Hello, Sharon here from the History of the Crusades Podcast.

We encountered a slight problem uploading episode 33 of the podcast.

For reasons which are unclear to me at the moment, the last... the hosting site. So I've created this mini episode which contains the last three minutes of

episode 33. Sorry about that. Some days the technology just doesn't work the way it should.

To make sure you're up to speed before we begin. Just before the last episode was cut off,

Emperor Manuel had decided to go to war against the Selyuk Sultan Masud.

He is marching his forces towards Philomenium, while Masud has retreated back to his capital, Iconium.

Right, here's the rest of your episode.

His wife, the sultana, was in the capital, so he strengthened the garrison there, and then left to prepare his army, deciding also to call forenforcement from the east.

Emperor Manuel camped outside Iconium for a number of months.

The city was defended by the sultana,

and the Emperor extended every courtesy to her, even contacting her when a rumor arose that her husband had died to tell her that the story was untrue.

Then he gave the Order was untrue. Then he gave the order to retreat and slowly made his way

back to Byzantine territory. Historians have questioned why the Emperor made this decision and the exact reason remains unclear.

The Second Crusade had yet to get underway so that can be discounted.

Most likely news reached him. so that can be discounted.

Most likely, news reached him that the King of Sicily was planning to attack Byzantine interests.

And his spies may also have informed him that Masood managed to recruit a considerable number of Muslim soldiers to his cause in the East.

Whatever the reason, the Emperor unexpectedly pulled out of the conflict and returned to Constantinople.

Then, before he was able to launch another attack,

word reached him of the preparations being made for the Second Crusade.

With tens of thousands of Latin Christians, some of them possibly hostile,

...