The Third Crusade The One We All Remember

The Third Crusade The One We All Remember

1183 The Moslems have this new leader, Saladin*, as Sultan of Egypt and Syria. He tricks the Christians into breaking the truce which provides him with a good excuse to push the Christians out of Palestine. He does a pretty good job. Taking the fortress cities, one by one,

he 1187 finally captures Jerusalem.* He turns out to be a lot more chivalrous than his opponents. As the Christian knights come into more and more contact with Saladin,* the European notion of Chivalry develops. Nobody in Europe needs to be told that it is time for the Third Crusade*. When the news of the fall of Jerusalem* reaches Europe everybody starts getting ready to move again.

1189 Richard I* (the Lionheart) comes to the English throne, takes all the cash he can lay his hands on, and heads off for the Crusade leaving his brother John* in charge at home. [This is the time of all that "Robin Hood" stuff.]

1190 Everybody starts off for the Third Crusade*, Richard* leading the English (and knights from all his French possessions), Philip* leading the rest of the French, and Frederick (who drowns on the way and his army disappears) leading the German forces.

The Feast of the Boy Bishop - (the Feast of the Holy Innocents, December 28) is another festival given over, in this case, to the choir boys. It includes activities similar to the Feast of Fools.

1190's - The Feast of Fools (the Feast of the Circumcision, January 1, or 6, or 13) is one of the feast days given over to some of the lesser clergy, in this case to the subdeacons. The clergy use the occasion to ridicule their superiors and the routine of church life. It is an opportunity for comedy and farce and no doubt makes use of earlier pagan practices. The Festival is presided over by a "bishop fool" who has ecclesiastical authority during the festival. Sometimes plays are staged as part of the festivities and they also are comic.

1191 The crusaders take back Acre* and Philip* goes home sick, leaving Richard* in charge of the whole shooting match. It's now a contest between Richard* and Saladin* and neither one wins.

1192 The stalemate ends in a five year truce and Saladin* still in firm possession of Jerusalem*. So much for that Crusade. On his way home Richard* is taken hostage by Duke Leopold of Austria* and held for ransom for two years. Leading, of course, to the familiar tales of Robin Hood, etc.

1194 The Scandinavian mythology collection Elder Edda* appears. 1194 - At Regensburg on the Danube there is a performance of a Prophet Play*. 1197 A Cistercian* abbot named Berthold* is invested as Bishop of Livonia (Latvia). When

he is unable to convert the pagan population he goes back to Germany and recruits a crusader army.

1198 Pope Innocent III* becomes the new Pope and speaks of the need for a Holy War. The Teutonic Knights*, (who seem to share that Roman military "Divine Missionary" attitude, at least their dominant motive is redemption through battle) are founded by the German Crusaders to the Holy Land. Their headquarters is in Palestine at Acre. Like other military orders, they grow rapidly in power, wealth and prestige. They have the patronage of the Holy Roman Emperor (who is also German) and the Pope. They get land in Italy, Greece, Germany and Palestine from the Emperor and privileges from the Pope.

Meanwhile, in northeastern Europe (Latvia, actually,) the Livonian Bishop, Albert of Buxtehude, gets a papal OK to have a crusade of his own, up in his part of Eastern Europe, against the pagan Livs. That doesn't work too well because the crusaders come just for the summer and go home in the winter.

19 On the death of Richard*, John Lackland* becomes king of England. The Pope's representatives are preaching a Holy War. That busy fair district of Champagne is holding a jousting tourney when the Holy War is preached as part of the event. All the knights at the jousting think this Holy War business is just the thing, so they join up and the word spreads.

late 1100's - We find La Seinte Resurrection, an Anglo-Norman play