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==Papal-Mongol agreement (1263)== ===Letter to Louis IX of France=== On April 10, 1262, the Mongol leader Hulagu sent through [[John the Hungarian]] a new letter to the French king [[Louis IX]] from the city of [[Maragheh]], offering again an alliance.<ref>Richard, p. 436 (french), p. 422 (english). "What Hulegu was offering was an alliance. And, contrary to what has long been written by the best authorities, this offer was not in response to appeals from the Franks."</ref> The letter explained that two years before, in 1260, Hulagu had to withdraw the bulk of his army from Syria due to the hot weather and the lack of provisions and grass for the horses.<ref>Jackson, p.178</ref> The letter mentioned Hulagu's intention to capture Jerusalem for the benefit of the Pope, and asked for Louis to send a fleet against Egypt: {{quote|"From the head of the Mongol army, avid to devastate the perfid nation of the Sarasins, goodwilling support of the Christian faith (...) so that you, who are the rulers of the coasts on the other side of the sea, endeavour to deny a refuge for the Infidels, your enemies and ours, by having your subjects diligently patrol the seas."|Letter from [[Hulagu]] to [[Louis IX of France|Saint Louis]].<ref>Letter from Hulagu to Saint Louis, quoted in ''Les Croisades'', Thierry Delcourt, p.151</ref>}} ===Papal agreement (1263)=== [[Image:PopeUrbanIV.JPG|thumb|[[Pope Urban IV]] tentatively agreed to an alliance with the Mongols in 1263.]] King Louis sent the embassy with the letter to [[Pope Urban IV]]. John the Hungarian transmitted to the Pope Hulagu's request for help as well as his interest in baptism.<ref>Reuven-Amitai, "Mongols and Mamluks" p.95</ref> In response, the Pope issued a short letter, known as the bull ''Exultavit cor nostru'', which congratulated Hulegu on his expression of goodwill towards the Christian faith. The historian Knobler described it as saying that the Pope tentatively agreed to Hulagu's plans, but only cautiously.<ref name=knobler/> According to Reuven-Amitai the Pope wrote that he rejoyced at Hulegu's interest in Christianity, and that "with his baptism effected, Christendom would help Hulegu in his struggle against the Saracens, including the dispatch of soldiers".<ref>Reuven-Amitai, "Mongols and Mamluks", p.95</ref> The French historian [[Jean Richard (historian)|Jean Richard]] describes this event as the turning point in the relations with the Mongols, from which the Mongols were considered as allies, rather than enemies.<ref>"On the side of the Franks of Syria, things had taken a different orientation. The point was not anymore to lead a Crusade against the Mongols. From that time on, the point was to engage in a Crusade together with them." Jean Richard, p.427</ref> He also claims that the exact terms of this alliance offered in 1262, can be learned from the report of the monk Richardus, which were presented in 1274 at the [[Second Council of Lyon|Council of Lyon]]. Richard says that according to Richardus, that Hulagu had welcomed the Christian ambassadors to his court, and then agreed to exempt Latin Christians from taxes and charges, in exchange for their prayers for the [[Qaghan]]. Hulagu also prohibited that Frank establishments should be molested, and committed to return [[Jerusalem]] to the Franks.<ref>Jean Richard, p.435</ref> Richard further says that the successful offensives of the Sultan [[Baibars]] at the time helped rally Westerners to the idea of an alliance,<ref>"The sustained attacks of Baibar (...) rallied the Occidentals to this alliance, to which the Mongols also convinced the Byzantines to adhere", in "Histoire des Croisades", p.453.</ref> and that it was in response to this coalition between the Franks, [[Ilkhanid]] Mongols and [[Byzantines]], that the Mongols of the [[Golden Horde]] allied with the Muslim Mamluks in return.<ref>"In 1264, to the coalition between the Franks, Mongols and Byzantines, responded the coalition between the Golden Horde and the Mamluks.” In Jean Richard, p.436</ref> ===Combined operations in the Levant (1262-1265)=== Meanwhile, the Mamluk leader [[Baibars]] began to threaten Antioch, which (as a vassal of the Armenians) had earlier supported the Mongols.<ref>Runciman, p.313</ref> In the summer of 1262, the king of Armenia went to the Mongols and again obtained their intervention to deliver the city.<ref>"Antioch was only saved (...) by the intervention of Hethoum who called the Mongols to intervene in favour of Bohemond. Les ''Gestes des Chiprois'' even seems to say that the Armenia monarch went in person to fetch the nearest Mongol troops". Grousset, p.609</ref><ref>Mentionned in Grousset, p.609. In 1262, the king of Armenia went to the Mongols and again obtained their intervention to deliver the city. - "In the year 1262, the sultan Bendocdar of Babiloine, who had taken the name of Melec el Vaher, put the city of Antioch under siege, but the king of Armenia went to see the Tatars and had them come, so that the Sarazins had to leave the siege and return to Babiloine.". Original French:"Et en lan de lincarnasion .mcc. et .lxii. le soudan de Babiloine Bendocdar quy se fist nomer Melec el Vaher ala aseger Antioche mais le roy dermenie si estoit ale a Tatars et les fist ehmeuer de venir et les Sarazins laiserent le siege dantioche et sen tornerent en Babiloine."[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/GuillaumeTyr5.html Guillame de Tyr "Historia rerum in partibus transmarinis gestarum" #316]</ref> The city was saved through Mongol intervention.<ref>”In the meantime, [Baibars] condicted his troops to Antioch, and started to besiege the city, which was saved by a Mongol intervention” Jean Richard, p.429</ref> Bohemond VI was again present at the court of Hulagu in 1264, trying to obtain as much support as possible from Mongol rulers against the Mamluk progression. His presence is described by the Armenian saint [[Vartan]]:<ref>"Grousset, p565</ref> {{quote|"In 1264, l'Il-Khan had me called, as well as the vartabeds Sarkis (Serge) and Krikor (Gregory), and Avak, priest of Tiflis. We arrived at the place of this powerful monarch at the beginning of the Tartar year, in July, period of the solemn assembly of the kuriltai. Here were all the Princes, Kings and Sultans submitted by the Tartars, with wonderful presents. Among them, I saw [[Hetoum I]], king of [[Armenia]], [[David VII Ulu|David]], king of [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], the Prince of Antioch (Bohemond VI), and a quantity of Sultans from Persia.|Vartan, trad. Dulaurier.<ref>Quoted in Grousset, p.565</ref>}} <!-- Recommend moving this to Wikiquote --> However, in response to Hetoum I and Bohemond VI's request for help, Hulagu was only capable of attacking the frontier fort of [[Al-Bira]] (1264-1265).<ref>Jean Richard, p.428</ref> The Mamluks were deeptly aware of the Franco-Mongol threat however. After the battle of Al-Bira, Baibars complained in a letter to a Frank prince (the Castellan of [[Jaffa]], apparently [[Jean d'Ibelin]]) of the collaboration between the Franks of Syria and the Mongols: {{quote|"This people have committed many offenses against me, such as writing to the Mongols to attack my territories"|Letter from [[Baybars]] to the Castellan of Jaffa. 1265.<ref>Quoted in Reuven-Amitai, "Mongols and Mamluks", p.102</ref>}} ===Death of Hulagu=== [[Image:DisasterOfMari1266.JPG|thumb|The Mamluks defeated the Armenians at the [[Battle of Mari]] in 1266, killing one of [[Hetoum I]]'s sons and capturing another (the future king [[Levon II of Armenia (King)|Leon II]]). They then ravaged the land of Armenia.<ref>Mutafian, p.58</ref>]] Following the death of Hulagu in 1265, the Muslim leader Baibars attacked the Franks, and brought terrible devastation to the kingdom of Little Armenia. In 1265, the new Khan [[Abaqa Khan|Abaqa]] further pursued Western cooperation. He corresponded with Pope [[Clement IV]] through 1267-1268, and reportedly sent a Mongol ambassador in 1268. Abaqa proposed a joint alliance between his forces, those of the West, and the father of Abaqa's wife, the [[Byzantine emperor]] [[Michael VIII Palaeologos]]. Abaqa received responses from Rome and from [[Jaume I of Aragon]], though it is unclear if this was what led to Jaume's unsuccessful expedition to Acre in 1269.<ref name=knobler/> In 1268, the Mamluk leader Baibars raided the area of Acre, taking the castle of [[Beaufort Castle, Lebanon|Beaufort]], and attacked Tripoli, where Bohemond VI was entrenched with his subjects. Baibars then arrived in front of Antioch, the largest of the Frankish cities, on May 14, 1268, and took the city after a siege of only 4 days, in the [[Siege of Antioch (1268)|Siege of Antioch]].<ref>Amin Maalouf, p.267</ref> After this defeat, Bohemond obtained a truce with Baibars<ref> Amin Maalouf, p.268 (French)</ref> but this left Bohemond with no estates except [[Tripoli]].<ref>Runciman, 325-327</ref>
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