The Medieval Papacy and the Crusades: The Crusades

The Decentralization and Feudalization of the Church

• Ninth-Century Insecurity and Its Impact: During the $9^{th}$ century, the city of Rome and the broader Church faced significant threats from external invasions, specifically the Vikings, Magyars, and Saracens (who notably sacked Rome during this period). This lack of safety led to a decline in the security and central authority of the papacy.

• The Feudalization of the Church: Due to the insecure political climate, the Church fell under "secular control." Local noble families began to treat religious offices and monasteries as hereditary family properties, a process described as the "feudalization of the church."

• Hereditary Religious Offices: Much like the political offices of counts or dukes, positions such as bishops and abbots were used by noble families to enhance their family's prestige and revenue within a specific locale. This leads to a decentralization of Church power as kingly, episcopal, and papal authority declines.

• Case Study: Bishop Odo: Odo was the Bishop of Bayeux and the half-brother of King William the First (William the Conqueror), the Duke of Normandy who conquered England at the Battle of Hastings in $1066$. The Bayeux Tapestry depicts Bishop Odo in the thick of battle, wielding a giant mace (club) to strike Saxons.

  • Implication: Clergy were forbidden from shedding blood with swords, so Odo used a mace to circumvent this while still engaging in warfare. His occupation of the office was primarily for material gain and to serve as a military knight, illustrating the depth of lay control over the Church.

• Case Study: Pope John the Twelfth: Pope John $XII$ became Pope in his early $20s$. He was installed by his powerful Roman family to enhance their family's position. He lived the life of a secular prince rather than a religious leader, exemplifying how the papacy itself was not immune to being used as a revenue source for vying noble families.

• Marriage in the Priesthood: During this era, married priests were the norm. The rule of celibacy found in the modern Catholic Church was not yet in effect.

The Cluniac Reform Movement

• The Monastery at Cluny: In the $10^{th}$ century, a reform movement began at the monastery of Cluny in the Burgundy region of France. The goal was to return to the original "Rule of Saint Benedict" (Benedictine Rule), which mandated vows of poverty, chastity, obedience, work, prayer, and study.

• Independence from Lay Control: Duke William the Pious of Aquitaine established the monastery with a unique charter: the land was granted on the condition that the monks remain completely independent of any secular or lay control, including the Duke's own family. The monks were given the right to select their own Abbot (leader) through internal elections.

• The Cluniac Federation: Cluny spawned a network of "daughter monasteries" throughout Western Europe. This federation of monasteries owed loyalty to the Abbot of Cluny and sought to end secular encroachment on the Church and return to religious fundamentals.

• Impact of Reform: The movement was most successful in areas where monarchical authority was weakest, such as France and Italy. In these regions, the Abbots of Cluny became the primary champions for reform.

• Monarch-Led Reform: Conversely, in areas like England and the Holy Roman Empire where kings were strong, the rulers themselves—often sincere, pious Christians worried about their souls—spearheaded monastic reform and appointed reforming churchmen to high positions.

Monasticism and the Rise of Pilgrimage

• Monks as Intercessors: Monasticism was popular because monks were viewed as "intercessors for fallen humanity." After the Fall and original sin, humanity was seen as being in a state of sin. Monasteries, with their $24/7$ cycle of prayer, were believed to assuage the wrath of God on behalf of the world.

• Pilgrimages as Atonement: A layman (non-church person) or secular person (non-ecclesiastic) could seek salvation and atone for sinful behavior through pilgrimages.

• Famous Pilgrimage Sites:

  • Santiago de Compostela: Located in Galicia, Northwestern Spain; houses the bones of Saint James the Apostle.

  • Rome: Home to the tombs of Saint Peter and Saint Paul and the seat of the papacy.

  • Jerusalem: The Holy Land where Christ lived and was crucified.

  • Canterbury: Site of the martyrdom of Archbishop Thomas Becket (murdered by henchmen of Henry $II$ of England). Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales focuses on a group traveling to this site.

The Investiture Crisis and Papal Prestige

• Emperor Henry the Third: A member of the Salian dynasty of Germany. Inspired by Charlemagne, he viewed himself as "God’s anointed one" and believed in "sacred kingship." In the $11^{th}$ century, he intervened in Rome to depose corrupt popes from local noble families and appoint reformers.

• Pope Leo the Ninth: A kinsman of Henry $III$ and a reformer who attempted to clean up the papacy despite opposition from native Roman nobility.

• Pope Nicholas the Second ($1058$-$1061$): Established the system of papal elections that exists today through the creation of the "College of Cardinals" in $1059$.

  • The College of Cardinals: Cardinals (from the Latin cardo, meaning "hinge," as they are the hinges supporting the Church) meet in a conclave to select a new pope from their own number, effectively excluding secular families. A proviso was initially included to save the Emperor’s prerogative, but the move aimed to expunge secular influence.

• Pope Gregory the Seventh (Hildebrand): A radical reformer determined to end "Lay Investiture" (the practice of secular rulers investing clerics with their symbols of office). He rejected old Carolingian notions of kingship and insisted only the Church could appoint bishops.

• Conflict with Henry the Fourth: The crisis centered on the appointment of the Archbishop of Milan. Henry $IV$ appointed a candidate, leading Gregory to excommunicate him in $1076$. Gregory absolved Henry's subjects of their loyalty, causing noble rebellions.

• Humiliation at Canossa ($1077$): Henry $IV$ traveled to Canossa to appear as a penitent. As a priest, Gregory was bound to hear his confession and rescind the excommunication. Henry "played for time," returned to Germany to defeat his rebels, and eventually drove Gregory into exile in Sicily.

• Concordat of Worms ($1122$): A compromise agreement where bishops are invested in their spiritual office only by the Church, but must obey the secular ruler (Emperor) for the political/temporal parts of their position. The papacy emerged as the primary winner, gaining significant influence.

The First Crusade ($1095$-$1099$)

• The Call to Crusade: Pope Urban $II$ called for a crusade in $1095$ at the Council of Clermont, framing it as a "penitential act" to atone for sins. The rallying cry was "Deus Vult" (God Wills It).

• The Byzantine Appeal: Emperor Alexios Komnenos appealed for military help against the Seljuk Turks who had taken Anatolia. He suggested that in exchange for help, he might reconcile the "East-West Schism" of $1054$ (the split between Latin/Catholic and Greek/Orthodox Christianity) and recognize the authority of the Pope (Petrine Succession).

• The People's Crusade ($1096$): Organized by Peter the Hermit and Walter "Sanzavoir" (meaning "Without Having"). Consisted of approximately $30,000$ people, mostly illiterate peasants.

  • Depredations: Due to lack of supplies and geographical knowledge, the group pillaged Eastern European Christians and massacred Jewish communities in the Rhineland (often to clear debts owed to Jewish creditors).

  • Disaster: Most were killed or enslaved by the Seljuk Turks after crossing the Bosphorus.

• The Military Crusade: Led by powerful lords: Bohemond and Tancred (Normans), Raymond $IV$ (Count of Toulouse), Godfrey of Bouillon and Baldwin of Boulogne (Lorraine), and Robert Kurthose (Duke of Normandy).

• Key Military Events:

  • Siege of Nicaea ($1097$): Turks surrendered secretly to Alexios Komnenos to avoid being slaughtered by the Crusaders.

  • Battle of Dorylaeum (July $1097$): Crusaders turned the tables on a Turkish ambush.

  • Capture of Edessa: Baldwin of Boulogne diverted to Edessa to carve out his own territory at the request of local Armenians.

  • Siege of Antioch ($1097$-$1098$): An $8$-month siege. After capturing the city, the Crusaders were besieged by a Turkish relief army from Mosul.

  • The Holy Lance: Peter Bartholomew allegedly discovered the Lance of Longinus (which pierced Christ) in Antioch. Despite a similar relic existing in Constantinople, this discovery motivated the Crusaders to defeat the larger relief army on June $28, 1098$.

  • Capture of Jerusalem (July $15, 1099$): Crusaders took the city from the Fatimids (who had recently replaced the Seljuks). They massacred much of the population, including Christians and Jews.

• Crusader States: Four states were established: The Kingdom of Jerusalem (Godfrey of Bouillon as first king), County of Tripoli, Principality of Antioch, and County of Edessa.

Subsequent Crusades

• Second Crusade ($1147$-$1149$): Triggered by the fall of Edessa in $1144$. Led by King Louis $VII$ of France and Emperor Conrad $III$ of Germany. It was an "abject failure," failing at Damascus.

• Saladin: A charismatic Muslim leader who united the disunited Muslim world (previously split between Turks, Arabs, Sunnis, and Shiites). He defeated the Crusaders at the Horns of Hattin in $1187$, leading to the loss of Jerusalem.

• Third Crusade ($1189$-$1192$): The "Kings' Crusade," the best-financed effort.

  • Leaders: Emperor Frederick Barbarossa (who drowned en route), King Philip Augustus of France (who returned home after recapturing Acre in July $1191$), and King Richard the Lionheart of England.

  • Battle of Arsuf (September $1191$): A rare instance where Muslims engaged the Crusaders' heavy shock cavalry face-to-face and lost.

  • Settlement: Richard realized he couldn't take Jerusalem and negotiated with Saladin. The piece allowed unarmed Christians to visit Jerusalem, while Muslims retained control.

• Fourth Crusade ($1202$-$1204$): Called by Pope Innocent $III$. Diverted by Venice and an exiled Byzantine prince to Constantinople.

  • The Sack of Constantinople ($1204$): Crusaders sacked the Christian city, establishing a "Latin Empire" until $1261$. This made the East-West Schism permanent and was seen as a supreme act of treachery by Orthodox Christians.

• Sixth Crusade ($1228$-$1229$): Led by Emperor Frederick $II$ ("Stupor Mundi" or "Wonder of the World"). He spoke Arabic and Greek. He negotiated a diplomatic settlement in $1229$ that ceded Jerusalem (except the Temple Mount/Dome of the Rock) to the Crusaders for $15$ years without any fighting. Pope Gregory $IX$ excommunicated him for not fighting.

• Seventh and Eighth Crusades: Led by King Louis $IX$ (Saint Louis) of France to Egypt and Tunis respectively; both were failures.

• The End of the Mainland Crusades: In $1291$, Acre, the last Crusader outpost, fell to the Muslims.

Impact and Other Crusading Movements

• The Reconquista: Crusading in the Iberian Peninsula to drive out the Muslims. Alfonso Henriques became the first King of Portugal (descended from Burgundian Crusaders). The Reconquista ended in $1492$ with the fall of Granada to Ferdinand and Isabella.

• Baltic Crusades: Led by the Teutonic Knights to forcibly convert non-Christian peoples in Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.

• Long-Term Consequences:

  • Religious Schism: Ensured the permanent split between Eastern Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism.

  • Holy War: Developed the doctrine of dying for the faith as a ticket to salvation (parallel to Jihad).

  • Economic Boom: Italian city-states (Venice, Genoa, Pisa, Amalfi) became extremely wealthy as middlemen in East-West trade.

  • Intercultural Exchange: European castle-building (e.g., Beaufort Castle in Lebanon, Richard the Lionheart’s castles in Normandy) and medical advances were influenced by Arabic achievements.

  • Political Legacy: Viewed by modern Middle Eastern societies as an early version of Western colonialism.