Battle of MONTGISARD 1177: Baldwin IV & Crusaders Vs Saladin & Ayyubids

The year is 1177, across the wide expanse of the hot arid Levant region, a force of some three to five thousand Christian warriors advanced toward the holy city of Jerusalem. The Crusader army led by Baldwin IV was battling not just the growing threat of the Ayyubid Sultanate, but also his own deteriorating health due to leprosy. At the age of 16, Baldwin was already a veteran king, forced to command from a litter while battling his disease. Meanwhile, his rival Saladin was growing his army and political power in the region, extending his reach over both Cairo and Damascus, and looking for a decisive opportunity to undermine the kingdom of Jerusalem. The Christian armies led by Baldwin IV was accompanied by Reynald of Châtillon and the Knights Templar, alongside a small force of Christian soldiers, roughly 500 knights and a few thousand infantry. Their force paled in comparison to that of their Ayyubid enemy, with estimates putting the Ayyubid forces at around 20,000 to 25,000 strong, vastly outnumbering the Crusaders. Saladin had crossed into the kingdom of Jerusalem with his massive army, expecting to destroy a weak Christian state. His advance was initially unhindered, and many Christian strongholds fell or fell back in his path. Baldwin IV, meanwhile, made a bold move. Gathering his small force, he marched to cut off and attack Saladin, while the Sultan's army was strung out and vulnerable. On November 25th, near Montguisard, between Ramla and Ibelin, Baldwin fell upon Saladin's position whilst the Ayyubid commander's force was marching and not fully prepared to give battle. Observing the Crusader force fast approaching, Saladin realized that his force was ill-prepared for battle. Most of his men were still widely dispersed and pillaging the surrounding land, and he could only recall a portion of his force, which consequently lost him the advantage of superior numbers. In a hurried act, he attempted to form up his available men into ranks in anticipation of a Crusader offensive. Albeit not at full strength, Saladin was still able to muster a far larger force compared to that of Baldwin's. To better elaborate how a great general such as Saladin had found himself in such a predicament, sources such as the Egyptian chroniclers theorized that the Ayyubid supplies had been delayed at a river crossing. And it is said that the army of Saladin may have been taken by surprise due to these circumstances. Other sources assume that Saladin had simply underestimated King Baldwin because of his young age and deathly illness. Whatever the case, the young leper king had gotten the better of his wiser, older opponent. It is said that King Baldwin IV ordered the relic of the True Cross to be raised in front of the opposing troops. The king, whose teenage body was already ravaged by aggressive leprosy, was helped from his horse and dropped to his knees before the cross. Sources say he prayed to God for victory and rose to his feet to cheers from his men, moved by what they had just witnessed. Though Baldwin was very ill and could barely ride his horse, he decided it was too late to turn back, and so led the attack. The Christian heavy cavalry, the knights, and Knights Templar, led a shock charge directly into Saladin's force. The attack fell upon a disorganized and ill-prepared Ayyubid army causing immense destruction. The heavy Christian knights had pierced directly through the center of Saladin's force, separating his formation straight down the middle and splitting their cohesion. With the entirety of the Christian force now fully committed to battle, Baldwin's men had momentum and morale on their side. A one-sided massacre soon ensued. The crusader soldiers, as if almost possessed by a god of war, ferociously cut down man after man that stood in their path, giving no quarter. Saladin's men, unprepared, disorganized, and possibly tired from marching, watched in horror as their comrades were being slain in droves right in front of their eyes. Saladin attempted to organize his men into ranks, but his force was too far spread out for his orders to be properly conveyed to his men. At the center, the crusader soldiers continued to carve a wedge straight through the Muslim infantry, to a point where Saladin himself almost found himself surrounded by Baldwin's men, but was able to avoid being confronted and retreated to safety. As the fighting dragged on, the death toll began to climb. Heavy casualties were being inflicted to Saladin's army, his men dropping left and right, with many more of his men abandoning their post and fleeing from the battle as opposed to needlessly being killed. The Christian Franks, aided by the Templars, slaughtered many important enemies, several of which were Saladin's generals. Faced by the destruction of his army, Saladin fell back to the safety of his elite guard. Composed of 1,000 highly disciplined Mamluk riders, the Frankish knights, with the Templars, once again regrouped to charge this last line of Ayyubid resistance. They broke through the Mamluk lines and nearly reached Saladin, who narrowly avoided being killed during the clashes by escaping on a camel. Not long after, Saladin's entire army broke and fell back in disarray. Some tried to regroup. Many were captured or slain in the melee. The victory was so complete that the crusaders succeeded in capturing Saladin's entire baggage train. In the aftermath, the battlefield was strewn with heavy losses on both sides in respect to the size of their armies. The Battle of Montgisard was a significant Christian triumph and a heavy blow to Saladin's prestige. Baldwin IV, a king battling a debilitating disease, had defeated a much larger and more experienced army in the field. While the conflict was far from over, Saladin remained a potent force. Montgisard provided a much-needed boost in Christian morale and a temporary check to Saladin's expansion. The battle stands as a testament to King Baldwin's display of courage, use of discipline, unity, and bold leadership under pressure which granted the young king a place of immortalization in history.