Description
Third Crusade to Liberate Jerusalem, 1189 - Barbarossa - MEDEVAL HISTORY: The Hohenstaufen, also called the Staufer or Staufen, were a dynasty of German kings (1138–1254) during the Middle Ages. Besides Germany, they also ruled the Kingdom of Sicily (1194–1268). In Italian historiography, they are known as the Svevi (Swabians), since they were Duke of Swabia from 1079. Three members of the dynasty—Frederick I, Henry VI and Frederick II—were crowned Holy Roman Emperor. Pope Urban III died shortly after, and was succeeded by Gregory VIII, who was more concerned with troubling reports from the Holy Land than with a power struggle with Barbarossa (red beard). After making his peace with the new pope, Frederick vowed to take up the cross at the Diet of Mainz in 1188. Frederick embarked on the Third Crusade (1189–92), a massive expedition in conjunction with the French, led by King Philip Augustus, and the English, under King Richard the Lionheart. Frederick organized a grand army of 100,000 men (including 20,000 knights) and set out on the overland route to the Holy Land; Some historians believe that this is an exaggeration, however, and that the true figure might be closer to 15,000 men, including 3,000 knights. Barbarossa drowns in the Saleph. From the Gotha Manuscript of the Saxon World Chronicle. The Crusaders passed through Hungary, Serbia, and Bulgaria before entering Byzantine territory and arriving at Constantinople in the autumn of 1189. Matters were complicated by a secret alliance between the Emperor of Constantinople and Saladin, warning of which was supplied by a note from Sibylla, ex-Queen of Jerusalem. While in Hungary, Barbarossa personally asked the Hungarian Prince Géza, brother of King Béla III of Hungary, to join the Crusade. The king agreed, and a Hungarian army of 2,000 men led by Géza escorted the German emperor's forces. The armies coming from western Europe pushed on through Anatolia, where they were victorious in taking Aksehir and defeating the Turks in the Battle of Iconium, and entered Cilician Armenia. The approach of the immense German army greatly concerned Saladin and the other Muslim leaders, who began to rally troops of their own to confront Barbarossa's forces. On 10 June 1190, Emperor Frederick drowned in the Saleph river. Accounts of the event are conflicting. Some historians believe he may have had a heart attack that complicated matters. Some of Frederick's men put him in a barrel of vinegar to preserve his body. Frederick's death plunged his army into chaos and lead to its near total dissolution, saving Muslim forces defending Jerusalem from almost certain defeat. Only 5,000 soldiers, a small fraction of the original force, arrived in Acre. Barbarossa's son, Frederick VI of Swabia, carried on with the remnants of the German army, along with the Hungarian army under the command of Prince Géza, with the aim of burying the emperor in Jerusalem, but efforts to conserve his body in vinegar failed. Hence, his flesh was interred in the Church of St Peter in Antioch, his bones in the cathedral of Tyre, and his heart and inner organs in Tarsus. The unexpected demise of Frederick left the Crusader army under the command of the rivals Philip II and Richard, who had traveled to Palestine separately by sea, and ultimately led to its dissolution. Richard continued to the East where he defeated Saladin in many battles, winning significant territories along the shores of Palestine, but ultimately failed to win the war by conquering Jerusalem itself before he was forced to return to his own territories in north-western Europe, known as the Angevin Empire. He returned home after he signed the Treaty of Ramla agreeing that Jerusalem would remain under Muslim control while allowing unarmed Christian pilgrims and traders to visit the city. The treaty also reduced the Latin Kingdom to a geopolitical coastal strip extending from Tyre to Jaffa. This Divided Back Era (1907-15) postcard is in good condition, but shows some edge wear. Original Eigentum Gebr Metz. Tubingen. HGA. No. 653B. No. 21.
