Inevitably, the Princes began to argue about tactics and strategy and more blatant self-interest emerged, especially when news reached us that Baldwin of Boulogne’s audacious adventure into Mesopotamia had become an outrageous success. With a force of barely 200 knights, he had managed to conquer the ancient and wealthy city of Edessa and create a Christian county, installing himself as its potentate.
Bohemond of Taranto now revealed that he wished to be made Prince of Antioch after the city had been taken and that he would not continue with the Crusade unless his demand was met. The Council of War was convened but it broke up in deadlock, with the Princes screaming at one another.
Then a new threat united us once more. Reports began to arrive that Kerbogha, Atabeg of Mosul, was approaching with a huge army, said to be over 50,000 strong, to relieve the city. With our reduced numbers, we were in a very vulnerable position and could easily end up trapped like rats in a barrel between the towering walls of the city we were besieging and a formidable advancing army.
At this point, we suffered more desertions. Stephen of Blois, one of the staunchest supporters of the Crusade, had had enough. His will was broken and news of an approaching horde of Seljuk Turks was the final straw. He and his large contingent took flight in the middle of the night and made for the coast at Alexandretta.
Tacitius then announced that he was taking his Byzantine contingent back to Constantinople. He kept his real reasons to himself, saying only that he had been ordered to return. Panic and anger spread throughout the army — panic because of the encroaching Turks, and anger because the besieged seemed to be faring better than the besiegers. Another Council of War was called; this one was much more amiable and focused.
Raymond of Toulouse summarized the situation.
‘My Lords, our siege is now in its seventh month. We are slowly strangling the city, but it has a thick neck and our grip is not as strong as it once was. We have fought off Ridwan and Duqaq, but now Kerbogha approaches with many allies and mercenaries. We have a ready-made fortress from which to defend ourselves; it stands behind us. Unfortunately, we are not welcome inside! What are we to do?’
The Count’s droll introduction made everyone smile and lessened the tension in the gathering.
Robert got up to speak.
‘My Lords, Count Raymond, may I offer the floor to Godwin of Ely, an Englishman who served as Captain of Emperor Alexius’s Varangian Guard for many years? He is a good friend of the Norman contingent and of Prince Edgar’s English knights.’
The Count looked at the other Princes, who all gave their approval.
‘Thank you, Duke Robert. My noble Lords, Count Raymond, over the past few days one of our knights has spent several hours inside the walls of Antioch.’
There were gasps of admiration around the room and some incredulity. Although our encirclement of the city was greater than it had been, it was still possible for the defenders to get in and out in small numbers under cover of darkness.
‘A young knight in the service of Prince Edgar, Sir Sweyn of Bourne — who, you will remember, is the knight who led the daring attack on Qilich Arslan’s baggage train — disguised himself as an Arab and mingled with a group of scavengers returning to the city. He is fortunate to be dark-skinned and can speak some Arabic.’
I looked at Robert, who shook his head. Hereward’s announcement was as much of a surprise to him as it was to me.
‘My Lords, would you allow Sweyn of Bourne to give you his report?’
There were enthusiastic approvals all round. Sweyn looked confident and poised as he started to speak.
‘My Lords, I have made contact with a man called Firuz. He was born an Armenian Christian, but converted to Islam some years ago. He is an armourer by trade, but in the siege he defends one of the isolated towers on the south-eastern side of the city. He is not disillusioned with his faith, but he is greedy. His terms are simple: he wants safe passage for himself and his family within an hour of the deed being done, a large estate in Sicily, one hundred pounds of silver and a knighthood conferred by Count Roger of Sicily. In return, on a night of the dark of the moon, he will leave a section of wall unguarded next to his tower, so that a small assault party can scale the walls. He will then lead us to the Gate of St George so that we can overwhelm the guards, open it and let in our army.’
Bohemond of Taranto asked the most important question: ‘Can we trust him?’
‘He’s prepared to offer his son as a hostage, my Lord.’
There was a stunned silence for a few moments as the Princes came to terms with the audacity and simplicity of Sweyn’s solution to their dilemma. Count Raymond got to his feet.
‘Sweyn of Bourne, you and I had a serious disagreement in Toulouse, after which I vowed that, when the time was right, I would teach you a lesson about how a knight should behave. Well, boy, if you pull this off, that incident will be forgotten and you will receive a significant reward of your own.’
Bohemond of Taranto then spoke. ‘I will pay the geld of silver and, as Roger of Sicily is my uncle, the lands and the title will not be a problem. When is the dark of the moon?’
‘Three days, my Lord.’
‘Then we’ll be ready. By the way, how did you find this man, Firuz?’
‘It’s not difficult to find greedy men, my Lord. There isn’t much food in the city and many are hungry. I went to the brothels, where people are usually discreet, and said that I had a bag of silver to buy a leg of mutton for a family feast and asked where I might find one. I was eventually sent to Firuz. Hidden beneath his forge, he had food and wine sufficient to feed a prince’s court for a month. I knew I had found the right man.’
Bohemond slapped Sweyn on the back with his huge hand and hurried off to begin preparing for the assault on the city. Robert and I rushed over to congratulate Sweyn on his remarkable coup.
‘It was Hereward’s idea.’
‘I couldn’t pass as an Arab, so Sweyn had to take all the risks. We weren’t hiding anything from you; I just wanted Sweyn to have his moment and for it to be as big a surprise for you as it was for everybody else.’
Just as Hereward finished speaking, Bohemond reappeared. Hereward stood up to greet him.
‘My Lord?’
Bohemond did not reply, but stared at Hereward intently.
‘I know who you are, Hereward of Bourne. It is too much of a coincidence that Sweyn is a son of Bourne and that he came to the Holy Land with Prince Edgar.’
Hereward did not respond. His expression impassive, he just stared back at the giant Norman. Bohemond’s craggy face then creased into a smile.
‘Do not worry, Godwin of Ely, your true identity is safe with me, especially after the service given to us today by Sir Sweyn.’
Bohemond then offered his hand and Hereward shook it firmly.
Sweyn was given the honour of leading the scaling party.
The plan worked perfectly; within twenty minutes of the grappling hooks landing on the battlements, St George’s Gate was open and a great tide of Crusaders rushed in. Antioch, the last major obstacle on the road to Jerusalem, was at the mercy of the Christians.
From that moment onwards, events did not unfold as Sweyn had hoped.
Robert had persuaded the Council of War to agree that civilians would not be harmed, but it was an empty promise. The Christian army showed no mercy.
Eight months of privation and the bloodlust of the Crusaders combined to create a frenzy of killing that lasted all night. By dawn, the streets flowed with rivers of blood and piles of bodies made them impassable.
Blinded by their indiscriminate savagery and the blackness of a moonless night, the marauding Crusaders put to the sword Syrian Orthodox Christians, Armenians, Jews and Greeks, who all perished with their Muslim neighbours.
In what should have been a moment of great elation for Sweyn, he stood on the battlements of the city and, instead of hailing the victory, let out an anguished cry.
‘ Why? ’
Stewart Binns
Crusade
30. Besiegers Besieged
Sweyn’s achievement had saved the Crusade, but only just in time. Kerbogha’s vast army appeared on the horizon in the middle of the afternoon. The entire Crusader army and all its civilian entourage hurried into Antioch
