History of the Crusades

the Crusades Episode 100. Episode 105 party like there's no tomorrow.

Hello again.

Last week we saw internal strife arise once again within the two remaining crusade estates.

The strife was so bad that King Hugh, the King of Acre and the King of Cyprus, decided to leave

the troublesome Kingdom of Acre to its own devices.

He retired to his remaining kingdom, the much easier to rule Kingdom of Cyprus, and didn't bother

raising any objections when Charles of Anjou, the King of Sicily, declared himself the King of Acre in 1277.

Also in the year 1277, Sultan Babars died unexpectedly in Damascus.

This news was greeted with jubulation by the Latin Christians of the Middle East who hoped for the

collapse and demise of the powerful Mamluk Sultanate.

For a while it looked like their hopes might be realized.

Beba's son and heir was a young man called Baraka, but he proved to be an inept ruler, spending the first

couple of years of his reign trying unsuccessfully to quell infighting between Egypt's powerful amirs.

It all became too much for Sultan Baba's top commander in Syria,

Almanseur Kalawon, an ex-slave who was legendary for the massive price he attracted when he was

sold in the slave markets as a young man. He had grown into a powerful soldier and military commander and

rose to become Sultan Baba's right-hand man in Syria.

In August 1279, Callowon decided that he had had enough of Baraka's ineffective attempts

at ruling, and he gathered the Syrian troops together and marched on Cairo.

Baraka promptly abdicated, and four months later later Callowun proclaimed himself Sultan.

Vanquishing the army of the Governor of Damascus who also proclaimed himself Sultan in 1280, Callowon

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