WEBVTT - A Crusade Gone Wrong

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Stuff you Missed in History Class from how

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<v Speaker 1>Stuff Works dot Com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm King Lamber and I'm Sarah Dowdy. And there are

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<v Speaker 1>many crusades that today's topic. The Fourth Crusade from twelve

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<v Speaker 1>oh two to twelve oh four was the least successful.

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<v Speaker 1>Its aim was to take Jerusalem from the Muslim Turks

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<v Speaker 1>who had seized it in eighties seven, but the result

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<v Speaker 1>was an attack on Christian cities and a permanent divide

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<v Speaker 1>between the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches. So clearly

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<v Speaker 1>something went horribly horribly wrong, and we're going to talk

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<v Speaker 1>about what it was that went wrong today. So as

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<v Speaker 1>far as the Crusades in general, they were rooted in

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<v Speaker 1>both political and religious motives. The Byzantine Empire was threatened

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<v Speaker 1>by these Seldic Turks, and Pope Urban the Second agreed

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<v Speaker 1>to endorse a war against them. This is the first

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<v Speaker 1>crusade to both save the Christians who were supposedly being

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<v Speaker 1>tortured and to save Jerusalem from the infidels. By saving Jerusalem,

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<v Speaker 1>the crusaders themselves would save their own souls. The win

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<v Speaker 1>win deal, and these were seen as defensive wars because

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<v Speaker 1>the church was under attack. But of course there's a

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<v Speaker 1>lot more to it than that, And if you want

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<v Speaker 1>a little more background, definitely check out an older episode

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<v Speaker 1>recorded by Candis and Jane on the Crusades of the

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<v Speaker 1>whole you can get all the background information. And we've

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<v Speaker 1>actually got a really good article on this too, Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>by Molly Edmunds of stuff Mom never told you how

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<v Speaker 1>the crusades worked. And an important thing to remember that

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<v Speaker 1>I got from her article quote many of the crusades

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<v Speaker 1>would begin with a goal to reach the Holy Land,

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<v Speaker 1>but would break down because of politics and warfare failure. Regardless,

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<v Speaker 1>religion was always the primary trigger for a crusade, so

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<v Speaker 1>remember that as we go along. So we have religion

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<v Speaker 1>and we have politics x, which go together like peanut

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<v Speaker 1>butter and jelly. And like I said to Sarah earlier,

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<v Speaker 1>a PPJ that blows up in your face sounds like

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<v Speaker 1>a sandwich that is far too dangerous for my taste.

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<v Speaker 1>But as we mentioned, Jerusalem is under the control of

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<v Speaker 1>the Muslims and the goal of the fourth Crusade is

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<v Speaker 1>to get it back. Sounds pretty simple, right, Hope Innocent

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<v Speaker 1>the third had been wanting a crusade of his own.

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<v Speaker 1>We all want a crusade of our own, and the

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<v Speaker 1>French answer is called they would take part. They would

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<v Speaker 1>make up the majority of the troops, and as their

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<v Speaker 1>leader they'll have an Italian count named Boniface molt Ferra.

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<v Speaker 1>The leaders of the crusade decide that the best way

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<v Speaker 1>to recapture Jerusalem is to go by sea to Egypt

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<v Speaker 1>and then invade from there. But they need a way

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<v Speaker 1>to transport all of their men and all of their

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<v Speaker 1>supplies by sea. They need help, and who is better

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<v Speaker 1>at all things seaworthy than the Venetian nations. So they

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<v Speaker 1>go to Venice and they meet with the ninety year

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<v Speaker 1>old blind Doge, Enrico din Dolo, who is in control

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<v Speaker 1>of Venice. And the crusaders want ships. They want about

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<v Speaker 1>thirty thousand men to man them, and they want food.

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<v Speaker 1>So the Doge agrees in exchange for eighty five thousand marks,

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<v Speaker 1>which is a ridiculously huge sum of money, but they

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<v Speaker 1>agree because after all, this is God, yeah, exactly, and

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<v Speaker 1>the Venetians do the work. It takes up almost all

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<v Speaker 1>of Venice's resources to build these ships and to man

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<v Speaker 1>them and to stock them, but more than thirty thousand

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<v Speaker 1>crusaders are supposed to congregate in Venice. So it all

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<v Speaker 1>work out because everybody will bring a little bit of money,

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<v Speaker 1>they'll have enough men for all the ships, and they'll

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<v Speaker 1>be together. They're all starting off in one group. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>you can really stir up morale that way. So from

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<v Speaker 1>there they would proceed on their mission. But there's a problem.

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<v Speaker 1>Only a third of the men show up because a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of the troops have decided, well, we don't want

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<v Speaker 1>to go all the way to Venice to meet with

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<v Speaker 1>you guys. We're going to leave from our own port.

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<v Speaker 1>Don't tell me what to do. So the result is

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<v Speaker 1>that there isn't enough money to pay Venice, and they

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<v Speaker 1>have way too much stuff because they have supplies, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>for thirty thou people, and they've only got twelve thousand.

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<v Speaker 1>They can't go back home. It would be dishonorable. They've

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<v Speaker 1>made this vow that they're going to do this religious thing,

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<v Speaker 1>and they can't not pay the Venetians. They have a

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<v Speaker 1>moral obligation to do so how can we resolve this? Fortunately,

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<v Speaker 1>the Doge makes them a pretty good offer. Attack the

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<v Speaker 1>city of Zara and we'll give you a little more

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<v Speaker 1>time to pay up. We're not going to write off

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<v Speaker 1>the debt, but you'll have more time to pay It's

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<v Speaker 1>not that great of a deal. Actually, it's kind of

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<v Speaker 1>a bad deal. Zara was on the Dalmatian coast and

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<v Speaker 1>Venice basically had had control over it until the Hungarian

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<v Speaker 1>king came along. But this presents a dilemma for the crusaders.

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<v Speaker 1>They need to pay their debt. But the Hungarian king

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<v Speaker 1>is Christian and under the Pope in realm to not

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<v Speaker 1>the the Eastern version of the Church, and he's a crusader,

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<v Speaker 1>so attacking him is attacking one of their own. What

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<v Speaker 1>can they do? Some refuse to attack, and others agree

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<v Speaker 1>to it because it's for the good of the crusade

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<v Speaker 1>as a whole. The ends justify the means that Pope

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<v Speaker 1>Innocent the Third is not pleased and basically sends them

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<v Speaker 1>a letter that says, don't you dare, I will excommunicate you.

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<v Speaker 1>But of course the Pope's message only gets to the

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<v Speaker 1>leadership the knights who are in charge, and they neglect

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<v Speaker 1>to pass it on to the common man because obviously,

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<v Speaker 1>under the threat of excommunication, which is the heaviest punishment

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<v Speaker 1>that the Church can give someone a lot of the

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<v Speaker 1>army would fall apart. So they keep this information to themselves,

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<v Speaker 1>and they attack, and they conquer, and the Pope excommunicates

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<v Speaker 1>them all again. The leaders are the only ones who

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<v Speaker 1>know that this has happened. They have all the information,

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<v Speaker 1>they have all the power, so they don't even know

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<v Speaker 1>that they're possibly damned. But meanwhile, there is a prince

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<v Speaker 1>in exile whose ears have perked up at the news

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<v Speaker 1>of what's going on in Zara. He is Alexius Angelos,

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<v Speaker 1>and his father, Isaac the Second had been Emperor of Byzantium,

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<v Speaker 1>but he had been deposed by his brother Alexius the Third,

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<v Speaker 1>who also ordered that his eyes be gouged out. Apparently

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<v Speaker 1>that was very popular style. So our exiled prince, the

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<v Speaker 1>rightful heir to the throne, goes to the leaders of

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<v Speaker 1>the Fourth Crusade and offers them a deal. He will

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<v Speaker 1>give them money and men to help them retake the

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<v Speaker 1>Holy Land if they will come to Constantinople, the capital

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<v Speaker 1>of the Byzantine Empire, and help him take the throne back.

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<v Speaker 1>And more importantly, he says that he will return what

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<v Speaker 1>is now the Greek Orthodox Church to the rule of

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<v Speaker 1>the Pope in Rome. This would be a huge coup.

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<v Speaker 1>Maybe the Pope would stop being so mad at the crusaders,

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<v Speaker 1>and also they would have reunited the church. So as

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<v Speaker 1>far as a religious mission goes, this is a word one.

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<v Speaker 1>And the doge supports the plan too, because he's thinking

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<v Speaker 1>of Venice's trade roots. And if Byzantium is an ally,

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<v Speaker 1>they're in a pretty good place all of a sudden,

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<v Speaker 1>so Boniface says, we're in And a note on Constantinople.

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<v Speaker 1>It is an incredibly rich city at the time, both

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<v Speaker 1>in culture and in a actual cash money. They have

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<v Speaker 1>the Hagia Sophia, for example, and founded by Constantine the

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<v Speaker 1>first in a d. Three thirty. It is the greatest

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<v Speaker 1>city of the Middle Ages, certainly better than anything Europe has.

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<v Speaker 1>They have, you know, the crown of Thorns relic, what

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<v Speaker 1>do you have? And it's the perfect place for trade.

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<v Speaker 1>It's right in between the East and the West. And

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<v Speaker 1>my favorite detail from a New Yorker article by Joan Acochella,

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<v Speaker 1>it's ladies watched over by twenty thousand eunuchs were silk

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<v Speaker 1>and jewels and white wigs. But it's not just the

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<v Speaker 1>ladies who are well defended. The city is really well

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<v Speaker 1>defended too. In nine years no one has taken it.

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<v Speaker 1>So this is the mark. We can imagine things are

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<v Speaker 1>going to be pretty tough from here on out. And

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<v Speaker 1>as far as this whole idea of going into Constantinople goes,

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<v Speaker 1>some of the other Crusaders are very unhappy because they're

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<v Speaker 1>supposed to be going to Jerusalem. What does Constantinople have

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<v Speaker 1>to do with any holes of well, and it's this

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<v Speaker 1>Christian cities. Why are we even getting involved in what

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<v Speaker 1>they're doing? Perhaps we're missing the point, regardless of what

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<v Speaker 1>some people think. The Crusaders arrive in Constantinople in twelve

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<v Speaker 1>o three and they're here to seize the throne from

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<v Speaker 1>Alexeius the third, return it to Isaac, who he doesn't

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<v Speaker 1>know this, but he's going to be co ruling with

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<v Speaker 1>his son who will be crowned Alexius the fourth, And

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<v Speaker 1>from there they can pay off Venice, they can reunite

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<v Speaker 1>the Eastern and Western churches, and hopefully finally be on

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<v Speaker 1>their way to Jerusalem. The people of Constantinople honestly aren't

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<v Speaker 1>all that interested in any of this. They're not perturbed

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<v Speaker 1>with this change in rule but Alexeius the Third is

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<v Speaker 1>he puts up a fight and he loses, and during

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<v Speaker 1>this fight the Frank's burned part of the city. Alexius

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<v Speaker 1>the Fourth has what he wanted, but the Venetians and

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<v Speaker 1>the Franks do not. Alexius doesn't have the money that

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<v Speaker 1>he promised, so he's forced to tax everyone, and he

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<v Speaker 1>begins melting down icons to try to raise it. The

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<v Speaker 1>citizens of Constantinople are not very happy. They're being taxed,

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<v Speaker 1>their icons are being melted down, and their city is

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<v Speaker 1>overrun by Franks, by Crusaders who are running amok and

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<v Speaker 1>trying to get what they can for themselves. So the

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<v Speaker 1>Greeks saith the Franks. The Franks saith. The Greeks were

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<v Speaker 1>constantly having skirmishes and Alexius the Fourth unpopularity catches up

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<v Speaker 1>with him. He is murdered. Um Isaac also mysteriously dies

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<v Speaker 1>around the same time, possibly murdered as well, and Alexius

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<v Speaker 1>the Fifth takes over. And Alexis the Fifth is not

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<v Speaker 1>interested in paying Alexius the Fourth debt. He says, I

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<v Speaker 1>don't have anything to do with this. You guys work

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<v Speaker 1>it out yourselves, so that's it. The Venetians want their money,

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<v Speaker 1>and the leaders of the Crusade vow to fight. Now

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<v Speaker 1>they see the Byzantines as an obstacle to be overcome,

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<v Speaker 1>and their fight is justified. They say they need to

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<v Speaker 1>save the Greeks from their own orthodox selves and punish

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<v Speaker 1>them for murdering their ruler, which isn't quite what this

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<v Speaker 1>is about, but we'll let them have it. And again

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<v Speaker 1>Innocence of third tells them in no uncertain terms not

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<v Speaker 1>to do this, but of course they do. For having

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<v Speaker 1>your own crusade. This is really not going according to plan.

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<v Speaker 1>For Innocent nobody's listening to him. So the Crusaders and

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<v Speaker 1>Alexius the Fifth Men fight, and the Greeks put up

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<v Speaker 1>a really good fight. This time Alexius flees, though, and

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<v Speaker 1>the fight still isn't over. This is in April twelve

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<v Speaker 1>o four. Finally, the Crusaders lay siege to the city

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<v Speaker 1>of Constantinople, and in three days it's over. So the

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<v Speaker 1>city that is not fallen in nine years it only

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<v Speaker 1>takes three days to fall. The crusade waters sacked the city, completely,

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<v Speaker 1>burned down parts of it, steal every piece of art

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<v Speaker 1>they can find, every religious relic, the patriarchal library is burned,

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<v Speaker 1>and precious religious icons in the Hockey Sophia destroyed. But

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<v Speaker 1>beyond the looting, the sacking of Constantinople is so notorious

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<v Speaker 1>because it wasn't just about the theft and the violence.

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<v Speaker 1>There was plenty of rapes and murders, but the atmosphere

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<v Speaker 1>was more like a big drunken party. It was jovial,

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<v Speaker 1>it was celebratory. They put a prostitute on the patriarch's

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<v Speaker 1>throne and the hockey Sophia and let her sing. They

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<v Speaker 1>get drunk, drinking out of chalices. This is the defilement

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<v Speaker 1>of all that the people in Constantinople held sacred. So

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<v Speaker 1>the Venetians claim their share of the loot, which is

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<v Speaker 1>most of it, as part of their payment. Have they

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<v Speaker 1>even fulfilled the debt entirely? Yet? I think they also

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<v Speaker 1>got some islands. How the Venetians come out okay, I guess.

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<v Speaker 1>So this is why you can still find Byzantine, aren't there.

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<v Speaker 1>It's it's part of that payment for all of these

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<v Speaker 1>ships and the men and the supplies. By the way,

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of our knowledge about the sacking of Constantinople

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<v Speaker 1>comes from a firsthand account from Nikita's kniatis. So that's

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<v Speaker 1>why some of these details about the prostitute singing from

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<v Speaker 1>the throne are so vivid and so out of this world.

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<v Speaker 1>So we started with this religious mission to quote unquote

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<v Speaker 1>save Jerusalem and we end with a prostitute on the

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<v Speaker 1>patriarchs throne in Constantinople. How did we get here? And

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<v Speaker 1>what's going to happen? While the aftermath is that the

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<v Speaker 1>people of the Byzantine Empire have seen what the Latins

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<v Speaker 1>can do and they would rather take their chances with

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<v Speaker 1>the Turks. The divide between what will be the Eastern

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<v Speaker 1>Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches is now permanent. This is

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<v Speaker 1>known as the Great Sism or the East West Sism,

0:12:56.000 --> 0:12:59.360
<v Speaker 1>and it's still that way today. The sacking of Constantinople

0:12:59.440 --> 0:13:02.640
<v Speaker 1>also marks the beginning of the end of the Byzantine Empire.

0:13:02.679 --> 0:13:08.520
<v Speaker 1>It's this sophisticated, wealthy, culturally rich city and it's never

0:13:08.760 --> 0:13:12.200
<v Speaker 1>quite the same again. It suffered a very serious blow, yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>and it would be taken again, finally falling to the

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<v Speaker 1>Turks in fourteen fifty three. So this crusade that begins

0:13:19.480 --> 0:13:23.000
<v Speaker 1>to save the Holy Land ends with Islam winning the

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<v Speaker 1>day in the East. Ironically, despite the complete and total

0:13:27.679 --> 0:13:31.960
<v Speaker 1>failure of this crusade, no one seemed to learn from it,

0:13:32.040 --> 0:13:35.240
<v Speaker 1>because these missions to save the Holy Land went on

0:13:35.840 --> 0:13:38.640
<v Speaker 1>for centuries, and it reminded me a lot of when

0:13:38.640 --> 0:13:42.160
<v Speaker 1>we were talking about the Reformation, and specifically the wars

0:13:42.200 --> 0:13:45.200
<v Speaker 1>between the Catholics and the Huguenots, which seemed to be

0:13:45.400 --> 0:13:49.200
<v Speaker 1>never ending. But compared to this, it's barely a drop

0:13:49.240 --> 0:13:51.359
<v Speaker 1>in the bucket. I mean, these go on for centuries.

0:13:51.440 --> 0:13:55.679
<v Speaker 1>It's ridiculous. And of course, while we're not still sailing

0:13:55.720 --> 0:13:59.719
<v Speaker 1>with ships with our red crosses on our chests, religious

0:13:59.720 --> 0:14:03.920
<v Speaker 1>war are still going on today. Speaking of France and

0:14:03.960 --> 0:14:07.280
<v Speaker 1>its religious wars, that brings us to our listener mail.

0:14:10.160 --> 0:14:13.720
<v Speaker 1>Of course, the ultimate result of those religious wars is

0:14:13.720 --> 0:14:16.840
<v Speaker 1>the rise of the Bourbon family, and our email today

0:14:16.920 --> 0:14:20.840
<v Speaker 1>is from Sam Sunnite, who requests a podcast on the

0:14:21.000 --> 0:14:25.160
<v Speaker 1>fabulous life of Madame du Pompadoor. But he also includes

0:14:25.240 --> 0:14:27.720
<v Speaker 1>a little tidbit on our podcast on who would have

0:14:27.720 --> 0:14:31.160
<v Speaker 1>been the Nazi King and Wallace Simpson and the radication crisis.

0:14:31.760 --> 0:14:33.920
<v Speaker 1>He says, I was remembering a picture of the Duke

0:14:34.000 --> 0:14:37.200
<v Speaker 1>and Duchess with my grandmother. She was a journalist for

0:14:37.240 --> 0:14:39.960
<v Speaker 1>the Boston Globe, but later had to leave because she

0:14:40.080 --> 0:14:43.040
<v Speaker 1>met my grandfather there and relationships were not allowed in

0:14:43.080 --> 0:14:47.400
<v Speaker 1>the workplace. Sorry, madman fans that didn't work out with

0:14:47.440 --> 0:14:50.840
<v Speaker 1>the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. My grandparents met the socialites,

0:14:50.960 --> 0:14:54.880
<v Speaker 1>movie stars, sports players and entertainers of the day, from

0:14:55.000 --> 0:14:59.000
<v Speaker 1>Katherine Hepburn to Judy Garland and JFK to Georgia O'Keefe,

0:14:59.200 --> 0:15:01.760
<v Speaker 1>who my grandfather. I said, it was horribly stuck up

0:15:01.800 --> 0:15:05.560
<v Speaker 1>and terrible more. We're not advocating at this point of view.

0:15:05.640 --> 0:15:08.560
<v Speaker 1>We're just reading a letter. He also said, I was

0:15:08.600 --> 0:15:11.160
<v Speaker 1>going to write you magnificent ladies a letter, but I

0:15:11.160 --> 0:15:14.160
<v Speaker 1>couldn't find the address. I'm sorry to say. I had

0:15:14.200 --> 0:15:16.720
<v Speaker 1>written it in calligraphy, and I embellished it with the

0:15:16.760 --> 0:15:20.320
<v Speaker 1>baroque doodles of my creation. And that brings us to

0:15:20.440 --> 0:15:23.960
<v Speaker 1>a little thing. We keep being asked what is the address,

0:15:24.040 --> 0:15:26.280
<v Speaker 1>but we think of it as a bit of a

0:15:26.360 --> 0:15:30.160
<v Speaker 1>scavenger hunt. We're hoping that you will search the website

0:15:30.200 --> 0:15:32.520
<v Speaker 1>how Stuff Works dot com and you will find it

0:15:32.960 --> 0:15:36.600
<v Speaker 1>and be persistent, and it will reach us. If you're

0:15:36.600 --> 0:15:39.920
<v Speaker 1>not inclined to your own Baroque doodles. An easier way

0:15:39.920 --> 0:15:42.480
<v Speaker 1>to reach us is at our Twitter which is at

0:15:42.560 --> 0:15:45.960
<v Speaker 1>Missed in History, or on our Facebook vandpage, or you

0:15:46.000 --> 0:15:49.160
<v Speaker 1>can email us at History Podcast at how stuff works

0:15:49.280 --> 0:15:51.800
<v Speaker 1>dot com and again, if you want to try and

0:15:51.920 --> 0:15:55.600
<v Speaker 1>find us, go to our homepage at www dot how

0:15:55.680 --> 0:15:59.800
<v Speaker 1>stuff works dot com. For more on this and thousands

0:15:59.840 --> 0:16:02.640
<v Speaker 1>of other topics, visit how stuff works dot com and

0:16:02.680 --> 0:16:04.320
<v Speaker 1>be sure to check out this stuff you Missed in

0:16:04.400 --> 0:16:06.720
<v Speaker 1>History class blog on the how stuff works dot com

0:16:06.800 --> 0:16:21.040
<v Speaker 1>pun page