It was interesting reading these chapters and looking at how differently the Christian crusaders of 1099 acted as opposed to the army of Saladin when he conquered Jerusalem in 1187. It seems in my mind at least, that when the Christians first conquered Jerusalem, the type of violence that the city had seen before reached a whole new level, as this was the first time that Armstrong made an effort to describe the exploits of a conquering force. The following quote by Raymond of Aguiles is particularly telling:
"It I tell the truth it will exceed your powers of belief. So let it suffice to say this much, at least, that in the Temple and the Porch of Solomon, men rode in blood up to their knees and the bridle reins. Indeed, it was a just and splendid judgment of God that this place should be filled with the blood of unbelievers since it had suffered so long from their blasphemies."
While this passage is certainly guilty of being hyperbole to some extent, I feel that it is not as much of an exaggeration as one would like to image.
Saladin's willingness to spare the lives of many of Jerusalem's inhabitants is an interesting decision from the tales of military history. While I don't believe that he made this decision out of any real remorse for his adversaries, I do believe that knowing about his decision is valuable in that it breaks free from the traditional narrative of Jerusalem's history. The city hasn't known nothing but savage bloodshed; there have been brief occasions where political cooperation and controlled attitudes have prevailed.
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