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May 6, 2024 · Crusades, military expeditions, beginning in the late 11th century, that were organized by western European Christians in response to centuries of Muslim wars of expansion. The Crusades took place from 1095 until the 16th century, when the advent of Protestantism led to the decline of papal authority.
- How many Crusades were there, and when did they take place?There were at least eight Crusades. The First Crusade lasted from 1096 to 1099. The Second Crusade began in 1147 and ended in 1149. The Third Crusa...
- What was the purpose of the Crusades?The Crusades were organized by western European Christians after centuries of Muslim wars of expansion. Their primary objectives were to stop the e...
- Who were the leaders of the Crusades?The First Crusade was led by Raymond of Saint-Gilles, Godrey of Bouillon, Hugh of Vermandois, Bohemond of Otranto, and Robert of Flanders, and the...
- Were the Crusades successful?The First Crusade, called in response to a request for help from the Byzantine emperor Alexius Comnenus, was astonishingly successful. The Crusader...
- Were there lasting results from the Crusades?The Crusades slowed the advance of Islamic power and may have prevented western Europe from falling under Muslim suzerainty. The Crusader states ex...
Learn the origin, synonyms, and examples of the word crusader, which means a person who engages in a crusade or a social or political cause. Find out how crusader is used in different contexts, such as the medieval Christian expeditions to the Holy Land or the modern anti-corruption movement in Russia.
Bibliography. Crusades. 14th-century miniature of the Second Crusade battle from the Estoire d'Eracles. The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Christian Latin Church in the medieval period.
Oct 12, 2018 · The Crusades were a series of military campaigns organised by popes and Christian western powers to take Jerusalem and the Holy Land back from Muslim control and then defend those gains. There were eight major official crusades between 1095 and 1270, as well as many more unofficial ones.
- Mark Cartwright
- How did the Crusades affect Europe?The Crusades affected Europe in that great wealth was invested in these wars and many of the ruling class died in them. Military orders were create...
- What were the three main causes of the Crusades?The three main causes of the crusades were: The Byzantine emperors wanted military help from Europe, the Popes wanted more power and prestige, and...
- Who proclaimed the beginning of the Crusades?The beginning of the Crusades was proclaimed by Pope Urban II.
- European Armies
- The Crusader States
- The Military Orders
- The Byzantine Empire
- Muslim Armies - The Seljuk Turks
- The Fatimids
- The Ayyubids
- The Mamluks
- The Moors
- The Ottomans
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European armies throughout the Crusades were a mix of heavily armoured knights, light cavalry, bowmen, crossbowmen, slingers, and regular infantry armed with spears, swords, axes, maces and any other weapon of choice. Most knights swore allegiance to one particular leader and, as many Crusades were led by multiple nobles or even kings and emperors,...
The four Crusader States in the Middle East were the Principality of Antioch, the County of Edessa, the County of Tripoli, and the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Led by (in theory) the latter, the states raised their own armies based on feudal tenants, free men and mercenaries. Rulers often granted estates to nobles in return for a fixed quota of fighting m...
Initially formed to protect and offer medical care for pilgrims travelling through the Holy Land, the military orders such as the Knights Templar, Knights Hospitaller and Teutonic Knights soon established themselves as an invaluable military presence in the region. Knights of the military orders, who were recruited from across Europe and lived much...
By the 12th century CE the Byzantine Empire was in decline and its army reflected this situation by being mostly composed of mercenaries. Nevertheless, at the time of the First Crusade, the Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos (r. 1081-1118 CE) could muster an army of around 70,000 when required. In the early Crusades, the Empire did contribute to ...
Muslim armies generally followed a similar pattern of recruitment as European armies and were made up of an elite bodyguard (askars), feudal levies from such key cities as Mosul, Aleppo and Damascus, allied troops, volunteers and mercenaries. In the Muslim armies, there were units of cavalry, which could include mounted archers, and infantry armed ...
The Fatimid Caliphate (909-1171 CE) was based in Egypt and relied heavily on mercenary troops but their vast wealth ensured they could field very large armies of reasonably well-trained and well-equipped infantry which included contingents of Sudanese archers. Cavalry was usually composed of a mix of scimitar-wielding Arabs, Bedouins and Berbers. T...
The Ayyubid Dynasty (1171-1260 CE) was formed by the great Muslim leader Saladin, the Sultan of Egypt and Syria(r. 1174-1193 CE). Taking over the armies of the Fatimids, Saladin greatly increased efficiency and selected as his main elite force around 1,000 Kurdish warriors, the Mamluks, who had been trained since childhood and who had especially st...
As already noted, the Mamluks formed a vital part of Ayyubid armies and they became so expert at warfare that they overthrew their masters in the mid-13th century CE and formed the Mamluk Sultanate (1250-1517 CE). They employed mercenaries such as Bedouins, Turks, Armenians and Kurds in their armies which were so large that the Crusaders became ext...
The Moors who controlled most of the southern half of Iberia and faced the Crusaders of the Reconquista favoured hit and run tactics using lightly armed cavalry whose preferred weapons were the lance and javelin. Even infantry troops, typically the frontline of a unit, had throwing javelins while the rest were armed with long spears. Berbers carrie...
By the end of the 14th century CE, a new foe was identified as a legitimate target for a Crusade: the Ottoman Turks. The Ottomans had two elite units of note. The Janissary Guards were a corps of infantry archers formed from conscripted Christians who were given military training from childhood. Secondly, the elite sipahiswas a cavalry unit whose m...
Learn about the diverse and powerful armies that fought in the Crusades, from Christians and Muslims to Byzantines and military orders. Explore their weapons, tactics, logistics and strategies in the Middle East and beyond.
- Mark Cartwright
May 5, 2015 · From ‘Le Roman de Godefroi de Bouillon’, France, 1337. (Bibliothèque Nationale / Bridgeman Images) During the last four decades the Crusades have become one of the most dynamic areas of historical enquiry, which points to an increasing curiosity to understand and interpret these extraordinary events.
Crusades - Holy War, Kingdoms, Reconquista | Britannica. Home World History Wars, Battles & Armed Conflicts. Summarize This Article. The Crusader states. Crusader states of the 12th century. A successful surprise attack on the Egyptian relief army ensured the Crusaders’ occupation of Palestine.
