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TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. INTRODUCTION ………………………………………………….
3
f. The Fifth Crusade………………………………………………
Crusades…………………………......... 4
IV. CONCLUSION………….………………………………………….
BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………..
IMPORTANT MAPS……………………………………………………....
8
I. INTRODUCTION
The Crusades are among the highlights of the Middle Ages in that it
garnered much documentation and attention of both historians and avid
readers alike. What is a Crusade? A crusade is a military expedition
organized by Western Christians against Muslim powers in order to maintain
control over Jerusalem and the places associated with Jesus Christ during His
earthly life.1 For many of the crusades, as we shall see later, those who
participated were willing not only to venture into foreign, non-Christian
lands, but also to sacrifice their lives and wealth just to rescue Jerusalem
from the clutches of the Muslims all for the sake of Jesus.
Before the first crusade was launched, several factors need to be
considered. In this paper, we shall cite two such fundamental factors. First,
there was the economic revival of the 11th century, which contributed to the
attitude of the people having financial confidence and great interest on
adventures. Second, there came the growth of religious enthusiasm, both for
the Muslims as well as the Christians. Christians believed that the end of the
world was coming. This gave the Christians much desire to go to Jerusalem,
the earthly symbol of the heavenly city, as pilgrims.2 Hence, Jerusalem
became a very important aspect of the Western Christians, particularly in
their religious fervor. The Seljuk Turks, originally one of several Muslim
Turkish tribes, embraced Islam. Eventually, they moved southwards. It was in
1071 that the Seljuk Turks defeated Romanus, the emperor of Byzantium, or
the Eastern Empire, during the battle of Manzikert.3 In the event, they went
out to conquer Jerusalem in 1076 and made it extremely difficult, if not
impossible for Christians to go on safe pilgrimages. Pilgrims towards the
1
Cf. The New Encyclopedia Britannica, 15th ed., Vol. 16 (Chicago: Encylopedia Britannica, Inc., 1994),
s.v. “The Crusades”.
2
Christians believed that going for pilgrimages to Holy sites, and especially in the land where the Lord
Jesus Christ died, would atone for their biggest sins. This symbolizes their spiritual journey back to God, having
been away from Him because of Sin. Indeed, grave sinners during this particular period of time have wandered off
into a place where God is and welcome them back to His loving embrace.
3
Cf. G.R. Evans, Faith in the Medieval World (Oxford: Lion Publishing, 2002), 134, and Lawrence G.
Lovasik, Church History: The Catholic Church through the Ages (New York: Catholic Book Publishing Co., 1990),
96.
Jerusalem, the main attraction of the Holy Land, were on the outpour during
the 11th Century. This was also considered by many Christian authorities as a
contamination of the Holy Land by the non-Christian people called Muslims.
As a response, Pope Urban II preached about the crusades at Council of
Clermont in Auvergne in 1095 and appealed to those who were present:
“Men of God, men chosen and blessed among all,
combine your forces! Take the road to the Holy Sepulchre
assured of the imperishable glory that awaits you in God’s
kingdom. Let each one deny himself and take the Cross!”4
It is very important to note that this particular plea, the first among the
Pope’s series of appeals that year, passionately inspired a great number of
Christians, whether peasant or rich, ordinary or powerful, to embark on
heroic journeys to rescue Jerusalem from these Muslims and these came to
be called Crusades.
This research work is an attempt to narrate the historical facts and
adventures of the crusades of the Middle Ages in a concise manner. Since
this is not a thorough scholarly work, the details of each crusade are reduced
to the bare essentials. Eight significant crusades will be tackled accordingly.
This text is arranged according to particular topics relevant to the basic
understanding of the Crusades.
6
Cf. Henri Daniel-Rops, Cathedral and Crusade, Vol. II, trans. by John Warrington (NY: Image Books,
1957), 188.
IV. CONCLUSION
Although many of the Crusades ended in relative disaster, they still
played a very significant role that could be described as providential. For
one, they revealed that Christians can truly be united, especially under the
guidance of able leaders such as Popes and Kings or Emperors who are
resolute enough to take back Jerusalem from the Muslims. Such unity
transcended the ordinary level in that a spiritual motivation was truly
involved in such Crusades. Second, these Crusades brought to the West
some of the most prized cultural achievements of the East, whether in
Science, Literature, or the Arts. Third, trade routes to the Orient were opened
up. Fourth, the Crusades unsurprisingly provided a venue for European
literature to flourish inasmuch as the Crusades invited many literary
enthusiasts to produce many accounts of the heroic adventures of those who
participated. Finally, the Crusades also gave some Religious institutions to
promote Christian missionary fervor into the Palestine area.
Hence, despite the failures of the Crusades, especially that of the
Fourth Crusade that severed diplomatic ties between the Eastern and the
Western Empires as well as Churches, they can be considered as among the
most stupendous feats of the Church during the medieval era.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
The New Encyclopedia Britannica. 15th ed., Vols. 3 and 16. Chicago:
Encylopedia Britannica, Inc., 1994.
Bradford, Ernle. The Sundered Cross: The Story of the Fourth Crusade. New
Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1967
Evans, G.R. Faith in the Medieval World. Oxford: Lion Publishing, 2002.
Frank, Isnard Wilhelm. A Concise History of The Mediaeval Church. NY: The
Continuum Publishing Company, 1995.
Guillemain, Bernard. The Early Middle Ages. Translated from the French by S.
Taylor. New York: Hawthorne Books, Inc., 1960.
Harkavy, Michael D., ed. The New Webster’s International Encyclopedia: The
New Illustrated Home Reference Guide. Florida: Trident Press
International, 1996.
Lovasik, Lawrence G. Church History: The Catholic Church through the Ages.
New York: Catholic Book Publishing Co., 1990.
Perry, Ray C., ed. A History of Christianity: Readings in the History of the
Early and Medieval Church. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1962.
Pirenne, Henri. A History of Europe. Vol. II. Translated by Bernard Miall. NY:
Doubleday Anchor Books, 1956.
Thomas, P.C. A Compact History of the Popes. Bangalore: The Bombay Saint
Paul Society, 1992.
Thomas, P.C. General Councils of the Church. Bangalore: Saint Paul Society,
1993.
1. First Crusade
First Crusade
2. Second Crusade
Second Crusade
3. Third Crusade
Third Crusade
4. Fourth Crusade
Zara
Fourth Crusade
During the
5. The Crusader States of the 12th Century establishment of the
Kingdom of
Jerusalem, after the
First Crusade, this is
a close
approximation of
how the Levant, or
the area that
spanned from
Palestine to Egypt
looked like in the 12th
Century.