| Battle of al-Fule | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theCrusades | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Kingdom of Jerusalem | Ayyubid Sultanate | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Guy of Lusignan | Saladin | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
18,000 (campaign) 1,300–1,500 knights 1,500 turcopoles 15,000 infantry | Unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
In the campaign andBattle of al-Fule (in Crusader termsLa Fève, LatinCastrum Fabe), a Crusader force led byGuy of Lusignan skirmished withSaladin'sAyyubid army for more than a week in September and October 1183. The fighting ended on 6 October with Saladin being forced to withdraw.[1]
In May 1182, Saladin invaded theKingdom of Jerusalem by way ofEilat, theTransjordan andGalilee.[2] During the summer, he was successfully resisted by KingBaldwin IV of Jerusalem in the campaign andBattle of Belvoir Castle[3]; however, the Crusader lands were badly damaged by Saracen raiders. By September 1183, Baldwin, crippled byleprosy, could no longer function as monarch. Guy of Lusignan, who had married Baldwin's sisterSibylla of Jerusalem in 1180, was appointed regent.[4]
On August 24, 1183, Saladin returned toDamascus, having conqueredAleppo and several cities inMesopotamia for his empire.[5] In September, he mounted a major invasion of theKingdom of Jerusalem. Crossing theJordan River, the Ayyubid host plundered the abandoned town ofBaisan.[3] Continuing west, up theJezreel Valley, Saladin established his army near some springs about 8 km southeast ofal-Fule. At the same time, the Muslim leader sent out numerous columns to damage as much property as possible.[2] The raiders destroyed the villages ofJenin andAfrabala, attacked the monastery onMount Tabor and wiped out a contingent fromKerak that was trying to join the Crusader field army.[4][5]
Expecting an attack,Guy of Lusignan mustered the Crusader host atLa Sephorie. When intelligence reports detected Saladin's invasion route, Guy marched the field army to the small castle ofLa Fève (al-Fule). His army was swollen by pilgrims and Italian sailors to a size of 1,300–1,500knights, 1,500turcopoles and over 15,000infantry. This was said to be the largest Latin army assembled "within living memory."[6][7][8]
The Frankish army advanced in its usual fashion toward the water points atAin Jalut (site of a decisiveMuslim victory over the Mongols in 1260) and Tubania (Ain Tuba'un)[4][3]. The exact formation cannot be reconstructed, except that the infantry spearmen and bowmen kept the Turkish horse archers at a respectable distance while the mounted knights launched local charges to drive away any Saracens who approached too closely.[3] Muslim chroniclers mention how Saladin'sMamluks led byJorduk an-Nuri andJawili were faced with an unexpected crusader attack, but they fortified themselves at the base of a mountain and caused the crusaders to retire.[4][5]
The Muslims harassed them with archery and constantly renewed attacks; these were on occasions pressed home to an extent which provoked the Franks to counter-attacks to clear their lines. As in1111 and1182 the Franks executed a fighting march which never quite became a pitched battle.[9]
Unable to halt his enemies or to provoke them to fight a pitched battle, Saladin withdrew his army from the springs and moved downstream. The Latin army camped around the springs and remained passive for eight days, refusing battle. The Saracens tried to incite the Franks into an attack while intercepting the Crusaders' supply convoys. Since the local Crusaders brought provisions for only three days while the pilgrims and the sailors brought none, the supply situation soon became critical. By great luck, the Latin soldiers found quantities of fish at Ain Tuba'un and this prevented them from starving until some food convoys got through the Ayyubid blockade.[9]
Saladin then moved towardMount Tabor, hoping to lure the Franks into an ambush.[3][4] Instead, Guy retreated to La Fève. During this move, the Ayyubid army quickly returned and pounced on theCrusaders again, but they were unable to halt or disrupt the march.[3] Saladin, also short of supplies, concluded the campaign.[2][5] At this, Guy marched back to his main base at La Sephorie.[4]
Following long-standing Crusader policy, Guy successfully thwarted Saladin's invasion by preventing him from capturing any strongholds and by keeping the field army intact.[3][4] But, as in 1182, the Saracen raiders caused extensive damage to crops and villages. Guy was harshly criticized by some for failing to fight a major battle when in command of such a large host. Others, mostly native barons such asRaymond III of Tripoli, supported his cautious strategy. They pointed out that Saladin's army was drawn up on rough ground, unsuitable for a Frankish heavy cavalry charge.[3][5] Soon after this battle, Guy lost his position as regent.[4]
The next time Guy commanded a major Crusader army, he was reminded how severely he was criticized for avoiding battle in 1183.[10] On that occasion, he initiated an aggressive move that resulted in total disaster for him at theBattle of Hattin in 1187.