POLL: What was the point of the crusades ???

Question: POLL: What was the point of the crusades !?!?!?

Your opinions please !?!? Thank you!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

They were about, mainly, who controlled Jerusalem!. It was, during the many Crusades, controlled by Christians, Muslims & Jews!. It's a Holy City in all 3 religions!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

It was kind of a bait and switch situation!. The declared goal was to restore Jerusalem to Christian rule!. The Arabs had conquered the Levant in the Seventh Century!.

The immediate impulse for the crusades was an appeal from the Byzantine Empire for help in restoring the Christian position in the East!. Long the eastern bulwark of Christendom, Byzantium was the north easter quarter of the old Roman empire, straddling the Balkan and Anatolian Peninsulas!. At the end of the 11th century, the irruption of Turks into the Middle East and their conversion to Islam changed the situation completely!. The Turks destroyed the flower of the Byzantine's professional army at Manzikert in 1071 and took over the center of Anatolia, the traditional recruiting ground for Byzantine soldiers!. The empire appealed to the pope who in 1095 preached the first crusade!.

Ambitious nobles joined to crusade to carve out lands for themselves, establishing the Crusader states and paying little attention to the needs of the Byzantines!. In 1204, the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople and the empire fell apart into smaller states!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

The points of the crusade was the retaking of Jerusalem and the Holy Land from the muslims!.
It was a new kind of pilgrimage (yes, a crusade is a pilgrimage) where violence and dying there where the best thing that could happen to you, for the sake of your soul!.
A good crusade would also act as a "super indulgence", a way to expiate all your sins!.
There were also crusades against heretics (cathars, hussites) or pagans (teutonics) against muslims but not in the Holy Land (Spain and Portugal, Tunisia, Egypt and later Nicopolis!.!.!.) in fact, they tendend to be as many crusades after the loss of the Levant as before!.
The motivations for nobles were also down to hearth: prove their value, worthiness, gain fame and possibly land, titles and wealth!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

The Pope called for the peoples of Europe to take back
Jerusalem from Muslims as known as the infidels!. About a year later the Crusaders defeated the Muslims and did take
back Jerusalem!. Then they lost it again!. There were about
4 crusades but none were as successful as the first!. Jerusalem is considered to be a holy city by Christians as
it was were Jesus was killed!. It is considered also to be
a holy city by the Jews and the Muslims!. That is why it is, was
and always will be a centre of religious warfare!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

There were a number of 'reasons', or convenient side-effects!.
Sure, the Turks were invading Byzantium, and doing pretty well, so the Byzantine Emporer (I forget his name) sends off to the Pope in Rome for help!.

Now the Pope has some problems of his own!. Norman knights (yep, northern France, Hastings, 1066, those boys) had just taken Sicily and were effectively holding the Vatican to ransom!. They were the tiger tank of the late 10th century and were kicking medieval a**e all over Europe!.

So the Pope says he will have a word with God and sort it out for them so they wont go to hell for killing people, if the people they kill are Muslims, not Christians!. Plus they can get as much land as they want, as long as they give Jerusalem to him!.

The response was pretty wide-spread!. The reasons, again, were several!. Redemption wasn't the only one!. There were a lot of landless princes (due to the hereditary transition of property) all looking for a place to call their own!. Honour, prowess, and psychotic hatred all contributed to the 'get into heaven free' rush!.

Finally you should never underestimate the power of the desire for cash!. Italy was the ideal starting point for any invasion East, and shipping all these people about, military and civilian, cost money!. The pilgrim route to Jerusalem would be quite a profitable enterprise, if the R!.C!. Church could only monopolise the whole way there!.!.!.!.!.

So!. it all comes down to land, money, politics and religion!. The four corner-stones of war through the ages!.

Umm thats kind of my opinion!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Christians, wrongly , thought that they could change the world into a Christians only world, people will believe in what they want to believe in and other people should not try to change their religious beliefs!. The muslims of today are trying to do the same thing and as before people will die but nothing will change!. I was brought up a catholic and nothing could make me change to another religion!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

My opinion:
English noblemen, egged on by the King, putting millions to the death for believing in something different!. In addition, a thinly disguised plot to steal these non-Christians assets to line their own pockets!.
!.!.!. perhaps a template for today!? Perhaps not!? !.!.!. you decide !.!.!.

xxFJWww@QuestionHome@Com

Christians!.!.!.!.against!.!.!.!. Muslims, theold tale!.!.!.!.There was a lot of land in the far east that was occupied by wealthy english aristocrates!.!.!.!.Lords etc!.!.!.!.The Countries wanted it back and so an army was gathered to fight against this tyrrany, bit like Bush and Saddam!.!.!?Www@QuestionHome@Com

The purpose of the Crusades was to recapture the Jerusalem from the Muslims!.

There were nine crusades over 200 years!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Hi baby!.!.!.like joh said !.!.!.to spread christianity!.!.!.!.!.it ws pointless in my opinion stupid riots etc!.!.!. against other innocent religions!.!.!.!.!!!.!.no offense intended to anyoneWww@QuestionHome@Com

To spread ChristianityWww@QuestionHome@Com

To spread Christianity!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

it was a religious war to try to wipe out all religions other than christianityWww@QuestionHome@Com

to brain wash people about christianity!.!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

The main goal of it was to spread Christianity!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

to push back the Turks who were spreading west and taking over territoryWww@QuestionHome@Com

i really have no idea! sorry wish i could help!
xx'sWww@QuestionHome@Com