THE LIFE OF SALADIN AND THE FALL OF THE KINGDOM OF JERUSALEM

CHAPTER XI.

THE CONQUEST OF MESOPOTAMIA.

1181-1183.

THE Great Truce was made, and Saladin was free to return to Egypt. He left his nephew Ferrukh Shah in charge of Syria, and reached Cairo at the beginning of 1181. The year that was past had brought changes to many thrones. Louis le Jeune of France had died and Philip Augustus had succeeded; Pope Lucius had followed Alexander, and Alexius II. sat in the seat of the Emperor Manuel Comnenus. In Asia there had been a succession in the Caliphate; al-Mustady was dead, and en-Nasir, the most energetic of the later Abbasids, was pontiff at Baghdad, Seyf-al-Din, the Atabeg of Mosul, was gathered to his fathers, and Izz-al-Din his brother reigned in his stead. The close of 1 181 witnessed an event of still greater importance to Saladin. On the 4th of December Nur-al-Din’s heir, es-Salih Ismail, ended his gentle inoffensive life at Aleppo in a mortal attack of the colic — not without the usual suspicion of poison. When he knew his death was at hand, he sent for his chief officers and made them swear the oath of fealty to his cousin of Mosul — the only prince of the house of Zengy powerful enough to cross swords with its great supplanter. The dying youth could not forgive Saladin his trespass against the sovereign rights of the dynasty.

The Atabeg of Mosul hastened to take possession of Aleppo, where he was joyfully welcomed by his cousin's retainers. Other cities of Syria were disposed to revert to their old allegiance, and Hamah openly avowed its sympathy. The Atabeg nevertheless remained true to the treaty which he had sworn, and refused all inducements to invade Saladin's dominions. His later conduct suggests that fear had its share in this moderation, for he never ventured to meet his rival in the open field. Even the possession of Aleppo was too great a strain upon his energy; and harassed by the apprehension that he could not defend at once both his Syrian and Mesopotamian capitals, he yielded to the urgency of his brother, Imad-al-Din, the ruler of Sinjar, and consented to exchange cities with him. Imad-al-Din entered Aleppo on the 19th of May, 1182.

To these transactions Saladin offered no opposition. He was bound by his treaty to respect his ally of Mosul, and he never broke a treaty in his life. At the same time he was closely watching events on his northern frontier. He had of course determined, long before, that the death of es-Salih should be the signal for his own advance to Aleppo. Its possession by so ambitious and unscrupulous a ruler as Imad-al-Din was an unforeseen obstacle to his plans. But nothing could be done so long as the peace was in force; and it would not expire till the 9th of September, 1182. It is true the other parties to the treaty would have justified him in tearing it up. The Franks had again broken their faith. Reginaldof Châtillon, released from his weary captivity at Aleppo, and thirsting for revenge, had now become master of the Dead Sea fortresses, by virtue of his marriage with Stephania, the widow of the third Humphrey of Toron and heiress of Karak. He used his position unscrupulously, and had lately captured a peaceful caravan of merchants in time of truce; in return, Saladin had detained a pilgrim ship that had run ashore at Damietta. When he prepared to re-enter Syria to protect his subjects, he learnt, further, that the Zengid princes had so far forgotten their honor and their religion as to make a formal treaty with the Christians and even with the Master of the Assassins for joint opposition to the common enemy— himself. Even this did not tempt him to depart from his word. He advanced into Syria, to be on his guard; but he took no measures against his deceitful allies until the treaty lapsed.

1182] Farewell to Cairo.

On the 11th of May, 1182, Saladin left Cairo. The chief officers and grandees of his court assembled at the Lake to bid him farewell. One after the other they advanced to his stirrup and took their leave of the sovereign whom they had learnt, during fourteen years of glory abroad and equity at home, to honor and admire. Odes were recited, rhapsodies declaimed. Suddenly a discordant voice jangled the harmony of gracious words. “Enjoy”, it cried, in the lines of the old Arab poet:

“Enjoy the perfume of the ox-eyes of Nejd:

After tonight, there will be no more ox-eyes”.

The discordant note jarred upon Saladin, sensitive like all Easterns to the presage of ill-omen, and he rode away from Egypt with a weight at his heart. The prophetic verse did not err. There were no more ox-eyes for him in Egypt: he never saw Cairo again.

Knowing that the Christians were massed upon the frontier to intercept him, Saladin took the desert route across the peninsula of Sinai to Eilat at the head of the Gulf of Akaba, and thence marched north over the barren flinty plain beside Mount Seir (the Shera range), reconnoitering in search of the enemy. Meeting with no opposition, he ravaged the country about Mont Real, whilst Baldwin's army watched him from their entrenchments near Karak, without moving a finger, either to fight him or cut him off from the wells. Profiting by their lethargy, he marched unmolested through Moab to Damascus in the middle of June. He found that his active nephew Ferrukh Shah had seized the opportunity of Baldwin’s absence in the south to cross the Jordan, lay Galilee waste, sack Deburiya among the oaks and myrtles of the wooded western slopes of Mount Tabor, and even to secure possession of a rocky fortress (Habis Jeldek), to which the Franks attached great importance. The raiders lifted twenty thousand head of cattle and a thousand captives.

Following up this advantage in July, Saladin despatched Ferrukh Shah again into Palestine. He went by way of Ras-el-Ayn, and crossed the Jordan towards Beysan (Bethsan), once Scythopolis, the third city of Palestine, but then a small town situated in the rich campaign beneath the naked peaks of Mount Gilboa. The Franks meanwhile broke up their camp at the Springs of Saffuriya, and hurried south to protect Belvoir, a new castle near Beysan, where they had large stores of ordnance. Following the Jordan downstream, they camped beneath “the hill of the Star”, whereon stood the ramparts of Belvoir. Saladin was himself near Tiberias, but he sent his two most capable generals, Taki-al-Din and Ferrukh Shah, at the head of a large body of horse-archers, to attack the position. The Saracens, according to their enemies, had 20,000 men in battle array, to their own 700 knights with their followers; but William of Tyre would have us believe that, thanks to the valor of the brothers Balian and Baldwin of Ramla, and other gallant warriors, the Christians had much the best of the skirmish, in spite of the defection of “many whose names for very shame we will not write”. The Moslems, on the other hand, whilst admitting heavy losses, claimed the victory. Both sides retired after the battle, the Franks to Forbelet (Afrabela) and Saladin to Damascus.

1182] Siege of Beyrut.

The Saracens do not seem to have been disheartened; for in August Saladin led his troops in person across the Bikaa. His object was to seize Beyrut, which he hoped to surprise and storm with the assistance of his Egyptian fleet, with which his brother al-Adil was harrying the coast of Palestine. The ships bombarded Beyrut; whilst Saladin coming down from the hills, whence his scouts had signaled the fleet, directed a general attack on the land side. The arrows fell so thick that the inhabitants “dared not lift a finger”, but the town was well fortified and garrisoned, and made a sturdy resistance. The Saracens, expecting to storm, had brought no mangonels for a regular siege. Moreover, King Baldwin was hastily equipping ships at Acre and Tyre for the relief of the port, and the Christian army was approaching. The surprise had failed, and Saladin, having more important affairs to attend to in the north, abandoned a leaguer which promised little success.

His change of plan is explained by the fact that he had received an invitation from Kukbury, the Emir of Harran, to enter and occupy Jezira. Any reason was good enough for Saladin, who was counting the hours till he could pay off his reckoning with the house of Zengy. At last the truce had come to an end; there were allies actually impatient to welcome him at the Great River; and the moment he could advance with honor he collected a siege-train and set out. After a feint attack on Aleppo, before which he lay but three days (19-21 September) he crossed the Euphrates at Bira. His partisans hastened to meet him. First Kukbury, whose fear of Mosilhad led him to invite invasion; then Nur-al-Din of Keyfa, brought their war-bands to his colors. One after the other the cities of "the Island" fell before them. Edessa, Saruj, Rakka, Karkisiya, Nisibin, one and all bowed down, as subjects in a royal progress. In the midst of this triumph, the news came that the Franks were again foraying about Damascus. “Let them”, said Saladin: “whilst they knock down villages, we are taking cities; when we come back we shall have all the more strength to fight them”.

So he pushed on to Mosul, the capital of his only Moslem rival. Once more strong walls proved a match for his sappers. Karak first, then Beyrut, and now Mosul, resisted all assaults. The double ramparts were closely packed with zealous defenders, and there was not a weak joint in the armour. The place was crammed with stores, provisions, ammunition, and engines of war, providently prepared for this very emergency. Nevertheless Izz-al-din would gladly have spared his city the rigors of a siege if an honorable arrangement could be come to; but Saladin’s one persistent demand was the cession of Aleppo, which Izz-al-Din had not the will, nor perhaps the power, to force his brother to abandon. The neighboring rulers of Armenia and Persia vainly endeavored to mediate; Saladin had but one answer: “Aleppo—or Mosul”.

1182] Invasion of Mesopotamia.

The investment was therefore begun on the 10th of November, 1182. Saladin himself took the position over against the Kinda gate; his brother Bury “Crown of Kings”  (Taj-el-muluk) commanded the attack on the Imadiya gate; whilst Nur-al-Din, of Keyfa, took charge of the gate of the Bridge. All their efforts, however, made no impression on the solid masonry, and after a month of fruitless endeavor, Saladin drew off his army and marched three days to Sinjar, thinking to break the spirit of the Mosilis by reducing the surrounding country on which they depended for supplies. Sinjar made a spirited defense, and for fifteen days Saladin lay before the walls under which Constantine once fought his great battle with Sapor; but on the 30th of December the ancient city was stormed and sacked by the irritated soldiery, who broke all discipline in greed of plunder. Saladin only succeeded in protecting the governor and his officers, and sent them to Mosul with every mark of honor. After establishing a garrison at Sinjar, he prepared to meet a coalition which had been formed by the Atabeg of Mosul and the Shah of Armenia, aided by the retainers of the Prince of Mardin and troops from Aleppo. By the end of February, 1183, a large army had assembled on the plain of Harzem, below Mardin; but, on hearing of Saladin’s approach, they hastily sent messengers to treat for peace. He said they should have their answer on the plain of Harzem. The menace was sufficient. Each of the allies fled incontinently to his own city, and when Saladin reached the rendez-vous, there was no enemy. “They advanced like men”, says the Chancellor; “like women they vanished”

The Atabeg had once more retreated behind the walls of Mosul; but Saladin did not pursue him. He abandoned all attempts upon that city for the present, and when he had completed the organization of his Mesopotamian conquests in his usual system of military fiefs, he marched north, and after eight days’ siege, on the 6th of May, 1183, took the city of Amid, in spite of the double enceinte of its massive walls of black basalt, its iron gates, and the natural moat formed by the crescent bend of the Tigris. The place was full of precious spoil, of weapons and engines of war, stores and treasure. The famous library of “a million volumes” was made over to the learned Chancellor, the Qady al-Fadil, who took away a mere selection of the books on seventy camels. This stronghold Saladin gave to his loyal and gallant ally the Prince of Keyfa. At this moment, news reached him that Imad-al-Din of Aleppo had arranged an understanding with the Franks, and was laying fire and sword to the Sultan’s lands in Syria; so he hurried across the Euphrates at Bira, and, taking Ayn Tab on his way, on the 21st encamped once more on the Green Meydan before Aleppo. Imad-al-Din did not offer a long resistance. He was unpopular with his new subjects, and wished to get back to his old quarters at Sinjar. On his side, Saladin was eager to consolidate his empire by the acquisition of the capital of northern Syria. An exchange was negotiated, by which in return for the surrender of Aleppo, the principality of Sinjar, with its dependent cities of Nisibin, Saruj, and Rakka, was restored to Imad-al-Din, who was to hold it as Saladin's vassal on terms of military service.

1183. Saladin at Aleppo.

On the 12th of June, the city was formally placed in Saladin's possession. The garrison paraded on the Green Meydan and paid him homage; a great banquet was given to celebrate the event; and general rejoicings prevailed. The people had never taken kindly to their late prince; they lamented the glorious days of Nur-al-Din, and hoped for their revival under a powerful and generous king, such as Saladin promised to be. Imad-al-Din became a butt for the scorn of the crowd, who jeered about “the ass who bartered fresh milk (in Arabic, Halab, i.e, Aleppo) for sour (Sinjar)”, and even paraded a wash-tub before him, saying: “You were never meant for a King! Try taking in washing!” He was glad to escape from the torrent of ridicule, and taking leave of Saladin on the 17th, he departed for Sinjar, richly equipped with choice horses and robes of honor presented by his generous adversary. The next day Saladin entered Aleppo. The crowd acclaimed him; poets sang his praise. The governor entertained him with splendor in the castle, and the whole city went mad with delight: was not Saladin their King? and was there any other so mighty, so just, and so generous in all the earth?

The possession of Aleppo made Saladin the most powerful ruler of Islam. From the Tigris to the Nile, and along the African coast as far as Tripoli, many great cities and different peoples owned his sway. His name was prayed for in the mosques from Mecca to Mesopotamia. When he wrote to the Pope, he even used the style “Rex omnium regum orientalium” and of all the eastern princes within his reach he was undoubtedly King. But to be incontestably supreme over this wide dominion he must still take another step. He had nothing to fear from the east or the north: Mosul was cowed, and the Seljuk of Konia was friendly; but there yet remained that narrow strip of land stretching beyond the mountains along the Syrian coast from Antioch to Ascalon,—the cities beyond the Orontes and the Jordan, and the barrier heights of Lebanon,— above all Jerusalem itself, holy to Moslems and Christians alike. That strip of hostile territory which severed his kingdom from the great sea; those forts and cities and holy places, which still were gripped in the mailed hands of his enemies; that happy valley of the Jordan where the wooden bells of Christians harshly clashed instead of the sweet and solemn chant of the Muezzin—all these were as a rock of offence to “the Sultan of Islam and of the Moslems”. Until the Holy City were once more in the keeping of the Faithful, until the rule of the Frank were brought low, for him at least there could be no rest.