The Fourth Crusade was initiated in 1202 by Pope Innocent III, with the intention of invading the Holy Land through Egypt. Pope Gregory VIII did not live to see the end of this crusade. This crusade is sometimes referred to as the King’s Crusade. Richard left the following year after establishing a truce with Saladin. However, due to an inadequate food and water supply, the crusade ended without the taking of Jerusalem. They defeated the Muslims near Arsuf and were in sight of Jerusalem. Pope Gregory VIII called for a crusade which was undertaken by King Richard I of England (Richard the Lionheart), Holy Roman Emporer Frederick I, and King Philip II of France. In 1187, Saladin, the Sultan of Egypt captured Jerusalem. By 1150, both leaders had returned to their countries without any result. French and German armies, under the Kings Louis VII and Conrad III respectively, marched to Jerusalem in 1147 but failed to accomplish any major successes. A new crusade was called for by various preachers, most notably by Bernard of Clairvaux. In 1099, they took Jerusalem by assault and created small crusader states which were the Kingdom of Jerusalem.Ĭan’t get enough of holy war? Check out The Crusades: The Authoritative History of the War for the Holy Land at ! 7The Second Crusade (1145-47)Īfter a period of relative peace in which Christians and Muslims co-existed in the Holy Land, Muslims conquered the town of Edessa.
Later that year, at the Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II called upon all Christians to join a war against the Turks, promising an indulgence for those who died in the service of the army.Ĭrusader armies managed to defeat two substantial Turkish forces at Dorylaeum and at Antioch, finally marching to Jerusalem with only a fraction of their original forces. In March 1095 at the Council of Piacenza, ambassadors sent by Byzantine emperor Alexius I called for help with defending his empire against the Seljuk Turks. Antioch succumbed in 1084, and by 1092 not one of the great metropolitan sees of Asia remained in the possession of the Christians. Asia Minor and all of Syria became the prey of the Turks. In 1070 Jerusalem was taken, and in 1071 Diogenes, the Greek emperor, was defeated and made captive at Mantzikert. In Jerusalem (the most popular site for pilgrimages in Medieval Europe) at the time, the Seljukian Turks were gaining power and Europe saw it as a threat to the safety of the Pilgrims and to Christendom. Some slight variations in start and end dates exist.Īt the time of the Crusades, Europe was divided into states whose rulers were involved in petty territorial disputes.
Further information on the Crusades can be found at Wikipedia, Encylopaedia Britanica, and the Catholic Encylopedia. There were additional crusades in later years but they were much smaller and had little effect, therefore they are not included here. This list explains the main eight crusades. Most people know about the Crusades but know very little about the cause and effect of them.