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Longespée own account, he surprised and took with small loss a caravan of merchandise on its road to Alexandria, gaining a rich spoil of camels, mules, asses, spices, unguents, gold, and silver. The French crusaders, with the king's brother, Robert, count of Artois, at their head, seized his spoils, declaring that he had broken the rules of the expedition by making a foray on his own account, nor would they listen to his proposal to share the spoils with the whole army. On his complaining to the king Louis said that he was grieved but was unable to help him, and Robert of Artois insisted that he had broken the rules. Louis prayed him to put up with his loss rather than make a division in the army, but William declared that Louis was no king since he could not do right to his followers, and that he would serve him no more. So he marched off with his men and went to Acre, where he published his grievances and proposed to the Templars and Hospitallers to join him in making war without the French and with troops that he would send for from England. His wrath was further excited by hearing that when he marched away Robert of Artois said that the magnificent French army was the better for being cleansed of the men with tails, meaning the English.

While he was at Acre he received a letter from Louis urging him to return, and speaking of certain rumours of an impending success in which the king was desirous that he should share. He went back with his force, heard the king's hopes, and was reconciled to his enemies. When in February 1250 the crusading army crossed the Aschmun branch of the arm of the Nile that flows out by Damietta, by a ford near Mansourah, William, the Count of Artois, and the Templars, as soon as they had effected the passage, pressed forward and attacked the infidels without waiting for orders. They pushed the Saracens back, and rode through Mansourah after them, though they were almost overwhelmed by the stones cast at them in the town. Robert of Artois wished to press on, quarrelled with the masters of the Temple and the Hospital who urged a return to the main army, and when William interposed, recommending that the advice of the master of the Temple should be followed, grossly insulted him, saying that the English were cowards, and that the army would be well quit of tails and those who bore them. William answered that he would be that day (19 Feb.) where the count would not dare to touch his horse's tail. So they rode forward. The Saracens having been reinforced by the Baharites, or Mamelouks, surrounded them, and the count cried out to William to flee. To which William replied: ‘Please God, my father's son will not flee for any Saracen. I would rather die well than live ill.’ After bearing the brunt of the battle William was slain with many others. His mother is said as she sat in her stall at Lacock to have seen him enter heaven in full armour, and in England he was reckoned a martyr. Struck with his valour, the sultan had him buried, and afterwards reproached the Christians for leaving his tomb uncared for, though they asserted that a miraculous light shone above it. They obtained leave to remove his bones and reverently buried them in the church of the Holy Cross at Acre (, v. 147–51, 166, 173, 342). A fine tomb on the north side of the nave of Salisbury Cathedral is attributed to him. William married Idonea, daughter and heiress of Richard de Camoille, and left a son named William who never bore the title of earl. This William was wounded at the tournament of Blyth, Nottinghamshire, on 4 June 1256, and died of his wounds the next year. He married Matilda, daughter of Walter de Clifford [see under ((sc|Walter de Clifford}}, d. 1190]. 

LONGFIELD, MOUNTIFORT (1802–1884), Irish judge, born in 1802, was son of Mountifort Longfield, vicar of Desert Serges or Desert Magee, co. Cork, by his wife Grace, daughter of William Lysaght of Fort William and Mount North, co. Cork. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, graduated as moderator and gold medallist in science in 1823, became a fellow in 1825, and proceeded to the degrees of M.A. in 1829 and LL.D. in 1831. In 1828 he was called to the Irish bar, but did not practise. When the professorship of political economy in Trinity College was founded in 1832, he was appointed the first professor; and in 1834 he resigned his fellowship and became regius professor of feudal and English law in the university