Venice & the Crusades (1090-1125)

in the early summer of 11:23 disaster struck the newly established Crusader states of the Holy Land the new king of Jerusalem Baldwin II currently acting as protector to the northern counties of Antioch and adessa too after both of their defeats in battle was himself defeated and held prisoner by the feared aruk kid Prince balak with the loss of the king increasingly daring bands of Turks began to push over the frontier to seize plunder and slaves threatening to plung the entire region into turmoil to make matters even worse along the coastline the fat amid Egyptians no particular allies to the Turks but a deadly adversary nonetheless to the Crusaders still controlled the highly sort after seaways along the 11 Shore over the preceding decades a long and bitter War of Attrition had been fought by the Lords of Tripoli and Jerusalem in order to bring the Egyptian held coastal cities of the Levant under their control though in truth little Headway had been made since the early days cities such as AA Jaffa and Tripoli already long having fallen under the sway of Jerusalem yet large and Powerful Maritime cities such as ascalon and Tha ever resupplied from the sea still remained in the hands of the Fatam mits and the Turks both offering Fierce resistance towards any attempts at capturing them and proving a constant thorn in the side of the Crusaders fleets operating out of both of these cities and from the ports of Alexandria and damietta in Egypt dominated the seaways in those days disrupting shipping and threatening to cut off the Crusaders from Europe altogether in May 11:23 a large Egyptian Fleet seized the opportunity of Baldwin's capture to besiege the coastal city of Jaffa after an inconclusive engagement the Egyptian Fleet ultimately pulled out towards the South likely to resupply of ascalon knowing that the Crusaders lacked any sort of Naval power to speak of and the byzantines being preoccupied with events to the north in the interior of Asia Minor the fids could rest easy for the time being with the ascendancy of the Arid prince balak in the East and the capture of Baldwin II Jerusalem looked set to fall the Egyptians could take their time in reclaiming their cities and pay their Sailors by praying on any Merchant V vessels full hearty enough to try their luck along the coast during that turbulent time after a few days of patrols a lookout on one of the outlying vessels of the fleet spotted exactly what they'd been looking for a group of trading vessels hugging the deeper waters out on the horizon seeking to slip by unseen upon hearing the good news the admiral of the fleet gave the order to give ch place ever since the Norman conquest of Sicily the Egyptians had suffered a serious deficit of Timber small trading fleets such as these came in handy they could always use the ships and of course there was the potential plunder and slaves to be found on board almost immediately the large Egyptian war gys gave Chase plying out into the deeper waters in search of an easy Victory before any of the Fatam mid rowers realized it however large billowing sails began to be spotted emerging out of the Horizon on all sides around them it was a trap the trading vessels were in fact just the outliers of a much larger Fleet sailing just out of sight below the Horizon to the horror of the Fatam made Sailors they were surrounded no sooner had the Egyptian ships engaged in Pursuit did they find themselves outnumbered and surrounded on all sides by skilled Christian Mariners the 12th century historian William of Ty recounts what happened next a fierce battle commenced both sides fought with great bitterness and there were so many killed that those who were there most emphatically assure you as unlikely as it may sound that the victors wed in the enemy's blood and the surrounding sea was dyed red from the blood that flowed down from the ships up to a radius of 2,000 steps but the shores they say were so thickly covered with the corpses that were ejected from the sea that the air was tainted and the surrounding region contracted a plague eventually amidst the gruesome Malle embroiling the opposing fleets the lead ship of the newcomers spotted the displayed banners of the fmid Admiral making a be line towards his vessel they smashed headlong into it piercing its sides and sending the unfortunate Commander to the bottom of the ocean if the Contemporary sources are to be believed not one Egyptian ship escaped the battle with nine being captured the rest sunk along with some 4,000 Sailors ultimately it was the newcomers not the fmds who would profit from Shipping in the area going on to capture 10 trading vessels over the next days with the lack of Timber in Northern Africa following the Norman conquest of Sicily the fmid fleet was effectively done for decimating Egyptian sea power for decades to come and effectively sealing the fates of Ty and ascalon for good as the burning h of the Fatam midw alley Still Smoked upon the Horizon the screams of drowning Mariners permeating through the air Doge Domino Mikel gazed out from his Flagship towards the friendly Port of AA he could smell an opportunity when he saw one and this would be massive to the great Fortune of the Franks of the Levant the venetians had arrived [Music] upon the initial calling of the First Crusade back in the late 1090s the city state of Venice a rising power on the world scene had initially hung back matching the Norman Prince Roger of Sicily in remaining neutral refusing to pledge his undying loyalty to the campaign like the other foremost Italian Maritime cities Genoa and Pisa whereas they had leapt at the chance of furthering their own spheres of influence and in engaging in the Crusader Zeal Venice recognized that war was bad for [Music] business the venetians wanted to keep their existing trade routes open having already been trading with Egypt and the Islamic powers of the Levant since the beginning of the century it was there on on the crystal clear waters of the Mediterranean that the riches of the Silk Roads flowed in from India and the Far East trickling in from far away on the backs of camels before being loaded up alongside Timber from northern Europe metal from Anatolia and ivory from the South but Venice already had access to the area the fatimids of Egypt being good trading partners and even the warlike selic Turks increasingly realizing the potential benefits of keeping the port cities of the Levant open to trade the Venetian Doge at the time Vitali Mikel ever the businessman preferred to wait after the first crusade was called in order to judge for himself the scale of the Enterprise and its prospects for Success before committing the services of his Republic for him the primary goal of Venice was to retain the city's advantage over the other Italian city states most notably the rising powers of Genoa and Pisa both Maritime Powers with Fierce Mercantile Ambitions of their own on the face of it purely from a geographical perspective Venice was at the obvious Advantage the city on the Lagoon lay on a far closer and easier route to both Constantinople and The Holy Land she already had firm links in the Levant and Egypt and in 1092 notably gained extensive trade rights all over the Byzantine Empire granted by the emperor Alexius commus in an attempt to revitalize the ailing Byzantine economy decimated by Decades of Civil War and hemorrhaging territory to the selic Turks not only were Venetian Merchants to be made made exempt from taxes on both imports and exports but they were also granted an entire district and Anchorage in the imperial capital Genoa and Pisa meanwhile engaged themselves in an intensive rivalry spending much of their time and energy in fighting over control of Corsica and other commercial interests in the Western Mediterranean rather than being filled with joy like much of the rest of Europe at the calling of the First Crusade many venetians were instead filled with apprehension all of their carefully laid plans were now threatened with destruction Not only was war bad for business but it also threatened to give an opportunity for expansion to the other Maritime cities should the Endeavor succeed as early as 1097 a genoan fleet left port to Ferry much needed supplies to the Crusaders during the siege of Antioch and the peasons weren't far behind them arriving in the area shortly afterwards to disrupt the Venetian strangle hold on the [Music] region upon the capture of Jerusalem in 1099 and the successful conclusion of the First Crusade the venetians begrudgingly accepted which way the wind was blowing and accordingly dispatched a fleet of some 200 ships under the dois son Vitali Giovani one by one they filed out of the grand Lagoon into the Adriatic calling in at their Dalmatian trading towns to pick up more soldiers and more Sailors along the way before finally rounding the pelones and pulling into the Byzantine island of roads for the winter the Byzantine emperor Alexius commus himself ever the shrewd businessmen had long enjoyed a mutual agreement with the venetians first calling on their Maritime support against the Normans of southern Italy in the 1080s and later offering them full tax exempt trade rights throughout the Empire now faced with the very same Normans having seized the former provincial capital of Antioch for their own rather than returning it to him he attempted to utilize the venetians for his own ends whilst the fleet lay anchored off the coast of Roads Alexius seems to have sent word to the Doge asking him to pull out of the region entirely or come to his Aid rather than support the Crusaders always emphasizing their treacherous actions while stressing his own long-standing agreement with Venice perhaps most offensive to Venice weren't the actions of the Crusaders but those of their own commercial Rivals ever a threat to their Supremacy over the eastwest trade routes of the Mediterranean a peason fleet lay in blockade of the Byzantine city of laka an important sea port to the provincial capital of Antioch having recently acquired Antioch for himself the Norman warlord band of Toronto was currently besieging the city from its landward side The bantine Defenders of the city were eventually able to push the peasant back the fleet pulling out mostly intact to retreat back home unfortunately for them a battle ready and fully refreshed fleet was waiting for them out in the waters of the Mediterranean weary from months of battle coming into anchor just off of roads they fell right into the clutches of the Venetian trap for the first time in history Venetian and pean fleets engaged in a fierce battle at Sea the venetians had watched the rise of the upstart young power and wished to clip their wings just to make sure they were very much the Lesser partner in the Italian dealings in the Levant and if at all possible to force them to relinquish any kind of potential activity in the area a brutal fight ensued with Mariners leaping from ship to ship to overwhelm enemy Crews just as much as Mana Wars crashed into each other bulkheads and masts hideously crunching in a battle for Mastery over the Waves by day's end it was the venetians who had made their point seeing 20 peason ships and around 4,000 Sailors captured they were released soon afterwards to limp back to Italy though not before they were forced to relinquish all of their plunder and to vow never to return again to the Eastern Mediterranean of course this assurance was soon forgotten both the peans and Jans soon obtaining trade rights in the newly forged kingdom of Jerusalem the battle of the rodian shore simply amounted to the first in a long series of confrontations between the Italian Maritime Powers over the coming centuries though Venice remained very much the Apex power for the time being she would be forced to return to the Holy Land again and again over the coming decades in order to retain her position 6 months after the fleet had first set out Venice had still landed no major blows against the Muslim powers of the Middle East nor even had any of its Sailors set foot or made port in the Holy Land as always Venice had put its own interests first delaying on roads for several weeks whilst her Sailors plundered valuable Christian relics to bring back to St Marx to help the burgeoning pilgrim trade yet another lucrative Venture for the city surely the byzantines wouldn't miss a few relics especially considering the support that the venetians had given them though this act can perhaps be seen as the first in a long line of questionable actions against the byzantines eventually culminating in the total sack of Constantinople in 1204 and the permanent shattering of Eastern Roman power that came as a result [Music] Sal finally in the summer of 1100 the Venetian Fleet put into port at the recently conquered city of Jaffa the desperate situation of the Crusaders is illustrated by the quite ludicrous trade rights and concessions that the venetians managed to secure for [Music] themselves it would be fair to say that if the Jans and the peans had it good the venetians were offered a ridiculous prize in recognition for their assistance in the Levant Vitali Giovani asked for a church and a market in every Christian town a third of every town they might capture in the future and finally in return for an annual tribute the entire city of Tripoli though these concessions never in fact materialized due to the main Cru s a commander Godfrey of bu's death making the deal null and void shortly afterwards nevertheless the power of Venice is still evident Godfrey's death and the ensuing political crisis in the newly forged kingdom of Jerusalem delayed the proposed attack on AA and a compromise was made in attacking Hyer a predominantly Jewish settlement understandably unwilling to sub MIT due to the recent Massacre of Jerusalem's entire Jewish population nonetheless the venetians besieged the city their Siege weapons ultimately proving too much for the Defenders to handle zealous Crusaders rushed through the city's Gates and as feared in a repeat of scenes that took place from the Ry to the Jordan they launched into a vicious prgram against the Jewish inhabitants of the city City massacring thousands so it was that August weighed down with plunder and holy relics satisfied that their commercial interests were secure the Venetian Fleet set sail for home they wouldn't return to the Holy Land for another decade again motivated primarily not by Crusader Zeal but by the necessity of overcoming their competition the other Maritime powers of Pisa and Genoa who in the meantime had both set up commercial activities not only in the Holy Land but also in the Byzantine Empire there were less advantageous rights in both there was also a very real military foe to contend with much closer to home in the form of the kingdom of Hungary under its king colan a fellow Catholic state but one with competing Ambitions along the Adriatic in the intervening years a number of floods had decimated the city on the Lagoon leveling churches and seeing entire districts sink into the waters for a time a new Doge had also been elected order lafo feri an energetic leader who recognized that something would have to to give a new expedition to bring much needed money into the city would do nicely by 1110 the new Doge order lafo opted to lead the Expedition personally sitting aboard the flagship of aund strong Fleet of vessels as usual the Venetian timing was impeccable at the same time time as the venetians approached the new ruler of Jerusalem King Baldwin I was besieging the city of sidon along with an army of axe-wielding marauders led by king sigard of Norway another set of newcomers and a throwback to the age of the Vikings Le in by prophit as much as by religious conviction yet The Siege was dragging on for longer than anticipated and it was only thanks to Venetian support that the city finally surrendered in December rather than being granted part of sedon the Doge seems to have Bartered for control of an entire District of acre the main Port City of Jerusalem where spices and silks flowed in from the East ivory from the south and metals from the North Baldwin agreed the Doge even gained the right to use Venetian measures and weights where wherever they operated and to maintain their own magistrate for legal issues though Genoa and Pisa had been similarly favored Venice had at least ensured a profitable arrangement for the future on the return Journey they again plundered more Christian relics from Byzantine as well as Turkish held lands along the coasts of Asia Minor in order to help with the burgeon commercial activity of the pilgrimage Trail in the Years following oao's expedition to the holyland even though some 300 ships had already been deployed to the east it was realized that bigger and better fleets would be required to maintain their position against their commercial Rivals never able to differentiate between Commerce and defense the ship rights of Venice engaged in an epic build building project assembling a truly colossal Fleet by 1119 this new Fleet would be in dire need Again by the Crusader [Music] Kingdoms in that year the entire antio Army had been annihilated at the field of blood though the situation was restored to a tentative balance by the actions of the new king of Jerusalem Baldwin II a resurgence of Egyptian sea power now threatened the long-term survival of the Kingdom as well as the ever powerful turkic powers of Syria urgent calls for Aid arrived at the Lagoon almost immediately though as usual they also arrived at the Rival powers of janoah and Pisa though they were tied up in fighting over Corsica again due to good timing it was venice's time to shine along with a new Expedition came a new Doge Domino Mikel his Flagship sailed out once more in August 1122 with 71 Mighty Mana Wars and many smaller vessels though at first its sails were not directed to the Egyptians but to fellow Christians they went to the Byzantine island of Corfu to seize relics and to teach the byzantines a [Music] lesson the death of Alexius comnenus four years earlier had led his son John to the throne accompanied by a stark shift in policy against the rising power of Venice whereas Alexus favored Venice John hadn't lived through the dark days of the 1070s and 1080s and he decided to revoke the trade rights of the young upstarts in response Venice simply mercilessly raided the Byzantine Islands easy pickings in the wake of Alexius comes' death in [Music] 1118 using the opportunity to teach their partner a [Music] lesson eventually JN backed down and restated the ludicrous tax exemptions granted when the Empire stood on the very verge of Oblivion though the relationship between the two Powers became increasingly strained ultimately however reports trickling in of a new disaster in the Holy Land took the attentions of the fleet Baldwin II the king of Jerusalem as well as Joseline of Corton count of adessa had been taken prisoner by the Arid warlord balak leaving the region divided and with no effective leadership reluctantly though sensing a potential profit when he saw one the Doge gave the order to set sail for the Levant they took their time however leisurely sacking the aan islands of chios Lesbos roads and Cyprus along the way in order to milk the bines for all they had before finally dropping anchor at akre in 1123 and decimating the Egyptian Fleet operating along the coast in the aftermath of the def feat of the Egyptian Fleet the Doge returned in Triumph to AA he was about to do some hard bargaining negotiations dragged on for months with the Christians desperate to capture Ty the main trading Emporium of the 11 Shore still in Muslim hands and ascalon the main fmid military base but the venetians only willing to commit to the operation in return for huge sums of money and Commercial con concessions finally in the first weeks of 1124 an agreement was made with even better terms than had been extorted in 1100 in every single Christian town and city of the Kingdom they were to be granted a church a bakery and bathouses together with exemption from all tolls and custom charges their right to use their own weights and measures was confirmed and finally they were offered a whole third of the cities of T and ascalon upon their capture should they take part in addition to their already existing District in the city of AA finally the Venetian Fleet sailed North to Ty whilst the Crusader Army marched Overland tire was an ancient sea port built upon an exceptional natural Harbor added to by success essive Generations down through the Millennia the city had once been home to a Phoenician population it was expertly made and deemed to be near invulnerable to attack from both sea and land on the 15th of February 11:24 the venetians led by the Doge and the Franks led by PMS count of Tripoli and William deori the still imprisoned King's conable began the siege at the time T was part of the territory of tkin the atabeg of Damascus and it possessed a capable Garrison and determined population already weathering several sieges over the proceeding two decades first off the Crusaders built large Siege towers and machines that could hurl immense pieces of rock over large distances to shatter the walls The Defenders of TI also built engines of their own hurling Boulders back at the approaching Siege towers as the conflict dragged on just like had happened when Alexander the Great besieged the city close to 1500 years before the citizens began to run short of food and sent urgent calls for Aid to make matters worse for the Defenders word arrived from the East that balak likely the foremost leader amongst the tur work of the region at the time died whilst besieging the city of hieropolis Baldwin still toiled in captivity though the removal of balak came as a great relief to the baguer residents of the Crusader [Music] states to getkin Meanwhile cautiously Advanced towards Ty from Damascus upon hearing of the death of balak however and faced with the forces of count pon of Tripoli and Constable William riding out to confront him he turned around and fled without fighting in June 1124 recognizing his now potentially volatile situation tokin sent envoys to negotiate peace after a series of lengthy and difficult negotiations it was agreed that the terms of the surrender would include letting those who wanted to leave the city be able to do so taking their family and property with them whilst those who wanted to stay would keep their houses and possessions this was an unpopular move with some of the Crusaders ever eager to plunder the city after a fierce Siege but the terms were adhered to nonetheless times had changed in the 25 years since Europeans arrived in the region and bloodthirsty massacres were no longer longer than Norm diplomacy being increasingly seen as a much better long-term survival strategy for the Crusader States after Holding Out for more than two decades Tyre finally surrendered on the 29th of June 1124 though Baldwin remained in captivity throughout all of these events following the death of balak and the subsequent breakup of arid power he was released in return for a ransom upon his arrival back in the Kingdom he found much of the crisis to have passed somehow against all the odds he'd not only held on to his kingdom but now had a new city to add to it one of the primary trading ports on the Mediterranean in return for their service in capturing the city Baldwin maintained his part in the deal broker during his his captivity by granting the venetians extensive commercial privileges a stake in the city and guarantees of property rights for The Heirs of venetians who were Shipwrecked or who had died in Tire thus ensuring that Venice would maintain a naval presence in the Latin East on the return Voyage the main venician Fleet again passed through the aian sea again they pillaged Greek Islands forcing the byzantines to abandon their dispute and reconfirm the original commercial privileges granted to Venice venice's overseas Colonial Enterprise had well and truly begun it was an Empire that would continue to thrive well into the 18th century until it was finally extinguished by [Music] Napoleon

Channel: History Time

Views: 211,127

Keywords: iMovie, venice, crusades, venice and the crusades, first crusade, crusade, crussader, crusaders, crusader, seljuk turks, seljuk turk, field of blood, fatimid egypt

Id: QiVcjvnlJBs

Length: 32min 56sec (1976 seconds)

Published: Tue Oct 30 2018