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What was the Siege of Jerusalem (1099)?

Introduction The Siege of Jerusalem took place from 07 June to 15 July 1099, during the First Crusade. The climax of the First Crusade, the successful siege saw the Crusaders take Jerusalem from the Fatimid Caliphate and laid the foundations for the Kingdom of Jerusalem. The siege is notable for the mass slaughter of Muslims… Read More

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What was the Battle of Dorylaeum (1097)?

Introduction The Battle of Dorylaeum took place during the First Crusade on 01 July 1097, between the Seljuk Turks and the Crusaders, near the city of Dorylaeum in Anatolia. Despite the Turkish forces of Kilij Arslan almost destroying the Crusader contingent of Bohemond, other Crusaders arrived just in time for a very close victory. Background… Read More

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What was the Siege of Nicaea (1097)?

Introduction The Siege of Nicaea took place from 14 May to 19 June 1097, during the First Crusade. The city belonged to the Seljuk Turks and opted to surrender to the Byzantines in fear of the crusaders breaking into the city. The siege was followed by the Battle of Dorylaeum, and the siege of Antioch,… Read More

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What were the Tafurs?

Introduction Tafurs were a group of participants of the First Crusade, under the Franks. Zealots following strict oaths of poverty, they are attributed acts of cannibalism during the Siege of Antioch. Background The Tafurs took their name from a horseless Norman knight, who assumed the organisation and armed leadership of peasants gathered by the preaching… Read More

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What was the First Crusade (1096-1099)?

Introduction The First Crusade (1096-1099) was the first of a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The initial objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Islamic rule. These campaigns were subsequently given the name crusades. The earliest initiative for the First Crusade… Read More

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What was the Battle of Antioch (1098)?

Introduction The Battle of Antioch (1098), part of the Siege of Antioch, was a military engagement fought between the forces of the Crusaders of Antioch and a Turkish coalition led by the Emir Kerbogha of Mosul as a part of the First Crusade. Kerbogha’s goal was to reclaim Antioch from the Crusaders and affirm his… Read More

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What was the Siege of Antioch (1097-1098)?

Introduction The Siege of Antioch took place during the First Crusade in 1097 and 1098. The first siege, by the crusaders against the Muslim-held city, lasted from 21 October 1097 to 02 June 1098. Antioch lay in a strategic location on the crusaders’ route to Palestine. Supplies, reinforcements and retreat could all be controlled by… Read More