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For historians, the provocations that lead to wars are always intriguing
affairs, much more complex then a single event such as Pearl Harbor, the assassination
of a politician or a declaration of independence. Inevitably, there are
social, religious and other factors leading up to these conflicts that,
given the hindsight of historians, might very well be corrected therefore
avoiding the loss of life and humanity itself that accompanies war. In fact,
it is probably safe to say that war most often results from a lack of
understanding between one are more cultures, or at times, even indifference
to understanding due to greed (as in the colonial period). These underlying
problems form a backdrop of stress and tension, much like a dry forest, that
given a single spark, sets off a massive fire.
Crusader Island Near Taba, Sinai
During the eleventh and twelfth centuries, the major Muslim powers were
fighting amongst themselves. The Sunni Muslims led by the Seljuq sultan
attention was directed towards the Fatimid
Muslims. However, small factions
of unruly adventurers and war bands controlled by neither major Islamic
power lived on the edge of the Byzantine empire. It was their raids
and trouble making that provoked the Byzantine emperor Romanus Diogenes to
raise a large army and advance against the Seljuq led Sunni Muslims. For his
part, Seljuq had been planning an offensive against the Fatimids in Syria
and had not encouraged these boarder tribes to attack the Byzantine lands.
Nevertheless, the ensuing battle would set the stage for the First Crusade,
with many years of violence to follow. Yet worse still would come millenniums
of mistrust between east and west, as well as Christians and Muslims.
These wars may certainly have been provoked by religious fervor and
misunderstanding, but most historians will also point out that greed finally
played no small part.
During the first part of the Crusades, Egypt was under the control of
Fatamid rulers. At first, the Crusaders paid little attention to Egypt, but
they soon began to consider the country a prize, as did the Sunni Muslims.
Perhaps the Egyptians might have accepted either power over their brutal
Fatamid rulers, but interestingly, the Fatamids themselves preferred the
Crusaders. They made a deal to buy off the Christian King Amaury of
Jerusalem, for two hundred thousand gold pieces, to protect them from the
Sunni Muslims. But this first attempt to capture Egypt ended in a
stalemate between Amaury and the Sunni Muslims and in fact both parties
agreed to withdraw.
When Amaury later returned he showed his intentions to the Egyptians by massacring every man,
woman and child in the Delta city of Bilbeis on November 3rd, 1168. This
united the Egyptians against the Crusaders, and would ultimately change the
face of Cairo forever.
At that time, this great city consisted principally of the old Fustat
district and the new, walled district of al Kahira. The Egyptians knew
that Fustat could not be defended as well as Qahira, and that left
to the Crusaders, Fustat would provide them with a base to lay siege to Qahira. So the decision was made to not only move the populace into
Kahira, but also to burn Fustat. This district, still certainly evident in
today's Cairo, was so significant even at that time that it burned for a period
of fifty-four days.
Now the rulers of Egypt sought the help of the Sunni Muslims under the
control of Nur Ed Din, ruler of Damascus. Damascus agreed, and sent his
general Shirkuh to Egypt, but he died before much could be done and his
nephew, he Ayyubid Saladin was became visor of Egypt March 2, 1169. Upon the death of Nur al-Din in 1174,
Saladin
gained control of Damascus as well, becoming one of the most powerful rulers
in the Muslim world.
Considered the most charismatic of the medieval sultans, Saladin was even
admired by his Frankish enemies. It is said that he taught the European
nights the code of chivalry. Other histories may also point to his bloody
and expensive efforts.
Saladin set about building the famous citadel in Cairo soon after taking
power, though it would not be finished until after his death in 1207. This
fortification remains a major Cairo landmark. However, Saladin would
not stay long in Cairo, for he had work elsewhere that called to him.
The Citadel, Cairo
During the First Crusade, Jerusalem had been taken from the Muslims by
the Christians, and it was Saladin who took it back in 1187. It should
be noted that upon the fall of Jerusalem, the Christians expected the same
harsh treatment they themselves had given to the Jews and Muslims when the
Crusaders had conquered the city. However, they were allowed to ransom
their lives, and the penniless were allowed to go free as well.
Upon Saladin's death, his brother ruled for a short period of time, but
it would be his nephew, El Kamil, who would become the next major ruler of
Egypt. It was he who finished the Saladin's
Citadel. An interesting
story is told that Kamil was actually knighted by Richard Coeur de Lion in
what Hitti calls "the romantic excesses of the time". Yet he was
an able defender of Egypt, and it was he who finally drove the Crusaders
from the country
The Crusaders came back in 1218 with a force mostly made up of Germans
who briefly took the port at Damietta. They held the city for three years,
but failed to resist the attack of Kamil and were forced to retreat.
However, it was here that St. Francis of Assisi, seeing that the attack was
going badly, courageously crossed the enemy lines to confront Kamil.
His intentions were to convert the Muslim ruler to Christianity, apparently
unaware that Kamil was surrounded with Coptic advisers and fully familiar
with the Christian faith. St. Francis offered to enter a fiery furnace on
the condition that should he come out alive, Kamil and his people would
embrace Christianity. The sultan replied to the saint with a lesson in
humanity and common sense, saying that gambling with one's life was not a
valid proof of one's god, and then saw St. Francis on his way with courtesy
and lavish gifts.
In order to unite Western Christendom with the isolated churches of Nubia
and Abyssinia, the crusaders attempted to advance down the Nile. This
French crusade against Egypt in 1249 ended in disaster for the West, but for
a brief time they again held Damietta.
The Crusades did not really end until 1291 when the last Crusader ports
were captured, and the wars did change the face of both the Christian and
Muslim world to some extent. But many historians believe that the Crusades
never threatened either the Muslim or Christian empires. Yet they
caused grave wounds to the Muslim and Christian worlds that have endured
into the twentieth and now the twenty-first centuries.
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