Andrew, king of
Hungary, was the only monarch who had leisure or inclination to leave
his dominions. He led the army to Palestine and defeated the Saracens,
but failed to follow up his victory, and soon after abandoned the
enterprise. The Duke of Austria, who succeeded him as leader, directed
the whole energy of the crusade against Egypt; and Damietta, which
commanded the river Nile, was chosen as the first point of attack.
Finding themselves unable to successfully defend the city, the Moslems
offered to yield the whole of Palestine to the Christians upon the
condition of the evacuation of Egypt. With a blindness almost
incredible these terms were refused, and a last attack made on the
walls of Damietta. The besieged made but slight resistance, and the
Christians entered the city, to find out of seventy thousand but three
thousand remaining, so fearful had been the scourge of plague and
famine. Several months were spent in Damietta. The climate either
weakened the frames or obscured the understandings of the Christians,
for after their conquest they remained inactive until the Moslems
recuperated their army and were able to recapture Damietta and expel
the Crusaders from Egypt.
64. With a view to the recovery of the Holy Land, Frederick II, of
Germany, had been married to Iolante, the heiress of the kingdom of
Jerusalem. His early life was spent in Sicily, in familiar intercourse
with Jews and Arabs, and Sicily was to the last the favored portion of
his dominion.
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