Battle of Acre
The Battle of Acre was a significant military engagement during the Third Crusade, occurring between 1189 and 1191. Following Saladin's earlier successes, including the decisive victory at the Battle of Hattin, the city of Acre became a focal point for both Crusader and Muslim forces. Initially, Acre had surrendered to Saladin’s forces in 1187, but after reinforcements arrived for the Crusaders, an extensive siege was laid by them starting in August 1189. The military campaign was marked by fierce trench warfare, the construction of siege towers, and various attempts to breach the city's defenses, all while facing significant hardships such as disease and famine.
As the siege progressed, the Crusaders received vital support from leaders like Philip II of France and Richard I of England, which bolstered their numbers and resources. Despite several assaults, Saladin's forces managed to resist until the situation for the defenders became untenable. After nearly two years of intense fighting, the garrison of Acre finally surrendered in July 1191. The outcome of the battle established Acre as a crucial stronghold for the remaining Crusader states in the region and facilitated further military operations along the coast of Palestine. The battle stands as a key moment in the broader context of the Crusades, reflecting the complex interplay of military strategy, leadership, and the harsh realities of warfare in that era.
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Subject Terms
Battle of Acre
Type of action: Ground battle in the Third Crusade
Date: August 26, 1189-July 12, 1191
Location: Israel
Combatants: Crusaders vs. Muslims
Principal commanders:Crusader, King Guy (1140–1194), Philip II of France (1165–1223), Richard I of England (1157–1199); Muslim, Saladin (1138–1193)
Result: After one of the greatest sieges in history, the crusader conquest of Acre stemmed Saladin’s reconquest of the Holy Land, preserving a truncated crusader kingdom for another century
Saladin’s decisive victory at the Battle of Hattin (July 4, 1187) left the crusader states almost defenseless. In the ensuing months, Saladin’s victorious troops captured much of the kingdom: Acre surrendered without a fight on July 10; Jerusalem followed on October 2, after a siege of less than two weeks.
The arrival of reinforcements from the west in the spring of 1189 allowed King Guy—now without a kingdom—to begin an ineffectual blockade of Acre on August 28, 1189. In September, Saladin was able to bring reinforcements and supplies to Acre by land and sea. He thereafter established a countersiege, cutting the crusaders’ communications by land. Both sides built concentric trenches encircling the city. During the harsh winter of 1190, the crusaders built three huge siege towers. On April 20, 1190, they pushed their towers against the walls of Acre in a great assault. On May 5, Saladin’s relieving army attacked the crusader trenches, drawing off the attackers and allowing the garrison of Acre to burn the towers. Battle raged in the trenches for more than a week.
During the summer of 1190, the crusaders built rams and trebuchets for a renewed assault, but these too were destroyed by the Greek fire from the garrison. After the arrival of a Pisan navy in September, the crusaders built a siege tower on the masts of two ships that had been lashed together. With this they assaulted the “Tower of Flies,” an island that controlled a massive chain and prevented crusader ships from entering the harbor. Once again, Muslim incendiary technology allowed them to burn the floating siege tower and defeat the assault. In December, Saladin’s navy was able to run the crusader blockade, bringing twenty-five shiploads of reinforcements and supplies. The winter of 1191 brought great hardship to the crusaders from cold, disease, and famine. The siege would have collapsed without the promise of French and English reinforcements, which were expected in the spring.
The arrival of Philip II of France (April 20) and Richard I of England (June 8) reinvigorated the crusader army with fresh supplies, equipment, men, and money. Their fleet and army were now finally large enough to completely blockade Acre to prevent the delivery of further supplies and reinforcements. Massive trebuchets and other artillery were constructed, along with a siege tower, a complex system of trenches, an armored roof (called a cat), siege shields, and palisades. Saladin, learning of the desperate situation from messages from the garrison, attempted to storm the crusader trenches and relieve the city but was repulsed (June 25). A steady artillery attack and undermining of the walls created ever-increasing breaches by early July. Three major crusader assaults into these breaches were driven off by the garrison. However, realizing that their position was now untenable, the garrison finally surrendered after a heroic defense of nearly two years. The city then served as the base for Richard’s reconquest of the coast of Palestine from Acre to Jaffa.
Significance
Acre became the capital of the surviving, though greatly diminished, crusader kingdom.
Bibliography
Ambroise. The Crusade of Richard Lion-Heart by Ambroise. New York: Columbia University Press, 1941.
Beha-ed-Din. The Life of Saladin. London: Palestine Pilgrims’ Text Society, 1897.
Francesco Gabrieli, trans. Arab Historians of the Crusades. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1969.
Gillingham, J. Richard I. 2d ed. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2000.
Lyons, M., and D. Jackson. Saladin: The Politics of Holy War. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1982.
Nicholson, Helen J., trans. Chronicle of the Third Crusade. Ashgate, Vt.: Aldershot, 1997.
Rogers, R. Latin Siege Warfare in the Twelfth Century. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1992.