The Road to Disaster: Louis IX’s Crusade Begins

In 1248, King Louis IX of France, later canonized as Saint Louis, embarked on the Seventh Crusade with grand ambitions of reclaiming Jerusalem from Muslim control. Unlike previous crusades, which had often been marred by competing European interests, Louis’ campaign was a meticulously planned endeavor funded by heavy taxation and supported by the French nobility. His initial target was Egypt, the heart of the Ayyubid Sultanate, whose wealth and strategic position made it a crucial stepping stone toward the Holy Land.

By June 1249, Louis’ forces captured the port city of Damietta with surprising ease, bolstering crusader morale. However, this early success masked the logistical and tactical challenges ahead. The Nile Delta’s labyrinthine waterways and the approaching flood season would soon prove disastrous for the invading army.

The Battle of Mansurah: A Turning Point

The crusaders’ advance toward Cairo was halted at the fortified city of Mansurah in early 1250. The Ayyubid forces, initially in disarray following the death of Sultan As-Salih Ayyub, regrouped under the leadership of the Mamluks—elite slave-soldiers of Turkic and Circassian origin. The Mamluks, though technically slaves, were highly trained warriors who would later dominate Egyptian politics.

On February 11, 1250, the Mamluks launched a devastating attack on Louis’ encampment. The crusaders, caught off guard, fought desperately in a chaotic melee. Louis’ younger brother, Alphonse of Poitiers, narrowly escaped, but the French forces suffered heavy losses. Though they repelled the initial assault, the crusaders were now trapped in a precarious position, surrounded by hostile forces and cut off from their supply lines.

The Siege and Starvation: A Crusade Unravels

The newly arrived Ayyubid Sultan, Turanshah, implemented a ruthless strategy to cripple the crusaders. He ordered the construction of small boats, transported by camels, to blockade the Nile and intercept French supply ships. With no combat personnel guarding their provisions, the crusaders soon faced starvation and disease.

By April 1250, Louis had no choice but to retreat. He offered to surrender Damietta in exchange for Jerusalem—a proposal Turanshah swiftly rejected, knowing the crusaders were in no position to negotiate. The retreat quickly turned into a massacre. Harassed by Mamluk cavalry, the starving and exhausted army disintegrated. Louis himself fell gravely ill and was carried on a stretcher as his forces were systematically captured or slaughtered.

The Humiliation of Capture and Ransom

The scale of the defeat was unprecedented. Over 10,000 crusaders, including Louis and his nobles, were taken prisoner. The captives were paraded through Cairo, where crowds jeered at their misfortune. Many were held in the ruins of ancient Egyptian temples, where the wounded were often executed.

Negotiations for their release were brutal. Turanshah demanded:
– The return of all Christian-held cities in the Levant.
– A staggering ransom of 1 million Byzantine gold bezants.
– The immediate surrender of Damietta.

Louis’ queen, Margaret of Provence, who had remained in Damietta, was forced to sell her jewels and tapestries to raise the first installment of the ransom. Despite her efforts, only 400,000 bezants were gathered—short of the required 500,000. Yet, Turanshah, perhaps sensing instability in his own ranks, agreed to release Louis and the nobles on May 6, 1250.

The Mamluk Coup and a Shifting Power Balance

Before the full ransom could be paid, Egypt’s political landscape shifted dramatically. Turanshah was assassinated in a Mamluk coup led by the formidable general Baibars and the cunning former slave Shajar al-Durr, who briefly ruled as sultana. The Ayyubid dynasty collapsed, and the Mamluks seized power—a regime that would dominate the region for centuries.

This upheaval gave Louis a temporary reprieve. He relocated to Acre, where he spent the next four years attempting to negotiate the release of remaining prisoners. Many, however, chose conversion to Islam over indefinite captivity—a pragmatic decision given the harsh alternatives.

Legacy of the Seventh Crusade

The Seventh Crusade was a catastrophic failure militarily, but it cemented Louis IX’s reputation as a pious and resilient leader. His willingness to remain in the Levant to secure his men’s freedom, even after his own release, earned him admiration. Yet the financial and human costs were staggering:
– The French treasury was drained.
– The military orders, particularly the Templars, were weakened.
– Thousands of soldiers never returned, either dying in captivity or assimilating into Muslim society.

For the Mamluks, the victory at Mansurah marked their rise as a dominant force in the Islamic world, setting the stage for their eventual expulsion of the Crusaders from the Levant.

Conclusion: A Crusade Remembered

Louis IX’s defeat at Mansurah remains one of the most dramatic collapses in crusading history. It underscored the logistical vulnerabilities of medieval warfare and the rising power of the Mamluks. For Louis, the experience deepened his religious fervor—leading to his later canonization—but also exposed the limits of European military ventures in the East. The Seventh Crusade’s legacy is a sobering reminder of ambition, miscalculation, and the brutal realities of holy war.