History glossary
First Crusade
the 1096-1099 crusading expedition that captured Jerusalem and created Latin Christian states in the Levant.
- Category
- Crusade
- Region
- Western Europe, Byzantium, and the Levant
- Date range
- 1096-1099
What it means
The First Crusade was the 1096-1099 expedition launched after Pope Urban II's call at Clermont. It moved through Byzantium and the eastern Mediterranean, captured Jerusalem in 1099, and created Latin Christian states in the Levant. Its success gave crusading lasting prestige, but its violence, including massacres in Europe and Jerusalem, also shaped the movement's legacy.
