The history of the first crusade Research Paper

The history of the first crusade - Research Paper Example hy the crusades were started is that the Muslims had taken the holy land and this was causing problems for the Christian pilgrims who were trying to visit the holy land. The same article above stated that Pope Urban called the crusade â€Å"God’s will† to take the holy land back, and this inspired many to take up arms and go to the holy land for God, but long before the first sword was sharpened for this purpose, the Christian pilgrims were able to visit the holy land without problems despite it being occupied by the Muslims. Since there seemed to be no conflict, then why did the Pope order the crusade and name it â€Å"God’s Will†? The reason for this goes deeper than the Muslims occupying Jerusalem. Many reasons combined in order to prompt the calling of the crusade. According to the-orb.net, during this time, Alexius Comnenus, the eastern emperor noticed an advancing treat on his kingdom, the Seljuk Turks. This threat came after Europe’s survival of many other attackers such as the Magyars, Vikings, and Saracens. Fearing that the new threat would take over his City of Constantinople, the emperor sought allies to aid him in driving these Turks away. The ally that decided to help him was Pope Urban II. He had good reason to support the eastern emperor’s need of an army. One of these reasons is that at the time, according to the article, the eastern and western churches were split and Pope Urban needed to find a way to bring the two churches together. He was also please that the eastern Emperor chose him as an ally because, according to the article, the Holy Roman Emperor had set up a â€Å"rival† pope to manage in another issue, but he was chosen to aid the eastern Emperor. He gave the speech and promised remission of sins, the support of God and the church as... It is evident from the study that religion and conflict have gone hand in hand through out man’s history. People have been defending and fighting for what they believe for as long as records have been written, and these conflicts come in all sizes and forms, from the smallest and most peaceful arguments, to full-blown wars with fighting and bloodshed. Some have even speculated that most of the world’s major wars would not have happened if not for religion. This is very ironic since most, if not all religions teach their followers about peace and kindness towards their fellow man, but make no mistake about it, countless people have fought and died over their religious beliefs. This makes these kinds of struggles a very important and pivotal part of mankind’s history and can also be considered major contributors that shaped our civilization. This crusade is one of the most pivotal and discussed points of history. Not only did it begin the series of crusades that ch anged the face of Christianity, it also marked one of the most fervent defenses of religion in history. The resources that this paper has used present the reader with 3 different approaches to the story of the first crusade. On the one hand, we have an approach that creates a picture of a self-serving pope with political intentions, on the other hand, there is a picture of a pop and emperor attempting to defend their subservient people from an aggressive force, and the last approach shows us a more neutral side.