Siege of Jerusalem (1244)

The 1244 Siege of Jerusalem took place after the Sixth Crusade, when roaming Khwarazmians clans conquered the city on July 15, 1244.

Siege of Jerusalem
Part of the Crusades
Date July 15, 1244 Location Jerusalem Result Decisive Ayyubid-Khwarazmian victory Sack of Jerusalem
Belligerents
Ayyubid Sultanate Khwarazmians	Kingdom of Jerusalem
Commanders and leaders
As-Salih Ayyub
Strength
Fewer	Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

Sequence of events

Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor led the Sixth Crusade to the Holy Land in 1228, and claimed the kingship of Jerusalem by right of his wife, Queen Yolande of Jerusalem, who had inherited the title of 'Queen of Jerusalem' from her mother, Maria of Montferrat, the wife of John of Brienne.

The size of Frederick II's army and his reputation was sufficient to regain Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth and a number of neighbouring castles by treaty from the Ayyubid Sultan Al-Kamil. However, Jerusalem did not remain for long in Christian hands, as there was not enough Christian-held hinterland to make it defensible.

The Ayyubids invited the free-roaming Khwarazmian clans, whose empire had been destroyed by the Mongols, to reconquer the city. In the siege and subsequent fall of the city in July, 1244, the Khwarazmians completely razed Jerusalem, leaving it in ruins and useless to both Christians and Muslims.

The Seventh Crusade (1248-1254) under Louis IX of France was motivated by this massacre, but it accomplished little except to play a part in the process of replacement of the Ayyubid sultans with the more powerful Mamluks, who were the Crusaders' main opponents from 1255.

External links

• The Siege on Orthodox Wiki
• The Siege on Encyclopædia Britannica
• The Siege on Timeline:History of Jerusalem
• The Siege on The Jewish History Resource Center