The Crusades An Overview Goal A

The Crusades An Overview

Goal • A more well-rounded understanding of the Crusades, when they happened, people involved, and impact • When you hear about the Crusades, you will have a basic – fairly good understanding of what happened

What’s in a name? • Crusades took their name from the croix – cross – that the crusaders of the First Crusade were supposed to where • Priests distributed red cloth croixes to the crusaders, which they sewed onto their shoulders

First Crusade (1095 -1099) • Urban II spoke at the Council of Clermont after receiving a letter from Byzantine Emperor Alexius I • Alexius just wanted financial assistance to raise an army of trained mercenaries to help against the Seljuk Turks • Urban saw it as an opportunity to liberate Jerusalem and the Holy Land from the infidel (Holy Land – Bethlehem – birthplace of Christ, Cana – where Christ performed his first miracle of turning water to wine, Nazareth – where Christ grew up and lived, Antioch – where followers of Jesus were first dubbed “Christians”)

First Crusade: Results • Antioch captured from Turks in 1098 • Jerusalem after five-week siege – bloodbath which Crusaders justified as “God’s judgment” on the infidels • Crusading lords pledged loyalty to Byzantine Emperor Alexius I, which they did not honor • Set up four states: Principalities of Antioch, Tripoli, county of Edessa, and Kingdom of Jerusalem • Crusader states became increasingly independent on Italian city-states for supplies – Genoa, Pisa, Venice

Second Crusade (1147 -1149) • Called for by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux in response to reports that Muslims were consolidating their forces and threatening the Christian states that had been established during the First Crusade (1144 -Edessa recaptured by Muslims) • Not coordinated well between the armies of the two leaders (King Louis VII of France and Emperor Conrad of Germany) • Not well organized • Received no support from King of Jerusalem • Result: Total failure

Second Crusade (1147 -1149) • Called for devout Christian Saint Bernard of Clairvaux • Saint Bernard addressed a crowd at Vezelay Cathedral in France: “Now on account of our sins, the sacrilegious enemies of the cross have begun to show their faces…What are you doing, you servants of the cross? Will you throw to the dogs that which is most holy? ” • What is the tone of this speech? What was its purpose?

Third Crusade • Richard the Lionhearted of England • • Philip Augustus of France

• Saladin of Damascus Frederick Barbarossa of Germany

Third Crusade (1189 -1192) • Saladin captured Jerusalem in 1187; Christendom ablaze with new calls for a crusade • Three monarchs: Emperor Frederick Barbarossa of Germany, Richard I the Lionhearted of England, and Philip II Augustus king of France • Frederick Barbarossa experienced successes in Asia Minor but then drowned accidently while swimming in a local river. • Richard the Lionheart and Philip II won victories along the coast where they had the support of their fleets; lost as they moved inland • Philip went home; Richard never regained Jerusalem but negotiated with Saladin, who allowed free passage of Christians to Jerusalem

Third Crusade • What’s happening? • Richard the Lionhearted executes Muslims at Acre – 2, 700

Third Crusade the King Richard Lionhearted • What’s happening? • Richard the Lionhearted executes Muslims at Acre – 2, 700

Knights Templar – Knights and monks – they were warriormonks; religious zealots – Highly-trained, very skilled and brave, and well -equipped with the most modern weapons of the time – A knight could not retreat in combat unless outnumbered by at least 3 -to-1, or by command of a superior officer, or if the Templar Flag fell (glorious to die in battle) – Small groups could fight well against larger numbers of enemies (ex. Battle against Saladin). – The effective “squadron charge”

Fourth Crusade (1202 -1204) • • Saladin died in 1193. Pope Innocent III called for Fourth Crusade. French, Dutch, and Venetians will transport them Crusaders attacked a city in Dalmatia known as Dara (they got involved to help the Venetians against the Byzantine Empire) • Power struggle going on for emperor of Byzantine Empire; one contender asks Crusaders at Zara for help – BIG MISTAKE • Crusaders sacked Constantinople in 1204 • Stole gold, jewelry, and precious furs; priests stole holy relics

Decline of Byzantine Empire • Disintegration into smaller states ruled by crusading barons or Byzantine princes • Constantinople ruled by Count Baldwin of Flanders • Venetians seized Crete and dominated Constantinople’s trade • Latin Empire (aka Western European) could not hold onto it • 1259 – Greeks regain control of Constantinople and established a new Byzantine line of rulers • Byzantine Empire never regained its strength; made it easier for Ottoman Turks to take over

Children’s Crusade 1212 • A youth named Nicholas of Cologne said God inspired him to lead a “Children’s Crusade. ” • Thousands of young people travelled with him down the Rhine River and across the Alps; in Italy the pope told them to go home. Most did. At the same time, 20, 000 children arrived from France; they wanted to see the Holy Land free of Muslims.

Children’s Crusade 1212 • Two ship owners in Marseilles, France agreed to transport them • Seven ships • Two perished in a storm near Sardinia • The other five sailed for North Africa where the children were sold into slavery

Fifth Crusade (1219 -1221) • Tried to regain the Holy Land by way of the powerful Muslim state of Egypt • Some early successes • Ultimate failure led to the end of papal leadership of the western crusaders

Sixth Crusade (1228 -1229) • Led by German emperor Frederick II • Took place without papal support • 1228 – the emperor marched into Jerusalem and accepted the crown as king of Jerusalem after making an agreement with the sultan of Egypt • Taken without a fight and without papal support • Once Frederick left, the city fell to a group of Turks who allied with the sultan of Egypt

Seventh and Eight Crusades (12481254; 1270) • Led by the pious king of France, Louis IX • Poorly organized and complete failures • Louis IX gained a reputation for his piety and was canonized (ever hear of Saint Louis? The ideal Christian king)

All Christian Stronghold Captured by Muslims • Remaining Christian possessions in the east were retaken • Acre, the last foothold of the crusaders, surrendered in 1291 • Crusades had failed to accomplish their primary goal of holding the Holy Land for the Christian West.

Effects of the Crusades • Crusader made little long-term impact on the Middle East; only visible remnants are their castles

Belvoir Castle/Fortress (Israel)

Effects • Broadening of perspectives that come from exchange between two cultures (interaction between Christian Europe and Muslim world was more meaningful in Sicily and Spain than in Holy Land) • Crusades helped stabilize Europe (violent knights went out and got killed; no longer disrupting development of European nations with their quarreling)

Effects • Italian port cities grew (Genoa, Pisa, Venice); but growing wealth of 12 th century Europe made the Crusades possible in the first place • Evil side effects – first widespread attacks on the Jews (pogroms) began with crusades (If you were going to fight the infidels in the Holy Land, then why not also attack the “murderers of Christ” at home? ) • Massacres of Jews became a regular feature of medieval European life

1. The First Crusade was called for by _______ at the Council of ________. 2. The Crusades were an attempt by Christendom to regain Jerusalem and the _________. 3. The four crusader states established as a result of the First Crusade were Tripoli, __________, and most _______.

4. The Third Crusade was led by _____ Barbarossa of Germany, Philip Augustus of France, and _____ the ______ of England. 5. The ____ Crusade was unlike any others as the leader Frederick II was able to take over Jerusalem without bloodshed. 6. At the massacre at ______ during the Third Crusade, 2, 700 Muslims were put to death.

7. Nicholas of Cologne led the ___________. 8. During the Fourth Crusade, the city of ______ was conquered and pillaged by the crusaders leading the decline of the Byzantine Empire. 9. Louis IX, the pious led the ____ and ____ Crusades, which were failures. 10. The _____ were a zealous group of warriors involved during the early Crusades.