Atlas of Battles

siege, major, medieval

Siege of Damascus

Siege of Damascus was a siege conducted on 28 July 1148 at Damascus, in what is now Syria. It was part of Second Crusade, which ran from 1147 to 1149. The recorded result: Muslim victory. Recorded strength: 20,000 troops against Unknown.

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Miniature: siege of Damascus, 1148
Miniature: siege of Damascus, 1148. Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought28 July 1148
WhereDamascus, Syria33.512N, 36.298E
OutcomeMuslim victory
BelligerentsCrusaders: Kingdom of Jerusalem; Holy Roman Empire; Kingdom of France; Knights Templar; Knights HospitalleragainstMuslim forces: Burids; Supported by: Zengids
Casualties and lossesHeavyandHeavy
Part ofSecond Crusade1147 to 1149

Where it sits in Second Crusade

Battle of Bosra, 1147Siege of Mahón, 1147Battle of Constantinople, 1147Battle of Dorylaeum, 1147Battle of Laodicea, 1147Battle of the Meander, 1147Battle of Ephesus, 1147Battle of Mount Cadmus, 1148Siege of Tortosa, 1148Siege of Damascus, 114811471148Siege of Damascus, 1148
10 placed engagements of Second Crusade in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date28 July 1148
to 28 July 1148
PlaceDamascus, Syria
33.512N, 36.298E
KindSiege, medieval
Strength20,000 troopsUnknown
Casualties and lossesHeavyHeavy
Commanders
Siege of DamascusSiege of DamascusCapture of DamascusSiege of DamascusSiege of DamascusBattle of DamascusBattle of Marj al-RahitBattle of DamascusBattle of Marj al-RahitBeirutṬarābulusHaifaNazarethAs SuwaydaAd NabkAl QunaytirahIrbid100 km33.512N, 36.298E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Siege of Damascus
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 25 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Siege of Damascus today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-06-18. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 698 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 654 to 1,151 m, 498 m of relief, steep country and today it is 77% built-up, 12% tree cover, 6% grassland.

built-up: 77%tree cover: 12%grassland: 6%cropland: 3%built-up 77%tree cover 12%grassland 6%cropland 3%
west to east, 10.0 km666 to 826 mnorth to south, 10.0 km678 to 979 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 5 times between AD 634 and 1941.

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1148

Siege of Damascus is one of 438 engagements of the 12th century in the atlas and one of 133 in present-day Syria.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q382967, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Siege of Damascus (1148), revision 1385665698, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.