604

Before Nov. 13. The Knights Templar write to Pope Adrian IV, reporting events in the Holy Land. The son of Sanguineus [Nur ad-Din, son of Zengi] besieged Bellinas with a large army and defeated King B[aldwin III] and the Knights Templar. B[ertrandus] magister and 87 Templar brothers were captured. 300 other milites, who were with them, were killed after capture. Large quantities of horses and arms were lost. King Baldwin, together with T[heodericus] Flandriae comes and Rainaldus de Sancto Walerico, collected an army, counter-attacked and relieved Bellinas. The Templars surprised 230 pagani, who were attending a wedding, and killed or captured them. The pope praises the Templars and encourages the archbishop of Reims to recruit suitable men to go to the aid of the Holy Land or to provide horses and arms.