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fought while the armies were on the march and the masses of fighting soldiers were slowly moving to Rusion. At about 2 km from the fortress the
Crusader battle formation finally collapsed under the Bulgarian assaults from both sides. The knights fought bravely, but most of them perished: only ten out of the initial 120 managed to reach Rusion. Thousands of ordinary soldiers were killed in the battle or captured. All Crusader commanders including Thierry de Termonde perished. The remains of the crushed army abandoned Rusion and sought refuge to the nearby town of
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of the fortress were few and could only watch from the towers. From there they could see the approaching Latin army divided into four detachments. The advanced guard was led by
Charles de Fren, then followed the troops of Termonde and the detachment of Andres Deboas and Jean de Choasy who were the first knights to climb the walls of Constantinople in 1204. The last detachment was under the command of Guillaume de Loos, brother of Thierry de Loos.
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and many cavalrymen set off from Rusion and rode the whole night. In the morning of 31 January they reached the castle, but found it deserted and headed back to Rusion. In the meantime 7,000 Bulgarians went round the
Crusaders and took positions at 7 km before the walls of Rusion. The defenders
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The battle began in the rear-guard. The detachment of
Guillaume de Loos was attacked by another Bulgarian force and, despite a desperate resistance, was routed. The survivors mixed up with the troops in front of them, but soon the next two Crusader detachments were also defeated. The battle was
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raiders to seize a small and insignificant castle in the vicinity. Kaloyan presumed on the ignorance and lack of discipline of the
Crusaders. The maneuver worked - in the evening of 30 January the Crusaders marched from the city gates. Thierry de Loos had been recalled to
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In the whole military operation the
Crusaders lost more than 200 knights, many thousands of soldiers and several Venetian garrisons were completely annihilated. The new Emperor of the Latin Empire
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tried to regroup and reorganize the remains of their army. Their main forces consisted of 140 knights and several thousand soldiers based in Rusion. This army was led by
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consolidated by the survivors from Rusion and a company of 2,000 men who arrived later. However, when
Kaloyan arrived the defenders panicked and after a
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headed to Rusion. According to his battle plan he had to force the Latins to leave the fortress and, to attract them, he sent a small company of
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were completely defeated and
Rodosto was looted. Many more towns were soon seized such as Perint,
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compared the defeat with the disaster at
Adrianople. However, the Crusaders were lucky - in 1207
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and now
Thierry de Termonde, who was known as a recklessly brave man, remained in charge. The
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who were among the most notable nobles of the Latin Empire of Constantinople.
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wrote that his troops were the bravest in the whole Latin army. Around 120
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358:. The Latin Empire suffered heavy casualties and in the fall of 1205 the
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Rodosto was well-fortified town with a large garrison of
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of Byzantium. The Bulgarians scored a major victory.
464:King for another 600 knights and 10,000 soldiers.
382:marched southwards. Part of the troops besieged
46:but its sources remain unclear because it lacks
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538:Battles involving the Second Bulgarian Empire
386:and the others under the personal command of
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208:Heavy, 120 knights and thousands of soldiers
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77:Learn how and when to remove this message
472:Kaloyan was killed during the siege of
448:which was taken in the following year.
484:needed time to enforce his authority.
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543:Battles involving the Latin Empire
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509:Stoyanov, Aleksandr (July 2019).
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497:battle of Rusion (in Bulgarian)
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16:Battle in 1206 in the Balkans
326:) between the armies of the
515:Journal of Military History
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548:History of Edirne Province
466:Geoffrey of Villehardouin
342:The great victory in the
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553:13th century in Bulgaria
378:In mid January 1206 the
32:This article includes a
338:Origins of the conflict
61:more precise citations.
346:was followed by other
167:Commanders and leaders
111:Bulgaria under Kaloyan
322:(Rusköy contemporary
200:Casualties and losses
558:Bulgarian–Latin Wars
476:and the new Emperor
424:Further developments
344:battle of Adrianople
247:Bulgarian–Latin wars
99:Bulgarian–Latin wars
364:Thierry de Termonde
182:Guillaume de Loos †
178:Thierry de Termonde
316:Битката при Русион
34:list of references
563:Conflicts in 1206
458:Henry of Flanders
405:Niketas Choniates
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53:Please help
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67:August 2013
59:introducing
532:Categories
488:References
480:who was a
403:historian
384:Adrianople
260:Adrianople
452:Aftermath
430:Venetians
401:Byzantine
360:Crusaders
348:Bulgarian
312:Bulgarian
330:and the
187:Strength
128:Location
97:Part of
482:usurper
418:Rodosto
409:knights
388:Kaloyan
356:Plovdiv
290:Plovdiv
275:Rodosto
205:Unknown
195:Unknown
173:Kaloyan
55:improve
462:French
438:Chorlu
374:Battle
352:Serres
320:Rusion
285:Beroia
270:Rusion
265:Serres
138:Result
132:Ruskoy
478:Boril
392:Cuman
324:Keşan
192:7,000
40:, or
470:Tsar
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