The Second and Third Crusade

The crusaders built strong castles in the Middle East, that seemed safe from attack; And although Jerusalem remained safe during this time, in 1144 a combined Arab and Turkish army did rise up and attack and capture the city of Edessa. The Pope reacted by ordering a second crusade to take Edessa back and return its control to the Christians.

The Second Crusade

The young king of France, Louis VII (Louis the Seventh), agreed to go, along with queen Eleanor of Aquitaine (France). So did Conrad III of Germany, the Holy Roman Emperor.

But this second crusade was a failure. Most of Conrad's soldiers were killed as they marched through Turkey. The Crusaders then decided to attack the Muslim controlled city of Damascus instead of Edessa, but the attack failed. The kings and queens went home defeated.

Despite this defeat, the Crusaders still retained control of many cities in the Middle East and Jerusalem.

However, in the 1180’s the Arabs found a new, strong leader, Saladin, who wiped out the crusaders main army at the Battle of Hattin (near the Lake of Galilee). Soon the crusaders had almost been pushed into the sea.

Saladin was a great Muslim leader. His real name was Salah al-Din Yusuf. He united and lead the Muslim world and in 1187, he recaptured Jerusalem for the Muslims after defeating the King of Jerusalem at the Battle of Hattin. When his soldiers entered the city of Jerusalem, they were not allowed to kill civilians, rob people or damage the city. The more successful Saladin was, the more he was seen by the Muslims as being their natural leader.

The Third Crusade

A new call for another crusade went out from Pope Gregory VIII (Gregory the Eighth), to once again to take Jerusalem from the Muslims. The Pope's plea was answered and Richard the Lionheart led an English army, but he and his fellow kings failed to drive Arabs from Jerusalem.

Saladin and Richard the Lionheart are two names that tend to dominate the Crusades. Both have gone down in Medieval history as great military leaders.

The Christians of western Europe were stunned by the success of Saladin. The pope, Gregory VIII, ordered another crusade immediately to regain the Holy City for the Christians. This was the start of the Third Crusade.

It was led by King Richard I (Richard the Lionheart), Emperor Frederick Barbarossa of Germany, and King Philip II of France.

These were possibly the three most important men in western Europe. It was to last from 1189 to 1192.

King Frederick (of Germany) was drowned on his march across Europe and only a small part of his army continued to the Middle East.

King Richard and King Philip (of France) men travelled by boat with their men. They stopped in modern-day Sicily (Italy). In March 1191, Philip then sailed to the port of Acre which was controlled by the Muslims.

This was an important port to capture for the Christians as it would allow them to easily land their ships and it was also the nearest big port to Jerusalem. Acre was besieged. Philip's men were joined by Richard's.

Richard had captured Cyprus first before moving on to Acre. However, the siege had its impact on Philip and left for France. Richard was left by himself.

While in control of Acre, the Christians massacred 2,000 Muslim soldiers who they had captured. Saladin had agreed to pay a ransom for them but somehow there was a breakdown in the process of payment and Richard ordered their execution.

Richard was determined to get to Jerusalem and he was prepared to take on Saladin.

The Crusaders kept as near to the coast as possible to allow ships to supply them. It was also slightly cooler with a coastal breeze. Regardless of this, the Christians suffered badly from the heat and lack of fresh water.

Richard marched towards Jerusalem in June 1192.

However, by now even Richard the Lionheart was suffering. He had a fever and appealed to his enemy Saladin to send him fresh water and fresh fruit. Saladin sent frozen snow to the Crusaders to be used as water and fresh fruit.

(First, Saladin was a strict Muslim. One of the main beliefs of Islam is that Muslims should help those in need. Secondly, Saladin admired Richards, fighting skills, courage and bravery.)

At this point, King Richard only had 2,000 fit soldiers and 50 fit knights to use in battle. With such a small force, Richard could not hope to take Jerusalem even though he got near enough to see the Holy City.

Although Richard failed to retake Jerusalem, he organized a truce with Saladin - pilgrims from the west would once again be allowed to visit Jerusalem without being troubled by the Muslims.

Neither Richard or Saladin particularly liked the truce but both sides were worn out and in October 1192, Richard sailed for western Europe never to return to the Holy Land.