Early European History Part 85

THE MAIN CRUSADE

Meanwhile real armies were gathering in the West. Recruits came in greater numbers from France than from any other country, a circ.u.mstance which resulted in the crusaders being generally called "Franks" by their Moslem foes. They had no single commander, but each contingent set out for Constantinople by its own route and at its own time. [6]

LEADERS OF THE CRUSADE

The crusaders included among their leaders some of the most distinguished representatives of European knighthood. Count Raymond of Toulouse headed a band of volunteers from Provence in southern France. G.o.dfrey of Bouillon and his brother Baldwin commanded a force of French and Germans from the Rhinelands. Normandy sent Robert, William the Conqueror's eldest son. The Normans from Italy and Sicily were led by Bohemond, a son of Robert Guiscard, [7] and his nephew Tancred.

THE CRUSADERS IN ASIA MINOR AND SYRIA

Though the crusaders probably did not number more than fifty thousand fighting men, the disunion which prevailed among the Turks favored the success of their enterprise. With some a.s.sistance from the eastern emperor they captured Nicaea, overran Asia Minor, and at length reached Antioch, the key to northern Syria. The city fell after a siege of seven months, but the crusaders were scarcely within the walls before they found themselves besieged by a large Turkish army. The crusaders were now in a desperate plight: famine wasted their ranks; many soldiers deserted; and Alexius disappointed all hope of rescue. But the news of the discovery in an Antioch church of the Holy Lance which had pierced the Savior's side restored their drooping spirits. The whole army issued forth from the city, bearing the relic as a standard, and drove the Turks in headlong flight. This victory opened the road to Jerusalem.

[Ill.u.s.tration: "MOSQUE OF OMAR," JERUSALEM More correctly called the Dome of the Rock. It was erected in 691 A.D., but many restorations have taken place since that date. The walls enclosing the entire structure were built in the ninth century, and the dome is attributed to Saladin (1189 A.D.). This building, with its brilliant tiles covering the walls and its beautiful stained gla.s.s, is a fine example of Mohammedan architecture.]

CAPTURE OF JERUSALEM, 1099 A.D.

Reduced now to perhaps one-fourth of their original numbers, the crusaders advanced slowly to the city which formed the goal of all their efforts.

Before attacking it they marched barefoot in religious procession around the walls, with Peter the Hermit at their head. Then came the grand a.s.sault. G.o.dfrey of Bouillon and Tancred were among the first to mount the ramparts. Once inside the city, the crusaders ma.s.sacred their enemies without mercy. Afterwards, we are told, they went "rejoicing, nay for excess of joy weeping, to the tomb of our Savior to adore and give thanks."

171. CRUSADERS' STATES IN SYRIA

LATIN KINGDOM OF JERUSALEM

After the capture of Jerusalem the crusaders met to elect a king. Their choice fell upon G.o.dfrey of Bouillon. He refused to wear a crown of gold in the city where Christ had worn a crown of thorns and accepted, instead, the modest t.i.tle of "Protector of the Holy Sepulcher." [8] G.o.dfrey died the next year and his brother Baldwin, who succeeded him, being less scrupulous, was crowned king at Bethlehem. The new kingdom contained nearly a score of fiefs, whose lords made war, administered justice, and coined money, like independent rulers. The main features of European feudalism were thus transplanted to Asiatic soil.

OTHER CRUSADERS' STATES

The winning of Jerusalem and the district about it formed hardly more than a preliminary stage in the conquest of Syria. Much fighting was still necessary before the crusaders could establish themselves firmly in the country. Instead of founding one strong power in Syria, they split up their possessions into the three princ.i.p.alities of Tripoli, Antioch, and Edessa. These small states owed allegiance to the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem.

MILITARY-RELIGIOUS ORDERS

The ability of the crusaders' states to maintain themselves for many years in Syria was largely due to the foundation of two military-religious orders. The members were both monks and knights; that is, to the monastic vows of chast.i.ty, poverty, and obedience they added a fourth vow, which bound them to protect pilgrims and fight the infidels. Such a combination of religion and warfare made a strong appeal to the medieval mind.

HOSPITALERS AND TEMPLARS

The Hospitalers, the first of these orders, grew out of a brotherhood for the care of sick pilgrims in a hospital at Jerusalem. Many knights joined the organization, which soon proved to be very useful in defending the Holy Land. Even more important were the Templars, so called because their headquarters in Jerusalem lay near the site of Solomon's Temple. Both orders built many castles in Syria, the remains of which still impress the beholder. They established numerous branches in Europe and, by presents and legacies, acquired vast wealth. The Templars were disbanded in the fourteenth century, but the Hospitalers continued to fight valiantly against the Turks long after the close of the crusading movement. [9]

[Ill.u.s.tration: EFFIGY OF A KNIGHT TEMPLAR Temple Church, London. Shows the kind of armor worn between 1190 and 1225 A.D.]

CHRISTIAN AND INFIDEL IN THE HOLY LAND

The depleted ranks of the crusaders were constantly filled by fresh bands of pilgrim knights who visited Palestine to pray at the Holy Sepulcher and cross swords with the infidel. In spite of constant border warfare much trade and friendly intercourse prevailed between Christians and Moslems.

They learned to respect one another both as foes and neighbors. The crusaders' states in Syria became, like Spain [10] and Sicily, [11] a meeting-place of East and West.

172. SECOND CRUSADE, 1147-1149 A.D., AND THIRD CRUSADE, 1189-1192 A.D.

ORIGIN OF THE SECOND CRUSADE

The success of the Christians in the First Crusade had been largely due to the disunion among their enemies. But the Moslems learned in time the value of united action, and in 1144 A.D. succeeded in capturing Edessa, one of the princ.i.p.al Christian outposts in the East. The fall of the city, followed by the loss of the entire county of Edessa, aroused western Europe to the danger which threatened the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem and led to another crusading enterprise.

PREACHING OF ST. BERNARD

The apostle of the Second Crusade was the great abbot of Clairvaux, St.

Bernard. [12] Scenes of the wildest enthusiasm marked his preaching. When the churches were not large enough to hold the crowds which flocked to hear him, he spoke from platforms erected in the fields. St. Bernard's eloquence induced two monarchs, Louis VII of France and Conrad III of Germany, to take the blood-red cross of a crusader.

FAILURE OF THE SECOND CRUSADE

The Second Crusade, though begun under the most favorable auspices, had an unhappy ending. Of the great host that set out from Europe, only a few thousands escaped annihilation in Asia Minor at the hands of the Turks.

Louis and Conrad, with the remnants of their armies, made a joint attack on Damascus, but had to raise the siege after a few days. This closed the crusade. As a chronicler of the expedition remarked, "having practically accomplished nothing, the inglorious ones returned home."

SALADIN

Not many years after the Second Crusade, the Moslem world found in the famous Saladin a leader for a holy war against the Christians. Saladin in character was a typical Mohammedan, very devout in prayers and fasting, fiercely hostile toward unbelievers, and full of the pride of race. To these qualities he added a kindliness and humanity not surpa.s.sed, if equaled, by any of his Christian foes. He lives in eastern history and legend as the hero who stemmed once for all the tide of European conquest in Asia.

CAPTURE OF JERUSALEM BY SALADIN, 1187 A.D.

Having made himself sultan of Egypt, Saladin united the Moslems of Syria under his sway and then advanced against the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem.

The Christians met him in a great battle near the lake of Galilee. It ended in the rout of their army and the capture of their king. Even the Holy Cross, which they had carried in the midst of the fight, became the spoil of the conqueror. Saladin quickly reaped the fruits of victory. The Christian cities of Syria opened their gates to him, and at last Jerusalem itself surrendered after a short siege. Little now remained of the possessions which the crusaders had won in the East.

THIRD CRUSADE ORGANIZED, 1189 A.D.

The news of the taking of Jerusalem spread consternation throughout western Christendom. The cry for another crusade arose on all sides. Once more thousands of men sewed the cross in gold, or silk, or cloth upon their garments and set out for the Holy Land. When the three greatest rulers of Europe--Philip Augustus, [13] king of France, Richard I, king of England, and the German emperor, Frederick Barbarossa [14]--a.s.sumed the cross, it seemed that nothing could prevent the restoration of Christian supremacy in Syria.

DEATH OF FREDERICK BARBAROSSA, 1190 A.D.

The Germans under Frederick Barbarossa were the first to start. This great emperor was now nearly seventy years old, yet age had not lessened his crusading zeal. He took the overland route and after much hard fighting reached southern Asia Minor. Here, however, he was drowned, while trying to cross a swollen stream. Many of his discouraged followers at once returned to Germany; a few of them, however, pressed on and joined the other crusaders before the walls of Acre.

[Ill.u.s.tration: RICHARD I IN PRISON From an illuminated ma.n.u.script of the thirteenth century. King Richard on his return from the Holy Land was shipwrecked off the coast of the Adriatic. Attempting to travel through Austria in disguise, he was captured by the duke of Austria, whom he had offended at the siege of Acre. The king regained his liberty only by paying a ransom equivalent to more than twice the annual revenues of England.]

ACRE CAPTURED BY PHILIP AND RICHARD, 1191 A.D.

The expedition of the French and English achieved little. Philip and Richard, who came by sea, captured Acre after a hard siege, but their quarrels prevented them from following up this initial success. Philip soon went home, leaving the further conduct of the crusade in Richard's hands.

RICHARD IN THE HOLY LAND, 1191-1192 A.D.

The English king remained for fourteen months longer in the Holy Land. His campaigns during this time gained for him the t.i.tle of "Lion-hearted,"

[15] by which he is always known. He had many adventures and performed knightly exploits without number, but could not capture Jerusalem.

Tradition declares that when, during a truce, some crusaders went up to Jerusalem, Richard refused to accompany them, saying that he would not enter as a pilgrim the city which he could not rescue as a conqueror. He and Saladin finally concluded a treaty by the terms of which Christians were permitted to visit Jerusalem without paying tribute. Richard then set sail for England, and with his departure from the Holy Land the Third Crusade came to an end.

173. FOURTH CRUSADE AND THE LATIN EMPIRE OF CONSTANTINOPLE, 1202-1261 A.D.

INNOCENT III AND THE FOURTH CRUSADE

The real author of the Fourth Crusade was the famous pope, Innocent III.

[16] Young, enthusiastic, and ambitious for the glory of the Papacy, he revived the plans of Urban II and sought once more to unite the forces of Christendom against Islam. No emperor or king answered his summons, but a number of knights (chiefly French) took the crusader's vow.