Crusading Warfare

Exploring the Military History of the Crusades

William James Hamblin
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Blue boxes reference primary
sources, and provide
quotations from primary
sources.

Gold boxes contains

references to secondary
sources.

White boxes are summaries

of primary sources.
Color coded
Green text boxes are my
analysis, notes, commentary,
and explanations.
text boxes
Brown text boxes provide
place and location names
1/11- Antioch Campaign
2a- Siege of Artah
1097 October 14-16
 0 25 50 k
Robert of Flanders’ expedition to Artah Te
le
bo
1097/10/14-15
H as
aly
s Danishmendids Mengujekids Saltuqids
(Saltuq)
Qi (Danishmend
4- {09/21} Crusaders Ghazi) (Mengujek)
{1090?-1102}
arrive at Caesarea Da {1090?-1118} Su )
{1085?-1104} Arsa
nias
(M
urat

Phrygia i lirm
ak
4
Kiz
Caesarea

Cappadocia 5- {09/30} Crusaders at

Melitene
Philomelium 5 Plastnezia (= Comana?)

Plastenzia
6- {10/04} Crusaders
Elbistan
6 at Coxon (Goksun)
Iconium Anti- Coxon Tigris
Tauru
✝ 1 n
s rmen7-ia{10/13-15}
s MtA Amid

Lycaonia ns Principalite s
Crusaders at Marash
a i

han
Cilician Gates n t s
u 7 Samosata ate

Sey
Rum Seljuqs
1- {08/15} Crusaders o ha
n
up h r
2 s M Sis Ce
y
Marash
E
capture Iconium ru
u

s
Heraclea
(Qilich Arslan)

ru
Ta

Sa
2- {09/01} Crusaders Cilicia RF
{1092-1107}
C capture Heraclea
aly
ca
Edessa
dn Adana Aintab
us us
m
yra
3 P
8
Mamistra Ta 8- {10/14-15} Robert of
Tarsus Harran
Flanders marches to Artah
3- {/09-10/} Tancred’s Gr
eat
er
Cilician Campaign Alexandretta Zab

Pamphylia Belen Pass Manbij l

Mosu a)
Gok
su
Antioch rb o g h
(Ke 1102}

h
lik
Seleucia (Yaghi-Siyan) -

Ba
Antioch
{1086-1098}
Aleppo {1095
St Simeon
Aleppo (Ridwan)
an
t es {1095-1113}
r
O Euphr
ates
Raqqa

Latakia
t ine
y zan
B
Mamistra
Region of Antioch and Aleppo 1097/10
Jerablus

s
Mt
Ta

s
aeu
Am
Ayas
Cyrrhus
RF E up
hra
te s

4- Highlands Azaz
Alexandretta
north of Artah
Darbsak 4 5- Aleppo and Antioch Manbij ♜

asu
♜ Two major cities of northern Syria; they are Qalat al-Najm

Kar
Syrian roughly equal in wealth and power.
Gates
Aleppo has more terriortory, but less good
♜ agricultural land;
2- Iron Bridge
Baghras Aleppo has more more pasture for
The most important f rin
A Turkmens and Bedouins
bridge over the Orantes in 5 Antioch has communication with the sea;
the north. It was strongly Lake
3- Road between Antioch Aleppo is landlocked
fortified with towers. Antioch

Artah
and Aleppo

Onr
ante
1 Aleppo
Antioch s
Iron Harim 3 Aleppo (Ridwan)
2 Bridge
{1095-1113}
4 1- Artah Atharib
s
te

Artah (Artasium) was a secondary fortified

an
nr

St Simeon city protecting the route and border between

O

Antioch and Aleppo.

Antioch 4- Highlands Artah was midway on the west-east road
south of Artah
(Yaghi-Siyan) between Antioch and Aleppo,
Qinnasrin Eu
{1086-1098} It was also midway between highlands to the ph
ra
north and south, making it a key strategic te
s
location.

Balis

Jisr
al-Shughur
tes
Onran

Bourzey
♜
 Strategic Situation at Artah 1097/10/

1a- Artah

5- Iron Bridge
The most important
bridge over the Orantes in
the north. It was strongly
fortified with towers.
1 Artah
Orantes
3
5 Iron
Bridge 3- Agricultural land
♜ Artah was situated in large flat fertile floodplain
of the Orantes River.

Ora
nte
s

4
Harim
Or

4- Orantes River 2
an

The Orantes River has numerous meanders in

tes

2-Harim (Harem)
the agricultural floodplains of this area. It flows
Harim was a sister town of Artah, but with a
northwest, then turns southwest toward Antioch.
stronger castle-citadel on built on an ancient tel.
 1a- Artah
As far as I am aware, there are no surviving
medieval remains of Artah nor its
RF 2- Robert of Flanders fortifications.
Approaches Artah Artah’s exact location is unknown, but it
{10/14} probably lies underneath in the area of urban
development in the modern city of Reyhanli.

1b- Turks prepare defense {10/15}

[AA 3.28b →WT 4.7c]
Artah [Artesium] which was very well
fortified with a wall and ramparts and a
turreted fortress, and where the Turks had
brought the remaining Armenian Christians
under the yoke of slavery.

1 Artah

1c- Artah’s Defensive Weakness

Artah was situated in flat open agricultural
plains, excellent for agriculture.
However, the good agricultural soil provides
an unsatisfactory foundation for city walls
and towers, which are thereby less stable and
easier to undermine during a siege.
 Robert of Flanders approaches Artah 1097/10/14

RF

1a- Robert arrives at Artah {10/14}

[AA 3.28b →WT 4.7c]
And so, as [the Crusaders] approached the city and its
ramparts, holding high beautiful banners of every
colour, their …helmets shining as brightly as gold, the Artah
Orantes news of their arrival alarmed the whole region. 2

Iron
Bridge
♜

1b- Robert’s Strategic Goals 2 - Turks prepare defense {10/14}

Scout the region for enemies and supplies to [AA 3.28b →WT 4.7c]
prepare the way for the main army The Turks who were on the ramparts
Take Artah if possible quickly as a base for of Artah and in the fortress intending to
Ora further military operations defend and resist stood stock still,
nte Don’t engage in a lengthy siege if Artah terrified at this sudden attack by the
s
doesn’t fall quickly Gauls, and they secured the town gates
with a bar and bolts.

Harim
Or
an
tes
 Artah betrayed to Robert by Armenians 1097/10/15

1- {10/15} Robert prepares

to besiege Artah. RF

1 Tu Artah
Orantes 2

Iron 3
Bridge
♜
2 - Armenians rebel against Turks {10/15}
3- {10/15} Surviving Turks [AA 3.28c]
flee to Antioch, and give The Armenian citizens … called to mind the injustices which they
warning. had borne from those same Turks … relying on the arrival and support
of the Christian [Crusaders], attacked the Turks and killed them with
Ora the sword's edge, they cut off their heads and threw them from the
nte windows and walls, and, opening the city gates to their Christian
s
brothers, they delivered up a safe entrance by their massacre of the
gentiles, by their throwing out of dead bodies.

Harim
Or
an
tes
 Turks gather Reinforcements 1097/10/15

1- {10/15} Robert of
Flanders secures Artah

RF Artah
Orantes

Iron
Bridge
♜

Tu

2 Ora
nte
s

2- {10/15} Turks gather

reinforcements

Harim
Or
an
tes
 Crusading Warfare
Next = 1/11/2b: Battle of Artah

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