Outremer
Second Battle of Ramleh
Surely one reason why they stayed was that Baldwin believed the force advancing from Egypt was a small force, only a reconnaissance. Baldwin decided to destroy it with only his cavalry. Stephen of Blois was hesitant and argued for a more thorough scouting report, but given his earlier acts of cowardice, no one listened to him.
They should have. The Egyptian army in fact was twice as large as the previous one. Baldwin and his army of about five hundred knights rode out over the hills. Coming over a particular rise, they saw the entire army in front of them. There was no possibility of escape, for the Egyptian cavalry was already cutting off retreat. The knights charged into the heart of the enemy.
This time the Egyptians held. Most of the knights were killed. A few managed to escape toward Jaffa, but the king was not among them. Baldwin, along with those unlucky Crusaders who had survived Anatolia, broke free and made it as far as Ramleh, taking refuge in the single tower there. The Egyptians immediately surrounded them, but night fell and saved them for the moment. During the night, Baldwin escaped. A few others managed it as well, each leaving separately. One of them, Gothman of Brussels, made it to Jerusalem, where he told the citizens to resist because the king still lived.
At dawn the Egyptians advanced on those who held out in the little fortification at Ramleh. They piled wood around the fortress and set it on fire. Rather than burn to death, those inside formed up for a final charge. Led by Conrad, constable of the kingdom, they plunged into the Egyptian army. Most died, including Stephen of Blois. The Constable was captured and sent with about a hundred other captives to Egypt.
Baldwin's escape was a near thing indeed. His wife and the court were at Jaffa, and he tried to head directly there, but the city was in the process of being invested by the Egyptians. He spent two days in the countryside before he managed to make it to Arsuf. He persuaded an English ship captain to take him to Jaffa, even though the Egyptians were blockading it. Luck was with him again, as a north wind kept drove the Egyptians back and swept his own ship into the roads.
Jaffa was now besieged by the Egyptians. A monk sent by Baldwin snuck through the Egyptian lines and carried word to Jerusalem. That city sent reinforcements, and the other survivors of Ramleh likewise were able to fight their way into the city. Then, in late May, a fleet arrived made up of various English and German crusaders. With these reinforcements, Baldwin felt strong enough to attack. Once again the Frankish cavalry charge completely undid the Egyptians. Once again, Baldwin drove them all the way to Ascalon and once again he profited from plundering the camp that they abandoned.