Battle of Dorylaeum (1147)
Battle of Dorylaeum (1147) | |||||||
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Part of the Second Crusade | |||||||
Combat in the 2nd Crusade, French manuscript, 14th century | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Holy Roman Empire | Sultanate of Rum | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Conrad III (WIA) | Mesud I | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
unknown | unknown | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
from 63% to 90% of army is killed, missing or captured (90% is an unreliable figure - see text)[1][2][a][b] | unknown |
The second Battle of Dorylaeum took place near Dorylaeum in October 1147, during the Second Crusade. It was not a single clash but consisted of a series of encounters over a number of days. The German crusader forces of Conrad III were defeated by the Seljuk Turks led by Sultan Mesud I.
Background
Following escalating friction between the
Running battle
As the crusaders crossed into the Anatolian plateau they entered an area of debatable frontier districts between the Byzantines and Seljuk Turks. Once beyond effective Byzantine control, the German army came under constant harassing attacks from the Turks, who excelled at such tactics. The poorer, and less well-supplied, infantry of the crusader army were the most vulnerable to hit-and-run
Aftermath and estimation of crusader losses
On regaining lands under firm Byzantine control Turkish attacks ceased. The failure of the crusaders was partly blamed on Byzantine treachery by the contemporary chronicler William of Tyre, the Greek guides and local population were accused of being in league with the Seljuks. However, convincing evidence or motivation for this scenario is lacking, though the Byzantine emperor, Manuel I, had hurriedly arranged a peace treaty with the Seljuk sultan. German losses are difficult to estimate, William of Tyre stating that only a remnant of the army was left. Of the 113 named men in the army, 22 are recorded to have died on the crusade, 42 to have survived and 49 are unaccounted for.[4] However, the named men would have been of the knightly and noble class, who, being better armoured and provisioned than the infantry, were more likely to survive. The detailed fate of a significant proportion of the German army shows that the notion of it being completely destroyed near Dorylaeum is untenable. Nicolle states that the 'professional core' of Conrad's army, i.e. the knights and other cavalry, remained "largely intact", though with shaken morale.[6]
The Germans subsequently joined forces with the French crusaders, led by
The anonymous German author of Annales Herbipolenses, a native of
Notes
References
- ^ a b Altan 2015, p. 120.
- ^ a b Runciman 1952, p. 268.
- ^ Phillips 2008, pp. 182–184.
- ^ a b c Phillips 2008, pp. 176–177.
- ^ Nicolle 2009, p. 47.
- ^ Nicolle 2009, p. 147.
- ^ Nicolle 2009, pp. 182–184.
- ^ Nicolle 2009, pp. 50–54.
- ^ Nicolle 2009, p. 81.
Bibliography
- Altan, Ebru (2015). Haçlı Seferleri Tarihi(History of the crusades (PDF) (in Turkish). İstanbul ÜNİVERSİTESİ AÇIK ve Uzaktan EĞİTİM FAKÜLTESİ. p. 120.
- ISBN 978-1-84603-354-4.
- Phillips, J. (2008). The Second Crusade: Extending the Frontiers of Christendom. Yale University Press.
- Runciman, S. (1952). A History of the Crusades. Vol. II: The Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Frankish East, 1100–1187. Cambridge University Press.