The Crusades

The Crusades

The 11th century brought good things to the Eastern

Mediterranean. There were generally no immense problems to deal with,

as everything was in a very tranquil state. The people who lived

there went with the flow, but what they did not know is that they

would soon be part of a turning point in religious history.

A large group of Christians formed a small military which was

called the Crusaders. They were out to recapture the Holy land from

the Muslims, and dedicated their lives to this. They were identified

by red cloth that was sewn on their garments in the form of a cross.

This indicated that they were the soldiers of Christ. Their name,

“The Crusaders” was derived from the Latin word crux meaning “cross,”

this then in turn was a reference to the biblical ruling that good

Christians always carry a cross.

The Crusaders existence was based on strong religious beliefs

more then any of the other minor reasons they were established. The

Crusaders also resurrected an older tradition of the pilgrimage to the

Holy Land, which was often imposed as a reconciliation of your-self.

They assumed two roles: pilgrims and soliders. Armed pilgrims would

normally not be accepted, but in this case they were, because they

were fighting for the Christian Holy Land. This made the “war”

justifiable in their eyes.

In the 7th century the Muslims took control of Jerusalem, and

in the 11th century they began to hassle and interfere with Christian

pilgrims and teaching in the Jerusalem area. To the Christians

Jerusalem was a heavenly city, the center of their existence and they

did not take lightly to being pushed out. The Popes encouragement,

religious indulgences, and promise of eternal merit provoked thousands

of Christians to enroll in this “holy” military to fight for the

cause.

The Crusades were also a response to the cries of help from the

Byzantine Empire, who was very worried about a gaining threat in the

form of the Seljuk Turks. In 1071 Jerusalem was taken and the

Byzantine army went down at Miniskirt to the Turks. This caused a bad

economic state for the west and the Crusades were a last stab at

extending trade routes and bring the Byzantine Empire to a status that

matched a rich and flourishing Italy.

Late in the year of 1095 Pope Urban announced on Tuesday,

November 27 that he would hold a public session to make an

announcement. This was the beginning of what was to be the First

Crusade. He thought that western Christendom should march to the

rescue of the East. Rich and poor alike should go and they should stop

murdering each other and instead fight a great war for what they

really believe in. They believed it was God’s will and that God would

lead them to victory. During his speech many interruptions took

place. People yelled and rallied behind Pope Urban and other crowd

members. Just after the Pope ended his speech the bishop of Le Puy

dropped to his knees and asked permission to join what was first

called the "Holy Expedition." The crowd quickly embraced him and many

followed with his example.

Each man involved with the expedition was to wear a cross in

symbolization

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