4th Units Preview: The County of Tripoli
Models by templar019, skins by dragases1453
HISTORY:
The beginnings of the County came in 1102, when Count Raymond IV of Toulouse, one of the leaders of the First Crusade, began a lengthy war with the Banu Ammar Emirs of Tripoli (theoretically vassals of the Fatimid caliphs in Cairo), gradually seizing much of their territory and besieging them within Tripoli itself. Raymond died in 1105, leaving his infant son Alfonso-Jordan as his heir, with a cousin, William-Jordan of Cerdagne, as regent. William-Jordan continued the siege of Tripoli for the next four years, when a bastard son of Raymond, Bertrand, who had been acting as regent of Toulouse, arrived in the east, leaving Toulouse to Alfonso-Jordan and his mother, who returned to France. Bertrand and William-Jordan, due to the mediation of King Baldwin I of Jerusalem, eventually came to an agreement whereby each would keep control of their own conquests, an agreement which Bertrand got the better part of when he captured Tripoli later that year. When William-Jordan died a few months later, Bertrand became sole ruler.
The County of Tripoli continued to exist as a vassal state of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, while within the county itself the Knights Hospitaller were given an autonomous castle in 1142, Krak des Chevaliers. Count Raymond III, who reigned in Tripoli from 1152 to 1187, was an important figure in the history of the Kingdom to the south, due to his close relationship to its Kings (his mother Hodierna was a daughter of Baldwin II of Jerusalem) and to his own position as Prince of Galilee through his wife. He acted twice as regent for the Kingdom, first for the young Baldwin IV from 1174 to 1177, and then again for Baldwin V from 1185 to 1186, and acted as the leader of the local nobility in their opposition to Baldwin IV's Courtenay relations, to the Templars, to Guy of Lusignan, and to Raynald of Chatillon. Raymond thus unsuccessfully argued in favor of peace with Saladin, but, ironically, it was Saladin's siege of Raymond's Countess in Tiberias that led the Crusader army into Galilee before its defeat at Hattin in 1187, and although Raymond survived the battle, he died soon afterwards.
The County managed to avoid being conquered by Saladin in his string of victories following Hattin, and Bohemund IV, second son of Bohemund III of Antioch, succeeded to it upon Raymond's death. After Bohemund III's death in 1201, the County was in personal union with Antioch for all but three years (1216-1219) until Antioch's own fall to the Mamelukes in 1268. Tripoli survived for a few more years.
The death of the unpopular Count Bohemund VII in 1287 led to a dispute between his heir, his sister Lucia, and the city's commune, which put itself under the protection of the Genoese. Eventually, Lucia came to an agreement with the Genoese and the Commune, which displeased the Venetians and the ambitious Bartholomew Embriaco, the Genoese mayor of the city, who called in the Mameluke Sultan Qalawun to their aid. Qalawun captured the city after a siege in 1289, bringing the history of the County to an end.
UNITS:
Infantry:
Pilgrims: These men come from all Europe to see the Holy land, were Jesus Christ lived and died; they are very fanatic and sometimes they are recruite by Crusader rulers, but they aren't a strong unit.
Syrian infantry: These light soldiers are recruited from the native population of the Holy land; They are almost of Muslim religion, so they aren't so loyal to their catholic rulers, but they are good as basic infantry.They are able to fight as light spearmen or as good archers.
Frank feudal Militia: when the European crusaders created their won kingdom they took there the fedual system.These men are professional soldiers; they fight with a sword and they are a good infantry unit.
Men-at-arms: These soldiers are the typical soldiers that serve under the knights. Unlike the lower classes, these men have enough money to buy heavy chain-mail, a kite shield, a dome helmet, and a steel broadsword. These men fight on foot and horseback, depending on the needs of the commanding lord or king. Their first loyalty belongs to the knight that they serve, so they will typically follow his orders and can be difficult to manage (May charge without orders) for the general in command. They are not only effective cavalry and infantry units, but hey are also much cheaper than the Knights of Europe. Also, the Knight must pay the majority, allowing a commander to access these powerful units in abundance. However, these units depend on the Knight’s willingness to serve for the duration of the battle, so the commander should remain aware of the morale of the Knight in addition to his men-at-arms.
Dismounted Knights: During the High Middle Ages, it was technically possible for every free man to become a knight, but the process of becoming (and the equipping of) a knight was very expensive; thus it was more likely that a knight would come from a noble (or wealthy) family. The process of being knighted began before adolescence, inside the prospective knight’s own home, where he was taught courtesy and appropriate manners. Around the age of 7 years, he would be sent away to train and serve at a grander household as a page. Here, he would serve as a kind of waiter and personal servant, entertaining and serving food to his elders. He would learn basic hunting and falconry, and also various battle skills such as taking care of, preparing, and riding horses, as well as use of weapons and armor. At about fourteen years of age, the page was assigned to a knight to serve as his personal companion and aide, as a squire. This allowed the squire to observe his master while he was in battle, in order to learn from his techniques. He also acted as a servant to the knight, taking care of his master’s equipment and horse. This was to uphold the knight’s code of Chivalry, which promoted generosity, courtesy, compassion, and most importantly, loyalty. Once the squire had established sufficient mastery of the required skills, he was dubbed a knight. There was no set age for this, but it usually occurred between the ages of seventeen and twenty-one. In the early period, the procedure began with the squire praying into the night. He was then bathed, and in the morning he was dressed in a white shirt, gold tunic, purple cloak, and was knighted by his king or lord. As the Middle Ages progressed, the process changed. The squire was made to vow that he would obey the regulations of chivalry, and never flee from battle. Then women would buckle on his armor. A squire could also be knighted on the battlefield, in which a lord simply struck him on the shoulder and said, “Be thou a knight.” Dismounted Knights on the battlefield are the pinnacle of warrior prowess with man being heavily-armored and well-trained, even without the warhorse for a mount. A knight’s typical weapon is the steel broadsword for hacking at the enemy up close. They are layered in chain-mail, some with crafted, steel plates to protect the vitals. The shield signifies the family or order in Europe, but by ‘Taking on the Cross,’ the knights bear the Holy Cross over their tunics and on their shields. These powerful warriors take on the might of Islam (and sometimes each other) for the Christian faith.
Cavalry:
Turcopole: The Teutonic Order called its own native light cavalry the "Turkopolen". Mercenary knights are sometimes hired for a campaign, during which they will ride as confreres of the Order. Mercenary engineers, crossbowmen, and other infantry might be rushed in to a city that was expected to stand siege. But these cases are temporary and of comparatively small scale. The Order has a permanent force of mercenary 'turcopoles'. Turcopoles are for the most part natives of Outremer, raised and trained locally. They serve as light cavalry: skirmishers, scouts, and mounted archers, and sometimes ride as a second line in a charge, to back up the knights and sergeants. Turcopoles have lighter, faster horses than knights or even sergeants, and they wear much lighter armor usually only a quilted aketon and a conical steel helmet.
Sergeants: These Order fighters have entered training as Knights of the Order and have proved themselves in battle, but they are forced to serve also in the army of the nation in which they are. The sergeants are equipped as light cavalry or infantry in order to support the powerful Knights of the Order charges. Drawn from a lower social class than the knights, they do not maintain the same authority, but they are more effective and better trained than most other men-at-arms.
Heavy Cavalry: During the High Middle Ages, it was technically possible for every free man to become a knight, but the process of becoming (and the equipping of) a knight was very expensive; thus it was more likely that a knight would come from a noble (or wealthy) family. The process of being knighted began before adolescence, inside the prospective knight’s own home, where he was taught courtesy and appropriate manners. Around the age of 7 years, he would be sent away to train and serve at a grander household as a page. Here, he would serve as a kind of waiter and personal servant, entertaining and serving food to his elders. He would learn basic hunting and falconry, and also various battle skills such as taking care of, preparing, and riding horses, as well as use of weapons and armor. At about fourteen years of age, the page was assigned to a knight to serve as his personal companion and aide, as a squire. This allowed the squire to observe his master while he was in battle, in order to learn from his techniques. He also acted as a servant to the knight, taking care of his master’s equipment and horse. This was to uphold the knight’s code of Chivalry, which promoted generosity, courtesy, compassion, and most importantly, loyalty. Once the squire had established sufficient mastery of the required skills, he was dubbed a knight. There was no set age for this, but it usually occurred between the ages of seventeen and twenty-one. In the early period, the procedure began with the squire praying into the night. He was then bathed, and in the morning he was dressed in a white shirt, gold tunic, purple cloak, and was knighted by his king or lord. As the Middle Ages progressed, the process changed. The squire was made to vow that he would obey the regulations of chivalry, and never flee from battle. Then women would buckle on his armor. A squire could also be knighted on the battlefield, in which a lord simply struck him on the shoulder and said, “Be thou a knight.” Knights on the battlefield are the pinnacle of Western heavy cavalry with man and horse both being heavily-armored and well-trained. A knight’s typical weapons are a 15-foot lance for dismounting opponents and piercing armor and a steel broadsword for hacking at the enemy up close. They are layered in chain-mail, some with crafted, steel plates to protect the vitals. The shield signifies the family or order in Europe, but by ‘Taking on the Cross,’ the knights bear the Holy Cross over their tunics and on their shields. These powerful warriors take on the might of Islam (and sometimes each other) for the Christian faith.
Skirmish:
Syrian Archers: These light soldiers are recruited from the native population of the Holy land; They are almost of Muslim religion, so they aren't so loyal to their catholic rulers, but they are good as basic infantry. They are able to fight as light spearmen or as good archers.
Syrian Crossbowmen: These men are good native crossbowmen. they learned to use this new weapon with the first Crusade, so they aren't still so good, but with a bit of training the could become as Christian Crossbowmen.
Frank Crossbowmen: Crossbowmen are effective range units of the European armies. A crossbow consists of a prod, similar in appearance to a bow, mounted on a stock, which has a mechanism to wind and shoot its bolts. These bolts are typically called quarrels, and do not depend upon lift as arrows do. Crossbow bolts must be made to have consistent weights as the mechanical process of engaging a bolt forces a more uniform process than that of using a bow and arrow. The prod ("bow") and stock of a crossbow were made of good hardwood, such as oak or hard maple. The central European bows were rather exotic as they were constructed of inlays as well as specialized woods. The prod is attached to the stock with hemp rope, linen, whipcord, or other strong cording. This cording is called the bridle of the crossbow. This consistent performance was part of what made the crossbow historically a significant force in warfare. Crossbowmen are meant to pierce through enemy armor and flesh at range and ease the way for the knights.
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Originally Posted by dragases1453
but anyway they could be changed
