Who wants to save his life, Doesn't take a saint of a cross.
I'm ready to die in battle
In the battle for the Lord Christ.
To all those whose consciences are unclean, Who is hiding in their own land
The gates of heaven are closed
And God meets us in paradise.
Friedrich von Hausen. Translation by V. Mikushevich)
It doesn't matter how and why, but it turned out that in 1099 the Western European knights found themselves in the East (the Lower Lands, Outremer, as they said then), where they created their states. There were many of them and they occupied a rather vast territory in Syria and Palestine, in Cyprus (after its conquest by the English Richard I) and in the Latin Empire with its capital in Constantinople after 1204, as well as from its successors in Greece. Well, the history of the crusader states in Syria, Palestine and Lebanon began with the arrival of the participants of the first crusade to the Middle East in 1098. It also had an end, which was marked by the fall of Acre and the coastal cities held by the crusaders in 1291, although the Templars owned the coastal the island of Arwad even before 1303. The Latin Empire lasted from 1204 to 1261, but the Crusader principalities in southern Greece persisted until the 15th century. And the kingdom of Cyprus was annexed by Venice only in 1489.
Crusaders at the walls of Antioch. The History of Guelmo de Tire (William of Tire), Acre, 1275-1300. (National Library of France, Paris)
Sands, heat and Muslims …
Small size, a hostile environment of non-Christians, an unusual climate - all this made the Crusader states sufficiently vulnerable, with the exception of the island of Cyprus. And it is clear that this vulnerability simply could not but have an impact on their military affairs. Let's start with the fact that there was, for example, the problem of a shortage of horses. It was evident in the early years and remained a source of Weakness to the Knighthood of the Lower Lands into the future. It would seem that Arabia was nearby, all the Mamluks rode beautiful horses, which were not so difficult to get, but … these horses were not suitable for heavily armed knightly cavalry, and heavy large horses from Europe were not only very expensive because of their carriage by sea, still could not withstand the local climate. There were also not enough soldiers, although the crusaders, quite possibly, greatly overestimated the number of their Islamic opponents. On the other hand, the problem of “cadres” became especially acute after the creation of the crusader states in Greece in 1204, when a large number of knights from Syria and Palestine went there.
Knights of Outremer. The History of Outremer, Jerusalem, 1287 (Municipal Library of Boulogne-sur-Mer, France)
When Borrowing Is Very Good
The tactics of the crusaders and their military organization were well studied, although traditionally more attention was paid to the first stage of the conquest than the second, defensive. The vital role of military orders such as the Knights Templar and Hospitaller and the role of urban military communities must be emphasized here. Generally speaking, the crusaders had little to teach the warriors of the eastern Mediterranean, but they themselves adopted much of what they saw in Byzantium and their Muslim opponents. The crusaders actively adopted items of equipment from them, although this, most likely, was only the tradition of using captured trophies, and by no means a deliberate copying of the enemy's military achievements. The most notable examples of this phenomenon were light cavalry, using spears with reed or bamboo shafts, mounted infantry (used for high-speed raids), and archers. The latter were necessary to fight the enemy cavalry, since it was she who was the main enemy of the crusader armies in the East. It was here that the knights finally realized that success on the battlefield can only be achieved by using their forces in a comprehensive manner. And if they lacked some kind of warriors, then … the latter could always be hired from local Christians and even Muslims of a different persuasion than the given enemy!
Knights Outremer fight with Muslims and … play chess with them. The History of Outremer, Jerusalem, 1287 (Municipal Library of Boulogne-sur-Mer, France)
The main thing is layering
Here it's time to consider how the knights generally dressed for battle, who fought in Syria and Palestine. Well, first of all, as it should be, and as was done everywhere at that time, the knights put on linen underwear - wide, similar to modern panties, underpants bra, reaching the knees and tied with ribbons on the legs and at the waist. Having put on a bre, the knight put on his legs in chasses - an extremely curious type of medieval clothing, which were separate trousers, cut and sewn in such a way that they, like stockings, tightly wrapped each leg. They were also tied to the bre's belt. Chain mail chausses lined with thin leather were put on over the fabric chaos and again tied to the belt. The chain mail foot replaced shoes, although it also happened that the chain mail shoe sole was leather. Sometimes, over the chain mail shosses, some fashionistas also pulled on colored fabrics. The chain mail was not visible under them, but nevertheless it was there. It has become a custom to protect the knees with forged cup-shaped knee pads attached to quilted “pipes” made of linen. Sometimes they were short. Sometimes they protected the entire hip to the very top, similar to the armor of the Italian knight Colaccio Beccadelli.
Warriors in scale armor. "Psalter of Millisenda" (cover, bone carving), Jerusalem, 1131-1143 (British Library, London)
The shirt, also linen or even silk, with ties on the sleeves and neck was loose fit. A quilted gambison caftan was worn over a shirt under chain mail. The hair on the head was removed under the same quilted cap, which protected the head from contact with the rings of the chain mail hood. The chain mail was worn on the gambison, the chain mail hood was an aventail over the chain mail. Sometimes he had a front flap that covered the lower part of his face, with leather lining and ties, or a hook with which he clung to the aventail. Thanks to all this, the valve could be folded back and talk freely. To fix the topfhelm cylindrical helmet, a leather roller stuffed with wool was put on the head. The helmet had a suede lining inside and a "petal stop" inside for the crown. All this made it possible to firmly fix the helmet on the head, which was important because of its narrow viewing slits. Helmets were often painted to protect against rust.
Knight's outfit 1285 Fig. Christa Hook.
Since it was very hot in Syria and Palestine, helmets "chapel-de-fer", that is, "iron hat", came into fashion here. Moreover, they were worn not only by ordinary infantrymen, but also by noble knights. Heraldic surcoat or white linen, as well as helmet mantle (a kind of "cover" for a helmet made of cloth), also spread here to prevent the armor from heating up in the sun. Brynandine - armor made of metal plates, which was worn over chain mail, was also trimmed from the outside with fabric, and often quite expensive, for example, velvet, since in this case it replaced surcoat. It is known that such armor as joserant or chain mail made of two layers of chain mail fabric of different weaving with an interlayer of fabric is also widely spread. The warriors of the West also began to use purely oriental developments of this time - lamellar, lamellar, shells, which were borrowed from the Byzantines and Muslims, as well as shells made of metal scales.
Knight's outfit 1340 Fig. Christa Hook.
As you can see, the equipment has become much more varied and rich. The surcoat is decorated with embroidery, chain mail chausses are covered with plates of embossed leather, leather shoulder pads and plate gloves appear. The dagger also becomes an obligatory weapon, and the indicator of wealth is gold (or at least gilded) chains that go to the hilts of the dagger, sword and helmet. Helmets-comforters - servilera come into fashion, and the "big helmet" itself gets a visor that rises upwards. Blades of swords and shields become of a different shape, which are now often made concave and provided with a recess for the spear shaft.
Weapon decoration - fashion of the East
The weapons of the knights of Outremer were varied and, in addition to the knight's spear, included a sword, an ax, and a mace or sixfighter. The handles of swords, like the scabbard, begin to decorate at this time. The knights in this case clearly copied the fashion of the East, where the custom of decorating weapons had long since become a tradition. The conductors of all these innovations, according to D. Nicolas, were the Armenians. Their role as occasional allies and as a source of mercenaries for the crusader states in Syria is obvious and far more important than that of any other Eastern Christian population group.
The head of the sword (obverse) of the era of the Crusades, found in the Middle East. The unidentified heraldic shield on the back of the disc was probably the mark of its original owner or the noble family to which it belonged. The lion on the obverse was obviously made later. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)
Sword head (reverse)
The head of the sword of Pierre Moclerc de Dreux (1190–1250), Duke of Breton and Earl of Richmond. OK. 1240-1250 Material: copper, gold, enamel, iron. Diameter 6, 1 cm, thickness 1, 2 cm), weight 226.8 g. Obverse. (Metropolitan Museum, New York) Interestingly, in his coat of arms in the upper left corner, ermine fur was first depicted and the same fur is shown on the shield of his effigia. But having visited the crusade and, apparently, having suffered there from thirst, he ordered to place in the coat of arms on the top of the sword the image of water skins, symbolizing participation in the crusade.
Turkopouls - Muslim mercenaries in the service of the knights of Christ
But, perhaps, the most interesting people in Outremer, who surprised the newcomers arriving from Europe in the Crusader states most of all, were the Turcopouls - Muslim troops with their national weapons in the service of Christians. They were not homogeneous in their ethnic and religious composition, and also included both cavalry and infantry, archers and spearmen, although most of them, apparently, were light horsemen using bows in the Byzantine style or the Mamluk style of Egypt. … That is, in the first case, they fired over the heads of their troops, being in the second line of knightly cavalry, and in the second, they attacked the enemy as skirmishers, trying to put him under the blow of their heavy cavalry with a false retreat. It is worth noting that the Turcopols appeared under the Crusaders in Cyprus, the Balkans or Greece and, possibly, even in Normandy after the return of the Crusader King Richard I from Palestine.
References:
1. Nicolle, D. Knight of Outremer AD 1187-1344. L.: Osprey (Warrior series # 18), 1996.
2. Nicolle, D. Saracen Faris 1050-1250 AD. L.: Osprey (Warrior series No. 10), 1994.
3. Nicolle D. Knight Hospitaller (1) 1100-1306. Oxford: Osprey (Warrior series # 33), 2001.
4. Nicolle D. Arms and Armor of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350. UK. L.: Greenhill Books. Vol. 1.
