The First Crusades

Knights, soldiers and common folk embarked on one of the bloodiest excursions in the history of this world. After the crusading message spread throughout Western Europe, a much unpredicted reaction occurred amongst the inhabitants. Many were looking for something to upset the humdrum of their everyday lives. Others were tired of the unilateral rule and were seeking an escape from unyielding oppression. And yet others were looking for a little adventure and seeking an escape from the harsh weather of Europe. The crusaders were pursuing a common goal to obtain total control of Jerusalem which cost many their lives, the Christians, Jewish people and Muslims.

Before the Christians began their triumphant crusades, al-Hakim, referred also as Mad Hakim, decided to develop his own army and work separately from the other Islamic sects. His plans were filled with mayhem and bloodshed. He began his vicious attacks on Christians and Jewish people. Even though the Islamic people had control of the “Promise Land,” pilgrims from other religious sects, Christianity and Judaism were welcomed and treated respectfully before al-Hakim took control of Jerusalem. As a result of Hakim’s tyranny and other acts of Islamic aggression, the Islamic people were considered a formidable, pagan force, which needed to be put in their place or obliterated completely.

            Al-Hakim destroyed the church of the Resurrection, the Holy Sepulcher. Christians were being harassed and punished, under restraints and penalties for practicing their Christian religion. He sought to prove a point that the Islamic religion was by far the religion that required the most honor and respect. The Christians were all ordered to wear heavy wooden crosses so they could be readily identified. The Christians and Jewish people were not permitted to join the Islamic people in any of their ceremonies or public services such as the public baths. They were singled out and ridiculed. They were attacked when they traveled to Jerusalem by the Muslims.  

            The Byzantine emperor, Alexius, felt it was prudent to visit the Holy Land to meet with al-Hakim. A cup bearer was sent to retrieve Alexius who was found seated at the entrance to Jerusalem. Al-Hakim wanted Alexius to believe he had no evil intentions. Alexius read al-Hakim’s intentions loud and clear. The meeting went well between the two rulers. Al-Hakim agreed to lighten up concerning his treatment of Christians in exchange for the emperor’s invitation for him to visit freely the fine city of Constantinople. The two rulers drank into the wee hours of the morning as they laughed heartily about the wealth and power they have both amassed over their years of rule. Alexius left Jerusalem feeling he met his match. He was impressed with the ruler.

             

            Pope Urban II sought and desired to obtain an army of well-trained seasoned soldiers and knights to serve in the crusade. To a large degree what he got was everyman’s army, not only the talented knights and foot soldiers that served under warlords, but also an army equipped with poor and wretched but faithful people who wanted to fight for the cause. The ragged mix of common people, who decided to join forces with the soldiers and knights, were straggling behind. Some were walking and others were riding horses. Some of the wives and children tagged along behind the men. A few of the families had wagons that were pulled by horses. Some of the children were crying because they were hungry, tired and scared.

            There were also rogues and crazed men who were released from the depths of imprisonment to provide service. Some of the men were known robbers and murderers. Those seeking pilgrimage in the crusading efforts were promised salvation. The sewing of the cross on many of the warriors’ clothing served as a testament of their loyalty. They were promised to inherit an everlasting life. Only a few of the crusade leaders met Urban’s high expectations (Foss, 2011).

            The Christian armies were trained in various forms of warfare. The knights were a specialized smaller group who usually fought on horseback. They were dressed in light chain mail from head to toe. The knights fought with a lance, sword, axe, or mace, and they were protected by a large shield. The shields bore the brunt of their opponents’ attacks. Each knight was supported by a company of squires, pages, and grooms. They were also provided assistance by the Frank soldiers. Common folk usually took up the rear.

            The Church referred to the crusaders as military pilgrims. These courageous warriors were required to take vows and they were also rewarded with dispensation of protection for their property at home. Any legal proceedings against them were suspended or dropped entirely. Another incentive was the erasing of sin from their very beings no matter the severity of the infractions. Knights were especially attracted by the Get-Out-Of-Hell-Free cards allowing them to commit any sins throughout the rest of their lives without incurring liability in this or the next world. They were on an honorable mission.

            The Seljuk Turks told another story when it came to warfare abilities. The Turks fought as mounted archers. The older nations of the Mideast such as the Fatimids of Egypt, fought in the same manner as the Europeans. Mounted archers did not have a clear advantage when it came to face-to-face combat. The knights also did not have a clear advantage over the Turks. The knights were so weighted down by their equipment and protective gear that they ended up being slower than the Turks. The longer range of the European cross bows were an advantage for the Christian warriors but they were slower than the shorter bows of the Turks. On the open battlefield the Turks had the advantage. In close quarters, the Christian warriors had the advantage. Either group did not have complete advantage over their opponents.

             In the spring of 1096, after some time of living in a period of draught, the sky opened up rain poured down over the territory of France. The autumn harvest was bountiful due to finally receiving the rain needed for the crops that summer. This bounty served as a sign. Shortly after the Council of Clermont and Pope Urban made a plea for Christian armies to take over the “Promise Land,” there was a shower of meteorites that came down from the night sky. During the month of February of 1096, while the French king and his royal followers met to discuss the upcoming crusade, the moon in eclipse turned blood red.

            In March, an aurora borealis lit the evening sky with a spectacular light show. Many people visited the church in droves out of fear of such a sight. In August of the same year, the moon eclipsed again and later that year the winter moon was blocked to some degree by the blaze of a comet. All these were seen as signs of something bigger coming their way. Many Christians burned the cross on their flesh. They felt the heavens were speaking to them and beckoning them to do their part to save the Holy Land from the clutches of the Muslims (Foss, 2011).

            Large brigades of crusaders assembled and went their separate ways as they traveled to Constantinople. The first battalion to arrive in December of 1096 was from Lorraine, northern France and Germany, led by Godfrey de Bouillon. The second to  arrive  was  a   group of  Normans

from southern Italy, led by Duke Bohemond of Otranto and Count Tancred. A third group arrived from southern France under count Raymond of Toulouse. Another battalion included Frenchmen, Normans and Englishmen. They were under the leadership of the Duke Hugh de Vermandois, Robert Curthose of Normandy and Stephen of Blois. The last group arrived in May of 1097. Additional groups joined forces at various times.

Alexius I, the emperor of the Byzantine empire, permitted the Christian soldiers as they crossed the Bosphorus to enter his empire. The emperor pressed the Christians to release lands to him that were formerly part of the Byzantine Empire. The crusaders were not happy about the emperor’s request and felt uneasy about Alexius’ motives to join the crusade efforts. The Byzantine emperor hurried them across the straits to Asia before they could cause any trouble in his region. The crusaders had a reputation of being rowdy, careless and blood thirsty (Castleton, 2008).

            Emich, another commander, was a feudal lord and he had under his command knights of his own kind and he was joined in Germany by several companies of French, Burgundian, Flemish and English soldiers. His company was properly armed. Emich was extremely evil and desired immensely to spill the blood of as many as possible, being a ruthless killing machine and fulfilling the goal of Lucifer wanting to rid the planet of as many humans as possible. He was a Nephilim descendent who disguised himself as a handsome, tall and strong man. Women fell at his feet. He was known for his tyrannical way of life. He took whatever he wanted without consideration of others.

Emich claimed he was going to turn the other cheek and become more righteous. He referred to this change as his awakening and likened himself to Saul in the Bible. He managed to bring under his command almost twelve thousand Christian followers. He preached to his followers that killing a Jew will bring pardon for all their sins. Emich convinced many of this belief. When they reached the Holy Land, he would convince them that killing Muslims would ensure their entrance into heaven. Emich knew Pope Urban already set the stage for erasing all their sins by parti-cipating in the crusade.

            A trail did not actually exist across the better part of France. The terrain was rocky and consisted of a lot of hills and valleys. It was not easy going.

            The large formidable group of warriors led by Emich stopped at one of the Jewish communities in the Rhineland area. It was time to let loose and kill as many Jewish people as possible. A thousand Jewish people were killed or driven to take their own lives. In Worms, a massacre of Jewish people occurred again without remorse. It was a virtual blood bath, 800 Jewish people lost their lives at that location. The trail of blood continued in Speir, Cologne, and Prague as the crusaders continued their way to the Holy Land. The hatred of Jewish people ran rampant amongst the Christian people (Asbridge, 2010).

            Even with the direction of some capable and manipulating men, there was a lack of coordination, discipline, planning, collaborated commands and a mutual purpose. What occurred was a muddled and often riotous campaigns which amounted to a mixed matched group of Christian trouble makers for the most part. The mob of armed miss-matched soldiers and civilians crossed Europe. Along the way they pilfered supplies from the communities they invaded on the path to their final destination. They were sure that God held them in favor for carrying out their holy duties. Others had a different opinion on what they were doing and how they were carrying out what they thought was their divine purpose. Fights broke out between the travelers.

            They pushed further and further towards their goal, the “Promise Land.” Soon the crusaders surrounded Nicaea, a Greek city that fell prey to the Turks recently. Things looked bleak. The Turkish sultan did not want to lose his reign of such a valuable conquest. He sent his forces out to break up the siege. They approached with caution after learning about the stories of the multiple massacres. Both armies engaged in full warfare. It was not much of a fight because the inexperienced and incompetent group of Franks could not stand up to the fierceness of the Turks. Thousands were left for dead on the field and tens of thousands of the Franks were delivered to the slave markets.

            The second wave of crusaders was in route and soon arrived at Nicaea. These crusaders were more prepared. They sharpened their swords and made plans for the takeover. They were more level headed and competent than the first group of crusaders. The Turks shrugged when they saw the second group. Because they did not see the Christians as much of a threat, the Turks were completely taken off guard. They were surprised the second group arrived so quickly after the first group was annihilated. The Turks were tired and running out of arrows. Once the third group of crusaders arrived behind them to provide back up, the Turks were slaughtered and the ones who survived ran off confused and bewildered. The sultan ran for the hills leaving behind his servants, treasury and baggage train (Asbridge, 2010). 

            As a result of eliminating the enemy in Nicea, the Franks were able to march across Asia Minor. They reclaimed the lost territory of the Byzantines and traveled towards Syria. The group of knights, Frank soldiers and civilians were ecstatic about their new conquest. They felt God was really on their side and felt a new sense of enthusiasm. Things were really looking up for the group of miss-matched troops.

            The weather was cooperating and the terrain was becoming a little less difficult to travel. The temperatures were rising as they traveled south. The crusaders traveled along the Mediterranean Sea. The waves were lapping against the shore. They decided to put up camp near the sea. They fell asleep while listening to the sound of the sea. The Common Cuckoo’s, Black-Throated Divers, and Flamingoes were calling out to one another as they swam and flew across the weary travelers.

            A calm breeze cooled off the travelers as they were swept into a heavy slumber. Heavy breathing and light snores could be heard from the travelers. The sky was dark and was lit by many stars. Even the two men who were supposed to be watching over the settlement to protect them from possible intruders were enjoying a deep slumber. The entire group was able to sleep through the night and catch up on some needed slumber without being disturbed.           

            The next morning many of the Frank soldiers and knights were stirring. They started planning their next move as they traveled closer to their final destination, Jerusalem. Their next stop was going to be Antioch. Their plans involved the take over this location from the Islamic troops. They were having doubts about their capability of overpowering the Muslims.  They proved to be a cunning adversary.

            “I believe our army is not as strong as it needs to be,” said Sir Harold, one of the knights.

            “I think you are right,” replied Paul, one of the Frank army’s commanders.

            “We need to keep going,” said Sir Taylor, another knight. Sir Taylor and Sir Harold were talking earlier about how they survived the battles and are happy to still be fighting together. They were looking forward to their next adventure with bated anticipation.

            “The fortress at Antioch is probably going to be heavily guarded. Word has probably gotten out about the other defeats and they are waiting for us fully armed and manned. Our group took some heavy hits and we are not as fully equipped for battle as I would like,” said Sir Harold.

            “I believe with tenacity and planning we can take over Antioch, also,” replied Sir Taylor, another knight.

            Sir Harold sighed and gave into the others’ request and addressed the crowd to relay what their plans were as they proceeded closer to their final destination.

            “Listen everyone. We are soon going to enter enemy territory again. I say it’s their territory rather loosely, be-cause the territory we are about to enter belongs to the Christians. Our plan is to travel to Antioch. We plan on camping outside the gates of this fortress and study and learn about what type of force we are up against. It is in our best interest to not rush in without knowing what is behind the fortress walls. Our plan is to send in spies. The couple of Arab followers we managed to get to join our side are going to infiltrate the settlement and report back to us about how heavily armed our enemies are and where the weak areas are. There are always areas of a compound that are not as heavily guarded as others. We can attack where we feel we have more of a fighting chance. Does everybody agree with me that we need to play this out very discreetly and be ready for anything?”

            All the people listening to Sir Howard nodded their heads.

            “We need to do some hunting and gathering to prepare for our provisions before taking off on this next journey. Who is going to join me?” asked Sir Harold.

            Most of the men in attendance nodded in agree-ment.

            Wild game was not as readily available as they had hoped so they fished the waters of the Mediterranean. They speared Garfish, Red Gurnard and Blue Whiting. They didn’t know what the fish were called. The fish were different from the ones they were familiar with, but they were still delicious when cooked. They ate heartily to prepare for the journey. The leftover fish was stored in woven baskets covered with blankets. The women also picked pomegranates, cactus pears and persimmons and stored these in baskets.

            The plan was to continue to fish and pick fruit along the way to furnish themselves with the food they needed. They were going to travel alongside the Mediterranean Sea. They heard there were mountains and other treacherous terrain further north. 

            They discovered when they arrived at Antioch that there were not enough crusaders to completely surround the city of Antioch. As planned earlier, they camped outside the walls of the fortified city while they tried to figure out what their next course of action was going to be. One of the scouts reported the Muslims were sending an Islamic relief army to stop the crusaders’ siege. The commanders and knights knew they had to operate quickly. They were in luck. The scouts that were stationed inside the walls of the city paid off. That evening the Christian army sent a strike force to scale over the walls and get into the city fortress by a food storage building. That area was not being guarded. They were assisted by a Christian Armenian inhabitant of the city of Antioch. The Islamic guards were killed by the front gates and the gates to the city were opened to the waiting Christian army.

            The Turkish relief force arrived and discovered the crusaders were inside the city. They surrounded the city to conduct their own siege. The crusaders were about to give up hope when they discovered what they thought was the actual spearhead that was used to stab Jesus’ side at Calvary. It was hidden under the floor of one of the old churches. They looked at their discovery as a sign they needed to take over the city of Antioch for the Christians. They decided to fight the Turks with all their might.

            The crusaders lost a lot of their horses on the long march from the French territory to Antioch so they had to do most of their fighting on foot. The loss of their horses worked towards the Christian crusaders’ advantage. The European knights were trained to fight on horses and on foot. They were well prepared to take on the Turks while on foot which was unlike what the Muslims were trained to do. The Turks have never met such heavily armored foot soldiers. Without big warhorses to hit with arrows, the Turkish arrows did not make an impact on the heavily covered knights with their strong, durable armor. The crusaders had the Turks cornered and with the limited number of Islamic warriors, they were butchered in no time.

            The crusaders were under command of some very good leaders. Prince Bohemond of Taranto was one of them. He served as a practical commander for the weary team of warriors. Often with so many varied groups, the soldiers may or may not follow the commands of the leaders. The insubordination would cause some confusion, delays and loss of men. Prince Bohemond was able to get the attention of most of the crusaders and more often than not they would follow his commands. He was intelligent, authoritative and fair when it came to most circumstances. Because of his leadership Prince Bohemond was requested to stay at Antioch to rule the city.

            Count Raymond of Toulouse and Godfrey of Bouillon continued on with the most of the remaining crusaders. Some stayed behind to assist Prince Bohemond with the running of Antioch. The crusaders were led toward Jerusalem by Raymond and Godfrey.

            During the month of December in 1098 the crusaders took over the town of Ma’arra which finally occurred after a month long siege. They massacred approximately 20,000 Islamic captives. It was a virtual blood bath. After two years of marching and fighting, the crusaders were worn out and hungry. Most of the horses were lost. The countryside was bleak concerning food. Some of the hungriest did the unthinkable. They cooked some of the dead Muslims and feasted on their flesh. Cannibalism was a practice that occurred either during desperate times or sometimes it served as a symbolism of victory.

            Finally, they reached Jerusalem and it was taken over in July of 1099.  Approximately 70,000 people were killed in the streets, mostly the Islamic people. A lot of Christian people and Jewish people were murdered, also. A large number of Jewish people were barricaded in a synagogue. The building was set on fire and the Jewish people were burned inside. Their screams could be heard for miles. The crusaders walked through large pools of blood as they cruised the streets looking for more victims to slaughter.

            The war was finally won for the Christians, all in the name of God. Jerusalem finally fell under the leadership of the Christians. The atrocity of the crusades has left a dark stain on the Christians. The bloodthirsty Christian soldiers closed the gates to Jerusalem and murdered every person who was not a crusader in the city; Christians, Muslims and Jewish people. Every man, woman and child was killed mercilessly under the rationale that the blood of the infidels would cleanse the Holy City (Asbridge, 2010).