Crusader invasions of Egypt
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| Crusader invasion of Egypt | |||||||||
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| Part of the Crusades | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Byzantine Empire Kingdom of Jerusalem Fatimid Caliphate (1163 - 1168) |
Zengid dynasty of Syria Fatimid Caliphate |
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| Commanders | |||||||||
| Amalric I of Jerusalem Manuel I Komnenos (in 1169) |
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| Strength | |||||||||
| Byzantium: perhaps some 20,000 to spare (50,000 total) Crusader states: c 20,000 |
Unknown, usually larger | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Heavy | Perhaps less | ||||||||
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The Crusader invasion of Egypt (1154 - 1169) was a series of campaigns undertaken by the Kingdom of Jerusalem to strengthen its position in the Levant by taking advantage of the weakness of Fatimid Egypt.
The war began as part of a succession crisis in the Fatimid Caliphate, which began to crumble under the pressure of Syria and the Crusader states. While one side called for help from Nur ad-Din, the other called for Crusader assistance. As the war progressed however it became a war of conquest. A number of Syrian campaigns into Egypt were stopped short of total victory by the aggressive campaigning of the Amalric I of Jerusalem. Even so, the Crusaders generally speaking did not have things go their way, despite several sackings. A combined Byzantine-Crusader siege of Damietta failed in 1169, the same year that Salah ad-Din, also known as Saladin in the West, took power in Egypt as vizier. In 1171 Saladin became Sultan of Egypt and the Crusaders thereafter turned their attention to the defence of their Kingdom, which, despite being surrounded by Syria and Egypt, held for another 16 years
However, after the fall of the Kingdom in 1187, the focus of the Crusaders shifted decisively towards Egypt and less so towards the Levant. This can be seen in the Third Crusade, were Richard the Lionheart recognized the importance of Egypt and twice suggested an invasion of the region. An assault against the Levant could not succeed without the resources and manpower of Egypt, which currently gave the Islamic powers in the region a decisive advantage. The Fourth, Fifth, Seventh, Eighth and Alexandrian Crusades all had Egypt as the intended target, with temporary victories followed by defeats, evacuations or negotiations - ultimately amounting to nothing. By 1291, Acre, the last Crusader fort in the Holy Land fell to the forces of the Mameluk Sultan of Egypt.
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[edit] Background
- See also: Siege of Ascalon and Second Crusade
Following the capture of Jerusalem by the forces of the First Crusade, the Fatimids of Egypt launched regular raids into Palestine against the Crusaders, while Zengi of Syria launched a series of successful attacks against the Principality of Antioch. The Second Crusade aimed to reverse the gains of Zengi, ironically with an assault on Damascus, Zengi's most powerful rival. The siege failed and forced the Kingdom to turn south for better fortunes. The Fatimid Caliphate in the 12th century was riddled with internal squabbles. Power lay not in the hands of the Fatimid Caliphate (who like his Sunni counter-part was a mere pawn) but in the hands of the Vizier of Egypt. The situation in Egypt made it ripe for conquest, either by Crusaders or by the forces of Zengi. The Crusader capture of Ascalon in 1154 meant that now the Kingdom was at war in two fronts but Egypt now had an enemy supply base close at hand.
[edit] Intervention of Nur-ed-Din, 1163 - 1164
In 1163, Shawar, the ousted Vizier of Egypt called Zengi for support in reinstating him to his former position as the de facto ruler of Egypt. Zengi was killed in 1146 but his successor Nur-ed-Din agreed to support his cause - an alliance between Syria and Egypt would ensure the demise of Crusaders. Little did Nur-ed-Din realize that, while his plan would succeed, it would not be he who would enjoy such unity.
On May 1164 Shawar became vizier of Egypt. He was however a mere figurehead to Nur-ed-Din who had installed his general Shirkuh as ruler of Egypt. Shawar became unsatisfied with this and called upon the enemy of the Sunni Muslims, Amalric I, King of Jerusalem.
[edit] Amalric invades; Second Crusader invasion 1164
Amalric I had his own designs on Egypt. Therefore, when Shawar invited Almaric into Egypt, he could not turn down such an offer. At Bilbeis, Amalric together with Shawar his Shi'ite ally, besieged Shirkuh. However, Nur-ed-Din moved his forces against the Crusader state of Antioch and despite being a Byzantine protectorate (Manuel was in the Balkans) defeated and captured Bohemond III of Antioch and Raymond III of Tripoli at the Battle of Harim. Amalric immediately raced north to rescue his vassal. Even so, Shirkuh evacuated Egypt too so it was a victory for Shawar who retained Egypt.
[edit] Shirkuh returns and third Crusader invasion 1166 - 1167
Shawar's rule in Egypt did not last long before Shirkuh returned in 1166 to take back Egypt. Shawar played his Crusader card again and this time Amalric believed an open battle would be able to settle the scores. Unlike Shirkuh, Amalric had naval supremacy in the Mediterranean (though to be fair there were few Syrian ports to the Mediterranean under Nur-ed-Din) and took a quick coastal route to Egypt, allowing him to link up with his ally Shawar just as Nur-ed-Din's deputy Shirkuh arrived. At Cairo, the combined Fatimid-Crusader army contemplated the next move while Shirkuh, outside the Pyramids of Giza made an unexpected move for the south. The Fatimid-Crusader army followed were at the Battle of al-Babein, the Crusaders got the worst of the fighting. Even so, the Crusader-Fatimids pursued the Syrians, whose plan to use Alexandria as a port came to nothing when the Crusader fleet arrived. At Alexandria, the besieged Shirkuh agreed to leave Egypt alone in return for a Crusader withdrawal. Amalric left with a favorable treaty resulting in Egyptian tribute to Jerusalem and a friendly Shawar in control.
[edit] Fourth Crusader invasion, 1168 - 1169
At this point in time the Crusaders should have focused on strengthening their position against Syria, but instead Amalric was tempted by the Hospitaller Knights to attack Egypt and take it. Manuel Komnenos received the idea well. The alliance was still being finalized when Amalric launched a quick attack against Bilbeis in 1168, massacring the population. Shawar appealed to Damascus and Shirkuh returned, killing Shawar and seizing power. Shirkuh himself died two months later and his nephew, Saladin took power as regent. At Damietta, the Byzantine-Crusader alliance materialized into a siege of the port. The Crusaders attacked late while the Byzantines, after three months abandoned the siege. In 1171, Saladin proclaimed himself Sultan while the Crusaders under Amalric were forced to retreat, having lost many men due to disease and warfare. The Knights Hospitaller became bankrupt after the operation but made a quick recovery financially. The same could not be said for the Kingdom.
[edit] Aftermath
The Kingdom of Jerusalem, surrounded by enemies now faced inevitable defeat. Saladin could raise armies potentially numbering 100,000 or more with Syria and Egypt under his control. Nur-ed-Din however was still alive until 1174 and Saladin's power in Egypt was seen as a rebellion against his vassalage to Nur-ed-Din. After the latter's death Syria and Egypt remained united. A few Crusader victories, notably at Montgisard and a failed Ayyubid siege of Tiberias allowed the Crusaders to stave off defeat until 1187. By 1189 the Crusader realm had been diminished beyond all strength and relied increasingly on politically-motivated and inexperienced western reinforcements.
