volume one

HISTORY OF THE CRUSADES. 155
descended to his soldiers, and repeated to them that all was
ready to receive them. His discourse, and still more, his
example, at length reanimated their courage, and sixty of
them commenced the escalade. They ascended by the ladder
of leather, led on by one Foulcher de Chartres, whom the
historian of Tancred compares to an eagle conducting her
ycuDg ones, and flying at their head.* Amoug these sixty
brave men was the count of Flanders, together with several
of the principal chiefs. A^ery soon sixty more Crusaders
quickly pressed upon the heels of the first,t and these again
were followed by such numbers and v»ith such precipitation,
that the parapet to which the ladder was fixed tottered, and
at length fell with a loud crash into the ditch. Such as
were nearly attaining the summit of the tower fell upon the
lances and swords of their companions who were following
them. Disorder and confusion prevailed among the assail-
ants, nevertheless the leaders of the plot viewed everj^thing
with a tranquil eye. Phirous embraced his new companions
over the bloody corpse of his brother ; he even yielded to
their swords another brother who happened to be with him,
and then surrendered to the Crusaders the three towers
intrusted to his command. Seven other towers soon fell
into their hands, and Phirous loudly summoned the whole
Christian army to his aid. He fixed a new ladder to the
rampart, by which the most impatient ascended, and he
pointed out to others a gate which they might easily burst
open, and by it crowds rushed into the city.
Godfrey, Raymond, and tlie duke of Normandy were
soon in the streets of Antioch at the head of their batta-
* Sicut aquila provocans pullos suos advolandura, et super eos volitans.
—Rad. Cair. torn. iii. p. 66.
t All these details of the siege and the taking of Antioch, which appear
to belong to the epopea, are taken literally from the ancient historians of
the crusades. See Albert d'Aix, lib. iii. and iv. ; William of Tyre, lib. v.;
Robert the Monk, lib. v. and vi. ; and the authors of the Collection of
Bonyars. All these historians agree in the principal circumstances. The
monk Robert, in the recital that he makes of it, expresses his surprise in
these words : " Non est lingua carnis quee satis valeat enarrare, quid
Francoriim manus valuit persundare." Foulcher de Chartres, who,
according to common opinion, was the first to mount the adder of ropes,
never speaks of himself in his narration, which fact is uite consistent
with the spirit of the Christian knights.