Economic/ Social factors

What was primogeniture?

• Eldest son inherited father’s lands and titles

• Younger sons inherited little - had an incentive to seek land abroad

• Eg Bohemond of Taranto

What did increased population cause?

• Increased pressure on land and resources

• Jerusalem known as land of milk and honey - fertile land to grow crops

What did Italian maritime cities see?

• Opportunities for trade expansion in the East

• Eg Genoa and Venice

Peasants

• Some joined for a hope of a better life (fertile land compared to acid european soil and cold climate)

Who did Stephen of Blois inspire to join?

• The nobility in Chartrain

Bohemond of Taranto

• 8/15 of his captains who joined him were close relatives

Cluniac Order

• At the heart of the papal reform movement - helped them to truly appreciate the religious reason for a crusade

How does Robert of Riems describe the West?

• Overcrowded, with limited opportunities to make money

• Said the East was a fertile land

First Crusade - booty

• After Jerusalem was captured, the crusaders plundered any valuables they could find

• Looting was part of the mental world of a Crusader along with religious motivation

Tancred

• Lived under the shadow of his Uncle, Bohemond

• Could escape his mouvances (word in which europeans were dependent on the patronage of someone wealthier)

What did Bohemond do in 1098?

• Broke his oath to Alexius to hand over the city of Antioch to the Byzantines and declared himself Prince of Antioch

• Reveals power was a motive to some

Settlement

• Only 200-300/1,200 Knights who battled at Ascalon stayed

• Most viewed the Crusade as a temporary phase in their lives, not as a way to ‘make it’ in the East

Cost of Crusading

• Many returned home in a state of poverty - booty to heavy to carry home

• Sent the message that you would not return home wealthy