1095–1099Reputable sourceWell documented
The First Crusade
On the timeline · around 1095–1099 ·
What happened
In 1095, at the Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II called on the knights of western Europe to march east and recover Jerusalem from Muslim rule, promising spiritual rewards. Tens of thousands answered. After a long and brutal campaign across Anatolia and Syria, the crusaders stormed Jerusalem in 1099, massacring much of its population.
Why it matters
The First Crusade was the only fully successful major crusade, and it launched two centuries of holy war between Christian Europe and the Muslim world for control of the Holy Land.
Sources
- World History Encyclopedia. First Crusade · Reputable source
Related timelines
- The Middle Ages → — A defining event of the High Middle Ages