First Crusade 1. Muslim Disunity a. Sunni/Shia Divisions i.

Shia Fatamids had a NAVY but would not aid the Sunni Turks to stop the Byzantines shipping in supplies b. Kerbogas army was deeply divided, and because Kerboga wanted Antioch for himself when he attacked in 1098, his army was not motivated enough to help him. i. Duqaq of Damascus and Riduan of Aleppo had been fighting over their inheritance, each taking their own city. However, both wanted to be able to control both cities and for this reason would not work together at the siege of Antioch. c. When Malik Shah died in 1092, the Seljuk Turks divided into Warlords who were competing over power. This meant that they were warring. i. Kilij Arslan was warring with the local Danishmends, and so chose to sort out a territorial dispute and fight the Crusaders later on, as the Danishmends were seen as a bigger threat at the time. 2. Religious Zeal a. The idea of Just War was accepted at the time, but it was still seen as not being forgivable by God. When the Knights were offered an opportunity to carry on their careers, just in devotion to God, with full remission of Sins and guaranteed access to Heaven, it seemed a logical choice. b. The discovery of the Holy Lance by Peter Bartholomew in 1098 also prompted the Crusaders into action and dramatically increased, and motivated them to fight against Kerboga when he would not complete a treaty with. c. Penitential walk around Jerusalem and the Cleansing of the Camp from Camp Followers show that peoples Zeal was linked into their motivation to fight for God. 3. Complacency following the Peoples Crusade a. Kilij Arslan chose to attack the Danishmends rather than the Crusaders because the Peoples Crusade had left him complacent that he would be able to d efeat them with ease in a short period of time. 4. Byzantine aid a. The Byzantines shipped supplies to the Crusaders whilst they were marching to Jerusalem, and Alexius offered support as their Liege lord. b. They also provided siege machine plans, which was important as the Crusaders had wooden castles back in Europe and had no idea how to fight against their stone counterparts in Asia Minor and Syria c. The Byzantines also sent General Tatakios with the Crusaders, to offer support and advice. This was important because he knew how the Muslims fought, where as the Crusaders were facing a new enemy before. 5. Poor Muslim Generalship a. Riduan of Aleppo and Duqaq of Damascus refused to fight alongside each other, and so Kerbogas army was weakened as he did not have the full amount of support that he shouldve done. b. Kerboga hesitated before sending his army to attack the Crusaders outside Antioch, where he allowed them to structure themselves. 6. Good Crusader generals a. When Arslan ambushed the Crusaders at Dorylaeum in 1097, Bohemond of Taranto rallied the Vanguard to stand up against the Muslim attackers. b. Godfrey of Bouillon lead the army to the rescue of Bohemond and the Vanguard, and he also found a weak spot in Jerusalems walls d uring the siege in 1098. 7. Element of Luck

a. Malik Shah had only just died - the Muslims were disunited & DANISHMENDS b. The Fatamids had only just conquered Jerusalem. Second Crusade 1. Poor Crusader leadership a. Conrad and Louis marched to Constantinople at different times i. Conrad was defeated at Dorylaeum ?YEAR? ii. Louis VII couldnt maintain march discipline and handed control of his army over to the Templars after being defeated at Mt. Cadmus in 1148. 2. Good Muslim leadership & unity a. Zengi was able to combine the armies of Aleppo and Mosul to hae a stronger fprce to combat the Crusaders with. 3. Improved Muslim military skills a. Knew how to fight the Crusaders 4. Local Franks a. Apparently ambushed the siege of Damascus by making the Crusaders move their siege towers i. WHY though? Disputed. 5. Lack of Religious Zeal a. Feudal obligation i. Louis court unsupportive in 1146 of going to the Holy Land. 6. Lack of common goal a. Edessa and then Damascus.

Fall of Jerusalem 1. Christian Disunity a. There were factional rivalries in Jerusalem, with people supporting different people to be leaders of Outremer b. When Guy of Lusignon became King of Jerusalem, Raymond of Tripoli strongly disagreed and organised a truce with Saladin, which allowed him free access through Tripolis lands. i. This, in turn, lead to the battle of Cresson of 1187 where all but four of the Knights Templars were killed. 2. Weak Outremer leadership a. 3. Lack of manpower a. Following the battle of Cresson in May 1187, the strong, dedicated Knights which defended Jerusalem had been defeated. b. Gerard de Ridefort was undeniably angry about this, and made Guy of Lusignon ride out to battle Saladins forces, allowing for the destruction of the army of Jerusalem. i. The destruction of the army left Jerusalem defenceless, and forced it to surrender to Saladins men. 4. Strength of Saladin a. Saladin effectively had the Crusader States surrounded. He controlled Syria, to the left of Outremer, Egypt, to the South of Outremer, and Damascus, to the North. b. He also had an army of 30,000 men, outnumbering Outremer. 5. Reynald of Chataillon a. Reynald attacked a caravan containing Saladins relative in 1187, provoking Saladin to start a HOLY WAR.

Third Crusade 1. Poor Crusader leadership o Richard could not control his anger well he threw Leopolds banners off of the walls of Acre in 1192. o Philip Augustus left in 1192 as his Crusading Vows had been fulfilled . o Barbarossa did not coordinate his trip to Constantinople and arrived at different times to Richard. He drowned in River Calycadmus, and his army was scattered under different leaders. o Richard was an indecisive leader, he lead the army against Jerusalem twice, once in January 1192 following the battle of Arsuf, and again in June 1192. By doing this, he reduced morale incredibly and divided the army even more so than previously. o And when Richards throne was threatened, he left the Holy Land. 2. Lack of manpower o Barbarossas army was scattered following his death in 1190. o Philip Augustus lead some members of his army home when he fulfilled his vows in 1192. o Leopold of Austria refused to acknowledge Richard as King and took his army home in 1192 also. 3. Crusader disunity o Richard was keen to negotiate with Saladin, which was not well liked by his army as they distrusted the Muslims and did not want to make truces with them. o Richard/Philip Philip couldnt take Acre, so Richard proved to be a superior general. o Richard/Burgundy Disunity regarding Jerusalem, Ascalon and Egypt. o Richard/Leopold Disunity regarding Acre 4. Distractions back in Europe o Richard returned home because Philip Augustus and his brother, John, had been rumoured to be plotting a coup against his Throne. 5. Saladins strength o Saladin was the most formidable army that they had ever seen, and it was clear that they were in a stalemate against him. They couldnt take Jerusalem, but his prestige was ruined by losing the battle of Arsuf. 6. Lack of agreeable aims o Marched on Jerusalem, rebuilt Ascalon for 4 months, marched on Jerusalem AGAIN and then decided Egypt was a better target CLEAR impact on Armys Morale.

Fourth Crusade 1. Enrico Dandalo a. Encouraged the over-estimation of the numbers of Crusaders who would turn up, leaving the Crusaders in debt in 1201 during the Treaty of Venice. b. Forced the Crusaders to go to Zara in 1202. i. Wouldnt listen to Peter Capuano ii. Wouldnt allow them to attack them after Egypt either. c. Encouraged the Crusaders to aid Alexius in 1203. d. Encouraged the Crusaders to attack the city of Constantinople in 1204. 2. Prince Alexius a. Lied to the Crusaders in Winter 1202 about his popularity b. Offered an undeniably large amount of money that tempted even the Pope himself c. Made the Crusaders stay on until Spring 1204 to defend him as he heavily taxed his people i. Leading to his assassination by Murzuphlus in 1204 3. Lack of Papal Control a. Excommunicated the entire Crusader army, but did not have the power to tell them about it relied too heavily on other people. b. Papal Legate fled to the Holy Land when he could not reason with Enrico Dandalo c. Allowed the sacking of Constantinople because of the power it would give him. 4. Poor Crusader leadership a. The leaders were financial illiterates. b. They succumbed to the temptation of Alexius offer c. When they finally managed to secure Constantinople and Thesally in 1204, they would not go to Egypt as they were too busy trying to maintain control. 5. Lack of Manpower a. Ensured that they couldnt pay the debt to the Venetians and allowed them to be controlled Made the temptation of a 500 knight garrison and 10,000 troops to Egypt all the more tempting