The Battle of Cresson was a small battle fought on May 1, 1187, at the fountain of Cresson, or 'Ain Gozeh, near Nazareth. It was a prelude to the defeat of the Kingdom of Jerusalem at the Battle of Hattin two months later.

The political situation in Jerusalem was tense. Raymond III of Tripoli, who had previously been regent for the kingdom and was still one of the kingdom's wisest advisors, refused to accept Guy of Lusignan as king, Guy being a recent arrival from Europe. Gerard of Ridefort, master of the Knights Templar, Roger des Moulins, master of the Knights Hospitaller, Balian of Ibelin, Joscius, archbishop of Tyre, and Reginald, lord of Sidon, were sent to Tiberias to negotiate with Raymond.

Meanwhile, Saladin had sent a small force towards Tiberias led by his son al-Afdal , seeking revenge for an attack on a Muslim caravan by Raynald of Chatillon. Raymond III hoped Saladin would ally with him against Guy, and allowed this force to pass through Tiberias on April 30, although he warned the Christians in Nazareth about the army's presence. Hearing this, Gerard quickly assembled a small army, consisting of the Templar garrisons from Qaqun and al-Fulah and the royal knights stationed at Nazareth, only about 140 men in total; Balian and Reginald were elsewhere and did not take part in the ensuing battle. Saladin's force, led by his son, consisted of about 700 men.

Gerard reached Cresson on May 1. The Muslims feigned a retreat, a common tactic which should not have fooled Gerard; nevertheless, he ordered a charge, against Roger's advice, and the knights were separated from the foot-soldiers. The Muslims easily repulsed a direct Christian attack, killing both the exhausted knights, and, later, the foot-soldiers. Gerard survived but almost all the others were killed.

In the aftermath of the battle, Raymond finally acknowledged Guy as king, but the damage to the kingdom was severe, and both Gerard and Raynald considered Raymond a traitor. Saladin gathered a much larger army of 20 000 men, invaded the kingdom in June, and defeated Guy at Hattin on July 4; by October he captured Jerusalem itself.

Sources

• R. C. Smail, Crusading Warfare, 1097-1193. Cambridge, 1995.
• Kenneth Setton, ed., A History of the Crusades. Madison, 1969-1989 (available online).