3. The Struggle for the Holy Land

About this Lecture

Lecture

In this module, we continue the story of the Third Crusade from the arrival of the armies of England and France to the final Treaty of Jaffa in 1192, focusing in particular on: (i) the situation in 1191, including the presence of Guy of Lusignan's camp outside Acre; (ii) the fall of Acre in July 1191; (iii) the return of Philip Augustus to France, and the transfer of control of the French forces to Hugh III, Duke of Burgundy; (iv) Richard's march south towards Jaffa, his victory over Saladin at the Battle of Arsuf (7 September 1191), a victory due in part to the actions of the Knights Hospitaller, and his capture of Jaffa; (v) the reasons why Richard was so lacklustre in marching against Jerusalem following the capture of Jaffa; (vi) the possibility of a campaign against Egypt, and the reasons why Richard might have contemplated such a campaign; (vii) the in-fighting among the Frankish authorities, particularly in relation to who should be King of Jerusalem; (viii) the settlement of these issues with the death of Conrad of Montferrat, the establishment of Guy of Lusignan as Lord of Cyprus, and the establishment of Henry II, Count of Champagne as (proposed future) ruler of Jerusalem; (ix) the in-fighting among the various contingents of the Frankish forces, and the reasons for this in-fighting; (x) Richard's desire to return to Western Europe following news that his kingdom is in danger; (xi) Richard's march on Jerusalem and retirement to Acre; (xi) Richard's victory over Saladin at the Battle of Jaffa; and (xii) the Treaty of Jaffa and the end of the Third Crusade.

Course

In this course, Dr Nicholas Morton (Nottingham Trent University) explores the Third Crusade (1189-92). We start by thinking about the origins of the Third Crusade, focusing in particular on the annihilation of the Crusader forces at the Battle of Hattin (1187) and Saladin's capture of Jerusalem (1187). After that, we turn to the journey east of the various contingents of the Crusader army, especially those led by the Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick Barbarossa, the French king, Philip Augustus, and Richard I of England. In the third module, we think about the progress of the Crusaders, focusing in particular on the Siege of Acre (1189-91) and the Battles of Arsuf (1191) and Jaffa (1192), as well as the Treat of Jaffa that brought the conflict to an end. In the final module, we consider the Third Crusade from Saladin's perspective, and think about which side 'won' the Third Crusade – was it the Crusaders or Saladin? or neither? or both?

Lecturer

Dr Nicholas Morton is a specialist in the history of crusading and the Medieval Mediterranean between the tenth and thirteenth centuries. More recently he has begun to focus specifically upon the theme of inter-faith relations between Christianity and Islam in this region. He has published extensively on topics connected to this subject area, writing a range of monographs and scholarly articles. He is also an editor for the Ashgate series Rulers of the Latin East.

Currently Dr Morton is completing a monograph exploring the First Crusaders' attitudes and behaviour towards the various non-Christian peoples they encountered during their campaign. This will be a highly revisionist work addressing many key scholarly and public orthodoxies surrounding the nature of Christian/Islamic interaction during the crusade.