Finally, before moving out, they were solemnly blessed by the bishops. Early that morning mass had been said, and all the soldiers who had not previously done so had made their confessions and received the Host. Fulk, in his mitre and vestments, held out a fragment of the true cross for each man, in turn, to dismount and kiss it.
This ceremony, of course, dragged so that the enthusiasm of the troops began to suffer until Bishop Peter of Comminges, with a more practical spirit than his brother of Toulouse, cut matters short by gently taking the relic into his own hands and held it up in sight of all present, promising to those who should fall the glory of martyrs and the remission of purgatory. Afterwards, when the little column had moved off, the clergy made for the church, and throughout the engagement continued to implore the throne of grace in behalf of the Christian arms with such fervor that “... they might be said to have howled rather than prayed.”
It is impossible to establish the numbers of the force which the Crusaders were about to attack. Pedro had mobilized a thousand knights, all of whom had not yet come in, but the number of his “sergeants” we do know. There are no figures as to the men brought by the Languedocian nobles, although we do know that two years before at Castlenaudary, their forces had heavily outnumbered de Montfort at a time when Pedro was not in the field. The calculations of different authorities vary widely. In cavalry alone, the Crusaders were certainly outnumbered at least four to one.
The southern infantry strength, including both feudal infantry and communal militia, has been estimated at forty thousand. No figures seem to exist for the Toulousain militia, but they were undoubtedly in considerable force. On the other hand, the morale of the allies was below the superb morale of the Crusaders; and there was friction between Languedocians and Spaniards, as we have seen.
The reconstruction of a mediæval battle is a matter of the greatest difficulty, as every scholar knows who has attempted such a task.
Even when (as in the present case) half a dozen contemporary accounts are at hand, nothing approaching a technical description of the action is to be found in them. Occasionally, as in the chronicle of Jaime of Aragon, which enumerates the different errors committed by the troops under his father, we get a flash of true military appreciation, but never more than a flash. Irrelevant but picturesque incidents, such as the series of mishaps suffered by de Montfort in mounting, are dwelt upon, while the fundamental points of an action are left vague.
The historian is therefore compelled to test his authorities by minute study of the terrain, by an examination of local tradition, and by all he has of common sense combined with military judgment.
With respect to this matter of military judgment yet one more difficulty appears, i.e., our complete ignorance of mediæval minor tactics. In most other respects, our ignorance is qualified. We know that our European ancestors of seven and eight hundred years ago could and did move large armies from France to Palestine, both by land and overseas. Therefore we are compelled to credit them with a considerable degree of discipline and an effective commissariat and intelligence service; to deny such obvious conclusions is merely to make a fool of oneself. We are well informed concerning their fortifications and siege work, which played so important a part in their wars. But as to the details of their tactical formations and especially as to the regularity of those formations we know nothing at all. Hence it is possible for highly educated veteran soldiers of to-day to argue that there was, for instance, no generally understood and practised method of passing from column to line and back again!
Accordingly it is not surprising to find that scholars disagree fundamentally over the Battle of Muret, and that no full reconstruction seems possible.
Nevertheless, after comparing all the evidence now available, an accurate outline of the action can be fixed. This I shall now attempt.