The Importance of Siege Warfare in the Middle East

The siege takes place as a result of a long decline in the power of the Holy Lands. The Mongols take Baghdad, they enter Syria, and at this moment there's a regime change within the Muslim world. And from that point on, we see the steady advance of the Mamluks. Almost all the Crusader castles, which are guarding the approaches to the coast, are taken one after another. This is a one-way ticket for the Crusaders. There is certainly a matter of what I call military tourism from the West. But really, the ability of the West to support the Crusaders' states is disappearing.