Siege of Hama (1130)
| Siege of Hama | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Zengids | Burids | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Imad al-Din Zengi | Sawinj of Hama | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Unknown | 500 elite knights | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
The siege of Hama was led by Imad al-Din Zengi who besieged and captured the city of Hama, then held by the Burids.[1]
At the beginning of 1130 Zengi desired to gain political legitimacy in Syria, as a result he married the daughter of the former ruler of Aleppo.[1] This move may have given him prestige over the Damascene Burids whom Zengi had sent several messages to inviting them to join him in a jihad against the Crusaders.[1]
When Buri overcame his doubts about Zengi he sent his son Sawinj, lord of Hama, in command of 500 elite knights.[1] The warm welcome and hospitality of Zengi banished any doubts and mistrust that Sawinj and his commanders may have had.[1] Three days later Zengi had Sawinj and his commanders arrested and imprisoned in Aleppo.[1][2] Zengi managed to loot the camp of Sawinj and confiscate all of his weapons, he then laid siege to Hama and captured it in October 1130.[1]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g El-Azhari, Taef. Zengi and the Muslim response to the Crusades: The politics of Jihad. Routledge, 2016.
- ^ Wilson, Ian. "11 By the Sword or by an Oath: Siege Warfare in the Latin East 1097-1131". In A Military History of the Mediterranean Sea, (Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2018) doi: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004362048_013