Third Crusade

The Third Crusade (1189–1192), also known as the Kings' Crusade, was an attempt by European leaders to reconquer the Holy Land from Salāh ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb, better known as "Saladin" in the Western world. During this Crusade, the Christian forces returned to the Holy Land to reclaim Jerusalem, which Saladin had recently recaptured after his decisive victory at Hattin. King Richard, the Crusader leader, began his Crusade by conquering Cyprus, and then winning his siege of Acre, killing three-thousand innocent people in Acre. The Crusaders then began to mobilize their forces to march towards Jaffa and then on to Jerusalem, their goal. Saladin was clearly aware of this, so he gathered his troops before the broken citadel of Arsuf, determined to halt the Crusaders and keep Jerusalem in Muslim hands.