The Crusades

Crusades They were carried out by Christian political and religious leaders to take control of the Holy Land from the Muslims.

Key Events of Crusades Pope Urban’s speech (1095) – he was the first of several popes to summon the Christian West to the Crusades. Pope Urban’s speech (1095) – he was the first of several popes to summon the Christian West to the Crusades. The First Crusade was the most successful in that it actually accomplished what it set out to do - conquer Jerusalem from the Muslims. The First Crusade was the most successful in that it actually accomplished what it set out to do - conquer Jerusalem from the Muslims.

120Crusade

Christian knights captured Jerusalem in Christian knights captured Jerusalem in 1099.

Founding of Crusader States  In the aftermath of the First Crusade ( ), Europeans carved out 4 states in Palestine, on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea.  Many castles and fortresses were built to protect the states from Muslim forces.  However, the Muslims gradually recaptured the territory, and European presence in Palestine ended with the fall of the city of Acre in 1291.

Key Events of Crusades Loss of Jerusalem to Saladin (October2, 1187). Loss of Jerusalem to Saladin (October2, 1187). –The Muslim general captured the holy city. Muslims immediately clambered up and removed the cross that the Crusaders had mounted on the cupola of the Dome of the Rock. Muslims immediately clambered up and removed the cross that the Crusaders had mounted on the cupola of the Dome of the Rock. –According to an eyewitness, the combined roar of the Muslims shouting "Allah is greatest!" and the groans of the defeated Crusaders, watching the fall of their sacred symbol, was so loud it shook the ground.

Key Events of Crusades ► The Sack of Constantinople by the Crusaders (4 th crusade).   Probably the most telling event which displayed the decline of the crusader ideal was the capture and pillage of the Christian bastion of Constantinople by the members of the Fourth Crusade in 1204.

Effects of Crusades Weakened the Pope and nobles; strengthened monarchs. Stimulated trade throughout the Mediterranean area and the Middle East. Left a legacy of bitterness among Christians, Jews, and Muslims. Weakened the Byzantine Empire.

Ottoman Invasions of Europe and the Byzantine Empire.   The Fall of Constantinople was the conquest of that Greek city by the Ottoman Turks under the command of Sultan Mehmed II in   This event marked the final destruction of the Eastern Roman Empire (the Byzantine Empire), and the death of the last Roman emperor.   Constantinople became the capital of the Ottoman Empire and was renamed Istanbul.

The Mongol Invasion In the 1200s, powerful Mongol armies invaded Russia, China, and Muslim states in Southeast Asia, destroying cities and countryside. The Mongol Empire, although short-lived, was one of the largest and most powerful empires ever on the face of the Earth. Genghis Khan was a Mongol Khan and military leader who unified the Mongol tribes and then founded the Mongol Empire through conquest, pillage, and destruction.

Genghis Khan "The greatest happiness is to vanquish your enemies, to chase them before you, to rob them of their wealth, to see those dear to them bathed in tears, to clasp to your bosom their wives and daughters." -GENGHIS KHAN