Let's be honest about the Crusaders: interesting facts about the Crusades. Crusades: the most shocking facts

This was the outcome... The Crusaders suffered a crushing defeat. Many dying people were left on the battlefield. The mortally wounded crusader lay in the mud. Convulsively clinging to the loose and cold ground. He did not feel the support of this earth. Lord...help me to continue my mission...to carry your Faith. The warrior coughed hoarsely. Spitting out the blood, he threw his head back helplessly. Suddenly the sun above his head was obscured by a figure. Do you really want to continue Vera's work? The knight whispered with only his lips “Yes..”, a stranger in a monk’s cloak with a hood that completely hid his face carried the warrior into the house. Within a few days, to his surprise, the crusader completely recovered. Although the monk only gave him water to drink and put his hands on him, no tinctures or powders familiar to the warrior. For some reason, the monk didn’t even read prayers, but when he put his hands on, a soothing warmth flowed through the crusader’s body, as if he had been lowered into a warm bath. A feeling of weightlessness and complete peace enveloped him. All worries and doubts left his mind. As soon as the warrior felt in shape, he went out into the street in front of the house and began to practice with his weapon. The monk looked at him silently for a long time, the warrior noticing this tried to show the best of what he could do, and he could do a lot. Mistaking the monk's silence for silent delight, he continued to complicate and complicate his techniques, knowing how spectacular his muscular body looked, making soft and precise movements from the side. Unexpectedly for him, the monk spoke in a quiet, calm voice: “Why are you practicing with weapons?” Slightly surprised by this turn of events, the crusader, pronouncing every word clearly, replied, “I can become stronger to fight.” "With whom?" - the monk asked just as calmly. The crusader looked at the monk as if he were crazy. “With enemies.” "With which?" - the monk did not let up. The warrior looked at the monk again, and still not understanding how he could not understand such simple things, he replied, “With the opponents of the Faith.” “What faith?” - the monk continued melancholy. “In Our God,” the crusader answered even more surprised, “What’s his name? God? After all, he doesn’t have a name, maybe they serve him, they just call him something else?” - the monk asked in an unchanged tone. “Okay, I just want to become stronger... That’s all... Just don’t ask why again... This is my path of service and my understanding of it...” The knight answered irritably. “Do you think that swinging a sword makes you stronger?” - new question The monk sounded a barely noticeable mockery, which nevertheless did not escape the warrior. “What do you mean by this”? The crusader almost growled. “You're in great shape, you have a weapon and you've already warmed up. Try to hit me...” - The monk remained standing in place, not even thinking about taking a fighting stance or preparing for battle in any way. The crusader made feints and complex pirouettes, but the monk incredibly managed to escape at the very last moment. Angry to the extreme, the warrior pulled out a second sword and tried to reach the obsessive monk with a new style of fighting. But he left the line of attack without visible effort. At one point, the monk gently threw his hands forward and, without the slightest effort, threw the crusader several meters away, barely touching him. Once on the ground, the crusader did not even have time to blink an eye, when, having made just one jump, the monk found himself standing right above him. Startled with surprise, he saw the smiling face of the monk, right opposite his own. It was incredibly fast... With his hands folded on the ground as a sign of his defeat, the crusader asked to become a student of the monk. A lot of time has passed since that moment, after long training, the crusader’s movements became soft and smooth, but even more deadly, he completely mastered his body. He could see three hundred and sixty degrees and control the functioning of any organ in his body. He could foresee and anticipate the enemy. He was truly pleased with himself. No one, perhaps except his teacher, could cope with him. He could destroy his enemies in huge crowds. Knowing perfectly the special points on the human body, he would be deadly and at the same time almost invulnerable. "Now I'm ready, Master!" he said in a confident tone. "For what?" The monk asked him in a calm voice, as always. “I can continue the Path of my Faith! Fighting her enemies,” the student answered with pathos. “No, my boy, you are still too weak. Show me what you can do." Without even having time to take a step towards the monk, he froze. His entire body was paralyzed. “How will you fight me if you can’t even get close to me?” - the monk asked him with a grin.
As soon as the body began to obey him, the warrior again knelt before the monk and asked to continue his training. He trained for a long time, strengthening his will and spirit. He knew a large number of secrets and riddles. Together with their teacher they sang and danced. Listening to the monk's thoughts as they sat by the fire, the warrior began to wake up early in the morning so that, together with his Master, he could go to the lake and meet the dawn. Gradually, watching how the first rays of the sun illuminate the darkness of the night, how the darkness slowly recedes under the onslaught of the sun, and in the evening again returns to its position as it sets, the crusader began to find peace. Having acquired it, he was able to grow trees, sing and dance like his Master. The monk told him about other wars that occur in the soul of everyone living on Earth. But in these wars there are no winners and losers, the goal in them is not to win, they need to find harmony. We are here as one multicellular organism. We act together, and our goal is the embodiment of the creator's plan! You and I are cells whose task is to bring the body into harmony. The monk explained to him, continuing to reveal more and more incredible truths for his student at first. During the time spent next to the monk, the warrior cut and sewed the same clothes for himself as his teacher. Having climbed the hill, he again saw the field where he had once died. Approaching the place from which the monk had picked him up, the man dug a hole and buried his swords and armor. Having placed a tombstone with his name, he turned and left. So, in the golden rays of the setting sun, he became a monk. An anonymous cell of a huge organism called humanity. After watching the sunset, two absolutely identical monks nodded to each other and went in different directions. Pursuing one great goal. Defending your Faith.

Now people associate the Middle Ages with fires, unsanitary conditions and bloody palace intrigues. If you remember the Crusades, then a common person unless he thinks about religious wars that violate Christian commandments. However, the history of that era and the crusades themselves is rich in various meanings, life experiences, examples of both meanness and courage.

Today we talk about the events that happened 920 years ago, in 1097, when the crusader army besieged the ancient city of Antioch-on-Orontes. The city seemed impregnable, and its eight-month siege almost led to the failure of everything. First Crusade.

Getting to know the East

The First Crusade became a very important cultural event. The European West, in fact, for the first time became acquainted with the amazing East, where the way of life, public order and culture in general were significantly different from the West. So, despite the selfish goals of most of the leaders of the crusade, there was no limit to the admiration and surprise of its participants.

The walls of Antioch, built over centuries, appeared in all their grandeur before the Crusaders in October 1097. An ancient trading city whose history dates back to approximately the 4th century BC. e. and where the followers of the teachings of Christ began to be called Christians for the first time, was located on the left bank of the Orontes River (on the site of the modern Turkish city of Antakya). During the era of Roman rule, Antioch was the fourth largest city in the empire, and during the Byzantine period - second after Constantinople. From 637 to 968, Antioch was in Muslim hands until Byzantium regained it. However, in 1084 the city again fell to the Muslims.

The height of the fortress walls of Antioch was 25 meters, which almost completely excluded the possibility of using assault ladders. The width of the walls was such that a team of four horses could drive along them. In addition, the walls were guarded by 450 watchtowers, and the mountains against which the walls rested did not allow the city to be completely blocked. However, by the time the Crusades began, Antioch was no longer the same. Wealthy Christian residents left the city because Muslims oppressed the Christian population if they refused to convert to Islam. As a result, Antioch lost its status as a significant trading point. Most of the houses were empty; of the many city gates, only five were operational. These circumstances somewhat simplified the task for the crusaders, but they did not dare to attack, resorting to the good old method - a siege.

Intrigue, hunger, looting

Overall, the Crusader leaders showed themselves to be poor strategists, resting after two years of continuous campaigning and fighting. Provisions were not calculated in case of a long siege, which is why famine soon began, many died, others looted, some did not hesitate to plunder even settlements where Christians lived. Individual noble knights began to leave the crusader army, withdrawing their troops. This affected the combat power of the besiegers. The siege dragged on, partly because the actions of the commanders were uncoordinated; many “pulled the blanket” on themselves, wanting to gain the laurels of the liberator ancient city. And this despite the agreement with the Byzantine basileus (emperor) Alexei I Komnenos that Antioch would return to Byzantine Empire.

It has come quite Cold winter, then spring 1098. In May, the crusaders received news that the huge army of Emir Kerboga was moving to help the besieged. The siege would probably have had to be lifted if not for the betrayal. Prince Bohemond of Tarentum (who most wanted to get Antioch into his possession), even before the news of Kerboga's army, managed to come to an agreement with Firuz - either the commander or the gunsmith of the guards of the Antioch tower of the Two Sisters. Firuz, an Armenian, a Christian by birth, who was forced to convert to Islam, was ready to help several crusaders penetrate the tower for a large sum of money so that they would open the gates for their troops. The military council of the crusaders suspected Bohemond's intention to break the oath given to the Byzantine basileus, and refused the proposal of the Tarentine prince under the pretext that it was unworthy of a knight to resort to the tricks and deceit characteristic of women. But soon news of the approach of large enemy forces forced the leaders of the crusaders to launch an assault precisely according to Bohemond’s plan.

Key to Victory

On the night of June 2-3, 1098, the crusaders, brutalized by a tiring siege, hunger and other hardships, burst into the city. A merciless bloody massacre began, in which, in addition to the defenders of Antioch, at least 10 thousand inhabitants died. By the evening of June 3, the entire city was under the control of the crusaders, except for the citadel (it continued to defend itself), located in its southern part. The victory was celebrated with feasts and entertainment.

But the joy was soon overshadowed. Just two days later, Kerboga’s army finally approached the city and besieged it. Now the crusaders found themselves in the same position as the previous masters of Antioch. Only the position of the knightly troops was much less enviable. During the eight months that the inhabitants of Antioch were under siege, they ate almost all the provisions, and the hungry crusaders, in the first days of their rule in the city, finished off the rest. And there was nowhere for them to expect help; moreover, a significant part of the soldiers left the city soon after the successful assault. In addition, it was necessary to constantly repel attacks by the defenders of the citadel, the garrison of which was regularly replenished with reinforcements from Kerboga’s army. The starving crusaders began to eat leather belts, harnesses, tree bark... In the end, exhausted by hunger, they became completely indifferent to their future fate and only remained in constant prayer. It was as if the city had become a huge chapel.

On June 10, a poor monk from Marseille, Pierre Barthelemy, who took part in the crusade, told the army about the vision. The Apostle Andrew himself allegedly appeared to him and told him that the greatest relic, the spear of Longinus, was buried in the Antioch Church of St. Peter. And if the crusaders find him, they will be granted victory.

According to the Gospel, a Roman legionnaire pierced the side of Christ crucified on the cross with his spear to check whether He was dead. Bishop Adhemar, the legate of the Pope, who acted as the spiritual leader of the crusade, had already seen the spear of Longinus in Constantinople, but kept silent about his skeptical attitude towards the monk’s story, seeing the flash of hope in the eyes of the crusader army. In St. Peter's Cathedral, the slabs were raised, the ground was dug up and... A piece of iron was found that resembled a fragment of a spear tip. Happiness knew no bounds! Count Raymond of Toulouse immediately declared divine evidence of the impending victory.

On June 28, ready for battle, having removed heavy armor from impotence, and practically without cavalry, the crusaders left the city and lined up in 12 detachments, stretching out in battle formation for a distance of one hour north of Antioch. Trumpets sounded, a spear was carried in front of the army, standard bearers opened the procession. Kerboga's army outnumbered them threefold (it is difficult to name the exact number, since the data is contradictory; there were probably about 25 thousand crusaders, about 75 thousand Muslims), they were well-fed and full of strength.

Kerboga decided that he could easily defeat the enemy, striking with all his might. He gave the order to feign a retreat in order to draw the crusader army into a more difficult terrain for battle. His warriors set fire to the grass behind them, and the archers, dispersing across the neighboring hills, showered the enemy with a hail of arrows. But the inspired crusaders could not be stopped. Matthew of Edessa, an Armenian historian and chronicler of the 12th century, wrote: “... the Christian army rushed together towards the foreigners, like fire that sparkles in the sky and burns the mountains.” Many soldiers later recalled that between their ranks they saw St. George the Victorious, St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki, and St. Mauritius, galloping on horses.

The battle itself was short when the crusaders finally caught up with Kerboga's troops. It was described by the Arab chronicler Ibn al-Qalanisi (c. 1070-1160): “... extremely weakened, they went on the offensive against the troops of Islam, which were very strong and numerous... The advanced cavalry detachments fled, and many militias and volunteers were put to the sword who joined the ranks of fighters for the faith, burning with the desire to protect Muslims.” Human courage had never known anything like this before, and the loot of the crusaders was so enormous that it took several days to move everything to the city.

I want to talk about one of the most ambitious and ambitious films of its time - "Crusade".

The Crusades are very fertile ground for cinema, but this topic is very rarely addressed. Hollywood is afraid of offending Muslims (or Jews and Christians) and the most that the viewer can count on is all sorts of politically correct shit, such as Kingdom of Heaven (2005) by Ridley Scott.
But all this could change back in 1993, when Paul Verhoeven, a talented and fearless director who was never afraid of controversial and risky topics, took up the matter. Being a big fan of this historical period, Verhoeven knew a lot about the Crusades and wanted to show their true essence on the big screen, giving the viewer a feel for the morals of the Middle Ages.

The script was assigned to Valon Greene, the man who wrote The Wild Bunch (1969), Sorcerer (1977), WarGames (1983) and other films.
What do you think will happen if you cross the talents of Green, who gave us The Wild Bunch (1969), and Verhoeven, who loves blood and dismemberment? The result is Crusade - perhaps one of the bloodiest films of its time.
To say that this film is cruel means don't say anything. The level of violence is off the scale even by Verhoeven's standards! This was a real Game Of Thrones of its time - the script constantly mentions rape, dirt and other pleasures of the Middle Ages. At the same time, Valon Green is well read, understands the material, and reading his prose is a pleasure.

At that time, Verhoeven had three major hits under his belt and there were no signs of trouble: the script was ready, and the sets were already being built in Spain.
At the very last moment, Verhoeven and Schwarzenegger held a meeting with the producers, who demanded guarantees from the director that the budget would not exceed the 100 million mark. Verhoeven exploded: “What do you mean guarantees? There are no guarantees! I can’t control God, how can I guarantee you anything? This is absurd!”
Arnold describes the events this way: "I kicked him under the table to shut him up, but he wouldn't stop. That was the end of the movie. Paul was always trying to be honest, but you can be a little more selective about when to be honest and when to just be honest." moving forward with the project. It was a real shame."

As a result, Carolco Pictures studio stopped filming and decided to invest money in... attention... Cuttrhoat Island (1995)!!! I hope the people who made this decision burn in hell. Cutthroat Island bankrupted the studio, becoming one of the biggest failures in film history.

Below is a retelling of the plot.
The script was actively circulating on the Internet for a while, but for several years now all the links have been dead. I miraculously found it on sale for $18 on Lulu.

The film opens with the robbery of an abbey in France in 1095.
Hagen (Schwarzenegger) sneaks into the monastery under cover of darkness, while the abbot of the monastery is having fun with two servant boys in his chambers. Hagen is caught red-handed and sent to prison. The abbot sends for Count Emmich, who rapes a fifteen-year-old girl in a barrel of grapes. Having finished the rape, he concludes: “I pronounce this harvest well-seasoned.”
It turns out that Hagen is Emmich's illegitimate half-brother, to whom his father bequeathed half of his fortune. The abbot knows about this secret will and forces Emmich to give him a quarter of his possessions in exchange for Hagen's death sentence.
Hagen is sentenced to hanging, but by a lucky coincidence, Pope Urban II comes to the monastery and gathers people for the Crusade. After the pope's fiery speech about how Muslims are raping nuns and oppressing Christians in Jerusalem, Hagen feels that this is his chance to stay alive.
At night, Hagen uses a lamp to heat the shackles in which he is shackled and burns a cross on his back. His cellmate Ari, who was in Samaria, tells him about the Life-Giving Cross and the relics of John the Baptist. In the morning, Hagen bares his back and talks about how he had a vision that he was a knight who swore allegiance to the Pope in the battle for Jerusalem. Having told other details of his dream, Hagen receives a pardon and becomes the mascot of this Crusade. He is placed under the command of Emmich, who still wants the death of his illegitimate relative.

On the way to Jerusalem, Emmich and his henchmen attack Jewish newlyweds who find themselves in the way of the crusaders. Emmich wants to rape the girl right in front of the groom, but Hagen stands up for them and permanently disfigures Emmich's face, crushing his jaw with an ax.
The degree of hatred between the brothers increases even more, but instead of simply killing Hagen, Emmich decides to make him suffer: in the port he sells Hagen and Ari into slavery to Barbary pirates. What follows is a colorful scene of boarding the ship. Having been captured, Ari, exposing his genital organ and remembering a few words in Arabic, convinces the invaders that he is a Muslim who completed the hajj to Mecca and was captured by the crusaders.
Meanwhile, an unenviable fate awaits Hagen: his friend is castrated right before his eyes (a truly terrible scene). Ari appears at the very last moment and saves Hagen, ransoming him from the savage surgeon. It turns out that Uncle Ari is an adviser to Prince Ibn Khaldun, who rules in Jerusalem, and now Hagen will be part of his personal guard. There is no choice - either slavery or service with a Muslim. The only chance to escape is to wait until the city is besieged by the Crusaders.
Meanwhile, in Jerusalem, Hagen learns the truth - there is no persecution of Christians. Jews, Muslims and Christians live in peace and can freely practice their religion. There in Jerusalem, Hagen falls in love with Leila, the daughter of Ibn Khaldun. Leila protects her virginity and therefore indirectly enjoys Hagen's body by sending him her servant.

Hagen finds Jarvat, kidnaps Leila, but is captured by Emmich's people, who, according to the good old tradition, want to rape her. Fortunately, Leila miraculously manages to escape, although she is again captured by Jarvat, and Hagen is sent to Emmich, to the crusader camp. There is complete debauchery and disorganization in the camp, and soon they are attacked by Muslims, led by Ibn Khaldun.
Hagen, having gained fame as a seer and talisman of the Crusade, inspires his fellows to victory in a very beautiful and poetic scene: the setting sun projects his silhouette - in black armor, killing crowds of Muslims - onto a thick wall of smoke. He thrusts his two-handed sword into the back of one of the fighters and the sword becomes like a cross, washed by the sunset light... The crusaders, seeing a sign from above in this murder, begin to gain victory and soon put the Muslims to flight.

What follows is a large-scale scene of the storming of Jerusalem, but Hagen does not participate in it: at night, with the help of Ari, he sneaks into the city in search of Leila. Jarvat holds her captive and Hagen tries to kill him, but their duel is interrupted by a shell hitting the castle wall. Ari, Hagen and Leila take to the streets of fallen Jerusalem.
- Death to the jews! - the crusaders shout, killing women and children.
- The Jews killed our Savior! Kill them! Destroy the name of Israel! - some hermit monk echoes them.
There is carnage in the streets.
It turns out that Ari is Jewish. In the crowd he sees his uncle Yakub and rushes to his aid. In the chaos and under the pressure of a huge mass of people, Ari finds himself locked in a synagogue, which is burned by the crusaders. Along with the synagogue, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher with the Life-Giving Cross is also burning. Hagen rushes in, places the cross on his back and, like Christ, leaves the temple engulfed in flames. The crusaders and ordinary people are fascinated by this spectacle, they kneel down and begin to pray. Hagen understands that a person possessing the Cross will enjoy enormous power and instructs the monks to hide it from prying eyes.

The time comes for the final duel with Emmich and Hagen literally cuts his enemy in half.
Seeing the reputation Hagen has gained, knight Godfrey invites him to swear allegiance to himself, but Hagen, disappointed and disgusted by this whole mess, refuses and leaves with Leila to the farm to lead a quiet and peaceful life.

The script ends with the caption: “Even under torture, the monks of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher refused to name the location Life-giving Cross. He was never found."

As we can see, this was a real Verhoeven - provocative, uncompromising and very cruel. The genre of historical adventure film skillfully incorporates a double bottom, although in my opinion Verhoeven went too far with “good” Muslims and “bad” Christians. We must not forget that Jews and Christians in Jerusalem were subjected to severe persecution: they could profess their faith, but at the same time their rights were infringed on literally at every step. In Muslim countries, people of other faiths always have the same fate: they are tolerated until a certain point.

History knows no subjunctive mood and the original film is now forever lost to the public. We have lost potentially one of best films 90s. In the end, everyone lost: Verhoeven, Schwarzenegger, the idiot producers and, of course, the audience.

Personally, I put this picture on a par with another unrealized masterpiece - Jodorowsky's Dune.

On the other hand, everything is not so bad and hopeless. The script has not lost its relevance and is so well written that there are still rumors about reviving the project. Who knows, maybe we'll see this film adaptation someday.
Although the original combo - Verhoeven + Schwarzenegger - still cannot be surpassed by anyone.

ABOUT crusades Probably everyone has heard and read it. For most people, this concept is associated with romance, albeit somewhat brutal, with Richard Lion Heart and Pushkin’s poem about the “poor knight”. There was, of course, blood and sacrifices; war is war. Most people think so modern people. However, in the history of the Crusades there are facts that can not only surprise, but also shock anyone.

Fact No. 1. The Crusaders were cannibals!

In 1098, during the siege of the Syrian fortress of Maara, the knights from Europe were very hungry: the siege lasted two months, and was preceded by a difficult march through the desert. When the Muslims finally surrendered - on the condition that the victors would spare the city's inhabitants - the Crusaders entered the city, but did not find the abundance they expected. A monstrous massacre began. And after that - no less monstrous feasts. Chronicler Ralph Cohen wrote: “Some people said that, limited in food, they had to boil adult Muslims in cauldrons and skewer children and roast them.” Another chronicler Fulcher of Chartres reported: “With a shudder I can say that many of our people, pursued by an insane feeling of hunger, cut off pieces of buttocks from already killed Saracens, fried them on the fire and, without waiting until they were sufficiently fried, devoured them with a slurping sound, as if savages." And finally, Albert of Aachen was surprised that the crusaders did not limit themselves to eating the corpses of Saracens, but “even ate dogs.”

Fact No. 2. There were children among the crusaders.

There were nine crusades in total. The fourth ended in 1204, the fifth began in 1217. But between them there was another, probably the most tragic of all - the children's crusade. It all started with the fact that Jesus Christ allegedly appeared to a certain teenager Stephen from Cloix. He ordered the boy to lead the crusade and liberate the Holy Sepulcher without weapons, but solely by the power of prayer and the purity of young souls. Stefan began to preach and thousands of teenagers and children from all over France and then Germany followed him. According to contemporaries, Stephen's sermon attracted more than 30,000 people. This entire horde not only prayed, but also stole along the way in order to somehow get food. Having somehow reached Marseille, and it must be taken into account that children from Germany had to overcome the Alps with incredible difficulties, the young crusaders were faced with the need to get transport. Finally, two local merchants provided them with 7 ships. The teenagers boarded these galleys, sailed away, and no one has seen them since. Years later, certain monks who were on this campaign appeared in Europe. They said that the ships took the children straight to Algeria, where Muslim slave traders were already waiting for them, with whom merchants from Marseilles entered into a conspiracy.

Fact No. 3. There were women among the crusaders.

Yes, yes, many beautiful ladies, as well as simple townswomen and peasant women, went overseas to participate in the reconquest of Jerusalem, experience adventure and see distant countries. Most of them, of course, also performed female roles during a military campaign. Noble ladies inspired the warriors and healed their wounds, while the rest washed clothes and prepared food. However, among women there were also those who put a cross on themselves and fought side by side with men. The most famous Amazon during the Crusades was Ita of Austria. The beautiful margravine in 1101, as part of the South German knightly army, overcame Asia Minor- During this campaign, the crusaders were exhausted from hunger and thirst - and were ambushed. In this skirmish near the city of Heraclea, she died. According to one version, the brave beauty did not die, but was captured and sold to a harem in Khorasan. In addition, the Arabs talked about an unusual military detachment that was captured. The Saracens were amazed to find that they were women. Captives were sold into slavery to elderly Muslim women to provide protection from attacks on their chastity.

Fact No. 4. The Crusaders fought against Christians.

Devout Catholics, who dreamed of conquering Jerusalem from the infidels, did not consider the Orthodox to be “correct” Christians, and behaved on the territory of the Byzantine Empire as among Muslims. The Fourth Crusade ended with the sack of Constantinople and the removal of a colossal amount of valuables and relics from there to Europe. The Greek chronicler Nikita Choniates wrote this: “It is not that what amazes us is that they robbed things, but that they threw down the holy icons of Christ and his saints to the ground, trampled them underfoot, and if they found any decoration on them, they tore it off like at random, and the icons themselves were taken out to crossroads to be trampled upon by passers-by or used instead of fuel when cooking food.”

Fact No. 5. There were defectors among the crusaders.

There are cowards and traitors in any war. In the Battle of Khotyn in 1187, which became one of the main disasters of the knightly army during the Third Crusade, six knights from the army of the Count of Tripoli went over to Saladin’s side. As the chronicle reports, they told Saladin about the desperate situation in which the crusader army, tormented by thirst and tired from the long march, was in, and encouraged him to attack as soon as possible. What was it like further fate these people are unknown. It can be assumed that it was not particularly good - Saladin did not favor traitors.

Fact No. 6. The Crusaders fought not only in Asia, but also in Europe.

The First Crusade began, inspired by the words of Pope Urban II, who called for killing not only Muslims, but also everyone who professes a non-Catholic religion. Some of the knights understood these words very differently, and in 1096 the army of German crusaders moved in the opposite direction from Jerusalem - through the Rhine valley to the north. Here they carried out a bloody massacre of Jews in Mainz, Cologne and other German cities. This was the first case of mass persecution of Jews in Europe. But the crusaders were not limited to Jews. In the 13th century, they carried out a number of military operations in the Baltic states, whose population professed ancient pagan cults. Finns, Karelians, Estonians, Lithuanians, Curonians and other tribes became the object of real hunting by the soldiers of Christ. They did not ignore the principalities of northern Rus', considering the Orthodox to be as infidel as pagans, Jews and Muslims. These campaigns in the Baltic states later became known as the Northern Crusades.

Fact No. 7. The Crusaders still exist today.

The knights went on their first crusade inspired by the call “Dieu le veut!” (God wants it that way!). These words became the motto of the Jerusalem Order of the Holy Sepulcher, established in 1099. Unlike many other orders of knighthood, this one still exists today. Its members include representatives of royal families, successful businessmen and scientists. Among famous people- members of the Order of the Holy Sepulcher can remember the composer Franz Liszt, the German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, and the Hollywood director John Furrow. There are brothers of this knightly order in Russia. In total, there are currently 28,000 members of the Order of the Holy Sepulcher in the world.

IN last years entire 10th century christian world froze in anticipation of the second coming. People were preparing for the Last Judgment, which, according to learned theologians, was supposed to occur in the year 1000. Nobody made plans for several years ahead. In 999, there were cases when peasants did not even harvest their crops: why fill barns when the apocalypse is about to break out?
The year 1001 came, and little had changed in the sublunary world, except that the farmers, who had put too much faith in the churchmen, went bankrupt and became impoverished. The theologians slapped their foreheads and declared that Last Judgment, naturally, should come a thousand years not after the birth of Christ, but after his resurrection. Christians took a breath and prepared to wait another 33 years. In 1034 everyone discovered that the second coming had never happened.

These games of the church with its flock about the ever-postponed end of the world greatly undermined people's faith in the sermons read to them from the pulpit. When the shock from the long expectation of apocalyptic horrors subsided, Christians discovered that their shepherds were not models at all Christian humility, chastity and piety. The turn of the millennium is precisely the period when the level of morals among monks and priests fell below the plinth in the deepest crypt. Bishops, cardinals and the most holy Popes themselves, without hiding from the laity, took mistresses, wallowed in luxury and, indulging in all seven deadly sins, violated all ten God's commandments. The local priesthood did not lag behind the church hierarchs, placing itself above human and divine laws. The clergy and monks did not even think of paying attention to such a vain and worthless thing as public opinion. It backfired on them.

In the second half of the 11th century Western Europe A wide variety of heresies blossomed in lush flowerbeds. People could not bring themselves to believe in what the false shepherds taught them; they themselves tried to find the hidden meaning of the word of God. Christians seeking truth clustered around a few literate people who interpreted the Bible according to their own understanding. Self-taught preachers, often possessing much greater oratorical abilities than church hierarchs, attracted crowds of listeners.

The Catholic Church tried to fight unauthorized attempts to interpret dogma, but at first not very diligently. The natural monopoly on mediation between heaven and earth seemed so unshakable to the churchmen that they only laughed at attempts to undermine it. But in vain. More and more inquisitive Christians united in their own communities, refusing to listen to sermons and accept communion from priests who, in their opinion, were mired in sin. These truth-seekers began to doubt numerous church sacraments. For example, they refused to baptize children, arguing that this should be a meaningful act of the person himself, and rejected the sacrament of marriage, which at that time was actively introduced into daily life Catholic Church. Some adherents of the new teachings refused to worship the cross, claiming that it was a murder weapon. In a word, from all sides, undermining was underway under the foundation of a huge church building that seemed unshakable.

This problem was most acute in southern France, in Languedoc. The so-called “Qatari heresy” was gaining momentum there. The adherents of this doctrine themselves, the Cathars (from Greek word“clean”) did not call themselves. They called each other “Good Christians” or “Good People.” By the middle of the 12th century, this teaching took possession of the minds of hundreds of thousands of people. IN different places In Europe they were called differently: Manichaeans, Origenists, Fifles, Albigensians, Publicans, Weavers, Bulgarians or Patarenes, although the beliefs of all these sects were extremely similar. Some scholars believe that their common origin was the Bogomil movement, which originated in Byzantium at the end of the first millennium.

The Cathars, as all representatives of this teaching are commonly called, tried to build their own church, guided by the example of the apostles. They devoutly revered the Gospel, but rejected the Old Testament, believing that New Testament- “the book of goodness,” and the Old Testament prophets taught cruelty. The Cathars extended the commandment “thou shalt not kill” to animals, so they were vegetarians, although they ate fish. They were baptized not with water, but with the laying on of the hands of several shepherds on the head of an adult newly baptized person. They didn't believe in human nature Christ, believing that a good God could not send his son to torment. The Cathars considered everything earthly to be the creation of the devil, and they believed in the transmigration of souls, believing that the souls of the dead do not immediately ascend to heaven, but move into the bodies of newborns, staying on Earth in anticipation of the Last Judgment.

The Cathars had their own church structure with clergy and bishops, and these could also be women. There were also unique monasteries, the inhabitants of which were called “good women” and “ good men" The Cathars vehemently rejected the Catholic Church's claims to temporal power, and were therefore favored by local feudal lords. The Cathars treated ordinary Catholics quite kindly, and many peasants, judiciously believing that life cannot be spoiled by double grace, carefully attended both Cathar and Catholic services.

The official church hastily looked for ways to combat the Cathar heresy. The first bonfires that heretics took part in broke out in Orleans and Toulouse in 1022. However, these executions had the opposite effect. In 1143, the Cologne monk Everwin de Steinfeld complained that the Cathars accepted the torment of fire with the dignity of the first Christians. And this causes sympathy for them among numerous spectators.

In addition to repression, the Vatican also used propaganda methods. To where the Cathars' positions were strongest, experienced preachers were sent, who were instructed not only to appeal to the flock from the pulpit, but also to organize debates with heretics. This helped little: the “good Christians” were much closer to the local parishioners than the emissaries from the Vatican, they spoke to the people in their language, and their position found warm approval among the listeners. The Languedoc feudal lords also favored the Cathars. The Cistercian preacher Bernard of Clairvaux complained bitterly about the insults that he, the papal envoy, suffered from the nobility, and about the inattention of the nobles to his sermons.

Catholics tried to fight the Cathars with their own weapons. The Castilian canon Dominic de Guzman changed into rags and began to travel, preaching the Catholic version of the word of God in Languedoc. They listened to him poorly. When Dominic was declared a saint after his death, legends arose about how he threw his writings and the writings of “good people” into the fire. The Qatari texts were burned, but the fire did not touch the papers of the future saint. Unfortunately, the Cathars of the 12th century did not yet know what they would write in the life of the future saint, and they did not renounce their delusions.

One of the papal legates, Peter de Castelnau, who tried in vain to reason with the Languedocians, exclaimed: “I know that the cause of Christ will not succeed in this country until one of us suffers for the faith.” He didn't know that he himself would suffer. Eradicating heresy at the top, de Castelnau in 1208 excommunicated Raymond VI himself, Count of Toulouse. In response, one of the count's associates killed the papal envoy.

Having received such an excellent pretext, Pope Innocent III declared a crusade against the Cathars in 1209. The pope was not at all embarrassed by the fact that this time the soldiers of Christ would not have to win the Holy Sepulcher from the infidel Mohammedans, but destroy their fellow tribesmen who devoutly believe in Christ, albeit a little differently: “Treat the distributors of heresy worse than the Saracens, because they themselves are worse than them.” The knights themselves were much more concerned about the theological issues with the announced “prizes”: the participants in the crusade were promised fat chunks of the possessions of the Languedoc feudal lords, who criminally patronized the vile heresy. Thousands of knights and mercenaries, mainly from the north of France, rushed to the south.

The first major locality the city of Beziers stood in the way of the horde of crusaders. The newcomers besieged it on July 22, 1209. They promised not to touch Beziers if its inhabitants would hand over all the Cathars to them. At a citywide meeting, a list of heretics was compiled. There were 222 of them out of 14,000 inhabitants, but they decided not to hand over the Cathars to the crusaders: they were respected for their kindness and decent behavior. The entire population of Beziers fell victim to this respect - the crusaders who took the city by storm massacred everyone without bothering with theological subtleties. Even before the assault, the knights turned to the papal representative Arnold Amalric for advice: how could they distinguish a good Catholic from a damned heretic? “Kill everyone, the Lord in heaven will recognize his own,” answered the clergyman. Only three dozen residents of the unfortunate city managed to survive the terrible massacre and subsequent fire.

After this nightmare, the entire population of Languedoc, regardless of religion, greeted the crusaders as bloody occupiers and offered them stubborn resistance. The Languedocians did not consider themselves French at that time, and their fierce resistance to the uninvited guests who came from the north with a cross and a sword took on the character of a national liberation struggle. It lasted for several decades, known in history as the period of the Albigensian Wars. According to historians, up to a million people became victims of these wars.

From the very beginning, the Crusaders tried to suppress resistance with fear. They did not always destroy the population of the conquered cities, but in any case, they left a bad memory of themselves. For example, on August 15, 1209, the invaders spared the inhabitants of Carcassonne, who surrendered without a fight, but deprived them of all their property and forced them to leave the city in only their underwear. When dividing the loot, the crusaders quarreled and a significant part of them went home. Soon, giant fires began to burn in the territories liberated from heresy. In Minerva in 1210, 140 Cathars were simultaneously burned, and in Lavora in 1211 - four hundred at once. The number of smaller fires could not be counted. The commander of the crusaders, Count Simon de Montfort, ordered the burning of even those who repented of heresy and returned to the bosom of the Catholic Church: “If he lies, this will serve as a punishment for his deception, and if he tells the truth, then he will atone for his previous sin with this execution.”

The resistance to the crusaders was led by Count Raymond VI of Toulouse. It was not only his sympathies for heretics, but also the fact that de Montfort openly declared his claims to Toulouse. Raymond organized a solid army from his vassal knights and foot militia. Throughout 1210-1212 it gave a worthy rebuff to the invaders. The crusaders were also hampered by the fact that in their rear, uprisings constantly broke out in already conquered cities.

On January 27, 1213, the oppressed Cathars were taken under the protection of the king of neighboring Aragon, Pedro II. His army moved to Languedoc and united with the army of Raymond of Toulouse. Now, under their flags there was a huge army of up to 50 thousand people. It seemed that the time had come for the liberation of Languedoc. The decisive battle took place on September 12 near the strategically important city of Muret.

The forces were clearly not equal. Under the command of de Montfort there were only about a thousand knights and six hundred infantry. The 45,000-strong Qatari army celebrated the victory in advance. On the eve of the battle, King Pedro spent a stormy night with his mistress and the next morning was not in the best shape, so he was unable to provide worthy resistance surprise attack Crusaders. In a furious slashing, the king of Aragon was killed with a sword in the chest. Upon learning of the death of their leader, the Qatari militia fled from the battlefield. The Languedoc and Aragonese knights retreated behind them. Hundreds of them drowned while crossing the river. The defeat was complete. The losses of the Cathars amounted to 20 thousand people, and the crusaders lost only 150 knights killed. After this defeat, Aragon withdrew from the war.

For several more years the war continued with varying success. Raymond VI either fled abroad or returned to his native land. His army either scattered under the attacks of the crusaders, then gathered again and recaptured the captured cities. Toulouse either surrendered to de Montfort or rebelled against him. In 1218, de Montfort was forced again, for the umpteenth time, to besiege the rebel Toulouse. During the siege, a stone from a catapult blew off his head. The siege was lifted, and for several years Toulouse again became Qatari. Papal legates zealously helped the exhausted crusaders. Things went better for the monks who worked systematically and did not know pity than for the warrior-knights. They cleared the occupied territories, mercilessly dealing with “good Christians”, as well as with those who, having feignedly converted to Catholicism, again joined the heresy. The bodies of the dead Cathars, so as not to desecrate Catholic cemeteries, were dug out of their graves and burned. All this terrified the flock, but did not suppress the will to resist the “good people.” A guerrilla war broke out in Languedoc.

In 1226, the anti-Qatar movement was led by the French king Louis VIII. The Languedoc forces were already running out, and three years later Raymond VI sued for peace. Languedoc was annexed to the possessions of the French crown, however, the Cathar heresy had not yet been completely exterminated. The last center of resistance was the castle of Montsegur, which stood on a high cliff in the spurs of the Pyrenees. In 1232, the Cathar bishops from Toulouse, along with their most fanatical supporters, found shelter there. For 10 years, Cathar preachers dispersed from Montsegur throughout the south of France for underground worship and sacraments. The Catholics looked with hatred towards Montsegur, but could not do anything - the fortress seemed impregnable.

In 1242, Raymond VII, the son of the Count of Toulouse, who had lost his possessions, persuaded the inhabitants of Montsegur to make a punitive raid - to deal with the mobile tribunal of the Inquisition created shortly before, which was holding court nearby. The inquisitors were killed, but violating the commandment “thou shalt not kill” had fatal consequences for the Cathars. In the summer of 1243, Montsegur was placed under a tight blockade. The defense was held by 15 knights, fifty soldiers and about two hundred “good people”. At the cost of incredible efforts, the crusaders were able to take Montsegur only on March 16, 1244. Several dozen defenders committed suicide, the rest were burned that same day at the foot of the cliff.

The surviving Languedoc Cathars finally went underground. The Inquisition carefully searched for their traces, but thanks to skillful secrecy, the “good people” managed to convey their teachings to parishioners who sympathized with them for another half a century.

The last surge of Cathar activity dates back to the beginning of the 14th century, when the family of the notary Peyre Hauthier from Ax-les-Termes tried to once again fan the flames of teachings hostile to Catholicism. Extremely active members of the Authier family traveled throughout the south of France and the north of Italy, looking for Cathars who had survived the underground and recruiting new supporters. The Inquisition quickly learned about the attempt at the “Catari reconquista” and rushed on its trail. By the end of the 1300s, all members of the Authier family were hunted down and burned. The only person close to them managed to survive - Guillaume Belibast, who fled to Catalonia. The tentacles of the inquisitors reached him there too. The last “good man,” Belibast, was burned at Villerouge-Termenez in 1321. This date is considered the final end of the Cathar heresy.

Sources

1. Grigulevich I. “History of the Inquisition”, 1970
2. Osokin N. “History of the Albigenses and their time” 2003
3. Photo of the announcement: Massacre of the Crusaders with the Cathars.