The more things change...

Conrad of Montferrat had every reason to be a happy man. Although the Third Crusade had not been going well for the western armies, Conrad had managed a political feat that he could count as a personal success. Conrad had manuervered the European nobles into selecting him as the next King of Jerusalem. The previous King of Jerusalem, Guy of Lusignan was still alive, but after suffering several humiliating defeats, and managing to alienate the leadership of the relief forces from the continent, Guy was far out of favor.

King Richard, called the Lionheart, pensioned off Guy to become "Emperor" of the island of Cyprus, a vital stronghold in the Crusader logistical chain from Europe to the Holy Land. Much political wrangling ensued over who would take over as the King of Jerusalem. The political in-fighting was somewhat silly, given that Jerusalem was still firmly in the hands of Saladin and his combined Muslim army, however, even as a figurehead, the position was much coveted. And so it was that Conrad, a Frank with possessions in the Holy Land, had every reason to rejoice when he was selected as Guy's successor to the throne of Jerusalem.

Too bad his joy didn't last long.

One afternoon, Conrad was scheduled to have supper with the local archbishop. His wife, however, wasted too much time in her bath. In a huff, Conrad started out alone for the Archbishop's residence. Conrad's disappointment grew when he arrived at the archbishop's only to discover that the archbishop had already eaten. Dejected, Conrad turned around and retraced his steps home. As Conrad crossed through the marketplace, he came to a narrow street, and as he passed through this alley, he met two familiar faces. They were both monks who had been on Conrad's household staff for over half a year and had gained his trust. As Conrad approached, one of the monks reached up to offer a letter. Conrad reached out his hand to take the letter, and the trusted servant produced a knife and thrust it into the would-be king's side.

We might imagine Conrad's surprise. Perhaps he called out to the second man for aid. But it would have done him no good, for in the next instant, the second monk's hand flashed with a matching blade and he unhorsed the noble. They stabbed Conrad repeatedly, and he bleed into the dust of the street as the two attackers fled. The hid in a church, but were found by men searching for them and dragged into the streets. At first, the two attackers claimed King Richard had sent them. But at length, they admitted to belong to the cult of Assassins.

And Conrad of Montferrat became the first Crusader to fall beneath an assassin dagger.

The Assassins were an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam, and their beliefs were considered heretical by the Sunni Muslims. For their part, the Assassins believed that mainstream Muslims were worse than the infidels, because they had been given the true faith and corrupted it. The sect sprung up in Persia, and although the theology had existed as a line of thought from the days of Mohammad, in a real sense, they were founded by Hasan-i-Sabbah. Hasan-i-Sabah not only acted as the charismatic leader of the religion, but a political figure as well. He subverted religiously and politically a swath of territory from present day Iraq to present day Afghanistan. He held a bloodless coup in a nigh impregnable fortress called Alamut in Persia, and ruled prophet and master of his small empire. He kept his enemies in check through the use of covert agents who acted as spies and murderers.

Many stories grew up around the training methods of these agents, but despite the repitition of the stories, the truth of them remains unknown. It was said that Hasan-i-Sabah created a garden of delights with actual streams flowing with milk and honey, and populated with many beautiful women eager to please any man's physical desires. Hasan would have potential agents drugged with Hashish (from which they got the name "assassin") and brought to the garden where they would regain consciousness and sample the garden. Then they would be drugged again, and brought before Hasan. Hasan would then hand them a dagger, explain their mission and tell them that they had tasted the paradise that would await them in martyrdom. And thus he would create fanatics.

The Assassins who killed Conrad of Montferrat were part of a branch headquartered in Syria. The lands of the Syrian Assassins straddled important trade routes, and both Crusaders and Muslims held an uneasy peace with the leader of this branch, known to history only as "The Old Man of the Mountain." Conrad had insulted the Old Man, and compounded the error by refusing to apologize or make restitution in the customary manner of the east. Such was the Old Man's power that in the aftermath of Conrad's murder, a Crusader count was dispatched to pay a courtesy call on the Old Man.

According to the chronicles of the day, the Count asked the Old Man if it was true that his followers would die for him. In response, the Old Man gestured to two guards standing on top of a wall. Instantly the two men jumped to their deaths. The Old Man turned to the ashen-faced Count and asked if he would like further proof. (If this scene seems familiar, it has been stolen for several stories, including the movie Conan the Barbarian.)

Saladin also had trouble with the Old Man. One story has it that Saladin marched his army on the Old Man's castle. They found the Old Man alone on the mountainside, sitting down as if he were planning to watch the siege of his castle. The soldiers were ordered to charge the Old Man, but as they approached, they became weary and their legs felt weighted with lead. Then the sense of unease crept over them, until it became a general panic, and the army turned around to retreat.

Three outright attempts on Saladin's life were made by the Assassins. In the first attempt, the Assassins were intercepted by Saladin's bodyguard within feet of him. In the second attempt, the Assassin actually drew his dagger and stabbed at Saladin's head. The dagger was deflected by a mail coif underneath his turban. After that, Saladin became very paranoid. He would not let anyone into his entourage without knowing the individual and his entire family.

In the third "attempt," Saladin entered his tent to find an Assassin's dagger placed gently on his pillow, next to a stack of steaming, hot cakes.

The Assassins were among the first to use organized terror as a political weapon. Their tactics are classic, and their pattern is till followed by terrorists today.