Editing 1247 (section)

==== Levant ====
* [[June 17]] &ndash; Egyptian forces under Sultan [[As-Salih Ayyub]] capture [[Tiberias]] and his castle. [[Mount Tabor]] and [[Belvoir Castle (Israel)|Belvoir Castle]] are occupied soon afterward. Next, Ayyub moves his army to siege [[Ascalon]] – which is defended by a garrison of Knights Hospitaller. They summon the help from [[Acre, Israel|Acre]] and [[Kingdom of Cyprus|Cyprus]].<ref>Irwin, Robert (1986). ''The Middle East in the Middle Ages: The Early Mamluk Sultanate, 1250–1382'', p. 19. Southern Illinois University Press/Croom Helm. {{ISBN|1-5974-0466-7}}.</ref>
* Summer &ndash; King [[Henry I of Cyprus|Henry I]] ("the Fat") sends a Cypriot squadron of 8 galleys with 100 knights led by [[Baldwin of Ibelin, Seneschal of Cyprus|Baldwin of Ibelin]], to Acre. With the support of the Italian colonists, they fitted out 7 more galleys and some 50 lighter ships, to relieve the siege at Ascalon – which is now blockaded by the Egyptian fleet.<ref>[[Steven Runciman]] (1952). ''A History of The Crusades. Vol III: The Kingdom of Acre'', p. 191. {{ISBN|978-0-241-29877-0}}.</ref>
* The Egyptian fleet (some 20 galleys) confronts the Crusader ships led by Baldwin of Ibelin at Ascalon. But before contact is made, it is caught in a sudden Mediterranean storm. Many of the Muslim ships are driven ashore and wrecked; the survivors sail back to [[Egypt in the Middle Ages|Egypt]].
* [[October 15]] &ndash; Egyptian forces under As-Salih Ayyub capture Ascalon by surprise – while a battering-ram forces a passageway under the walls right into the citadel. Most of the defenders are massacred, and the remainder of the garrison is taken prisoner.<ref>Steven Runciman (1952). ''A History of The Crusades. Vol III: The Kingdom of Acre'', p. 192. {{ISBN|978-0-241-29877-0}}.</ref>