Seventh Crusade

Seventh Crusade
Part of the Crusades

Louis IX during the Seventh Crusade
Date1248–1254
Location
Result Muslim victory
Territorial
changes
Status quo ante bellum
Belligerents
Kingdom of France
Kingdom of Jerusalem
Knights Templar
Knights Hospitaller
Kingdom of Navarre
Ayyubid Dynasty
Bahris
Commanders and leaders
Strength
15,000 infantry
2,400–2,800 knights
5,000 crossbowmen
Unknown
Casualties and losses

Heavy

  • Christian army mostly destroyed or captured.
  • Louis IX captured.

Heavy

  • Muslim armies destroyed in battles fought.

The Seventh Crusade (1248–1254) was the first of the two Crusades led by Louis IX of France. Also known as the Crusade of Louis IX to the Holy Land, it aimed to reclaim the Holy Land by attacking Egypt, the main seat of Muslim power in the Near East. The Crusade was conducted in response to setbacks in the Kingdom of Jerusalem, beginning with the loss of the Holy City in 1244, and was preached by Innocent IV in conjunction with a crusade against emperor Frederick II, Baltic rebellions and Mongol incursions. After initial success, the crusade ended in defeat, with most of the army – including the king – captured by the Muslims.

Following his release, Louis stayed in the Holy Land for four years, doing what he could towards the re-establishment of the kingdom. The struggle between the papacy and Holy Roman Empire paralyzed Europe, with few answering Louis' calls for help following his capture and ransoming. The one answer was the Shepherds’ Crusade, started to rescue the king and meeting with disaster. In 1254, Louis returned to France having concluded some important treaties. The second of Louis' Crusades was his equally unsuccessful 1270 expedition to Tunis, the Eighth Crusade, where he died of dysentery shortly after the campaign landed.