In December 1177 a messenger staggered north from Jerusalem heading to the castle of Harim, near Aleppo. He was “mutilated and lacerated,” bloodied, weak and barely alive, but he clutched a precious cargo: an open letter to all the Christian faithful, describing events that had taken place a few weeks previously, between Ramla and Ibelin at a place called Mont Gisard (Tell al-Safiya).
