volume one

HISTORY OF THE CEUSADES. 179
parts of Europe met with death immediately on their arrival
at Antioch. Within one month, more than fifty thousand
pilgrims perished by this epidemic* The Christians had to
regret among their leaders Henry d'Asques, Eenaud d'Amer-
bach, and several other knights renowned for their exploits.
In the midst of the general mourning, the bishop of Puy,
who comforted the Crusaders in their misery, himself gave
way under his fatigue and died,t lihe the leader of the
Hebrews, without having seen the promised land. His remains
were buried in the church of St. Peter of Antioch, in
the very spot where the miraculous lance had been discovered.
All the pilgrims, whose spiritual father he had been,
honoured his funeral with their presence and their tears.
The leaders, who sincerely regretted him, wrote to the pope
to inform him of the death of his apostolic legate. They at
the same time solicited Urban to come and place himself at
their head, to sanctify the standards of the crusade, and to
promote union and peace in the army of Jesus Christ.
But neither the respect they entertained for the memory
of Adhemar, nor the spectacle of the scourge which was
devourins: the Christian armv, could close their hearts
against ambition and discord. The count of Thoulouse,
who still maintained his claims to the possession of Antioch,
refused to deliver up to Bohemond the citadel of which ho
had become master on the day the Christians had defeated
the army of Kerbogha. These two haughty rivals were
several times on the point of coming to blows, Eaymond
accusing the new prince of Antioch of ha\T.ng usurped that
which belonged to his companions, whilst Bohemond threatened
to bathe his sword, red with the blood of infidels, in
blood which he said he had too long spared. One day that
the princes and leaders were assembled in the basilica of the
church of St. Peter, engaged in regulating the affairs of the
crusade, their deliberations were disturbed by the most
* Albert d'Aix &ays a hundred thousand.
^
f Tasso makes Adhemar die at the siege of Jerusalem, and makes him
die by the hands of a woman. Some historians attribute the canticle
" Salve Regina " to Bishop Adhemar. The bishops of Pily, his succes-
sors, bear in their coat of arms the sword on one side and the pastoral
staff on the other. It is added that the canons of the same city wore
every year, at Easter, a cloak in the form of a cuirass.