What Were The Causes And Consequences Of The Crusades

This crusade would grant remission of sin to those who undertook the crusade. Harris again remarks on the similarities, “The reaction in the papal curia when news arrived that Constantinople had fallen was much the same as it had been when Jerusalem had been lost to Saladin in 1187” (pg 195 2nd Edition). Pope Urban IV justifies this new crusade by saying that without Constantinople, the way to Jerusalem was blocked and any efforts to retake the Holy Land would fail. This call to crusade is similar to the one that launches the Third Crusade led by Richard Coeur de Lion to retake Jerusalem. However, here these parallels end. Unlike in the Third Crusade, Pope Urban IV's call for crusade fails and no armies are sent forth. At least none that could constitute a strict crusade due to a lack of promised remission of

Silk soon became an imperial monopoly, and through this way, the trade of luxury items became the Byzantine’s main source of income. The location of Constantinople also aided in military conquest and defence, for the empire’s naval headquarters were located along the shores, and had access to the Black Sea and Mediterranean. Because of the Empire’s location, all but overlapping the fallen Roman’s territory, the Byzantine Empire was greatly affected by these Roman’s past traditions and ways of life.

This was a bad scene when the Catholics were fighting against the Eastern Orthodox leading to the conquer of Byzantine, capital of Constantinople. This lead to the Turkish Muslims to advance towards Europe which resulted in the fall of Eastern Europe.

People say that the Byzantine Empire is compared to an accordion. Well, it is. Comparing all of the civilizations and empires we learned about, I find that the Byzantine has a history, where people living in that empire rise at on time and fall inconsiderably during another time. The Byzantine Empire is an empire ruled by Emperor Justantine, and Constantinople was the imperial capital of the Byzantine world until it was invaded by the Turks in 1453. Now, how does the imperial capital, Constantinople, Hagia Sophia, Justinian, and the Crusaders involve in the Byzantine Empire? I find that geography and the achievements of the Empire can be two strong reasoning’s on how and why we should study the Byzantine Empire.

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.

Following the decline of the Western Roman Empire in 476 CE, a new empire rose up in the ashes. This new empire, the Byzantine Empire, was a culmination of Western Roman cultures and tradition, yet, it also contains many distinctive features. Originating from the same empire, the two empires display similar cultural roots.

The Latin forces were away fighting near the Black Sea. When the Latins realized that Michael had taken control of Constantinople, they fled the area. This ended the period of Latin rule and restored the Byzantine Empire. he effect of the Latins on the Byzantine Empire, however, was devastating; it never fully recovered. Indeed, the plundering of Constantinople was so extensive that the resulting damage was only partially repaired even 50 years later. During the mid-500s, the bubonic plague attacks the Byzantine empire, weakening the empire’s military and economy.Justinian I dies in 565 CE. He leaves the Byzantine army scattered across the empire and the empire in serious financial trouble.The Slavs raid the Byzantine empire during the late 500s. In the late 500s and early 600s, the Lombards conquer Byzantine territory in northern Italy. The Avars attack Constantinople in 626 CE and are defeated. The Arabs attack Constantinople in 674 CE and 717 CE and are defeated both times.In 811 CE, the Bulgars crush the Byzantine army and kill the Byzantine empire.In 813 CE, the Bulgars lay siege on Constantinople but are defeated. During the 1100s, after the first Crusade, many Latins settle in the Byzantine Empire. Resentment between the Byzantines and Latins grows. During the 1100s, Venice gains control over many Byzantine trading routes. Resentment between the Byzantines and Latins grows. During the Fourth Crusade, crusaders (mostly Latins) and

Because Justinian has a different mindset on how to protect and construct cities, Justinian made a new Byzantine

One of their goals was to split churches permanent.They had destroyed Constantinople and they had destroyed their magnificent library and they

In his call at Clermont in 1095, Pope Urban II asked all fellow Christians to join in the aid of the Christians in the East that were then prone to Turkish attacks. Requesting that they all leave their lives and run to their aid, Pope Urban II explained how they would be doing all in the name of God. The Pope let all of the people know that they would all be greatly recompensed in following God's will and fighting for God and in doing so he further led the people to understand that any killing they would do would be forgiven since it was all to be in God's will. In addition, he insisted that if any were to die in this aid, they would all be

The fall of Constantinople in 1453 was one of the most influential events in history and marked the end of the Byzantine Empire. The main effect of the fall of Constantinople in 1453 was the downfall of the Byzantine Empire and the rise of the Ottoman Empire. The city was mainly populated by Christians and now has become an Islamic city. The capture of Constantinople stated the end of the Roman Empire, which lasted for about one thousand five hundred years. The invasion of the city of Constantinople and the end of the Byzantine Empire marked the end of the Middle Ages.

In addition to the horrors carried out by the Seljuk horde on Christians and their shrines, the Byzantines were also begging the pope to protect their empire from other Turkish tribes. Urban II's main incentive for answering this plea for help was not entirely contingent on the letter he received from the Holy Roman Emperor, but more so from the notion that the Eastern and Western sects of the church could be unified. Moreover, they might be fused under the Pope, granting him sovereignty over the entire Christian church. This Papal hope has been revealed to historians through, among other sources, the different accounts of his speech at Clermont. For example, Guibert of Nogent recalls the pope declaring: "And you ought, furthermore, to consider with the utmost deliberation, ..., that the Mother of churches should flourish anew to the worship of Christianity, whether perchance, [God] may not wish other regions of the East to be restored to the faith against the approaching time of the Antichrist" (Peters, Guibert of Nogent, 35). Unfortunately, the Holy Roman Emperor feared his throne was in jeopardy due to the large number of crusaders that arrived to drive out the Turks. He demanded that they press on towards the Holy Land, and for reasons that need not be discussed, strong ties with the Papacy were severed soon

After years of chaos and civil war, the the Byzantine throne was finally seized in 1081 and by Emperor Alexius I. Later in 1095, Alexius sent envoys to Pope Urban II asking for mercenary troops from the West to help confront the Turkish threat. In response to which, the Pope promptly called the Council of Clermont to take up arms to aid the Byzantines and recapture the Holy Land from Muslim control. Pope Urban’s plea was met with a tremendous response, both among the military elite as well as ordinary citizens. Thus With a battle cry of "God wills it!" the Crusades were

When Islam began to spread eastward into North Africa and Spain, Christians began to react. The Turkish Muslims were getting too close for comfort, so Christians decided to go on the defense. They were headed straight for the Byzantine Empire, and they did not want them to invade. They decided that they needed to stop the spread of Islam and take their lands back (Davis).

Alexius IV couldn't keep his promise to pay the Crusaders. Because of this promise the citizens of Constantinople was outraged with the decision. He was already despised because of he disrupted the peace of the city by bringing in an army. He raised the city taxes and tried any method to produce any money for the payment, but in the end he only gathered half of the payment. Although Alexius IV's payment went straight to the Venetians to pay off the debt the Crusaders still expected what they were promised. Once again the Crusaders became stranded and halted their goal as they waited for the other half of the money. The Crusaders prolonged their stay thinking they will be compensated soon, but Alexius IV had another reason to keep the Crusaders.