Famous Men of the Middle Ages · Ch. XIX · Unit 7: The Crusades
26. Peter the Hermit and the First Crusade
Goal: Your child can tell why the Crusades began, what Peter the Hermit did, and how Jerusalem was taken in 1099, and can say that the Crusades are remembered very differently by Christians and Muslims.
You'll need
- The book, open to this chapter
- A map or globe showing Europe, the Middle East and Asia (a free online map works)
- Paper and colored pencils
- Your timeline strip (see the tips at the top)
What's in the book
Chapter XIX (about 1050-1115): pilgrims are badly treated after the Turks take Jerusalem. At the Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II calls for a war to rescue the holy places, and the crowd cries "God wills it!" Peter the Hermit rides through Italy, France and Germany on a donkey, preaching. His disorderly crowd plunders Hungary and is destroyed by the Turks. Godfrey of Bouillon's army takes Antioch, then Jerusalem on July 15, 1099. Godfrey will not be called king. Peter returns to France and founds a monastery.
The lesson, step by step
Set the scene
Find Jerusalem, then Constantinople, then Antioch (in Turkey today, near Syria). Trace the long road from France across Hungary to Constantinople and down to Jerusalem.
SayJerusalem is a holy city for Jews, Christians and Muslims. That is one reason so many people have fought over it.
Read the chapter
Read Chapter XIX aloud. It begins:
During the Middle Ages the Christians of Europe used to go to the Holy Land for the purpose of visiting the tomb of Christ and other sacred places.
Tell it back
Prompts:
- Why did Christians in Europe become angry about Jerusalem?
- How did Peter the Hermit dress and travel?
- What happened to Peter's followers?
- Why would Godfrey not wear a crown in Jerusalem?
A word from history
Read this:
Thus began the first of seven wars known as the "Crusades" or "Wars of the Cross," waged to rescue the Holy Land from the Mohammedans.
SayCrusade comes from a word for cross. Each Crusader wore a cross on his shoulder.
The other side of the story
SayThe book tells the Crusades from the Crusaders' side. To the Muslims who lived there, the Crusaders were invaders from far away. The book does not say that when the Crusaders took Jerusalem they killed a great many of the people living there, Muslims and Jews. People still remember the Crusades very differently today.
Talk it over
Read Godfrey's words:
I cannot wear a crown of gold where Christ wore one of thorns
Ask: The Crusaders believed they were doing God's will. Out of half a million who set out, the book says fewer than fifty thousand were left. What do you think it cost the families back home?
Remember it
Add to the timeline: "1096 First Crusade" and "1099 Crusaders take Jerusalem."
Afterwards
Ask your child to tell the story of Peter the Hermit in their own words.
Tip
If your child asks who was right, it is fine to say that both sides believed they were defending something holy, and that the fighting caused great suffering on both sides.
Answers to the book's problems
After the Turks took Jerusalem, pilgrims were badly treated, and it seemed unsafe to visit the holy places. Peter went bareheaded and barefoot in a coarse robe tied with a rope, riding a donkey. They had no supplies, plundered Hungary and were attacked; the rest were badly beaten by the Turks and only a few escaped. He would not wear a crown of gold where Christ wore a crown of thorns.
Worked out for this site from the scan. If a number in your copy differs, trust the book.