The Crusades

Jerusalem captured by the Muslims

Jan 1, 1076

The most holy of holy places for Christians was successfully invaded by the Muslims and taken.

Preparing for the First Crusade

Nov 27, 1095

Pope Urban the 2nd was responsible for assisting Emperor Alexus of Constantinople, in launching the first crusade. He made one of the most influential speeches in the Middle Ages, calling on Christian the princes of Europe to go ona crusade to rescue the Holy Land from the Turks and Islamic men. The way Pope Urban the 2nd completed this was through giving a speech at the Council of Clermont in France and combining the ideas of making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and killing infidels.

The First Crusade

Feb 13, 1099

From a military point of view according to records of the first crusade, it was considered the most successful with documents describing the victory the Christians had over the Turkish and Muslim people.

The Second Crusade

Feb 13, 1147

In the year 1446 a city known as Edessa, the latin 'Bulwark' of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem, was taken by the Turks and as a result the entire population was either slaughtered or sold into slavery. This is what caused the second Crusade and triggered another bloody battle which was announced by Pope Eugene the 3rd.

The Third Crusade

Feb 13, 1189

The Third Crusade also known as the 'Kings Crusade' began in 1187 when 'Saladin' united the Moslems of Syria to carry out an attack against the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem, taking over the Holy City. And so began the Third Crusade, being led by Frederick the first Barbarossa of Germany, Philip the second Augustus of France and Richard the first, the Lionheart of England.

The Fourth Crusade

Feb 13, 1202

The man who began the fourth Crusade was the famous Pope, Innocent the Third who decided to revive the plans of Pope Urban the second and set out to once more unite the forces of Chistendom against Islam. Rather than taking Jerusalem from the Moslems, the Knights who had taken the vow instead took control of Constantinople.

The Fifth Crusade

Apr 13, 1213

The Fifth Crusade began when Pope innocent the third, issued the Papal Bull Quia maior in April 1213, calling for a new Crusade to recapture Jerusalem. The Crusade was led by Duke Leopold Vl of Austria, Andrew the second of Hungary and Frederick the Second Holy Roman Emperor. The Crusade had been set in the spring of 1217, but the Pope would not live to see the Crusade depart, and so the new Pope, Pope Honorius the Third took his place and was just as eager to see it succeed, but it did not.

The Sixth Crusade

Feb 13, 1228

Possibly one of the most Successful Crusades, lasting only one year. However, a first attempt to reach the Holy Land was foiled by an outbreak of fever amongst the crusaders, and Frederick was forced to turn back. Pope Gregory IX did not see this as a valid excuse, and when Frederick again set off in 1228, Once there he entered negotiations with Malik al-Kamil, Sultan of Egypt, and ruler of Jerusalem, and gained Jerusalem, Nazareth and Bethlehem, along with a corridor giving access to the sea.

The Seventh Crusade

Feb 13, 1248

This Crusade, led by Louis IX, a reaction to the loss of Jerusalem in 1244, to the Moslems. The crusade was aimed at Egypt, the main Muslim power in the area. Through March 1250 his army retreated under pressure, until the Egyptians were ready to attack. Finally, at the battle of 'Fariskur' in 6 April 1250, the Egyptians broke the French infantry. Louis was captured, and was eventually released after the payment of a ransom.

The Eighth Crusade

Feb 13, 1270

The last major crusade aimed at the Holy Land, and an failure that well symbolises the end of the crusades. After the crusade was over, the future Edward I of England arrived, and finding the crusade over, journeyed on himself to the Holy Land, where the powerful crusader fortress of Krak had just been captured by Baibars, where he campaigned until 1272, when the death of his father Henry III forced him to return to England. This era in the Holy Land ended in 1291, with the fall of Acre.