Crusader invasions of Egypt
| Crusader invasions of Egypt | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Crusades | |||||||||
Crusader invasions of Egypt | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
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Kingdom of Jerusalem Byzantine Empire County of Tripoli Principality of Antioch Knights Hospitaller Knights Templar Armenian Principality of Cilicia French crusaders Forces and Supporters of Shawar |
Fatimid Caliphate Zengid Dynasty | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Amalric I Andronikos Kontostephanos Shawar |
Caliph Al-Adid Dirgham Nur ad-Din Zengi Asad ad-Din Shirkuh Salahuddin Ayyubi | ||||||||
The Crusader invasions of Egypt were the repeated invasions of Fatimid Egypt from 1163 to 1169 by King Amalric of Jerusalem, who wished to strengthen the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem's position in the Levant by taking advantage of the weakness of the Fatimids.
The invasions began as part of a succession crisis in the caliphate, which began to crumble under the pressure of Muslim Syria ruled by the Zengids and the Christian Crusader states. While one side called for help from the emir of Syria, Nur al-Din Zengi, the other called for Crusader assistance. As the war progressed, however, it became a war of conquest. A number of Syrian campaigns into Egypt were stopped short of total victory by the aggressive campaigning of King Amalric. Even so, the Crusaders generally speaking did not have things go their way, despite several sackings. A combined Byzantine–Crusader siege of Damietta failed in 1169, the same year that Saladin took power in Egypt as vizier. In 1171, Saladin became sultan of Egypt and the crusaders thereafter turned their attention to the defence of their kingdom, which, despite being surrounded by Syria and Egypt, held for another 16 years. Later crusades tried to support the Kingdom of Jerusalem by targeting the danger that was Egypt, but to no avail.