The Impact of the People’s Crusade
CHHI 510: Survey of the History of Christianity
September 25, 2023
Contents
What Caused the First Crusade?..............................................................................................1
A Historical Perspective...........................................................................................................1
An Islamic Perspective.............................................................................................................2
A Crusader Perspective...........................................................................................................3
The Great Schism of 1054........................................................................................................4
The People’s Crusade..............................................................................................................6
Lessons from the People’s Crusade........................................................................................11
Conclusion............................................................................................................................12
Bibliography..........................................................................................................................13
ii
1
The Crusades were a series of holy wars that took place between 1096 and 1291. These
wars were initiated for a variety of reasons. One of these reasons included control of religious
sites considered holy by both Christians and Muslims, and another reason was to bring unity
between Eastern and Western Christians after the events that lead to the Great Schism of 1054.
While not all the main goals of the First Crusade were accomplished, ultimately, the First
Crusade was a success. However, the People’s Crusade, which was the first phase of the First
Crusade, was a failure. While Peter the Hermit was successful in recruiting a large array of forces
to retake the Holy Land, several factors such as his army being full of lower class, untrained
peasants, not knowing the true strength of the enemy and his army becoming more focused on
looting and pillaging would ultimately lead to the demise of the People’s Crusade.
What Caused the First Crusade?
A Historical Perspective
There were several unique reasons as to what caused the Crusades to occur. As Brundage
notes “The Crusades were a product of the eleventh century, probably the most decisive period
in the history of western Europe.”1 Several decades after the year 1050 witnessed the birth of a
new Western world that was not seen previously which expanded in every direction.2 Western
Europe was somewhat small and confined, with most of it being central to northern Italy, Gual,
Western Germany and England.3 The neighbors of these Western European states such as the
Byzantine Greeks were all considered potential enemies of these regions. The two centuries
following the year 1050 saw the west expand in essentially every direction. This expansion
1 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, Chicago, Barakaldo Books, 2020. 12
2 Ibid.
3 Ibid.
2
included Scandinavia accepting Christianity, the Normans reclaiming Moslem and Byzantine
settlements in southern Italy and Sicily, as well as Western Christian Knights taking the Iberian
Peninsula from the Moslems.4 Because of these factors, in addition to several others, the
Crusades could be considered a vast migration by those in the west to expand their territories
and boundaries by incorporating the West’s immediate neighbors into the Western European
family. Brundage notes “The Crusades were, in fact, an integral part of the beginning of
European colonialism.”5
An Islamic Perspective
From the Islamic perspective, there were many problems that plagued the Muslim world that
led to the Crusades. During the seventh century, Islam began its rapid expansion along the
Arabian Peninsula after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. As Islam grew rapidly as the
centuries passed, its future grew somewhat uncertain with the amount of turmoil and chaos
within the Islamic sphere. The years 1092-1094 were devastating for the Islamic world due to
the high number of deaths of major political leaders from Egypt eastwards.6 Starting in 1092,
the Vizier Nizam al Mulk was murdered. The third Seljuq Sultan, Malikshah died suspiciously
followed shortly by his wife, grandson and other close political leaders.7 In 1094, the Fatimid
caliph of Egypt, Al-Mustansir, who ruled for fifty-eight years, met his end. Shortly after, his vizier,
Badr al-Jamali also died.8 This year also saw the death of the Abbasid Sunni caliph Al-
4 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, Chicago, Barakaldo Books, 2020. 12
5 Ibid.
6 Carole Hillenbrand, The Crusades: Islamic Perspectives, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1999. 33
7 Ibid.
8 Ibid.
3
Muqtadi. As one Muslim historian said, “This year is called the year of the death of caliphs and
commanders.”9 The numerous amounts of untimely deaths of such major political figures was
disastrous for the Islamic world and could not have come at a worse time as the Crusades were
vastly approaching.
Schisms within the Muslim world also played a factor in the years leading up to the Crusades.
In the years 1063-92, the Seljuks had begun to wage war against fellow Muslims. Specifically,
against the Fatimid Shi’ite caliphate of Cairo who the Seljuks deemed “heretical.”10 These long,
drawn-out conflicts between the Shi’ites and Sunnis were fought in Syria and Palestine during
this period.11 It could be difficult to imagine the Muslims fighting against the Franks as a unified
force with so much turmoil with their ranks. The years leading up to the Crusades for the
Muslims were characterized by sudden losses in leadership, infighting with different sects, and
general hostility and anger within the Islamic world.12
A Crusader Perspective
From the perspective of the Crusaders, the Crusades were meant to retake the Holy land
from non-Christians who were considered wicked and evil by many of the European Christians.12
Brundage calls it “a religious movement” where the most consequential objective in the eyes of
many Western European participants was to enforce Latin Christianity upon the Holy places
which included Bethlehem and Jerusalem and Syria and Palestine as well.13 The Crusaders
9 Carole Hillenbrand, The Crusades: Islamic Perspectives, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1999. 33
10 Ibid.
11 Ibid.
12 Ibid.
12 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, Chicago, (Barakaldo Books, 2020), 13.
13 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, Chicago, (Barakaldo Books, 2020), 13
4
viewed themselves as righteous heroes commissioned by God Himself to purge the Holy lands
from those who would defile it in their eyes.14 In fact, the Crusaders believed this so much, that
“Deus vult!” became the unofficial slogan of the Crusaders which meant “God Wills it!”15 Pope
Urban II made sure to characterize the nature of the enemy in such a way that ensured Muslims
were evil and despicable in the eyes of God to the Crusaders. Urban noted that Muslims were
“subhuman and ravishers of women, murderers of Christians and polluters of Christian
churches, violent, rapacious and aggressive.”16
The Great Schism of 1054
During the year 1095, Pope Urban would issue a call to arms to march to the East to free the
city of Jerusalem from Muslim control. At the Council of Clermont in 1095, Pope Urban would
appeal to the bishops saying that recapturing the holy land was of the upmost importance.17
However, Pope Urban did have another goal, and that was reconciliation with the Eastern
Church.18 The Muslims were not the only ones dealing with schisms within their communities.
The Great Schism of 1054 had occurred years earlier which essentially left the Eastern Orthodox
Christians and Western Catholics fractured for a variety of reasons. While the schism did not
happen overnight, it was in fact a slow tumultuous process that had been shaping up for
centuries prior. The roots of what would become the Great Schism of 1054 could easily be
14 Ibid
15 John Cotts, “God Wills it! Supplementary Divine Purposes for the crusades according to Crusade
Propaganda,” The Journal of Ecclesiastical History 70, no. 3 (07,2019)
16 Jacques Theron and Erna Oliver. "Changing Perspectives on the Crusades." Hervormde Teologiese
Studies 74, no. 1 (2018), https://go.openathens.net/redirector/liberty.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/
scholarlyjournals/changing-perspectives-on-crusades/docview/2025301598/se-2.
17 Torben K. Nielsen, Legacies of the Crusades: Proceedings of the Ninth Conference of the Society for the
Study of the Crusades and the Latin East, (Brepols Publishers, 2021), 21.
18 Ibid., 23
5
traced back to the year 325.19 This was the year that the Council of Nicaea was convened by
Emperor Constantine I to settle several theological controversies and disputes between
bishops.20 While there were several resolutions from the first council such as the Nicene Creed
and the date and celebration of Easter, there were still many disputes that went unresolved and
lingered for many years after the council had concluded. Cultural and Language barriers would
also play a role in the schism. As time had passed, the language of Western Christianity had
shifted from Greek to Latin. These shifts in languages would essentially mean the development
of new religious rituals and practices that would only fuel division between the different
churches.21 Centuries later, in the summer of 1054, Cardinal Humbert and representatives of
Pope Leo IX (who had passed away in April of the same year) placed something known as the
“bull of excommunications” on the altar of the Hagia Sophia which led to the excommunication
of the Patriarch Michael Cerularius.23 Pope Urban II knew that the division between the Eastern
and Western churches were present for centuries at this point. It was his hope that the First
Crusade could reunite the East and West against a common enemy in the Muslims. While he
initially succeeded in this endeavor, ultimately his success with reunification as well as total
control of the holy lands by the Crusaders, would not last long. It should also be noted that
while Urban did achieve his initial goal of reclaiming Jerusalem from the Muslims, he passed
away on 29 July 1099, which was approximately two weeks after the holy land had been
recaptured.22
19 Anna M. Cox “THE GREAT SCHISM: The Great Divide of the West, the East and Christianity,”
International journal of social science studies. 6, no. 3 (2018)
20 Ibid.
21 Ibid.
23 Ibid.
22 Paul Chevedden, “Crusade Creationism Versus Pope Urban II’s Conceptualization of the Crusades.” The
Historian (Kingston 75, no. 1 (2013): 12.
6
The People’s Crusade
The People’s Crusade (also known as the Popular Crusade or the Peasant’s Crusade) was the
first phase of the First Crusade. The People’s Crusade was led by a charismatic monk named
Peter the Hermit.23 Pope Urban II most likely expected the nobility of the West to be the only
real participants in the First Crusade when he made his call to arms at the Council of Clermont.
However, things quickly grew much more than what the Pope likely expected. While there
would be many knights and noblemen who took up arms for the holy cause, there were also
several participants who came from the lower class ranks of Western society hence the name
“People’s” or “Peasant’s” Crusade.24 The main differences from the People’s Crusade and the
rest of the Main Crusades was that the People’s version was not sanctioned or backed by the
official church while the actual Crusades were sanctioned and funded by the church directly.
The lower-class crusaders who joined Peter on his journey to Jerusalem were not specially
trained combatants while the knights and noblemen of the sanctioned Crusades were. While
Pope Urban II might have been thrilled that his call to arms had excited so many within the
lower class, there is no way to know for certain what Urban had thought as no historical records
of his thoughts on the People’s Crusade exist.25
While most historians would likely argue that there was nothing physically special about
Peter the Hermit, it is assumed that he was a gifted and charismatic speaker because of his
ability to galvanize huge swaths of people into leaving their friends, families, possessions and
homes behind in service of something much bigger than themselves.26 Because of Peter’s ability
23 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, (Chicago, Barakaldo Books), 2020, 32
24 Ibid.,
25 Ibid., 36
26 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, (Chicago, Barakaldo Books), 2020, 32
7
to galvanize and preach to the masses, it was assumed for many years that Peter himself was
the originator of the First Crusade as many believed he was the first one to advocate for the
freedom of Jerusalem.27 Some estimates have suggested that Peter had gathered followers that
were numbered in the thousands who mostly included peasants, criminals, some noblemen
(without land), lower-ranking knights and also women and children.28 According to some
estimates,
Peter’s army most likely marched thirty to forty kilometers per day on the way to Jerusalem.29
A distinguished knight known was Walter the Penniless was one of the men who joined
Peter on his quest to free Jerusalem from the Muslims. Walter had his own delegation of French
soldiers and a small group of knights by his side.30 The trek to Jerusalem was not an easy journey
for Peter and his Army. Walter and his army had come through Bulgarian territories and had
incidentally begun a dispute with Bulgarian officials. During this time, much of Walters Army
had dispersed while some of Walters men took refuge inside of a chapel while Bulgarian forces
had grown stronger.31 The Bulgarians burned the chapel down completely which resulted in
Walter losing about sixty of his men. Those who managed to escape the burning church were
seriously wounded.32 This was only a small sample of what would ultimately be the fate of
Peter’s army. Peter’s army fought through several different skirmishes on the way to the holy
land. One battle of relevance was a battle in the province of Nish where Peter and his forces
27 Nicholas Paul & Suzanna M. Yeager, “Remembering The Crusades: Myth, image and Identity,”
(Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Pres, 2012)
28 Ibid.
29 Steven Runciman “The First Crusaders’ Journey Across the Balkan Peninsula, (Byzantion 19), 1949, 210.
30 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, (Chicago, Barakaldo Books), 2020, 33.
31 Ibid., 38
32 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, (Chicago, Barakaldo Books), 2020, 38
8
encountered commander Nicetas. During this encounter, Nicetas attacked the fear formation of
the Crusaders. As these battles continued to unfold, many of the crusaders were killed or
captured.33 Some estimates suggest as many as 10,000 crusaders were killed or captured which
would have roughly been a quarter of Peter’s army.34 While making their way through Semlin,
Peter’s army encountered Hungarian forces and during a riot, the crusaders managed to kill
about four thousand Hungarian soldiers.35 After these turn of events, Peter and his forces
crossed the Sava River using custom built rafts which took them to the Byzantine town of
Belgrade. The citizens of Belgrade had abandoned the town in anticipation of the crusaders and
because of this, Peter’s army would go on to pillage and burn Belgrade to the ground.36 The
People’s Crusade was characterized by the lack of organization, discipline and control. All of this
became even more evident than when the crusaders arrived in Asia minor. The difficult journey
that the crusaders made through Europe had taken a toll on their enthusiasm.37 The crusaders
seemed to have been more concerned about looting and pillaging then their original objective
of retaking Jerusalem. By the time the Crusaders had made their settlement at Civetot, Peter’s
authority over his forces had virtually disappeared entirely and the morale of his men was
essentially at rock bottom.38 Arguments amongst the men had started to unfold and relations
had gotten to the point where the men had started to separate themselves into separate
cliques. All of this led to the men starting unorganized groups with the sole purpose of raiding
33 Steven Runciman “The First Crusaders’ Journey Across the Balkan Peninsula, (Byzantion 19), 1949, 213.
34 Ibid.
35 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, (Chicago, Barakaldo Books). 2020, 36.
36 Ibid.
37 Ibid., 38.
38 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, (Chicago, Barakaldo Books). 2020, 38
9
and pillaging nearby villages and towns.39 Ultimately, these turn of events would lead the
People’s Crusade to its demise as they attracted the attention of Kilij Arslan.
A group of German soldiers who had sieged a fort previously were attacked by Kilij Arslan and
his forces. The German’s defeat was decisive to the point that they had to take shelter in the
fort from the hail of Turkish arrows made of horn and bone. Most of the German forces were
killed and about two hundred were taken captive.40 Once word of what happened reached
Walter and his forces, they considered going after the Turks for vengeance. Walter decided
against a revenge mission and wanted to wait until Peter returned from Constantinople before
doing anything. After about eight days, Geoffrey Burel, the master of the infantry, convinced the
army that they should retaliate against the Turkish forces.41 After all the leaders had agreed, all
the calvary and infantry troops assembled to fight the Turkish forces. The total numbers that left
the camp the next morning were about twenty-five thousand infantrymen and five hundred
armored knights.44 As previously mentioned, the participants in the People’s Crusade were not
well trained and because of this, they made very loud noises and sounds while marching
through the mountain and forest regions. This made the crusaders easy targets for Kilij Arslan
and his forces. Arslan’s forces were able to surprise the crusaders as they were well-trained and
exercised noise discipline when entering the forest regions against the crusaders.42 When the
crusaders finally met with Arslan’s forces, the crusaders were met with a hail or arrows. While
the crusaders were able to mount a small offensive which resulted in about two hundred dead
Turks, ultimately, they lost several of their leaders including Walter the Penniless and Rainald of
39 Ibid.
40 Ibid., 39
41 Ibid., 40
44 Ibid.
42 James A. Brundage, The Crusades: A documentary Survey, (Chicago, Barakaldo Books), 2020, 40.
10
Breis. The other leaders, like Geoffrey Burel, had managed to escape and had essentially
forsaken the surviving troops. Once it was known that the leaders had either been killed or had
run away, the rest of the soldiers scattered away from the battlefield.43 The Turks had followed
the soldiers as they fled the battlefield and followed them all the way back to the camp and
killed most of the soldiers en route. The Crusaders who escaped found their way to an
abandoned fort along the seashore and took refuge inside for as long as they could. While many
of them were killed, some were able to be rescued after Peter had gotten word of their
situation and petitioned the emperor for help.47 Peter had lost most of his untrained army. This
was essentially the end of the People’s Crusade as a fighting force. Peter and those that
remained had managed to remain at Constantinople under the protection of Alexius until the
Crusading expeditions from the West had arrived.44 In hindsight, it is not surprising that the
People’s Crusade ended in absolute disaster. A fighting force composed mainly of lower class,
untrained, and uneducated peasants along with women and children generally stood no chance
against well-trained and armed Muslim combatants. It is surprising that they managed to get as
far as they did. As mentioned previously, Peter was a very gifted speaker, who assured the
Crusaders that God would lead them to victory in their endeavors to retake the Holy land from
the Muslims. Unfortunately for Peter and his Army, this could not have been farther from the
truth. As time went on and as the Crusaders got closer and closer to Jerusalem, their
determination and willpower decreased considerably. What started off as a zealous bunch of
Crusaders who believed they were being led by God directly to free the holy land turned into a
ragtag group of troublemakers who only appeared to cause more problems wherever they
43 Ibid., 41
47 Ibid.
44 Ibid., 42
11
went. Even Peter’s authority over the group had waned considerably as time had passed. While
the intentions of the People’s Crusade were genuine in wanting to retake Jerusalem, the failure
that they endured as well as the knights and noblemen that would later go on to retake
Jerusalem proves that the People’s Crusade should have never taken place at all.
Lessons from the People’s Crusade
There are several lessons that Christians today can take away from the People’s Crusade. The
First Crusade was not a war meant to be fought by commoners such as Peter and his Army.
Society today is very secularized compared to what it used to be 50 years ago. The Christian
Church today much understand that, but at the same time, must also realize that the Church
should be changing society today and not the other way around. Peter and his Army answered a
call to arms that was not meant for them specifically. Believers in the present time should
realize that they are not called to fight every battle. Every believer today is equipped for
different battles that others may not have to face.
Another lesson the Church can learn today is that finishing the race is important. Paul wrote
to
Timothy saying, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith (2
Timothy 4:7 NKJV).” When the Crusaders left for Jerusalem, they were very eager to reclaim the
holy land, but as the journey became longer, their enthusiasm started to wane as they
approached Jerusalem. By the time the Crusaders were near the end of their journey, they were
a nothing more than a disorganized band of pillagers and looters. Even Peter was not able to
hold authority over the Crusaders as he did at the start of the journey. Life is difficult for
everyone, especially for believers in Christ Jesus. The People’s Crusade teaches us that you must
12
be careful to guard against selfish pleasures versus the need to stay faithful to your goals and
beliefs.
Conclusion
The participants of the People’s Crusade had noble goals of freeing the Holy land from those
they considered wicked and sinful. However, their own wickedness would ultimately lead the
Crusader’s to their demise as the hands of the Muslims. The call to arms that Pope Urban II
made at the Council of Clermont in November of 1095 was not intended for the lower-class of
Western society but was instead intended for trained Knights and Noblemen who could stand
toe to toe with the Muslim armies. While Peter and his Army had much enthusiasm from the
beginning of the journey while also seeing some success in battle, ultimately, their enthusiasm
and morale fell apart and coupled with their lack of training and skills, it was only a matter of
time before they were ultimately defeated by Kilij Arslan and his superior forces.
13
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