Following Orders

[Monsignor de Beaumanoir]

Our prayers continue to be with Lady FeFay.

Your crusade plans for the fall sound more like a threat than a pleasure cruise Warrior Monk.    I know you will find the good populace of Fairhaven to be kind, open-minded, forward thinking and radiant.    

In other words, if you thought the Cathars were bad, you ain't seen nothin'.....  

Thank you all for your kind words, I will be most happy, eager, and pleased to show her upon my return home this evening!

As for the invitation, I look forward to it. And for the record, my 5 year old Sith Princess (Darth Brynnius) makes Cathar and Saracen camps look like Buddist Monk Day Care facility!

[Lady Christina de Pond]

don't worry i'm being good and staying inside a lot

[Sir William Marcus]

[Richard de Graeme]

It is with a heavy heart , that I must now inform the Green Monk, that we will not be attending Bristol this year. Due to the Queen suffering an unexpected injury, I have found it in her best interest to remain here and allow her time to be attended by a physician and heal. It was originally her idea to attend this function, and she would still very much like to, but a 14hr trip up, with a 5 year old Princess in tow, would not be in her physical best interest.

Warrior Monk, I am indeed saddened to hear of thy Queen's demise and wish her a swift and thorough recovery.  Please do convey my sentiments thus to Lady LeFay and thine young Princess. Thy wisdom is true. Such a journey would cause undo hardship for all. Perhaps next year Sir William and Femme Falchion may be persuaded to join the caravan and attend Bristol? What say ye all? Shall we meet in the turning of the Year?

Having just returned from the North, completing a Solstice paddle in my trusty canoe "Borderland", the Green Monk, is renewed, hale, hearty, and steeled for the upcoming Faire season.

All Blessings be upon thee, thy kith and kin.

[Sir William Marcus]

One would very much indeed love to attend.  Time will only tell if a visit will be granted.

Now... Hail Monday!

[Monsignor de Beaumanoir]

Fighting through to Monday...

[Monsignor de Beaumanoir]

Movie FYI:

King Richard and the Crusaders (1954)

The film invents a military order of "Castelaines" or "Castlers", of which Sir Giles (Robert Douglas) is the Master. In the source novel, these characters are Knights Templar, whom Sir Walter Scott invariably depicted as villains. It is unclear whether the change was made because of the Production Code (Templars were a monastic order, so hostile depictions might fall under the rules against negative depictions of clergy), or to avoid upsetting the Masonic Knights Templar, of which a number of distinguished Hollywood figures were members.


I'm looking for this one, if anyone knows where I can find it on DVD.......

[Richard de Graeme]

Quite a cast, I must say!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047150/

It is hard to imagine an old fart, such as myself, has no recollection of ever seeing this movie!

[Richard de Graeme]

Zzzzzzzzzzzzz...snort...snort...wonder where they are...zzzzzzz.

[Monsignor de Beaumanoir]

I'm trying to track it down. I have a sizable collection of very old medieval themed movies, and I don't have this one.........

[Monsignor de Beaumanoir]

In the coming days, many will celebrate for many a variety of reasons. I wish you all safe times, and leave you with another 4th of July incident of historical importance:

The Horns of Hattin:



Background

When Baldwin IV finally succumbed to his leprosy in 1185, Baldwin V became King, but he was a sickly child and died within a year. Guy went with Sibylla to Jerusalem for his stepson's funeral in 1186, along with an armed escort, with which he garrisoned the city. Raymond III, who was jealous to protect his own influence and his new political ally, the dowager queen Maria Comnena, was making arrangements to summon the Haute Cour when Sibylla was crowned queen by Patriarch Eraclius. Raynald of Chatillon gained popular support for Sibylla by affirming that she was "li plus apareissanz et plus dreis heis dou rouame" ("the most evident and rightful heir of the kingdom"). With the clear support of the church Sibylla was undisputed sovereign.

However, before she was crowned she agreed with oppositional court members that she would annul her marriage with Guy to please them, as long as she would be given free choice in her next husband. The leaders of the Haute Cour agreed, and Sibylla was crowned thereafter as queen regnant. Taking her choice as husband, to the astonishment of the rival court faction, she remarried Guy, who became King in August 1186. The Queen removed the crown from her head and handed it to Guy, permitting him to crown himself, at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, in September 1186.

Guy of Lusignan became king of Jerusalem in 1186, in thanks to the antics of his wife Sibylla, after the death of Sibylla's son Baldwin V. The Kingdom of Jerusalem was at this time divided between the "court faction" of Guy, Sibylla, and relative newcomers to the kingdom such as Raynald of Chatillon, as well as Gerard of Ridefort and the Knights Templar; and the "nobles' faction", led by Raymond III of Tripoli, who had been regent for the child-king Baldwin V and had opposed the succession of Guy. Disgusted, Raymond of Tripoli watched as his fellow barons hastened to Jerusalem to make obeisance to King Guy and Queen Sibylla. The great lord of Tripoli rode in the opposite direction, up the Jordan River Valley to Tiberias. The situation was so tense that there was almost open warfare between Raymond and Guy, who wanted to besiege Tiberias, a fortress held by Raymond through his wife Eschiva, Princess of Galilee. War was avoided through the mediation of Raymond's supporter Balian of Ibelin.

Meanwhile, the Muslim states surrounding the kingdom had been united during the 1170s and 1180s by Saladin. Saladin had been appointed vizier of Egypt in 1169 and soon came to rule the country as sultan. In 1174, he imposed his rule over Damascus; his authority extended to Aleppo by 1176 and Mosul by 1183. For the first time, the Kingdom of Jerusalem was encircled by Muslim territory united under one ruler. The crusaders defeated Saladin at the Battle of Montgisard in 1177, and in the early 1180s there was an uneasy truce between the two sides, which was broken by the raids of Raynald on Muslim caravans passing through his fief of Oultrejordain. Raynald also threatened to attack Mecca itself.

When Guy became king, Raymond made a separate truce with Saladin, and in 1187 allowed the sultan to send an army into the northern part of the kingdom. At the same time, an embassy was on its way from Jerusalem to Tripoli to negotiate a settlement between Raymond and Guy. This embassy was defeated at the Battle of Cresson on May 1, by a small force under the command of Al-Afdal. Raymond, wracked with guilt, reconciled with Guy, who assembled the entire army of the kingdom and marched north to meet Saladin.

Siege of Tiberias

After reconciling, Raymond and Guy met at Acre with the bulk of the crusader army. According to the claims of some European sources, it consisted of 1,200 knights, a greater number of lighter cavalry, and perhaps 10,000 foot soldiers, supplemented by crossbowmen from the Italian merchant fleet, and a large number of mercenaries (including Turcopoles) hired with money donated to the kingdom by Henry II of England. Also with the army was the relic of the True Cross, carried by the Bishop of Acre, who was there in place of the ailing Patriarch Heraclius.

On July 2, Saladin, who wanted to lure Guy into moving his army away from the springs at Saffuriya, personally led a siege of Raymond's fortress of Tiberias while the main Muslim army remained at Kafr Sabt. The garrison at Tiberias tried to pay Saladin off, but he refused, later stating that "when the people realized they had an opponent who could not be tricked and would not be contented with tribute, they were afraid lest war might eat them up and they asked for quarter...but the servant gave the sword dominion over them." The fortress fell the same day. A tower was mined and, when it fell, Saladin's troops stormed the breach killing the opposing forces and taking prisoners.

Holding out, Raymond's wife Eschiva was besieged in the citadel. As the mining was begun on that structure, news was received by Saladin that Guy was moving the Frank army east. The Crusaders had taken the bait.

Guy's decision to leave the safety of his defenses was the result of a Crusader war council held the night of July 2. Though reports of what happened at this meeting are biased due to personal feuds among the Franks, it seems Raymond argued that a march from Acre to Tiberias was exactly what Saladin wanted while Sephoria was a strong position for the Crusaders to defend. Furthermore, Guy shouldn't worry about Tiberias, which Raymond held personally and was willing to give up for the safety of the kingdom. In response to this argument, and despite their reconciliation (internal court politics remaining strong), Raymond was accused of cowardice by Gerard and Raynald. The latter influenced Guy to attack immediately.

Guy thus ordered the army to march against Saladin at Tiberias, which is indeed just what Saladin had planned, for he had calculated that he could defeat the crusaders only in a field battle rather than by besieging their fortifications.

East versus West

The Christian forces, led by King Guy of Jerusalem, numbered 1200 knights, 4000 lighter cavalry and 15000 – 18000 infantry. Saladin's host contained 12000 professional cavalry, or faris, with other horsemen and infantry bringing the Muslim army to a strength of around 30-45,000.

The Christian army resumed their march toward Tiberius – which was under siege by Muslim forces - at dawn on the 4th of July, 1187. They had been constantly harassed by Saladin's army since leaving Sephorie the day before and morale was low due to thirst and exhaustion.

Saladin had instructed bundles of dried brushwood placed on the surrounding hills the night before and dug cisterns which had been filled with water brought up from Lake Tiberius by camel train. He now ordered his troops to light these bundles, and pour water on the ground in full view of the thirsty crusaders. The choking smoke and taunting muslims further demoralized the Christians.

Saladin then attacked with his centre and right flank. The Templars counter-charged and the Christian vanguard attacked the Muslim right wing. The Crusader cavalry succeeded in driving off the initial Muslim assaults but lost many horses.
Morale began to disintegrate and many of the Christian infantry began heading eastwards. King Guy ordered the army to halt and pitch tents in the hope of providing a barrier to further Muslim cavalry attacks.

It was at this point that Raymond of Tripoli attempted to break through the encircling Muslims and led his men in a wild charge northwards. The Muslim cavalry merely swung aside to let him pass and closed the ring again. Raymond was unable to charge back up the hill and led his men away from the battle.

Titans collide

There was a hill nearby with two pronounced crests known as the Horns of Hattin. The Christian infantry sought refuge on the nearby northern Horn of Hattin, and, despite entreaties from the cavalry below, refused to budge. The Knights, realizing how exposed they were, occupied the flat-topped southern Horn, pitching the Royal tent as a rallying standard.
Saladin now ordered his foot-soldiers to attack the Christian infantry. After a fierce and desperate slaughter, those Christian soldiers who had not been killed either surrendered or were captured. Saladin then directed his attentions to the Christian nobility on the southern Horn.

Muslim cavalry attacked the Crusader Knights, who made several counter-charges, coming close enough to endanger Saladin himself. After 2 attempts, Muslim faris managed to battle their way onto the summit of the southern Horn and cut the guy ropes of the Royal tent. The tent fell, and with it any further resolve the crusaders may have had to continue fighting.

Saladin had captured almost all of the nobility of the Crusader states, including King Guy, the Master of the Hospitallers, the Master of the Templars; Gerard de Ridefort and the notorious Reynald of Chatillon. The Templars and Hospitallers were given the choice of converting to Islam or execution. In total, 230 were put to death.

Gerard was given the condition by Saladin that, if he could convince a Templar fortress to surrender peacefully, he would be set free. He succeeded and on his release went to Tortosa, where he ably led the Templars' defence of their castle, which held out after the fall of the town to Saladin's siege forces. Having taken back control of his order from Thierry, he seems to have seized the remainder of Henry II's money which had been left with the Templars in Tyre. This provoked a complaint from the city's defender, Conrad of Montferrat, in letters of 20 September 1188 to Baldwin of Exeter and Frederick Barbarossa: "...graver still, the Master of the Temple has made off with the King of England's alms".

In 1189, he again joined forces with Guy, taking the Templars to the Siege of Acre. He was either killed in battle or executed after being taken prisoner by Saladin again on October 1.

Many of the knights and Barons were ransomed but the majority of the Crusader infantry were sold into slavery. Possibly as many as 3000 Christians managed to escape the battle, including Balian d'Ibelin, whom had commanded the rearguard and would win lasting fame for his defense of Jerusalem in September 1187.

[BLAKDUKE]

My good Templar:

The movie you speak of is readily available on E-bay, I have seen several.  I have heve it VHS and could copy it for you, though the quality would not be the best. 

Am sad to hear of thy ladies injury.  Mine own queen is now well healed from the surgeons knives, poltices and leeches.
May your lady return to good health soon.

what are thy plans for this holiday weekend?

Wilt thou be out and about, out and far gone, or just vegetating.   

[Sir William Marcus]

[Monsignor de Beaumanoir]

"The events of the morrow's afternoon will be legendary!"

[Sir William Marcus]

Three years in the waiting. A gathering of warriors monks held at thee McCordia Preceptory has finally become a reality.