Garnier de Nablus
Garnier de Nablus | |
|---|---|
 Garnier de Napoli de Sirie, by Jean-François Cars c. 1725 | |
| 10th Grand Masters of the Knights Hospitaller | |
| In office 1190–1192 | |
| Preceded by | Armengol de Aspa |
| Succeeded by | Geoffrey de Donjon |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1147 Nablus, Palestine |
| Died | 31 August 1192 (aged 44–45) Acre, Palestine |
| Military service | |
| Battles/wars | Battle of Arsuf |
Garnier de Nablus was the 10th Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller from 1190 to 1192.[1] He fought at the Battle of Arsuf under King Richard the Lionheart during the Third Crusade.
Battle of Arsuf[]
King Richard I had previously ordered no direct engagement with the enemy on the march to capture Jaffa during the Battle of Arsuf. Situated at the rear of the military column, Garnier's Hospitallers were under heavy pressure by the Saracens. They were constantly harassed with arrows and small scale hit-and-run attacks in an attempt to disrupt and lure the crusader column into full battle. According to the 13th-century manuscript Itinerarium Regis Ricardi, Garnier was near breaking point and rode forward in person to try to persuade Richard to attack:
My lord the king, we are violently pressed by the enemy, and are in danger of eternal infamy, as if we did not dare to return their blows; we are each of us losing our horses one after another, and why should we bear with them any further?[2]
He also asked that Richard relieve the pressure with a cavalry charge. Richard refused and replied, "Good Master, it is you who must sustain the attack; no man can be everywhere at once."[2] When the pressure increased, the Grand Master and one other knight, Baldwin de Carreo, charged the Saracens. They were joined soon after by the rest of the Hospitaller force. Richard, seeing that his orders were already disobeyed, signaled for a full charge. This caught the enemy at a vulnerable moment, and their ranks were broken. Thus, in some ways, Garnier helped win the battle, though in contravention of Richard's orders.
Portrayal in fiction and film[]
In the video game Assassin's Creed, Garnier de Naplouse (the game uses the French Naplouse instead of Nablus) is one of the nine main assassination targets and is depicted as a man taking in mentally ill patients, often by force, and experimenting on them in an attempt to cure them. While being somewhat successful, this in-game portrayal of Garnier shows him as a cruel and sadistic man,[3] greatly contrasting with his real life persona.[4] In addition, he is assassinated in Acre in 1191, while historically he died in 1192 after fighting in the battle of Arsuf.
Actor Donald Sumpter portrays Garnier in the 2008 BBC TV docudrama series Heroes and Villains, which features a reenactment of the battle at Arsuf.
References[]
- ^ Flavigny, Bertrand Galimard (2005). Histoire de l'ordre de Malte. Francia: Perrin. pp. 317–319. ISBN 9782262021153.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Book IV: Richard's march from Acre to Arsuf". Richard of Holy Trinity. Itinerary of Richard I and others to the Holy Land (formerly ascribed to Geoffrey de Vinsauf) (PDF). United States Naval Academy. Publications Medieval Latin Series. Cambridge, Ontario: York University. 2001.
- ^ "Dossier Assassin's Creed - Partie 3 - Un premier épisode prometteur". Playerone.tv (in French). Retrieved 2021-04-04.
- ^ "History Behind the Game – Assassin's Creed Characters". VentureBeat. Retrieved 2021-04-04.
Bibliography[]
- Miller, David (2013). Richard the Lionheart: the Mighty Crusader. Hachette UK. pp. 76–77. ISBN 9781780227115.
- "Chapter XIX". Itinerarium Peregrinorum et Gesta Regis Ricardi.
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- Grand Masters of the Knights Hospitaller
- Christians of the Third Crusade
- 1192 deaths
- Priors of Saint John of Jerusalem in England
- 1147 births
- English people stubs