The Kingdom of Jerusalem lasted for as long as it did because even though it was surrounded by enemies, those enemies were not united. The Egyptian and Syrian Muslims did not present a united front as various in fighting prevented true unity. This is not to say that they not come to the aid of each other. During the first Crusade, Muslim troops from Bagdad marched to defeat the Crusaders after the fall of Antioch to the Christians.

This lack of political unity allowed for the Christian exploitation. The King of Jerusalem understood the precarious situation of his kingdom and so launched relatively limited campaigns and often sought treaties with his neighbors prior to or immediately following these campaigns. Baldwin IV and Saladin routinely had treaties with each other.

Following the fall of Jerusalem and the Third Crusade, the Muslim world lost the political unity it had under Saladin. Richard the Lion-Heart helped resecure a defensible strip with his crusade and Saladin preserved that strip with his death. Following that, the Latin Kingdom returned to exploiting political divisions until the Mamluks brought that unity back and pushed the Crusaders out.