In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, criticism of crusading was a minority opinion in

western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

. By contrast, the

crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

in general were roundly criticized in the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

and unanimously condemned in the

Islamic world The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. In ...

. Criticism of crusading could be limited to a particular crusade or apply to crusades in general. The dominant strand of criticism was aimed at the conduct of crusades and not at the theory of crusading itself. Although the latter criticism did exist, it was expressed only by a small minority within the minority of crusade critics. More often, criticism was aimed at improving the odds of success of future crusades. As crusaders were held to a higher standard than soldiers in other wars, their defeats were often blamed on their sins, such as greed and sexual promiscuity. The financing and preaching of crusades also came under criticism. In Roger of Wendover and

Matthew of Paris Matthew Paris, also known as Matthew of Paris ( la, Matthæus Parisiensis, lit=Matthew the Parisian; c. 1200 – 1259), was an English Benedictine monk, chronicler, artist in illuminated manuscripts and cartographer, based at St Albans Abbey in ...

, for example, new taxes were criticized as dangerous precedents, while preachers were accused of extorting funds. Although criticism was present from the beginning, in general it increased across the main era of the crusades (1095–1291). Disillusionment often preceded critique. The earliest criticism of crusading itself, and not merely the means and effects of crusading, is associated with the failure of the

Second Crusade The Second Crusade (1145–1149) was the second major crusade launched from Europe. The Second Crusade was started in response to the fall of the County of Edessa in 1144 to the forces of Zengi. The county had been founded during the First Crusa ...

(1147–1149).

Gerhoh of Reichersberg Gerhoh of Reichersberg (Latin: ''Gerhohus Reicherspergensis.'' b. at Polling 1093; d. at Reichersberg, 27 June 1169) was one of the most distinguished theologians of Germany in the twelfth century. He was provost of Reichersberg Abbey and a Cano ...

initially supported the

First Crusade The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Islamic ru ...

(1095–1099) and the Second, but by 1162 his attitude had shifted. He had concluded that the motivation for the crusade was avarice and that God had willed the crusaders to be deceived by false preaching and led to destruction. The ''

Annals of Würzburg Annals ( la, annāles, from , "year") are a concise historical record in which events are arranged chronologically, year by year, although the term is also used loosely for any historical record. Scope The nature of the distinction between anna ...

'' go so far as to claim that the Second Crusade was inspired by the devil: Around the same time,

Isaac de l'Étoile Isaac of Stella, also referred to as Isaac de l'Étoile, (c. 1100, in England – c. 1170s, Étoile, Archigny, France) was a Cistercian and later a Carthusian monk, theologian and philosopher. Life Born in England, after studies in Paris, he e ...

criticized the

Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

as a "new monstrosity" and wondered at how plunder and massacre could be committed in the name of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

. In 1214,

Adam of Perseigne Adam of Perseigne ( 1145 – 1221) was a French Cistercian, abbot of Perseigne Abbey in the Diocese of Le Mans. Adam was born around 1145 into a serf, or peasant, family. He is thought to have been first a canon regular, later a Benedictine of Marm ...

, who fought in the Holy Land on the

Fourth Crusade The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204) was a Latin Christian armed expedition called by Pope Innocent III. The stated intent of the expedition was to recapture the Muslim-controlled city of Jerusalem, by first defeating the powerful Egyptian Ayyubid S ...

(1202–1204) wrote against the very idea: The failure of the Seventh Crusade (1248–1250) sparked a new wave of criticism.

Humbert of Romans Humbert of Romans (, Romans-sur-Isère – 14 July 1277, Valence, Drôme, France) was a French Dominican friar who served as the fifth Master General of the Order of Preachers from 1254 to 1263. Early career Nothing is known of his early lif ...

, in his treatise on crusade preaching, ''De praedicatione crucis'', refers to contemporary criticism of crusading.

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{refend Crusades

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...