How Did Pope Urban II Influence The First Crusade?

The Crusades were the first tactical mission by Western Christianity in order to recapture the Muslim conquered Holy Lands. Several people have been accredited with the launch of the crusades including Peter the Hermit however it is now understood that this responsibility rested primarily with Pope Urban II . The main goal of the Crusades was the results of an appeal from Alexius II, who had pleaded for Western Volunteers help with the prevention of any further invasions. The Pope’s actions are viewed as him answering the pleas of help of another in need, fulfilling his Christian right. However, from reading the documents it is apparent that Pope Urban had ulterior motives for encouraging engagement in the war against the Turks. The

On November 27, 1095, Pope Urban II gave a supposedly important speech at the end of a church meeting in Clermont, France. In it he had called upon the nobleness of the Franks, to go to the East and assist their Christian “brothers”, the Byzantines, against the attacks of the Muslim Turks. He also apparently encouraged them to liberate Jerusalem, the most sacred and holy city in Christendom, for the Muslims had ruled it since taking it from the Christian Byzantines in A.D. 638. The Crusades were a series of wars between Christians and others to take back Jerusalem.

According to Baldric's version of Pope Urban II's speech calling for holy war, the Pope's chief motive was to rescue or liberate Jerusalem from Muslim control, for the purpose of spreading Christianity (namely, Roman Catholicism.) Baldric wrote about the speech favorably, from a post-crusade perspective, biased by his support of the crusades and his knowledge of the victories achieved.

Going against modern day religious beliefs, in 1095AD the Christians went to war to claim the holy city of Jerusalem, massacring the Muslims in a bloody attempt to worship their God. Pope Urban II’s speech at Clermont inspired by claims made by the Byzantium Emperor encouraged the Christians to partake in the First Crusade in an attempt to liberate Jerusalem. The religious and economic factors were the most relevant to cause this crusade, with some influence from desired political gain and little from social factors unrelated to religion. The immediate consequences were positive for the Christians and negative for the Muslims, but the First Crusade launched an ongoing conflict between the Christians and Muslims which had positive and negative consequences for both sides. There are a number of relevant modern sources which examine the causes and consequences of the First Crusade, but, while there are many medieval sources, they do not explicitly discuss the causes and consequences of the war. In order to fully comprehend the First Crusade, it is necessary to analyse the religious, economic, and political factors, as well as the short-term, long-term, and modern consequences.

The First Crusades was a military group that was started by Christians in Europe who wanted to gain back the Holy Land that was being occupied by the Muslims. Pope Urban II preached a sermon at Clermont Ferrand on November 1095. Most histories consider this speech to be the spark the fueled a wave of military campaigns to gain back the Holy Land. This speech was meant to unite the Europeans and to gain back what was taken from them. The holy land was a small area on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. The First Crusades was a very successful military expedition that was driven by religious faith to reclaim Jerusalem and other holy places that fell under Muslim control. driven by religious faith. They wanted to gain back the Holy Land that was once theirs. Arabs and the Muslim Turks otherwise known as the Seljuk Turks were the Muslims that invaded and conquered land rightfully occupied by the Christian’s. Many European men, women, and children joined the Crusades and fought in the Middle East. Pope Urban II granted forgiveness of all sins to those who died in battle thus assuring them ascendancy into heaven. Which gave those who volunteered to fight assurance. Nobles and peasants responded in great numbers to the call and marched across Europe to the capital of the Byzantine empire. Having the support of the Byzantine emperor helped make them a stronger army. The Crusaders took over many of the cities on the Mediterranean coast and built a large number of fortified castles across the Holy Land to protect their newly established territories. Soon after seizing power the Seljuks face a very different challenge to Islamic civilization. It came from Christian Crusaders. Knights from western Europe who were determined to capture portions of the Islamic world that made up the holy land of biblical times. Muslim political division and element of surprise made the first of the Crusaders assaults, between 1096 and 1099, by far the most successful. Much of

Pope Urban II’s first argument to justify fighting Muslims is that the Christian people have a responsibility to their God to regain the Holy Land, Jerusalem. This justification can be seen in this quote “… the Lord, beseech you as Christ’s heralds to publish this everywhere and to persuade all people of whatever rank… to carry aid promptly to those Christians and to

The age leading up to the first crusade is detailed by many current historians, as well as Pope Urban II, as a time period where inhabitants "rage[d] against [their own] brothers and cut each other [to] pieces" (Peters, Baldric of Dol, 31) for economic and social advancement. In spite of these references, many people today believe that the Pope instigated the crusades for the sole reason of reclaiming Jerusalem. However, other motivations such as supplementary religious factors and the chance for economic, social, and political gain also played major roles. These motivations were not experienced supremely by the Pope; in fact he needed to instill these inspirations in all Christians to evoke their will to fight. The holy land had long

The primary target of the First Crusade (and the intended target of many more crusades), preached by Urban II at the Council of Clermont in 1095, was Jerusalem. In the version of this sermon by Robert the Monk, Urban urges those present to admire rulers who “have extended…the territory of the Holy Church”, and to “enter upon the road to the Holy Sepulchre; wrest that land from the wicked race, and subject it to yourselves. That land which as

In 1095 Pope Urban II traveled from northern Italy to France to preside over the council of Clermont. After Pope Urban II delivered his sermon, Pope Urban II called for the faithful to help the Christians in the East against the Turks, and free Jerusalem from Turkish rule. Therefore, this sermon has come to be known as Urban II’s Call to Crusade and the beginning of the first Holy War. Notably, in Pope Urban II’s sermon to entice people to help, they were offered spiritual rewards of forgiveness of their sins for those who joined the cause. In addition, historians have had to rely on several accounts that were written by men said to have been present at the Council of Clermont, and heard Pope Urban II’s deliver his sermon. However, there

Urban’s intentions were unclear. Urban wanted to contain all the power and not share it with the emperor. By gaining this land, it would benefit his campaign. Also, the First Crusade was not a defensive war. Muslims never threatened Urban or his people. In Urban’s speech, the language seemed defensive, but he was actually the aggressor. It was possible that Urban’s plan to take back Jerusalem was pure. He did not want Jerusalem to convert to muslim. He might have been trying to preserve christianity from falling through the cracks. Perhaps, Urban wanted to save the faith of God, and prevent Christians from being punished for their sins. As for Christians, their motivations were believed to be spiritual. They were convinced that they would be saved rather being damned to hell if they went to take back Jerusalem. This made Christians and Urban have a common goal of gaining back

One of the most violent and bloody conflicts in history were the religious wars known as the Crusades. These wars that lasted from 1096 to 1291 and each impacted civilization in their own way (History.com, 2010). After the Byzantine Empire was defeated by the Seljuk Turks, Emperor Alexius Comnenus wrote to Pope Urban II in attempt to gain military aid in his holy war (Schlager and Lauer, 2001). Urban II used this issue to unite some of the feuding European kings and nobles who were challenging his authority. He called for knights to go to the Holy Land to regain the Jesus’ tomb, the Holy Sepulcher, and to free the Christians from Muslim control during his speech in France, on November 27, 1095 (Schlager and Lauer, 2001).

Religion was one of the main reasons for the start of the First Crusade. Islam was growing and by the time of the late 11th century Islam occupied the areas of the Holy Land which were the foundations of Christian belief. Pope Urban 2nd made his speech November 1095 urging a military expedition to aid the Christians in the east. The Pope hoped that it would unify quarrelling in Europe and unite Europe through Christianity. The response that the Pope received was enormous. In the opinion of Jean Richard, who states that it was ‘problematic’ as it ‘set off shock waves that put

In 1095 the first crusade began, when thousands of Christians from Christendom responded to Pope Urban II's plea to go to war against Muslim forces in the Holy Land. Pope Urban II was responding to messengers sent by Byzantine Emperor Alexius I, stating that he needed troops to help defeat the Turkish threat. Urban II also wanted to use this opportunity to combine different parts of Europe and mend the relationship between Christian Europe and the Byzantine Empire. “Pope Urban’s plea met with a tremendous response, both among lower levels of the military elite as well as ordinary citizens; it was determined that those who joined the armed pilgrimage would wear a cross as a symbol of the Church.”

In 637, the Rashidun Caliphate had seized and subjugated Jerusalem whilst it was under the rule of the Byzantium Empire. Throughout the time between this and the conclusion of the 11th century, the Byzantium Empire had lost the majority of their land to the Seljuk Turks, therefore forcing Emperor Alexius I to implore for Pope Urban II assistance in regaining land. As the Pope ventilated numerous awards, both spiritually and physically, an abundance of his people accepted his offer without hesitation. Despite the fact that the wars had a façade of spiritual ethics, it masked the leader’s fears of the Turks overtaking their land.

Jerusalem is one of the oldest cities in the world. Located in between the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea, It is the main destination for those tourists that have a desire of getting a grasp of the Western East Countries, and for many, a unique religious experience. However, Jerusalem: also called the "Holy Land" has by its name a very controversial meaning: " The City of Peace". Once ago in this place, according to the Hebrew Bible (The Tanakh), the Temple of Solomon was built. According to the Muslim Bible (The Quran), also the location of the Dome of the Rock. From the Christian point of view and The Bible, It was once the place where the trial, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus took place. This series of religious events have brought up along with it a conflict in between Middle Eastern Countries for more than 50 years long with one main question on the plate: Who fairly and ethically deserves to live in the Holy Land?