Cold Open

It’s the early morning of July 24th, 1148, outside the walled city of Damascus, on the edge of the Syrian desert.

A young French soldier, caked in dust and sweat, peers through the closely packed men ahead. He’s part of a 50,000-strong Crusader army that stretches as far as the eye can see. There are soldiers here from all over Western Europe, a mass of men so vast it seems impossible for any city to stand against it.

But the soldier is also tired. He and his comrades have marched for four days through the desert to get here. And now the day is already heating up again.

Beyond the lines of men in front of him, the soldier can see the ancient walls of Damascus, shimmering in the rising heat. The soldier licks his parched lips. With the prize finally in sight, the weight of their mission starts to sink in. They are here to capture Damascus for all of Christendom.

The soldier tries to shake off his uncertainty. They’ve all been told that the Muslim forces inside the city are weak and divided. And despite the high walls that protect them, the defenders won’t be able to withstand such a mighty army as they are.

A sharp horn sounds across the valley. The soldier grips his weapon as the army around him begins to surge forward as one.

As he marches onward, the soldier feels a sense of divine purpose. With God on their side, surely victory is inevitable. The city before them will fall, its walls will crumble, and the banners of Christ will soon fly high above Damascus.

The assault on Damascus will end in triumph—but not for the Crusaders. Instead, the Muslim forces inside the city will repel the attackers and deny them the chance to expand Christian territory. It is a failure which will terrify Europe, cost thousands of lives, and humiliate the two kings who thought victory was there for the taking when they attacked Damascus on July 24th, 1148.

Introduction

From Noiser and Airship, I’m Lindsay Graham, and this is History Daily.

History is made every day. On this podcast—every day—we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world.

Today is July 24th, 1148: The Siege of Damascus.

Act One: Into the Orchard Maze

It’s December 19th, 1144, in a palace in Aleppo, Syria, three and a half years before Crusaders attack Damascus.

The powerful Islamic warlord Imad al-Din Zengi sits at the head of a long wooden table. The 59-year-old is flanked by his most trusted military advisors and strategists. The men’s faces are all grave, their body language tense—they have gathered to make a seismic decision.

Over the past ten years, Zengi has united two cities under his rule and risen to become one of the most powerful men in the Muslim world. Now, he is turning his gaze to the Christian states that neighbor his own.

When the First Crusade ended nearly 50 years ago, the Holy Land had been remade. Armies invading from Europe had seized large areas of land and established four new Christian states lining the eastern shores of the Mediterranean: Edessa, Antioch, Tripoli, and Jerusalem.

Zengi believes it's his duty to reclaim those lands for Islam. The decision he faces now is where to strike first. From his seat at the head of the table, Zengi can see the face of every man in the room. He watches calmly as the debate grows increasingly heated.

Some want to strike straight at the Holy City of Jerusalem. Others suggest Tripoli, the smallest of the Crusader States.

Amid the overlapping voices, a lone advisor stands, motioning for quiet. He points out that Edessa was the first Crusader state established. So it is only fitting that it should also be the first to fall. As the easternmost Christian territory, Edessa is also isolated. If it calls for help, it will take weeks for aid to arrive from other Crusader states. And by then, Edessa will have fallen.

The other advisors are about to shout their objections, but Zengi raises his hand. He’s heard enough. He’s decided that they will march on the city of Edessa.

Less than a week later, on December 24th, 1144, Zengi launches his attack. His forces climb, dig, and mine their way over, under, and through the walls of the city. And once they’re inside, they slaughter as many Christians as possible.

By the end of their brutal assault, Edessa is left in ruins, with smoke billowing over its shattered walls.

Word of Zengi’s victory spreads quickly across the region—and far beyond. Until now, many in Europe believed the Crusader states were protected by divine favor. But the fall of Edessa proves that the Christian-controlled parts of the Holy Land are vulnerable. If God will not protect them, then it is up to the people of Europe.

It takes almost a year for the Catholic Church to officially respond. But on December 1st, 1145, Pope Eugene III issues a formal call for a Second Crusade. Its aim is to liberate Edessa and protect the Holy Land.

The deeply devout King Louis VII of France is quick to answer this call. The 25-year-old declares that he will lead his army personally. Within weeks, Emperor Conrad III of Germany also throws his weight behind this new Crusade. So now, with two influential kings answering the Pope’s call, a Crusade fever spreads across Europe as lords, knights, and even commoners pledge themselves to this holy cause.

It takes a few months to make all the preparations, so it’s not until early summer of 1147 that the French and German armies set off on their long march to reclaim the lost Christian territory. Progress is slow, and when they get closer to their destination, they fall under attack from Muslim forces in Western Turkey. By the time the French and German armies finally reach the Holy Land in early 1148, their fighting strength has been severely reduced, and the two kings decide that Edessa is now too well-defended to attack directly.

With Edessa now off the table, King Louis and Emperor Conrad rethink their plans. They lead what remains of their armies further south to Jerusalem. And there, in the summer of 1148, they meet with other Christian leaders from the region and decide on a new target: Damascus

This Muslim city is rich and strategically located, with control over many important trade routes. As a prize, it will more than make up for the loss of Edessa.

So, the vast joint army of kings and commoners will set out on its mission in July 1148. These Crusaders hope that God will lead them to victory. But, instead, they will march into disaster.

Act Two: A Fatal Flaw

It’s early in the morning of July 24th, 1148, outside Damascus, a year after the beginning of the Second Crusade.

28-year-old Louis VII of France paces back and forth on a rocky hillside overlooking the city walls. From here, he can watch as the Christian armies approach Damascus, advancing through an orchard to the west of the city. He scans the lines of soldiers marching forward, weapons and armor glinting in the sun as their banners stream overhead.

Although the siege is just beginning, Louis’s face is already drawn and tired. He knows a Crusade is more than just a military campaign—it's a test of faith. And he hopes that he and his men are up to the challenge as they approach the walls of the city.

Soon, horns and bells sound from within the city, warning of the impending attack. Louis sees enemy troops lining the walls, just tiny silhouettes in the distance, scurrying back and forth. It seems impossible that they might be able to resist the vast flood of Christian fighters rushing toward them.

And soon, the Crusaders have fought their way to just outside the city gates. From his hilltop vantage point, Louis prays for a speedy victory. He knows his quest is a noble one—a chance to reclaim complete control of the Holy Land for Christendom. And now, after all their difficulties on the journey here, it seems that Louis’ faith will be rewarded. His army’s commanders tell him that they hope to capture Damascus by the time the sun rises in the morning.

But then progress stalls. Even with 50,000 men, the Crusaders can’t find a way into the city. And while they struggle, the defenders inside know they only have to hold them off for a little while longer. Because reinforcements are on their way.

Before the Christian army could cut off the city, Damascus’s leaders sent an urgent message to Nur ad-Din.

The warlord Zengi has died in the years since his famous capture of Edessa, but his son and successor, 28-year-old Nur ad-Din, is a formidable warrior in his own right, and just as determined as his father to rid these lands of the Christians.

So, help is coming. But for it to reach the city, the defenders will have to clear a path. So, late in the day, after hours of fighting, they launch a counterattack. The Crusaders are taken by surprise, and all the progress made during the day is lost—they are forced back to the orchards where they began.

And when Nur ad-Din’s forces arrive, they move swiftly to bolster the city’s defenses. Ad Din's archers and mounted troops help the men of Damascus harass the Crusader lines, cutting off supplies of food and water, which are vital for any army in the punishing summer heat.

And as their stores begin to dwindle, so too do the Crusaders’ hopes of victory. By the end of the third day, they’ve barely been able to break out of the orchards. King Louis, Emperor Conrad, and the other Christian leaders hold a crisis meeting. They never expected such fierce resistance, and it has left them confused and desperate.

In the end, they make a fateful decision. They order their men to abandon their position among the orchard trees. The entire army then marches to the opposite side of the city and launches a new assault there.

The Christian commanders believe that the defenses on this Eastern side are less well fortified—and they’re right. But the move still proves a terrible mistake.

The terrain to the east of Damascus is bare. And without the shelter of the orchards, the heat is even more brutal. And though the city’s defenses are less robust, Nur ad-Din’s reinforcements make up for that shortfall. The Crusaders again find no way into the city.

The kings realize they’ve made a mistake. But by then, it’s too late. When they abandoned their position in the orchard, Nur ad-Din's forces moved in. And with the orchards occupied, their supply lines cut, and the city stubbornly resisting all attacks, the Crusaders have nowhere to go.

Inside their camp, chaos quickly takes hold. No one knows who’s in charge. And breathless messengers hurry back and forth, carrying conflicting and contradictory commands. Rumors swirl that Louis has fled, and that Conrad has fallen back. Then, scouts arrive with word that Nur ad-Din himself is on the march and heading toward the city with even more troops from the north.

As the sun climbs higher on the third day, sweat pools inside armor, tempers flare, and men start snapping at each other. The Crusaders are no longer advancing—they’re unraveling. And as their hopes fade, terror will creep into its place. Soon, they will be forced to abandon their doomed assault in order to flee for their lives.

Act Three: Confusion and Collapse

It’s July 28th, 1148, on the walls of Damascus, four days after the Crusaders began their attack on the city.

Beneath the baking midday sun, an exhausted Muslim defender takes a moment to rest. Leaning back against the stones he has defended day and night, he listens with a smile to the sound of chaos drifting over the wall from the enemy camp.

He can’t understand what’s being shouted. But there’s no mistaking the confusion in the air as orders are made, countermanded, and made again. Fights are breaking out between the different nationalities as hunger and dehydration set in. All thoughts of attacking the city seem to have been abandoned. In the heat of the Syrian desert, the mighty Christian army has taken just four days to fall apart.

King Louis of France and Emperor Conrad of Germany pull what remains of their forces back to Jerusalem, blaming one another for their humiliating defeat. But it isn’t over yet. Jerusalem is more than a hundred miles south of Damascus, and the Christian forces are harassed every step of the way by enemy archers and horsemen. So when the Crusaders do finally limp back into Jerusalem, they’re a shadow of the mighty force that set off just weeks earlier.

This failed siege effectively brings an end to the Second Crusade and shatters the confidence in the Crusader cause across Europe. As for Damascus, Nur ad-Din becomes its new master, adding the rich and well-connected city to his rapidly growing empire.

But while Nur ad-Din will grow stronger in the years to come, the Crusader states will weaken. And as they squabble between themselves, the Christian grip in the Holy Land will falter. Eventually, in 1187, even the holy city of Jerusalem will fall to Muslim forces, in another devastating blow for Christendom that was foreshadowed by the disastrous siege of Damascus, which began on July 24th, 1148.

Outro

Next on History Daily. July 25th, 1965. Bob Dylan enrages his fans by going electric at the Newport Folk Festival.

From Noiser and Airship, this is History Daily, hosted, edited, and executive produced by me, Lindsay Graham.

Audio editing by Muhammad Shahzaib.

Sound design by Gabriel Gould.

Supervising Sound Designer Matthew Filler.

Music by Thrumm.

This episode is written and researched by Olivia Jordan.

Edited by Joel Callen.

Managing producer Emily Burke.

Executive Producers are William Simpson for Airship, and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.