What motivated the Crusades?

During the early middle ages, Europe recovered from centuries of invasion and the collapse of the Roman empire. In its wake arose a decentralized political structure and the Roman Catholic Church rose to prominence, playing a dominant role inspiring religious leadership and cultural unity in western Europe. The office of the papacy and the monastic movement were two powerful institutions that helped preserve Roman traditions, develop and consolidate a uniquely European culture. The crusades also occurred during the High Middle Ages, in part fueled by the threat posed to the Byzantine Empire by the rise of the Seljuk Turks. Read Chapter 12 and relevant sections of Chapter 13. View the following PBS program: The Dark Ages: Part 10-The Crusades Read Comparative Essay: Feudal Orders Around the World, on pg 283, and Opposing Viewpoints: Two Views of Trade and Merchants, on pg 311. Read Politics and Government: Christian Crusaders Capture Constantinople, on pg 339. In your opinion, what really motivated the Crusades? Was it religious, economic, OR political factors that led Europe to carry out the Crusades? Select only ONE FACTOR that you believe was the primary motivation behind the Crusades, and support your argument. Were the Crusades a major mistake or did they have any positive consequences? Based on your readings of the Comparative Essay: Feudal Orders Around the World, on pg 283, and Opposing Viewpoints: Two Views of Trade and Merchants, on pg 311, what do the writers of both excerpts have to say about trade? Do they share any ideas in common? How do religion and religious values factor into the viewpoints expressed about trade? What reservations do they seem to express?    

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