Siege of Damietta

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The Siege of Damietta was actually two sieges by crusaders, in 1218 and 1248/9.

The city, under the control of the Ayyubid Al-Kamil, was besieged by knights of the Fifth Crusade. The attacking force was repelled.

v • d • e Fifth Crusade Jerusalem – Damietta

The knights lay siege to the city of Damietta with the aid of a Frisian fleet. Even after reinforced to 35,000 men however, they were heavily outnumbered by the 70,000 Muslims. In an interesting twist, the Crusaders formed an alliance with Kay Kaus I, Seljuk Sultanate of Rum in Anatolia. Kaus attacks the Ayyubids in Syria so that the Crusaders wouldn't have to fight on two fronts.

King Louis IX landed in 1248/9 at Damietta on his Seventh Crusade. Egypt would, Louis thought, provide a base from which to attack Jerusalem, and its wealth and supply of grain would keep the crusaders fed and equipped. On June 6 Damietta was taken with little resistance from the Egyptians, who withdrew further up the Nile. Louis was able to build a stockade for the whole Crusade camp with the wood from 24 captured Egyptian trebuchets.

The flooding of the Nile had not been taken into account, however, and it soon grounded Louis and his army at Damietta for six months, where the knights sat back and enjoyed the spoils of war. Louis ignored the agreement made during the Fifth Crusade that Damietta should be given to the Kingdom of Jerusalem, now a rump state in Acre, but he did set up an archbishopric there (under the authority of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem) and used the city as a base to direct military operations against the Muslims of Syria.