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should be appointed, and that all should abide by their opinion; and how the king
assented and the French opposed it.
It was therefore agreed, by the kingÕs recommendation, and by
common consent, that twenty trusty men should be sworn, and that all
should follow their advice, without further opposition. There were chosen
five of the Templars, five of the French nobles, five of the Hospitallers, and
five of the natives of Syria. These twenty met together, and after conferring
for some time on the aforesaid matter, they gave it as their decided
opinion, that it was the most eligible plan to proceed direct to the siege of

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Babylon. On hearing this, the French stoutly opposed it, and protested that
they would march nowhere else but to the siege of Jerusalem. The king, on
hearing of the obstinacy and defection of the French, was troubled thereat,
and remarked Ñ ÒIf the French will accede to our plan, and agree to
proceed to the siege of Babylon, according to their oath of obedience, I will
give them my fleet, which lies at Acre, fully equipped, to carry their
provisions and necessaries, and the army can then march along the coast
with confidence. I will also conduct thither, at my own charge, 700 knights,
and 2,000 of their followers, in the name of the Lord; and if any one has
need of the assistance of my money or means, he may be assured that he
shall be supplied according to his wants; and if any one doubts my doing
this, I will march with my own soldiers only, and without other help.Ó
Then he immediately ordered that inquiries should be made at the tents of
the Hospitallers, which were contiguous to his own, what they could
supply for the completion of the siege, and how many men they could
furnish. The chiefs also came there, and agreed to make an ample
contribution towards the expenses of the siege, though they had very little
in their pockets. But at that doubtful and critical juncture, they seemed too
eager to undertake so venturous an enterprise, with even less precaution
than they evinced in commencing the siege of Jerusalem, from which the
jurors had so earnestly dissuaded them.
Chapter III. Ñ How, while the army was at Betenoble, Bernard, the kingÕs spy,
brought news of the approach of some very large caravans from Babylon, and how
King Richard sent out men to capture, and Saladin sent on the other hand to guard
them.
While therefore they were anxiously inquiring what each ought to
contribute towards the expenses of the siege, there arrived Bernard, a spy
of King RichardÕs, and two others, all of whom were natives of the country,
and came from the neighbourhood of Babylon. They were attired in the
Turkish costume, and differed in nowise from the Saracens, and it was
their business to report to King Richard the condition of the enemy. No one
spoke the Turkish language with greater ease, and King Richard had given

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to each of the three 100 marks of silver for his services. They signified to the
king that he should set out, with all his men, as quickly as possible, to
intercept the caravans, which were coming from Babylon, and to which
they promised to conduct him. The king, delighted at what be heard,
charged the duke of Burgundy to join him immediately in the enterprise,
and bring the French to assist; and they agreed to go, on condition that they
should receive the third part of the booty, to which the king assented. Then
about 500 soldiers instantly set out, well armed, and the king took with him
a thousand hired serving men. At evening they pursued their march, the
king preceding them, and advancing all night, by the light of a splendid
moon, they arrived at Galatia. There they rested a short time, and sent to
Ascalon for provisions. Meanwhile, they carefully prepared their arms,
until the servants, who had been sent for the provisions, arrived. But our
men had no sooner started, as we have said, to capture the caravans, than a
spy informed Saladin, at Jerusalem, that he had seen King Richard set out,
with his people, in great haste, to intercept his caravans; and thus the secret
of our expedition was revealed. Saladin then hastily sent off 500 chosen
Turks, who, on joining with the others that were intrusted with the
protection of the caravans, formed a body of 2,000 horsemen, besides a
numerous company of foot-soldiers.
Chapter IV. Ñ How King Richard fought bravely with the Turks, and took a