Turkish invasion of the Kingdom. The siege begins Encouraged by these victories, Baldwin decided to make an assault on Ascalon in 1153. With the entire army of Jerusalem he marched to the fortress and began to destroy the surrounding orchards in January. Patriarch Fulcher was also present, along with Raymond du Puy de Provence and Bernard de Tremelay, the masters of the Hospitallers and Templars respectively, and all the other great barons of the kingdom, including Hugh of Ibelin, Philip of Milly, Humphrey II of Toron, and Raynald of Châtillon. The siege was undertaken both by land and by sea, with the fleet commanded by Gerard of Sidon. The crusader force was also bolstered by a large group of pilgrims, who happened to be on their way to Jerusalem at the time. On the Fatimid side, the city was garrisoned by members of the local Kananiyya tribe, as well as a cavalry contingent from Cairo, some 400 to 600 strong, that was rotated into the city every six months. In response to the Crusader attack, the vizier Ibn as-Sallar began preparing reinforcements for the city in March, as well as a naval expedition. The army set off and got as far as Bilbays, while Ibn al-Sallar supervised the final preparations of the fleet, including a naval review and the payment of the crews. The army commanders at Bilbays, led by Ibn al-Sallar's stepson Abbas ibn Abi al-Futuh, hatched a plot to kill the vizier, which was carried out on 3 April. The army returned to Cairo, where Abbas became vizier, leaving Ascalon largely to its fate. The Fatimid fleet sailed to Ascalon and easily dispersed the weak Crusader squadron of 15 ships, but as the city's harbour was unsuitable for sustaining a fleet for long periods of time, it had to return to Egypt. Battles and surrender Siege towers were constructed, and for five months there were many skirmishes and victories and defeats on both sides. Ascalon was vast and virtually impenetrable; behind its massive walls and gates were twice as many defenders as there were besiegers outside, and there were supplies of food to last for years. In May the Egyptian fleet arrived to resupply the city; Gerard of Sidon's little fleet could do nothing to stop them. However, a setback for Ascalon occurred in August when the besieged tried to burn down one of the crusader siege towers;