Free A Short History of the World by Christopher Lascelles

butchering thousands of Jews on the way, an act that brought great shame upon them. Only a few made it to Nicaea where they were slaughtered by the Turks. During the same year, however, more organised groups led by prominent nobles and professional soldiers arrived at Constantinople and sacked the Seljuk cities of Nicaea and Antioch on their way to Jerusalem.  
    When the Fatimids of Egypt heard of the fall of Antioch they invaded Palestine and captured Bethlehem. Fortunately for the crusaders, the Seljuks and the Fatimids were sworn enemies, which meant they spent more time fighting each other than preparing for the defence of Jerusalem. And so it came to be that, in 1099, not long after the crusaders had entered Bethlehem, Jerusalem fell to the invading army of French and Norman knights. Most of the population, regardless of religion, was butchered without mercy.

    Over the following years the crusaders founded four crusader kingdoms in the heart of ‘Dar al-Islam’ and built several huge forts to protect themselves, some of which still stand today. These kingdoms came to be known collectively as ‘Outremer’, from the French word for ‘overseas’, as most of the knights who had taken part in the first crusade were French or Norman.  
    Many crusaders returned home after having fulfilled their vows, leaving the crusader kingdoms relatively undefended. This was partially solved by the foundation of the Knights Templar, a military order established to protect the crusader kingdoms and any pilgrims wishing to visit Jerusalem now that it was back in Christian hands. Despite their best efforts, however, they were unable to protect one of the crusader kingdoms (Edessa), which was taken by the Turks in 1144. This event launched a disastrous crusade to take it back, this time led by King Louis VII of France and King Conrad III of Germany.  
    Things took a further turn for the worse for the crusaders towards the end of the 12th century when the Muslim world of Egypt, Syria and much of northern Africa became united under the leadership of the Sunni Muslim, Yusuf ibn Ayyub, who would become known as Salah al-Din (Saladin), or Rectifier of the Faith. Saladin founded his own dynasty, that of the Ayyubids. 36 Setting his sights on freeing the Holy Land from crusader rule, Saladin and his armies swept through the crusader kingdoms, taking city after city until Jerusalem itself finally fell back into Muslim hands in 1187. During his siege of Jerusalem, Saladin gained fame for sparing the inhabitants, in sharp contrast to the way the Christians had acted 90 or so years previously.  
    With Europe in shock, Pope Gregory VIII quickly called for a third crusade – a call that was greeted with enthusiasm by Emperor Frederick Barbarossa of Germany, King Richard I of England 37 and King Philip II of France. This crusade was marred by disagreement and bad luck; Frederick Barbarossa drowned in a river and most of his army returned home after his death; Philip II returned home with his troops after a disagreement, and Richard I made it to the walls of Jerusalem only to be advised by the Knights Templar that even if he succeeded in capturing the city, he would not have the manpower to hold on to it.  
    These events inspired Richard to return to England to deal with a threat from his brother, John, in whose hands he had left the throne while on crusade. 38 But before Richard left the Holy Land, he signed a peace treaty with Saladin in which the crusader kingdoms were allowed to hold onto much of their land. Christian pilgrims would also be granted access to Jerusalem, but the city itself would remain in Muslim control.  
    On yet another crusade to free Jerusalem in 1203-4, the crusaders brought shame on themselves once again. On their way to Jerusalem they were offered money by the son of the deposed Byzantine emperor to help him re-take his throne in Constantinople. When he reneged on his payment, the furious crusaders went on a rampage