The Crusades: A Brief History

When we learn about the crusades we only focus on two, the first and the third. They are the most important, however, I was curious about the others. In this blog post I will briefly discuss all the crusades.

The First Crusade
The first Crusade (1095-1099), was called by Pope Urban II to reclaim the Holy Land from the Muslims. This Crusade was the most successful, and in the end Jerusalem was taken and the Kingdom of Jerusalem was established. Also, three other crusader states were established, Edessa, Antioch, and Tripoli.

The Second Crusade
The Second Crusade (1147-1149), was called to recover the city of Edessa, which had been lost in 1145. Two kings took up the call Louis VII of France and Conrad of the Holy Roman Empire. Unfortunately, the German army was decisively defeated by the Turks in Anatolia, and this defeat knocked them out of the crusade. When the French arrived in the Holy Land they decided to attack the city of Damascus. However, due to major losses they were unable to maintain an effective siege, and with a Muslim army marching to relieve the city, they left, ending the Crusade.

The Third Crusade
The Third Crusade (1188-1192), was called to take back the city of Jerusalem. Three kings answered the call, Frederick Barbarossa, Phillip II of France, and Richard the Lionheart. Frederick's army marched to the Holy Land over land. However, his army turned back in Anatolia when he drowned. Phillip and Richard traveled by sea. After taking back the port city of Acre, Phillip, due to his health, left for home. Richard then traveled down the coast being harassed and attacked by the Muslim leader Saladin. However, Richard's army was took weak to take back Jerusalem. therefore, Richard and Saladin signed a peace treaty. Although not able to take back Jerusalem the crusaders took back and defended the coastal cities.

The Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade (1202-1204) was called because of the failure of the third. The Crusader army gathered at Venice to purchase passage to the Holy Land. However, they were not able to pay for the passage. Therefore, the Venetians make a deal; the Crusaders would take Zama, a rebellious city on the Adriatic, and then they would take them to the Holy Land. Before, the fleet sailed Prince Alexius of the Byzantines showed up. He convinced the Crusaders to attack Constantinople, because Alexius's father was over thrown and replaced by his brother. The Crusaders, after defeating Zama, sailed to Constantinople. After a siege and assaults, the cities defences fell, leading to a sack of the city. The Fourth Crusade ended here, after the great wealth of Constantinople had been divided among the victors.

The Fifth Crusade
The Fifth Crusade (1213-1221) set out to take Egypt. Egypt was the main Muslim power in the area, therefore, to knock it out Jerusalem would be easier to take. The Crusader army landed on the Nile planning to march up it to take Cairo. The first city to take was Damietta, which was on the Nile blocking the route to Cairo. After a year of siege and unsuccessful attempts by the Muslims to defeat the Crusader army, the city was taken. Due to Crusader disunity and waiting for reinforcements the army did not move on Cairo immediately. This allowed the Muslims to build up strength. When the Crusader army finally moved marched on Cairo they were defeated. After this defeat a peace treaty was signed that restored all lands before the Crusade began and a eight year peace.

The Sixth Crusade
The Sixth Crusade (1228-1229) was Holy Roman Emperor's Frederick II crusade to make up for his failure to come to the aid of the crusaders in the Fifth Crusade. Frederick II due to his long history of backing down from the crusades, his conflicts with the Pope, and an outbreak of disease on his ships that delayed him, the Pope excommunicated him. Nevertheless Frederick sailed to the Holy Land. However, due to his excommunication many in the Holy Land did not help him and join his crusade. Therefore, Frederick could not launch an offensive. Fortunately, Muslim infighting created an opportunity for diplomacy. Frederick signed a peace treaty with the Sultan of Egypt, Al-Kamil. This treaty returned Jerusalem to the Christians and guaranteed a ten year peace. Frederick claimed the throne of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, but left the Holy Land because local Christian leaders did not recognized him as king.

The Seventh Crusade
The Seventh Crusade (1248-1254) was undertaken by King Louis XI of France. This last major Crusade resembled the fifth one. Louis planned to take Egypt, therefore, weakening the Muslim hold on Jerusalem. Like the Fifth Crusade, Louis marched down the Nile, taking Damietta, with relative ease. Louis continued the march to Cairo, attacking the Muslims at Mansourah. At first the battle went in favor of the Crusaders. However, a counterattack pushed the crusaders back to their camp. Due to a Muslim blockade and an outbreak of disease the Crusader army surrendered. King Louis was released when his ransom was paid.

The Eighth Crusade
The Eighth Crusade (1270) was another crusade taken by Louis XI of France. The plan was to take Tunisia and then march across north Africa to Egypt and the Holy Land. However, after beginning the siege of Tunis, Louis died. His brother succeeded him, and a peace treaty was signed.

The Ninth Crusade
The Ninth Crusade (1271-1272) was carried out by Prince Edward of England. Edward arriving too late to participate in the eighth crusade decided to sail for the Holy Land. After arriving he ended the siege of Acre. Unfortunately, word got to him that his father died and he had to return to England to be crowned king.

After the Ninth Crusade there were no more attempts to regain the Holy Land. The final Crusader city, Acre, fell in 1291 ending the Crusading era.

For more information about the Crusades
http://crusades.boisestate.edu/contents.shtml