[1] The Christian army was largely composed of Byzantine regulars and also included a Templar force and substantial contingents from Antioch and Edessa.

One of the objectives of their Syrian campaign was to create a Christian buffer state centered on Aleppo but also including Shaizar, Homs and Hama.

[1] Due to the dangers involved the Byzantines were content to let the Franks own the buffer state of the hinterlands, presumably under imperial suzerainty.

[1] Instead the reverse happened, large numbers of the Muslim militia made a sortie against the Byzantines and emerged victorious from the skirmishing.

The siege is hardly mentioned in Christian chronicles, and while Aleppo might have been viewed as a target if its defenses had been weak, there is evidence that the city of Shaizar was the real goal of the allied army.