Richard I

Chronicon Syriacum

Anthony Alcock

The title page of the publication by P. J. Bruns reads De Rebus Gestis Richardi Angliae Regis
in Palaestina Excerptum ex Gregorii Abulpharagii Chronico Syriaco (1780). In fact, the
name Richard appears nowhere in the Syriac text. It covers some of things that happened
in the Third Crusade (1189-1192), the two protagonists of which were Richard I of
England and Saladin (Salāh al Dīn ibn Ayyūb al-Dawīnī), of whom there is a biography
written by his friend and associate, Bahā' al-Dīn ibn Shaddād,1 who was an eyewitness of
some the events of the Crusade.

The numbers in brackets are the page numbers of the Latin translation, in the margins of which
are the page nos. of the Syriac, which I have consulted throughout. A note about names: I have
occasionally used 'Richard' in the translation, even though it does not appear in the Syriac.
Arab names familiar to me have been written using what I hope is the conventional
transliteration mode of Arabic names. The Arabic text of Ibn Shaddād does not even attempt to
record the names of Occidentals, perhaps as a way of dismissing them, unlike the Latin
Itinerarium, which mentions Saladin by name as Salahadinus, which shows fairly clearly
that Richard was trying to reproduce the sound of the name he had heard.

1 For an English translation of this text cf. D.S. Richards Rare and Excellent History of Saladin
(2001). A useful survey of all the available contemporary and near-contemporary texts
that deal with the Third Crusade can be found in T. A. Archer The Crusade of Richard I
1189-192 (1912), which provides details of the position of each writer vis-à-vis the
Crusade and successfully constructs a 'continuous' narrative of the events from all these
sources. The only eyewitness account from the Crusader perspective is a Latin text wtitten
by a clergyman called Richard of Holy Trinity Priory at Aldgate in London, and portions of
it can be found in M.T. Stead Itinerarium Regis Ricardi (1920). In apology for the relatively
unpolished style of his narrative Richard points out he wrote it in the camp, where bellicos
strepitus tranquillae meditationis otium non admisisse (Stead p. iii). Richard appears to
have disliked Saladin as much as Ibn Shaddād seems to have disliked Richard I.

1
 Translation

[5] The King of England then departed and took Cyprus from the Greeks. 2
From there he crossed over to Akkah,3 where he made his camp, and this
greatly strengthened the Franks. Twenty Arab princes sent envoys and
emissaries to tell Saladin that they had been made downhearted and
desperate by this incessant war. and indeed they were becoming sick. Saladin
told them to leave the coastal region so that he might replace them with
others. Since the Arabs were relatively inexperienced in siege warfare,4 the
Franks began to press forward more vigorously and set up seven machines
against one tower. 5

The English King sent envoys to Saladin to say:6 "There will be no harm if you
and I meet somewhere and reach an agreement that is beneficial to both
sides." Saladin replied: "It is right that the peace treaty made earlier be
confirmed, followed by a meeting between the two of us. After friendly and
convivial talks war hardly seems appropriate." 7

2 The capture of the island in 1191 was a useful strategic move in gaining easy maritime
access to Akkah (‫)ع اكا‬, which had been built up since early Ummayad times as maritime
port with naval dockyard and was major theatre of battle in the First Crusade. Like Coptic
and Arabic the Syriac word for Greek is derived from 'Ionian': ‫ܝܘܢܝܐ‬

3 Usually written 'Acre' in English.

4 Lat. contra murum. Syr. ‫ ܫܘܪܐ ܕܥܓܐܩܪܒܐ‬, which seems to indicate close quarters and
vigilance.

5 Ibn Shaddād talks of a siege tower constructed by the Franks of four storeys. The Franks
used it to fire incendiary missiles 'until God decreed that it catch fire and burn up' cf.
Richards p. 151. Whether these two accounts refer to the same incident seems entirely
possible but is in fact unknown.

6 The chronicle was written probably only four or five decades after the events narrated, so
it is likely that stories were still circulating orally about this war and possible that this
conversation is reasonably faithful.

7 For a similar exchange in the Arabic text cf. Richards p. 153.

2
In the next few days the Englishman was seriously ill.8 The Franks delayed
their war effort because of his illness. While he was recovering, he sent
emissaries to Saladin: "Do not blame me for breaking off talks with you, for my
illness has been an interruption. Now I am better and I am asking you if you
will allow me to send you gifts. It not right that monarchs should refuse the
mutual exchange of gifts, embassies and tokens of friendship, regardless of
any state of war that might exist between them. This is what we have learned
from our fathers, kings of an earlier generation." Saladin replied: "Agreed: if
you accept our gifts, we will accept yours." The envoy said: "We have hawks,
eagles and other trained birds of prey that are sick.9 We are asking you to give
us hens and pigeon chicks for them to eat that they might recover our
strength, and we will bring them to you." al-cAdil,10 the brother of Saladin,
said jokingly to the envoy: "The King of England, who has just recovered from
an illness, now needs pigeons but claims to have hawks." Saladin vested the
envoy in royal garments and sent him back with many hens, pigeon chicks and
pigeons. Three envoys then came to Saladin from the Franks and they sought
apples and snow,11 on receipt of which they departed. [6] It is said that the
King of England had no interest in repeatedly sending empty missions of this
sort. His only concern was to find out about the power of Saladin and the
kings who were with him. Being pressed by the war, these latter sent to
Saladin, telling him that if they did not receive help, they would hand over the
city. But Saladin could do little more than study the Franks in the war he was
conducting with them. The Franks were divided into two parts, one fighting
against those outside and one fighting against those inside. When the latter
saw that they could no longer move,12 they begged for their lives. The Franks
said: "We will not spare you unless Saladin returns all the Franks he has taken
prisoner. Let him return all the cities he has taken from us." When Saladin was

8 Called Arnoldia in the Itinerarium cf. Stead p. 26

9 ‫ܐܡܚܠܝ‬

10 Richard unsuccessfully offered his sister Joan and his niece Eleanor in marriage to al-Adil.

11 ‫ܬܠܓܐ‬

12 The Latin phrase ad incitas redactos translates the Syriac ‫ܡܢܟܕܘ ܫܩܝܠܝܢ‬

3
told of this, he said: "I will give only 3,000 prisoners for the Arabs captured at
Akkah. But if they give me Akkah, I will give them city for city. Let them take
other cities by the sword if they can, as indeed13 I occupied the rest of the
cities."14 When the Franks heard this, they were unable to contain themselves
and started scaling the walls and lowering themselves into the city. With much
bloodshed they forced those who had survived into a corner and the Arabs
said to the Franks: "Do not kill us until we let Saladin know that he might
redeem us with gold and Frank prisoners, whatever your price. The Franks
made a pact: if within 14 days, that is at the new moon, Saladin gives us
200,000 gold dinars and 100 of their prisoners, whose names we will write
out, Counts and Conti15 and others, and 1500 prisoners whose names we do
not know, we will release you." When the Arabs of Akkah informed Saladin of
this, the magnates assembled and he consulted them. Their response was
unanimous: "Those Arabs are our brothers. How can we neglect them ?"
Saladin therefore promised that he would pay the ransom. He immediately
sent to the places16 and gathered the Frank prisoners. Concerning the gold, he
promised that he would pay a third of it within ten days. After this period had
elapsed, he sent a messenger to the Franks and said: "Release all the Arabs in
your custody. You will be given a third of the gold and you can keep hostages
for the other two thirds. Or give us hostages for the third part of the gold that
you have received." But the Franks said: "Let our word be enough for you and
our faith, which we give in place of hostages." [7] Saladin was obdurate and
did not agree with this. The Franks then became angry and bound the Arabs
with ropes and led them outide the city to a hill. They made a large wooden
structure around them, old ropes and garments, called betati,17 like a wall.

13 ‫ܟܐܡܬ‬

14 Richards p. 160

15 ‫ ܟܘܢܕܐ‬is possibly 'Conti'

16 ‫ ܐܬܪܘܬܐ‬i.e. where the Franks were being kept prisoner.

17 According to Payne-Smith Syriac Dictionary (1903) 56b the word is Arabic and means
'bottle, wine vessel', which hardly fits the sense here The nearest Arabic word to it that I
can find is ‫بتي ة‬. Bruns (p. 15) does not know what it is, but is fairly sure that ferociter et
crudeliter egisse Francos, presumably because this 'wall' screened the atrocities they
intended to commit.

4
With their swords drawn they fell on them and slaughtered them all, while
the Arab sentries18 were standing and watching. The number of men killed on
the walls of Akkah, both outside and inside on the hill, was as high as 100,800.
This happened in the seventh month 587 A.H., i.e. 1502 of the Greeks, 19 month
of Ab. We have taken a little time to explain these deaths, because it is so well
known among the Arabs who have written books on this injury which the
Arabs experienced at the hands of the Franks.20

After the capture of Akkah. the Franks left a force large enough to guard the
city and builders to rebuild its walls. They moved forward against Arsuf. 21
Saladin likewise made similar progress. They engaged in battle whenever they
met. One day, when the Arabs attacked the rear of the Franks, the King of
England zealously attacked the Arabs with great force, and many of them
dispersed and fled. Saladin was left with only seventeen of his élite force,
trumpet players and standard-bearers. If the Franks had not been afraid of
walking into an ambush, which would slow them down, they would taken
Saladin that day and Arab dignity would have crumbled. Saladin sent his
builders and cavalry to close off access to the citadel of Bagrās22 and destroy it.
As they moved forward, with some modest depredation to the citadel, they
heard that Levon the Lord of Cilicia23 was preparing to attack them.
Accordingly, they left and fled. When the Antiochenes heard of their flight,
they came to Bagrās, where they found 12,000 measures of wheat. These were
sent to Antioch, where they brought much relief, for there was a great famine
18 The first word in my copy looks like ‫ ܝܐܟ‬but I cannot find anything like it in Payne-
Smith. My translation of is the Latin statio.

19 The Seleucid Era, which began in 312 BC

20 Richards pp. 164-165. The Arab writer declares that it was Richard who was treacherously
responsible for the slaughter, suggesting at the end of the passage that he wanted to leave
no troops at his rear as he marched forward to Ascalon, concluding with the pious
comment 'God knows best'

21 Close to the sea just north of Jaffa cf. Richards pp.174-175. Ibn Shaddād mentions his own
performance during this battle, so his account is rather detailed.

22 The Greek name is πάγραι. The Templars rebuilt the Byzantine fortification on this ideal
defensive location in 1153.

23 Levon II was the Lord of Cilicia from 1187 to 1198.

5
there. A few days later Levon attacked and prevailed over the Franks and took
Bagrās from them. Saladin then sent troops and sacked Ascalon, whose
inhabitants he decimated. The Franks had already built Jaffa and made it their
headquarters beause it was midway between Jerusalem and Jaffa. This is why
the Arabs say: "We cannot save Ascalon." Saladin left for Jerusalem, explored it
and equipped it with men and materials. At this point Mu'izz al Dîn, the Lord
of Malatiyya,24 went to see him. And when he [8] had explained about his
father the Sultan Kelig Arslan and about his brothers that they wished to take
Malatiyya from him,25 Saladin received him with honour and gave him the
daughter of his brother, al-cAdil in marriage, and sent him back to Malatiyya.
In this way he ensured that Malatiyya would not be taken from him. The King
of England sent an envoy to Saladin: "Look, men on both sides are dying. How
long is this bloodshed to continue ? Give us back the places you have taken
from us, especially Jerusalem, the house of our worship, the reason why we
have come here, so that we can stop what we are doing, return home and you
will have no further trouble from us." Saladin replied: "These are historically
not your places but those of the Greeks. The Arabs took possession of them
from the Greeks. When the Arabs became weaker, you came and took them
from them. We sought to regain them and took them back from you. You say of
Jerusalem: 'It is the house of our worship. But we worship and honour it more
than you, as God has instructed us in his Koran.'" The King of England then
sent an envoy to Saladin: "I would like your brother al-cAdil to take my sister26
in marriage, who came with me to worship at Jerusalem. If you let your
brother rule the coastal cities, with their citadels and urban regions, the
villages will be left to the Templars and Hospitallers. 27 There will be a
connection by marriage.28 I will give my sister all the coastal cities which are
in the hands of the Franks and she will live in Jerusalem." But Saladin would
24 Gk μελιτηνή in the part of Asia Minor known as Cappadocia

25 Richards p. 181

26 Joan. There was opposition to the marriage, not least from Joan who refused to marry a
Muslim. cf. Richards pp. 187-188

27 ‫ܕܘܝܐ ܘܐܣܒܬܐܪܝܐ‬

28 ‫ܚܬܢܘܬܐ‬

6
not agree. His brother, al-cAdil, burning with lust, sent magnates and elders to
his brother Saladin that he might agree. When Saladin became very angry,
they cleverly said: "We know that this will not happen and that this woman,
the daughter of a great king, will not agree to marry an Arab. Her brother
knows this perfectly well.29 Perhaps it is by way of mockery, for he is inclined
to be humorous, that he made this astute suggestion. So, do not afflict your
brother."30 Saladin was moved by this and sent an envoy to Richard about the
agreement. The envoy was detained for three days and on the third day
Richard said: "I have been assiduously trying to persuade my sister for the last
three days, but she is unmoved. She say: 'If he becomes a Christian, it will be
done. Otherwise not.' Shamefacedly Saladin's envoy returned. At this time Taqī
el Dīn 'Umar, the brother of Saladin, died [9] on the way to laying siege to
Khalata.31 He was taken back and buried at Miapharekita.32 His hatred of
Christians was great and he was merciless in shedding Armenian blood in
Gabalgur,33 where he was accompanied by his son Mansur. He armed himself
at Miapharekita and sent a messenger to Saladin: "If he had not conceded the
places of his father, Taqī al Dīn, he would have made an agreement with
Bokhtamara,34 the Lord of Khalata. For this reason Saladin neglected him, but
a liitle later he gave his father's places to al-cAdīl, but to Mansur he gave
Edessa, Harran and Samosata. As both forces, Arabs and Franks, moved
towards Ascalon, making a stop on a certain day, the Arabs laid traps for the
Franks as they came out of their camp to collect wood. When the Franks saw
the traps, they mounted their horses and attacked the Arabs, killing three
magnates from among the servants of Saladin, while two common 35 Frank

29 ‫ܛܒ ܝܕܥ‬

30 ‫ܒܕܓܘܢ ܠ ܬܚܫ ܐܚܘܟ‬

31 Ar. ‫خلط‬

32 Ar. ‫ مايافارقين‬on the Tigris in the Diyarbakir province of Turkey

33 The only references I have been able to find using the Internet are to this passage, without
further geographical specification. Bruns (p.16) gives the Ar. as ‫جبل جور‬

34 Presunably the same person as Baktimur, the mameluke of Shah Arman who succedeed
the latter on his death. Richards Index of Persons

35 ‫ܡܢ ܫܚܝܡܐ‬

7
horsemen were taken prisoner. The Englishman then sent an envoy to al-cAdīl,
berating him for his disgraceful behaviour: "I wish to see and speak to you."
The Franks set up a large tent outside their camp and al-cAdīl went to the King
of England and spent the whole day with him, and they separated towards
evening. The King said to al-cAdīl: "I wish to sit with your brother Saladin in
this tent, to see and speak with him." When al-Adīl told him of this, Saladin
refused for two reasons: first, he was afraid; second, he thought it not fitting
that should go to Richard. "It is not fitting for Kings to meet until a peace has
been settled, But no peace has been settled. If he wishes to make it, I am not
skilled enough to talk to him nor he to me. We need an interpreter, so let him
appoint his envoy, and then there need be no meeting,"36 In winter the King of
England went to Akkah and Saladin went to Jerusalem and sent 24,000 gold
dinars to ransom the Arab prisoners from the hands of the Franks. At the
beginning of 588 A.H. the Franks set out for Ascalon and started to repair its
buildings.

A disagreement had arisen between the Marquis of Tyre37 and the English
King: the latter did not approve of the Marquis' autocratic rule Tyre (he
wanted to take Tyre away from him), so the Marquis promised Saladin that he
would join the Arabs and occupy Dara38 with his people.39 When his envoy,
who was with Saladin, [10] two Ismacilis40 in monks' habits attacked the
Marquis as he was riding. One of them attacked him with his knife and the
other fled into a nearby church. The wounded Marquis was also brought into
this church. When the other Ismacili monk, the companion of the one who had
struck the blow, saw the Marquis still able ro speak, he attacked him in the

36 Richards p. 153

37 Conrad of Montferrat, whose task it was to hold Tyre after the Battle of Hattin near Lake
Tiberias in 1187, in which the Crusaders were defeated and after which Saladin took town
after until he was stopped at Tyre.

38 The name of this place occurs as ‫ ܕܐܪܐ‬and ‫ ܕܐܪܘܡ‬, the site of a Crusader castle built
in 1153 by Amalric I.

39 ‫ܒܢܝ ܓܢܣܗ‬

40 In his note on this term (p.17) Bruns cites a description of such people by Abu'l Feda as
'Batini', a member of a group who divined a secret meaning in the Koran (‫)الباطنية‬

8
middle of the church, struck him again and the Marquis died. The two Isma cilis
were taken prisoner by the Franks and under torture said that they had been
sent by the King of England. The Franks believed the assassins because of the
enmity betwen Richard and the Marquis. But it became clear later that they
had been sent by Sinanus,41 the leader of the Ismacilis. The King of England
gave Tyre to Count Henry,42 who married the Marquis' widow and went to live
with her while she was carrying the Marquis' child. This deed was against the
law. The Franks, strengthened, moved forward and pitched their camp at Dara,
which they seized from the Arabs, with no survivors. At this time the Franks
captured a large troop of Arabs who had come from Egypt with gold for
Saladin. When the latter heard that the Franks were preparing a great army
for an assault on Jerusalem, he gathered his forces and prepared for battle.
The walls of Jerusalem having been fortified, he attacked all the aqueducts
outside it. As the Franks were preparing to attack Jerusalem, the King of
England advised them against it. He said: "The land around Jerusalem is dry,
and the Arabs have polluted all the water around the city.43 The nearest river
is miles away. Do not think that Jerusalem is like Akkah. Believe me, but for
the sea, we would not even be able to remain in Akkah for two days." They
listened to his advice and set off for Gaza. Saladin may well have rejoiced that
the sight of him had deflected them from Jerusalem. But he was still afraid for
Egypt. The King then sent an envoy to Saladin: "Do not think that I have
withdrawn out of fear or weakness. Aries44 does not withdraw except to strike
the head. If you wish to make peace on my terms, I will tell you what those
terms are." After many legations peace was drawn up, to the effect that the
territories in Frankish hands were to remain there, to wit, Jaffa and its
surrounding land, Caesarea, Arsuf, Haifa and Akkah; but Antioch, 45 Tripolis

41 This may be a corruption of senex 'elder' cf. Bruns pp. 17ff. for a detailed explanation of
what the name may refer to.

42 Henry II, Count of Champagne, later described as Richard's nephew.

43 Richards p. 211

44 Presumably a combined reference to the animal and the instrument of siege warfare.

45 Bruns (p. 19) has a note about the reading ‫ ܘܐܢܛܝܘܟܝܐ‬, in which he expresses his firm
conviction that the copula is to be omitted.

9
and other places were to be left to the Arabs. Ascalon was to remain a
wasteland.46 Saladin gave the Franks an amount of gold, which they invested
in rebuilding Ascalon. [11] The way was thus opened up, and many Franks
arrived to worship at Jerusalem. Saladin honoured them all and gave them
gifts and transport. It is said that the English King sent to Saladin and said to
him: "Any Frank who does not have a permit from me, do not allow him to
proceed to Jerusalem." Saladin assembled his wise men and asked them:
"What interest does a king have in doing this ?" They discussed the matter and
replied: "The Franks have no other serious reason for leaving except to
worship at Jerusalem. When they have completed this, they return home, with
no further motive for leaving their homeland. So the King now forbids them to
leave at any other time than when he wishes to leave with him readily and
diligently."47 When Saladin discovered this, he sent an envoy to the King:
"These people are foreigners. Since peace has been agreed, it is not for me to
afflict them. If you forbid them, that is for you decide." But the Franks, having
captured Akkah, also took two Arab magnates prisoner: Bar Mashtūb and
Qarāqūsh, a eunuch. This latter was Greek and Saladin had sent him to
Africa,48 where he captured many cities. He then returned to Egypt. where he
built a wall that still bears his name. The former was commander-in-chief of
the Arab army at Akkah. The Franks set his ransom at 80,000 dinars. 49 When
Mashtūb asked how much would save his life, he Franks replied: "30,000
dinars." Qarāqūsh said: "So am I. Bar Mashtūb will not pay 30,000, while I pay
80,000." The Franks laughed as they took the 30,000 from him.50 There are
other similar stories about him. A certain poet wrote a large book about him.
which he published after Qarāqūsh's death.

When the peace was made, Saladin set forth for Beirut. He was visited by
46 ‫ܚܪܒܬܐ‬

47 The Treaty of Jaffa in Sept. 1192 ensured a three-year truce and access to Jerusalem for
Christian pilgrims. I don not fully understand the comments of Saladin.

48 Whether this is the same person as the one mentioned in Ricards p.144 is not known.

49 It would seem that Bar Mashtūb was worth 30,000 and Qarāqūsh 80,000.

50 This process was probably a little more involved than this summary would suggest.

10
Bohemond the Prince of Antioch,51 whom he received with great ceremony. He
clothed Bohemond and fourteen magnates with him in royal garments. He
gave him part of the produce52 of the Antioch territory captured by the Arabs.
Saladin, admiring how the Prince had approached him without fear and with
confidence, honoured him all the more and dismissed him in peace. Saladin
then left for Damascus. The King of England made Henry, his nephew, Count of
Akkah. He crossed the sea to return home but, it is said, died before he
arrived there.

51 Here written: ‫ ܐܢܛܝܢ‬Bohemond III (1148-1201), the grandson of Bohemond I who was
a leader in the First Crusade and became ruler of Taranto and of Antioch.

52 ‫ܡܥܠܬܐ‬

11