Crusade of 1269
The "khan of Tartary" (actually the Ilkhan) Abaqa corresponded with James in early 1267, inviting him to join forces with the Mongols and go on Crusade. James sent an ambassador to Abaqa in the person of Jayme Alaric de Perpignan, who returned with a Mongol embassy in 1269. Pope Clement IV tried to dissuade James from Crusading, regarding his moral character as sub-par, and Alfonso X did the same. Nonetheless, James, who was then campaigning in Murcia, made peace with Mohammed I ibn Nasr, the Sultan of Granada, and set about collecting funds for a Crusade. After organising the government for his absence and assembling a fleet at Barcelona in September 1269, he was ready to sail east. The troubadour Olivier lo Templier composed a song praising the voyage and hoping for its success. A storm, however, drove him off course and he landed at Aigues-Mortes. According to the continuator of William of Tyre, he returned via Montpellier por l'amor de sa dame Berenguiere ("for the love his lady Berengaria") and abandoned any further effort at a Crusade.
James' sons Pedro Fernández and Fernán Sánchez, who had been given command of part of the fleet, did continue on their way to Acre, where they arrived in December. They found that Baibars, the Mameluke sultan of Egypt, had broken his truce with the Kingdom of Jerusalem and was making a demonstration of his military power in front of Acre. During the demonstration, Egyptian troops hidden in the bushes ambushed a returning Frankish force which had been in Galilee. James' sons, initially eager for a fight, changed their minds after this spectacle and returned home via Sicily, where Fernán Sánchez was knighted by Charles of Anjou.
Read more about this topic: James I Of Aragon
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