Christians and the Crusades

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses Pope Urban II's call to Crusade and the altruistic or self-centered motivations Christians had for joining. The paper then shows how, although the objectives are in many ways reversed, the contemporary jihadist is similar to the medieval Christian Crusader.

From the Paper:

"Pope Urban II's call to Crusade at the Council of Clermont in 1095 was one of the seminal moments of medieval Christendom. Though recorded only after the fact by contemporaries, and known today only through fragments, the speech captured much of the ethos of the period, directed as it was toward social ideals as they were interpreted by each of the classes of society. Essentially, the Pope's address concerned a call to Christians to put aside their internal differences and come to the rescue of Christians and Christian sites in the Holy Land. Under continued assault from the Muslim Turks, the re-capture of the Holy Land, and its being made safe for Christian pilgrims, would represent a coming together of Europeans in the name of the highest ideals of the Church. Western Europeans of every rank and nationality responded enthusiastically to the Pontiff's appeal. Yet, their motives may not always have been wholly selfless or purely religious."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Irwin, Robert. "Muslim Responses to the Crusades." History Today Apr. 1997: 43+.
• James, Douglas. "Christians and the First Crusade: Douglas James Explain Why So Many in the Christian West Answered Urban II's Call to Arms Following the Council of Clermont in 1095." History Review (2005): 34+.
• Mastnak, Toma . Crusading Peace: Christendom, the Muslim World, and Western Political Order. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2002..
• Nicholson, Helen. The Knights Hospitaller. Woodbridge, England: Boydell Press, 2001.
• Riley-Smith, Jonathan, ed. The Oxford History of the Crusades. Oxford: Oxford University, 1999.

More papers on Christians and the Crusades:

• Term Paper # 96482 : "Islam and the Crusades"
• Book Review # 117835 : "The Crusades" by Hans Eberhard Mayer"
• Essay # 124879 : "The Crusades Through Arab Eyes"

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