hst230_handout_crusaders_in_lebanon_part_i

1 LAU‐HST 230 History of Lebanon Antique and Medieval Dr. Ray Mouawad Handout: The Crusaders in Lebanon 12‐13 th century, part one Handout: The Crusaders in Lebanon 12‐13 th century, part one I. THE CRUSADES What are the Crusades? The Crusades were a series of religiously sanctioned military campaigns, originally defensive in nature, waged by much of Roman Catholic Europe, particularly the Franks of France and the Holy Roman Empire. The crusades that were aiming specifically to restore Christian control over the Holy Land were fought over a period of nearly 200 years, between 1095 and 1291. The Crusades originally had the goal of recapturing Jerusalem and the Holy Land from Muslim rule, and their campaigns were launched in response to a call for help from the Christian Byzantine Empire against the expansion of the Muslim Seljuk Turks into Anatolia. The Crusades had far‐reaching political, economic, and social impacts, some of which lasted until today. Because of internal conflicts among Christian kingdoms and political powers, some of the crusades’ expeditions were diverted from their original aim, such as the Fourth Crusade, which resulted in the sack of Christian Constantinople and the partition of the Byzantine Empire between Venice and the Crusaders. The Sixth Crusade was the first crusade to set sail without the official blessing of the Pope. The Seventh, Eighth and Ninth Crusades resulted in Mamluk and Hafsid victories, as the Ninth Crusade marked the end of the Crusades in the Middle East. The Holy Land The Holy Land is significant in Christianity because of the land's association as the place of nativity, ministry, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth, whom Christians regard as the Savior or Messiah. By the end of the 4th century, following the Roman Emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity (312) and later the founding of the Byzantine Empire after the partition of the Roman Empire, the Holy Land had become a predominantly Christian region. Churches commemorating various events in the life of Jesus had been erected at key sites. In Islam, Jerusalem hold also a particular significance as it holds it to be the site of the ascension into heaven of the prophet Muhammad whom Muslims believe to be the foremost prophet of Allah and Jerusalem is often regarded as the third most sacred site in Islam. The Muslim presence in the Holy Land began with the initial Muslim conquest of Syria in the 7th century under the Rashidun Caliphs. The Muslim armies' successes put increasing pressure on the Eastern Orthodox Byzantine Empire which had originally claimed the region (part of the Eastern Roman Empire which the Byzantines inherited) as their territory – this included eventual incursions by the Seljuk Turks in the eleventh century. Causes of the Crusades Another factor that contributed to the change in Western attitudes towards the East came in the year 1009, when the Fatimid Caliph al‐Hakim bi‐Amr Allah ordered the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. In 1039 his successor, after requiring large sums, permitted the Byzantine Empire to rebuild

hst230_handout_crusaders_in_lebanon_part_i

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