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Author Archives: Ruth
King Baldwin’s Feminist Daughters
I’ve described King Baldwin II as a family man, the fact that sets him apart from the other First Crusaders. Coming with the Boulogne brothers as a landless knight, he had inherited Edessa and immediately married Morphia, the heiress of … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades, Women
Tagged Alice, Baldwin of Jerusalem, Hodierna, Ioveta, Melisende, Morphia
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Knights of Temple and Hospital, 1118
In the first year of King Baldwin II, a knight named Hugues (Hugh, Hugo) proposed the creation of a new monastic order. He had probably come to Jerusalem in 1114, on pilgrimage with the Count of Champagne. Hugues chose to … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades
Tagged Bernard of Clairvaux, Jerusalem, Templars
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King Sigurd the Crusader
Norway decided to participate in the Crusade on its own schedule; it was at the outer rim of Christendom, so news of the First Crusade’s call arrived there slowly. Pilgrimages appealed to Scandinavians very much, since long voyages were part … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades
Tagged Lisbon, Norway, Varangian Guard
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Baldwin I is Dead, Long Live Baldwin II
In 1115, King Baldwin I sent a general invitation to Syrian Christians to come resettle in Jerusalem. The city’s economy was very thin, since the Crusaders had killed so many of the residents in their original assault. The ensuing years … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades
Tagged Baldwin of Boulogne, Baldwin of Jerusalem, Morphia
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Life of Tancred, 1097-1112
Tancred was a young man of about 20 when Pope Urban preached the Crusade. His grandfather had conquered Sicily, so he was looking for a new frontier. The Crusade was perfect for him, since he already spoke some Arabic. He … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades
Tagged Bohemund, Cecilia, Sicily, Tancred
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Bohemund: Glory and Shame, 1104-11
Bohemund, son of the Norman who conquered Sicily, was described as a tiger by Anna Comnena, Emperor Alexios’s daughter. His ferocious assault on Albania in past years had advertised Norman strength, and when he set out as a leader in … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades
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Hostages and Ransom, 1103
By 1103, Count Baldwin II of Edessa, his lieutenant Joscelin of Tel Bashir, and other Crusaders had finally raised the sum of gold to buy Bohemund’s freedom. A tenth of the gold was levied from a local Muslim who wanted … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades, Women
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Mt. Pilgrim and Raymond’s Legacy, 1101-5
Raymond of Toulouse had taken a vow not to return home. He had missed out on the prizes of Antioch and Jerusalem, but his army had taken some towns and forts in the vicinity of Tripoli. Among these early captures … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades
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The Crusade of the Faint-Hearted, 1101-2
In 1101, the new Pope Paschal called for another wave of pilgrim fighters to go east. Some of them were fresh faces, including the Archbishop of Milan leading another disorganized crowd of poor men, but some were First Crusaders who … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades
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Caesarea, 1101: Bad Cop, Good Cop
The Crusaders did not yet have a good port, since Antioch was actually inland a bit on the Orontes River. The ports in this area had all been fortified by Greek or Roman founders, so they had serious walls and … Continue reading
Posted in Islam History D: Crusades
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