Give reasons for the following.
1. The emerging power of Turks led to Crusades? Explain
Answers
The Crusades were a series of religious wars fought by Christian kingdoms against Muslim kingdoms beginning in 1096 and ending in 1291. One major reason for crusades was the growing power of the Seljuk Turks. The Seljuks conquered considerable land from the Byzantines in what is now Turkey and Armenia. During the same period, Western European kingdoms, were gaining power. They assumed the role of protectors of Western Christian Civilization. The Byzantine Emperor Alexius asked Pope Urban II for military support to help fight the Seljuks Turks. In November of 1095 at the Council of Clermont in France, Pope Urban called on Western Christians to aid the Byzantines and recover the Holy Land from the Muslim invaders. The response to the Pope's request was overwhelming. European Christians from all wa life jumped at the chance to stop the Turkish and recover the Holy Land.