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The Crusades – Guided Notes
Beginning of The Crusades
- Around 1050 AD the Seljuk Turk Empire who were Muslims invaded the Byzantine Empire
in Eastern Europe
- They took over the Holy Land of Palestine
- The Pope ordered Kings from all over Western Europe to go and take back the Holy Land
by force
Reasons for The Crusades
- The Pope saw it as a chance to increase his power
- Christians believed their sins would be forgiven if they fought in the Crusades and if they
died they would go directly to heaven
- Nobles hoped to gain wealth and land by participating and adventurers saw the Crusades
as a chance to travel and see the world
- Serfs hoped to escape feudal oppression by fighting
The Crusades
- There were 8 different Crusades in total
- These 8 Crusades took place over a course of 200 years - 1100 AD - 1300 AD
- The Christians won the 1st Crusade easily; they retook Jerusalem and set up a feudal
system to keep social order
- With Muslim forces now under the command of Saladin they march back to the Holy Land
and recapture it during the 2nd Crusade
- Saladin does not allow his troops to kill, harm or steal from defeated Christian Crusaders
- During the 3rd Crusade Richard The Lion-Hearted who was the King of England marches
the Christian troops back to fight
- The Christians win many battles but unable to capture the Holy Land
- A peace treaty is signed between Richard the Lion-Hearted and Saladin
- The treaty says that Muslims are in control of the Holy Land, but Christians may visit it
- This peace agreement will lead to the expansion of trade as Christians will bring back rare
goods and items to Europe
- It also leads to cultural diffusion as Muslims and Christians interact with one another in
the Holy Land
- Once both Saladin and Richard The Lion-Hearted die, the peace agreement dies with them
- Each of the next 5 is won by the Muslims
The Impact of The Crusades – Trade/Learning/The Church/End of Feudalism
- The Crusades left behind a legacy of religious hatred between Christians and Muslims
- Jews were targeted by both sides in the Crusades; sometimes entire Jewish communities
were wiped out
- There were some positive effects of the Crusades:
- Major increase in trade
- Christian Crusaders returning home from the Holy Land brought back new fabrics, spices,
perfumes and goods like sugar and cotton
- Even though bad blood remained between Christians and Muslims the trade routes stayed
open
- As Western Christians were introduced to Eastern European and Muslim culture they saw
the importance of education
- The Crusades led to changes in the Christian Church
- In Western Europe the Pope gained power
- However, the rift between Catholics in Western Europe and Orthodox Christians in Eastern
Europe grew wider
- The Crusades also led to the end of feudalism
- With the Pope and various Kings gaining more power during this fighting power became
much more centralized
- Also with the new increase in trade, money, not land became much more important
Summary
- The short term and long term effects of the Crusades:
- Religious hatred increased between Christians and Muslims
- Trade greatly increased during and following the Crusades
- Feudalism ended & cultural diffusion greatly increased