A.D. 1191. LETTEE OF E1CHAED, KING OF ENGLAND. 221 The Letter of Richard, king of England, on the departure of the king of Francefrom Acre. " Eichard, by the grace of God, king of England, duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, and earl of Anjou, to N., his dearly beloved and faithful subject, greeting, Know, that after the capture of Acre, and after the departure of my lord the king of France from us at Acre, who there basely abandoned the purpose of his pilgrimage, and broke his vow, against the will of God, to the eternal disgrace of himself and of his realm, we took the road to Joppa ; and when we approached near Assur, Saladin met us with a mighty host of his Saracens, and made an attack upon us. However, by the mercy of God, we lost not a man on this day, with the exception of one of extreme valour, and much endeared to the whole army by his merits, namely, Jacques de Avennes, who was ever ready and devoted, like a stay and support to the army, in all holiness and in the sincerity of the faith, for many years past, to serve God in the army of the Christians. After this, by the will of God, we arrived at Joppa. We fortified that city with trenches and a wall, making it our purpose everywhere, to the very best of our power, to promote the interests of Christianity. Also, on a second day, being the vigil of the Nativity of Saint Mary, Saladin lost an infinite number of his great men, and taking to flight, as though bereft of the benefit of all aid and counsel, laid waste the whole of the land of Sulia. Further, on the third day before the rout of Saladin, we were wounded in the left side with a javelin, but by the grace of God have now recovered from the effects thereof. Know, also, that by the grace of God, we hope within twenty days after the Nativity of our Lord, to recover the Holy City of Jerusalem, and the Sepulchre of our Lord, after effecting ' which we shall return home. Witness ourselves at Joppa, on the first day of October." The Letter of the king of England to the allât of Clairval, on the same subject. "Eichard, by the grace of God, king of England, duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, and earl of Anjou, to the venerable man and his most dearly-beloved friend in Christ, the abbat of Clairval, health and a succession of continued prosperity-After the mournful and universally bewailed loss of the Holy