Internet Medieval Sourcebook
Selected Sources: The Crusades
Contents
- General
- Background
- The First Crusade
- Urban II's Speech, 1095
- Attacks on the Jews
- The Journeys and Battles of the Crusade
- The Historians of the First Crusade
- "Crusades" after the First Crusade
- The Kingdom of Jerusalem
- Government
- Economics
- Cultures
- Christian Muslim Interaction
- The Crusader Orders
- General
- Templars
- Hospitallers
- Teutonic Knights
- The Second Crusade and Aftermath
- Calling the Crusade
- Successes and Failures
- Criticism of the Crusade
- The Third Crusade
- Latin Problems
- The Loss of Jerusalem
- The Failure of Europe's Monarchs
- The German Crusade of 1197
- The Fourth Crusade
- The Fifth and Later Crusades
- St Louis' Crusades
- The Fall of the Latin East
- The Effects of the
Crusade Ideal in the West
General
Background
- Leo IV (r.847-855): Forgiveness of Sins for Those Who
Dies in Battle, c.850.
- Leo IV (r.847-855): Pope Leo IV’s Letter to the Frankish Army: Holy War and the Kingdom of Heaven (847/8?), trans. and comment by Sam Ottewill-Soulsby [At Saltuemundo] [Internet Archive version here]
- John VIII (r. 872-882): Indulgence for Fighting the
Heathen, 878.
- Letaldus of Micy. Journey of the Relics of St. Junianus, including a description of the Peace Council of Charroux
in 989. Trans. by Thomas Head
- The Acts of the Council of Charroux forbidding violence against churches, the poor, and unarmed clergy. 989, June 1st: [At Salutemmundo] [Internet Archive backup of index page here]
- Andrew of Fleury. Miracles of St. Benedict. Trans. by Thomas Head [At ORB]
A description of the Peace League of Bourges and its campaign in 1038.
- For pilgrimage to Jerusalem, see Ralph Glaber (d.c.1044): The Year 1000 AD from the Miracles de Saint-Benoit.
- Ahimaaz ben Paltiel: The Arab invasions of Southern Italy, according to The Chronicle of Ahimaaz 1054 [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- Gregory VII (1073-1085): Call for a "Crusade", 1074.
- Gregory VII (1073-1085): Epistolae Vagantes. 1074-1075 [At Legal History] [internet Archive version here]
On his desire to fight for Eastern Christians; Against
Clerical Simony; For Clerical Chastity; and Against Clerical Marriage.
- Annalist of Nieder-Altaich: The Great German
Pilgrimage of 1064-65.
- The Annales Lupi Protospatharii of Bari: The Career of Robert Guiscard (1056-1085) [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- Embrico of Mainz: Life of Muhammad (c. 1100CE) Medieval Christian Depictions of Islam, trans by Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi [At Aymennjawad.org] [Internet Archive version here] [See Wikipedia: Emberico of Mainz]
- Adelphus: Life of Muhammad (12th Century?) Medieval Christian Depictions of Islam, trans by Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi [At Aymennjawad.org] [Internet Archive version here]
The First Crusade
There are many translations of texts about the First Crusade. Dana C. Munro
["Urban and the Crusaders", Translations and Reprints from the Original
Sources of European History, Vol 1:2, (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania,
1895)] and August. C. Krey, [The First Crusade: The Accounts of Eyewitnesses and
Participants, (Princeton: 1921)] both translated selections of crusader sources
organized around events. There have been more recent translation of many of these texts
[see WEB Crusader
Sources in Translation], but they are still copyrighted. Here the texts by Krey and
Munro are presented in two ways: first as printed - with collected texts from various
historians on a specific issue; and then with all the available texts from each historian
collected together.
- Urban II's Speech, 1095
- Attacks on the Jews
- The Journeys and Battles of the Crusade
- The First Crusade: A short narrative from contemporary sources [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- Peter the Hermit and the Popular Crusade: Collected
Accounts.
Accounts of Guibert de Nogent, William of Tyre, Albert of Aix, Ekkhard of Aura, Anna
Comnena, and the Gesta.
- The Crusaders Journey to Constantinople: Collected
Accounts.
Accounts of the Gesta, Albert of Aix, and Raymond d'Aguiliers.
- The Crusaders at Constantinople: Collected Accounts.
Accounts of Anna Comnena, the Gesta, Albert of Aix, and Raymond d'Aguiliers.
- Anna Comnena: On A Rude Crusader .
(Geary includes more (copyrighted) material than this extract.)
- The Siege and Capture of Nicea: Collected Accounts.
Accounts of The Gesta, Raymond d'Aguiliers, Anna Comnena, and Alexius I' Letter
to Abbot of Monte Cassino.
- The Siege and Capture of Antioch: Collected Accounts.
Accounts of The Gesta and Raymond d'Aguiliers.
- Peter Tudebode: The Battle for Antioch in the First Crusade (1097-98) according to Peter Tudebode [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- The Siege and Capture of Jerusalem: Collected Accounts.
Accounts of The Gesta, Raymond d'Aguiliers, Letters of Manasses II, Pope Paschal
II, and account of Fulcher of Chartres.
- Fulcher (Fulk) of Chartres: The
Capture of Jerusalem, 1099.
- Contemporary Letters on the Capture of Jerusalem by the Crusaders, Journal of Jewish Studies. Vol.3, no.4. 1952, pp 162-77. [Internet Archive]
- Crusader Letters.
- The Historians of the First Crusade
- "Crusades" after the First Crusade
The Kingdom of Jerusalem
- WEB The French of Outremer [Fordham]
- WEB The Crusader States [Fordham]
- WEB Revised Regesta Regni Hierosolymitani
Plans to be a calendar of all the charters, other legal or formal documents and letters that were composed between 1098 and 1291 in the Latin kingdoms of Jerusalem, Cyprus and Cilician Armenia, the principality of Antioch and the counties of Edessa and Tripoli.
- WEB Manuscripts in the Libraries of the Greek and Armenian Patriarchates in Jerusalem [LOC]
- Government
- Economics
- Cultures
- Christian Muslim Interaction
- WEB Transmediterrane Geschichte (Transmediterranean History) [Univ of Konstanz] [Internet Archive backup here]
"Transmediterranean History" is an anthology of sources, with comments, intended to facilitate access to transmediterranean topics and their source documentation for researchers, teachers and interested parties. The wiki-based database provides source excerpts in the original and in translation, structured epochally and arranged chronologically. The texts are in original language with side-by-side German translation. Although one cannot yet rely on AI translation, the results of Google translation are quite satisfactory on this site, partly because the German translations are in uncomplicated German. Periods covered are: Before Arab-Islamic Expansion; Aran-Islamic Expansion (7th-9th centuries); New Neighbours (9th-11th centuries); Latin Christian Expansion (11-13th centuries).
- Ibn Al-Athir: Account of First Crusade, copyrighted
- Usmah Ibn Munqidh (1095-1188): Autobiography: Excerpts on
the Franks, c.1175 CE.
-
Usmah Ibn Munqidh (1095-1188): On European
Piracy, c.1175 CE. [At Internet Archive, from CCNY]
-
Usmah Ibn Munqidh (1095-1188): On Muslim and Christian
Piety, c.1175 CE. [At Internet Archive, from CCNY]
- The Tale of Two
Hashish-Easters (Traditional), and another Hashish Tale,
from Arabian Nights [At Drug Library] [Internet Archive version here]
- 2ND Philip K. Hitti : The
Assasins [At Drug Library] [Internet Archive version here]
- A
Christian-Muslim Debate (12th Century)
- Bills of Sale for Saracen Slave Girls, 1248
The Crusader Orders
- General
- Templars
- Hospitallers
- Teutonic Knights
- Documents relating to the Baltic Crusade 1199-1266
The Second Crusade and
Aftermath
- Calling the Crusade
- Successes and Failures
- Cafarro: The Genoese expedition to Almeria, 1147 [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- Osbernus: De expugnatione Lyxbonensi [The Capture of
Lisbon], 1147.
The first, and most lasting, military encounter of the Second Crusade was the Capture of
Lisbon.
- The Conquest of Lisbon - De Expugnatione Lyxbonensi, trans. Charles Wendell David, full text, (Columbia UP, 1936) PDF [marked as public domain by Google books]
- Conrad III: Letters to the Abbot of Corvey, 1148.
On the failures of the Germans' Crusade.
- Odo of Deuil: The Crusade of Louis VII.
Odo, Louis VII's chaplain, recounts the preaching of St. Bernard, and the journey of the
army.
- William of Tyre: The Fiasco at Damascus, 1148.
- Contemporary Letters and Texts concerning the Second Crusade , trans. by G.A. Loud, PDF [At Leeds IMS] [Internet Archive backup here]
From Conrad III to Eugenius III; Conrad III to Abbot Wibald; Lious VII to
Abbot Suger; Conrad III to Abbot Wibald; Peter of Cluny to Roger of Sicily; Wurzburg Annals.
- Criticism of the Crusade
The Third Crusade
- Military Backgrounds
- Latin Problems
- William of Tyre: Latin Disarray, 1150-1185.
- The Siege of Ascalon (1153) [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- Aymeric, patriarch of Antioch: The Decline of
Christian Power in the Holy Land, 1164, Letter to Louis VII of France. See also
Catholic Encyclopedia: Latin Kingdom
of Jerusalem.
- Aymeric, patriarch of Antioch: Letter from Aymeric, Patriarch of Antioch, to Louis VII, King of France (1164) [Internet Archive version here]
- The Tract about the Places and Conditions of the Holy Land, c. 1168-1176, trans. by G.A. Loud, PDF [At Leeds IMS] [Internet Archive backup here]
- Pope Alexander III (1159-1118): Cor Nostrum 1181, [Wikisource]
Letter written by Pope Alexander III to all the Christian kings and princes, about the difficulties facing the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.
- Ansbert: Letter from the East to the Master of the
Hospitallers, 1187.
- The Loss of Jerusalem
- The Failure of Europe's Monarchs
- The Crusade of Richard I, 1189-92: Extracts from the Itinerarium Ricardi, Bohâdin, Ernoul, Roger of Howden, Richard of Devizes, Rigord, Ibn Alathîr, Li Livres, Eracles, Etc. trans Thomas Andrew Archer (1912) PDF [Internet Archive archive version here]
- The Song of the Siege of Acre 1187, trans Patrick DeBrosse [At Crusader States] [Internet Archive version here]
- Henry II, King of England: The Saladin Tithe,
1188
- The Crusade of Frederick Barbarossa: Letters,
1189.
Letters by Frederick I and Ex-Queen Sibylla blaming the Byzantine Emperor for problems.
- Letter on the Death of the Emperor Frederick I, trans. William North .PDF [At Carleton] [Internet Archive version here]
A member of Frederick’s expedition describes the journey and battles of the German crusader force and the death of the Emperor in Asia Minor.
- A Naval Battle near Acre (1190) [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- Historia de Expeditione Frederici Imperatoris: Death of Frederick Barbarossa, 1190.
- Itinerarium Peregrinorum et Gesta Regis Ricardi: Richard
the Lion-Hearted Conquers Cyprus, 1191.
- Itinerarium Peregrinorum et Gesta Regis Ricardi: The
Siege and Capture of Acre, 1191.
- Itinerarium Peregrinorum et Gesta Regis Ricardi: Philip Augustus Returns to France, 1191.
- Itinerarium Peregrinorum et Gesta Regis Ricardi: Muslim Hostages Slain at Acre, 1191.
- Itinerarium Peregrinorum et Gesta Regis Ricardi: Richard
the Lionheart Makes Peace with Saladin,
- Two accounts of the conquest of Cyprus by Richard I (1191) [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- Rigord of St. Denis (1145/50-1209): The King of France on the Third Crusade from Gesta Philippi Augusti (The Deeds of Philip Augustus), by Rigord of St. Denis, translated by Paul Hyams (Cornell University) and expanded G.A. Loud
- Rigord of St. Denis (1145/50-1209): Deeds of Philip II Augustus, trans Paul Hyams, full text? [Was At Cornell, now Internet Archive]
- Rigord of St. Denis (1145/50-1209): Deeds of Philip II Augustus, trans Paul Hyams, full text, [Here by permission]
- The German Crusade of 1197
- The German Crusade, 1197.
Letter of the Duke of Lorrain to the Archbishop of Cologne, 1197 - before the crusade was
checked by the death of Henry VI.
The Fourth Crusade
- The Fourth Crusade 1204: Collected Sources.
Texts from Villehardoun, Robert de Clari, Choniates, etc.
- Geoffrey de Villehardouin (c.1160-c.1212): Chronicle
of the Fourth Crusade and The Conquest of Constantinople. full text
- Robert of Clari (13th century): The Conquest of Constantinople (1204), full text [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- Robert de Clari: The Capture of Constantinople,
selections.
- Ibn al-Athir (d. 1233): On the Latin Conquest of Constantinople in 1204, trans Mohammed Ballan [At Ballandalus] [Internet Archive version here]
- Nicetas Choniates: Capture of Constantinople,
1204.
- Innocent III: Letter 136: Reprimand of Papal Legate,
1204.
- Contemporary Documents concerning the Fourth Crusade and the Latin Empire of Constantinople , trans. by G.A. Loud, PDF [At Leeds IMS] [Internet Archive backup here]
The Fifth and Later Crusades
After the Fourth Crusade, the nature of the movement changed. Never again was there a
general multinational crusade directed at the Holy Land. The experiences of 1187-92 had
shown that Egypt was the base of Muslim power, and so expeditions were directed there. It
would be a mistake to see the end of crusading fervour however. During the thirteenth
century there were eight large expeditions, as well as other manifestations of crusading
ideas. None of these expeditions could avoid the effects of the rise of the Mongols and
Mamelukes in the Middle East - where armies increased in size and made the small Western
units meaningless. The eight thirteenth-century expeditions were:
- 1218, Andrew of Hungary's Crusade
- 1218-21, The Fifth Crusade
- 1228-29, Frederick II's Crusade
- 1239, Thibaut of Navarre's Crusade
- 1240-41, Richard of Cornwall's Crusade
- 1248-54, The Sixth Crusade - St. Louis's Crusade
- 1270-72, Edward of England's (Later Edward II) Crusade
- 1270 St. Louis's second Crusade [To Tunis]
- The Albigensian Crusade
- The Children's Crusade
- The Fifth Crusade
- Frederick II's Crusade
- The Decline of the Crusader States in the Levant
- The Capture of Jerusalem, 1244.
Letter from the Master of the Hospitalers at Jerusalem, to Lord De Lamaye.
- Pope Innocent IV (1243-1254): Cum non solum 1245, [Wikisource]
Letter written by Pope Innocent IV to the Mongols on March 13, 1245. One of the first communications from the Papacy to the Mongols, the letter appeals to the Mongols to desist from attacking Christians and other nations, and inquires as to the Mongols' future intentions.
- Pope Innocent IV (1243-1254): Dei Patris Immensa, 1245, [Wikisource]
An exposition of the Christian faith urging the Mongols to accept baptism.
- Pope Innocent IV (1243-1254): Viam Agnoscere Veritatis 1248, [Wikisource]
A reply to a message from Mongol commander Baiju.
- Pope Urban IV (1261–1264) or Pope Clement IV (1265–1268): De Sinu patris and Audi filia et 1260s [Wikisource]
Letters urging an unnamed nobleman to return to his wife, possibly in reference to the Cypriot queen Plaisance of Antioch and her lover John of Jaffa.
- The Battle of Ayn Jalut (1260) [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- The Mongol Invasion of the Middle East (1258-1260), according to Rashiduddin Fazlullah [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- Adh-Dhababi’s Record of the Destruction of Damascus by the Mongols in 1299-1301 [At De Re Militari] [Internet Archive version here]
- St. Louis's Crusades
- The Fall of the Latin East
The Effects of the
Crusade Ideal in the West
NOTES: copyrighted means the text is not available for free distribution. Links to files at other site are indicated by [At some indication of the site name or
location]. No indication means that the text file is local. WEB indicates a link to one of
small number of high quality web sites which provide either more texts or an especially
valuable overview.
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