The winter months of 1190 and the spring of 1191 had been spent by them in very uneasy lodgings at Messina. Richard and Philip were, from the very first, jealous of one another. Richard was betrothed to Philip’s sister, and Philip suspected him of wishing to break off the engagement. Richard’s sister Johanna, the widow of William the Good, was still in Sicily. Richard wanted to get her and her fortune into his hands and out of the hands of Tancred, who, with a doubtful claim, had set himself up as King of Sicily against Henry of Hohenstaufen, who had married the late king’s aunt. Now, the Hohenstaufen and the French had always been allies; Richard, through his sister’s marriage with Henry the Lion, was closely connected with the Welfs, who had suffered forfeiture and banishment from the policy of Frederick Barbarossa. He was also naturally the ally of Tancred, who looked upon him as the head of Norman chivalry. Yet to secure his sister he found it necessary to force Tancred to terms. Whilst Tancred negotiated the people of Messina rose against the strangers; the strangers quarrelled among themselves; Philip planned treachery against Richard, and tried to draw Tancred into a conspiracy; Tancred informed Richard of the treachery. Matters were within a hair’s breadth of a battle between the crusading kings. Philip’s strength, however, was not equal to his spite, and the air gradually cleared. Tancred gave up the queen and her fortune, and arranged a marriage for one of his daughters with Arthur of Brittany, who was recognized as Richard’s heir. Soon after Queen Eleanor arrived at Naples with the lady Berengaria of Navarre in her company; whereupon, by the advice of Count Philip of Flanders, Philip released Richard from the promise to marry his sister; and at last, at the end of March, 1191, the French Crusaders sailed away to Acre. Richard followed in a few days; but a storm carrying part of his fleet to Cyprus, he found himself obliged to fight with Isaac Comnenus, the Emperor, and then to conquer and reform the island, where also he was married. After he reached Acre, where he arrived on June 8, he as well as Philip fell ill, and only after a delay of some weeks was able to take part in the siege. The town held out a little longer; but early in July surrendered, and gave the Christians once more a footing in the Holy Land. Immediately after the capture Philip started homewards, leaving his vow of pilgrimage unfulfilled. Richard remained to complete the conquest.
Richard’s
campaigns
in Palestine.
The sufferings and the cruelties of this part of the history are not pleasant to dwell upon. It is a sad tale to tell how Saladin slew his prisoners, how the Duke of Burgundy and Richard slew theirs; how Conrad and Guy quarrelled, the French supporting Conrad and Richard supporting Guy; how the people perished, and brave and noble knights took menial service to earn bread. A more brilliant yet scarcely less sad story is the great march of Richard by the way of the sea from Acre to Joppa, and his progress, after a stay of seven weeks at Joppa, on the way to Jerusalem as far as Ramleh. Every step was dogged by Saladin, every straggler cut off, every place of encampment won by fighting. Christmas found the king within a few miles of Jerusalem; but he never came within reach of it. Had he known the internal condition of the city he might have taken it. Jerusalem was in a panic, Saladin for once paralyzed by alarm; but Richard had no good intelligence. The Franks insisted that Ascalon should be secured before the Holy City was occupied. The favorable moment passed away.
Ascalon
rebuilt.
Exploits of
Richard.
Richard with a heavy heart turned his back on Jerusalem and went to rebuild Ascalon. Before that was done the French began to draw back. The struggle between Guy and Conrad broke out again. Saladin, by Easter 1192, was in full force and in good spirits again. Richard performed during these months some of the most daring exploits of his whole life: capturing the fortresses of the south country of Judah, and with a small force and incredibly rapid movements intercepting the great caravan of the Saracens on the borders of the desert. Such acts increased his fame but scarcely helped the Crusade.
March on
Jerusalem.
Retreat and
truce.
In June it became absolutely necessary to determine on further steps. Now the French insisted on attacking Jerusalem. Richard had learned caution, and the council of the Crusade recommended an expedition to Egypt to secure the south as Acre barred the north. At last Richard yielded to the pressure of the French, and in spite of the want of water and the absurdity of sitting down before the Holy City with an enormous army in the middle of summer, he led them again to Beit-nuba, four hours’ journey from Jerusalem. Then the French changed their minds again; and thence, on July 4, began the retreat preparatory to the return. Richard had been too long away from France, whither Philip had returned, and from England, where John was waiting for his chances; he began to negotiate for a truce, and in September, after a dashing exploit at Joppa, in which he rescued the town from almost certain capture, he arranged a peace for three years three months and three days.
Richard’s
journey
homewards.