The leaders and soldiers of the army had performed prodigies of valour. Bohemond, Tancred, Adhemar, Baldwin du Bourg, and Eustace had appeared everywhere, leading their warriors in the paths of danger. The whole army spoke of the lance-thrusts and marvellous feats of arms of the count de Vermandois and the two Roberts. The duke of Normandy sustained a single combat with a leader of the infidels, who advanced towards him surrounded by his troop. With one blow of his sword he split his head to the shoulder, and, as the Saracen fell dead at his feet, exclaimed, “_I devote thy impure soul to the powers of hell_.” Tancred, says Raoul de Caen, distinguished himself amongst the most intrepid of the knights. In the heat of the _mêlée_, the Christian hero, as modest as he was brave, made his squire swear to preserve silence upon the exploits of which he was a witness.[107] “Godfrey, who, in this memorable day, had displayed the skill of a great captain, signalized his bravery and vast strength by actions which both history and poetry have celebrated. No armour seemed proof against his trenchant blade; lances, helmets, and cuirasses flew in shivers beneath its strokes. A Saracen of surpassing strength and stature offered him single combat in the midst of the _mêlée_, and with his first blow dashed the shield of Godfrey in pieces. Indignant at such audacity, the Christian hero raised himself in his stirrups, and rushing on his antagonist, dealt him so terrible a blow on the shoulder, that he divided his body into two parts.[108] The one, say the historians, fell to the ground, whilst the other remained on the horse, which returned to the city, where this spectacle redoubled the consternation of the besieged. In spite of these astonishing exploits, the Christians sustained a considerable loss. Whilst celebrating the heroic valour of the Crusaders, contemporary history is astonished at the multitude of martyrs which the Saracens sent to heaven, and who, on arriving in the abodes of the elect, with crowns upon their heads, and palm branches in their hands, addressed God in these words: ‘Why have you not spared our blood which has flowed for you this day?’”[109]