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Battle of Fariskur (1250)

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Battle of Fariskur
Part of the Seventh Crusade
DateApril 6, 1250
Location
Egypt
Result Egyptian Ayyubids victory
Belligerents
Egyptian Ayyubids Crusaders
Commanders and leaders
Turanshah Louis IX of France
Strength
Unknown started the 7th crusade with 80,000 [1]
Casualties and losses
ca. 100 [2]

+ 15,000 [3]

Louis taken captive

The Battle of Fariskur fought on April 6, 1250 between the Crusaders led by Louis IX King of France (later Saint Louis)[4] and Egyptian forces led by Turanshah.

Background

With the full support of Pope Innocent IV during the First Council of Lyon, King Louis IX of France accompanied by his brothers Charles d'Anjou and Robert d'Artois launched the Seventh Crusade against Egypt. The aims of the crusade were to defeat Egypt, destroy the Ayyubid dynasty in Egypt and Syria and recover Jerusalem which the Muslims recaptured in 1244.

File:Crusade damietta.jpg
Ships of the 7th crusade attacking Damietta.

The ships entered the Egyptian waters and the troops of the Seventh Crusade disembarked at Damietta in June 1249. Louis IX sent a letter to as-Salih Ayyub [5] . Emir Fakhr ad-Din Yussuf the commander of the Ayybid garrison in Damiette retreated to the camp of the Sultan in Ashmum-Tanah [6] causing a great panic among the inhabitants of Damietta who fled the town leaving the bridge that connected the west bank of the Nile with Damiette intact. After occupying the Egyptian port of Damietta in June 1249 he decided to march to Cairo, encouraged by the arrival of reinforcement led by his third brother Alphonse de Poitiers and the news of the death of as-Salih Ayyub the Ayyubid Sultan of Egypt. The Franks succeeded in crossing the Canal of Ashmum (known today by the name al-Bahr al-Saghir) and launched a surprise attack against the Egyptian camp in Gideila (جديله), two miles away from Al Mansurah [7]. The Egyptian troops in the camp, who were taken by surprise, retreated to Al Mansurah and the crusaders proceeded towards the town. The leadership of the Egyptian force passed to the Mamluk commandants Faris ad-Din Aktai, Baibars al-Bunduqdari who succeeded in reorganizing the retreating troops. Shajar al-Durr who was in full charge of Egypt agreed about the plan of Baibars to defend Al Mansurah [8]. Baibars orderded the opening of a gate to let the knights of the crusaders enter the town. The crusaders rushed into the town that they thought was deserted to find themselves trapped inside. The crusaders were besieged from all directions by the Egyptian forces and the town's population and heavy losses were inflicted upon them. Heavy casualties were inflicted upon the crusaders. Robert de Artois (brother of Louis IX) who took refuge in a house[9] [10] [11] and William of Salisbury were among those who were killed in Al Mansurah. Only five Knights Templar survived the Battle [12]. The crusaders were forced to retreat in disorder to Gideila where they camped within a ditch and wall. Early in the morning of February 11, The Muslim forces launched a devastating offensive against the Franks camp. For many weeks the Franks were forced to remain in their camp enduring a long exhausting guerilla war [13] . Many crusaders were captured and taken to Cairo [14] .

Battle

File:Beibars.jpg
Artistic illustration of Baibars in battle

On February 27, Turanshah, the new sultan, arrived to Egypt from Hasankeyf and went straight to Al Mansurah to lead the Egyptian army. Ships were transported overland and dropped in the Nile (in Bahr al-Mahala) behind the ships of the crusaders cutting the reinforcement line from Damietta and besieging the crusade force of King Louis IX. The Egyptians used Greek fire and destroyed and seized many ships and supply vessels. Soon the besieged crusaders were suffering from devastating attacks, famine and disease. Some crusaders lost faith and deserted to the Muslim side [15] [16]. King Louis IX proposed to the Egyptians the surrender of Damietta in exchange for Jerusalem and some towns on the Syrian coast. The Egyptians, aware of the miserable situation of the crusaders, refused the besieged king's offer. On April 5, covered by the darkness of night, the crusaders evacuated their camp and began to flee northward towards Damietta. Being in panic and haste they forgot to destroy a pontoon bridge that was set up by them over the canal. The Egyptians crossed the canal over the bridge and followed them till Fariskur (فارسكور) where they utterly destroyed them on the 6th of April. Thousands of crusaders were killed and taken prisoners[17][18] [19]. King Louis IX and his a few nobles who survived were captured in the nearby village of Moniat Abdallah (منية عبدالله, now Meniat el Nasr) where they took refuge. Louis IX surrendered to a eunuch named al-Salihi after he was promised he would not be killed [20][21] and together with his two brothers Charles d'Anjou and Alphonse de Poitiers he was taken to Al Mansurah where he was imprisoned in the house of Ibrahim ben Lokman , the royal chancellor, chained and under the guard of another eunuch named Sobih al-Moazami [22] [23]. King Louis' coif was exhibited in Syria [24] [25]. While the house of Ibrahim ben Lokman was used as a prison for Louis IX and the nobles, a camp was set up outside Al Mansurah to shelter thousands of war prisoners.

Aftermath

Louis IX. was taken prisoner and ransomed

The ultimate defeat of the crusaders and the capture of Louis IX in Fariskur caused a shock in France. The crusaders were circulating false information in Europe claiming that king Louis IX defeated the Sultan of Egypt in a great battle and Cairo had been betrayed into his hands[26][27]. When the news of the French defeat reached France a rather hysterical movement known by the name Shepherds' Crusade occurred in France.[28]

Louis IX was ransomed for 400,000 dinars. After he pledged not to return to Egypt again and surrendered Damietta to the Egyptians, he was allowed to leave alive on the 8th of May 1250 to Acre with his brothers and 12,000 war prisoners who the Egyptians agreed to release [29] following his queen, Marguerite de Provence , who was suffering from nightmares [30] and left to Acre a few days earlier with her in Damietta born son who was called Jean Tristan (John Sorrow) [31] .

The National Day of Damiette Governorate on May 8, marks the anniversary of the expelling of Louis IX from Egypt in 1250.[32]

Historical consequence

File:Letter from Guyuk to Innocent IV.gif
The 1246 letter of Güyük to Pope Innocent IV.

The Seventh Crusade met its tragic end at Fariskur in 1250 marking a historical turnpoint for all the regional parties existing on that time. Egypt defeated Louis's crusade and proved to be Islam's citadel and arsenal. The Seventh Crusade was the last major offensive undertaken by the crusaders against Egypt. The crusaders never could recover Jerusalem and the kings of Europe, except Louis IX, began to lose their interest in launching new crusades. But shortly after the battle of Fariskur, the Ayyubid Sultan Turanshah was assassinated at Fariskur itself[33][34] and the Mamluks, the same victorious champions of Al Mansurah, became the new rulers of Egypt. The power map of the southern and eastern Mediterranean basin became divided among four main dominions . Mamluk Egypt, Ayyubid Syria, Franks of Acre and Syrian Christian beach-heads and the Levantiane Christian state of the Cilician Armenia. While the Mamluks of Egypt and the Ayyubids of Syria turned into two conflicting rivals, the Franks and the Cilician Armenians in addition to the Principality of Antioch were allied. The Mongols, who suddenly erupted out of the Eurasian Steppe, had their armies by 1241 ridden westwards as far as the river Oder and the north eastern shore of the Adriatic and during the Battle of Fariskur they were pentrating deep into all adjoinning regions.

Pope sent emissaries to the Mongols. Ascelin of Lombardia receiving (left) and remitting (right) a letter to the Mongol general Baiju.

The Western Christians and the Cilician Armenians always hoped to have a grand alliance with the Mongols against the Islamic World. While the Cilician Armenians submitted themselves to Mongol suzerainty since 1247 and in 1254 their King Hetoum visited the Mongols Capital, pope Innocent IV, who fully supported the Seventh Crusade against Egypt, sent in 1246 his Franciscan emissaryGiovanni da Pian del Carpine to the Great Khan of the Mongols in Qaraqorum seeking alliace against the Muslims but he received a disappointing answer from Güyük Khan who told him that he and the kings of Europe should submit to the Mongols [35]. In 1253, After his defeat in Egypt, King Louis IX sent from Acre another emissary, the Franciscan friar William of Rubruck who accompanied him earlier in his Egyptian expedition, but the outcome of this trip was also not followed by an effective action [36].

1260 Mongol offensive reached border of Egypt.

In 1258 the Mongol army led by Hulagu Khan sacked Baghdad and liquidated the Abbasid Caliphate then advanced to Syria and captured Damascus. Upon that, the path to Egypt was open. The Mongols sent a threatening message to Egypt asking it to submit to the Mongols [37]. In 1260 an Egyptian army led by the Mamluks Sultan Qutuz and commander Baibars al-Bunduqdari - same champions of Al Mansurah - annihilated a Mongol army at Ain Jalut. The commander of the Mongol army who was killed at the battle was Kitbuqa, a Nestorian Christian who was accompanied by the Christian king of Cilician Armenia and by the Christian prince of Antioch [38] . The Franks of Acre who stood neutral, and who were warned by Qutuz not to commit an act of treachery, gave passage to the Egyptian army [39] . The triumphant army took Damascus and Syria became part of the Mamluks dominion.

Baibars punished Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia in 1266

Later, during the era of Sultan al-Zahir Baibars al-Bunduqdari, the Cilician Armanians and the Principality of Antioch had to pay a huge price for their alliance with the Mongols [40] . After the Battle of Ain Jalut the Mamluks repulsed three more invasions of Syria by the Mongols. Islam survived the combined crusaders and Mongol invasions though it had never been in such great jeopardy at any date since its birth [41].

Golden Horde's Domains in 1389

In 1257, the Mongol Empire suffered a serious split when Mongols of the Golden Horde, in the western half of the Eurasian steppe, converted to Islam and allied with the Mamluks ( see Berke-Hulagu war ), followed, in later years by other Mongols. In 1270 Louis IX made his last attempt and organized a new crusade ( The Eighth Crusade ) against Tunis, hoping to be able to attack Egypt again from there, but he died in Tunis [42]. During the reign of Sultan Baibars the number of the Franks dominions on the Syrian coast were reduced drastically . Acre and the last Frankish strongholds were captured by the Mamluk Sultan al-Ashraf Khalil between 1291 and 1292.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Shayal, p.95/2
  2. ^ Al-Maqrizi, p.456/vol.1
  3. ^ al-Maqrizi, p.455/vol.1
  4. ^ Louis IX was proclaimed a Saint by Pope Boniface VIII in 1297
  5. ^ " As you know I am the ruler of the christian nation I do know you are the ruler of the Muhammadan nation. The people of Andalusia give me money and gifts while we drive them like cattle. We kill their men and we make their women widows. We take the boys and the girls as prisoners and we make houses empty. I have told you enough and I have advised you to the end, so now if you make the strongest oath to me and if you go to christian priests and monks and if you carry kindles before my eyes as a sign of obeying the cross, all these will not persuade me from reaching you and killing you at your dearest spot on earth. If the land will be mine then it is a gift to me. If the land will be yours and you defeat me then you will have the upper hand. I have told you and I have warned you about my soldiers who obey me. They can fill open fields and mountains, their number like pebbles. They will be sent to you with swords of destruction." Letter from Louis IV to as-Salih Ayyub - ( Al-Maqrizi, p.436/vol.1 )
  6. ^ Ashmum-Tanah, now town of Dakahlia - Al-Maqrizi , note p.434/vol.1
  7. ^ Gideila and Al Mansurah on map.
  8. ^ Qasim,p.18
  9. ^ Lord of Joinville, 110, part II
  10. ^ Asly, p.49
  11. ^ Skip Knox, Egyptian Counter-attack, The Seventh Crusade.
  12. ^ according to Matthew Paris, Only 2 Templars, 1 Hospitaller and one ‘contemptible person’ escaped
  13. ^ After the crusaders captured Damietta general emergency was declared in Egypt (called al-Nafir al-Am (النفير العام)) Commones joinned the battling zone and raided the crusaders camp frequently — Al-Maqrizi, p.446/vol.1, p.456/vol1. Ibn Taghri, pp.102-273/vol.6.
  14. ^ Al-Maqrizi, p.447/vol.1
  15. ^ Matthew Paris, LOUIS IX`S CRUSADE, p.108 / Vol. 5.
  16. ^ Al-Maqrizi, p.446/vol.1
  17. ^ Ibn Taghri, pp.102-273/ vol.6
  18. ^ Abu al-Fida, pp.66-87/year 648H.
  19. ^ Al-Maqrizi, pp. 455-456/ vol.1
  20. ^ Abu al-Fida, pp.66-87/ year 648H.
  21. ^ Al-Maqrizi, p.456/vol.1
  22. ^ Ibn Taghri
  23. ^ Though Louis IX, who was a king, was treated well, he was chained and put under the guard of a slave which was not according to the custom
  24. ^ Al-Maqrizi,p.456/vol.1
  25. ^ Ibn Taghri, pp.102-273/vol.6
  26. ^ Lord of Joinville, 170, part II
  27. ^ False rumours from Egypt: letters from the bishop of Marseilles and certain Templars spread the rumour that Cairo and Babylon have been captured and the fleeing Saracens have left Alexandria undefended. - Matthew Paris , note. p. 118 / Vol. 5. LOUIS IX`S CRUSADE 1250.
  28. ^ Matthæi Parisiensis, pp. 246-253
  29. ^ Many prisoners were executed. Al-Maqrizi, p. 455/ vol.1.- Ibn Taghri, pp.102-273/vol.6. - The number 12,000 included prisoners from older battles. Al-Maqrizi, p. 460/ vol.1
  30. ^ " This news ( the arrest of her husband Louis ) terrified her so much, that every time she fell asleep in her bed, she fancied that her room was all filled with Saracens, and she would scream out, "Help! help!" - ( Lord of Joinville, 201 / Chapter XVII ).
  31. ^ Both Louis IX and his son Jean Tristan died in Tunis in 1270 during the Eighth Crusade. See also the Eighth Crusade.
  32. ^ See also Battle of Al Mansurah.
  33. ^ Al-Maqrizi, p. 458/vol.1
  34. ^ Ibn Taghri, pp.102-273/vol.6
  35. ^ You must say with a sincere heart: "We will be your subjects; we will give you our strength". You must in person come with your kings, all together, without exception, to render us service and pay us homage. Only then will we acknowledge your submission. And if you do not follow the order of God, and go against our orders, we will know you as our enemy." —From letter of Güyük to Pope Innocent IV, 1246. Lord of Joinville, pp.249-259.
  36. ^ Toynbee, p. 449
  37. ^ Say to Egypt, Hulagu has come with swords unsheathed and sharp. The mightiest of her people will become humble, he will send their children to join the aged. — From Letter of hulagu to Qutuz
  38. ^ Toynbee, p. 449
  39. ^ The Egyptian army on its way to Ain Jalut camped beside Acre. Baibars had an opinion of taking Acre by the way but Sultan Qutuz refused.
  40. ^ Cilician Armania was devastated by Sultan Baibars's commander Qalawun upon the Battle of Mari in 1266. The Principality of Antioch was destroyed by Sultan Baibars in 1268
  41. ^ Toyenbee
  42. ^ Satiric verses were composed in Tunis about Louis new plan to invade Tunis : " O Louis , Tunis is the sister of Egypt ! thus expect your ordeal ! you will find your tomb here instead of the house of Ibn Lokman; and the eunuch Sobih will be here raplaced by Munkir and Nakir." (According to Muslim creed Munkir and Nakir are two angels who interrogate the dead.) — verses by Ahmad Ismail Alzayat.Al-Maqrizi, p.462/vol.1


References

  • Abu al-Fida, Tarikh Abu Al-Fida, The Concise History of Humanity.
  • Al-Maqrizi, Al Selouk Leme'refatt Dewall al-Melouk, Dar al-kotob, 1997. In English: Bohn, Henry G., The Road to Knowledge of the Return of Kings, Chronicles of the Crusades, AMS Press, 1969.
  • Dupuy, Trevor N The Harpers Military Encyclopedia of Military History, New York:HarperCollins, 1993. ISBN 0-06-270056-1
  • Hassan, O., Al-Zahir Baibars, Dar al-Amal 1997
  • Ibn Taghri, al-Nujum al-Zahirah Fi Milook Misr wa al-Qahirah, al-Hay'ah al-Misreyah 1968
  • Qasim,Abdu Qasim Dr., Asr Salatin AlMamlik ( era of the Mamluk Sultans ), Eye for human and social studies, Cairo 2007
  • Sadawi, H., Al-Mamalik, Maroof Ikhwan, Alexandria
  • Skip Knox, Dr. E.L., The Crusades, Seventh Crusade, A college course on the Crusades, 1999
  • Toynbee, Arnold J., Mankind and mother earth, Oxford university press 1976
  • The chronicles of Matthew Paris ( Matthew Paris: Chronica Majora ) translated by Helen Nicholson 1989.
  • Matthæi Parisiensis, monachi Sancti Albani, Chronica majora By Matthew Paris, Roger, Henry Richards, Longman & co. 1880.
  • The Memoirs of the Lord of Joinville, translated by Ethel Wedgwood (1906)
  • The New Encyclopædia Britannica, H.H. Berton Publisher, 1973
  • The New Encyclopædia Britannica, Macropædia,H.H. Berton Publisher,1973-1974
  • www.historyofwar.org
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