No sooner had Abubeker restored the unity of faith and government, than he despatched a circular letter to the Arabian tribes.
"In the name of the most merciful God, to the rest of the true believers. Health and happiness, and the mercy and blessing of God, be upon you. I praise the most high God, and I pray for his prophet Mahomet. This is to acquaint you, that I intend to send the true believers into Syria (44) to take it out of the hands of the infidels. And I would have you know, that the fighting for religion is an act of obedience to God."
His messengers returned with the tidings of pious and martial ardour which they had kindled in every province; and the camp of Medina was successively filled with the intrepid bands of the Saracens,who panted for action, complained of the heat of the season and the scarcity of provisions, and accused with impatient murmurs the delays of the caliph. As soon as their numbers were complete, Abubeker ascended the hill, reviewed the men, the horses, and the arms, and poured forth a fervent prayer for the success of their undertaking. In person, and on foot, he accompanied the first day's march; and when the blushing leaders attempted to dismount, the caliph removed their scruples by a declaration, that those who rode, and those who walked, in the service of religion, were equally meritorious. His instructions (45) to the chiefs of the Syrian army were inspired by the warlike fanaticism which advances to seize, and affects to despise, the objects of earthly ambition.
"Remember," said the successor of the prophet, "that you are always in the presence of God, on the verge of death, in the assurance of judgment, and the hope of paradise. Avoid injustice and oppression; consult withyour brethren, and study to preserve the love and confidence of your troops. When you fight the battles of the Lord, acquit yourselves like men, without turning your backs; but let not your victory be stained with the blood of women or children. Destroy no palm-trees, nor burn any fields of corn. Cut down no fruit-trees, nor do any mischief to cattle, only such as you kill to eat. When you make any covenant or article, stand to it, and be as good as your word. As you go on, you will find some religious persons who live retired in monasteries, and propose to themselves to serve God that way: let them alone, and neither kill them nor destroy their monasteries: (46) And you will find another sort of people, that belong to the synagogue of Satan, who have shaven crowns; (47) be sure you cleave their skulls, and give them no quarter till they either turn Mahometans or pay 'tribute.'"
All profane or frivolous conversation, all dangerous recollection of ancient quarrels, was severely prohibited among the Arabs: in the tumult of a camp, the exercises of religion were assiduously practised; and the intervals of action were employed in prayer, meditation, and the study of the Koran. The abuse, or even the use, of wine was chastised by fourscore strokes on the soles of the feet, and in the fervour of their primitive zeal, many secret sinners revealed their fault, and solicited their punishment. After some hesitation, the command of the Syrian army was delegated to Abu Obeidah, one of the fugitives of Mecca, and companions of Mahomet; whose zeal and devotion was assuaged, without being abated, by the singular mildness and benevolence of his temper. But in all the emergencies of war, the soldiers demanded the superior genius of Caled; and whoever might be the choice of the prince, the Sword of Godwas both in fact and fame the foremost leader of the Saracens. He obeyed without reluctance; he was consulted without jealousy; and such was the spirit of the man, or rather of the times, that Caled professed his readiness to serve under the banner of the faith, though it were in the hands of a child or an enemy. Glory, and riches, and dominion, were indeed promised to the victorious Mussulman; but he was carefully instructed, that if the goods of this life were his only incitement, they likewise would be his only reward.
Siege of Bosra.
One of the fifteen provinces of Syria, the cultivated lands
to the eastward of the Jordan had been decorated by Roman
vanity with the name of Arabia; (48) and the first arms of the Saracens were justified by the semblance of a national
right. The country was enriched by the various benefits of
trade; by the vigilance of the emperors it was covered with
a line of forts; and the populous cities of Gerasa,
Philadelphia, and Bosra (49) were secure, at least from a
surprise, by the solid structure of their walls. The last of
these cities was the eighteenth station from Medina: the
road was familiar to the caravans of Hejaz and Irak, who
annually visited this plenteous market of the province and
the desert: the perpetual jealousy of the Arabs had trained
the inhabitants to arms; and twelve thousand horse could
sally from the gates of Bosra, an appellation which
signifies, in the Syriac language, a strong tower of
defence. Encouraged by their first success against the open
towns and flying parties of the borders, a detachment of
four thousand Moslems presumed to summon and attack the
fortress of Bosra. They were oppressed by the numbers of the
Syrians; they were saved by the presence of Chaled, with
fifteen hundred horse: he blamed the enterprise, restored
the battle, and rescued his friend, the venerable Serjabil,
who had vainly invoked the unity of God and the promises of
the apostle. After a short repose the Moslems performed
their ablutions with sand instead of water; (50) and the
morning prayer was recited by Chaled before they mounted on
horseback. Confident in their strength, the people of Bosra
threw open their gates, drew their forces into the plain,
and swore to die in the defence of their religion. But a
religion of peace was incapable of withstanding the fanatic
cry of "Fight, fight! Paradise, paradise!" that re-echoed in the ranks of the Saracens; and the uproar of the town, the
ringing of bells, (51) and the exclamations of the priests and monks, increased the dismay and disorder of the Christians. With the loss of two hundred and thirty men, the Arabs remained masters of the field; and the ramparts of Bosra, in expectation of human or divine aid, were crowded with holy crosses and consecrated banners. The governor Romanus had recommended an early submission: despised by the people, and degraded from his office, he still retained the desire and opportunity of revenge. In a nocturnal interview he informed the enemy of a subterraneous passage from his house under the wall of the city; the son of the caliph, with a hundred volunteers, were committed to the faith of this new ally, and their successful intrepidity gave an easy entrance to their companions. After Chaled had imposed the terms of servitude and tribute, the apostate or convert avowed in the assembly of the people his meritorious
treason:
" I renounce your society," said Romanus, "both in this world and the world to come. And I deny him that was crucified, and whosoever worships him. And I choose God for my Lord, Islam for my faith, Mecca for my temple, the Moslems for my brethren, and Mohammed for my prophet; who was sent to lead us into the right way, and to exalt the true religion in spite of those who join partners with God."
Siege of Damascus, A.D. 633
The conquest of Bosra, four days' journey from Damascus, (52)
encouraged the Arabs to besiege the ancient capital of
Syria. (53) At some distance from the walls they encamped
among the groves and fountains of that delicious territory,
(54) and the usual option, of the Mohammedan faith, of
tribute, or of war, was proposed to the resolute citizens,
who had been lately strengthened by a reinforcement of five
thousand Greeks. In the decline, as in the infancy of the
military art, a hostile defiance was frequently offered and
accepted by the generals themselves: (55) many a lance was
shivered in the plain of Damascus, and the personal prowess
of Chaled was signalised in the first sally of the besieged.
After an obstinate combat he had overthrown and made
prisoner one of the Christian leaders, a stout and worthy
antagonist. He instantly mounted a fresh horse, the gift of
the governor of Palmyra, and pushed forwards to the front of
the battle.
"Repose yourself for a moment," said his friend Derar, "and permit me to supply your place: you are fatigued with fighting with this dog."
"O Derar," replied the indefatigable Saracen, "we shall rest in the world to come. He that labours to-day shall rest tomorrow."
With the same unabated ardour Chaled answered, encountered, and vanquished a second champion; and the heads of his two captives, who refused to abandon their religion, were indignantly hurled into the midst of the city. The event of some general and partial actions reduced the Damascenes to a closer defence: but a messenger, whom they dropped from the walls, returned with the promise of speedy and powerful succour, and their tumultuous joy conveyed the intelligence to the camp of the Arabs. After some debate, it was resolved by the generals to raise, or rather to suspend, the siege of Damascus till they had given battle to the forces of the emperor. In the retreat Chaled would have chosen the more perilous station of the rear-guard; he modestly yielded to the wishes of Abu Obeidah. But in the hour of danger he flew to the rescue of his companion, who was rudely pressed by a sally of six thousand horse and ten thousand foot, and few among the Christians could relate at Damascus the circumstances of their defeat. The importance of the contest required the junction of the Saracens, who were dispersed on the frontiers of Syria and Palestine; and I shall transcribe one of the circular mandates which was addressed to Amrou, the future conqueror of Egypt:
"In the name of the most merciful God: from Chaled to Amrou, health and happiness. Know that thy brethren the Moslems design to march to Aiznadin, where there is an army of seventy thousand Greeks, who purpose to come against us, that they may extinguish the Light of God with their mouths; but God preserveth his light in spite of the infidels. (56) As soon therefore as this letter of mine shall be delivered to thy hands, come with those that are with thee to Aiznadin, where thou shalt find us if it please the most high God."
The summons was cheerfully obeyed, and the forty-five thousand Moslems, who met on the same day, on the-same spot, ascribed to the blessing of Providence the effects of their activity and zeal.
Battle of Aiznadin, A.D. 633, July 13.
About four years after the triumphs of the Persian war the
repose of Heraclius and the empire was again disturbed by a
new enemy, the power of whose religion was more strongly
felt than it was clearly understood by the Christians of the
East. In his palace of Constantinople or Antioch he was
awakened by the invasion of Syria, the loss of Bosra, and
the danger of Damascus. An army of seventy thousand
veterans, or new levies, was assembled at Hems or Emesa,
under the command of his general Werdan: (57) and these
troops, consisting chiefly of cavalry, might be
indifferently styled either Syrians, or Greeks, or Romans:
Syrians, from the place of their birth or warfare; Greeks,
from the religion and language of their sovereign; and
Romans, from the proud appellation which was still profaned
by the successors of Constantine. On the plain of Aiznadin,
as Werdan rode on a white mule decorated with gold chains,
and surrounded with ensigns and standards, he was surprised
by the near approach of a fierce and naked warrior, who had
undertaken to view the state of the enemy. The adventurous
valour of Derar was inspired, and has perhaps been adorned,
by the enthusiasm of his age and country. The hatred of the
Christians, the love of spoil, and the contempt of danger,
were the ruling passions of the audacious Saracen; and the
prospect of instant death could never shake his religious
confidence, or ruffle the calmness of his resolution, or
even suspend the frank and partial pleasantry of his humour.
In the most hopeless enterprises he was bold, and prudent,
and fortunate: after innumerable hazards, after being thrice
a prisoner in the hands of the infidels, he still survived
to relate the achievements, and to enjoy the rewards, of the
Syrian conquest. On this occasion his single lance maintained a flying fight against thirty Romans, who were detached by Werdan; and, after killing or unhorsing seventeen of their lumber, Derar returned in safety to his applauding brethren. When his rashness was mildly censured by the general, he excused himself with the simplicity of a soldier.
"Nay," said Derar, "I did not begin first: but they came out to take me, and I was afraid that God should see me turn my back: and indeed I fought in ,good earnest, and without doubt God assisted me against them; and had I not been apprehensive of disobeying your orders, I should not have come away as I did; and I perceive already that they will fall into our hands."
In the presence of both armies a venerable Greek advanced from the ranks with a liberal offer of peace; and the departure of the Saracens would have been purchased by a gift to each soldier of l turban, a robe, and a piece of gold; ten robes and a hundred pieces to their leader; one hundred robes and a thousand pieces to the caliph. A smile of indignation expressed the refusal of Chaled.
"Ye Christian dogs, you know your option; the Koran, the tribute, or the sword. We are a people whose delight is in war rather than in peace: and we despise your pitiful alms, since we shall be speedily masters of your wealth your families, and your persons."
Notwithstanding this apparent disdain, he was deeply conscious of the public danger: those who had been in Persia, and had seen the armies of Chosroes, confessed that they never beheld a more formidable array. From the superiority of the enemy the artful Saracen derived a fresh incentive of courage:
"You see before you," said he, "the united force of the Romans; you cannot hope to escape, but you may conquer Syria in a single day. The event depends on your discipline and patience. Reserve yourselves till the evening. It was in the evening that the Prophet was accustomed to vanquish."
During two successive engagements, his temperate firmness sustained the darts of the enemy and the murmurs of his troops. At length, when the spirits and quivers of the adverse line were almost exhausted, Chaled gave the signal of onset and victory. The remains of the Imperial army fled to Antioch, or Caesarea, or Damascus; and the death of four hundred and seventy Moslems was compensated by the opinion that they had sent to hell above fifty thousand of the infidels. The spoil was inestimable; many banners and crosses of gold and silver, precious stones, silver and gold chains, and innumerable suits of the richest armour and apparel. The general distribution was postponed till Damascus should be taken; but the seasonable supply of arms became the instrument of new victories The glorious intelligence was transmitted to the throne of the caliph — and the Arabian tribes, the coldest or most hostile to the prophet's mission, were eager and importunate to share the harvest of Syria.
The Arabs return to Damascus.
The sad tidings were carried to Damascus by the speed of
grief and terror; and the inhabitants beheld from their
walls the return of the heroes of Aiznadin. Amrou led the
van at the head of nine thousand horse: the bands of the
Saracens succeeded each other in formidable review; and the
rear was closed by Chaled in person, with the standard of
the black eagle. To the activity of Derar he entrusted the
commission of patrolling round the city with two thousand
horse, of scouring the plain, and of intercepting all
succour or intelligence. The rest of the Arabian chiefs were
fixed in their respective stations before the seven gates of
Damascus; and the siege was renewed with fresh vigour and
confidence. The art, the labour, the military engines of the
Greeks and Romans are seldom to be found in the simple,
though successful, operations of the Saracens: it was
sufficient for them to invest a city with arms rather than
with trenches; to repel the sallies of the besieged; to
attempt a stratagem or an assault; or to expect the progress
of famine and discontent Damascus would have acquiesced in
the trial of Aiznadin, as a final and peremptory sentence
between the emperor and the caliph: her courage was
rekindled by the example and authority of Thomas, a noble
Greek, illustrious in a private condition by the alliance of
Heraclius. (58) The tumult and illumination of the night
proclaimed the design of the morning sally; and the
Christian hero, who affected to despise the enthusiasm of
the Arabs, employed the resource of a similar superstition.
At the principal gate in the sight of both armies, a lofty crucifix was erected; the bishop, with his clergy, accompanied the march, and laid the volume of the New Testament before the image of Jesus; and the contending
parties were scandalised or edified by a prayer that the Son of God would defend his servants and vindicate his truth. The battle raged with incessant fury; and the dexterity of Thomas, (59) an incomparable archer, was fatal to the boldest Saracens, till their death was revenged by a female heroine. The wife of Aban, who had followed him to the holy war, embraced her expiring husband.
"Happy," said she, "happy art thou, my dear: thou art gone to thy Lord, who first joined us together, and then parted us asunder. I will revenge thy death, and endeavour to the utmost of my power to come to the place where thou art, because I love thee. Henceforth shall no man ever touch me more, for I have dedicated myself to the service of God."
Without a groan, without a tear, she washed the corpse of her husband, and buried him with the usual rites. Then grasping the manly weapons, which in her native land she was accustomed to wield, the intrepid widow of Aban sought the place where his murderer fought in the thickest of the battle. Her first arrow pierced the hand of his standard-bearer; her second wounded Thomas in the eye; and the fainting Christians no longer beheld their ensign or their leader. Yet the generous champion of Damascus refused to withdraw to his palace: his wound was dressed on the rampart; the fight was continued till the evening; and the Syrians rested on their arms. In the silence of the night, the signal was given by a stroke on the great bell; the gates were thrown open, and each gate discharged an impetuous column on the sleeping camp of the Saracens. Chaled was the first in arms: at the head of four hundred horse he flew to the post of danger, and the tears trickled down his iron cheeks as he uttered a fervent ejaculation:
"O God, who never sleepest, look upon thy servants, and do not deliver them into the hands of their enemies."
The valour and victory of Thomas were arrested by the presence of the sword of God, with the knowledge of the peril, the Moslems recovered their ranks, and charged the assailants in the flank and rear. After the loss of thousands, the Christian general retreated with a sigh of despair, and the pursuit of the Saracens was checked by the military engines of the rampart.
The city is taken by storm and capitulation, A.D. 634.
After a siege of seventy days, (60) the patience, and perhaps the provisions, of the Damascenes were exhausted; and the bravest of their chiefs submitted to the hard dictates of necessity. In the occurrences of peace and war, they had been taught to dread the fierceness of Chaled and to revere the mild virtues of Abu Obeidah. At the hour of midnight one hundred chosen deputies of the clergy and people were introduced to the tent of that venerable commander. He received and dismissed them with courtesy. They returned with a written agreement, on the faith of a
companion of Mohammed, that all hostilities should cease; that the voluntary emigrants might depart in safety, with as much as they could carry away of their effects; and that the tributary subjects of the caliph should enjoy their lands and houses, with the use and possession of seven churches. On these terms, the most respectable hostages, and the gate nearest to his camp, were delivered into his hands: his soldiers imitated the moderation of their chief: and he enjoyed the submissive gratitude of a people whom he had rescued from destruction. But the success of the treaty had relaxed their vigilance, and in the same moment the opposite quarter of the city was betrayed and taken by assault. A party of a hundred Arabs had opened the eastern gate to a more inexorable foe.
" No quarter," cried the rapacious and sanguinary Chaled, " no quarter to the enemies of the Lord:"
his trumpets sounded, and a torrent of Christian blood was poured down the streets of Damascus. When he reached the church of St. Mary, he was astonished and provoked by the peaceful aspect of his companions; their swords were in the scabbard, and they were surrounded by a multitude of priests and monks. Abu Obeidah saluted the general:
" God," said he, "has delivered the city into my hands by way of surrender, and has saved the believers the trouble of fighting."
" And am I not," replied the indignant Chaled, " am I not the lieutenant of the commander of the faithful? Have I not taken the city by storm? The unbelievers shall perish by the sword. Fall on."
The hungry and cruel Arabs would have obeyed the welcome command; and Damascus was lost, if the benevolence of Abu Obeidah had not been supported by a decent and dignified firmness. Throwing himself between the trembling citizens and the most eager of the barbarians, he adjured them, by the holy name of God, to respect his promise, to suspend their fury, and to wait the determination of their chiefs. The chiefs retired into the church of St. Mary; and after a vehement debate, Chaled submitted in some measure to the reason and authority of his colleague; who urged the sanctity of a covenant, the advantage as well as the honour which the Moslems would derive from the punctual performance of their word, and the obstinate resistance which they must encounter from the distrust and despair of the rest of the Syrian cities. It was agreed that the sword should be sheathed, that the part of Damascus which had surrendered to Abu Obeidah should be immediately entitled to the benefit of his capitulation, and that the final decision should be referred to the justice and wisdom of the caliph. (61) A large majority of the people accepted the terms of toleration and tribute; and Damascus is still peopled by twenty thousand Christians. But the valiant Thomas, and the free-born patriots who had fought under his banner, embraced the alternative of poverty and exile. In the adjacent meadow a numerous encampment was formed of priests and laymen, of soldiers and citizens, of women and children: they collected, with haste and terror, their most precious movables; and abandoned, with loud lamentations or silent anguish, their native homes and the pleasant banks of the Pharpar. The inflexible soul of Chaled was not touched by the spectacle of their distress: he disputed with the Damascenes the property of a magazine of corn; endeavoured to exclude the garrison from the benefit of the treaty; consented, with reluctance, that each of the fugitives should arm himself with a sword, or a lance, or a bow; and sternly declared, that, after a respite of three days, they might be pursued and treated as the enemies of the Moslems.
Pursuit of the Damascenes.
The passion of a Syrian youth completed the
ruin of the exiles of Damascus. A nobleman of the city, of
the name of Jonas, (62) was betrothed to a wealthy maiden;
but her parents delayed the consummation of his nuptials,
and their daughter was persuaded to escape with the man whom
she had chosen. They corrupted the nightly watchmen of the
gate Keisan; the lover, who led the way, was encompassed by
a squadron of Arabs; but his exclamation in the Greek
tongue, "the bird is taken," admonished his mistress to
hasten her return. In the presence of Chaled, and of death, the unfortunate Jonas professed his belief in one God and his apostle Mohammed; and continued, till the season of his martyrdom, to discharge the duties of a brave and sincere Musulman. When the city was taken, he flew to the monastery where Eudocia had taken refuge; but the lover was forgotten; the apostate was scorned; she preferred her religion to her country; and the justice of Chaled, though deaf to mercy, refused to detain by force a male or female inhabitant of Damascus. Four days was the general confined to the city by
the obligation of the treaty and the urgent cares of his new
conquest. His appetite for blood and rapine would have been
extinguished by the hopeless computation of time and
distance; but he listened to the importunities of Jonas, who
assured him that the weary fugitives might yet be overtaken.
At the head of four thousand horse, in the disguise of
Christian Arabs, Chaled undertook the pursuit. They halted
only for the moments of prayer; and their guide had a
perfect knowledge of the country. For a long way the
footsteps of the Damascenes were plain and conspicuous: they
vanished on a sudden, but the Saracens were comforted by the
assurance that the caravan had turned aside into the
mountains, and must speedily fall into their hands. In
traversing the ridges of the Libanus they endured
intolerable hardships, and the sinking spirits of the
veteran fanatics were supported and cheered by the
unconquerable ardour of a lover. From a peasant of the
country they were informed that the emperor had sent orders
to the colony of exiles to pursue without delay the road of
the sea-coast and of Constantinople, apprehensive, perhaps,
that the soldiers and people of Antioch might be discouraged
by the sight and the story of their sufferings. The Saracens
were conducted through the territories of Gabala (63) and
Laodicea, at a cautious distance from the walls of the
cities; the rain was incessant, the night was dark, a single
mountain separated them from the Roman army; and Chaled,
ever anxious for the safety of his brethren, whispered an
ominous dream in the ear of his companion. With the dawn of
day the prospect again cleared, and they saw before them, in
a pleasant valley, the tents of Damascus. After a short
interval of repose and prayer Chaled divided his cavalry
into four squadrons, committing the first to his faithful
Derar, and reserving the last for himself. They successively
rushed on the promiscuous multitude, insufficiently provided
with arms, and already vanquished by sorrow and fatigue.
Except a captive, who was pardoned and dismissed, the Arabs
enjoyed the satisfaction of believing that not a Christian
of either sex escaped the edge of their scimitars. The gold
and silver of Damascus was scattered over the camp, and a
royal wardrobe of three hundred load of silk might clothe an
army of naked barbarians. In the tumult of the battle Jonas
sought and found the object of his pursuit: but her
resentment was inflamed by the last act of his perfidy; and
as Eudocia struggled in his hateful embraces, she struck a
dagger to her heart. Another female, the widow of Thomas,
and the real or supposed daughter of Heraclius, was spared
and released without a ransom; but the generosity of Chaled
was the effect of his contempt; and the haughty Saracen
insulted, by a message of defiance, the throne of the
Caesars. Chaled had penetrated above a hundred and fifty
miles into the heart of the Roman province: he returned to
Damascus with the same secrecy and speed. On the accession
of Omar, the sword of God was removed from the command; but
the caliph, who blamed the rashness, was compelled to
applaud the vigour and conduct of the enterprise.
Fair of Abyla.
Another expedition of the conquerors of Damascus will
equally display their avidity and their contempt for the
riches of the present world. They were informed that the
produce and manufactures of the country were annually
collected in the fair of Abyla, (64) about thirty miles from
the city; that the cell of a devout hermit was visited at
the same time by a multitude of pilgrims; and that the
festival of trade and superstition would be ennobled by the
nuptials of the daughter of the governor of Tripoli.
Abdallah, the son of Jaafar, a glorious and holy martyr,
undertook, with a banner of five hundred horse, the pious
and profitable commission of despoiling the infidels. As he
approached the fair of Abyla, he was astonished by the
report of this mighty concourse of Jews and Christians,
Greeks, and Armenians, of natives of Syria and of strangers
of Egypt, to the number of ten thousand, besides a guard of
five thousand horse that attended the person of the bride.
The Saracens paused:
"For my own part," said Abdallah, "I dare not go back: our foes are many, our danger is great, but our reward is splendid and secure, either in this life or in the life to come. Let every man, according to his inclination, advance or retire."
Not a Mussulman deserted his standard.
"Lead the way," said Abdallah to his Christian guide, "and you shall see what the companions of the prophet can perform."
They charged in five squadrons; but after the first advantage of the surprise, they were encompassed and almost overwhelmed by the multitude of their enemies; and their valiant band is fancifully compared to a white spot in the skin of a black camel. (65) About the hour of sunset, when their weapons dropped from their hands, when they panted on the verge of eternity, they discovered an approaching cloud of dust; they heard the welcome sound of the tecbir, (66) and they soon perceived the standard of Caled, who flew to their relief with the utmost speed of his cavalry. The Christians were broken by his attack, and slaughtered in their flight, as far as the river of Tripoli. They left behind them the various riches of the fair; the merchandises that were exposed for sale, the money that was brought for purchase, the gay decorations of the nuptials, and the governor's daughter, with forty of her female attendants. The fruits, provisions, and furniture, the money, plate, and jewels, were diligently laden on the backs of horses, asses, and mules; and the holy robbers returned in triumph to Damascus. The hermit, after a short and angry controversy with Caled, declined the crown of martyrdom, and was left alive in the solitary scene of blood and devastation.
Siege of Heliopolis and Emesa, A.D. 635
Syria, (67) one of the countries that have been improved by the most early cultivation, is not unworthy of the
preference. (68) The heat of the climate is tempered by the vicinity of the sea and mountains, by the plenty of wood and water; and the produce of a fertile soil affords the subsistence, and encourages the propagation, of men and animals. From the age of David to that of Heraclius, the country was overspread with ancient and flourishing cities:
the inhabitants were numerous and wealthy; and, after the slow ravage of despotism and superstition, after the recent calamities of the Persian war, Syria could still attract and reward the rapacious tribes of the desert. A plain, of ten days' journey, from Damascus to Aleppo and Antioch, is watered, on the western side, by the winding course of the Orontes. The hills of Libanus and Anti-Libanus are planted from north to south, between the Orontes and the Mediterranean; and the epithet of hollow (Coelesyria) was
applied to a long and fruitful valley, which is confined in the same direction, by the two ridges of snowy mountains. (69) Among the cities, which are enumerated by Greek and Oriental names in the geography and conquest of Syria, we may distinguish Emesa or Hems, Heliopolis or Baalbec, the former as the metropolis of the plain, the latter as the capital of the valley. Under the last of the Caesars, they were strong and populous; the turrets glittered from afar: an ample space was covered with public and private buildings; and the citizens were illustrious by their spirit, or at least by their pride; by their riches, or at least by their luxury. In the days of Paganism, both Emesa and Heliopolis were addicted to the worship of Baal, or the sun; but the decline of their superstition and splendour has been marked by a singular variety of fortune. Not a vestige remains of the temple of Emesa, which was equalled in poetic style to the summits of Mount Libanus, (70) while the ruins
of Baalbec, invisible to the writers of antiquity, excite
the curiosity and wonder of the European traveller. (71) The
measure of the temple is two hundred feet in length, and one
hundred in breadth: the front is adorned with a double
portico of eight columns; fourteen may be counted on either
side; and each column, forty-five feet in height, is
composed of three massy blocks of stone or marble. The
proportions and ornaments of the Corinthian order express
the architecture of the Greeks: but as Baalbec has never
been the seat of a monarch, we are at a loss to conceive how
the expense of these magnificent structures could be
supplied by private or municipal liberality. (72) From the
conquest of Damascus the Saracens proceeded to Heliopolis
and Emesa: but I shall decline the repetition of the sallies
and combats which have been already shown on a larger scale.
In the prosecution of the war, their policy was not less
effectual than their sword. By short and separate truces
they dissolved the union of the enemy; accustomed the
Syrians to compare their friendship with their enmity;
familiarized the idea of their language, religion, and
manners; and exhausted, by clandestine purchase, the
magazines and arsenals of the cities which they returned to
besiege. They aggravated the ransom of the more wealthy, or
the more obstinate; and Chalcis alone was taxed at five
thousand ounces of gold, five thousand ounces of silver, two
thousand robes of silk, and as many figs and olives as would
load five thousand asses. But the terms of truce or
capitulation were faithfully observed; and the lieutenant of
the caliph, who had promised not to enter the walls of the
captive Baalbec, remained tranquil and immovable in his tent
till the jarring factions solicited the interposition of a
foreign master. The conquest of the plain and valley of
Syria was achieved in less than two years. Yet the commander
of the faithful reproved the slowness of their progress; and
the Saracens, bewailing their fault with tears of rage and
repentance, called aloud on their chiefs to lead them forth
to fight the battles of the Lord. In a recent action, under
the walls of Emesa, an Arabian youth, the cousin of Caled,
was heard aloud to exclaim,
"Methinks I see the black-eyed girls looking upon me; one of whom, should she appear in this world, all mankind would die for love of her. And I see in the hand of one of them a handkerchief of green silk, and a cap of precious stones, and she beckons me, and calls out, Come hither quickly, for I love thee."
With these words, charging the Christians, he made havoc wherever he went, till, observed at length by the governor of Hems, he was struck through with a javelin.
Battle of Yermuk,A.D. 636, November.
It was incumbent on the Saracens to exert the full powers of
their valour and enthusiasm against the forces of the
emperor, who was taught, by repeated losses, that the rovers
of the desert had undertaken, and would speedily achieve, a
regular and permanent conquest. From the provinces of
Europe and Asia, fourscore thousand soldiers were
transported by sea and land to Antioch and Caesarea: the
light troops of the army consisted of sixty thousand
Christian Arabs of the tribe of Gassan. Under the banner of
Jabalah, the last of their princes, they marched in the van;
and it was a maxim of the Greeks, that for the purpose of
cutting diamond, a diamond was the most effectual. Heraclius
withheld his person from the dangers of the field; but his
presumption, or perhaps his despondency, suggested a
peremptory order, that the fate of the province and the war
should be decided by a single battle. The Syrians were
attached to the standard of Rome and of the cross: but the
noble, the citizen, the peasant, were exasperated by the
injustice and cruelty of a licentious host, who oppressed
them as subjects, and despised them as strangers and aliens.
(73) A report of these mighty preparations was conveyed to
the Saracens in their camp of Emesa, and the chiefs, though
resolved to fight, assembled a council: the faith of Abu
Obeidah would have expected on the same spot the glory of
martyrdom; the wisdom of Caled advised an honourable retreat
to the skirts of Palestine and Arabia, where they might
await the succours of their friends, and the attack of the
unbelievers. A speedy messenger soon returned from the
throne of Medina, with the blessings of Omar and Ali, the
prayers of the widows of the prophet, and a reinforcement of
eight thousand Moslems. In their way they overturned a
detachment of Greeks, and when they joined at Yermuk the
camp of their brethren, they found the pleasing
intelligence, that Caled had already defeated and scattered
the Christian Arabs of the tribe of Gassan. In the
neighbourhood of Bosra, the springs of Mount Hermon descend
in a torrent to the plain of Decapolis, or ten cities; and
the Hieromax, a name which has been corrupted to Yermuk, is
lost, after a short course, in the Lake of Tiberias. (74) The
banks of this obscure stream were illustrated by a long and
bloody encounter. On this momentous occasion, the public
voice, and the modesty of Abu Obeidah, restored the command
to the most deserving of the Moslems. Caled assumed his
station in the front, his colleague was posted in the rear,
that the disorder of the fugitive might be checked by his
venerable aspect, and the sight of the yellow banner which
Mahomet had displayed before the walls of Chaibar. The last
line was occupied by the sister of Derar, with the Arabian
women who had enlisted in this holy war, who were accustomed
to wield the bow and the lance, and who in a moment of
captivity had defended, against the uncircumcised ravishers,
their chastity and religion. (75) The exhortation of the generals was brief and forcible:
"Paradise is before you, the devil and hell-fire in your rear."
Yet such was the weight of the Roman cavalry, that the right wing of the Arabs was broken and separated from the main body. Thrice did they retreat in disorder, and thrice were they driven back to the charge by the reproaches and blows of the women. In the intervals of action, Abu Obeidah visited the tents of his brethren, prolonged their repose by repeating at once the prayers of two different hours, bound up their wounds with his own hands, and administered the comfortable reflection, that the infidels partook of their sufferings without partaking of their reward. Four thousand and thirty of the Moslems were buried in the field of battle; and the skill of the Armenian archers enabled seven hundred to boast that they had lost an eye in that meritorious service. The veterans of the Syrian war acknowledged that it was the hardest and most doubtful of the days which they had seen. But it was likewise the most decisive: many thousands of the Greeks and Syrians fell by the swords of the Arabs; many were slaughtered, after the defeat, in the woods and mountains; many, by mistaking the ford, were drowned in the waters of the Yermuk; and however the loss may be magnified, (76) the Christian writers confess and bewail the bloody punishment of their sins. (77) Manuel, the Roman general, was either killed at Damascus, or took refuge in the monastery of Mount Sinai. An exile in the Byzantine court, Jabalah lamented the manners of Arabia, and his unlucky preference of the Christian cause. (78) He had once inclined to the profession of Islam; but in the pilgrimage of Mecca, Jabalah was provoked to strike one of his brethren, and fled with amazement from the stern and equal justice of the caliph These victorious Saracens enjoyed at Damascus a month of pleasure and repose: the spoil was divided by the discretion of Abu Obeidah: an equal share was allotted to a soldier and to his horse, and a double portion was reserved for the noble coursers of the Arabian breed.
Conquest of Jerusalem, A.D. 637.
After the battle of Yermuk, the Roman army no longer appeared in the field; and the Saracens might securely choose, among the fortified towns of Syria, the first object of their attack. They consulted the caliph whether they should march to Caesarea or Jerusalem; and the advice of Ali determined the immediate siege of the latter. To a profane eye, Jerusalem was the first or second capital of Palestine; but after Mecca and Medina, it was revered and visited by the devout Moslems, as the temple of the Holy Land which had
been sanctified by the revelation of Moses, of Jesus, and of Mahomet himself. The son of Abu Sophian was sent with five thousand Arabs to try the first experiment of surprise or treaty; but on the eleventh day, the town was invested by the whole force of Abu Obeidah. He addressed the customary
summons to the chief commanders and people of Aelia. (79)
"Health and happiness to every one that follows the right way! We require of you to testify that there is but one God, and that Mahomet is his apostle. If you refuse this, consent to pay tribute, and be under us forthwith. Otherwise I shall bring men against you who love death better than you do the drinking of wine or eating hog's flesh. Nor will I ever stir from you, if it please God, till I have destroyed those that fight for you, and made slaves of your children."
But the city was defended on every side by deep valleys and steep ascents; since the invasion of Syria, the walls and towers had been anxiously restored; the bravest of the fugitives of Yermuk had stopped in the nearest place of refuge; and in the defence of the sepulchre of Christ, the natives and strangers might feel some sparks of the enthusiasm, which so fiercely glowed in the bosoms of the Saracens. The siege of Jerusalem lasted four months; not a day was lost without some action of sally or assault; the military engines incessantly played from the ramparts; and the inclemency of the winter was still more painful and destructive to the Arabs. The Christians yielded at length to the perseverance of the besiegers. The patriarch Sophronius appeared on the walls, and by the voice of an interpreter demanded a conference. After a vain attempt to dissuade the lieutenant of the caliph from his impious enterprise, he proposed, in the name of the people, a fair capitulation, with this extraordinary clause, that the articles of security should be ratified by the authority and presence of Omar himself. The question was debated in the council of Medina; the sanctity of the place, and the advice of Ali, persuaded the caliph to gratify the wishes of his soldiers and enemies; and the simplicity of his journey is more illustrious than the royal pageants of vanity and oppression. The conqueror of Persia and Syria was mounted on a red camel, which carried, besides his person, a bag of corn, a bag of dates, a wooden dish, and a leathern bottle of water. Wherever he halted, the company, without distinction, was invited to partake of his homely fare, and the repast was consecrated by the prayer and exhortation of the commander of the faithful. (80) But in this expedition or pilgrimage, his power was exercised in the administration of justice: he reformed the licentious polygamy of the Arabs, relieved the tributaries from extortion and cruelty, and chastised the luxury of the Saracens, by despoiling them of their rich silks, and dragging them on their faces in the dirt. When he came within sight of Jerusalem, the caliph cried with a loud voice,
"God is victorious. O Lord, give us an easy conquest!"
and, pitching his tent of coarse hair, calmly seated himself on the ground. After signing the capitulation, he entered the city without fear or precaution; and courteously discoursed with the patriarch concerning its religious antiquities. (81) Sophronius bowed before his new master, and secretly muttered, in the words of Daniel,
"The abomination of desolation is in the holy place." (82)
At the hour of prayer they stood together in the church of the resurrection; but the caliph refused to perform his devotions, and contented himself with praying on the steps of the church of Constantine. To the patriarch he disclosed his prudent and honourable motive.
"Had I yielded," said Omar, "to your request, the Moslems of a future age would have infringed the treaty under colour of imitating my example."
By his command the ground of the temple of Solomon was prepared for the foundation of a mosch; (83) and, during a residence of ten days, he regulated the present and future state of his Syrian conquests. Medina might be jealous, lest the caliph should be detained by the sanctity of Jerusalem or the beauty of Damascus; her apprehensions were dispelled by his prompt and voluntary return to the tomb of the apostle. (84)
Of Aleppo and Antioch, A.D. 638
To achieve what yet remained of the Syrian war the caliph
had formed two separate armies; a chosen detachment, under
Amrou and Yezid, was left in the camp of Palestine; while
the larger division, under the standard of Abu Obeidah and
Caled, marched away to the north against Antioch and Aleppo.
The latter of these, the Beraea of the Greeks, was not yet
illustrious as the capital of a province or a kingdom; and
the inhabitants, by anticipating their submission and
pleading their poverty, obtained a moderate composition for
their lives and religion. But the castle of Aleppo, (85) distinct from the city, stood erect on a lofty artificial mound the sides were sharpened to a precipice, and faced
with free-stone; and the breadth of the ditch might be
filled with water from the neighbouring springs. After the
loss of three thousand men, the garrison was still equal to
the defence; and Youkinna, their valiant and hereditary
chief, had murdered his brother, a holy monk, for daring to
pronounce the name of peace. In a siege of four or five
months, the hardest of the Syrian war, great numbers of the
Saracens were killed and wounded: their removal to the
distance of a mile could not seduce the vigilance of
Youkinna; nor could the Christians be terrified by the
execution of three hundred captives, whom they beheaded
before the castle wall. The silence, and at length the
complaints, of Abu Obeidah informed the caliph that their
hope and patience were consumed at the foot of this
impregnable fortress.
"I am variously affected," replied Omar, "by the difference of your success; but I charge you by no means to raise the siege of the castle. Your retreat would diminish the reputation of our arms, and encourage the infidels to fall upon you on all sides. Remain before Aleppo till God shall determine the event, and forage with your horse round the adjacent country."
The exhortation of the commander of the faithful was fortified by a supply of volunteers from all the tribes of Arabia, who arrived in the camp on horses or camels. Among these was Dames, of a servile birth, but of gigantic size and intrepid resolution. The forty-seventh day of his service he proposed, with only thirty men, to make an attempt on the castle. The experience and testimony of Caled recommended his offer; and Abu Obeidah admonished his brethren not to despise the baser origin of Dames, since he himself, could he relinquish the public care, would cheerfully serve under the banner of the slave. His design was covered by the appearance of a retreat; and the camp of the Saracens was pitched about a league from Aleppo. The thirty adventurers lay in ambush at the foot of the hill; and Dames at length succeeded in his inquiries, though he was provoked by the ignorance of his Greek captives.
"God curse these dogs," said the illiterate Arab; "what a strange barbarous language they speak!"
At the darkest hour of the night, he scaled the most accessible height, which he had diligently surveyed, a place where the stones were less entire, or the slope less perpendicular, or the guard less vigilant. Seven of the stoutest Saracens mounted on each other's shoulders, and the weight of the column was sustained on the broad and sinewy back of the gigantic slave. The foremost in this painful ascent could grasp and climb the lowest part of the battlements; they silently stabbed and cast down the sentinels; and the thirty brethren, repeating a pious ejaculation, "O apostle of God, help and deliver us!" were successively drawn up by the long folds of their turbans. With bold and cautious footsteps, Dames explored the palace of the governor, who celebrated, in riotous merriment, the festival of his deliverance. From thence, returning to his companions, he assaulted on the inside the entrance of the castle. They overpowered the guard, unbolted the gate, let down the drawbridge, and defended the narrow pass, till the arrival of Caled, with the dawn of day, relieved their danger and assured their conquest. Youkinna, a formidable foe, became an active and useful proselyte; and the general of the Saracens expressed his regard for the most humble merit, by detaining the army at Aleppo till Dames was cured of his honourable wounds. The capital of Syria was still covered by the castle of Aazaz and the iron bridge of the Orontes. After the loss of those important posts, and the defeat of the last of the Roman armies, the luxury of Antioch (86) trembled and obeyed. Her safety was ransomed with three hundred thousand pieces of gold; but the throne of the successors of Alexander, the seat of the Roman government of the East, which had been decorated by Caesar with the titles of free, and holy, and inviolate was degraded under the yoke of the caliphs to the secondary rank of a provincial town. (87)
Flight of Heraclius, A.D. 638.
In the life of Heraclius, the glories of the Persian war are clouded on either hand by the disgrace and weakness of his more early and his later days. When the successors of Mahomet unsheathed the sword of war and religion, he was astonished at the boundless prospect of toil and danger; his nature was indolent, nor could the infirm and frigid age of the emperor be kindled to a second effort. The sense of shame, and the importunities of the Syrians, prevented the hasty departure from the scene of action; but the hero was no more; and the loss of Damascus and Jerusalem, the bloody fields of Aiznadin and Yermuk, may be imputed in some degree to the absence or misconduct of the sovereign. Instead of defending the sepulchre of Christ, he involved the church and state in a metaphysical controversy for the unity of his will; and while Heraclius crowned the offspring of his second nuptials, he was tamely stripped of the most valuable part of their inheritance. In the cathedral of Antioch, in the presence of the bishops, at the foot of the crucifix, he bewailed the sins of the prince and people; but his confession instructed the world, that it was vain, and perhaps impious, to resist the judgment of God. The Saracens were invincible in fact, since they were invincible in opinion; and the desertion of Youkinna, his false repentance and repeated perfidy, might justify the suspicion of the emperor, that he was encompassed by traitors and apostates, who conspired to betray his person and their country to the enemies of Christ. In the hour of adversity, his superstition was agitated by the omens and dreams of a falling crown; and after bidding an eternal farewell to Syria, he secretly embarked with a few attendants, and
absolved the faith of his subjects. (88) Constantine, his eldest son, had been stationed with forty thousand men at Caesarea, the civil metropolis of the three provinces of Palestine. But his private interest recalled him to the
Byzantine court; and, after the flight of his father, he felt himself an unequal champion to the united force of the caliph. His vanguard was boldly attacked by three hundred Arabs and a thousand black slaves, who, in the depth of winter, had climbed the snowy mountains of Libanus, and who were speedily followed by the victorious squadrons of Caled himself. From the north and south the troops of Antioch and Jerusalem advanced along the sea-shore till their banners were joined under the walls of the Phoenician cities: End of the Syrian war Tripoli and Tyre were betrayed; and a fleet of fifty transports, which entered without distrust the captive harbours, brought a seasonable supply of arms and provisions to the camp of the Saracens. Their labours were terminated by the unexpected surrender of Caesarea: the Roman prince had embarked in the night; (89) and the defenceless citizens solicited their pardon with an offering of two hundred thousand pieces of gold. The remainder of the province, Ramlah, Ptolemais or Acre, Sichem or Neapolis, Gaza, Ascalon, Berytus, Sidon, Gabala, Laodicea, Apamea, Hierapolis, no longer presumed to dispute the will of the conqueror; and Syria bowed under the sceptre of the caliphs seven hundred years after Pompey had despoiled the last of the Macedonian kings. (90)
The conquerors of Syria, A.D. 633-639.
The sieges and battles of six campaigns had consumed many thousands of the Moslems. They died with the reputation and the cheerfulness of martyrs; and the simplicity of their faith may be expressed in the words of an Arabian youth, when he embraced, for the last time, his sister and mother:
"It is not," said he, "the delicacies of Syria, or the fading delights of this world, that have prompted me to devote my life in the cause of religion. But I seek the favour of God and his apostle; and I have heard, from one of the companions of the prophet, that the spirits of the martyrs will be lodged in the crops of green birds, who shall taste the fruits, and drink of the rivers, of paradise. Farewell, we shall meet again among the groves and fountains which God has provided for his elect."
The faithful captives might exercise a passive and more arduous resolution; and a cousin of Mahomet is celebrated for refusing, after an abstinence of three days, the wine and pork, the only nourishment that was allowed by the malice of the infidels. The frailty of some weaker brethren exasperated the implacable spirit of fanaticism; and the father of Amer deplored, in pathetic strains, the apostasy and damnation of a son, who had renounced the promises of God, and the intercession of the prophet, to occupy, with the priests and deacons, the lowest mansions of hell. The more fortunate Arabs, who survived the war and persevered in the faith, were restrained by their abstemious leader from the abuse of prosperity. After a refreshment of three days, Abu Obeidah withdrew his troops from the pernicious contagion of the luxury of Antioch, and assured the caliph that their religion and virtue could only be preserved by the hard discipline of poverty and labour. But the virtue of Omar, however rigorous to himself, was kind and liberal to his brethren. After a just tribute of praise and thanksgiving, he dropped a tear of compassion; and sitting down on the ground, wrote an answer, in which he mildly censured the severity of his lieutenant:
"God," said the successor of the prophet, "has not forbidden the use of the good things of this world to faithful men, and such as have performed good works. Therefore you ought to have given them leave to rest themselves, and partake freely of those good things which the country affordeth. If any of the Saracens have no family in Arabia, they may marry in Syria; and whosoever of them wants any female slaves, he may purchase as many as he hath occasion for."
The conquerors prepared to use, or to abuse, this gracious permission; but the year of their triumph was marked by a mortality of men and cattle; and twenty-five thousand Saracens were snatched away from the possession of Syria. The death of Abu Obeidah might be lamented by the Christians; but his brethren recollected that he was one of the ten elect whom the prophet had named as the heirs of paradise. (91) Caled survived his brethren about three years: and the tomb of the Sword of God is shown in the neighbourhood of Emesa. His valour, which founded in Arabia and Syria the empire of the caliphs, was fortified by the opinion of a special providence; and as long as he wore a cap, which had been blessed by Mahomet, he deemed himself invulnerable amidst the darts of the infidels.
Progress of the Syrian conquerors, A.D. 639-655.
The place of the first conquerors was supplied by a new generation of their children and countrymen: Syria became the seat and support of the house of Ommiyah; and the revenue, the soldiers, the ships of that powerful kingdom
were consecrated to enlarge on every side the empire of the caliphs. But the Saracens despise a superfluity of fame; and their historians scarcely condescend to mention the subordinate conquests which are lost in the splendour and rapidity of their victorious career. To the north of Syria,
they passed Mount Taurus, and reduced to their obedience the province of Cilicia, with its capital Tarsus, the ancient monument of the Assyrian kings. Beyond a second ridge of the same mountains, they spread the flame of war, rather than the light of religion, as far as the shores of the
Euxine, and the neighbourhood of Constantinople. To the east
they advanced to the banks and sources of the Euphrates and Tigris: (92) the long disputed barrier of Rome and Persia was forever confounded the walls of Edessa and Amida, of Dara
and Nisibis, which had resisted the arms and engines of Sapor or Nushirvan, were levelled in the dust; and the holy city of Abgarus might vainly produce the epistle or the image of Christ to an unbelieving conqueror. To the west the Syrian kingdom is bounded by the sea: and the ruin of Aradus, a small island or peninsula on the coast, was postponed during ten years. But the hills of Libanus abounded in timber; the trade of Phoenicia was populous in mariners; and a fleet of seventeen hundred barks was equipped and manned by the natives of the desert. The Imperial navy of the Romans fled before them from the Pamphylian rocks to the Hellespont; but the spirit of the emperor, a grandson of Heraclius, had been subdued before the combat by a dream and a pun. (93) The Saracens rode masters of the sea; and the islands of Cyprus, Rhodes, and the Cyclades, were successively exposed to their rapacious visits. Three hundred years before the Christian aera, the memorable though fruitless siege of Rhodes (94) by Demetrius had furnished that maritime republic with the materials and the subject of a trophy. A gigantic statue of Apollo, or the sun, seventy cubits in height, was erected at the entrance of the harbour, a monument of the freedom and the arts of Greece. After standing fifty-six years, the colossus of Rhodes was overthrown by an earthquake; but the massy trunk, and huge fragments, lay scattered eight centuries on the ground, and are often described as one of the wonders of the ancient world. They were collected by the diligence of the Saracens, and sold to a Jewish merchant of Edessa, who is said to have laden nine hundred camels with the weight of the brass metal; an enormous weight, though we should include the hundred colossal figures, (95) and the three thousand statues, which adorned the prosperity of the city of the sun.
| « NEXT » | « Chapter 51 » | « Fall In The EAST » | « Fall In The WEST » | « Decline & Fall » |