Were Christians and Muslims Allies in the First Crusade? By Peter Konieczny …when the Christians saw they had prevailed as victors, and few of their number had fallen, they dismounted and cut off the heads of those killed, tied them to their saddles and carried them back in great happiness to their many comrades who were awaiting the outcome in the camp around Antioch, along with a thousand fit horses and many spoils they took from the defeated enemy.
The king of Egypt’s envoys were in that same battle and they also took back the army on their saddles the cut-off heads of Turks. This account of battle outside of Antioch, from the History of the Journey of Jerusalem by Albert of Aachen, illustrates a little-known aspect of the First Crusade – that while the crusaders were fighting against one group of Muslims, they were also fighting side-by-side with other Muslims. Saladin and the Problem of the Counter-Crusade in Medieval Europe. Saladin and the Problem of the Counter-Crusade in Medieval Europe By Jay Rubenstein Historically Speaking, Vol.13:5 (2012) 19th-century depiction of a victorious Saladin, by Gustave Doré.
Introduction: In 1105 a Muslim Damascene scholar named Ali ibn Tahir al-Sulami argued in a treatise that Muslims needed to learn anew the practice of jihad. A wicked race of unbelievers, polytheistic Christians who insisted on worshipping three gods instead of one, was waging war—their own version of jihad—against Islam. The enemies of whom al-Sulami wrote, the “Franks,” which included but was not limited to the crusaders, had made significant incursions into Muslim territory. But the disunity that al-Sulami decried was simply too ingrained—an attribute of the Islamic world rather than an anomaly. A disputed succession to the Fatimid Caliphate in 1094, for example, had led to the birth of the Ismaili sect, better known as “the Assassins” and best remembered for their expertise at political murder. The Crusades[1] Crusades - 1of20 (BBC) Crusades. Help support New Advent and get the full contents of this website as an instant download.
Includes the Catholic Encyclopedia, Church Fathers, Summa, Bible and more — all for only $19.99... The Crusades were expeditions undertaken, in fulfilment of a solemn vow, to deliver the Holy Places from Mohammedan tyranny. The origin of the word may be traced to the cross made of cloth and worn as a badge on the outer garment of those who took part in these enterprises. Medieval writers use the terms crux (pro cruce transmarina, Charter of 1284, cited by Du Cange s.v. crux), croisement (Joinville), croiserie (Monstrelet), etc.
Since the Middle Ages the meaning of the word crusade has been extended to include all wars undertaken in pursuance of a vow, and directed against infidels, i.e. against Mohammedans, pagans, heretics, or those under the ban of excommunication. Division It has been customary to describe the Crusades as eight in number: I. In the Year 1096: The First Crusade and the Jews by Robert Chazan. The Crusades. The Crusades In 1095 an assembly of churchmen called by Pope Urban II met at Clermont, France. Messengers from the Byzantine Emperor Alexius Comnenus had urged the pope to send help against the armies of Muslim Turks. On November 27 the pope addressed the assembly and asked the warriors of Europe to liberate the Holy Land from the Muslims.
The response of the assembly was overwhelmingly favorable. Thus was launched the first and most successful of at least eight crusades against the Muslim caliphates of the Near East. "God wills it! " Arab-Islamic history. Pre-Islamic Arabia The original Arab, the Bedouin by Philip K Hitti (from "The Arabs: A Short History") Ancient accounts of Arabia (from the Internet Ancient History Sourcebook) Herodotus, c. 430 BCE Strabo, c. 22 CE Dio Cassius, c. 220 CE Ammianus Marcellinus, c. 380 CE Procopius of Caesarea, c. 550 CE Pre-Islamic Arabic culture The desert origins of the Arabs, by Richard Hooker [World Cultures website] Byzantium and the Arabs in the Fifth Century by Irfan Shahid (Dumbarton Oaks Research Library, Washington DC)
A History of the Crusades.