Overview
In November 1095, at the Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II called on the knights of Western Europe to help the Christians of the East and free Jerusalem from Muslim rule. The response astonished contemporaries. Within four years a Latin army had crossed Anatolia, taken Antioch after a gruelling siege, and captured Jerusalem in July 1099 — founding the crusader states Key term · 1098–1291 Crusader states The four Latin Christian states created in the Levant after the First Crusade — the County of Edessa, the Principality of Antioch, the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the County of Tripoli. Why it matters They depended on a steady flow of reinforcements from Europe and on divisions among their Muslim neighbours. Their gradual loss, from Edessa in 1144 to Acre in 1291, drove further crusades. See in glossary → that would survive in some form for almost two centuries.
Key dates
- Mar 1095 Envoys of the Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos ask the pope for military help against the Seljuk Turks Key term · 11th–12th centuries Seljuk Turks A Turkic Sunni Muslim dynasty that conquered Persia, Iraq and much of Anatolia, defeating the Byzantines at Manzikert in 1071. Why it matters Their advance prompted the Byzantine appeal for help that led to the First Crusade — and their fragmentation after 1092 helped the crusaders succeed. See in glossary → .
- 27 Nov 1095 Urban II preaches the crusade at Clermont.
- 1096 The People’s Crusade Key term · 1096 People's Crusade A large, poorly organised wave of crusaders, many of them non-combatants, led by preachers such as Peter the Hermit, who set out before the main armies. Why it matters It was destroyed by the Seljuks in Anatolia in October 1096. It shows how Urban's call spread beyond the knightly class he intended — and how uncontrollable popular enthusiasm could be. See in glossary → sets out; crusaders attack Jewish communities in the Rhineland massacres Key term · 1096 Rhineland massacres Attacks on Jewish communities in towns such as Speyer, Worms and Mainz by crusading bands on their way east. Why it matters They show that crusading zeal could turn against "enemies of Christ" at home, and they began a long association between crusades and anti-Jewish violence in Europe. See in glossary → .
- Jun–Jul 1097 The main armies take Nicaea (handed to the Byzantines) and defeat the Seljuks at Dorylaeum.
- Oct 1097–Jun 1098 The siege of Antioch Key term · October 1097 – June 1098 Siege of Antioch The crusaders' eight-month siege of Antioch, followed by their own encirclement in the city by the army of Kerbogha of Mosul, whom they defeated on 28 June 1098. Why it matters The turning point of the crusade. Starvation and desertion nearly destroyed the army, while victory — helped by Kerbogha's divided coalition — opened the road to Jerusalem. See in glossary → ; the crusaders then defeat Kerbogha’s relief army.
- 15 Jul 1099 Jerusalem falls; its Muslim and Jewish inhabitants are massacred.
- Aug 1099 Victory over a Fatimid army at Ascalon secures the conquest.
Causes
The Byzantine appeal. After the Seljuk victory at Manzikert (1071) the Byzantine Empire lost most of Anatolia. Alexios I wanted Western mercenaries to help recover it — not a mass pilgrimage army with its own agenda.
Papal ambition. Urban II saw an opportunity to assert papal leadership of Christendom during the conflict with the German emperor, to heal the schism of 1054 with the Eastern Church, and to redirect knightly violence away from Europe — the “Peace of God” movement had already tried to limit it.
Religious motivation. Crusaders were offered spiritual rewards for an armed pilgrimage. The chronicler Fulcher of Chartres reported Urban’s promise:
All who die by the way, whether by land or by sea, or in battle against the pagans, shall have immediate remission of sins.
Why this quote matters
This is the promise of an indulgence — remission of the penalty for sins — for those who took the cross. It explains why nobles sold or mortgaged land to go: for many the crusade was an act of penance, not a business venture. Remember that Fulcher wrote after the crusade's success.
The crowd’s reported response, “Deus vult! — God wills it!” Quotation The crowd at Clermont as reported by Robert the Monk Why it matters The cry became the crusaders' battle slogan. Robert wrote around 1107, so his account is shaped by what the crusade became. , captures the religious enthusiasm the call released. The indulgence Key term · from 1095 Indulgence A grant by the Church remitting the penance due for sins. Urban II offered crusaders full remission for those who went to Jerusalem with pure motives. Why it matters It turned war into an act of penance, which helps explain the scale of the response to Urban's call — and later became a focus of criticism of the Church during the Reformation. See in glossary → , the prestige of pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and apocalyptic expectation all played a part.
Material motives? Older accounts stressed land-hungry younger sons. Historians now point out that crusading was ruinously expensive and that most crusaders who survived went home — which suggests material gain was secondary for most.
Why did it succeed?
- Muslim division. The Seljuk sultanate had fragmented after 1092, and the Sunni Seljuks and Shi’a Fatimids of Egypt were rivals. The Fatimids had themselves retaken Jerusalem from the Seljuks in 1098.
- Byzantine support. Guides, supplies and the recovery of Nicaea gave the expedition a foothold in Anatolia.
- Western military strengths. The charge of heavily armoured knights and the crusaders’ ability to fight as a coherent force when it mattered — at Dorylaeum and against Kerbogha.
- Religious conviction. Belief in divine support sustained morale through starvation at Antioch; the “discovery” of the Holy Lance there gave the army renewed confidence.
- Luck and timing. Kerbogha’s coalition fell apart in battle, and Egyptian reinforcements reached Jerusalem too late.
Consequences
- Four crusader states were established: Edessa, Antioch, Jerusalem and (by 1109) Tripoli.
- Relations with Byzantium soured when Bohemond kept Antioch instead of returning it to Alexios.
- The Rhineland massacres began a pattern of anti-Jewish violence associated with crusading.
- In the Islamic world the immediate impact was limited, but the loss of Jerusalem later became a rallying cry for the jihad Key term · 12th century (in this context) Jihad In Islam, "struggle" or "striving" in the path of God; in its military sense, war to defend or extend Muslim rule. Why it matters The call for jihad against the Franks was revived by Zengi, Nur al-Din and Saladin, uniting Syria and Egypt and leading to the recapture of Jerusalem in 1187. See in glossary → of Zengi, Nur al-Din and Saladin, who retook the city in 1187.
Historians’ debate
Runciman portrayed the crusades as a tragic episode that damaged Byzantium and poisoned relations between Christians and Muslims, ending with a famous condemnation of the whole movement as an act of intolerance.
Using charters that record how crusaders financed their journeys, Riley-Smith argued that most were driven by genuine piety and penitential zeal, not by the hope of land or loot.
Hillenbrand showed how Muslim writers experienced the crusades — at first as a local, Frankish problem — and how the idea of jihad against the Franks developed over the twelfth century.
Test yourself
Why did Alexios I ask the West for help, and why was he disappointed by what arrived? Reveal
He needed soldiers to recover Anatolia from the Seljuk Turks after Manzikert. He hoped for disciplined mercenaries under his command; instead came huge independent armies, including the disorderly People’s Crusade, whose leaders pursued their own goals — Bohemond kept Antioch for himself.
Give three reasons the First Crusade succeeded. Reveal
Divisions among the Muslim powers (the fragmented Seljuks and the rival Fatimids); Byzantine logistical support in Anatolia; and the crusaders’ religious conviction and military cohesion at key battles such as Dorylaeum and against Kerbogha at Antioch.
Why do historians doubt that most crusaders went for land and wealth? Reveal
Crusading was extremely expensive — many sold or mortgaged property to go — and most survivors returned home rather than settling in the East. Charters show crusaders describing their motives in religious terms.
Key terms
- Crusader states 1098–1291
-
The four Latin Christian states created in the Levant after the First Crusade — the County of Edessa, the Principality of Antioch, the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the County of Tripoli.
Significance: They depended on a steady flow of reinforcements from Europe and on divisions among their Muslim neighbours. Their gradual loss, from Edessa in 1144 to Acre in 1291, drove further crusades.
- Indulgence from 1095
-
A grant by the Church remitting the penance due for sins. Urban II offered crusaders full remission for those who went to Jerusalem with pure motives.
Significance: It turned war into an act of penance, which helps explain the scale of the response to Urban's call — and later became a focus of criticism of the Church during the Reformation.
- Jihad 12th century (in this context)
-
In Islam, "struggle" or "striving" in the path of God; in its military sense, war to defend or extend Muslim rule.
Significance: The call for jihad against the Franks was revived by Zengi, Nur al-Din and Saladin, uniting Syria and Egypt and leading to the recapture of Jerusalem in 1187.
- People's Crusade 1096
-
A large, poorly organised wave of crusaders, many of them non-combatants, led by preachers such as Peter the Hermit, who set out before the main armies.
Significance: It was destroyed by the Seljuks in Anatolia in October 1096. It shows how Urban's call spread beyond the knightly class he intended — and how uncontrollable popular enthusiasm could be.
- Rhineland massacres 1096
-
Attacks on Jewish communities in towns such as Speyer, Worms and Mainz by crusading bands on their way east.
Significance: They show that crusading zeal could turn against "enemies of Christ" at home, and they began a long association between crusades and anti-Jewish violence in Europe.
- Seljuk Turks 11th–12th centuries
-
A Turkic Sunni Muslim dynasty that conquered Persia, Iraq and much of Anatolia, defeating the Byzantines at Manzikert in 1071.
Significance: Their advance prompted the Byzantine appeal for help that led to the First Crusade — and their fragmentation after 1092 helped the crusaders succeed.
- Siege of Antioch October 1097 – June 1098
-
The crusaders' eight-month siege of Antioch, followed by their own encirclement in the city by the army of Kerbogha of Mosul, whom they defeated on 28 June 1098.
Significance: The turning point of the crusade. Starvation and desertion nearly destroyed the army, while victory — helped by Kerbogha's divided coalition — opened the road to Jerusalem.