Global InformationSiege of Antioch information
| Siege of Antioch | |||||||||
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| Part of the First Crusade | |||||||||
 The siege of Antioch, from a 15th-century miniature painting | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
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Crusaders Byzantine Empire |
Seljuk Empire
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Bohemond of Taranto Stephen of Blois Hugh of Vermandois Eustace III of Boulogne Baldwin II of Hainaut Tancred of Hauteville Rainald III of Toul Gaston IV of Béarn Anselm of Ribemont Tatikios |
Yaghi-Siyan † Duqaq Toghtekin Janah ad-Dawla Fakhr al-Mulk Radwan Shams ad-Daulah Kerbogha Arslantash of Sinjar Qaradja of Harran Watthab ibn-Mahmud Balduk of Samosata Soqman ibn Ortoq Ahmad ibn-Marwan  | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
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Crusaders: 2,000 light infantry and naval support |
Antiochene garrison: ~5,000[3][4] Duqaq's relief force: ~10,000[5] Radwan's relief force: ~12,000[6][7] Kerbogha's relief force: ~35,000–40,000[8][9] | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
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Heavy
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Heavy
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The siege of Antioch took place during the First Crusade in 1097 and 1098, on the crusaders' way to Jerusalem through Syria. Two sieges took place in succession. The first siege, by the crusaders against the city held by the Seljuk Empire, lasted from 20 October 1097[10] to 3 June 1098. The second siege, of the crusader-held city by a Seljuk relieving army, lasted three weeks in June 1098, leading to the Battle of Antioch in which the crusaders defeated the relieving army led by Kerbogha. The crusaders then established the Principality of Antioch, ruled by Bohemond of Taranto.[11]
Antioch (modern Antakya) lay in a strategic location on the crusaders' route to Palestine through the Syrian Coastal mountain range. Supplies, reinforcements and retreat could all be controlled by the city. Anticipating that it would be attacked, the Seljuk governor of the city, Yağısıyan, began stockpiling food and sending requests for help. The Byzantine walls surrounding the city presented a formidable obstacle to its capture, but the leaders of the crusade felt compelled to besiege Antioch anyway.
The crusaders arrived outside the city on 21 October and began the siege. The garrison sortied unsuccessfully on 29 December. After stripping the surrounding area of food, the crusaders were forced to look farther afield for supplies, opening themselves to ambush. On 31 December, a force of 20,000 crusaders encountered a relief army led by Duqaq, ruler of Damascus, heading to Antioch and defeated them. As the siege went on, supplies dwindled and in early 1098 one in seven of the crusaders was dying from starvation, and people began deserting.
A second relief force, this time under the command of Duqaq's brother Ridwan, emir of Aleppo, advanced towards Antioch, arriving on 9 February. Like the army of Duqaq before, it was defeated. Antioch was captured on 3 June, although the citadel remained in the hands of the Turkish defenders. Kerbogha, atabeg of Mosul, began the second siege, against the crusaders who had occupied Antioch, which lasted from 7 to 28 June 1098. The second siege ended when the crusaders exited the city to engage Kerbogha's army in battle on 28 June and succeeded in defeating them. On seeing the Turkish army routed, the defenders remaining in the citadel surrendered.
- ^ France 1996, p. 261
- ^ Asbridge 2004, p. 233
- ^ Asbridge 2004, p. 160
- ^ France 1996, p. 224
- ^ Asbridge 2004, p. 171
- ^ Asbridge 2004, p. 181
- ^ France 1996, p. 246
- ^ Asbridge 2004, p. 204
- ^ Rubenstein 2011, p. 206
- ^ Matthews, Rupert. "Siege of Antioch". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
- ^ France, John (2006)."Sieges of Antioch (1097–1098)". In The Crusades – An Encyclopedia. pp. 79–81.