De Expugatione Terrae Sanctae per Saladinum

[Peter1469]

The "Conquest of the Holy Land by Saladin" - an account by a survivor of the destruction of the Crusader kingdoms in the Levant, likely a Templar or Hospitaller knight..

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 by*passed. Late in September Saladin's armies camped before the Holy City itself.

The Holy City was put under siege and finally captured by a Muslim army on October 2, 1187 AD. Islam ruled over Jerusalem until the 20th century. The Christian crusaders had lost the Levant.

[Green Arrow]

On my birthday!

I love reading about Saladin. He's a fascinating figure, and that whole leadership dynamic between him and Nur ad-Din is intriguing. He gave most of his wealth to his subjects before he died. Very much a benevolent ruler from what I've read.

[Peter1469]

On my birthday!

I love reading about Saladin. He's a fascinating figure, and that whole leadership dynamic between him and Nur ad-Din is intriguing. He gave most of his wealth to his subjects before he died. Very much a benevolent ruler from what I've read.

He was very much a nice ruler considering the times.

[Mister D]

This was a good article. The author argues that the Christian military position really began to unravel after the loss of the castle at Jacob's Ford. It made Hattin possible.

Frontier Warfare in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem: The Campaign of Jacob’s Ford, 1178-79

The construction by the Latins of the fortress of Chastellet at the place known as ‘Jacob’s Ford’ or Bait el-Ahzan on the Upper Jordan between Lake Huleh and the Sea of Galilee between October, 1178, and March, 1179, and Saladin’s subsequent and ultimately successful attempt to demolish it in August, 1179, offers an interesting case history for the study of Christian-Muslim warfare in the reign of King Baldwin IV. Although the sources are not copious, they tell us enough to be able to draw some tentative conclusions about the military, economic, and religious significance of a site desired by both sides and the nature of the warfare required to make those desires a reality. The picture which emerges is far removed from the traditional images of the the gallant leper king and the chivalrous Saladin; rather it is one of grim and often desperate conflict, no less brutal and ruthless than its counterparts on western Christendom’s other frontiers in Germany and Spain. Indeed, it could not have been otherwise, for control of this crossing was absolutely crucial to both sides in a way which it had not been in the past. More than any other military event between 1174 and 1187, the loss of this fortification began the process which led to the defeat of the Christians at Hattin

http://deremilitari.org/2013/12/fron...-ford-1178-79/

[KC]

Saddam Hussein tried to turn Saladin into a national figure, ironic given Saladin's Kurdish ethnicity.