How to be Chosen by God, A People’s Guide: The Discovery of the Holy Lance and Religious

Relics as Political Weapons

John Dietrick

ASH 4210

April 19, 2024

 Dietrick 1

The siege of Antioch provided the first crusader leaders with their biggest obstacle in

taking the holy city of Jerusalem and fulfilling Pope Urban's orders. Antioch was perhaps the

most strategically important city on their quest for the holy land and the Crusaders needed to take

control and successfully siege the city if they wanted to move towards the holy land despite the

strong fortifications in their way.1 Their initial siege, led by Bohemond of Taranto, Godfrey de

Bouillon, and Raymond of Toulouse was a harrowing feat that lasted several months and was

bombarded with Turkish garrisons, leading to mass starvation and illness.2 However, their

suffering ended when Bohemond established contact with a Christian soldier within the city that

opened the main gates for them and allowed them entrance into the heavily fortified Antioch.

This led to a mass killing of the Turkish and non-Turkish citizens in Antioch and quick control of

the city by the Crusaders. However, soon after they maintained control of the city Kerbogha, a

Seljuk atabeg who had significant military acclaim laid his siege onto the city, which left the

Crusaders with little supplies or food left. This left the situation particularly dire, as the poorer

crusaders also known as paupers, had grown more disgruntled with the lack of food and health

they had. This led to many leaving the crusade altogether, following the lead of Stephen of Blois

who gained infamy when he left the siege cowardly.3 This was also a time during significant

political struggles between the major leaders with Bohemod aiming to control the city himself

despite his oath to the Byzantine Empire and order by Adamaher Le Puy, head bishop fellow.

It is in this political and military context that an unknown poor peasant by the name of

Peter Bartholomew had a meeting with Bishop Adhemar of Le Puy and Count Raymond of

Toulouse stating his vision of St Andrew the Apostle saying that he revealed the Lance that

1
Thomas Madden, The Consise History of the Crusades. (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 1999) 25
2
Madden,The Consise History of the Crusades, 28
3
Madden,The Consise History of the Crusades, 27
 Dietrick 2

pierced Jesus' body at his crucifixion was buried in the Basilica of St Peter in Antioch.4 This

vision had numerous effects on the siege of Antioch and eventually played a role in the turning

of the tide in the Crusader's favor. It was paraded as one of the main causes for the siege of

Antioch's success, which opens up questions about how the use of religious iconography and

narratives can affect the political and military landscape of the Crusades. The role Peter

Bartholomew played in the holy lance debacle which led to an eventual break with Raymond of

Toulouse, a crucial political ally, and his death also opens up questions on what it means to be a

poor crusader and how they could succeed in a landscape of political and social discontent. The

holy lance is portrayed in contemporary accounts such as Raymond of Aguilers as a significant

aspect in the success of the Crusaders and those who doubted its divinity were blasphemous. The

Holy Lance had transcended its original use as a divine relic dreamed up by Peter Bartholomew

into a political tool to be utilized and exploited. Multiple figures such as Peter Bartholomew,

Raymond of Toulouse, and Raymond of Aguiliers saw the opportunity that the Holy Lance held

to maintain and increase their political influence in a time of severe social discontent and famine.

It proves to be a tool in both political and class struggles for those who can utilize it properly in

times of great struggle and turmoil.

Peter Bartholomew's role in analyzing the event's importance in the social and political

struggle is important as it is quite unusual that “a servile youth would seek to dictate to a prince

of great age, dignity, and standing.” 5 This allows us to analyze where religious iconography and

divine intervention come in handy and how they can be effectively utilized for political gains, as

someone with Peter Bartholomew's status could not be able to succeed if not for the dire straits

4
Thomas Asbridge. “The Holy Lance of Antioch: Power, Devotion, and Memory on the First Crusade”.
Reading Medieval Studies. 2007. 4
5
Conor Kostick. The Social Structure of the First Crusade. (Leidan:Brill, 2008).
 Dietrick 3

they were in. They were trapped in a highly fortified city, with no reinforcements to be found as

the supplies and food dwindled to nothing causing further dissatisfaction, especially for the poor

Crusaders.6 Poor Crusaders were the primary audience for Peter Bartholomews' sermons and

vision due to the high stress they were under. His visions and success in maintaining a

relationship with Raymond of Toulouse recognize that poor crusaders could experience authentic

visions, and poverty was seen to have spiritual benefits.7 This is shown in contemporary accounts

of the discovery of the Holy Lance, most particularly with Raymond of Aguilar, a priest who had

a close relationship with Raymond of Toulouse and Peter Bartholomew and had the most

comprehensive account of the discovery of the Lance who put particular emphasis on Peter

Bartholomews lowly and austere status which made him more believable. In the account, he is

dressed in peasant clothing and is barefoot and he is the one to jump into the hole and dig out the

lance dirty and ragged.8 This was not used as a method of degrading the priest but as a method of

depicting the priest as a pious and truthful individual. Constructing Peter Bartholomews'

character was an important method of giving him a sense of credibility within the crusading

rankings. It is shown that Raymond sought to construct Peters's character in terms of clerical

masculinity. Only referring to him as a young man or peasant, cemented Peter’s identity and

religious authority to speak on behalf of God through his humility, reluctance, and low social

origins.9 The reasons why Count Raymond allowed and accommodated the visionary become

clearer when taking into account his declining role and influence as a crusading leader. He was

seen as shirking from battle and his courage was challenged, so when seeing this opportunity to

6
Gesta Francorum (1098-1101) 63
7
Kostick. The Social Structure of the First Crusade. 134
8
August. C. Krey, The First Crusade: The Accounts of Eyewitnesses and Participants, (Princeton: 1921),
176-82
9
Natasha Hodgson, “Bearded Ghosts and Holy Visions: Miracles, Manliness and Clerical Authority on
the First crusades in Miracles” in political authority and Violence in medival and early modern europe ed.
Matthew Rowley and Natasha Hodgens (London: Routledge, 2021)
 Dietrick 4

save the siege of Antioch he took the opportunity despite having to deal with Peter Bartholomew

as a leader and a spiritual advisor.10

An important point to delve into in regards to the discovery of the Lance is why Peter

Bartholomew was able to get the traction that he did. It is not only due to the detrimental social

conditions and famines at the time and a preacher in the search for more influence as it did not

give the discovery the political standing it required. This is where Raymond of Toulouse enters

the picture as a power-hungry crusading leader whose standing and authority were waning. The

two figures cultivated alliances that inextricably linked the discovery of the Lance to Raymond’s

leadership claiming that ‘God gave the Lance to the Count, and in fact, “had reserved it for him

alone through the ages. and also made him leader of the crusaders” which gave peter

Bartholomew opportunities to direct military and political strategy within the crusades.11 Sacred

relics already had long importance for the cursing armies despite many being skeptical of the

discovery. Many had brought sacred objects with them on their journey such as Bishop Adhemar

Le Puy who carried a piece of the True Cross throughout his journey established a precedence of

religious iconography playing a role in the trajectory of the crusading military efforts. They had

grown accustomed to divine intervention such as Raymond of Aguilers describing how knights

in 'shining armor' appeared at the battle of Dorylaeum.12 Stephen of Valence was another priest

who experienced a similar visionary experience at Antioch which shows the performance and

emotion infused with religious discovery. He saw a vision of Christ himself along with the virgin

Mary, but it was not utilized or harnessed as a political opportunity to the extent that the Holy

Lance was.13 One difference between the two visions was the aspect of choreography and

10
Marius Kjørmo. “The Holy Lance of Antioch: A Study on the Impact of a Perceived Relic during the
First Crusade” University of Bergen
11
Raymond of Aguiiers, p. 75
12
Asbridge. “The Holy Lance of Antioch: Power, Devotion, and Memory on the First Crusade” 7-8
13
Hodgens. ““Bearded Ghosts and Holy Visions”. 107
 Dietrick 5

high-status witnesses within the event. Figures such as Raymond of Aguilers, Farald of Thouras,

and the Bishop of Orange were chosen to lend authority to the vision and played a role in giving

credit to the relic for the besieged and starving Crusaders.14

There is no doubt that a vast number of lower-status crusaders believed the holiness of

the Lance and its effect on crusading morale; however, it's important to analyze the lances actual

political effect on the success of the second siege of Antioch in favor of the crusader, as may

contemporary historians argue that there was a direct impact of the lance on the crusader's

success. It's important to take into account the timing of the crusading forces' attack on

Kerboghas forces as an embassy led by Peter the Hermit to negotiate some sort of peace talks

failed as Kerbogha is reported saying "You will have to fight your way out" in one account.15At

this point, the Crusaders were faced with no other real choice than to attack Kerbogha’s forces.

Despite this, the close proximity of the discovery of the Holy Lance and the success against

Kerboghas in terms of time created a grand mythos of the Lance, shown by the development of a

sort of cult of the Holy Lance led by Peter Bartholomew. Peter took on a role as a spiritual

advisor and regularly reported visions that became increasingly radical in a climate of divisions

among the leadership militarily and politically.16 Contemporary accounts create the narrative that

the Holy Lance played a significant role in the turning of the tides for the Crusaders. A sort of

collective memory started to develop due to the Holy Lance, starting as the cult of veneration

around it developed. This had numerous effects on the European's perception of the First

Crusades as a whole.17 This was not done purposely but was an example of a larger process of

individuals collectivizing their memory and then coalescing it into recorded 'history' to interpret

14
Hodgens. ““Bearded Ghosts and Holy Visions”. 111.
15
Ibn al-Athir, Kamel-Altevarykh, Recueil des historiens des croisades, Hisoriens orientaux, vol. I 194
16
Conor Kostick. “'The trial by fire of Peter Bartholomew: a case study in medieval social conflict'
Leidschrift: Met Het Kruis Getekend (2012)
17
Asbridge. “The Holy Lance of Antioch: Power, Devotion, and Memory on the First Crusade” 10
 Dietrick 6

and understand events, most particularly to explain the 'miracle' of victory on 28 June.18

Raymond of Toulouse certainly used the Lance purposefully as he began making it known that it

was he who carried the Lance at the siege of Antioch and described two miraculous events

during this time. He saw that all those who were near the Lance were unscathed from any arrows

and the Lance had incurred a miraculous rain that brought nourishment to men and horses. 19

Around a month after the siege of Antioch was concluded, the Bishop of Adhemar Le

Puy, papal legate and holy leader of the Crusades had died of a plague. He was also someone

who had serious doubts about the veracity of the Holy Lance and was a major obstacle for Peter

Bartholomew to consolidate his power and influence. Soon after Adhemar was dead, Peter

attempted to play the role of new legate when he reported another vision in which the dead

bishop appeared accompanied by St Andrew. In this vision, the legitimacy of the Lance was

reinforced as Adehmar went to hell for doubting the miracle and Adhémar stated that now, as he

is dead, he shall offer “better counsel” through the lens of Peter Bartholomews' visions. 20

Raymond of Toulouse presented himself as the secular patron of the Lance's burgeoning cult and

consequently as leader of the crusade in the steed of the dead papal legate. This was all with the

approval of Adhemar and god himself as St. Andrew made it clear that the lance was given to

Raymond to rule.21 Bishop of Adhemar Le Puys's attitude to and relationship with the Holy

Lance gradually blurred through contemporary narrative accounts such as the Gesta Francorum

and Raymond of Aguilers writings. The papal legate was buried in the Basilica of St Peter where

the Holy Lance was originally uncovered.22 Another development set forth by Peter

18
Asbridge. “The Holy Lance of Antioch: Power, Devotion, and Memory on the First Crusade” 11
19
Hodgens. ““Bearded Ghosts and Holy Visions”. 115
20
Raymond of Aguilers, Historia Francorum qui ceperunt Iherusalem ed. John France
21
Kjørmo. “The Holy Lance of Antioch” 17
22
Asbridge. “The Holy Lance of Antioch: Power, Devotion, and Memory on the First Crusade” 11
 Dietrick 7

Bartholomew at the death of Adehmar is expressions of social discontent to gain the favor of the

poor starving crusaders sometimes named paupers. During this time after the siege of Antioch

was complete, mass famine and shortages continued to plague the Crusaders as delays on the

move towards the city of Jerusalem continued. The Paupers were significantly affected by this as

they lacked any form of income other than plunder and the victory over Kerbogha created only

temporary relief. 23 It was said that since Adehmar was a helper of the paupers, he was saved

from permanent suffering in hell, argued Peter Bartholomew. It was required of the rich princes

to treat all Crusaders as equals and said unequal wealth should be distributed otherwise they

would make the lord upset with all the Crusaders.24 There was a significant split among the

crusading leaders on problems such as the veracity of the Lance, the role of the Byzantine

Empire, and, most importantly, who would lead the Crusaders to Jerusalem. A vision with St

Andrew by Peter Bartholomew addressed this split and was very hostile to restoring the city of

Antioch to the Byzantine Empire. At the same time, to get back at Bohemond for casting serious

doubts about the veracity of the Lance, argued that using force to obtain the city was illegal to

stem a coup attempt by Bohemond.25 Bohemond had already violently ousted Raymond's troops

from the citadel of Antioch, so St Andrew’s message was essential as disunity could lead to

disaster. During the siege of Ma’rra soon after they took Antioch, Count Raymond had hoped to

use the town as a base for a principality that he could hold as a vassal of the Byzantine emperor.

This was too much for the Paupers who created an alliance with the miles, a knight with some

status as circumstances began to destitute between the political makeup of the crusader leaders. 26

The two groups insisted that the Count of Raymond lead the way to Jerusalem and if he failed,

23
Kostick. The Social Structure of the First Crusade. 136
24
Raymond of Aguilers 263
25
Kjørmo. “The Holy Lance of Antioch” 17
26
Kostick. The Social Structure of the First Crusade. 141
 Dietrick 8

which many saw him doing often, demanded that the Lance be handed back to the people with

the lord as their leader. After this, Raymond showed little sign of resuming the march, leading to

an angry body of poor crusaders revolting in which they toppled the walls of the town he wanted

to set as a principality. 27 Peter Bartholomews' vision with St. Andrew was an attempt to settle

the political instability and eventually have Raymond of Toulouse become victorious as a leader

of the crusade to Jerusalem. However, Peter Bartholomew realized that Raymond of Toulouse,

due to his power-hungry and unholy behavior, had lost much of the prestige given by the Lance.

Peter Bartholomew explained the message of St Andrew was for Count Raymond and it said that

he had sinned badly and needed to commit to penance but could be forgiven and not all was lost

in his error of judgment.28 This was a risky move for Peter Bartholomew to condemn his closest

political ally and his closest connection to the political and military decision-making within the

crusader ranks. Despite the significant weakening of the political positioning of Raymond of

Toulouse, Peter Bartholomew maintained a level of support of the paupers that, at a time of such

social discontent was crucial and could not be overlooked. This incident was the first sign of

strain between the colluding crusading figures as Peter Barthmolew played a particular role in

condemning his actions. Despite this, the Holy Lance and by extension, Peter Bartholomew was

an important asset to Raymond of Toulouse in maintaining military control during times of great

poor upheaval, especially with some of the military beginning to lose faith in the Holy Lance.29

This was part of an increasing amount of public doubting of the veracity of the Lance, which

previously was less unified and limited to the nobility. Now it became much more unified and

seeped into the poorer crusaders.

27
Kostick. The Social Structure of the First Crusade. 143
28
Hodgens. ““Bearded Ghosts and Holy Visions”. 119
29
Kostick. “The trial by fire of Peter Bartholomew” 33
 Dietrick 9

The vision with St.Andrew was remarkable for several reasons. Particularly, this is the

first vision of Peters that had Jesus Christ appear before him which was something that did not

happen to him before and shows that Peters's vision grew increasingly radical as time went on

and his success grew. Another reason was that he raised the idea of taking a tithe for the church

and the paupers. This reflects the level of harsh poverty at the siege and that would drive some of

the poorest crusaders to acts of cannibalism.30 In fact, at this point of the siege, paupers were so

important to the visions of Peter Bartholomew that the saints were clad in common clothing of

the paupers and made an important point about God’s favor being with the poor.31 This is at the

point where the social discontent and violent upheaval got to a tipping point and Bartholomews'

critics were able to confront him and end his reign of terror. Arnulf of Choques, Robert of

Normandy chaplain was the chief critic which, Raymond of Aguileres characterizes as seizing an

opportunity to grab power for himself. 32 The primary narrative of the subsequent trial is said by

Rayond of Aguilers described him as “a learned man of immoral life” and brought Peter

Bartholomew to the point of demanding a trial by fire to prove the veracity of the Lance.33

The Holy Lance always had its doubters, but at this point, the political alliance between

Raymond of Toulouse proved to be weakened to the point of dismantling, and the coalition of

doubters such as Bohemond along with the other Norman crusaders led to Peter Bartholomew

ordering an ordeal by fire to prove himself. Peter and Arnulf could be said to represent two

distinct models of clerical performance, as Bartholomew was a common peasant and gained a

reputation with the poorer people as a modest common man, while Arnulf was a learned priest

with a lot of experience and had connections with political crusading leaders not out of visions or

30
Kostick. The Social Structure of the First Crusade. 143
31
Hodgens. ““Bearded Ghosts and Holy Visions.” 130
32
Natasha Hodgins. “Reputation, Authority and Masculine Identities in the Political Culture of the First
Crusaders: The Career of Arnulf of Chocques.” History. 2017. 890
33
William of Tyre, Chronicon. 366
 Dietrick 10

relics.34 Peter Bartholomew's downfall was most particularly a political one, As during this last

vision he advocated for a siege of Arqua, which precipitated a clash with the other princely

factions.35 He alienated himself from his supporters by arguing for a purge amongst the ranks due

to an excess of sinners and he said the Lord ordered him the oversee mass executions. This led to

a great perturbance among the masses and the trial by fire was the only way for Peter

Bartholomew to obtain his power and influence amongst the Crusaders. The results of the ordeal

were reported to be a success and a failure based on the contemporary chronicler's writings.

Raymond, of course, stated that Peter had come out unharmed. Instead, he creates a narrative of a

mob turning against their leader as a crowd charges the visionary stabbing him multiple times

and wounding him.36 In a world where miraculous burning ordeals occur, this ordeal would have

been Peter’s greatest performance of authority yet, and his reign of terror would have no

obstacles, so it makes sense in Richard of Aguilers narrative that there would be men sent to kill

the martyr figure, Richard of Aguiles main purpose was to exonerate critics who claimed Peter

failed the trial.37 To this effort, Richard of Aguilers further attempted to cleanse his role as a

pious and faithful servant to the very end as he includes an account of Peter Bartholomews last

days. He supposedly has a vision with the Virgin Mary who claims that Richard of Aguilers

wanted him to go through the ordeal to prove that he would not burn and the Holy Lance would

forever be proven to be divine.38 In the text, Peter Bartholomew says “you wished me at my peril

to hold this proof of the same revelations.”39 As for Raymond of Toulouse, the proclaimed leader

of the Crusades, his hopes of reaching Jerusalem as a secular commander were foiled. He was

34
Hodgens. ““Bearded Ghosts and Holy Visions”. 119
35
Thomas Asbridge,”Siege of Arqa” in The First Crusade: A New History: The Roots of Conflict
between Christianity and Islam (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.)
36
Kostick. “The trial by fire of Peter Bartholomew” 34-35
37
Kostick. The Social Structure of the First Crusade.146
38
Kostick. The Social Structure of the First Crusade.148
39
Raymond of Aguilers 123
 Dietrick 11

distracted by his territorial ambitions in Tripoli and Peter Bartholomew damaged his reputation

with the ordeal by fire. He was forced to share command of the siege of the Holy City with

Godfrey of Bouillon.40

The Holy Lance was propped up in narratives of the Crusades as a divine object that was

crucial to the success of the crusading leaders. While the object was merely a hunk of metal, its

political ramifications are profound. Above anything, it was a political tool and weapon that

could be utilized to stir up the masses and exploit them to gain influence and power. Peter

Bartholomew, who had very little status but was ambitious was able to successfully utilize the

Lance and navigate the rocky political landscape of the first crusade to gain influence with the

poor masses. Raymond of Toulouse was a crusading leader with waning influence and was able

to utilize the Lance to maintain and link his power to the divinity of the Lance. However, it was

also increasingly unstable and Raymond's numerous grabs for power got the better of him and he

was unable to become the singular leader of the Crusades. Even Raymond of Aguilers, the

contemporary historian of the discovery of the Holy Lance and its most ardent defender,

attempted to utilize the lance to defend his role in History and maintain his influence as a truthful

and objective source of knowledge for historians.

40
Asbridge. “The Holy Lance of Antioch.” 22
 Dietrick 12

Bibliography

Asbridge, Thomas. “The Holy Lance of Antioch: Power, Devotion, and Memory on the First
Crusade”. Reading Medieval Studies. 2007

Asbridge, Thomas. ”Siege of Arqa” in The First Crusade: A New History: The Roots of Conflict
between Christianity and Islam (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.)

Gesta Francorum (1098-1101)

Hodgins, Natasha. “Reputation, Authority and Masculine Identities in the Political Culture of the
First Crusaders: The Career of Arnulf of Chocques.” History. 2017.

Hodgson, Natasha, “Bearded Ghosts and Holy Visions: Miracles, Manliness and Clerical
Authority on the First Crusades in Miracles” in Political Authority and Violence in Medival and
Early Modern Europe ed. Matthew Rowley and Natasha Hodgens (London: Routledge, 2021)

Ibn al-Athir, Kamel-Altevarykh, Recueil des historiens des croisades, Hisoriens orientaux, vol. I

Kostick, Conor. The Social Structure of the First Crusade. (Leidan:Brill, 2008).

Kostick, Conor. “'The trial by fire of Peter Bartholomew: a case study in medieval social
conflict” Leidschrift: Met Het Kruis Getekend. 2012

Krey, August The First Crusade: The Accounts of Eyewitnesses and Participants, (Princeton:
1921)

Madden, Thomas The Consise History of the Crusades. (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 1999)

Raymond of Aguilers, Historia Francorum qui ceperunt Iherusalem, ed. John France

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