And that's your brain on action movies! :)
Not every conflict necessitates one side to be the "good guys".
First of all - the "Crusades" were not only wars agains Islam. The Catholic church undertook a number of crusades against Christian and even catholic nations and communities. Pretty much anyone one pope or another didn't fancy was eligeable to have a crusade called against them. And by the way, legally, they still are. :P
As for the portion of Crusades which were directed against Islamic nations and caliphates, they were not about ideology or religion, but about geopolitical interests - as are all wars. Do not make the mistake of thinking that crusaders did not wreak the same havoc in the Middle East that the Turks did on their way to Vienna.
For reference, you may want to read up on the 1204 crusader sacking of Constantinople - a Christian city! They didn't care. They were just passing by on their way to "liberate" the holy lands. But that was just a pretext. They were there to murder, pillage and get rich, Christian or Muslim made no difference.
What the valiant crusaders left of Constantinople never did recover. You could safely say that they are the reason it was eventually conquered by the Ottomans and remains Istanbul to this very day.
There were no "good guys" in the crusades, except the civilian casualties.
reply
share