he city, and had,
with much prowess and foresight and care, vigorously defended the
city. But as it pleased God, and to punish the sins of the inhabitants
of Acre, the said master of the Temple, lifting up his right arm in
the combat, was shot by a Saracen with a poisoned arrow, which entered
into the joints of his cuirass, by the which wound he shortly after
died; and because of his death the whole city was moved and put in
fear; and by reason of the confusion of so many lords and captains, as
we before said, all fell into disorder, and there was discord in the
guard and defence of the city; and each one who could gave heed to
his own safety, taking refuge in ships and in other vessels which were
in the port. For the which cause the Saracens, continuing the attacks
by day and by night, entered the city by force and traversed it,
robbing everywhere and slaying all who came in their way, and the
young men and maidens they carried off as slaves; and there were of
slain and prisoners, men, women and children, more than 60,000; and
the loss of goods and booty was infinite. And having collected the
booty and treasures, and carried away the prisoners out of the city,
they broke down the walls and strongholds, and set fire to them, and
destroyed all the city, whereby Christendom sustained very great hurt,
for by the loss of Acre there remained in the Holy Land no city
pertaining to the Christians; and never again was any one of the good
trading cities, which are on our sea-shores and borders, worth
one-half of its former profit in merchandise and arts; because of the
loss of the city and port of Acre, by reason of its good situation
right on the brow of our sea, and in the midst of Syria, and well-nigh
in the midst of the inhabited world, seventy miles distant from
Jerusalem, a magazine and port for all merchandise, both from the East
and from the West; and all races of men in the world met there to
barter merchandise; and there were interpreters there of all the
languages of the world, so that it was like one of the elements of the
world. And this disaster was not without the great and just judgment
of God, for that city was more full of sinful men and of women of
every kind of abandoned vice than any other Christian city. When the
sorrowful tidings came to the West, the Pope proclaimed great
indulgences and pardons to whosoever should give aid and succour to
the Holy Land, sending word to all Christian lords that he purposed