Eve of the Third Crusade (1170)

Timeline

1. 1169–1170Egypt–Syria frontier · LevantAfter becoming vizier of Egypt in 1169, Saladin rapidly centralized power, though his relationship with his overlord Nur ad-Din remained delicate. By 1170 Ayyubid forces controlled Egypt's key military and political posts, making the unification of Syria and Egypt a real possibility in the Muslim world and posing a long-term strategic threat to the Crusader states.
2. 1170Jerusalem · PalestineIn the later reign of Amalric I, the royal court wavered between intervening in Egypt, allying with Byzantium, and taking a hard line against the Muslims. Vassal states such as Antioch and Tripoli acted independently, and raids and broken agreements were frequent, weakening the Crusaders' collective defense.
3. 1170Constantinople–Antioch · LevantByzantine emperor Manuel I maintained an alliance with Jerusalem, but his claims of suzerainty over the Crusader states (especially Antioch) clashed repeatedly with Latin traditions of autonomy. Western Europe had not yet organized a new large-scale expedition, and the Christian Levant lacked a unified strategy to counter Muslim consolidation.