A. D. 1220.] MORTALITY AMONGST TU B IÌKS1KGKKS. he would not leave the spot till lie liad taken the eity, and immediately ordered his engines to be arranged round the place and a (ierce assault to he made. Λ severe attack was then commenced, and pctrarite, cross-bows, and all other kinds ol' military weapons were now put in constant use. On the other hand the city, till that time unattempled by hostile troops, was well defended by trenches, walls, turrets, and ramparts outside, whilst within it was well garrisoned with knights and thousands of soldiers, and well supplied with horses, arms, collections of stones for missiles, engines and barriers, and was well stored with provisions, and did not therefore fear the assaults of the besiegers; for the defenders of the city bravely hurled on them stone for stone, weapon for weapon, spear for spear, and dart for dart, inflicting deadly wounds on the besieging French. Of the moi taiUj tint famine amongst the besiegers. After the siege, had been carried on for a length of time, the provisions of the besiegers failed them and numbers of the troops died; for the count of Toulouse, like a skilful soldier, had, before the arrival of the French, removed out of their way all kinds of provisions, together with the old mcu, women, children, and the burses and cattle, so that they were deprived of nil kinds of sustenance. And it was not only the men who suffered, but also the horses and cattle of the army perished of hunger; for the count had caused all the fields throughout the district to be. ploughed up, so that there was no supply of fodder for the cattle except what had been brought from the French provinces; therefore large bodies of troops were obliged to leave the camp to seek for provisions for the men and food for the horses, and on these exenr-ions they took many towns which opposed them, and tbev often suffered great loss from attacks by the count of Toulouse, who with his troops lay in ambuscade for them. At this siege (he French were exposed to death in many wavs, fri in the mortality which was raging dreadfully amongst their men and horses, from the deadly weapons and destructive, stones of the besieged who bravely defended the city, and from the general famine which raged principally amongst the poorer (dusses, who bad neither food or money. In addition to the other miseries, which assailed the army without inter