Now it is good to organize body and soul and mind for a voyage. Indeed it is wise to put the miserable flesh in order. Greffen Affagart recommends that each traveler carry a straw mat since the beams of a vessel are coated with pitch. Also, two jars. One for Saint Nicholas water, which remains sweet at sea, another for Padua wine, which is beneficial to drink in hot climates. Also, one should take a flask of preserved rose syrup to fortify the bowel. Little cooking pots, to be sure. Concerning food, salted ox tongue or ham, biscuit, cheese, almonds, figs, raisins, and sugar. We ourselves were less comfortably equipped. As to mind and soul, they must be at rest because infinite peril lurks above and beneath the surface. We are told of stupendous fish that gnaw ships apart and will not be dissuaded except by a man’s angry visage, hence one must confront them at water level with a countenance equally bold and horrific. There was some mariner, whose name I know not, who let himself down on a rope to affright the terrible fish but growing alarmed forgot his scowl and was snapped in half.
Be that as it may, one evening off the Barbary coast we observed a mountain formed strangely like an egg. All night we sailed, yet at dawn here was the mountain, unmoved. Again this happened so we felt uneasy. A priest said we should make three processions round the masts of our ship. I myself was at this time very ill and weak but found men to carry me in their arms. After a short while, thanks to the intercession of our gracious Lord, we passed by this mountain.
When we came to Cyprus we found King Louis already there, having sailed aboard his ship Montjoie and disembarked at Limassol two weeks before the feast of Saint Rémy. We saw in profusion the granaries and cellarage he had ordered, casks of wine heaped atop one another until they resembled barns. Here were stacks of barley and wheat that had begun to sprout because of rain falling on them so they might have been grassy mounds. Yet as we loaded grain aboard ship for transport to Egypt we saw that underneath the lush growth it was as good as if newly threshed.
Because many troops had not arrived we loitered on Cyprus until Ascension. We heard that a battle impended between the king of Armenia and the richest pagan on earth, the sultan of Iconium. They say he poured melted gold into jars of the sort used to hold wine, each large enough to contain three or four hogsheads, and smashed the jars so these enormous gold forms stood upright to the astonishment and delight of visitors. It is said that twelve strong men could not topple one. Now since we had little to do while awaiting reinforcements a number of sergeants crossed over to Armenia with the idea of enriching themselves, but not one came back. In a paltry desire for wealth they forgot the Savior.
Also during this period the sultan of Cairo thought to wage war against the prince of Homs. Away he went and besieged the city. But the prince of Homs learned through spies about a canker on the sultan’s leg and bribed a ferrais, who is a valet, to administer poison. The ferrais smeared poison on a mat where his lord was accustomed to sit while playing chess and as the sultan moved his leg this venom worked into the canker and impinged upon his heart. For two days he could not eat or drink or speak. Without leadership the Babylonians felt confused. They retreated to Cairo, leaving the city of Homs at peace. This shows how each man is subject to his body, an inconstant and wretched master. But the Lord God remains unchangeable.
Also while we loitered on Cyprus here came two Nestorians, Mark and David, envoys from the great khan of the Tartars. They brought a letter professing sympathy for our cause and said the khan would help us free Jerusalem from the infidel grip. Many at court heard this with grave surprise. King Louis, however, expressed delight. He responded by despatching two friars from the Order of Predicants, entrusting them to deliver a costly tent of vermilion cloth for use as a chapel. Included were small stone effigies to illustrate Christian theology. Annunciation, Nativity, Baptism of our Lord, stages of His suffering, Ascension, arrival of the Holy Ghost, and so forth. In addition his majesty sent cups and books and whatever else would be required for the Predicants to celebrate mass. All this he did in hopes of making our faith attractive to these Tartars.
With God’s help our people assembled. We were two thousand five hundred knights plus five thousand archers, as well as a great many armed pilgrims. King Louis ordered us to the vessels and sent each captain a letter with instructions that it should not be opened until we had cleared port. Then the seals were broken and we learned that we should follow his majesty to Damietta at the mouth of the Nile. How many ships followed in the king’s wake I do not know. If little boats were counted, perhaps two thousand. It was a fair thing to see, more beautiful than a picture made with stained glass.
Whitmonday the wind slackened. Thursday we came in view of Damietta. There were the sultan’s forces drawn up, kettledrums booming, cymbals clashing, Saracen horns screeching, all contributing a fearful noise while the armor of these pagans winked gold in the sun.
His majesty ordered the fleet to anchor well offshore and summoned the barons to speak with him aboard Montjoie. There at council we agreed to land next day, whereupon the king addressed us. Loyal friends,
