Crusades

Crusades:

The Crusades were a series of wars during the Middle Ages where the Christians of Europe tried to retake control of Jerusalem and the Holy Land from the Muslims. 

• There were 9 crusades

Each of three major religious groups claimed Jerusalem in the land of Palestine as their holy city.

• To Christians, it was the place where Jesus was crucified and ascended to heaven

• To Muslims, it was the place where Muhammad met three earlier prophets Abraham, Moses and Jesus.

• To Jews, it was the site of the ancient temple built by Solomon

• In 600 CE, Arabs conquered the city. 
• The Arabs continued to allow Christian and Jewish pilgrims to visit Jerusalem. They even allowed Jews and Christians to live in the city.   
•  In 1095, a different tribe of Arabs took over Jerusalem. They refused to allow Jewish and Christian pilgrims to enter the city. 

The Pope heard about this and called for Christians to do something.  He asked for a volunteer army to go and take back Jerusalem.  About 30,000 knights and other fighting men took up the challenge and left to retake Jerusalem.  As a sign of their fighting for their…