Noma/arab/athir

Ali ibn al-Athir, al-Kamil fi'l Ta'rikh

In Rabī’ II of this year [October 1110] the Franks gained possession of the city of Sidon on the coast of Syria. This came about because there arrived by sea to Syria sixty ships of the Franks, loaded with men and supplies, accompanied by one of their princes [Sigurd], intent on making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and on waging war, as he asserted, against the Muslims. Baldwin, the king of Jerusalem, met with them and an agreement was made between them that they would attack Islamic territory. They set out from Jerusalem and besieged the city of Sidon on 3 Rabī’ II [19 October 1110] and pressed it hard by land and sea.

The Egyptian fleet was anchored at Tyre but was unable to aid Sidon. The Franks constructed a wooden tower very solidly. They put on it a protective covering against fire and stones and moved it forward for an assault. When the inhabitants of Sidon saw it, their hearts sank and they feared that the same would befall them as had befallen the people of Beirut, so they sent the cadi and a number of the city’s shaykhs to the Franks. They requested terms from the king, who gave a guarantee of their lives and property to them and to the troops amongst them. To whomsoever wished to remain there with them they granted terms but whoever wanted to depart was not stopped. An oath to that effect was given them. The governor left and also a larger number of the notables of the city on 20 Jumādā I [5 December 1110] to go to Damascus. A great number remained in the city under the guarantee. The siege had lasted forty-seven days.

Baldwin left for Jerusalem but then returned to Sidon after a little while and imposed on the Muslims who had remained there payment of 20,000 dinars. He impoverished them and swallowed up their wealth.