volume one

HISTOEY OF THE CETJSADES. 363
The king and the barons of Jerusalem, who dreaded the
stay of Louis VII. at Autioch, sent deputies to conjure him,
in the name of Jesus Christ, to hasten his march towards
the holy city. The king of France yielded to their wishes,
and crossed Syria and Phoenicia without stopping at the
court of the count of Tripoli, who entertained the same projects
as Raymond of Poictiers. His arrival in the Holy Land
created the greatest enthusiasm, and re-animated the hopes
of the Christians. The people, the princes, and the prelates
of Jerusalem came out to meet him, bearing in their hands
branches of olive, and singing the same words as the Saviour
of the world was saluted with— " Blessed he lie loJio comes in
the name of the Lord^ The emperor of Grermany, who had
left Europe at the head of a powerful army, had just reached
Jerusalem in the character of a simple pilgrim. The two
monarchs embraced, wept over their misfortunes, and repairing
together to the church of the Hesurrection, adored
the inscrutable decrees of Providence.
Baldwin III., who then reigned at Jerusalem, was a young
prince of great hope ; and being as impatient to extend his
own renowTi as to enlarge his kingdom, he neglected no
means to obtain the
on the war against
confidence of the Crusaders, and urge
the Saracens. An assembly was convoked
at Ptolemais, to deliberate upon the operations of this
crusade. The emperor Conrad, the king of Prance, and the
young king of Jerusalem repaired thither, accompanied by
their barons and their knights. The leaders of the Chris-
tian armies, and the heads of the Church deliberated to2:ether
upon the subject of the holy war in the presence of
Queen Melisinde, the marchioness of Austria, and several
other Grerman and French ladies, who had followed the
Crusaders into Asia. In this brilliant assembly the Christians
were astonished at not seeing the queen, Eleanor of
Guienne, and were thus reminded with regret of the sojourn
at Antioch. The absence of Raymond of Antioch, and the
counts of Edessa and Tripoli, who had not been invited to
the meeting, must necessarily have created sad reflections,
and given bii'th to presages upon the effects of discord among
the Christians of the East.
The name of the unfortunate Josselin was scarcely men^
tioned in the council of the princes and barons ; nothing
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