...history is not encouraging in this respect. The bloodiest wars in history have been religious wars." Richard M. Nixon. Many people believe that all war is caused by your religious beliefs but others disagree. One example is the Crusades. A crusade is a war fought on behalf of God. America uses this excuse all the time. The Crusades were a series of religious wars between Christians and Muslims started primarily to secure control of holy sites considered sacred by both groups. In all, eight major Crusade expeditions occurred between 1096 and 1291. The bloody, violent and often ruthless conflicts propelled the status of European Christians, making...
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...Crusades Abstract Crusades are recalled as a major incident in the history. This series of the holy war started in 1095 and continued till 1272. In general, reasons and motivational factors behind crusades are classified as subjective in nature. The goal of the Christian in this war was to liberate Jerusalem from Muslim possession and retook the control of the holy land. While, Muslims at the beginning of this war were on defensive side and failed to sustain their kingdom. However, after the third crusade, Saladin recaptured Jerusalem and included this state in his Kingdom of Egypt. This paper briefly describes the reasons and impacts of crusades which affected Europe in terms of politics, economy and social system and benefits. Table of Contents John Q. Student Professor Doe English 344 8 May 2000 Crusades Introduction The human history has seen numerous wars which have been fought to achieve the strategic goals of the states. Most of the wars reflect the intention of territorial expansion, acquiring additional resources of occupied land, settling down the political instability and to create balance or dominancy in terms of power in the region. However, history also witnesses to the fact that there are many wars that were fought on the name of religion. Crusades, among them, are generally referred as holy war or series of religious military actions to conquer the...
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...Religion and War Since the dawn of time people have raged war. Many could argue that politics, power, or natural resources are the cause of war. But many people miss the underlying factor: Religion. Throughout history religion has been the prominent cause of wars. Religion has many conflicts in the history of the world. In ancient times civilizations believed that if they won a war it was because the gods favored them. The wars may have been over land or power but it was believed that it was their religion that won their victory. The bible says, "Some rely on chariots, others on horses, but we on the name of the Lord our God. They collapse and fall, But we stand strong and firm. Lord, grant victory to the king; Answer when we call upon you"(Psalm 20: 8-10). The key test is to see who wins. If God is really on your side, then you will win. One might face enormous odds against them, but this doesn't mean anything when God stands on one side. One of the major examples where religion caused war would be the Crusades. The Crusades were fought in the 11th century. The Crusades were a series of Holy Wars between Christian and Muslims, which was centered around the city of Jerusalem. In 1065 the Turks took Jerusalem and massacred 3,000 Christians starting a chain of events, which lead to the start of the Crusades. However, some researchers say that the massacre of the 3000 Christians which caused the crusades to begin and not because of differing religious beliefs. The Crusades were...
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...of the First Crusade The Crusades were a violent military campaign between the Latin Roman Catholic Church and the Islamic empire. According to Don Closson an author with probe ministers, there were 7 crusades in total and they lasted about 200 years. John France the author of The Crusades And The Expansion Of Catholic Christendom states that , “After the First Crusade achieved its goal, the invading Christians set up several Latin Christian states. Because of this Muslims in the region vowed to wage holy war (jihad) to regain control over the region (Crusades). But what caused this dispute, what caused the crusades to even begin? Well before the crusades started the dispute between Christians and Muslims could be seen in many different...
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...The Crusades - Research paper The Crusades, like so much of the modern conflict, were not wholly rational movements that could be explained away by purely economic or territorial ambition or by the clash of rights and interests. They were fueled, on all sides, by myths and passions that were far more effective in getting people to act than any purely political motivation. The medieval holy wars in the Middle East could not be solved by rational treatises or neat territorial solutions. Fundamental passions were involved which touched the identity of Christians, Muslims and Jews and which were sacred to the identity of each. They have not changed very much in the holy wars of today. --Karen Armstrong, Holy War, 1988 Crusades were by far the...
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...Religion and Warfare: Yesterday and Today A religious war is a war justified by religious differences. It can be the acceptable forces of one state that has a well-known religion against those of another state with either a different religion or a different section within the same religion, or, at the level below a state, it can be a faction motivated by religion attempting to spread its faith by violence either within the state or elsewhere. The French Wars of Religion, the Crusades, and the Reconquista are often cited historical examples. While there are certainly wars fought primarily on religious grounds, wars frequently have multiple and complex causes. Saint Augustine is credited as being the first to detail a "Just War" theory within Christianity, whereby war is justifiable on religious grounds. Saint Thomas Aquinas elaborated on these criteria and his writings were used by the Roman Catholic Church to regulate the actions of European countries (Sherman & Salisbury). In modern times religious differences are frequently used as shorthand for cultural and historical differences between combatants, giving the impression that the conflict is primarily about religious differences. For example, The Troubles in Northern Ireland is frequently seen as a conflict between Catholic and Protestant. However, the more basic cause is the attachment of Northern Ireland to either the Republic of Ireland or the United Kingdom. As the native Irish were mostly Catholic, and the...
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...mixed with other subjects or it will result in ongoing fights, arguments, and wars. In the case of the Crusades, this was exactly the result- a series of religious “Holy wars”. This particular set of Holy wars was divided amongst the Christians, Muslims, and Jews in revolt against the Catholic church. The original intention of the Crusades started as a political issue under the rule of Pope Urban II in 1095 AD. His goal was to increase Papal power, obtain wealth, and gain greater political power in Jerusalem, the Holy land. However, this quickly changed when religion played its role. The Pope performed a speech in Claremont simply implying that Muslims were persecuting the Christian faith due to the regions they resided in near the Middle East. As a result, the first Crusade came to terms. Something as profound as the Crusades will never be forgotten and although many centuries have passed, the previous problems still linger- especially in the Middle East. Most history books will focus on the outcome of the Crusades according to Western European culture, but it is the Eastern culture and religions who have truly suffered. All one has to do in order to realize this is to look at the current situation in our world today. The effects of the Crusades have taken a negative toll on the relations between Jewish, Christian, and Muslim religions and communities. In order to explain the result of the Crusades within the Jewish religion, one must understand what Jerusalem is to the Jewish...
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...The Crusades were a series of wars taking place in Asia Minor and the Levant between 1095 and 1291, in which Western European nations engaged using the propaganda of religious expeditionary wars. The first crusade was called by Pope Urban II of the Roman Catholic Church, with the stated goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem. The background to the Crusades was the centuries of Arab–Byzantine Wars and the Seljuq-Byzantine Wars and the recent decisive defeat of the Byzantine army by Seljuk Turks at Manzikert in 1071. The Norman conqueror Robert Guiscard's conquest of Byzantine territories added to the problems of the Byzantine Empire. In an attempt to curtail both dangers, its Emperor Alexios I sought to align Christian nations against a common enemy, requested western aid, and Pope Urban II in turn enlisted western leaders in the cause of taking back the Holy Land.[1] The crusaders comprised military units of Roman Catholics from all over western Europe, and were not under unified command. The main series of Crusades, primarily against Muslims in the Levant, occurred between 1095 and 1291. Historians have given many of the earlier crusades numbers. After some early successes, the later crusades failed and the crusaders were defeated and forced to return home. Several hundred thousand soldiers became Crusaders by taking vows;[2] the Pope granted them plenary indulgence. Their emblem was the cross — the term "crusade" is derived from the French...
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...a major key role in wars and death. The Crusades were a series of wars of Christians who wanted the holy land because the Muslims had conquered Jerusalem (Holy Land) and had also conquered many other countries. With this in mind, I believe that religion did play a part in the Crusaders, for instance the “Holy Land” known as Jerusalem. European Christians fought the wars because of religion, poverty, and economic reasons. The reason for the Crusades going into war was because they wanted to recapture the “Holy Land” from the Muslims. Many people didn’t like the fact that Muslims were living where Jesus had walked, lived, and made miracles. In document 1, Runciman states that “Their motives were … genuinely religious …...
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...The Crusades were a bloody religious war, they had a goal to have conquest of The Holy Land, but they had failed that goal. They also had left a bad remembrance of hatred behind them. In the Middle East, Christians and Muslims committed an awful violation in the name of religion. In Europe, Crusaders sometimes turned their anger on the Jews, kill the entire communities. The Crusades were fought between 30,000 people from Europe and the Seljuk Turks, who had taken total control of The Holy Land from the Arabs. The main Crusades took over a period of 200 years, they began in 1905 and continued till 1272. The Crusades are more negative, for example relations between Muslims and their Christian and Jewish subjects worsened. Commerce with the...
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...The Crusades Through Arab Eyes: Part I The Crusades Through Arab Eyes, by Amin Maalouf, originally published in 1983, takes a new approach to telling an old history from the point-of-view of Muslim historians. Throughout the text, Maalouf focuses on how Muslims perceive the nearly 200-year-long slaughters by Western religious zealots that took Arab cities and holy grounds, regardless of how violent the means and how those perceptions have lead to contemporary ideological wars in the Middle East. Through Arab Eyes presents a compelling history of the series of wars by European Christians that sought to seize holy places under Muslim control between the 11th and 13th centuries. Maalouf tells the story of the seizure of Muslim people and their lands. Between the two disparaging accounts —the Arab view, a bloody slaughter from the historical accounts of exclusively Muslim experts and the same events portrayed as dignified religious conquests by Western historians — Maalouf pulls off not only a convincing argument but one that explores the breach of the Islamic nations by Christian crusaders. Part one, “Invasions” reveals that the Muslim people’s incomprehension of the crusades themselves and the lack of organization among their ranks, lead to their devastation during the invasions. To understand the Muslim perspective from which this book is told, it’s worth knowing a thing or two about its author, Amin Maalouf. Maalouf is perhaps the best-fit person to construct a book like...
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...the Crusades Changed the World HIS/276CA June 23, 2014 How the Crusades Changed the World The Dark Ages were a time of cultural recession for Western Europe. The barbarian invasions during the fifth and sixth centuries had obliterated the Roman Empire in the West. The wisdom of the lost Empire was nothing more than a memory. The Crusades offered endless opportunity and provided exposure the knowledge, culture, and resources that fueled the European progression into the Renaissance; a fortuity that shifted both cultural and religious power in the modern world. By the end of the 10th century, Western Europe was destitute. The inhabitants could not farm their land properly, and soon a cycle of famine, flood, and disease began to dictate the lives of the people. The only surviving institution was the Western Church in Rome. Roman popes soon began to challenge the Byzantine emperors for ultimate control of the church. Tension grew between the two branches of Christianity, which lead to cultural, theological, and irreconcilable differences between the Roman Catholic Church in Western Europe and the Greek Orthodox Church in the Byzantine Empire (Stalcup, 2000). This event, known as the East-West Schism in 1054, was a precursor to the Protestant Reformation (Stalcup, 2000). Meanwhile, a holy war in Spain between Christian Europeans and Muslims terrorized the outskirts of Rome during the tenth and eleventh centuries. Western Europe became very accustomed to religious war...
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...Religion and War Since the dawn of time people have raged war. Many could argue that politics, power, or natural resources are the cause of war. But many people miss the underlying factor: Religion. Throughout history religion has been the prominent cause of wars. Religion has many conflicts in the history of the world. In ancient times civilizations believed that if they won a war it was because the gods favored them. The wars may have been over land or power but it was believed that it was their religion that won their victory. The bible says, "Some rely on chariots, others on horses, but we on the name of the Lord our God. They collapse and fall, But we stand strong and firm. Lord, grant victory to the king; Answer when we call upon you"(Psalm 20: 8-10). The key test is to see who wins. If God is really on your side, then you will win. One might face enormous odds against them, but this doesn't mean anything when God stands on one side. One of the major examples where religion caused war would be the Crusades. The Crusades were fought in the 11th century. The Crusades were a series of Holy Wars between Christian and Muslims, which was centered around the city of Jerusalem. In 1065 the Turks took Jerusalem and massacred 3,000 Christians starting a chain of events, which lead to the start of the Crusades. However, some researchers say that the massacre of the 3000 Christians which caused the crusades to begin and not because of differing religious beliefs. The Crusades were...
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... The Crusades The crusades were military expeditions launched against the Muslims by the Christians in an attempt to regain the holy land. They took place between 1095 AD and 1291 AD. It was one of the most violent periods in the history of mankind. The crusades did not accomplish much during their time. The crusades were unnecessary because many people were raped and killed, there was only one successful crusade, and they ultimately weakened the empire. The crusades caused great pain to families, Jewish communities and more. For instance, “the crusades ended their campaign in 1099 by slaughtering some 30,000 Muslims and Jews in Jerusalem.” They are considered to be the most violent, because innocent people were killed. Many different types of weapons were used to accomplish these tragic events. The blood from the children that were killed was mixed with the leavened bread of Passover. There were seven different crusades. Even though, the first crusade was successful in the holy war, many Muslims were slaughtered. The second crusade was launched in the 12th century. They lost many battles and were ambushed. The third crusade destroyed a chain of cities along the Mediterranean. The fourth crusades had financial difficulties, so they took Constantinople and plundered it to get money. The fifth, sixth, and seventh crusades were the same as the others- they were launched and did not accomplish much. Overall, there are many reasons why the crusades were not...
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...Christianity and Islam Crusades during Middle Ages HIS 276 5/29/2012 Christianity and Islam - the Crusades of Middle Ages Christian military and religious expeditions fought against rivalries, mainly Islam, were known as crusades. These Crusades were commonly known as the feuds between Christians and Muslims; better related as holy warriors (Ferguson, 1977). The Crusades were primarily responsible for the actions of feudalism. Both religions became Islam mass murders as a result of religion. The problems began when Muslim invaded lands that belong to Christians. Their intentions were to convert those living on the land and take control in the name of their religion, Islam. Christians resented the fact that Muslims were ruling their Holy land and decided to begin military forces to regain their territory (1977). Pilgrimage was the greatest reason for crusading. In the view of Christianity, anyone who traveled to Jerusalem, regardless of the distance, would receive a clean slate- wiping away all sins. This was the ultimate gift for the Christian society. The quest originally started as a military venture and quickly evolved into a religious tug of war. Some Christians even claimed to have actually seen visions of God. Crusades date back as far as 711, with many battles throughout history (Halazs, 2008). The most memorable was the crusade of 1071 when Turks gained the Asian Empire and planned an attack on the Roman Empire. At this time the Turks (representing...
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