Esther Cruz
History
101-02
October
24, 2013
Blog 3
The Crusades
The
Crusade was a time when the Catholic Church wanted to re-gain control,
authority, and power over provinces in the Middle East. The first Crusade began
in 1095. The Muslims denied pilgrims the right to visit the holy lands and the
Kingdom of Christendom wanted to free Eastern Christians from Islamic rule.
Four Armies of Crusaders were formed from troops of different Western European
regions. Raymond of Saint-Gilles, Godfrey of Buillon, Hugh of Vermandois, and
Bohemond of Taranto led this Crusade.
The armies of Christians from Western Europe responded to Pope Urban
II’s plea to go to war against Muslim forces in the Holy Land. The goal of the
First Crusade was achieved in 1099. Jerusalem was captured.
The
Second Crusade started when Europeans lost control of Edessa, territory that
they previously controlled, to the Muslims. King Louis VII of France and King
Conrad III of Germany led the Second Crusade. After Louis and Conrad managed to
assemble their armies at Jerusalem, they decided to attack the Syrian
stronghold Damascus with an army of 50,000. The Second Crusade ended when the
Crusaders defeated the Muslims.
The
Third Crusade began after the fall of Jerusalem in 1187 to Salah al-Din. The
Crusaders of Jerusalem attempted to capture Egypt many times. Nur-Al-Din’s
forces seized Cairo in 1169 and forced the Crusade army to evacuate. Richard
the Lion-hearted of England, Phillip II of France, and the Holy Roman emperor
Frederick Barbarossa led three great armies from Europe. Unfortunately
Frederick accidently drowned causing the other two kings to quarrel and the
whole crusade failed.
In
the end there were nine Crusades fought by European Christians against Muslims.
The first four crusades were the most important ones.
