Pious exclamations

On 11 October 1270 the English and Scottish crusaders under Lord Edward landed at Tunis in North Africa. The leader of the crusade, Saint Louis of France, had sailed before them along with Charles of Anjou, King of Sicily.

It seems Louis was in no fit state. According to his biographer, Joinville, he was too sick to wear armour or remain long on horseback. Joinville even claimed that he had carried the king in his arms on one occasion, because Louis was too feeble to walk.

Even so, the French king insisted on leading another expedition to the Holy Land. For all his striving, Louis would never see Jerusalem. While camped outside Carthage, his army was stricken by dysentery. The king contracted the disease, as did his eldest son Philip, along with malaria. On 25 August Louis had himself laid on a bed of ashes and died in agony of body and soul. His last words are recorded:

“Lord God, give us grace to have the power of despising and forgetting the things of this world, so that we may not fear any evil.”

When Edward arrived, several weeks later, command of the crusade had passed to Charles. The expedition itself, so carefully planned and organised, had fallen apart. Apart from the English and Scots, the contingents from Flanders, Italy and Germany were also behind schedule.

The crusaders had landed in North Africa to attack Carthage, held by the Muslim Emir of Tunisia, Muhammed al-Mustansir. After the death of Louis, the more pragmatic Charles adopted a different policy. To the dismay of other Christian leaders, he entered into talks with the emir. In exchange for the departure of the crusaders, Muhammed agreed to pay a hefty ransom. This included an annual tribute to Charles, release of Christian captives, and the toleration of some missionary activity by certain religious orders.

English chronicles make much of Edward's disgust at the treaty. Some exclamations of suitably pious horror are put into his mouth, but there were more practical concerns. He and other crusade leaders, including the Count of Flanders and Duke of Luxembourg, had signed contracts with Genoese seamen. The Genoese had agreed to transport and return the crusaders only once. Charles's proposal to deliver the entire force to Sicily for the winter meant that everyone had to take out new contracts. This was expensive, and Charles compounded the problem by refusing to share the emir's tribute among his allies.

In spite of protests, the treaty went ahead and was sealed on 1 November. A few days later the entire Christian fleet sailed for Trapani in Sicily. To the satisfaction of English chroniclers, a storm blew up and sent Charles's ships, carrying the emir's tribute, straight to the bottom:

“All the money of the Berbers was lost. The vessels of Edward, in the centre of the others, were saved as if by a miracle...being spared very deservedly because he alone had not desired the money of the Berbers. He had only desired to restore to the Christians, as far as he was able, the land stained with the blood of Jesus Christ.”

- Westminster chronicle