Amidst these sanguinary disputes, Conrad, who had an ambassador at the court of Saladin, unable longer to endure the authority of Richard, entered into an alliance with the Mussulmans. Saladin, by treaty, abandoned to the marquis of Tyre all the cities the latter might take from the Christians, and promised to aid him in his conquests, only reserving the booty for the Mussulman soldiers. This treaty, dictated by hatred to Richard, was the signal for the death of Conrad; a very short time afterwards the marquis of Tyre perished by an unknown hand.
English authors assert that Conrad had had quarrels with the chief of the Ismaëlians, and that he was assassinated by the orders of this redoubtable enemy. Two young slaves left the voluptuous gardens, in which their master had brought them up, to execute his vengeance. They arrived at Tyre, and, in order to conceal their purpose the better, received baptism. They engaged themselves in the service of Conrad, and remained six months about his person, apparently only occupied in offering up prayers to the God of the Christians. One day, as the marquis was coming from dining with the bishop of Beauvais, the two Ismaëlians attacked him, and wounded him mortally. Whilst the people congregated tumultuously, one of the assassins fled into a neighbouring church, into which, likewise, the bleeding marquis was borne. The Ismaëlian, who had concealed himself, suddenly rushed through the crowd, and again falling upon Conrad, struck him repeatedly with his dagger, till he was quite dead. The two assassins were seized, and both died amidst tortures, without uttering a single groan, or naming the person who had employed them to take away the life of the marquis of Tyre.[348]
The continuator of Tabary says that Saladin had offered the Old Man of the Mountains ten thousand pieces of gold if he would cause the marquis of Tyre and the king of England to be assassinated; but the prince of the mountain, adds the same historian, did not think proper to deliver Saladin entirely from his war with the Franks, and only performed half of that which had been required of him. The Christians did not attribute the death of Conrad to Saladin, but many among them accused Richard of it. A short time after the murder, a letter was published, in which the lord of the mountain avowed himself to be the author of the assassination; but this letter bore no character of authenticity about it. The savage lord of the mountain could not write, and could have no interest in making the apology of a Christian prince.[349] The king of England himself strengthened the public suspicions by taking possession of Tyre, and giving the widow of Conrad in marriage to his nephew, the count of Champagne. However it may be, this accusation, which was accredited among the Christians, announced plainly the idea they entertained of the character of Richard. The account of the death of Conrad soon reached Europe, and Philip Augustus, dreading the same fate, no longer appeared in public without being surrounded by a guard. The court of France accused Richard of the blackest attempts; but it is probable that Philip, on this occasion, showed more fear than he really felt, in order to render his rival the more odious, and to arm against him the hatred of the pope, and the indignation of all the princes of Christendom.
After the death of Conrad, Richard had no rivals to suspect, or enemies to fight with among the Christians; the opinion even that was entertained of his character, only served to augment his authority, by creating a dread of his hatred or vengeance. He took advantage of a moment, in which Saladin disbanded part of his army, to get possession of the castle of Darcum, built upon the confines of Palestine, towards Egypt. He undertook several other enterprises, which spread terror and surprise among the Saracens; and, all at once, to satisfy the wishes of the Crusaders, marched towards Jerusalem, in which city Saladin had shut himself up with all the troops he could gather together. At the approach of the Christians, the sultan convoked his emirs, and made them swear, on the stone of Jacob, to be buried beneath the ruins of the city rather than yield it up to the soldiers of Richard.
The Christian army encamped at the foot of the mountains of Judea, all the passes of which were guarded by the troops of Saladin and the Saracen peasants of Naplouse and Hebron. As Richard drew near to Jerusalem, his aversion to the idea of allowing the duke of Austria and the duke of Burgundy to share in such a glorious conquest increased; whilst they were not at all willing to assist the king of England in an enterprise that would so much augment his pride and renown. Every time that he proposed to proceed against the holy city, the zeal of the leaders of the army appeared to cool;[350] and when Richard sought to defer the conquest, most of them endeavoured to arouse the enthusiasm of the Crusaders, and repeated the oath they had taken to deliver the tomb of Christ. Thus the proximity to Jerusalem, which ought to have united the Christians more firmly, only served to increase their divisions, and spread trouble, disorder, and discouragement through the whole army.
The Christians were but a few leagues from Jerusalem, and the council assembled to determine what steps must be taken. Many of the leaders thought that they ought at once to besiege the city, and spoke of the consternation of the Mussulmans. The soldiers of Saladin, said they, had not forgotten the evils of Ptolemaïs, and trembled at the idea of again shutting themselves within the ramparts of a city. Fugitives from Jerusalem had informed them that the presence even of Saladin could not keep up the spirits of the soldiers, and that all the inhabitants, seized with terror, were upon the point of flying to Damascus.
They who maintained an opposite opinion, among whom was Richard, thought that the reports spread regarding the disposition of the Mussulmans were but a snare of Saladin’s, by which he hoped to lure the Crusaders into places in which he could destroy them without fighting. “At the moment in which we are speaking,” said they, “the Mussulman cavalry surround the plain on which our army is encamped. It is difficult and dangerous to advance across the mountains of Judea. The roads, bordered by precipices, are, in many places, cut through the solid rock, and are dominated by steep heights, from which ill-armed peasants will be sufficient to crush, or at least to stop the columns of the Christians. How are we to transport through such narrow passes our baggage, our machines, or our munitions of war? If our bravery should succeed in surmounting all these difficulties, will it be easy to keep up our communications with the coast? If we are conquered, how shall we make our retreat, pursued by the army of Saladin?”
Opinions continued to be divided: the king of England wished to retreat to Ascalon; whilst the dukes of Austria and Burgundy warmly maintained that they ought to march towards Jerusalem. Twenty-four knights were selected to determine upon the course that was to be adopted, and the Christian army awaited their decision with an impatience mingled with fear. After having deliberated for some time, the twenty-four knights concluded that the army could not pursue its march without danger, and that the most prudent plan would be to retreat towards the sea-coast. Richard, after having given the order for retreat, whether he was sincerely afflicted, or whether he wished to regain the confidence and esteem of the Crusaders, turned towards Jerusalem with his eyes filled with tears, and covering his face with his buckler, declared himself unworthy to behold a city that he could not conquer.
The Crusaders once more turned their backs upon Jerusalem, which they had sworn so often and so solemnly to deliver, the soldiers totally unable to comprehend the policy or intentions of their leaders. Richard, who had led the Christian army towards the holy city, might at least be accused of want of determination of purpose.[351] The uncertainty of his plans completed the destruction of the confidence which his skill and great military talents had created; and the despair of the Crusaders put an end to the fear of a chief they no longer loved. Discord broke out with fresh fury; such as remained partisans of Richard, reproached his enemies with misleading the spirit of the army; but all parties mutually accused each other of favouring the cause of the infidels. As is generally the case in unsuccessful wars, perfidy and treachery were the subjects most current among the Crusaders.
The most violent complaints were uttered against Richard, who replied to his enemies in a strain of high-minded bravery, worthy of an Amadis or a Roland. At the head of a weak detachment, he took a convoy of seven thousand camels on the way to Jerusalem; on another occasion, going on board a vessel with a few knights, he landed at Jaffa, where the banners of Saladin floated over the towers and ramparts; he pursued the conquerors sword in hand, and forced them to abandon their temporary conquest. A few days after, the king of England, with a troop of his chosen knights, attacked a body of seven thousand Mussulman horse; he rushed in amongst them, and with a stroke of his sabre struck dead at his feet the leader of the Saracens, who all appeared stupified and motionless with surprise and fear.