Third Crusade
To what extend did the European leaders recapture the holy land from Saladin in the third crusade?
Forty years after the failure of the Second Crusade, Richard I of England, Philip II of France and Barbarossa leader of Germany all ended their conflicts to assist the Third Crusade (1189-1192). Saladin, who captured Jerusalem in 1187, had unified Syria and Egypt in the past, making him a very powerful adversary and an excellent military leader. Losing the Holy Land was too shameful for Christendom, so with the Pope 's blessing, dozens of thousands of men marched toward Jerusalem under the three great kings.
Saladin preferred to defend the city without bloodshed and offered generous terms, but the citizens inside refused to leave their holy city, vowing to destroy it in a fight to the death rather than see it handed over peacefully. Thus the siege began.
Three reasons are primarily given for the beginning of the Crusades: to free Jerusalem and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; to aid the suffering Christians of the East, thereby healing the rift between Roman and Orthodox Christianity following the Schism of 1054; and to marshal the energy of the constantly warring feudal lords and knights into the one cause of "penitential warfare." 1
Barbarossa responded instantly to the Crusade and recruited 15,000 men. His army was so huge that he couldn 't cross through the Mediterranean Sea, so he had to march by Land crossing through the Bosporus into Asia Minor. The German army had great success, even capturing Iconium, the Sultanate of Rum 's capital. Unfortunately, Barbarossa himself was thrown from his horse and drowned due to his heavy armour. Most of his army went home, except for a small portion which, commanded by Barbarossa’s son, marched to Antioch only to be further reduced by fever.
England 's King Richard I (the Lion-hearted) arrived in June, after a disastrous sea voyage that had significantly reduced his force. Acre was taken by the Crusaders in June.
Forty years after the failure of the Second Crusade, Richard I of England, Philip II of France and Barbarossa leader of Germany all ended their conflicts to assist the Third Crusade (1189-1192). Saladin, who captured Jerusalem in 1187, had unified Syria and Egypt in the past, making him a very powerful adversary and an excellent military leader. Losing the Holy Land was too shameful for Christendom, so with the Pope 's blessing, dozens of thousands of men marched toward Jerusalem under the three great kings.
Saladin preferred to defend the city without bloodshed and offered generous terms, but the citizens inside refused to leave their holy city, vowing to destroy it in a fight to the death rather than see it handed over peacefully. Thus the siege began.
Three reasons are primarily given for the beginning of the Crusades: to free Jerusalem and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; to aid the suffering Christians of the East, thereby healing the rift between Roman and Orthodox Christianity following the Schism of 1054; and to marshal the energy of the constantly warring feudal lords and knights into the one cause of "penitential warfare." 1
Barbarossa responded instantly to the Crusade and recruited 15,000 men. His army was so huge that he couldn 't cross through the Mediterranean Sea, so he had to march by Land crossing through the Bosporus into Asia Minor. The German army had great success, even capturing Iconium, the Sultanate of Rum 's capital. Unfortunately, Barbarossa himself was thrown from his horse and drowned due to his heavy armour. Most of his army went home, except for a small portion which, commanded by Barbarossa’s son, marched to Antioch only to be further reduced by fever.
England 's King Richard I (the Lion-hearted) arrived in June, after a disastrous sea voyage that had significantly reduced his force. Acre was taken by the Crusaders in June.
Bibliography: Saladin and the Second and Third Crusades, 1147 to 1193 . 2014. Saladin and the Second and Third Crusades, 1147 to 1193 . [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.fsmitha.com/h3/casia01c.htm. [Accessed 11 April 2014]. THE CRUSADES TO THE HOLY LAND. 2014. THE CRUSADES TO THE HOLY LAND. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.jesuschristsavior.net/Crusades.html. [Accessed 11 April 2014]. The Third Crusade. 2014. The Third Crusade. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.medievality.com/third-crusade.html. [Accessed 03 April 2014]. Internet History Sourcebooks Project. 2014. Internet History Sourcebooks Project. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/1192peace.asp. [Accessed 11 April 2014]. History of the Crusades | The Knights Templar. 2014. History of the Crusades | The Knights Templar. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.theknightstemplar.org/history-of-the-crusades/. [Accessed 11 April 2014]. By Matthew Thompson