The Supply of War Materials to Egypt in the Crusader Period

Abstract

This chapter aims at presenting an overview of the supply of war materials to Egypt in the crusader period. It is well known that twelfth and thirteenth century Egypt was short of war materials. Some specific commodities available in Egypt provided western merchants with an even more powerful incentive to import war materials. Venice and Genoa were also involved in the shipping of war materials to Egypt. Venetian timber exports to Egypt appear to have become a matter of routine by the twelfth century. An incident involving a Genoese ship in Byzantine waters some time before 1174 reveals a new aspect of timber supplies to Egypt. The activity of western merchants in Egypt expanded after 1192 and throughout the thirteenth century. The focus of both medieval sources and modern historians dealing with timber, iron and pitch in Egypt has been on maritime quality lumber and pitch required for its navy and on iron for the manufacture of arms.

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