One day two heretics, taken at Castres, were brought before him; one of them was unshakable in his belief, the other expressed a readiness to turn convert: "Burn them both," said the count; "if this fellow mean what he says, the fire will serve for expiation of his sins, and, if he lie, he will suffer the penalty for his imposture." At the siege of the castle of Lavaur, in 1211, Amaury, Lord of Montr6al, and eighty knights, had been made prisoners: and "the noble Count Simon," says Peter of Vaulx- Cernay, decided to hang them all on one gibbet; but when Amaury, the most distinguished amongst them, had been hanged, the gallows-poles, which, from too great haste, had not been firmly fixed in the ground, having come down, the count, perceiving how great was the delay, ordered the rest to be slain.

The pilgrims therefore fell upon them right eagerly and slew them on the spot.

Further, the count caused stones to be heaped upon the lady of the castle, Amaury's sister, a very wicked heretic, who had been cast into a well.

Finally our crusaders, with extreme alacrity, burned heretics without number." In the midst of these atrocious unbridlements of passions supposed to be religious, other passions were not slow to make their appearance.
Innocent III.

had promised the crusaders the sovereignty of the domains they might win by conquest from princes who were heretics or protectors of heretics.