Third Crusade
Richard Marches on Jerusalem
The army was tired and needed rest, and Richard needed some sort of base from which to launch his attack on Jerusalem, so the next few months were spent fortifying Jaffa. It was during these months that Richard sold the island of Cyprus to the Templars. His representatives there had been plagued by revolts. He had drained the island of money and it was of no further interest to him. Templar gold, however, was of immediate interest.
In November, Saladin disbanded about half his army and retired to winter quarters. Richard tried to take advantage of this and moved his army forward. The weather, however, was terrible. He got as close as twelve miles from the city early in January 1192, but then had to pull back. Not only was Saladin in the field against him, but a second army had come up from Egypt, and the city itself had been fortified.
Richard then moved down to Ascalon. Saladin had torn down the fortifications there, so the English set about rebuilding them and Richard spent the next four months there. During this time, disputes that had been festering among the Crusaders came into the open. Many of the French knights left Richard and went to Acre or back to France, mainly because Philip had left them little money and Richard was no longer able to pay them. Conrad was still openly defiant of Richard and was supported in this by many of the Palestinian barons who refused to accept Guy as their king. The Pisans and Genoese at Acre quarreled so badly that Richard had to go to Acre in person to settle it.
Worse yet, the King was receiving bad news from home. His brother, John, was usurping power shamelessly. And Philip seemed on the verge of breaking his oath not to attack any of Richard's lands while he was still on Crusade. The King became convinced that he would have to make some sort of treaty with Saladin and return home as soon as possible.