Politics in the Crusades
The political shock of the Crusades affect everything from country ' relationships with one another to the creation of entirely new political states . During the First Crusade , Alexius I had involve all crusading generals to bank an cuss that any recovered solid ground be returned to the Byzantine Empire . But when Alexius I was discovered withdraw from the siege at Antioch , the Crusaders lost respect for the human being and were not disposed to satisfy their promise .
As a resultant , fourCrusader Stateswere formed to be ruled by the West : the realm of Jerusalem , the principality of Antioch , the county of Edessa , and the county of Tripoli . The new Crusader States lack strong leadership , however , and they were easily taken back by the Muslims .
In 1144 , the Crusader State Edessa was captured , which prompted a call for theSecond Crusade(1145 - 1148 ) . At this point , kings and monarch from the West began to get involve , which placed a political rake on what transpired during the Second Crusade . When Louis VII of France arrived in Antioch to prepare to take back the Holy Land , he felt the swayer of the Crusader States were undermine the holy purpose of the Crusades . There was some difficultness deciding what city to attack . The armies , meeting at Jerusalem , hesitantly decided to assail Damascus , even though its Muslim emperor was generally well-disposed with the Crusader States . Damascus was learn as a threat to Jerusalem because of its faithful propinquity . The beleaguering was a failure , however , as we ’ll see on the next page .
The Second Crusade also laid fundament for poor political relations between the Byzantine Empire and the West . The Byzantines were none too thrilled about the returning Crusaders , remembering their poor behavior during the First Crusade . The Saturnia pavonia had developed some pact with the Turks – a decision that made the West misgiving the Byzantines . Louis VII pick the unsuccessful person of the Second campaign on the Byzantines ' nonstarter to supply supply . This feeling regrettably provided the groundwork for the Fourth Crusade .
TheFourth Crusade(1202 - 1204 ) was political from the outset . The armies were to match in Venice , and then proceed to the Holy Land . However , when the French army arrive , it was much smaller than anticipate , which anger Venice . The French had contracted with Venice for ship and provision . But the pocket-sized army did n’t need that many supplies , nor could it afford them . The Venetians had already invested a great mountain in the French . To get its money ’s worth , the Venetians regularise that the French take the city of Zadar . The city of Zadar ( locate in today ’s Croatia ) was a Christian urban center , but it had been rebelling against Venetian rule . Pope Innocent III strongly disagree with this scheme , and many knights refused to take part , but Zadar was charm in 1202 .
After capturing Zadar , the Crusaders direct toward Constantinople , the capitol of the Byzantine Empire . They planned to take part in a plot to give the toilet to a new boy cite Alexius Angelus , son of Isaac II , who had been depone as Byzantine Emperor in 1195 . Alexius Angelus prognosticate to help the Crusaders take the Holy Land . dealings had eroded between the East and West , and the Crusaders were eager to win back their friend .
The Crusaders attacked Constantinople , setting flaming to a recess of the city , and set up Alexius Angelus as emperor . Alexius Angelus proved to be unpopular and was toppled in another coup . The Crusaders , furious that they had n’t gotten the aid they ’d been anticipate , saw this as yet another sign that the Byzantine Empire remain firm in their way . The Crusaders declared state of war on Constantinople , and jell about pillage the richest metropolis in Christendom . They sacked the city for three days , stain holy places , destroying and stealing valuable , raping charwoman , and cement the schism between East and West .
government played its most successful part in theSixth Crusade(1228 - 1229 ) , when Frederick II of Germany managed , through statecraft and negotiation , to secure Jerusalem for the Christians . This would last for ten year .
Next , we ’ll learn more about the campaign ' challenging siege war tactic . How were bricole , towers and moats used to round a walled city ? line up out on the next Thomas Nelson Page .
