, year 1182 be crowned King, an Infant of about five Years of Age, the Son of his Sister Sybilla by the Marquis of Montferrat, her first Husband, lea­ving the Government of the Kingdom to the Earl of Tripolis, the Man whom he had before most disgraced, and who was the declared Enemy of Earl Guy, [Page 131]against whom he was so incensed, year 1182 that he had recourse to Arms to be Revenged on him. But these Matters were composed by the Prudence of William Arch­bishop of Tyre, great Chancellor of the Realm, year 1183 who found out Expedients to patch up a kind of Accord between these two quarrelling Lords.

Then it was Resolved to send with all speed a great Ambassage into the West, to desire a quick and powerful Assistance against Saladin, who now began to push his Conquests even into Palestine. For this Purpose, Choice was made of Heraclius the Patriarch of Jerusalem, and the two great Masters of the Temple and the Hospital, who were then the two most considerable Men of the Holy Land, both in regard of the Number, and the Valor of the Knights of these two Orders, who were now become most Powerful and most Famous throughout all Christendom. These Ambassadors Arrived happily at the Port of Brindes; but their Negotiation was not answerably happy to that of their Voyage: For the different Interests of the Christian Princes at that time, were such as would not permit them to ingage in an Enterprise of such Difficulty, as was the Leading of an Army of Crusades into Palestine, as the Ambassadors desired. William King of Sicily was ingaged in a War against the Cruel Andronicus, to take Vengeance upon that Tyrant, who had horribly Massacred all the Latins that were at Con­stantinople, that so he might with greater Facility usurp the Imperial Throne, by putting to Death the young Alexis, the Son of Manuel. Having therefore been able to procure nothing more from this Prince, besides great Promises for the future, they crossed through Italy to Verona, where Pope Lucius, and the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, held a great Assembly of Princes and Prelates, to determine the Differences between them, and to settle the Affairs of Italy. The Emperor, who was absolutely resolved to re-settle his Authority, which the Wars, during the Schism, which had been made with the Papal See, had so much weakned, gave them nothing but fair Words and great Hopes; and for the Pope, as he ever distrusted the Romans, who not long before had Revolted from him, he was able to do no more than to give the Ambassadors his Letters, to the Kings of England and France, wherein he exhorted them to this Enter­prise, as Alexander the Third his Predecessor had before to little Purpose done. The Patriarch therefore, and the great Masters of the Hospitallers, after ha­ving performed their last Duty to the Master of the Temple, who Died at Verona, passed into France. There they were most magnificently Received and Treated by the Order of the King Philip Augustus, at Paris, to whom they presented the Keys of the Holy City, of the Tower of David, and the Holy Sepulchre, with the Royal Standard, in token that they put themselves under his Protection, and to oblige him to Succor the Holy Land, as if it were his own Kingdom, now that it was reduced to such extreme Danger by the Infidels. Whereupon a general Assembly of all the Prelates and great Men of the Realm, was called at Paris, to Debate this great Affair; and they considering that the King was not above eight and twenty Years of Age, and had no Issue, were of Opinion, That he ought not in Person to undertake such a dangerous Voyage; only Philip promised the Ambassadors, that he would move his Subjects through­out the whole Realm to inrowl themselves for this War, and that he would at his own Cost, furnish all those liberally for their Maintenance, who would take up Arms for so Just and Holy a War. This Answer was not at all to the Satisfaction of the Patriarch; however he contented himself as well as he could, upon the Hopes which he had that the King of England, upon whom they did particularly rely in Syria, would make himself the Head of the En­terprise.

That King was Henry the Second, the Son of Geoffry Earl of Anjou, who had married Maud the Empress, the Widow of the Emperor Henry the Fourth, she was Daughter to Henry the First King of England; so that this Henry the Se­cond was Grand-child both to Henry the First, and to Fowk d' Anjou, King of Jerusalem, who was the Father to Geoffry Earl of Anjou, and to Amauri King of Jerusalem; and by reason thereof he was Cousin German to Baldwin the Fourth, who was the late King of Palestine; so that doubtless he was more par­ticularly Obliged than any other Prince, to Defend that Realm which might one Day descend to him by Inheritance. He was also more especially Obliged to [Page 132]it for the Expitation of the Crime which he had Committed, year 1183 in permitting the Assassins of St Thomas Archbishop of Canterbury, to Murder him in his own Church; and he had accepted it as a Penance from the Pope, within three Years to lead an Army in Person to the Holy Land. More than ten Years were already slip'd away since the Term prefixed, and he had not done any thing to­wards the Accomplishment of his Promise; of which he was by a Letter from Pope Lucius, reminded in Terms sharp enough, who told him plainly, that it was impessible for him to escape the severe Judgments of God, who would not permit himself to be mocked, and whose Vengeance he would have cause to Fear, if he persisted willfully in the breach of his Promise. All these Conside­rations made the Patriarch hope for more happy Success to his Negotiation in England, in regard, that in this pressing Necessity, it was probable, either that the King would go in Person into Palestine, for the satisfaction of his Promise; or at least, that he would send one of his three Sons to command the Army; and bigg with these Expectations, he crossed the Sea with his Colleague, and in the beginning of the Year following came to London.

year 1185 Henry, who was beforehand resolved not to grant what the Ambassadours came to desire, would nevertheless save his Reputation, and therefore he did them all the Honour imaginable, and took the most plausible Courses to justify his Conduct. He therefore sent for them to Reading, where the Court then was, and gave them a most favourable Audience; He very graciously, and with great marks of Goodness and Compassion, heard the Patriarch Heraclius, who in a most passionate Discourse, after he had presented him with the Keys of Jerusa­lem, and the Holy Sepulchre, represented the piteous Condition to which the Affairs of the Christians in the East were reduced, who he said, stretched out their beseeching Hands to him, who above all others, had so many powerful Reasons, both Divine and Humane, to oblige him to take them into his Pro­tection. The King gave him Hopes, that he should in a little time receive Sa­tisfaction in what he had proposed, assuring him with all the appearances of a great Sincerity, that with God's Help all should go well, and that this Affair should succeed to his Contentment: And in the Interim he conducted the Am­hassadours to London, there to attend the more particular Answer, which he pro­mised to give them, after he had first, according to the Custom, taken the Ad­vice of the Prelates and Lords of his Parliament upon it, which he had ordered to be called against the first Sunday in Lent. And accordingly, he did not fail to call a Parliament, where, besides the great Men of England, there were also present, William King of Scotland, and David his Brother, and the Lords of that Realm, which then was held of the King of England. Now the Patriarch, as the Pope in his Letter, and himself in his Speech had done, principally insisted upon the Promise, which the King made, when he obtained his Absolution, to go in Person to the Holy Land; the King consulted the Bishops and the Abbots in the Case, to know whether, considering the present Circumstances of his Affairs, he was obliged to aquit himself of his Promise, by accomplishing that part of his Penance which was imposed on him by the Pope, and to which he had so solemnly obliged himself. This certainly was a most nice and curious Case of Conscience, and which ought in the first place to be decided; in regard, that if his Promise was binding, there was no longer place for Deliberation, and that he had but one Choice to make, which was, to acquit himself of it by un­dertaking the Voyage: If he was not obliged to that Condition of his Penance, then it must fall under Examination, whether of these two was most Expedi­ent, either that the King should assist the Orientals without going in Person out of the Kingdom, or that he should himself conduct the Succours into Pale­stine. As for the King, to shew that his Proceedings were clear and with good Faith upon the matter, he would by all means, that the Patriarch and the great Master, should themselves Assist at the Debate, while this Question was under Deliberation, with full and intire Liberty, there to offer what they should judge Convenient. And withal, he strictly required of all that assisted at that Assembly, that they should faithfully give their Opinions, without any sort of Complaisance to him, and declare their Judgment upon their Consciences, which of these two was most expedient and necessary for his Souls Health [Page 133]and Salvation; year 1185 protesting that he was firmly resolved to put in Execution what should be determined by the Plurality of Votes in that Assembly.

The more severe Opinion assuredly was, That the King should abide by his Word and Promise, that he should accomplish the Penance which he had ac­cepted of, and that he should go in Person to the Succour of the Holy Land: and this the Patriarch failed not to support with all the Reasons and Argu­ments which could be alledged: For, urged he, What is there in all Civil So­ciety, which ought to be more sacred and inviolable, than the Word of a migh­ty King? Can there be any thing that ought more religiously to be observed, than a Promise made upon receiving the Holy Sacrament, at the Absolution gi­ven for an Offence, which was granted upon the Condition of accomplishing the Penance which is accepted to satisfie God Almighty? And supposing that there could be a Dispensation, so as to change it to another; Who could give that Dispensation, or make that Exchange, except the Pope, who had impo­sed the Penance; and who was so far from being willing to grant any such Dis­pensation, that he presssed the Performance of it in the most pressing Terms, and with the most terrible Menaces of the Judgments of God, if the Satisfaction was longer deferred? These Arguments, without doubt, appeared very strong: Nevertheless, all the Bishops and Abbots, among whom there were many ex­traordinary knowing, and very good People; among others, Baldwin Arch-Bishop of Canterbury, a Man of most wonderful Merit; concluded with one com­mon Consent, for the more mild Opinion; and maintained, that the King was not only not obliged at present to undertake this Voyage to Palestine, but also, that it was more conducing to the Health of his Soul, that he should stay to govern his Dominions; in regard that the Promise which he had made in accepting the Penance, was not only in its own Nature dispensable, but ought to be dispen­sed with, because nothing could oblige a Prince to the prejudice of another Pro­mise which was made before it, and which was indispensable, and by which the King, by his Coronation Oath, had obliged himself to govern his Subjects, and defend them against the Attempts of all their Enemies, both Foreign and Do­mestick; which it was impossible for him to do in his Absence, in a Govern­ment where his Presence could not be wanting. And for what concerned one of the Sons of the King, which was desired in default of the King's going in Person, they all agreed unanimously with the Lords Temporal, that the Parlia­ment had no power to determine upon it, in regard they were absent; and that therefore the Resolution which was to be taken upon that Matter depended absolutely upon their own Will and Pleasure. And, in short, they judged all together, that though the King had, of himself, a mighty desire to go this Voyage, yet he ought not to undertake it without first consulting the King of France, who, in respect of the Estates of Normandy, Guienne, and other Pro­vinces which he held in the French Monarchy, was his Lord and Soveraign: But that notwithstanding, he might give liberty to his Subjects to take up the Cross, and undertake that Voyage upon the first Occasion; and that the King should advance a Sum of Money for their Support who should undertake this War, who it was promised, should follow shortly after.

This was the Resolution which was taken in the Parliament of London, and with which the Patriarch Heraclius, who was of a very violent Humour, was so exasperated, by thinking all his Hopes and Endeavours were lost, that he in­stantly threw off all manner of Respect which was due to so great a Prince, and treated him after so rude a fashion, that it is impossible to excuse it under the soft name of Zeal, as he endeavoured to persuade the World. For the King, that he might sweeten what seemed so harsh in this matter, was resolved him­self to remonstrate to the Ambassadours, whom he sent for, the Reasons which had moved the Parliament to come to that Resolution, which they esteemed so prejudicial to the Hopes of their Embassage: He informed them, that it was the fear they had, that the French, with whom they never continued long in Peace, would draw some advantage from his Absence; as also, that they were not without Jealousies and Suspicious, that his own Sons, of whom they were not too well assured, might occasion some disturbance in the Realm: but that for his own particular, he would with all his heart, give fifty thousand Marks [Page 134]in Silver for the maintaining of the War, year 1185 and that he would further oblige him­self to maintain all such of his Subjects as would undertake that Enterprise. This certainly was very obligingly and advantageously offered by the King: but the Cholerick Patriarch, fiercely rejecting the Proposition, told him very insolently, That they had no occasion for his Money, but for his Person; that they had more Gold and Silver than they desired; and that they were not come so far, but to search for a Man who wanted Money, as he did, and who therefore might, to his ad­vantage, make a profitable War against the Infidels; and that they did not seek for Money, which stood in need of a Man who was skilled in Military Affairs, and knew how to employ it in that War. And for you, Sir, added he, speaking to him with an Air, as offensive and disobliging as was imaginable; You have hitherto reigned with abundance of Glory: But know, that God, whose Cause you have now abandoned, is about also to abandon you; and he will let you see what will be the Consequence of re­paying him with Ingratitude, for all those Riches and Kingdoms which you have not obtained, but by your Enormous Crimes. You have violated your Faith to the King of France, who is your Soveraign; and you make that your Excuse to refuse this War, that you are afraid he should make War upon you: You have barbarously caused the holy Arch-bishop of Canterbury to be murdered; and yet, in Expiation of your Guilt, you refuse to undertake this Holy War, for the Defence of the Holy Land, to which you had engaged your self most solemnly upon the blessed Sacrament. And then seeing the King change Colour, and blush with Madness and Anger; Never believe, pur­sued he, thrusting out his Neck; Never believe that I have the least Apprehension of the Effects of that Fury which glows about your Cheeks and Eyes, and which the truth of what I have spoken, which you cannot endure, hath kindled in your Soul; there ta­king Head. Treat me as you have done St. Thomas: I had rather die by your Hand in England, than by that of the Sarasins in Syria, since I esteem you little less than a barbarous Sarasin.

In truth, this extravagant, raving Language in a Patriarch, and a Patriarch-Ambassadour, was both inexcusable and insupportable; but the King, whose Age and Experience, and the dangerous Consequences which had followed upon the death of Becket, the Arch-bishop of Canterbury, had rendred more mode­rate, made a great Attempt upon himself, and generously surmounted his Pas­sion, though the Patriarch went on, still vomiting out of indecent Reproaches, worse than before, which I am ashamed to relate. And when the Transport, into which the old Prelate had put himself was over, and that he began again to be in a tolerable Humour, the King did not, for all this, fail to treat him with abundance of Sweetness and Civility, till such time as he carried him over in his own Ship to Roan; where, after the Celebration of Easter, he went with him to the Frontier, that so he might be a Witness of the Conference which was held for three days with King Philip, upon the Subject of this Holy War. But for all that, the Patriarch was no more satisfied than he had been before; for the two Kings remained fixed in their Resolution, and both together infor­med him, that their Affairs would not permit to be so far and long absent from their Dominions, but that they were both willing to assist him with such Stores of Men and Money, as might defend them against all the Power of Saladin.

And thus it happened at the last, that Heraclius, who had made no scruple while he was in Palestine, but he should bring along with him, either the King of England, or one of his Sons, was forced to return, not only without them, but without the Succours also which were offered him, which out of madness he foolishly despised, contrary to all the Rules of Prudence and Reason, and to the mighty prejudice of the declining Affairs of his Master. So much doth it import Princes, not to abandon their Affairs and Interests to the Discretion of those who have so little themselves, as to suffer their unruly Passions to go­vern them so absolutely, as to lose even that little which they have. It is true indeed, that after all this, the Arch-bishops of Canterbury and Roan, and the greatest part of the Lords of England, Normandy and Guienne, and the other Provinces which the English possessed in France, took up the Cross, as soon as the Soldiers which Philip Augustus had levied, in order to the sending them to the Succour of the Holy Land. But this beginning of a Crusade turned to no [Page 135]great account; not only because the two Kings did not at all engage in it, year 1185 but also because the Peace which was made between them, was shortly after broken; the occasion of which, and the renewing of the War, happened to be, by the Refusal of Richard, the Son of the King of England, to do the Homage which he ought to have rendred to King Philip, for the Earldom of Poitou, which he held of the Crown of France by that ancient Tenure: as also, by reason that King Henry refused to restore the Earldom of Gisors, after the death of the young Henry, his eldest Son, to whom it was given in Dowry with Margaret of France, his Lady, the Sister of Philip Augustus, upon Condition that it should revert to that Crown if Henry should dye without Issue, as he did three Years after his Marriage.

Thus the Holy Land, which was so furiously attacked by an Enemy so formi­dable as Saladin, remained destitute of all Assistance; and that which was still more deplorable was, that this sad Relation being reported throughout Pale­stine, by the Indiscretion of the Patriarch, struck the whole Country with such an universal Consternation, as produced a most dangerous Effect; for an Eng­gish Knight of the Temple, one Robert de St. Alban, a good Captain, but an ill Man, who had neither Religion, Honour, nor Conscience; believing, upon this Report, that all was lost as to the Christians, and that he could no longer hope to establish his Fortune amongst a ruined People, he began to think of ma­king it among the Sarasins; and to make himself considerable, in meriting well of Saladin, though by the blackest of all Crimes. This infamous Man there­fore rendred himself to that Prince, offering him his Service against the Chri­stians; and promised him, that in a little time he would destroy them, and also take the City of Jerusalem, with the Weakness whereof he was perfectly acquainted: And that he might give him such Assurance of his Truth as was unquestionable, he also added, That he was ready to renounce his Religion, and turn Mahometan. Saladin, who very well knew him by the Reputation which he had acquired, and which had given him the Fame of one of the ablest and most valiant Knights of his Order, accepted his Offers; and to engage him the more strongly to his Party, gave him his Niece in Marriage, and in conse­quence, a very good Army, with which this infamous Apostate committed most horrid Discorders in Palestine; but as he approached to Jorusalem, which he believed he should be able to surprize with the third part of his Troops, whilst the other desolated all the Country as far as Samaria, or Sebastia, even to Jericho, the small number of Soldiers which were in the City, with the Inhabitants, sallied out at the Postern-Gates so luckily, that the Traytor, who expected no such matter, was himself surprized, and most of his Companions being cut in pieces, he was constrained to sly with all the haste his Spurs could help him to, thereby to escape the just Punishments which he knew he deser­ved for his detestable Perfidy. This was some little Consolation to poor King Baldwin, who had tasted little in his Life, but went out of the World some few Days after, with this small Satisfaction; dying in the twenty fifth Year of his Age, and the twelfth of his Reign; not less with the Violence of his Disease, than with the Grief which he had, to see his poor Kingdom destitute of all hopes of Succour, and left in the hands of a feeble Infant, betwixt eight and nine Years of Age; and which was in extream danger to be miserably torn in pieces, by the Factions and Ambition of the Great Men.

And indeed, presently after the death of this Prince, year 1186 those dangerous Con­tests for the Regency began to break out, between the Earl of Tripolis, and Guy de Lusignan: But this Fire became a mighty Blaze by the death of the little King, which happened about seven Months after that of his Unkle, by a slow Poyson which, it is said, was given him either by Count Raymond, his Gover­nor, who had some Pretensions to the Throne; or as others believed, by his own Mother Sybilla, an ambitious and unnatural Woman, who was not able to suffer this little Infant to take from her the Hope of being a Queen. But let it be as it will, that the Malignity of Men's Natures, and the Liberty which they give themselves, to publish their own Suspicions, and the idle Reports of the People, for undoubted Truths, which hath often given Rise to the Belief of such supposed Crimes: This is certain, that the death of this Infant King gave [Page 136]the fatal Blow to this unhappy Kingdom, year 1186 and to the Liberty of the unfortu­nate City of Jerusalem. King Baldwin the Fourth had two Sisters; Sybilla, the Mother of this little Baldwin the Fifth, which she had by her first Husband, William, Marquis of Montferrat; his second Sister was Isabella, the Daughter of Mary, the second Wife of Amauri, and Niece to Manuel, the Emperor of Con­staminople; who was married to Alfred de Thoron, Son to the late Constable of Jerusalem. Now Raymond, who was the nearest Relation to the deceased Kings, pretended that, in the present Condition of their Affairs, he ought to succeed to the Kingdom, to the Exclusion of the Females; and he was supported in his Pretensions by the Militia, the People, and the Judgment of King Baldwin the Fourth, who had intrusted him with the Minority of the young King, his Ne­phew; excluding from it Guy de Lusignan, the second Husband of his Sister Sy­billa. On the other side, all the great Lords of the Realm, who were for main­taining the Succession to the lawful Heirs of the Sisters of Baldwin the Fourth, were resolute to recognize the Princess Sybilla for their Queen; but with this Condition, that some Expedient should be found out to break her Marriage with Count Guy of Lusignan, with whom they would have nothing to do, both in regard that he was not reputed either brave or able, as also, that they could not endure that a Stranger, newly come among them, should possess the Throne, to the prejudice of so many Lords of the Realm, who might sill it more advan­tageously. Nevertheless, Sybilla, who was altogether as dexterous as she was ambitious, having for some time concealed the death of her Son, knew so well how to gain the Patriarch, and the great Masters of the Temple and the Ho­spital, who made the most powerful Interest, that she procured her self and Husband to be crowned, almost at the same time that the death of the little King was divulged, before the other Pretenders could have the leisure to enter­prize any thing against her. It is true indeed, that they were so transported with Madness at this surprizing Artifice, that they offered to declare Alfred de Tho­ron King; but whether it were that he had little Ambition, or little Courage, he rejected the Tender, and went himself immediately to recognize the new King, by doing him Homage; the others thereupon, being astonished with his Action, yet followed his Example, though they detested in their hearts this Cowardly Submission of his, as they termed it, and reserved themselves for the future, by some Opportunity or other, to overthrow that Throne, to which they now submitted only in Appearance, and Compliance to the present Neces­sity. But it was far otherwise with the Earl of Tripolis; for he, neither able to suffer, nor to dissemble the Injury, which he thought he received by prefer­ring his Rival, was so transported with Rage and Fury, that he immediately retired into his own Estates; and presently after, to accomplish his Revenge, committed a Fact, the most black, dishonourable and detestable, that ever was recorded in any Story. This Count Raymond the Third was descended in the Right Line from the famous Raymond Earl of Tholouse, who was his third Grand­father, and who, after he had done so many fair Actions in the first Crusade, died in the Year 1105. in the Fortress of Mount Pilgrims, about two Miles from Tripolis, which he then besieged. Bertrand, his Son, who took that City, succeeded his Father in the Earldom, which he held of the Realm of Jerusalem; and he left for his Successor, Pontius de Tholouse, his Son; who married Cecilia, the Widow of the valiant Tancred, the Daughter of Philip, the King of France, which he had by Bertrada de Monfort; who had also had by Fowk d' Anjou, her former Husband, the young Count Fowk, who was afterwards King of Jerusa­lem. From this Earl Pontius and Cecilia, descended Raymond the Second, Ne­phew to King Fowk; and who was also his Brother in Law, by the Marriage of the younger Sister of Queen Melesintha, the Daughter of King Baldwin the Se­cond, and Wife of King Fowk. So that Raymond the Third, of whom I now speak, who was the Son of Raymond the Second, was, by his Father, second Cousin; and by his Mother, Cousin-german to King Amauri, the Father of Sy­billa, and Unkle to the little King deceased. Being of this Illustrious Blood, he had also Qualities answerable to the Greatness of his Birth: for he was wise and judicious in Counsel; prudent, moderate, grave, serious, and extream so­ber; speaking little, and very reserved, though he had a Spirit quick and [Page 137]piercing, and was of a mighty Courage, and undaunted Boldness: year 1186 He was ve­ry ready, and even eager in the Execution of what he undertook, as too well appeared in the Battle of Harenc, which he and the Prince of Antioch lost to Noradin; wherein he was taken Prisoner, and carried to Alepo; where he continued in Captivity for eight Years, paying for his Ransom twenty thou­sand Pounds, the greatest part whereof he received from the King Amauri. As for the rest, he was wonderful cunning, civil, popular, and artificially com­plaisant to those with whom he had to do, but sierce and ruggid to his Dome­sticks, where he acted without Constraint, according to the Dictates of his mo­rose Temper, which made it self known for Saturnine and Melancholy, by the Habit of his Body, which was thin, large and meagre, his Visage melancholy, his Complexion swarthy, his Hair black and lank, his Nose hooked, his Eyes quick and fiery, his whole Phisnomy sierce and gloomy, which, in despight of all the Art which he made use of to sweeten it, made too visible Appearances, that he had at the bottom of his Soul, those untamed, tumultuous and violent Passions, which were capable of transporting him to the last Extremities of Rage and Wickedness, as made themselves manifest in that fearful manner which I am about to relate.

For Saladin, who was diligent in watching how to make his Advantage of these Divisions among the Christian Princes, the noise of the Rupture being come to his knowledge, secretly sent to Earl Raymond, with whom he had be­fore had some Correspondency. He sollicited him to joyn their Forces toge­ther against Guy de Lusignan, and promised him to set him upon the Throne of Jerusalem, and to assist him with all his Power, to maintain him there, provi­ded that, for the Security of his Fidelity, he would renounce Christianity, and embrace the Law of Mahomet. There are few Examples in History which make it more apparent, into what a fearful Abyss of Blindness and Madness the violent Passions of Jealousie, Ambition, Hatred and Revenge precipitate a Man, who hath once so far abandoned himself to them, as no longer to give ear to Reason, Honour and Conscience, which oppose them. Raymond, who was resolved, at any rate, that his Rival should perish, and who had no other Thoughts, but how to gratisie his importunate Passions, though at the Expence of the greatest Crimes in the World, and the Damnation of his Soul; without fur­ther weighing the the Shame, or the Danger, into which, in all senses, he was plunging himself, in giving Credit to an Enemy, and an ambitious Infidel; pro­mised all that Saladin desired, provided that he would follow his Direction, and enter into the Realm with a powerful Army when it was a convenient time, by the Way which he should advise. He therefore acquainted him only with his Design; which, that it might prosper, was to be enterprized in this manner, as he had before contrived in his Imagination: There was a necessity that he must for the present dissemble the Change of his Religion, of which nevertheless he assured him, that he would turn Mahometan; as also, that it was necessary that he should conceal his implacable Hatred to his Enemy, by pretending a perfect Reconciliation with him, that so he might more easily destroy him, when he should not have the least suspition of him. And therefore Saladin, who also had his design to deceive him, after he had made use of him for his own Pro­ject, having highly applauded and approved of his Artifice; this Traytor, seeming to have recovered his Transports, and now to be a true Penitent, acted with so much Cunning, and so deep Dissimulation, that by the Mediation of some of the principal Lords who were of his Confederacy, and not in the least suspected by the King, he made his Peace with that poor Prince, who was ravished with Joy to think that now he had nothing more to fear from an Ene­my so potent and dangerous; who, being now reconciled, and returned to his Duty, might make him also hope to receive considerable Services from him.

Thus did he, as it were, deliver himself bound, Hand and Foot, into the Power of his mortal Enemy, who had sworn his Ruin, and who had already sold him to Saladin: For Raymond, who had married Eschina, the Princess of Galilee, the Widow of the Count de Bures, the Constable of the Kingdom, which was the Daughter of Hugh de St. Omer, to whom King Baldwin had given that Principality, was by that Marriage, possessed of it; and having for the purpose, [Page 138]after his secret Treaty with Saladin, year 1186 placed a very weak Garrison there, he advertised him to enter by that way into the Kingdom. This the Conqueror salled not to do; and having first defeated the Troops of the Templers and Hospitaliers, upon the first Day of May, in a Combat wherein the Master of the Hospital and sixty of the bravest Knights sell upon the place, he easily sci­zed upon the greatest part of the considerable Towns, which were left in a manner wholly desenceless. And following the Advice which he received from Count Raymond, after his Accommodation with the King, he besieged Tiberias, since called Tabary, with an Army of above fourscore thousand Horse, and a great number of Foot. This was a sair and great Town, anciently called Cenerth, situate upon the West of the great Lake of Cenesareth, or the Sea of Galilee, which Herod the Tetrarch, after he had magnificently rebuilt it, and sortified it with strong Walls, and good Towers, had given to it the Name of Tiberias, after the Name of the Roman Emperor then reigning. Now the Earl having left a very slender Garrison there, Saladin attacked it without any difficulty, and took it; all that the Princess Eschina, who knew nothing of the Treason of her Hus­band, was able to do, being to save her self by retiring into the Fortress, with those sew Soldiers which she had to defend it, in Expectation of the Succours, which she sent instantly to desire from the King.

Upon this News, the Council was divided in their Opinions. The more Wise and Prudent were utterly against attempting to relieve the place by main Force, in regard, That this could not be done, but by drawing the Garrisons out of the other Cities, to re-inforce the Army, which, without them, was too weak to under­take so great an Enterprise; and that this was, in effect, to expose the whole Realm to inevitable Ruin, in case they should lose the Battel. But the Earl of Tripolis, who would not lose so fair an Opportunity to accomplish his Treason, vehemently opposed that Opinion; and maintained, That there was an absolute necessity to en­deavour the Relief of the Fortress of Tiberias: That it was to lose all, to lose their Honour, by suffering the Princess, his Wife, who so bravely defended it, to perish, whilst they stood cowardly looking on: And that all the other Cities despairing, after such an Example, to be relieved, would instantly surrender to the Conquerors, and fol­low the Fortune of Tiberias, if it should be taken. And for any thing else, in draw­ing out the Garrisons from the Cities, they should thereby have so good an Army, and so numerous, that there could not be any room for Fear, but that they should beat that Enemy, whom they had so often vanquished with far less Forces. The four Sons also of the Princess Eschina; which she had by her first Husband, made a mighty Noise; and with repeated Instances, demanded Relief to be sent to their Mo­ther. The Queen Sybilla also employed for this purpose, all the Power which she had over the Spirit of the King, her Husband, who was indeed her Crea­ture. So that, in conclusion, the greatest part of the Lords inclining to this Opinion; some out of Complaisance to the Queen, others out of Service to the four Princes of Tiberias, and divers out of the design which Count Raymond had secretly communicated to them; it was resolved, that they should march di­rectly against the Enemies, with all the Forces which they could draw out of the Garrisons; where none were to be lest, but such as were incapable of bear­ing Arms. And thus with these Troops, which were composed of a great ma­ny Men, and a few Soldiers; the Army consisting in twelve thousand Horse, and twenty thousand Foot, besides the Citizens, who were compelled by Force to serve in the War, they advanced towards Tiberias.

Now as Raymond, who in Right of the Princess, his Lady, was Prince of Ga­lilee, was better acquainted with the Country than the rest; and that he was not only esteemed a great Soldier, but that he seemed also to have the greatest Interest in the Victory, which was to deliver the Person which ought to be the dearest to him, the Conduct of the Army was unanimously committed to him. That perfidious Traytor, who gave secret Advertisement of all things to the Enemies, unfortunately, or rather maliciously engaged them in a rude and ste­ril Country, among the Straits of the Rocks and Mountains, where there was neither Water nor Forrage. The Enemies, who only waited for this lucky Mi­nute, failed not to encompass them with their Troops, which were far more numerous, after the same manner that the Romans had some time been inclosed [Page 139]in the Furcae Caudinae, year 1187 which were not more Famous by the Shameful Ignomony into which the ignorance and the Temerity of their Captains there precipita­ted their Soldiers, then these Straits, for the deplorable Overthrow of the Christian Army, which was betrayed into the Hands of the Infidels by the base­ness of their Perfidious Conductor.

It was now high Summer, in the beginning of July, when the Heats of that Burning Climate are most insupportable: and there was not one Drop of Wa­ter to be found among those Rocks, so that the Men and Horses died with Thirst, and were able to do no more; there was therefore a Necessity of resolving immediately to sight the Enemy. For though the Disadvantage was very great by reason that it was impossible to draw up the Army in Battalia, in a Post which was so uneven and so strait and broken with Rocks, that they could not attack the Enemy, but by filing off, yet it was impossible to avoid that Choice; the Army was divided into a great many Bodies commanded by the Principal Lords, who were to follow one another, who were to sustain there Companions, and who were reciprocally to be sustained by those which follow­ed them. The Enemies expected them in good Order to cut them off, as they marched in these long Files, before they should have Leisure to form themselves into Squadrons upon the Plain, to give them Battle. The great Master of the Temple who chose to have the Van with his Noble Knights, advanced first, and charged so furiously upon those Enemies which opposed him, that over­turning them upon those who followed them he put them into Disorder, inso­much that these Gallant men, who fought most Valiantly after the Example of their Captain, killing, overturning, or putting to flight all that durst oppose their first Fury, had they been sustained by the other Bodies, who had Order to follow them, the whole Army might with little Difficulty have been drawn from that disadvantageous Post, and have had the Liberty of sighting in the Plain Field, where they would doubtless have been able to have hoped or how­ever disputed for the Victory; but here it was that the detestable Treason of the Perfidious Earl of Tripolis made it self most infamously Visible; For he had so ordered the Matter, that he himself commanded that Body which was to follow the Templers, and he had also disposed the other Troops in such manner, that all the Lords who were of his Party were to follow him. Now these Traytors would not advance, alledging that this was to lead their Souldiers to a perfect Butchery, to quit their advantageous Post and to march them thus in Files into the Plain, which was all covered with the Battalions and squadrons of the Ene­mies, who must needs cut them all in Pieces, taking them thus without Trouble one after another: So that these brave Knights, infamously abandoned by their Reserves, and on every side surrounded by an innumerable Multitude of Sara­sins were all either slain upon the Place, or taken Prisoners, not so much as one of them escaping.

After this Defeat, Saladin seeing that no more durst advance to the Combat, approached to the Camp of the Christians, which yet he would not adventure to attack; but that he might complete their Dispair by taking from them all Appea­rance of a Possibility to draw themselves out of that wicked Strait, he caused Fires to be made in the Woods, which invironed the greatest Parts of those Rocks, and set strong Guards upon all the other Avenues, that so he might sight them with greater Advantage if they should endeavour to Retreat, But six Fugitives, who run to his Army, and to gain Credence with him, offered to be­come Sarasins, as they presently did, having assured him that the Christian Soldi­ers were half dead with Hunger and Thirst, and under the greatest Consterna­tion, so oppressed with their Misfortune, Weariness and Despair that they were scarce able to stand or go; upon this Advice he instantly resolved to Charge them; which he did with that Success, that his Army powering in up­on them by the Straits which the Christians had abandoned, they fell upon these mi­serable People, who were crouded together, and who had neither Courage to defend themselves, nor Power to fly cross the Flames and the Rocks, that it was no longer a Combat, but a Horrible Butchery and Slaughter: So that al­most all the Captains and Christian Soldiers, either perished in this miserable Day, or were taken Prisoners. Few there were who saved themselves by [Page 140]Flight, year 1187 except the Perfidious Raymond and his Complices, whom the Turks per­mitted to escape. The King seeing that all was lost, thought to have saved him­self by flying, but Tokedin the Nephew of Saladin pursued him so quick that he took him Prisoner, as also the true Cross, which Rufin the Bishop of Ptolemais, according to the Custom, carried that Day in the Battle. That Bishop was armed with a Curiass contrary to the manner of all the other Prelates, who be­fore him had carried that Holy Wood unarmed, not so much as one of them ha­ving even been wounded, whereas he notwithstanding his Armour, was shot quite through the Body with an Arrow, wherewith he lost both his life and the Cross which he carried. Tokedin, who took it, when he brought the King a Prisoner before his Uncle, presented that also to him as the most Glorious Trophy of his Victory.

There never was any Victory, more sad and deplorable to the Vanquished or more complete and advantageous to the Vanquishers; a Victory which made the Conquerors Masters of all the rich Equipage of so many Princes and great Lords, as were either Slain or taken in that Battle. And as Saladin had a mor­tal Hatred to the Knights of the two Orders, of the Temple and the Hospital of Jerusalem, he caused the Heads of all of them who were found among the Pri­soners to be cut off in his Presence, excepting only the great Master of the Temple; so that he almost extinguished the whole Orders of them that were in Palestine, for not one of these Valiant men had once offered to fly, and the grea­test part of them perished Nobly with their Swords in their Hands during the Combat. He also with his own hand slew the Brave Renaud de Chattillon, who after having a long time governed the Principality of Antioch, the Heiress whereof, the Princess Constantia, he had married, was since that Gover­nour of the Countries beyond Jordan, where he had so often arrested the Course and of Saladin's Victories. This Prince who otherwise was a Person of great Humanity, when his Anger did not transport him beyond his Reason, yet could not bear with this Valiant man, who being by him briskly and with a little insulting over his Misfortunes, demanded some Questions, answer­ed him with an Air as Fierce and Haughty as the other spoke to him, insomuch that the Liberty which he ought to have admired in a man, whose Courage neither his Misfortune nor his Chains could abate, provoked him to that Degree that for­getting himself, he cut of his Head with a Blow of his Cimiter, dishonouring his Victory by that Brutal Action, which was so altogether unworthy of so great a man as he otherwise was. And thus by this unmanly Action he made it appear, that it was more difficult to vanquish himself than to overcome his Enemies. As for the rest, whether it were that he repented of so shameful and cruel a Transport, or that his Avarice opposed his Cruelty; the Fear that he had to lose so many great Ransoms, which he might expect from such considerable Priso­ners, made him treat them with extraordinary Civility, especially the King, the Great Master of the Temple, and the old Marquis of Montferrat, the Father-in-Law of Queen Sybilla, who being come a little before to Visit the Holy Places would needs make one in that unfortunate Battle.

But this was the smallest Fruit which Saladin drew from the gaining of this Memorable Day; for being a great Captain, as able, dexterous and diligent in making the best of a Victory, as he was Valiant and happy in gaining it; and that he knew that the greatest part of the Cities were in a manner destitute of Gar­risons, and without Defence; he therefore immediately marched and presen­ted his Victorious Army before Ptolemais, a fair and flourishing City whose Ha­ven was Necessary to receive the Fleet which was to come to him from Egypt. There were no Soldiers in the City, all those which had been in Garrison having been drawn out to recruit the Army, where they perished in that fatal Battle, and after so great a Loss, there was no Expectation of any Succour for them; so that though it was a mighty strong Place, yet it was surrendred to him in two days, upon the Assurance which he gave to the Native Inhabitants, that he would treat them most favourably, and that the Latins should have Liberty to retire whither they pleased, and that there should not be the least Injury offered either to their Persons or Goods, which they might carry away with them. He did most exactly keep his Word with them; and the Reputation [Page 141]which he had gained, of being a just, merciful and Generous Prince, year 1187 together with the Inability which the other Cities found to defend themselves, all the Forces of the Kingdom being so imprudently exposed upon one single Hazzard where they all perished, was the Reason, that in less than three Months all the o­ther Cities except Tyre, Ascalon and Jerusalem yielded and submitted themselves to the Will of the Conqueror. He made some little Offer to besiege Ascalon; but seeing that Place, which was as the Bulwork of the Realm against Egypt, was extraordinary strong and well defended, he was in the Opinion, that if he must imploy his Forces against these three Cities which remainded yet unta­ken, it was much better to begin with the Capital City: For he well hoped that after the taking of that the two others, seeing themselves separated from one another, at the two Extremities of the Kingdom, would quickly follow the Fortune of Jerusalem.

It was then about the middle of September that Saladin came to encamp before Jerusalem, with the most powerful and numerous Army that he had ever before had; sierce with his Victories and rich with the Spoils of the Vanquished, and despising the pitiful Remainders of those who were shut up in the Capital City, which he looked upon as the End of his Labours and the Subject of his Future Triumph. There was in the City, the Queen Sybilla, the patriarch Heraclius, and Renaud Lord of Sidon or Sajetta, who escaped from the Battle, and was suspect­ed to be a Accomplice in the Treason of Count Raymond. And that which without doubt was a very unlucky Presage to this poor City, was, that besides the frigh­ted Citizens who trembled to see such a formidable Enemy at their Gates, there were but a very inconsiderable Number of Soldiers who had escaped the Defeat; and the Inhabitants of the little Villages and Neighbouring Burroughs who were come thither for Refuge. Saladin immediately caused the Besieged to be summoned to surrender the City, proposing to them Examples of others, who had experienced his Clemency, Equity, and that inviolable Fidelity with which he always kept his Word and Promise. He promised them also, that be­sides those advantageous Conditions which he had granted to others, and which he offered to them, he would confer greater Favours upon them, he would maintain the Priviledges, the Honours and the Dignities which they injoyed un­der their Kings. These were honourable Terms, and though the Defendants had not overmuch Courage, yet they had some Shame left to prevent their yielding so soon. So that an Answer was given like men of Bravery, that they were resolved to defend the Place to the last Extremities. But this Courage was not lasting being but counterfeit. For Saladin having for ten days together made continual false Attacks upon the West, to draw thither the greatest Num­ber of the Defendants, did at the same time batter the Walls, where they were weakest and almost ruinous upon the North Part of the City: So that having made a large Breach, and that they saw he was now preparing for a General Assault, the Besieged sent out to him to capitulate upon the Fourteenth day of the Siege. Saladin, who was determined to take, not to ruin the City, admitted the Treaty and at last it was finished though with Conditions much less favourable and ad­vantageous then those which they were offered before. For now he was re­solved that every own should redeem his Liberty, by paying a certain Imposi­tion or Poll-Money according to the difference of Ages and Conditions. That all the Franks and Latins with such as were descended from them, should depart the City, and not be suffered to carry away any more of their Goods then what they could bear upon their Backs. And that no Christians except Greeks, Syrians, Armenians and Jacobites, should for the Future be permitted to inhabit there.

There never was a Spectacle more moving or more lamentable, then to see so many People of all sorts of Conditions constrained to quit the Holy City, which their Fathers had so gloriously conquered; and for which they never before had that Tenderness and Passion as now that they must leave it: But this is the usual Folly of Mankind, that they rarely perfectly know the Good things which they possess with Ease, till they are upon the Point of relinquishing them for ever. During the whole Night, which was to usher in that Gloomy day of par­ting, nothing was to be heard, but the Groans, the Lamentations, and the [Page 142]Howlings of Despair, year 1187 the piteous Cries of the Women and Children, the men, the Youths and the Aged, who deplored the Misfortune of the Holy City which was now to be delivered into the Hands of the Infidels, and their one Exile, which in those sad Moments, they could not but look upon as the greatest of their Punishments. Above all it was the Greatest Difficulty for them to leave the Holy Sepulchre, which they bedewed with their Tears, and gave it those last Kisses, which were to bid it eternally farewel. Then was to be seen the weeping Mothers loaden with their little Infants, who must now march out before they could go; the Husbands supporting them with one Hand, and with the other leading those which were but just able to go; the stronger carrying on their Backs, those whom either Age or Weakness had made impotent; and the Remainder every one carrying the Money and the most portable of their best Moveables which they had, in this Order marched out of the City, every one loaden with something which either Nature or Piety, Necessity or Cha­rity obliged them to take Care of.

In this time Saladin, who would not make his Entry into the City till all the Franks and Latins were departed, obliged them by his Presence to make the more hast; for such was the Vanity of this Proud and insulting Conqueror, that he would himself assist at this deplorable Spectacle, which he considered as one of the fairest Flowers in his Triumphant Gerland. The Patriarch with all the Clergy of Jerusalem marched first, in a Condition far different from that wherein he was accustomed to appear upon the solemn days, with the sa­cred Wood of the true Cross, which the Emperor Heraclius had formerly reco­vered from the Infidels, and which was now unhappily newly fallen into their Hands again, under this unfortunate Prelate Heraclius, according to the Re­mark which was pubickly made by one upon him, who justly reproached him with the Disorders of his Life, so little conformable to the Sanctity of his Character. After him came the Queen Sybilla, accompanied with the two little Princesses, her Daughters, and all the People of Quality. Saladin who was Civil and Courteous, much above what could be expected from one of his Nation, who generally were not guilty of being over polished in their Manners, descended from his Throne, and receiving her with abundance of Honour and Respect, gave her all the Consolation she was capable of in her great Misfortune; by the Hopes which he made her entertain of the Liberty of her Husband, upon a reason­able Composition. He also, according to his Promise, gave her a good Convoy to conduct her and her whole Retinue to Ascalon, whither she resolved to re­tire. After this he saw the Common People pass bye, whose sad Equipage and miserable Condition, and above all the Woful Cries of some Women, touched him so nearly, that the Generous Compassion which he had, made him in this Rencounter, do an Action, which the Roman Historians would have judged worthy of the Vertue of the Heroes of Ancient Rome.

For as in this general Grief and Sorrow, which sadly appeared through the whole Company of these poor afflicted Exiles, he observed that the Women and the young Ladies of Quality, as well as the rest, who had nothing of the noble Air, beheld him after a manner infinitely touching, whilest with piteous Cryes, and their Hands stretched out towards his Throne, they seemed in that posture of Suppliants to beg some Favor from him; whereupon he commanded all the Company to stop, and sent to know of these Ladies, what it was which they desired of him. They returned in Answer, that besides the Subject of their Sadness and Affliction, which was common to them, with the rest of their Nati­on, who were turned out of their Habitations, and this beloved City, they had something which was more particular, having lost in the Battle of Tiberias, some their Husbands, others their Fathers or near Relations, who possibly might be in the number of the Captives: They therefore most humbly Requested of his Majesty, that he would not deprive them of that last Refuge which they had, after the loss of their Estates, in the Persons of those who were so dear unto them, and so necessary to them in that Extremity of Misery and Poverty, to which they now found themselves reduced. Whereupon that generous Prince, who had nothing Barbarous except his Birth, when his Choler, to which he was too much a Subject, permitted him to be himself, was so nearly touched [Page 143]with the Words, and the Tears of these poor afflicted Ladies, year 1187 that he instant­ly commanded, that diligent Search should be made among the Prisoners, and that such as they named, if they were found there, should be imediately set at Liberty, and bestowed upon their Intercessions and their charming Tears: and while this was doing, he had the Civility to Discourse with them with mighty Sweetness and Humanity, giving them Consolation for their Losses, and ex­horting them courageously to suffer the Disgraces and Capri [...]i [...]es of Fortune, which is not less constant in her Persecutions to those who are in Adversity, than Prodigal in conferring her Favors upon the Prosperous. And that he might comfort them like a great Prince, he accompanied the sweetness of his Words with the Effects of a Royal Bounty; making every one of these young Ladies magnificent Presents proportionable to their several Qualities, thereby puting them into a Condition, not to have much reason to complain of the Severity of their Fortune. This without all doubt was a most great and Heroick Action, which of it self was very Glorious, but it appeared much more advantageously afterwards, by being opposed to the barbarous Brutality of the Earl of Tripo­lis, which cannot be sufficiently detested; for having lost all manner of Senti­ments of Virtue and Humanity, which he seemed to have renounced with his Religion, he by the most barbarous Avarice, so soon as these poor Exiles were arrived at Tripolis, caused to be taken from them all that little which the Turks had left them; which reduced them to that furious Dispair, that a Woman a­mong the rest, from whom he had Ravished by this horrible Robbery, all that she had, except a little Insant which she carried upon her Shoulders, took the poor Babe, and to secure it from the Jaws of inevitable Famine, transported with Rage and Fury, she threw it into the Sea, in the Presence of this Apostate and unnatural Earl, upon whom she discharged a thousand terrible Imprecations, to draw down from Heaven the just Vengeance of God upon him. Nor was it long deferred, for presently after, this unfortunate Prince met with the Pu­nishment due to his horrible Crimes, to the Load of which he had now added this last. The manner was thus; presently after the taking of Jerusalem, finding that his Subjects had a Horrour and Detestation of him, and that Saladin, was so far from bestowing upon him the Kingdom of Jerusalem, as he had promised, and made him hope, that he would now take Tripolis also, from him; he fell in­to such a Grief, or rather Rage, that running stark Mad and Distracted, he presently after his Wits, lost also his execrable Life. A rare and fearful Ex­ample, which plainly instructs us, that though Treason may be for some time advantageous to those in Favour of whom it is committed, yet it never fails to render the Traitors Odious and Insupportable; and that God himself, where Men either cannot, or will not punish it, commonly makes the Effects of it fall by some extraordinary and remarkable Stroak of his Justice, upon the persidi­ous Heads of those who are guilty of that abominable Crime, which in effect, while it strikes at his imediate Vicegerents upon Earth, is an Affront to his supreme Majesty, who hath intrusted them with the Government of the World.

Saladin, after the departure of the Franks, was resolved to enter into Jeru­salem in Triumph, which accordingly he did, with all the Pomp and Magnifi­cence, which he believed was most proper to heighten the Lustre of his Victory, and the Conquest over all the East. He therefore entred it in the middle of his Army, which was inriched with the Spoils of the Vanquished, and the Rewards with which this Conqueror, who gave away almost all to his Soldiers, was pleased to honour them. He was followed by the captive King, who by a strange Reverse of his Fortune, appeared a Slave in the same City, where but a few Months before he had commanded upon the Throne; then came the great Master of the Temple; the old Marquis of Montferrat, and the Constable, with other great Lords of the Realm, who were taken Prisoners at the Battle of Ti­berias; and last of all, by twenty thousand Prisoners which he had taken in di­verse Rencounters, and which after his Triumph were sent in Fetters to Da­mascus. The first thing which he did, after he saw himself Master of Jerusalem, was to abolish all the Marks of Christian Religion in the Temple of Salomon, where, after he had caused it to be washed with Rose-water mingled with com­mon [Page 144]Water, year 1187 as it were to purify it, he went to make his Prayers to Mahomet, to return Thanks to God for his Victory. The other Churches were most horribly pro [...]ed by the Soldiers, who after having plundred them, turned them into Stables, and committed a thousand Outrages against the Cross, which they sacrilegiously dragged through the Streets, from the Temple to the Tow­er of David. It is said however, that Saladin had no share in these Disorders, and that he seemed not to know of them, in regard it was difficult for him to have hindred them: But he absolutely prohibited any manner of Injury to be done to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, either because he had a real Venera­tion for Jesus Christ, whom the Mahometans acknowledged for a great Profit; or that he was not willing to deprive himself of so great a Gain as he hoped would redound to him from the Devotion of the Pilgrims, who undertook that Voyage, to pay their Duty at the sacred Monument of their Lord and God. For he obliged the Syrians with a great summ of Money to redeem that Holy Church, to whom he left it intirely, after he had first despoiled it of all the rich Ornaments, and the precious Vessels, which the Christian Princes had there offered. He also afterward published an Edict, by which he forbid all Persons to disturb the Christians in their Devotions, or to do any thing contrary to the Honour which was due to that Church. He further set at Liberty abundance of Captives, and commanded that all the Infirm and Sick Persons which were in the famous Hospitals of Jerusalem, should be entertained and attended there as formerly, where he also left all the Friars Servitors of the Hospitals to take care of them; which ought to render the Name and Memory of this Insidel Prince Glorious, whether it were that it proceeded from the natural Goodness of his Soul, or that he made use of it as a certain kind of Policy to win upon the Hearts of the Christians his new Subjects.

Thus Jerusalem, which had been so happily delivered from the Tyranny of the Sarasins by the Princes of the first Crusade, under the Pontificate of Ʋrban the Second, and governed by nine Christian Kings, all French either by Birth or Extraction, for the space of fourscore and eight Years, from Godfrey of Bullen to Guy of Lusignan, was again taken by the Barbarians in the Popedom of Ʋr­ban the Third, and reduced under the Power of Saladin. And not long after, Queen Sybilla surrendred unto him the strong City of Ascalon, for the delive­rance of the King her Husband, and the great Master of the Templers. After which, as the Conqueror believed that he could with ease, when he pleased, make himself Master of Tripolis, which had put it self into the Hands of the Prince of Antioch, he went and laid Siege to the famous City of Tyre, which by the Vertue and good Fortune of one Person, happened to be preserved, in the manner which I am about to relate.

The most illustrious House of the Ancient Marquisses of Montferrat, which was descended from the Dukes of Saxony, was at that time one of the greatest in Europe, and the strongest in Italy. William the Third, surnamed the Old, who was the Head of it, held the most considerable Rank among the greatest Princes of his time for his Vertue, for his Estate, his Alliances with the Empe­rour and the King of France; but above all, for the extraordinary Merit of four Princes, his Sons, which he had by the Marchioness his Lady, who was the Sister of the Emperour Conrade. His eldest Son Boniface, received the Crown of Thessaly as the Reward of those famous Actions which he did after the taking of Constantinople. William Longsword, his second Son, was designed to be the King of Jerusalem, by Baldwin the Fourth, who married his Sister the Princess Sybilla to him; but he died about five Months after his Marriage, leaving her with Child of the little King Baldwin, who soon after died. Reynier, which was his third Son, made also a Voyage to the Holy Land, where he died two or three Years before the loss of Jerusalem. And the last, who was after the Name of the Emperour, his Uncle, called Conrade, was he of all the Brothers who gained the greatest Reputation by the Glory of his Arms. This young Prince, in whose Person Nature had joyned with a marvellous Beauty, a most extraordinary Strength both of Body and of Mind; and who with the heroick Courage, in­credible Heat, and ready Resolution of undaunted Youth, had also acquired the Address and Prudence of an old and experienced Captain, and most perfect Un­derstanding [Page 145]in the Military Art; insomuch that the old Marquis his Father, year 1188 had made no Difficulty, notwithstanding his want of a Maturity of Age, to give him the Command of an Army, which he had raised for the Interests of the Pope, against the Emperour Frederick his Kinsman, at the Sollicitation of Manuel, who extremely, as well as the Pope, feared the growing Power of that Emperour; The young Conrade, so well managed this War, that in Conclusion, he van­quished the German Army, which was commanded by the Archbishop of Mayence, whom he there took Prisoner: and this high Reputation which he so well me­rited, was the occasion, that about seven or eight Years afterwards, Isaac An­gelus being come to the Constantinopolitan Empire, gave him his Sister Theodora in Marriage, together with the Dignity of Caesar, and the Hopes that he should succeed him in the Empire: And truly he made it appear by a most illustrious Action, that he well deserved it: For Branas the General of the Imperial Army, having caused himself to be proclaimed Emperour, Isaac, who had not expected any thing less, and who had neither Men, nor Money wherewith to raise them, and being also of a cowardly Spirit, believed that all was lost; and therefore in­stead of runing to his Arms, he, as his last Remedy, had Recourse to the Pray­ers of the Monks, whom he assembled at the Palace to implore the Succour and Assistance of God: But the young Caesar, drawing him from among the Religi­ous, whom he sent to pray to God in their Monasteries, remonstrated to him so powerfully, that he ought to joyn other Arms to those of his Prayers, to combat and oppose his Enemies, that by little and little he raised up his Spirits, till at last he brought him to the Resolution of acting, and dying, however at the worst, like an Emperour: Thereupon he made him engage all that he had, his rich Furniture of Gold and Silver, that so he might have wherewith to levy Men; and therein the young Conrade acted with so much Diligence and Readi­ness, that in a few days he raised in Constantinople, a very considerable number of Troops, composed of Greeks, and all manner of Asiatique Strangers, Latins, and even Turks and Sarasins, who happened to have Business there. These be­ing joyned with those that belonged to the Court and the City Militia, made up a very good Army, with which he lead the Emperour against Branas, who was advanced within View of Constantinople, on the side of Blaquerness; and in the Plain which is on the other side of that Suburb, it was that he gave Battle to the Rebels, with so much Vigour, and such admirable Conduct, that he intirely defeated them; and having slain Branas with his own Hand, he cut off his Head and presented it to the Emperor.

But he presently after perceived that this Prince, according to the Custom of great Men, who rarely love those Persons sincerely, to whom they stand ex­tremely obliged, was so far from rewarding his Services, that now he despised him, and that he would give him no other Portion with his Sister, but the vain Title of Caesar, and the Honour of wearing purple Shoes. Being therefore of a good fierce Temper, and besides, not over delicate as to matter of Consci­ence, he resolved to take hold of the first Occasion to abandon him, which he also did, but in a manner, which certainly neither became him as a gallant Man, nor as a Christian. He had taken the Cross for the Holy War when he came to Constantinople, and there he understood the great Progress which the Arms of Saladin made in Palestine: Now the Emperour, who was advanced with a few Troops towards the Danubius, to begin the War against the Wallachians, had left him at Constantinople, to gather up the rest of the Army, and pressed him ac­cording to his Promise, to make hast to joyn him with them: But he, resolving to delude the Emperour in his turn, as he had been deluded by him, instead of going to joyn with him, he went aboard certain Ships, which he had caused upon some other Pretext to be rigged out, with all those Troops in whom he consi­ded; making no Scruple either to forsake the Emperour or the Princess his Lady; but as if his Marriage had been null and void, he left her, and weighed Anchor for Palestine, without knowing any thing of the defeat of the Christian Army, or the Captivity of his Father.

As he approached to Ptolemais, a few days after it was Surrendered to Sala­din, he was something surprized that he did not hear the Bells, which were ac­customed to be rung out, when any Christian Vessels were ready to enter the [Page 146]Port, year 1188 but in a moment after he was more astonished, when in the place of the Cross, he perceived upon the Towers, all the Ensigns of the Sara­sins, by which he knew that the Town was reduced under the Dominion of the Insidels. This made him take a sudden Resolution to sail to Tyre, which was not distant above eight Miles from thence to the Northward. This City, so flourishing, and so celebrated for its Antiquity, for its Riches, and for the fa­mous Seige which was enterprized against it by Alexander the Great, who from an Island, which it was before, made it a Peninsula, joyning it by a prodigi­ous Bank of Earth, to the firm Land of the Continent, was now under the ut­most Consternation, finding it self without Defendants, and just upon the Point to run the same Fortune with Ptolemaïs. The brave Marquis who landed in the Critical Moment, and who had abundance of Courage, Resolution, and Con­duct, failed not to lay hold upon so fair an Occasion to purchase, not only Glo­ry, but so considerable a Fortune in Phoenicia, by saving this renowned City. He therefore offered to defend them against all the Forces of the Sarasins, with those which he had brought, provided they would Obey him; and as a Re­compence for preserving of the City, which was so visibly exposed to the ex­treme danger of falling under the Power of the Infidels, that they would re­ceive him for their Master and their Lord. All this was imediately consented unto; and therefore to secure the City, the next day he caused diverse of the Earl of Tripolis, his Complices, who were discovered to have a Design to seize upon the Fortress, to be hanged for their Treason: And in short, he laboured with so much Diligence in repairing the Fortifications, by the help of the Inha­bitants, and those who were retired thither from Ptolemaïs, and furnished it with all things necessary to sustain a Siege, that he saw himself in a Condition to resist all the Forces of Saladin. And that crafty Prince, fearing to receive an Affront before a City so well fortified, offered Conrade to give Liberty to the old Marquis his Father, and if he would put the Place into his Power, to recom­pense him with so great a Sum of Money, as should exceed all that he could rea­sonably hope. But when he saw the Marquis so firm, that neither Pity, nor Interest were able to work upon him; he then resolved to carry the Place by Force, and therefore attacked it by Land with all manner of Engines, and blocked it up by Sea with a mighty Fleet, to prevent the landing of any Sup­plies by the Shipping of Genoua and Sicily. But all his Attempts became fruit­less by the Valour and good Fortune, and strong Resolution of the Marquis, who by two or three stout Sallies, which he made with great Success, obliged the Turks to remove to a greater Distance: He also fitted out all the Shipping in the Port, and joyning with the Fleet of Margaritus, Admiral of the Royal Navy of Sicily, he attacked the Fleet of Saladin, ad defeated it so intirely, that scarce a Ship escaped, but either taken, burnt, sunk, or constrained, to avoid be­ing taken, to run ashoar in the View of Saladin himself, who saw, but could not prevent the Misfortune; and now began to despair of Success, since it was no longer possible for him to hinder the Succours which came from Europe, to en­ter at Pleasure into Tyre. And there entred such considerable Numbers of them, who expected the arrival of the Army of the Crusades, that Conrade had there­by the Means, not only to establish his Dominions, but also to carry the War among his Enemies, and to meet with the good Fortune in one Encounter, a­mong many others to take one Prisoner of great Quality, who was exchanged for the old Marquis his Father, to whom he restored his Liberty by his Valour, much more honourably than he could have done by a foolish Pity of his Capti­vity. But Saladin, who had a great Soul, and who was not much astonished with an Accident, which he had in some measure foreseen, nor surprised with this little Reverse of his Fortune, to which the Prudence and the Success of the greatest Captains must sometimes submit, quickly repaired this Loss by throw­ing himself into the Principality of Antioch, which he totally reduced in less than three Months under his Power: For he took more than twenty Places, and constrained the Capital City to come to Terms, by which they promised to surrender to him, if in a certain time they were not relieved by an Army of the Princes of Europe, more potent than his. Thus of all the Conquests which the Franks had made with so much Glory to the Christian Name in Syria, Pa­lestine, [Page 147]and Mesopotamia, there remained nothing but these three Cities, Amioch, year 1188 which was not theirs neither, but upon a Condition which might fail; Tripolis, where the King, who had nothing more left of his Kingdom, was retired after his Deliverance, and Tyre, which the Marquis Conrade had so unexpectedly preserved. And that which was yet more Deplorable, was the Division which happened between the King and the Marquis, who pretended to retain Tyre, as having justly acquired it; all the Men of Spirit were upon this divided into these two Parties, so that it was of great Advantage to Saladin, that he had delivered this unhappy King, who by this new Disturbance, was the cause of the Loss of all the rest. Strange Revolution of Fortune, which in so small a time made such a prodigious Change in the Condition of the Christians and the Insidels! which though it may give one some Astonishment, yet to me it doth not seem mighty Difficult to assign the Causes, which therefore for a little we will indeavour to find.

For first; The Crusades who founded the Realm of Jerusalem, and those who after them atchieved those glorious Conquests, altho they had their Passi­ons, and their Failings, and were as other Men, subject to humane Infirmities, yet for the most, they were good in the main, Men who had a great Fond of Honour any Honesty, solidly Devout, and strongly inclined to the good of Religion, fearing God, and above all, most zealous for his Glory. Whereas, whether the Manners of their Successors were by little and little corrupted by the contagious Commerce which they had with the Insidel Nations, with which they were Surrounded; or that great Numbers of wicked People, who passed into the Holy, to save themselves from the Pursuit of Justice, carried thi­ther, and left by their pernicious Examples, those Crimes to their Posterity, which they had escaped the just Punishment of. Most certain it is, that some small time before the Fall of that Kingdom, the Lives of the Christians of the East, and even of the Clergy themselves, were so horribly Desolute, that it is impossible without Horror, to represent the frightful Picture, which the Writers of those Times, and those who have Copied after them, have drawn of their Crimes. And I wish with all my Soul, that it were possible to efface and abolish the Memory of them, rather than with a kind of Scandal to expose them to the View of such honest People, whose Modesty may recoil at the reading of them. For this Reason, as God punished the Offences of the Israelites, whom himself had conducted by so many Miracles into this same Holy Land; and that the Punishment which they had so justly merited, was the depriving them of their Empire, and delivering them into the Hands of the Philistins, Chaldeans, and other Infidel People, who were the Executioners of his Justice; so did he punish the horrible Crimes of the Christians, whom he had brought into Pale­stine by the victorious Arms of the first Crusades, by depriving them of that Kingdom, and abandoning them to be Slaves to those People whom their An­cestors had with so much Glory so often vanquished.

But farther, to give some natural Reason for this Change, the first Conque­rors of Palestine were warlike and most valiant Men, accustomed to Fatigues, and such as frankly exposed themselves to all manner of Dangers, and were ne­ver known to recoil, let the number of their Enemies which they were to in­counter, be never so Prodigious; they esteemed it a Happiness to dye Martyrs in combating gloriously for the Faith, and for the Name of Jesus Christ: And the Orientals, against whom they fought, were at that time little skilled in Wars, cowardly, undisciplin'd, and half-armed People, who were not able to abide above one Shock, as having nothing to trust to but their Bows and Ar­rows, which they shot at Rovers, and commonly rather slying than fighting: Whereas on the contrary, the Christians having exchanged with the Infidels for all their Vices, had also gotten their Cowardice, their esseminate and idle way of Living; loving Repose and Pleasure, and hating the trouble of War, and the Severity of that Discipline, which is so necessary to a Soldier, and which they wholly neglected. The Turks and Sarasins on the other hand, were become mighty Warlike under their victorious Sultans, Sanguin, Noradin, Syracon, and Saladin, who having learnt at their Cost to arm themselves like the Euro­peans, with good Curiasses and strong Lances, had also taught them to follow [Page 148]their Colours, year 1188 to fight hand to hand, and had inspired them with Courage and Considence, both by their Examples, and the fortunate Success of their Arms.

And in short, The Conquerors of the Holy Land, under the first Kings, were under one sole Head, who uniformly governed the whole Body of his Estate and Army, which acted according to the Measures which he prescribed, with a perfect Unity, without Division, without diversity of Interests, Inclinations and Opinions, as if the whole Army had been as one Man, according to the Expres­sion so frequent in the Scripture. Whereas the Turks and Sarasins, were then divided almost into as many particular Estates as there were Cities in Palestine and Syria, and therefore could raise no great Armies, but what must be com­manded by many Chiefs, who, for the most part, never accorded very well, by reason of the diversity of their Opinions and Interests, which made them al­most continually be overthrown, though they were incomparably the stronger in number of Soldiers than their Conquerors. But upon the falling of the Realm, the Christian Army was composed of the Troops of diverse Chiefs, those of the King of Jerusalem, the Prince of Antioch, the Earl of Tripolis, and the great Masters of the Temple and the Hospital, who all of them had different Pro­spects and Designs, which did not at all agree one with the other. On the con­trary, all the Estates of the Infidels, bordering upon the Christians, Egypt, Ara­bia, Mesopotamia, the Realms of Damascus and Cilicia, were at that time united into one single Monarchy, under the great Saladin; and so their Army had but one Captain and Head, who being most Wise and Valiant, gave one Impression, and a constant regular Movement to this great Body, which did not act but ac­cording to his positive Orders.

And certainly it is most particularly this Unity which hath always made great Armies Victorious, as may be seen in all Ages and Histories, but was never more manifested than in this last Campaign, which was so glorious and so advan­tageous to the King of France. For on the one part, the Emperour and the Spaniards, and great part of the Princes of the Circles of the Empire and the Hollanders, being leagued and confederated against him had raised very strong and numerous Armies to invade France, both by Sea and Land. On the other side, that King alone, without imploying any other Power but his own, and gi­ving out himself, those Orders which were with Fidelity Executed, always pre­vented them, I do not say, from entring, but so much as approaching France: Beat them thoroughly to the very Islands; and in Person, by main Force conque­red one fair and large Province; and his Army alone in Flanders, under his auspicious Fortune, commanded by the famous Prince of Conde, having to op­pose them three great Armies of the Emperour, the King of Spain, and the Hollanders, joyned in one Body under three Chieftains, yet cut in pieces their Rere, took their Baggage, ravished from them more than one hundred Colours, and shamefully chased them from before Oudenard, and pursued them beyond the Scheld. And there it was, that their Commanders, having at last the Leisure to take Breath, and to complain one to another, were constrained to avow, by their Flight, which they disguised under the name of a Retreat, that as there is but one Soul in one Body, to give it Life, Movement, and the Power to per­form those admirable Operations of a Man; so there ought to be but one abso­lute Monarch in a Kingdom, and one General in an Army, to procure the Feli­city of the People, and to inable them to triumph gloriously over all the Ene­mies which go about to trouble their Repose, or rob them of their Happiness. But after these Reflections which I have made, according to my little Art in Po­liticks, which possibly will not appear altogether Useless, or at least Indivertive, it is time to return to my Subject, and pursue this History of the Crusade.

THE HISTORY OF THE CRUSADE, OR, The Expeditions of the Christian Princes for the Conquest of the Holy Land. PART II.
BOOK II.

year 1188 THe sad news of the loss of Jerusalem, and the deplorable estate, into which the fortune of the Christians was reduced in the East, made a mighty Change upon the Spirits, and a strange Revolution of all the Affairs of the West. Pope Ʋrban III. who was then at Ferrara, was so strangely surprized with it, that in a Moment he found himself seized and pierced with such an excessive, and, as it proved, a mortal Grief, which, in a little time after he had heard it, carried him to his Tomb. Gregory VIII. who succeeded him, and was chosen the very next Day after his Decease, at the same time writ most pressing and passionate Letters to all faithful Christians, exhorting to take up the Cross for the Recovery of the Holy Land; promising to them the same Graces which his Predecessors, the Popes, Ʋrban II. and Eu­genius III. had granted to those who were enrolled upon the two first Crusades. And to appease the Wrath of God by Humiliations, and by the Sufferings of voluntary Penitences, he ordained, That throughout all Christendom, for the space of five Years, the Fast of Friday should be observed with the same Auste­rity that it was in the time of Lent: And besides the Abstinence upon Wednes­days and Saturdays, he obliged himself, and all his Brethren, the Cardinals and Bishops, exactly to observe the like Abstinence upon every Monday. By which Method he made, upon the suddain, such a wonderful Reformation in the Court of Rome, that the Cardinals did not only voluntarily submit themselves to the Rigour of this Penitence, but did of themselves, without any Command from him, which certainly must strangely surprize my Readers, oblige themselves to very strict Rules for their way of Living, and the Reformation of their Manners, such as certainly could not proceed, but from Hearts perfectly con­trite, and humbled before God; thereby to satisfie his Justice, and to implore his Mercy and his Pity. For being, with the Pope's Consent, assembled, to de­liberate among themselves, upon what ought to be done for the Service of the Church in this pressing Necessity, they resolved, and most religiously promised, one to another, to observe these following Articles.

year 1188 That they would retrench in their Families what soever was superfluous, and what­ever had too much of the Pomp and Vanity of the present World. That they themselves would, for Example, be the first who would take up the Cross; and not only preach it by their Words, but by their Actions. That for this purpose, they would neither make use of Horses, Mules, or Litters; but that they would constantly go on soot, so long as the Feet of the Turks and Sarasins defiled that Holy Land, which Jesus Christ had sanctified by his Presence and sacred Steps. That they would go in Person themselves before the rest into Palestine, without any other Equipage except the Cross, and the Poverty of Jesus Christ; living upon Alms. And lastly, at their Return, that they would no more receive any Presents from those who had Affairs in the Court of Rome, but content themselves with what was strictly necessary for their living in that modest Way which was conformable to their Condition.

These were their great Resolves: And truly I am of Opinion, that without doing any Injury to the Memory of these good Cardinals, one may lawfully say, that their Devotion, in the Transports of its first Heats, carried them something further, than the Limits of a holy Discretion would have prescribed to them. Nor is it to be found in History, that these brave Resolutions pro­duced those Effects which they seemed to promise, and which might have been expected from them; possibly because whilst they would do too much, they did too little, by that Weakness, which is so commonly incident to Mankind to fall very much below, when they come to repent themselves of having gone too high above those just Measures which a wise Man, after he hath once taken, will be sure in all things to observe most exactly.

After this, Gregory seeing that it was impossibly that the Design of Succour­ing the Holy Land should prosper, so long as the Christian Princes of Europe were engaged in Wars among themselves, he resolved to send his Legates to bring them to an Accord; at least, to conclude a Truce for certain Years: And that he might do something on his part towards such an excellent Work, he went in Person with the Deputies of Genoua, to accord the Differences which had occasioned a War between them and Pisa: But as he laboured very happily in re-uniting these two potent Republicks, who in conclusion, embraced that Spirit of Peace, wherewith he endeavoured to inspire them, he was seized with a Tertian Ague and Fever, which in a few days carried him off, in the second Month of his Pontificate.

Clement III. who in twenty days after succeeded him, confirmed all that he had done, and pursued the same holy Enterprise, with the very same Zeal. He was admirably seconded by the Negotiation of William, Archbishop of Tyre, who was come to implore the Assistance of the Christian Princes. This is that great Man, who with so much strength of Judgment, writ the History of the Holy War, which he continued till a little before the death of Baldwin IV. and who, after he had so often managed the greatest Affairs of that Realm, where­of he was the Chancellor, was at last sent Ambassador into the West, upon the hope that he would negotiate in a different manner than the Patriarch Heraclius had done, whom he much surpassed in all manner of Abilities. He came into France at the same time that Cardinal Henry, the Bishop of Albano, Legate from the Holy See, arrived there: And there are some Authors who assure us, that Pope Clement honoured this Archbishop with the same Character, and joyned him in Commission with the Cardinal, to treat a Peace between the two Kings of England and France, to the end they might unite in the Resolation of undertaking the War against Saladin.

That War which Philip the August had declared against Henry II. King of England, for the Restitution of the Earldom of Vexin, had been terminated by the Undertaking of Pope Ʋrban, upon condition that the King of England, as a Dependant for those Estates upon the Crown of France, should in a time pre­fixed, submit himself to the Judgment of the Court of France. That Term being expired, Henry not only still retained the Earldom, which he was ob­liged to restore; but also the Princess Alice, the Sister of Philip, who was de­signed to be married to Richard, the Son of the King of England. Philip resol­ved [Page 152]to do himself Reason for such a visible Injustice, year 1188 was about to enter into Normandy with a potent Army, where Henry also was expecting him with con­siderable Forces, when the Archbishop of Tyre arrived very opportunely to suspend, at least, for a time, the Anger of these two Princes. And so it was, that by the force of his Genius, and his Eloquence, he procured an Interview between them, in a Plain between Trie and Gisors; where they were used to meet, when they treated, one with the other. The two Kings met there, about the middle of January, accompanied with the Princes, Prelates and great Lords of both the Kingdoms: And there it was that the illustrious Archbishop employed all the Power of his Eloquence, and of his Wit, to represent in that August Assembly, The deplorable Estate into which the fatal Divisions of the Christian Prin­ces of the East had reduced the Kingdom of Jerusalem, which the first Crusades had, from so many barbarous and Infidel Nations, so gloriously conquered with their victo­rious Arms. He then remonstrated, That of four puissant Estates, which they had established upon the Ruins of the Mahomitan Empire, and which extended the Domi­nions of the Christians, from Cilicia to Egypt, and from the Sea to the River Ty­gris, there remained nothing to them now, more than three Cities. That Antioch, dispairing to be able to preserve it self by its own Forces, had already promised to sur­render, if it were not immediately relieved by those of the West. That Tyre, without necessary Succours, was not in a condition to sustain a second Siege, having in the first lost the greatest part of its Defendants. That Tripolis was too weak to endure one; and could no longer remain in Freedom, than it pleased Saladin to present himself be­fore it, to add it to his other Conquests. And that further, after so lamentable a Loss as that of Jerusalem, and the rest of the Holy Land, there was great danger of losing also the very Hopes which remained to the Christians in those places, from whence they might take a Beginning to re-establish the Kingdom of Christ Jesus, if those two Kings, the most potent of Christendom, did not unite their Hearts, and their Arms, to run to the Relief of Christ and his Cause, of whose only Grace and Goodness they held all which they did possess. And, in short, he said upon that Subject so many pathetick things, and in a manner, so powerful, and so touching, that the two Princes, whether they had in a former Conference, which they had, agreed this, as one of the Articles of the Peace; or that God, in whose Hands are the Hearts of Kings, to change them in a Moment, by the extraordinary Working of his Power; it is certain that they embraced one the other mutually, in the Pre­sence of the whole Assembly; and did it with all the Marks of a perfect Re­conciliation, and a sincere and cordial Friendship, as if there had never been any Subject of Discontent or Difference between them.

And at the same time might be heard on all sides the confused Voices of a Multitude of People, who broak out into great Cries of Joy; and from every Quarter was to be heard, Long live King Philip; Long live King Henry: Let us go, Let us go to this War against the Infidels, under the Conduct of these two mighty Kings. Let us deliver Jerusalem, and extirpate the Enemies of Jesus Christ. The Cross, the Cross; let it be given us; the Sign of our Salvation, and the Ruin of the Sarasins. These Acclamations were also presently followed with that happy Success, which attended the Legation of this brave Archbishop of Tyre, that the two Kings first presenting themselves, to receive the Cross from the hands of the Legates, they were followed by Richard, the Son of the King of Eng­land, Duke of Guienne, and Earl of Poitou, who had voluntarily taken it be­fore the Loss of Jerusalem, but would now anew receive it from the hands of the Legates: As also did Philip Earl of Flanders, the Duke of Burgundy, the Earls of Blois, Dreux, Champagne, Perche, Clermont, Barr, Beaumont, Nevers; James Lord of Avesnes, and almost all the great Lords of France, England and Flanders, who were present at this Assembly. And to distinguish the one from the other, it was ordained, that the French should take a Red Cross, being the same they bore in the first Crusade; the English, a white one; and the Flemmings, one of Green. It is said that at the same time there appeared one in Heaven, bright and shining, which helped to inflame the Devotion of those who took up the other; as if God himself had manifestly called them to this Holy War by a sacred Signal from above. And to render the Memory of so great an Action Eternal, a Cross was erected, and a Church built in the midst of the Field of this Conference; which was ever after called, The Holy Field.

year 1188 After this, the Kings, to support the Charges of this War, and to prevent the Disorders which had been so injurious to the former Crusades, resolved to pub­lish these following Ordinances: That all Persons who had not undertaken the Cross, of what Quality soever, even the Ecclesiasticks, except the Chartreux, the Bernardines, and the Religious of Fontevraud, should pay one Tenth of their Revenues, and of their Mo­veables, except their Arms, their Habits, Books, Jewels, and consecrated Ʋtensils and Or­naments; which was afterwards called by the name of Saladin's Tenth, by reason that it was raised upon the Occasion of making this War with Saladin. That the Crusades should have liberty to raise a Tenth of all their Subjects who did not go to this War. And that the Husbandmen who undertook to go and take the Cross, without the Leave of their Lords first obtained, should not be exempted from this Impost. That all Interest upon Money lent, should cease for all the time that the Debters were upon Service in the Holy Land. That all Persons might mortgage their Inheritances, or their Bene­fices, for three Years; during which time, the Creditors should peaceably enjoy them, whatever happened to the Owners. That all unlawful Games of Chance, all Swearing, Blasphemy and Disorders should be severely punished. To which were also added very admirable Orders for the Regulation of Excess in Apparel, in the Tables, and the Retinues of the Crusades; and above all, that except some old Landres­ses, there should no Women be suffered to go along with the Army, as had been permitted in the former Crusades, and which had occasioned great Disorders.

These Ordinances were received, and solemnly published in both the King­doms, where an infinite number of People enrolled themselves for the Cross; some out of Zeal, and true Devotion; others to be exempted from the Tax, which though it was consented to by the Bishops, in the Parliament of Paris, which was held this Year about Mid-Lent, yet there were some Ecclesiasticks, who declared themselves against it tartly enough: Among the rest, Peter de Blois, one of the most knowing Men of his Age, writ against it to Henry de Dreux, Bishop of Orleans, the King's Nephew, in very hard Terms; pressing him to oppose this Ordinance of the King, which, he said, was a Breach of the Liberties and Privileges of the Ecclesiasticks; from whom, he pretended, no other Aids ever were or ought to be exacted, besides their Suffrages and Prayers. But this Advice of this Archdeacon of Bath in England, though otherwise an able Man, prevailed nothing upon the Bishops of France, whom he something too liberally accused of following too gentle and easie a Conduct: For they, as well as the Bishops of England, with great Justice and Reason, as well as Pie­ty, believed that such a part of the Goods of the Church might very lawfully be employed, upon such an holy Occasion, for the Deliverance of the Sepulchre of Jesus Christ, and so many poor Christian Slaves, and in a manner, all the Oriental Churches from the Oppression and Tyranny of the Infidels. See now how Zeal, when it is a little over-heated, easily becomes so false and foolish, as to blind Men to that degree, that they are not able to see that for good Sense, which common Reason alone, without other Theology, discovers so plainly to the whole World. Thus then all things were disposed for a happy Beginning to this Crusade, if the Division which, in a little time after, broke out again be­tween the two Kings, had not turned those Arms against Christians, which they had before prepared, to fight against the Sarasins.

Among other Articles which were agreed upon at this famous Conference in the Field of Gisors, it was ordained, That all Matters in difference on one part, and the other, should remain in the same Estate wherein they stood before; and that no one should enterprize any thing against his Neighbour, till such time as the Holy War were determined. In this time, Richard Duke of Guienne, and Earl of Poitiers, to the prejudice of a Treaty so solemnly made, concluded and ratified, renewing the ancient Quarrel betwixt him and Count Raymond of Tho­louse, threw himself suddenly into that Count's Territories, and presently took from him Cahors and Moissack. Philip, in mighty Indignation for this Action, and moved with the Complaints of the Count, who came to implore his Suc­cour, as his Soveraign, immediately made a powerful Diversion in the Provin­ces of the English; where he took Castle-Roux, Busencais, Argemon, Levroux, Montrichard, and all the places which the English at that time possessed in Avergne and Berry. Henry, on his part, did not fail to make haste to his Son's Assistance, [Page 154]who went to joyn him in Normandy. year 1188 Philip also marched thither with his Vi­ctorious Army, where he obtained great Advantages against the English, till at length, a Conference for Peace was held near Bonmoulin, at which the Earls of Flanders and Champaigne, with divers other Princes, continually importuned the King to conclude, protesting to him that otherwise they would desert him, for that they were resolved to accomplish their Vow in going to the Holy War. There never was any Conference managed with greater Dexterity and Policy, than this was by King Philip: For knowing perfectly the Humour and the In­terests of the King of England and his Son, he only demanded that the Princess Alice, his Sister, whom the late King, his Father, had designed to be married to Richard, and who was kept in Custody by Henry, should be put into the hands of her intended Husband, since they were now both of Age; and that Richard should be declared joynt King of England with his Father, as the de­ceased Prince Henry had been, who had married Margaret, the eldest Sister of the Princess Alice. Henry, against whom the Prince, his eldest Son, suppor­ted by the French, had formerly made a most cruel War, fearing lest Richard, who was no less ambitious than his Brother, should create him the same trouble; or possibly, having his Soul pre-possessed with another Passion, less excusable, but more strong than either Fear or Policy, would by no means agree to these two Articles. So that this Conference produced no other Effects, but only a Truce of a few Months during the Winter; and that which Philip had fore­seen, did not fail to happen, to his advantage, as well as according to his Ex­pectation; for Richard, who was of a Temper extream ambitious and turbu­lent, was so exasperated with this Denyal, that he instantly abandoned his Father, and passed into the Party and Interests of Philip, did him Homage for all the Lands which he held in France, and promised him an inviolable Fideli­ty, and to serve him against all Persons whatsoever, even his own Father; as he did.

And indeed, as soon as the short Truce which had been made, came to be expired, which it did the next Spring, the King, with all his Forces, joyned with those of Richard, who had drawn to his Party, besides the Gascons and Poi­tenins, his Vassals, many Angevins and Bretons, marched against Henry, who lay with a very few Troops at Saumur. But the Cardinal d' Anaigne, the Pope's Le­gate, who succeeded in the place of the Cardinal d'Albano, who was dead not long before, negotiated so happily with the two Kings, that they promised to meet in Whitsun-Week, near Ferte-Benard; and there amicably to treat before him, and the Archbishops of Reims, Bourges, Rean and Canterbury; who were to decide all their Differences. Whereupon these Prelates instantly pro­nounced an Anathema against all those, of what Quality soever, except the Per­sons of the two Kings, who should any way go about to obstruct the Conclusion of a Peace so necessary to all Christendom; and without which, the Crusade would become wholly ineffectual. The Kings, and Richard Duke of Guienne, and Earl of Poitiers, accompanied with all the Great Men of both Realms, be­ing come to the place designed for the Conference, Philip demanded as before, That his Sister, the Princess Alice, who was affianced to Duke Richard, should be delivered to him by King Henry, who, contrary to all Justice, had kept her from him: And that John, the third Son of King Henry, usually called Sans-Terre, Without Land, to whom it seems the King, to take off that ignominious Name, had given his Interest in Ireland, should also take up the Cross. Henry, on the contrary, persisted obstinately in his Protestations, that he would never suffer this Marriage, although he said he would give his Consent, or at least, made that Pretence, that the Princess should marry John, the youngest Brother of Richard; knowing well that that fierce and haughty Prince would never suf­fer tamely that Indignity to be put upon him. Whereupon Philip seeing there was nothing further to be expected from that Conference, broke it up, and pro­tested that he would do himself Justice by his Arms, since he was refused it by Reason.

But the Cardinal d' Anaigne, without considering that the Injury proceeded from him, who obstinately refused to accomplish a Treaty so solemnly sworn; whereas he ought to have pressed the King of England to keep his Promise, and [Page 155]to restore the Princess Alice to her designed Husband, year 1188 and not to put such an in­vincible Obstacle to the Peace, by so manifest and unjust an Infraction of the Treaty, fell upon Philip the August, and spoke to him with a surprizing Con­fidence, in such Language as, without doubt, Pope Clement had made no part, either of his Commission or Instructions: For he told him plainly, That if he did not entirely accord Matters with the King of England, he would put the whole Realm of France under an Interdict. To which Philip, who had a great Soul, and who was perfectly acquainted with the Extent, both of the Bounds of his own Power, and that of the Church, which are two Orders very different, and which have both their just Limits, answered him very readily, That he did not in the least stand in fear of that Sentence; and that, being most unjust, as there could be no doubt but it was, it must therefore be mill and void. That Rome never had any Right to make any Judgment against the Realm of France, whether the King should take up Arms or not, either to oblige his Enemies to do him Reason, or to chastise his Rebellious Subjects. And for any thing more, the Sentence seemed to be the Product of English Sterling, and not to proceed from a dis-interessed Legate; whose Duty was to perform the Office of a common Father, in the place of the Pope, whom he was sent to represent. This was to speak like a great King, who, without Emotion, knew how to maintain the Rights of his Crown independent from any other but God alone; and to preserve his Soveraign Authority, without shocking that of the Church, whose Kingdom is wholly spiritual, and which it holds from Jesus Christ; and therefore, as he hath assured us, is not of this World. But Prince Richard, who though he had seen as many Years as Philip, was not by far so mo­derate; nor so much Master of his Passion, as to be able to contain himself in such reasonable Terms: For finding himself particularly interessed in this Pro­cedure of the Legate, which wholly ruined all his Pretensions, he was so trans­ported, that running furiously upon him with his Sword in his Hand, without considering where he was, or what he was about to do, he had undoubtedly run him through, if the Archbishops and Lords, who assisted at the Confe­rence, had not all together rushed upon this violent Prince, to stop his Fury, and thereby given opportunity to the Legate, half dead with Fear, to secure himself by Flight from the greatest Danger that ever he had run in all his Life.

The Preliminary Discourse of the Peace being thus broken, Philip, who was powerfully armed, pursued his Point so vigorously, that he took Ferte-Benard, Montfort, Beaumont, and some other places; and afterwards attacked, and by Force carried Mans, from whence Henry, who was retired thither, did, not without great difficulty, escape to Chinon, after having lost the greatest part of his Men in that Retreat, which was little better than a Flight. His Son John also, whom, among all his Children, he loved the most tenderly, abandoned him, to joyn with Philip, who, at the Head of his Army, passing the first over a Ford upon the Loir, took Tours by Assault. After which, the King of Eng­land, being in fear of his own Person, and having no assured place of Retreat, was forced to submit to the Law of the Vanquisher, and accept such a Peace as he would please to give him; which was upon these following Conditions:

That Henry should pay to Philip twenty thousand Marks in Silver, for the Expen­ces of the War. That he should put the Princess Alice into the Hands of such as should be appointed by the King and Prince Richard, who was to marry her after his Return from the Holy Land. That the two Kings and Prince Richard should Rendesvouz in the Mid-lent of the Year following at Vezelay, to begin together the Voyage which they were obliged to by their Vow. That the Vassals of the King of England should take an Oath of Fealty to Richard; and that those of them who had followed him in this War, should not be obliged to render their Homage to Henry, till such time as they were to go this Voyage to the Holy Land. That the Great Men of England should promise to abandon the King, in case he should fail in the performance of any one of these Articles; and that in the Interim, Philip and Richard should hold certain Towns in Hostage, till such time as he should fully and truly have performed what was comprehended in the Treaty.

It is reported, that as the two Kings were in a Treaty in the open Field, to­wards the end of June, between Tours and Chinon, concerning the Articles of [Page 156]this Peace, year 1189 which seemed very insupportable to Henry, there happened, two days successively, two most terrible Claps of Thunder, although the Heavens were so serene, that there was not the least speck of a Cloud to be seen in the Sky; at which Henry was so dreadfully amazed, that if some of his Followers had not instantly run to him, to support him, he had fallen from his Horse: and that being thereupon struck with mortal Apprehensions of some terrible Punishment from Heaven, if he persisted longer to retard the Crusade, by refu­sing the Peace, he accorded to Philip whatsoever he demanded, and immediately signed the Treaty. He had, nevertheless, a few Moments after, so many ter­rible Assaults of Shame and Grief upon his Soul, and was, in particular, so sen­sibly touched with the undutiful Actions of his own Children, who had, from being one of the greatest and most glorious Princes in the Universe, re­duced him into that piteous Estate, to comply so meanly and tamely to what was imposed upon him, that he presently fell desperately sick, and in three days time dyed, in the sixty first Year of his Age, upon the Octave of the Apostles, St. Peter and St. Paul, at the Castle of Chinon, bestowing his Male­dictions upon his disobedient Sons, which he would never be persuaded to re­voke, notwithstanding the repeated Instances which were made to him by the Bishops who waited on him in his Sickness. He did, however, receive the Sa­crament, and Extream Unction, with great Devotion; giving manifest Tokens of his Repentance, in submitting to the Divine Justice, which he acknowledged, had justly laid this great Change of Fortune upon him, as a Punishment for those Crimes which he had committed in his Prosperity. He had also the Misfor­tune, that his Domesticks, every one seizing upon something, left him with­out any thing else but a poor Sheet to cover him. But his Son Richard, who had so furiously opposed him in his Life, gave all the Testimonies of an exces­sive Sorrow for his Death, and caused him to be carried, most magnificently adorned in his Royal Robes, to be interred at the Nunnery of Fontevraud, where he had a desire to be buried. This new King himself assisted at the Funerals, where he testified, by the abundance of his Tears, that he was unfeignedly tou­ched with Sorrow and Remorse for his Father's Death. But it is reported that, to his other Grief, he had the Displeasure to be afflicted with an odd and unaccountable Accident; for, as he approached the Corps of the deceased King, as he lay in the Coffin, the Blood which gushed out of his Nostrils seemed to reproach him with his Ingratitude, and unnatural Rebellion, and even, as the Discourse went, the Parricide of his Father; whom his Disobedience did, in some measure, seem to have hastned to his Tomb sooner than Nature, which was yet strong and vigorous in him, had intended. He, nevertheless, stayed out the whole Ceremony, till such time as the Royal Defunct was interred in the Quire of the Church of those Religious Nuns; which verified the Revelation of a Monk, who praying, upon a certain time, for the Prosperity of the King, heard these words, which he then did not understand, but which were explai­ned by the Event; He shall take up my Sign, and in carrying it, shall be mightily tormented: The Belly of his Wife shall rise up against him; and at the last, he shall be hid among the Veils. For, as he took the Cross for the Holy War, he carried the Sign of Jesus Christ; and he was immediately after cruelly tormented by the Persecutions of his Sons, which continued till his Death; after which, he was covered with the Veil of Death, being interred in a Quire of Veiled Nuns.

We must however, do Justice to the Memory of this Prince, who was one in this Crusade, though it so happened, that he never had his part in any Action, in regard it was so long deferred by the War, whereof he was the Occasion. He was a French Man by Nation, born in the City of Mans, which he there­fore used to call his Darling: and most assuredly, he was one of the greatest, and most potent Kings that ever sat upon the English Throne; and certainly, had been the most fortunate, if either he had never been a Father, or if, to­ward the latter end of his thirty and five Years Reign, he had not met with the Opposition of the young and invincible Philip the August, whose Fortune, sup­ported by his Courage and admirable Prudence, was as a fatal Curb, which, ac­cording to the Prediction of the famous Morling, was to tame this fierce and haughty Leopard; or like a strong Dam, which stopped short, and broke that [Page 157]impetuous Torrent of his Power and Ambition, year 1189 which menaced an Inundation over the rest of France, whereof Henry already possessed a very great part: For, besides England, where he reigned as Soveraign Monarch; and Ireland, which he had conquered; Scotland, which was Tributary to him; he also pos­sessed Normandy in the Right of Inheritance, descending to him by his Mother Maud, the Empress, Daughter of Henry I. King of England; and by Geoffrey, Earl of Anjou, his Father, who was Son to Count Fowk; he had Anjou, Maine, Touraine, a great part of Berry and Avignion, where he pretended to be Sove­raign: And, in Right of Queen Eleonor, his Wife, whom Lewis the Young quit­ted to him, by a Canonical Sentence, he had Gascon, Guienne, Poitou, and the other Countries which depended upon them: Besides that, Britanny fell to his third Son Geoffrey, by the Marriage of the Heiress of that Country. So that he was as potent on this Side the Sea, where he was a Homager to the Crown of France, as he was on the other side, where he was King of England, and Lord of Ireland. He was of a middle Stature, but of a Shape no way handsom, by reason that he was extream gross and corpulent, notwithstanding that he was, not only very temperate, but amidst the great Affairs in which he was always employed, and which he managed with wonderful Application, in continual Action; either travelling, or Walking, or making use of the more violent Ex­ercises of Riding the great Horse, or Hunting; that thereby he might abate the growing unwieldy by his Fatness, to which his Sanguin Complexion had condemned him. As for any thing else, he was of Temperament, robust and sound; having a large, full Breast, and a big Head: His Eyes were blew, hand­som, and full of Fire: His Hair yellow and soft, inclining something too much towards the red: His Voice hoarse, his Speech rough, and his Mind very fierce and Martial. For his Mind, he was very dexterous, and of a penetrating Un­derstanding; but something more crafty than became so great a Prince: He had, however, cultivated his Spirit with the Study of Ingenuous Learning, which inabled him with a certain Eloquence, very easily and naturally to ex­press himself. And there was in his Soul such a Stock of Vices, as well as Ver­tues, natural Perfections and Imperfections; which were so blended together, that if they would not permit it to be said of him, that he was a very exceeding good Prince, yet they very absolutely prohibit the fixing the Character of a very ill one upon him: For he was gentle and sweet to every body, when he was in dangers; but harsh, fierce and severe when he saw himself out of them: he was complaisant abroad, morose to his Domesticks; liberal to Strangers, and in publick, but parsimonious to his own, and too great a Husband in his private Affairs: A great Promiser, but a slender Performer; above all things, loving his Liberty, and hating Constraint, to that degree, that he could not endure to be a Slave to his own Word, or his Faith, which he made no great scruple, upon occasion, to violate. In matters of Justice, he was too slow; and sometimes, by the Interposition of Money, which he loved excessively, he would wholly remit the Execution of it. He drew great Sums from his Sub­jects, with which he often chose rather to buy Peace, than maintain War, in which he did not delight; though when he was forced to make War, he did it like a great Captain, and an expert Soldier; shewing more Tenderness and Goodness towards his Soldiers, when he understood they were slain, and in lamenting their Deaths, than he used to shew to them whilst they were living: He was wonderful kind to the Church-men, and above all, to the Bishops, whom he always loved to have about him; but yet not concerning himself much with their Franchises and Privileges, to which he had but very little regard: He was a passionate Lover of his Children, but he was ever raising Differences among them, one with another, to prevent their falling into Quarrels with him­self; but this proved an unlucky Project to him, and at last was the occasion that they all joyned together against him. He was magnanimous and generous in his Enterprises; but withal, so haughtily ambitious, that he was used to say, that the whole Earth was not sufficient to satiate the Desires of a King like him: He was equally constant in his Love and Hate, which he did not ea­sily change; a great Patron of Widows, Orphans, of poor distressed People who were without Support, of whom he took great care; above all, he was [Page 158]kind to such as had the Misfortune to be Shipwrack'd upon the English Coasts; year 1189 abolishing that barbarous Custom which had long prevailed, of despoiling such miscrable Persons of all that which they had saved from the Sea, except their Lives, which the Country People were used to call, God's Goods: He was a great Lover of the publick Peace and Tranquility, which he main­tained in his Dominion, by the rigorous Justice which he caused to be dis­pensed to such notorious Malefactors as were found Disturbers of them; so that he cleared his Estates of Thieves, Robbers and Murderers: He was pious, and fearing God; but very shy and reserved to the Church-men, af­ter the publick Penance which he did for the Death of Becket.

But all these Vertues, which cannot, without Injustice, be suppressed, were dishonoured by his great Vices; and principally, by his Impudicity and Avarice; which prevailed so upon him, that, besides the Exactions, which were very great, which he imposed upon his People, he ever pro­tected the Jews; dissembling his Knowledge of their Insolencies against the Christians, because of the great Gain which these faithless Usurers made, whereof he had a Share. He would also suffer long Vacancies in the Bi­shopricks, to the end he might enjoy their Revenues; giving a very slender Reason in Excuse; That it was much better for him to employ that Money for the Service of the Realm, than that it should be spent in the Prodigali­ties of proud and pompous Trains, Pleasures and Delicacies, as the Bishops wasted it, after the manner of the wicked World, and in a way far diffe­rent from the Temperance and Vertue of their Predecessors of the ancient Church. But in talking at this rate, he condemned himself, excusing one fault by committing another, far greater than that which he reproached; for he usually bestowed the Revenues upon such a sort of People as, by the notorious scandalous way of their living, even in his own Judgment, rendred themselves unworthy of them: Whereas he ought rather to have taken care that those great Revenues should have been expended according to the Rules of the Church, by the Nomination of good Subjects, and worthy Men, to those high and great Preferments: And indeed, he did, in a great measure, towards the end of his Life and Reign, make a Reparation for this Errour; which oc­casioned him much Trouble, and raised many uneasie Scruples in his Soul; for he nominated to the Archbishoprick of Canterbury, Baldwin, a Cistertian Monk, a most excellent Man; and to the See of Lincoln, he preferred St. Hugh, the Chartreux, the Person, of all the Prelates of his time, who took the holy Li­berty to represent their Failings to the Kings, his Contemporaries, by that marvellous Authority which, by the Sanctity of his Life, he had so deserved­ly acquired. In short, The great Medly of Vertues and of Vices in this King, were also accompanied with that of his good and evil Fortune; but with this remarkable difference; that his happy State lasted thirty Years, where­in he flourished in all Earthly Glory and Felicity; whereas he was persecu­ted by his ill Destiny, but for the last five Years of his Life; and that too was occasioned by his invincible Wilfulness, in refusing Peace upon such just and honourable Conditions as were tendred: Whereby he brought up­on himself that War, which, for two Years, retarded the Effect of the Cru­sade in France and England; so that it was begun by the Germans alone, with abundance of Zeal and Courage.

For presently after the Conference in the Field of Gisors, where the two Kings took upon them the Cross, Henry Cardinal d' Albano, the Pope's Le­gate, and William Archbishop of Tyre, passed into Germany, to persuade the Emperor to undertake the Holy War. The Emperor then reigning, was the famous Frederick, the first of that Name, formerly Duke of Sua­bia; who after having so gloriously assisted his Uncle Conrade, in the se­cond Crusade, succeeded him in the Imperial Throne, which he possessed for six and thirty Years, with much Glory and Prosperity; leaving throughout all Germany, Poland and Italy, the illustrious Marks of the greatness of his Courage, his Mind, his Vertues, and his admirable A­ctions. And were it possible to obliterate the deadly Remembrance of the Schism, which, by an unhappy Engagement, he made in the Church, [Page 159]and which he so long supported with his Arms, year 1189 it might with great Justice be affirmed that his Reign ought to be esteemed as the greatest of any Prince that ever the Empire had, since the Death of the celebrated Charlemain. He was then about sixty and eight Years of Age, of a Port extremely Majestick, a Sta­ture somewhat surpassing the middle, but of a Proportion in all the Parts of his Body, regular and Exact; and from which his Age which did him no other Injury but to render him Venerable, had not taken much of that natural Force, which he had in so great a Measure, and which was accompanied with an admirable A­gility in all manner of Exercises: The turn of his Face was very fine, and the Lines delicate considering his Age; his Cheeks were plump, his Eye-brows large, his Eyes very sweet, and yet lively and piercing, his Speech agreeable, his Mouth smiling, and his Air so engaging that to whomsoever he did the Ho­nour but once to speak, they found it impossible to defend themselves from his Charmes; and he always left the Image of Majesty so deeply imprinted and graven in their Memories, that it was impossible to efface it from the Mind, or to prevent its being continually present to their Remembrance; his Hair by reason of the Change which so many Years had brought upon it, was perfect white, which still seemed to add something more Venerable to his Majesty, though the Natural Colour of it had been red, from whence he came to acquire the Name of Barbarousse, or Red beard, a Name which his fair and glorious Actions, have rendred as famous among Historians, as those others more beautiful, which have been given to the most renowned Princes to distinguish them by a particular Appellation and as an Elogy for their Vertues and Atchievements. As for the Per­fections of his Soul, they yet far surpassed those of his Body; for he had a most Beautiful Mind, a most happy Memory, which being joyned with the long Ex­perience, and the Care he had taken to instruct himself in all things, had made him acquire an infinite Number of such pretty Sorts of Learning and Knowledge, as might well rank him in the Catalogue of the most able men of his Time. He was extreme Wife and Judicious, Liberal and of great Hu­manity, Affable and Courteous to all men, condescending even to the meanest of his Subjects; but terrible to his Enemies, and above all to Rebels, a great Cap­tain, personally Valiant and fearless in the greatest Dangers, always carrying himself with mighty Evenness, and Temper in both the one and the other For­tune, though it was his Happiness not to be much acquainted with the Worse.

Being such as I have now described him, and therefore equally feared, loved and respected by all the Princes of the Empire, he had called a General Diet at Mayence to meet the Fourth Sunday in Lont, in the Year 1188. there the Le­gates came in Person, where after they had happily composed all the Differen­ces, which remained between several Princes and Cities of the Empire, they made the same Remonstrances for relieving the Christians of Palestine which they had before made to the Kings of France and England. Frederick who for above ten years had fully reconciled himself with the Church, had before for­med that generous Resolution, for his own Satisfaction, to employ those Arms for Jesus Christ, against the Sarasins, which by the Misfortunes of the Times, he had made use of against the Christians. He nevertheless demanded the Advice of the Assembly thereupon, but in such a manner as made it easily be known, what was in the Intention of his Soul; for he only proposed whether it was to the Pur­pose, not whether he should refuse that Assistance which Jesus Christ himself demanded of him, which was such a cowardly and shameful Ingratitude, which he knew the whole Assembly would disdain, but whether he should defer ta­king up the Cross, after that the French and English had with much Ardour em­braced it. Whereupon all the Princes and the Prelates, and all the Deputies of the Cities, cried out with one Voice, as if the Emperor had at the same instant inspired them all, with his one Zeal and Courage, That without deferring any longer, they ought to take up the Cross, that all the World might see that the German Nation, especially under such an Emperor, would never yield, either in their Zeal, or in their Courage to the English, French, or any Nation under Heaven. So that now there was nothing more to be done but to conclude the Holy War and the Cru­sade. The Emperor at the same instant descending from his Throne to receive [Page 160]the Cross by the Hands of the Legates, year 1189 being assisted by Godfrey Bishop of Wirts­burgh, and Frederick Duke of Suabia his Second Son, who had already taken it himself upon the hearing the sad news of the Loss of Jerusalem, but now would have it also in Ceremony after the Emperor his Father. The greatest part of those who were present at that Assembly following that illustrious Example al­so took upon them the Cross with an incredible Ardour. The Principal of which were Leopold Duke of Austria, Berthodus Duke of Moravia, Herman Marquis of Baden, the Counts de Nassau, de Thuringe, de Missen, de Hollandia, and more than sixty others of the most eniment Princes of the Empire; the Bishops of Be­sanson, Cambray, Munster, Osnabrug, Missen, Passau, Wirzbourg and more then ten besides, all which besides the Legates, went immediately to preach the Cru­sade in their several Diocesses, and throughout Germany, where an infinite Number of People of all Conditions took up the Cross. But the Emperor, who knew by the Experience of the Second Crusade, that two great a Multi­tude occasioned nothing but Cumber, Trouble and famine in an Army, there­fore caused an Edict to be published by which he prohibited, all those who were not able to expend three marks in Silver to provide themselves of Ne­cessaries for so long a Voyage, to engage in it or list themselves for this Expe­dition; and also commanded those of the greatest Ability, to make the best Preparation for it that they were able, that so they might have wherewith to serve themselves in their Necessities. After which he gave Command that all the Crusades should repair to their Colours at Ratisbonne, in the Month of April, the Year insuing, where he promised without fail to be himself upon the Feast of St. George, and that he would then immediately advance without staying for the rest.

This being done he sent four several Ambassadours to so many Princes with whom he must necessarily treat, before he undertook any thing further. Henry Earl of Diets was sent to Saladin, to summon them to restore the Holy Land which he had usurped from the Christians, as also the Wood of the Holy Cross which he had taken at the Battle of Tiberias, and in Case of his refusal to de­nounce War against him from the Emperor. I do not here pretend to insert the Letters of these two great Princes, which pass for Currant with many Historians, in regard that it appears clearly that they are Counterfiets, and the Forgeries of some Prolifick Scribe, who had more desire to please, than Art in the com­piling of them, so as to render them either probable or Pleasant. Godfrey Baron of Wisenbach was dispatched to the Sultan of Iconium, who pretended to be a Wonderful Friend to the Christians, and who made many strong Protestations, that he and all his should ever be at the Emperors Service, who might at his Plea­sure pass through his Estates with the same Freedom as if they were his own. Fre­derick also himself at the same time writ to the Emperor of Constantinople, and sent to desire Passage through his Territories, and that he might be furnished with Provisions at the Price Currant. To this he agreed but after a very inde­cent manner, detaining the Ambassadour without any positive Resolution, till those of the Sultan of Iconium passed by Constantinople, to go into Germany, there to make the Offers and Complements of their Master to the Emperor. The Arch Bishop of Mayence was the only man of that Character, who succeed­ed most advantageously in his Negotiation, for he obtained of Bela King of Hun­gary all that he desired, which was the Princess his Daughter for Frederick Duke of Suabia Son to the Emperor, and Security of Passage and Provision for the Army at most reasonable Rates. Thus all things being disposed to begin this great Enterprise, Frederick, who had passed all the Lent and the Festivals of Easter at Ratisbonne to attend the coming of the Crusades, parted from thence the latter End of April with those who were already come, and descended down the Danubius, as far as Presbourg, whereupon Whitsunday he held a general Coun­cil of all the Princes, Prelates, and high Officers of his Army, to regulate their March, and to establish that good Order and those wholesome Laws against all Crimes, and Licentiousness, which were so necessary in an Army, and which he was resolved should be most exactly obeyed, as they were afterwards during the whole Voyage. In Conclusion after having caused Henry his eldest Son to be crowned King, of the Romans, he took his March at the Head of a fair and flou­rishing [Page 161]Army, year 1189 consisting in more then one hundred and fifty thousand Soldiers all choise men, with which he crossed all Hungary with King Bela, who came to receive him upon the Frontier, conducted him as far as Belgrade; from whence after a Repose of eight days he entred into Bulgaria, which he was two Months in passing, by reason that he was forced so often to combat with those Barbarous People, who laid continual Ambushes in his Passage, and whom he could defeat no other ways but by guarding the Passage on both sides of his Army, and as fast as they could be taken hanging up these Thieves upon the next Trees where they were seized.

But he had something more to doe when he entred upon the Territories of the Greek Emperor, where believing he should pass as a Friend and meet with all manner of Refreshments and Accomodations for his Army, as had been pro­mised him, he found nothing throughout, but Enemies Armed against him by the Perfidy of the Greek Emperor: but it did not fail at last to fall heavy upon him as it had formerly upon the two Comnenius's Alexis and Manuel in the two first Crusades. This Emperor was that Isaacius Angelus, who about five Years before had been proclaimed Emperor in a Sedition, which himself had raised for the Destruction of the Cruel Andronicus. He was a man who had little either Soul or Heart, but the Want of those was supplied with Presumption and Va­nity in abundance, by which he made all his Follies and those Vices most appa­rent, which are most capable of rendring a Prince despicable and hated; for he was sottish even to downright folly, extreme light and inconstant, coward­ly, Voluptuous, Effeminate, most foolishly Prodigal, and infamously Cove­tous; taking a Pleasure to receive from all sorts of Persons, though it were but Toys add Trisles, and making no Difficulty to take any thing that pleased his Fancy, even to the horrible Sacriledge of robbing the Churches, without any Scruple, of their Jewels, Plate and Ornaments, and even the Consecrated Vessels, to make use of at his Publick Entertainments, notwithstanding that he seemed even to a strange Bigottry to make Profession of Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, to whom he made most Magnificent Offerings and honoured her with Images consecrated to her, the richest in the World, all glistering with Gold, and sparkling with the fairest Stones that could be procured. As for any thing more, he was aman without Truth, Faith and Honour, who delighted in no­thing but the Injoyment of his Riches, and the Sweets of Empire, which he soo­lishly promised himself he should enjoy more than Thirty Years; and in the Inte­rim abandoning all the Care and Trouble of it to some one of his Favourites, which was sometimes a doating old Eunuch, otherwhiles some young fantastical Boy, scarcely past the Discipline of a School or got free from the Ferula, who now must manage a Sceptre, and by whom he permitted himself to be lead as if he had been a meer Child. See what sort of man this Emperor Isaacius was, who after he had promised to Frederick not only all safe Passage, but all manner of Assistance, did all that lay in the Compass of his Power against him, and that for these two more especial reasons.

First for that Saladin, who knew well how to amuse him had made him abun­dance of Vain Promises to bestow Palestine upon him; upon Condition that he should obstruct the Passage of the Occidentals; That he should enter into an alliance with him, and thereby oblige himself to send his Gallies to his assistance and that his Ambassadors, which he had at the Court of Constaminople, should be there treated with all manner of Honour. The Second Reason was, that he permitted himself most sottishly to be seduced by the Impostures of a remarka­ble Cheat, the manner of which I am about to relate. There was a certain Venetian, who having got himself naturallized a Geeek at Constantinople, took up­on him the Name of Dositheos, and there turned Monk in the famous Monastery of Studius, from whence he hoped that he should one day be able to Mount to the highest Dignities of the Church. Now whether this Fellow was really a great Master in the Art of Astrology and taking the true Horescope or that he was really acquainted with that which is more Criminal and the black Art, or which I think was the most easie, that he boldly played the Prophet at all Adven­ture, in regard he had nothing to loose but his little Credit, if his Prophecies should not prove true, certain it is that he predicted to Isaacius a long time before it happened, that he should one day attain the Empire. That Predi­ction [Page 162]had made such an Impression upon his mind, year 1189 and had gained so much Belief and Consideration with him that he believed it as an Oracle; and happening luckily to fall out accordingly, there was nothing which he thought too much to do for Dosithcos. So that some little time after having made two Patriarchs of Constan­tinople be successively deposed under false Pretexts, he having therefore elevated them to that Dignity, he took a great Phancy to transferr his Dositheos from the Chair of Jerusalem, whereof he possessed only the Titular Right as being one of the Imperial Cities. But he found a great Obstacle to the Accomplishment of his Desire, in Regard that in the Code of the Oriential Church, there were found certain Canons of more than one Ages standing which prohibited these kind of Translations particularly of Metropolitans, and much more of one Partiar­chate to another: To surmount this Difficulty, he had recourse to a very plea­sant Artifice, which was apparently suggested to him by this false Dositheos, and which succeeded according to his Wish. There was in his Court the Fa­mous Theodore Balsamon, who of all the Greeks was esteemed the most able and skilful Canonist, and who hath left us a Digest of the Canons of little Fidelity, more then to inable the Adversaries of the Roman Church, of which he declared himself upon all Occasions the Implacable Enemy, from thence to draw Argu­ments of an Eternal Opposition. This man was Patriarch of Antioch, where he yet retained not the least Authority, in regard that City was wholly in the Power of the Latins, who had there a Patriarch of their own. I would by no means indure the Goverment of a Schismatick. Now the Emperor who knew his Am­bitious Humour, and that he was capable of doing and saying what he pleased, pro­vided he were satisfied in that governing Passion, caused him one day to be sent for in Private, where making to him a pretended Confidence he complained to him miserably of the small Number of able men that were to be found among the Ecclesiasticks, and in the Monasteries from whence he said Learning and Vertue seemed in a manner to be banished; insomuch that in all his Empire he could find but one man, who was capable of filling the Vacant Seat of Constantinople. So as he wish­ed to do Honour to the Church and to be able to oppose the Latins. After which he said, as it were opening his very Heart to him, that not knowing any Person be­sides himself capable by reason of his merit, to sustain that great Dignity, he had along time had it in his Thoughts to translate him from the Patriarchate of An­tioch, of which he possessed only the empty Title, to that of Constantinople where he might have the Opportunity of displaying more advantageously those Great Talents which God had imparted to him, and particularly, that pro­found Skill which he had acquired in the Laws and the Discipline of the Church: But that hitherto he never durst enterprize it, in regard that he had always heard it said, that such Translations were not lawful or according to the Canons; but notwithstanding if he who was far more knowing than any other, and who was reputed the very Oracle of those kinds of Learning, was able to demon­strate and perswade the World by interpreting the Canons, that they might very well according to the Intention of the Church upon certain Occasions be suspended, as sometimes they had been, it would be the greatest joy and Satis­faction in the World to him, and that without deferring a Moment longer, he would name him to the Chair of Constantinople. There needed no more to make Theodore yield, after the Temptation of possessing of such an elevated Digni­ty, which that ambitious man suffered to overcome him without making the least Resistance against it. He therefore readily answered the Emperor, that his Ma­jesty should not fail to receive full satisfaction, and that it was easie to acco­modate the Canons to his advantage. See now the deplorable Weakness of the greatest part of Mankind; who, whereas they ought to regulate their Passions, by submitting them to the Laws, chuse rather on the contrary to rule the Law by accomodating it to their Passions, whilest they endeavour by their false Subtile­ties to perswade themselves, that it is not at all contrary to what they desir.

The Emperor having thus artificially drawn him into the Snare, the next day assembled all the Bishops who were in great Numbers about the Court, to the Church of St. Sophia, where it was in his Presence proposed, whether this kind of Translation, might be allowed according to the Canons. Balsamon, who had not been wanting the preceding Night to instruct his Brethren, shew­ed by many famous Instances out of Antiquity, that the Ancient Canons did not [Page 163]absolutely prohibit it, year 1189 but that they only were designed to reform the Abuse which might be made of it. All his Partisans whom, he had gained to his Opinion, and the others who were nothing so knowing as himself, especially in the Canon Law, were immediately in the same Sentiment. Thus it passed without Difficulty as their Opinion and the Translation which might really be made for the greater advantage of the Church, was also authorized and comfirmed as Lawful by the Im­perial Letters. After which the Emperor who had now all that he desired, nomina­ted Dositheos Patriarch of Constantinople, and having thus gulled poor Theodore, left him as he found him, to starve upon his lean Honour of being still the Titular Pa­triarch of Antioch. However Dositheos, who made his Entry into Constantinople with all the Pomp and magnificence of a Triumph, did not long rejoyce in the Enjoyment of his wretched Cheat; for the Bishops unable to suffer that he had thus abused them [...] entred into so many Cabals against him, and so wrought up the Hatred of the Populace, to whom he was already odious by the manner of his Living which was altogether unworthy of that high Dignity, that the Em­peror, who would have supported him by Force, fearing it might occasion a great Sedition, was at length constrained to abandon him, and to suffer him to be deposed, about two Years after he had by Fraud obtained it, Georgius Xiphi­line succeeding in his Place; so that he not only lost the Chair of Constantinople to which he had unlawfully aspired, but that of Jerusalem also, which upon his Translation was conferred upon another.

But in that time that he was Patriarch of Constantinople, he absolutely gover­ned the Emperor, and by his Delusions turned him which way he pleased; then it was that he made him believe, that the Design of Frederick was not with that powerful Army to make War against Saladin for the Deliverance of the Holy Land, and the City of Jerusalem, but a pure Artifice to cover the Design which he had to make himself Master of Constantinople. And to confirm this, counterfeiting the Prophet, he shewed him certain fantastical Figures, which he said had been drawn by Salomon, to represent the future State of things; from which he assured that foolish and Credulous Emperor that Frederick was to enter Constantinople by the Gate Xylocernos, which joyned to the Palace of Blaquernes; that he should commit a thousand abominably things, but that in the end he should be most severely punished. All these Fooleries he pronounced with an Air so affirmative and so serious, that this ridiculous Prince, to prevent the Effects of his Predictions, caused the Port of Blaquernes to be walled up; then Dositheos, shewing him the Windows of the Highest Tower of the five which beautisie that fair Palace, would needs carry him up thither, where with two Darts, which he usually carried in his left Hand, he was to stand huffing and in a menacing Posture, which the filly Conjurer told him, should strike Frederick with his Germans to the Hearts, so that he should not need to trouble himself to march out to give them Battle: Thus did he expose him as if he had been all pure Fool, to the Derision of all that saw or heard of this silly Adventure.

However he did not fail amidst all his Stupid Vanity, to give out the Necessa­ry Orders, for obstructing the Passage of the Emperor, to whom at the same time he offered the most insupportable Affront; For as Frederick approached the Frontier, he sent the Bishop of Munster, Robert Earl of Nassau, and Count Walram in Ambassage to him, to desire that he might have free Passage, and Provisions for the Army, according to the Stipulations of the Treaty; this per­fidious, after he had at first received them in a tollerable good manner, within eight days, threw them loaden with Irons into a dark and loathsome Prison, thereby in a manner wholly Barbarous, violating the very Law of Nations, to oblige the Ambassadors of Saladin, who used their utmost Efforts to engage him so deeply in a War with Frederick, that he might not know how to go back from his Promises to their Master. Then following the Advice of his Dositheos, who was of Confederacy with the Sarasins; he armed powerfully, and sent his Cousin Manuel, the Great Master of the Horse, with a numerous Army, and Orders to dispute the Passes with the Germans; and to cut off all Provisions from them, But the Cowardise of the Greeks was but a feeble Obstacle to the Invincible Forces of Frederick; for not being able so much as to indure the sight of the Duke of Suabia, who with his Sword in his Hand, marched against them at the Head of the Vanguard, they immediately turned their Backs and [Page 164]abandoned the Barricades and Retrenchments which they had made at the first Pass of the Mountains, year 1189 which lead into Thracia: So that all the Army falling into that Country, the Emperor to punish the Treachery of the Greeks, per­mitted them to live at Discretion, as they did, finding in the Fields great abun­dance of all kinds of Grain, it being now August, which the Greeks, had not time to carry into the fenced Towns and Cities according to the Or­ders which had been given.

But that which finished his Ruin, was the insupportable Vanity of Isaacius, who sending to treat with Frederick, did it in the most brutish manner in the World denying him the Title of Emperor; for he sent to him to let him understand, That he knew no other Emperor but of Constantinople, which was himself; and that if he would acknowledge him in that Quality for his Lord and Master, and give him so many Hostages as he demanded, for Security that he would Enterprize nothing contrary to his Service or Interests, and give him the Moiety of all the Conquests which he should make upon the Sarasins, then, and upon no other Terms he was resolved to afford him the Liberty of the Passage which he desired. Now whether the Greek Emperor was so indiscreet to command in this kind of Insolent Language, which seems agreeable enough to his Character and his Genius; or that the Envoys, as Nicetas in excu­sing it, would assure us, exceeded the Limits of their Commission, is uncertain; But Frederick though he was not a little picqued, yet had the Discretion to con­ceal and smother his Resentment, till he had procured the Liberty of his Am­bassadours: And therefore he contented himself with returning this Answer with a disdainful Smile, which manifested a great measure of Assurance, and but lit­tle Sharpness, That he trusted in God, and in all those brave men which accompanied him, that there was yet no great Necessity for his complying with such kind Terms; that for any thing more when their Master, speaking to the Ambassadours, had restored to him his Ambassadours whom he held in Chains, with so much Inhumanity, and so much against the Law of all Nations, to the Shame of the Christian Name which there­by he exposed to the Derision of the Sarasins, he should have a Subject whereupon in some sort to acknowledge himself obliged to him, the Honour of God and the Empire still ex­cepted. After with advancing daily without staying for the Answer of the Greek, and seizing without Resistance, upon all the Places in his Passage, upon the twentieth fifth day of August he incamped within View of Philioppopolis, a great and rich City upon the Hebrus, scituate between three Hills at the Foot of Mount Hemus.

The Historian Nicetas Acominatus, a person of Quality, and first Gentleman of the Bedchamber to the Emperor, was then Governour of that Province, whereof this was the Capital City. Now as he received every Day several Orders, by the lightness and instability of his Masters Mind, who to Day would command that all Hands should be at work upon the Fortifications, and to Morrow, that they should demolish them and quit the Town; he was, be­fore he could do the one or the other, surprized, in such manner, as to be con­strained, with the principal of the Inhabitants, to seek his Safety in quitting the City: There Frederick quartered his whole Army, to refresh his Men with the prodigious Plenty of Provisions which he found there; for the City was very Rich, by the Traffick which they had with the Armenians, who were a great party of the Inhabitants, and who loved the Franks extremely. Four Days after this, Manuel, the General of the Greek Army, being perpetually sol­licited by the Emperor, who accused him of Cowardice, advanced within six Miles of Philippopolis, with express Order to combat the Germans. But he was so little acquainted with War, that some of the Vancouriers of the Germans, who were abroad to discover the Enemies Posture, having taken some Priso­ners, who were straggling, took a Resolution to assault their whole Army, which they did with such Courage, that those cowardly Greeks believing that they had all Frederick's in the Head of them, shamefully turned their Backs, leaving the Field intirely to those few Germans: Nor did they after this find a­ny thing that appeared like Body of an Army. After which, having taken some strong Places which were defended by the Alains, whom Saladin had sent to aid the Greeks, they were all, for a Terror to the rest, put to the Sword: So that seizing upon Nicopolis, Adrianople, and all the Cities which are between the [Page 165] Egean and the Euxine Seas, they inlarged their Conquests on both sides, year 1189 to the very Gates of Constantinople.

Then it was, that the perfidious Isaacius, finding himself reduced to the last Extremities, set the Ambassadors of Frederick at Liberty, and in all suppliant and humble manner, desired a Peace. He offered all the Shipping that was ne­cessary for his Passage into Asia, intreating that this Passage might be as quick as could be, and that he might have Hostages for his Security. But Frederick, who was resolved to pull down the foolish Pride of this feeble, but presumptu­ous Prince, who before would not treat with him, but as King of the Germans, made him now very sensible that he was the Emperor of the Romans; and there­fore, like a Caesar, he answered the Ambassadors, That it was the Right of the Conquerors to give Laws to the Vanquished, That it appertained to him who had con­quered Thracia, to dispose of it as he thought convenient. That therefore, the Year being so far advanced, he was resolved to winter in Thracia with his whole Army, to punish their Master for having so long retarded his Voyage by his foolish Perfidious­ness, and giving him the trouble to beat him, and to take his Towns, where he had now no longer any Right. But if he expected any Favour from him, that he must take Care against Easter, in the Year ensueing, to provide him so much Shipping as was necessary for the Transportation of his whole Army into Asia, by the Hellespont; and to give him sufficient Security for his Promises, of which he knew he would be libe­ral, but which he had no manner of Reason to repose any sort of Confidence in; That he was resolved to have in Hostage four and twenty of the principal Officers and Lords of his Court, and eight hundred others of inferior Quality, whom he must forthwith send to him, together with the Ambassadors of the Sultan of Iconium, whom he restrained at Constantinople contrary to the Law of Nations. That upon these Conditions he would give him the Assurance of his Oath, that he had no designs upon his Empire, as he had vainly imagined, or at least, made a shew of believing, that so he might have some Pretext, though a very ill one, for the violation of his Faith.

There is certainly nothing so Insolent as a proud Coward in Prosperity, when he finds himself extraordinarily advanced by his good Fortune; nor is there any thing so Low, Mean, and Croaching, when once his Haughtiness is tamed and brought down by the reverse of Adversity. This Isaacius, who a little before boasted with insufferable Insolence, that he was the only Emperor, and next to God, the Lord and Master of other Kings, now thought himself very happy to be offered a Treaty, which gave him liberty to accept even of these dishonourable Conditions, which were sufficiently humbling for him. He there­fore without Delay sent the Ratification, with the Ambassadors, the Hostages, and great Presents to the Emperor, who passed the Winter at Adrianople, till Easter approaching he went to Callipolis, where he was resolved to pass the Hellespont. There he did not fail to find far more Shipping than Isaacius had promised him, for there were of Barkes, Brigantines, Galliots, and Gallies, near upon five hundred; so much hast did that poor Prince make to deliver himself from these dangerous and troublesome Guests, who had perfectly recruited themselves of all their Fatigues, and very well inriched themselves at his Ex­pence, in so good a winter Quarter. Thus the Army, to which diverse new Crusades had come to joyn themselves, and which was in a Condition as good or better, than when it first marched out of Germany; year 1190 began to pass the Sea up­on Good Friday, the twenty third day of March, and in seven days were all tran­sported over the Hellespont. They had so good a Passage, that not one Man was lost, such Care did the Emperor take, who was continually jealous and watch­ful over the Greeks; and fearing least when the first were passed over, they might set upon the last, he was resolved to embarque with the last himself, as he did upon the seventh Day, and happily joyned the rest of his Army in Asia, near the City of Lampsacus.

The next Morning he began his March, and quitting the left hand Way, which he had found was so difficult and dangerous, when he accompanied his Uncle the Emperor Conrade, he took to the Right, by the Sea Coast, crossing over Mysia, Troas, Phrygia, and Lydia, by the Cities of Thyatira and Philadel­phia, to the Meander, which he passed near Laodicea, where the Army reposed for a few days. The Inhabitants of this City furnished them with all manner [Page 166]of Refreshments, year 1190 with an incredible Chearfulness, which was a pleasing Sur­prise to the Emperor, who now believed that the Sultan of Iconium, whose Go­vernment extended as far as that side of the Meander, would inviolably keep his Promise, which he had given him, and which he daily repeated by his Ambas­sadors, who followed the Camp. But he was no sooner arrived at that dange­rous Mountain, which is near the Head of the Meander, and which the defeat of the Rereguard of the French Army, under Lewis the Young, had made so Memorable, but he found the Enemies in the Head of him, and presently un­derstood that this perfidious Infidel Prince, had not made him all those fair Pro­mises, but to draw him into the Snare, which he had artfully had by his infa­mous Treachery. Which should instruct Christian Princes, that they ought to take all imaginable Precaution, and extraordinary Security, when the necessity of their Affairs obliges them to treat with those People, who wanting that true Faith which they owe to God, usually take no care of preserving it towards Men.

This Sultan was Caïscosroës, who about ten years before had been dispoiled of his Dominions by his Brother Rucratin, and was afterwards re-established by the Greeks. This Prince had a little before concluded an Alliance with Saladin, who had given his Daughter in Marriage to his Son Melich, who succeeded him. He had also a secret Intelligence with Isaacius, who corresponded with both these Sultans against the Latins, whom he mortally hated, as do all the Greeks, but more especially in those times: So that all the Ambassadors which this perfidi­ous Infidel had sent to Frederick, and whom Isaacius had apparently by Force detained at Constantinople, were sent for no other Purpose but to abuse the Em­peror with greater ease, and to draw him from Laodicea, into those desert Coun­tries, from whence he had caused all the Provisions to be withdrawn, that so he might destroy that Army by Famine, and by the infinite multitude of Troops, which he had gathered out of all Asia, continually to molest the Army in their March, and to attack them at all the difficult Passes. In short, they found that the Straits of the Mountain were possessed by the Turks, but nevertheless, they were such miserable Cowards, that would not abide more than the first Shock of the Germans, who there made a great Carnage among them, and put the rest to flight. However they rallied the next Morning, and came again in far greater Numbers, but rather like Thieves than Souldiers, vexing the Army on all Sides with slinging great Stones, and discharging their Arrows, after which they would save themselves according to their Custom, by retireing at full Speed, and then presently return again after the same manner, without giving the Germans, who were heavily armed, the possibility of coming to Blows with them; and having thus combated with them all the Day, they in the Night seized upon the Avenues of another Mountain, which were extraordinary strait, and through which they knew the Christian Army must necessarily pass the fol­lowing Day.

But Frederick, who disposed all things with an incredible presence of Mind, thought of a pretty Stratagem, which succeeded perfectly to his Wish. He divided his Army into two Bodies, leaving the smallest Party in the Camp, which was at the Foot of the Mountain; after which, seeming to be afraid of the Turks, and to dispair of forcing the Pass, he marched in the Morning with the greatest Party quite another way, as if he designed to find some other Pas­sage. He was not distanced far from the Camp, when the Turks really believ­ing that his Fear was the occasion of his Flight, and the hast which he made to draw himself out of such a dangerous Place, had made him abandon his Camp; but that the desire they had of Plunder, and that Avarice which is the govern­ing Passion of these Barbarians, blinded them in such sort, that abandoning their advantageous Post, they tumbled down from the Mountain in the greatest Dis­order, to fall upon the Camp, which they believed they should rifle at their Discretion, finding it without Defence. But those who guarded it, shewed them their Mistake, and defended it so vigorously, that the Emperor making a short Turn, upon a Signal which was given him by Fire and Smoak, charged them upon their Backs; so that being shut in between two powerful Bodies, they were most of them cutt in Pieces, and the rest scattered, leaving the Pas­sage free to the victorious Army.

year 1190 Frederick nevertheless found it very difficult to believe that he was betrayed by the Sultan of Iconium, in regard that his Ambassadors were still in his Re­tinue, and they always highly disavowed these to be their Masters Troops; but it was not long before he came to be disabused; for about the Feast of the Ascension, which was the third Day of May, the Ambassadors took the Oppor­tunity of the Night to steal away, forcing along with them Godfrey the Empe­ror's Interpreter; and in the same place where the Sultan Chisiastlan, the Fa­ther of this, had defeated the Army of the Emperor Manuel, about fourteen Years before, he found more than thirty thousand Men imbodied into an Army, to oppose his Passage in the Straits, which might easily be maintained by a very inconsiderable Number. The Turks had gathered great heaps of Stones, that so they might, from the high Rocks, shower them down out of their Slings, upon the Christians; upon whom also they might with ease tumble down huge pieces of the Craggs, which they had before loosened for that purpose. But Frederick, very dexterously drew the Army out of that Danger also; for having promised to a certain Prisoner, that he would give him his Life, upon Conditi­on that he should, as he offered for that Favour, conduct the Army by another way over the Top of this Mountain, which was three Miles in the Ascent, he passed it the same Day, though not without great Difficulty, and with the Loss of above a thousand Horses, and as many Beasts of Burthen, who tumbled over the Precipices on the one Side and the other.

As soon as he was descended into the Plain, he incamped there, to refresh his Army a little in that place, which was very commodious, in regard of the plen­ty of Forrage: But the Turks, who with their dreadful Multitude filled all the Country, having run from all parts during the whole Night, the next Morn­ing fell upon the Rereguard, whilest that another Party of them having cut them off from the Van, charged them in the Front. This was one of the great­est and most dangerous Combats which happened in all the Voyage; but the Dukes of Suabia and Moravia, and the Marquis of Baden, who commanded that Body, combated with so much Courage and Conduct, that they forced the E­nemies to a shameful Flight, after their having left a great many of their Num­ber dead upon the place, and without so much as the Loss of one Man, though there were a great many wounded; and among them Frederick the Son of the Emperor, who had two of his Teeth broaken out by a Blow from a Sling; a great part also of the Baggage was lost; the less Valiant among the Turks, ha­ving taken the Opportunity of the heat of the Fight, to fall upon those who guarded it: After this, as the Troops of the Enemies increased daily more and more, they gave such continual Alarms, that the Souldiers were forced al­most continually to stand to their Arms to defend themselves against these Infi­dels, who attacked them Night and Day without Intermission, though they were continually beaten; and that one time among many, that they ventured to attack the Camp by Night, there were slain above six thousand of them, and among the rest, one hundred seventy four of their most considerable Officers.

But after all, These Victories could not deliver the Army from the most terrible and dangerous of their Enemies, which was Famine; for all the Pro­visions which they had carried with them, being either consumed by so long a March, or lost with the Sumpters and that part of the Baggage which had been taken, and all the Country being either Barren or Uninhabited, or deso­lated by the Enemies, who made a horrible Wast throughout; the Army was forced to kill the Mules, and Horses, which would otherwise have been lost for want of Forrage; so that there remained but a few of them, and they so feeble and meagre, that their Masters were so far from receiving the Benefit of being carried by them upon their March, that they were forced to walk on foot, and lead them by the Bridles: Insomuch that I cannot but relate a pretty Adventure which happened thereupon, and which the Historian Nicetas, as much a Greek all over as he was, yet thought fit to dedicate to the Memory of Posterity, as a Prodigy of Valour, comparable even to the Fables which have been invented, to frame the Heroes of the first Ages. A certain German Cavaleer, of an ex­traordinary Force and Stature, being mighty unwilling to part with his Horse, who by reason of his Poverty was in no condition to carry him, marched on [Page 168]foot, year 1190 leading him softly at a good Distance from the rest of his Troop, when he was presently set upon by fifty of the stoutest among the Turks, who con­stantly hovered about the Army, and who all together discharged their Arrows against him; but this valiant Man regarding them with a Look fierce and con­temptuous, received them all upon a Buckler, with which his left Arm was covered, through which he had put his Bridle, by which he held his Horse; and holding his Sword in his other hand, he kept still on his Way, without so much as once stopping or turning, till at last, a Turk more resolute than his Companions, leaving his Bow, and putting Spurs to his Horse, came galloping upon him with his Sable in his Hand, and with all his Force discharged a mighty Blow upon the German, which had no more effect than if he had struck it against a Rock; whereupon the fierce Ʋndaunted, perceiving that he could not make a sure Blow at the Rider, who was too high for him, he with a dreadful Re­verse cut off both the Horses Foreleggs at the Knees, and the poor Animal at the instant sinking upon his Stumps, the Rider still sitting in the Saddle, he discharged such a horrible Blow upon his Head, that he cut him quite down to the very Saddle, and wounded the Horse into the Bargain. This so affrighted his Companions, as well it might, that taking the Souldier for some Daemon, ra­ther than for a Man, they betook themselves to their Spurs, as if the Devil had drive them, leaving the Hero coolly, and at leisure to pursue his way to the Camp, where he arrived a good while after the rest.

The Emperor all this time, still advanced towards Iconium, with a Resoluti­on to Perish or to take that City, and both to punish the Sultan for his Perfidy, and to refresh his Army after so many Fatigues. For this Reason therefore, these cowardly Barbarïans fearing such an Affront, and believing on the other side, that they had to do, with Men half dead with Famine, resolved at length, to expect them in the open Field, and with all their Forces to put it to the ha­zard of a Battle. And therefore having mustered up all their Troops, which composed an Army of more than three hundred thousand Combatants, upon the eleventh day of May, they appeared in View of the Christian Army, un­der the Conduct of Melich, the eldest Son of the Sultan. He extended his Troops to the right and left upon the Heights which he had possessed himself of all there­about, as far as the Sight would reach, that thereby he might strike a Terror into the Hearts of the Christians; who after having lost so great numbers of their Souldiers, and the greatest part of their Horses, by the defect of Forrage and Provisions, in such a difficult March of three Months, appeared but as a hand­ful in comparison of such a fearful Multitude of their Enemies. The Emperor, who was one of the greatest Captains of the World, took occasion to draw an Advantage from this Action of the Enemies, who did it for their own, and to terrify the Christians by the View of all their Forces, which were to be discove­red easily from their Posts; for he put on a counterfeit Amazement, and after having well dissembled a Fear, by the little Assurance of his Countenance, and the many Changes which he made in the order of his Battle, he caused his Troops to move in such a sort of Countermarch, as gave the Turks a firm Per­suasion that he had not the least Intention to Fight, but rather how to save him­self by a Retreat. Hereupon the first Squadrons of the Barbarians, who be­lieved that the Victory was already as good as in their Hands, and that they had nothing more to do, but to change this Retreat into a manifest Flight, de­scended from the Mountains into the Plain with so much Precipitation, that they galloped with a loose Rein, and in great Disorder, with dreadful Cries, ac­cording to their Custom, after these supposed Fugitives. But they soon found their Mistake, for the Germans turning Head imediately upon them, and charg­ing them with their Swords, quickly made them fly in good Earnest, after having left a great many stretching upon the place, to save themselves in Hast and Confusion upon the Mountains, with the gross of their Army, which was not yet come down. The two following Days passed in light Skirmishes, but upon the third, which was the morrow after Whitsuntide, there was a necessity of coming to a general Battle.

Melich, who had too many Troops to be able to range them commodiously in the Ground of which he was possessed, divided his Army into two great Bo­dies, [Page 169]which he posted the one behind the other, year 1190 upon two Hills which were se­parated by a little Valley, that so he might be able to send what Troops he plea­sed from the second Hill, to sustain those who were upon the first. He com­manded the first Body in Person, his Brothers being at the Head of the other, which served as a Rereguard. The Emperor himself, on his side, led the Van, and the Command of the Rere he gave to his Son, the Duke of Suabia, who had order to sustain him, by instantly following of him, to the end that they might make the more powerful Effort, by charging both together, almost at the same time, upon the first Body of the Enemies. Now the Ascent of the Hill upon which they stood in Battalia, being not very steep, the Emperor, after he had passed the prodigious Discharge of their Arrows and Stones, which had little Effect, charged upon the first Squadrons of his Enemies; after which, contra­ry to their Custom, they made some Resistance, whereas usually their manner of Fight, was like that of the ancient Parthians, from whom they were de­scended, in vaulting about, and returning to the Charge after they had wheeled off, but this Resistance lasted but a little time, for these sort of People, who were better acquainted with robbing and killing, than with this manner of sight­ing, not being able to sustain the furious Shock of these Germans, whose very Countenances struck them with Terrour, and who dealt about lusty Blows of Pike, Sword, and Battle-Axes, and made a dreadful Slaughter among such as either durst abide their Force, or had not the Opportunity to avoid it, as in­deed few of them had, by reason of the greatness of their Number, which hin­dred the nimbleness of their Flight; so that of the boldest of them, who for some time maintained the close Fight, above ten thousand lay stretched out up­on the Place. Melich, who behaved himself very gallantly, was overthrown by a Blow of the Lance, and four of the Sultan's principal Noblemen, were slain by his Side; nor was it without extreme Difficulty and Hazard, that being quickly re-mounted again, and seeing that all his Vanguard was intirely defeated, he saved himself upon the Hill, where the Rereguard, commanded by his Bro­thers, stood in Battalia. But that stood but a small time; it was already half defeated, by the Fear which seized those Troops, in seeing the woful Slaughter of their Companions of the Van; and the Flight of the General, who in saving himself with the Flyers, carried also the Terrour and the Confusion among the other Squadrons; so that as soon as ever they saw the Emperor, who marched over the Bellies of all those whom he found in the Valley, advanced gently, and in good Order against them, they presently fled at full Speed, towards Iconium, having the Christians still at their Backs, who pursued them until it was Night.

That which is most marvellous in this Victory, is that the Conquerors ob­tained it without almost any Loss; which many attributed to the particular Protection of St. George and St. Victor, which are the ordinary Names that are called upon in Battle, and whom some affirmed that they saw combat with the Turks before the Squadrons of the Christians: which must either be attributed to some extraordinary Effect of the Divine Commission, as many times happen­ed to the People of Israel, according to the Testimony of the Scripture it self, which relates to us the Sun's standing still in Gibeon, and the Moon in the Valley of Ajalon, and that the Stars in their Courses fought against proud Sisera, and that the Hailstones, of prodigious bigness, the Artillery of Heaven, overthrew the Enemies of God and his People: Or else it is possible, it might be the effect of what diverse of them had often heard related of the Celestial Squa­drons which were reported to have been seen in the first Crusade, at the famous Battle of Antioch, whose Imagination being therefore strongly pre-possessed with the Impressions of those Ideas, might upon this Occasion frame to themselves the like Apparitions: Be it as it will, this is certain, that a Cavaleer of Repu­tation, and in no sort to be thought an idle or dreaming Visionary, whose Name was Lewis de Helfenstein, affirmed it positively before the Emperor, and pro­tested to him before the whole Army, upon his Oath, and upon the Faith of a vowed Pilgrim of the Holy Sepulchre, and of a Crusade, that he had more than once seen St. George at the Head of the Squadrons, putting the Enemies to Flight. This was also afterwards confirmed by the Turks themselves, who related that [Page 170]they saw, year 1190 at the Head of the Christian Army, certain Troops in white Arms, which were no where to be found among them. I must needs acknowledge, that one is not at all obliged to give Credit to these kind of Visions, which for the most part are the Effects of great Illusions; but I also know very well that an Historian hath no manner of Right, by the Warrant of his own Authority, to reject such as are supported by Testimonies so remarkable as this is; and that if he be left at his own Liberty to disbelieve them as he shall please, yet he can­not pretend to the Liberty by suppressing them, to take from his Readers, the Right which they have after the reading them, to judge of them as they think fit.

Now as these Barbarians did again, with the same ease as they had fled, rally themselves, Melich having quickly re-assembled them before Iconium, sent to let the Emperor know, from the Sultan his Father, that he was ready to permit him free Passage, and to furnish him with all manner of Provisions in Plenty, pro­vided, that he would, for Form sake only, pay thirty thousand Crowns, and oblige the Armenian Christians, to yield to the Sultan those Places which they held in Cilicia, which the Historians of that time, do for this Reason, so often confound with Armenia. To this Frederick instantly answered, sweetly and calmly, according to his manner, but magnificently, and always like Caesar; That a Roman Emperor, especially at the Head of an Army of Crusades, going to deliver the Sepulchre of Jesus Christ, was not acquainted with the way of Merchandi­sing for his Passage with Silver, when he knew so readily how to open it more nobly, with the harder Metal of the glittering Steel, which he wore by his Side, and which the Sultan should ere long find was a Key, that would not only let him out of his Country, but open to him the Gates, and give him Entrance into his Capital City of Iconium. And the following day, without staying for any other Answer, he removed his Camp, which was already within View of Iconium, and advanced towards the City to attack it.

Iconium, which at this time is called Cogny, the Capital City of Lycaonia, and of all the Dominions of this Sultan, which besides this Province, extended in­to Pisidia, Cappadocia, Pamphilia, and Isauria, which not long after was called Caramania, was afore this time a very good City, and well Fortified, where the Pacha Governour of the Province made his Residence. But it was at this time much Greater, more Rich and Populous, environed with good Walls, and for­tified with a many fair Towers, of a wonderful Thickness, and extraordinary Height; and besides it had in the fashion of a Citadel, a very great Castle scitu­ate upon a Mountain, which commanded the Town; and in the Opinion of a certain Writer, who was present at that War, the City was no way less than Cologne, which is one of the biggest and most considerable Cities of Germany. It was also very Beautiful without the Walls, there being on the West side a great Park inclosed with stone Walls, in which the Sultans had built two magnificent Palaces, for their Diversion during the Heats of the Summer; there were also round about it abundance of Gardins, which made the coming to it on that part very pleasing, but withal very difficult, by reason that there was Con­venience for the placing a great number of Souldiers, who might from those Covertures discharge in great Security their Arrows, against those who ap­proached. The Emperor nevertheless, having commanded every Horseman to take a Footman behind him, that so upon their lighting, they might the better attack those who defended these Inclosures, easily made himself Master of them, and there lodged all the Army, with a Resolution the next Morning, being the twenty eighth of May, to Assault the City, though it was defended by a great part of the Enemies Army; whilest the other part, which was re-inforced to the number of two hundred thousand Men, was in the Field, ready to charge upon the Backs of the Christians, in case they attempted any thing against the Town.

So soon therefore as the Day appeared, the Emperor without deferring up­on the Propositions of Peace, which the Sultan made only to amuse him, divided the Army into two Bodies. He gave the Command of the first to the Duke of Suabia, his Son, accompanied with Florent Earl of Holland, with Order to attack the City: And the other he commanded himself, to oppose the Enemies, if they [Page 171]should attempt to fall upon them behind, during the Attack. year 1190 Never was there any Enterprise that appeared more unadvisable, nor never any that did more happily succeed: For the Sultan, who was issued out to repulse the Assailants, scarcely saw the foremost Squadrons, who ran upon him with their Lances conched, but that, being seized with the Cowardly Apprehension of Death, which he believed, without flying, was inevitable, he ignominiously shewed them his Back; and by his timerous Example, drew all his Troops after him; who fled with such a Pannick Fear, that the Germans pursued them so briskly, as not to give them liberty to shut the Gates before they also were entred with them into the City. And no sooner were they gotten in, but they put all to the Sword whom they met in the Streets and Market-places, without distin­ction, thereby to oblige them to retire into their Houses, and leave the Streets free. The Sultan, with great difficulty, saved himself in the Castle, with his Children, and that which was most considerable in the Court, being hotly pur­sued by the Duke of Suabia, who chased them with the Sword at their Backs, killing and slaying all that opposed him, or stood in his way, to the very Gates of the Fortress. Thus this great City was taken, by the fearful Disorder oc­casioned by the Cowardly Timerousness of one Man: And the Victors made themselves Masters of it, without almost any Loss; rather owing it to the fear of the Vanquished, than to their own Valour, since they found no Enemy that would give them occasion to exercise it, in the Execution of a generous En­terprise.

All this time the Emperor, who knew nothing of the Success of those who attacked the City, was at hard Blows with the great Army of his Enemies; for they knowing that he had only a Moyety of the Army, charged him with more Resolution than was customary to them, upon the hopes which they had, that they should easily surround such a little Army, which could not possibly resist two hundred thousand Men, who assailed him on all sides at the same time. And, in truth, they assailed him in such good Order, and with so much Vigour, drawing down upon him on every side, all together, with fearful Cries, and an infinite number of Darts, Arrows and Stones, which they dis­charged from their Bows and Slings: Insomuch, that the Christians, who were so small a number in Comparison, and so harrassed with the Fatigues of their March, and the Combats of the foregoing Days, and almost spoiled with the horrible Rain which had fallen all the Night before, began to despair, not only of the Victory, but of their Lives. The Bishops themselves, and the Priests, habited in their Rochets, Surplices and Stoles, who expected nothing the Stroak of Death, and to offer to God their Lives as a Sacrifice, however exhorted the Soldiers, with great Cries, to do the same, and expose theirs freely, after their Example. But the Emperor, ready, as he was, to die for the Love of Jesus Christ, was yet resolved, if it were possible, to live, and live a Conqueror for the Love of Glory; and therefore, galloping amongst the Ranks, he animated them by his Voice and Gesture, and posted to put himself at the Head of the foremost Squadrons; where regarding his People with Eyes which shot Fire into the very Bottom of the most frozen Courage, he commu­nicated to them the same Ardour with which his noble Heart was animated. What do you stand for, said he, my generous Fellow-Soldiers? Let us go, Let us go under the conquering Ensign of the Death of Christ Jesus, who calls us to the Victory: It is not in expecting Death from them, but in carrying it among our Enemies, that we must be Victors. And thereupon, setting Spurs to his Horse, he threw him­self into the thickest Squadrons of the Turks, all covered with Sweat and Blood, as he was; and his Courage furnishing him with new Forces, he laid about him, cutting, overturning and killing with mighty Blows of his Sword, on both sides of him, all those that durst oppose his Fury. All his Soldiers, ani­mated by his Example, and by seeing the danger to which their Prince exposed himself for their sakes, became, as it were, new Men; and as if they had but just freshly begun the Combat, they followed him with so much Heat, Impe­tuosity and Fury, that those Squadrons, unable to sustain the terrible Shock, being overthrown upon those who followed them, the Terrour spread it self so among the rest of the Army, that they presently fell into Disorder, [Page 172]and in a Moment after, year 1190 into a downright Flight, and, according to the custom of these Barbarians, saved themselves in the Mountains, leaving ten thousand slain upon the place.

After this Execution, the Emperor, who was not willing to amuse himself, by pursuing the Fugitives, lead his victorious Soldiers to the City, of the Ta­king whereof he was by this time advertised; where he was received, as it were, in Triumph by his Son. He gave the Plunder of it to his Army, which there found Riches, even surpassing Imagination, and a prodigious quantity of all kind of Provisions, to refresh them, after so many Travels, Toyls and Ha­zards. The Emperor had, among other things, for his share, more than one hundred thousand Marks in Gold and Silver, which was found in the Palace of Melich, and which was the Money, which Saladin had given him as a Portion with his Daughter. The next Day the Emperor caused Prayers to be publick­ly sung in Iconium, and Thanks to be given for a Victory so great and memo­rable. The Sultan then, seeing himself besieged in the Castle, from whence he could not escape, humbly demanded Peace of the Emperor, upon such Con­ditions as he should please: And Frederick, whose great design was to advance as fast as possible towards Syria, to combat with Saladin, after having publick­ly reproached this miserable Sultan with his base Perfidiousness, did him the fa­vour to promise him, that he would restore the City to him in the Condition wherein it was, provided only that he should furnish him with Provisions for all the time he marched through his Dominions; and that for a Warranty of the Performance of his Word, he should put into his hands, as Hostages, twen­ty of the greatest Persons of his Court, whom the Emperor should chuse; and that, after the Repose of seven days, wherein his Army was to be Quartered, partly in the Town, and partly in the Sultan's Park, he would take his March, and quit the City, as he also did, on the 30th Day of May, arriving at Laran­da, upon the Frontier of Cilicia, at the Foot of Mount Taurus; from whence, nevertheless, he did not release the Hostages, in regard that his Subjects had again molested the Army upon their March.

The Mountain Taurus is the greatest, and the highest, of all those of Asia; and which, taking different Names in the several Provinces through which it passeth, or which it divides from one another, as well on this, as the further side of Euphrates, retains particularly the Name of Taurus in Cilicia; which it se­parates from Isauria, Lycaonia, Cappadocia, and the lesser Armenia, by a long Chain of Mountains and Rocks, extream broken and frightful; where it lifts up it self upon the Sea-Coast, towards the Consines of Isauria, in which place it bends it self in the form of a Crescent: and after having formed this great Demicircle, it comes to a Butt upon the same Sea, upon the East, near the Ci­ty of Issus, so celebrated, for the Battle which Alexander the Great gained against Darius, in the Straits of these Mountains. They are for the most part, by reason of their excessive heighth, covered with Snow, that there is no pas­sing of them, but in Summer; and then so broken with Precipices, so steep and ragged, that they are wholly inaccessible, except by three Passes, which are ex­tream narrow, and difficult of Access: So that they are called by the Greeks, Piles, or Ports, by one of which there is a necessity of passing, to enter into Cilicia. It was by that, of these three, which leads towards Cappadocia and Lycaonia, that the Emperor, after having reposed some time at Laranda, began to engage himself in the Passage of these Mountains, which could not be performed in ma­ny days, and with a great deal of difficulty. He received, during this trouble­som Passage, with abundance of Joy, Livon, Prince of Armenia, the Brother of Rupin de la Montagne, who, with the principal Persons of that Country, came to wait upon him, and pay him their Respects; offering all that they had, at his Service, for his Accommodation. After they had taken their leave of him, leaving six of them to accompany him, he at last accomplished this diffi­cult Passage, the 10th of June; and dis-incumbring himself of these tiresom Rocks, he descended into the Valley, which is watered by the River Cydnus.

This River ariseth out of Mount Taurus, in the Coast of Cappadocia; from whence, entring into Cilicia, by one of these Valleys, which are formed by these Mountains, it rowls its gentle Streams, extream clear and fresh, upon its mur­muring [Page 173]Bed of clean Gravel and Pebbles; and is not very spacious tiil, year 1190 having passed through the famous City of Tharsus, it dischargeth it self into the Ocean. History hath made this River famous, by the extream danger which Alexander there run of losing his Life, whilst in the Heat of Summer, being all on fire with the violence of the burning Season, he would needs bath himself in these too cool Streams of Cydnus, being then upon his March against Darius. But an Accident more deplorable, which here happened to the Emperor Frede­rick by the very same way, ought for ever to render the Memory of that fa­tal River odious. For the very same day, which was a Sunday, the Eve of St. Barnabas, this great Prince, after having dined upon the Bank of that Ri­ver, which he had just passed, seeing the Water, which to him seemed very delightful, and not able to support the intollerable Heat of that Season of the Year, without making use of that Remedy which was so easie, and which he naturally loved, would needs bath himself in those cool and refreshing Streams, notwithstanding all that was alledged to divert him from it: but he was no sooner in the River, into the middle of which he threw himself, but that the ex­cessive Coldness of the Water seized him in a moment; and penetrating his Pores, which, by reason of the extream Heat, were so open, combated his na­tural Heat and Spirits with so much Violence that, in a Swound, he sunk down to the bottom of the Water. He was, however, taken up alive, and so soon as he began to return to his Memory, perceiving his death approaching, he gave Thanks unto Almighty God, who did him the favour to call him in his Pil­grimage, and in the Performance of his Vow; and recommending his Soul into his Hands, and offering his Life in Sacrifice for the Remission of his Sins, he pre­sently expired. I know that many Writers report the matter otherwise, and say, that his Horse foundring in the Passage of the River, his Foot hung in the Stirrup, and so he was drowned, as he was passing into Armenia, over the Ri­ver Salef: but as the most ancient Historians, his Contemporaries, and some of them who were present, positively, some of them, affirm, it was the River Cydnus: And others of them say, it was a River near Tarsus, in which he was drowned, swimming after Dinner; and that one of them informs us, that he died not till the Evening. In my Opinion, there is not the least place left for deliberation, which of them we ought to believe; especially considering that it is very easie to reconcile these Historical Differences, by what was before ob­served, that it was then very customary to confound Armenia with Cilicia, and that the River Salef is the same Cydnus, as the Annalist Roger gives us to under­stand, by the Description which he makes of those Countries.

Thus died one of the greatest Princes that ever silled the Throne of the Cae­sars, Frederick the First, in the seventieth Year of his Age, whilst he was march­ing to combat Saladin, for the Re-Conquest of the Realm of Jerusalem; to which important Design, he had levelled the Way, by all those Victories which he had so gloriously gained against the Greek Emperor, and the Sultan of Ico­nium, the Allies of Saladin. The sole Renown of the Actions of this invincible Prince struck that famous Conqueror with so great a fear, that upon the very Rumour and Noise of his Coming, despairing to be able to maintain them against him, he caused the Walls of Laodicea in Syria, of Giblet, Tortosa, Biblis, Berytus and Sydon to be demolished; and had thoughts himself of reti­ring into Egypt, that he might not be obliged to hazard his Fortune against that of an Enemy so successful and formidable. He was happy in finishing a Life so illustrious, in the Course of his Victories, and before giddy Fortune, who never loves to court one Favourite long, had begun to forsake him: but much more happy in a Death so full of Glory, and of Deserts before God and Men, since he died in the generous Pursuit of his great Design, in quitting his own Empire, to re-establish that of Jesus Christ, in that mysterious Spot of Ground, where he was pleased to work, by his Life, and by his Death, the great Wonder of our Salvation. For thus it is that we ought charitably to judge of the Death of this Prince, by those things which we know of him, and not according to the rash, medling Humour of some, who will needs pretend to enter into the incomprehensible Judgments of God, who have had the Confi­dence to attribute his Death to the Divine Vengeance, as a Punishment for the [Page 174]War which he made against the Holy See. year 1190 Great Presumption of Humane Nature! which, under the pretext of Religion and Piety, dares so audaciously undertake to regulate the Decrees of Heaven; and by a Judgment which, in its own nature, is extreamly criminal, to pre-judge that which Jesus Christ himself only hath the Authority of giving, and which must be kept secret un­til the last Day.

So soon as the general Consternation, or rather the extream Despair, in which the Army was, by reason of this deplorable Accident, was a little over, the Princes and General Officers being assembled, by a common Consent, ac­knowledged Frederick, Duke of Suabia, for their General; the Emperor, his Father, at his death, having recommended the Care of the Army to him, and left it under his Command. It was with as much Joy as was possibly to be ex­pected in such a deep Affliction, that the Army took the Oath of Fealty to him, whom they acknowledged as the true Heir, and the living Image of all the great Qualities and Vertues of his Father. And this Prince, who in reallity possessed them in a degree very nearly approaching the Perfections of that ad­mirable Emperor, made it appear quickly that he was his true Successor, by his Liberality, in bestowing great Largesses upon the Soldiers, to whom he di­vided the greatest part of the Treasure which fell to his Father's share at the ta­king of Iconium. After he had therefore divided the Army into two parts, the lesser number imbarked on the Vessels which the Armenians, who then held di­vers places in Cilicia, furnished him withal; and himself with the greater Par­ty, after having interred the Emperor's Entrails, and embalmed the Body of his Father, at Tarsus, took his way by Land towards Antioch, where he did not arrive till after a tedious March of six Weeks, wherein he suffered ex­treamly, both by the defect of Provisions, and by the continual Ambushes of the Turks. But the Abundance which he found in this great City, where he was most magnificently received, was more fatal to his Army, than either all the Want they had endured, or all the Combats they had undergone, since their parting from Constantinople; for the Soldiers passing suddenly from one Ex­tream into another, there followed so much Sickness, such a Mortality, and at last, the Plague among them, in such a furious manner, that of a numerous and flourishing Army, which it was when it entred into Asia, there remained not more than seven thousand Foot, and five or six hundred Horse; with which, notwithstanding, the valiant Frederick marched over the Bellies of all that durst oppose him, and happily arrived at the City of Tyre. There it was that he payed the last Duties to his Father, whom he caused to be interred in the great Church, with all the Magnificence and Ceremonies of a Funeral Pomp, worthy of so great an Emperor, the Archbishop of Tyre, from whom he received the Cross, making his Elegy in a most admirable Funeral Oration. After which, Duke Frederick went to joyn the Christian Army, which for two years had un­dertaken and pursued the famous Siege of Ptolemais, in the manner which I am about to relate.

When Saladin, after a Years Imprisonment at Damascus, gave Liberty to King Guy of Lusignan, he exacted from him, among other hard Conditions, that he should renounce all manner of Claim to the Kingdom of Jerusalem; and to engage himself by a soremn Oath, to repass the Sea as soon as it was possible. But after he was at liberty, the Bishops declared that this Oath was in no sort obliging, in regard it was forced from him by Compulsion, and in his Re­straint; and also because Saladin himself had first violated his Faith, in not de­livering his Prisoner so soon as Ascalon was rendred to him, as he had promi­sed. And for this Reason the King, who was retired to Tripolis, began to re­new the War, after he had assembled a considerable number of Troops of those of his own Realm, who before durst not appear, but flocked in to him upon the Arrival of the Crusades; who seeing the French and English engaged in War, came along with Geoffrey de Lusignan, his Brother. Having gained some Advantages of the Turks in the beginning, he after went and presented himself before Tyre, where the Marquis of Montferrat, who pretended he had justly acquired the Principality of that City, refusing him Entrance, he was so enra­ged, that although he had not half Forces enough for such an Enterprise, yet [Page 175]he encamped before the place, and put himself into a posture of besieging it. year 1190 But the Patriarch Heraclius, and the great Master of the Templers, wisely re­presenting to him, that it was impossible for him to attempt a matter of this nature, without absolutely ruining, not only himself, but all the Hopes that yet remained to the Christians in Palestine, he desisted from it; and thereupon, desperate to see that he had not one place left to him in all his Kingdom; for Tripo­lis appertained of Right to Raymond, Prince of Antioch, he took Counsel of his Dispair, and turning short to the Left Hand, he lead his little Army di­rectly to Ptolemais, in hopes to take it, either by Assault, or by Surprise.

Ptolemais, by some called Accon, or Acre, derives its Name from one of the Kings of Egypt, who was its Restorer, and was at that time, a fair and large City, lying upon the Coast of the Phoenician Sea. It was of a Triangular Fi­gure, the Base of it being towards the East, the two Sides towards the North and South, and the Point ended in a Rock, which advanced it self a good space into the Sea, upon the West; where the Town becoming the narrowest, abut­ted upon a great, high and strong Tower, which was called the Fly-Tower, because that formerly, in that place stood a Temple dedicated to Beelzebub, which signifies the God of Flies. It also served for a Watch-Tower, or Light-House, to discover the Entry of the Haven, which lay towards the South, in a certain Bay which the Sea made in that place, which was very commodious, and capable of receiving great numbers of Ships. It was incompassed with very strong Walls and Barbicans, or Out-Walls, with large and deep Ditches and Graffs; as also, with very good Towers, placed at convenient distances, to defend each other: The principal of these, which served as a Castle and Fortress to the City, was called the Wicked Tower, by reason that the People, by an old sottish Fable, which, according to Custom, was held for an Authen­tick Tradition among them, had a Belief that it was built with those thirty Pieces of Money, for which Judas sold our Saviour. The Country adjacent was very pleasant, being a fair and rich Champaign, which upon the North, was bounded by Mount Saron, distant about two Leagues from the City; and upon Mount Carmel on the South, much about the same distance; towards the East it was extended to the Mountains of Galilee, from whence there arose two small Rivers, one whereof passing through the City, emptied it self into the Sea, at the Haven: The other, called Belus, flows about two hundred and fifty Paces from the City, Southwards, and is famous for having been the oc­casion of the Invention of Glass, by furnishing the Materials of which it was first made.

For about the middle of its Course, it forms a kind of a Lake, or Marish, which Pliny calls, the Lake of Cyndevia, of a round Figure, which may be some hundred Cubits in Compass, the Bottom whereof is full of a certain Sand which by the Winds is driven into it from the Tops of the adjacent Hills, where it obtains a Disposition which inclines it easily to be turned into Glass; for being boiled and purisied in a Furnace, it turns into a transparent Mass, white and clear, almost like Crystal: And that which is most wondrous, any small piece of this Crystal being thrown upon the Banks of this Lake, in little time re­gains its former Nature, and is converted into the same common Sand which it was, before it was blown by the Winds into this Lake. But though this Champaign about Ptolemais be very equal and level towards the Foot of the Mountains which inviron it, yet there are two Hills near the Town; the one of which is called Turon, which some have confounded with the famous Castle of Thoron, situate some three or four Leagues from thence, upon the Extremi­ty of the Mountains of Tyre, which extend themselves to the upper Galilee: The other is called the Hill of the Mosquee, on the other side the River Belus; upon which, besides that Mosquee of the Sarasins, is to be seen an ancient Se­pulchre, which they say is that of Memnon, though without giving us precise­ly any Foundation whereupon to establish that Belief. This was the nature of this place, which proved the Theatre of so many brave Actions as were per­formed at this Siege of Ptolemais, which one may well say, was one of the most memorable which is related in any History.

year 1190 This City was taken from the Christians, about the Year 636. by Omar, the Successour of Mahomet, who easily made himself Master of it, all things in Asia stooping, as it were, to receive the Yoke of this Conqueror. King Baldwin l. regained it from the Sarasins, in the Year 1104. in twenty four days, by the help of the Fleet of the Genoese; and after the unfortunate Battle of Tiberias, Saladin constrained it to surrender in two days; but the Christians under King Guy of Lusignan, to re-take it from Saladin, laid Siege to it, which lasted more than three Years; where the gallant Actions which were done upon one side and the other, with all the Forces of Europe and Asia, which were there employed, either to attack it, or defend it, have rendred it most celebrated to Posterity.

The King therefore being resolved to have this Town, that so he might, at least, have one in his Realm, and one by which he might with Convenience re­ceive the Succours of the West, began to form his Siege against it about the end of August, in the Year 1188. with his little Army, which the Sarasins of Ptolemais looked upon with such Contempt, that they did not think it worth the shutting of their Gates against him: And, in truth, he had not above seven hun­dred Horse, and about eight or nine thousand Foot, comprising the Pisans, which the Archbishop of that place had brought to the Succour of the Holy Land, and whom the Marquis of Montferrat had driven out of Tyre, by reason that he espoused the Interest of Guy de Lusignan, as the Archbishop of Ravenna, with the Venetians and Lombards, did that of the Marquis. There were in Ptolemais four times the number of Soldiers, under very good Officers, whom Saladin had placed there, to oppose the Garrison of Tyre, and to preserve that Port; which being in the middle of his Conquests, was most convenient to receive the Fleet which he was rigging in Egypt. The King nevertheless, who had ma­ny brave Men, and who believed that he might draw some Advantage from this foolish Presumption of his Enemies, and from the Contempt which they had of this small number, did not fail to attack the place; and he did it so briskly, some attempting the Gates, which were open, and others presenting the Sca­lade at those places where the Walls were lowest, that they had infallibly ta­ken the Town at that very time, if that first Fury had not been dashed by an unlucky Report which was spread about, and which they afterwards found salfe; that Saladin, with a powerful Army, was coming to fall upon their Rear: for without giving himself the leisure to examine whether the Report were true or false, this poor Prince, who was accused to be very defective in point of Bra­very, was so terrified with the very Shadow of Saladin, that he immediately caused the Retreat to be founded, and went and fortified himself upon the Emi­nence of Turon, thinking now of nothing but to strengthen his Camp, and expect the Succours of the Crusades, who, during the War between the two Crowns of England and France, arrived daily, one after another, in Palestine.

This was the first Errour which Guy of Lusignan committed during this Siege, which was occasioned by the too great Apprehension of Danger, where there was really none. And at the same time Saladin fell into another, no way infe­riour on his part, in that he had not taken sufficient Pre-caution against what might happen: For that Prince, who then besieged the Fortress of Beaufort, which lay upon the River Eleutherus, some five or six Leagues from Ptolemais, and which belonged to the Knights of the Temple; having understood that Guy of Lusignan had undertaken the Siege of that City, he thanked God, that he had put his Enemies into his Hands, and that he had now the Opportunity to destroy the Remainder of the Christians, who were come, he said, to put them­selves into their own Chains. And as those who applauded this brave Speech advised him, immediately to lay hold of so fair an Occasion to defeat them, as then presented it self; he made Answer, That the Victory being indubitable, he was resolved that his Brother, who was to joyn him within a few days, should not lose his share in the pleasure of it: but he became instructed by a chargeable Experiment, something with the latest for so great a Captain, That in Martial Affairs, the Loss of Time is an irreparable Error; and that, deferring the Execu­tion of what is to be done in a Critical Conjuncture, which is not to be fixed according to Fancy and Imagination, is never to be recovered: For Victory, [Page 177]which usually attends a favourable moment is no more to be recalled then that happy Minute when once, the Insufficiency, year 1190 Negligence or Presumption of a Captain, permits it to slide from between his Hands. For Saladin coming in some time after with an Army of an hundred Thousand men to attack the Christians, whom he believed he should defeat without any dispute, found he was in a mighty mistake and that though he had to do with an Army which was much less than his own, yet they were far more Valiant and much augmented in Numbers in Comparison of what they were at the first. And in Fact it was composed of very gallant men, who having retrenched themselves most ad­vantageously upon the Hill of Turon, notwithstanding all the Furious Attacks which he made both Night and Day, he was not able to force their Camp, but was at last constrained to incamp himself at the Foot of the Hill which he totally surrounded, to besiege these Besiegers, not doubting in the least but he should have them at his Discretion in a little time for want of Provisi­ons.

And certainly the Christians who had neither Force enough to fight him in the Plain Field, no Provisions sufficient to maintain their Camp, for any long time, must have been reduced to very fatal Extremities, when there appeared in a suddain a great Fleet of above Fifty Ships who with full Sail bore directly afore the Wind towards the Shoar. The Christians who from the Top of the Hill easily discovered this Navy, were presently under the Apprehensions, that this might be the Naval Force of Saladin which was daily expected out of Egypt; and those who were on Board, seeing from far a Camp upon the Top of that Hill, were reciprocally suspicious, that it was the Camp of the Turks, who having gotten Intelligence of the great Preparations in Europe, for the Succour of the Christians in Palestine, attended their Landing there, with a Resolution to fight them and prevent their Descent. But when the Fleet drawing nearer, both the Christians in the Camp perceived the Cross in the Ensigns of the Ships which they wore upon the Poopes, and those who were aboard saw the same dis­playd in the Colours of the Camp, they mutually faluted each other with great Shouts of Joy, which presently informed Saladin of the Arrival of Succours, which was in a few Moments repeated by an agreable Surprise, in the discovery of another Fleet more numerous then the first, which came from the Coast of Tyre to reinforce the Camp of the Christians.

The first was a Fleet of Danes and Frisons, to which were joyned such of the English who were resolved not to stay till the two Kings were accorded to make their Voyage to the Holy Land. These were all chosen men, resolute to em­ploy the last drop of their Blood for the deliverance of the Sepulchre of Jesus Christ; and they did so well accomplish that resolution, that of twelve thou­sand Gentlemen who arrived upon this Fleet, there remained not above one hundred alive at the End of the Siege. Their Passage also was no less glorious than advantageous to Christendom, for in their Way they took from the Sara­sins the City of Silves in Portugal, which they put into the Hands of the King Dom Sancho the Son of the great Alphonso: and it hapned that they were at the same time joyned by several other Ships, who had on board a great Number of Vo­lunteers both Nobility and Soldiers under diverse French Lords and Princes; the Principal of which were Robert Second Count de Dreux, with his Bro­ther Philip the Bishop of Beavais, the Cousins of the King; Thiband Earl of Chartres and Stephen his Brother, Earl of Sancerre, Rayoul Count de Clermont in Be­avoise, Thiband Count de Bar, Erard Count de Brienne, and Andrew his Brother, who was esteemed one of the most Gallant men of his time; William Count de Châ­lon upon the Saone, Geoffry de Joinville, Senescal de Champagne, Guy de Dampiere, Anseric de Montreal, Manasses de Gerland, Guy de Chatillon Upon the Marne, and his Brother Gaucher the Third, who was afterwards Earl of St. Paul, and who signalized himself under that illustious name by a thousand noble Actions, which he performed in the War against the Albigenses, and in serving Philip the August against the Enemies of the Crown, and above all in the Famous Battle of Bovines, where he commanded the Rereguard of the Royal Army.

Gaucher the Second Grandfather of these two brave Lords, and his Brother Renaud de Chastillon, had formerly been in the Second Crusade under the Conduct [Page 178]of King Lewis the Young. year 1190 Gaucher miserable perished in the unfortunate Combat of the Mountain of Laodicea, and the Valiant Renaud, who had been Prince of Antioch, was slain by the Hand of Saladin himself after the deplorable and fatal Battle of Tiberias; Guy de Chattillon, who was imbarked upon this Fleet with the French Princes, lost his Life at the Siege of Accon: So that there are to be found few Families in France, which have contributed so many great Men for the Holy War, as have been derived from this Illustrious House of Chastillon; from whence some tell us was descended that great Eudes de Chastillon, Archdea­con of Reims, Prior of Clugny, Cardinal de Ostia, and at last Sovereign Pope un­der the Name of Ʋrban the Second, who was the Author of the first of the Cru­sades. But we are otherwise informed by Alberick the Monk of the three Foun­tains of the Diocess of Chalons upon the Marne in his Chronicle, which is only a col­lection of old Contemporary Authors, and of which I have had a fair Manuscript communicated to me by M. Mabre Craymoisy, Director of the Royal Printing-House of the Louvre, who also printed this History. This Alberick in his Chroni­cle, under the Year 1087. which is that of the Exaltation of Ʋrban, produceth not only Guy de Basosches, as the Writer of the History of the Popes, but another Author called Hugh, who affirms that this Pope was born at Chastillon upon the Marne, and that he was Son to the Lord de Lageri, whose descendants from Rodolph, the Brother of Ʋrban, to the fifth Generation he there gives an Account of; so that Eudes the Monk of Clugny took his Sirname from the Place of his Birth, according to the Custom of those times, and of our own also in some Monasteries, his Fathers Name according to Panvinius being Miles; another of our most Famous Genealogists, will by all means have him to be the Son of a Lord of Chastillon, whom he calls Miles, but who never was in rerum Natura except in his own prolifick Brain, since it is most evident that he was deceived, as his own Son a most knowing Person ingeniously confesseth, and is made apparent by comparing what he saith with Guibert the Abbot of Nogent, an Author of that time, who affirms that he was born in the Territory of Reims where the Seignio­ry of Lageri lies.

I have been willing contrary to my Custom to make this Genealogick Re­mark, to shew how easie it is for Writers to be deceived in these kind of Mat­ters, by mistaking sometimes the place of their Birth for that of the Seigniory; and that when by such an Equivocal Slip one comes to be perswaded that a man is descended from such a House, into which Genealogical Stemm having graf­ted him they presently find out for him such imaginary Fathers, Mothers and Grandfathers as never were in being, as they have done for this Pope Ʋrban the Second. And for this reason it is that I have not given my self or the Reader much Trouble in discussing the Genealogies of those persons of whom I have Occasion to speak in this Work, in regard that is not only very troublesome, but uncertain, unprofitable, Invidious and Vain, and in no sort proper for an Histo­rian, who ought to leave such Researches to those who make it their pecu­liar Design to record the History of some Illustrious House.

To return therefore to my Subject, James Lord of Avesnes, and Guise, one of the most renowned Captains of his Age, being desirous to imitate the Zeal of Gerard d' Avesnes one of his Ancestors who was in the first Crusade, joyned these Princes with a good Troop of his Subjects. So that these generous French all toge­ther made more then ten thousand brave men, who burning with an earnest Desire as soon as possible to combat the Infidels had not the Power to wait till the two Kings should be in a Condition to accomplish their Vow, but caused a Fleet at their own Charges to be rigged out at Marseilles, from whence in thirty five days time they arrived prosperously in the Road of Ptolemais at the same time, that the Dains Frisons and English came to an Anchor in the same place; so that to­gether they formed a very fair Army.

The other Fleet was that of the Germans, who had gone to Sea to reinforce the Army of the Emperor, under the Conduct of the Lantgrave of Thuringia and the Duke of Guelderland, who coming to ride before the Port of Tyre, had at length perswaded the Marquis of Montferrat, who was before frequently sollici­ted by such as came from the besieged Army upon the Hill Turon, to joyn his Fleet with theirs, so that weighing Anchor with about twenty two thousand Soldiers [Page 179]aboard, they stood directly for Ptolemais, year 1190 where by a very fortunate adven­ture they arrived at the same time with the other Fleet. So that Saladin per­ceiving he had two powerful Armies in the Head of him, whose landing he could not oppose without exposing himself to be attacked by those who were incamped on the Hill, drew off into another Eminence opposite to that of Turon and there retrenched himself, in Expectation of Reinforcements, which were marching towards him from all Quarters. But the Captains of the Christian Army in a few days, having also received fresh Supplies of Crusades, French and I­talians, and seeing they had more Forces then the Christians had ever before had since their coming into Palestine, as also that it would be difficult to force the Town in the View of such a Potent Army as was that of Saladin, they re­solved at last to oblige him to a Battle, to which that Prince was already suffici­ently inclined,

There was between the two Camps a fair and large Plain, where the two Ar­mies might with case range themselves in Battle, and from the Hills they both descended as if it had been by concert, at break of day the fourteenth of Octo­ber. The Christian Army consisted in forty thousand Horse and a hundred thousand Foot, which were divided into four Bodies, drawn up in three Lines, the first which made the right Wing, wherein the King would command was composed of his own Troops, with those of France and the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem. The Second which was the left, was commanded by the Marquis of Montferrat, who besides his own Troops which were the best in all the East, had also those which Eudes Archbishop of Ravenna, the Venetians and Lombards, who were of his Party, had brought to him. The Body of the Bat­tle which was the third was formed partly of the Germans, under the Lantgrave; the Danes and English, with the Pisans under their ArchBishop, who were of the King's Party. And the fourth which was the Body of Reserve, was conducted by Gerrard de Bibesford Great Master of the Temple accompanied with his Knights, and the Germans under the Duke of Guelderland, as also of the Cata­lonians, who had joyned the French at Marseilles. Geoffry de Lusignan, and James de Avesnes with their Troops, remained to guard the Camp, and to de­fend it against those of the City who might fally out to attack it during the Bat­tle. The Cavalry was ranged in the Intervals of the Battallions of the Second Line; and the Light-Horse, being all Archers, were in the Front, followed by the men at Armes, who were all of the Nobility, who had acquired great Ex­perience in the Wars of Europe, and in whom consisted the Principal Strength of the Army.

On the other Side Saladin whose Army was by much more Numerous, con­sisting in an Hundred thousand Horse, and more Foot, divided this great Army into seven Bodies; he put six into two Lines which he opposed to those of the Christians, and the seventh was for a Reserve, besides the Troops which he left for the Guard of the Camp. Never was there seen greater Ardour or Chear­fulness in any Christian Army, than appeared upon this Day; there was not so much as one Soldier who made the least doubt of a certain Victory, and who did not look upon the Turks as a Booty abandoned to them, to inrich themselves with their Spoils; and there was one among the Captains, who seeing the Re­solution of so many brave men as composed this flourishing Army, the like where­of had never been seen in the Holy Land, cried out by a horrible Trusport of his Indignation and a Presumption too justly to be blamed as Criminala, is tthere hen any Power in all Asia, which can be capable of resisting us in the Condition wherein we are? It is impossible for me not to despise this Multitude of Enemies which face us; and if God Almighty will but stand Neuter without aiding the one or the other Part, we are most assured of the Victory, since we have nothing else to do but to march to it over the Bellies of all this Army which opposes us. Insupportable Vanity of the Spirit of Mankind! which so easily loseth it self in the Foolish Ideas which its frames of its own Strength, which in reallity without his Help is nothing but miserable Weakness, as too plainly appeared in the Issue of this Battle. The two Armies being drawn up stood facing one the other without attempting any thing, till nine of the Clock in the Morning, and then the first Battallions of the Christians sud­dainly opened upon the signal given, the Cavalry advanced from between the In­tervals [Page 180]and began the Combat. year 1190 The Light-Horse after having discharged their Arrows, covering themselves with their Bucklers, sell with Sword in Hand upon the first Squadrons of the Enemies, to whom they scarce gave time to make their first Discharge. Whereupon the Men at Armes who followed them close, entred at the Breaches they had made, overturning and killing with the mighty Force of the Lance whatever they met with that opposed them; and at the same time the Batallions of Foot, who followed at a great Pace after the Ca­valry, threw themselves upon those People already disordered by the first Shock, and charged in upon them with Sword and Pikes; and in the first Heat fought with so much Fury, that they found him to recoil, and in a Moment after pressing vigorously upon them, they threw them upon the Second Line, which instead of sustaining them, were so struck with a pannick Fear, that they fell into a Rout, and betook themselves to a manifest Flight, leaving the Field quite naked, that so according to their Custom they might themselves fly with the foremost. The Christians now believing themselves with the Place of Battle intirely possessed of the Victory, sent forth mighty Shouts of Joy, which still the more terrified their Enemies, who fled at loose Rein; so that Saladin him­self unable to stop them in this horrible Disorder, was also carried along with the Croud of the Fugitives. But this Joy did not last long, by reason of a sud­dain Change of Fortune, which happened from three or four Causes which al­together concurred in the disaster which attended the Christian Army.

For first the Soldiers, who ought to have pursued their Point, and have gi­ven Chace to the Enemies to hinder their rallying, immediately fell upon the Camp, which Fear had caused those who guarded it to abandon, and fell to plundering, especially the Tents of Saladin, which were replenished with Infi­nite Riches; nor was it in the Power of the Captains to prevent this disorder, so much did the Sight of those magnificent Pavilions, all shining with Silk and Gold, inflame the Covetousness of the Soldiers, who gave ear to nothing but the Dictates of their Greedy Avarice. Now Saladin who was a great Cap­tain, and perceived this Disorder, failed not to make his Advantage of it, and therefore according to the Custom of these Barbarians so conformable to their Predecessors, the Ancient Parthians, they were as quickly rallied as they had been quickly routed; of all the Christian Army, there remained none in the Field of Battle, besides the great Master of the Temple, who with his Body, without runing to the Spoil, as did the rest, pursued the Victory in very good Order. Saladin finding himself incomparably the Stronger, after the Rallyment which he had made, and not doubting in the least, but he should easily deal with the rest, if he could only defeat this single Body, which was that only which was in a Condition of fighting, marched instantly towards him and stopping him in the middle of his Course, obliged him to change his pursuit into a more regular Combat; the Fight was for a time on both sides maintained with a most obstinate Courage, and all the Vigour imaginable, the one fighting to preserve the advantage and the Victory which they had already gotten, and the other to snatch it out of the Hands of these few who remained in order of Battle, and who could not expect to be relieved. But at length a new Re-inforcement, which Saladin did not in the least expect, and who came just in the very Heat of the Fight, quite turned the Scale of Fortune to his side. It was five or six thousand men, who during the Battle had issued out of the Town, and who having made a shew as if they would attack the Camp only to amuse those who defended it, turned short to the left, to fall upon the Rere of those whom they saw in so small a number combating against their Party. So that this small number being overpowered by the Multitude of their Ene­mies, who surrounded them on all Parts, was at last constrained to give way, and endeavour to save themselves in the best manner that they could, after ha­ving left the greatest part of their Valiant Companions extended upon the Earth, and among others the Great Master, and the Steward of the Order, and eighteen or twenty of the bravest Knights. Saladin without losing any time turned short towards his Camp, which was full of the disorderly Soldiers of the Christians, who were so busie in plundering, that they had not so much as perceived this Action of Saladin. There was nevertheless some Rallyment [Page 181]made by the Diligence of the Captains, year 1190 who seeing the Danger wherein they were advanced, with those Troops which they could draw together, to op­pose the first Effort of the Enemy; and some still coming after others, and put­ting themselves into Order of Battle as well as they could, they began again to renew the Combat, with some hope of regaining the advantage by their Valour, which they had lost by their Indiscretion. But it happened as it doth fre­quently, that the greatest Events depend upon the most trifling things, that a ridiculous Accident made them loose anew all their Hopes, and put all into dis­order and Confusion. For the Germans who had been the most greedy of the Booty as they had pillaged the Tents of Saladin, were endeavouring to get toge­ther to secure their Booty before they returned to the Combat. It happened, that a Horse the most beautiful of all which they had taken, being broken from them, a great many of them followed him with all Speed to take him again, thereupon some of them who were already engaged, seeing them in that hast and Precipitation almost breathless, running in that tumultuous manner, there being nothing so disturbing as a suddain Fear, imagined that the greatest Part of their Enemies having invested them, were falling upon their Backs, whilest that Saladin after having cut the Templers in pieces, came to attack them in the Front. This Imagination made them instantly face about, and at that Moment seeing a great many others following the first who cried after the Horse, they made no doubt but that they fled from their Enemies who pursued them, and thereupon fell to running also, thereby drawing by their Example those who were next them, to a shameful Flight.

It fortuned also at the same time, that some demanding in this Tumult and Confusion What is the Matter? Some others at a Venture made Answer that those of the Town having defeated the Guard were plundering the Camp, so that this Report being presently spread through the whole Army all disbanded, and ran with Precipitation and disorder towards the Camp, some to save that, others to save themselves, all to lose their Honour and the day, and without doubt all had been lost, if Geoffry de Lusignan, and James de Avesnes, who came out in order of Battle with the Body which they commanded, had not stopped the Turks who pursued with great Eagerness the Flying Christians and constrain­ed them to take also their Turn of running, and making the best of their Way to their own Camp. Thus ended the unlucky Day, the Honour whereof both parties challenged as their own, and endeavoured as well as they could to frame some kind of Appearance of a Victory to themselves. The Christians for having taken and plundered the Camp of the Sarasins, who were also finally re­pulsed by them. The Sarasins for that they had put the Christians to Flight, and beaten them to their very Camp. the loss however certainly fell much more heavily upon the Sarasins than upon the Christians; for the Christians did not lose above two thousand Men besides the great Master of the Temple and his Knights, and Count Andrew de Brienne, who was slain while he endeavoured to stop the Flight of his Soldiers. Whereas Saladin, beside incomparably a greater Number of Turks, which were slain in the first Charge, lost also Mirasalion his el­dest Son, his Nephew Tokedin, and his Lieutenant General Migebat, who were slain upon the Place, with the greatest Part of his Officers, and the most Valiant men of his Army, who were ashamed to fly as did the rest at the very Beginning of the Battle.

After this having mutually tasted of each others Courage, they did as it were by consent on both sides forbear fighting, and fell to fortifiing themselves; Saladin in drawing new Troops from all the Places in his Dominions and the Christians, by working upon their Retrenchments before the Town, and making Strong Lines of Circumvallation against the Army of Saladin, Contravallation against those of the City whom they Besieged very straitly by distributing their Quarters within the two Lines in this manner: The Marquis of Montfer­rat took his Post toward Tyre on the North to the very Coast of the Sea; Upon his left were the Knights of the Hospital, in a fair Estate which they possessed before the loss of Ptolemais. After them incamped the Genoese, upon a Hill called Mount Musard. The French possessed the quarter between the North and the East, having at their Head Robert Earl of Dreux, with the Bishop of [Page 182] Beavais his Brother, year 1190 the Counts de Blois, de Clermont, de Bar, and de Brienne, Hugh de Gournay, and the brave Nobility and Gentry, which came upon the Fleet which was equipped at Marseilles; and to animate them to the War, they had also with them the Archbishops of Besanson, Nazareth and Montreal, on the further side of Jordan. The English were posted more to the East, under the Conduct of Baldwin Archbishop of Canterbury, Hubert Bishop of Salisbury, and Ranulph de Glanvile. Next to them were the Flemmings, accompanied by the Bishop of Cambray, Raymond the Second, Viscount de Turenne, and the Lord of Issodun, who extended themselves to the Hill of Turon. Upon the Hill was the Quarter of the King, who besides Queen Sibyl his Wise, Geoffry, and Aimar de Lusignan his Brothers, Humphrey de Thoron his Brother-in-Law, Hugh Lord of Tabary, Renaud de Sidon, the Patriarch Heraclius, the Bishops of Accon and Bethlehem, with all the principal Men of his Realm, had also with him the Vis­count of Chastelleraud, with the Troops of Poiteumes, in whom he had the great­est Confidence, in regard they were his own Countrymen. The Knights of the Temple encamped next, under James d' Avesnes with his Hainaulters, over a­gainst the Wicked Tower. Lower towards the South, the Lawgrave of Thurin­gia, and the Duke of Guelderland were posted with the Germans, Danes, and Fri­sons, upon the Hill of the Mosque, on this side the River Belus. The Archbishop of Pisa, with the Pisans, was lodged towards the Port, and the Archbishop of Ravenna, with the Venetians and Lombards, a little lower upon the Brink of the Sea, where the Lines ended upon the South.

This was the Disposition of the Christian Camp during all the time of this Siege, which proved very long, for three Reasons more especially. First, be­cause Saladin, who had re-inforced his Army with a prodigious number of Souldiers, which repaired to him continually, from all the Provinces of Afri­ca and Asia, attacked the Lines, so often as the Christians attacked the City, and that way made so great a diversion of their Forces, that they never had a sufficient Force to take it by Assault. The second was, that the Garrison be­ing very strong, and consisting in the most valiant Men that Saladin had, under the Command of Caracos, the most experienced of all his Captains, and under whom, he himself had served his Apprenticeship in the Trade of War, they defended themselves so well, and made such furious Sallies, and to so good Ef­fect, ruining the Works, burning the Engines, the Towers, and the wooden Castles, which were built by the Besiegers, that after a great deal of Time and Trouble, and the loss of many of their Men, they were always, as it were, be­ginning, which raised so much Dispair in some, that quitting the Siege, they returned into the West; as among others did the Lantgrave, after that the Be­sieged had burnt a Tower, which with prodigious Labour he had raised high­er than the highest of the City it self. And without all doubt, this precipitate Retreat, gave occasion to that false and malicious Report, which was so much to his Dishonour, spread abroad, That Saladin had beaten him home with a golden Sword, and that by secret Confederacy, he had suffered that formidable Machin to be burnt for want of a sufficient Defence. But in short, the third and principal Reason of the excessive length of this Siege was, that both the one and the other received great Succours of Men and Provisions by Sea, where­by they still indeavoured to increase their Power. In the beginning the Christi­ans were absolute Masters; for a few days before the Battle, they received a Re-inforcement of ten thousand Foot, and five hundred Horse, with all sorts of Munitions; and in the first Year, there came to them above five hundred Ships from Pavia, Calabria, and Sicily, who after having discharged themselves of the Men and Provisions, returned to fetch more. But this Assistance failing by the Death of William King of Sicily, and the Fleet which Saladin had rigged in Egypt, riding Mistress of the Ocean, the Besieged received all manner of Re­freshments, and the Besiegers were so miserably afflicted with a cruel Famine, which constrained them to feed on the Carcasses of the dead Animals; and which became so insupportable, that a Party of the Army threw themselves in Disor­der, and in despight of the Wills of their Officers, upon the Enemies Camp, that there they might get some Provisions; and in their Return, falling into an Ambuscade, were all cut in pieces. However this continued not long, in re­gard [Page 183]it was remedied by the good Conduct of the Marquis de Montferrat, year 1190 who returning from Tyre with his Fleet, which he went to sit out to Sea, defeated that of Saladin in the View of the Town, and revictualed the Camp, which in a little time received a new Reinforcement of excellent Troops, under the Con­duct of young Henry Earl of Champagne, and also all kind of Provisions and Arms, which were now with Liberty brought in by Sea. Thus, as the Be­siegers and Besieged, were from time to time succoured by the Way of the Sea, they were as it were, by turns, sometimes Weak and Strong, according as they had the Command of that Passage. On the other side Saladin, who believed always that the best way was to cire out the Patience of the Chri­stians, or to famish them, would by no means come to a declsive Battle; so that Matters stood as it were in a continual Balance, neither Party obtaining any con­siderable Advantage over the other. But towards the end of the second Year of the Siege, there happened a new Division between the King and the Marquis of Montferrat, which indangered the Loss of all.

Queen Sibyl and her Daughter being dead by the Incommodities of so long a Siege, Humphrey de Thoron, the Husband of Isabella, the Sister of the late Queen, who had not the Courage to accept of the Realm when it was offered him in­tire, before the Victories of Saladin, had now an Inclination to pretend to it, when it was reduced to the last Extremities. Guy de Lusignan, although with the Queen his Wife he had lost all manner of Right, which he held only from her Life, yet protested nevertheless, that being Chosen, Annointed, and Ac­knowledged King, he could not be divested of that August Character, which he was absolutely resolved never to quit, but together with his Life. Hereupon the Princes were divided into diverse Factions: But the Marquis of Montferrat, who was the most powerful and most cunning among them, taking the Part first of the one and then of the other, with an Intention to remove them both, en­deavoured upon their Division to establish himself both in the Possession of the Princess and of the Realm. And though the Enteprise, was both surprizing and bold, yet it did not appear to him to be very Difficult; for being Brave, Rich, Liberal, fortunate in War, and of a mighty Reputation, it was easy for him to gain a great Party among the Princes, who knew very well there was no Comparison between him and his two Rivals. For Guy de Lusignan, had no­thing that could appear in competition of his great Qualities, and Humphrey de Thoron, in his Face, his Behaviour, and his Humour, no way Martial, together with mighty Boyishness, had more of the Air of a young Girl than of a Man: And besides, the Marquis had a secret Understanding with the Queen Mother, Mary the Niece of the Emperor Manuel, and the Princess Isabella her Daugh­ter, who had no Hatred for his Person. Now as they had all taken their Mea­sures, the Queen Mary and the Princess, caused Humphrey to be Cited before the Bishop of Accon, the Patriarch Heraclius being then sick to Death; and up­on the Testimony of Balian Lord of Ybelin, who had espoused the Queen Mary, the Widow of King Amauri, of Payen Lord of Caïphas, and of Renaud de Si­don, whom the Marquis had gained; the Marriage was declared Null, upon the Pretence, that the Princess had never given her Consent; but that being ex­treme young, she had been compelled to marry Humphrey; and that she had al­ways disclaimed it, and protested against it as an Act of Force and Violence. After which the Marquis publickly Married Isabella by the Ministery of the Bishop of Beavais; and carried himself as King, to the great Scandal of all good People, who plainly saw and detested this shameful Collusion, and the horrible Injustice which was done to Humphrey. It is said also, that Baldwin the Arch­bishop of Canterbury, was so sensibly touched with the Displeasure which he took at this abominable Action, and the Apprehension which he had of the hor­rible Disorders which were like to insue thereupon in the Army, that he fell sick with the Vexation; and in five days died, as Holily as he had lived Religi­ously. But the greatest part adhered to the Marquis, and in regard the pub­lick Fortune seemed to depend upon him, principally for the Provisions which were to come from Tyre, even those who were not at all satisfied, yet were obliged to dissemble their Displeasure; so that a patched Accommodation was made, by which the one and the other were to remain in the State wherein they [Page 184]were, year 1190 in expectation of the coming up of the Emperor and the two Kings, to whom the Judgment of this Affair was to be committed.

In this Condition it was, that the Affairs of this famous Siege stood, when News was brought of the Death of the Emperor, and the Arrival of the Duke of Suabia at Tyre, to whom the Marquis immediately repaired, and conducted him on Board his Fleet to the Camp, where he was received with all imagi­nable Honour; He took his Post among the Germans and the Danes, in the Quarter which the Lantgrave had before possessed, upon the Hill of the Mosquee, extending to the Bridge of the River Belus: So soon as this considerable Re-in­forcement was come, it was resolved according to the proposition which was made by Duke Frederick, to make a general Assault: Which was accordingly done both by Sea and Land, with all the Courage imaginable; and the Souldi­ers in despight of the brave Resistance of the Besieged, did in more than one place plant the Standards of the Cross upon the Walls. It was on this Occa­sion, that it is reported, that Leopold Duke of Austria, made his heroick Courage most Conspicuous, by an Action, whose glorious Marks, which at this day bla­zon the Armes of a House, which is since become so August under the Name of the House of Austria, do eternally publish the Memory, Fame, and Glory of it. He fought from the Height of a wooden Castle, which was raised at the Entry of the Gate against the Flye Tower, and which was built upon the Deck of a great Ship. For being mounted over the Walls, followed by a few of his Men, he was so hardly pressed by the numerous Infidels, that all his Followers being slain, and being now Single, he was constrained to throw himself into the Sea, half drowned already in his own, and the Blood of his Enemies; for he had no­thing but Red about him, except the white Scarf which he wore; whereupon Frederick to eternize the Memory of such a noble Action, gave him for his Armes, with the great Applause of the whole Army, in a Shield Gules a Fez Argent, which the Princes of Austria have ever since that time born. The Combat was not much more Advantageous by Land, in regard that Saladin having at the same time attacked the Lines, which he forced in many places, they were obliged to quit the Assault, to repulse the Enemies, who were at last constrained to re­tire. Saladin in this Rencounter, lost the greatest part of his best Men, and did not without great Difficulty disingage himself, being something too far ad­vanced, from those who on every side surrounded him, and who pursued him a great way beyond the Lines.

This was the last military Action of Duke Frederick, who, this being the se­cond Autumn of the Siege, was by the Distemper which raged in the Camp, in a few days taken off, to the incredible Regret of the whole Army, who even adored this brave Prince, whose rare Virtue, which shined at his Death, had rendred him more Illustrious than he had been all the time of his Life, although a thousand Actions had made it most Glorious. For the Eastern Physicians assu­ring him that his Distemper might easily be cured by the use of Females, he with­out a moments Hesitation answered, that he had much rather lose his Life, than preserve it by such a Remedy as must sully both his Soul and Body, at the same time that he had obliged himself by the Vow of his Pilgrimage, to do what was pleasing to Jesus Christ, who is the King, the Crown, and Husband of chast and pure Souls, being all Purity and Chastity himself; and thereupon sur­rendered his victorious Spirit into the Hands of God, having overcome the two most formidable Enemies of Mankind, the Pleasures of Life, and the Pains, as well as Fears of Death, of which, in the middle of a flourishing and verdant Youth, he chose to receive the cold Imbraces, rather than those of Life, which he could not save but by the loss of his Chastity and Purity. A rare Example, which having been followed some three hundred Years after, and in a like Age by Prince Casimir Son of Casimir King of Poland, and Elizabeth, Daughter of the Emperor Albertus, Archduke of Austria, advanced him to that degree of Sanctity, as to deserve those supreme Honours, which the Church solemnly renders to those whom she believes to be in the glorious State of the most Hap­py after Death. But this Death, which was so advantageous to Frederick, was most sad and pernicious to the Army; for the Germans now become desperate by having lost both their Emperor and their Prince, would no longer acknowledge [Page 185]any Captain, but quitted that Enterprise, year 1190 which in Conclusion had been so Un­fortunate to them, and returned, as well as they could, into their own Coun­try, a few only excepted, who resolved to Accomplish their Vow under Leopold Duke of Austria. Add to this Accident the Sickness which daily continued in the Camp, and the Famine which at some times they suffered, and by which the Army must certainly have perished, if the Marquis had not taken Care from time to time to supply them abundantly with his Fleet. This absolutely gain­ed him all the Commanders and the Souldiers, who took his Part against Guy de Lusignan, who now had nothing left, but the vain Shadow of Royal Majesty, without the least Substance of Power or Authority. Thus the Army being ex­tremely diminished, did nothing now but act upon the Defensive, in their Re­trenchments opposing the Assaults of Saladin on the one side, and the Sallies of the Besieged on the other, till the Arrival of the two Kings, whose Voyage and Actions it is now time for me, after having given myself and the Reader a mo­ments Breath, to recount unto him.

THE HISTORY OF THE CRUSADE, OR, The Expeditions of the Christian Princes for the Conquest of the Holy Land. PART II.
BOOK III.

year 1190 T The Crusade, which had been so solemly sworn in the Holy Field, and which the War that was kindled between the two Kings, had so long time retarded, had at length its Effect, by the perfect Understanding, which for some time there was between Philip the August, and Richard sirnamed Caeur­de-Lion, at the beginning of the Reign of this new King. For so soon as he had received the Sword as Duke of Nor­mandy, at our Ladies Church in Roan, and the Crown of England at Westmin­ster, with the general Applause of all his Subjects, who saw that he took quite differing Courses from his Father, who was not at all beloved; he had no other Thoughts, but of making Preparations for the Holy War. Above all things, he applied himself to the procuring a good Treasury of Gold and Silver, but not by charging the People with the rigorous Exaction of Saladins Tenth, as did his Father, who when he had received it, made use of it in the War between the two Crowns. For this purpose he took the way of selling all the Dignities which he could, all Offices, and the Lands of his Demesnes, at a very low rate, thereby to intice the Avarice or the Ambition of unwary Purchasers, who easi­ly suffered themselves to be imposed upon with those cheap Bargains, not fore­seeing that he had Design of Reassumption after his Return, as he did, without any other Reimbursment than by allowing upon the Foot of the Account, what they made over and above their Charges of the Demesnes, during the time that they injoyed them. But he dissembled the matter so well, and on one side seemed so truly to have a design to sell all that he could, and on the other, shewed so many Marks of a ruined Constitution, which both his constant Fatigues of War, and his Debauches gained an easy Credit to, that the Purchasers, without any Difficulty, suffered themselves to be perswaded that he would never return, and that he had no other Prospect than of the present, as not having any hopes of living long. And for these Reasons it was, that very many straitned them­selves to lay hold of this occasion of Profit, whereby he drew from them vast Summs, turning every thing into Money, even to protesting to those who were astonished at his Proceedings, that if he could find a Chapman, who was able to buy of him the City of London, he should make no Difficulty to sell it to him.

But he drew the greatest Advantages from diverse Prelates of his Realm that were extraordinary Rich, from whom he drew all the Money that they had, by selling to them temporal Dignities, which they were mighty glad to add to their Bishopricks or their Abbies. It was by this Stratagem, that he drew into [Page 188]the Net the Bishop of Durham, year 1190 an old Man equally Covetous and Ambitious, by persuading him to purchase the Earldom of that Province, which he would u­nite to his Bishoprick. For that Prelate, who was ready to die with the De­sire which he had to be Earl of Northumberland, gave him for that Title, all the Riches which he had for a long time been hoarding up, out of the Revenue of his Bishoprick, as well as those other less honest Markets which he had made. And to this, he threw in also all the Money which he had reserved, purposely to defray his Expences in the Voyage which he had undertaken to make to Je­rusalem; thereby renouncing his Vow, his Conscience, and his Honour, that so he might become great in this World, out of which, his old Age was even now ready to chase him, which made the King very pleasantly to say, when he had gotten all his Money, That he was about to work a kind of Miracle, and to make a young Earl out of an old Bishop. He also seized upon all the Estate of Geoffry Ri­del Bishop of Ely, for appearing before him with the Train of a King, at the City of Winchester; but all this magnifick Pomp could not prevent the Tri­umph of Death, which seized imediately upon him, by this Surprise, and di­vested him of this stately Vanity, so unbecoming the Sacred Character of a Bi­shop. For this Prince believed, that these great Riches might to much better Advantage be imployed in defraying the Expences of his Coronation, than so foolishly lavished in the Pageantry of worldly Pomp; and that he might there­by spare his own, which he indeavoured to keep as a Reserve to support the Charges of his Voyage to the Holy Land. He also surrendred to William King of Scots, for ten thousand Marks Sterling, the Castles of Rocksborough and Ber­wick, which he had been constrained to yield to King Henry the Second, for his Ransom, he being taken Prisoner in the War between them. He also acquit­ted him of the Homage which he was obliged by force, to pay as one part of the Price of his Liberty. And in short, as on one hand he was resolved not to be incumbred with the multitude of the Crusades, the Multitudes of which had done more Hurt than Service in the other Expeditions; and on the other, that he knew very well, that diverse of the richest of his Subjects, who had in­gaged themselves two Years before to undertake that Voyage, were willing e­nough to be dispensed with; he therefore obtained Permission from the Pope, to discharge all such from their Vow, upon Condition that they should propor­tionably to their Estate, contribute a summ of Money towards the Charges of the Holy War.

All this joyned to the Treasure of his Father, which he had at first seized up­on, and which amounted to more than nine hundred thousand Livers in Gold and Silver, gave him the Ability to live after the best manner, and in a far more Royal Way than any of his Predecessors had ever done. So that he caused to be equipped in all the Ports of England, Normandy, Bretany, Poitou, and Guienne, a great number of Ships, to compose one of the fairest Fleets, which had ever before been put to Sea. For when he weighed from the Road of Messina, where he had passed the Winter, he had one hundred and fifty great Ships, fifty three Gallies, besides Barks, Tartanes, and other small Craft, which attended the Na­vy with Provisions, and Munitions of War. He gave the Command of the Fleet to Gerrard Archbishop of Ousch, and Bernard Bishop of Bayonne, to whom he joyned in Commission, Robert de Sablé, Richard de Chamville, and William Fortz, Earl of Albermarle, three excellent Men in Sea Affairs, who had order, with­out sparing any, to put in Execution those admirable Orders, which were pro­claimed for preventing of Disorders, and Punishment of Offences in the Fleet. He could not for all that, stop those which were at the same time committed al­most all over England, upon the Jews, of which himself was the Occasion, tho he did not command it. For as the Jews, whom his Father had always favoured, were upon his Coronation Day, contrary to his express Command, entred into the Palace, from whence they were thrust out, and some of them treated very severely, the People, who imagined that it was the King's Inclination that they should exterminate that perfidious Nation, who for their Extortion, Avarice, and other enormous Crimes, were extremely hated, fell upon them with such Fury, that it was impossible to appease them: And this Example spreading it self, occasioned a most horrible Massacre among those miserable People, in ma­ny [Page 189]Cities, where the young People, who had undertaken the Cross, year 1190 and wanted wherewith to furnish themselves for so chargeable a Voyage, were ravished with such opportunity of Plundring their Houses, and thereby being inabled to put themselves into an Equipage at the Expence of these declared Enemies of Jesus Christ.

In this time, Philip the August prepared for this Enterprise, in a manner more regular, and did not to procure Money, take those Methods of selling Offices and temporal Dignities, to the Prelates of his Realm, who were more regular and modest than those of England: Neither did he raise any Taxes or Contributi­ons for the Expences of this Voyage; in regard that all the French Lords, who had taken the Cross, were resolved to accomplish their Vow; and he believed that he should have enough out of his good Husbandry, of that Tenth which was given for this War, and which still remained in Bank ever since the last Year. For this Reason therefore he caused an Edict to be published, and all concerned to be sworn in the Parliament which he held at Paris, that they should render themselves at Vezelay in the Week of Easter, from thence together to take the Voyage. And this being done, he sent Rotrou Earl of Perche into England, to advertise King Richard of his Proceedings, who on his side, made those who had taken the Vow, swear the same thing upon the Holy Evangelists, in the Parlia­ment at London. After which, the King having recommended the Care of the Realm to Queen Eleonor his Mother, having delivered her from the Confine­ment in which the late King had for five or six Years last kept her, and to William Longfield Bishop of Ely, his Chancellor, he imbarked the fourteenth day of December at Dover, and landed the same day at Graveling, from whence he went about the end of the Month to Confer with King Philip at Nonancour; There it was, that after they had mutually given the one to the other, all the assurance of an inviolable Amity, they caused Letters, Patents in the Name of both the Kings, to be dispatched, whereby they fixed the time of their Depar­ture, with all their Subjects of the Crusade, and promised to each other a most sincere and indissoluble Friendship, according to the Faith which they had seve­rally plighted to one another; Philip King of France to Richard King of Eng­land, as his Friend and faithful Liegeman; and Richard King of England to Phi­lip King of France, as his Lord and Friend. These are the very Words of these Letters dated the thirtieth day of December at Nonancour, as they are reported by Radulph Dean of London, who writ in that time such Matters as he himself was an Eye Witness of, and in the Transaction whereof he had a considerable Share. But in regard the Time which they had limited appeared too short, for the Preparations which were of necessity to be made, the two Kings had a second Interview at Vezelay, where they lengthened the time of their Rendezvouz till the Week after Midsummer. In which time they finished their Treaty, which among others had these Articles; That if either of them died in the time of the Holy War, the other should make use of the Money and the Army of the deceased King, to carry on and finish the War. That the Lords of the two Kingdoms, should maintain a fraternal Correspondence, and that the Bishops should excommunicate all those who should enterprize any thing to the Disad­vantage of the Crusades during their Abscence. But it happening that about this same time Queen Isabella lost her Life, in giving it to two Twins, who did not survive her above three Days, an inauspicuous Augury was from thence drawn concerning this Voyage; either by the superstitious Humour of the Peo­ple, who love to make their foolish Remarks upon such Events, and to turn every surprizing Accident into a Mystery of future Consequences; or possibly it might be a kind of Presage, which God is sometimes pleased to give, as hath been frequenty observed, and was more remarkable in another Accident which happened at this very time; For as the King of England at the Church of Saint Martin in Tours, took the Marks of his Pilgrimage to the Holy Land, the Con­secrated Pilgrims Staff, by his leaning too hard upon it, broak in the Middle. This Presage gave a certain Horrour and Fear to all the Assistants at the Cere­mony, but not the least to this immoveable Prince, who was not of an Humour to Philosophize upon such sort of Adventures, which gave not the least Trouble or Inquietude to his unshaken Soul.

year 1190 The Devotion of Philip the August was more calm and edifying: He recei­ved, upon St. John Baptist's Day, in the Church of St. Dennis in France, the consecrated Pilgrim's Staff, from the Hands of William Archbishop of Reims, his Uncle by the Mother's side; and himself took from the Altar, the Royal Stan­dard, or the Oriflame, with all the most sensible Marks of a most tender and ad­mirable Devotion; imploring the Aid of Heaven by his Prayers and Tears, in such an uncommon and charming Decency of Piety, as produced the like Sen­timents in the Souls of all those who assisted at that solemn Action. After which, having left the Government of the Realm, in his Absence, to the Queen Adela, his Mother, he came to Vezelay, where he was met by King Richard; who, to avert the Effects of the unlucky Presage which happened to him at Tours, would there anew receive the Pilgrim's Staff before the Altar of St. Mag­dalene, whose Body, they say, reposed in that Abby. From hence the two Kings marched together to Lyon, where, for the Conveniency of the Troops which followed them, they divided themselves, and took different Ways; the King of France taking that of Genoa, and the King of England, that of Mar­seilles; which two Cities they had made choice of for the Rendezvouz of their respective Armies. At their parting, they renewed the Protestations of an in­violable Amity, which they had so frequently made, and which, notwithstan­ding, were presently broken at their next Meeting. And truly, it was not reasonably to be hoped, that it should be of any lasting Continuance between two Princes, whose Interests, Temperaments, Humours, Sentiments, In­clinations and Manners accorded so very little, as may easily be observed from the Portraicts and Characters, which I am going to draw from the Life, and the Truth, and to make a Present of them to the Reader.

Philip was then in the very Flower of his Age, being about twenty four Years of Age, of a most admirable Shape, and a Stature something exceeding the Middle, of a Majestick Port, and an Air fierce and Martial, which nevertheless, had nothing in it discouraging the Beholders, in regard it was accompanied with that rare Beauty which Nature had so advantageously bestowed upon him; for the whole Turn and Composure of his Face was admirable, and all the Stroaks of it regular and delicate; his Forehead was fair and high, his Nose a little gracefully rising, his Hair fair, his Cheeks wore a beautiful Vermilion, his Eyes were quick, and sparkled with a certain gentle Fire, which, with a kind of Fixedness in his Looks, joyned with the Colour of his Complexion, manifestly shewed his Temper to be naturally Sanguin, and inclining to Cho­ler; and two little Moles which he had growing at the Corner of his left Eye, not at all to the disadvantage of its Beauty, rather augmented the Whiteness of his Skin, by the Opposition of their Blackness. But that which was the Life of this Royal Beauty, and which added the greatest Graces to all those Won­ders which shined about him with such a charming Glory, was the admirable Qualities of an incomparable Mind, which made all the Vertues necessary for a great King shine most conspicuously in his Conduct, and all his Actions: For he was extreamly Religious, and even jealous for the Glory of God, for which he had Sentiments most infinitely tender, and full of a respectful Veneration: He was an implacable Enemy to Blasphemers, whom he caused to be thrown in­to the Seine; and of Hereticks, whom he exterminated with Fire and Faggot: He was a most passionate Adorer of Equity, Faith and Justice, which he caused to be rendred to all his Subjects with the greatest Exactness, and without Discri­mination, Distinction of Persons, or Partiality; merciful and compassionate to the Poor, as if he had been their Father; Liberal, but according to the Rules of Judgment and Discretion; Magnificent above the Genius, and the Custom of the Kings of his Age, but most particularly in the Expences of his House, and the Entertainment of Military Men, in publick Buildings, and Royal Foun­dations, as well appeared by the ruinous Walls of Paris, which he caused to be re-built at the same time that he was engaged in the Holy War. Upon the whole, he was equally wise, prudent and moderate in his Counsels, and quick, ardent and bold in the Execution of them; brave and valiant, even to a Fault; a great Lover of Learning, which he caused to re-flourish, especially in the Uni­versity of Paris; affable, vigilant, provident; happy in War, and always in­vincible [Page 191]and victorious, year 1190 as he evidently made appear in his Wars with the Eng­lish and the Flemmings; and which, in the Process of his Reign, more remarka­bly appeared, by the glorious Conquests which he made of a great part of Poi­tou, Guienne, and all Normandy, of Avignion, Artois, Cambresis, Bullen, and so many other Earldoms as he added and re-united to his Crown; beginning, the first of our Kings of the third Race, the great Work which Lewis the Great hath in our time so happily compleated, by giving to France the ancient Limits, from the Ocean, to the Rhine. In short, if Philip, who always triumphed over his Enemies, had had the power to vanquish himself, and that Impatience and Choler which his hot Temper raised in him, and which sometimes overcame his Reason, and for some Moments took from him the liberty of acting accor­ding to his better Inclinations, one might say, that his Character is that of a Prince accomplished with all manner of Perfections which could be wished in a great and admirable King.

And it is much to his advantage that he stands so near King Richard, who could not come in comparison with him, neither for his Body, nor his Soul; although it must not be denied, but that Prince also possessed many great and excellent Qualities; but they were mixed with so many Faults and Vices, which exceeded his Perfections, that they were obscured and sullied by them. He was about the three and thirtieth Year of his Age, of Stature very tall, but of a Shape very disproportionate, being become excessive gross, either by his Intemperance, or by a Swelling which remained after a long Quartane Ague, which had left his Vifage of a pale, Leaden Colour: His Arms were also some­what with the longest, though very strong and Nervous; and his Thighs too short in Proportion: His Eyes were full of a Fire, but a Fire that was too fierce and ardent: His Hair extraordinary light, and inclining towards Red, which denoted his Complexion to be excessively hot and cholerick, and naturally strong, if the Violence of his Exercises, his Passions, and his Debauches, had not so ruined it, as to make it appear almost quite overthrown, and wholly languishing. It is said also, that he had abundance of Cauteries, or Issues, up­on his Body, in order to the continual discharging of those corrupted Hu­mours with which he abounded; so much had that tedious Ague, and the Dis­orders of his Life, altered the Establishment and Foundation of his Health, and all the beauteous Lineaments of his Face, which Nature had bestowed on him. He was however, in the main, a Prince magnanimous, bold, enterpri­zing, brave, fearless, and of an invincible Courage, by which he acquired the Sir-name of Caeur-de-Lion, or Lyon's Heart; a Name which the English and Normans bestowed on him, and which the Memory of those noble Actions which he so happily and couragiously executed, have preserved to him to this day. It was nevertheless easily discoverable, that he had something of the Fierceness and Brutallity of that Animal, mixed with the noble Courage of the Lyon; for it is certain, that he was most violent, rash and turbulent, subject to the Transports of Fury; hard and severe, even to Cruelty, which rendred him odious: Besides, he was inconstant, making little Account of his Word and Faith; without a true Sense of Friendship, Tenderness, or good Nature, even to the Violation of the most sacred Laws and Rights of Nature, as ap­pears by his frequent taking up Arms against his own Father: Above all, He was as eager to draw Money from every thing, as he was prodigal in wasting it when he had it: He was presumptuous, proud and arrogant; voluptuous and debauched, even in publick, and so far from being concerned to conceal them, that he would turn his Crimes into Raillery; witness the Answer which he gave one day to that holy Man, Fouques de Neuilly, who preaching before him in Normandy, told him seriously, that it was time for him to set his Affairs in order, and to quit himself of three dangerous Daughters which he had, which would certainly prove his Ruin if he kept them any longer with him. Richard, who took him according to the literal meaning, thinking that it was very ea­sie to convince him of Imposture; That is false, said he to him, thou Hypocrite, I have no Daughters at all. Pardon me, Sir, replied the good Man, you have three very lewd ones; your Arrogance, your Avarice, and your Luxury, which will infallibly, in a little time, ruin you, if you keep them them with you. Very well, re­plied [Page 192]the King, year 1190 laughing, instead of seriously thinking of Repentance and Amendment; Since there is a necessity then of parting with them, therefore I do im­mediately bequeath my Arrogance to the Templers, my Avarice to the Monks, and my Luxury to the Prelates of my Realm. But as on the one side, notwithstanding all his Debauches, he had a Principle of Religion which was firmly rooted in his Soul; and on the other side, according to his impetuous Nature, he was usually in the Extreams, either of Good or Bad; he had sometimes such great Transports of Devotion, and was so sensible of the Enormity of his Crimes, that to witness his Repentance, and to satisfie God Almighty for his Follies, he would do such things as certainly, the most severe Directors of Conscience would never have thought fit to be exacted from so great a King. And that which was infinitely advantageous to this Prince was, that this Principle of Religion, summoning up all its Power in his Soul at the Hour of his Death, made him express the most rigorous Repentance that is possible to be found in the Histories of the greatest Saints. Thus, so long as a Man, more especially a Prince, preserves the Principles of true Faith, by submitting his Sentiments to those of Religion and the Catholick Church, one may still retain a Hope, notwithstanding the Infirmities to which he is subject, that this Root of Life will, in time, produce the Fruits of a true Conversion, and like a Plant which keeps its Root, how dead soever it may appear in the Winter, and dispoiled of its Leaves and Flowers, yet at the Return of the Spring, it will recover its native Beauty, and pleasant Verdure.

Sea now what kind of Men these two Kings were, and from so vast a diffe­rence of their Tempers and Inclinations, it will be easie to fore-see, that they could not remain long in a good Understanding, one with the other, as ap­peared but too visibly in the Consequences of their future Voyage. Philip, whose Fleet waited for him at Genoa, parted the first, with a brave and flou­rishing Army, composed of the greatest part of his Nobility, and the choice Soldiers of France, though it is hard to determine precisely in what number they consisted, in regard the Writers of those times have not left us any cer­tain Information: But this is most certain, that he was accompanied with the greatest Men of the Realm, the Principal of which were, Eudes Duke of Bur­gundy, Peter Count de Nevers, Renaud Count de Chartres, Geoffrey Count de Perche, Aubrey de Rullen, Mareshal of France; Matthew de Montmorency, who was afterwards Constable of France; the Counts de Beaumont, Rochefort, Va­lery, Dreux de Mello, Lord de Loches and Chattillon; and William de Mello, his Brother. The Fleet was met at Sea with a furious Tempest, which gave the King occasion to shew the Greatness of his Soul, in the magnificent Gifts which he bestowed on chose who lost their Equipage, being forced to throw it over­board, for the Safety of their Lives. At last he came to an Anchor, upon the 6th of September, in the Road of Messina, where the two Kings had before agreed, the place of their Joyning should be.

In this time King Richard, after having waited eight days, to no purpose, the Arrival of his Fleet at Marseilles, being pushed on by his natural Impa­tience, he imbarked himself, the 17th of August, upon thirty Merchants Ships, which he caused to be fitted up; and after having Coasted all along, by Ge­noa, Tuscany and Champaign in Italy, he arrived happily at Naples; from whence he passed to Salernum, there to expect News of his Fleet, whose long and unaccountable Delay gave him an extraordinary Inquietude and Dis­pleasure.

The Fleet had put to Sea in Easter-Week, and after it had been soundly bea­ten with a Tempest, which, they say, was miraculously calmed by Thomas of Canterbury, who had raised many worse in his Life, according to the credulous Humour of those Ages; it being affirmed by some, that he appeared upon the Deck of the great Ship called the London, that Vessel came up with Cape St. Vin­cent, over against the City of Silves, nine other Ships entring the River of Les­bon, where they came to an Anchor. The Miramolin, or King of the Sarasins of the Western Africa, at that time made War, with a potent Army, against Sancho, King of Portugal, whom he had surprized, and who, with an inconsi­derable number of Troops, had put himself into Santaren. This Prince be­lieving [Page 193]that Heaven had sent him the Succour of these Strangers, year 1190 as it had be­fore done to the late King Alphonso, his Father, requested them to help him in this his pressing Necessity. Whereupon five hundred of the bravest of them immediately went into his Service, whilst that fourscore of the most valiant young Gentlemen, who were aboard the London, put themselves into Sylves, for the Defence of that City: But Fortune, without giving them the liberty of drawing their Swords, put an end to this War, by the suddain Death of Mirmalion; after which, his Army immediately disbanded it self. The English then returning to their Vessels, sound there sixty three more of their Ships, who had put in there to refresh themselves, and all that great City in Arms against their People, who had committed great Insolencies and Disorders against the Inhabitants; insomuch that Blood had been drawn on both sides, divers Houses plundred and burnt, and some of the English committed to Pri­son. But all these Matters being calmed by the Prudence of King Sancho, who knew very well how to pacifie both Parties, the English took their leave, the 25th Day of July, and the same Day, joyning three and thirty great Ships, with which Admiral William Fortz attended them at the Mouth of the Tagus, they prosperously pursued their Voyage, till they came to an Anchor before Sa­lernum. There it was that King Richard met his Fleet, and the 30th of Sep­tember arrived at the Port of Messina, where he was received by the French and Sicilians with all possible Honour, and with all the Marks of a sincere and perfect Friendship. But this was not of any long Continuance; and the good Understanding which at first appeared among these three Nations, was present­ly interrupted and broken by two great Quarrels which Richard had, and which were the Cause that the two Kings, instead of presently pursuing their inten­ded Voyage, were obliged to defer it till the following Year, and to pass all the Winter at Messina. The manner was thus.

William, king of Sicily, being dead without Issue, the Sicilians, who were resolved to have a King of the Race of their Norman Princes, placed his Cou­sin Tancred, the Natural Son of Roger, Duke of Pavia, upon the Throne, not­withstanding that, before his Death, William had caused Queen Constance, his Aunt, the Wife of the Emperor Henry VI. to be acknowledged their Queen, and had declared her to be the Inheretrix of the Crown. Now Richard, with­out pretending to have any part in this great Difference between the Emperor and Tancred, only desired of this new King, that he would send to him Jane, his Sister, the Daughter of Henry II. King of England, the Widow of the de­ceased King William, that he would restore to him her Dowry, with several other things, to which he pretended; and above all, an hundred Ships, which the late King had promised to his Father-in Law, King Henry, for his Voyage to the Levant. Tancred immediately sent the Queen to him, but deferring to give him Satisfaction in his other Pretensions, Richard, who was resolved that he should do him Reason, seized upon two strong Places which lay upon the Straits. This gave such a Jealousie to the Messineses, who naturally are not too much given to forbearing, that they took Arms against the English, and beat them out of the City; and the English, no less naturally impatient of Beat­ing, but more hot and brave than the Sicilians, ran immediately to their Arms, and issuing in Battalia, out of their Camp, repulsed these forward Burghers into the City, and put themselves into a Posture to attack it by Force. There was however, a few Moments Truce agreed to, by the Interposition of Philip the August, who endeavoured to accommodate this Difference between them. But Richard, having discovered, or at least believing, that the Messineses had an Intention to surprize him, during the Preliminary Treaty of the Peace, be­gan the Assault upon the Town with so much Fury, that he carried the Place; but he left it again presently, after he had received the Excuses of the Magi­strates, and the Satisfaction which he demanded of them, out of Respect, as he said, to King Philip, who had his Quarter in the City, and who was not at all satisfied with these violent Proceedings of King Richard. For this Reason Ri­chard, to strengthen himself against him by the Alliance of Tancred, concluded a Peace with that King, who offered him, besides the Ships, twenty thousand Ounces of Gold, to quit all his other Pretensions; and twenty thousand more [Page 194]for the Portion of his Daughter, year 1190 who was to be married to Arthur, Duke of Bretany, Nephew to King Richard. So that the Conclusion of this Quarrel was the Foundation of another, incomparably more dangerous, which hereby grew between the kings of France and England.

For Tancred perceiving that the French King had no reason to be satisfied with this Marriage, which was surreptitious, concluded without his Knowledge, and which directly shocked all his Interests, endeavoured to link himself more closely with the English, as he did, and to exasperate them against King Philip. And truly, finding that these two Princes were already imbroiled upon the Sub­ject of the Taking Messina, where Richard having caused his Standards to be planted, Philip sent to have them taken down. He went to the King of Eng­land, and shewed him the Letters, which, he assured him, came from the King of France, wherein he offered him the Assistance of all his Forces, if he would make War with Richard, who, he said, had no other Thoughts but to amuse him with the Shew of Peace, thereby with more Ease to seize upon his Realm. Richard, although he was extreamly provoked with this Procedure, yet was very well pleased to have so specious a Pretence to break with Philip. Philip complaining with Justice enough, reciprocally against him, that having, so long since, affianced his Sister Alice, he had now altered his Thoughts, and was de­signed to marry Berengera, the Daughter of Garcias, King of Navarre; fol­lowing therein the Counsel of Queen Eleonor, who her self had conducted that Princess thither. There seemed great Foundation for the Complaints on either side, and their Spirits were wound up to that degree, as indangered the Break­ing of the holy League, by a deadly War between these two Princes; which, if it had happened, had absolutely ruined all the Hopes of ever re-establishing the Affairs of the Christians in the Holy Land. But, in Conclusion, there were Expedients found out for the appeasing of this great Quarrel, by an amicable Composure, which pacified their Spirits, at least, in Appearance, and for some time. Richard protested that he would most inviolably have kept his Promise in marrying the Princess Alice, if he had not been most certainly assured, for some time before, that the late King Henry, his Father, who was known to have been most passionately Amorous of her, had not exceeded the Bounds of Modesty in his Courtship to her; and she, those of Vertue, in the Caresses which she re­ceived from him: And that, after this Discovery, all the Laws, both of God and Nature, opposed this Marriage. And whereas the Princess pretended her self to be wholly innocent of these Crimes, alledging that she had never done any thing Criminal; and that the Appearances of Kindness, which she might be accused of, in permitting the Visits of that importunate old King, as she never consen­ted to them, so she was not in the Capacity of hindring them, which possibly might be true; yet it was impossible to repair the Blemish which her Honour had received, and which therefore to him was intollerable because it was incurable; and the malicious World would, to his Dis-reputation, believe it true, though it might be false. He therefore offered to restore Vexin, which she was to have in Dowry, and to pay her ten thousand Marks in Silver. And, in short, he passed his Royal Word to King Philip that, with the beginning of the Spring, he would be rea­dy, without any further delay, to accompany him in the Enterprise of the Ho­ly Land. Philip also, on his side, complained highly, and protested that the Letters were suppositious, and a treacherous Artifice, to engage him in a Quarrel with the King of England, his Ally, and Companion in Arms in this Holy War. Thus the two Kings, having once more patched up an Accord, did unprofitably renew the Protestations of their Amity, which was impossible to hold long between two Princes who had an insuperable Antipathy the one to the other. However, they passed the remainder of the Winter something more calmly at Messina; where it is said, the famous Abbot Joachim foretold the little Success, which they were to expect from their Voyage.

This Man who, whilst he lived, made such a Noise and Figure in the World, and who, to this very day, ever since his Death, is so great a Riddle and Mystery, was a Calabrian by Birth, and an Abbot of the Monastery of the Cistertians in his own Country; his Way of Living, and his Conduct, was wholly extraordinary, and of which never any spoke with Mediocrity, whether it were good or evil; [Page 195]for some would have him pass for one of the most eminent Doctors, year 1190 the most famous Prophets, and the greatest and most miraculous Saints that ever was in the Church of God: On the contrary, Others hold him for a most impudent Impostor, a wicked Hypocrite, and a most dangerous Tritheite Heretick; for the proudest, most arrogant, and presumptuous of Mankind. But those who, without prejudice, have coolly examined all that is alledged on both sides, touching this famous Abbot, believe that, without doing him Injustice, one may keep the middle way between these two Extreams, and affirm that he was a bold and ignorant Visionary, who having a weak Head, and a strong Imagina­tion, together with little Learning, and less Solidity of Judgment to manage it, took all his Imaginations, and his own Fancies, for Oracles; and that there­fore undertaking to make Predictions, amidst a hundred things which he pre­tended to foretel, he must play with very ill Fortune, if some of them did not prove true, though it were by the pure Effect of Chance: So that those who had took their Measures of him, according to what he had foretold them truly, cried him up as a mighty Prophet; and the others, who had been deceived, as well as he, by his Presages, treated him as a Cheat, and an Impostor: Neither the one nor the other of these People, all this while, having the Wit to per­ceive that he was, in reallity, neither Prophet nor Cheat, but a silly, over-run Visionary, who deceived himself first, and afterwards those who believed him, by his ridiculous Illusions, which possibly was the genuine Effect of his few Brains, and much Presumption.

And for certain, this is true, that going to visit the holy Places at Jerusa­lem, at the Age of fifteen Years, when he hardly understood his Grammar, he pretended that the Spirit of God was infused into him, in the Church of the holy Sepulchre; and there a perfect Knowledge of all the hidden Mysteries of the Scripture was bestowed upon him, especially of the Book of the Apocalyps, whereof he said he had the Key, which no Man before him could ever find. That thereupon, without applying himself to any other Studies, he began to labour with the Visions of that Book, which he endeavoured to adjust to his own, as best pleased him; taking his own Dreams for the true Sense of those sacred Mysteries. However, he was so ingenuous as to acknowledge, that he neither had any Revelations, nor yet the Gift of Prophecy; but that he had received from God the Spirit of Understanding, as clearly to understand what was contained in the Prophecies of the Old and New Testament, as the Prophets themselves, who writ them by the Impulse of the Spirit of God. Moreover, he was a Man who affected Singularity, and who aimed at nothing but was very uncommon and extraordinary, both in his Conduct and his Doctrine; and that therefore, in the Council of Lateran, under Innocent III. he was declared an open Heretick, because he had undertaken to write, and maintain, against the Great Master of the Sentences, some Positions concerning the Trinity, which was open Tritheism; for he was of Opinion, that every Person in the Holy Trinity had a distinct, Proper and peculiar Essence, and that they were begotten, one from another. He was also presented in the Pope's Court, and accused by the Religious of his own Order, among whom he raised a most dangerous Schism. In short, He was an eternal Medler with Prophecies, Predictions, and the Affection of foretelling future Contingen­cies: And if some one of his Presages, by mere Chance, proved true in the Event, there were a hundred of them, so obscure and ambiguous, that might be interpreted either way; many of the most famous of those which he pub­lished with so much Noise and Confidence, being proved false in their Events, even whilst he was alive; which cannot be made appear better, than by this famous Conference which he had at Messina, with King Richard.

For there being a mighty Talk of this Abbot Joachim, who was at this time in the Top of his Reputation, especially in Italy, where all People heard him as a Prophet, Richard desired Tancred to send for him to Messi­na, that from him he might be informed of the Success of this War which he was about to undertake, to re-conquer Jerusalem from the Hands of the Infidels. This is commonly the nature of Men, especially of Great Men, to have a longing desire to penetrate into the inscrutable Secrets of the time [Page 196]to come, year 1190 by a dangerous and vain Curiosity, which usurping upon the peculiar Prerogative of God Almighty, who hath reserved this Knowledge incommu­nicably to himself, he does not fail to punish that bold Presumption, by some Misfortune, either agreeable or contrary to the Prediction which is made. But that which gave Richard the greater desire to consult this famous Abbot was, the sad News of the deplorable Accident which had befallen the Emperor, ta­king him out of the World in the middle of his victorious Course, and which, it was confidently reported, had been predicted to him most clearly by the Abbot, who positively affirmed, that he should have no good Success. This gave a mighty Confirmation to all those People who had conceived this Opi­nion of him, that he had the Gift of Prophecy. Come he did then, and, accor­ding to his custom, taking upon him the Tone of a Prophet, he presently told the two Kings, with a serious Air, and without a Moments Hesitation, That it was to no manner of purpose that they were going to Jerusalem, to deliver the Holy Land, in regard that the Time appointed for its Deliverance was not yet come. Philip the August, who had a most solid Mind, and who took no further care but to give good Order for the present, thereby to assure the future, in which con­sists the best Art of Prediction, was in no pain for this Discourse of the Abbot, to which he gave but little Credit. But Richard, who had a certain Weakness for those kind of Prophecies, had a Curiosity to be further satisfied, demanded of him, upon what kind of Knowledge he founded this Prediction, that he pro­nounced with such Assurance. Whereupon this Visionary, whose Head was full of nothing but the Chimera's of his own Dreams, which he made upon the Apocalyps, of which he thought he had as perfect an Understanding as St. John, who writ these Revelations, fell to interpreting the Visions contained in that Book, and especially that of the horrible Dragon with seven Heads, which would have devoured the Man-child which was to be born of the Woman cloa­thed with the Sun. The sixth Head of this Monster, he said, was Saladin, who had taken Jerusalem, who should certainly be destroyed by the Christians, who should regain this holy City; but that, according to the Mystery of the Numbers denoted in the Vision, it should not be till seven Years, from the Taking of it, were accomplished. If it be so, briskly replied Richard, interrupting him, What have we done, to come so far to no purpose? Your Voyage, answered the Ab­bot, was necessary for your own Glory; for that by doing this, God will make you triumph over all your Enemies, and will elevate you above all other Princes of the Earth.

The Events plainly shewed, that these two first Predictions were most false, since Jerusalem was not taken in that time, and that the Voyage was, in con­clusion, very unfortunate for King Richard, who fell into the Hands of his Ene­mies, and was very ill treated by them.

But his Illusion, or rather, his Extravagance and Folly appeared much more, when, pursuing the Interpretation of this Mystery, according to the disorderly Capricioes of his own Imagination, he added, that the seventh Head of this Dragon was Antichrist, who should be born in Rome, and should be Pope: for this dangerous Devote had the Confidence to publish this Folly, and boldly to affirm, that this Enemy of Jesus Christ was, at that time, in his youthful Age. That in the Year 1199. the sixth Seal of the fatal Book should be opened, and that thereupon should ensue the Kingdom, Persecution, and the Death of Anti­christ; and that the Gospel should, before that, be preached in all the World. But he might very well, himself, before his own Death, see the falseness of his Prediction. And from that time that he undertook, with so much Confidence, to maintain that Opinion, he was most powerfully confuted, and convinced of the little probability of his Prophecies, by the Archbishops of Ousch and Roan, the Bishops of Bayonne and D'Eureux, and other learned Ecclesiasticks, who were present at this Conference; and shewed him by Scripture, which plainly tells us, that the Time which he undertook to limit, was wholly unknown; that his Conceptions were not only false, but rash and vain Imaginations of his own Fancy, which he endeavoured to obtrude upon the World for Truths. In­somuch that King Richard himself, who now undertook to be able to confute him, made no more Account of him than King Philip had done, and no further amused himself about him. See what manner of Man this Abbot Joachim was, [Page 197]and what Belief he gained upon the Minds of the English and French, year 1190 who were not altogether so credulous as the Italians, many of which, though, did not be­lieve him; but only, among the Common People, his Fictions passed Currant, as if they had been Heavenly Oracles. But it is observable, that this hath con­stantly been the Destiny of those who would undertake to prophesie, or to ex­plain future Events, by accommodating them to the Mysteries of the Apocalyps, to lose the greatest part of their Reason and Understanding, by dashing against that Rock which hath split so many Spirits as, by their foolish Curiosity, have, at last, only gained the infamous Reputation of being Visionary Extravagants.

The two Kings therefore, without being retarded by the Predictions of this Man, whom they sent back to his Solitude of Haute-Pierre in Calabria, to write upon the Prophets and the Apocalyps, resolved to pursue their Voyage so soon as the Season would permit. Philip, who always pressed the King of England, not to delay the time, parted the first, in the Month of March, with all his Fleet, and arrived fortunately, in two and twenty days, upon Easter-Eve, be­fore Acre, where he was received by the Crusades with incredible Transports of Pleasure, as if an Angel from Heaven was come to the Relief of the Christian Army, which had now besieged this important Place very near three Years. So soon as he was arrived, he visited the Works, and took his Quarters so near the Walls, that his Lodgment was within less than a Discharge of the Darts and Arrows of his Enemies. He then began to plant his Slings for great Stones, his Rams, and other Engines, which played to so good purpose, and so furious­ly, upon the place, that in few days he had made a reasonable fair Breach. At which time the French presented themselves before it, in order to an Assault, resolved to perish, or to carry the Place, and all the Honour of the Siege. And no doubt can be made, but the City had certainly, that day, been taken, considering the mighty Earnestness which so many brave Men shewed, so fresh, and so resolute, if King Philip, who always acted with great sincerity, had not been something too scrupulous upon this Occasion, even to the disadvantage of the publick Interest. For whereas one of the Articles of the Treaty which he had made with the King of England imported, that they should equally share their Conquests, he understood this Article to extend even to Glory, and was resolved that Richard should share it with him in the Taking of the Town, which he was in a Condition to take without him. And therefore, contenting himself with lodging at the Foot of the Wall, he resolved to put off the Assault till his Arrival.

And in truth, that Prince was resolved to put to Sea immediately after Phi­lip, but he was constrained to defer it some time, by reason that Queen Eleonor, his Mother, who brought along with her the Princess Berengera, arrived the same day that Philip sailed. He caused these two Princesses to be magnificently received at Messina, where he affianced this new Mistriss; after which, Queen Eleonor returning for England, taking with her Jane, his Sister, and the Prin­cess Berengera, he commanded part of his Fleet to attend them, and himself, with the rest, darted at last, upon Wednesday in Passion-Week, from Messina, eighteen days after King Philip the August. It is true, the Sea was not at all propitious to him, for, upon Good-Friday, he was met by a most furious Tem­pest; but having, till this time been ever mighty fortunate, he drew a great Advantage from this Accident, and the Tempest which scattered his Navy, was worth to him the Conquest of the Island of Cyprus: The manner whereof I will in short recount.

The Island of Cyprus, one of the fairest and greatest of the Mediterranean Sea, lying about some hundred Miles from Syria, was at that time under the Dominion of the Emperors of Constantinople, who sent thither some Duke, or Lieutenant, to be their Deputy-Governor. Isaac, a Prince of the House of the Comnenius's by his Mother, who was Daughter of another Isaac, Brother to the Emperor Manuel, had seized upon that Government, during the Empire of An­dronicus, by virtue of Letters Patents from that Emperor, which this Cheat had counterfeited; and not long after, he very openly usurped the absolute Dominion of the Place, by taking upon him the Title and Authorit [...] of Empe­ror. After the Death of the unfortunate Andronicus, he maintained himself in [Page 198]his Usurpation, year 1191 against all the Forces of Isaacius Angelus, whom he defeated, with the Assistance of Margeritus, Admiral of the Fleet of William, King of Si­cily. After which, as this Tyrant, who was one of the most wicked of Man­kind, saw himself assured in his new Empire, according to the custom and na­ture of Tyranny, which is, indifferently to commit all manner of Crimes, to enjoy the first, which is committed by revolting from a lawful Master, there was no manner of Wickedness, Injustice, Robbery, Extortion, Violence, or Cruelty, which he did not exercise upon the poor Islanders, whom he reduced even to the utmost Dispair. Nor had he much more Humanity towards Stran­gers; for three great Ships of the English Fleet, which, by the Violence of the Tempest, had been thrown upon the Island, and stranded, in the View of Li­misso, anciently called Amathus, upon the South side of the Island, this Barba­rian, who presently run, with his Soldiers, to the Bank, caused all those who escaped the Wrack to be taken, and after having inhumanely despoiled them of all they had about them, and in their Ships, he caused them to be bound, Hand and Foot, and thrown into a deep Dungeon, there miserably to perish by Fa­mine. Nor would he permit the great Ship, on Board of which were the two Princesses, and which was in manifest danger of being lost, to come within the Port of Limisso, as they had earnestly desired Permission of him to do; but would have them ride it out, exposed to the Mercy of the Seas and the Waves, that so he might have the brutish and cruel Pleasure, either to see them sink to the Bottom, or split against the Rocks.

In this time, the Tempest being appeased, Richard, who had taken Port at Candia, and from thence had sailed to the Rhodes, where he re-assembled his Ships; and hearing of the ill Treatment which some of his Ships had met with in the Island of Cyprus, he came and presented himself, with the rest of his Na­vy, in good Order, before Limisso, the 6th Day of May, and immediately sent to the Tyrant, to demand Satisfaction for the Affront had been done him, with a peremptory Command to him, instantly to set such of the English at Liberty as he had made Prisoners, and to make full Restitution of whatever he had taken from them. The furious Brute fiercely replied to the Envoys of the King, That they should go tell their Master, that he was so far from giving him the Satisfaction he foolishly demanded, that if he did not make the more haste, and take the advantage of his Sails and Oars, he must expect the same Treatment for himself. And thereupon he marched directly to the Shoar with all the Troops which he kept in Pay, and a multitude of confused, undisciplined People, ill armed, and worse ordered, who ran down in hopes of Booty, and not in expectation of Blows: But he was mightily mistaken in the Man with whom he was to deal, for Ri­chard, furiously exasperated by his Answer, gave present Order that all his Ar­my should make a Descent, by the help of the Barks and Chaloups; and put­ting himself into the first Row of the Barks, at the Head of his Archers, he rained such a Storm of mortal Arrows, as he rowed to the Shoar, upon the Heads of his affrighted Enemies, that under the favour of that Consternation, he leaped first ashoar, and was followed so courageously by his Men, who sound none to oppose their Descent, that they charged so briskly upon these Barbarians, with their Swords in their Hands, and fell into the Battalions of these cowardly and disorderly Greeks, they presently put them into Confusion, and in a few Minutes, to a manifest Flight, and in the Pursuit, made a dread­ful Slaughter among them, till they got to the Mountains, where they saved themselves: Then returning, the victorious Army entred Limisso without Re­sistance, the Soldiers, who were to have kept it, having, for fear, abandoned the place.

This happy Beginning was presently succeeded by a Conclusion no less for­tunate; for the Night following he surprized Isaac, who, having rallied his People, came to encamp within five Miles of Limisso; and having cut the best part of his Troops in pieces, dissipated the rest, and taken all his Baggage: So that this miserable Wretch, abandoned of the Cypriots, who, the next day af­ter the Victory, came to do Homage to King Richard, was constrained, in most humble manner, to beg a Peace; which he obtained upon Conditions hard enough, and sufficiently ignominious, and such as, possibly, King Richard would [Page 199]not have required of him; but his Cowardly Fear dictated them to him: year 1191 And he who, in his Prosperity, was so presumptuous, to imagine he could not offer too little; in this Reverse of his Fortune, thought he could never offer enough. The Conditions were these; That he should own the King of England for his Soveraign, and should do him Homage for the Island, under the Title of the Realm of Cyprus. That he should give his only Daughter and Heiress to whomsoe­ver King Richard should nominate. That, besides delivering the Prisoners which he had taken, he should pay twenty thousand Marks in Gold, for Dammages to those whom he had plundred. That he should go in Person, with twenty thousand choice Men, to serve the King in the War of the Holy Land. That, for the Security of his Promises, he should instantly put all the Places in his Dominions into the King's Hands: and that, reciprocally, the King should engage upon his Honour to restore them to him, so soon as he had accomplished all his Engagements. And, to begin with what was most shameful, he immediately came to do his Homage to King Richard, in the Presence of Guy, King of Jerusalem, and Geoffrey de Lu­signan, his Brother, Raymond, Prince of Antioch, and Bohemond, Count of Tripolis, his Son, Aufrey de Thoren, and the other Lords, who were come to Cyprus, to oblige King Richard to enter into their Interests, against the Mar­quis of Montferrat, Prince of Tyre, whose Party King Philip the August seemed much to favour.

But this Peace did not last long; for, whether this unfortunate Tyrant was ashamed of his Cowardice, or that some Person had advertised him se­cretly, that there was a design to make him a Prisoner, he fled the same Day, and made it be told to the King, That he was resolved never to keep such an unjust Treaty; which being the Effect of Force, and the suddain Disorder of his Judgment, by Dispair, was not at all obliging. For this Reason Richard, who was better pleased with War than Peace, which, how advantageous soever, ravished from him a Conquest which he could not fail of obtaining, instantly caused him to be pursued both by Land and Sea, with so much Heat and Expedition, that, running over the whole Island, with his Troops divided into several Parties, all the Cities opened their Gates to him, so soon as he or his Lieutenants appeared before them. So that the miserable Isaac, abandoned of all the World, who had him in Detestation, even in his better Fortune, was constrained to surrender. The Princess, his Daughter, who was in the Castle of Cherin, was the first to implore the Clemency of the King; who received her with great Civility, and caused her to be conducted to Limisso, where was the Queen, his Sister, and the Princess Berengera. After which, the Tyrant, who had now no other Re­treat left, besides a Monastery fortified upon a Rock, seeing that he was about to be attacked, could not resolve to die honourably, in making a noble Defence, but, by extream Lowness of Spirit, resolved to beg a Life, which ought to have been more insupportable than a thousand Deaths. He came then from the Monastery in the Habit of a Mourner, his Hair and Beard neg­lected, his Eyes overflown with Tears, throwing himself, like a Slave, at the Feet of the King; and he, who had so audaciously assumed the Title of an Emperor, submitted himself entirely to his Mercy, only making his Re­quest, that he would not put him in Chains; which, of all the things of the World, he said, was what he most feared, and which would, assuredly, make him die with Grief. Whereupon, King Richard, who naturally loved to divert himself with the most serious things, and who was so far from being touched with any Compassion for the Misery of this Infamous, that, in regard of his woful Cowardice, he had scarcely the Patience to see him; turning himself to Raoul, his Chamberlain, to whose Charge he consigned this miserable Man, and smiling, he commanded him to use him as an Emperor, and that therefore he should put upon him Manacles, Fetters and Chains of Silver, to distinguish him to be a Prisoner of Quality: Which Raoul did not fail, solemnly to put accordingly in Execution.

Thus the Realm of Cyprus was, without any considerable Loss, conquered in less than three Weeks by King Richard, who, at the same time, married the Princess Berengera at Limisso, and caused her to be Crowned Queen of [Page 200] England, year 1191 and of Cyprus, with all manner of Magnificence, and, as it were, in a kind of Triumph, after such a happy Conquest. This done, he sent the two Queens and the Princess, the Daughter of Isaac, with a good Party of his Fleet, who arrived happily at Acre, the 1st Day of June, being the Eve of Whitsunday. He caused the Tyrant to be conducted Prisoner to Tripo­lis; and, for himself, after he had regulated the Affairs of his new King­dom, which he put under the Conduct of two Governors, he received from his new Subjects the Value of half their Moveables, which they offered him of their own Accord, that so they might have from him the Confirmation of the Privileges which they had formerly enjoyed under the Emperor Manuel. All which Matters being adjusted, upon the 5th of June, he parted from Cy­prus, with the King of Jerusalem, and the Levantine Princes: The next day he passed before Tyre, where the Garrison of Conrade, fearing he might seize upon the Place, would not permit him to Land. The next Day, as he drew near to Acre, he discovered the biggest of all the Ships that he had ever seen upon the Sea, who had the Arms of France painted upon her Stem; but sus­pecting it might be some Stratagem, and sending out to hall her, he found it was a Ship of Saladin's, which had on Board her five hundred choice Men, Pro­visions, Arms and Munition; as also, Artificial Fire-works, and two hundred most venemous Serpents, in Glasses, to throw into the Camp of the Christians. Richard caused her to be attacked by his Galliots; and, after a long and furious Combat, which was maintained with extraordinary Obstinacy by those despe­rate People, till such time as being pierced in a great many places by the Stems of the Galliots, who ran upon her with full Sails and Oars, that she sunk to the Bottom, all the Soldiers and Mariners, who threw themselves into the Sea, or into the Ships of the Christians, to save themselves, being either drowned or slain, excepting two hundred of the principal Officers and Engi­neers, who were taken Prisoners. After which, Richard, landing the next day, being the 8th of June, entred, as it were, in Triumph, laden with Spoils and Glory, into the Camp before Acre.

Philip the August received him with the greatest Demonstrations of Joy and Friendship. But that Prince, too generous, learnt quickly after, by a dange­rous Experiment, that an Excess of Vertue, which causes one to lose a fair Op­portunity, especially in Matters of War, is always a great Fault in a Prince or Captain. And certainly, he ought not to have made any Scruple of Ta­king the City, as he might easily have done, without King Richard, whom he unprofitably staid for so long time, while that King, more cunning, and less scrupulous, and who had not for others such tender Concerns, did, without him, take a whole Kingdom. For, in short, the missing of this Opportunity gave Rise to many Accidents, which had like to have entirely ruined the En­terprise: For the Besieged made great advantage of that long Repose, and the leisure which was given them by a kind of Truce, of which they knew not the Cause; however, they employed it to the repairing of the Breaches, and were so strengthned by little Succours, which frequently slip'd into them, that they found themselves in a Condition often to repulse the great Assaults which were given against them at unseasonable times, the Opportunity being lost before. Be­sides, the King of France first, and after some time, the King of England, fell sick of that dangerous Malady, which made them lose their Hair, Nails and Skin, by its subtil and Corrosive Malignity, which consumes all that Matter which is necessary for the Defence or the Ornament of the Body. But the most dangerous Evil of all, and which endangered the common Ruin, was, the Division which broke out more furiously than ever between the two Kings. The ancient Eng­lish Historians of that time lay all the Blame upon Philip, whilst the French, who writ at the same time, accuse King Richard, and lay all the Fault at his Door: and the reason is plain, that both the one and the other living at the same time, and writing what was done in their own time, either their Fear or their Hope, their Love or Hate, took from them the power and the liberty of writing the Truth sincerely, and without Partiality. For my own particular, who, besides the natural Love I have for it, have always made Profession to speak and write, when there is occasion, with that frank and honest liberty which can never be taken from a [Page 201]good Man, year 1191 and who am under no manner of Temptations from any of these Pas­sions, which may hinder me from speaking concerning these Kings what I believe to be true, it cannot be supposed I should do otherwise, since I have nothing either to hope or fear from them; and that there is no danger, four hundred Years after their Death, any Person should so warmly espouse the Interests of their Ashes. I say then, that after having strictly examined whatever is written upon one side and the other, concerning this great difference, I find, that Richard did not use King Philip with that Respect which was due to him, as his Liege Lord for so many great and fair Provinces as he held of him in France: For as he had amassed prodigious Sums of Money in England, in Sicily, and in Cyprus, he spared no Cost to allure the bravest Men to his Party, and to draw them to his Service by excessive Profusions, and the extraordinary Advantages which he made them; insomuch that, under­standing that Philip gave three Crowns in Gold by the Month to every Horse-man, he promised four to such as would quit that Service, and take Pay under him. So that he seemed to endeavour to exhalt himself above his Master, and to render him contemptible. But then, on the other side, Philip, who had a great Heart, and who bore it very impatiently, to be in this manner insulted over by his Vassal, shewed so much displeasure, that he gave those whom the Profusions of Richard had gained, especially the Levantines, who were most charmed with them, occasion to believe that he was not able to support his Greatness, and his Merit, to be thus topped and overshaded. Moreover, as Philip, before the Arrival of the English, had so far advanced the Works, and so beaten down the Walls, and ruined the De­fences, that he might easily have taken the place, if he had not been too scrupulous of taking all the Glory to himself; whereas Richard, to whom he had given the opportunity of taking his share, by a strange Effect of Jealousie and Ambition, would by no means have the City taken whilst Philip was there; insomuch, that when the French assaulted the Town, this jealous Prince prohibited the English, either to sustain them, or to assault it on their side, as had before been resolved upon at the Council of War. This brought on Reproaches, Quarrels and Ha­tred, which daily increased, and grew more violent between the two Nations, than that of the War which had begun to break out before, under King Henry; there being, besides, naturally not too much Sympathy between them.

That which augmented this Division was also the Difference between Guy de Lusignan and the Marquis Conrade de Montferrat, for the Realm of Jerusalem; which the one pretended to keep, and the other to have, when as Saladin was yet possessed of it: For King Philip carried himself openly for the Marquis, in the Right of his Wife; and for that being a great Warrier, who had, by his good Conduct, preserved the small Remainder of that poor Realm, it seemed much better that he should have it, rather than his Rival, who had lost it so un­fortunately, for want of Courage, and sufficient Conduct. On the contrary, the King of England, for that very reason, opposed his Pretensions, being unwil­ling it should fall into the hands of so brave a Man; and therefore, with all his Power, he supported Guy of Lusignan, by reason that that unfortunate Prince having much Weakness, and little Merit, Richard was in hopes of disposing of the Realm according to his own Will. And, in short, the new Conquest which the King of England had made of the Island of Cyprus, which he was resolved to keep, did not at all please Philip, who demanded the half of that Realm, in vir­tue of the Treaty, by which they were obliged to divide equally between them whatsoever should be gained by that Voyage. But Richard maintained, either that this Division was to be restrained to such Conquests as were made upon the Infidels, or otherwise, that by the same reason he ought to divide the Succession to the Earldom of Flanders with the King, since, by the Death of the Earl, Phi­lip pretended to have acquired a Right unto. And by reason of this Division, their Spirits were so exasperated, that while nothing was done against the com­mon Enemy, both sides reproached each other with holding a secret Intelligence and Correspondency with the Infidels, both the one Party and the other receiving Presents from Saladin. And, in truth, this brave Sarasin Prince, who was natu­rally generous, and made War like a noble Enemy, was used, from time to time, to send the most excellent Fruits of Damascus to the two Kings, who, in Return, sent him some of the pretty Rarities of Europe.

year 1191 Thus matters were so far from being advantaged by the coming of these two mighty Armies to the Camp, which with the Forces of the Levant and other Succours come from Europe made more than three hundred thousand men, that they were reduced into a worse Condition than before, by this fatal Dis­cord, which divided all the Christian Lords, and armed them one against the o­ther. The Knights of the Temple, the Duke of Burgundy, all the Party of the Marquis Conrade and the Germans declared themselves for Philip. Richard had of his Party besides his own Subjects, the Hospitallers the Pisans, and those a­mong the Levantine Princes who favoured Guy de Lusignan, the Flemings who were for the Young Baldwin, the Nephew of their deceased Earl, and who some twelve Years after obtained the Empire of Constantinople, as also some French men, among others, Henry Earl of Champagne, whom Richard had gained by his excessive Liberalities; so that the Camp seemed more dangerously besieged than the City, being attacked from without by the Army of Saladin, and more miserably within by this fearful Division, which had ruined all, unless God, who was resol­ved to crown the Zeal of these two great Princes, notwithstanding all the disor­ders of their Passions, had appeased this Tempest, and unexpectedly brought a Calm among them by the undertaking of some of the Wisest and most prudent Per­sons, of both Armies who made a Composure of all Differences between the two Kings on this manner. It was ordained, That they should confirm their for­mer Treaty and most inviolable and exactly keep it on one side and the other. That they should devide between them whatsoever they should take from the Infidels. That when one of the two Kings should give an Assault to the City, the other should oppose Saladin in defending the Lines; and for the difference between Guy de Lusignan and the Marquis de Montferrat, it should be referred to the Determination of certain Judges equally chosen on both sides. And not long after a solemn Judgement was rendred thereupon by which it was decreed, That Guy de Lusignan should for the remainder of his Life continue King of Jerusalem, but that his Children if he should mar­ry again should have no sort of Pretentions to that Crown, the Reversion and Succession whereof should remain to the Marquis and those Children he should have by the Princess Isabella his Lady, Sister to the late Queen Sybilla. That in the Interim he should have the Moity of the Revenues of the Realm, together with the Principalities of Tyre, of Sydon, and Baruth, by holding them of the Crown; and that Geoffry de Lusignan should upon the same Conditions hold the Counties of Jaffa and Caesa­rea.

This being done, and the Peace in this manner confirmed at least in Appea­rance between the two Kings, nothing was now thought upon but how to press forward the Siege; and it was done with so much Vigor, by continual battering the Walls both Night and Day and redoubling the Attacks, that the Besieged Sarasins now dispairing to be able long to defend the Place against so great Forces, as were now become unanimous, offered to surrender, provided they might be assured of their Lives and Liberty to retire whither they pleased, without carrying any thing away with them more than their wearing Apparel, The Kings, who were assured they could carry the Place, thought to make a considerable Advantage of that dispair to which so many Brave men were redu­ced, whom they believed Saladin would not suffer to perish, and therefore would hearken to no Terms, unless Saladin would restore the true Cross, Jerusalem, and all the Cities which he had taken after the Battle of Tyberias. Sa­ladin, who was obliged to turn his Arms against the Son of Noradin, who attemp­ted to take from him Mesopotamia, was willing to consent to these very Terms, provided that the Kings should assist him against his Enemies in Person with thir­ty thousand Men; nay he was contented that it should be done by their Lieute­nants, and with fewer Troops, to which he would join his, provided, they would serve him one Year. But whether the two Kings judged it unworthy of their Majesty, which they thought must suffer an Abasement in serving an In­fidel,; or that the Son of Noradin on the other side solliciting them to joyn with him against Saladin, They believed that by such a favourable diversion they should be able with Ease to take from him all those Cities, they absolutely re­fused these Conditions. And therefore they began now more furiously than e­ver to attack the City, in one of which Assaults, Alberic Clement Mareschal of [Page 203] France, after he had already gained the Walls was slain in the City. year 1191 That which was of mighty Service to the Besiegers was, that a disguised Christian, who was in the Town, and who was one of the Council, gave them frequent Advertisement by Letters, which he threw into the Camp, of all the Resolutions, which were taken by the Sarasins; so that all their Enterprises being discovered, were rendred ineffectual; but this Important Service was never recompensed, in regard the Intelligencer could never be known after the taking of the Ci­ty, which was at last constrained to surrender. For on the one hand Saladin who was obliged to retire, had sent to them to make the best Terms they could; on the other, there was no more Expectation of Succour for them by the Sea where the Christians were absolute Masters; and the French who by prodigious Labour, had drawn their Mines to the very Foundations of the Wicked Tower, and the eleventh of July had overthrown all the Walls, and were just now ready to set Fire to the Wooden Pillars which supported it; there­fore the sive Admirals or Emirs, who commanded the Garrisons, Caracos, Mesiock, Helsedin, Limathos, and Jordic, hung out a Flag of Parley; and after having treated with the Commissioners, of the two Kings, the next morning the Agree­ment was perfected in these Articles. That they should immediately surrender the place with all the Gold, Silver and Moveables, the Ammunition, Arms and Provisions which were in it, without retaining any thing to themselves more than their wearing Ap­parel. That they should procure from Saladin the true Cross, together with all the Christians, which he detained Captives, and that he should pay to the two Kings one hundred thousand of those pieces of Gold which were called Besans, from the Name of Con­stantinople otherwise called Bysance, where they were minted with the Effigies of the Greek Emperor; that in Expectation of the Performance of the Treaty, they with the whole Garrison should remain Prisoners at War; and that if Saladin did not in forty days accomplish these Articles, they should be wholly at the Discretion of the two Kings, who should dispose of their Lives and Liberties as they should judge conveni­ent.

Thus was the City of Ptolemais or Acre taken at the last by the Christians, after one of the longest and most memorable Sieges which have been ever seen, and with the loss of as many brave men as might have conquered all Asia; for besides an Infinite Number of Soldiers, Gentlemen and great Lords, Germans, English, Italians, Flemings and Levantines who perished during the Siege, either by the Malady, or by the frequent Combats which happened. The French lost there, a­among the Persons of the greatest Quality, the Counts Thibaud de Chartres and de Blois, Stephen de Sancerre, John de Vendome, Rotrou de Perche, Erard de Brienne, Raoul de Clermont. Gilbert de Tilieres, the Count de Ponthieu, the Viscounts de Turenne and de Castillane, Alberic Clement Mareschal of France, Adam the Great Chamberlain, the Lords jocelin de Montmorency, Guy de Chastillon, Florem de Augest Bernard de St. Valery, Enguerand de Fiennes, Gautier de Moy, Geoffry de la Briere, Anselm de Montreal, Guy de Dane, Hugh de Hoiry, Raoul de Fougeres, Eudes de Go­ness, Raoul de Hauterive, and Renaud de Magni, all whose Names I have found among the Writers of those times, and which I thought my self obliged by no means to suppress; but that in this History the Reader may receive the Plea­sure of finding among his Ancestors, by consulting the Pedigree, some of these Illustrious men, whose glorious Memory ought to be an Eternal Honor to those Houses who have descended from them.

The City being taken, the Kings according to their Treaty divided all the Booty equally between them, as also the Prisoners and the Houses. The Car­dinal Bishop of Verona, Legat of the Holy See, the Archbishop of Tyre and Pisa, the Bishops of Beavais, Chartres d' Eureux, Bayonne, Salisbury and Tripolis, so­lemnly re-dedicated the Churches, which the Sarasins had turned into Mosches. There were also assigned to the Venetians, Genoeses, Pisans, to the Knights of the Temple and those of the Hospital the Quarters and Rights which they were to possess in the City of Acre, and in truth every thing passed peaceably and in good Order, except that King Richard, who too easily suffered himself to be transported by his Natural Violence and Choler, committed two Actions, of surious Madness, one of which proved afterwards very dangerous to himself, and the other presently to the poor Christians, which happened thus, at the [Page 204]same time that the French had overthrown the Walls adjoyning to the Wicked Tower, year 1191 and were ready to force the Place, and that the Besieged found them­selves necessitated to capitulate, before the surrender, Leopold, Duke of Austria, who attacked a quarter on the opposite part had seized upon another Tower, and had there planted his Standard, which stood there after the Reduction of the City. Richard, who for other Matters was exasperated against Leopold, in regard that as well as the rest of the Germans he had been of Philip's. Party, took this occasion to be revenged of him, as if he had usurped upon the Au­thority of the two Kings, and therefore caused the Standard to be taken down by plain Force, and being torn in pieces and trampled under Foot he caused it to be thrown into the Kennel, by the most insupportable of all Affronts that could be given to a Prince who loved Glory. The Germans who were natu­rally jealous of the Honor of their Nation, and incapable of bearing, I do not say, such a horrible Injury as this was, but even the Shadow of being contem­ned, had not failed instantly to do themselves reason by their Arms, which they presently took against the English; but Leopold who was altogether as brave, but something a better Dissembler than King Richard, chose rather for a time to respite his Vengeance, which he hoped to find a more fit occasion for, where he should not be blamed by induring the pain of this Affront for doing greater Mischiefs to the Christian Affairs, which must needs suffer much by a Civil War, and which in a few days following did suffer extremely by ano­ther cruel Effect of the Violent Nature of this Prince. For seeing that Saladin persisted in refusing to satisfie the Articles of the Capitulation, which the Be­sieged had on his Behalf ratified, he conceived such a Despight, that he Inhu­manly caused the Heads of above five thousand Prisoners which fell to his Share, to be cut off. Nor could he be diswaded from it, by the Consideration of so many Christian Captives, to whom Saladin as he had menaced caused the same measure to be given, by a kind of cruel Reprisal, the blame of which is always laid upon him who begins. And certainly it hath always been seen, that these dangerous Examples, which are given to an Enemy in the time of War, which he always believes he hath a Right to render the like measure, for the Security of his own People, have always been condemned by others who have had the Occasion to suffer by it, and that those who give it are at last constrained to abstain the first from it, though something with the latest, and after it hath caused the Lives of so many unfortunates, as have perished either by the trans­ports of the one or the Vengeance of the other. As for King Philip who was more moderate, he used his with more humanity and contented himself to leave the Prisoners in the Hands of Marquis Conrade, as he Passed by Tyre in his re­turn from the Holy Land into France.

This Prince who was extreme Wise, perceived on the one hand that Richard, become now more Fierce and Violent than ever, after the taking of Acre, kept no sort of Measures, and that it was impossible for them long time to keep in any Terms of Accord; and on the other, perceiving that he was daily infeebled by the Distemper into which he was again relapsed; he might run the Hazard of dying in Palestine, without being able to do any Service to Christendom; and that in the mean time Advantage might be taken of his Absence, by invading the Earldom of Flanders, which ought to return to the Crown of France, by the Death of Count Philip. He made this to be most civilly represented to the King of England, that finding by the increase of his Distemper, he was like to be rendred incapable to serve the Affairs of the Christians in the Holy Land, he judged it more to their Advantage, that one single Commander should finish the War; and for this purpose, that he would resign all wholly to his Conduct, to­gether with a good party of his Army, under the Command of the Duke of Bur­gundy. He added also, that to take from him all manner of Pretext which he might have to complain of his Departure, or the Fear that he might entertain, that he did not return into France, but to fall upon his Dominions there during his Absence, he assured him, that if he had occasion to make War upon him, it should not be till the Expiration of fourty days after his Return. After which, having left five hundred Men at Armes, and ten thousand Foot, with the Duke of Burgundy, and some Troops which he lent for a Year to the Prince of Anti­och, [Page 205]he imbarcked the first day of August upon thirty Gallies, year 1191 with the remaind­er of his Army; and after having coasted along by Syria, the le [...]ser Asia, Greece, Epirus, and Calabria, from time to time, making such Stays by the Way as were necessary for the regaining of his Strength and Health, he went to pay his De­votions at Rome. There he was received with all imaginable Honour by Pope Celestin the III. who approving of his Return, according to the Custom, be­stowed upon him and his Followers, the Palmes and the Crosses, in token that they had accomplished their Vow. From thence, passing by Land into France, in the Month of December he arrived at Fountainbleau, and from thence he re­paired to St. Dennis, where prostrating himself before the Altar of the Holy Martyrs, he offered his Royal Robe, and gave solemn Thanks to Almighty God, who had delivered him from so many Dangers as he had run by Sea and Land, and had at last happily reconducted him into his own Kingdom. This was the Conclusion of this holy Enterprise of Philip the August, and as one may say absolutely, that it was very Fortunate, by the Reduction of the City of Acre; so it is most certain, that it had been much greater, if it had been performed by his single Forces; for being composed of the very Flower of the Nobility and Gentry of France, and conducted by the most Wise and Valiant King of that time, they might without Difficulty have Triumphed over Sala­din, if the Conjunction of a most potent Rival had not infeebled them by than unhappy Division which his haughty, jealous, and ambitious Humour occasioned among them. But in short, this is generally the Fatality which accompanies such kind of Unions, which being made among differing States and Princes for some common End, usually by the growing of Discords among themselves, terminate in the intire Ruin of those united Sentiments and Designs; there be­ing nothing so Improsperous, especially in the Affairs of War, as want of a good Understanding and Concord among Confederates, which in reallity is sel­dom, if ever, to be expected from the multitude of Coordinate Captains, which must needs produce Differences and Oppositions first in point of Opinion, and afterwards by necessary Consequence, in the very Union it self.

But in this time King Richard, who was now the sole Commander of the Christian Army in Syria and Palestine, proved not much more Fortunate in the end of his Enterprise, by reason that he was so continually agitated by the Tempests of his own violent and tumultuous Passions, that he was difficultly at any Agreement with himself, but was become even his own Rival: For on the one hand, his Ambition, and love of Glory, mingled with some Remains of Piety and Religion, transported him vigorously towards the pushing forward his Conquests against Saladin, and above all, to take Jerusalem, which was the main End of this Crusade; on the other, the Jealousie of State, and the Fear of the Armes of Philip, whom in his Conscience, he knew to be most justly Exasperated against him, the Distrust which he had of the French which were left behind, under the Command of the Duke of Burgundy, the great Friend of the Marquis the Prince of Tyre, his mortal Enemy, and above all, his Avarice, which was his ruling Passion, and the Covetousness of drawing immense summs of Money from the Sarasin Nobility, whom he detained Prisoners, and from Saladin himself, who continualy sollicited him for a Peace; all these Passions put him into great Discomposures of Mind, and he was under very strong Temp­tations of making some Truce with the Sarasins, and passing immediately in­to Europe. But it must be said to the Glory of this King, who doubtless was one of the bravest of his Age, that at length his most no [...]e Passion, which was the Love of Glory, and it may be also, that which he had for the good of Re­ligion prevailed over the rest, and in Conclusion, carried him to the War, which he recommenced in the most glorious manner in the World.

He employed some six Weeks in repairing the Breaches of Acre, and in re­freshing his Army, which after the Retreat of Marquis Conrade, and almost all the Italians, and many other Crusades, whom either Poverty or Weariness, or Discontent, caused to forsake this lingring War, yet consisted in above one hundred thousand Men. After which, towards the latter end of August, he be­gan to move, and took the right hand along the Sea Coast, to selve upon such maritim Places as Saladin had caused to be dismantled. The Fleet constantly [Page 206]plyed along the Coast with them, year 1190 to furnish them with Provisions, but he had also on his left hand the Army of Saladin, who coasted along the Mountains, to molest him by continual Skirmishes in his March, and to watch some favourable Opportunity to give him Battle upon any notable Advantage; and upon the seventh of September, the Infidel thought he had found the lucky Moment at the Pass of a River, which dischargeth it self into the Sea near Antipatris. For Saladin, who had above three hundred thousand Men in his Army, had divided them into three Bodies, one of which was posted on this side the River, to op­pose the Passage of the Christians; another was ranged on the further Bank, to the intent that if the first Body should be broaken, they might be ready to charge such as should attempt to pass the River; Saladin himself with the third, which was by much the greatest, and composed of the choicest of all his Troops, kept himself in the Coverture of the Mountains on the left of the Christian Army, ready to fall upon the Rereguard, at such time as the Van should be ingaged with his other Troops in disputing the Pass of the River.

King Richard, who had stayed some days at Cesarea, as well to refresh his Army, as to repair the Ruines of that Place, no sooner came within View of the River, but that he saw it on both sides imbanked with his Enemies, he resolved therefore to give them Battle; both in regard there was no stopping to loose the Pass, nor no retreating without manifest Danger of being sur­rounded, and put into some Disorder by retireing. Now as he marched always in Battalia, for fear of being surprized, his Army was instantly drawn into such Order as was convenient. The Valiant James d' Avesnes that day com­manded the Van, with what remained of the Danes, Brabanters, Flemings, and Hollanders. The King led the Body of the Battle, where were the English, the Normans, the Poiteuins, the Gascons, and the Levantine Troops; near his Per­son was the Young Henry Count of Champagne, his Nephew, who to the Preju­dice of what he owed to King Philip his Soveraign, who was also his Uncle; this young Prince being born of the Sister of the King, the Daughter of Queen Eleonor and Lewis the Young, was intirely devoted to King Richard. The Rere­guard was commanded by the Duke of Burgundy, General of the French Army, who was accompanied by the Templers and the German Troops, who followed Leopold the Archduke of Austria, who never abandoned the French, but were most strictly united with them during this Crusade. So soon as the Armies came within View, which was about Noon, the Combat was not long defer­red; For James d' Avesnes, who was one of the bravest and most prudent Cap­tains of his Age, charged so furiously upon the first Squadrons of the Enemies, who were posted on this side the River, that he broak into them twice, over­turning and killing all that opposed his Passage: But being transported with the heat of his Courage, as he returned to the third Charge, followed but by a few, in comparison of that fearful Number of those who succeeded in the place of the broaken Squadrons, he received a terrible Blow with a Scymiter, which cut off his Leg; notwithstanding which he sustained himself by the force of his invincible Courage, and failed not still to fight and to Slay on the right and the left, all such as durst venture within the reach of his dreadful Sword, till at last, that also with the Sword fell by another unfortunate Blow of the Scymi­ter, whereupon those cowardly Infidels fell upon him, and by a thousand Wounds gave him a glorious Death, after he had opened the Way to Victory by that Carnage which he had made of the most daring of the Sarasins, and by the Flight of the more Cowardly.

For Richard, who sustained him, and who heard him a moment before his Death, cry out aloud, Brave King, come and revenge my Death, all in Fury at his Fall, entred at the Breach which this illustrious Deceased had made, and fell in like a Thunderclap among the thickest of the Enemies, where the Flemings, mad even to dispair to have lost their General, already made a dreadful Slaugh­ter among them, that unable to stand the dreadful Shock, they turned their Backs, and sled amain towards the Mountains to save themselves. So that the Bank being on this side cleared of the Enemies, this valiant Prince, without gi­ving the couragious English leave to cool one Moment, threw himself into the River, which at this time was but very low, and drawing by his Example, all [Page 207]his Battail after him, and the Vanguard, who now had no other General, year 1191 he ad­vanced towards that great Body of Sarasins, who pretended to defend the other Bank. This he did with so much Resolution, that they had not the Considence to expect him, but instantly dispersed themselves and sled, the King not offering to put himself to the trouble to pursue them; so that finding himself Master of both the Banks of the River, where no Enemy appeared, he believed he was in perfect Possession of a compleat Victory, when he found himself mistaken, and perceived at a great Distance on the other side of the River, a prodigious Cloud of Dust, mingled with Darts and Arrows, which might be seen sly from all Quarters, as also one might hear a confused noise of the Instruments of War, the cryes of Men, and the neighing of Horses: This was occasioned by the greatest part of the Army of the Sarasins, commanded by Saladin himself, who descend­ing from the Mountains into the Plain, had surrounded the Arrere-guard, which he believed was at too great a distance to be secured by the main Battle: For Sa­ladin, who was a great Captain, had cut them off so much to his Advantage, and had them so in the plain Field, that he promised himself an assured Victo­ry, and doubted not but he should certainly either cut them in pieces, or force them to surrender at Descretion. But he quickly found that he had to do with People who were Masters in the Trade of War, who having without any Con­fusion, ranged themselves into four Battalions, sustained on the right and left by what Cavalry they had, formed the Face of a Battle every way, and with little Loss sustained all the Efforts of the Sarasins, who believed themselves already Conquerours, till such time as Richard advertised of the Danger of these gal­lant Men, quickly repassing the River, came running at full Speed to their As­sistance.

Then it was, that for some time the Combat began to be more surious and bloody than it was before, the two Kings by their Voice and Gesture, but much more by their Example, animating their Souldiers to aspire to Victory. For af­ter having done all that could be expected from two of the most able Captains in the World, Providing against all Events, giving out necessary Orders, and themselves in the Charge giving the the first Blows, it happened that in the Rencounter, knowing each other by those Marks which distinguished them from the rest, they both hit upon the same thought, and each of them believing he had sound an Enemy worthy of himself, and whom with honour he might com­bat, both as a Souldier and a King; they both believed that the general Victory would depend upon their particular Encounter, and that he whom Fortune should declare her Favourite, would not fail of having the Glory of singly ob­taining the Victory. So both of them, at the same time, charging his Arm with a strong Lance, they furiously ran one against the other, and being both of them most Stout and Valiant Men, admirably mounted, and animated with an ardent desire of Glory, wherein Hatred had the least Share, the Shock was extreme Rude and Violent, their Lances flew into a thousand Splinters, and Ri­chard was something disordered with the mighty Blow which he received, but he had managed his Lance with so much Adress and Force, that he overthrew both Horse and Man upon the Ground: This raised a mighty Shout from both the Armies, as if Saladin had been slain; and the Sarasins came tumbling in Shoals about him, so thick, either to relieve him if alive, or to carry him off if he were dead, that Richard, who was approaching with his Sword, advanced to finish his Victory, was constrained to let it fall upon less considerable Ene­mies, of whom he made a most horrible Slaughter, for their interposing betwixt him and Glory. Saladin, the goodness of whose Armes had saved his Life, sore­ly bruised in Body, and tormented with the Shame of his Fall, being mounted upon a fresh Horse, did by his speedy Flight prevent a worse Destiny, and left the Christians in possession of a cheap and perfect Victory. For seeing that a great part of his Men, frightned by the Belief they had that he was slain, had already found their Heels, and that the rest being altogether in Confusion and Disorder, retreated before the Enemy, he thought now no longer of any thing but how to save himself, and after him the whole Army thought it no Disgrace to make the best hast they could from Death and Danger, which fol­lowed them closely at the Heels. Thus the Christian Army remained Victorious [Page 208]on all sides, year 1191 and with so great a loss of the Enemies, that what in the Battle, and what in the Pursuit, above fourscore thousand of them were slain, and a­mong them thirty two Emirs were found among the Dead on the Field of the Battle; so great a Victory cost the Christians but a very few private Soldiers, and not one Man of Condition, except the valiant James d' Avesne, who was slain at the beginning of the Battle of the Vanguard.

But it must be said, that if King Richard knew how to vanquish in this fa­mous Day, with all the Glory which can be gained upon a like Occasion, he had Hanibal's Misfortune, not to have the Art to make Advantage of his Victo­ry: For if instead of amusing himself with Rebuilding the Maritim Towns, which Saladin had ruined, which might have been more commodiously done at another Season, he had marched straight to Jerusalem, most assuredly he might have taken it without Resistance, by reason that Saladin was fled among the Mountains, and those who were left there for the Defence of the Place, not be­ing able to hope to be Relieved, and fearing to meet with the same Measure, which those who had so obstinately defended Acre, would scarcely have had the Courage to defend it against him. But whether it were his Prosperity, and the excessive Joy, with which so great a Victory had disturbed his Mind, which made him incline to tast the Pleasure of being so great a Conqueror, or whe­ther it were, that after having done very well, one naturally loves to take the more easy part, and not to hazard that Glory which one hath already acquired; certain it is, that this is a Fault with which almost in all Ages, one hath occasion to reproach the greatest Captains; and it is observable, that most frequently they have lost the Opportunity of finishing a War, by attacking, after great Suc­cess, the Enemy, and following the fortunate Blow which they had given. Thus King Richard, after so fair a Victory, lost the rest of the Year in re-building and re-peopling the Maritim Towns, and especially Jaffa, whither he caused the two Queens to come; and where in that time he ran a far greater Danger than he he had done in besieging of Jerusalem.

One Day as he was hunting, he with five or six of his Gentlemen, fell into a great Ambuscade of the Sarasins, where he had been infalibly taken and lead Captive to Saladin, if one of the Lords who accompanied him, whose Name was William de Pourcellets, a Gentleman of Provence, who was wholly devoted to his Service, had not done an Action which History ought to recommend to Po­sterity, as a most illustrious Example of that inviolable Fidelity which Servants owe to their Masters, and much more Subjects to their Soveraigns, though to the hazard of their Lives: For seeing the King, who valiantly defended himself with mighty Blows of his Sword, in danger to be taken, or slain, as already four of the Company were, who lay extended upon the Grass at their Masters Feet, he cried out in the Language of the Sarasins, I am the King: Whereupon, all of them desirous to have a share in the taking of so great a King, ran to him, and gave King Richard the liberty to save himself, whilest without regarding a­ny others, they all fell with Precipitation upon him whom they took for the King. Saladin, who had nothing of the Barbarian in his Conduct, acting like a generous Prince, treated his Prisoner according to the merit of so brave an Acti­on: And King Richard for his part, failed not to recompence him with Honours proportionable to his Deserts, for he gave in Exchange for him ten of the greatest and richest Noblemen among his Prisoners, to manifest the Esteem which he had for this brave Man, whom alone he valued at the rate of ten Princes, for whose Ransoms he might have expected very great Riches and Treasures. This was the Glory, which by his Virtue, this gallant Man acqui­red for himself whilest living, and which dying he bequeathed to his illustrious House, which to this day preserves its Lustre, and maintains its Rank among the most Ancient and the most Noble of Provence.

All this time Saladin ceased not to lay all the Country Wast, and thereby to take away all manner of Subsistence from the Christians; as also to ruine all the Cities of Palestine except Jerusalem and two or three strong Fortresses; whilest Richard unprofitably wasted his time in rebuilding those Places, which being de­molished, could give no trouble to his principal Design. He also suffered him­self to be amused by a Treaty of Peace, extremely Advantageous to him, which [Page 209] Saphadin the Brother of Saladin pretended to negotiate between them, year 1191 by which he proposed to the King to relinquish to him all the Country on this side Jordan to the Sea, provided that Ascalon, which was to be demolished, should apper­tain to neither Party. These Offers seemed so Advantageous to Richard who was already imbroiled with the French under the Duke of Burgundy, that he was very much disposed to conclude with Saphadin. But at length he perceived that he was deluded, and that the Barbarian, more cunning than honest, had not begun this Negotiation but to gain time, and to throw him upon the Winter. He thereupon fell into an extreme Rage, and as Rage is one of the worst of Councellors, which puts Men upon acting without any certain Rules or Mea­sures, to satisfy this inpetuous Passion, he blindly followed its Conduct, and at that unseasonable time of the Year undertook the Siege of Jerusalem, which if he had consulted Reason, he ought to have done, and might happily have effected it, three or four Months before. year 1192 He went therefore with Precipitation enough in the Month of January, with the whole Army, already much diminished by the departure of many of the Crusades, who were displeased with his Delays of Peopling, Planting, and Rebuilding, in which he consumed the Summer, and pas­sing by Rama, which Saphadin in his Retreat had demolished, he advanced with­in three or four Leagues of Jerusalem. All the Souldiers witnessed an excessive Joy, to find themselves within View of that City, where they hoped shortly to worship before the Sacred Sepulchre of Jesus Christ, so great an Assurance had they of the Victory. But when the Counsel was assembled, the Passion of King Richard being something cooled, and the Matter debated in cold Blood, the greatest part of the Captains adjudged that the Enterprise was too rash to hope that it should Prosper. There it was remonstrated, That the Town was very Strong, and well provided, that Saladin was there in Person with the choicest of his Troops, not at all doubting but that there he was in a Condition of Security, as Affairs then stood, the Season being such, that an Army could not possibly undertake a Siege, without putting themselves, against all the Rules of Art and War, into a most mani­fest Danger of being Ruined; That in effect, the Country being intirely ruined by the Wast, which Saladin had made, there was not Subsistence to be found for one single day for the Army; and that it being in the deep of Winter, there was no probability of getting Provision by the Sea. And for that extraordinary Ardor which the Soldiers shewed, it ought to be suspected, by reason that one might well fear, that so soon as they had visited the Holy Sepulchre, they would quit Palestine to return into their respective Countries, aand abandon the new Conquests to the Sarasins, who would then easily re­cover what had been taken from them. And for these Reasons, It was concluded to defer the Siege till the Spring should be advanced, and in the mean time to continue the Fortification of the places which had been Demolished, and above all, the City of Asca­lon, which was infinitely Commodious, for hindring the Succours which might come to the Enemy out of Egypt, and to receive such as might arrive for the Assistance of the Crusades out of Europe.

This Resolution was no sooner taken than it was put in Execution, though with an unconceivable Displeasure to the Souldiers, and above all to the French, who openly murmured against Richard, whom they did not stick to accuse of having a secret Understanding with Saladin. They said boldly, That Saladin had never shut himself within the Walls of Jerusalem, if he had not been very well assured that he had nothing to fear from such an obliging Enemy. And that without all question, he was ready, had the Army but once faced it, to quit the Place, and that the Garrison would either quickly have followed him, or have Surrendred, fearing to be abandoned by him, like those who so bravely de­fended Acre, to the Descretion and Mercy of the Vanquisher. But however it were, so soon as the Army came to Rama, a great part of it disbanded, the most of the French retiring to Jaffa, Tyre, and Acre; but this did not hinder King Richard to pursue the Resolution which had been taken, to go and fortify Asca­lon, whither he went acompanied with the Count de Champagne, his Nephew, who continued always constantly faithful to him. The Dukes of Burgundy and Austria also went thither with him, but it was not long before they left him; the Austrian, because he was afresh unworthily, as he thought, treated by him, [Page 210]for refusing to take one part of the Town to Fortify, year 1192 which caused him, with all his Germans, to retire into his own Country; the Burgundian, because ha­ving desired him to lend him some Money for the payment of his Troops, he briskly refused him in Terms very disobliging, which caused the Duke, who before had no great Kindness for King Richard, to carry away the rest of the French to Acre; in a little time after which, there happened an Accident which occasioned a mighty Change in the Face of Affairs.

The Pisans and the Genoese, to whom Quarters were assigned in that City, and who had for a long time quarrelled each other, came at last to open Hostilities, and in the Fray had committed great Slaughters one upon the other. The Genoese, who had always joyned with the French, in taking part with the Marquis Conrade, called him in to their Assistance; but the King of England, to whose Service the Pisans were devoted, came so expeditiously with his Army to their Succour, that Conrade, who was already incamped before the Town, find­ing himself too weak to make any Resistance, was constrained to draw off again to Tyre. And within a few days after, about the end of April, as the Marquis returned from the Bishop of Beauvais, who had treated him at a Dinner, he was slain in the open Street by two Assassins of the Old Man of the Mountain: The Prince so called was Lord of a little Estate situated in the Mountains of Phoenicia, between Tortosa and Tripolis, which consisted in ten Castles, built upon most in­accessible Rocks, and in some few Towns, which stood in the most fair and de­licate Valleys which lay among these Mountains. These People, who from a Persian Word were called Assissins or Capyciens, consisted in about sixty thousand Souls, who came from the Confines of Persia near Babylon, some four or five hundred Years before, about such time as the Arabians, the Successors of Ma­homet, rendred themselves Masters of the East, and having possessed themselves of these Mountains, whose Avenues they had rendred inaccessible, they had so well fortified them, that till this very time they had maintained their Liberty independent from either the Caliphs, the Sultans, or the Kings of Jerusalem. Their Prince was Elective, who took no other Name but that of the Ancient, or the Old Man, as a Mark not of his Age, but of his Authority and Power.

And indeed that was so great, and he was so obeyed by his Subjects, that there was no manner of Danger to which they did not freely expose themselves in the Execution of his Commands, tho the most unjust and barbarous in the World, even to throwing themselves headlong from any Precipice, upon the least signi­fication that such was his Pleasure. So much power had this false Belief upon their Spirit, which they had by Tradition received from their Ancestors, and in which they took great Care to Educate their Children, that by dying in this manner, in Executing without Exception or Difference, what was commanded them by the Ancient, they should pass imediately to the injoyment of a Life in­finitely Happy in the Heavens. So that when he sent them to the Court of any Prince, either Christian or Sarasin, who had disobliged him, with a Command to dispatch him, there was no sort of Disguise or Artifice, no manner of Treache­ry which they would not make use of, to perform his execrable Commands, without ever flinching at the most cruel Torments, which they might expect to Suffer; and in the midst of which, they would manifest a certain Pleasure, that they had with Fidelity acquitted themselves of their Commission.

It is certainly very strange, that the Princes who had so much Interest to ex­terminate such a pernicious Nation, should so long time permit them, not only to have a Being, but looking upon them as it were, as Masters of their Lives, by the Fear which they had of these Assassins, they made them continual Presents, thereby to gain their Favour to permit them to live. For never any except the Templers, were so bold as once to offer to attack them; but they valiantly set upon them, entred their Country, and obliged them to pay the yearly Tribute of two thousand Crowns, to secure their Villages from being Plundred; but in this Prosperity of their Armes, they did an Action so Base and Wicked, as di­servedly drew upon them the Hatred and the Curse of God and Men. For du­ring the Reign of Amauri King of Jerusalem, the Old Man of the Mountain, who was a Man of Sense, having compared the Gospel with the Alcoran, sent to let that King Understand, that he with all his People, were ready to embrace [Page 211]the Christian Religion, provided that at the same time, year 1192 that he was received into the Liberty of the Children of God by Baptism, he might also be freed from that Tribute which he was constrained to pay to the Templers. The King, who offered to make the Templers an Equivalent to the loss they might hereby sustain, made no doubt, but that they would with Joy receive a Pro­position so advantageous to all Christians, but especially to Princes, who had always reason to fear all things from these Desperadoes; but Avarice, which had already begun to corrupt that Order,, so far blinded them, that one of the Knights, upon whom the great Master would never permit Justice to be done, assassinated the Ambassadour, who was come to propose a Condition so just and reasonable. This so exasperated these People, that they became more obstinate in their Mahometanism, more Enemies to the Christians, and more Assassins than ever they had been before.

It was for such a kind of Injustice that these two Russians murdered the Mar­quis Conrade, Prince of Tyre, for a ship loaden with rich Merchandise which be­longed to a Subject of the Old man of the Mountain being forced by a Tempest to put into the Port of Tyre, the Marquis caused her to be seized, and put the Master of her to death for complaining of the Injustice which was done him. The Prince of the Assassins sending to demand Satisfaction and Restitution of the Ship and Goods, and Reparation for the Death of his Subject the Marquis made a laughing matter of it at the first, but upon a Second demand, he com­manded one of the Envoys, to be thrown into the Sea. This so incensed the old man, that he sent two of his Devotes to Tyre, who there counterfeited to re­nounce Mahometanism and got themselves baptized the better to cover and ena­ble them to execute their Treason; After some time they found means to get into the Marquis his Retinue, and ordinarily to attend him wherever he went; and hereby obtained an Opportunity of stabbing him as he returned from Din­ner from the Bishop of Beauvais; and though they were put to the most exquisite Torments which could be suffered, and roasted alive, yet would they never accuse any Person, or confess who it was that set them on to commit such a horrible Murther. There were some however who failed not to suspect King Richard, who was known to be his declared Enemy, and the report was so strong that it was written to King Philip the August, and he was assured that this Prince with whom he had had such great differences, had hired the Old man of the Mountain to commit this Assassinate upon the Marquis.

There cannot indeed be too much Precaution to preserve the Sacred Persons of Kings upon which depends the Welfare of their Dominions; and upon this occasion, Philip took Guards about his Person, to protect himself from a like Treason, and such damnable Attempts. But neither History nor Historian ought so far to take the particular part either of Princes or Nations, as to disin­gage himself of that Duty which he owes to truth; and for the Interest I have in that, I think my self obliged tosay, That though King Richard neither lo­ved King Philip nor the Marquis yet nevertheless he was, not at all culpable of these horrid Crimes of which some have with so much Injustice and so little Truth accused him, and endeavoured to blacken his Memory. And indeed the Prince of the Mountains did in a short time after wholly justisie and acquit him of this suspicion, by the Testimony of his Authentick Letters, wherein he de­clared the true cause of this Murther of the Marquis, according to the manner which I have before recounted. And one ought with Truth to avow, that considering the Natural Humour and Inclination of King Richard, he could not be capable of so black a Treason; for although he was extreme Violent, Im­petuous and mighty Impatient of Injuries and Affronts, yet he had a great and generous Soul, and made Profession openly and like a Gallant man to attack such as he believed he ought to esteem his Enemies, and was never known to have recourse to base and Ignominous Ways of taking his Revenge. And this great Courage not only taught him to despise all these false Reports, but also to draw all those advantages which an able Polititian could make of such an untoward Ac­cident, in the baseness whereof he knew he had no share. For he managed the matter so well, that without much difficulty he perswaded the Princess Isabella, the Widow of Marquis Conrade, to marry Henry Count of Champagne, to whom in [Page 212]regard of his Adherence to him, year 1191 he was resolved at his return to leave all that remained to the Christians of the Holy Land, the Promise which he made to the Princess to make her Queen of Jerusalem by the Exclusion of Guy of Lusignan, was the thing she most passionately desired, was the most powerful reason to induce her to this Marriage. Nor was it difficult for him to make good his Promise, in regard that on the one hand Count Henry was extremely beloved by the great men of the Coun­try, who had no manner of kindness for Lusignan; and on the other that he promi­sed him in Exchange for a Kingdom, which was almost wholly lost, to give him that of Cyprus, provided he payed to the Templers a certain Summ of Mo­ney for which he had engaged it to them. This despoiled Prince, whose For­tune absolutely depended upon his Protector, willingly received this Offer; so that shortly after, the Marriage was celebrated between the Count du Cham­pain and the Princess Isabella, who from that time took upon her the Title of the Queen of Jerusalem, although Henry out of Modesty would pretend to no­thing higher than that of Prince. Thus all the Forces of the Realm being uni­ted by this Accomodation, Richard put himself at the Head of them, and be­gan the Champaign early in the Month of June, by the Siege of Darum which he took in four days, being one of the strongest Fortresses which Saladin had; and after the taking of several other places of less Importance, which he put into the Hands of his Nephew, he returned to Ascalon, where the Duke of Bur­gundy joyned him with the French Troops under his Command. After which to save his Reputation, and that it might not appear to have been his Fault that Jerusalem was not taken, he seemed resolved to besiege and take it in good Ear­nest, which caused a mighty joy throughout the Army, which seemed to breath nothing but the consummating of that glorious Enterprise. For this purpose he parted from Ascalon, and advanced to Bethanopolis between Jaffa and Jerusa­salem, to the same place where he was posted before, when he had a former Design of besieging the City. When he arrived there he understood that a Part of the Army of the Sarasins, was encamped behind the neighbouring Moun­tains, with a Design to fall upon him, when he should be about making his Lodgements; whereupon he went and briskly fell upon them, and that with so much Fury and so little Expectation, that he cut the greatest part of them in pieces, and put the rest to Flight, taking all their Baggage, and so returned loa­den with Booty to the Camp; whilest this happened news was brought him, that the Caravan of Egypt guarded with above ten thousand men with all sorts of Mu­nitions for the Relief of Jerusalem, was advancing thither and at no great dist­ance; whereupon taking five thousand Horse, he marched upon the Eve of St. John Baptist to surprize them and charged them so Impetuously, that after ha­ving slain the greatest part of the Convoy, with the loss of not above seventeen or eighteen Horsemen, and dissipated the rest, he took betwixt four and five thousand Camels, and an Infinite Number of other Beasts of Burden, charged with Gold, Silver and precious Merchandises, not only for Necessity but de­light, such as come from the Indies by the Arabian Gulph to Egypt. And this great Booty he destributed liberally among the Army without reserving any thing for himself which was more then ever he had done in all the former Battles which he had gained.

And in Truth it seemed very resonable that, after two such great Victories, and the taking of such a rich Convoy, the taking of Jerusalem could not be a thing to be doubted; but the Joy which possessed the whole Army which with incredible Ardor undertook that Enterprise, was presently after changed into an Excessive Grief, when the Resolution of returning to Ascalon was declared to them, as the Advice of twenty Captains whom Richard had chosen to delibe­rate concerning the Siege of Jerusalem, whilest he marched to attack the Cara­van. For they all concluded, that the Siege was not by any means fit to be un­dertaken; alledging many weak and feeble reasons, but concealing the true ones upon which it was grounded, which was that the King of England, had strong­ly resolved to return to his own Dominions; and that all which he had done was but to amuse the World and to make a shew, as if he would besiege Jerusalem, For he had received advice two several times, after Easter by two Expresses from England, that his Brother John, having by force displaced and driven [Page 213]out of the Realm, the Bishop of Ely his Chancellor, year 1192 and the Principal Officers of the Crown, manifestly intended to make himself King; he was also assured that he was powerfully protected by the King of France, who was ready by force to take Vexin, because it was refused to be surrendred to him, according to the Articles of Messina. Richard who was extreme hasty, would have im­mediately imbarked himself, leaving to the Count de Champagne, with the Places in Palestine, three hundred men at Arms, and two thousand English Foot, to­gether with the Forces of the Country for his Defence. But a certain Ecclesi­astick, a very able man, who was near his Person, and in whom he reposed very much Confidence, perswaded him to deferr his Departure for a little time, that so he might save his Honor, by making some Movement by which the World might be perswaded that it was not his Fault that Jerusalem was not taken; and upon this Account it was, that he did all that is before mentioned, and that he would have those twenty Captains of whom he was very well assured, deter­mine the Affair concerning the Siege of Jerusalem, who by no means approved it; but urged, that it was much better to continue the Fortifications of As­calon and Gaza, which were the two Keys of the Realm towards Egypt, and by that means to secure themselves from the Attempts of Saladin, before they un­dertook the Siege of the Capital City. So that Richard seemed only to deferr it upon the Opinion of so many knowing men who were chosen from among the Templers and Knights of the Hospital, the Lords of the Country, and se­veral of those who come from Europe; after which he declared publickly, that since it was judged inconvenient at that time to attempt the Siege of Jerusalem, he would there leave thee Count de Champagne his Nephew to undertake it in due time; and that for himself he was obliged to return to defend his Domini­ons, against such as laid hold of this Advantage of his Absence to Enterprize a­gainst him and to invade them.

It is impossible to express the Mischief which this Imprudent Declaration oc­casioned, which he did before he had perfected his Treaty, with Saladin which was then a Foot; for Saladin seeing the Danger he was in to lose all, was con­tented to have some and to yield the rest to the Christians, upon most advan­tageous Conditions: But so soon as he perceived that he had nothing to fear from that quarter, and that upon Richard's resolving to depart, the whole Army would Instantly disband; he held so firm and fierce, that a Truce in such a manner as he pleased, was all that could be gained from him; a Truce unwor­thy of the Reputation and Courage of a King of England. the Army of the Crusades being herewith most furiously inraged, and almost mad, to see them­selves robbed of the Glory of delivering the Holy Sepulchre of Jesus Christ, which they had with so much Danger, come so far to search after, disbanded of its one accord, the greatest part of them thinking now of nothing but returning into their own Country, bestowing a thousand Curses upon King Richard, whom they accused more than ever, to have assassinated the Prince of Tyre, to have attempted against the Life of Philip the August, and sold the Holy Land to Saladin, with whom he held a Correspondence. Richard by the Grandeur of his Soul and his Natural Courage, gave himself no manner of trouble, for what was the Effect of Rage and Anger, and the Malicious pleasure, which men take to speak Evil of those whom Fortune or Merit have elevated above them or what they spoak so outragiously against his Conduct in this War; and, indeed in a short time after he made it evident by a most glorious Action, that this last Accusation was as great a Calumny as the two former.

For as he arrived at Acre, where the Duke of Burgundy with the French, were also come to give order for their Return, he received advice that Saladin, understanding that the Christian Army was broken up, had laid Siege to Jaffa; Upon this news he rallied all the Troops he could, and dividing them into two Bodies, he gave one to the Count de Champagne, with Orders to march by Land, and with the other he himself went by Sea, with the choice Lords of the French and Flemings who would follow him upon this great occasion. Those who manifested the greatest Ardour, and whom among others he chose to be near his Person, were Gauchier de Chastillon, who had lost his Brother in the Siege of Acre. the Counts of Cleves, and Limbourg, the Baron of Stanford, Va­leran [Page 214]de Luxenburg, Guy de Montfort, Bartholomew de Mortemar, Raoul de Maule­on, William de L' Estang, Andrew de Savigni, Henry de Nevile, Dreux de Mello, and William de Barres. He was for some time stayed by contrary Winds, and did not arrive, till precisely the Evening of that day, wherein those who had retired into the Castle, after the taking of the City, had promised to surren­der, if they were not before that time relieved. The Sarasins seeing him coming, had put themselves in Battalia, upon the Bank to hinder his Descent; and the greatest part looking upon such an Attempt as impossible, advised the King to return: But this undaunted Prince, perceiving that the Castle yet held out, causing his Shallop to row close to the Shoar, was the first that leapt into the Sea, and drew the rest after him, rather by the extreme Dan­ger to which they saw him expose himself, than by the Force of such a brave Exam­ple; and after he had routed the Sarasins who fled instantly amazed at his pro­digious Boldness, he stormed the Town by the same Breaches which they had made, and cutting in pieces those who besieged the Castle; he constrained Sala­din with the remainder of his Troops, to retire in great disorder to the Moun­tains,

But this was not all; for three days after, seven thousand chosen men of the most brave of all Saladin's Army, thinking to surprize him early in the Mor­ning in his Quarters while he was asleep, taking the Alarm he so quickly ralli­ed what Troops of Infantry could be gotten together on the sudden, and for­med them so well into a square Battalion, that they durst never so much as ap­proach him; for he had so ranged his men, that between every Pike, who kneeled with one knee upon the Ground, two Cross-Bows were placed, one of which charged the Cross-Bows, whilest the other let fly the Mortal Arrows among them without ceasing; and at last seeing the Enemies disordered by the great Showers of those dreadful forked Arrows, and that they did nothing but wheel about his Battalion which had a Front every way, he by an excess of Courage, or rather Temerity threw himself on Horse-Back into the midst of his Enemies, although he had not with him above ten Lords, who were mounted as he was, the Cheif of which were the Count de Champagne, the Earl of Leicester, Bartho­lomew Mortemar, Raoul de Mauleon, Andrew de Savigni, William de L' Estang, and Henry de Nevile. There he did shew the Prodigies of Valour with those Generous Lords, who by his Example combated like so many inraged Lyons. He relieved Robert, Earl of Leicester, who happened to be dismounted; he cut off the Arms of those who had seized upon the Lord Mauleon to make him Pri­soner; his Sword like Lightning flew every way, carrying Death and Ter­ror along with it among his Enimies, and at last seeing the General who com­manded the Sarasins, who was animating his men to the Combat, and reproach­ed them of Cowardice to suffer such a handful to triumph over them, he ran up to him and with a mighty Blow of his Falchion cut off his Head and right Arm close by the Shoulder, so that he fell dead among the Horses Feet. This dread­ful Blow so terrified the Sarasins, that they durst not come near him, but at­tacked him at a distance with their Arrows; so that at last weary of their Slaughter he returned to his Camp, the Caparison of his Horse being bristled with the Enemies Arrows of whom he left seven hundred Extended upon the Earth without having lost any more then two of his Men.

In truth such a Noble and Heroick Action, made it most apparent that there was no manner of Understanding between him and Saladin, against whom, if there had, certainly he would never have fought with such apparent Hazard of his Person to drive him out of Jaffa, after he had taken it. But all this did not hinder, but that Saladin, who saw very well that Richard, who was fallen sick after this Combat, was not only resolved but necessitated to return into Eu­rope, obliged him in Conclusion to accept of a Truce with such Conditions as he was pleased to give, as if he had been the Conqueror. They were these. That the Christians should demolish all the places which they had siezed upon, since the taking of Acre, and above all Ascalon. That all the Coast from Tyre to Jaffa, should be in the Power of the Christians, that the rest should remain in the Possession of Saladin, except Ascalon, which upon the Expiration of the Truce, should fall to his [Page 215]Share who should then be most potent; year 1192 and that Richard should be satisfied from him for the Expences which he had been at in the Fortifications of that Place. That during the Truce, which was to begin at Easter, in the following Year, and to continue for three Years, three Months, three Weeks, and three Days, the Christians should have liberty, in small numbers, freely to enter into Jerusalem, to make there their Devo­tions at the Holy Sepulchre.

Thus this great Crusade, wherein all the Forces of Germany, France and Eng­land were employed under three of the greatest Princes of the Universe, against one single Conqueror, ended, at last, in nothing more than the Taking of one poor Town, which cost the Lives of an infinite number of brave Men; the least part of which, if they had been under the Command of one single Captain, might with ease have conquered the whole Eastern Empire. But it is never to be expected, or hoped, but that Hatred, Envy, Ambition, Jealousie of State, and Diversity of Interests, which never fail to happen among plurality of Com­manders, should ever suffer these kind of Unions to continue firm or long: And it would be a kind of Prodigy, if they should not, according to their na­ture, produce those Divisions and Animosities, which alone, without the As­sistance of other Mischiefs, are capable of ruining the greatest Enterprises, and the bravest Armies: Whereas one single Chief, with far less number, shall cer­tainly triumph over the greatest Multitude, leagued against him, provided he hath but Patience to permit Discords to enter into the Camp of the Confede­rates, and will but give them leave to overthrow themselves.

The Truce being signed, Richard, who found himself still worse in the un­wholsom Air of Jaffa, caused himself to be removed to Caiphas; where Saladin, who had naturally a generous Soul, sent to visit him, with great Marks of Af­fection, Esteem and Respect: He also very obligingly received the Bishop of Salisbury at Jerusalem, who, with the rest of the Pilgrims, went thither, to of­fer the Vows of the King, who still continued much indisposed in his Health. And after he had most courteously entertained that Prelate, he obliged him to demand what Favour lay in his Power; and promised, he would grant it. Whereupon the Bishop requested, that, not only in the Church of the Holy Se­pulchre, but those of Nazareth and Bethlehem, there might be permitted to re­main two Latin Priests, and two Deacons, with freedom publickly to celebrate Divine Service in those places: to which Saladin without any difficulty, accor­ding to his Word, accorded. After this, the King, finding his Health in some measure re-established, repaired to Acre, where the Duke of Burgundy was dead of the Distemper, some eight Days before his Arrival: There he caused his Fleet to be rigged, upon which he embarked the two Queens, with the greatest part of his Forces; who, not long after, happily arrived in England: And about the beginning of October, he also departed, with the Displeasure of ha­ving on one side concluded a Truce, most inglorious and disadvantageous to the Christians; and on the other, with the Honour and Pleasure, at his parting, to have bestowed two Kingdoms, that of Jerusalem, which was a very piteous one, but yet a Kingdom, upon the Count de Champagne, his Nephew; and that of Cyprus, which he had conquered, upon Guy de Lusignan, in which House it con­tinued two hundred and eighty Years. Thus it was that King Richard left the Holy Land, with a Promise to these two Princes, that, upon the Expiration of the Truce, he would return with more powerful Forces; and to persuade the World that this Resolution of his was in serious Earnest, he continued still to wear the Pilgrim's Cross upon his Habit.

As for the rest, his natural Impatience and Temerity made him commit two mighty Faults, which rendred his Return very unfortunate. For first, Whereas he ought to have embarked himself like a great King, upon a gallant Fleet, that so he might return with Security, and the same Magnificence with which he came, he satisfied himself with one great Ship, in which he might easily, by Sea, have fallen either into the hands of Enemies or Pyrates; and after that, when he was at Corsu, perceiving that his Vessel was a Slug, and made no Way, he threw himself, for the more Expedition, into a Galliot, and was, by Tempest, driven into the Gulph of Venice, where he was shipwrack'd between that place and the City Aquilea; and having run a thousand Dangers in crossing through [Page 216] Germany in Disguise, year 1193 the greatest part of his Followers being taken Prisoners by the Germans, who pursued him, and laid all the Passages for him, he was, at last discovered near Vienna, by the Subjects of the Duke of Austria, his mor­tal Enemy, who made him Prisoner, and treated him with sufficient Inhumani­ty, in Revenge of the old Quarrel before Acre; and after some time he delive­red him into the hands of the Emperor Henry VI. This Prince, to cover his abominable Avarice, which made him so unjustly detain this King, only to draw a great Ransom from him, made his publick Pretence, that all this was to do Reason for what Richard had done to his Prejudice in Sicily, and for the Assassi­nate of the Marquis of Montferrat, and those other Crimes of which he had been accused in Palestine. But Richard, who was naturally cloquent, in a full Diet before the Princes of the Empire at Spire, made his Innocence so evidently appear, that the whole Assembly was moved for him, even to Tears, and in­treated the Emperor that, for the future, he might be treated like a King; which the Emperor, more out of Shame than Honour, consented to.

Pope Celestin also sollicited by the Letters of Queen Eleonor, which were all in the Style of Peter de Blois, who writ them; and by the Prayers and Intrea­ties of Gautier Archbishop of Roan, and the Bishops of Normandy; who, upon this occasion, manifested great Ardor and Affection for the Service of King Ri­chard, did all that he possibly could, to obtain his Liberty. He proceeded so far as to denounce the Anathema against the Duke of Austria, for daring to make a Prisoner of a Pilgrim, expresly contrary to an Article of the Crusade, which denounces Excommunication against such as should attempt any thing ei­ther against the Persons or Estates of such as had taken upon them the Cross. He also menaced the Emperor to interdict all his Dominions, if he did not pre­sently release this prince, who came to employ his Blood and his Fortune against the Infidels, and over whom he could pretend no sort of Right. But this had very little Effect upon the Germans, who, for a long time, had been accustomed to be in no pain for the Thunders of Rome: For, notwithstanding all these Me­naces, year 1194 poor Richard could not be set at Liberty, till, after above a Years Impri­sonment, he payed a hundred thousand Marks in Silver before his Releasment, and left fifty Hostages, among which was the Archbishop of Roan, for the Pay­ment of fifty thousand Marks more; of which, the Duke of Austria was to have twenty thousand, and the third part of the hundred thousand already received by the Emperor. So that, to raise this Sum, all England was taxed; and even the Chalices and consecrated Vessels were forced to be melted down and coyned. So far was this Prince, who was falsly accused to have sold Palestine to Saladin, from making any Advantage of the Crusade, that it is most certain, that, in this Expedition he spent an immense Treasure, to the great Impoverishment of him­self, and his whole Realm.

But as he had not made this Treaty, but whilst he was under a Force and Vio­lence, therefore, so soon as he was returned into England, he sent his Ambassa­dors to the Pope, to demand Justice from him. He desired of him, that since, by virtue of the Protection of the Holy See, it was promised to all the Crusade, that their Persons and Estates should be free from Injuries, during the whole time of their Pilgrimage, that he would, by all sorts of Canonical Ways, compel the Emperor and the Duke of Austria to set at liberty his Hostages, to restore the Money which they had so unjustly exacted from him, and to make him Sa­tisfaction for the cruel Injury which they had done him, contrary to all the Laws, both Humane and Divine. Celestin, who saw that the Treaty of the Crusade, which was universally received and confirmed, without Contradiction, was manifestly infringed in this great Article, could not refuse to do him Ju­stice. He therefore, according to the Canons, caused these two Princes to be three several times admonished to make Satisfaction in these Particulars; and seeing that they persisted obstinately to deride his Threatnings, he did anew denounce the Anathema of the Church, first against Leopold, and then against the Emperor, with all the usual Solemnities. The Duke hereupon became more obstinate, and was so far transported, as to threaten the Hostages which he had with Death. But it was not long before all the World believed, that those terrible Scourges with which the Duke was chastised, and that deplorable Accident [Page 217]which befel him, year 1193 were the evident Effects of the Anger and Justice of God Al­mighty, who would punish his Obstinacy in this World, that so he might find Mercy in the next.

And, in truth, besides that many of his Cities were destroyed, either by Fire from Heaven, or by the Waters of the Danubius, which drowned the greatest part of his Country, in which Plague and Famine made a horrible Ra­vage, one Day, when he had made a magnificent Entertainment at Gretz, to celebrate his Birth-day, his Horse falling upon him, broke his Leg; after which, a Fire in such furious manner seized upon the Part, that, unable to en­dure the violence of the pain of that terrible Inflammation, he caused it to be cut off; but the Inflammation, of whose Nature the Physicians were wholly ig­norant, mounted from his Leg, to his Thigh; and from his Thigh, expanding its Flame through his whole Body, he then acknowledged that it was the Hand of God which was upon him, confessed his Fault, delivered the Hostages of King Richard, became a Penitent, received Absolution from the Bishops, and died in the Peace of the Church, after he had, by his last Will and Testament, ordered Restitution to be made to Richard, King of England, of all the Money which he had received from him. But it is commonly to be observed, that these kind of Restitutions, with which dying Persons charge their Executors, are rarely discharged by the Living: And Pope Innocent III. who succeeded Ce­lestin, had not a little trouble with the Successors of Leopold, when he endea­voured to oblige them to the Performance of that part of his Will, the difficul­ty of Restitution persuading them against the Justice of it. But as to any thing further, it is to be observed, that neither this Leopold, nor his Successors, of whom I discourse, were at all related to those Princes who, at present, possess the Title of Austria; that Family, which, about a hundred Years after, entred into the House of Hapsbourg, being descended from the House of Alsatia, from which, that August Family, which now bears the name of the House of Austria, derives its Original.

In this time the Affairs of the Christians of the East remained in great Tran­quility in reference to the Sarasins, who willingly maintained a Truce which was so extreamly advantageous to them, and which gave them reason to hope, that in a small time they should become Masters of all the Remainder of Syria: But they happened to be something embroiled, by a kind of Civil War, which was like to break out by the Treachery of Bohemond, the third of that Name, Prince of Antioch. For, being a Man of great Ambition, little Prudence, and less Power to support it, he had recourse to unworthy Artifices and Cheats, which he made use of to oppress the Armenian Princes, his Neighbours, whose Power and Greatness, which increased every day, gave him a troublesom Jea­lousie. He had, by these Cowardly ways, made Rupin of the Mountain his Prisoner, upon pretext of a Conference, and thought to have done the same to Livon, who did not only succeed in the Power of his Brother Rupin, but was al­so more successful, and augmented that Power, by the taking of divers places from Bohemond. This Prince, after he had made an Accommodation with him, thought to have surprized him also in the same manner; and having sent to him, to desire an Interview in a certain place, he resolved there to seize upon him, and make him his Prisoner. But Livon, who followed the Maxim of those who hold, That one ought never to trust a Man who hath once violated his Faith, came to the place appointed strongly guarded, with a great number of brave Men, whom he placed in Ambuscade, in a place at a convenient distance from the place of Meeting; and then advancing, only accompanied with two Persons, according as it was concluded between them, perceiving by the Com­pany which Bohemond had with him, the Treachery which was intended, he gave the Signal to his People, who immediately came pouring in upon Bohe­mond, and surprized him, putting him into the hands of Prince Livon, who carried him Prisoner into his Dominions. Count Henry, who saw well that this Quarrel must necessarily divide all the Christians of the East, went himself into Armenia; where he was, by Livon, received with all the Respect imagi­nable, but with a strong Resolution, nevertheless, to draw all the Advantage he could possibly from his good Fortune, as indeed he did: For the Count so [Page 218]well managed the Spirit of Bohemond, year 1195 that, to re-gain his Liberty, which he made him understand, was never to be obtained, but upon these Terms, he at last consented, that Prince Raymond, his Son, should marry the Princess Alice, the Daughter of Rupin, and Neice to Livon: That Livon should hold all the Places which he had conquered in the Principality of Antioch, and that, for the future, that Principality should do Homage to Armenia. After which, Livon, by the Consent of Count Henry, took upon him the Title of King of Armenia; which was afterwards confirmed to him by the Pope and the Emperor.

It is most certain that the Sarasins might have drawn extraordinary Advan­tages from these Divisions which began to arise among the Christians; but the Divine Providence averted that Misfortune, by the Revolution which happened in the Empire of the Infidels, by the Decease of Saladin, who, amidst these Actions, died at Damascus, after he had tamed all the Rebels on this side Eu­phrates. He was certainly a Prince, notwithstanding all the Sarasin he had about him, who was possessed of Vertues and Qualities, which might well be compared with those of the most famous Conquerors of Antiquity; and who, after having performed a thousand noble Actions in his Life, did one at his Death which ought to be received by Posterity, as a most admirable Lecture of the Vanity of all Earthly Pomp and Glory: For, some Moments before his Death, calling for him who used to carry his Banner before him in all his Battles, he commanded him to tie to the Top of a Lance a Linen Shrowd, in which he was to be wrap'd at his Interment; and displaying it, as being the Standard of Death, which triumphed over so great a Prince, to make this Proclamation; This is all which the great Saladin, Vanquisher and Master of the Empire of the East, must carry with him, out of the World, of all the Treasures and the Glory which he hath acquired by so many mighty Conquests. A rare Spectacle, and most worthy to be eternally regarded by the greatest Kings, who, from hence, may see and know, that, though their Birth and Fortune have elevated them above the Le­vel of Mankind; yet Death, which will one day equal them with the meanest of their Subjects, will strip them of all the Pomp and Grandure of this World; and that nothing but the Riches of the Soul, and the Glories of their Vertue, will distinguish them from others in the Life to come.

As to the rest; This great Prince, who, by the Obligations of his Birth, and the Policy of State, upon which his Interest and his Fortune depended, had, during his Life, made publick Profession of Mahometanism, at his Death seemed not so very well satisfied of the Truth of that Sect; for, after he had dispo­sed of his Dominions in favour of his Children, he divided all his Personal Estate into three Parts, which he ordered to be equally distributed among the poor Sarasins, Jews and Christians, which should be found in all his Dominions. And this he did with an Imagination, that, at his Death, he having these three Strings to his Bow, though two should fail, he should be sure of the third; and that, though he lost two Thirds of his Alms upon two false Religions, yet the other falling upon the true, he should undoubtedly find Advantage by it, for the good of his Soul. Poor, well meaning Prince! He did not know that there is a vast difference between Temporal and Eternal Goods: And that though those are submitted to the Empire of Fortune, which gives or takes them, according as she pleases to turn her sporting Wheel; yet in these it is far otherwise, and that Eternal Goods are never exposed to Hazard and Ad­venture but they are certainly lost.

The Death of Saladin presently made a Change in the Face of Affairs throughout all Asia: For, having divided his Dominions among his twelve Sons, without leaving any thing to his Brother Saphadin, who had most faith­fully served him in all his Wars. This Prince, valiant and ambitious, resol­ved to revenge himself upon the first Opportunity; nor was it long before it was offered, and by him laid hold of: For his Nephew, to whose Share, in the Distribution, Egypt fell, being slain by a Fall from his Horse, as he was hunting, Saphadin, with Ease, made himself Master of that fair Dominion; and presently raising a powerful Army, all the Soldiers of Saladin, who had served under him, and esteemed him, infinitely running in to him, he attem­pted the Ruin of his other Nephews; and in a short time, either by Force of [Page 219]Arms, or by Treachery of their Subjects, he overthrew them all, year 1195 except the Sultan of Alepo, to whom his Subjects always preserved a most inviolable Fideli­ty. Thus, whilst the Infidels armed one against another, and thought of no­thing but how to destroy themselves, it was believed in Europe, that a fair Oc­casion was offered for the Recovery of the Realm of Jerusalem, now almost en­tirely lost; which gave occasion to a new Crusade, which was also followed by three others, as in the ensuing History may be seen.