The+Crusades

=The Crusades=

====The Crusades were a series of religious expeditionary wars blessed by the Pope and the Catholic church, woth the main goal of restoring Christian access to the Holy Lands in and around Jerusalem. Launched by the Byzantine Empire, the Crusades, which were primarly against Muslims, occured between 1095 and 1291. There were eight crusades in total, by the most renowned Crusade was the first. Lasting from 1096-1099, the first Crusade was the most successful due to Muslim political divisions and the element of surprise. The Crusaders divided the Holy Land into Christian mini-kingdoms and, in 1099, Jerusalem was taken and all Muslim and Jewish inhabitants were massacred.====

====However, throughout all eight Crusades the Muslim princes paid no attention to the Christians. Instead, they continued focusing on arguing amongst themselves. In the 12th century the Muslims reconquered and the last Chrisitian king fell in 1291. Although the Muslims were the ones being conquered, it was the Christians who recieved a lasting impact. European borrowing from the Muslim world increased significantly and the Europeans were able to recover much of the Greek learning that had once been lost. The exchange was one way though for the Muslims showed no interest in the learning and institutions of the Christian west. The Crusades helped to end the dark ages in Europe and brought power and wealth to the Catholic church. While the Crusades were not helpful to Christianity, they were very successful for Europe.media type="custom" key="12160814" align="left"====

Map of the First Crusade:
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Sources:
[|www.history.com] [|www.wikipedia.com] World Civilizations The Global Experience-4th Edition