Thesis on "Crusades: Causes, Consequences, and Results Several Centuries"
Thesis 9 pages (2494 words) Sources: 4 Style: Chicago
[EXCERPT] . . . .
Crusades: Causes, Consequences, and ResultsSeveral centuries after they ended, the Crusades are remembered as wars that were fought and lost in the name of God. The efforts and means utilized and maintained to continue to wage a battle for more than one hundred years is memorable nonetheless. While we say that these wars were fought in the name of God, it is simply not that easy to define. The causes for the Crusades cannot be traced to an isolated event but rather several factors that operated together to create a climate of religious fervor to fight for the name of God. Power, piety, zeal, determination are words we can use to define some of the reasons that drove men to establish a war with another race of people, in which little was known. The Crusades are a story as much about the nature of man as they are the nature of politics and religion. The religious reasons led to social and economic ramifications that changed the political landscape forever. We see the Crusades as religious wars but a closer inspection reveals that they were fought for various reasons with Europe's political, social, and economic order was facing a positive turnaround in at the turn of the century. Expansion was prevalent and, as a result, the economy was improving greatly from the turmoil it had experienced in 900. While all of this sounds good and was good to a certain extent, things were still fragile. Strength and the power of the unknown paved the way for the crusades. Land, expansion, adventure, zeal, soldiers, and powerful papal leadership were the essential ingredients for crusading, which became "popular social movement" (Noble 416). No one could have imagined what the Crusades meant from the first to the las
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Perhaps the cause for the First Crusade could not be topped nor the same zeal for war captured in any wars or crusades following it. According to many critics, the Second Crusade accomplished very little as Conrad III and Louis VII were simply jealous of each other. In Noble's estimation, the one achievement from this crusade was "an accident" (Noble 1994, 416) when soldiers traveling by sea captured Lisbon, thus opening a new front which laid the foundation for the kingdom of Portugal. Here we see an example of unintended consequences working in favor of a bad event or choice. The Third Crusade was called for when Saladin conquered Jerusalem in 1187. This crusade, known as King Richard's "chivalrous episode" (Maurios 1937, 95), might be one of the most popular of the Crusades because of King Richard's notoriety. It should be recognized that the Third Crusade was the most "bloody and brutal" (Palmer 1976, 33) of the Crusades. Richard's gallant effort did not land him with the Holy Sepulcher, but it did give him a chance to display his courage. In addition, he was able to come to terms with Saladin and begin working toward a negotiation. Another interesting aspect of the Third Crusade is how it became known as the Kings' Crusade because King Richard formed alliances with King Philip and Frederick I. Jerusalem was not won, however, and all that was accomplished with this crusade was a passage into Jerusalem. Saladin allowed this, which says much about his tolerance and demeanor. With such a non-eventful ending to the Third Crusade, Innocent III called for another crusade when he was elected in 1198. He summoned help from preachers and military leaders and in just over a year, they produced "fifty galleys and 450 transports, a tribute to the awesome capabilities of the Venetian shipyards" (Noble 1994, 416). The great accomplishment of the Fourth Crusade was not capture of Jerusalem but Constantinople. This served to be the beginning of the end of the Byzantine Empire and "worsened the already tense relations between the Catholic and Orthodox churches" (417). In the later crusades, popes were determined to "take a more active role in planning Crusades, right down to setting objectives" (416). It became clear that no pope wanted to lose control like Innocent III did and it also became clear that the "liberation of Jerusalem required a solid base of operations in the eastern Mediterranean" (416).
Egypt became an object of attention in the Fifth and Sixth Crusade but a secure base was never established. The Seventh Crusade, lead by Louis IX has been classified as a failure. In 1291, the last crusader stronghold fell and that marked the end of an era.
The consequences of the Crusades seem to stand out far more than the causes of them. The First Crusade was considered a success in that the Holy Land was recovered and pilgrim routes became passable. This might be where the positive affects of the Crusades ends. Many critics agree that the Crusades were little more than vicious. Henry Smith claims that no other wars have been as destructive as the Crusades. He claims that on principles, morals, and politics, the Crusades "cannot be justified" (Smith 1909, 468). War was a "sacred duty" (468) and, as a result, the Crusades "encouraged the most horrible violences of fanaticism" (468). Politically, the Crusades were "hostile to the advancement of knowledge and liberty" (469). As a consequence, there was literally no improvement in the social conditions of the kingdoms. Smith asserts that the pope was the "only monarch who mixed politics with his piety" (469). The political changes that occurred in England cannot be attributed to the Crusades, in Smith's opinion, and the "great… READ MORE
Quoted Instructions for "Crusades: Causes, Consequences, and Results Several Centuries" Assignment:
The Crusades. What were the most significant causes and results of the Crusades? Consider religious, economic, and social factors in your analysis. What were the positive and the negative consequences of the Christian crusades, both in the Islamic Middle East and in the Christian West?
*Must use at least 5 footnotes.
*Please include outline.
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“Crusades: Causes, Consequences, and Results Several Centuries.” A1-TermPaper.com, 2009, https://www.a1-termpaper.com/topics/essay/crusades-causes-consequences-results/8383. Accessed 28 Sep 2024.
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