The Council of Clermont and the First Crusade (1095)

The Council of Clermont and the First Crusade (1095)

• In November 1095, Pope Urban II called a council at Clermont in southern France.
  • Officially, the council was meant to deal with church reforms (rules and discipline inside the Church).
  • However, this council is remembered mainly because of one event: the sermon given by Pope Urban II that started the First Crusade.
• Pope Urban II was responding to requests from the Byzantine Emperor Alexius I.
  • Alexius I asked for help because his empire was under attack by the Seljuk Turks (a Muslim Turkish power).
  • In his speech, Urban II told the French nobles to stop fighting each other in feudal wars .
  • He encouraged them instead to use their fighting skills to help Eastern Christians and to “liberate” the Holy Land (Jerusalem and surrounding areas).
• The Pope promised something very important to those who joined the Crusade.
  • He promised remission of temporal penalties for sin (forgiveness of Church punishments that normally remained even after confession).
  • This full forgiveness was called a plenary indulgence (complete removal of these penalties).
  • This promise was only for those who joined out of devotion (religious sincerity, not for money or power).
• The crowd reacted very loudly and emotionally.
  • They shouted “Deus vult,” which means “God wills it.”
  • This phrase became the main battle cry of the Crusades.

This event is extremely important in Church history.
• Its importance comes mainly from the fact that it changed how the Church understood war from a theological point of view (how war was explained using religious teaching).

• Before this event, killing in battle was usually seen as a sin.
  • Even when a war was allowed, soldiers often had to do penance afterward (acts like fasting or prayer to make up for sin).
  • Pope Urban II changed this understanding by calling the Crusade a “Holy War.”
  • He taught that fighting itself could be a spiritual act.
  • He presented the Crusade as a penitential act (an act that removes sin).
  • In this way, war itself became a means of salvation .
• The Council of Clermont also increased the power and influence of the papacy .
  • It showed that the Pope could ignore kings and directly call the people of Europe to action.
  • He was able to gather huge armies under one religious goal.
• Pope Urban II also hoped that the Crusade would heal the division between the Eastern and Western Churches (the Great Schism).
  • However, the opposite happened.
  • The Crusades made the division deeper and created long-lasting hostility between Christianity and Islam.

How did the First Crusade change the theology of war?

1. From “Just War” to “Holy War”

• Before 1095, the main Christian teaching about war came from Augustine.
  • This teaching was called the “just war” theory.
  • According to this view, war could sometimes be necessary to stop evil.
  • However, even a just war was still morally troubling and sad.
• Even in a just war, killing was often treated as sinful.
  • Soldiers were expected to do penance afterward.
  • For example, after the Battle of Hastings in 1066, the Norman soldiers were required to do penance for the people they killed.
• The First Crusade introduced a new idea: “Holy War.”
  • This war was not ordered by a king, but by the Church and the Pope.
  • The goal was not only justice, but the “honour of God.”
  • It was also meant to recover Christ’s patrimony (lands believed to belong to Christ).
• The idea of Holy War was clearly expressed in the phrase “Deus vult” (“God wills it”).
  • This phrase showed the belief that the violence was commanded by God Himself.

2. Warfare as Penance and a Means of Salvation

• The most radical change was how fighting itself was redefined.
  • Fighting was now seen as a spiritual act and a form of penance.

Remission of Sins:
• Pope Urban II promised a plenary indulgence.
• This meant that all remaining punishments for sin were removed.
• Fighting in the Crusade replaced other forms of penance like fasting or prayer.
• The act of war itself was believed to wash away sins.

• Salvation through Slaughter (a shocking idea meaning salvation through killing in war):
  • Preachers taught that knights could gain eternal life by fighting.
  • Abbot Guibert of Nogent explained that knights no longer needed to become monks to save their souls.
  • They could receive God’s grace while remaining soldiers, wearing armour instead of monastic robes.

3. The Armed Pilgrimage

• The Crusade combined two roles: warrior and pilgrim.

Taking the Cross:
• The journey was described as a pilgrimage to the Holy Sepulchre (the tomb of Christ).
• Crusaders “took the cross,” meaning they sewed a cross onto their clothes.
• This symbol showed they were following Christ’s command to carry their cross.

Devotional Violence:
• A new form of spirituality developed.
• Violence against the “infidel” (non-Christians, especially Muslims) was seen as an act of love.
• This love was directed toward God and toward Eastern Christians who needed protection.

4. The Creation of Military Orders

• This new theology led to the creation of military orders.
  • Examples include the Knights Templar and the Hospitallers.
• These groups created the idea of the “monk-warrior.”
  • Members took monastic vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.
  • At the same time, they were trained to fight and kill.
  • They believed they were fighting both a spiritual war against the devil and a physical war against Muslims.

5. Contrast with Eastern Theology

• This theology of Holy War developed mainly in the Western Church.
  • The Eastern Orthodox Church did not accept this view.
• The Eastern Church continued to see war as a necessary evil.
  • Soldiers killed in battle were not called martyrs.
  • The East kept a moral distinction that the Western Church removed.

What was the Byzantine Emperor’s role in starting the Crusades?

1. The Request for Military Aid

• The Byzantine Empire was in serious danger after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071.
  • In this battle, the Seljuk Turks defeated the Byzantine army.
  • After this defeat, the Turks took control of most of Asia Minor.
  • Asia Minor was the main source of money and soldiers for the Empire.
• Emperor Alexius I feared the collapse of his empire.
  • He sent a request for help to Pope Urban II.
  • This request was made at the Council of Piacenza in 1095.

2. Expectations vs. Reality

• Alexius wanted limited help.
  • He expected trained Western mercenaries (paid professional soldiers).
  • His goal was to recover lost Byzantine land in Asia Minor.

He did not ask for a religious Crusade.
• He did not ask for the liberation of Jerusalem.

• Pope Urban II used this request differently.
  • He turned it into a call for a massive Holy War.
  • His goal became the liberation of the Holy Sepulchre.

3. Managing the Crusaders

• When the Crusaders arrived in Constantinople (1096–1097), Alexius was alarmed.
  • Instead of small professional armies, huge crowds arrived.
  • These armies included knights and peasants.
  • They were poorly disciplined and extremely large.
  • Alexius saw them as a danger to his capital city.
• To control the situation, Alexius took several steps:

Oaths of Allegiance:
• Crusader leaders were forced to swear loyalty to the Emperor.
• They promised to return any former Byzantine land they captured.

Rapid Transport:
• Alexius supplied the armies with food.
• He quickly transported them across the Bosporus into Asia Minor.
• This removed them from Constantinople and pushed them toward fighting the Turks.

4. Outcome for the Emperor

• At first, the arrangement helped Alexius.
  • With Crusader help, he recovered Nicaea.
  • He also regained western Asia Minor.
• Later, relations broke down.
  • Crusader leaders such as Bohemond kept cities like Antioch.
  • These lands were not returned to the Emperor as promised.

Endnotes

1. 2,000 Years of Christ’s Power Vol. 2, pp. 32-33
2.  (A History of Christianity, p. 410
3.  Church History A Captivating Guide,
4. 2,000 Years of Christ’s Power Vol. 2, p. 33
5.  30 Events That Shaped the Church, p. 109
6. The Popular Encyclopaedia of Church History, p. 109
7. 2,000 Years of Christ’s Power Vol. 2, pp. 30, 34-35
8. Church History, Volume One, p. 399.
9. 2,000 Years of Christ’s Power Vol. 2, p. 41
10.  Church History in Plain Language, p. 185
11.  A History of Christianity, p. 488.
12. 2,000 Years of Christ’s Power Vol. 2, pp. 41-43
13.  A History of Christianity, p. 412
14.  Church History, Volume One, p. 401.