History of the Crusades

Illus -83 Tissue

INVOCATION TO MOHAMET

In the meanwhile, Kelaoun was still detained in Egypt by sickness, and feeling his end approach, the sultan sent for his son and his principal emirs ; he recommended to the latter, to serve his son as they had served himself ; and to the former, to follow up the war against the Christians without any intermission, conjuring him not to grant his remains the honor of sepulture before he had conquered the city of Ptolemais. Chalil swore to accomplish the last wishes of his father ; and when Kelaoun had closed his eyes, the ulemas and the imauns assembled in the chapel in which his remains were deposited, and read during the whole night verses from the Koran, never ceasing to invoke their prophet against the disciples of Christ. Chalil did not delay setting forward on his marchwith his army. The Franks hoped that the death of Kelaoun would give birth to some disorders among the Mamelukes ; but hatred for the Christians was a sufficient bond of union for the Mussulman soldiers ; the siege even of Ptolemais, the hope of annihilating a Christian city, stifled all the germs of discord, and consolidated the power of Chalil, whom they proclaimed beforehand the conqueror of the Franks, and the PACIFICATION OF THE MUSSULMAN RELIGION. -Book XV

We offer Beautiful Giclee Art Print Productions of all of these illustrations at HistoryoftheCrusades.net

 

ill -1 ill -2 ill -3 ill 4 ill -5 ill -6 ill -7 ill -8 ill -9 ill -10 ill -11 ill -12 ill -13 ill -14 ill -15 ill -16 ill -17 ill -18 ill -19 ill -20 ill -21 ill -22 ill -23 ill -24 ill -25 ill -26 ill -27 ill -28 ill -29 ill -30 ill -31 ill -32 ill -33 ill -34 ill -35 ill -36 ill -37 ill -38 ill -39 ill -40 ill -41 ill-42 ill -43 ill -44 ill -45 ill -46 ill -47 ill -48 ill -49 ill -50 ill -51 ill -52 ill -53 ill -54 ill -55 ill -56 ill -57 ill -58 ill -59 ill -60 ill -61 ill -62 ill -63 ill -64 ill -65 ill -66 ill -67 ill -68 ill -69 ill -70 ill -71 ill -72 ill -73 ill -74 ill -75 ill -76 ill -77 ill-78 ill -79 ill -80 ill -81 ill -82 ill -83 ill -84 ill -85 ill -86 ill -87 ill -88 ill -89 ill -90 ill -91 ill -92 ill -93 ill -94 ill -95 ill -96 ill -97 ill -98 ill -99 ill -100
The images you see are only low resolution scans from our books. We offer Beautiful Art Print Productions of all of these illustrations at HistoryoftheCrusades.net
Home All Content design images text within this site are Copyright de Haerne 2003-2004

*Notes; page 210 The Saracens, on there part, became astonished at the resistance which all their attacks met with ; so many combats, in which their innumberable multitude had not been able to obtain a decided advantage, began to give them discouragement. In the infidel army it was impossible to explain the invincible bravery of the Christian soldiers without assigning miraculas causes for it. A thousand extraordinary tales flew from mouth to mouth, and struck the imagination of the gross crowd of the Mussulmans. They believed they saw two men in every one of those with whom they fought ; in the excess of their astonishment, they persauded themselves that every warrior who fell beneath their stroke was born of himself, and returned stronger and more terrible than ever to the field of battle. The sultan of Cairo appeared to have lost all hope of taking the city by assault. . . . .On may 4th, a day fatal to the Christians, the signal for a fresh assault was given.

They were already upon the breach, when the knights of the Temple formed a rash resolution of making a sortie, and attacking the camp of the Mussulmans. They found the enemy's army drawn up in order of battle ; after a bloody conflict, the Saracens repulsed the Christians, and pursued them to the foot of the ramparts. the grand-master of the Temple was struck by an arrow and fell in the midst of his knights. The grand-master of the Hospital, at the same time received a wound which disabled him. The rout then beacme general, and all hope of saving the city was lost. There were scarcely a thousand Christian warriors left to defend the gate of St. Anthony against the whole Mussulman army.

The Christians were obliged to yield to the multitude of their enemies ; they directed their course towards the house of the Templars, situated on the seacoast. It was then that a death-pall seemed stretched over the whole city of Ptolemais ; the Saracens advanced full of fury ; there was not a street that did not become the teatre of carnage ; a battle was fought for every tower, for every place, and at the entrance of every public building ; and in all these combats, so many men were killed, that, according to the report of an historian, they walked upon the dead as upon a bridge.

As if angry heaven gave the signal for destruction, a violent storm, accompanied by hail and rain, burst over the city ; the horizon was all at once covered with such impenetrable darkness, that the combatants could scarcely distinguish the colours they fought under, or see which standard floated over the towers ; all the scourages contributed to the desolation of Ptolemais ; the flames appeared in several quarters. . . pages 212, 213, 214 The Templars castle the only place left for refuges to assemble. . .