DE JOINVILLE'S STORY OF THE SEVENTH CRUSADE
These particulars de Joinville faithfully narrated, at various times, to
Prince Edward, who was an indefatigable listener to whatever pertained to
feats of chivalry and arms.--But he dwelt with far greater circumlocution
and precision upon the events of the Seventh Crusade, in which he was
personally engaged with Louis IX.
"You must know, gracious prince," said the good knight, in the quaint
language of the times, "that though the Christians in Asia had possession
of the holy places, by the treaty with Melech Camel, the mildew of discord
continually blighted all their plans for the improvement of the state, and
as soon as the truce had expired, the Saracens again fell upon them in
their weakened condition, and slaughtered great multitudes of pilgrims.
For this cause it was, that Gregory IX. called again upon the devout
children of the church, to take arms against the Infidels."
"I remember," replied Edward, "the departure of my uncle Richard of
Cornwall, and the valiant Longsword, with their knights, and retainers for
Palestine, and I have heard that his very name was a terror to the
Saracens, inasmuch as they mistook him for the great Richard Coeur de
Lion. God willing, Sire de Joinville, the name of Edward shall one day,
frighten his enemies as well."
To this De Joinville gravely replied, "Thou wouldst do well to remember
that which the good King Louis said, when, to secure the tranquillity of
his subjects, he relinquished so great a portion of his territory to thy
royal sire: I would rather be like our Lord, who giveth freely to all,
than like the conquerors of the earth who have made to themselves enemies
in grasping the rights of others!"
"In sooth," replied Edward, "the sentiment savoreth more of the saint than
of the king," a little piqued that his ambitious tendencies elicited no
warmer approbation.
"And yet," returned de Joinville, "King Louis is the greatest monarch in
Europe, and often by his wise counsel accommodates those differences which
involve other countries in bloodshed. He has, thou knowest well, already
composed the dissensions between thy father and his haughty
brother-in-law, Earl Leicester."
"Aye, verily," returned Edward, his eyes flashing with the presentiment of
vengeance, "this good sword shall one day teach the misproud earl better
manners.--Had my father, less of those meek virtues which thou prizest so
highly, he would never have ratified the statutes of Oxford, and made
England the prey of Simon de Montfort's rapacity."
"The poor inhabitants of Albi and Carcassonne, albeit many of them, I fear
me, were miserable heretics, teach their children to curse the name even
more bitterly," answered de Joinville, "than thou dost."
"He who slaughters women and children," answered Edward, with proud
disdain, "even though it be by the commands of the church, stains his
fair fame more deeply than his sword. To my poor wit it seems good sire,
that this crusade against our own vassals in happy France, bears a hue far
different from the wars in Palestine."
"So thought my good lord," returned de Joinville, "for though his soul
loveth peace, his conscience was often unquiet with the thought of the
sufferings of the Christians, who, pressed by the Turks, cried out for
aid, and yet he knew not how he might leave his people for a foreign war.
At length his doubts were resolved on this wise.--Being grievously ill at
Paris, his soul as it were departed from his body. He saw standing before
him Count Raimond of Toulouse, who, being in the torment of purgatory,
cried out, 'Oh! that I had employed my people in chasing the children of
Satan from the Holy Land, then would they not have had leisure to have
devised those heresies by which they have destroyed both their souls and
bodies in hell.' When the soul of the king returned, he heard those who
had nursed him speaking together, and one would have covered his face with
a cloth, thinking that all was over, but another (so God willed it)
declared continually that he was alive. Then he opened his eyes and looked
upon them, and he desired one of them to bring him the crucifix, and he
swore upon it that if God should please restore him to health, he would,
in person, undertake the Holy War. In like manner as the king put on the
cross, so did his three brothers, Robert, Count d'Artois, Alphonzo, Count
de Poitiers, and Charles, Count d'Anjou, the venerable Hugh le Brun, Count
le Marche and his sons, with many others of rank and dignity, and many
lords whom Simon de Montfort had deprived of their patrimony in Languedoc,
and many others who had fought against the heretics. Thus did the pious
king make the Holy War the means of expiation and of universal
reconcilement. But so wise was he withal, and so careful of his people,
that he thought also to make the expedition the foundation of a great
colony in Egypt. Thus many of the transports were laden with spades,
pitch-forks, plows, and other implements for the tilling of the ground,
together with seeds of various kinds, for the better prospering of the new
state. You must know, before the king left the realm, he summoned all the
barons to Paris, and there made them renew their homage and swear loyalty
to his children, should any unfortunate event happen to himself during
this expedition.
"Magnificent dresses were on this occasion bestowed upon all the
courtiers, and the next day the cavaliers were surprised to find, that to
every cloak a splendid gold cross had been affixed by the art of the
goldsmith, thereby intimating the king's desire that they should join him
in the Crusade.
"It was in the month of August that we embarked at the rock Marseilles,
and the priest and clerks standing round the king, sang the beautiful
hymn, 'Veni Creator,' from the beginning to the end. While they were
singing, the mariners set their sails in the name of God, and soon, with a
favorable wind, the coast disappeared from our view, and we saw nothing
but the sea and sky. We landed first at Cyprus, where we made a long stay,
waiting for Count Alphonzo, who headed the reserve. Here ambassadors from
all nations came to pay their court to the French monarch. The great Chan
of Tartary paid him many fine compliments, and bade his servants say that
their master was ready to assist him in delivering Jerusalem from the
hands of the Saracens. The King of France sent likewise to the Chan a
tent, in the form of a chapel, of fine scarlet cloth, embroidered on the
inside with the mysteries of our faith. Two black monks had charge of it,
and were also instructed to exhort the Tartars, and show them how they
ought to put their belief in God."
"Are not the Tartars of the same race as the Turks?" inquired Edward, with
great curiosity.
"I understand not well the genealogy of the people of the East," replied
de Joinville, "but I consider Tartary as a general name for a vast
country, whence have issued, at various times, certain tribes called
Scythians, Hungarians, Turks, and Mongols, which have overrun the fertile
provinces that skirt the Mediterranean."
The prince, feeling greatly enlightened at this comprehensive answer,
listened respectfully while de Joinville resumed. "There came also
ambassadors from the Christians of Constantinople, Armenia and Syria.
Envoys likewise from the 'Old Man of the Mountain,' of whom there runs so
many strange stories. King Louis also formed a league with the leader of
the Mongols against the two great popes of Islamism, the Sultans of Cairo
and Bagdad. From Cyprus we sailed to Damietta, which King Louis attacked
sword in hand. The Infidels, by the favor of God, were put to the worse,
and the city fell into our hands. We found great spoil in Damietta, and
were comfortably lodged there. But the king's officers, instead of
well-treating the merchants, who would have supplied the army with
provisions, hired out to them stalls and workmen, at so dear a rate, that
they departed from us, which was a great evil and loss. Barons and knights
began to give sumptuous banquets, one to the other; the commonalty also
gave themselves up to all kinds of dissipation, which lasted until the day
we set forward toward Cairo, on the route formerly travelled by Jean de
Brienne. We were stopped at Mansourah many days by a branch of the Nile,
where it was necessary to construct a dyke, and there they assailed us
with the Greek fire, by which we were in great danger of perishing. This
fire was in appearance like a great tun, and its tail was of the length of
a long spear, and the noise which it made was like thunder, and it seemed
a great dragon of fire flying through the air, giving such light by its
flame, that we saw in our camp as clearly as in broad day; and when it
fell upon a knight in armor, it penetrated through the scales thereof, and
burned to the very bone. Thus our army suffered greatly, and were
prevented from making farther progress.
"The king called his barons to council, and it was concluded to return to
Damietta. But so many of our army had fallen sick, that it was necessary
to make preparations to embark upon the Nile. The king himself suffered
greatly with the pestilence, and our march was stopped by the Saracens,
who lay in wait for us upon the banks of the river, and as the prince
would not desert his people, we were all made prisoners together. After we
had suffered many things, both in body and spirit, the Sultan, who had
been recently elected by the Mamelukes, agreed to accept as ransom for the
captives, the city of Damietta and the sum of 500,000 livres. When the
Sultan found that King Louis complied with the first demand without
striving to drive a bargain, 'Go and tell him from me,' he said, 'that I
retract one-fifth of the sum, because I have found him both generous and
liberal.'
"After the affair was concluded, my royal master empowered me to accompany
the envoys to Damietta, and to receive from Queen Margaret the money for
the ransom. When I came to the palace where the queen was lodged, I found
her apartment guarded by an aged knight, whom, when she heard of her royal
husband's captivity, she had caused to take oath that, should the Saracens
enter the town, he would himself put an end to her life before they could
seize her person. My royal mistress received me graciously, and gave me
the money which the king had commanded, and she also bade me look upon the
son she had borne to Louis during his absence, that I might assure him of
their health and comfort. The misfortunes that had attended our arms
caused us to quit Egypt; and, sailing at once for Acre, we were received
with great joy by the Christians of the East. We employed ourselves in
restoring the fortifications of the principal towns, but the monarch,
through dejection at the failure of his enterprise, returned to France
without making a pilgrimage to the holy places."
"By my faith," replied the young prince, "it were a matter of surprise
that such well-appointed expeditions should suffer such total loss.
Methinks a good soldier should never sheathe his sword till the hour of
victory."
De Joinville regarded the inexperienced youth with a benevolent smile,
remarking only, that caution and prudence are virtues as essential to a
ruler, as courage and prowess.