The First Crusade

The First Crusade

1095 Pope Urban II preaches the First Crusade*. Remember that "Reconquest" idea of the Pope's? Well, what with all that productivity and social organization, there is a surplus of the aggressive, fighting types just dying to make war on somebody, anybody. The Byzantine Empire* doesn't recognize the authority of Rome and it's being threatened by those nasty Turks who took Jerusalem* [see 1071]. That jealousy, (mentioned earlier) about the terrific cultural edge the Arabs have over the Christian West, really gnaws at the Europeans. So the time seems just right for a religious crusade to free the Holy Land* from those uppity infidels. Besides, think of the plunder!

1096 So all the bishops and priests everywhere start preaching the Crusade, but the most effective is a dirty, homely little runt who comes to be known as Peter the Hermit*. It isn't those fighting type knights that he attracts. Instead it's mostly the common people who flock by the thousands. Under a soldier of fortune called Walter the Penniless*, the People's Crusade* moves out of Cologne on the road to Constantinople. As usual, they pillage and burn their way through the Christian countries as they march to Constantinople. Fortunately for the surviving local Christians, the entire People's Crusade* is wiped out by the Turks just south of Constantinople.

1096 - Meanwhile, back in Europe, the real fighting types put together four great divisions of knightly armies. There's a French one from Lorraine under Godfrey de Bouillon* who starts first. He's followed closely to Constantinople by a bunch of Normans from southern Italy and Sicily under Bohemond of Taranto*. Immediately behind them comes the bunch from Provence in southern France under Count Raymond IV of Toulouse*. The fourth, and biggest bunch, comes in two parts. The smaller part is from Flanders (that place where they make all the cloth) under Count Robert II*. The larger part is made up of English, Normans and Bretons (northern France) under William the Conquerors.'s* son Duke Robert of Normandy*.

1097 - The combined force of around thirty-five thousand horse and foot soldiers march off to meet the Turks. By this time they're beginning to refer to these Turks as Saracens*. With considerable ups and downs they fight their way through Nicea, Antioch (Godfrey's younger brother Baldwin decides to take off on his own and takes Armenia, where he stays for a while as the prince of Edessa.)

1098 Meanwhile, back in Europe, a French monk, Robert Molesme*, leaves his own religious order (Benedictine) to set up a new one in a poor, marshy area of Burgundian forest called Citeaux. His order comes to be called Cistercians* The whole point is to set up abbeys 'far from the haunts of men' on marginal land. For such a difficult task they need more help and employ "lay" brothers who are permitted to sell their surplus. The relevance of this particular event is that it spreads the latest and best agricultural practices among the local populations. Another big step forward toward a productive economy.

1099 Back at the Crusades - Three years after they start, the remaining forces take Jerusalem*. There's considerable jockeying over which of the leaders gets to rule there, and finally Godfrey* gets the nod. He takes the title of "Advocate of the Holy Sepulchre." The two Roberts pack up their loot to go home

10 - and Raymond goes off in a huff to Syria to seek a kingdom of his own. Godfrey dies of typhoid fever and his brother Baldwin takes over, becoming king of Jerusalem*.