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.LIII.Villehardouin, Conquête, 2:214 and 227, secs.403 and 413, simplynotes in passing that le Vernas (Branas) had married the sister of the king of France,without mentioning when or the circumstances. , ` ' 293*******The year 1199:.In those days Master Fulk arose out of the city ofParis.He was a priest of a certain village, namely Neuilly, which laynot far from that city.Already now for two years he was regardedas a preacher of great renown in whom resided an ardent energydirected against married priests and public usurers, and againstthese his preaching was especially aimed in a strong and very bitterassault.Certain people say that some miracles were effectedthrough him, most of all at the founts that he blessed.Yet in thismatter some were scandalized because he collected tremendouswealth under the pretext of assisting the land of Jerusalem20 andbecause he was irascible beyond measure.But a letter and commis-sion from the Supreme Pontiff supported him,21 and many doubt-lessly ceased practicing usury, and a good deal of usurious pro®twas returned.He also had disciple-preachers, and, let me to cometo the point brie¯y, through both his and his disciples' efforts, thesenobles, who had abandoned King Philip while King Richard wasalive, were signed with the Cross: namely, Count Baldwin of Flan-ders, Count Louis of Blois, the counts Geoffrey of Perche22 andHugh of Saint Pol, and certain others.And at the hands of thesemen the story of Constantinople unfolded.Master Fulk also estab-lished the nunnery of Saint Antoine in Paris for ``public women''who had turned away from sin.23******The year 1201: Around Pentecost, Count Thibault died in Cham-20Gutsch, ``Twelfth Century,'' 205, and O'Brien, ``Fulk,'' 131-132, deal with thesecharges.Cf.the DC.21If it ever existed, the official papal commission is lost.As Gutsch, ``Twelfth Cen-tury,'' 202-203, and O'Brien, ``Fulk,'' 128-129, have pointed out, Reg.1:398 (above) isnot a commission to preach the crusade; it merely authorizes Fulk to enlist monks andregular canons as preaching associates.O'Brien thinks it probable Fulk received a now-lost commission; Gutsch is less certain.Brown, ``Cistercians,'' 65-66, especially note 13,thinks it likely that he received a commission by mid September 1198 ± prior to theissuance of Reg.1:398.22Count Geoffrey III died in April 1202 before embarking on the crusade:Longnon, Compagnons, 104.23Fulk was also credited with arranging dowries for former prostitutes who wishedto marry: Alphandéry, Chrétienté, 275-276. 294 :pagne,24 twenty-®ve years of age and signed with the Cross.He sentCount Renard of Dampierre25 with adequate funds as his surrogateto the lands across the sea.******The year 1202:26There took place an overseas expedition of noblessigned with the Cross who had formerly abandoned King Philipwhen King Richard attacked, as well as of other barons.These aretheir names: the bishops Nivelon of Soissons and Garnier ofTroyes; Baldwin, count of Flanders and Hainaut, and his brotherHenry, surnamed d'Angre; Count Hugh of Saint Pol; Count Louisof Blois; Count Geoffrey of Perche; James, a nobleman, son ofJames the Elder and brother of Walter of Avesnes;27 two men fromChampagne who are called de Champlitte, Odo and William, sonof Odo;28 Geoffrey, marshal of Champagne,29 and his nephewGeoffrey, named de Villehardouin;30 Othon of la Roche, a Burgun-dian by birth;31 and many others from France, Flanders, andBurgundy, and that man called Count Renard of Dampierre.Join-ing them was Boniface, the noble marquis of Montferrat, whosebrothers were William and Conrad, who had ruled over landsacross the sea: William at Jaffa and Conrad at Tyre.32 Conse-quently, all those men came to Venice to arrange how they mightgo by sea all the way to Constantinople by traveling aroundGreece.33 Meanwhile, while the ships were being prepared, with24Thibaut III of Champagne and Brie (1179-1201): Longnon, Compagnons, 11-13.Pentecost fell on 13 May; Thibault died on 24 May.25Renard II, lord (but not count) of Dampierre; Andrea, ``Adam of Perseigne.''29-31, notes 50, 53, 54 and 57, and Longnon, Compagnons, 60-63.See also below.26Note that under this heading Alberic does not distinguish between events thatoccurred in 1202 and those that took place in 1203.27Longnon, Compagnons, 153-154.28Despite what Alberic seems to imply, the men were brothers, sons of CountHugh I of Champagne: ibid., 209-212; see also Reg.6:99.Odo is mentioned in the DCas one of two men who took charge of the deceased Fulk's crusade funds.29Geoffrey of Villehardouin, crusade historian: Longnon, Compagnons, 26-32.30Ibid., 32-41.This younger Geoffrey of Villehardouin (d.ca.1229) left the host atVenice and sailed directly to Syria, a detail his uncle, who otherwise castigates the so-called deserters who left the main body of the army, fails to mention.31Ibid., 215-216.32See FC2, 27-30.33Note how Alberic assumes Constantinople was the primary objective from thestart. , ` ' 295cunning mind the Venetians made those pilgrims come to a certainsmall island, which is named after Saint Nicholas, and they con-®ned them there.They did not allow them to leave until those samepilgrims swore that they would forcibly capture along with them thecity of Zara, which had been hostile to the Venetians for a longtime.They so swore.Sailing with them, they besieged Zara, cap-tured it, and handed it over to the Venetians.In Constantinople at that time, Keyralexius, surnamed Andro-nicus, usurper of the throne, had removed his brother Isaac frompower, had thrown him blinded into prison, and had ordered hisson Alexius killed.34 However, through the help of a certainsteward, Alexius slipped from his grasp, ¯ed to Philip, duke ofSwabia and king of Germany, and hid there with him, because thewife of this same Philip was the sister of Alexius.Therefore, whenthe Frankish pilgrims had come to capture the city of Zara at thedirection of the Venetians, as was noted above, following the adviceof the aforementioned King Philip, Alexius sent his letter to themexplaining how he had been driven away by his uncle Andronicus.With many entreaties and promises, he fashioned the followingcourse of action: If he were restored to his imperial patrimony bythem, he would prepare sufficient amounts of provisions, ships, andother things necessary for the relief of the Holy Land.Whereupon our noblemen consulted Pope Innocent about thesematters through envoys whom they sent to Rome.35 He freelyagreed to this affair,36 wished them well, and pardoned their trans-gression, in which they had seized the city of Zara from the king ofHungary on behalf of the Venetians.Having received his reply,they sent for Alexius and prepared the ships.The doge of Venice,Enrico, a very wise man, was allied with the aforementioned no-bles, along with his people.In addition, the bishop of Bethlehem,37Master John, bishop-elect of Acre,38 and one bishop from Saxony,Lord Conrad of Halberstadt, were joined with him.39 And so, all34See note 11
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