A Brief History of the Crusades

The main goal of the crusades was to capture Jerusalem and the Holy Land from the
Muslims, however, those who took up the cross were also motivated by their own interests
which were not necessary religious or spiritual in nature. Many Crusaders were driven by the
opportunity to gain land, wealth and power, while the Roman Catholic Church saw an
opportunity to establish its dominance in the Holy Land.

What Were the Crusades

The crusades were a series of military expeditions which were undertaken by the Christian
Europe against the Muslims in the Holy Land between the end of the 11th century and the
end of the 13th century. The main objective of the crusades was to “free” the Holy Land from
the Muslims although the Crusaders were also driven by other motives including economic,
social and political. The Christian holy wars, however, were also deployed in Europe against
heretics and pagans, and even political enemies.
 The Pope’s Call for the Crusade at Council of Clermont
The key event in history of the crusades was the speech of Pope Urban II at the Council of
Clermont in 1095. The Pope who was asked for military aid against the Seljuk Turks by the
Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenus urged the Western Christendom to help their fellow
Christians in the east. No original transcription of the Pope’s speech at Clermont exists,
however, it must have been highly persuasive as his call for the crusade received an
enormous response.

People’s Crusade (1096)

Although the Pope and Byzantine Emperor wanted to raise an army of knights, the first
Crusaders to reach Constantinople were peasant bands led by the wandering preacher Peter
the Hermit and French knight Walter the Penniless. The Byzantine Emperor, confused with
the unusual army transported the bands across the Bosporus into Asia Minor and told them to
wait for the forces of the European princes. The Crusaders, however, became impatient and
clashed with the Seljuk Turks who had no difficulties with unexperienced and poorly equipped
peasant bands. The so-called People’s Crusade thus came to an end before the European
princes arrived in the Byzantine capital.

First Crusade (1096 - 1099)

The European princes - Godfrey of Boullon and his brother Baldwin, Raymond IV of
Toulouse, Robert Guiscard’s son Bohemond of Taranto, Tancred, Hugh of Vermandois and
Robert of Normandy were completing their last preparations when the peasant bands in Asia
Minor were annihilated by the Seljuk Turks. They were supposed to meet in Constantinople in
1096 and launch a joined military expedition against the Muslims. However, they took
 different routes and the First Crusade was launched only in
spring of 1097.

Before the Crusaders were shipped to Asia Minor, the

Byzantine Emperor who feared that the Crusaders will take the
captured territories for themselves forced them to take an oath
of fealty and promise to return the conquered lands to
Constantinople. But the Crusaders latter broke their oath. The
First Crusade ended with the conquest of Jerusalem in July
1099 and creation of four crusader states - the Principality of
Antioch, Kingdom of Jerusalem, County of Edessa and County
of Tripoli which were divided between the leaders of the
expedition. Godfrey of Boullon took the Kingdom of Jerusalem,
his brother Baldwin became Count of Edessa (and later King of
Jerusalem), Bohemond of Taranto gained the Principality of Antioch, while Raymond IV of
Toulouse was made Count of Tripoli.

Second Crusade (1147 - 1149)

In 1144, the County of Edessa was captured by
Zengi, ruler of Mosul. The fall of Edessa did not
particularly upset other crusader states in the Holy
Land but when the news of the event reached
Europe, a number of preachers started calling for a
new crusade including Bernard of Clairvaux. He
managed to convince Conrad III of Germany and
Louis VII of France who arrived in the Holy Land in
1147 and 1148, respectively. However, after the failed siege of Damascus in 1148 the
German King left the Holy Land. Louis VII followed him one year later and the Second
Crusade ended as a failure.

Third Crusade (1189 - 1192)

The Third Crusade, also called the Kings’ Crusade was a response to the fall of Jerusalem to
Saladin, Sultan of Egypt and Syria in 1187. Frederick I (Barbarossa) of Germany, Richard I of
England and Philip II of France responded to the Pope’s call for the military expedition to
recapture Jerusalem from the Muslims. However, Frederick I Barbarossa who set out first,
died on his way to the Holy Land, while the rivalry between Richard and Philip resulted in the
departure of the latter from the Holy Land. The English king managed to capture the city of
Acre which was besieged from 1189 shortly after Philip’s departure in 1191 and defeated
Saladin in the Battle of Arsuf. By the end of year 1191, he was only a few miles from
Jerusalem but he was forced to withdraw. Before he departed from the Holy Land, however,
he concluded a truce with Saladin by which he negotiated Jaffa and a narrow strip of coast,
and a free access to the Holy Sepulcher for the Christians. With Richard’s withdrawal in 1192,
the Third Crusade came to an end
without achieving its goal -
recapture of Jerusalem.
 Fourth Crusade (1202 - 1204)
One decade after the end of the Third Crusade, Pope Innocent III managed to raise another
crusader army which, however, was troubled by lack of financial resources. In return for
transportation to the Holy Land, the Crusaders
agreed to capture the city of Zara on the Adriatic
coast for Venice. There, they were contacted by
Alexios IV Angelos who asked them for military
assistance to depose his uncle Alexios III Angelos
and restore his father Isaac II Angelos to the
Byzantine throne. In return, they would be payed a
large sum of money and provided with supply and
troops for the crusade. The Crusaders captured
Constantinople and restored Isaac II Angelos as
the

Byzantine Emperor who, however, failed to keep his son’s promise. The Fourth Crusade
ended with the fall of Constantinople to the Crusaders and
establishment of crusader states on the territory of the
Byzantine Empire. The Crusaders never made it to the Holy
Land.

Children’s Crusade (1212)

After the Fourth Crusade, an idea appeared that innocent

children can succeed in what their elders failed due to their
impiety and impurity. The so-called Children’s Crusade,
however, ended tragically. Many children Crusaders were
sold into slavery, while many died from starvation and
 diseases while trying to reach the Italian ports. U Francuskoj nesupješan, u Njemačkoj
Nikola.

Fifth Crusade (1217 - 1221)

The successor of Pope Innocent III, Pope Honorius III pursued his predecessor’s policy and
continued to preach the crusade. His call was responded by Andrew II of Hungary and Duke
Leopold VI of Austria who, however, did not set out to the Holy Land but Egypt instead.

In 1219, the Crusaders captured Damietta but they refused the Ayyubid Sultan of Egypt, Al-
Kamil who offered them all holy cities and the western part of the Kingdom of Jerusalem in
return for their withdrawal from Egypt. The expedition to Cairo, however, ended as a disaster
and forced the Crusaders to return home empty-handed.

Sixth Crusade (1228 - 1229)

The Sixth Crusade was undertaken by Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor who was
excommunicated by Pope Gregory IX one year earlier for postponing his promise to take up
the cross. Frederick’s crusade, however, involved little military action. Almost immediately
after his arrival to the Holy Land, he entered negotiations with the Egyptian Sultan Al-Kamil
and managed to win Jerusalem, Jaffa, Nazareth and Bethlehem for the Christians, and had
himself crowned the King of Jerusalem. His gains, however, were lost in 1244 when the
Egyptian Muslims and their Turkish allies recaptured Jerusalem.

Seventh Crusade (1248 - 1254)

The Seventh Crusade was launched by Louis IX of France who made a vow to take up the
cross and restore the Muslim controlled Palestine to the Christians if he would recover from
 an illness. He decided to launch a campaign in Egypt. But just like the leaders of the Fifth
Crusade, he failed to capture Cairo and was taken captive during the expedition to the
Egyptian capital. He was released after a ransom had been paid and set out to the Holy Land
to get support for another campaign. However, he returned to France after he received the
news of his mother’s death in 1254 and left the Holy Land in the hands of the Muslims.

Eight Crusade (1270)

After nearly two decades, Louis IX of France launched another crusade but this time he had
chosen to start his campaign in Tunis. But just like the previous crusade, the Eight Crusade
ended as a failure. Louis died on August 25, 1270, most likely from dysentery, while his
brother Charles of Anjou concluded a peace treaty with the Tunisian caliph and returned
home.

Ninth Crusade (1271 - 1272)

The Ninth Crusade was undertaken by the future King of England, Edward I who was on the
way to Tunis when Louis IX died. Edward overwintered in Sicily and landed in Acre in 1271
hoping to win support for the Christian cause. There was, however, little interest for another
crusade and when Edward received the news of his father’s illness, he returned to England
and ended the period of the crusades in the Holy Land. Acra fell in 1291.

Legacy of the Crusades

The main goal of the crusades - capturing Jerusalem and the Holy Land for the Christendom
failed but the military expeditions dramatically influenced both the medieval Europe and the
Middle East. They have stimulated exchange of ideas which left a deep imprint in science,
literature, medicine, architecture, invention, trade, commerce and transportation, and
contributed to weakening of the feudal system and strengthening of the national monarchies
in Europe. The Crusades, however, also deepened the breach between the Eastern and
Western branches of Christianity and increased the tensions between the Christian and the
Muslim worlds.