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On March 13, 2017, the youtube channel Real Crusades History posted a video titled Top 5 Myths About the Crusades[1]. A link to this video can be found here:
. The channel Real Crusades History strives to approach the crusades from an unbiased angle and this video does a great job highlighting some misconceptions about the crusades widely held by contemporary society. One misconception concerns what motivated the crusaders to undertake their mission. This article will elaborate on the Real Crusades History’s verdict about the crusaders’ primary motive by examining the speech in which Pope Urban II called for the first crusade.
In order to understand the pope’s speech, it is important to know some historical context. In the year 1094 Emperor Alexius I Comnenus, ruler of Byzantium, called for aid from Pope Urban II against the Seljuk Turks. The Seljuk Turks formed a mighty Islamic Empire which at this time had control over nearly all of Asia Minor, including the Holy Land. The Seljuk Turks had gained much of this land including the Holy Land through a series of military conquests. In a Council held from November 18 to November 28 , 1095 in the city of Clermont, France, Pope Urban II answered the Byzantine emperor’s call. On November 27 Pope Urban II declared unequivocally the need for the Christian West to help their brothers in the East, calling for the first Crusade. Pope Urban II named Jerusalem as the main goal of the crusaders and told them to go forward to battle with the cry of ‘Deus Vult’ or ‘God wills it’. However, the question still remains, why would God will such a thing? Or more precisely, why did medieval Christians believe God would will such a thing?
Fortunately, Pope Urban II identifies in his speech, and quite eloquently at that, why exactly the first Crusade was God’s will. In his speech, of which there exist contemporaneous written reports, the pope explains the need for a Crusade. The response by the medieval Christian demonstrates that Pope Urban II’s reasonings resonated with his contemporaries. In his November 27, 1095 speech, according to the records made by Fulcher of Chartres and Robert the Monk, the pope laid out a vision of Christian brotherhood that required peace amongst Christians and a willingness to aid each other in both moral and material struggles. Specifically, the pope established a sort of list of duties that Christian Brothers owed to one another. Examining this vision of Christian Brotherhood and looking at what duties medieval Christians thought they owed each other makes apparent why so many were willing to go on the Crusade.
Continued below.
Why Did Christians Crusade?
In order to understand the pope’s speech, it is important to know some historical context. In the year 1094 Emperor Alexius I Comnenus, ruler of Byzantium, called for aid from Pope Urban II against the Seljuk Turks. The Seljuk Turks formed a mighty Islamic Empire which at this time had control over nearly all of Asia Minor, including the Holy Land. The Seljuk Turks had gained much of this land including the Holy Land through a series of military conquests. In a Council held from November 18 to November 28 , 1095 in the city of Clermont, France, Pope Urban II answered the Byzantine emperor’s call. On November 27 Pope Urban II declared unequivocally the need for the Christian West to help their brothers in the East, calling for the first Crusade. Pope Urban II named Jerusalem as the main goal of the crusaders and told them to go forward to battle with the cry of ‘Deus Vult’ or ‘God wills it’. However, the question still remains, why would God will such a thing? Or more precisely, why did medieval Christians believe God would will such a thing?
Fortunately, Pope Urban II identifies in his speech, and quite eloquently at that, why exactly the first Crusade was God’s will. In his speech, of which there exist contemporaneous written reports, the pope explains the need for a Crusade. The response by the medieval Christian demonstrates that Pope Urban II’s reasonings resonated with his contemporaries. In his November 27, 1095 speech, according to the records made by Fulcher of Chartres and Robert the Monk, the pope laid out a vision of Christian brotherhood that required peace amongst Christians and a willingness to aid each other in both moral and material struggles. Specifically, the pope established a sort of list of duties that Christian Brothers owed to one another. Examining this vision of Christian Brotherhood and looking at what duties medieval Christians thought they owed each other makes apparent why so many were willing to go on the Crusade.
Continued below.
Why Did Christians Crusade?
