EARLY in the spring of 1271, Edward, accompanied by his fair spouse, and Theobald, arch-deacon of Pla-ccntia, his old tutor, left the shores of Sicily and sailed lor Acre. Small was the force with which the English prince Went to rescue the imperilled Christians of Syria. His brother, Edmund Crouchback, Earl of Lancaster; his brother-in-law, John, Earl of Brittany; his beloved friends, Robert de Brus, John de Vesci, and Thomas De Clare, with three hundred English knights, and the Frieslanders who had left Aigues MorteS with St. Louis, formed the force with which be went to encounter Bibars Bcndocdar.
Before proceeding to Acre, Edward landed at Cyprus, and having been received by the King and nobles of that island with the honors due to his rank and reputation, continued his voyage towards the imperilled city. No sooner had the Prince landed at Acre, than he climbed the walls, viewed Bendocdar's army, and ascertained the extent of territory which the Christians still called their own. The scene which lay before the great Prince's eye, must have suggested melancholy thoughts. He could not delude himself with the idea of changing the fortune of the East at the head of so slender a force as that which he had brought to Acre; but he must have reflected, with a sigh, what a mighty part he might have played in the " world's debate," had he come at the head of such an army, as had over and over again been ruined and lost for want of a leader of capacity. As it was, he could only lament the plight to which the empire of Godfrey had been reduced.
But small as was Edward's army, his arrival changed the Sultan's plans. Every Mameluke warrior heard with consternation that he was of the same regal race as Richard Caeur de Lion, the fame of whose prowess still lingered in the East; and Bibars Bendoc-dar no sooner became aware that Edward Plantagenet was in Acre, than he evinced his alarm, gathered in his warriors, and beat a retreat.
The arrival of Edward and the retreat of Bibars, revived the hopes of the Eastern Christians; and around the Prince gladly came the Templars and the Knights of St. John. With their aid he planned an expedition; for the idea of remaining idle was not one to be entertained. Within a month after his landing, Edward left the Princess at Acre, placed himself at the head of a little army, and advanced upon the Mussulman territories. After having seen his force increase to the number of seven thousand men, he marched towards Nazareth.
A well-built town situated about six miles from Mount Tabor, in a narrow valley, with flat-roofed houses of two storys, and environs planted with fig-trees, olive-trees, and vines: such is Nazareth, in the nineteenth century. At the time of the crusades, this town was regarded with peculiar veneration, as the place in which the Saviour of mankind had passed his earlier years; and, within its limits, the crusaders erected, in honor of the Virgin, a church, which was considered the most beautiful of all the structures raised by the Christians in the East. Shortly before Edward's arrival at Acre, Bibars Bendocdar having taken Nazareth from the Christians, rendered the occasion memorable by giving the church of St. Mary to the flames; and so bitter was the indignation felt by the faithful at this act of destruction, that when Edward turned towards Nazareth, the crusaders thanked God that the day of vengeance had arrived.
Edward, though squeamish about shedding the blood of English peasants, had probably no scruples about the slaughter of " Pagan dogs." Advancing upon Nazareth, he resolved on taking the place by storm; and fearful was the carnage that ensued. With a craving for revenge gnawing at their hearts, the crusaders assaulted the town; and entering, sword in hand, cut down all who opposed. No quarter was given. The cry of "Remember the burning of St. Mary's church," was sufficient to drown every appeal for mercy; and the crusaders only ceased from the work of carnage to plant the Christian standard on the walls.
After garrisoning Nazareth, Edward set out on his return to Acre. Ere proceeding a few miles, however, he received intelligence, that an army of Saracens was coming in pursuit, with the hope of surprising him in a narrow pass, and of retaking the town. Not a moment was lost. The victorious crusaders immediately turning back, met their foes face to face; and the Saracens, suddenly attacked, sustained such a defeat as convinced them of the prowess of the foe whom they had to encounter.
But Bibars Bendocdar was not a man to despair; and the crusaders had scarcely time to rest from their fatigues, when information reached Edward that the Saracens were mustermg at Kahow, about fifteen miles from Acre, and preparing to come and offer him battle. " Ha 1" exclaimed the English Prince, with a spirit as high as he exhibited on a similar occasion twenty-six years later, " they shall not need to come to find me; for I will forthwith go to seek them!"
Everything was quickly prepared for an expedition; and on the evening of Tuesday, the 23d of June, the crusaders learned that, before daybreak, war-steeds must be saddled and warriors mounted. Long ere sunrise, Edward issued from Acre at the head of his army, and directed his course towards the Saracenic camp. A small force, indeed, his appeared, with which to go on such an enterprise; but stout were the hearts and strong the hands of the Christian warriors, as they moved onward, confident in the genius of their chief and the grandeur of their cause.
Chroniclers have failed to hand down to ns any detailed account of Edward's operations in the East; and, considering the achievements which history has had to record of that mighty Prince as the English Justinian, it is not wonderful that his exploits as a crusader should have been allowed to fall into the background. Sufficient has, however, been chronicled to show how rapidly and widely his fame spread in the East, and to give an idea of the last field, on which the warriors of Christendom did battle for the recovery of their Saviour's sepulchre.
It was the morning of Wednesday, the 24th of June, 1271; and the force of Bibars Bendocdar was drawn together at Kahow, where there was a castle. The Saracenic warriors were bent upon a great effort to crush their foes; and the Saracenic poets were probably celebrating Edward's prospective defeat and death.
While the Saracens were passing " the space of dim hazy dawn which forms the twilight of a Syrian morning in dreams of victory, they became aware of the approach of foes; and, with banners displayed and lances gleaming, the crusaders advanced to the attack. Well did the turbaned soldiers of Bibars Bendocdar know the approaching warriors. On that point, at least, there could hardly have been a mistake. The Templars were there with their white mantles and red crosses; and the Knights of St. John, in their black robes, with five white crosses on each in memory of the five wounds of Christ; and strangely mingling and contrasting with the crusaders from Friesland in waistcoats of horsecloth and rusty jackets, appeared the English chivalry, trained to arms in the Barons' War, and eager to prove their piety and their patriotism. William de Valence, and John de Vesci; John de Gourney, and Odo de Grandison; Roger de Clifford, and Thomas de Clare; Robert de Brus, John of Brittany, and Edmund Crouchback, Earl of Lancaster, with silken surcoats over their chain mail, must have appeared no contemptible foes, as they clustered around "Sire Edward" on that midsummer morning, when he rode to Kahow and offered battle to the enemies of his religion. Few, indeed, they were; but Bibars Bendocdar was destined to learn, that Christendom had never sent gallanter men to fight for the cross, than were found in that little band of Englishmen.
Nothing daunted, we will suppose the Saracens to have sprung to arms; and beat their drums, and prepared for resistance. But, however that may have been, it soon appeared, that against the army led by the Conqueror of Evesham, their valor was vain. Templars and Knights of St. John dyed their lances in infidel blood; Edward's knights exhibited a courage worthy of the flower of Anglo-Norman chivalry; and, dashing aside turban and buckler, the Frieslanders rushed on without a thought of mercy, and, in the name of their Redeemer, slew the unbelieving foe.
But in the conflict, Edward must have been by far the most formidable champion of the cross. Indeed, when the imagination is condupted by a train of historical associations to the thirteenth century, it is not easy, in that dauntless and too-adventurous soldier, to recognize the calm English statesman, who rendered his memory immortal by the laws which he instituted. Mounted on his gray steed, now charging forward at the head of his knights, dispersing the amazed foe -- now retreating to re-form his little band or to engage, hand to hand, with some stalwart Saracen, this English Prince, already great as a warrior, and destined to prove far greater as a legislator and administrator, by his marvellous prowess, appears to have produced on the oriental imagination, an impression not less strong than had, in other days, been made by Robert Cur-tbose, with his paladin-like courage, or by Richard Coeur de Lion with his mighty strength.
At length the Saracens were smitten hip and thigh; and, a multitude of his soldiers having fallen, the host of Bibars Bendocdar gave way. Their mighty adversary appeared to be gifted with supernatural strength; and when Edward, on Gray Lyard, charged upon the Sultan's ranks, Mahomet could not have sustained their courage. Emir and Baharite alike recoiled before the strong steed and the tall rider; and, leaving the camp to their victors, they disappeared from the lost field.
While the Saracens were flying wherever they deemed that safety could be found, the crusaders entered the deserted camp, and had the gratification of finding "much booty." This operation over, they left the field to the eagles and vultures, that, with unerring instinct, came down from the mountains to prey upon the bodies of the slain; and proceeded to a stronghold, situated on the sea coast, and known as the Castle of the Pilgrims. At this fortress, the remarkable ruins of which are still to be seen, the crusaders, during Wednesday night, found quarters; and, on Thursday morning, they returned in triumph to Acre.
Having been received with much applause by the Christians in Acre, and joined by the King and nobles of Cyprus, Edward began to dream of accomplishing something great, and prepared for a third expedition. Arrangements having been made, his trumpets once more sounded to horse; and marching, in the month of August, as far as the castle of St. George, the Prince took possession of that stronghold. No foe, however, appeared to oppose Edward's progress, and nothing farther could be achieved. Indeed, when the Syrian Christians discovered that the English Prince had no money, and that he expected no reinforcements, their ardor suddenly cooled; and, finding the impossibility of keeping an army together, he was fain to return to Acre.
The position of Edward was now mortifying, but he was not without a consolation. Fortunately, enough had been done to gratify the pride of Englishmen, and to teach foreigners to speak of English warriors with respect. He knew well that when slowly but surely, tidings reached London of Acre having been relieved, Nazareth retaken, the castle of the Pilgrims and the castle of St. George recovered, and the battle of Ka-how won against fearful odds, royalists and supporters of oligarchy would shake hands, and pledge each other in a health to " Sire Edward," and breathe a prayer that the brave Prince might soon be restored to the land of which he was the pride and the hope.
Edward might well be gratified with the result of his achievements. With three hundred valiant men from England, he had changed the aspect of affairs. Bibars Bendocdar had retreated to Egypt, as had been his wont after a campaign, but not, as on former occasions, to recruit and return. In fact, the Sultan had met his match, and discovered that no advantage was to be gained in playing the game of carnage with the man who laid Simon de Montfort low.
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From John G. Edgar
The Crusades and the Crusaders, 1860
