Why Saladin’s Chronicler Called Richard the Lionheart an “Unparalleled Disaster” for Islam

  “The king was the outstanding man of his time for bravery, cunning, steadfastness and endurance. In him the Muslims were tried by an unparalleled disaster.” 

Today in history, the important fortress city of Acre fell back into Crusader hands, and in so doing ushered in the Third Crusade—the most bloody and violent of all Crusades. And its chief architect—a man hated but also greatly respected by his Muslim adversaries—was King Richard I, the Lionheart. 

Following the decisive battle of Hattin in 1187, Sultan Saladin went on to conquer Jerusalem and most other Christian kingdoms, including coastal Acre. Elated by his success, he vowed not only to eliminate all Crusaders from the Holy Land, but to invade Europe and “pursue the Franks there, so as to free the earth of anyone who does not believe in Allah, or die in the attempt.”  

Before long, however, and due to its strategic location, Acre became the rallying point for the remaining Crusaders. If only they could reclaim it, they could reconsolidate their power base and spread out again, including to Jerusalem. So they laid siege to it in the summer of 1189. Famine, plague, and pestilence harried the Crusaders and countless thousands died while the Muslims continued to hold out in Acre.

The mood changed in the summer of 1191, when King Richard I of England—whom most Crusaders looked to as their natural leader—arrived with his men.

FULL ARTICLE AT: https://raymondibrahim.substack.com/p/why-saladins-chronicler-called-richard?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=6873559&post_id=206627281&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=1v9n4o&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email