Calling the First Crusade

Fulcher of Chartres, Pope Urban II’s Speech at Clermont(1095)

The papacy emerged from the Gregorian reforms with enhanced power and prestige as the head of Western Christendom. Pope Urban II (r. 1088–1099) embraced his position of leadership and directed it toward a new cause: freeing Jerusalem and the Holy Land from the Seljuk Turks. They had seized control of the city as part of a broader expansionist campaign in Asia Minor. In need of military reinforcements to counter this threat, the Byzantine emperor called on the pope for help. Urban II’s response is captured in the document that follows. It is a version of a speech hedelivered to a large crowd in Clermont, France, in 1095 urging them to put down their weapons against one another and use them instead against the “infidel” in the Holy Land. Cleric Fulcher of Chartres (c. 1059–c. 1127) was present at the speech and was one of the tens of thousands who took up the pope’s call to fight for God. He served as chaplain for one of the crusade leaders and recorded his experiences, including what he heard that day in Clermont, in a three-volumeChronicle. His firsthand knowledge of events combined with the richness of his account make hisChronicle among the most reliable of all sources on the First Crusade.

From Oliver J. Thatcher and Edgar Holmes McNeal, A Source Book for Medieval History (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1905), 516–17.

Although, O sons of God, you have promised more firmly than ever to keep the peace among yourselves and to preserve the rights of the church, there remains still an important work for you to do. Freshly quickened by the divine correction, you must apply the strength of your righteousness to another matter which concerns you as well as God. For your brethren who live in the east are in urgent need of your help, and you must hasten to give them the aid which has often been promised them. For, as the most of you have heard, the Turks and Arabs have attacked them and have conquered the territory of Romania [the Greek empire] as far west as the shore of the Mediterranean and the Hellespont, which is called the Arm of St. George. They have occupied more and more of the lands of those Christians, and have overcome them in seven battles. They have killed and captured many, and have destroyed the churches and devastated the empire. If you permit them to continue thus for awhile with impunity, the faithful of God will be much more widely attacked by them. On this account I, or rather the Lord, beseech you as Christ’s heralds to publish this everywhere and to persuade all people of whatever rank, foot-soldiers and knights, poor and rich, to carry aid promptly to those Christians and to destroy that vile race from the lands of our friends. I say this to those who are present, it is meant also for those who are absent. Moreover, Christ commands it.

All who die by the way, whether by land or by sea, or in battle against the pagans, shall have immediate remission of sins. This I grant them through the power of God with which I am invested. O what a disgrace if such a despised and base race, which worships demons, should conquer a people which has the faith of omnipotent God and is made glorious with the name of Christ! With what reproaches will the Lord overwhelm us if you do not aid those who, with us, profess the Christian religion! Let those who have been accustomed unjustly to wage private warfare against the faithful now go against the infidels and end with victory this war which should have been begun long ago. Let those who, for a long time, have been robbers, now become knights. Let those who have been fighting against their brothers and relatives now fight in a proper way against the barbarians. Let those who have been serving as mercenaries for small pay now obtain the eternal reward. Let those who have been wearing themselves out in both body and soul now work for a double honor. Behold! on this side will be the sorrowful and poor, on that, the rich; on this side, the enemies of the Lord, on that, his friends. Let those who go not put off the journey, but rent their lands and collect money for their expenses; and as soon as winter is over and spring comes, let them eagerly set out on the way with God as their guide.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Why does Urban II urge his audience to fight against the Turks? What language does he use to describe the crusaders and their journey? What language does he use to describe the Turks?
Why do you think this language motivated people in the audience like Fulcher of Chartres to join the crusade? What did the crusade have to offer them?
How does Urban II cast himself in this speech? How may it have strengthened the papacy’s position in the church hierarchy?

4.

Arab Response to the First Crusade

Ibn al-Athīr, A Muslim Perspective (1097–1099)

In preaching the First Crusade, Pope Urban II called on the entire “race of Franks” to expel the enemies of God (“Turks” and “Arabs”) from the Holy Land. As official accounts of the crusade make clear, Urban’s words shaped the attitudes and actions of the crusaders as they made their way through Constantinople, south to the Seljuk capital of Nicaea, and then onward to Jerusalem, which they conquered in early June 1099. They saw themselves as God’s army, which had the right and obligation to destroy “infidels.” The document that follows reveals an entirely different perspective, that of Muslim leaders and soldiers fighting the crusaders along the way. It is drawn from a sweeping chronicle of Islamic history by Arab historian Ibn al-Athīr (1160–1233), who used a range of sources to describe the crusaders’ activities and the Muslim response to them. For him, the crusaders were not men of God, but rather ruthless invaders who wreaked havoc on local peoples and holy sites.

From Ibn al-Athīr, The Chronicle of Ibn al-Athīr for the Crusading Period from al-Kamil fi’l-Ta’rikh, part 1, trans. D. S. Richards (Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2006), 13–17, 21–22.

How the Franks Took the City of Antioch

The power of the Franks and their increased importance were first manifested by their invasion of the lands of Islam and their conquest of part of them in the year 478 [1085–6], for [that was when] they took the city of Toledo and other cities of Spain, as we have already mentioned.

Then in the year 484 [1091–2] they attacked and conquered the island of Sicily, as we have also mentioned. They descended on the coasts of Ifrīqiya¹ and seized some part, which was then taken back from them. Later they took other parts, as you shall see.

When it was the year 490 [1096–7] they invaded Syria. The reason for their invasion was that their ruler, Baldwin, a relative of Roger the Frank who had conquered Sicily, gathered a great host of Franks and sent to Roger saying, “I have gathered a great host and I am coming to you. I shall proceed to Ifrīqiya to take it and I shall be a neighbor of yours.” Roger assembled his men and consulted them about this. They said, “By the truth of the Gospel, this is excellent for us and them. The lands will become Christian lands.” Roger raised his leg and gave a loud fart. “By the truth of my religion,” he said, “there is more use in that than in what you have to say!” “How so?” they asked. “If they come to me,” he replied, “I shall require vast expenditure and ships to convey them to Ifrīqiya and troops of mine also. If they take the territory it will be theirs and resources from Sicily will go to them. I shall be deprived of the money that comes in every year from agricultural revenues. If they do not succeed, they will return to my lands and I shall suffer from them. Tamīm will say, ‘You have betrayed me and broken the agreement I have [with you].’ Our mutual contacts and visits will be interrupted. The land of Ifrīqiya will be waiting for us. Whenever we find the strength we will take it.”

He summoned Baldwin’s envoy and said to him, “If you are determined to wage holy war on the Muslims, then the best way is to conquer Jerusalem. You will free it from their hands and have glory. Between me and the people of Ifrīqiya, however, are oaths and treaties.” They therefore made their preparations and marched forth to Syria.

It has been said that the Alid rulers of Egypt² became fearful when they saw the strength and power of the Saljuq state, that it had gained control of Syrian lands as far as Gaza, leaving no buffer state between the Saljuqs and Egypt to protect them, and that Aqsīs³ had entered Egypt and blockaded it. They therefore sent to the Franks to invite them to invade Syria, to conquer it and separate them and the [other] Muslims, but God knows best.

After they had decided to march to Syria, they went to Constantinople to cross the straits into Muslim lands, to travel on by land, for that would be easier for them. When they arrived, the Byzantine emperor refused them passage through his territory. He said, “I will not allow you to cross into the lands of Islam until you swear to me that you will surrender Antioch to me.” His aim was to urge them to move into Islamic lands, assuming that Turks would not spare a single one of them, because he had seen how fierce they were and their control of the lands. They agreed to that and crossed the Bosphorus at Constantinople in the year 490 [1096–7].

They reached the lands of Qilij Arslān ibn Sulaymán ibn Qutlumish⁴ namely Konya and other cities. Having arrived there, they were met by Qilij Arslān with his hosts, who resisted them. They put him to flight in Rajab 490 [July 1097] after a battle⁵ and then traversed his lands into those of the son of the Armenian⁶ which they marched through before emerging at Antioch and putting it under siege.

When the ruler Yaghī Siyān⁷ heard of their coming, he feared the Christians in the city. He sent out the Muslim inhabitants by themselves and ordered them to dig the moat. Then the next day he sent out the Christians also to dig the moat, unaccompanied by any Muslim. They labored on it until the evening but when they wished to enter the city he prevented them and said, “You can give me Antioch until I see how things will be with us and the Franks.” They asked, “Who will look after our sons and our wives?” “I will look after them in your place,” he replied. So they held back and took up residence in the Frankish camp. The Franks besieged the city for nine months. Yaghī Siyān displayed such courage, excellent counsel, resolution, and careful planning as had never been seen from anyone else. Most of the Franks perished. Had they remained in the numbers they set out with, they would have overwhelmed the lands of Islam. Yaghī Siyān protected the families of those Christians of Antioch, whom he had expelled, and restrained the hands that would do them harm.

After their siege of Antioch had lasted long, the Franks made contact with one of the men garrisoning the towers, who was an armorer, known as Rūzbah, and offered him money and grants of land. He was in charge of a tower next to the valley, which was built with a window overlooking the valley. After they had made an arrangement with this cursed armorer, they came to the window, which they opened and through which they entered. A large number climbed up on ropes. When they numbered more than five hundred, they blew the trumpet. That was at dawn. The defenders were already tired from many sleepless nights on guard. Yaghī Siyān awoke and asked what was happening. He was told, “That trumpet is from the citadel. No doubt it has already been taken.” However, it was not from the citadel but merely from that tower. He was seized with fear, opened the city gate and left in headlong flight with thirty retainers. His deputy as governor of the city came and asked after him. He was told that he had fled, so he himself fled by another gate. That was a boon for the Franks. Had he held firm for a while, they would have perished. The Franks entered the city through the gate and sacked it, killing the Muslims that were there. This was in Jumada I [April-May 1098].⁸ . . .

How the Muslims Marched against the Franks and What Befell Them

When Qiwām al-Dawla Karbughā⁹ heard of the Franks’ doings and their conquest of Antioch, he gathered his forces and marched to Syria. He camped at Jarj Dābiq,¹⁰ where the troops of Syria, both Turks and Arabs, rallied to him, apart from those who were in Aleppo. There assembled with him Duqāq ibn Tutush,¹¹ Tughtakīn the Atabeg,¹² Janāh al-Dawla the lord of Homs,¹³Arslān Tāsh the lord of Sinjār, Suqmān ibn Artuq and other emirs, the likes of whom are not to be found. Hearing of this, the Franks’ misfortunes increased and they were fearful because of their weakness and their shortage of provisions. The Muslims came and besieged them in Antioch, but Karbughā behaved badly towards the Muslims with him. He angered the emirs and lorded it over them, imagining that they would stay with him despite that. However, infuriated by this, they secretly planned to betray him, if there should be a battle, and they determined to give him up when the armies clashed.

The Franks, after they had taken Antioch, were left there for twelve days with nothing to eat. The powerful fed on their horses, while the wretched poor ate carrion and leaves. In view of this, they sent to Karbughā, asking him for terms to leave the city, but he did not grant what they sought. He said, “My sword alone will eject you.”

The following princes were with them: Baldwin,¹⁴ [Raymond of] St. Gilles,¹⁵ Count Godfrey, the Count lord of Edessa,¹⁶ and Bohemond the lord of Antioch, their leader. There was a monk there, of influence amongst them, who was a cunning man. He said to them, “The Messiah (blessings be upon Him) had a lance which was buried in the church at Antioch, which was a great building.¹⁷ If you find it, you will prevail, but if you do not find it, then destruction is assured.” He had previously buried a lance in a place there and removed the traces [of his digging]. He commanded them to fast and repent, which they did for three days. On the fourth day he took them all into the place, accompanied by the common people and workmen. They dug everywhere and found it as he had said. “Rejoice in your coming victory,” he said to them.¹⁸

On the fifth day they went out of the gate in scattered groups of five or six or so. The Muslims said to Karbughā, “You ought to stand at the gate and kill all that come out, because now, when they are scattered, it is easy to deal with them.” He replied, “No, do not do that. Leave them alone until they have all come out and then we can kill them.” He did not allow his men to engage them. However, one group of Muslims did kill several that had come out but he came in person and ordered them to desist.

When the Franks had all come out and not one of them remained within, they drew up a great battle line. At that, the Muslims turned their backs in flight, firstly because of the contempt and the scorn with which Karbughā had treated them and secondly because he had prevented them from killing the Franks. Their flight was complete. Not one of them struck a blow with a sword, thrust with a spear or shot an arrow. The last to flee were Suqmān ibn Artuq and Janāḥ al-Dawla because they were stationed in ambush. Karbughā fled with them. When the Franks observed this, they thought that it was a trick, since there had been no battle such as to cause a flight and they feared to pursue them. A company of warriors for the faith stood firm and fought zealously, seeking martyrdom. The Franks slew thousands of them and seized as booty the provisions, money, furnishings, horses and weapons that were in the camp. Their situation was restored and their strength returned. . . .

How the Franks (God Curse Them) Took Jerusalem

Jerusalem had been held by Tāj al-Dawla Tutush who assigned it to Emir Suqmān ibn Artuq the Turkoman. When the Franks defeated the Turks at Antioch and made slaughter amongst them, the power of the Turks weakened and they lost cohesion. When the Egyptians saw their weakness, they marched to Jerusalem, led by al-Afd.al ibn Badr al-Jamālī. There they besieged Suqmān and Īlghāzī, the sons of Artuq, and also their cousin Savanj and their nephew Yāqūtī. They set up forty and more trebuchets against the town and demolished parts of its wall. The inhabitants fought back and the fighting and the siege lasted somewhat over forty days, until the Egyptians took the city on terms in Sha‘bān 489 [July 1096]. Al-Afd.al treated Suqmān, Īlghāzī and their followers well, gave them generous gifts and sent them on their way to Damascus. Subsequently they crossed the Euphrates. Suqmān took up residence in Edessa but Īlghāzī moved to Iraq.

The Egyptians appointed as deputy in Jerusalem a man called Iftikhār al-Dawla, who remained there until this present time, when the Franks attacked after they had besieged Acre but with no success. After their arrival they erected forty trebuchets or more and they constructed two towers, one on Mount Zion side but the Muslims burnt that one and killed all inside. After they had completely destroyed it by fire, their help was then called for, as the city defenses had been overwhelmed on the other side. The Franks did indeed take the city from the north in the forenoon of Friday, seven days remaining of Sha‘bān [15 July 1099]. The inhabitants became prey for the sword. For a week the Franks continued to slaughter the Muslims. A group of Muslims took refuge in the Tower of David¹⁹ and defended themselves there. They resisted for three days and then the Franks offered them safe-conduct, so they surrendered the place. The Franks kept faith with them and they departed at night for Ascalon, where they remained.

In the Aqsa Mosque the Franks killed more than 70,000, a large number of them being imams, ulema, righteous men, and ascetics, Muslims who had left their native lands and come to live a holy life in this august spot. The Franks took forty or more silver candlesticks from the Dome of the Rock, each of which weighed 3,600 dirhams, and also a silver candelabrum weighing forty Syrian rotls. They removed 150 small candlesticks of silver and twenty or so of gold. The booty they took was beyond counting.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

How does Ibn al-Athīr portray the crusaders and their leaders? What does he reveal about the organization and motives of the crusading armies in the process?
As described here, what factors contributed to the crusaders’ military success against the Muslims?
According to Ibn al-Athīr, the Franks killed thousands of local residents when they took Jerusalem. How does Ibn al-Athīr describe the Franks’ actions? How do you think his religious ideas may have shaped his account?