Countries and by Ekkehard of Aura and Bishop
Manasses, most of whom had come by sea to Antioch, they reached the
neighbourhood of Beirut in the early spring of 1102. To ensure their safe
passage through enemy country Baldwin sent an escort to meet them there and to
convey them to Jerusalem. After celebrating Easter at the Holy Places the
leaders prepared to return home. William of Aquitaine safely embarked for Saint
Symeon at the end of April; but the ship in which Stephen of Blois and Stephen
of Burgundy, with several others, had taken their passage was driven ashore by
a storm off Jaffa. Before another ship could be found to accommodate them,
there was news that a fresh Moslem host was marching up from Egypt. Owing to
this fateful mishap they remained to assist in the coming struggle.
1102: Second
Battle of Ramleh
In mid-May 1102 the Egyptian army, consisting
of some twenty thousand Arabs and Sudanese, under the command of the Vizier’s
own son, Sharaf al-Ma’ali, assembled at Ascalon and moved up towards Ramleh.
Baldwin had made his preparations. An army of several thousand Christians
waited at Jaffa; and the Galilean garrisons were ready to send detachments when
required. But Baldwin’s scouts misled him. Believing the Egyptians to be a
small body of raiders he decided to destroy them himself without calling upon
his reserves. He had with him at Jerusalem his friends from the West, Stephen
of Blois, Stephen of Burgundy, the Constable Conrad, Hugh, Count of Lusignan
and various Belgian knights. He proposed to them to set out with his cavalry to
finish off the job. Stephen of Blois ventured to suggest that it was a rash
undertaking; a better reconnaissance would be desirable. But nobody even
listened to Stephen, remembering his cowardice at Antioch. He joined his
comrades without further complaint.
On 17 May King Baldwin set out with some five
hundred horsemen from Jerusalem. They rode gaily, with little order. When they
came out into the plain and suddenly saw before them the vast Egyptian army,
Baldwin realized his mistake. But there could be no turning back. They were
already seen, and the Egyptian light cavalry was riding up to cut off their
retreat. Their only chance was to charge headlong into the enemy. The
Egyptians, believing at first that this must be the vanguard of a greater army,
nearly gave up before the impact; but when they saw that no other force
followed, they rallied and closed in on the Franks. Baldwin’s ranks broke. A
few knights, led by Roger of Rozoy and Baldwin’s cousin, Hugh of Le Bourg, cut
their way through the Egyptian host and reached the safety of Jaffa. Many, such
as Gerard of Avesnes and Godfrey’s former chamberlain, Stabelon, were killed on
the field. But King Baldwin himself and his chief comrades made their way into
the little fortress of Ramleh, where they were surrounded by the Egyptian army.
Nightfall saved them from immediate attack. But
the defences of Ramleh were pitiable. Only one tower, built by Baldwin the
previous year, might possibly be held; and into that they crowded. In the
middle of the night an Arab came to the gate and asked to see the King. He was
admitted and revealed himself as the husband of the lady to whom Baldwin had
shown courtesy during his raid on Transjordan. In gratitude he warned the King
that the Egyptian assault would begin at dawn and that he must escape at once.
Baldwin took his advice. However much he may have regretted the desertion of
his comrades — and he was not a man with a highly developed sense of honour — he
saw that on his own preservation depended the preservation of the kingdom. With
a groom and three other companions he slipped out on horseback, through the
enemy lines, trusting his Gazelle to take him to safety. During the same night,
Lithard of Cambrai, Viscount of Jaffa, and Gothman of Brussels separately made
their escape. Gothman, though severely wounded, managed to reach Jerusalem,
where he brought tidings of the
Manasses, most of whom had come by sea to Antioch, they reached the
neighbourhood of Beirut in the early spring of 1102. To ensure their safe
passage through enemy country Baldwin sent an escort to meet them there and to
convey them to Jerusalem. After celebrating Easter at the Holy Places the
leaders prepared to return home. William of Aquitaine safely embarked for Saint
Symeon at the end of April; but the ship in which Stephen of Blois and Stephen
of Burgundy, with several others, had taken their passage was driven ashore by
a storm off Jaffa. Before another ship could be found to accommodate them,
there was news that a fresh Moslem host was marching up from Egypt. Owing to
this fateful mishap they remained to assist in the coming struggle.
1102: Second
Battle of Ramleh
In mid-May 1102 the Egyptian army, consisting
of some twenty thousand Arabs and Sudanese, under the command of the Vizier’s
own son, Sharaf al-Ma’ali, assembled at Ascalon and moved up towards Ramleh.
Baldwin had made his preparations. An army of several thousand Christians
waited at Jaffa; and the Galilean garrisons were ready to send detachments when
required. But Baldwin’s scouts misled him. Believing the Egyptians to be a
small body of raiders he decided to destroy them himself without calling upon
his reserves. He had with him at Jerusalem his friends from the West, Stephen
of Blois, Stephen of Burgundy, the Constable Conrad, Hugh, Count of Lusignan
and various Belgian knights. He proposed to them to set out with his cavalry to
finish off the job. Stephen of Blois ventured to suggest that it was a rash
undertaking; a better reconnaissance would be desirable. But nobody even
listened to Stephen, remembering his cowardice at Antioch. He joined his
comrades without further complaint.
On 17 May King Baldwin set out with some five
hundred horsemen from Jerusalem. They rode gaily, with little order. When they
came out into the plain and suddenly saw before them the vast Egyptian army,
Baldwin realized his mistake. But there could be no turning back. They were
already seen, and the Egyptian light cavalry was riding up to cut off their
retreat. Their only chance was to charge headlong into the enemy. The
Egyptians, believing at first that this must be the vanguard of a greater army,
nearly gave up before the impact; but when they saw that no other force
followed, they rallied and closed in on the Franks. Baldwin’s ranks broke. A
few knights, led by Roger of Rozoy and Baldwin’s cousin, Hugh of Le Bourg, cut
their way through the Egyptian host and reached the safety of Jaffa. Many, such
as Gerard of Avesnes and Godfrey’s former chamberlain, Stabelon, were killed on
the field. But King Baldwin himself and his chief comrades made their way into
the little fortress of Ramleh, where they were surrounded by the Egyptian army.
Nightfall saved them from immediate attack. But
the defences of Ramleh were pitiable. Only one tower, built by Baldwin the
previous year, might possibly be held; and into that they crowded. In the
middle of the night an Arab came to the gate and asked to see the King. He was
admitted and revealed himself as the husband of the lady to whom Baldwin had
shown courtesy during his raid on Transjordan. In gratitude he warned the King
that the Egyptian assault would begin at dawn and that he must escape at once.
Baldwin took his advice. However much he may have regretted the desertion of
his comrades — and he was not a man with a highly developed sense of honour — he
saw that on his own preservation depended the preservation of the kingdom. With
a groom and three other companions he slipped out on horseback, through the
enemy lines, trusting his Gazelle to take him to safety. During the same night,
Lithard of Cambrai, Viscount of Jaffa, and Gothman of Brussels separately made
their escape. Gothman, though severely wounded, managed to reach Jerusalem,
where he brought tidings of the
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