Intro to the Crusades

If I were to participate in any war before 1500, I would have to say that being a part of the crusades would probably be the most intriguing option for me. I think that the whole prospect of the crusades is a very interesting one, waging a holy war on a people for simply taking over one of your cities? That is a faith to reckon with. In 1076 the Muslims captured Jerusalem, which caused a bit of a rising with the predominately Christian Europe. Over a period of about 200 years there were a total of 8 DIFFERENT crusades. What could possibly be more intense than waging a holy war? Well you guessed it, and Medieval Europe carried it out, MULTIPLE holy wars.

Now, to be fair we need to look at this from the standpoint of the Muslims, because let’s face it, the world isn’t Christian. The Muslims equally wanted to maintain their hold on Jerusalem because surprisingly enough, it is a holy place for them as well. A high school history lesson might show, that interestingly, Muhammad had also been to this holy land, soo, that being said, both Muslims and Christians’ had a distinct reason for wanting this land to be theirs, and they were prepared to go to war about it…or, go to eight wars about it.

The most well known of the crusades, is perhaps the first. Fearing that the Muslims might get power hungry and invade his lands, one brave soldier stood up and asked the pope, pope Urban II for help. This man’s name was Alexius I of Constantinople. Now the pope spoke and asked for volunteers, the website history learning site UK quotes Urban II of having said, “Christians, hasten to help your brothers in the East, for they are being attacked. Arm for the rescue of Jerusalem under your captain Christ. Wear his cross as your badge. If you are killed your sins will be pardoned.[1]" This plea for help gathered many able bodied men to the cause. After taking out the Muslim defenses the Europeans eventually overtook them at Jerusalem. This was not without casualty however, many men died at the hands of the Muslims as well as to sickness. With the first of the eight wars down, there would be many more deaths to follow.


[1] The History Learning Site UK. “The First Crusade,” 2000-2009 historylearningsite.co.uk, http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/cru2.htm