The Crusades: Background, Causes, and Consequences

Introduction

The Crusades refer to a series of wars waged by Western European Christians to recapture the Holy Land from the Muslims from the end of the 11th century to the late 13th century. The Holy Land comprised present-day Palestine and especially the city of Jerusalem, considered holy by Christians as the site of Christ's crucifixion. The word "Crusade" itself can be traced to the cross made of cloth worn as a badge on the outer garments of campaign participants. Later, the term was broadened to include all military campaigns by Europeans against non-Christians. There were four major Crusades carried out by European Christian armies, although many more excursions against Muslims as well as other "unbelievers" during the Middle Ages have been termed "crusades" by some historians. This paper discusses the background, causes, and consequences of the Crusades, examines the First Crusade in detail, and takes a brief look at the subsequent crusades.

Background: Europe and the Rise of Islam

Following the death of Charlemagne, King of the Franks and Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, in 814 A.D., the Empire fell into steady decline. Christian Europe came under repeated attacks from the Magyars in the east and center and from the marauding Vikings in the north. Islam, which had been a growing power since the 7th century, posed an even bigger threat to Europe. Its forces had conquered North Africa, the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, and Spain by the 8th century. The Byzantine Empire, which had survived the fall of the Western Roman Empire to carry the torch of ancient Greco-Roman civilization and Christianity in the east, was also threatened by the forces of Islam.

In the 11th century A.D., however, Europe began to experience a revival in strength. A growing population was matched by a robust economy. The power and influence of the Church was consolidated following a reform movement that reversed the previous practice of kings appointing important clergy members. The growing population and economy meant that European traders needed access to the Mediterranean trade routes hitherto controlled by the Muslims. By the end of the 11th century, therefore, Western Europe had regained much of its confidence and was brimming with restless energy. Moreover, an increasing number of young men — sons of nobles in a feudal European society — were able and willing to embark on adventurous journeys. Religious feelings and secular economic interests were thus in alignment for forays to the East at this time.

The Seljuks were one of several Turkish tribes that had recently converted to Islam in the 11th century A.D. and had established their rule in Iran on the edges of the Byzantine Empire. When the Seljuks began making forays into the Anatolian peninsula (present-day Turkey), then part of the Byzantine Empire, Emperor Alexius felt greatly threatened. Due to the weakened state of his empire, he appealed to Pope Urban II for help to fight the "unbelievers." It is worth noting that there was little love lost between the Roman Catholic Church and the Byzantine Eastern Orthodox Church, which did not recognize the pope, used the Greek language rather than Latin, and had very different forms of art and architecture.

The Immediate Cause and Pope Urban II's Clermont Address

The appeal struck a responsive chord in the West. Tales of Muslim treatment of Christians in the East had already roused bitter hatred among Western Europeans. That hatred had been further reinforced by stories of mutilation and torture of Christians by Muslim warlords — most of which were exaggerations or outright lies — brought back by pilgrims who had traveled to Jerusalem. (Gore 1)

Pope Urban II had recently assumed a position of prominence in European politics following the papal reforms in the Church. The tales and the request for help by the Byzantine Emperor provided him with powerful ammunition to persuade the proud princes of Europe to give up their personal vendettas and unite to fight the Infidel. He decided to seize the opportunity to put a much more ambitious plan in motion: a "holy war" against the Muslims in order to regain the Holy Lands and the city of Jerusalem, which was under Muslim occupation in 1095.

No transcript of Pope Urban II's address at Clermont in 1095 exists. However, some of the monks present at the time later recorded what the pope had said, and slightly different versions of the speech now survive. The account of Urban's speech as reported by Robert the Monk of Rheims has been used in this paper. It has been reported that Urban addressed the gathering in his native French language in a highly effective and emotional manner. The speech was a clever mix of passionate exhortations to the religious convictions of the Christian gathering — offering them salvation in the hereafter — as well as the promise of material wealth.

The Franks were referred to as "the race beloved and chosen by God," and the Muslims were denounced in the strongest terms as "...an accursed race, a race wholly alienated from God, [that] has violently invaded the lands of those Christians." Urban went on to recount how the "unclean" Muslims had tortured and killed their fellow Christians, defiled and destroyed the churches of God, and dismembered the kingdom of the Greeks — a reference to the Byzantine Empire, considered an extension of ancient Greek culture in the East. (Robinson 312)

The Franks were then exhorted to avenge the wrongs perpetrated by the Muslims and to recover lands that rightfully belonged to the Christians. The Pope motivated the people by referring to the brave deeds and accomplishments of King Charlemagne, his son Louis, and other Frankish monarchs. Urban then expanded his appeal by raising the specter of the Holy Sepulchre, exhorting: "Let the holy Sepulcher of our Lord and Savior, which is possessed by the unclean nations, especially arouse you..." (Ibid. 313)

He reminded the faithful that love of family and children should not hinder them from a higher cause, quoting the Gospel: "He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me." In the same breath, he appealed to their material instincts by reminding the people that they lived in a land too limited for the growing population, while the Holy Land — with Jerusalem at the center of the earth — was a land that "floweth with milk and honey," waiting to be freed from the clutches of the infidels. The Pope advised the Christians to stop quarreling among themselves and to unite for a higher cause. He promised that all those who willingly undertook the journey to free the Holy Land would have their sins washed away and would be assured of "imperishable glory in the kingdom of heaven." It is notable that this concept of holy war is not very different from the concept of jihad in Islam, which also offers participants a place in heaven.

According to Robert the Monk, all those present agreed enthusiastically with Pope Urban and cried out in unison, "It is the will of God! It is the will of God!" The Pope asked them to make this their war cry in combat with the enemy.