What Were The Crusades Essay Research Paper

What Were The Crusades Essay, Research Paper

What Were The Crusades.

In the year 1095, Emperor Alexius beseeched Pope Urban II in Europe for aid against the invading forces of Seljuk Turks, who were pushing at the borders of the Byzantine Empire. Little did Alexius know, or anyone for that matter, that with the mailing of that letter, one of the greatest religious and military phenomena of the history of the world had just been sparked. In November of that year, in Clermont, France, Pope Urban II stood before a throng of European nobles and peasants, and asked for their aid in recapturing the Holy Land, the home land of Jesus Christ, the Land of the Holy Sepulchre. Despite numerous accounts and retellings both in books and documentaries, the details and true essence of the Crusades remains unknown by the masses. Many questions and controversies arise when the matter is deeply looked into: Why were these Holy Wars undertaken. Were they truly “Holy Wars.” Who made up the armies. What effects did the Crusades have upon the Europe and the world. Fortunately, when the matter is deeply researched many answers are discovered as well. The following is an attempt to answer the mysteries of one of the most glorious conquests and over-ambitious blunders of military history.

Why Were the Crusades Undertaken.

When Pope Urban II read the letter from Alexius, Emperor of Byzantine, a glorious vision of sorts came to the Pope, and he quickly acted and made plans for the First Crusade. At the Council of Clermont, Urban II stood before thousands and appealed to their religiousness with a Holy War to the lands of the Holy Sepulchre in the Middle East. There was little mention of the invasion of the Byzantine Empire by the Seljuk Turks, only word of a terrible army of blood-thirsty heathens. In addition to the liberation of the city of Jerusalem, Pope Urban II appealed to the material desires of the people as well, for a holy crusade would provide land to the conquering armies, which would bring an end to the constant land struggle that the growing population of European nobles seemed to be caught in the middle of. Another reason for the undertaking of a military campaign such as this, was the further expansion of the Western Catholic Church, and the possible reuniting of the Western and Eastern Churches under one authority, which of course, would be Pope Urban II and his successors. During the next five centuries of holy wars, the objectives of these crusades would be seriously questioned, and would be a major factor in the public response to them as well.

Who Fought In the Crusades.

The greater portion of the Armies of Christendom was made up of powerful nobles, their subsequent vassals, and the vassals’ knights. This was due largely in part to the fact that the Crusades were a volunteer military organization in which each man supplied his own weapons, armor, and a horse if he were the owner of one. During the first few crusades, especially the First Crusade, many peasants joined in the fight simply to escape the hardships of everyday life, which were going to kill them anyway. Lessons were soon learned, and in time all the elderly, women, and children were discouraged from taking part because they were burdensome to an army on the move and they also had to be constantly protected from enemy ambushes. They also hounded on the provisions which were always in desperate need by the battle-weary soldiers. With time many monastic clans that were dedicated to the protection of the numerous pilgrims traveling to the Holy Land came to power. These small, yet powerful bands of monk-knights, who only submitted to the Pope himself, were supported by the king in return for protection and activity in the Crusades. A few of the more famous and influential clans included the Templars, the Hospitallers, and the Tuetonics.

When and Where Did the Crusades Take Place.

There were countless crusades throughout the next centuries; some were big, some were small, some were successful, and some ended in terrible disaster. Everything was seen as a direct reflection of God’s view of the people at the time. There were eight major crusades during the next two hundred years. The First Crusade, 1095-1099, was actually made up of two dispatchments. The first, called the Peasant’s Crusade, was an unofficial army led by Peter the Hermit and Walter the Penniless, who left Europe in the spring of 1096 on their way to Constantinople. This roving army of peasants wreaked havoc all over the Balkans against anyone considered an enemy to Christianity, but later in autumn, the real army, the Barons’ Crusade, which was a mix of German and French forces leave Europe and matters come under control. The First Crusade is successful in capturing Jerusalem and setting up four Christian states, but much of the army returns home, leaving very few knights to defend the newest addition to Christendom.

Over the next forty years the Muslim armies retake much of the land lost in the First Crusade, and in 1146 St. Bernard and Pope Eugenius III preach for a second crusade to recapture the Christian States lost to the Muslims. The Second Crusade, 1147-1148, is another combination of French and German forces, but leaders did not especially get along. The German army was defeated in October, 1147, the French in January, 1148, and the crusade was later abandoned after forces were defe