Medieval Sourcebook:
De Expugatione Terrae Sanctae per Saladinum: Capture of Jerusalem by Saladin, 1187
[Adapted from Brundage] The Battle of Hattin decimated the
knights and soldiers of the Latin states. The remnants of the
fighting forces of the Kingdom sought refuge in the fortified
coastal cities and especially at Tyre. Through the months of July
and August, Saladin successively occupied the remaining towns,
cities, and castles of the Holy Land. His initial attack upon
Tyre failed, however, and the city was bypassed. Late in
September Saladin's armies camped before the Holy City itself.
The Holy City of Jerusalem was besieged on September 20. It was
surrounded on every side by unbelievers, who shot arrows everywhere
into the air. They were accompanied by frightening armaments and,
with a great clamor of trumpets, they shrieked and wailed, "Hai,
hai." The city was aroused by the noise and tumult of the
barbarians and, for a time, they all cried out: "True and
Holy Cross! Sepulchre of Jesus Christ's resurrection! Save the
city of Jerusalem and its dwellers!"
The battle was then joined and both sides began courageously
to fight. But since so much unhappiness was produced through sorrow
and sadness, we shall not enumerate all the Turkish attacks and
assemblies, by which, for two weeks, the Christians were worn
down.... During this time it seemed that God had charge over the
city, for who can say why one man who was hit died, while another
wounded man escaped? Arrows fell like raindrops, so that one could
not show a finger above the ramparts without being hit. There
were so many wounded that all the hospitals and physicians in
the city were hard put to it just to extract the missiles from
their bodies. I myself was wounded in the face by an arrow which
struck the bridge of my nose. The wooden shaft has been taken
out, but the metal tip has remained there to this day. The inhabitants
of Jerusalem fought courageously enough for a week, while the
enemy settled down opposite the tower of David.
Saladin saw that he was making no progress and that as things
were going he could do no damage to the city. Accordingly, he
and his aides began to circle around the city and to examine the
city's weak points, in search of a place where he could set up
his engines without fear of the Christians and where he could
more easily attack the town.... At dawn on a certain day [Sept
26] the King of Egypt (that is, Saladin) ordered the camp to be
moved without any tumult or commotion. He ordered the tents to
be pitched in the Vale of Jehosephat, on the Mount of Olives,
and on Mount joy, and throughout the hills in that region. When
morning had come the men of Jerusalem lifted up their eyes and,
when the darkness of the clouds had gone, they saw that the Saracens
were pulling up their tents as if they were going to leave. The
inhabitants of Jerusalem rejoiced greatly and said: "The
King of Syria has fled, because he could not destroy the city
as be had planned." When the turn of the matter was known,
however, this rejoicing was quickly turned into grief and lamentation.
The tyrant[Saladin] at once ordered the engines to be constructed
and balistas to be put up. He likewise ordered olive branches
and branches of other trees to be collected and piled between
the city and the engines. That evening he ordered the army to
take up arms and the engineers to proceed with their iron tools,
so that before the Christians could do anything about it, they
would all be prepared at the foot of the walls. The cruelest of
tyrants also arrayed up to ten thousand armed knights with bows
and lances on horseback, so that if the men of the city attempted
a foray they would be blocked. He stationed another ten thousand
or more men armed to the teeth with bows for shooting arrows,
under cover of shields and targets. He kept the rest with himself
and his lieutenants around the engines.
When everything was arranged in this fashion, at daybreak they
began to break down the comer of the tower and to attack all around
the walls. The archers began shooting arrows and those who were
at the engines began to fire rocks in earnest.
The men of the city expected nothing of the sort and left the
city walls without guard. Tired and worn out, they slept until
morning, for unless the Lord watch the city, he labors in vain
who guards it. When the sun had risen, those who were sleep ing
in the towers were startled by the noise of the barbarians. When
they saw these things they were terrified and overcome with fear.
Like madmen they yelled out through the city: "Hurry, men
of Jerusalem! Hasten! Help! The walls have already been breached!
The foreigners are entering!" Aroused, they hastened through
the city as bravely as they could, but they were power less to
repulse the Damascenes from the walls, either with spears, lances,
arrows, stones, or with molten lead and bronze.
The Turks unceasingly hurled rocks forcefully against the ramparts.
Between the walls and the outer defenses they threw rocks and
the socalled Greek fire, which bums wood, stone, and whatever
it touches. Everywhere the archers shot arrows without measure
and without ceasing, while the others were boldly smashing the
walls.
The men of Jerusalem, meanwhile, were taking counsel. They decided
that everyone, with such horses and arms as could be mustered,
should leave the city and march steadily through the gate which
leads to Jehosephat. Thus, if God allowed it, they would push
the enemy back a bit from the walls. They were foiled, however,
by the Turkish horsemen and were woefully defeated….
The Chaldeans [Saladin and his army] fought the battle fiercely
for a few days and triumphed. The Christians were failing so by
this time that scarcely twenty or thirty men appeared to defend
the city walls. No man could be found in the whole city who was
brave enough to dare keep watch at the defences for a night, even
for a fee of a hundred besants .With my own ears I heard the voice
of a public crier between the great wall and the outer works proclaiming
(on behalf of the lord Patriarch and the other great men of the
city) that if fifty strong and brave sergeants could be found
who would take up arms voluntarily and keep guard during the night
over the comer which had already been destroyed, they would receive
five thousand besants. They were not found....
Meanwhile, they sent legates to the King of Syria, begging him
to temper his anger toward them and accept them as allies, as
he had done for others. He refused and is reported to have given
this reply: "I have frequently heard from our wise men, the fakih,[from al-Fakih - a wise man] that Jerusalem
cannot be cleansed, save by Christian blood, and I wish to take
counsel with them on this point." Thus, uncertain, they returned.
They sent others, Balian and Ranier of Naples"' and Thomas
Patrick, offering a hundred thousand besants. Saladin would not
receive them and, their hopes shattered, they returned. They sent
them back again with others, demanding that Saladin himself say
what kind of agreement he wanted. If possible they would comply;
if not, they would hold out to the death.
Saladin had taken counsel and laid down these ransom terms for
the inhabitants of Jerusalem: each male, ten years old and over,
was to pay ten besants for his ransom; females, five besants;
boys, seven years old and under, one. Those who wished would be
freed on these terms and could leave securely with their possessions.
The inhabitants of Jerusalem who would not accept these terms,
or those who did not have ten besants, were to become booty, to
be slain by the army's swords. This agreement pleased the lord
Patriarch and the others who had money ....
On Friday, October 2, this agreement was read out through the
streets of Jerusalem, so that everyone might within forty days
provide for himself and pay to Saladin the tribute as aforesaid
for his freedom. When they heard these arrangements, the crowds
throughout the city wailed in sorrowful tones: "Woe, woe
to us miserable people! We have no gold! What are we to do? .
. ." Who would ever have thought that such wickedness would
be perpetrated by Christians? .
But, alas, by the hands of wicked Christians Jerusalem was turned
over to the wicked. The gates were closed and guards were posted.
The fakihs and kadis, [judges] the ministers
of the wicked error, who are considered bishops and priests by
the Saracens came for prayer and religious purposes first to the
Temple of the Lord, which they call Beithhalla and in which they
have great faith for salvation. They believed they were cleansing
it and with unclean and horrible bellows they defiled the Temple
by shouting with polluted lips the Muslim precept: "Allahu
akbar! Allahu akbar! . . ." [God is Great]
Our people held the city of Jerusalem for some eighty-nine years.
. . . Within a short time, Saladin had conquered almost the whole
Kingdom of Jerusalem. He exalted the grandeur of Mohammed's law
and showed that, in the event, its might exceeded that of the
Christian religion.
Source:
De Expugatione Terrae Sanctae per Saladinum, [The Capture
of the Holy Land by Saladin], ed. Joseph Stevenson, Rolls Series,
(London: Longmans, 1875), translated by James Brundage, The
Crusades: A Documentary History, (Milwaukee, WI: Marquette
University Press, 1962), 159-63
Copyright note: Professor Brundage informed the Medieval
Sourcebook that copyright was not renewed on this work. Moreover
he gave permission for use of his translations.
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© Paul Halsall December 1997
halsall@murray.fordham.edu
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