At the beginning of the eleventh century, western Europe was deeply divided and rife with conflict and war between states. However, despite the animosity that existed between many of them, they were all connected by their Christian faith and obedience to the papal state. When Pope Urban II declared the First Crusade in 1095, it served as a rallying point for knights and lay people alike to prove their faith and fight for a common cause. There are few other instances of such religious fervor, devotion, and unity to be found among the kingdoms of Europe at this time. Over the course of the Four Crusades and the span of almost two centuries, the people of the West became involved in numerous conflicts with often bloody and violent endings. The …show more content…
When Pope Urban II declared the First Crusade at Clermont in 1095, he drew upon feelings of piety of those in the crowd, “calling on men from all over Christendom to come to the rescue of their fellow Christians in the east: ‘Undertake this journey for the remission of your sins, assured of the imperishable glory of the kingdom of heaven.’ (Keen 1991, pp. 117-118). Before any other motive, the crusaders believed that they were fighting because it was God’s will and they were fighting for the religion that they were so devoted to. Unlike military conflicts of this time, the call from the pope, the representative of God, to fight for religion drew enthusiasm from clergy and laity alike. The reaction of the crowds Clermont demonstrates how the idea of a war in defense of Christianity was alone able to draw widespread enthusiasm without the promise of material gain. It is unlikely that there would have been such enthusiasm unless there was a genuine desire among most crusaders to fight in defense of their religion and to follow the orders of the pope, and, by extension, God. Furthermore, during the eleventh century pilgrimages were very popular, so when Urban II first announced the crusade, the goal of capturing Jerusalem turned it into an armed pilgrimage in the minds of those who participated (Riley Smith 1986, pp. 22). Connecting the Crusade to the pilgrimage made the laity see it as an act of devotion which would please God and which was sanctioned by the pope. It also made it a very attractive option for those who wanted the opportunity to see the Holy Land, as they would have the protection of an army. The fact that the crusade would lead them to Jerusalem made it seem especially desirable and spiritually rewarding to people of all backgrounds, as it was such a significant
Alexius’ land including Jerusalem had been captured by Turks, and he wanted revenge. He asked for an elite force of knights to accompany his forces to recapture Jerusalem. 5) Offer THREE benefits a new Crusade had for the Christian church in the West. What does the video argue made it attractive to the Church, knights, families, and the
A Different Outlook on the Crusades Rodney Stark, author of the monograph God’s Battalions: The Case for the Crusades, displays a different approach than most of what he believes was the cause of the crusades. The monograph displays the events of the crusades in chronological order to get an accurate understanding of what happened and when. The question that Stark is researching is the true cause of the crusades. In his introduction, Stark explains the general view of what historians believed caused the crusades. He explains many different popular interpretations on how and why the crusades began.
Allen Cutler’s journal article delves in to the concept of military conflict and conversion to Christianity during the First Crusade. The author states that it was the intent of Pope Urban II who inherited his interest in crusading against Muslims from Pope Gregory VII, to Christianize Muslims, by words and example. There have been those who have argued Urban II had no interest in conversion, but Allen, counters their assumptions by presenting three document sources that imply that during Urban’s speech at Clermont he broached the subject of conversion, by referring to the Turks as “a race utterly alienated from God.” Allen surmises that Urban the implication is they were not “converted to Christianity” and therefore conversion was foremost on Pope Urban’s mind. The Pope also wanted to reinstall papal
The greatly needed stability for the Holy Roman Empire motivated the political leaders for the undertaking of the Christian Crusades. At this time the Holy Roman Empire was a poverish and the majority of the people who were in the middle and lower class were not able to live comfortably. In addition the government was not strong enough to advance let alone support the people. The fairly new feudalist government created a separation within the classes the made the lower class serfs, Middle class knight and the upper class lords and kings fight for mobility and power. In result of this violence and chaos erupted.
DBQ: Question: Were the Crusades caused primarily by religious devotion or by the desire for political and economic gain? Document Usage: Political (3, 6), Economic (3, 4, 6) Counter: Religious (1, 2, 5). The Middle East was the powerhouse of the world, and due to Rome collapsing Europe lost some of their power. Christians desired missionaries and more power, they noticed the wealth in Dar-Islam and wanted it for themselves.
Allan Cutler’s journal article “The First Crusade and the Idea of Conversion” is the first part of an ongoing compilation of tales regarding the First Crusade. Cutler’s grammar is excellent and his writing style is simplistic and easy for the reader to understand. The author list innumerable sources for such a short article, unfortunately, he does not provide much historical fact based data. Cutler continually makes assumptions about his premise and asks the reader to do the same. Cutler in trying to describe what he contends to be “One of the greatest moments in history.”
Whoever, therefore, shall determine upon this holy pilgrimage, and shall make his vow to God to that effect, and shall offer himself to him for sacrifice, as a living victim, holy and acceptable to God, shall wear the sign of the cross of the Lord on his forehead or on his chest”-Pope urban II (Directed at the Crusades) Pope Urban II was a famous pope who initiated the crusades in 1095. Urban II was the pope who influenced many European and French people to join him on his crusade to win back the Holy Land. This essay will prove why the pope changed Europe for the better and what impact he had on the crusades. Pope Urban II was born in 1035 in France.
The Crusades were a violent series of battles that Christians fought against Muslims in order to gain back the holy land, Jerusalem. The Christians felt threatened by the intimidating rule of the Islamic Empire, and their response was the first Crusade. These attacks continued and grew unsuccessful throughout many years, and are often due to the intense bond between Christians and God, however there are other influences, like wealth and power. Some argue also that the actions committed during these events were not necessarily “barbaric”, considering the historical time period. The Crusades should be remembered as a series of attacks with a variety of motives and influences that were violent and barbaric.
However, there is more support for the fact that these wars were driven by desire for political and economic gain in the long run. The religious parts were just to trick those who believed so strongly in their faith to fight so the large surviving army could bring back wealth and to impact the Silk Road trade in their favor. A document from a Christian Monk who had participated in the Crusade talks about people’s motivations to join the Crusades, stating, “for they bore the sign of the cross on their garments as a reminder that they should mortify the flesh and in the hope that they would in this way triumph over the enemies of the cross of Christ…” This line from the text shows how dedicated they were to fight against “Christ’s enemies”, which were the Jews and the Muslims, and how much they desired to claim the town of Jerusalem. Now, that was the original reason for those people to head out and serve.
The Crusades were a series of religious wars fought between Christians and Muslims in the Middle Ages, spanning over 200 years, that began in 1095 and lasted until the fall of Tripoli in 1291. The Crusades started as a direct result of Pope Urban ii's speech at Clermont in 1095, where, due to his religiously based outlook on life, he characterized Muslims as violent and immoral and depicted the Crusaders as righteous defenders of Christianity. Pope Urban ii's speech perfectly represents the European's attitude towards the Muslim groups they were attacking; however, these attitudes were modified to fit various other ethnic groups, such as Jewish and Eastern Christians. The Crusaders associated many Jewish groups with negative aspects such as
The Crusade Wars were holy quests to gain the Holy Land, Jerusalem. It is recognized as a series of religiously sanctioned military crusade wars in Europe. Christianity was the dominant religion of power and wealth. Pope Urban II, initiated the first crusade by responding to a request from the Emperor of Constantinople for military help. Those who took to the crusade would be released of their debts and paying taxes.
With the goal of reconquering the Holy Lands of the Middle East, many Western Europeans supported a series of military conquests called the Crusades. As seen in the documents the religious figures who supported the Crusades had an idealized vision of the unification and religious zeal the Crusades would bring to the Christian faith, but for many of the actual crusaders, the cause of the crusades was a hope for economic gain through pillage. Although one of the original causes of the Crusades, according to religious figures, was to support the Byzantines and perhaps reunify the Eastern and Western churches, they resulted in increased feelings of tension in the Christian churches and actually aided creating a closer connection between different
A series of religious conflicts known as the Crusades were started, encouraged, and occasionally even led by the Catholic Church. The initial argument began over who had control of the holy land but was escalated by Pope Urban ii, in his Speech at council of Clermont in 1095. Urban ii’s speech was to excite his followers to be prepared for the crusades and the destruction they may cause. He stood in front of them and gave his words of encouragement to them but had secretive intentions to motivate them to fight. His followers then listened to him and fought for their beliefs as Pope Urban ii suggested and amounted to an export of violence.
Pope Urban II’s speech at Clermont in 1095 was a call to crusade given outdoors to the nobles, commoners and church leaders of the Western European Christians (the Franks). The people were moved by this speech and it changed history, launching the first crusade to capture Jerusalem from the Muslim Turks. After hearing Pope Urban II’s speech, thousands of Western European Christians were moved to embark on the dangerous journey and fight in the crusade. I believe the main reasons they were moved and persuaded to fight was; 1) they felt it was their Christian duty, 2) Pope Urban promised them absolution for their sins and 3) they felt compelled to defend Christianity, their holy land and the Eastern Christians.
To protect Christ, they must unify together in the Holy War to liberate the Holy Land that has been invaded by the Turks. To persuade the people even more to join the crusades Urban announces that “They have killed and captured many, and have destroyed the churches and devastated the empire. If you permit them to continue thus for awhile with impurity, the faithful of God will be much more widely attacked by them”. Hearing how the Turks have burned down their churches, killed and captured their own people and have caused devastation to the empire was the striking call that pushed people to fight in the Holy War. Not only was their empire at stake but also the threat of their