The Positive And Negative Impact Of The First Crusades

The first Crusades were mainly fought between the Islamic Empire and the Roman Catholic church, although it affected thousands of people in both Europe and the Middle East; especially people living in the city of Jerusalem. The holy war was a series of battles lasting from 1095 to 1291 between The Roman Catholic Church, Judaism and The Islamic Empire. The war was initiated by the Roman Catholic Church as a way to gain control of the "holy city: Jerusalem. Up until the 7th century, control of the city was constantly being switched between the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire and the Sassanid Empire. After the 7th century, Islam gained control of Jerusalem until the crusades when the Roman Catholic Church attempted to overthrow them by sending military troops to the city. Control of Jerusalem was desired by all three religious groups because it is considered to be one of the holiest sites for Judaism: the location where King Solomon constructed the f1irst temple to …show more content…
During the first crusade, both Muslims and Jews living in Jerusalem were massacred by the Roman Catholic Church. It was difficult for crusaders to distinguish between Christian, Muslim and Jewish people, therefore many Christians were as well killed in the massacre. Allegedly, during July 1099, Crusaders of the Roman Catholic Church were killing both Muslim and Jewish people in the streets, alleyways, and even their own homes. As a result of this invasion, there were approximately only a few thousand survivors out of a population of approximately forty thousand people; therefore suffering a massive depopulation. People who were not murder by the Roman Catholic Church were sold as slaves at the cities gates. After the invasion, it was strictly forbidden for both Jewish and Muslim people to live and visit Jerusalem. As you can see, this is why the Crusades had an initially negative impact on the people of