God's Kingdom Part 6 - Slipping Away
Things were going pretty well in Jerusalem. My son was married and working on getting me a grandson. With the exception of the setback in Ascalon I've been able to expand my borders and liberate much of the Holy Land. After the conquest of Tripoli things became quite and routine. That peace was shattered when Beylerbey Duqaq II declares holy war for my westernmost holdings. I had fought off his father 20 years before during the First Crusade and would do the same again.
No war against the Muslims was complete without my trusty allies the Knights Hospitaller. As always they quickly answered my call to arms and brought thousands of Christian soldiers into the fight. I had hoped that the Knights Templar would also join me in war but they had already committed themselves elsewhere. I am not worried though, the combined power of my levies and the Hospitallers should be enough.
We met up in Irbid and as a single host took the war to Damascus. I may not have started this war but I would not sit back and wait to be attacked. We moved on the main strength of Duqaq II as it was gathering in Az Zarqa. They attempted to flee but realized that they could not escape us. The landscape favored the heavy knights of the Hospitallers. As our armies neared the knights set their lances and charged. A mighty sight and one I hoped to never be on the receiving end of. The infidels never stood a chance. Quickly they broke and ran and we gave pursuit.
Me and my men became heroes to the rest of the Christian world. We were bravely fighting off Muslim hordes who were attempting to wrest back the Holy Land in the name of Allah. Out of obligation, guilt or admiration some even offered to join me in my war. I appreciated the gesture but I sending men to fight with me would carry more weight than empty words of support.
After a year and a half of war and Duqaq II was on the ropes. The Knights Hospitaller had been besieging Damascus for nearly a year and the county was starving. Inside my borders my men were fighting off the last of the invaders in Irbid and Tiberias. Upon their defeat and the fall of his seat of power Duqaq II admitted he was beaten and offered to pay me reparations. Gladly I accept his generous offer.
I do not leave it there though. With Damascus' armies smashed and the kingdom weak I saw a perfect opportunity to expand my borders and get revenge on Duqaq for daring to wage war on me. Two decades ago I tried to capture Baalbek and failed when the war ended inconclusively. The second time I would not be thwarted.
I pressed the Duke of Tripoli's claim on Baalbek because I did not want all of the Sunni rulers to join together in the defense of Damascus. While my army was strong there were limits to that power. I was not yet ready to take on the entire Muslim world. Initially the war went well for me. With Duqaq unable to muster a serious fighting force my army combined with the Hospitallers was able to defeat the meager resistance and begin besieging Muslim castles, starting with Baalbek and Damascus. Much to my dismay Duqaq II was able to sneak a messenger out through my siege lines and to the Sultan of Rum. Seeing an ally in danger Rum raised its levies and joined in war against me.
Wanting to end the war as quickly as possible I split my army up into smaller elements so that we could siege multiple counties at once. I personally led the army that was besieging Al Murfaq. Al Murfaq was deemed a quieter area for me to be in. At the age of 64 I was not the fighter I once was and my advisers thought it best that I avoid serious battle. I was still a very competent commander though and my expertise and leadership would prove vital to help with the siege.
It was a hot July night and I was having troubles sleeping. I had finally fallen asleep when I was suddenly awoken by the sounds of battle. The Muslims were upon us! They had thought us lulled by months of boredom and attempted to sally forth. With no time to put on my armor I grabbed my sword and rushed toward the sounds of battle. In the dark it was hard to tell friend from foe. As I ran past a tent a Muslim warrior sprung out and nearly impaled me upon his sword. I took a grazing cut on my ribs but was able to twist away before serious harm could be done. Seeing me still alive the warrior came at me and back and forth we went. He was young and full of strength. I was an old man and wounded, every second losing more blood and energy. I was sorely pressed and as I went to block my opponent's sword I miscalculated his swing and felt a sharp pain as my arm was severed just below my elbow. I stared at my sword and forearm on the ground and the stump that was left. In shock I blacked out, forgetting about my foe and the battle around me.
Muslim defenders sallying forth from Al Murfaq
I awoke days later in my tent. I was alive but would never hold a sword again. I had been fighting in battles for almost 50 years. I have fought for the Roman Emperor, for my family, and for my God. My fighting days were done. I may have been maimed for life but I was still able to rule.
When my second son Errard had come of age I bestowed our ancestral home of Boulogne on him. Upon hearing that I had been wounded in battle and seeing that I was fully involved with a war against Damascus he had the audacity to declare his independence from my kingdom. I would teach the ungrateful child a lesson.
Unable to spare any men of my own to send to France I instead turn to a band of Bulgarian mercenaries. I had plenty of coin to pay them with and once they arrived in Jerusalem I was able to put them aboard my ships and send them Errard's coast.
As they arrived in Boulogne they discovered something very worrisome. France had taken advantage of Errard's declaration of independence and King Phillip II pressed a claim on the county. If I cannot convince Errard to rejoin my kingdom either through diplomacy or force then Boulogne will pass from my country for good. If it is lost there is little I could do to get it back. I do not have the strength to take on France and also keep my kingdom together at the same time.
Finally as 1125 began an army from Rum made their appearance. Seeing that Damascus was occupied by my forces they set in to liberate it from my men. Not wanting to allow Duqaq to have his capital back I sent in the Knights Hospitaller. With zeal and fervor the Knights attacked the Muslims and killed them to a man.
With their hopes of salvation from Rum destroyed Damascus had no choice but to surrender. Baalbek was mine.
My excitement and joy at the conquest of Baalbek was short-lived as reports came in that a large French army was approaching Boulogne. There was no way that the Bulgarians would be able to stop the French from attacking Boulogne. I consulted my marshal and we decided that it was a lost cause. I did not have enough levies to fight off the French and my treasury was not full enough to support the number of mercenaries I would need. My arrogant, disgrace of a son had cost us our family lands. I sent him a letter telling him to never return for if he did I would imprison him. He would never see the light of day again.
Following the loss of Boulogne things began to go downhill. The kingdom had peace within and without but it felt like Jerusalem was weakening. My health was failing and I found myself lapsing into dark moods. Many of the honorable and talented men who accompanied me on crusade to liberate Jerusalem had passed on and less capable men had taken their place.
My son Leon proved to be more and more of a disappointment. Once a bright and promising young man, years of ruling in Tortosa changed him. He became slothful and arbitrary and as the years past his abilities atrophied.
The more I pressed him to be more and tried to prepare him to succeed me the more stressed he became. Finally the stress became too much and just days before his 34th birthday he passed away. Suddenly I found the fate of a kingdom I spent half of my life building up about to fall upon the shoulders of a 12 year old boy.
I was an old man when Leonard became my heir. I prayed every night that God would give me the strength to wake up the next morning. I spent my days teaching all I could and preparing my grandson to take over as King of Jerusalem. God was good to me and I was able to see Leonard become a man. Once he came of age and I saw the capable man he was I felt that I had fulfilled everything I could. One December night in 1138 I forgot to pray for the strength to wake up and I never did.