Richard the Lionheart and the Crusades

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Richard I, also known as Richard the Lionheart due to his “reputation as a great military leader and warrior” , was the third of five sons of King Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. Richard the Lionheart had taken command of his army by the age of 16 and his military reputation came from battles in Poitou, by controlling rebellions. A crusade is a “military expedition made by Europeans to recover the Holy Land from Muslims in the 11th, 12th, 13th centuries.” These Holy wars were brutal campaigns launched by Christian states of Europe against the Saracens, this was the word used for Muslims during the middle ages, for many reasons such as politics, religion and social change. The city of Jerusalem had great Holy significance to the Christian religion. The Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre commemorated the hill of crucifixion of Christ and the tomb where he was buried. This was why many Christians made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, but in 1065 three thousand Christians were killed and the remaining were persecuted, once Europe caught wind of this they wanted to fight against this and re...

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