Chapter 701 - The Fall of Jerusalem

Chapter 701 - The Fall of Jerusalem

In the Holy City of Jerusalem, the Sultan of the Timurid Empire stood upon the ramparts gazing at the enemy army gathered below. The Crusaders had attacked sooner than he had anticipated, and the messenger that he and his Byzantine Allies had been captured and eliminated by the Crusader forces before he could reach the shores of the Reich.

Because of this tragic fate, Jerusalem stood on its own, with a garrison comprising Timurid and Byzantine soldiers, who would have decided to defend the city until their last breaths. Months of indiscriminate bombardment had left much of the city uninhabitable. Luckily, the rounds fired by the Crusader's drake cannons were inert, and thus caused far less damage than the Austrian terror bombings of Florence.

Still, morale was low, and those who had put their lives on the line were beginning to feel hopeless. Although their 1417 12-pounder Field Guns were highly effective on the field of battle. Against the enemy's rifled muzzleloaders, they were not nearly as effective in a siege. With their range proving to be severely lacking.

For comparison, the 1417 12-pounder Field Guns had an effective range of 1,536 meters while the rifled muzzle loaders used by the Crusaders had an effective firing range of 4,600 meters at an angle of 20 degrees. The city's defenders could only sit back and wait as their city was bombarded into submission.

After seeing the bombardment continue, Salan descended from the ramparts of the city, and returned to the keep where the Byzantine generals stood with an equal sense of despair on their faces. Salan knew that the moment the Crusaders broke down the door, they would butcher all Muslims in the city and enslave the orthodox Christians. The fate of the jews who called Jerusalem their home would be equally dire.

Rather than wait until the city way destroyed, he had decided on a course of action, which he did not hesitate to voice to his allies.

"That's it! I'm done waiting around. Our infantry weapons are superior to theirs. If we sally forth through the gates and meet their army in the field, we will have the advantage. How many men have we lost waiting for reinforcements to arrive that are simply not coming? If I'm going to die here in this city, then I will at least do it with my blade in hand!"

The Strategos of Palestine were quick to object against this notion.

"The enemy army outnumbers us three to one. If we go out there now, we are asking to be defeated! The entire army of Egypt is here in this city. If they were to perish here in this city, the region would be undefended. We have fought too long, and bled too much to give up North Africa to the crusaders!"

Despite this reasoning, Salan was insistent. He did not care about Egypt, as far as he was concerned, if the Byzantines lost the territory it only benefited the Muslims who would swoop in and reclaim it from the crusader forces. The alliance that Berengar had fought so hard to form between the orthodox and Muslim worlds was beginning to collapse. Ultimately, it was the Strategos of Egypt who spoke up in favor of Salan's words.

"If we do nothing, this city will be our tomb. If we storm the enemy's position, we have a chance of success. Besides, Egypt is in good hands. If my army were to perish here, I assure you, the Kaiser would swoop in and prevent the Crusader army from getting too far in the region..."

Both Salan and the Strategos of Palestine were shocked when they heard this, with both of them asking the same question at the same time.

"How are you so sure?"

A smug smile formed on the Strategos of Egypt's face as he proudly announced the security of Egypt even without the Byzantine Army, which was stationed there.

"Because the Kaiser owns a large amount of territory in the region where he is building a massive canal. I doubt that man would allow his ambitions to be halted because of a few pesky crusaders. If those fools dare to march into Egypt, they will face the fury of the German Army."

When the two men heard this, they were surprised. The Suez Canal was not public information. It was a private endeavor carried out by Berengar and his people. Only the Kaiser, his employees, the Byzantine Emperor, and the Strategos of Egypt were aware of this reality. Upon hearing that Egypt would be safe even if its army was defeated here in Jerusalem, the Strategos of Palestine let out a heavy sigh before nodding his head in agreement.

"Very well. If that is the case, then I have no lingering fears. Alert the troops, we will be sallying forth from the city, and attacking the enemy position in a frontal assault starting at dawn!"

The three generals were in agreement. This battle would either end in total victory or humiliating defeat. Either way, they would not sit idly by and suffer the enemy's bombardment any longer. Hours passed, and the army of Jerusalem was gathered at its gates. Their weapons were fully loaded, and they were prepared to charge forth into the fray, knowing the possibility of certain death was high.

The gates of the Holy City slowly opened, until finally they were open, revealing that the enemy was heavily fortified in their encampment. At once, the three generals issued the order that would end this battle.

"Charge!"

With that said, the city's defenders rushed out of the gates in the tens of thousands and towards the enemy encampment. The moment the gates opened, the enemy artillery focused their fired on the horde of Byzantine and Timurid soldiers who charged forward with their rifled muskets and bayonets without the fear of death in their hearts.

The mixed battlecries of the Byzantine and Timurid forces filled the air as they rushed towards the enemy encampment through artillery fire.

"God wills it!"

"Allahu Akbar!"

The defenders of Jerusalem rapidly approached the enemy position in a giant horde of bayonets. When they got within firing distance they immediately formed ranks and fired on the enemy, who were still equipped with smoothbore matchlock muskets.

The volley fire descended down range and onto the targets who stood behind makeshift fortifications, mostly made of wood. These defenses were easily shredded apart by the minie ball projectiles, who continued on their path into the armored parts of the Crusader's body.

Once the defenders had fired their shots, they charged forth with their triangular bayonets no longer caring about their lives. If they were to die this day, then they would claim the lives of as many crusaders as possible. Unfortunately, the Crusaders were well disciplined, and waited until their enemies were so close that they could see the whites in their eyes.

Once such a scenario presented itself, they fired their own volley, sending lead balls down range and through the armor of the Byzantine and Timurid soldiers. The first wave of Jerusalem's defenders were immediately cut down like wheat to the scythe, but the second wave was undeterred by the loss of their comrades, and stormed past the makeshift defenses, forcing themselves into melee engagements with the enemy.

Bayonets from both armies intermixed, as the two opposing forces sought to dig their blades past the weak parts of their enemies' armor and into their bodies with the hope that they could claim their lives. The defenders of Jerusalem had gained the initial advantage. However, it did not last for long.

The crusader army was overwhelming in numbers, and they abused this fact. Without regard for the lives of his allied forces, King Lawrence of England gave the order to fire on the chaotic melee, which mostly consisted of French soldiers and the enemy forces. Before Aubry could even object, the English musketeers had lined up and fired a volley on the battle that was taking part in front of them.

French, Byzantine, and Timurid soldiers all fell to the gunfire, gazing upon their rear with horror. The French lines quickly crumbled in fear of being betrayed by the English, yet before they could even retreat, a second volley had fired. This time from the Burgundian Forces. It would appear that Duke Marcel had aligned with King Lawrence to eliminate the armies of France alongside the enemies they were facing.

Ironically, this betrayal of the French secured the upper hand, as enough of the Byzantine and Timurid forces were caught in the crossfire. Seeing that the other kingdoms had fired upon the chaotic battle, the other armies that consisted of the Crusader Forces lined up and fired their shots as well.

The two Byzantine Strategos, and the Sultan of the Timurid Empire, gazed in horror as their armies were cut to ribbons by the enemy gunfire. Their men fell by the thousands, and no longer presented enough of a threat to the overwhelming numbers of Crusader. It was at this moment that Salan had decided to abandon the city of Jerusalem, just like he had done to Acre.

"Retreat! Fall back to Ascalon! The city is lost!"

He did not wait for anybody else to hear the orders, only the troops that were protecting the Generals in the rear were able to make it out in time. With Salan and his elite forces retreating, the two Byzantine Strategos were left with two options: die in Jerusalem or flee further southward to the Egyptian border. Jerusalem had fallen, and they had failed in their endeavors to prevent it.

Out of the 25,000 defenders of Jerusalem, at most 5,000 managed to escape from the battle and flee to Ascalon. The losses to the Byzantine-Timurid Alliance were severe. However, the French did not escape the slaughter. Only a few hundred French soldiers remained alive and capable of battle after the betrayal they suffered at the hands of their allies.

Aubry was left in a precarious position. His allies had betrayed him, and as a result, he had lost his army. Naturally, Aubry had left the battlefield the moment he saw his forces gunned down by the men who claimed to support him. He immediately headed to the ports of Acre where he intended to return to the safety of his homeland.