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Page 423
he was in his own land, he was not absolute master of it. Another few losses like the battle of Arsuf and his sultans would begin to desert him. Saladin sent his own brother Safadin (Saif al-Din al-Adil) to listen to what Richard had to say.
During the following months Richard was the model of a King. Although he had made offers to Saladin that the Moslem leader was considering, he did not lose sight of the condition or readiness of his army, nor of the need to gain the approval of the men he led for any agreement he made. On a flying visit to Acre in October to recall some of the army that had drifted back to the pleasant climate and luxury of that city, Richard even seemed to make an effort to conquer his growing distaste for Berengaria. This resulted in the ladies joining the army in winter quarters at Latrum for Christmas.
The weather was horrible, wet and very cold. Although this suited Simon and Alinor quite wellthey were perfectly content to sit by the fire and plan and dream of the futureit was not equally satisfactory to the others. Out of common courtesy Richard was often forced into his wife's company, and the necessity of facing constantly the living symbol of his guilt and her unvarying sweetness in refusing to acknowledge that he had any fault did not improve the King's temper. Berengaria's dream was shattering into ever smaller and more irreparable fragments. Joanna was no help because she was furious with her brother.
One of the peace plans Richard had evolved rested upon Joanna's marriage to Saladin's brother. Aside from the religious problem, which the Pope could presumably provide for by a dispensation, that would mean sharing her husband with as many as three other wives and any number of concubines and being isolated forever in what amounted to an all-female prison. Although Joanna looked like her mother, she proved she was her father's daughter. The fine Angevin rage

 
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