COD 2 andy, and Stephen of Chartres, his brother-inRobert, count of Flanders, and Hugh, count of andois, brother of Philip I. of France. The aid e nations of the West had been invoked by the Emr Alexius, but when it came, his fears were roused, he only consented to furnish the means of transport oss the narrow channel of Constantinople after the ders had done homage to him, and promised to hold y conquests they might make as fiefs of his empire. This point settled, the host advanced; its numbers canot be accurately ascertained, but it is stated by a co-emporary who was present (Fulcher of Chartres) at 500,000 men able to bear arms, beside a multitude of priests and monks, and women and children. Nice, the scene of the destruction of the first body of pilgrims, was besieged and taken before the end of June; its sultan was defeated at Dorylæum, in Phrygia, on the 4th of July; and traversing Asia Minor, Godfrey and his companions in October found themselves before Antioch, the capital of Syria, which they immediately besieged, but did not capture until June, 1098. Here they remained, the prey of famine and discord, until May, 1099, when they again set forth, and passing along the seashore, overawing by their numbers, but not pausing to make conquests, at length, on the 7th of June, came in sight of the object of all their toils, the holy city, Jerusalem. The city had changed hands while the crusade had been in progress, and was now held by Aladdin, the lieutenant of the Caliph of Egypt, who resolutely defended it for more than a month, but at length it was Jerusalem was committed. These new comers treated both the native Christians and the pilgrims with every indignity and cruelty, and the narrative, spread through Europe by Peter the Hermit, one of the sufferers, sufficed to determine its warlike princes and people to unite in a great and worthy effort for the rescue of the Holy Land from the hands of the infidels. It was at a council held at Clermont in November, 1095, under the presidency of Pope Urban II., that this step was determined on, and the following August was appointed for the departure of the expedition; the time was anticipated by the impatience of a vast body of peasants, who, placing themselves under the guidance of Peter the Hermit and his lieutenant, Walter the Pennyless, advanced as early as March from the borders of the Rhine, but after suffering innumerable hardships they were cut off at their very entrance into Asia by the Sultan of Nice; Walter fell among them, but Peter found shelter at Constantinople. About the appointed time, the main army of the crusaders started, and passing, some through Germany, Hungary, and the Greek dominions, others through Italy and then by sea, they rendezvoused at Constantinople in May, 1097. Their chief leaders were Godfrey of Bouillon, the duke of Lorraine, accompanied by his brothers Eustace and Baldwink; Raymond, count of Toulouse, and Adhemar, bishop of Puy, the papal legate; the Norman princes Bohemond of Tarentum and his nephew Tancred; Robert, son of William of They were the sons of Eustace of Boulogne, already mentioned. See pp. 140, 185. Normandy, and Stephen of Chartres, his brother-inlaw; Robert, count of Flanders, and Hugh, count of Vermandois, brother of Philip I. of France. The aid of the nations of the West had been invoked by the Emperor Alexius, but when it came, his fears were roused, and he only consented to furnish the means of transport across the narrow channel of Constantinople after the leaders had done homage to him, and promised to hold any conquests they might make as fiefs of his empire. This point settled, the host advanced; its numbers cannot be accurately ascertained, but it is stated by a cotemporary who was present (Fulcher of Chartres) at 600,000 men able to bear arms, beside a multitude of priests and monks, and women and children. Nice, the scene of the destruction of the first body of pilgrims, was besieged and taken before the end of June; its sultan was defeated at Dorylæum, in Phrygia, on the 4th of July; and traversing Asia Minor, Godfrey and his companions in October found themselves before Antioch, the capital of Syria, which they immediately besieged, but did not capture until June, 1098. Here they remained, the prey of famine and discord, until May, 1099, when they again set forth, and passing along the seashore, overawing by their numbers, but not pausing to make conquests, at length, on the 7th of June, came in sight of the object of all their toils, the holy city, Jerusalem. The city had changed hands while the crusade had been in progress, and was now held by Aladdin, the lieutenant of the Caliph of Egypt, who resolutely defended it for more than a month, but at length it was stormed on the 15th of July; and on the 23rd of the same month Godfrey of Bouillon was chosen ruler of the new kingdom; he, however, piously refused to wear a crown of gold where his Lord had worn a crown of thorns, and contented himself with the modest title of Baron of the Holy Sepulchre. His reign was brief, but, though surrounded by powerful states, his immediate successors enlarged their borders, and before fifty years had elapsed the whole country between Egypt and Mount Taurus, extending inland nearly to Damascus, was in the hands of the Christians, and was divided into the kingdom of Jerusalem, the principality of Antioch, and the county of Tripoli; with for some time the district of Edessa, beyond the Euphrates; this last was soon lost again, but Antioch and Tripoli remained much longer in the hands of the Christians than Jerusalem itself. Arms of the kingdom of Jerusalem. A.D. 1096. William, count of Eu, charged with conspiracy, is overcome in single combat, and is blinded and mutilated; the earl of Champagne and other nobles, on the same charge, are deprived of her lands. Robert sets out on the crusade, having mortgaged Normandy to William. William visits Normandy. Several fruitless expeditions into Wales by the neigh bouring Norman lords. They, however, re-occupy Anglesey. The see of Waterford is founded by the Ostmen in Ireland, and Malchus, an Irishman, but educated in England, is consecrated thereto by Anselm, archbishop of Canterbury, to whom he promises canonical obedience. Anselm also consecrates Wilfrid to the see of St. David's. A.D. 1097. William makes a campaign in Wales, from Midsummer to August, without effect. The Norman lords build castles on the border. William builds a wall around the Tower, a bridge over the Thames, and a great hall at Westminster; “and men were grievously oppressed . . . and perished thereby." Anselm retires to Rome in October. ... many A.D. 1098. Edgar Atheling, with English aid, establishes his nephew Edgar on the throne in Scotland. Magnus III. of Norway conquers the Orkneys, the Hebrides, and the Isle of Man, and ravages Angleseyj At Anglesey he was encountered by Hugh Montgomery, earl of Shrewsbury, and Hugh de Abrincis, earl of Chester, who had re-captured the island. The death of the former, as recorded in the Heimskringla, affords an instance of clever marksmanship, which it is to be presumed could not often be paralleled: 66 King Magnus shot with the bow; but Hugo the Brave was all over in armour, so that nothing was bare about him excepting one eye. King Magnus let fly an arrow at him, as also did a man who was beside the king. They both struck him at once. The one shaft hit the nose-screen of the helmet, which was bent by it on one side, and the other arrow hit the earl's eye, and went through his head, and that was found to be the king's. Earl Hugo fell, and the English fled, with the loss of many people." The story is also told by Giraldus Cambrensis. Magnus is said by William of Malmesbury to have been accompanied on the expedition by Harold, a son of King Harold. The Normans withdrew, having conferred the government on Owen ap Edwin, who is said to have been the son of the widow of Edmund Ironside. |