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Second Crusade

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Military History and War;
Religious disputes

   The fall of Edessa, seen here on the right of this map (c.1140), was
   the proximate cause of the Second Crusade.
   Enlarge
   The fall of Edessa, seen here on the right of this map (c.1140), was
   the proximate cause of the Second Crusade.
                                     Crusades
   First – People's – German – 1101 – Second – Third – Fourth –
   Albigensian – Children's – Fifth – Sixth – Seventh – Shepherds' –
   Eighth – Ninth – Aragonese – Alexandrian – Nicopolis – Northern –
   Hussite – Varna

   The Second Crusade was the second major crusade launched from Europe,
   called in 1145 in response to the fall of the County of Edessa the
   previous year. Edessa was the first of the Crusader states to have been
   founded during the First Crusade (1095–1099), and was the first to
   fall. The Second Crusade was announced by Pope Eugene III, and was the
   first of the crusades to be led by European kings, namely Louis VII of
   France and Conrad III of Germany, with help from a number of other
   important European nobles. The armies of the two kings marched
   separately across Europe and were somewhat hindered by Byzantine
   emperor Manuel I Comnenus; after crossing Byzantine territory into
   Anatolia, both armies were separately defeated by the Seljuk Turks.
   Louis and Conrad and the remnants of their armies reached Jerusalem
   and, in 1148, participated in an ill-advised attack on Damascus. The
   crusade in the east was a failure for the crusaders and a great victory
   for the Muslims. It would ultimately lead to the fall of Jerusalem and
   the Third Crusade at the end of the 12th century.

   The only success came outside of the Mediterranean, where Flemish,
   Frisian, Norman, English, Scottish, and some German crusaders, on the
   way by ship to the Holy Land, fortuitously stopped and helped capture
   Lisbon in 1147. Meanwhile, in Eastern Europe, the first of the Northern
   Crusades began with the intent of forcibly converting pagan tribes to
   Christianity, and these crusades would go on for centuries.

Background

   After the First Crusade and the minor Crusade of 1101 there were three
   crusader states established in the east: the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the
   Principality of Antioch, and the County of Edessa. A fourth, the County
   of Tripoli, was established in 1109. Edessa was the most northerly of
   these, and also the weakest and least populated; as such, it was
   subject to frequent attacks from the surrounding Muslim states ruled by
   the Ortoqids, Danishmends, and Seljuk Turks. Count Baldwin II and
   future count Joscelin of Courtenay were taken captive after their
   defeat at the Battle of Harran in 1104. Baldwin and Joscelin were both
   captured a second time in 1122, and although Edessa recovered somewhat
   after the Battle of Azaz in 1125, Joscelin was killed in battle in
   1131. His successor Joscelin II was forced into an alliance with the
   Byzantine Empire, but in 1143 both the Byzantine emperor John II
   Comnenus and the King of Jerusalem Fulk of Anjou died. Joscelin had
   also quarreled with the Count of Tripoli and the Prince of Antioch,
   leaving Edessa with no powerful allies.

   Meanwhile, the Seljuk Zengi, atabeg of Mosul, had added Aleppo to his
   rule in 1128. Aleppo was the key to power in Syria, contested between
   the rulers of Mosul and Damascus. Both Zengi and King Baldwin II turned
   their attention towards Damascus; Baldwin was defeated outside the city
   in 1129. Damascus, ruled by the Burid Dynasty, later allied with King
   Fulk when Zengi besieged the city in 1139 and 1140; the alliance was
   negotiated by the chronicler Usamah ibn Munqidh.

   In late 1144, Joscelin II allied with the Ortoqids and marched out of
   Edessa with almost his entire army to support the Ortoqid Kara Aslan
   against Aleppo. Zengi, already seeking to take advantage of Fulk's
   death in 1143, hurried north to besiege Edessa, which fell to him after
   a month on December 24, 1144. Manasses of Hierges, Philip of Milly and
   others were sent from Jerusalem to assist, but arrived too late.
   Joscelin II continued to rule the remnants of the county from
   Turbessel, but little by little the rest of the territory was captured
   or sold to the Byzantines. Zengi himself was praised throughout Islam
   as "defender of the faith" and al-Malik al-Mansur, "the victorious
   king". He did not pursue an attack on the remaining territory of
   Edessa, or the Principality of Antioch, as was feared; events in Mosul
   compelled him to return home, and he once again set his sights on
   Damascus. However, he was assassinated by a slave in 1146 and was
   succeeded in Aleppo by his son Nur ad-Din. Joscelin attempted to take
   back Edessa following Zengi's murder, but Nur ad-Din defeated him in
   November of 1146.

Reaction in the west

   The news of the fall of Edessa was brought back to Europe first by
   pilgrims early in 1145, and then by embassies from Antioch, Jerusalem,
   and Armenia. Bishop Hugh of Jabala reported the news to Pope Eugene
   III, who issued the bull Quantum praedecessores on December 1 of that
   year, calling for a second crusade. Hugh also told the Pope of an
   eastern Christian king, who, it was hoped, would bring relief to the
   crusader states: this is the first documented mention of Prester John.
   Eugene did not control Rome and lived instead at Viterbo, but
   nevertheless the crusade was meant to be more organized and centrally
   controlled than the First Crusade: certain preachers would be approved
   by the pope, the armies would be led by the strongest kings of Europe,
   and a route would be planned beforehand. The initial response to the
   new crusade bull was poor, and it in fact had to be reissued when it
   was clear that Louis VII would be taking part in the expedition. Louis
   VII of France had also been considering a new expedition independently
   of the Pope, which he announced to his Christmas court at Bourges in
   1145. It is debatable whether Louis was planning a crusade of his own
   or in fact a pilgrimage, as he wanted to fulfil a vow made by his
   brother Philip to go to the Holy Land, as he had been prevented by
   death. It is probable that Louis had made this decision independently
   of hearing about Quantum Praedecessores.In any case, Abbot Suger and
   other nobles were not in favour of Louis' plans, as he would
   potentially be gone from the kingdom for several years. Louis consulted
   Bernard of Clairvaux, who referred him back to Eugene. Now Louis would
   have definitely heard about the papal bull, and Eugene enthusiastically
   supported Louis' crusade. The bull was reissued on March 1, 1146, and
   Eugene authorized Bernard to preach the news throughout France.

Bernard of Clairvaux preaches the crusade

   There had been virtually no popular enthusiasm for the crusade as there
   had been in 1095 and 1096. However, St. Bernard, one of the most famous
   and respected men of Christendom at the time, found it expedient to
   dwell upon the taking of the cross as a potent means of gaining
   absolution for sin and attaining grace. On March 31, with Louis
   present, he preached to an enormous crowd in a field at Vézelay.
   Bernard, "the honey-tongued teacher" worked his magic of oration, men
   rose up and yelled "Crosses, give us Crosses!" and they supposedly ran
   out of cloth to make crosses; to make more Bernard is said to have
   given his own outer garments to be cut up. Unlike the First Crusade,
   the new venture attracted Royalty, such as Eleanor of Aquitaine, then
   Queen of France; Thierry of Alsace, Count of Flanders; Henry, the
   future Count of Champagne; Louis’ brother Robert I of Dreux; Alphonse I
   of Toulouse; William II of Nevers; William de Warenne, 3rd Earl of
   Surrey; Hugh VII of Lusignan; and numerous other nobles and bishops.
   But an even greater show of support came from the common people. St.
   Bernard wrote to the Pope a few days afterwards: "I opened my mouth; I
   spoke; and at once the Crusaders have multiplied to infinity. Villages
   and towns are now deserted. You will scarcely find one man for every
   seven women. Everywhere you see widows whose husbands are still alive".
   Eleanor of Aquitaine
   Enlarge
   Eleanor of Aquitaine

   It was decided that the crusaders would depart in one year, during
   which time they would make preparations and lay out a route to the Holy
   Land. Louis and Eugene received support from those rulers whose lands
   they would have to cross: Geza of Hungary, Roger II of Sicily, and
   Byzantine emperor Manuel I Comnenus, although Manuel wanted the
   crusaders to swear an oath of fealty to him, just as his grandfather
   Alexius I Comnenus had demanded.

   Meanwhile St. Bernard continued to preach in Burgundy, Lorraine and
   Flanders. As in the First Crusade, the preaching inadvertently led to
   attacks on Jews; a fanatical German monk named Rudolf was apparently
   inspiring massacres of Jews in the Rhineland, Cologne, Mainz, Worms,
   and Speyer, with Rudolf claiming Jews were not contributing financially
   to the rescue of the Holy Land. St. Bernard and the Archbishops of
   Cologne and Mainz were vehemently opposed to these attacks, and so St.
   Bernard traveled from Flanders to Germany to deal with the problem, and
   for the most part Bernard convinced Rudolf’s audience to follow him
   instead. Bernard then found Rudolf in Mainz and was able to silence
   him, returning him to his monastery.

   While still in Germany, St. Bernard also preached to Conrad III of
   Germany in November of 1146, but as Conrad was not interested in
   participating himself, Bernard continued onwards to preach in southern
   Germany and Switzerland. However, on the way back in December, he
   stopped at Speyer, where, in the presence of Conrad, he delivered an
   emotional sermon in which he took the role of Christ and asked what
   more he could do for the emperor. "Man", he cried, "what ought I to
   have done for you that I have not done?" Conrad could no longer resist
   and joined the crusade with many of his nobles, including Frederick II,
   Duke of Swabia. Just as at Vézelay earlier, many common people also
   took up the cause in Germany.

   The Pope also authorized a Crusade in Spain, although the war against
   the Moors had been going on for some time already. He granted Alfonso
   VII of Castile the same indulgence he had given to the French
   crusaders, and like Pope Urban II had done in 1095, urged the Spanish
   to fight on their own territory rather than joining the crusade to the
   east. He authorized Marseille, Pisa, Genoa, and other cities to fight
   in Spain as well, but elsewhere urged the Italians, such as Amadeus III
   of Savoy, to go to the east. Eugene did not want Conrad to participate,
   hoping instead that he would give imperial support to his own claims on
   the papacy, but he did not forbid him outright from leaving. As well as
   this, Eugene III also authorized a crusade in the Germanic lands
   against the Wends, who were pagan. Wars had been going on for some time
   between the Germans and Wends, and it took the persuasion of Bernard to
   allow indulgences to be issued for the Wendish Crusade. the expedition
   itself was not of traditional crusading nature, as it was an expansive
   one against pagans rather than Muslims, and was not related to the
   protection of the Holy Land. The Second Crusade therefore saw an
   interesting development in new arenas for crusading.

Preparations

   On February 16, 1147, the French crusaders met at Étampes to discuss
   their route. The Germans had already decided to travel overland through
   Hungary, as Roger II was an enemy of Conrad and the sea route was
   politically impractical. Many of the French nobles distrusted the land
   route, which would take them through the Byzantine Empire, the
   reputation of which still suffered from the accounts of the First
   Crusaders. Nevertheless it was decided to follow Conrad, and to set out
   on June 15. Roger II was offended and refused to participate any
   longer. In France, Abbot Suger and Count William of Nevers were elected
   as regents while the king would be on crusade.

   In Germany, further preaching was done by Adam of Ebrach, and Otto of
   Freising also took the cross. On March 13 at Frankfurt, Conrad’s son
   Frederick was elected king, under the regency of Henry, Archbishop of
   Mainz. The Germans planned to set out in May and meet the French in
   Constantinople. During this meeting, other German princes extended the
   idea of a crusade to the Slavic tribes living to the northeast of the
   Holy Roman Empire, and were authorized by Bernard to launch a crusade
   against them. On April 13 Eugene confirmed this crusade, comparing to
   the crusades in Spain and Palestine. Thus in 1147 the Wendish Crusade
   was also born.

The crusade in Spain and Portugal

   Alfonso I of Portugal
   Enlarge
   Alfonso I of Portugal

   In mid-May the first contingents left from England, consisting of
   Flemish, Frisian, Norman, English, Scottish, and some German crusaders.
   No prince or king led this part of the crusade; England at the time was
   in the midst of The Anarchy. They arrived at Porto at June, and were
   convinced by the bishop to continue to Lisbon, to which King Alfonso
   had already gone when he heard a crusader fleet was on its way. Since
   the Spanish crusade was already sanctioned by the pope, and they would
   still be fighting Muslims, the crusaders agreed. The siege of Lisbon
   began on July 1 and lasted until October 24 when the city fell to the
   crusaders, who thoroughly plundered it before handing it over to
   Alfonso. Some of the crusaders settled in the newly captured city, and
   Gilbert of Hastings was elected bishop, but most of the fleet continued
   to the east in February 1148. Almost at the same time, the Spanish
   under Alfonso VII of Castile and Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona
   and others captured Almería. In 1148 and 1149 they also captured
   Tortosa, Fraga, and Lerida.

German departure

   The German crusaders, consisting of Franconians, Bavarians, and
   Swabians, left by land, also in May 1147. Ottokar III of Styria joined
   Conrad at Vienna, and Conrad's enemy Geza II of Hungary was finally
   convinced to let them pass through unharmed. When the army arrived in
   Byzantine territory, Manuel feared they were going to attack him, and
   Byzantine troops were posted to ensure that there was no trouble. There
   was a brief skirmish with some of the more unruly Germans near
   Philippopolis and in Adrianople, where the Byzantine general Prosouch
   fought with Conrad’s nephew, the future emperor Frederick. To make
   things worse, some of the German soldiers were killed in a flood at the
   beginning of September. On September 10, however, they arrived at
   Constantinople, where relations with Manuel were poor and the Germans
   were convinced to cross into Asia Minor as quickly as possible. Manuel
   wanted Conrad to leave some of his troops behind, to assist Manuel in
   defending against attacks from Roger II, who had taken the opportunity
   to plunder the cities of Greece, but Conrad did not agree, despite
   being a fellow enemy of Roger.
   Emperor Frederick I, duke of Swabia during the Second Crusade
   Enlarge
   Emperor Frederick I, duke of Swabia during the Second Crusade

   In Asia Minor, Conrad decided not to wait for the French, and marched
   towards Iconium, capital of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rüm. Conrad split
   his army into two divisions, one of these was destroyed by the Seljuks
   on October 25, 1147 at the second battle of Dorylaeum. The Turks used
   their typical tactic of pretending to retreat, and then returning to
   attack the small force of German cavalry which had separated from the
   main army to chase them. Conrad began a slow retreat back to
   Constantinople, and his army was harassed daily by the Turks, who
   attacked stragglers and defeated the rearguard. Even Conrad was wounded
   in a skirmish with them. The other division, led by Otto of Freising,
   had marched south to the Mediterranean coast and was similarly defeated
   early in 1148.

French departure

   Fresco of Emperor Manuel I
   Enlarge
   Fresco of Emperor Manuel I

   The French crusaders departed from Metz in June, led by Louis, Thierry
   of Alsace, Renaut I of Bar, Amadeus III of Savoy and his half-brother
   William V of Montferrat, William VII of Auvergne, and others, along
   with armies from Lorraine, Brittany, Burgundy, and Aquitaine. A force
   from Provence, led by Alphonse of Toulouse, chose to wait until August,
   and to cross by sea. At Worms, Louis joined with crusaders from
   Normandy and England. They followed Conrad’s route fairly peacefully,
   although Louis came into conflict with Geza of Hungary when Geza
   discovered Louis had allowed an attempted Hungarian usurper to join his
   army.

   Relations within Byzantine territory were also poor, and the
   Lorrainers, who had marched ahead of the rest of the French, also came
   into conflict with the slower Germans whom they met on the way. Since
   the original negotiations between Louis and Manuel, Manuel had broken
   off his military campaign against the Sultanate of Rüm, signing a truce
   with his enemy Sultan Mas'ud. This was done so that Manuel would be
   free to concentrate on defending his empire from the Crusaders, who had
   gained a reputation for theft and treachery since the First Crusade and
   were widely suspected of harbouring sinister designs on Constantinople.
   Nevertheless, Manuel's relations with the French army were somewhat
   better than with the Germans, and Louis was entertained lavishly in
   Constantinople. Some of the French were outraged by Manuel's truce with
   the Seljuks and called for an attack on Constantinople, but they were
   restrained by the papal legates.

   When the armies from Savoy, Auvergne, and Montferrat joined Louis in
   Constantinople, having taken the land route through Italy and crossing
   from Brindisi to Durazzo, the entire army was shipped across the
   Bosporus to Asia Minor. In the tradition set by his grandfather Alexios
   I, Manuel had the French swear to return to the Empire any territory
   they captured. They were encouraged by rumours that the Germans had
   captured Iconium, but Manuel refused to give Louis any Byzantine
   troops. Byzantium had just been invaded by Roger II of Sicily, and all
   of Manuel's army was needed in the Balkans. Both the Germans and French
   therefore entered Asia without any Byzantine assistance, unlike the
   armies of the First Crusade.

   The French met the remnants of Conrad's army at Nicaea, and Conrad
   joined Louis' force. They followed Otto of Freising's route along the
   Mediterranean coast, and they arrived at Ephesus in December, where
   they learned that the Turks were preparing to attack them. Manuel also
   sent ambassadors complaining about the pillaging and plundering that
   Louis had done along the way, and there was no guarantee that the
   Byzantines would assist them against the Turks. Meanwhile Conrad fell
   sick and returned to Constantinople, where Manuel attended to him
   personally, and Louis, paying no attention to the warnings of a Turkish
   attack, marched out from Ephesus.

   The Turks were indeed waiting to attack, but in a small battle outside
   Ephesus, the French were victorious. They reached Laodicea early in
   January 1148, only a few days after Otto of Freising’s army had been
   destroyed in the same area. Resuming the march, the vanguard under
   Amadeus of Savoy became separated from the rest of the army, and Louis’
   troops were routed by the Turks. Louis himself, according to Odo of
   Deuil, climbed a tree and was ignored by the Turks, who did not
   recognize him. The Turks did not bother to attack further and the
   French marched on to Adalia, continually harassed from afar by the
   Turks, who had also burned the land to prevent the French from
   replenishing their food, both for themselves and their horses. Louis
   wanted to continue by land, and it was decided to gather a fleet at
   Adalia and sail for Antioch. After being delayed for a month by storms,
   most of the promised ships did not arrive at all. Louis and his
   associates claimed the ships for themselves, while the rest of the army
   had to resume the long march to Antioch. The army was almost entirely
   destroyed, either by the Turks or by sickness.

Journey to Jerusalem

   Louis eventually arrived in Antioch on March 19, after being delayed by
   storms; Amadeus of Savoy had died on Cyprus along the way. Louis was
   welcomed by Eleanor’s uncle Raymond of Poitiers. Raymond expected him
   to help defend against the Turks and to accompany him on an expedition
   against Aleppo, but Louis refused, preferring instead to finish his
   pilgrimage to Jerusalem rather than focus on the military aspect of the
   crusade. Eleanor enjoyed her stay, but her uncle wanted her to remain
   behind and divorce Louis if the king refused to help him. Louis quickly
   left Antioch for Tripoli. Meanwhile, Otto of Freising and the remnant
   of his troops arrived in Jerusalem early in April, and Conrad soon
   after, and Fulk, Patriarch of Jerusalem, was sent to invite Louis to
   join them. The fleet that had stopped at Lisbon arrived around this
   time, as well as the Provencals under Alphonse of Toulouse. Alphonse
   himself had died on the way to Jerusalem, supposedly poisoned by
   Raymond II of Tripoli, his nephew who feared his political aspirations
   in the county.

Council of Acre

   The Umayyad Mosque in the center of Damascus
   Enlarge
   The Umayyad Mosque in the centre of Damascus

   In Jerusalem the focus of the crusade quickly changed to Damascus, the
   preferred target of King Baldwin III and the Knights Templar. Conrad
   was persuaded to take part in this expedition. When Louis arrived, the
   Haute Cour met at Acre on June 24. This was the most spectacular
   meeting of the Cour in its existence: Conrad, Otto, Henry II of
   Austria, future emperor Frederick I Barbarossa (at the time Duke of
   Swabia), and William V of Montferrat represented the Holy Roman Empire;
   Louis, Alphonse's son Bertrand, Thierry of Alsace, and various other
   ecclesiastical and secular lords represented the French; and from
   Jerusalem King Baldwin, Queen Melisende, Patriarch Fulk, Robert of
   Craon (master of the Knights Templar), Raymond du Puy de Provence
   (master of the Knights Hospitaller), Manasses of Hierges ( constable of
   Jerusalem), Humphrey II of Toron, Philip of Milly, and Barisan of
   Ibelin were among those present. Notably, no one from Antioch, Tripoli,
   or the former County of Edessa attended. Some of the French considered
   their pilgrimage completed, and wanted to return home; some of the
   barons native to Jerusalem pointed out that it would be unwise to
   attack Damascus, their ally against the Zengid dynasty. Conrad, Louis,
   and Baldwin insisted, however, and in July an army assembled at
   Tiberias.

Siege of Damascus

   The crusaders decided to attack Damascus from the west, where orchards
   would provide them with a constant food supply. They arrived on July
   23, with the army of Jerusalem in the vanguard, followed by Louis and
   then Conrad in the rearguard. The Muslims were prepared for the attack
   and constantly attacked the army advancing through the orchards. The
   crusaders managed to fight their way through and chase the defenders
   back across the Barada River and into Damascus; having arrived outside
   the walls of the city, they immediately put it to siege. Damascus had
   sought help from Saif ad-Din Ghazi I of Aleppo and Nur ad-Din of Mosul,
   and the vizier, Mu'in ad-Din Unur, led an unsuccessful attack on the
   crusader camp. There were conflicts in both camps: Unur could not trust
   Saif ad-Din or Nur ad-Din from conquering the city entirely if they
   offered help; and the crusaders could not agree about who would receive
   the city if they captured it. On July 27 the crusaders decided to move
   to the eastern side of the city, which was less heavily fortified but
   had much less food and water. Nur ad-Din had by now arrived and it was
   impossible to return to their better position. First Conrad, then the
   rest of the army, decided to retreat back to Jerusalem.

Aftermath

   All sides felt betrayed by the others. A new plan was made to attack
   Ascalon, and Conrad took his troops there, but no further help arrived,
   due to the lack of trust that had resulted from the failed siege. The
   expedition to Ascalon was abandoned, and Conrad returned to
   Constantinople to further his alliance with Manuel, while Louis
   remained behind in Jerusalem until 1149. Back in Europe, Bernard of
   Clairvaux was also humiliated, and when his attempt to call a new
   crusade failed, he tried to disassociate himself from the fiasco of the
   Second Crusade altogether. He died in 1153.

   The siege of Damascus had disastrous long-term consequences for
   Jerusalem: Damascus no longer trusted the crusader kingdom, and the
   city was handed over to Nur ad-Din in 1154. Baldwin III finally seized
   Ascalon in 1153, which brought Egypt into the sphere of conflict.
   Jerusalem was able to make further advances into Egypt, briefly
   occupying Cairo in the 1160s. However, relations with the Byzantine
   Empire were mixed, and reinforcements from the west were sparse after
   the disaster of the Second Crusade. King Amalric I of Jerusalem allied
   with the Byzantines and participated in a combined invasion of Egypt in
   1169, but the expedition ultimately failed. In 1171, Saladin, nephew of
   one of Nur ad-Din's generals, was proclaimed Sultan of Egypt, uniting
   Egypt and Syria and completely surrounding the crusader kingdom.
   Meanwhile the Byzantine alliance ended with the death of emperor Manuel
   I in 1180, and in 1187 Jerusalem capitulated to Saladin. His forces
   then spread north to capture all but the capital cities of the Crusader
   States, precipitating the Third Crusade.
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