The People's Crusade is part of the First Crusade and lasted roughly six months from April 1096 to October. It is also known as the Popular Crusade, Peasants' Crusade, or the Paupers' Crusade. Capture of Jerusalem during the First Crusade, 1099, from a medieval manuscript The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and in those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years. ... This article is about the medieval Crusades . ... The First Crusade was launched in 1095 by Pope Urban II to regain control of the sacred city of Jerusalem and the Christian Holy Land from Muslims. ... The German Crusade of 1096 is that part of the First Crusade in which peasant crusaders, mostly from Germany, attacked not Muslims but Jews. ... The Crusade of 1101 was a minor crusade, actually three separate movements, organized in 1100 and 1101 in the successful aftermath of the First Crusade. ... The Second Crusade was the second major crusade launched from Europe. ... The Third Crusade (1189 - 1192) was an attempt by European leaders to reconquer the Holy Land from Saladin. ... The Fourth Crusade (1202-1204), originally designed to conquer Jerusalem by taking Egypt first, instead, in 1204, conquered the Orthodox Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire. ... The Albigensian Crusade (1209-1229) was a 20-year military effort initiated by the Roman Catholic Church to eliminate the Cathars in southern France, a sect considered heretical by the Roman Catholic hierarchy. ... The Childrens Crusade is the name given a variety of fictional and factual events in 1212 AD that combine some or all of these elements: visions by a boy, children marching to south Italy, an attempt to free the Holy Land, children being sold into slavery. ... The Fifth Crusade (1217–1221) was an attempt to take back Jerusalem by first conquering the powerful Muslim state in Egypt. ... The Sixth Crusade began in 1228 as an attempt to reconquer Jerusalem. ... The Seventh Crusade was a crusade led by Louis IX of France from 1248 to 1254. ... The Shepherds Crusade is two separate events from the 13th and 14th century. ... The Eighth Crusade was a crusade launched by Louis IX of France in 1270. ... The Ninth Crusade is commonly considered to be the last of the medieval Crusades against the Muslims in the Holy Land. ... The Northern Crusades, or Baltic Crusades, were undertaken by Western Europeans against the still heathen people of North Eastern Europe around the Baltic Sea. ... The First Crusade was launched in 1095 by Pope Urban II to regain control of the sacred city of Jerusalem and the Christian Holy Land from Muslims. ... Events Bernhard becomes Bishop of Brandenburg First documented teaching at the University of Oxford Beginning of the Peoples Crusade, the German Crusade, and the First Crusade Vital I Michele is Doge of Venice Peter I, King of Aragon, conquers Huesca Phayao, now a province of Thailand, is founded as...

Background

Pope Urban II planned departure of the crusade for August 15, 1096, but months before this, a number of unexpected armies of peasants and lowly knights organized and set off for Jerusalem on their own. The peasant population had been afflicted by drought, famine, and plague for many years before 1096, and some of them seem to have envisioned the crusade as an escape from these hardships. Spurring them on had been a number of coincidental meteorological occurrences beginning in 1095 that seemed to be a divine blessing for the movement ? a meteor shower, aurorae, a lunar eclipse, and a comet, among other events. An outbreak of ergotism, which usually led to mass pilgrimages anyway, had also occurred just before the Council of Clermont. Millenarianism, the belief that the end of the world was imminent, popular in the early 11th century, experienced a resurgence in popularity. The response was beyond expectations: While Urban might have expected a few thousand knights, he ended up with a migration numbering up to 100,000 of mostly unskilled fighters, including women and children. Urban II, né Otho of Lagery (or Otto or Odo) (1042 - July 29, 1099), pope from 1088 to July 29, 1099, was born into nobility in France at Lagery (near Châtillon-sur-Marne) and was church educated. ... This article is about the medieval Crusades . ... August 15 is the 227th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (228th in leap years), with 138 days remaining. ... Events Bernhard becomes Bishop of Brandenburg First documented teaching at the University of Oxford Beginning of the Peoples Crusade, the German Crusade, and the First Crusade Vital I Michele is Doge of Venice Peter I, King of Aragon, conquers Huesca Phayao, now a province of Thailand, is founded as... Jerusalem (Hebrew: יְרוּשָׁלַיִם Yerushalayim; Arabic: القدس al-Quds; see also names of Jerusalem) is an ancient Middle Eastern city of key importance to the religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. ... Categories: Planetology | Astronomy stubs ... The term aurorae has several meanings: the plural noun of aurora Aurorae (band) are an American electronica/ psychedelic trance duo This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... An eclipse occurs whenever the Sun, Earth and Moon line up exactly. ... Comet Hale-Bopp, showing a white dust tail and blue gas tail (February 1997) A comet is a small astronomical object similar to an asteroid but composed largely of ice. ... Ergotism is the effect of long-term ergot poisoning, classically due to the ingestion of the alkaloids produced by the Claviceps purpurea fungus which infects rye and other grains, and more recently by the action of a number of ergoline-based drugs. ... Pope Urban II at the Council of Clermont, given a Late Gothic setting in this painting of c 1490 The Council of Clermont was a mixed synod of ecclesiastics and laymen of the Roman Catholic Church, which was held in November 1095 and triggered the First Crusade. ... Millenarianism or millenarism is the belief by a religious, social, or political group or movement in a coming major transformation of society after which all things will be changed in a positive (or sometimes negative or ambiguous) direction. ...

A charismatic monk and powerful orator named Peter the Hermit of Amiens was the spiritual leader of the movement. He was known for riding a donkey and dressing in simple clothing. He had vigorously preached the crusade throughout northern France and Flanders. He claimed to have been appointed to preach by Christ himself (and supposedly had a divine letter to prove it), and it is likely that some of his followers thought he, not Urban, was the true originator of the crusading idea. It is often believed that Peter's army was a band of illiterate, incompetent peasants who had no idea where they were going, and who believed that every city of any size they encountered on their way was Jerusalem itself; this may have been true for some, but the long tradition of pilgrimages to Jerusalem ensured that the location and distance of the city were well-known. While the majority were unskilled in fighting, there were some well-trained minor knights leading them, such as the future chronicler Fulcher of Chartres, and Walter Sans-Avoir (also known as Walter the Penniless), who, as his name suggests, was an impoverished knight with no lord and no vassals, but was nonetheless experienced in warfare. Peter the Hermit preaching the First Crusade, as depicted in the 1851 Illustrated London Reading Book Peter the Hermit was a priest of Amiens, in France. ... The cathedral in Amiens Location within France Amiens is a city and commune in the north of France, 120 km north of Paris. ... Definitions Flanders (Dutch: Vlaanderen, French: Flandre or Flandres) has two main designations: a historical region (the County of Flanders), and an administrative region of Belgium (the Flemish Region and the Flemish Community). ... Fulcher of Chartres (born around 1059 in or near Chartres) was a chronicler of the First Crusade. ... Walter the Penniless (in French Fr. ...

Walter and the French

1888 map showing proximity of Semlin, river Save and Belgrade.

Peter gathered his army at Cologne on April 12, 1096, planning to stop there and preach to the Germans and gather more crusaders. The French, however, were not willing to wait for Peter and the Germans and under the leadership of Walter Sans-Avoir a few thousand French crusaders left before Peter reaching Hungary on May 8, passing through Hungary without incident and arriving at the river Save at the border of Byzantine territory at Belgrade. The Belgrade commander was taken by surprise having no orders on what to do with them and refused entry, forcing the crusaders to pillage the countryside for food. This resulted in skirmishes with the Belgrade garrison and to make matters worse, sixteen of Walter's men had tried to rob a market in Semlin across the river in Hungary and were stripped of their armor and clothing which was hung from the castle walls. Eventually the crusaders were allowed to carry on to Nish where they were provided with food and waited to hear from Constantinople on their allowed passage. By the end of July the army arrived in Constantinople under Byzantine escort. Legend: Bahnhof - train station; one on the left is now defunct but larger one is still Belgrades main train station Belgrad - Belgrade Donau - Danube Dortschol - Dorcol Dunavica - Dunavica (now doesnt exist; the stream and the swamp around it are now dried out and New Belgrade is built over... Legend: Bahnhof - train station; one on the left is now defunct but larger one is still Belgrades main train station Belgrad - Belgrade Donau - Danube Dortschol - Dorcol Dunavica - Dunavica (now doesnt exist; the stream and the swamp around it are now dried out and New Belgrade is built over... Cologne skyline at night. ... April 12 is the 102nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (103rd in leap years). ... May 8 is the 128th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (129th in leap years). ... Sava can mean several things: for polynesian mythology creature see Sava (mythology), see Sava (river) for a river in central-southern Europe see Sava (name) for south Slavic name, see Saint Sava for Serbian medieval prince turned monk (1176 - 1235). ... The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered at its capital in Constantinople. ... Belgrade (Serbian, Београд, Beograd  listen), is the capital (2003–) of Serbia and Montenegro and Yugoslavia (1918–2003). ... Coat of Zemun Zemun (Земун, Hungarian: Zimony, German: Semlin) is a major suburb of Belgrade situated on the left bank of the Sava river. ... Niš (Ниш, the Roman Naissus; see below) is a city in Serbia and Montenegro (formerly Yugoslavia), 43. ... Map of Constantinople. ...

Cologne to Constantinople

Peter and the remaining crusaders left Cologne on about April 20. About 20,000 followers left immediately, while another group would follow soon after (see the German Crusade). When they reached the Danube, part of the decided to continue on by boat down the Danube, while the main body continued overland and entered Hungary at Ödenburg (now Sopron). There it continued through Hungary without incident and rejoined the Danube contingent at Semlin on the Byzantine frontier. April 20 is the 110th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (111th in leap years). ... The German Crusade of 1096 is that part of the First Crusade in which peasant crusaders, mostly from Germany, attacked not Muslims but Jews. ... Danube in Budapest Length 2,888 ¹ km Elevation of the source 1,078 ² m Average discharge 30 km. ... Sopron (pronounced shop-ron), historically also known by the German name Ödenburg, is the name of a town in Hungary. ...

In Semlin the crusaders became suspicious, seeing Walter's sixteen suits of armor hanging from the walls, and eventually a dispute over the price of a pair of shoes in the market led to a riot, which then turned in to an all-out assault on the city by the crusaders (probably against the desires of Peter), in which 4,000 Hungarians were killed. The crusaders then fled across the river Save to Belgrade, but only after skirmishing with Belgrade troops. The residents of Belgrade fled, and the crusaders pillaged and burned the city. Then they marched for seven days, arriving at Nish on July 3. There, the commander of Nish promised to provide escort for Peter's army to Constantinople as well as food, if he would leave right away. Peter obliged, and the next morning he set out. However, a few Germans got into a dispute with some locals along the road and set fire to a mill, which escalated out of Peter's control until Nish sent out its entire garrison against the crusaders. The crusaders were completely routed, losing about a quarter of their number; the remainder regrouping further on at Bela Palanka. When they reached Sofia on July 12, they met their Byzantine escort, which brought them safely the rest of the way to Constantinople by August 1. For other meanings of NIS try here. ... July 3rd is the 184th day of the year (185th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 181 days remaining. ... Remesiana (Bela Palanka in Antic time) is a municipality of Serbia. ... The city of Sofia (Bulgarian: София), at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, has a population of 1,208,930 (2003), and is the biggest city and capital of the Republic of Bulgaria. ... July 12 is the 193rd day (194th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 172 days remaining. ... August 1st is the 213th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (214th in leap years), with 152 days remaining. ...

Leadership breakdown

Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus, not knowing what else to do with such an unusual and unexpected "army", quickly ferried them across the Bosporus by August 6. It has since been debated whether he sent them away without Byzantine guides knowing full well that they could be slaughtered by the Turks, or whether they insisted on continuing into Asia despite his warnings. In any case, it is known that Alexius warned Peter not to engage the Turks, whom he believed to be superior to Peter's motley army, and to wait for the main body of crusaders who were still on the way. This is a list of Byzantine Emperors. ... Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus Alexius I (1048–August 15, 1118), Byzantine emperor (1081–1118), was the third son of John Comnenus, the nephew of Isaac I Comnenus (emperor 1057–1059). ... Fatih Sultan Mehmed Bridge over the Bosporus seen from over Rumelihisarı This article is about the strait; Bosphorus is also a university in Turkey. ... August 6 is the 218th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (219th in leap years), with 147 days remaining. ...

Peter was re-joined by the French under Walter Sans-Avoir and a number of bands of Italian crusaders who arrived at the same time. Once in Asia they began to pillage towns and reached Nicomedia where an argument broke out between the Germans and Italians on one side the French on the other. The Germans and Italians split off and elected a new leader, an Italian named Rainald, while for the French, Geoffrey Burel took command. Peter had effectively lost control of the crusade. Nicomedes I of Bithynia founded the city of Nicomedia (modern Ismid), at the head of the Gulf of Astacus (which opens on the Propontis), in 264 BC The city has ever since been one of the chief towns in this part of Asia Minor. ...

Even though Alexius had urged Peter to wait for the Princes and main army, Peter had lost much of his authority and the crusaders spurred each other on, moving more boldly against nearby towns until finally the French reached the edge of Nicaea, a capital Turkish stronghold, where they pillaged the suburbs. The Germans, not to be outdone, marched with six thousand crusaders on Xerigordon and captured the city to use it as a base to raid the countryside. In response the Turks sent a sizeable army against Xerigordon and on September 29 captured the only water source, located outside the city walls, which the Germans had failed to notice. After eight days of drinking the blood of donkeys and their own urine the crusaders were forced to surrender. Those who remained true to Christianity were killed while those who converted were sent off into slavery. Nicaea is also the ancient name of the French city Nice. ... September 29 is the 272nd day of the year (273rd in leap years). ...

Crisis

Humiliating defeat of the Peoples' Crusade army (Miniature of 1490)

Back at the main crusaders' camp, Turkish spies had spread the rumor that the Germans who had taken Xerigordon had also taken Nicaea, which caused excitement to get there as soon as possible to share in the looting. Of course, the Turks had ambushed the road to Nicaea. When the real truth of what had happened at Xerigordon reached the crusaders, excitement turned to panic. Peter the Hermit had gone back to Constantinople to arrange for supplies and was due back soon, and most of the leaders argued to wait for him to return (which he never did). However Geoffrey Burel, who had popular support among the masses of the army, argued that it would be cowardly to wait, and they should move against the Turks right away. His will prevailed: On the morning of October 21 the entire army of 20,000 marched out toward Nicaea, leaving women, children, the old and the sick behind at the camp. Download high resolution version (500x732, 59 KB) This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Download high resolution version (500x732, 59 KB) This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... October 21 is the 294th day of the year (295th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 71 days remaining. ...

Three miles from the camp, where the road entered a narrow, wooded valley near the village of Dracon, the Turkish ambush was waiting. Panic set in immediately and within minutes the mass of the army was in full route back to the camp. Most of the crusaders were defeated; Children and those who surrendered were spared, however. Thousands of soldiers that attempted to fight back were all outbattled. Three thousand, including Geoffrey Burel, were lucky enough to hole up in an old abandoned castle. Eventually the Byzantines sailed over and raised the siege; these few thousand returned to Constantinople, the only survivors of the People's Crusade.

References

• Peter the Hermit and the People's Crusade: Collected Accounts (http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/peterhermit.html).
• Duncalf, Frederic. "The Peasants Crusade." American Historical Review 26 (1921): pg. 440-453.
• see also First Crusade Selected Sources