The Importance of the Siege of Acre during the Third Crusade, 1189-1192
By Susan Woodson
Published online (2006)
Introduction: An important part of Islamic history consists of the Crusades where the Western Christians fought against the Eastern Muslims. Evaluating the Siege of Acre during the Third Crusade shows the beginnings of a Latin re-conquest and a Western pathway into the Holy Land. Through looking at the causes of the Third Crusade, Saladin, Richard I, Philip II, the reasons to capture Acre, the siege of the city, the surrender of Acre, the hostage situation, and the aftermath of the battle, it can be presented that the Siege of Acre could be considered a turning point for the Crusaders in defeating Saladin. Acre may not have been a major city as Jerusalem, but its capture by the Christian crusaders was significant because it created a Christian territory near the Holy Land marking the beginning towards a re-conquest by Christians of the lands taken by the Muslims during the Crusades.
Analyzing the causes of the Third Crusades helps to explain how and why the Siege of Acre occurred and why it’s significant to understand. In 1187, the Third Crusade began as “Jerusalem had been captured by the Infidel and an apparently flourishing Christian Kingdom was tottering on the brink of total ruin.” In other words, Saladin had conquered Jerusalem and had expelled the Christians from the holy city. Saladin fought for Jerusalem because it “was his duty before his God and his faith” as well as to “have liberated the holy city from the yoke of the invaders without a bloodbath, destruction, or hatred.” Due to his conquests of the Holy Land, King Philip II of France and King Richard I of England began the Third Crusade on July 4, 1190 to “win land and plunder as well as glory” The goal for the Christian Crusaders was to recapture the Holy Land, which would lead them to Acre. The importance of capturing the Holy Land by both Muslims and Christians would cause the Siege of Acre to be a critical battle during the Crusades as it was a battle for territory near the Holy Land.
One of the most influential figures of the Siege of Acre includes Saladin, who led the Muslims during part of the Crusades. Saladin was born in Egypt and would become the “Emperor of Syria, and Egypt” during his lifetime creating “united front against the Christians.” Before the Siege of Acre, Saladin captured Jerusalem stating that “‘when God gave me the land of Egypt, I was sure that he meant Palestine for me as well.’” Saladin was the first to unite the Muslims against the Crusaders and would be known for his victory at Jerusalem. In the Siege of Acre, Saladin would be forced to surrender leading to the end of his conquests and the beginning of the re-conquests of the Christians in the future Crusades except for Jerusalem. Understanding the influential Saladin shows how the Siege of Acre during the Third Crusade became a crucial moment as Saladin was defeated.
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19 Oct 2009
Tags: Crusades, Military History, Near East, Twelfth Century
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The Teutonic Knights in the Holy Land, 1190-1291
By Nicholas Morton
Boydell, 2009
ISBN: 9781843834779
The Teutonic Order was founded in 1190 to provide medical care for crusaders in the kingdom of Jerusalem. In time, it assumed a military role and played an important part in the defence of the Christian territories in the Eastern Mediterranean and in the Baltic regions of Prussia and Livonia; in the Levant, it fought against the neighbouring Islamic powers, whilst managing their turbulent relations with their patrons in the papacy and the German Empire. As the Order grew, it colonised territories in Prussia and Livonia, forcing it to address how it distributed its resources between its geographically-spread communities. Similarly, the brethren also needed to develop an organisational framework that could support the conduct of war on frontiers that were divided by hundreds of miles.
This book – the first comprehensive analysis of the Order in the Holy Land – explores the formative years of this powerful international institution and places its deeds in the Levant within the context of the wider Christian, pagan and Islamic world. It examines the challenges that shaped its identity and the masters who planned its policies.
Contents
Introduction
1 The Foundation of the Order 1190-1215
2 The Fifth Crusade and the development of the Teutonic Knights 1216-1223
3 The Preparations for the expedition of Frederick II
4 From the Crusade of Emperor Frederick II to the death of Herman von Salza 1227 – 1239
5 Conrad von Thüringen, the Barons’ Crusade and a change of policy
6 Dependence and Independence
7 The Division of Resources between the Holy Land and the Baltic
8 The Politics of the Levant
9 The Military Organisation of the Teutonic Knights in the Holy Land
10 Control, Co-ordination and Supply
11 Conclusion
12 Appendices
13 Bibliography
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6 Jun 2009
Tags: 2009 Books, Crusades, Monasticism, Near East
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The journal of Roberto da Sanseverino (1417-1487) : a study on navigation and seafaring in the fifteenth century
By Tullio Vidoni
PhD Dissertation, University of British Columbia, 1993
Abstract: Roberto da Sanseverino went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1458. He travelled from Venice to Jaffa on a galley and made his return, from Acre to Ancona, on a three-masted sailing ship. During both voyages he kept very accurate logs of distances, courses and wind directions. He described the sails employed for different modes of sailing and other activities pertaining to the safe operation of the vessels. These logs are contained in Sanseverino’s diary of his pilgrimage and are an essential part of an original manuscript kept at the University of Bologna. This diary is the first documentation, and the only one known to exist up to this time, which presents a complete description of the methods employed by medieval shipmasters to navigate and handle their ships overlong voyages. The accuracy and reliability of the numeric data and of the other facts contained in the logs are such that, among other unusual findings, they make it possible to deter-mine the length of the Venetian sea mile, the angles of tack of medieval ships to windward and the speeds attainable under various conditions of sailing. Other original descriptions encompass the handling of ships in anchorages and some of the technical considerations that were essential to ensure ship seaworthiness under different conditions of cargo. Further reflections on all these data make it possible to arrive at certain conclusions about the economic constraints of sea ventures in different seasons of the year.
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23 May 2009
Tags: Geography, Italy, Maritime Studies, Near East
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The Construction of Islamic-Education Institutions in Mamluk Gaza
By Hatim Mahamid
Nebula, Vol. 4:4 (2007)
Introduction: The development of educational institutions and main mosques in the principle cities of Syria was compatible with the importance of th cities as centres of government. A review of the educational institutions in various cities of the region reveals two different phenomena. The first is the developent of educational institutions during the Zangid and Ayyubid periods in the northern cities of Syria, which were not affected by the Crusader conquest, like Aleppo, Damascus, Hamat, Homs, Ba’albek, Busra, Manbaj, al-Ma’arra and others. During the Ayyubid period, most of these cities were governed by Ayyubid rulers, who exercised almost complete autonomy. This led to the development of Islamic education under their auspices, which reflected the positions of the Ayyubid rulers. These cities (the northern ones) were also affected by the Mongolian invasion during the Mamluk period, which directly or indirectly damaged educational and religious institutions.
The second phenomenon was the development of educational and religious institutions during the Mamluk period, in the southern and coastal cities of Syria, and particularly those cities that had previously been under Crusader rule or influence, like Jerusalem, Hebron, Gaza, Safed, Tripoli, and others. Most of the educational institutions in those cities were founded during the Mamluk period after the Crusaders were entirely expelled from the coastal areas of Syria.
Although information about educational and religious institutions in these cities is scarce, one may conduct a limited survey based on the biographies of scholars or rulers who were involved in these enterprises during the period under discussion. In this study, I’ll focus dealing with this topic related to the cityof Gaza as a case study and model of the southern cities of Syria which were affected by similar political circumstances.
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13 May 2009
Tags: Ecclesiastical History, Education, Near East, Syria
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The Byzantine and Early Islamic settlement of Khirbat Shuwayka
By Ibrahim Abu A’mar, Marwan Abu Khalaf, Salah Al-Houdalieh, and Robert Hoyland
Web Journal of Cultural Patrimony, Vol. 1:2 (2006)
Abstract: The site of Khirbat Shuwayka lies on the south side of the modern Ramallah/el-Bira on the ancient road from Jerusalem to Nablus. This article covers the excavation of 2003 season which was shared between Al-Quds University and Oxford University. The results indicate the emerge of three distinct archaeological features: a residential complex in the northwest, a church in the north east and a winemaking installation in the south east of the site. The principal occupation of the site was in the Byzantine period (4th-7th centuries), and later in the Umayyad and Abbasid periods (8th-10th centuries) as a complex of simple domestic dwelling were uncovered.
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12 May 2009
Tags: Archaeology, Byzantium, Near East
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The Holy Land, Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Qur’an, Sunnah and other Islamic Literary Sources
By Mustafa Abu Sway
Paper given at Children of Abraham: Trialogue of Civilizations (2007)
Introduction: Coming from the same divine source as previous revelations, Islam embodies many things that are common to them such as the special status that the Holy Land and Jerusalem enjoy.
Islam recognizes the fact that the Holy Land is sacred to the People of the Book. When Muslims say that the Holy Land is the “Land of the Prophets”, certainly the prophets of the Children of Israel are included and constitute a continuum in the line of prophecy, which culminated with Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon them all). Almost every prophet lived in the Holy Land, or had a special relationship with it, including those who were born elsewhere. An example of the latter is Prophet Abraham, the prototype iconoclast. After he destroyed and mocked the idols of his people, they planned violence against him, but he was destined to go to the Holy Land. The following verse uses inclusive language to reflect the nature of Abraham’s new home:
But We delivered him and [his nephew] Lot [and directed them] to the
land which We have blessed for the nations. Qur’an, 21: 71
An example of a prophet who had a special relationship with the Holy Land and Jerusalem in particular is that of Prophet Muhammad. The Qur’an stated in the chapter of the “Children of Israel” (Banu Israel), or the “Journey at Night” (Al-Isra’), that he was taken in a night journey miraculously from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque (Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa):
Glory be to (Allah) Who did take His Servant for a journey by night from
the Sacred Mosque [Al-Masjid Al-Haram] to the Farthest Mosque [Al-
Masjid Al-Aqsa] whose precincts We did bless, in order that We might
show him some of Our Signs: for He is the One who hears and sees [all
things]. Qur’an, 17:1
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7 May 2009
Tags: Islam, Near East
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The Restoration of Beaufort Castle (South Lebanon): A 3D Restitution according to Historical Documentation
By Pierre Grussenmeyer and Jean Yasmine
XIXth CIPA International Symposium (2003)
Abstract: This paper presents the contribution of photogrammetry within the framework of the documentation of the Beaufort castle (South Lebanon), also called Qalaat el-Chaqif (12-17th century). After the withdrawal of the Israeli army of southern Lebanon, the Lebanese government asked for a consulting firm (J. Yasmine, DGA consultant) to establish general tender documents for the restoration of the Beaufort castle. Many parts of the site were destroyed or buried because of the war. In 2002, the castle has been surveyed by geodetic methods (GPS and total station techniques) to establish reference points and a revised map of the area. In 2003, J. Yasmine has completed the survey by aerial oblique images taken by helicopter and terrestrial images, following the recommendations of CIPA 3×3 rules. After the calibration of the different cameras, the block of images has been computed within the PhotoModelerTM package, in order to document and draw the parts difficult to reach by traditional topographic techniques and to check the homogeneity of this important historic building (approx. surface of 150m x 75m, height of 30m).
Several archive images of the castle were taken by the French army between the years 1935 and 1937 (vertical and oblique overall views on glass plates). The aim of the project is to use this archive documentation in order to try to make a 3D restitution of the destroyed and buried historical structures of the castle. This restitution will help the consultant to establish the framework of the excavation and restoration tasks, by showing the historical structures destroyed by the war. This collaboration has been possible thanks to the academic relations between the laboratory of photogrammetry of INSA Strasbourg and the Restoration Centre of the Lebanese University in Tripoli.
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25 Apr 2009
Tags: Archaeology, Near East
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The Doctrine of Signatures in the Medieval and Ottoman Levant
By Efriam Lev
Vesalius, Vol.8:1 ( 2002)
Abstract: This study traces the use of the Doctrine of Signatures among medieval and Ottoman physicians and its subsequent appearance in the pharmacological literature of the Levant. Close examination of the historical sources of the Levant seems to support the claim that although this theory did not originate in the region, it was certainly practised there. These sources have revealed 23 substances with medicinal uses based on the Doctrine, bearing witness to the extent of its influence at the time. The main categories of the Doctrine uncovered were: similarity between the substance used and the human organ; resemblance in shape or behaviour to a specific animal; correlation between the colour of a substance and the colour of the symptoms; similarities between the substance and the patient’s symptoms and the use of a substance that might produce symptoms of a particular disease in a healthy person to remedy those same symptoms in one who is sick.
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25 Apr 2009
Tags: Medicine, Near East
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Community, Identity and the Redemption of Captives: Comparative perspectives across the Mediterranean
By James William Brodman
Anuario de Estudios Medievales, Vol 36:1 (2006)
Abstract: Yvonne Friedman, in Encounters between Enemies (2002), asks why charitable ransoming was more developed and successful in the medieval West than it was in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. This paper seeks to answer this question through an examination of community solidarity. Particularly important to an understanding of western European ransoming customs is the distinction between the deserving poor, who are neighbors, and itinerants and vagabonds who are not. Hispanic ransoming custom, precisely because it emerged within the context of developing municipal communities, was a reflection of this group solidarity; consequently, the caritative ransomers who followed – such as, the Mercedarians and Trinitarians – had to adjust their appeal to conform to these group prejudices. The society of the Latin East, because it was more transient and less cohesive, failed to develop such institutions of solidarity and thus dealt with captives on a more pragmatic, less compassionate basis.
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14 Feb 2009
Tags: Crusades, Military History, Monasticism, Near East, Spain
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The Social Structure of the First Crusade
By Conor Kostick
Brill, 2009
ISBN: 978 90 04 16665 3
The First Crusade (1096 – 1099) was an extraordinary undertaking. Because the repercussions of that expedition have rippled on down the centuries, there has been an enormous literature on the subject. Yet, unlike so many other areas of medieval history, until now the First Crusade has failed to attract the attention of historians interested in social dynamics. This book is the first to examine the sociology of the sources in order to provide a detailed analysis of the various social classes which participated in the expedition and the tensions between them. In doing so, it offers a fresh approach to the many debates surrounding the subject of the First Crusade.
Click here to read our Interview with Conor Kostick
The First Crusade: For Faith and Plunder, article by Conor Kostick
Conor Kostick News
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10 Feb 2009
Tags: Crusades, Near East
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